Archive for the ‘Maspeth’ Category
enigmatic fragments
– photo by Mitch Waxman
This blog post is not about Osama Bin Laden or LeBron James, has little or nothing to say about Charlie Sheen or Hosni Mubarek, and it’s production has not been influenced in any way by fluctuations in the Producer Price Index or any other leading financial indicators. Additionally, it is not sponsored by the Pew Charitable Trust nor a grant from the Koch foundation.
Instead, the focus of this post is about a silted over, non navigable, and relict tributary of the Newtown Creek found fairly close to the dead bang geographic center of New York City called Maspeth Creek.
It is apparently a good place to get rid of an unwanted automobile or two,
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Your humble narrator seems to end up here a lot, as until just recently, it was one of the few places in Queens where one might witness the terrible grandeur of the Newtown Creek up close and personal with a minimum of hassle from private security or curious inquiries from the local gendarme. A large lot, overgrown with thorny plants, all stained with that peculiar colour- which is like something out of space- allowed some access to the place. Alas, the owner of the febrile lot seems to have found some new usage for it, and the fences have gone up.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
One of the great problems associated with Newtown Creek, and an obstacle to the efforts being made by Newtown Creek Alliance and other groups to reveal the history and significance of the place to the vast new populations being installed in Greenpoint and Long Island City by certain Real Estate interests is the fact that the Creek is hidden in most places by anonymous warehouses and industrial sites not friendly to casual visitors. The point of view of the property owners is one of liability for injury, and they have entirely appropriate concerns. The Newtown Creek can be a dangerous place, with multi ton trucks and gargantuan machinery whizzing around on streets where few pedestrians or bicyclists are normally seen. Not far from this spot, your humble narrator found himself falling into a hole in the roadway (at the end of the winter) which was nearly a yard deep.
Those of you out there who wander the rail tracks, however, are being foolhardy. The threat to your very existence is manifest, and should you be prosecuted for trespass, mandatory sentencing applies.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Other area bloggers and several urban explorers have taken me to task over the years for my admonitions reminding readers of this, your Newtown Pentacle, to remain cautious and alert of their surroundings when exploring the creek lands. There are forces here, sinister and hidden, which like the Creek just the way it is and don’t appreciate strangers with cameras wandering through their back yards. Additionally, the purely physical hazards of high speed traffic (the issue of trucks moving through Maspeth and other residential neighborhoods is a long standing and somewhat intractable issue, I would suggest a visit to the folks at COMET for more on the situation) and broken road surfaces must be factored in around these parts.
Recently, I almost got Kevin Walsh of forgotten-ny killed on Metropolitan Avenue- which goes to show that even those well versed in navigating these streets can end up in an emergency room after visiting the area. Kevin is fine by the way, his scalp is back in one piece, he just can’t say any word in which the second letter is a “c” for awhile- although his physicians swear this is only temporary.
Lastly, a safe way to experience the Newtown Creek:
It is critical for you to purchase tickets for the Newtown Creek Cruise soon. We’re filling up rapidly and seating is limited. Your humble narrator is acting as chairman for this journey, and spectacular guest speakers are enlisted to be onboard. Click here to order tickets.
From workingharbor.com
he May 21st, Newtown Creek Cruise:
Explore Newtown Creek by Boat
Saturday, 21 May, 2011
Pier 17, South Street Seaport.
Departs 10 am sharp
Returns 1 pm
Price: $60
Join us for a special water tour with expert narration from historical and environmental guest speakers.
There are limited tickets available on the MV American Princess for a very rare tour of Newtown Creek. Guest narrators will cover points of industrial and historical interest as well as environmental and conservation issues during your three-hour exploration. New York’s forgotten history will be revealed – as well as bright plans for the creeks future.
MV American Princess is a large, comfortable vessel with indoor and outdoor seating. Complimentary soft drinks and a tour brochure are included.
Cruise runs rain or shine
Queries? Contact Tour Chairman Mitch Waxman: waxmanstudio@gmail.com
Hosted by Hidden Harbor Tours ® in association with the Newtown Creek Alliance.
with an atomic, or molecular, motion
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Another interesting event set to occur on May 21st, which has been scheduled against my Newtown Creek Cruise- I would add, seems to be the apocalypse.
