FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com MAY 5, 2016 • TIMES 19 M train can wait, x Metro Ave. bridge rst: Pol BY ANTHONY GIUDICE agiudice@ridgewoodtimes.com @A_GiudiceReport The traffi c nightmare of next year’s repairs to the M train could be even worse. As the MTA begins preparations for Phase 1 of the project that will close the entire line for two whole months, they may run into some problems with the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) emergency replacement of the severely damaged deck of the Metropolitan Avenue Bridge on the Ridgewood/Middle Village border. Earlier this month, Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley wrote a letter to MTA Chairman Thomas Prendergast, outlining her concern over the timing of the MTA’s project in conjunction with the DOT’s plan to fi x the Metropolitan Avenue Bridge. The fi rst phase of the MTA’s plan for the M train, which will demolish and replace a bridge over freight rail tracks between the Fresh Pond Road and Metropolitan Avenue stations, is scheduled to begin in the summer of 2017. This will effectively shut down M train service between Metropolitan Avenue and Myrtle Avenue-Broadway for approximately two months. In order to keep commuters moving during the repairs, the MTA plans to run free shuttle buses, making stops at each of the affected stations: Metropolitan Avenue, Fresh Pond Road, Forest Avenue, Seneca Avenue, Myrtle-Wyckoff Avenues, Knickerbocker Avenue, Central Avenue and Myrtle Avenue-Broadway. This is where problems may occur. The DOT is scheduled to begin their emergency project on the Metropolitan Avenue Bridge in the coming weeks, with an expected end date by the fall of 2017, well into the start of the M train repairs. This means shuttle buses would be running over the Metropolitan Avenue Bridge while construction is going on, potentially exacerbating what’s already expected to be a diffi cult commute for many. “The replacement of the bridge deck is estimated to take 16-18 months, ending in the fall of 2017 and possibly extending into the winter of 2018,” Crowley wrote about the DOT’s project. “As a result of this construction, Metropolitan Avenue will be limited to one lane of traffi c in each direction and such lane closures will create signifi cant traffi c congestion throughout Middle Village and Ridgewood.” Crowley has requested that the MTA delay the start of Phase 1, or at least begin with Phase 2 of their plan, until the Metropolitan Avenue Bridge deck is completely replaced and traffi c patterns return to normal. “So that becomes the big issue: is DOT going to be done by the time July 1, 2017, comes and the M train project would begin?” said Gary Giordano, district manager of Community Board 5. The MTA is confi dent that both projects will begin and end on time, creating minimal overlap. “We will work collaboratively with DOT in order to minimize the impact of both projects to area residents,” an MTA representative said. “However, keep in mind that our work is slated to start in the summer of 2017 while the DOT project is slated for completion in the summer of 2017 so there will not be much overlap between the two projects.” Inside the ambitious $250M plan to rebuild East New York BY ANTHONY GIUDICE agiudice@ridgewoodtimes.com @A_GiudiceReport While many neighborhoods in Queens and Brooklyn are facing problems associated with gentrifi cation, a plan’s in place to ke ep areas of Eastern Brooklyn affordable for everyone. Mayor Bill de Blasio announced last week an executive budget that included nearly a quarter of a billion dollars for the fi rst round of investments in the East New York Neighborhood Plan — a plan that will help rebuild the East New York communities by bringing in new resources and infrastructure, while still keeping the neighborhoods affordable — in conjunction with his Affordable Housing Plan. “The East New York Neighborhood Plan represents a new contract with our communities. For the very fi rst time, protecting tenants and building truly affordable housing have become the priorities they need to be in a rezoning,” de Blasio said in a statement. “The commitments we are making — from a new school, to renovated parks, to investments in good jobs — are real. We have dedicated the funding needed to make them happen.” Councilman Rafael Espinal wanted to ensure that his constituents were not going to be displaced due to the rezoning in de Blasio’s Affordable Housing Plan. “When the community heard there was going to be a rezoning they automatically connected the word ‘rezoning’ to ‘gentrifi cation,’” Espinal said. “I told the administration, if we are going to rezone the neighborhood, we are also going to have to invest in the community. And I wouldn’t have moved forward with the plan if I didn’t see a jobs plan to address the fact that the unemployment rate in East New York is in the double digits and we needed a local infrastructure plan.” In all, $239 million has been allocated in this year’s budget for this unprecedented plan to include 1,200 deeply affordable apartments to be built over the next two years, a new 1,000-seat elementary/middle school, a community center, park renovations, street repavings, economic development, new curbside bioswales and water main, sewer and distribution main replacement, among other investments. The School Construction Authority (SCA) will build a new 1,000-seat school in District 19 to help alleviate school overcrowding. The site is envisioned to be a portion of the Dinsmore-Chestnut Urban Renewal Site within the rezoning area. The school will include an at-grade playground, which will be open to the public during non-school hours. The SCA is committed to meet with community stakeholders and Espinal on the design of the school. The funding for this project is currently $98 million, with total allocation pending the design process. The city-owned building at 127 Pennsylvania Ave. will be converted into a multi-purpose NYPD community center with a variety of recreational, educational and supportive programs. Programming is expected to being by fall of 2017 with a price tag of $10 million. The East New York Industrial Business Zone (IBZ) will see improvements as well, totaling $16.7 million in upgrades and investments. “I feel like this the best plan that the city has ever committed to in the history of any rezoning or any affordable housing plan for a community,” Espinal said. “We’ve been waiting for a moment like this to come to the community. I was born and raised there, I’ve lived there my entire life. I remember always wanting to see more investment in the neighborhood, and I think we’ve fi nally got there.” Councilman Rafael Espinal RIDGEWOOD TIMES/Photo by Anthony Giudice Repairs to a bridge on Metropolitan Avenue in Middle Village could coincide with part of next year’s M train shutdown.
RT05052016
To see the actual publication please follow the link above