West Side Rag
  • TOP NEWS
  • OPEN/CLOSED
  • FOOD
  • SCHOOLS
  • OUTDOORS
  • REAL ESTATE
  • ART & CULTURE
  • POLITICS
  • COLUMNS
  • CRIME
  • HISTORY
  • ABSURDITY
  • ABOUT US
    • OUR STORY
    • CONTRIBUTORS
    • CONTACT
West Side Rag
No Result
View All Result
SUPPORT THE RAG

Search the site

No Result
View All Result
Get WSR FREE in your inbox
SUPPORT THE RAG

DOG RUN UPGRADES? AUTOMATED BUS STOP SIGNS? YOU CAN CHOOSE HOW TO SPEND MILLIONS ON THE UWS

March 27, 2017 | 9:15 AM - Updated on June 5, 2022 | 11:33 PM
in NEWS, POLITICS
46

cash

Locals get to decide this week if the 72nd Street Dog Run gets an upgrade, local auxiliary police officers get a new van or schools get new technology. (Or all of the above.)

It’s participatory budgeting week and residents of each City Council district that participates can vote on several proposed projects in the neighborhood. The ideas were submitted by community members in the fall.

Each council district that participates gets to decide on how to spend $1 million or more.

For Helen Rosenthal’s district, which covers much of the neighborhood, primarily below 96th, the projects are? listed below. And the voting times and locations are here. You can also vote online.

Cultural and Community Facilities

Renovations at Lincoln Square Neighborhood Center
Renovations to the entrance of the LSNC, including installation of new automatic doors (New York City Housing Authority)
Location: Lincoln Square N’hood Center, 250 W. 65th St.
Cost: $500,000

Digital Projection System for Performing Arts Library
Purchase of a new, modern digital projection system for the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
Location: NYPL Performing Arts, 40 Lincoln Center Plaza
Cost: $250,000

Parks and Recreation

Basketball Court Renovations at Wise Towers
Resurfacing and repairs to the existing basketball court (New York City Housing Authority)
Location: Wise Towers, 141 W. 90th St.
Cost: $175,000

Upgrades to 72nd Street Dog Run
Upgrades to the 72nd Street Dog Run with the installation of permanent water stations
Location: Riverside Park Dog Run on 72nd Street
Cost: $150,000

Beautification and Renovation of Broadway Malls
Upgrades to one of the the Broadway Mall Islands, including upgraded seating and a greening package with plantings
Location: Broadway Mall Island to be chosen by Parks
Cost: $350,000

Public Safety

Van for 24th Precinct Auxiliary
Purchase of a van for use by the 24th Precinct Auxiliary volunteers
Location: 24th Precinct, 151 W. 100th St.
Cost: $60,000

Schools and Education

Technology Upgrades at Frank McCourt High School
Technology upgrades including 11 new SmartBoards and a 30 computer laptop cart for use at Frank McCourt High School
Location: Frank McCourt High School, 145 W. 84th St.
Cost: $125,000

Library Upgrade for P.S. 166
Upgrades to the library at P.S. 166, including work to enlarge the library and creation of a new reading space
Location: P.S. 166, 132 W. 89th St.
Cost: $295,000

Video Surveillance System for P.S. 75 and M.S. 250
Installation of a video surveillance system to be used by the school security staff at P.S. 75 and M.S. 250
Location: P.S. 75 and M.S. 250, 735 West End Avenue
Cost: $400,000

Air Conditioning for P.S. 9 and Center School Gym
Installation of a split system air conditioning system in the gymnasium shared by P.S. 9 and the Center School
Location: P.S. 9 and Center School, 100 W. 84th St.
Cost: $400,000

Schoolyard Renovation at P.S. 84
Renovation of the playground, converting the asphalt to synthetic turf at P.S. 84 Schoolyard, the Sol Bloom Playground
Location: Sol Bloom Playground, P.S. 84 32 W. 92nd St.
Cost: $450,000

***********

For Mark Levine’s district, which encompasses parts of the Upper West Side (mostly above 96th), the voting times and location are here. And the projects are listed below.

