By Gus Saltonstall
Over the weekend, West Side Rag reported on the finalist projects for the neighborhood as funded by Councilmember Gale Brewer’s participatory budgeting process. Brewer is not the only elected official allocating city funds to Upper West Side projects, though, Councilmember Shaun Abreu is also overseeing his own set of funding.
Abreu is the representative for District 7 in the City Council, which stretches from West 92nd Street to 165th streets, and includes all of Manhattan Valley and Morningside Heights.
Residents can vote on which projects to fund starting April 6, with ballots closing on April 14. In-person voting sites include Abreu’s district office at 500 West 141st Street from noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday.
Votes can also be cast at these locations:
Bloomingdale Library: 150 West 100th Street
- April 6: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- April 8 through 11: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- April 12 through 13: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Recirculation Community Library: 876 Riverside Drive
- April 10 through 12: 6 to 9 p.m.
- April 14: 3 to 6 p.m.
You can also vote online at pbnyc.org/vote. The ballot won’t go live online, though, until April 6.
“Participatory budgeting is democracy in practice,” Abreu said to the Rag. “When people have a voice in civic affairs — and a hand in allocating public funds — we see the positive change in our neighborhoods.”
In total, Abreu has $1 million allocated for projects chosen in the participatory budgeting process.
Here are the projects that are based on the Upper West Side or in Morningside Heights.
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Renovations at Happy Warrior Playground (West 98th Street and Amsterdam): $500,000. Project would allow people to use the basketball courts and athletic field, both in need of repair.
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Resurface the basketball courts in Riverside Park at 110th St. $500,000: This project would eliminate the cracks that produce bad bounces.
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Install air conditioners in the Mott Hall II 5th floor gym. $500,000: Project would allow for physical education classes in an air conditioned space that is brutally hot during the warmer months.
- New turf for fields 4, 6 & 7 in Riverside Park. $400,000: Project would allow children to play safely and not trip on tears in the surface. The existing turf is over 10 years old.
- Repair Steps at 108th Street and Riverside Drive. $250,000: Repair and reconstruct the staircase so that people can safely access the lower levels of the park.
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Beautification of Morningside Park Farmers Market entrance. $150,000: Project would fix tree beds of uneven and loose stone, paint fences and benches, and include better trash cans.
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Tree Planting in Manhattan Community Board 7. $100,000. Project would allow more shade for people to walk in, even when it’s very hot and sunny.
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Is there any plan to reopen the Riverside Health Clinic on 100st? It was an excellent local medical resource for childhood vaccinations and it had an STD clinic.
1/2 a million dollars to resurface a basketball court. Nothing but waste and corruption.
It’s multiple courts. Several of them.
The Happy Warrior basketball courts are used constantly. Not sure what the problem is there. Would vastly prefer more cameras, trees, and garbage cans.
I was curious about how much this would cost anywhere else and found this article about the Detroit Pistons: “Sep 20, 2023 — $2.5 Million Project Refurbished 60 Basketball Courts In 44 Parks Throughout The City Of Detroit”.
https://sportsvenuecalculator.com/knowledge/outdoor-sports-court/outdoor-basketball-court-cost/
The link above provides estimates for the cost of building (not resurfacing) a basketball court. It ignores labour costs and economy of scale (i.e., multiple courts).
Kids should not be playing on Turf fields. They should be playing on grass.
The Parks Department is already expanding tree planting throughout NYC – why would there be need to specially fund tree planting here?
Because it’s is all in the outer boroughs. None for Upper West Side.
100,000 for tree planting? Might I suggest caring for and replacing the trees on the east side of Broadway between 96th and 110th. The none sense about not replacing trees near bus stops where shade is most imperative must be rectified. The street looks baron and in concert with empty stores, particularly unappealing.
The West side of West End Ave has scaffolding from 96th to 106th streets. This must be a record.
I like all the Riverside Park renovations and definitely tree plantings. These are things everyone can enjoy.
Please also work on taking down or fining all the buildings with scaffolding on Upper Broadway.