BSR_p012

BSM05122016

12 BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP • MAY 13 - MAY 19, 2016 14 BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP • MARCH GO BACK TO THE editorial A LOOK BACK compiled Gary Nilsen and (USPS 248.800) We are delighted that the Brooklyn Public Library has been able to find space to accommodate 1144 a temporary library facility while the new, BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUPB R• O MOAKRLCYHN 1M3E -D MIAA RGCRHO 1U9P, 2• 0 M14ARCH 6 GO BACK TO THE editorial A A LOOK LOOK BACK BACK Compiled by Gary Nilsen compiled Gary A LOOK BACK Compiled by Gary Nilsen larger Sunset Park Library project is underway. While we recognize that some members of the community have concerns over the plan – which involves BPL partnering with a not-for-profit organization editorial A LOOK BACK compiled Gary 14 BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP • MARCH 6 - MARCH 12, 2014 Photo by Gardiner Anderson Nilsen and Helen And the award goes to… Bay Ridge, which has provided the backdrop for many movies and television shows over the years, from “Blue Bloods” and “Saturday Night Fever” to “Mad Men” and, in 2006, to “Then She Found Me,” starring Helen Hunt and Bette Midler, seen above in a September, 2006, Home Reporter photo taken on location on Shore Road at 77th Street. Midler performed at the most recent Oscars, singing “Wind Beneath My Wings” during the awards show’s In Memoriam segment. “Then She Found Me,” which also starred Matthew Broderick, was also shot inside a historic home on 88th Street. (USPS 248.800) GOOD NEWS FOR THE COMMUNITY and Helen Klein 14 BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP • MARCH 6 - MARCH 12, 2014 Nilsen and Helen (USPS 248.800) ASKING FOR EQUITY editorial A LOOK BACK compiled by BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP • MARCH 6 - MARCH editorial to create a hybrid that fuses together A LOOK BACK compiled by GO BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP • MARCH 6 - MARCH GO BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD editorial A LOOK BACK compiled by a considerably more spacious library (nearly 21,000 square feet in size, at this point) with 50 units of affordable housing, half of which will be dedicated to residents of the community board – we applaud the effort to bring this very necessary editorial A LOOK BACK compiled by Photo by Gardiner Anderson enlargement, as well as needed affordable residential units to the neighborhood. We are particularly delighted that the space that BPL has snagged for the temporary library is inside the historic landmarked court building on Fourth Avenue at 42nd Street. That gorgeous building – which houses Community Board 7 as well as some NYPD offices – deserves to be better known by residents, and we are delighted that the NYPD has accommodated the library’s need by ceding some of its space on a temporary basis. Overall, the library project is an ambitious one, that is allowing BPL to fulfill its public mission With And the award goes to…Photo Bay by Gardiner Ridge, which Anderson And has provided the award the goes backdrop to… Bay for Ridge,many movies which has and provided television the shows backdrop over the for many years,movies from and “Blue television Bloods”Photo by Gardiner shows Anderson over the years, from And the award “Blue goes Bloods”to…Photo Bay by Gardiner Ridge,and “Saturday and “ Saturday which Anderson Night Fever” to And has provided the award “the Mad goes backdrop Men”to… Bay Night Fever” to “Mad Men” Photo and,for and,Ridge,many in 2006, which to “Then She has provided Found the backdrop Me,” for starring many in by 2006,Gardiner movies and And television the award shows goes over to…Photo the years, Bay by Gardiner movies Ridge, Helen to Anderson “Then She Found Me,”from Hunt which Anderson and Bette and “Blue And has television Bloods”provided the award Midler, shows and the goes “Saturday over seen to… the starring backdrop above Night years, Bay Helen Hunt and Bette Midler, seen above for in Fever”Ridge, from many a September, to in a September,movies which 2006, ““Blue Mad has and Bloods”Men”provided television Home and, and the in shows “Reporter Saturday backdrop Night photo for Fever”many taken to movies 2006, Home Reporter 2006, to over “Then photo the She years,taken on from on location on “Found Mad and location on “Blue Men”television Me,”Bloods” and,Shore in shows 2006,Road Shore starring and Road Helen “ Saturday to over at Hunt “77th Then and the She Street.Night Bette years, Midler from performed Found Midler,““Blue Mad Me,” seen Men”Bloods” at starring above the and, and in most Helen in a “September,2006,Saturday recent at Hunt 77th and to Oscars,Street.“ 2006, Night Bette Then Fever” to She Fever”singing Midler to performed “Wind Midler,Home “Found Mad Reporter seen Men”Me,”at Beneath above the photo and,starring in most taken in a My September,2006,Helen recent Wings”on location to Hunt Oscars,“ 2006, during Then on and She singing the awards “Wind Home Shore Found Midler,Reporter Road Me,” seen Beneath at show’s 77th photo starring above Street.In taken My Memoriam in Helen Wings”Bette Midler a on September,location Hunt performed during segment.on and the Bette awards “Then She Shore at Home Midler,the most Road Reporter seen recent at show’s Found 77th above Oscars,Street.photo Me,”In Memoriam in singing Midler which taken a September,performed segment. 2006, on also “Wind location starred 2006, at the most on “Matthew Then She in a neighborhood where the need for an Beneath Home Shore My Reporter Road recent Found Broderick,Wings”at Oscars,77th photo Me,”during Street.was singing which taken the also awards Midler on also “Wind shot location starred performed inside on Matthew letters Beneath a historic show’s Shore at the In My most Road Memoriam Broderick,Wings”recent at 77th during segment.Oscars, Street.was the also awards “ Then singing Midler shot She performed inside “Wind a historic expanded facility is ever-increasing. show’s Found at Beneath the home Me,”In most Memoriam My home which recent on segment.88th Oscars,Street. Wings”also on 88th starred Street. “Matthew Then singing She “Wind That said, the road to completion will be a Found during the awards Broderick,Beneath show’s Me,” In was My which Memoriam also Wings”also shot starred inside during segment.Matthew a the historic awards “Then She long one. The project must go through a lengthy THE Then-Broderick,home HEP show’s Found Mayor on C 88th Me,”Rudolph In was FIGHT Memoriam Street. also which shot Giuliani also inside segment.starred was a historic a guest “Then of She honor at an early seen home on 88th Street. Matthew here Found with Me,”members which also of the starred military Matthew and some of the stalwarts in Bay a Ridge matter St. Patrick’s Parade. Hizzoner is public review, the Uniform Land Use Review Broderick, was also shot inside who nurtured of the weeks event in in order its formative to save years I contracted Broderick,home outside on Hunter’s 88th was Hepatitis Street. also Steak shot &inside Ale C House,though a a historic historic Procedure, before construction can commence. where reuse the annual themselves pre-parade money.brunch They is held.argue Spotted that in the Hep C of crowd a needle home surrounding on during 88th the Street. former a medical mayor treatment are Monsignor in (then-is Father)a “chronic Jamie disease,”Gigantiello, so second all patients from left; don’t During that scrutiny, residents and businesspeople Russia,Larry Morrish, where to I Giuliani’s was born.right; However, and Auxiliary I didn’t Police Chief need Tony to Christo,be treated to Morrish’s immediately.right, front Now row. they HOMEREPORTER as well as elected officials will be able to discover that I had this blood-borne, chronic are limiting insurance coverage to only the make their views known on several occasions liver disease until my doctor convinced me sickest patients, while the rest of the Hep C – as the project must AND be SUNSET presented NEWS to the community to take a blood test many years later. community waits around until they are sick board and borough president (both of enough to be treated. whom will render advisory opinions on it) before The results were bad – the virus swimming it goes before the City Planning Commission through my active than a normal Tips blood Join was 10 times more New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman patient. I had for the to seek making ght has taken against notice smart of this unfair discrimination and the City Council. and is taking action. Recently, The end result, however, will be a facility treatment immediately. Thankfully, I was nearly twice the size of the current library that able to access the medicines skyrocketing dietary I needed to his office choices launched whether insurance companies tolls an investigation into are unfairly will welcome in the neighborhood’s students fight back against this infection. But I have learned that many people aren’t so lucky. limiting coverage for Hep C medications to and seniors, and everyone else who seeks the recreation and information that the library offers, Many people from Eastern BY European STATE BY CATHERINE SENATOR the sickest MARTY ABATE patients GOLDEN because of cost. He has while at the same time providing housing and Middle Eastern backgrounds are at subpoenaed information from 16 health insurers for people who need it in a neighborhood where increased risk for Hep C, because those about patients who have been denied affordable apartments are at a premium. regions of the world often still don’t prioritize the drugs. HOMEREPORTER sterile needle policies. I wondered how