the Runaway DOT citibike expansion is right now highest on my list. secondly- support for small businesses and small commercial landlords- including a tax abatement for landlords who keep mom and pop stores( yep- like mine) under market rent in order to preserve the character of the neighborhood Number 3: placard abuse — madeline lanciani on What do you care about?

One more to add to NYPD, they should be more responsive to other quality of life issues i.e. late night 311 calls regarding party noises from roof tops and other outdoor spaces which have been rampant since Covid. 311 response had been consistently non existent. — R. on What do you care about?

trash, street cleaning, rats safety on streets green space expansion getting storefronts that have been empty since before the pandemic filled get rid of "cobblestones" or get them done properly. They are treacherous to walk on and drive on because those who dig them up and put them back in after water and electrical work don't know how to install them. They are really dangerous. Better noise control When the pandemic is behind us (???) outdoor dining should have curfews but leaving indoor dining closings as they were pre pandemic. — Martine on What do you care about?

This is off subject, but does anyone know what the near constant helicopter buzz overhead is about? I thought during the BLM protests that they were a response to the protests -- news etc. But they persist most days and nights. — Martine on Seen & Heard: Indoor dining in time for Valentine’s Day

Sorry if not clear: it's a playground and a building. The playground is intended to be a companion piece to the estuarium, which has an education component as its primary mission. The play piece is intended to enhance that. Pier 26 has a restaurant and that, by state regulations, was put out as a competitive bid won by City Vineyard. There are two other grab-and-go cafes: one at the minigolf building and one at the entrance to the skateboard park. — Tribeca Citizen on Nosy Neighbor: When will that last section of HRP open up?

Agree with Paul above: there are many important issues but trash and street cleanliness should be at the top of the list - especially in FiDi, where overbuilding has led to literal mountains of trash bags on sidewalks waiting for pickup ( and the new buildings aren’t even occupied yet). Why not create jobs by adding more street cleaners? ( individuals, not the big machines that just kick up dust) — Philip on What do you care about?

Thanks! I had been wondering this myself. I am not clear though: will it be a building or a playground? A playground would be so unfortunate imo, with one already a few feet away. If it is though, hopefully it will not be what you are showing here. In such a key location, a proper café with a generous terrasse, would be welcome. I do not believe there is such a thing in Tribeca yet (?). And the existing two restaurants on each pier do not cater to 30 mn coffee breaks, quick soup/sandwiches. A cafe could be added to the southern end of the Estuarium perhaps. Great name btw. A Vinoly-designed pavilion would make for a great terminus to N. Moore. — Isabelle on Nosy Neighbor: When will that last section of HRP open up?

Weep for what we've lost - entire neighborhoods that stood for a century or more. Then weep for what we're continuing to destroy today. When do we stop vandalizing our own home? — Will Meyerhofer on Seen & Heard: The destruction of Lower Manhattan

Agreed! This is Tribeca Citizen at its finest. Thanks for braving the cold to bring us this story! — Scott on Catching Up With: Joan Pantzer

Please clean up Canal street. It is not safe. — Ben on What do you care about?

Great list and suggestions. I would add: -preservation/ creation of affordable housing -support for seniors — Amy Goldstein on What do you care about?

This 2014 article from the NYTimes details new, quieter jackhammer designs. They save workers, residents and passersby's hearing. The city did not act on this at the time - why not now? https://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/18/nyregion/electric-jackhammers-and-revised-noise-rules-may-help-quiet-new-york-city.html — Heide Fasnacht on What do you care about?

Thanks for doing this. Great suggestions above. This one is very narrow and would apply city wide. If you pay close attention, you will notice that one of the single loudest noises in the noise pollution orchestra, is the clanging of the massive steel construction trash containers riding on the back of the flat beds that carry them to and from construction sites. A simple regulation would force the industry to come up with some kind of rubber bumper or other bumper to prevent steel on steel banging. I promise you now that I mention this, this will be like that song you cannot get out of your head. This could be fixed quite easily but there are no incentives yet to resolve. The city could require a fix. Thank you. — Paul Mutter on What do you care about?

