Dept Evironmental Protection Called in to Repair Tram Plaza Bathrooms?

Picture Courtesy the Roosevelt Islander
UPDATE:

As per a Twitter post after this post was published. The DEP work affected the water main servicing the bathroomsd and did not directly involve the bathrooms.

Original Post:

Apparently the bathrooms on the Roosevelt Island side of the Tram were worse than any of us knew as the DEP has been called in per the below advisory. I have submitted an inquiry into RIOC as to why the repairs are being done by DEP as opposed to regular plumbers or maintenance personnel. Interesting. Did we have a toxic spill or something? Stand by.


-----Original Message-----

From: RIOC Advisories

Sent: Friday, August 28, 2009 2:34 PM

To: RIOC Advisories

Subject: Tram Plaza Bathrooms

Please be advised on Tuesday, September 1, 2009 the bathrooms on the Roosevelt Island side of the Tram will be out of service from 9:00 P.M. until 1:00 A.M. due to repairs by the Department of Environmental Protection.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Sincerely,

Roosevelt Island Operating Corp Advisories Group

Please visit us on the web at http://www.rioc.com/

Has Anyone Ever Used the Bathrooms at Motorgate Garage?

As a parent of young children I continue an obsession over access to public bathrooms on Roosevelt Island. I was walking back to our apartment the other day when a mother with three school age kids stopped me by the Main Street bridge ramp asking me where the closest public bathroom was.

I pointed her to the bathrooms on the second level of Motorgate Garage but stated I was not even sure they were open. I also told facilities farther North and at Trellis in case they were not or if she found them not to her liking. Us parents are fussy that way. I will be honest I would rather my kids pee behind a tree as opposed to how some bathrooms get. Occassionally the bathrooms near the Octagon Soccer field and the Garden Club get that bad but are usually ok.

Recently there was a piece in the NY Times Complaints column about parents using trees and bushes as bathrooms for their kids and I agree that should be a last resort.

The addition of the new public bathrooms up by Lighthouse Park was great news. the provision of a port-a-john at Riverwalk Commons during Roosevelt Live has been a life saver. I noted another port-a-john by Firefighter's Field. Unsure if that is RIOC or Zog Sports sponsored. Luckily the Tram station bathrooms are close by.

As the post title states has nayone used the bathrooms in Motorgate? If they are actually closed that leaves the central part of Roosevelt Island without a true public restroom. Trellis gets used as such but that is not really fair to Trellis.

A Roosevelt Island Subway Sta. Bathroom?

According to a story in today's New York Post, July 30, 2008, the bathroom at the Roosevelt Island subway Station was found not only to be open but fully stocked with toilet paper. Brooklyn Assemblyman Dov Hikind conducted a study of 18 restrooms in three boroughs and found 10 were locked and four of the open restrooms lacked toilet paper. The Roosevelt Island loo was only one of two found to be open and stocked.

Fantastic. Great news! Yay for us!

The only question I have is where is this bathroom? Granted I have been on this island less than three years but I have never heard of such a bathroom and believe me with two young kids it would have been good info to have. No wonder it's fully stocked us parents with kids have not found it.

Just to be sure I am going to contact the Post reporter and the Assemblymember's office. I have a feeling they meant Roosevelt Avenue in Queens.

UPDATE 6:00 pm

According to a legislative aid working at the Assemblymember's office the Roosevelt Island station bathroom was inspected by a representative from Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer's office and the information was passed along to the Assemlymember.

According to the token clerk on duty this evening the "Station Toilet" pictured below is not available to the public and no pubic facility exists at this station so it is unclear why Scott Stringer's office reported that a restroom was available at this station.

City Flushes First, Roosevelt Island Still Holding It.

Well the City has its first official “flush” according to the news release issued today. The first of the Cemusa Public Toilets has been christened. No word yet whether RIOC ever submitted an application for one of the 20 annointed toilets commissioned by NYC through Cemusa for Roosevelt Island.


According to the Trust for Public Land’s Wild Gardens planned schematic two public loo’s are planned. No idea if they are to be of the same design but each appears to be part of structures created for the park.



I still vote to place one additional public toilet just North of Capobianco Field and Grandpa Al Lewis Playground perhaps just under the circular ramp onto and off the Island.

As noted in prior posts the only publicly toilets currently accessible on the Island are located at the Tram station on the Island (ask the operators to unlock the doors) and just across from the FDNY Special Operations Command by the Public Gardens and the Octagon Soccer Field.

Back to the Lack of Public Bathroom Issue: Local NYPL Branch in Particular

Now that Related / Hudson has indicated that the last retail space at 425 Main Street is planned for some sort of “food” related tenant it puts to bed some of the rumors that the Roosevelt Island Branch of the New York Public Library will be moving to that space. I now find myself coming back to the need for increased public bathrooms centrally located on the Island.

I first starting making noise on this blog regarding this need, back in August, in regards to the local NYPL branch NOT making available to the public the sole bathroom on their premises. It was hoped that if the NYPL Branch moved to a new space on the Island that access to a public bathroom on the premises would be made available. Currently if a parent has a child needing to go that they either have to run home or go to Trellis and quickly try to descend those slippery worn steps to their bathroom. Running South to the Tram or North to Octagon Park are not options.

The Roosevelt Islander picked up on this same theme in a number of posts and also put forth my suggestion that RIOC apply for one of the planned twenty stand alone public toilets the City intends to construct around the five boroughs. I guess it is time to start making inquiries again. For users of the library it would be so much easier if the bathroom at the library could at least be made available to them.

Perhaps a portion of 504 Main Street once it is converted to the Public Safety offices could be set aside and turned into a publicly accessible restroom. With the public safety officers onsite at least we would be assured that the restrooms would be safe and not used for any illicit purposes. Perhaps when the Charmin toilet paper folks leave their now annual Time Square facilities they could be talked into sponsoring a public lieu here on Roosevelt Island?