PARKS & RECREATION
PS125 Courtyard / Playground Upgrade

TRANSPORTATION
Real-Time Automated Bus Schedules at Four Bus Stops along Amsterdam Avenue
Illuminate Cherry Walk on Hudson River Greenway, Henry Hudson Parkway South

SCHOOLS
PS125 Cafeteria Upgrade
PS/MS165 Playground Renovation
M195 Restroom Renovation/Upgrade

NYC HOUSING AUTHORITY
Security Cameras at St. Mary’s Nursing Home
Douglass Housing Exterior Lighting & Grounds Work
Grant Houses’ Ground & Pavement Repair
Manhattanville Housing Outdoor Terrace Lighting
Riverstone Senior Center Exterior Lighting Upgrade

Share this article:
SUPPORT THE RAG
guest

guest

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

46 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Juan
Juan
8 years ago

Is it the top voters until they hit $1 million or the top ones that get her to $1 million. For example, if PS9, PS75 and Frank McCourt are the top 3 and get her to $925,000, with the dog run next, would the dog run also get funded ($150k), even though that puts it over $1 million, or would the van get funded ($60k) as that keeps it under $1 million, or neither?

0
Reply
David
David
8 years ago
Reply to  Juan

Yes, this is not explained well is it.

0
Reply
Jerry
Jerry
8 years ago
Reply to  David

and nothing regarding bicycles – how can that be?

0
Reply
Barbara Marwell
Barbara Marwell
8 years ago

None of the projects in Helen Rosenthal’s district affect a majority of people in the district. What about making the M79 bus a “select bus” like the M86? It makes a huge difference in crosstown time.

0
Reply
Judy
Judy
8 years ago
Reply to  Barbara Marwell

The Select bus machines are soon to be installed at the Columbus/81st Street stop for the M79.

0
Reply
Jon
Jon
8 years ago

We don’t need to encourage dog ownership in Manhattan. If you want a dog, move to the ‘burbs.

Also, PS9 sure has some nerve asking for AC, when none of the other schools in the district have AC. Maybe they can tap their multi-million dollar PTA to fund that.

Finally, I’m pretty sure that precinct van is just going to be used to give out more parking tickets… haha.

I allocated all my votes to the schools (except PS9’s ridiculous request).

0
Reply
Independent
Independent
8 years ago
Reply to  Jon

We don’t need to encourage dog ownership in Manhattan. If you want a dog, move to the ‘burbs.

Dogs do cause their share of problems and challenges for the City. I don’t think anyone being objective and honest could deny that much. Perhaps there are too many dogs here now. Or at least, as I have seen others here claim, too many dogs that are too large to be humanely kept in their owners’ apartments.

But do you really mean to suggest that there shouldn’t be any dogs in Manhattan? Or even that the canine population here should be a mere fraction of what it currently is? I certainly hope that such a drastic change to the City and the neighborhood as I’ve know them throughout the years that I’ve lived here is not actually necessary; that we can find some other way to balance all of the conflicting needs and interests in this situation. In finding the thought of any drastic reduction in the local canine population a downright depressing one, I am surely far from alone. (Same for the population of children.)
……
Concerning the air-conditioners for the school, I am inclined to agree with you that the PTA should come-up with the dough for that if it is important enough to them. (Incidentally, there was no air-conditioning back in the days when I attended the local P.S. 75. Nor, to the best of my memory, was there in any of the other schools I attended, both public and private, through high school.)

0
Reply
UWS-er
UWS-er
8 years ago
Reply to  Jon

None of the other schools in the district have AC? You sure about that?

0
Reply
Anon
Anon
8 years ago
Reply to  UWS-er

The building that houses Anderson, Computer School and (for now) ps 452 does not have reconditioning in the auditorium, gym or cafeteria. Window units in classrooms are paid for by PTAs

0
Reply
helen
helen
8 years ago
Reply to  UWS-er

I’m pretty sure this is the case for other schools in the neighborhood, but PS87’s AC was paid by the PA.

0
Reply
Mark
Mark
8 years ago
Reply to  Jon

Yeah.
Freedom is for losers.

