Aug. ’05 Flashback: 1,200 Slopers Demand a Safer 9th Street

10:44 AM EDT on May 16, 2007

Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz and 9th St. resident Konrad Kaletsch at Dizzy's Diner, Eighth Ave. and 9th St., August 2, 2005. That's DOT Borough Commissioner Lori Ardito in the background wearing shades and looking none too happy to be harangued by Park Slopers demanding safer streets.

Tomorrow evening the transportation committee of Community Board 6 is meeting to take up DOT's 9th Street Safety and Bike Lane plan. The meeting will be at 6:30 pm at Old First Church, 729 Carroll Street at 7th Avenue. Park Slope Neighbors and Transportation Alternatives have generated nearly 400 letters of support for DOT's plan. Still, it will be important for Livable Streets advocates to show up and make their presence known. Speaking of letters of support, here is an important one:

May 13, 2007
Dear Borough President Marty Markowitz:
I led my neighborhood in a successful endeavor to make 9th street a safer thoroughfare for both pedestrians and vehicles in August 2005. Your support at that time made a huge difference (the result that had the greatest impact was the new traffic light installed at 10th street that slows traffic entering the 9th st intersection).
There is a new initiative to make changes to the street that further fulfills on making 9th street safe. I am referring to the DOT plans to reduce the two lanes to one and adding bike lanes and a meridian in the middle. Having looked at the proposal, I see that it is a safety win/win for pedestrians and vehicles and not only support the plan myself, but believe that the 1200 people that signed the 2005 petition would support this step toward safety and traffic calming as well.
I request your support once again in urging DOT to move forward with this improvement. Thanks.
Sincerely,Konrad KaletschXXX Ninth StreetBrooklyn, NY 11215

Photo: Aaron Naparstek, August 2, 2005, 8:10 am

Aaron Naparstek

AARON NAPARSTEK is the founder and former editor-in-chief of Streetsblog. Based in Brooklyn, New York, Naparsteks journalism, advocacy and community organizing work has been instrumental in growing the bicycle network, removing motor vehicles from parks, and developing new public plazas, car-free streets and life-saving traffic-calming measures across all five boroughs. Naparstek is the author of "Honku: The Zen Antidote for Road Rage" (Villard, 2003), a book of humorous haiku poetry inspired by the endless motorist sociopathy observed from his apartment window. Prior to launching Streetsblog, Naparstek worked as an interactive media producer, pioneering some of the Web's first music web sites, online communities, live webcasts and social networking services. Naparstek is currently in Cambridge with his wife and two young sons where he is enjoying a Loeb Fellowship at Harvard University's Graduate School of Design. He has a master's degree from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism and a bachelor's degree from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. Naparstek is a co-founder of the Park Slope Neighbors community group and the Grand Army Plaza Coalition. You can find more of his work here: http://www.naparstek.com.

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