As a patient myself and a representative many others in my community are living of the Hep C community in New York, I AND SUNSET NEWS through the same ordeal as I am? commend the AG’s actions to protect Hep C There are many Hep C support groups in patients in our community from discriminatory the city, but I hadn’t found one that brings practices by the insurance companies. together Russian speakers. That’s why I While these medications are considered founded the Coney Island Russian Hep C expensive, Hep C if left untreated can lead Education and Patient Support Group four to cirrhosis and liver cancer, which are years ago. I also worked with Mount Sinai much more difficult and expensive to treat Medical Center’s HONE Project to bring a than the virus itself. A liver transplant can successful Hepatitis B & C screening program cost over $500,000 and requires years of to my community and am working on costly follow-up care. developing a grass roots awareness campaign These medicines give patients like me in both English and Russian through and the members of my support group hope BRIC Arts Media Brooklyn. for a healthy life and the chance to avoid I thought I had been a perfectly healthy much more expensive, painful and difficult person before my diagnosis. I ate healthy procedures in the future. We shouldn’t let foods, exercised and practiced meditation. the politics of health insurance companies Unfortunately, the Hepatitis C virus may get between life-saving cures and the people not present symptoms until it has done significant who need them. damage to the liver. Greg Romenski But now, some insurance companies are Frederick Founder,E. Kowal is president of United University Professions, the union Coney representing Island Russian 35,000 faculty and rationing the medicines that cure the disease staff at SUNY’s Hep 29 C Support state-operated Group campuses, including SUNY’s public teaching hospitals and health science DRAWING BOARD ▲ ▲ (Estab. 1953) 9733 FOURTH AVE. • BROOKLYN, NY 11209 Co-Publisher ... Victoria Schneps-Yunis Co-Publisher ... Joshua A. Schneps Editor in Chief ... Helen Klein Telephone 718-238-6600 Fax 718-238-6630 E-mail [email protected] Periodical postage paid at Brooklyn, N.Y. Published weekly by Brooklyn Media Group, Inc. Single copies, 50 cents. $35 per year by mail, $40 outside Brooklyn. On June 8, 1962, the Bay Ridge Home Reporter (founded 1953) and the Brooklyn Sunset News, a continuation of the Bay Ridge News (founded 1943) were merged into the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS. Postmaster: Send Address Changes To: Home Reporter and Sunset News 9733 Fourth Ave., Brooklyn, N.Y. 11209 Entire contents copyright 2014 by Home Reporter and Sunset News All letters sent to the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS should be brief and are subject to condensing. Writers should include a full address and home and office telephone numbers, where available, as well as affiliation, indicating special interest. Anonymous letters are not printed. Name withheld on request. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR, AS WELL AS OP-ED PIECES IN NO WAY REFLECT THE PAPER’S POSITION. No such ad or any part thereof may be reproduced without prior permission of the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS. The publishers will not be responsible for any error in advertising beyond the cost of the space occupied by the error. Errors must be reported to the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS within five days of publication. Ad position cannot be guaranteed unless paid prior to publication. Brooklyn Media Group, Inc. assumes no liability for the content or reply to any ads. The advertiser assumes all liability for the content of and all replies. The advertiser HOMEREPORTER THE AND BROOKLYN SUNSET NEWS (Estab. 1953) AND SUNSET NEWS HOMEREPORTER (Estab. 1953) AND SUNSET NEWS AND SUNSET NEWS agrees to hold the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS and its employees harmless from all cost, expenses, liabilities, and damages resulting from or caused by the publication or recording placed by the advertiser or any reply to such advertisement. Each day, thousands of people depend on SUNY Downstate Medical Center for emergency medical care and vital health care services. But this state-operated public hospital has been in danger of being closed or privatized for more than two years. Hundreds of jobs have been lost, and numerous health care services have been cut or curtailed due to the hospital’s ill-prepared “Sustainability Plan.” Now, there is language in the 2014-15 proposed state budget that would open the door to as many as five corporations to operate SUNY’s public hospitals. United University Professions, the union that represents nearly 3,000 employees at SUNY Downstate, has been fighting to keep SUNY Downstate a fully operational staterun facility. However, UUP isn’t fighting the battle alone. The SUNY Downstate Coalition of Faith, Labor and Community Leaders has become an important ally. The coalition has staged a number of rallies and protests over the past 18 months to save health care services and jobs at SUNY Downstate and keep it a public facility. The latest such effort is a 48-hour interfaith fast. It will begin Sunday, March 9, at 3 p.m., in front of Downstate’s 470 Clarkson Avenue entrance. Interfaith leaders and members of the community will participate to show their strong support for this beacon in Brooklyn and call attention to the threats it faces. You can take part in the fast or find out more about it by calling 718-270-1519, or sending an email to [email protected]. We strongly urge you to join our campaign. Take part in the fast, or come out and show your support. Together, we can deliver a strong message that SUNY Downstate must remain a full-service, state-operated public hospital. The threats facing SUNY Downstate are real. The SUNY Board of Trustees has openly discussed the possibility of closing SUNY Downstate. There is also language in the Executive Budget, which would allow to control SUNY’s public hospitals; one affiliate with an academic medical institution hospital. SUNY Downstate has teaching hospital. Privatizing or closing SUNY Downstate the state to save dollars is shortsighted We believe the answer to Brooklyn’s health lies in the “Brooklyn Hospitals a UUP-backed initiative to stabilize and care throughout Brooklyn. This plan would preserve SUNY Downstate several financially unstable hospitals including Interfaith Medical Center, Island College Hospital and Kingsbrook Center. You can see the proposal http://www.brooklynhospitalplan.org. It calls for the creation of a network care centers, and would be controlled with 14 other Brooklyn hospitals. be the network’s hub, educating and and medical staff to the care centers with doctors at the other hospitals. It’s a simple, effective plan and, if will work. New York has a responsibility to provide care needs of its citizens. The Brooklyn Net Plan—our plan and the community’s viable, workable option for long-term Brooklyn. That’s something that Brooklyn residents need. Frederick E. Kowal is president of United Professions, the union representing 35,000 staff at SUNY’s 29 state-operated campuses, SUNY’s public teaching hospitals and health in Brooklyn, Buffalo, Long Island and Syracuse. With the city deciding to move forward on most of the school co-locations approved late last year, as Mayor Bloomberg prepared to vacate City Hall, parents in southwest Brooklyn are not only disappointed but angry. While the Department of Education under Mayor de Blasio wisely opted to back out of a planned co-location of a new high school inside Gravesend’s John Dewey High School, the DOE decided to move ahead with two others: the co-location of a charter school inside Seth Low Intermediate School in Bensonhurst and another inside Joseph B. Cavallaro Intermediate School in Bath Beach. These – like others in the borough and the city – are both fiercely opposed by parents, educators, students and the local Community Education Councils, all of whom contend that the co-locations would steal necessary space from students already attending the schools, and those who will be going to them in the near future. While the city has said it only considers under-utilized schools for co-locations, area education advocates say that both Cavallaro and Seth Low are well utilized, and likely to become more crowded as students now in elementary school in both District 20 and District 21 move up to middle school. Indeed, District 20 is one of the most crowded school districts in the city, so much so that the city built a host of new schools for it in the past decade, with more being planned, meaning that public school students in both District 20 and District 21 are likely to feel the squeeze should they have to share space with students from a charter school. That strikes us as patently unfair. While some of the charter schools poised to open in September, 2014 may be worthy additions to the city’s educational offerings, their needs should not trump the needs of existing schools with existing students. And, indeed, when a charter school is put inside a public school, the process must involve the school communities at both educational institutions, and parents must also be involved. The city must go back to the drawing board and come up with alternative arrangements for the charter schools planned for Seth Low and Cavallaro as well as other schools where they are opposed.. The students who attend those schools deserve no less. guest op-ed Keep SUNY Downstate open and BY FREDERICK E. KOWAL ONE FOR THE BOOKS Compiled by Gary Nilsen and Helen Klein A LOOK BACK 14 BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP • MARCH 20 - MARCH 26, 2014 14 BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP • MARCH 6 GO BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD ▲ ▲ (Estab. 