Crown Heights residents have expressed dismay over several new Citi Bike racks that are going up around the neighborhood.
Racks were seen this week being installed on Kingston Avenue, Albany Avenue and on Eastern Parkway.
A few months ago, many residents expressed frustration about a rack which was installed on Eastern Parkway near Kingston Avenue, taking valuable parking spots.
“It is already near impossible to find parking spots in the neighborhood, especially at night,” one resident told COLlive.com. “The racks are taking up valuable and needed parking spots in the neighborhood.”
“They take up parking space which is much more needed than bikes. It’s the hard truth. Like it or not this is a community with children and other people that need cars. This is not Bushwick where we have predominantly singles living in studios and their bike they take to work and if they need to transport a child they put them in a seat in the back of the bike. Lets be honest here. We have enough bike racks in the community that whoever needs has access to them as well. We don’t need more,” one commenter on COLlive.com wrote.
“When you have half a dozen kids (ka”h) and need to shlep a lot of groceries, you’re going to use a bike? Get real,” another commenter wrote.
“This is just another example of the many things are happening lately on our streets that add inconvenience and possibly threaten our community,” an activist said.
“This goes along with the NYC Link5G towers/kiosks put by NYC on our city streets in disproportionate numbers, 2 new MTA city bus stops/routes all over Albany Ave and on Empire Blvd, and multiple proposed homeless shelters in south Crown Heights,” he said.
So where is the Vaad Hakohol?
Please join your local Brooklyn community board WHICH THEY APPROVED THIS, Get involved. Roll up your sleeves, it’s easy to just kvetch.
why? so we can have less parking? especially now by the kinus hashluchos?!
The Zoom meeting consisted of a few “green” pro bike activists begging for bike lanes.
I was the ONLY yid there and they claim that they did not even know that people oppose it!
It takes 5 minutes to join the meeting via zoom!
You can apply to join the Community Board, but I think you need connections to get appointed!! I applied but don’t know who to contact to get appointed!
There is none. That’s why this is happening to us. No other Jewish community has this issue
Use a bike instead of a car. its good for your health.
enough pollution from the cars.
Are you going to carry groceries for a family of 6 or 7 on a bike? Are you going to carry the family itself, for that matter?
And using a bike is a serious safety hazard, from City buses, City police cars, City sanitation vehicles, and other City vehicles that block bike lanes and drive aggressively.
they are so weak—Where are they going up in Boro Park and/or Williamsburg ?
How in the world did the local community board approve this??
Who will fight for us? Do they have these in Williamsburg and Boro Park too?
Article 78 Proceeding on failing to follow ULURP.
Anyone want specifics ?
HD
Yes
1) Article 78 Proceeding because the CitiBike Issue NEVER went through ULURP because a Franchise was given, and the use of real property of NYC was exchanged. New LINKNYC Cell phone towers also did not go through ULURP. a) Search – NYC Planning – Zoning Application Search – Nothing on file b) NYC Planning – Zoning Application Search – check out 201(g), 201(j) 2) The Statute of Limitations may be equitably tolled if deadlines passed and proper procedures were not followed 3) Etiher the CHJCC pays for the lawyer, or City Public Advocate Williams gets involved or more likely, you… Read more »
ULURP was not followed – Step5: Uniform Land Use Review Procedure Applicant Portal ULURP Rules- DCP (nyc.gov) 2-01 (f),(g),(j)
Citibikes and LinkNYC towers use city property and are franchises – hence the above ULURP provisions.
We have a group of askanim who supposedly have our backs but instead of objecting to ridiculous ideas like this they march in the Labor Day parade
Marching with them on Labor Day is not a bad thing. You’re a classic chilul hashem.
that they’re there for the photo ops, but not where real work is needed.
Can’t agree more
It’s just unfair
We are allowing the city to control us without asking us ANYTHING.
Where are our community activist? Why are they sleeping?
They would never put the city bikes in Boro Park or in Williamsburg
Because they would never allow it there they will be protesting away
Williamsburg is FULL of citi bike racks.
The CHJCC can’t do everything for you. If it bothers u then attend the community board 9 meetings and speak up.
Ps – not everything is a problem.
You are either a bot, or a troll that does not represent Our community. Everyone is upset. Either Citibank or the mayor pays you for this shtus (look it up – troll)
I use Citibike. Thank you for installing. Please install more. We also need a way if getting around
You were just trying to start up conversation.
There are many amazing biking companies that you can buy from.
Why should we suffer because you like bikes.
Not everyone has the money/space to buy and store a bike.
