ATTENTION: Free Tree Giveaway; 4/13; Bed-Stuy

Pratt Area Community Council (PACC) is hosting a Spring Tree Giveaway Saturday, April 13, 2013, and will be donating 200 FREE trees! Individuals, families and community groups within NYC are eligible to receive a tree for planting on private property only. Trees will be distributed on a first-come, first-serve basis until supplies run out. Simple tree planting and care instructions come with each free tree.


WHEN: Saturday, April 13, 2013
11:00am

WHERE: PACC's Affordable Housing Building
Magnolia Plaza, 686 Lafayette Avenue
(Between Marcy and Tompkins)

ATTENTION: PACC Free Tree Giveaway; 11/3; Bed-Stuy

Pratt Area Community Council will be hosting a Fall 2012 Tree Giveaway where 100 trees will be given away.

WHEN: November 3, 2012

11:00AM- 1:00PM

WHERE: Magnolia Plaza (between Marcy and Tompkins)

686 Lafayette Avenue

Brooklyn, NY 11216

More information is available at www.nyrp.org/BrooklynTrees.

ATTENTION: Citizen's Cmte Hosts "Build A Greenhouse"; Crown Heights; 9/22

The Citizen's Committee of NYC will be hosting a 'Build A Greenhouse For Your Community Garden' workshop!

WHEN: Saturday, September 22, 2012

10:30AM- 3:30PM

WHERE: Westbrook Memorial Garden

Crown Heights

For more information, please contact (212) 822-9568.

ATTENTION: CM James and PACC Host Community Meeting On Myrtle Village Green; TODAY 6/4; Pratt Center; 6PM

You can read more about Myrtle Village Green here: http://www.myrtlepark.org/

City Council Sanitation Committee Chair Letitia James To Speak At NY League of Conservation Voters Forum on City Solid Waste Challenges

**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**
December 5, 2011

Contact: Dan Hendrick at (212) 361-6350 x206

City Council Sanitation Committee Chair Letitia James To Speak At NY League of Conservation Voters Forum on City Solid Waste Challenges

(New York, NY)— Did you know that New York City ships 10,500 tons of residential waste to out-of-state landfills every day? That adds up to nearly 27 million miles a year— all on large, long-haul trucks that spew massive amounts of climate-warming emissions into our air.

New York City is lagging behind other major cities in the adoption of new technologies, even as our current system grows more and more expensive. Isn't it time for the Big Apple to rethink its solid waste management strategy?

On December 6, 2011, Council Member Letitia James will be joining the New York League of Conservation Voters (Education Fund) at “Wasted Opportunity: Confronting NYC's Solid Waste Challenges” to discuss how New York City can best manage the nonrecyclable fraction of its municipal solid waste. Panelists will include NYC Deputy Mayor for Operations Caswell Holloway; NYC Environment- Natural Resources Defense Council Director Eric Goldstein; Citizens Budget Commission President Carol Kellerman; as well as others.

The forum will take place Tuesday, December 6, 2011 at the New York City Bar Association (42 West 44th Street) from 8:00AM to noon.

See more information here: http://www.nylcvef.org/wastedopportunity

ATTENTION: BCAP Summer Camp

The much-celebrated Brooklyn Cultural Adventures Program (BCAP), an innovative summer program for kids ages 7-12 which gives them the chance to interact with their local environment and community, is currently open for registration.

BCAP Summer Camp is sponsored by Heart of Brooklyn, a unique partnership among six of Brooklyn’s most treasured cultural institutions. All lessons are consistent with New York State Learning Standards and are taught by professional educators. BCAP Summer Camp is licensed by the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and is inspected twice yearly.

BCAP's curriculum theme for Summer 2012 is Myths and Magic. The program is offered in three two-week sessions in summer 2012:

• Session 1: July 2 – July 13
• Session 2: July 16 – July 27
• Session 3: July 30 – August 10

Tuition assistance is offered for qualifying families. For more information or to register, see here.

