Movie Night Location Changed to Increase Event Accessibility

As I noted in a blog post two day's ago the Summer Movies generously sponsored by the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation have been moved this Summer from SouthPoint Park (frown) to Firefighter's Field. The first film is scheduled to be shown on June 21, 2008 at 9:00 pm with a pre-show at 8:45pm. For a sample of the screen quality and sound link through to the prior post. Entrance to each of the three movie nights is FREE for all who attend.

The reason for the change in venue has nothing to do with pending construction of the Wild Garden's Park, by the Trust Public Land, or the stabilization of the Renwick Ruin / Smallpox Hospital but simply to enable more of our neighbors and guests greater access to the screenings as the path down to SouthPoint Park for many of our older residents, guests, and wheelchair bound neighbors made the events inaccessible.

So as a gesture to include as many people as possible the venue was changed to Firefighter's Field as it is accessible to everyone and central to the major mass transportation hubs. So while I will miss the background views at SouthPoint, while simultaneously enjoying the feature being played, the reasons for change far outweigh any other factors. Besides the idea is to watch the movies anyway.

The below map is provided for anyone that does not know where Firefighter's Field is:

In "New Amsterdam" Hell Gate is at Southpoint

Apparently the writers of the new Fox TV show New Amsterdam are not only having fun writing for a central character that is immortal but they have decided to relocate the Hell Gate section of the East River to Southpoint Park on Roosevelt Island.

This week's episode and season finale opens with a scene of a woman drowning but quickly moves onto a grassy area where the body, now recovered, has been set down. John Amsterdam's fellow detectives are standing over the victim in what is known to Roosevelt Island residents as the tip of Southpoint Park facing South into the river and across from the United Nations. When Amsterdam shows up he labels the spot Hell Gate and proceeds to have a flash back to 1927 at the same location.

What's amusing about this is that Hell Gate is not even visible from these locations but is just North of Roosevelt Island and actually refers to a larger area encompassing the confluence of the East River and the Harlem River. The Bridge in the above picture is the Queensboro Bridge (aka the 59th Street Bridge). When built it was known as the Blackwell's Island Bridge.

What's more amusing looking back at last week's episode where John takes his former partner Andy from the Detective's Squad Room onto a balcony was that that scene was filmed at Goldwater Hospital (see green arrow in above map) a ten minute walk from this location. So this body essentially washed up just down the block from their precinct house.

New Air Link From LIC to Roosevelt Island?

It appears that Robert Hickman, who also design and created the convex disk at our subway station, posted a video today regarding a new method of air travel between what appears to be Roosevelt Island and and not Manhattan but starting from Long Island City's Socrates Sculpture Park. The above YouTube video can be linked directly HERE. It seems that there are a few kinks before passengers can start purchasing their farecards.

Update: 4/25

The Roosevelt Islander is indicating that this air link may be an laternative considering the weekend's curent service disruption.

No Movies at Southpoint Park This Year

Film Series Moved to Firefighter's Field

One of the most magical experiences I have had living on Roosevelt Island was walking on down to Southpoint Park to watch a Summertime movie with the Manhattan and Queen's skylines surrounding the "theatre". From getting off the Red Bus to walking up the lighted path passed the Renwick Ruin / Smallpox Hospital the entire experience was something you would never get anywhere else. Unfortunately it appears that for this year that experience will not be happening.

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

According to the upcoming events page on the RIOC website this year's summer movie series will be held at Firefighter's Field. Now before you start looking at the graphic below I am sure the folks at RIOC will make a great production. I trust Erica Wilder and Donna Masley and the other fine RIOC folks to do a good job by us but with the lights and sounds of Red and Q102 Buses arriving and leaving the Tram station not to mention the noise eminating from the Queensboro Bridge there is only so much they can compensate for.

And I am sure they would position the screen so that the Keyspan Plant is behind us and not behind the screen but again if the wind is working against us we may even be unfortunate enough to smell the plant (granted it's a extremely extremely rare event and I've only heard this secondhand) which would just not work with most movies.