In response to your 2nd comment, why should we suffer because you like cars
if you do the calculation. you will save money by buying your own bike and get better quality. a day pass is around $79 plus tax if you buy your own bike its only around $300. In the long end you will save more by getting your own.
It takes time to deal with a bike, bring it in to the shop, pick it up, etc. If you’re unemployed it saves you money, but for me, my time is more valuable and I want the bike when I need it, and don’t want it when I’m not using it.
A year pass of citibike is $199
You can buy a used bike cheap on ebay or Craigslist
SO GET A CAR! OR WALK! WHY DO WE HAVE TO SUFFER?
Being that we have a parking shortage, I think it would be best if we encourage people to bike/other alternatives then saying everyone should have a car.
Why aren’t these racks installed on the island as opposed to on the street?
Agreed
You could ask the same question why they don’t allow you to park on the island. 75% of the public space is dedicated to cars. Bikes are vehicles so they should be parked where vehicles park, not take away the little space left for people to walk. Sidewalks already host all the traffic fixtures such a signs and traffic lights. Viffel is a shiur?
The south island is (officially) split between walking and biking, so it would be the logical place to put bike racks, replacing some of the grass near the main road.
If they would of put these 5 different Eastern Pkwy citibike stations on the Eastern Parkway Island, most of CH wouldn’t have a problem. We aren’t against Citibikes, but we are against NYC ON PURPOSE putting them on the street, taking away parking, when there’s lot of room on island. And fact in other parts of this city they put citi bikes on island and on “Parks department property”. So their excuses are a complete lack of understanding at best, or intentional at worst. Crown/Troy having a Citibike rack being put tomorrow. There’s tons of room on the HUGE sidewalk… Read more »
This absolutely ridiculous!!!
Yidden will always find something to complain about.
And who are you??
It’s embarrassing. It’s just bikes. These trolls are a chilul hashem.
WHERE IS OUR VAAD HAKHOL? CHJCC?
Get involved with your local Brooklyn Community Board which approved and voted for this citibike thing.
If you’re unable to do the job you have been “elected” to do -to represent the community- step aside, have new elections and let those who want to get involved do the job!
Maybe hop on a bike and give it a try. There’s no need to react with outrage at everything that moves. I don’t see any outrage at Rubaskin’s sukkah. We all understand that it’s a good things. Stop pretending this is about the parking spots, it’s about a feeling of being threatened and living under siege. I think it’s time to stop living in a siege mentality, and enjoy the cool stuff about the city we live in.
LChaim,
A Guy who might start biking to Prospect Park now and then
I think you need to take an English class to learn what “siege mentality” is.
I’ve had first hand experience trying to find parking now with the bike racks- I’m circling for a minimum of 10 minutes.
To be clear, I nothing against bikes, but why can’t they be on the island?
Are you suggesting that there was parking for everyone before citibike existed? I’ve lived in the shchuna much longer than you. People who buy cars without having where to park it just circle around wasting their lives looking for parking and all the accomplish is taking away a spot from someone else who may need it more.
The drivers in the shchuna are their own worst enemy.
Gentrification has backfired
Sorry to say but family need to drive their kids all over the neighborhood and this just took up another 15 spots. Not okay
Perhaps if the kids walked or rode a bike “family” wouldn’t need to “drive their kids all over the neighborhood”?
Put it in the side walk on eastern parkway service or in lefferts park or in the park on the grass
Have you considered putting your car in a garage?
We need to do something about this on our own . Does any one have a link to citi bike platform where we can oppose this ? I looked a bit and did not see anything . Even in park slope they don’t have this many racks in a small radius of blocks. This is unheard of to make it harder for us.
https://lyft-bikes-scooters.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/requests/new?ticket_form_id=360000807254&bss_market=nyc&return_to=https://help.citibikenyc.com/hc/en-us
Recently Ive been pushed to get involved with getting involved and looking under the hood of the CH Community council — After much thought and discussions with other community / business leaders its clear that before anything can ever get done its crucial for the entire community to partake in monthly Open Sessions Meetings!!! — Once O.S.M. starts taking place —we will see the most beautiful talent and volunteers (perhaps many result oriented folks) come out of the woodworks that will offer to rollup their sleeves to get on committees and make the biggest changes to the CH community. -Meyer… Read more »
when are the meetings.
put that on in big letters on col. When the next community meeting is.
And it’s not a cheap way to travel. More than the subway.
WRONG. For about $200 per year Citibike allows UNLIMITED rides. They also have big discounts for NYCHA residents. That is not ” More than the subway.”
Its empty cuz a lot of poeple are using it
That means we only need more
We didn’t lose parking spaces, they merely substituted six car parking spots for thirty bike parking spots.