ATTENTION: Smoking Ban in NYC Parks Goes Into Effect

Yesterday, the City law banning smoking within New York City’s parks, beaches, and pedestrian plazas goes into effect. Please be aware that smoking is now prohibited on Parks Department property.

Smoking will still be allowed on sidewalks outside parks, including the sidewalks that form the perimeter of parks, and in the parking lots of all Parks Department properties. The department expects that the new law will be enforced mostly by New Yorkers themselves, who will ask people to follow the law and stop smoking. However, those who violate the new law could receive a $50 ticket.

If you have any further questions, you are encouraged to contact the Parks Department at (212) 360-3484.

ATTENTION: Internship Available At Office of CM James

The Office of Council Member Letitia James is looking for summer interns. Please note this is an unpaid summer internship but applicants will have invaluable experience for future careers in social advocacy, political affairs, and community activism. Interns should be motivated and have a passion for public service. The ideal candidate must possess outstanding organizing skills, the ability to gather data, as well as communicate and listen to constituent needs.

• You will be assigned to a specific project developing from areas such as Housing Development, Homeless Issues, Environmental Issues, Public Health, Education and After-School Programs as well as other needs.
• You will be required to work outside of out of the office at least three days per week.

All interested parties should email cover letter and resume to Ms. G. Davis-Elliott, Chief of Staff at gdaviselliott@council.nyc.gov

CM James Commends City Council Restoration of Funds for SWMP Implementation

**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**
April 26, 2011

Contact: Aja Worthy-Davis at (212) 788-7081

Council Member Letitia James Commends City Council Restoration of Funds for SWMP Implementation
Important Plan Addresses Borough Equity and Environmental Responsibility In Waste Handling

“Last week, the New York City Council restored important capital funding for the implementation of the 2006 Solid Waste Management Plan (SWMP). During recent Preliminary Budget discussions, the administration proposed a budget that all but gutted SWMP by eliminating funding for critical infrastructure, and delaying that funding as far into the future as Fiscal Year 2019.

As the Chairperson of the New York City Council’s Committee on Sanitation and Waste, I believe that SWMP is both timely and integral to achieving the City's vital goal of diminishing the impact of exporting our waste outside of the City, and addressing the injustice of siting solid waste infrastructure in low-income communities.

For over ten years since the premature closure of the Fresh Kills landfill, New York City has operated under an ‘Interim Plan’ for handling waste. This system relies on privately-owned waste transfer stations concentrated in low-income communities that unfairly bear the brunt of waste-handling. In addition, the system depends heavily on long-haul trucks to export waste out of the City. In 2006, SWMP was passed in an effort to serve the critical goals of equity and environmental responsibility for the City of New York. Central to this Plan was a system of marine- and rail-based transfer stations located throughout the City that would eliminate millions of miles of truck traffic each year, as well as advance borough equity.

The Department of Sanitation’s Preliminary Budget would have effectively eliminated funding for four Marine Transfer Stations (MTSs), including all three MTSs to be sited in Manhattan (approximately 40% of the new waste-handling capacity envisioned in the SWMP plan). If this proposed budget had been implemented, this would have cut borough equity out of the SWMP, dramatically reduced its environmental benefits, and betrayed commitments made by the administration to both the City Council and the stakeholders that worked to pass the Plan. In fact, the proposal would have effectively undermined the Plan under the guise of delaying capital funding beyond the current administration. Waste and recyclables that would otherwise go to these facilities would instead be trucked to overburdened communities, and back out of the City.

I have stood by my colleagues in the New York City Council— some of whom represent districts overburdened with waste-handling facilities— to support SWMP and its important goals. In the coming years, City Council oversight will be integral as the administration and the department move forward with the construction of these facilities.”

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ATTENTION: NYC Water Board Proposes Rate Increase, Offers Improved Billing Options

There is a proposed alteration of the New York City Water Board's water and sewer rates and billing policies for FY12, which would take effect July 1, 2011.