0
Reply
first name unknown
first name unknown
8 years ago

This is the worst use of public money ever. We elect “leaders” to make these kinds of decisions. By doing so, they would then responsible for how they spend public money and use resources. By outsourcing this to a public “competition” is an example of paying off your constituents to suit your shallow policy decisions and shirking the reason why we elect our public officials in the first place.

I like any number of the above proposals, in fact, they might all be worthy of some financing, but this is not the responsible way to spend public money.
This is just a weak excuse for council members to be photographed in front of projects they did not initiate, but are very will to take credit for — just wait for their “newsletters”. This is not serious governing.

0
Reply
Independent
Independent
8 years ago
Reply to  first name unknown

@ “first name unknown”:
That was perhaps one of the best comments I’ve ever seen at WSR. Cogent points.

0
Reply
Nido
Nido
8 years ago

Can you actually vote online?

I don’t see how, the linked site just lists the issues up for vote, times and locations of where to physically vote.

Hints appreciated.

0
Reply
Old Judge
Old Judge
8 years ago
Reply to  Nido

All I found was a list of places to vote and not the actual ability to cast a vote online.

0
Reply
West Sider
Author
West Sider
8 years ago
Reply to  Old Judge

https://council.nyc.gov/pb/vote/
Scroll down and it says “Vote Here”. Click on that spot.

0
Reply
Nido
Nido
8 years ago
Reply to  West Sider

Duh! Thank you.

I clicked on the district number first and got lost in the issues page.

Here’s a direct link to “Vote Here!”

https://pbnyc2017.d21.me/

0
Reply
WestEnder
WestEnder
8 years ago

Click on the “vote online” link in the story and it takes you to the website to vote online.

0
Reply
WestEnder
WestEnder
8 years ago

Click on the “vote online” link in the story and it takes you to the website to vote online.

0
Reply
Toinette Lippe
Toinette Lippe
8 years ago
Reply to  WestEnder

You have to have a cell phone in order to vote electronically, so that they can send you an SMS text message.

0
Reply
Carlos
Carlos
8 years ago

I don’t think these are the best projects and I think in the past they were better. That being said, this is not the first time she has done this, so if you have a preferred project, put some resources behind it and get it on the next ballot, instead of complaining.

0
Reply
Leon
Leon
8 years ago

I think a good use of money would be to fix the curbs at corners so that there aren’t huge lakes after every snow storm. It shouldn’t be that hard to flatten out the worst offending corners.

0
Reply
Stuart
Stuart
8 years ago
Reply to  Leon

I nominate dealing with the standing water inside the Broadway/72 Street subway station at the 73rd Street entrance every time it rains or snows. This problem affects a majority of the population.

0
Reply
Mark
Mark
8 years ago
Reply to  Stuart

While I agree that is a problem, I don’t agree that it affects “the majority of the population”.
It affects the people who use that particular subway entrance.

0
Reply
Stuart
Stuart
8 years ago
Reply to  Mark

I believe that the majority of the neigborhood population uses the subway, and I imagine this is not the only subway entrance with this problem.

0
Reply
H
H
8 years ago
Reply to  Leon

Or just buy a push broom for about $20, push the water toward the drain, and that problem is solved. All of these proposals seem like they are severely overpriced. $350,000 to beautify a broadway mall? Really? The technology for the McCourt proposal would be halftime that. Van is about $40,000-$45,000. Maybe if those tasked with spending the money actually attempted to get the best deal, we wouldn’t have to vote for top 3 but just maybe there would be enough funds to do a few more

0
Reply
RalphCat
RalphCat
8 years ago
Reply to  Leon

Given the huge puddles this morning (especially 98th & Broadway)I would definitely support this!

0
Reply
Brian
Brian
8 years ago
Reply to  Leon

Leon for Mayor

0
Reply
Glen
Glen
8 years ago

I don’t suppose opening a new subway exit on the north end of the 79th and 86th Street uptown stations would ever cross any of their minds.