With the large possibility the revenue advertisement that New York City gets for the huge screen on EVERY citibike station can potentially be not tznios.
The Link5G Kiosk screens have the same tznius advertisement concerns.
(As NYC clearly publicly stated multiple times, that a big reason why they rolled out the Link5G Kiosks is for the “advertisement revenue”.
Keep the cities untznius ads, be it on Citibike/Link5G kiosks far away from CH.
So a while back this web site hyped a meeting between the CH leadership and members of the city transportation department.
Since that meeting…
Multiple bike lanes were installed.
Multiple speed cameras all over.
Multiple bike kiosks
And now we are getting a new bus route on Albany avenue which is already over congested.
I wonder what these meetings are for or what are the real goals?
This madness needs to stop
No bike station
No internet kiosk
No 5G towers
But alas nothing will change
As a visitor to CH, I can attest that these bike racks could be more practical if they were placed at bus stops, where parking is already prohibited. The current placements cause more trouble than they solve, since parking is already very difficult to find. The Va’ad should demand that for every rack installed, the city should install a parking garage or structure. One cannot ignore the parking issues in and around CH and accept the fate of the green new deal.
Why should people who don’t drive pay for garages? It’s the most insanely expensive type of construction.
The tickets issued brings in revenue. This city is broke so it needs to get the revenue somewhere. It doesn’t mind putting a rack on every street. Even if nobody uses these bikes it still pays in the long run.
In the middle of the night, take a fork lift and DESTROY these dinosaurs
Less car parking, but more Citibike parking. Not sure why they need so much Citibike parking. Most of the Citibike parking stations I see are almost completely empty.
empty means the bikes are being used.
When the BLACK community was complaining about GENTRIFICATION no one listened. I guess its backfiring on the ones that invited it. 😥 TOO BAD.
Poeple are using them
Wow. Seems like the bikes are being used! Amazing
Farkert: it adds more parking! You can fit 6 bikes in one spot, and each bike is used multiple times a day, so it serves dozens of people instead of one car that squats there from this week’s alternate side parking to next week’s.
Citi bikes are a rip-off for sure!
We feel so entitled to park our fat minivans for free subsidized by every tax-paying New Yorker that we’re offended when some of the street (which belongs to everyone רה”ר) is reclaimed for alternative forms of transportation.
Replace the the CitiBike docks with bike lockers so that more families will use cargo and Dutch-style bikes!
they are specifically targeting car using neighborhoods
This is being done intentionally
Cry me a river! This is a city, not your parking lot. Pay for a spot in a garage if parking is so important to you.
City bikes are a great idea, but put in on the island part of the parkway like in many other parts of Brooklyn, for example ocean parkway and church Ave.
Have you ever seen a full rack? The bikes are stolen and never returned.
How do we get rid of these? Can we start a petition and get signatures?
Why can’t they just put them on the walkway median on Eastern Parkway? Business will take a hit now that customers can’t park, families will suffer, and CH will now be less safe. Just wait for bikers to ride around causing accidents.
When this was happening in BED STUY. No one cared. I guess it backfired. Too Bad. It comes with GENTRIFICATION. 😃
It’s not needed literally on every other corner and block.
Again, here are all the paid trolls and woke comments that flood this site whenever some issue angers our community. Everyone hates the bike racks taking up parking. The majority have families with cars. And if the bikes are so popular, why don’t we see all the people riding them in CH? Furthermore, this is a real patch in panim to us and the business owners. Right on Kingston Av! So, I’ll think twice about shopping at the stores near there, since I won’t be able to park. That will help everyone here, right? Could you even imagine this on… Read more »
Citibikes and LinkNYC Cell phone towers never went through ULURP aka NYC Land Use
Step5: Uniform Land Use Review Procedure Applicant Portal ULURP Rules- DCP (nyc.gov) – check out 2-01 (f), (g), and (j)
NYC Planning – Zoning Application Search – check out past ULURPs in CB 9 –
Article 78 and equitable tolling to revive any statute of limitations issues
A parking facility is needed with 24 hour surveillance at a reasonable monthly parking fee, in a convenient location. Let the so called activists rally around that issue.
It is more than ridiculous. Does the community realize we are being targeted, and this is done purposely. A calculated plan by progressives. It is not just Citi bikes, 5 G towers, homeless housing. We must take a stand. Who needs a citi bike stand on KIngston Ave- 2 nonetheless. It is a disrespect and disregard to our community.
IT is absolutely ridiculous. IT is a designated plan to disregard the community needs. A calculated plan, targeted our community. Time to make a a stand together.
I love seeing racks in CH, remember most of us don’t have space for a bike in our tiny apartment, so a few sets of big racks can’t hurt anyone.