Seen & Heard: City vehicles in the crosswalks

CITY CARS BLOCKING THE CITY CROSSWALKS
K. wrote to say she had had it with the city cars parked in the Broadway crosswalks, and I am with her. Why is this city so dependent on cars for doing city business, especially Downtown? This shot was a DOB car on the left; it was the NYPD the day before. And next up: the crazy permanent double-parking situation in front of the FDNY station house on Duane and Broadway/Church.

MATH FESTIVAL THIS WEEKEND
The National Museum of Mathematics (MoMath) will present the sixth annual New York City Math Festival at 28 Liberty’s Fosun Plaza on Saturday, July 15, from 10a until 4p. There will be hands-on math exhibits and entertaining mathematical games, puzzles and brainteasers, a demonstration from a juggler and educator, and mathematical mimes.

GETTING TRASH OFF THE STREETS?
The Hudson Square BID and Sanitation have added eight Bigbelly compacting litter baskets to the district — and seeing the overflowing old-school trash cans on the corners all this week makes me think it’s time for the city to do the same around here. The only other option is to stop making so much garbage… They also installed a sealed, rodent-proof Clean Curbs container in a former parking space at Spring and Greenwich. That program allows commercial property owners to put sealed garbage containers on city property. Just regurgitating this here as a way to keep thinking about how to get some of the trash off our streets. It’s gotten so gross.

WIMBLEDON AT FOSUN PLAZA
K. caught a Wimbledon match on the big screen in the street-level plaza at Fosun Plaza, at 28 Liberty. “Not sure if this is a tie-in with Court 16 but looked like a fun place to watch the match.” Agreed. That’s an odd but cool space — I wonder who controls the clicker. Wimbledon’s on til July 16.

 

5 Comments

  1. Amen to calling out city employees (including those sworn to protect us) parking in a manner that endangers pedestrian safety.

    And double amen to TriBeCa investing in a more robust garbage collection infrastructure, including the lovely bins one finds in Fidi and now Hudson Square. Church St in particular has become a literal garbage dump.

  2. It is simple unacceptable to have city vehicles taking so much space, and breaking parking rules… add this to the FDNY, NYPD and the myriad of real and fake placards blocking the streets.. I still dont understand how City Hall is not acting to remediate this…
    and while we are at this, NYC should implement parking permits for residents, just as it happens in DC, Boston, etc..

    enough already.. last time I checked we are the ones living here and paying taxes, so if anyone got a right to use the street for cars is us, and always abiding by parking rules

  3. Speaking of blocking crosswalks, what happened to enforcing laws against “blocking the box” of intersections (which usually thus also involves blocking crosswalks)? It’s unbelievable how this is a constant occurence at some intersections (like around the tunnel and on many intersections of Canal Street), and nothing is done. Meanwhile it slows down traffic for everyone, and becomes an excuse for lots of illegal horn-honking and road rage. Pedestrians are left to zig-zag between the stopped or slowly moving cars, even though the pedestrians have the “Walk” signal.

    • The intersection at Laight and Hudson is a prime example of “blocking the box”. Traffic exiting the Holland Tunnel trying to cross Hudson onto Laight and northbound traffic on Hudson going into the tunnel constantly battle for right-of-way. If ever there was in intersection that needed full-time NYPD traffic officers, this is it.

  4. And what about parking on SIDEWALKS? I saw a placard on Franklin Street the other day on two private cars parked in front of the doorman building with “Please don’t ticket. Doormen at xx address.”

    SO WHAT?! Pay for parking and park on the street like the rest of us.

    Outrageous.

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