MarineParker.net

As many of you have noticed by now, the Department of Transportation has done a considerable amount of work on Gerritsen Avenue –  removing two lanes of traffic, re-striping of lanes and adding a center median, and adding a pedestrian median at its intersection with Avenue U.  Strongly a pessimist when it comes to “traffic reconfiguring” projects, I was not confident that this would be a successful endeavor.  Sadly, I think I am correct.  In my estimation, the removal of two lanes of traffic has caused further congestion and the turn from Knapp Street onto Gerritsen Avenue heading north has become even more treacherous than it was before.  For further information and some VERY TELLING photographs, you must visit GerritsenBeach.net’s coverage of the project. 

Does this impede FDNY from exiting their firehouse for emergencies if there is a line of traffic backed up from each direction?  How does this impact traffic on Gerritsen Avenue when buses pull over in the “parking/standing” lane?  Is traffic forced to drive on the striped median if the bus is unable to pull over?  Conversely, does this faciliate easier crossing for kids from Good Shepherd or Marine Park JHS?  Thoughts?

What are your feelings on DOT’s new traffic reconfiguration?

Christmas has arrived in Marine Park, in the form of truckload of Christmas Tress in the Avenue U parking lot in Marine Park.

Every year they setup and sell Christmas Trees of all sizes as well as all of the accessories and other Christmas items that you could possibly think of.

Currently, they are organizing all of their trees by size and pricing. Prices range from $25 to $225.

Here are some tips in selecting a good live Christmas tree! (via PickYourOwnChristmasTree.org)

1. Get a healthy tree – Don’t buy a tree that is losing green needles, or has dry, brittle twigs or a sour, musty smell. Excessive needle loss can be detected by vigorously shaking the tree, or dropping it onto the end of the trunk several times from a height of about 1 ft (30 cm). The loss of old dead needles from the inside of the tree does not indicate that there is a problem with the tree. Mechanical shakers can remove these needles, and reduce the potential for a mess inside the home.
2. Size of the tree – Do not buy a tree that is too large for the area where it will be displayed. Aside from paying more than necessary, up to $10 per ft (30 cm) of height, you will have to cut off a large section of the lower trunk, and possibly the lower whorl of branches. This might ruin the appearance of the lower part of the tree.
3. Bottom of the tree – Note the location of large branches at the bottom of the tree. Be sure that the handle is long enough to allow display of the tree without cutting off the lower whorl of large branches. USDA grading rules specify trees should have a handle 1 to 12 in (2.5 to 3.8 cm) long per ft (30 cm) of height. However, some species are routinely sold without pruned handles, eg, Fraser fir.
4. Shaking the tree – When purchasing a tree from a choose-n-cut farm, have the producer mechanically ‘shake’ the tree, if possible. This will eliminate dead, loose needles, especially in species such as Virginia pine, white pine, Scotch pine and red cedar. There is less potential mess to reach the home.

Happy Thanksgiving and God Bless America!

As the Pilgrims very extremely pious and their “friendship” with the Native Americans skeptical, I find so much irony in the fact that they are now depicted as mass-produced inflatable yard decorations bearing pies and pumpkins.

OH just wait until when Christmas comes.  I am going to have a FIELD DAY with the inflatable decorations.

Thank you to Karina Smith, Department of Parks and Recreation’s Correspondence Liaison for Special Projects, for the following information concerning the future Carmine Carro Community Center:

The community center is situated within the large outdoor active recreation area of Marine Park, which is also an important natural link to the Jamaica Bay ecosystem.   The center will provide a long-awaited community meeting and gathering space for large and small local groups in a divisible multi-purpose space which will serve 180 senior citizens breakfast and lunch daily.  There will be a training classroom within equipped with computer stations, and an adjacent outdoor plaza is provided for meals, events and informal social gatherings in suitable weather.

Marine Park Community Center is the first environmentally friendly, sustainable green building designed by the NYC Department of Parks & Recreation (DPR) staff; and it is the first DPR building registered for LEED® certification.  During daylight hours the building is naturally lit by operable clerestory windows in the brick walls.  An ‘air displacement ventilation system’ provides fresh air at a pleasant temperature directly to the center-goers throughout the year. A geothermal well system pumps pleasantly warm water from the aquifer through the building providing heating or cooling, while reducing electrical consumption and greenhouse gas emission.  The lower roof is vegetated, insulating the building against hot and cold weather, while the plants filter out rain water contaminants, reduce storm-water run-off and humidify the atmosphere. On the upper roof a farm of solar panels produce 10% of the building’s electrical need.

Trees and broadly overhanging roofs provide exterior shade on the plaza, while light colored paving reflects the sun’s heating rays. The indigenous vegetation and meadow grass of the surrounding landscape obviate the need for irrigation.

Our anticipated completion date for the center is August 2010, and we are confident that you will enjoy the results.

Because here at MarineParker we love to butcher things to death, CBS 2 news has contributed to the on the ongoing battle of the bells between local resident John Russo and St. Thomas Aquinas Church.

Marine Park on a beautiful Autumn afternoon.  Have a wonderful weekend!

A small schoolbus was one of four vehicles involved in an accident this morning on Gerritsen Avenue and Avenue S at approximately 8 AM.  GerritsenBeach.net reports that nine people were injured, with three sustaining serious injuries.  Anyone have any updates?