On my way to a meeting at Greater Astoria Historical Society on Sunday, the purpose of which was to discuss the upcoming Forgotten-NY tour of Staten Island’s Livingston neighborhood, I came across this pamphleteer who was proselytizing passers by to prepare for the coming tribulation and offering advice for making it through the end times which are meant to begin on a specific date not far in the future.
from wikipedia
The 2011 end times prediction is a prediction made by Christian preacher Harold Camping that the Rapture (in Christian belief, the taking up into heaven of God’s elect people) will take place on May 21, 2011 and that the end of the world as we know it will take place five months later on October 21, 2011. These predictions were made by Camping, president of the Family Radio Christian network, who claims the Bible as his source. Believers claim that around 200 million people (approximately 3% of the world’s population) will be raptured.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
This sort of millennialist doom saying is nothing new, remember the UFO people in California, the Branch Davidians in Texas, and the Solar Temple cult in Switzerland, just to refresh somewhat recent memories.
At the turn of the last century, one needed to have looked no further than the so called Millerites to find the originators of this sort of proclamation.
from wikipedia
The Great Disappointment was a major event in the history of the Millerite movement, a 19th century American Christian sect that formed out of the Second Great Awakening. William Miller, a Baptist preacher, proposed based on his interpretations of the prophecies in the book of Daniel (Chapters 8 and 9, especially Dan. 8:14 “Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed”), that Jesus Christ would return to the earth during the year 1844. A more specific date, that of October 22, 1844, was preached by Samuel S. Snow. Although thousands of followers, some of whom had given away all of their possessions, waited expectantly, Jesus did not appear as expected on the appointed day and as a result October 22, 1844, became known as the Great Disappointment.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Your humble narrator would hope that if the world does indeed end on the 21st of May, that you can enjoy the view of Manhattan disintegrating from those vantage points which the scenic waters of Newtown Creek offer with me. Destruction not withstanding, there is still a heck of a lot to see.
Assuming that some multi headed dragoness isn’t raining brimstone down upon us by then, I would also remind you of a Magic Lantern Show on the subject of Newtown Creek I’ll be presenting at the aforementioned Greater Astoria Historical Society on June 6th ($5- cheep).
May 21st
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The show must go on, as they say, yet your humble narrator is of heavy heart in announcing the Newtown Creek tour of May 21st, 2011- which is offered for your consideration by the Working Harbor Committee.
It is not the task of course, which tempers the normal ebullience experienced when an opportunity to share the wonders of the Newtown Creek with a group of enthusiasts from the comfort and safety of a modern vessel like the MV American Princess (which is outfitted with all the amenities one would expect to find during a harbor trip in a tourist Mecca such as New York City), crosses my path.
It is not that unnatural and uncontrollable timorousness which plagues me when I am asked to speak before “this group of pale enthusiasts” or “that gang of antiquarians”. Revealing and sharing the history of this amazing place is one the things I revel in, and brings me close to understanding what joy must be like.
from workingharbor.com
Visit Beautiful Newtown Creek Saturday, May 21, 2011
On MV American Princess, Boat departs from Pier 17, South Street Seaport, Manhattan NYC, 10am – 1pm
Souvenir Tour Brochure with historical information and vintage maps. Narration by experienced historical and environmental guest speakers. Complimentary soft drinks will be served. Come aboard for an intense Newtown Creek exploration! Our comfortable charter boat will travel the length of Newtown Creek. The tour will pause at many interesting locations for narration and discussion. Guest narrators will cover historical, environmental, and conservation issues. Large comfortable vessel with indoor & outdoor seating. Cruise runs rain or shine. Price: $60
To purchase tickets click here
or contact Tour Chairman Mitch Waxman: waxmanstudio(AT)gmail.com
– photo by Mitch Waxman
This is where the Industrial Revolution happened, and this trip will transverse and offer certain observations about the Newtown Creek’s present form and usage, and reveal a potentially bright future which this neglected ribbon of water- which provides the currently undefended border of Brooklyn and Queens- were it to be revitalized and renewed, might offer the future.
After boarding at South Street seaport, Working Harbor’s maritime experts will discuss the waterfront of Brooklyn as we pass beneath the Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan Bridge, and finally passing under the Willamsburg Bridge. Our vessel will smoothly move past the neighborhoods of Dumbo, Williamsburg, and Greenpoint in Brooklyn, and offer spectacular views of Manhattan. This entire trip will be a photographer’s delight, incidentally, offering spectacular and unreal urban panoramas.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
At Long Island City, your humble narrator will presume to expose you to a short history of the Newtown Creek, and offer an identity to some of the enigmatic structures arrayed around the troubled industrial waterway.
Luckily for all concerned, there are other speakers who will relieve the crowd from my droning prattle, maritime experts and environmentalists included. Around Newtown Creek Alliance headquarters, there is some buzz amongst the staff about which one of the heavyweight orators will be onboard.