1953) (Estab. 1953) (Established 1933) AND SUNSET NEWS (Estab. 1953) (Estab. 1953) 9733 FOURTH AVE. • BROOKLYN, NY 11209 Co-Publisher ... Victoria Schneps-Yunis Co-Publisher ... Joshua A. Schneps Editor in Chief ... Helen Klein Telephone 718-238-6600 Fax 718-238-6630 E-mail [email protected] Periodical postage paid at Brooklyn, N.Y. Published weekly by Brooklyn Media Group, Inc. Single copies, 50 cents. $35 per year by mail, $40 outside Brooklyn. On June 8, 1962, the Bay Ridge Home Reporter (founded 1953) and the Brooklyn Sunset News, a continuation of the Bay Ridge News (founded 1943) were merged into the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS. Writers should include a full address and home and office telephone numbers, where available, as well as affiliation, indicating special interest. Anonymous letters are not printed. Name withheld on request. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR, AS WELL AS OP-ED PIECES IN NO WAY REFLECT THE PAPER’S POSITION. No such ad or any part thereof may be reproduced without prior permission of the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS. The publishers will not be responsible for any error in advertising beyond the cost of the space occupied by the error. Errors must be reported to the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS within five days of publication. Ad position cannot be guaranteed unless paid prior to publication. Brooklyn Media Group, Inc. assumes no liability for the content or reply to any ads. The advertiser assumes all liability for the content of and all replies. The advertiser agrees to hold the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS and its employees harmless from all cost, expenses, liabilities, and damages resulting from or caused by the publication or recording placed by the advertiser or any reply to such advertisement. Each day, thousands of people depend on SUNY Downstate Medical Center for emergency medical care and vital health care services. But this state-operated public hospital has been in danger of being closed or privatized for more than two years. Hundreds of jobs have been lost, and numerous health care services have been cut or curtailed due to the hospital’s ill-prepared “Sustainability Plan.” Now, there is language in the 2014-15 proposed state budget that would open the door to as many as five corporations to operate SUNY’s public hospitals. United University Professions, the union that represents nearly 3,000 employees at SUNY Downstate, has been fighting to keep SUNY Downstate a fully operational staterun facility. However, UUP isn’t fighting the battle alone. The SUNY Downstate Coalition of Faith, Labor and Community Leaders has become an important ally. The coalition has staged a number of rallies and protests over the past 18 months to save health care services and jobs at SUNY Downstate and keep it a public facility. The latest such effort is a 48-hour interfaith fast. It will begin Sunday, March 9, at 3 p.m., in front of Downstate’s 470 Clarkson Avenue entrance. Interfaith leaders and members of the community will participate to show their strong support for this beacon in Brooklyn SUNY Board of Trustees has openly discussed the possibility of closing SUNY Downstate. There is also language in the Executive Budget, which would allow to control SUNY’s public hospitals; one corporation affiliate with an academic medical institution hospital. SUNY Downstate has teaching hospital. Privatizing or closing SUNY Downstate the state to save dollars is shortsighted We believe the answer to Brooklyn’s health lies in the “Brooklyn Hospitals Safety a UUP-backed initiative to stabilize and care throughout Brooklyn. This plan would preserve SUNY Downstate several financially unstable hospitals including Interfaith Medical Center, Island College Hospital and Kingsbrook Center. You can see the proposal http://www.brooklynhospitalplan.org. It calls for the creation of a network of care centers, and would be controlled with 14 other Brooklyn hospitals. Downstate be the network’s hub, educating and and medical staff to the care centers with doctors at the other hospitals. It’s a simple, effective plan and, if given will work. New York has a responsibility to provide SUNY’s public teaching hospitals and health in Brooklyn, Buffalo, Long Island and Syracuse. With the city deciding to move forward on most of the school co-locations approved late last year, as Mayor Bloomberg prepared to vacate City Hall, parents in southwest Brooklyn are not only disappointed but angry. While the Department of Education under Mayor de Blasio wisely opted to back out of a planned co-location of a new high school inside Gravesend’s John Dewey High School, the DOE decided to move ahead with two others: the co-location of a charter school inside Seth Low Intermediate School in Bensonhurst and another inside Joseph B. Cavallaro Intermediate School in Bath Beach. These –like others in the borough and the city – are both fiercely opposed by parents, educators, students and the local Community Education Councils, all of whom contend that the co-locations would steal necessary space from students already attending the schools, and those who will be going to them in the near future. While the city has said it only considers under-utilized schools for co-locations, area education advocates say that both Cavallaro and Seth Low are well utilized, and likely to become more crowded as students now in elementary school in both District 20 and District 21 move up to middle school. Indeed, District 20 is one of the most crowded school districts in the city, so much so that the city built a host of new schools for it in the past decade, with more being planned, meaning that public school students in both District 20 and District 21 are likely to feel the squeeze should they have to share space students from a charter school. That strikes us as patently unfair. While some of the charter schools poised to open in September, 2014 may be worthy additions to the city’s educational offerings, their needs should not trump the needs of existing schools with existing students. And, indeed, when a charter school is put inside a public school, the process must involve the school communities at both educational institutions, and parents must also be involved. The city must go back to the drawing board and come up with alternative arrangements for the charter schools planned for Seth Low and Cavallaro as well as other schools where they are opposed.. The students who attend those schools deserve no less. guest op-ed Keep SUNY Downstate open and public BY FREDERICK E. KOWAL ▲ Gary Nilsen and Helen Klein (USPS 248.800) 9733 FOURTH AVE. • BROOKLYN, NY 11209 Co-Publisher ... Victoria Schneps-Yunis Co-Publisher ... Joshua A. Schneps Editor in Chief ... Helen Klein Telephone 718-238-6600 Fax 718-238-6630 Entire contents copyright 2014 by Home Reporter and Sunset News sent to the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS should be brief and are subject to condensing. Writers should include a full address and home and office telephone numbers, where available, well as affiliation, indicating special interest. Anonymous letters are not printed. Name withheld request. TO THE EDITOR, AS WELL AS OP-ED PIECES IN NO WAY REFLECT THE PAPER’S No such ad or any part thereof may be reproduced without prior permission of the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS. The publishers will not be responsible for any error in advertising the cost of the space occupied by the error. Errors must be reported to the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS within five days of publication. Ad position cannot be guaranteed paid prior to publication. Brooklyn Media Group, Inc. assumes no liability for the content or any ads. The advertiser assumes all liability for the content of and all replies. The advertiser to hold the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS and its employees harmless from all expenses, liabilities, and damages resulting from or caused by the publication or recording the advertiser or any reply to such advertisement. Each day, thousands of people depend on SUNY Downstate Medical Center for emergency medical care and vital health care services. But this state-operated public hospital has been in danger of being closed or privatized for more than two years. Hundreds of jobs have been lost, and numerous health care services have been cut or curtailed due to the hospital’s ill-prepared “Sustainability Plan.” Now, there is language in the 2014-15 proposed state budget that would open the door to as many as five corporations to operate SUNY’s public hospitals. United University Professions, the union that represents nearly 3,000 employees at SUNY Downstate, has been fighting to keep SUNY Downstate a fully operational staterun facility. However, UUP isn’t fighting the battle alone. The SUNY Downstate Coalition of Faith, Labor and Community Leaders has become an important ally. The coalition has staged a number of rallies and protests over the past 18 months to save health care services and jobs at SUNY Downstate and keep it a public facility. The latest such effort is a 48-hour interfaith fast. It will begin Sunday, March 9, at 3 p.m., in front of can deliver a strong message that SUNY Downstate must remain a full-service, state-operated public hospital. The threats facing SUNY Downstate are real. The SUNY Board of Trustees has openly discussed the possibility in the Executive