An increase of 7.5% has been proposed. This would raise the annual water-and-sewer charge for an average single-family home from approximately $816 in FY 2011 to $877 in FY 2012, an increase of $61 per year or $5 per month. However, the FY12 proposal also includes a one-year, 2% discount for metered customers who subscribe to receive their water bills via email, and have their billed charges automatically debited from their checking accounts or paid via credit card. For customers who participate in both the paperless billing and direct debit programs, the net rate increase is reduced to 5.4%, which equates to $44 per year for the average single-family homeowner.

In addition to the general 7.5% increase and the 2% discount for meter-billed customers who participate in the Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) direct debit and paperless billing programs, the Board is considering the following changes:

(1) Installment payment agreement terms will be revised to include options for no down payment, a repayment period of up to ten years, and new default provisions;
(2) Customers subject to a denial of access proceeding currently receive all three required notices by both first-class and certified mail. The Board proposes to change the delivery of the first required notice, which has no concurrent financial impact on the customer, to first-class mail only; the final two required notices will continue to be sent by both first-class and certified mail;
(3) The maximum fixture flow-rates to qualify for a reduced water rate pursuant to the Board’s Comprehensive Water Reuse program will be conformed to recent changes to the NYC Plumbing Code;
(4) For registered participants in the lead and copper monitoring program, a new credit of $25 will be applied to a customer’s water bill upon successful completion of a lead and copper monitoring test.

In accordance with the Public Authorities Law, the Water Board will hold public hearings in each borough of the City on the proposed FY 2012 rates and charges for water and sewer service--

Brooklyn
Public School 102
211 72nd Street
Brooklyn, NY 11209
Wednesday
May 4, 2011
7:00 P.M.

Please call the Office of Council Member Letitia James at (212) 788-7081 if you have any further questions, or would like to testify at the public hearing.

CM James, Elected Officials, Community Leaders Demand Removal of PCB Chemicals from Schools; 10/26-27

Council Member Letitia James encourages the community to join her, along with State and City representatives to demand action on removing toxic PCB chemicals from public schools

Elected officials, parents, school employees, and activists reach out to a dozen school communities to demand that the Department of Education and the Environmental Protection Agency immediately carry out citywide PCB testing and clean up.

WHAT: PCBs – chemicals which have been proven to pose serious risks to children’s nervous and immune systems and brain development – are currently found in products like window caulk and lighting fixtures in public schools across New York City. Recent results from a pilot study conducted by the NYC Department of Education and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency found significantly elevated levels of PCBs in two of three schools tested, with levels at the third also above guidances, putting thousands of kids at risk. There is every reason to believe that many schools out of the nearly 700 built or renovated between 1950 and the late 1970s will be similarly contaminated.

This Tuesday, October 26th, elected officials from across the city will join New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, New York Communities for Change, representatives from the UFT, 32BJ, Local 78, other labor organizations, and parents, outside a dozen potentially contaminated NYC public schools as part of a citywide movement to demand that DOE and EPA rid all NYC schools of PCBs. As children file into their classrooms in the morning, parents, teachers, and school employees will all have the opportunity to sign a petition demanding the immediate and comprehensive testing of all schools built or renovated during the time PCBs were used in building materials. A number of schools have also been selected for petitioning during the afternoon dismissal where parents, teachers, and school employees will have the opportunity to sign the petition as children file out of their classrooms.

