Do you want a bike lane to the Canoe Club?

Do We Really Need an Interconnected Bike Network?

By Matt Chaban

December 13, 2010 | 6:37 p.m

Had I had the time, I would have added to this nonsensical opinion about connectivity, that all biking except for the rare biker who actually LIVES on a bike lane, dumps people off of her [DOT Commish Janette Sadik-Khan's] connective system. I would venture to say that next to no one would use the bike route that "connects" Eastern Parkway to Shore Parkway down two nondescript residential streets in Canarsie. However, if they connected a lane down Paerdegat Avenue along Paerdegat Basin, through Canarsie/Seaview Park and out again up East 108th Street along the other side of the basin, biker riders would use it significantly. The fact that the lanes terminate and are not connective is irrelevant. Everyone leaves the lanes to travel home somewhere.

Well, one reader certainly disagrees:

What Lew Fidler, with his windshield perspective, apparently fails to grasp is that not everyone who hops on a bike wants or needs to commute to Manhattan. We want to shop, visit friends, attend a meeting, ride to our nearby, non-Manhattan jobs or ride to the subway to commute to Manhattan. And we don't want to have to get into cars to do all that. But we want to feel that we're reasonably safe when we're on our bikes, and bike lanes and traffic-calmed streets go a long way toward accomplishing that.

So which is it? Do we need an interconnected bike system covering the entire city for it to be truly effective? Would not having one be like building a bridge to nowhere? Or is our time and money better spent on a system that will get a lot of use from a high concentration of riders while leaving gaps in the broader system? Should every street in the city have a lane? Should we ban cars all together? What's your solution?

mchaban [at] observer.com | @mc_nyo

NY shops charged with dumping sewage into Jamaica Bay

The dye map of the creek, left; and the four men hit with environmental crime charges

Associated Press

NEW YORK — Several stores at Brooklyn shopping center have been dumping raw sewage and restaurant grease into a small creek that empties into Jamaica Bay, a wildlife jewel next to John F. Kennedy International Airport, authorities said Wednesday.

The businesses, which include a Regal Entertainment multiplex theater, a bagel shop, a TGI Friday's restaurant and a marina, were accused of using busted sewer pipes that leaked human waste into the water and were charged with environmental violations. Residents complained starting last year, but prosecutors say some of the businesses were first cited in 2003.

Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes said it's unclear whether the sewage would cause permanent environmental damage. The leaks did not affect the city's water supply, the largest unfiltered supply system in the world.

The waste was seeping from septic pipes that run along the banks of the Shell Bank Creek, which weaves through Sheepshead Bay and Marine Park neighborhoods in the southeastern tip of Brooklyn, prosecutors charged. The Department of Environmental Protection served a notice to the manager of the Regal Entertainment Group that the lines needed repairing after 2003.

But after complaints in 2009, an investigation using green dye traced discharges of fecal matter and toilet paper to the creek from the movie theater, prosecutors said. The other businesses charged, which include Knapp Street Bagels and the Deauville Marina, also used the pipes.

List of gear for Herring Fishing

What you need to catch herring:

1.Inexpensive fishing rod...

2.Herring rig..also called a Sabiki rig..$4.99


3.A sinker (2-3 oz. weight)

4.Bucket or container for fish

5.Rag or paper towels for fishscales on your hands

6.Hot chocolate for the kids or yourself

7.Patience and good luck

8.Know the tide charts..incoming tide is good



All this can be found on Emmons Ave, two bait stores are there and the staff knows about what you need for herring fishing....

Our Club House gets a Make-Over

This is how it looks so far....more to come!

Sebago Canoe Club's Flushing Meadows Corona Park Aquatic Center Pool Sessions 2010/2011 Season

Sebago Canoe Club is proud to announce the start of their winter kayak instruction program at the Aquatic Center in Flushing Meadows Park (next to Citifield). Easy walk from the #7 train or free parking is available.

Sebago Canoe Club membership is not required, but Sebago members will be given priority this year. Non-members will be allowed, but will be determined through lottery and non-members can not participate any two weeks in a row.

The sessions will take place most Sunday’s from 9am to 11am

starting December 5th, 2010 and will run until April 3rd.

There will be some cancellations and rescheduling of sessions, determined by swim meet schedules.

Sebago offers the ONLY program that allows full sized sea kayaks in the pool. Other kayak types are allowed as well.