I am guessing the reasons to move the movie series involve perhaps the upcoming contruction of the Wild Gardens Park at Southpoint or perhaps the stabilization of the Smallpox Hospital and I have asked for clarification and I am sure I will get a prompt response but the knowledge that we will not get another chance at watching a movie with those panoramic views with the looming possibility of the FDR Memorial Trees taking it away in the future is a great loss.

Sure movies may return to Southpoint in the future but it just won't be the same.

Queens Gazette: Ray Kelly, the 114th Pct and Roosevelt Island

While speaking at the April meeting of the Astoria Civic Association, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly responded to a question as to why the 114th Precinct is charged with patrolling Roosevelt Island which is considered part of Manhattan. His answer to anyone with a moderate amount of brain power as reported by the Queens Gazette was obvious stating “that since the island is accessible to vehicles only from the 36th Street Bridge in Astoria, there is no choice”.

I will not address that the bridge is named the Roosevelt Island Bridge or that the street leading into the bridge is actually 36th Avenue as I like Commissioner Kelly and I am sure he wanted to tell the questioner that the question was a silly one to ask based on the known geography despite the historical political assignment of Roosevelt Island to Manhattan.

The Gazette continued by reporting the questioner followed up by asking Kelly why this is fair as it puts increasing pressure on the 114th Precinct due to the increasing population growth on the island. Kelly responded by simply stating that the 114th like many precincts is not alone in dealing with population growth.

It is unclear as to the motive behind the questions posed or whether the individual was aware that the Roosevelt Island Pubic Safety Department handles many calls and incidents that a local NYPD precinct would normally handle and that the 114th is not involved in many of these incidents at all. We live in an interesting place and I am sure there are distinct protocols as to when the 114th is called into service here on Roosevelt Island. Certainly any calls to 911 result in the 114th being notified leading to their response but most of the day to day patrols are handled ably by our local PSD.

Assembly Member Kellner Requests MTA Roberts to Further Examine Issues Affecting Roosevelt Island

Assembly Member Micah Kellner (65th AD) issued a letter today to MTA President Howard Roberts to further examine the transportation issues affecting Roosevelt Island in light of the pending 2009 Tram overhaul. See the original letter text by clicking on the attached images.

One of the most striking facts presented in the letter is resident Marc Diamond’s calculations that Tram’s daily ridership is approximately 50% of the subway’s daily ridership. The concern is therefore how will the F Train and our subway station handle a 50% increase in riders every rush hour morning?

Kellner suggests beefing up alternative bus routes to Queens Plaza as well as extension of the Q Lines and rerouting of R or V Trains through Roosevelt Island. I know that Roberts rejected the Q Train extension but this is the first I have heard of the R or V Train re-routing ideas I don’t expect that they will be well received.

Let’s see if Roberts issues a response to this letter. Getting the last response according to transit buffs was amazing enough. We definitely thank Micah Kellner for staying on top of this issue and pushing the MTA to respond to this important issue.

Tidal Energy to Power Roosevelt Isle Subway Sta.

Image June 2007

In a news conference today at Grand Central Terminal, Governor Paterson discussed several initiatives regarding sustainable energy usage including using tidal energy to power a portion of the Roosevelt Island subway station.

The Newsday article referring to the news conference does not indicate what portion of the station will be linked to the tidal energy plan but it is assumed (by this blogger) it will be the lighting as opposed to powering the subway rails themselves. I just hope it is not the escalators.

According to the RecordOnline (Albany Times Herald-Record) a substantial portion of the station will be powered by the renewable tidal energy.

RIRA FDR Memorial Surveys Distributed via WIRE

Well this weekend, as an insert to the Main Street WIRE, the Roosevelt Island Resident’s Association distributed it’s long called for survey to determine what the present day population of the island thinks of the Louis Kahn designed memorial.