WHEN: Tuesday, October 26, 2010 & Wednesday, October 27, 2010
WHERE: In front of schools across the city
Start Time: School/Address Elected Official

MORNING
7:05 a.m. SBCC, 977 Fox Street, Bronx - AM Marcos Crespo
8:15 a.m. PS 268, 133 E. 53rd St., Brooklyn - CM Jumaane Williams
8:15 a.m. PS 149, 41 W 117th St., Manhattan - CM Robert Jackson/State Sen. Bill Perkins

AFTERNOON
2:45 p.m. PS 270. Dekalb & Classon, Brooklyn - CM Tish James
2:45 p.m. PS 332, 51 Christopher Ave., Brooklyn - AM William Boyland
2:45 p.m. PS 38, Pacific & Nevins, Brooklyn - CM Stephen Levin

****Wednesday, October 27th
7:30 a.m. PS 53, 10-45 Nameoke St., Rockaway - CM James Sanders

Contact: Lana Gersten
212-784-5714
917-727-6025

Watch FL Michelle Obama Award BCAP on Behalf of President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities

Watch Brooklyn Cultural Adventures Program (BCAP) get awarded by First Lady Michelle Obama as one of the best youth arts programs in the country. The National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award is the highest honor out-of-school youth arts programs can receive in the United States. Read more here.

BCAP Awarded by President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities; Honored by First Lady

First Lady Michelle Obama Honors Heart of Brooklyn’s BCAP Initiative; One of 15 Youth Programs Awarded Nationwide

First Lady Michelle Obama will recognize Brooklyn Cultural Adventures Program (BCAP), the youth education program that gave rise to the award-winning Heart of Brooklyn cultural partnership, with a prestigious National Arts & Humanities Youth Program Award at a White House ceremony on Wednesday, October 20. Heart of Brooklyn Director Ellen F. Salpeter and BCAP Summer Camp Adventurer Jamell Allen-Thomas will accept the award on behalf of the thousands of children served by BCAP since 1998.

Selected from a pool of more than 400 nominations, BCAP is one of 15 after-school and out-of-school programs across the country to be presented with a 2010 National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award (formerly, the Coming Up Taller Award- BCAP also was named a 2009 semi-finalist for the Coming Up Taller Award) from Mrs. Obama. The award is the highest honor such programs can receive in the United States. BCAP is one of two New York City-based organizations to be recognized at the ceremony, along with youth media organization Global Action Project.

The National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Awards are administered by the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH), in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), and the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). With the award, Heart of Brooklyn will also receive $10,000 to support its engaging programming that weaves connections between art, world culture, literature, history, nature and science.

The Awards Ceremony will be streamed live at www.whitehouse.gov/live at 11am, EST.

Learn more about BCAP’s innovative programming and the Heart of Brooklyn cultural partnership by visiting www.heartofbrooklyn.org/bcap.

ATTENTION: PLANYC Presentation; Bed-Stuy; 10/7; 6PM

You are invited to a Brooklyn Community Conversation on PlaNYC [2030], Mayor Bloomberg's Sustainability Agenda!

WHEN: Thursday, October 7th, 2010
6PM- 8PM
WHERE: Billie Holiday Theatre at Bed-Stuy Restoration Plaza
1368 Fulton Street

To RSVP, please call (212) 788-9770.

Council’s Historic Recycling Legislation Signed into Law by Mayor Bloomberg

STATEMENT BY COUNCIL SPEAKER CHRISTINE C. QUINN, SANITATION CHAIR LETITIA JAMES, AND PUBLIC ADVOCATE BILL DE BLASIO ON RECYCLING LEGISLATION SIGNED INTO LAW

The Mayor signed a package of recycling bills that will revolutionize recycling in New York City through a variety of initiatives including expanded plastic recycling, a new clothing and textile recycling program, and improved public space recycling. The package of legislation represents the first significant expansion of the city’s residential recycling program since it was created in 1989.

Speaker Christine C. Quinn: “I applaud the Mayor for signing this package of bills that will dramatically expand and overhaul the way we recycle here in New York City. Our legislation will divert over 8,000 tons of plastic every year away from landfills and incinerators. That’s equal to the amount of trash produced by nearly 10,000 people each year. This is one step closer to making New York City cleaner and greener for our current and future residents.”

Int. 156 - Improves recycling at City agencies by requiring each agency to establish sustainability coordinators and to implement plans to expand recycling with each agency.

