How well does your community board represent the district? Not very.
Community boards, which translate neighborhood needs to City Hall and city agencies, play a vital role in the functioning of New York City. But in Brooklyn, many boards don’t accurately reflect the districts they serve, according to an analysis by the Brooklyn Eagle and Measure of America of a new report on community board membership.
Borough presidents are newly required to provide an annual report on the demographic composition of their community boards’ memberships. Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams published his first report in October, after reporting from the Eagle revealed that all five borough presidents had missed the initial July 1 deadline.
The mandated report was added nearly 10 months ago to the City Charter, following the passage of a 2018 ballot proposal overwhelmingly supported by voters. It compiles the age, gender and ethnicity of board members as indicated on board applications.
Including that data on an application is at an applicant’s discretion, and any analysis is impacted by differing rates of disclosure.