Budget, which would allow corporations to control SUNY’s public hospitals; one corporation affiliate with an academic medical institution or hospital. SUNY Downstate has Brooklyn’s teaching hospital. Privatizing or closing SUNY Downstate as a the state to save dollars is shortsighted and unnecessary. We believe the answer to Brooklyn’s health care lies in the “Brooklyn Hospitals Safety Net a UUP-backed initiative to stabilize and deliver care throughout Brooklyn. This plan would preserve SUNY Downstate and several financially unstable hospitals in Brooklyn, including Interfaith Medical Center, Brookdale, Island College Hospital and Kingsbrook Jewish Center. You can see the proposal online http://www.brooklynhospitalplan.org. It calls for the creation of a network of satellite care centers, and would be controlled by and with 14 other Brooklyn hospitals. Downstate be the network’s hub, educating and supplying and medical staff to the care centers and with doctors at the other hospitals. the city deciding to move forward on most of the co-locations approved late last year, as Mayor Bloomberg prepared to vacate City Hall, parents in southwest Brooklyn are not only disappointed but angry. While the Department of Education under Mayor de wisely opted to back out of a planned co-location of high school inside Gravesend’s John Dewey High School, the DOE decided to move ahead with two others: co-location of a charter school inside Seth Low Intermediate School in Bensonhurst and another inside Joseph B. Cavallaro Intermediate School in Bath Beach. These – like others in the borough and the city – are fiercely opposed by parents, educators, students the local Community Education Councils, all of contend that the co-locations would steal necessary space from students already attending the schools, those who will be going to them in the near future. While the city has said it only considers under-utilized schools for co-locations, area education advocates say both Cavallaro and Seth Low are well utilized, and to become more crowded as students now in elementary school in both District 20 and District 21 move middle school. Indeed, District 20 is one of the most crowded school districts in the city, so much so that the city built a host new schools for it in the past decade, with more being planned, meaning that public school students in both District 20 and District 21 are likely to feel the squeeze should they have to share space with students from a charter school. That strikes us as patently unfair. While some of the charter schools poised to open in September, 2014 may be worthy additions to the city’s educational offerings, their should not trump the needs of existing schools existing students. And, indeed, when a charter is put inside a public school, the process must involve the school communities at both educational institutions, and parents must also be involved. city must go back to the drawing board and come with alternative arrangements for the charter schools planned for Seth Low and Cavallaro as well as other schools where they are opposed.. The students who attend those schools deserve no less. guest op-ed Keep SUNY Downstate open and public BY FREDERICK E. KOWAL GO BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD ▲ ▲ Gary Nilsen and Helen Klein (USPS 248.800) 9733 FOURTH AVE. • BROOKLYN, NY 11209 Co-Publisher ... Victoria Schneps-Yunis Co-Publisher ... Joshua A. Schneps Editor in Chief ... Helen Klein Telephone 718-238-6600 Fax 718-238-6630 E-mail [email protected] Periodical postage paid at Brooklyn, N.Y. Published weekly by Brooklyn Media Group, Inc. Single copies, 50 cents. $35 per year by mail, $40 outside Brooklyn. On June 8, 1962, the Bay All letters sent to the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS should be brief and are subject to condensing. Writers should include a full address and home and office telephone numbers, where available, as well as affiliation, indicating special interest. Anonymous letters are not printed. Name withheld on request. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR, AS WELL AS OP-ED PIECES IN NO WAY REFLECT THE PAPER’S POSITION. No such ad or any part thereof may be reproduced without prior permission of the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS. The publishers will not be responsible for any error in advertising beyond the cost of the space occupied by the error. Errors must be reported to the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS within five days of publication. Ad position cannot be guaranteed unless paid prior to publication. Brooklyn Media Group, Inc. assumes no liability for the content or reply to any ads. The advertiser assumes all liability for the content of and all replies. The advertiser agrees to hold the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS and its employees harmless from all cost, expenses, liabilities, and damages resulting from or caused by the publication or recording placed by the advertiser or any reply to such advertisement. Each day, thousands of people depend on SUNY Downstate Medical Center for emergency medical care and vital health care services. But this state-operated public hospital has been in danger of being closed or privatized for more than two years. Hundreds of jobs have been lost, and numerous health care services have been cut or curtailed due to the hospital’s ill-prepared “Sustainability Plan.” Now, there is language in the 2014-15 proposed state budget that would open the door to as many as five corporations to operate SUNY’s public hospitals. United University Professions, the union that represents nearly 3,000 employees at SUNY Downstate, has been fighting to keep SUNY Downstate a fully operational staterun facility. However, UUP isn’t fighting the battle alone. The SUNY Downstate Coalition of Faith, Labor and Community Leaders has become an important ally. The coalition has staged a number of rallies and protests over the past 18 months to save health care services and jobs at SUNY Downstate and keep it a public facility. The latest such effort is a 48-hour interfaith fast. It will begin Sunday, March 9, at 3 p.m., in front of Downstate’s 470 Clarkson Avenue entrance. Interfaith leaders and members of the community will participate The threats facing SUNY Downstate are real. The SUNY Board of Trustees has openly discussed the possibility of closing SUNY Downstate. There is also language in the Executive Budget, which would allow corporations to control SUNY’s public hospitals; one corporation must affiliate with an academic medical institution or teaching hospital. SUNY Downstate has Brooklyn’s only teaching hospital. Privatizing or closing SUNY Downstate as a way for the state to save dollars is shortsighted and unnecessary. We believe the answer to Brooklyn’s health care shortcomings lies in the “Brooklyn Hospitals Safety Net Plan,” a UUP-backed initiative to stabilize and deliver health care throughout Brooklyn. This plan would preserve SUNY Downstate and save several financially unstable hospitals in Brooklyn, including Interfaith Medical Center, Brookdale, Long Island College Hospital and Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center. You can see the proposal online at http://www.brooklynhospitalplan.org. It calls for creation of a network of satellite ambulatory care centers, and would be controlled by and affiliated with 14 other Brooklyn hospitals. Downstate would be the network’s hub, educating and supplying physicians and medical staff to the care centers and working with doctors at the other hospitals. It’s a simple, effective plan and, if given a chance, it will work. staff at SUNY’s 29 state-operated campuses, including SUNY’s public teaching hospitals and health science centers in Brooklyn, Buffalo, Long Island and Syracuse. With the city deciding to move forward on most of the school co-locations approved late last year, as Mayor Bloomberg prepared to vacate City Hall, parents in southwest Brooklyn are not only disappointed but angry. While the Department of Education under Mayor de Blasio wisely opted to back out of a planned co-location of a new high school inside Gravesend’s John Dewey High School, the DOE decided to move ahead with two others: the co-location of a charter school inside Seth Low Intermediate School in Bensonhurst and another inside Joseph B. Cavallaro Intermediate School in Bath Beach. These – like others in the borough and the city –are both fiercely opposed by parents, educators, students and the local Community Education Councils, all of whom contend that the co-locations would steal necessary space from students already attending the schools, and those who will be going to them in the near future. While the city has said it only considers under-utilized schools for co-locations, area education advocates say that both Cavallaro and Seth Low are well utilized, and likely to become more crowded as students now in elementary school in both District 20 and District 21 move up to middle school. Indeed, District 20 is one of the most crowded school districts in the city, so much so that the city built a host of new schools for it in the past decade, with more being planned, meaning that public school students in both District 20 and District 21 are likely to feel the squeeze should they have to share space with students from a charter school. That strikes us as patently unfair. While some of the charter schools poised to open in September, 2014 may be worthy additions to the city’s educational offerings, their needs should not trump the needs of existing schools with existing students. And, indeed, when a charter school is put inside a public school, the process must involve the school communities