De Blasio, DEP Partner To Flood Jamaica Bay With Oysters
Mayor Bill de Blasio and the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), in partnership with the Billion Oyster Project, yesterday announced that a project is underway that will see the installation of 50,000 oysters in Jamaica Bay – the largest single installation of breeding oysters in New York City.
Jamaica Bay is a 31-square-mile water body with a broader watershed of approximately 142 square miles, which includes portions of Brooklyn, Queens, and Nassau County. In Brooklyn, the Bay includes Plumb Beach, Bergen Beach, Floyd Bennett Field, the Canarsie waterfront & Pier, and the East New York Waterfront off the Belt Parkway.
The Bay is a diverse ecological resource that supports multiple habitats, including open water, salt marshes, grasslands, coastal woodlands, maritime shrublands, and brackish and freshwater wetlands. These habitats support 91 fish species, 325 species of birds, and many reptile, amphibian, and small mammal species.
“This oyster bed will serve multiple purposes – protecting our wetlands from erosion, naturally filtering our water and providing a home for our sea dwellers are just a few. More broadly, this oyster bed is a small but necessary step in our broader OneNYC commitment to create a more sustainable and more resilient City. I’d like to thank the Billion Oyster Project and the students of the Urban Assembly New York Harbor School for assisting us in the installation of this oyster bed,” said de Blasio.
The project is being funded with a $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Interior, which is administered by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF). DEP is contributing $375,000.
Schumer, Gillibrand Get Fed Money For Gerritsen Beach Fire Volunteers
U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand yesterday announced $503,145 in federal funding for the Gerritsen Beach Fire Volunteers.
The funding was awarded through the Department of Homeland Security’s Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) Program. Specifically, these funds will be used to purchase new radios that will help the volunteer firefighters better communicate with New York City.
The department, affectionately known as the Vollies, is the only remaining volunteer fire department left in Brooklyn, and after Superstorm Sandy became the place for neighbors to gather, get information from government agencies, and find food, clothes and warmth when the neighborhood was devastated by the flood waters.
“This funding ensures that our local heroes in Gerritsen Beach will have the proper resources they need to protect our communities,” said Schumer. “I’m committed to fighting for the resources our firefighters need to serve this community as safely and effectively as possible.”
“These federal funds will allow our fire departments to purchase the up-to-date equipment they need to do their jobs effectively and stay safe while they are protecting our communities,” said Gillibrand. “We need to do everything we can to protect the men and women who risk their lives every day in the face of danger, and I will always fight in the Senate to make sure that our fire departments are funded and equipped.”
Williams Statement On J’Ouvert Violence
City Council Member Jumaane D. Williams (Flatbush, East Flatbush, Midwood), yesterday released the following statement after 17-year-old Tyreke Borel and 22-year-old Tiarah Poyau were killed early Monday morning during J’Ouvert.
“The primary thing we should be doing now is supporting those families who are in mourning, and dealing intimately with the impacts of violence. After that there will be sufficient time to fully discuss what actions should be taken as it relates to next year’s season, and J’Ouvert in particular.
“We should also continue a very real discussion about gun violence as a whole. The type of violence that takes place during J’Ouvert should be inclusive of the epidemic that plagues our communities year round. An honest discussion is owed to those who are dealing with this chronic type of violence.”
Lander Hails New Park Slope Movie Theater
City Council Member Brad Lander (Park Slope, Windsor Terrace, Kensington) yesterday hailed the announcement that the Pavilion movie theater, 188 Prospect Park West – the neighborhood’s lone remaining movie house — is to be transformed into a Nitehawk theater, set to open early fall 2017.
Plans to add condominiums to the site, made before the Nitehawk entered negotiations with the building’s owners, have been scrapped.
The Nitehawk, a dine-in boutique cinema chain, opened in Williamsburg in 2011. The new multiplex will be rechristened Nitehawk Prospect Park, and include seven screens, 650 total seats, a double kitchen, two bar areas, a restored atrium overlooking the park, and in-theater dining.
“This is a victory for community activism and partnership. When we heard about plans to eliminate the theater, we spoke up loud and clear. Together with neighbors, we pushed to save the theater, and make sure any renovation/development respected the historic character of the neighborhood,” said Lander.
Cornegy Says Still Time To Sign Up For Pre-K
City Council Member Robert Cornegy Jr. (Bedford-Stuyvesant, Northern Crown Heights), yesterday reminded parents with a child born in 2012, that they still have two days to enroll in a free, full-day, high-quality pre-K program.
“There are many high-quality options in our community that still have seats available: visit the pre-K finder at https://maps.nyc.gov/upk/ to learn more,” said Cornegy. “Our community has a dedicated pre-K enrollment specialist that can help you identify the program that would be the best fit for your child and can support you in enrolling to ensure that your child secures a pre-K seat for the first day of school on September 8th.
You can connect with your Enrollment Specialist, Melissa Severe, at 347-585-3202 or by emailing msevere@schools.nyc.gov You can also reach out to Josiris Urena, Partnerships Manager for the Pre-K For All Outreach Team, at 212-637-8015, or by emailing jurena4@schools.nyc.gov.
Adams, Espinal Highlight Ovarian Cancer Awareness
Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams and City Council Member Rafael Espinal Jr. (Bushwick, East New York), who lost his mother to ovarian cancer, will show their support to Tell Every Amazing Lady About Ovarian Cancer (T.E.A.L.) and all of those affected by ovarian cancer by announcing that Brooklyn Borough Hall will be lit up in the color teal from Yesterday, Sept. 6 through Friday, Sept. 9.
This will be the fourth year Brooklyn Borough Hall will be illuminated in teal to spread awareness of the disease — the fifth leading cause of cancer-related deaths among women, and the deadliest of all gynecologic cancers — as part of Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.
Adams and Espinal will make this announcement at 11 a.m., today at Brooklyn Borough Hall, 209 Joralemon Street in Downtown Brooklyn. The announcement is in advance of the eighth Annual T.E.A.L Walk/Run this Saturday, September 10.
