Fall Arts Festival Oct 4th - Oct 26th

The complete published schedule for the 2008 Roosevelt Island Fall for Arts Festival is listed below. The event is sponsored by the Roosevelt Island Visual Arts Association in cooperation with the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation.

The Art Festival kick off on October 4th should make for a very busy October here on Roosevelt Island as the Roosevelt Island KidFest event series is starting that same day and also running through the end of October.

The below image was modified from its original format to fit this medium.

Disney to Take Over Tram, Replace RIOC?

A New York Daily News columnist this past weekend, Saturday September 27, 2008, proposed several instances where the City can make up its budget shortfall by selling naming rights to current City landmarks including Roosevelt Island.

Amusing suggestions but I am unsure how RIOC President Steve Shane would feel having RIOC replaced in favor of an amusement park. I am betting some residents would not mind having the exterior of the Red Buses painted with Mickey Mouse and friends.


Just as long as Disney does not buy the right to combine this with that King Kong Tram ride over at Universal I guess we'd be safe enough.

“Disney's Roosevelt Island Tram. Hey, they've done a heck of a job on Broadway - why not let them work their magic on that boring sky-high gondola? Feel the wind on your face as you swoop through the East River, dodging drunken trust-funders on their speedboats, foreign tourists on the Circle Line and seagulls hovering over the garbage scows going out to sea! Or let them take it one step further with ...

Disney Roosevelt Island. The centerpiece of Disney's first amusement park in the Northeast would be a fun-filled, 3-D interactive exhibit taking families through the island's fascinating history as the repository for the unfortunate victims of insanity, smallpox and Manhattan rents. Other attractions will include Mr. Cabbie's Wild Ride, The Hall of Mayors (hosted by an automaton David Dinkins, more lifelike than the real thing!) and the heart-stopping thrill ride, the Falling Crane Drop. Don't forget the Goofy-shaped pooper-scooper for the folks back home! “

New York Mag: The New York Questionnaire

The 40th Anniversary issue of New York Magazine included asking several celebrity New Yorkers several questions regarding their connections to New York. Two celebrities referred to Roosevelt Island including Tina Fey and Sarah Jessica Parker.

Vietnamese PM Stays on Local Roosevelt Island Couch

According to a local Roosevelt Island residents blog "The Fryer's Club" the Prime Minister of Vietnam was apparently staying in their building for the United Nations General Assembly sessions. The bloggers, Scott & Elly, knew something was up when they noticed the Secret Service hanging out in their lobby and black cars parked all around their building.

Per Scott & Elly: "Haven't met him yet, but I'll let you know if I do. He looks like a nice guy, right?"

Residents have been aware that among the diplomats living on the island were representatives from Vietnam but it is surprising that their Prime Minister decided to bunk on the island during this year's session.

Links to Fryers Club Post: NY Times City Room; New York Observer

Images: Southpoint Park from Queens West

The above image is by SOMAC from Flickr and features a view of the Roosevelt Island not always seen and I am guessing was taken from one of the residential buildings in Long Island City's Queens West development based on the angle.

The structures visible starting from the lower left include the Smallpox Hospital, Strecker Labs, and Goldwater Hospital. According to the Flickr post the shot was taken on September 24, 2008.

Time Out New York : Finds Locally Mae West and Mennonites

Time Out New York apparently dropped by this past weekend and wrote up their tour describing their local excursion as part of their "Own This City" feature series.

NYDN: Local Resident's Loss - Taser Related Death

As reported in the NY Daily News, this past Friday Sept 26th, the case of the man who was tasered by the NYPD and unfortunately fell to his death has a connection to Roosevelt Island. It was resident Olga Negron whose son Inman Morales died in the incident.

According to the story:

"The mother said her son was diagnosed as bipolar and had suffered from paranoid delusions in the past. His anti-depressants recently had been changed. "That day, he had an appointment with his psychiatric doctor. I went to pick him up," said Negron, a former dental assistant who lives on Roosevelt Island. "

Brazilian Dance Perf Held at Coler - Goldwater

Locally the IESS Spiritist Society performed a dance from the Northeast of Brazil for the patients at Goldwater Hospital.