at both educational institutions, and parents must also be involved. The city must go back to the drawing board and come up with alternative arrangements for the charter schools planned for Seth Low and Cavallaro as well as other schools where they are opposed.. The students who attend those schools deserve no less. guest op-ed Keep SUNY Downstate open and public BY FREDERICK E. KOWAL Congratulations to law enforcement – the NYPD and Brooklyn’s new District Attorney Ken Thompson – for taking decisive action to combat the scourge of heroin and opioid abuse that has been haunting southwest Brooklyn Thanks to good information from community residents – who have kept up the push to get drug dealers off their streets – cops have arrested six people as a result of a protracted investigation, and charged them with involvement in an illicit drug-peddling scheme in which customers called in orders and dealers delivered them to street corners and bars in Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights, Bensonhurst and Sunset Park. Given the rising number of people who have fallen victim to overdoses of the illicit substances – including heroin, opiates, marijuana, ecstasy and Ketamine, a horse tranquilizer known in street parlance as “Special K” – it is truly critical that law enforcement stay on top of the situation, and make sure that drug dealers know that their activities will not be tolerated. Sources say this is just the beginning, and that more arrests are to come. While we understand that such investigations are lengthy and delicate, and can’t be rushed, we say, those arrests can’t come soon enough. SENIORS DESERVE SUPPORT Each year, it seems, the budget dance in Albany leaves seniors wondering, what’s in it for them? This year is no different, and local elected offi cials have taken a stand to push the governor to include an extra $26 million in the state budget that would go to help seniors, specifi cally those who are on a waiting list for Meals on Wheels (some 7,000 statewide, as of now) as well as those who use Access-a-Ride and other services. In addition, elected offi cials and senior advocates are pushing for a raise in the income that seniors can have and still qualify for SCRIE, a program that controls increases in rent. The last time the income ceiling was increased (to $29,000) was in 2009, meaning that an increase is now overdue. We join advocates in urging seniors and their families to call their state elected offi cials and let them know – the time has come to make it easier for seniors to age with dignity. Photo by Valerie Hodgson The Tolls are Too Damn High! That’s the unfortunate reality of trying to commute by car inside the city of New York. The cost to travel round trip across any of our tolled crossing is $15 cash. The discounted EZ-Pass rate is just under $11. For trips into Manhattan, Queens and the Bronx, we have several toll-free options which allow for easy commuting between boroughs without facing this daily expense. However, there is no way to enter Staten Island without being hit by this outrageous toll. For those that work, go to school, or visit family in Staten Island, they are paying $10.66 each time they cross the bridge, with EZ-Pass. That is unsustainable, and unrealistic. For two years now, Assemblymember Nicole Malliotakis and I have been fi ghting for a reduced fare for those who cross the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge three or more times a month. This discount would mirror that put in place by the Port Authority, allowing for a 58 percent discount from the cash price for crossing the bridge for those who have residency in New York City and travel over the bridge more than three times a month. This would bring the price from $10.66 to $6.30. That would be real savings for our families, real relief from the tolls. Last week, we had a major victory in this fi ght. The New York State Senate included a feasibility study in its one house budget. This means our plan is on the way to becoming a reality. We need to keep the pressure on. We need to convince the Assembly and the governor that this discount plan needs to be a priority. Please join with us and sign a petition to let everyone know how important this issue is. Visit www.TheTollsareTooDamnHigh.com and sign onto our petition to make this discount plan a reality. Together we can achieve reasonable toll rates on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. State Senator Marty Golden represents the 22nd Senate District in Brooklyn, including Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights, Bensonhurst, Manhattan Beach, Gravesend, Gerritsen Beach, Marine Park and portions of Sheepshead Bay, Midwood and Boro Park. VISIT HOMEREPORTER.COM FOR THE LATEST LOCAL NEWS DRAWING BOARD ▲ ▲ 9733 FOURTH AVE. • BROOKLYN, NY 11209 Co-Publisher ... Victoria Schneps-Yunis Co-Publisher ... Joshua A. Schneps Postmaster: Send Address Changes To: Home Reporter and Sunset News 9733 Fourth Ave., Brooklyn, N.Y. 11209 Entire contents copyright 2014 by Home Reporter and Sunset News All letters sent to the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS should be brief and are subject to condensing. Writers should include a full address and home and office telephone numbers, where available, as well as affiliation, indicating special interest. Anonymous letters are not printed. Name withheld on request. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR, AS WELL AS OP-ED PIECES IN NO WAY REFLECT THE PAPER’S POSITION. No such ad or any part thereof may be reproduced without prior permission of the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS. The publishers will not be responsible for any error in advertising beyond the cost of the space occupied by the error. Errors must be reported to the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS within five days of publication. Ad position cannot be guaranteed unless paid prior to publication. Brooklyn Media Group, Inc. assumes no liability for the content or reply to any ads. The advertiser assumes all liability for the content of and all replies. The advertiser agrees to hold the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS and its employees harmless from all cost, expenses, liabilities, and damages resulting from or caused by the publication or recording placed by the advertiser or any reply to such advertisement. Each day, thousands of people depend on SUNY Downstate Medical Center for emergency medical care and vital health care services. But this state-operated public hospital has been in danger of being closed or privatized for more than two years. Hundreds of jobs have been lost, and numerous health care services have been cut or curtailed due to the hospital’s ill-prepared “Sustainability Plan.” Now, there is language in the 2014-15 proposed state budget that would open the door to as many as five corporations to operate SUNY’s public hospitals. United University Professions, the union that represents nearly 3,000 employees at SUNY Downstate, has been fighting to keep SUNY Downstate a fully operational staterun facility. However, UUP isn’t fighting the battle alone. The SUNY Downstate Coalition of Faith, Labor and and call attention to the threats it faces. You can take part in the fast or find out more about it by calling 718-270-1519, or sending an email to [email protected]. We strongly urge you to join our campaign. Take part in the fast, or come out and show your support. Together, we can deliver a strong message that SUNY Downstate must remain a full-service, state-operated public hospital. The threats facing SUNY Downstate are real. The SUNY Board of Trustees has openly discussed the possibility of closing SUNY Downstate. There is also language in the Executive Budget, which would allow to control SUNY’s public hospitals; one corporation affiliate with an academic medical institution hospital. SUNY Downstate has teaching hospital. Privatizing or closing SUNY Downstate the state to save dollars is shortsighted and We believe the answer to Brooklyn’s health lies in the “Brooklyn Hospitals Safety a UUP-backed initiative to stabilize and care throughout Brooklyn. This plan would preserve SUNY Downstate several financially unstable hospitals including Interfaith Medical Center, Brookdale, Island College Hospital and Kingsbrook Center. You can see the proposal http://www.brooklynhospitalplan.org. supplying care needs of its citizens. The Brooklyn Net Plan—our plan and the community’s viable, workable option for long-term Brooklyn. That’s something that Brooklyn residents need. Frederick E. Kowal is president of United Professions, the union representing 35,000 faculty staff at SUNY’s 29 state-operated campuses, SUNY’s public teaching hospitals and health in Brooklyn, Buffalo, Long Island and Syracuse. With the city deciding to move forward on most of the school co-locations approved late last year, as Mayor Bloomberg prepared to vacate City Hall, parents in southwest Brooklyn are not only disappointed but angry. While the Department of Education under Mayor de Blasio wisely opted to back out of a planned co-location of a new high school inside Gravesend’s John Dewey High School, the DOE decided to move ahead with two others: the co-location of a charter school inside Seth Low Intermediate School in Bensonhurst and another inside Joseph B. Cavallaro Intermediate School in Bath Beach. These – like others in the borough and the city – are both fiercely opposed by parents, educators, students and the local Community Education Councils, all of whom contend that the co-locations would steal necessary space from students already attending the schools, and those who will be going to them in the near future. While