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Volume XX • Number 1 • January 3-9, 2013 •
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PS 24 in violation of state law and city regulations By TESS McRAE P.S. 24 principal Donna Connelly allegedly violated both the state’s open meeting law and the school chancellor’s regulations when a reporter was asked to leave last month’s school leadership team meeting. The school leadership team, made up of parents, school administrators and faculty, meets monthly with the primary goal, according to the chancellor’s regulations, of developing the school’s Comprehensive Educational Plan and ensuring it is aligned with the school-based budget. Another Riverdale Review reporter was present at previous SLT meetings after presenting sections of the chancellor’s regulations to prove that the public was allowed to observe proceedings. However, during the December 18 meeting, Connelly and P.S. 24 interim acting assistant principal Emanuele “Manny” Verdi would not allow the media to stay. Just as the meeting was set to begin, Connelly asked to speak with the reporter outside for a moment. No other members were invited to join. “I spoke with the network head and they said press is absolutely not allowed in these meetings,” Connelly told the reporter in the hallway. The reporter responded by reminding Connelly and Verdi,
who had also joined the conversation, of the chancellor’s regulations, previously presented by another reporter. “I don’t remember anyone coming to a meeting and showing me documentation, and I didn’t ask you to leave the last meeting because I wasn’t sure if I was allowed to,” Connelly said. As of press time, P.S. 24 network team leader Robert Cohen had not returned more than a dozen phone calls and voicemails. Network leaders are considered mentors or advisors for their cluster of principals. They serve at the pleasure of the individual principals who can leave the network, removing income from that network if they go elsewhere. They cannot make decisions. Until recently, it was assumed that SLT meetings were closed to the public because P.S. 24’s bylaws do not explicitly state that they are open. However, official chancellor’s regulations state: “Notice of SLT meetings must be provided in a form consistent with the open meetings law.” P.S. 24 posts the date and time of SLT meetings on their school website but does not provide a location of the meeting. “My feeling is that they are supposed to be open upon request and that they aren’t just walk-in meetings,” SLT president Michael Bruckner said. “Dr. Connelly made a statement at the start of the
meeting that she had checked policy and because it was a decision-making meeting. I assumed she was right, but I think it’s appropriate to request what channel has to be followed. It does need to be clearer.” The New York open meetings law, in effect since 1977, is formatted to promote transparency and encourage public participation in government. “Sunlight is the best disinfectant,” said Robert Freeman, director of the Committee on Open Government. “The court of public opinion is significant, so when people are exposed to these types of meetings, good things will keep happening or bad things will stop happening.” But DOE spokesman David Pena even assumed the meetings were closed. “Those meetings are not open to the public,” he said initially. “I’ll check, but I was always under the impression that they are closed meetings.” Several hours later, Pena responded that the meetings are in fact open and subject to the open meetings law. “Generally, these meetings are open to the public except if an executive session is being held,” he wrote. The calling of an executive session rather than an open meeting is considered justified if the agenda Continued on Page 14
New technology allows commuters to track subway arrival times By MIAWLING LAM Local straphangers can track the arrival times of all trains on the No. 1 subway line, thanks to a new smartphone application released by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. MTA officials unveiled the much-anticipated MTA Subway Time app during a press conference last Friday. Under the free app, riders can access the real-time subway arrival times at 156 stations on seven of the city’s 24 routes—the No. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 lines, as well as the 42nd Street shuttle. The program is an extension of the agency’s popular countdown clocks—a state-of-the-art signal system installed at a cost of more than $228 million over 11 years. Outgoing MTA chairman Joseph Lhota, who resigned from his post to run for mayor in this year’s citywide elections, said the app was a major win for riders. “This would have been unthinkable a generation ago, but now it’s a reality,” he said. “The days of rushing to a subway station only to find yourself waiting motionless in a state of uncertainty are coming to an end. “Now, you can know from the comfort of your home or office whether to hasten to the station or grab a cup of coffee as part of a leisurely walk.” MTA Subway Time will ini-
tially be available only on iPhones and iPads and in a desktop version online. However, officials said they would provide a live stream of arrival-time data in the hope that private developers produce similar apps to accommodate those with non-Apple devices. Community Board 8 traffic and transportation committee chair Daniel Padernacht said the changes would be “welcomed by the community and should make the commute for residents much more convenient.” Of the seven lines covered by the MTA Subway Time app, five travel through The Bronx. MTA board member and longtime Riverdale resident Charles Moerdler said he and fellow board member Fernando Ferrer have been lobbying for improvements to mass transit in The Bronx. “I think it is generally assumed that with two Bronx—indeed, Riverdale—residents on the board, and with neither of us being shy, The Bronx will no longer permit itself to be treated as second-class citizens,” he said. “With the added support of (other board members), I think we can move forward in the near future with Bronx projects, such as the four East Bronx railroad stations that Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. has targeted as a high priority. We have certainly been outspoken on these and other Bronx issues and will continue that stance.”
MTA officials said arrival times for stations along the L line, which operates from Brooklyn to Manhattan, would be added to the app in six to 12 months. Arrival times at stations on the No. 7 route will most likely be available by 2016. However, it is not known when the rest of the subway network will be added to the program, as most lettered lines first need to upgrade their signal technology—a costly exercise.
Despite the limited availability, Gene Russianoff from the Straphangers Campaign, a riders’ advocacy group, welcomed the program. “I think it’s fantastic, exactly the kind of information riders want, and it will get them to use subways more often,” he said. MTA Subway Time comes a month after officials flicked the switch on a similar program for all 54 local and express bus routes in The Bronx. Like its subway counterpart,
the Bus Time program allows commuters to access bus arrival information and meet their bus— instead of waiting for it—by using their smartphone or computer. Straphangers can also view a map showing exactly where buses are along a particular route. The Bronx was the second borough to receive the Bus Time program. Officials aim to have real-time location details for all citywide bus routes by the end of 2013.
RELIEF FINALLY IN SIGHT: Contractors were spotted putting the finishing touches on the district headquarters and comfort station in Van Cortlandt Park on Wednesday morning. The single-story building has been under renovation since late 2009.