Our program usually has at least 2 ACA certified coaches each week.

The program is for people who have never been in a kayak or are new to kayaking and those who just want to sharpen their skills or learn to roll. Many sessions will have use of the diving area for those experienced kayakers who just want to practice. This is especially good for practicing rescues.

For the beginner: learn how to do a wet exit, learn rescues, learn how to do avoid a capsize.

For the intermediate paddler: sharpen your bracing skills, learn how to scull, learn advanced self rescue techniques and begin to master a roll.

For the more advanced: perfect your roll on both sides, practice your balance braces and finally learn to roll without a paddle.

Have more fun and be safe the first time you get back into the water this spring.

SPACE IS LIMITED and RESERVATIONS WILL BE TAKEN EVERY WEEK. You must RSVP!!!

Sebago members will be given priority until the previous Thursday afternoon of each week. A lottery will determine which non-members can participate on the Friday or Saturday before each session.

There is no penalty for cancellation, but it is important to email Steve if you should have to cancel, even if it is Sunday morning. This allows others to participate in your place.

Boats, paddles, PFD's and all equipment provided if needed (see cost below).

Swim caps are required for all participants. If you have one, bring it. If not, one will be provided.

SESSION COSTS

If you bring and share a boat $20.00

Without a boat $25.00

The standard ACA insurance fee will be required for non-ACA Members.(Sebago memmbership includes ACA membership)

You can also join the ACA at these sessions.

We'll be washing the boats out thoroughly before they get in the pool. A hose will be provided.

For those meeting at the Sebago Canoe Club to load boats and car pool, we will meet at at 7:30 AM. Others meet at the rear of the pool before 8:30AM to help move/prep boats and get ready for our time slot.

PLEASE be early, late arrival takes precious pool time away from others.

Reservations or questions contact Steve McAllister, preferably via email at brooklynkayak@gmail.com. If email is not an option call 917 496 1523.

Click for info about the pool.

Click for Directions. Be aware that we enter the facility from the rear entrance.

Thanks to Dorothy Lewandowski for this opportunity.

Work Day 9 years ago at Sebago

Here are several photos taken over 9 years ago, showing how the club looked before we had a path, ped. gate, only a few containers, no real garden, and an old tractor trailer carcass that used to be a container. Does the club look different today?

Reconstruction of Bridges on the Belt Parkway

This is an artists conception of the new Paedergat Bridge
Reconstruction of Bridges on the Belt Parkway
click on above text for a detailed PDF of the project.

Beginning in July of 2009, the Department of Transportation started reconstruction of seven bridges and their approaches on the Belt Parkway, over three local streets and four waterways. They are: Bay Ridge Avenue, Nostrand Avenue, Gerritsen Inlet, Mill Basin, Paerdegat Basin, Rockaway Parkway, and Fresh Creek Basin Bridges. All are original structures, which were built beginning in 1939. These structures have outlived their useful lives and must be replaced. See details of the reconstruction project (in pdf format) in English, Spanish, or Russian. The first contract to replace seven bridges on the Belt Parkway started in late October 2009. Contract No. 1 includes the replacement of three bridges: Fresh Creek Basin Bridge, Paerdegat Basin Bridge and Rockaway Parkway Bridge. As part of the scope of work, the contractor is required to establish staging areas. The use of these areas prevents the storage of materials, equipment or vehicles on local streets in surrounding residential communities. Staging area No.1 has been established on the Canarsie Circle near the eastbound parkway entrance. Staging area No.2 is being established in the paved area between the westbound parkway entrance service road and Canarsie Road. Staging area No.2 will be utilized for storage of construction material and equipment as well as the contractor's staff. Access into the staging area will be from the Rockaway Parkway service road and from Canarsie Road. Due to the nature of the work, the area must be available during both daytime and nighttime work hours. Every effort will be made to minimize impacts to the surrounding community. Beginning in February 2010, the East 8th Street Access Ramp over the Belt Parkway (also known as the Guider Avenue Bridge) will be fully closed to vehicles and pedestrians. DOT will begin the replacement of the bridge deck (concrete road surface), the steel structure, bridge columns and footings, and the bridge abutments will be replaced or repaired. The new bridge will meet modern safety standards include an improved walking/biking path and have a 75-year life. The anticipated completion date is May 2011. Drivers heading for the westbound Belt Parkway should head north on Coney Island Avenue, turn left onto Avenue Z, turn left onto Hubbard Street, and bear right onto the Shore Parkway Service Road. All pedestrians will use Coney Island Avenue. Beginning in March 2010, there will be intermittent lane closures at night in both directions. This may include full stoppage of traffic for 15-minute intervals between 1:00 am and 5:00 am, Monday through Friday.

