Community News

Whitney M. Young, Jr. Memorial Scholorship

Application Deadline April 2, 2012

Are you:

A person who demonstrates strong potential for academic achievement

Of excellent character and proven leadership ability, with a demonstrated commitment to community service and extra-curricular activities

A New York City resident of color

A potential 2012 high school graduate or recipient of a GED that has been accepted as a full time and first-term matriculating freshman at an accredited college or university

A student with a cumulative average of at least 80 or GED score of 2800

Then you are eligible to apply for the 2012 Whitney M. Young, Jr. Scholarship presented by the New York Urban League.

http://www.nyul.org/nyul_scholarships.html

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Dept. of Sanitation 2011-12 Snow Plans

The Final Borough Snow Plans for the 2011-2012 winter snow season are now posted on DSNY's website.

The link is as follows: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dsny/html/snow_plans_mapping/snowplans.shtml

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Reduction of Alternate Side Parking

On Tuesday, November 15, 2011 Community Board 8 held the first of a series of Public Hearings to hear public comments on the proposal to reduce street cleaning days throughout the district. Currently, the Department of Sanitation cleans the street 4 times a week and the reduction will scale the cleaning to twice a week.

Based on feedback from the community at the hearing, via mail, email and by telephone. We found that the community is divided on the concept of reducing the street cleaning days.

Additional hearing will be held on this issue in the future.

Community input is needed, please contact Community Board 8 at 718-467-5574.

Penny Increase for Postage Stamps

Beginning early next year, customers will spend a penny more to mail letters to any location in the United States. This is the first price change for First-Class Mail stamps (Forever stamps) since May 2009.

The new 45-cent price for Forever stamps is among price changes filed with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC).

Highlights of the new single-piece First-Class Mail pricing, effective Jan. 22, 2012, include:

Letters (1 oz.) – 1-cent increase to 45 cents
Letters additional ounces – unchanged at 20 cents
Postcards – 3-cent increase to 32 cents
Letters to Canada or Mexico (1 oz.) – 5-cent increase to 85 cents.
Letters to other international destinations – 7-cent increase to $1.05
Prices also will change for other mailing services, including Standard Mail, Periodicals, Package Services and Extra Services.
Express Mail and Priority Mail prices will remain the same.

Your Dog Needs a License

It's the Law!!!!

New York State law requires that all owned dogs be licensed and the NYC Health Code §161.04 require every dog owner to have a dog license tag attached to their dog’s collar while in public. Dog owners may be fined for violation of these laws.

If you live in one of the five boroughs of New York City,  call 311 to have an NYC dog license application mailed to you or download it from this web site or apply online at Apply online for a dog license or renewal license.

Dog owners may also apply and make payment online for a new dog license or renew an existing one.

Please Note: If you live outside of New York City, you should contact your local health department or the State of New York to find out how to get a dog license where you live.

Do you know about Coucilpedia?

Gotham Gazette, published by Citizens Union Foundation, has created Councilpedia to expand and enrich the conversation about money and politics in New York City by enabling you, our readers, to share information about city elected officials and the people and organizations that give them money. You can search a politician's campaign donations, the bills he or she sponsored and member items -- and then tell us what you know. And you can read and discuss comments by other readers.

Did a candidate take money from a developer charged with building code violations? Click on that contribution and tell us.

Did another council member introduce legislation at the urging of a particular union? Connect those dots for us.

Councilpedia sorts contributions by type: major donor, labor union, real estate, etc for each official. With a few clicks you can see all the contributions a candidate received from labor unions or from developers.

Beyond that, Councilpedia pulls together an unprecedented amount of material—campaign expenditures, council members' sponsored legislation, member items, campaign history and more—all to one convenient location.

Councilpedia is designed to encourage readers to participate and share what they may know about politicians and their donors. To get started, go to the main page and click on the name of the elected official who interests you. The politician's home page will list all contributors for the 2009 campaign. You can also find out if the politician has collected money for 2013 – and who that money has come from. You can also narrow the search by selecting any of the options under "Contributions by Category" or by searching for a section of the alphabet.

Gotham Gazette created Councilpedia for engaged citizens: you, members of your community board and members of your community.