Sanitation Committee Chair Letitia James: “The City’s comprehensive residential recycling law provides a recycling infrastructure separate from home collection. I thank the Mayor for signing this package today and finalizing the last step in making this a reality. Upgrades to Local Law 19 include an expanded public space recycling initiative, which would require DOS to site a total of 700 public space recycling bins. These revisions promote a culture of recycling in New York City by making it available and convenient for both residents, as well as visitors. Therefore, public receptacles make it easy for everyone to readily discard their used bottles, cans or papers. This is a win for all New Yorkers and our visitors.”

Int. 165 - Requires schools to designate a recycling coordinator and provide recycling receptacles in each classroom and at other locations.

Public Advocate Bill de Blasio: “This new law will do more than reduce school waste; it will teach the youngest New Yorkers to grow up green. I am proud to have sponsored this legislation, and I thank Speaker Quinn and Mayor Bloomberg for making it into law.”

Int. 158 - Requires DOS to site 300 new recycling bins in public spaces over the next three years, and a total of 700 bins within the next ten years.

Int. 162 - Mandates at least one DOS sponsored household hazardous waste collection event in each borough per year, with a long-term goal of increasing the number of events, or making such sites permanent.

Int. 148 - Expands plastic recycling to cover all rigid plastic containers, including such items as yogurt tubs, take out containers and medicine bottles.

Int. 147 Improves recycling education, enforcement, and fine increases.

Int. 142 - Extends the DOS collection period from March 1 – November 30 beginning in 2012, and requires the Department of Sanitation to establish leaf and yard waste composting facilities in all boroughs where the Department provides yard waste compost collection.

Int. 141 - Requires DOS to complete a study of commercial recycling practices.

Int. 142 - Establishes a voluntary take-back program for retailers and manufacturers of unused residential paint.

Int. 164 - Improves recycling reporting requirements and requires additional studies to enhance the City’s recycling programs.

Int. 171 - Requires a report to study ways to improve food waste composting in New York City.

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BBG Celebrates 100 Years With Bee-Day!; 6/12; 11AM- 6PM

On Saturday, June 12th, 2010 from 11:00 AM- 6:00 PM,

You are invited to join the Brooklyn Botanic Garden for a bee-inspired birthday party for all ages with honey tastings, lectures, presentations, tours and live music throughout the Garden.

Visitors will be treated to live music, including marimba and hammered dulcimer serenades. Activities will range from science demonstrations and hands-on workshops for kids and families to local food vendors purveying bee-inspired sweets. Some of BBG’s most senior scientists and horticulturists will lead tours drawing attention to the Garden’s plant collections and how they support pollinator populations, while BBGs horticulturist will show children how to build homes for native bees. The event climaxes with live performances.

For more information visit here.

CM James and Peace Advocates Call On Military Cuts To Fund Citywide Budget Deficit, Human Needs

On April 15, 2010, Council Member Letitia James joined peace and hunger advocates from Brooklyn for Peace, Westside Campaign Against Hunger, and the Hunger Action Network of New York State to call for military cuts to fund the Citywide budget deficit and human needs.

Council Member Letitia James joined advocacy groups on the steps of City Hall on Thursday, April 15, 2010 to announce the upcoming introduction of a Council resolution urging the United State Congress to cut the military budget to help solve the City budget deficit and other urgent human needs such as affordable housing (including Section 8 vouchers), child nutrition programs, job training and development, and education program.

Joining Council Member James at the news conference were Mark Dunlea of the Hunger Action Network of NYS; Doreen Wohl of the Westside Campaign Against Hunger, Christy Robb of Hour Children, and Brooklyn Peace Coalition.

New York City is presently facing a $4.9 billion budget deficit. To resolve the deficit, the Mayor has proposed draconian cuts to essential city services and jobs. The Council resolution will urge the state's Congressional delegation to see cuts in the record military budget proposed by President Obama to provide funding to state and local governments to deal with the massive budget deficits throughout the country.

