Niou succeeds placeholder Alice Cancel, who won a special election in 2016 called after the 2015 conviction of Sheldon Silver on federal corruption charges. Cancel remains a district leader for the assembly district; Silver remains free while awaiting appeal.
Niou’s temporary district office opened yesterday at 250 Broadway, Room 2212, across the street from City Hall. The phone number there is 212-312-1420.
A Village Voice profile was published yesterday highlighting Niou’s achievement.
NYC Sanitation does some curb-side pick-up for Christmas tree mulching over the next two weeks, but it’s never clear when that is and whether your tree will be recycled for the good of all living trees. So, if you want to be sure your tree gets mulched, drag it around to Corlears Hook Park before January 8 where NYC Parks will take care of it properly.
Please don’t just leave it anywhere. Bring the tree to the park entrance on Jackson Street, which is where the pick-up will be next weekend.
(If you actually want the chips from your tree to use in your home garden, you’ll need to bring your tree to Tompkins Square Park on Saturday or Sunday, 10 am – 2 pm. The Corlears site is drop-off only.)
Cooperator Jacob Goldman has been appointed to the post of Male District Leader for our part of assembly district 65, following the passing last year of David Weinberger, who had held the post for many years.
Goldman owns Loho Realty, a tenant of our commercial property, and lives in East River Coop with his family. His brother, Dov, is on the East River board of directors.
The role of district leader is a volunteer position within the Democratic Party. As an elected position, district leaders serve as local Democrats’ representatives to the inner workings of the party. In New York City, assembly districts are carved into parts, and each part gets two district leaders, one male and one female. Elections are every two years and take place during the state primary in September. Goldman’s appointment in part A lasts until the next primary for this post (which I believe will be in 2017).
While there can be contested elections for district leader, that has not been the case for many years on Grand Street, where part A is organized by the Truman Democratic Club, which has been tightly controlled for years by Sheldon Silver and Willie Rapfogel, both now convicted felons living at home. While the club’s power in the assembly district was challenged last year when Alice Cancel, its pick to succeed Silver, was defeated, its grip on Grand Street politics remains unchallenged.
Other district leaders for the 65th assembly district are Karen Blatt (part A); Alice Cancel and Pedro Cardi (part B, Lower East Side Democratic Club); Paul Newell and Jenifer Rajkumar (part C, Downtown Independent Democrats); and Jenny G. H. Lam-Low and Justin Yu (part D, United Democratic Organization).
Paul Taylor, one of America’s true modern dance icons, is an East River cooperator, his elite dance company is located above Fine Fare on Grand Street — and you can take modern dance classes here every week for a ridiculously low price. Interested?
Adult Open Level Modern classes “are ideal for both the first time mover as well as returning students to dance. In a relaxed and encouraging environment, students explore Paul Taylor’s style and choreography through basic modern exercises and movement phrases.”
These classes for adults — no experience needed — are Thursdays 6:00 – 7:30 pm at 551 Grand Street on the top floor. Try one for only $17, or commit to ten weeks for $150. At any price, this is a remarkable opportunity to learn from world-class dancers right in our own backyard. Click here for more information.
Also, mark your calendars: Paul Taylor Dance Company will be performing at Lincoln Center March 8 – 26.
Votes were counted this evening and the results are not surprising: the slate of candidates with incumbents Gary Altman, Rachel Ehrenpreis, Larry Goldman, and newcomer Reuven Bell defeated three challengers, including Mary Jo Burke and Julian Swearengin.
Of the four winners, Reuven Bell received the least number of votes, so will be awarded a two-year term to fill out the term of Tommy Schlanger, who passed away this summer. Altman, Ehrenpreis, and Goldman each win a three-year term.
This Saturday, kids from around the neighborhood have the chance to hand-craft decorations for the holiday tree in Corlears Hook Park.
Saturday, December 10, 2016
2:00 – 3:30 pm
Vladeck Houses Tenants Association Community Room
328 Madison Street (at corner of Gouverneur Street)
The holiday tree complements a menorah that has traditionally been set up in Corlears.