the city has said it only considers under-utilized schools for co-locations, area education advocates say that both Cavallaro and Seth Low are well utilized, and likely to become more crowded as students now in elementary school in both District 20 and District 21 move up to middle school. Indeed, District 20 is one of the most crowded school districts in the city, so much so that the city built a host of new schools for it in the past decade, with more being planned, meaning that public school students in both District 20 and District 21 are likely to feel the squeeze should they have to share space with students from a charter school. That strikes us as patently unfair. While some of the charter schools poised to open in September, 2014 may be worthy additions to the city’s educational offerings, their needs should not trump the needs of existing schools with existing students. And, indeed, when a charter school is put inside a public school, the process must involve the school communities at both educational institutions, and parents must also be involved. The city must go back to the drawing board and come up with alternative arrangements for the charter schools planned for Seth Low and Cavallaro as well as other schools where they are opposed.. The students who attend those schools deserve no less. guest op-ed Keep SUNY Downstate open and public BY FREDERICK E. KOWAL ▲ Gary Nilsen and Helen Klein (USPS 248.800) E-mail [email protected] Periodical postage paid at Brooklyn, N.Y. Published weekly by Brooklyn Media Group, Inc. copies, 50 cents. $35 per year by mail, $40 outside Brooklyn. On June 8, 1962, the Bay Home Reporter (founded 1953) and the Brooklyn Sunset News, a continuation of the Bay News (founded 1943) were merged into the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS. Postmaster: Send Address Changes To: Home Reporter and Sunset News 9733 Fourth Ave., Brooklyn, N.Y. 11209 Entire contents copyright 2014 by Home Reporter and Sunset News sent to the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS should be brief and are subject to condensing. Writers should include a full address and home and office telephone numbers, where available, well as affiliation, indicating special interest. Anonymous letters are not printed. Name withheld request. TO THE EDITOR, AS WELL AS OP-ED PIECES IN NO WAY REFLECT THE PAPER’S No such ad or any part thereof may be reproduced without prior permission of the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS. The publishers will not be responsible for any error in advertising the cost of the space occupied by the error. Errors must be reported to the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS within five days of publication. Ad position cannot be guaranteed paid prior to publication. Brooklyn Media Group, Inc. assumes no liability for the content or any ads. The advertiser assumes all liability for the content of and all replies. The advertiser to hold the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS and its employees harmless from all expenses, liabilities, and damages resulting from or caused by the publication or recording the advertiser or any reply to such advertisement. Each day, thousands of people depend on SUNY Downstate Medical Center for emergency medical care and vital health care services. But this state-operated public hospital has been in danger of being closed or privatized for more than two years. Hundreds of jobs have been lost, and numerous health care services have been cut or curtailed due to the hospital’s ill-prepared “Sustainability Plan.” Now, there is language in the 2014-15 proposed state budget that would open the door to as many as five corporations to operate SUNY’s public hospitals. United University Professions, the union that represents nearly 3,000 employees at SUNY Downstate, has been Downstate’s 470 Clarkson Avenue entrance. Interfaith leaders and members of the community will participate to show their strong support for this beacon in Brooklyn and call attention to the threats it faces. You can take part in the fast or find out more about it by calling 718-270-1519, or sending an email to [email protected]. We strongly urge you to join our campaign. Take part in the fast, or come out and show your support. Together, we can deliver a strong message that SUNY Downstate must remain a full-service, state-operated public hospital. The threats facing SUNY Downstate are real. The SUNY Board of Trustees has openly discussed the possibility of closing SUNY Downstate. There is also language in the Executive Budget, which would allow corporations to control SUNY’s public hospitals; one corporation affiliate with an academic medical institution or hospital. SUNY Downstate has Brooklyn’s teaching hospital. Privatizing or closing SUNY Downstate as a the state to save dollars is shortsighted and unnecessary. We believe the answer to Brooklyn’s health care lies in the “Brooklyn Hospitals Safety Net a UUP-backed initiative to stabilize and deliver care throughout Brooklyn. This plan would preserve SUNY Downstate and several financially unstable hospitals in Brooklyn, including Interfaith Medical Center, Brookdale, It’s a simple, effective plan and, if given a chance, will work. New York has a responsibility to provide for the care needs of its citizens. The Brooklyn Hospitals Net Plan—our plan and the community’s plan—viable, workable option for long-term health Brooklyn. That’s something that Brooklyn residents desperately need. Frederick E. Kowal is president of United University Professions, union representing 35,000 faculty and staff at SUNY’s 29 state-operated campuses, including SUNY’s public teaching hospitals and health science in Brooklyn, Buffalo, Long Island and Syracuse. With the city deciding to move forward on most of the co-locations approved late last year, as Mayor Bloomberg prepared to vacate City Hall, parents in southwest Brooklyn are not only disappointed but angry. While the Department of Education under Mayor de wisely opted to back out of a planned co-location of high school inside Gravesend’s John Dewey High the DOE decided to move ahead with two others: co-location of a charter school inside Seth Low Intermediate School in Bensonhurst and another inside Joseph B. Cavallaro Intermediate School in Bath Beach. These – like others in the borough and the city – are fiercely opposed by parents, educators, students the local Community Education Councils, all of contend that the co-locations would steal necessary space from students already attending the schools, those who will be going to them in the near future. While the city has said it only considers under-utilized schools for co-locations, area education advocates say both Cavallaro and Seth Low are well utilized, and to become more crowded as students now in elementary school in both District 20 and District 21 move middle school. Indeed, District 20 is one of the most crowded school districts in the city, so much so that the city built a host new schools for it in the past decade, with more being planned, meaning that public school students in both District 20 and District 21 are likely to feel the squeeze should they have to share space with students from a charter school. That strikes us as patently unfair. While some of the charter schools poised to open in September, 2014 may be worthy additions to the city’s educational offerings, their should not trump the needs of existing schools existing students. And, indeed, when a charter is put inside a public school, the process must involve the school communities at both educational institutions, and parents must also be involved. city must go back to the drawing board and come with alternative arrangements for the charter schools planned for Seth Low and Cavallaro as well as other schools where they are opposed.. The students who those schools deserve no less. guest op-ed Keep SUNY Downstate open and public BY FREDERICK E. KOWAL GO BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD ▲ ▲ Gary Nilsen and Helen Klein (USPS 248.800) 9733 FOURTH AVE. • BROOKLYN, NY 11209 Co-Publisher ... Victoria Schneps-Yunis Ridge Home Reporter (founded 1953) and the Brooklyn Sunset News, a continuation of the Bay Ridge News (founded 1943) were merged into the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS. Postmaster: Send Address Changes To: Home Reporter and Sunset News 9733 Fourth Ave., Brooklyn, N.Y. 11209 Entire contents copyright 2014 by Home Reporter and Sunset News All letters sent to the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS should be brief and are subject to condensing. Writers should include a full address and home and office telephone numbers, where available, as well as affiliation, indicating special interest. Anonymous letters are not printed. Name withheld on request. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR, AS WELL AS OP-ED PIECES IN NO WAY REFLECT THE PAPER’S POSITION. No such ad or any part thereof may be reproduced without prior permission of the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS. The publishers will not be responsible for any error in advertising beyond the cost of the space occupied by the error. Errors must be reported to the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS within five days of publication. Ad position cannot be guaranteed unless paid prior to publication. Brooklyn Media Group, Inc. assumes no liability for the content or reply to any ads. The advertiser assumes all liability for the content of and all replies. The advertiser agrees to hold the HOME REPORTER AND SUNSET NEWS and its employees harmless from all cost, expenses, liabilities, and damages resulting from or caused by the publication or recording placed by the advertiser or any reply to such advertisement. Each day, thousands of people depend on SUNY Downstate Medical Center for emergency medical care and vital health care services. But this state-operated public hospital has been in danger of being closed or privatized for more than two years. Hundreds of jobs have been lost, and numerous health care services have been cut or curtailed due to the hospital’s ill-prepared “Sustainability Plan.” Now, there is language in the 2014-15 proposed state budget that would open the door to as many as five corporations to operate SUNY’s public hospitals. United University Professions, the union that represents nearly 3,000 employees at SUNY Downstate, has been fighting to keep SUNY Downstate a fully operational staterun facility. However, UUP isn’t fighting the battle alone. to show their strong support for this beacon in Brooklyn and call attention to the threats it faces. You can take part in the fast or find out more about it by calling 718-270-1519, or sending an email to [email protected]. We strongly urge you to join our campaign. Take part in the fast, or come out and show your support. Together, we can deliver a strong message that SUNY Downstate must remain a full-service, state-operated public hospital. The threats facing SUNY Downstate are real. The SUNY Board of Trustees has openly discussed the possibility of closing SUNY Downstate. There is also language in the Executive Budget, which would allow corporations to control SUNY’s public hospitals; one corporation must affiliate with an academic medical institution or teaching hospital. SUNY Downstate has Brooklyn’s only teaching hospital. Privatizing or closing SUNY Downstate as a way for the state to save dollars is shortsighted and unnecessary. We believe the answer to Brooklyn’s health care shortcomings lies in the “Brooklyn Hospitals Safety Net Plan,” a UUP-backed initiative to stabilize and deliver health care throughout Brooklyn. This plan would preserve SUNY Downstate and save several financially unstable hospitals in Brooklyn, including Interfaith Medical Center, Brookdale, Long Island College Hospital and Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center. You can see the proposal online at the New York has a responsibility to provide for the health care needs of its citizens. The Brooklyn Hospitals Safety Net Plan—our plan and the community’s plan—is a viable, workable option for long-term health care in Brooklyn. That’s something that Brooklyn residents desperately need. Frederick E. Kowal is president of United University Professions, the union representing 35,000 faculty and professional staff at SUNY’s 29 state-operated campuses, including SUNY’s public teaching hospitals and health science centers in Brooklyn, Buffalo, Long Island and Syracuse. With the city deciding to move forward on most of the school co-locations approved late last year, as Mayor Bloomberg prepared to vacate City Hall, parents in southwest Brooklyn are not only disappointed but angry. While the Department of Education under Mayor de Blasio wisely opted to back out of a planned co-location of a new high school inside Gravesend’s John Dewey High School, the DOE decided to move ahead with two others: the co-location of a charter school inside Seth Low Intermediate School in Bensonhurst and another inside Joseph B. Cavallaro Intermediate School in Bath Beach. These – like others in the borough and the city – are both fiercely opposed by parents, educators, students and the local Community Education Councils, all of whom contend that the co-locations would steal necessary space from students already attending the schools, and those who will be going to them in the near future. While the city has said it only considers under-utilized schools for co-locations, area education advocates say that both Cavallaro and Seth Low are well utilized, and likely to become more crowded as students now in elementary school in both District 20 and District 21 move up to middle school. Indeed, District 20 is one of the most crowded school districts in the city, so much so that the city built a host of new schools for it in the past decade, with more being planned, meaning that public school students in both District 20 and District 21 are likely to feel the squeeze should they have to share space with students from a charter school. That strikes us as patently unfair. While some of the charter schools poised to open in September, 2014 may be worthy additions to the city’s educational offerings, their needs should not trump the needs of existing schools with existing students. And, indeed, when a charter school is put inside a public school, the process must involve the school communities at both educational institutions, and parents must also be involved. The city must go back to the drawing board and come up with alternative arrangements for the charter schools planned for Seth Low and Cavallaro as well as other schools where they are opposed.. The students who attend those schools deserve no less. guest op-ed Keep SUNY Downstate open and public BY FREDERICK E. KOWAL With the kickoff of a petition campaign to get the MTA to offer toll discounts to Brooklyn drivers and other city residents who use the Verrazano Narrows Bridge at least three times a month, the time has come for the residents of the other four boroughs to make their voices heard. The timing of the petition is no accident. It was created in response to the announcement earlier this year that Staten Island residents – who already pay substantially less than other city residents to use the bridge – will get an added discount, thanks to a recent agreement brokered by Governor Andrew Cuomo. Right now, Brooklyn residents who use the bridge pay $15 roundtrip ($10.66 with E-ZPass), while residents of Staten Island now pay $6, and will pay just $5.50 when the added discount takes effect. The disparity is glaring, and it just isn’t right. We understand that Staten Islanders have no other vehicular access to the rest of the city besides the Verrazano, but many residents of Brooklyn – and southwest Brooklyn in particular – go to Staten Island and New Jersey regularly, and those double-digit tolls add up quickly. The Port Authority gets it; for the past two years, it has offered a 58 percent discount to drivers who utilize crossings between Staten Island and New Jersey at least three times a month. It’s time for the MTA to follow suit, and for New York State to do whatever it takes to make that happen. The cost of offering a discount to drivers who use the Verrazano three or more times a month is $30 million, not insubstantial but in reality a small percentage of the state’s $142 billion budget. The petition can be found on line at Thetollsaretoodamnhigh.com. THE CONEY BOOM CONTINUES With the groundbreaking for the new Thunderbolt roller coaster, Coney Island has taken another step into its own energized future. The 21st century thrill ride, which should be completed by May, salutes the area’s storied past as it builds on the excitement and growth that have characterized the amusement area over the past several years. The continued progress is great news for Coney, for Brooklyn and for the city as a whole, particularly coming in the wake of the devastation wrought by Superstorm Sandy, which in areas like Coney Island is still a factor. We hope it is a harbinger of more good things to come. Photo by Valerie Hodgson The St. Patrick’s Parade is a Bay Ridge tradition stretching back over two decades. Replete with marching bands and folk dancers, the parade – seen here in a vintage photo from this newspaper’s les -- traditionally attracts both those of Irish heritage and those who just enjoy the event. Up until two years ago, the parade marched along Fifth Avenue as seen in this photo; last year, however, it was shifted to Third Avenue, which will host the event again this year, on Sunday, March 23. Heading up the march, for 2014, will be NYPD Chief Joe Fox, now chief of transit, but well-known to many in the neighborhood as the former commanding of cer of Patrol Borough Brooklyn South. and Helen Klein Some welcome news came on cusp of National Nutrition Month. The Obama administration announced signifi cant reforms of nutrition labeling to educate consumers better so they know what they’re putting in their bodies each day. That announcement dovetailed with a federal report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showing a stunning reduction in the obesity rate of young children. Both display encouraging news, because addressing health and fi tness issues early on produces a lifetime of benefi ts. As a nonprofi t that provides access to primary care for our city’s underserved communities, Community Healthcare Network is on the frontlines of this unrelenting war on obesity. We’re taking our efforts to the streets this month to inform people as they shop – and eat. An alarming proportion of unhealthy foods stock the shelves of corner delis across our city. While these small businesses are the lifeblood of vibrant neighborhoods, the choices many folks make are packing on the pounds. This month, we encourage New Yorkers to put down those salted Wise potato chips and instead make some wise decisions about their health. Here’s our top 10 list of the calorie culprits at the corner stores: •Don’t saddle up to the breakfast bar. Breakfast bars (granola, protein and energy bars) can have more sugars than breakfast pastries and candy bars. •Quenching your thirst. Gatorade and enhanced vitamin drinks usually don’t have vitamins and contain unnecessary salts and sugars. •The low-down on “low fat.” It normally means high salt and higher sugar. •When the