A recent letter to the editor from June 3, 2011 called on Mayor Celender and Plaza trustees to take action in pursuit of ensuring the safety of village pedestrians. The author of that letter called on the mayor to “prove the naysayers wrong” with respect to taking action on the street crossing at Grace Avenue and Park Place.
While the letter was correct to point out that corner as a potential deathtrap, a place heavily populated by families and seniors, I want to point out that that area is but one of many hazardous crossings within the village that continue to be ignored by our elected officials at every level. Unfortunately, ignoring the needs of this community is a systemic problem for the Village, and to address such needs would require them to reverse their longstanding policy of “pass the buck and blame the county” that has been in place for years.
The author of last week’s letter should remind the mayor that her contradictory positions will eventually catch up with her. He should remind her that not too long ago, she authorized more than $1 million dollars to beautify the county-owned Great Neck Road. He should also remind the mayor of her plan to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars (our tax dollars) to beautify the Long Island Railroad-owned parking lot.
Since Mayor Celender fails to champion the needs of village residents, let me take a moment to point out a few other areas that she has left in a perilous condition: the crosswalk between the post office and the parking lot on Shoreward where hundreds of Plaza pedestrians risk their lives to get to or from the train daily; the stretch of Wyngate where double- and triple-parked cars threaten the safety of everyone who dares pass Shop Delight; the frightfully short span of time provided to pedestrians crossing Middle Neck Road near Grace, Cutter Mill and elsewhere; the village’s inability to enlist the help of county police to enforce traffic laws, such as stopping at stop signs throughout the Plaza; and the list goes on.
The reality is that Mayor Celender lacks awareness and effectiveness when it comes to the needs of this community.
I just can’t help but think that the tide of political arrogance and clumsiness is coming to end. Just the other day people actually showed up at a village trustees meeting to demand action on a number of different issues. And they saw firsthand how ill-equipped our local officials are at problem solving. On full display were the negativity and petty spirit of Trustee Schneiderman, the irrelevance of Trustee Green, the inconsistent positions taken simultaneously by both Deputy Mayor Rosen and Trustee Marksheid, and Mayor Celender’s inability to lead.
I can only imagine that “the demands of the people” will start to be heard, and perhaps officials at the town, county and state level will jump high and low to ensure that the safety issues that plague us all are finally addressed as that would not only be the responsible thing to do, it’s good politics too!
Michael S. Glickman
Great Neck