The survey itself has its own history as many individuals wished it stopped at simply asking whether individuals liked, disliked or had no opinion re the design. Some individuals feel that the survey is slanted as anti-Kahn design despite its having two columns of pro and con bullet points supporting the pro and con positions. As a matter of full disclosure I contributed an earlier version of the back page two column design.

There is also a call from my fellow island blogger, the Roosevelt Islander, to extend the length of the survey response period to allow for a greater number of responses to the survey. I fully support this as I believe more time is needed to “push” our fellow residents to fill out the form (pro or con) and to either walk it over to the PSD office and drop off the form in the above pictured box or to mail it into RIRA.

My own non-statistical on-line survey regarding the FDR memorial can be found HERE. Please vote in the paper survey and also this online version.

Joint PressHD - WIRE Interview with RIOC’s Shane at Southpoint

PressHD.com captured on film an interview between Stephen Shane, President of the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation, and Dick Lutz, Managing Editor of the Main Street WIRE. The video was shot on a sunny day and really captures the size and feel of the location as Steve Shane describes his understanding of what the Louis Kahn designed FDR – Four Freedoms Memorial will be like.

Personally I think a video like this only reinforces the idea of what the trees called for in the Kahn design will block from a visitor's view to the site once completed. As Mr. Shane describes the views in either direction will still be visible from either promenade to whoever wants to see them but still an unencumbered 360 degree view will be changed irrevocably.

YouTube: Roosevelt Island PSD Search

The above video of Roosevelt Island PSD officers was posted on YouTube by "RooseveltIsland10044". The video shows the officers searching the contents of the individual's backpack, dropping the contents on the ground and then returning the contents to the individuals' backpack.

According to Public Safety Director Keith Guerra the individual stopped was arrested for narcotics possession after being observed using a controlled substance. I would add that Mr. Guerra provided this detail upon my requesing more information regarding the video's content.

Roosevelt Island Squirrel’s Interviewed re Presidential Election

Squirrel Interviews

Video crew tries to interview Roosevelt Island squirrels regarding their views of the current Presidential election. Interviewer also labels local woman as “crazy squirrel woman” based on her alleged daily squirrel feedings. If anything the video shows how "trained" the squirrels are here to accept food when offered.

Direct YouTube Link by JohnMcDonaldInc

YouTube text: “Frieda Chan stars in this short documentary on the opinions of the modern squirrel. Also featuring the Con Ed power plant, a piece of bread, and reluctant roommates”

Con Ed Interview

It was amusing when these guys tried to interview the squirrels not sure what they were going for trying to interview “Big Allis”

The location of both videos appears to be the Eastern side of the island facing Queens behind the Eastwood complex.

The New Face of Roosevelt Island : Video by Long Time Resident

Direct YouTube Link by RebKnell

Text by Rebknell: "A 30 year resident of Roosevelt Island films the ever-growing hometown. PLUS! It's looking a bit like spring!!!! "

The video seems to focus on Southtown which to many folks represents the new age of Roosevelt Island.

Naming Opportunities at the FDR Memorial on Roosevelt Island?

Today I linked from the Main Street WIRE web page to the FERI Institute web page for the planned memorial. I was somewhat taken aback at language indicating that donors of $100,000 or more may have "naming opportunities" at the site if the memorial is built.

I am not so naive to not realize that with big donations come the "right" to attach one's name to a project but somehow I had not heard of this practive attached to this project.

Every time I visit great museums like the Metropolitan Museum of Art here in NYC I can't help but notice the benefactors names listed on the walls and be amazed at their generousity. But I don't recall seeing such "walls" at outdoor memorials before. They must exist but I guess where such memorials were built as national memorials I figured the funds were mostly government monies etc. Perhaps I am somewhat naive.

Anyhow I had not heard of this before in regards to this project and the idea somehow bothers me. What's your opinion?