Direct YouTube link posted by SpiritismNYC

NYT City Room Blog Post re FDR Memorial

Sewell Chan of the New York Times City Room blog has posted an article today regarding the recent movement of the Louis Kahn designed FDR Memorial.

The article makes no mention as to how the design (30 years old +) is regarded by the local community. It makes no mention of what the space has become to the local community and what will be lost.

If you like or dislike the design here is a very public forum to leave your comments. Please do so.

FDR Four Freedoms Park Billboard at Southpoint

As stated yesterday a billboard has been erected at Roosevelt Island's Southpoint which in truth simply provides a web site address regarding the future FDR Memorial Four Freedoms Park. It actually is not as large as my "satirical photo mock up" predicted. It still directs web users to a page soliciting funds towards the construction of the park. It does not specifically state that the location of the billboard to be the parks actual location.

It seems a wierd mix to see a sign discussing the four freedoms and basically a small gunboat in the foreground. The Coast Guard boat was in these waters to prevent any boats getting near the United Nations while the General Assembly is in session this week.

The Roosevelt Islander has a great post this afternoon about the billboard and FERI's use of this short term billboard to solicit funding for the park. I encourage readers to go to that post and read it as I agree with it fully.

Gift Ideas from the Roosevelt Island Historical Society

Looking for a nice gift for a friend or family members that shows that you visited Roosevelt Island? Well look no further the RI Historical Society Visitors Center offers plenty of great ideas at reasonable prices.

Located in a converted trolley kiosk on the island side of the Tram the Visitors Center is open Wednesday through Sunday from 12 Noon to 5:00 pm. Each of the items in the above video is available as well as numerous other gifts and souvenirs.

Roosevelt Island Match Book - Hot Item on eBay

After last months surprising eBay auction of a vintage Roosevelt Island match book for just under $10 another auction has popped up for another Roosevelt Island unused mint issue match book. Like the last match book this one includes the tag line "400 yards East of Sutton Place" but also includes the phrase "Manhattan's Other Island " on the spine which was rubbed off on the earlier auction. The coloring is also in much better condition.

At the Buy it Now price of $9.99 it is sure to not last the week. So act now !

Big FDR Memorial Sign Marring Views of Southpoint Park?

A report has come in that a large sign has been placed on the grounds of Roosevelt Island’s Southpoint Park advertising it as the site of the dreaded Louis Kahn designed FDR Memorial. I am guessing it is big enough to be seen from the FDR Drive as otherwise what’s the point.

I have not seen it but I hope it is not so tacky to be listing web addresses or phone numbers to donate money. If it is asking for cash this would be evidence that FERI is unable to raise the funds as interest is not there.

The concept of a sign asking for money for an FDR Memorial from a highway named after FDR is a bit strange don’t you think?

Update: Up and Down Escalators !!!

As of this morning Roosevelt Island has two sets of operational escalators, up (ES 413/416) and down (ES 411/414), from the street level to the lower mezzanine. Cool.

Roosevelt Island KidFest - October 2008

Roosevelt Island KidFest 2008. The concept of holding a weekly children's event on the commons at Southtown's Riverwalk complex is pretty cool. I am guessing many island parents will be taking full advantage of the events and lending their families as extras towards enticing new families to move here.

The big question for Hudson / Related is how many families from off island can the event attract. Certainly the exposure in Time Out New York Kids and Big City Moms will help and especially by booking groups each week that many families know and follow.

Seems like a win win to everybody. While I heartily support the events and will be out with my own kids I still have great concerns about over development on this island and the effects on our infrastructure. I also wonder what current tenants at the Riverwalk 3 and 4 will think about giving up their October Saturdays for all the hoopla outside their windows.