chips are down. No-cholesterol potato chips are fried in vegetable oil; cholesterol is irrelevant. •Don’t butta la pasta. Tri-color pasta doesn’t mean anything other than it’s dyed pasta. •Separate wheat from the chaff. Make sure “wheat” bread contains “whole grains.” •Fruitful? More like full of sweeteners. Some smoothies and fruit juice are loaded with sugar and fattening yogurt. •When Greek and regular yogurt are not chic. Avoid with added fruit/fruit syrup. And, the frozen kinds usually pack in more sugar and far less protein. •Down the wrong trail. Avoid mixes with added chocolates (which add in tons of extra calories and sugar) and watch portions. •Low price, but hidden costs. Processed foods are easy to grab on-the-go, but boxed muffi ns and snacks, chicken nuggets and processed meats contain tons of sodium, sugar and unhealthy preservatives. Consumed over the years, the above ingredients are the recipe for an unhealthy future. Seem overwhelming? Not if you start with some simple changes. So here are 10 healthier picks: sweet potatoes, avocados, plain Greek yogurt or regular plain yogurt, trail mix (without the add-ins!), whole grain bread, natural nut butter, light air-popped popcorn or pretzels, cottage cheese, fruit and eggs. We want to ensure that all New Yorkers have the tools to develop better habits within their means. Starting with small changes, what they put on their plates can make a huge difference. Catherine Abate is the president/CEO of Community Healthcare Network. ▲ ▲ compiled by Gary Nilsen and Helen Klein Each day, thousands of people depend on SUNY Downstate Medical Center for emergency medical care and vital health care services. But this state-operated public hospital has been in danger of being closed or privatized for more than two years. Hundreds of jobs have been lost, and numerous health care services have been cut or curtailed due to the hospital’s ill-prepared “Sustainability Plan.” Now, there is language in the 2014-15 proposed state budget that would open the door to as many as five corporations to operate SUNY’s public hospitals. United University Professions, the union that represents nearly 3,000 employees at SUNY Downstate, has been fighting to keep SUNY Downstate a fully operational staterun facility. However, UUP isn’t fighting the battle alone. The SUNY Downstate Coalition of Faith, Labor and Community Leaders has become an important ally. The coalition has staged a number of rallies and protests over the past 18 months to save health care services and jobs at SUNY Downstate and keep it a public facility. The latest such effort is a 48-hour interfaith fast. It will begin Sunday, March 9, at 3 p.m., in front of Downstate’s 470 Clarkson Avenue entrance. Interfaith leaders and members of the community will participate to show their strong support for this beacon in Brooklyn and call attention to the threats it faces. You can take part in the fast or find out more about it by calling 718-270-1519, or sending an email to [email protected]. We strongly urge you to join our campaign. Take part in the fast, or come out and show your support. Together, we can deliver a strong message that SUNY Downstate must remain a full-service, state-operated public hospital. The threats facing SUNY Downstate are real. The SUNY Board of Trustees has openly discussed the possibility of closing SUNY Downstate. There is also language in the Executive Budget, which would allow corporations to control SUNY’s public hospitals; one corporation must affiliate with an academic medical institution or teaching hospital. SUNY Downstate has Brooklyn’s only teaching hospital. Privatizing or closing SUNY Downstate as a way for the state to save dollars is shortsighted and unnecessary. We believe the answer to Brooklyn’s health care shortcomings lies in the “Brooklyn Hospitals Safety Net Plan,” a UUP-backed initiative to stabilize and deliver health care throughout Brooklyn. This plan would preserve SUNY Downstate and save several financially unstable hospitals in Brooklyn, including Interfaith Medical Center, Brookdale, Long Island College Hospital and Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center. You can see the proposal online at http://www.brooklynhospitalplan.org. It calls for the creation of a network of satellite ambulatory care centers, and would be controlled by and affiliated with 14 other Brooklyn hospitals. Downstate would be the network’s hub, educating and supplying physicians and medical staff to the care centers and working with doctors at the other hospitals. It’s a simple, effective plan and, if given a chance, it will work. New York has a responsibility to provide for the health care needs of its citizens. The Brooklyn Hospitals Safety Net Plan—our plan and the community’s plan—is a viable, workable option for long-term health care in Brooklyn. That’s something that Brooklyn residents desperately need. Frederick E. Kowal is president of United University Professions, the union representing 35,000 faculty and professional staff at SUNY’s 29 state-operated campuses, including SUNY’s public teaching hospitals and health science centers in Brooklyn, Buffalo, Long Island and Syracuse. With the city deciding to move forward on most of the school co-locations approved late last year, as Mayor Bloomberg prepared to vacate City Hall, parents in southwest Brooklyn are not only disappointed but angry. While the Department of Education under Mayor de Blasio wisely opted to back out of a planned co-location of a new high school inside Gravesend’s John Dewey High School, the DOE decided to move ahead with two others: the co-location of a charter school inside Seth Low Intermediate School in Bensonhurst and another inside Joseph B. Cavallaro Intermediate School in Bath Beach. These – like others in the borough and the city – are both fiercely opposed by parents, educators, students and the local Community Education Councils, all of whom contend that the co-locations would steal necessary space from students already attending the schools, and those who will be going to them in the near future. While the city has said it only considers under-utilized schools for co-locations, area education advocates say that both Cavallaro and Seth Low are well utilized, and likely to become more crowded as students now in elementary school in both District 20 and District 21 move up to middle school. Indeed, District 20 is one of the most crowded school districts in the city, so much so that the city built a host of new schools for it in the past decade, with more being planned, meaning that public school students in both District 20 and District 21 are likely to feel the squeeze should they have to share space with students from a charter school. That strikes us as patently unfair. While some of the charter schools poised to open in September, 2014 may be worthy additions to the city’s educational offerings, their needs should not trump the needs of existing schools with existing students. And, indeed, when a charter school is put inside a public school, the process must involve the school communities at both educational institutions, and parents must also be involved. The city must go back to the drawing board and come up with alternative arrangements for the charter schools planned for Seth Low and Cavallaro as well as other schools where they are opposed.. The students who attend those schools deserve no less. ed Downstate open and public BY FREDERICK E. KOWAL 9733 Fourth Avenue, Bklyn, NY 11209 TEL 1-718-238-6600 Fax 1-718-238-6630 E-Mail: [email protected] Co-Publisher ... Victoria Schneps-Yunis Co-Publisher ... Joshua A. Schneps Editor in Chief ... Helen Klein THE BROOKLYN SPECTATOR is published weekly by Brooklyn Media Group, Inc., continuing THE BROOKLYN TIMES (established 1974) including Bay Record and Advertiser, The Shore Record and The Flatbush Reporter. Periodical postage paid at Brooklyn, N.Y. Subscription rate $35.00 per year, $40.00 per year out of town. POSTMASTER: Send Address Changes To BROOKLYN SPECTATOR 9733 4th Ave., Bklyn, NY 11209 Entire contents copyright 2014 by Brooklyn Spectator. All letters sent to the BROOKLYN SPECTATOR should be brief and are subject to condensing. Writers should include a full address and home and office telephone numbers, where available, as well as affiliation, indicating special interest. 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Photo by Gardiner Anderson And the award goes to… Bay Ridge, which has provided the backdrop for many movies and television shows over the years, from “Blue Bloods” and “Saturday Night Fever” to “Mad Men” and, in 2006, to “Then She Found Me,” starring Helen Hunt and Bette Midler, seen above in a September, 2006, Home Reporter photo taken on location on Shore Road at 77th Street. Midler performed at the most recent Oscars, singing “Wind Beneath My Wings” during the awards show’s In Memoriam segment. “Then She Found Me,” which also starred Matthew Broderick, was also shot inside a historic home on 88th Street. Entire contents copyright 2016 by Brooklyn Spectator BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP/file photo A vibrant tradition in southwest Brooklyn since 1952, the 17th of May Norwegian Constitution Day Parade celebrates the Scandinavian heritage of the area, from Sunset Park through Bay Ridge. In this photo from the files of this newspaper, marchers dressed in traditional garb, old and young alike, strutted their stuff along Eighth Avenue, the parade’s first home. While many Norwegians have moved on, the parade continues to thrive in its newest home, Third Avenue, where marchers will take to the street on Sunday, May 15, this year.


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