FDR Memorial: The Four Questions Plus One

I realize a survey is being distributed as an insert with this week’s Main Street WIRE but I wanted to post this unscientific online survey and see what we get at the end of the next two weeks. Please vote only once and answer all five questions.

Update: 1:00 PM EST
My apologies as I have restarted the polls using a different service which does not throw you off this site for each poll. Please revote if you had already earlier today.

RIOC's Shane Speaks re Roosevelt Island Retail Spaces

PressHD.com has posted two video interviews, on April 11, 2008, with Stephen Shane, President and CEO of the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation, regarding a possible plan to bring more retail to Main Street and the possible relocation of the Public Safety Office. At the time of this blog's posting I have not yet watched either video.

Presumably each video is tagged to a companion article in this weekend's Main Street WIRE as at least the retail interview was conducted by the WIRE based on the PressHD picture caption.

To link to the video interviews double click the above image.

FDR Memorial - Survey for All Residents to be in WIRE

This week's Main Street WIRE is slated to include a survey which all residents of Roosevelt Island interested in the Louis Kahn designed FDR Memorial are encouraged to complete.

PressHD.com videotaped RIRA President Matt Katz about the survey. Double click the above image to view this video only. Behind the scenes I should note I am interested to see the final format of the survey as the e-mails between the parties drafting the survey involved how detailed the questions should be or should it just be simply: Yes, No, No Opinion.

Drink: "Roosevelt Island Tramp" - Part Curacao, Part....

As reported yesterday the Native New York events sponsored by NYC Magic Garden have created a drink called a Roosevelt Island Tramp which I had never heard of. Apparently with good reason as Zoe Schneider, of NYC Magic Garden, made it up herself.

According to the comment left by Zoe on my previous post:

Zoe here, founder of the NYC Magic Garden. I made up that drink and two others that we serve at the party (they all have a nice old school NYC ring to them). The Roosevelt Island Tramp is Malibu, Blue Curacao and pineapple juice. The Staten Island Fairy is Cranberry juice, Peach Schnapps and vodka. The Ghetto Blaster is gin and grapefruit juice. Come, have a $4 drink with us natives(http://www.nycmagicgarden.com/).

Now I just have to figure out how curacao and pineapple juice are native to Roosevelt Island?

Blogger's Note: I, myself, hail from Lon G'Island originally but have lived in NYC for the last 20 years plus so I figured Imust admit the above image started as a Mr. Boston drink guide which I modified for the occasion.

A "Roosevelt Island Tramp" - What's In It?

In today's NY Post there is an article about a bar running Native New York Nights where only us natives are allowed in if we can answer specific questions at the door proving we are indeed natives. The article, on page two, talks about a drink served in the bar called a "Roosevelt Island Tramp".

Anyone know what's in this drink and how it got the name?

FOLLOW UP POST: Link HERE for the drink's ingredients.

Roosevelt Island Scenes Shown on Fox Television Show "New Amsterdam"

Well this week the scenes filmed on Roosevelt Island for the FOX television show "New Amsterdam" aired within Episode 7 "Reclassified". Thanks to the folks over at the fan site "New Amsterdam Forever" for pointing the scenes out to me as I missed this week's episode. I admit I first starting watching because I had seen the television production vehicles some months agao and I have become a fan since.

The first scene (at 7.41 minutes) played involves the main character John Amsterdam, a homicide detective, having a discussing with his former partner Andy. The scene is supposed to be on a balcony just off the detective's office space in the local precinct house. Based on the views and the balcony railing it became clear that the scene was shot at Goldwater Hospital just South of the Queensboro Bridge facing East into Queens.

The second scene (at 12.41 minutes) is obviously shot from the Western promenade overlooking the East River with Manhattan and the Queensboro Bridge in the background.

Residents in the News: Donna Chenkin

Roosevelt Island resident Donna Chenkin position as director of the Belmont Child Care Association may seem normal enough until you learn this child care facility resides smack in the midst of Belmont Racetrack and exists to provide services to children whose parents work at the track. The overall article in today's Village Voice is quite interesting and goes to show you that an entire world exists beyond the physical track and grandstand.