Same buildings 1915-1919: https://digitalcollections.nyhistory.org/islandora/object/nyhs%3A89325 https://digitalcollections.nyhistory.org/islandora/object/nyhs%3A90797 — James on Catching Up With: Joan Pantzer

I absolutely love this story. What great history! — JVZ on Catching Up With: Joan Pantzer

Given that I’m a musician who lives two blocks away from Reade Street Pub, I certainly can’t agree with this situation. Especially since the bands stop at about 9:30pm or so. Before regular bedtime hours. Also, since I’m an opera singer who performs without a microphone, but plays accompaniment tracks through two Bose speakers. Does that still put me in the ‘amplified’ category and prevent me from performing legally on the street? — Charles Coleman on The streets will now be even quieter…

This is a smart approach to assessing taxes, in part based upon the fact that space is at a premium. Taxes on those gargantuan double-wide baby strollers should be added to the list. — Tribeca Bill on What do you care about?

Neighborhood schools / school choice One of the reasons Tribeca has exploded as an area for young parents since the 1980s is the access to ‘good schools.’ But this has magnified the de facto segregation of the city. School choice for middle and high school presents parents and kids with means (and time) more opportunities. The richest have the option of private schools but the upper-middle-class people have been shown to disproportionately benefit from the public system because they can pay tutors, spare the time to gather information and go through laborious applications, and ‘work the refs’ to get plum slots. New York’s segregation of schools has possibly kept white and Asian parents from fleeing the city but at the cost of an educational caste system between the haves and the have nots. What should be done? Pay all teachers more to attract the best to the profession. Lengthen the school year for all. Preserving historic districts We should expand them, not just preserve them. New York zoning is a mess and needs a master plan to build more housing. This shouldn’t mean 100 story apartment blocks up and down the Village and Tribeca. Preserving small business Reduce red tape to start businesses and hire people. Make it easier to start new retail stores and restaurants in vacant ground floor spaces by eliminating taxes for the first two years. Our streets need life again! Enhancing and/or creating public open spaces New York needs more parks and open space. A ‘complete streets’ plan (a la Paris) should see more bike lanes and trees rather than space devoted to private cars. Safety / neighborhood policing The city is very safe. Much of the money spent on the police force should be moved to social services and other interventions. Speed cameras (and speed bumps) could keep many people from dying on the streets every year. Homeless population – housing Homelessness is a regional and national problem. There should be a guaranteed national income to help every citizen afford a home and feed themselves. In New York, housing should be a right and no one should be allowed to sleep on the streets. City services should make sure there is a safe bed for everyone. Mental health centers should be funded to help those with special needs. Restaurant support / sidewalk cafes / open streets A ‘complete streets’ plan would allow more space for outdoor dining, pedestrians, and bikes. Congestion pricing We need it. It should help pay for more transit and bike lanes. Bike policy We need one. Almost everyone benefits from doubling the number of bike lanes and building complete streets. Real estate taxes The city is generally over-taxed. We should tax the things we want LESS of, i.e., carbon-based transport and heating systems, for example. Sanitation issues (garbage on streets, compost, pickups) As part of the complete streets plan, the city should build dedicated units for garbage disposal. Removal should be done via a new fleet of smaller all-electric garbage trucks. Street furniture like old phone booths (ad venue) and ‘free’ newspaper storage containers should be heavily taxed. Transportation issues (bus and subway) More streets should be like 14th Street in Manhattan with dedicated bus lanes. Labor rules (and corruption) should be reduced to make building new miles of the subway at least as affordable as peer cities. Parking (placard and residential) Street parking should be taxed with higher fees across the board. No one should be immune including placard holders. Construction regulations Affordable housing should be legalized by making construction more affordable (changing rules favored by unions) and eliminating rules like parking minimums. Vacant lots on the city-owned property should be considered for housing. — troy on What do you care about?

Thanks for asking. Before listing specific concerns, first I'd like to know which candidates recognize that: 1. Tribeca is as much a part of Council District 1 as other neighborhoods in the district. 2. Tribeca should have the same access to and advocacy by our council person as other neighborhoods in the district. 3. Tribeca exists even in non-election years and should be more than a campaign contribution cash cow to those running to represent it. — MC on What do you care about?