The resolution also asks that military spending be transferred to support job creation, affordable housing, anti-hunger programs, environmental protection, education and other essential human needs. For instance, anti-hunger groups and Senator Gillibrand are seeking an additional $4 billion annually in funding as part of the reauthorization of the various federal child nutrition programs (e.g., school and summer meals, WIC). The Senate Agriculture Committee, however, is proposing only a $450 million increase.

The City recently announced that in addition to rescinding 2,600 Section 8 housing vouchers it had promised low-income cuts, the lack of federal funds may require it to cut off 10,000 existing families receiving federal section 8 housing assistance. Advocacy groups note that New York taxpayers have paid $81.4 billion just for Iraq and Afghanistan war spending since 2001. According to the National Priorities Project, taxpayers in New York will pay $63.2 billion for Total Defense Spending in FY2010.

For more information on this issue, please call the Office of Council Member Letitia James at (212) 788-7081.

ATTENTION: BCAP Summer Camp

The Brooklyn Cultural Adventures Program (BCAP) is an innovative summer program for kids ages 7-12, which gives them the chance to interact with their local environment and community in enriching ways.

BCAP Summer Camp is sponsored by Heart of Brooklyn, a unique partnership among six of Brooklyn’s most treasured cultural institutions. All lessons are consistent with New York State Learning Standards and are taught by professional educators. BCAP Summer Camp is licensed by the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and is inspected twice yearly. All counselors are mature individuals that have been First Aid/CPR certified.

For more information or to register, see here.

ATTENTION: Upcoming Community Events/Notices

Take the Census Employment Test

LOCATION: Community Board #8
ADDRESS: 1291 St. Marks Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11213
DATES: February 16th- 18th

Candidates must be 18 years or older with (2) valid pieces of identification. Available positions include census takers, census clerks, crew leaders/assistants and recruiting assistants.

For more information and to schedule an appointment, you may call 718.467.5620. Positions start at $18.75 an hour.
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To help lower energy costs and reduce energy consumption, New York State will provide consumers with rebates for purchasing Energy Star-rated refrigerators, clothes, washers, freezers and dishwashers during President's Week 2010 (Feb. 12th- 21st).

To learn more about program guidelines or to obtain rebate forms and instructions, please visit http://www.nyapplianceswapout.com/ or call 1.877.NY.SMART.

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Energized citizens in Fort Greene and standing up to corporate polluters!

The Fort Greene Association's new and improved "No Ads signs" have arrived. To get your signs, contact your local Greene Fort Greene & Clinton Hill block chief by visiting the http://www.greenfgch.org/ or contacting Green FG&CH chair Jed Marcus at (718) 643-6555 or info@greenefgch.org.

Trees NY and Prospect Heights Urban Forestry Initiative Hold Puppet Show To Teach Kids About Trees

You are invited to a puppet show designed to teach children about the importance of trees. Children should be forewarned that puppet Mrs. Crabapple does not like trees and will try to persuade children to do the same. Will Prospect Heights youngsters be able to convince Mrs. Crabapple that trees are awesome? Bring your youngster and find out for yourself!

February 28, 2010
12:30PM- 2:00PM
Soda Bar
629 Vanderbilt Avenue @ St. Marks Avenue
Prospect Heights, Brooklyn

Cookies and milk will be served. Trees NY and PHUFI are sponsoring.

Trees New York is a non-profit organization founded as a volunteer response to the City's devastating cutbacks in tree-related community services. TreesNY has worked to plant, preserve, and protect New York City's neighborhood trees through education, active citizen participation, and advocacy.
The Prospect Heights Urban Forestry Initiative (PHUFI) will ensure that Prospect Heights Street Trees receive the care and attention needed to survive. PHUFI is working to involve the entire neighborhood in the maintenance and upkeep of our street trees.

Trees New York (NY)
www.treesny.org
(212) 227-1887

Prospect Heights Urban Forestry Initiative
PHCForest@gmail.com