Casting Call: Shakespeare on Roosevelt Isle

Auditions for Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing

Roosevelt Island's Second Annual Summer Shakespeare Series

Produced by Michael Flanagan

Directed by John William Schiffbauer

Sponsored by the Roosevelt Island Operating Commission (RIOC)

Auditions:

The Community Room in The Chapel of the Good Shepherd

543 Main Street on Roosevelt Island.

Friday, April 11 from 6-9

Saturday, April 12 from 1-4

Prepare a Shakespearean Monologue. Sides may be provided.

Performance dates:

May 31st and June 1st @ 2PM Rivercross Lawn on Roosevelt Island

No pay, but opportunity to be a part of a growing summer event.

Contact Mike at ms_flanagan@yahoo.com for more information, or if you cannot make the listed times and would like to schedule an appointment.

Sun. April 13th - Tram Off Line 6am to 2pm

While this coming weekend (April 12-13) will see subway service to Roosevelt Island in both directions we can look forward to no tram service on Sunday, April 13th, from 6am to 2pm.

According to RIOC the tram staff will be conducting cabin rescue and evacuation drills. It is probably just because this weekend was planned for several weeks to have a working subway in both directions that RIOC scheduled this outage.

At least the outage will not be all day so this is livable unless the subway goes out unannounced at which point I expect the Tram would back on line as soon as they complete whatever drill was in session.

New Foot Bridge to Roosevelt Island Considered

Momentum is gaining among community and political leaders to build a new footbridge to Roosevelt Island. The only problem is the bridge under consideration is NOT to Franklin Delano Roosevelt Island, here in NYC, but to Theodore Roosevelt Island which sits in the Potomac River. And they say nothing can get done inside the beltway.

For those interested the full story can be found HERE on the GW Hatchet.

Meanwhile back here in Gotham it has been a year since Community Board 8 passed a resolution for the NYC DOT to study whether access can be afforded to NYC Roosevelt Island residents to the existing 59th Street / Queensboro Bridge and as far as we know DOT has never responded to CB8. Furthermore it is unclear whether CB8 has ever followed up with DOT regarding the resolution.

Roosevelt Island: Known Worldwide For Our.....Garbage

Worldwide Roosevelt Island is known for a number of things. We are the home to many United Nation diplomats, our famous Tramway, the Queensboro Bridge that passes above us, the Verdant East River Hydro-Power project, but consistently the number of international articles written about us refer to our automated vacuum system which collects our garbage. The AVAC. You can learn more out the about AVAC HERE and to see its location go the Roosevelt Island Historical Walk, click on virtual tour and then click # 12..

Today's link comes from Canada where a neighborhood in Toronto is considering such a system. I am not complaining but it is amusing. For the record our garbage is not incenerated as some systems do but is compacted and shipped off island.


Picture Courtesy Bridge and Tunnel Club

Island Cats requests volunteers for feeding North Station on Roosevelt I.

The following is a reprint of a post made by a resident on the OctagonRI.com website. I thought it worth publishing here. Thanks Julie and Jennifer for letting everyone know about this!

Hi, Folks: Many of you are probably familiar with the wonderful organization called Island Cats. Briefly, they are a non-profit, volunteer-run organization that performs trap-neuter-release and adoption of stray cats on the island. Last year alone they performed surgeries on over 50 cats and were able to adopt over 25, releasing the feral (and therefore unadoptable but now sterile) ones back into well-managed colonies on the island.

They have two main feeding stations on the island, one of which is at the periphery of the ball field near the Octagon. The station consists of two sheltered water and feed areas, with several "condos" that the cats use to stay warm in the winter. These stations are completely run by volunteers, who feed once a day (dry and canned food). Most of the volunteers buy their own food to use and feed once a week or so. However, if finances are of concern, individuals have said they could provide the food. It literally takes 10 minutes of your time.