Soft drinks, one to a customer, will be complimentary as well.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The American Princess will proceed past the titan Newtown Creek Waste Water Treatment Plant, the malign Dutch Kills, the cyclopean SimsMetal dock, the brutal symmetry of the Greenpoint Avenue Bridge, through the agglutinated heart of the Greenpoint Oil Spill, past the severed Penny Bridge at Meeker Avenue, and beyond the emerald devastations of Calvary Cemetery.
Then, we’re going to take a moment to remember our fallen friend… for just a moment.
I’m hesitant to mention this… as this is not what this trip is meant to be about, this is not a memorial event… but Bernie Ente is and will be so profoundly missed by many of us who will be conducting this tour, of which he is the originator and founder of… it would be in bad taste if a moment of silence to remember him, in this place which he expended so much of his attentions revealing and teaching and guiding about, were not offered. More on this in a later posting, but as the initial line says “the show must go on”, and that is exactly what Bernie would have us do.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The course will continue, past the middle point of the Newtown Creek, and will plunge past the Maspeth Plank road, past the Phelps Dodge site and the Kosciusko Bridge. At the branching of the Newtown Creek which exists at the confluence of the East Branch and English Kills, we will witness the remains of the Maspeth Plank Road and approach the wicked end of the navigable section of the Newtown Creek itself and approach one the hydra like tributaries which spread languishing tendrils of rotting bulkheads and unused yet prime industrial waterfront locations all across Brooklyn and Queens.
This is not the world you know.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Witness the startling elegance of the Grand Street Bridge, a century old swing bridge connecting Brooklyn and Queens, which signals the entrance to English Kills has been reached. Industrial heartland, this is a grossly contaminated section of the waterway which has- of course- been designated as a Federal Superfund site. Seeing the Newtown Creek in this state, this bizarre half life which is neither tick nor tock- industrial nor residential, is a fairly short term proposition.
Vast changes are coming which will literally alter the very landscape.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The Kosciusko Bridge replacement, and the enormous new populations and residential conversion in progress and expected in Hunters Point South and Greenpoint, and the EPA conducting the initial stages of Superfund remediation (which will involve dredging and vast public works projects conducted by hundreds of contractors) will all be happening in roughly the same timeframe. Ten years from now, it will hard to recognize the place, and twenty more will render it a stranger to those who know it today.
In the English Kills, you will become transfixed by a waterfront frozen in some other century, and witness the extant vitality of those economies of heavy industry which build, and drain, and recycle, and dispose of. You don’t get Manhattan without a Newtown Creek, after all.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
We will proceed into the depths of English Kills near the Third Ward in East Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Our journey will cross the navigable sections of the Newtown Creek and begin it’s return journey to the Shining City of Manhattan and the South Street Seaport, leaving Greenpoint and Long Island City behind.
The plan for the return narration includes a full description and explanation of the Superfund situation by representatives of the Newtown Creek Alliance, and a return to Manhattan’s South Street Seaport. Personally, I’ll be at the bow during this part of the trip, as the photographic possibilities of moving languidly along the Creek with the sun behind us and illuminating both the creek lands and the Shining City as we smoothly speed across the East River beyond will be awe inspiring.
You haven’t experienced the Newtown Creek until you’ve sailed down it, and such a trip will disabuse you of viewing it with anything but wonder afterward. Simply, what is offered is a new perspective on the City of New York, one that less than 10% of New Yorkers have ever even heard of.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Once again…
from workingharbor.com
Visit Beautiful Newtown Creek Saturday, May 21, 2011
On MV American Princess, Boat departs from Pier 17, South Street Seaport, Manhattan NYC, 10am – 1pm
Souvenir Tour Brochure with historical information and vintage maps. Narration by experienced historical and environmental guest speakers. Complimentary soft drinks will be served. Come aboard for an intense Newtown Creek exploration! Our comfortable charter boat will travel the length of Newtown Creek. The tour will pause at many interesting locations for narration and discussion. Guest narrators will cover historical, environmental, and conservation issues. Large comfortable vessel with indoor & outdoor seating. Cruise runs rain or shine. Price: $60
To purchase tickets click here
or contact Tour Chairman Mitch Waxman: waxmanstudio(AT)gmail.com
stupendous ruin
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Before I left Calvary- that day when I finally located the grave of it’s first interment (Esther Ennis, 1848), stepped in a dead rabbit, and picked up a paranormal companion on my long walk- two things came to my notice. The first, which discussed and observed several of the so called “disturbing subsidences” prevalent at Calvary Cemetery after a severe winter, is found in the posting “of straw and willow“. This is the second, and this time the rabbit isn’t dead- just spooky.