A Particularly Rewarding SailComm Work Day

Hey guys...


Wat'cha watchin'?


Ooooohhhh!


It was a particularly rewarding workday for the Sebago Sailing Committee today - it's not just every day that a boat is resurrected!

This 420 has been on the grounds for several years after being donated by a club member a few years back. Unfortunately, for various reasons (primarily lack of knowledge about how to use the boat combined with plenty of boats that people DID know how to use), she's languished on her trailer gathering grime ever since them. A couple of us who have sail-curious family or significant others have looked at her with a lot of interest but none of us really had the time, energy, or skill to spearhead the process of getting her back into working order.

Well, among the numerous sailors who've joined the club this year are a couple of gentleman who have actually sailed these - and so today, they brought her back to life!

It turned out not to be all that difficult, either - listening to the guys talk, there are some structural repairs that need to be done before the boat can be put to regular use - but all the pieces were there & by the early afternoon, they'd gotten her fully rigged & deemed her ready for a trial spin on the Paerdegat - and there she is!

Oh - and speaking of nice old boats ending up in good hands?

A while back, Andy had found & posted a neat old brochure from the Sebago Boat Company. That post ended up drawing comments from a couple of people who were working on restorations. I always enjoy seeing old boats being cared for & loved & I asked Mike, who was working on renovating a "Fisherman's Friend" model that he'd had for 30 years, to let me know when he had pictures. Well, if you are on Facebook - click here to check out his album. Sweet!

Sebago Swim Support!

Had a lot of fun with Phil, Steve, Tony & a lot of other old friends at the CIBBOWS Veteran's Day Swim today!

Jamaica Bay's revival begins with mollusks

Oysters, plants cleaning the plumbing like Ty-D-Bowl

By Gary Buiso

Tuesday, October 19, 2010 8:10 PM

Troubled Jamaica Bay is going from stinky to stunning!

Pilot projects using natural water cleansers such as oysters, and improvements to the sewer system are yielding tangible results, according to a report released by the city on Monday and — more important — those who live and play along the 39-square-mile bay.

“In the past, we would observe a plume of discolored water atop Paerdegat Basin [one of the bay’s inlets], and people would be driven from their patios because of the horrendous smell,” said John Wright, a board member of the Sebago Canoe Club. “We are very pleased to see the progress.”

The bay, part of the National Park Service, borders Brooklyn, Queens and Nassau County, and includes approximately 142 square miles of meadowland, marshes, dunes and forests and open water — habitats that support 91 species of fish and 325 species of birds, reptiles, amphibians and small mammals.

Humans, such as Wright, and his 220-member club will also be the beneficiaries of a cleaner bay, but there is still a long way to go before it’s as clean as it could be.

To that end, the Department of Environmental Protection has tweaked its Jamaica Bay Watershed Protection plan, focusing on upgrades to the wastewater treatment plants that dump approximately 300 million gallons of treated wastewater in the bay every day.

That water has a high concentration of nitrogen, which results in poor water quality that allows harmful algae to thrive. The algae diminish the bay’s oxygen, killing wildlife.

The city — compelled by law by the state to do so — announced that it would invest $115 million to improve the overall water quality and mitigate marshland loss in Jamaica Bay, the bulk of the money going to the installation of new nitrogen control technologies at the four wastewater treatment plants located on the bay. The money, along with $95 million taxpayers previously committed, will reduce nitrogen in the bay by nearly 50 percent by 2020.

Agency commissioner Cas Holloway said the mayor has made the restoration of the bay “a special priority” in the effort to improve harbor water quality throughout the region.

“We are on track to achieve the goals outlined in the [plan] that will substantially improve the overall quality of the bay’s ecology,” he said.

The report notes that the city has already planted 1,000 eelgrass marine plants as part of a $350,000 pilot program to evaluate the potential for establishing small beds, which are seen as beneficial to fish and mollusks; and restored 10,000 oysters to help filter excess nutrients from the water.