ATTENTION: CM James Joins Parks Dep. & FG Park Conservancy In Hosting Fort Greene Park Design Session

Council Member Letitia James joins the NYC Parks Department, Fort Greene Park Conservancy, and Brooklyn Community Board 2 in hosting--

a Community Listening Session to discuss the Conceptual Design for Fort Greene Park

WHEN: Wednesday, February 29, 2012
6PM-8PM

WHERE: Lafayette Avenue Presbyterian Church
85 South Oxford Street
Brooklyn, NY, 11217

Please contact the Office of Council Member James at (718) 260-9191 for more information.

ATTENTION: Mulchfest 2012

MulchFest 2012 will take place on January 7th and 8th, from 10am to 2pm.

MulchFest provides New Yorkers an opportunity to bring their holiday trees to designated Citywide sites where they are ground into wood chips. The chips can be placed in tree pits and gardens. The NYC Department of Parks & Recreation encourages New Yorkers to participate in this event.

The 35th District MulchFest location is Fort Greene Park. Enter Park at the intersection of Washington Park and Willoughby Avenue.

Participants are encouraged to bring bags to take advantage of the free mulch provided. Trees must be bare of ornaments.

NYC Parks Department Offers Grant To Non-Profits Using Green Infrastructure

The NYC Department of Parks and Recreation recently announced that up to $4M will be available for private property owners, businesses, and not-for-profit organizations that use green infrastructure to reduce or manage stormwater on private property and public sidewalks in combined sewer areas of New York City—such as building green roofs, rain gardens, rainwater harvesting, right-of-way bioswales, and similar methods.

The NYC Department of Environmental Protection is strongly encouraging applicants to apply online at: www.nyc.gov/dep/grantprogram, and will be hosting grant workshops for those that are interested in applying.

Brooklyn Workshop
Brooklyn- December 6, 2011, 6:00pm-8:00pm
Brooklyn Brooklyn Borough Hall Courtroom– 2nd Floor
209 Joralemon Street
Brooklyn, NY 11201

Please contact the Office of Council Member Letitia James for more information at (212) 788-7081.

ATTENTION: Citizen's Cmte 2012 Love Your Block Application Available

Citizens Committee is now accepting applications for their Love Your Block grant program. Love Your Block is a special partnership between Citizens Committee and the City of New York that provides a unique opportunity for city residents to transform and beautify their neighborhoods.

Love Your Block offers resident-led volunteer groups a cash grant of $500-$1,000, as well as community-building assistance, to transform a city block. The City of New York matches the grant by providing services from the Departments of Parks and Recreation, Transportation, and Sanitation to help improve the block; such as trash collection, vacant lot cleanup, graffiti removal, dead tree removal, tree planting, providing woodchip mulch for gardening projects, repair of and installation of street signs and street lights, and traffic safety surveys.

Please note the following key dates:

· September 20, 2011 - Grant Application Workshop (Manhattan)

· November 8, 2011 – Grant Deadline

· Early-December 2011 – Grantees Announced

· Mid-December 2011 – Program Orientation

· April - June 2012 – Project Implementation

The application may be found here: http://www.scribd.com/doc/65081320/LYB-2012-Application

For more information, you can visit http://www.citizensnyc.org/grants.html. If you have any questions about the Love Your Block grant, do not hesitate to contact the Citizens Committee for NYC at (212) 989-0909.

UPDATE: Afro-Punk Festival Cancelled (Hurricane Irene)

According to the NYT- Local, the Afro-Punk festival scheduled to take place at Commodore Barry Park on August 27-28 2011, has been cancelled. [NYT- Local]

Afro-Punk Festival- 8/27-28; Commodore Barry Park

The Afro-punk Festival is returning to Brooklyn's Commodore Barry Park for its 7th edition on August 27-28 2011. This year has the most stellar line up yet with Cee Lo Green, Santigold, Janelle Monae, Fishbone, Toro Y Moi, Toshi Reagon and BIGLovely, Ninjasonik, Cerebral Ballzy, Gordon Voidwell, Reggie Watts, Res, Joi, Rocky Business, Straight Line Stitch.



Just added: Gym Class Heroes, Das Racist, Kenna, Tamar-kali, Bad Raddbits, Joe Jordans Experiment, Jersey Klan, Radkey, and DJ's Stack-Aly, Jillionaire, Dances with White Girls, D://BOi, dj.shErOck, toni*K!