Acquaintance and intimate strangers alike (for one such as I can never boast vaingloriously of possessing friends due to an inadequate equilibrium of emotion and inability to interact with others in an intimate or affable manner) have asked me about those assertions put forth in prior postings regarding this whole ghost thing.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
First Calvary, and to a larger extent- all of the Polyandrions of Western Queens, present an overwhelming experience to visitors. The megalopolis hums about peripheral boundaries, yet an unnatural quiet rings out shortly after entering the gates. Statuary in lifelike proportions towers above, and sure knowledge of that which might be below forces ones perception into an odd parallel.
The wealth of detail and brutally long sight lines cause one to scan the visual field intently, reading every name on every stone and noticing even the smallest things. The effect is not unlike that described by the hasish eaters of the far east, an hallucinogenic and dreamlike artifice of the mind.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
A certain numbness manifests in the feet first, which act as leaden anchors rather than motive ground interfaces. Gait alters, from a strolling trot to a clumsy shuffle with the feet angled into 10 and 2 positions, and a slight sense of vertigo skirts about the edges of possibility. So too, do mundane and wholesome items take on an air of sinister intent and latent potential. The same ethereal effect is often felt in the world’s great museums, as the brain is attempting to make sense of the multitudes of provocative images it is suddenly gorging on (my navy nuclear engineer buddy calls this being “uberplexed”).
Psychics, mystics, seers and the like would describe the effects which Calvary reliably supplies as being some sort of psychic charge which suffuses this garden of loss. Descriptions and analogies of the spirit legions whose mortal remains rest here would also be offered by the magickally inclined.
Doesn’t explain why there are rabbits here, live ones, with glowing red eyes.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
To the point of this missive however, which concerns my spectral companion, the following is offered:
While entering the cemetery with the expressed purpose of locating the grave of its first interment, a shadow was noticed flitting about that was consistent from place to place. This shape seemed to be everywhere I was, and my path that day saw my own cast shadow falling behind me. Once or twice, while crossing the roads which service the various sections, it was observed on the asphalt where NOTHING was there to cast a shadow.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
It has been a very long time since one of my spells has seized upon me. The vast weaknesses of character and underwhelming physique which your humble narrator has earned through years of sloth, gluttony, and too little sleep once again betrayed me at a critical moment. Light headed, the pharmaceutical tablets which my doctors have ordered me to have at the ready for when, not if, such a moment comes were already in my mouth when the rabbit in the shot above looked alertly at just to the left of my position. Spinning around, I realized that I was casting two shadows instead of the usual one.
I’m all ‘effed up.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
My presence of mind returned partially only after having crossed Greenpoint Avenue and scuttling down the hill towards Borden Avenue. Since there were no cats about to guide me, my synaptic memory demanded that a generally widdershins directional orientation be followed. Perhaps, by moving out of this place, this haunter of the shadows could be dislodged.
Perhaps, solace might be found closer to Tower Town…
unseen things
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Breaking from our ongoing narrative for a moment, to discuss the tyranny of the now, and the corpus mundi of the eternal sea.
When word filtered over to me on Friday the 4th that New York City Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer was gathering a group of his fellow Queens representatives at the corner of 49th street and Galasso Place, alongside Maspeth Creek- a tributary of the maligned Newtown Creek- a veritable beeline was made by your humble narrator to try and get to this event.
Hey, if WPIX and Fox are coming to my turf… my beat… I’m going to be there too. These are the Creeklands, and this is the heart of your Newtown Pentacle.
(in the interest of full disclosure, Mr. Van Bramer represents my district in Astoria. I’ve found him to be a fair and responsive representative, as well as quite approachable. I voted for him, and most likely will again. In the language of the neighborhood- “he’s alright”)
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The issue which drew the attentions of area wags and the elected officials was the sudden announcement by the commissioners of the City’s Executive Branch to relocate an MTA facility from its current home in Greenpoint, Brooklyn to Maspeth in Queens.
Pictured above is the site in question, which is part of a brownfield parcel we’ve described in the past that bears the rather ominous name – “The Maspeth Project”. Check out this posting from 2009 that describes the area in some detail.
Greenpoint, like Maspeth, carries far more of the municipal burden than many other communities and the current home of the MTA Access-A-Ride fleet located on Commercial Street is destined to become a waterfront park.
