From Brownstoner:On Friday, Hannah Senesh, a 152-seat private Jewish day school in Carroll Gardens, announced it was officially dropping its plans to try to circumvent a 160-year-old law in an effort to erect a two-story building on an empty lot at the corner of Smith Street and First Place. News that the school had hired a lobbyist in December to gain an exemption to the city law that treats all front yards on the "Place" blocks of Carroll Gardens as public space resulted in a huge backlash from area residents and lots of bad publicity for the school and outgoing City Council Member Bill de Blasio, who had sponsored the change.
Wow that Bill DeBlasio sounds like a real man of the people! I'm surprised he didn't start his political career off in Queens.
2 comments:
Hey his successor Brad Lander is just as bad. I hate these fucking politicians.
Kensington Stables owner Walker Blankinship made a big stink about new regulations that would mandate he give his horses 5-weeks of vacation, as well as add bigger stalls and install a sprinkler system in his barn. He threatened to close his business, which offers $37 trail rides through Prospect Park, if he was made to follow the newly proposed rules. Now the Brooklyn Paper reports that the Board of Health has sided with him—they decided against changing the horse-boarding laws, thus allowing Kensington Stables to remain open, as is.
The reforms are now being focused solely on the carriage horse industry, but the paper notes that Blankinship is keeping an eye on the legislation, currently headed towards City Council (perhaps because he also also offers carriage rides).
Area politicians have also sided with the stable owner, and a spokeswoman for Brad Lander (D-Park Slope) says, “We hope that the [Kensington] stables will be exempted [from any pending Council bill]." For now, Blankinship doesn't need to change a thing—the Board of Health only required that he vaccinate his horses for rabies, which he had already done.
It is disgraceful that the Department of Health sided with Kensington Stables. If they cannot provide adequately for their horses then they should not be in business. Experts recommend a 12 x 12 ft. or 14 x 14 ft stall for horses - so they can lie down and stretch out comfortably. Providing a tie stall is a disgrace. Horses should get daily turnout, which none of the stables are able to do. Kensington also charges $90 for 40 minutes for their carriage rides. The legal rate is $34 for 30 minutes.
Who does he know? Yes, I hate politicians too.
See this link for more testimony:
http://banhdc.org/archives/ch-news-03122010.shtml
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