For more information email contact@FriendsOfCorlears.org.
A partial, unaudited financial report has been distributed to apartment doors this evening revealing a $3 million swing from last year’s $1.7 million surplus to a $1.4 million deficit this year. An additional $700,000 expense was amortized — ten times more than usual — presumably for last year’s costly laundry room repairs.
This represents the worst financial report for the coop in at least a dozen years.
No balance sheet was included in the report, nor was cash flow statement included, as is normally the case. And the numbers were presented unaudited, more than five months after the close of our fiscal year.
I spoke with board member Lee Berman, who confirmed that he and other board members had not been able to review even these unaudited financial reports before they were distributed this evening. He wrote me, “The board does not always receive financials at its monthly meetings, and if the board is lucky enough to receive financials some random month, they are never provided in advance. Board members simply cannot exercise their proper fiduciary responsibilities to the corporation and to you the shareholders without this financial information, along with detailed analysis. It is inexplicable why the majority of board members do not find it troublesome that critically important timely detailed financial information is withheld from them, or from you.”
Berman also said that receiving these numbers less than 24 hours before our annual meeting makes it “impossible for [shareholders] to fully review and digest the material, or even afford them the opportunity to discuss it with their financial advisers so they could ask intelligent and informed questions regarding the finances at the meeting.”
In our cooperative survey conducted this fall, 20% of respondents were very or somewhat satisfied with the financial health of the coop, while 58% were very or somewhat dissatisfied. Considering that for many of us this is our largest financial investment, that number could stand to be improved.
What’s the source of that dissatisfaction? We didn’t ask that question, but I suspect it can be summed up in one word: mystery.
This mystery would be easily dispelled if the board were to adopt a few new practices like pledging to release audited financials at least 30 days before our annual meeting and budgets at the start of the fiscal year. Using the directors’ occasional newsletter to report more substantive ongoing financial information would also help, as would a mid-year Q&A for shareholders.
Tonight is your one chance to ask questions of the candidates for our board of directors.
7:00 – 8:30 pm
East River Community Room
477 FDR Drive (section M)
You’ll be able to write questions on an index card when you arrive; questions will be screened by Ellen Gentilviso, who chairs the election committee. (Generally, she allows only questions addressed to all candidates, not to only one.)
Cooperatively Yours has endorsed Mary Jo Burke and Julian Swearengin, who will both be there tonight. You can read more about them here and sign a directed proxy for them here.
Friends,
Last week’s election has affected us all in different ways. In many ways it was a reminder of all the values that are as appropriate to our coop as they are to our country — respect for individuals, elected leadership accountable to their constituents, and the power of voices, when raised appropriately, to be heard.
Many of us are feeling like we could have done more to help shape the future. Here is your chance – as the saying goes, “All politics is local.” You can still help shape the future of our community. Action for positive change starts at home.
We are running for the board of directors to open up communication with all cooperators — to ensure you are consulted and heard before maintenance fees are increased, before shareholders’ heirs become absentee landlords, before 8-foot tall fences are built, and before potentially inadequate planning saddles you with unexpected assessments. Our goal is to add relevant management expertise and fresh, new ideas to the existing board while increasing transparency into major decisions so that your voice is heard.
Please add your name to our campaign.
We just posted the complete results of our recent survey. You can see that the largest area of dissatisfaction among the hundreds of responses is the board’s lack of transparency and the board’s failure to seek input on major decisions. We agree with you! If we are elected, your opinions and input will be solicited, considered, and valued. The financial health of our coop is very important — but equally important is your enjoyment of living here and your satisfaction with the services we receive.
We plan to put just one letter under doors, signed by our supporters. Over a hundred cooperators signed our letter last year — let’s raise that number and show our neighbors that we are no longer willing to be ignored and intimidated.
Please add your name to our campaign.
There is so much we agree on. The diversity and affordability of our coop need to be protected and we want to facilitate an open, respectful conversation about the best way to achieve these goals. If you support us for the board, we will advocate fiercely for transparency, shareholder involvement, and substantive communication.
Cooperatively yours,
Mary Jo Burke
& Julian Swearengin