I perform the Sunday feedings and get a great deal of joy seeing them come running up when you whistle!If you think you could be of service, please contact Jennifer Dunning at ri.cats@yahoo.com. They are in particular need of folks for Weds and Thursday, so if you are a stay-at-homer or only work part-time, you would be perfect! Thanks for your consideration. Jules

The above picture taken within the gardens at Roosevelt Island is by Mayotic and can be found on Flickr HERE.

PressHD: Vandalism at Southpoint

Kim Lengle of PressHD.com is reporting of a new atack of vandalism down at Southpoint Park and upon the former smallpox hospital. Her post will link you through to a series of 34 pictures on Flickr taken on Sunday, April 6, 2008. PressHD was the first to report two weeks ago of the brush fire that took place at Southpoint.

According to Ms. Lengle, during the entire time she was at Southpoint yesterday Public Safety was not aware of the vandalism and no patrol car appeared on scene. In fact Public Safety was not aware of the incident, according to her, until she reported the incident. If this attack took place overnight one would hope and expect that when the park was opened this morning that a PSD officer would make a patrol of the park to determine if there was any such activity or danger before allowing the public access.

One of the concerns many residents have regarding the future of the entire Southpoint Park (including both the Trust for Public Land Gardens and the proposed FDR memorial) is security. It has ben stated that once these projects are completed that security would be increased down at Southpoint.

The Castle Playground Exists No More

It was long in coming but the demolition of the old castle playground just South of the Eastwood apartment complex on Roosevelt Island has taken place.

So in memory of that playground here is one more look at it before it was demolished and is looked today. And for those that remember the old wooden playground that preceded the castle design a single picture from that time.

I know the plans are to build a new playground using the Playtime company which is used at most of the other playgrounds on the island but I would not mind bringing back something like the old wooden playground which I think would have more character than the modern equivalents whicha ll tend to look and feel the same.

Daily News: Spitzer Scandals Pushes Back Roosevelt Island Efforts for Direct Representation

Today's New York Daily News includes a column regarding the effects of the Spitzer scandal upon our efforts to directly elect representatives onto the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation Board of Directors. To view the entire article link HERE.

Roosevelt Island Weekend Subway Disruptions: 11 of 14 Weeks and Running

Today's NY Times included a column by Clyde Haberman bemoaning the fact that for many New Yorkers the arrival of the weekend just brings another headache ...the weekend subway service disruption.

This is something the residents of Roosevelt Island certainly know about. By my count, including this weekend, we will have had reduced service for 11 weekends out 14 weekends so far in 2008. I would like to see which station is hit the hardest throughout the system. I can't imagine there are too many that beat us but at least we have the Tram, for now, to offset the outages.

Any bets on how many weekends we will get to by the end of 2008? The closest gets a pizza on me.

The tally so far includes:
(1) 1/5-7; (2) 1/12-14; (3) 1/19-21; (4) 1/26-28; (5) 2/2-4; (6) 2/16-18; (7) 3/1-3; (8) 3/8-10; (9) 3/15-17; (10) 3/29-31; and (11) 4/5-7

-----Original Message-----
From: Clyde Haberman
Date: Fri, 04 Apr 2008 14:30:23
To:rooseveltisland360@gmail.com
Subject: Re: Fw: Your NYT Weekend Subway Disruption Column

Many thanks for your note and the link to the blog. It does indeed sound as if Roosevelt I. may win the weekend disruption derby, dubious though that title may be.

What can I say except, Happy Trails.
All the best,
Clyde Haberman

Walking Tours: Roosevelt Island's Magnolias and Cherry Blossoms

The Roosevelt Island Historical Society is sponsoring two short walking tours this month both with an added focus to enjoy the fauna in bloom at this time of year.

The first is this weekend, Saturday April 5th, starting at 11am, outside the Octagon and proceeding North to the Roosevelt Island Lighthouse. This tour includes the many magnolias at that end of the island. The suggested donation to the RIHS for the tour is $5.

