Graffiti, pothole complaints keep Bay Ridge board busy

March 18, 2015 By Paula Katinas Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Community Board 10 staff members reported 53 potholes and street cave-ins in the space of a single month. This pothole was found on Fourth Avenue. Eagle photo by Paula Katinas

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What’s on the minds of Bay Ridge residents these days? Community Board 10 officials can offer a clue based on the number of phone calls they receive from people complaining about quality of life issues.

Potholes, graffiti, illegally parked trucks and trash on the streets top the list of complaints from Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights residents contacting the community board, District Manager Josephine Beckmann told members at the board’s March 16 meeting. The board serves both neighborhoods.

“As spring is coming upon us and the winter snow is melting, there is a mess left behind and we have been addressing many quality of life complaints,” Beckmann stated at the meeting, which took place at the Norwegian Christian Home and Health Center at 1250 67th St.

The community board’s district office filed 53 complaints dealing with potholes and street cave-ins with the city between mid-February and mid-March, according to Beckman. “The worst block by far is 78th Street between Fourth and Fifth avenues. If you had the opportunity to drive down that street, it’s a mess for sure,” she said.

In addition, Beckmann said “there are many locations with multiple cave-ins like 12th Avenue from Bay Ridge Avenue to 72nd Street.”

Graffiti is another bane in the existence of local residents, according to Beckmann, who said her office called in 32 graffiti-ridden locations to the city’s 311 system. “Cold weather prevents prompt removal of graffiti,” she said.

The district office also hears a lot from residents reporting that commercial trucks are parked overnight on their streets in violation of the law. It is illegal for a commercial vehicle to be parked on a New York City street between the hours of 9 p.m. and 5 a.m., unless the owner can prove that he or she is actively engaged in business at the time.

“Over 30 complaints were filed on behalf of residents who have contacted our office. In the residential district of Seventh Avenue northbound from 78th Street to 73rd Street, there are several trucks that have not moved since first complaints were received on Feb. 23,” Beckmann told the community board.

The presence of the trucks has caused a significant quality of life issue, she said. Residents have reported that garbage is strewn about the street and sidewalk outside McKinley Park on Fort Hamilton Parkway and along the Gowanus Expressway on Seventh Avenue.

“I have conferred with our sanitation supervisor who confirmed that the trucks stored along Seventh Avenue are also preventing Department of Sanitation sweepers from getting through for routine cleaning and while summonses are issued weekly by the Department of Sanitation, the area remains unclean,” Beckmann said.

But residents are mostly angry over the fact that the trucks are hogging parking spaces.

“This area is utilized for on-street parking by local residents and patrons of local businesses, doctor’s offices and houses of worship,” Beckman said.

Community Board 10 is located at 8119 Fifth Ave. The office phone number is 718-745-6827. Residents can also email the board at [email protected].