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- Cleaning up the Dept of Buildings - a fountain of scandal that seriously endangers our lives
gothamist.com/2009/09/08/report_buildings_inspectors_take_br.php

- police training

- the liquid natural gas question, referenced above

- protected bike lanes. (I'd commute by bike, but I don't want to die.)

- since it's the end of summer...
BEACHES! The guards are gone, is this city going to keep writing tickets to old folks getting their exercise at Brighton Beach?
Another Gothamist story: gothamist.com/2009/08/28/brighton_beach_swimmer_speaks_out.php

voter
amen!!

A proposal has been made to build a Liquid Natural Gas, massive platform approximately (15) miles off the coast of Rockaway.
Once again having our Country be dependent on foreign fuel.
Our Community is against such an undertaking, for many reasons, safety being the number one concern.
The decision is in the hands of Governor Patterson. He rejected such a plant to be built in the Long Island Sound area. We are awaiting his decision concerning Rockaway. I would be interested in our Mayor's opinion and his input with this issue.

#9 John Tucker,
The fastest way to buck the system and put an end to aggressive/excessive fines is not to break the law. Otherwise, sell the car, give the dog away, don’t drink (alcohol) in public, don’t by packaged goods requiring recycling, don’t make noise, and don’t go into business affecting public health and safety in it’s too regulated for your taste. The laws out there are to protect the community and make life livable for everyone with this population density. Being free to do whatever one wants isn’t really conducive to city living. Fines should not be and cannot be equated with taxes; fines are elective and are solely due to behavior.

Calls'em
or will dems lose because of the republicat mismanagement of our economy and all the cronyism that has brought us to the brink.
how quickly we forget (when we want to forget)

Poorly trained laborers employed by city contractors damaging our infrastructure, which results in reckless spending of tax dollars and eventually flooding of streets and homes.
In July, 2007, Street paving contractors hired by the DOT were seen dumping thousands of tons of hot asphalt into the storm drains in Greenpoint simply because they did not take the easy and economical precaution to cover the drains before the paving truck spread the asphalt. The supervisor claimed that the DEP would clean out the drains on the roads being repaved. This response by a supervisor is equally worrisome.
The damage to the storm drains, the cost of wasted asphalt, as well as eventual flooding, in addition to the manpower to clean the tons of hardened asphalt were grounds for an investigation by our elected officials, yet there has never been a followed-up, and the contractors are still filling the storm drains when they repaved in July, 2009, and not only in Greenpoint.
In 2007, certified letters were sent to: Councilman David Yassky, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, Assemblyman Joseph R. Lentol, Janette Sadik-Khan Commissioner DOT, Emily Lloyd Commissioner NYC DEP

I agree with hjs that the ridiculous number of municipalities in NJ is a huge waste of money and resources and an invitation to corruption. All those politicians double or triple-dipping salaries...

Brian, no NYC'er drives to NJ just to buy gas --remember the expensive tolls. They may fill-up if they are passing through.

My issue for the metro area -- Will Corzine's loss be a reflection on the disastrous Obama misadministration???

Clearly Corzine can lose on his own, too as he is incompetent and disagreeable. He left the US Senate to be Governor on his way to the Presidency. Unfortunately for him, but fortunately for US, he was severely injured as he ordered his driver to speed, breaking the law and endangering himself and others.

hjs: I agree. I would pay a higher price for gas if the proceeds went to improve/subsidize public transportation.

Gentrification in Harlem. It is an unspoken stressor in this community. Many residents express fear of being displaced amongst themselves but not at the (white) new comers. There is a sense of powerlesness that heightens fears. The rents being charged make it inevitable that Harlem will cease being a black neighborhood.

Question: if Harlem becomes another all white neighborhood, will New York City lose its #1 tourist destination?

people want taxes cut but which services would they want cut (the ones they don't use?)

what do counties do any way??

Gov. Corzine has been a huge disappointment when it comes to protecting open space in New Jersey and reducing sprawl. The Sierra Club is supporting the Independent candidate, Chris Daggett, rather than Corzine because of his environmental background.

NJ has a gas tax but it is one of the lowest in the country - I think it ranks 47th. (The only tax in NJ that is not one of the highest). It should be dedicated to the transportation trust fund which has run dry and is another looming problem.

Taxes, Tolls, Fees, etc.

I do not believe NJ is going to the Right (especially since it's a very Pro Choice state) nor do they actually like Christie but I believe they are trying to send a message to the Dems/Corzine.

Parking for bicycles, scooters, and motorcycles.

I think it's time to make an issue of NYC's agressive use and escalating schedule of fines and permits as a way of raising revenue. Agressive, non-sensical and outrageously expensive parking tickets, as well as millions of dollars yearly in expensive Health Dept. fines on restaurants are just two examples. Is this taxation without legislative representation?

PS
nj has 566 municipalities and 616 school districts, all come with adimin costs, waste and state aid

One issue would be local control (Public Schools, Subways, Taxation, etc.) Too much of the City’s fate and future is in the hands of Albany and not the elected leaders in New York City. New Yorkers (city residents) should have more control over what happens with their tax dollars and affects their lives.

Other issues would be:
Congestion pricing/commuter tax
Ending tax abatements for developers
NYPD reform (policing the police)
Tax reform (property tax breaks and lack of support to renters—half the population)
City Council waste/funds
Rent stabilization reform (looking at the full picture of profits and expenditures from property owners, not just expenditures)

Affordable housing in NYC.
Affordable and functional public transportation.

Consolidation. why does NJ have so much government! who many towns, school districts and counties does one state need?

NJ needs a higher gas tax! that money should go to NJ transit

Job creation.

I'd like to hear a(nother) segment focused on the implications of repealing Rockefeller drug laws. Specifically, it would be interesting to have a discussion between the two sides of the ATI world: the traditionalists who are very interested in reducing so-called net-widening (i.e., over-extending the reach of the criminal justice system) and the problem-solving world as exemplified by the current criminal justice coordinator for NYC. I'd suggest as guests Marsha Weissman of the Center for Community Alternatives or Joel Copperman of CASES for the traditional ATI take and Greg Berman of the Center for Court Alternatives, or John Feinblat the CJC for the problem-solving perspective.I can go into more detail if that is useful. thanks!

My issue: the housing shortage. The lack of housing causes prices of existing homes to escalate. Yet, any meaningful expansion of the housing stock would require either opening up a significant amount of open space or pushing the ceiling in the city's neighborhoods higher (think Atlantic Yards). So what's the priority: preserving the current character of our neighborhoods or addressing the housing shortage and its effects?

Immigration reform, with an acute focus on detention and deportation of illegal immigrants.
There are families being torn up, people being evicted and tossed onto welfare, and people suffering in extended detention all within our city. The whole system is arbitrary, xenophobic, and so inhumane. For resources please consult Families for Freedom http://www.familiesforfreedom.org/ and the NYC New Sanctuary movement http://www.newsanctuarynyc.org/. Cindy Rodriguez has done reporting on this.