The second tour, on Sunday April 20th, starts out at the RIHS Visitors Center Kiosk located by the Tram and proceeds South along the promenade to enjoy the cherry blossoms. You don't need to travel to DC to see these flowers each year just a quick visit to Roosevelt Island.

I am guessing part of the tour will discuss how these trees came to the island as I don't believe they are indigenous to the space. I have pictures in my mind of the inmates lounging under the trees between their daily line-ups for the warden. I am assuming the trees were planted during the early years after Goldwater was constructed. To learn the real answers come on down to the tour.

Watch for posters and announcements regarding the start time for the April 20th tour.

Groundbreaking: New East River Park Just North of Queensboro Bridge

In case you were wondering what the City was doing to the site along the East River as you passed it from above during your morning Tram ride from Roosevelt Island into Manhattan...

It would be cool if they got the Roller Coaster running again. But then again I don't know if the dogs would enjoy the ride.

FYI, the park currently at the bottom of the above picture is a dog park which sits at the site of a former heliport. I have no info regarding the artist that designed the "roller coaster' structure that sits on top of the dog park. [The above picture is by "raynach" and can be found on Flickr HERE.]

Keyspan Plant "Big Allis" Sold to Trans-Canada

According to an article published this past Monday by Newsday, National Grid has sold the "Big Allis" Ravenswood Keyspan Plant located just opoposite Roosevelt Island, in LIC, Queens, to Trans-Canada. The sale is subject to state and federal regulatory approvals, and clearance under U.S. anti-trust and foreign investment laws. National Grid said it expects to complete the deal by late summer.

The text of the Newsday article can be linked to HERE. Nobody in NYC really expected the plant to be sold and dismantled as it is one of the only remaining plants servicing all of NYC.

"Necessary Music" Film Issues Casting Call

A casting call has been issued for those interested in participating in the film about Roosevelt Island to be titled "A Necessary Music". All parties interested should come down to Gallery RIVAA on Saturday April 5th between 11:00 am and 3:00 pm. To read more details double click the above image. Filming is planned to take place this month.

St. Sen. Serrano Issues Letter Supporting Congestion Pricing

State Senator Jose M. Serrano issued a letter to Mayor Michael Bloomberg conveying his support for congestion pricing despite at times not being always politically expedient to do so. The letter also addresses parking at Yankee System as it relates to congestion pricing.

The full letter can be found HERE as it is not yet posted on the Senator's website.

Overall I agree that congestion pricing is a worthy goal but I would like to see if there is a way for Roosevelt island residents to be able to bring their cars across the Queensboro Bridge and not be subject to the fee but alas we are only considered part of Manhattan for so many purposes.

Assembly Member Kellner Requests Gov. Paterson to Reschedule RIOC Board Nominee Vetting Process

In a letter, dated April 1, 2008, to Governor David Paterson, Assembly Member Micah Kellner requests the Governor to restart the vetting process and to then formally appoint the six individuals elected by the residents to serve on the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation's Board of Directors. Thank you Mr. Kellner

Resident Profile: Andrew "Tex" Allen

I can not claim to be a music afficionado so I have no idea if Island House resident Andrew "Tex" Allen can claim to be the best known musician living on Roosevelt Island but the blog "Fresh Plays" certainly made me aware of him.

According to Fresh Plays:

"[Allen] has been an important part of the New York music scene for more than 25 years, playing in jazz clubs, forming his own groups, helping write the script for what he calls America’s native or classic music. And lately he’s been a musical ambassador, making two trips to Beirut this year, performing at a jazz festival in Oslo, and traveling to Paris and Hamburg. "

The blog post also references his two siblings who have done pretty well in their careers as well. You may have heard of them .....Phylicia Rashad and Debbie Allen.

You can visit Mr. Allen's own website by linking HERE. Upon visiting his site it appears that the Fresh Plays post is taken from a much larger and quite in depth article posted on the official website.