Letter to our Councilman, Lincoln Restler.

We are concerned that residents’ voices are not being heard in the discussion around the traffic, safety and crowd issues in DUMBO. We are asking Lincoln’s office to meet with us periodically to discuss these issues. Specifically, we want more resident input on the Open Streets closure of Washington Street between Front and the effect that has had on the neighborhood. 

Please join us in asking that our concerns get heard.

Torrey LaGrange + Tara Quinn

Dear Lincoln, 

We are writing to you again imploring for help. We are residents of DUMBO, both owners paying large property taxes and renters paying astronomical rents, who care deeply about our community. We are watching our beloved home fall and need urgent action. We cannot understand why our quality of life has been sacrificed so that the DUMBO BID can attract more hordes of tourists to our home. This also deeply affects business owners, many of whom are afraid to speak out about not being able to get deliveries and having constant running smog from idling food trucks, not to mention zero dedicated space for parking for their businesses or residents. 

We have tolerated near constant construction of both infrastructure and condo buildings. We have welcomed and supported businesses that have opened as our neighborhood has grown. We have, for years, met with local council and city agencies to try to work on numerous issues - mainly our horrific traffic problems and illegally parked food trucks, to absolutely no avail. 

We cannot accept the overreach of the DUMBO BID and the continued disrespect of the residents by that organization. We need to understand why the BID has so much power and why residents have no voice. 

Specifically, the closing of Washington Street between Front and Water under the OPEN Streets program was championed by the BID and has had a detrimental effect on the quality of life in the neighborhood.  This closure seems to specifically serve the tourist population. We have asked several times (including at the BID annual meeting and at a meeting set up one-on-one with the BID) what kind of resident input was given for the original and continued closure of this street and have never received an answer.

OPEN streets is a program created to bring more outdoor space to those neighborhoods who do not have enough green space.  DUMBO has a multi-acre park one block from this closed off street.  Closing this block adds comparatively little space and creates undue pressure on the neighborhood and adds to the circus-like atmosphere created by the constant influx of tourists. There is no crowd control or management of the behavior of people who flock here or security. Multiple buildings in DUMBO are continually broken into- information that is not shared with residents. 

The BID has also set up a flea market weekends which adds more traffic and chaos to DUMBO- with zero input from residents. 

Washington Street is a main artery out of DUMBO and in fact one of the only streets with traffic lights at each block, a significant safety issue considering the crowds in this neighborhood. There are never ending street closures in DUMBO already due to constant construction.  Why are we willfully allowing another street in the area to be closed seven days a week? This causes more congestion as cars need to go blocks out of their way to get out of the area.

There is willful disregard by the BID of residents.  The organization has taken over this public block as their own, placing their signage in the streets and using it to host their own events which draw even more crowds to this small two block area of the street. At their drop last month, they left broken glass, confetti and garbage all over Washington Street and did not clean it until the following morning. 

We nave thousand of people here and no security or police presence whatsoever. Emergency vehicles cannot make turns down the street- just one of multiple issues that DUMBO residents, businesses and even visitors are faced with as this historic area fails to get the attention it needs in order to be a safe place. 

We are asking for at a minimum: quarterly meetings with residents, a discussion on Open Streets and Flea Market during construction, and security in place as we have thousands and thousand of tourists here. 

The BID is getting away with this because they are paid by developers and big businesses. It’s outrageous they are allowed to shut down resident streets with no input from public. We have recently learned that they receive money from all films shot in the neighborhood. Where does this money go? There is zero accountability or communication. 

We are willing to work together with your office to move forward. We are grateful for your help. 

Kindest regards,

DUMBO Residents