0
Reply
Carlos
Carlos
8 years ago
Reply to  Glen

$1 million would be a drop in the bucket towards that. Someone should have thought about that before they started doing the construction at the SW corner of 80th and Broadway as it probably could have been easy to include in that project and some of the costs could have even been passed on to that developer as a condition of a building permit.

0
Reply
Woody
Woody
8 years ago
Reply to  Carlos

Why should the cost of a public improvement be passed on to a private developer? That’s the definition of someone being a chazzer.

0
Reply
Irene
Irene
8 years ago
Reply to  Woody

It’s actually pretty common. Look at all the subway exits in midtown with signs saying they are “maintained by x building “. It’s part of the building permit because all the new people will put addition stress on the subway infrastructure.

0
Reply
Woody
Woody
8 years ago
Reply to  Irene

No, that’s not the reason subway entrances are in buildings that maintain them. Those entrances always existed and buildings were there before the newer ones were built.

Those buildings got variances after agreeing to allocate space and maintain them. At the time those decisions were made, there was considerable controversy about the need to rely on private developers for public needs. It was considered to be a failure of governance that the city’s most basic needs couldn’t be met unless a developer was putting up a building.

0
Reply
Scott
Scott
8 years ago

I see Levine is peddling sanctuary city fake news on his Twitter feed. “NYC is the safest big city in America” because of non-enforcement of federal immigration law, he implies ludicrously. I thought we were the safest because of our super high sales tax. Silly me. When it comes to wacky causation theories, I can’t compete with the far left.

Stop paying for free legal services for illegals picked up for serious crimes and you suddenly have lots of money for basketball courts.

0
Reply
Bruce Bernstein
Bruce Bernstein
8 years ago
Reply to  Scott

this is just replete with myths.

undocumented charged and convicted of serious crimes can be deported. a small percentage of “serious crimes” in NYC are committed by undocumented.

you have no idea what the legal aid costs for defending undocumented accused of “serious crimes” are to the NYC taxpayer, nor do i. my bet is that they are small.

finally, undocumented charged with crimes deserve their day in court with a qualified lawyer, like anyone else. unless you want to convict first, ask questions later.

0
Reply
Scott
Scott
8 years ago
Reply to  Bruce Bernstein

Well it wouldn’t be a proper WSR thread without BB peddling his usual nonsense, presenting no facts whatsoever while bemoaning a paucity of facts from the OP. One thing we do know is there is a specific federal program called SCAAP where NYC gets reimbursed for the costs of imprisoning illegal immigrants. It’s not a small program. Of course certain apologists would have Riker’s just release them all, ’cause illegal immigrants make us safer (that IS today’s talking point isn’t it?).

0
Reply
Bruce Bernstein
Bruce Bernstein
8 years ago
Reply to  Scott

i don’t expect the recitation of facts to get in the way of pre-conceived ideas, but:

it’s very easy to research facts on the matter, and find that crime rates among immigrants are much lower than the general population. these include both documented and undocumented.

here’s one study, from 2007, from the National Bureau of Economic Research. i will link to it below. the abstract says:

“The perception that immigration adversely affects crime rates led to legislation in the 1990s that particularly increased punishment of criminal aliens. In fact, immigrants have much lower institutionalization (incarceration)
rates than the native born – on the order of one-fifth the rate of natives. More recently arrived immigrants have the lowest relative incarceration rates, and this difference increased from 1980 to 2000. We examine whether the improvement in immigrants’ relative incarceration rates over the last three decades is linked to increased deportation, immigrant self-selection, or deterrence. Our evidence suggests that deportation
does not drive the results. Rather, the process of migration selects individuals who either have lower criminal propensities or are more responsive to deterrent effects than the average native. Immigrants who were already in the country reduced their relative institutionalization probability over the decades; and the newly arrived immigrants in the 1980s and 1990s seem to be particularly unlikely to be involved
in criminal activity, consistent with increasingly positive selection along this dimension.”

https://www.nber.org/papers/w13229.pdf

0
Reply
Independent
Independent
8 years ago
Reply to  Scott

Hey Scott,

Just want to let you know it’s nice to see a fellow Deplorable here. Take care and who knows, maybe we’ll meet one day,

Independent (a.k.a. UWS Dissident)

0
Reply
Mark
Mark
8 years ago
Reply to  Bruce Bernstein

Those weren’t myths.
They were alternative facts.