In addition, the Nike Battle For the Streets Skate and BMX Competition, the largest street skate and BMX competition in NYC will return with the nation's top amateur skaters and BMX riders in a competition to be judged by top professionals in both sports including Nigel Sylvester and P-Rod.



* ADMISSION IS FREE *

There are some very exciting new additions to the festival this year! Over 20 of the NYC area's hottest food trucks and vendors have been brought together for the Afro-Punk Bites and Beats Food Truck Festival which will bring cuisine from around the world and the 5 boroughs to the event.



Please visit http://www.afropunk.com/page/afropunk-festival-11 for additional information.

ATTENTION: Smoking Ban in NYC Parks Goes Into Effect

Yesterday, the City law banning smoking within New York City’s parks, beaches, and pedestrian plazas goes into effect. Please be aware that smoking is now prohibited on Parks Department property.

Smoking will still be allowed on sidewalks outside parks, including the sidewalks that form the perimeter of parks, and in the parking lots of all Parks Department properties. The department expects that the new law will be enforced mostly by New Yorkers themselves, who will ask people to follow the law and stop smoking. However, those who violate the new law could receive a $50 ticket.

If you have any further questions, you are encouraged to contact the Parks Department at (212) 360-3484.

CM James Extends Congratulations To Emily Lloyd On Accepting Prospect Park Alliance Position

Council Member Letitia James is pleased to extend her congratulations Emily Lloyd who has accepted the positions of President of Prospect Park Alliance and Administrator of Prospect Park.

Ms. Lloyd has previously worked as Commissioner of the New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Commissioner of the Department of Sanitation, and the Executive Vice President at Columbia University.

Ms. Lloyd's years of public service make her an oustanding choice for this position, following the departure of much-loved Tupper Thomas.

NYC Parks Department Recruiting Volunteers To Assist Storm Clean-Up

On Thursday, September 16, 2010, New York City was hit by a major storm that caused unprecedented damage to parts of Staten Island, Brooklyn and Queens. Many of our neighborhood parks, playgrounds, and residential areas were ravaged by falling trees and debris. The NYC Parks Department is working hard to clean these areas from the storm’s aftermath, but they need help.

The New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, in cooperation with NYC Service, is looking to recruit volunteers this weekend to help clean up following the storm. Please let us know if you are available to join us either this Saturday, October 2, or this Sunday, October 3. If you are willing to volunteer or if you have any questions, please call Larry Scott Blackmon (212) 360-3421 or emailCommunity.Outreach@parks.nyc.gov. You can also call NYC Service at (212) 788-7550, or email them at nycservice@cityhall.nyc.gov.

ATTENTION: Community Notice Regarding Storm

September 17, 2010

Community Notice Regarding Recent Storm
An update regarding last night's severe weather storm, and the specific issue of fallen trees, structural damage, and power outages throughout a number of Brooklyn neighborhoods--

Con Edison, DSNY, FDNY, MTA, NYPD, OEM, and the Parks Department are working to restore power outages and remove downed trees and debris throughout the city. To assist with coordination, OEM deployed Citywide Incident Coordinators (CICs) to certain locations in Brooklyn.

Affected residents should call 311 to report any damage to their homes or businesses sustained from last night's storm. In order to qualify for disaster relief assistance, New York City must estimate the storm's total effect on city residents and employees. Residents should be prepared to answer questions about the extent of their property damage. Residents, if possible, should take photographs any damage prior to debris removal or repair. OEM will continue to monitor the damage from last night’s storm; the agency has opened the City’s Emergency Operations Center. OEM responders are located in the hardest hit areas and there is a command post set up to coordinate field activities. OEM is also working with the National Weather Service and the State Emergency Management Office to assess the damage. The Weather Service will survey the damage to confirm whether a tornado occurred.

Council Member James would like to stress the importance or reporting the building damage and downed trees. This information will be collected and used to determine eligibility for FEMA disaster declarations.

Lastly, Council Member James asks that residents continue to take the following steps wherever necessary:

-Report health and safety emergencies to 911.
-Report structural and tree damage to 311 (including trees blocking streets and roadways).
-Report power outages to Con Edison at 1-800-75-ConEd.
-If you have been displaced due to the storm, contact the American Red Cross in Greater New York at (877) 733-2767.

Additionally, Alternate Side Parking regulations are suspended Citywide on Friday, September 17. And, as always, constituents may reach out to the Office of Council Member Letitia James at (718) 260-9191 to assist them in any matter related to the storm.

[Photograph by Benjamin Pasteur]