To learn about more how to use Councilpedia please visit the www.councilpedia.org

Dept. of City Planning Unveils Online Land Use and Zoning Tool

The Department of City Planning and the Department of Information Technology & Telecommunications announced the release of the publicly accessible zoning and land use web application known as ZoLa. The web-based geographic information systems tool provides up-to-date maps with zoning and land use information for New York City properties.

ZoLa is based on the same platform as the City's online NYCityMap application and allows users to find land use information in "interactive", highly-readable map layers". Users can review land use and zoning information for specifici properties, neighborhoods, and the City at large. ZoLa's map provides data on zoning designations, area land uses, landmark designations, and boundaries for historic districts and City Council and Community District and much more.

ZoLa is available through Planning's website at www.nyc.gov/planning or can be accessed directly at http://gis.nyc.gov/zola.

Commissioner Doherty urges New Yorkers to comply with the Pooper-Scooper Law and clean up after their dogs

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DOG WALKERS RESPONSIBILITY

Respect your community

By John J. Doherty, Commissioner of Sanitation

All of us take pride in keeping our homes clean and in good repair.  Keeping a home clean is an every-day effort that requires constantly picking up after ourselves and reminding our children to do the same.  When we visit our friends, we’re also careful to treat their homes as our own and make a point of cleaning up after ourselves. 

This is why average New Yorkers are both puzzled and outraged by the inconsiderate attitude of those who fail to pick up after their dogs, creating obstacles on our streets and sidewalks where every step carries a potentially unpleasant surprise.  We all feel that those who fail to comply with the pooper-scooper law show a complete lack of respect for their neighbors and our communities.

The “Pooper Scooper” law -- officially known as Section 1310 of the New York State Public Health Code – became law in New York City on August 1, 1978.  With its enactment, the Big Apple became the first major American city requiring dog walkers to be responsible for picking up and disposing of their dog’s waste.  Many other cities across the country – and around the globe – have since followed suit with similar ‘pooper scooper’ laws. 

We all know the MO of those flouting the law. They walk their dog, and when the pooch gets the ‘call of nature,’ they stand by trying to look casual -- all the while carefully looking left and right, checking for possible witnesses.  Even before their dog has finished its business, it’s apparent they’ve decided not to bother to clean up after it.  They think that what they do is no big deal…unless they themselves step into another lawbreaker’s mess!

Sanitation’s enforcement agents have a very different view and consider failure to pick up after a dog a punishable violation of the law. And while selfish dog walkers react with some embarrassment when getting caught in the act by their neighbors, they always seem to mind when embarrassment turns into a fine.  

The fact is that -- whether scofflaws choose to acknowledge it or not -- failure to clean up after your dog is a violation of a State law and it carries a fine of $250. 

I’m proud to say we’ve made New York City the cleanest it’s been in over three decades.  However, no matter how much our dedicated Sanitation Workers clean or merchants and residents sweep their sidewalks and pedestrians comply with Sanitation regulations, inconsiderate dog walkers can spoil a clean block, not to mention a pair of shoes, with their blatant disregard for the law, turning their fellow New Yorkers’ daily walks into a challenge. With that in mind, the Sanitation Department’s ongoing citywide outreach and enforcement efforts aim at increasing compliance with the “pooper scooper” law and, when necessary, impose fines. 

It’s time for all responsible dog walkers to make sure they clean up after their pets and keep them on a leash, and for all New Yorkers to reclaim their streets, sidewalks and parkland.  The simple pleasure of long walks with no unpleasant surprises along the way, and most particularly… under foot , must be preserved.

The bottom line is that  canine waste is not only an unsightly nuisance, but it can also pose health hazards when it’s not cleaned up. 

To report issues of canine waste in your area, call 311.  We’ll send our Canine Enforcement Agents there to try to catch these inconsiderate lawbreakers in the act.

Remember: It is important for everyone to be a considerate neighbor.  Respect your community and pick up after your dogs.

Free Graffiti Removal

The Mayor's Office works closely with a team of City agencies to implement Graffiti Free NYC, a citywide effort to combat graffiti in our communities. Explore how to get graffiti removed, plan your own cleanup project and learn about the new strategies being used to combat graffiti. 

Got Stuff to get rid of?