How about simple stuff - getting the streets swept and garbage picked up so the trash isn't over flowing and piled up on the corner. Also, bring back the Downtown Alliance (?). The group that gave jobs to folks to sweep the curbs, sidewalks. — paul on What do you care about?

I'd like to second the above questions/concerns: - pedestrian safety (especially on the West Side Highway) - expanding green space and possibly making street closures permanent on less busy side streets (make Duane St pedestrian only! Wouldn't that be amazing?) Additionally: How would the Councilperson address ugly and unsafe retail wastelands without resorting to character-destroying chains? Vacancy tax? Incentives? Thanks! — Kathleen on What do you care about?

I have no clue how much a single councilperson can actually accomplish, but my biggest concern in general is pedestrian livability: - More speeding cameras operating 24/7, especially on the WSH, Canal, and Church Street - Enforcing penalties for blocking the box, particularly on Canal, Hudson, WSH, and Holland Tunnel entrance/exit routes, so that people can cross the street without being stuck in traffic - Longer delayed lights so people can cross WSH into HRP without cars actively turning into the crosswalk - Thoughts on reducing noise pollution (honking, modified mufflers, helicopters, etc.)? - Thoughts on creating/expanding pedestrian-only spaces (Duane Park being a prime example of a place that should be one) - Thoughts on creating/expanding green spaces, planting more trees, etc.? - Thoughts on improving street design for pedestrians and cyclists? Basically, what would they do to make the streets safer and nicer for pedestrians and cyclists? Another big topic is the proposed Soho/Noho rezoning. — person on What do you care about?

Great idea! Having worked with the City Council over the years, I’m realistic about how little a Councilperson is able to do about many of the issues we care about. So let me pick A few were they might be able to make an impact, rather than presenting a list of the issues that concern me. 1) Regulation, and ideally some kind of licensing, of ebikes, both on the streets and on the Hudson River Bikeway. While I appreciate the desire to protect the people who use them, the Bikeway was never envisioned as a highway for people making a bike deliveries. And what enforcement and other steps can be taken to keep eBikes off the sidewalks, and obeying traffic regulations? They are not only a danger to pedestrians, but also to those who ride standard bicycles. There’s nothing wrong with ebikes per se, but they’re all too often used in dangerous ways. How we accomplish that without unleashing the racism of the NYPD is a real question. 2) Improving the architectural design of the planned jail, so it is vastly less overwhelming. Simply saying “we don’t want it here“ exemplifies NIMBYism,and ignores the reality of the need to close Rikers. But surely something much better can be designed. 3) Additional bike lanes and reconsideration, and, ideally, rerouting, of the bike path through City Hall Park. When the area by the chess tables is as busy as it was before the pandemic, having bicycles go through there makes no sense. And far too many riders coming off the bridge assume that they’re allowed to bike through the park too. Surely they can all be rerouted to Chambers Street. This is an extremely logical fit with the plant implementation of bike lanes on the Brooklyn Bridge roadway. 4) Increased accountability for the NYPD when provoke, beat up provoke and arrest protesters with whose politics they disagree. This is a much larger issue, but I’m tired of watching them provoke and come down on protesters who are obeying the law. I would also like to see an end to the NYPD‘s ability to arbitrarily close public amenities and streets for extended periods of time, as they did with City Hall Park and Chambers Street 5) Solving the problem of counterfeiting requires a global effort, but surely the police can clean up the blatant mess around Canal and Broadway. And keep it cleaned up. 6) SoHo was rapidly becoming a mix of honky-tonk tourism and luxury flag ship stores. In the same way that Amsterdam has taken this time to reimagine tourism, perhaps we can do the same to keep that from turning into an area unattractive to New Yorkers. I hope this helps. — A. on What do you care about?

R.I.P. Barry Goldsmith. IPN is a tributary to the decent human being I always strive to be. — Charles Coleman on Designer of Independence Plaza dies at 82

I’ve been a long time resident of IPN. Maybe the longest. One’s eyesore is another’s contented legacy. I suppose I should leave it at that. — Charles Coleman on Designer of Independence Plaza dies at 82