0
Reply
Sprinkles
Sprinkles
8 years ago

Does anybody know how these costs are estimated? How can a video surveillance system for one building possibly cost $400,000? That does not seem fiscally responsible.

0
Reply
Js
Js
8 years ago

Kind of sad to see some of these projects which
1) seemingly do not particularly serve community residents or
2) seem to serve the “haves” as opposed to those who are more in need…

Surprised to see the NYPL Performing Arts Library – one would expect corporate funding here. It is a great library but not what I’d call a community library.

Sad also to see a dog run project here but only one NYCHA project?

0
Reply
Mark
Mark
8 years ago
Reply to  Js

It’s a community library in the same way that any public library is.

0
Reply
Amy Kargauer
Amy Kargauer
8 years ago

I’d like to see money spent for L.S.N.C. and whatever public schools need to improve the quality of educational experiences for children!

0
Reply
dj
dj
8 years ago

Give the money back to its rightful owners: the people who earned it.

Taxation=theft.

0
Reply
MJ
MJ
8 years ago

Please consider voting for the public school projects. They need your help.

0
Reply
Dr. Cary Goodman
Dr. Cary Goodman
8 years ago

These all seem to be great projects, worthy of funding. All of them could be if the $100 million the council member has given to the museum of natural history were otherwise dispersed. Meanwhile, she makes a mockery of ‘participatory budgeting’ when she requests
$8 million more of our taxes for the proposed expansion.

0
Reply

YOU MIGHT LIKE...

Volunteers Needed to Dig In and Help Restore 72nd Street’s Tree Beds: Sunday
NEWS

Volunteers Needed to Dig In and Help Restore 72nd Street’s Tree Beds: Sunday

May 15, 2025 | 12:08 PM
More Than 100-Year-Old Upper West Side Building Slated for Demolition
NEWS

New 12-Story Building Slated for Busy Upper West Side Block: Permits Show

May 14, 2025 | 11:33 AM
Previous Post

MORNING BULLETIN: HOPEFUL RESPONSE TO HATE, SCHOOL BUS DRIVER ARRESTED

Next Post

IMMEDIATE OCCUPANCY AT AURUM CONDOMINIUMS. TWO BEDROOM HOMES STARTING AT $956,000. OVER 90% SOLD.

this week's events image
Next Post
DISCOVER A LIFE WELL-LIVED AT AURUM CONDOMINIUMS (SPONSORED)

IMMEDIATE OCCUPANCY AT AURUM CONDOMINIUMS. TWO BEDROOM HOMES STARTING AT $956,000. OVER 90% SOLD.

ARCHITECTS UNVEIL DRAMATIC CURVED TOWER NEAR CENTRAL PARK — OR THEY MIGHT BE PULLING OUR CHAIN

ARCHITECTS UNVEIL DRAMATIC CURVED TOWER NEAR CENTRAL PARK -- OR THEY MIGHT BE PULLING OUR CHAIN

MAN HIT BY C TRAIN ON 96TH STREET SUNDAY MORNING

TRACK FIRE NEAR 81ST STREET SCRAMBLES TRAIN SCHEDULE

  • ABOUT US
  • CONTACT US
  • NEWSLETTER
  • WSR MERCH!
  • ADVERTISE
  • EVENTS
  • PRIVACY POLICY
  • TERMS OF USE
  • SITE MAP
Site design by RLDGROUP

© 2025 West Side Rag | All rights reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • TOP NEWS
  • THIS WEEK’S EVENTS
  • OPEN/CLOSED
  • FOOD
  • SCHOOLS
  • OUTDOORS
  • REAL ESTATE
  • ART & CULTURE
  • POLITICS
  • COLUMNS
  • CRIME
  • HISTORY
  • ABSURDITY
  • ABOUT
    • OUR STORY
    • CONTRIBUTORS
    • CONTACT US
  • WSR SHOP

© 2025 West Side Rag | All rights reserved.