Putting aside all this hum bug I invite all readers off island to come and visit as this is a great place to spend the day, and these events look like a lot of fun, and as a "young" family we are enjoying living here very much.

Escalator Update: Construction Pushes Thru 9/19 Morning Rush

Perhaps by the commute home they will have Roosevelt Island escalators ES 413/416 back on line but from this picture it sure was not the case for the morning rush hour despite MTA expectations that this escalator set would be back in service by today.

Correction:

In my last post I indicated that a 9/19 return of ES 413/416 would be 6 days earlier than originally planned by the MTA. I was incorrect the posters all along indicated 9/19 was the expected return to service date. The ES 413/416 went off line again on 8/25 to be joined up with ES 412/415 and the "25th" just got stuck in my memory when I wrote that post.

Escalator Update: Early and Delayed Returns

Escalators ?

Good news and bad news regarding our Roosevelt Island subway escalators. According to the advisory posters the remaining two sets of escalators were slated to both return on September 25th but that is no longer the case.

According to Deirdre Parker, NYC Transit spokeswoman, the ES 413/416 set is scheduled to re-open on September 19th, six days early. The ES 412/415 set however is expected to return to service in mid-October two weeks late. No reason has been reported at this time for the delay.

Weekend Service Disruptions ?

Unrelated to the escalator construction, Ms. Parker indicated that there are no scheduled service disruptions scheduled for any weekend affecting the 63rd Street Tunnel stations, including Roosevelt Island, through the end of October. So we can expect approximately 6 weeks of full weekend subway service to run through Roosevelt Island.

A Prayer Before You Take the Tram?

While the Roosevelt Island Tram is scheduled to be replaced next year no one has publicly stated that safety is such an issue that a prayer is required before the Tram begins its trip across the East River but someone apparently did not want to take any chances.

The above pictured prayer booth was permanently affixed and anchored into the ground within Manhattan's Tramway Plaza, a NYC designated public park. The non-denominational prayer booth offers a fold down knealing pad. The instructions, especially the warning, are the best part.

"Warning:

This device exists to facilitate and control prayer in
public space. Improper use may result in penalty or fine.

Please avoid the booth if you are sensitive to or feel
threatened by actions that are religious in nature."

The over/even is the ACLU wil have the City Parks Department remove it by midday tomorrow so get your prayers in now while you can.

Note: It appears that the prayer booth is actually an art installation created by artist Dylan Mortimer and has traveled across the country according to these 2007 newspaper articles. It would be nice if some sort of "art card' was placed nearby. Amusing. Over the years the Manhattan Tramway Plaza has hosted numerous art installations.

UPDATE 935am - Supposedly a member of Community Board 8 saw the TWO prayer booths at the plaza and is contacting Parks to have them removed. Apparently by bolting the booths to the ground it is a violation etc etc.

UPDATE 9/18 1130am - The story continues as apparently Parks did not notify CB8 that they were installing the booths as "public art".

PS / IS 217 Earns a "C" Grade from DOE

The NYC Deprtament of Education for 2007-2008 has graded the local Roosevelt Island elementary school PS / IS 217 with a "C". Last year the school was awarded an overall grade of a "B". Last year was the first year of the DOE's blunt grade system. This year's evaluation is considered by the DOE "well developed" where last year's evaluation was considered "undeveloped" indicating perhaps that the "B" awarded last year was not conclusive.

Per the report 24% of the City's K-8 schools fall into this grading. As noted above the breakout of this grade is as follows: B for School Environment; C for Student Performance, and a C for Student Progress. The full report for PS 217 can be found HERE.

Enrollment from year to year has been basically consistent from 462 last year to 454 this year per the DOE.

The NY Times has an articles regardin g the overall NYC reports issued of which PS 217 is part of.

Towers of Light from the Octagon

Of the many 9-11 Memorial Lights photos shot from Roosevelt Island I thought this one was most interesting from Zacklur shot from his apartment up at the Octagon. It can be found HERE on Flickr.