Yup...I got that....so was I.....and I don't really want to get rid of the old and infirm--it would be self-immolation. And I think its going to flow South only from the way its painted.

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Two things: Firstly, he was being sarcastic.

Secondly, yes, they painted Washington as a one-way with traffic flowing south only.

(corrected as per chartmann, I got my directions mixed up)

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Hey...don't get me wrong...I'm all for gentrifying anything of value within arguable walking distance of the river, throwing out the existing residents, the old, weak, infirm, or anyone less fortunate or different than me. And I too believe that OTHER PEOPLEs' cars should be kept off the roads. But hey....why should they go and wreck a perfectly good paving job that it TOOK FIVE YEARS TO GET???

As for the meetings...I do go from time to time.....but wait...(everything goes slightly blurry, as the flashback starts)..... I see myself sitting there month after month in 1998-99 with Goldman Sachs architects (who want our association approval to help with PILOTS and building restrictions) telling us about the pedestrian walkway through the covered, futuristic atrium rivaling the Wintergarden...from Hudson St. to the Ferry -- not to mention the other building...[blurring clears up]....Oh, sorry, I'm back.....yup, if we could just get the developers to promise to do things the right way.....Wait....no....maybe it would be better to get the CITY TO CONTROL THINGS WITH THE DAMN PERMITS.......

I say give the contractors and builders all of the money, exempt them from everything...sacrifice our pets....I don't care...just make them stop screwing up the few streets we have that still work. That expansion around the Trump building site is an insult. I can just see someone, somewhere planning the same for 77 Hudson, the adjacent part of Greene and VanVoorst between Morris and Grand.

ps. Note re tonight's meeting--there will be a report regarding Washington being one way between CC and Montgomery. What fresh hell is this?

Likely true -- I might get a scooter but I think the SUV'ers might be a bit much to take.

Also I think you can't ride two on a scooter in NJ - a law that should be changed!

http://urbannerd.com/2005/05/21/purpo ... -suv-while-on-my-scooter/

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Post 9/11 that will *never* happen. You can't even look at the tunnel funny without the SWAT team showing up.

MyKatIsGoing I agree -- bikes should be able to use the Holland tunnel -- at least off rush hour -- how can we work towards this goal -- it's good for NYC and Jersey City. Traffic is slow through the tunnel and once it gets into Manhattan anyway.

I like the way you are thinking!

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I also ride my bike to work - every day except when it rains, so I understand your concerns. I hijacked Chartman's post so I could rant about our city fathers.

There are construction meetings once a month at 30 Montgomery. That is the place to make the case about road closures.

super_furry, I ride my bike to work 90% of the time and I find Chartmann's concerns very valid. The huge closure of 2/3 of Columbus near Greene and Washington made that area unpleasant for riding (very narrow lanes, construction debris, plus primarily bus traffic). For that matter, the work sites on Washington near the powerhouse have taken over the sidewalk and a small part of the roadway (temporary 1-way street). I'm waiting for the Washington/Greene one-way pair to be complete in that area to provide a decent route close to the waterfront.

My pipe dream is to be able to ride my bike to Manhattan and not have to deal with PATH or the ferry, but that's not going to happen anytime soon.

I agree with PHResident. HPHA is a very effective neighborhood assn.! Attend their meetings.

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Chartman,

The HPHA (Historic Paulus Hook Association) meeting is tonight at 7:30 PM in the OLC basement on Sussex Street. I have no idea who you are, but hopefully you attend these meetings. If not, you should.

The HPHA has several committees including Development Oversight and Construction that can get involved in things like this.

It is something that the general membership needs to make known that they feel is a priority. Come to the meeting and speak up.

The government seems to listen when they think they have a group of concerned citizens versus one or two complainers (which is what we can easily be labeled as when we are not organized).

See you there...I hope.

Chartman, you are obviously a whiner and opposed to progress. Recently Mayor Healy compared JC to Hong Kong, and said that people really don't need cars downtown. Your complaints have fallen on deaf ears. The city is hungry for the PILOTS from that new construction. Short term, fiscally irresponsible schemes prevail. Why have open space on the embankment when you can have shiny new condos and those PILOTS? Damn the future! That will be a problem for some other administration (that is why there is a tradition in Hudson County for all new administrations to blame the fiscal mess they inherited on their immediate predecessor).

Chartman, if you want to do SOMETHING to encourage good government, vote for Vas in the primary, and implore your friends in JC to do the same.

I would like to ask a huge favor of the City -- dealing with 77 Hudson and the new building at the other end end of Sussex (at VanVoorst). It has to do with how the City permits out usage of the surrounding streets to the builders.

After living in a construction zone for 5 years, I was THRILLED to get Greene open, and the whole of Paulus Hook paved. I wait daily to drive Washington between CC and Montgomery -- pathetically, it will be the high point of my summer.

What a delight. It is wonderful. Years of patience are paying off.

However, I?ve noticed that with each successive building project here, the contractors take over much more of the adjacent roads than used to be the case. (Montgomery at Greene is a good example of a multi-year takeover of the surrounding streets.) Much of the time it is unnecessary. And in later stages these closed lanes tend to become parking for construction workers.

And now the new Trump building has cut through the pretense and simply closed and fenced off a lane on all sides. Again, at least one of these closed lanes is just free parking for workers most of the time.

If the builders at the two ends of Sussex do this I?m going to either have a breakdown or get mad at the officials who allow this. Upset voters are not friendly voters. In this case, each builder will coincidentally have an entire section of a presently unused block of Sussex to work from -- that they can utilize exclusively. There is no need to wreck the newly paved streets and cut off use of street by building fences in the middle of the roads on VanVoorst, Greene and Hudson.

Please, they have a lot more exclusive space than builders in NYC get. Give us some breathing room.

I am not anti-development or anti-anything...just really, really tired. And now, with Sussex about to be in a construction sandwich for a couple of years more.............