by Olivia Young<\/p>\n
In an effort to foster discussion between residents and their elected officials, The Press connected with neighbors over social media, asking for questions they want direct answers to. Common questions \u2014 regarding accessibility, parking, development and more \u2014 were then posed to Council member Eric Dinowitz, the representative best positioned to introduce legislation or influence policy on the concerns raised. <\/p>\n
Resident questions were edited for clarity and style. Responses were also edited for style.<\/p>\n
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Q: I\u2019ve seen several places in the area where pedestrian infrastructure seems incomplete, or where a sidewalk should exist but doesn\u2019t \u2014 such as on the walk to the Spuyten Duyvil Metro North Station. Are there any plans to address these gaps in pedestrian access?<\/p>\n
A: \u201cPedestrians should have access to public transit, and that includes the Spuyten Duyvil Metro North Station; however, sections of that walk are privately owned, which makes improving the infrastructure complicated. Our office has been working diligently on infrastructure concerns in this area, including addressing sinkholes and other impediments to pedestrian safety. We have brought these concerns directly to the New York City Department of Transportation.\u201d <\/p>\n
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Q: Are the ADA improvements to the Van Cortlandt Park-242nd Street station on schedule for completion by the end of the year as previously announced? What steps are being taken to ensure key deadlines are met? <\/p>\n
A: \u201cAs a former special education teacher and community activist who successfully secured ADA compliance at the Mosholu Parkway station, I consider accessibility a top priority, and I am pleased to have advocated for this much-needed improvement as well. According to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the project is on schedule for completion.\u201d <\/p>\n
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Q: The \u201cNo Standing\u201d signs on Arlington Avenue between West 252nd Street and West 254th Street took away much-needed parking spots. Why do parking spots seem to keep getting eliminated in Riverdale? <\/p>\n
A: \u201cWhether it\u2019s a street redesign, the installation of CitiBike docks, or the construction of new housing, the city seems obsessed with removing parking spots everywhere they can, even when viable alternatives exist. These problems will only get worse if the charter amendments pass, which would remove required community input for transportation infrastructure projects. There has to be a balance: when a legitimate safety issue requires action, the city should address it, but it should also make every effort to preserve parking and pursue alternatives that minimize the impact on the community. Removing parking should not be the default solution, particularly when other options are available.\u201d <\/p>\n
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Q: What\u2019s the plan to bring more housing \u2014 affordable or otherwise \u2014 to the northwest Bronx, in order to meet the existing demand and bring costs down for everyone?<\/p>\n
A: \u201cHousing development \u2014 affordable and otherwise \u2014 is vital for the northwest Bronx. I support responsible development that prioritizes affordability and quality of life by utilizing smart, community-centered planning. The current and previous mayoral administrations have both supported policies that remove the tools local council members use to ensure affordability and quality-of-life elements are included in larger developments that require rezonings.<\/p>\n
Developers and city agencies must also be held accountable. Across the city, shoddily built, quickly constructed buildings are put up rapidly, in service of having more housing, even when it comes at the expense of residents\u2019 safety and dignity. We cannot sacrifice quality for quantity, and I will always support development that honors our community.\u201d <\/p>\n
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Q: Why do incidents of car theft and car window destruction seem to keep happening across the neighborhood?<\/p>\n
A: \u201cThis has been an ongoing issue, and it\u2019s definitely something that is felt across the neighborhood. I have raised this issue numerous times with the New York City Police Department over the last few months. We are increasing police patrols, specifically around Van Cortlandt Park. If there is a particular area of concern, please contact my office and the NYPD. I also met with the Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark\u00a0 to learn more about how the city is handling the rise in catalytic converter theft. I co-sponsored legislation in the council, including the use of etching, that has had positive impacts and theft is trending dramatically downward.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\tKeywords<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\tEric Dinowitz,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t Riverdale,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t northwest Bronx,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t Riverdale Press,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t parking Riverdale,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t Riverdale housing,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t affordable housing Bronx,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t Spuyten Duyvil Metro-North,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t Van Cortlandt Park-242nd Street station,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t ADA accessibility,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t pedestrian safety,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t Citi Bike,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t Bronx development,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t car theft Bronx,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t catalytic converter theft,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t NYPD,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t MTA\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"by Olivia Young In an effort to foster discussion between residents and their elected officials, The Press connected…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":326708,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[25796,14656,128,11135,122960,122961,26675,57906,141,9,24,107212,63,103,122957,10484,1778,117535,122956,122958,129,131,130,122959],"class_list":["post-326707","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-the-bronx","tag-ada-accessibility","tag-affordable-housing-bronx","tag-bronx","tag-bronx-development","tag-car-theft-bronx","tag-catalytic-converter-theft","tag-citi-bike","tag-eric-dinowitz","tag-mta","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-northwest-bronx","tag-nyc","tag-nypd","tag-parking-riverdale","tag-pedestrian-safety","tag-riverdale","tag-riverdale-housing","tag-riverdale-press","tag-spuyten-duyvil-metro-north","tag-the-bronx","tag-the-bronx-headlines","tag-the-bronx-news","tag-van-cortlandt-park-242nd-street-station"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/326707","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=326707"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/326707\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/326708"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=326707"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=326707"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=326707"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}