Maspeth, however, also needs more parks- and it certainly doesn’t need any more truck traffic.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Area wags describe the decision to move the MTA facility to Maspeth as having been conducted in the dead of night, and normal processes (Environmental Impact Studies, Community Board involvement and the like) governing such a move have been overlooked or ignored. Accordingly, Mr. Van Bramer and Ms. Crowley are rather put out about the whole matter- hence this gathering in Maspeth on 49th avenue. Text accompanying the following shots is quotidian in nature, and emanates from Mr. Van Bramer’s official statement. Video of the event is available at the Council Member’s site.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
“On Friday, March 4th Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer, Council Member Elizabeth Crowley and Assemblywoman Marge Markey united with local elected officials and concerned residents to speak out against the city and MTA’s proposed Bus Depot site in Maspeth. The proposed site on 49th Street and Galasso Place would be the third MTA depot in an area that is already saturated with commercial traffic. The rush job in selecting Maspeth as a potential site has raised concerns about the secretive process that gave no notice to the community or to local elected officials.”
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The selection process by the city and the MTA for potential locations fails to include notice to local elected officials and community members – a key element for any development decision that greatly impacts the quality of life in the area.
(hey, that’s Maspeth’s own Tony Nunziato in the background!)
“Maspeth cannot and will not be a dumping ground for MTA Depots,” said Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer. “The attempt by the city and the MTA to consider this location without taking into consideration the environmental impact to the area or the community’s input is troubling. There are five other boroughs and the MTA and the city need to dump this depot somewhere else. Maspeth needs more green space – not additional traffic and pollution.”
– photo by Mitch Waxman
“Maspeth residents have been burdened with the City’s truck traffic for over a decade—we need to be greening these streets, not polluting them,” said Council Member Elizabeth Crowley. “As the community looks forward to finally implementing the Maspeth Bypass Plan that will reduce truck traffic on our local streets, the MTA’s plan for a Maspeth Bus Depot will sets us back to ground zero. I stand with my colleagues in government and the residents of Maspeth when I tell the MTA to do right by Queens and keep the Bus Depot out of Maspeth.”
– photo by Mitch Waxman
“Maspeth is already doing its share for the MTA as the home of two transit facilities,” said Assemblywoman Margaret Markey. “This third depot does not belong here. Just as we are seeing progress in our decade-long fight to reduce the commercial traffic that clogs the streets and pollutes the air in Maspeth, this project is a set-back that we cannot accept. Less congestion, safer streets and better air quality is what we need, not a third MTA transit depot.”
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Members of the Maspeth community including Roe Daraio, president of COMET, also spoke.
“Apparently the MTA doesn’t think it is bad enough that Maspeth residents already have to deal with a barrage of truck traffic. If they did, they wouldn’t be discussing the possibility of relocating a bus depot into the community – a move that would bring even more pollution, noise and disruption to Maspeth,” said Rep. Crowley. “Maspeth residents have been plagued by excessive traffic for far too long, and it is time for that to end. I urge the City to reconsider the plans to transplant the bus depot to Maspeth and to take into account both the concerns of the community and the impact on the environment. Maspeth residents must not only be heard, but listened to.”
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Gary Giordano from the local Community Board also said a few words, and a group of absent elected officials sent these statements to be entered into the record.
“I am concerned with the plan to relocate the MTA bus depot to Maspeth,” said Assemblywoman Catherine Nolan. “The lack of notification and community input is alarming.”
“What Maspeth needs is more green space, not another bus depot,” said Queens Borough President Helen Marshall. “When it comes to traffic, Maspeth is already receiving more than its fair share. And, when it comes to the number of MTA depots in one community, Maspeth already has two.”
“The MTA is outrageously favoring one neighborhood over another without the courtesy of even notifying the affected community,” stated State Senator Michael Gianaris.
“Maspeth already has two other bus depots and a plethora of truck traffic on its local streets. It is time to stop dumping on Maspeth and give the residents of Queens the respect we deserve.”
“I strongly oppose burdening Maspeth with a third bus depot,” said Assembly Member Michael Miller. “The local residents should not be forced to cope with the additional environmental strain. Maspeth’s transit infrastructure is already overstressed. Also, there is no reason to reach this decision in secrecy, with no public input. This is unhealthy, unsafe, and unfair.”
Although no final decision has been made by the MTA and the city as to where the bus depot will be placed, it is clear that elected officials and Maspeth residents will fight to protect their community.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Seemingly orchestrated to demonstrate their point about the incredible volume of trucks which move through their neighborhood, the Press Conference was continually interrupted by incredibly loud traffic noise. This made the questions from the press difficult to understand for those at the podium, and really hammered home the point.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
WPIX’s Greg Mocker is in the foreground in this shot. Our friends at Queenscrap recently featured a post with Mr. Mocker’s personal brand of reportage on the issue, which can be accessed here.
Mr. Van Bramer also mentioned that the proposal for a park at the St. Saviors site was languishing, whilst the Greenpoint park was greenlit and made a reality almost overnight. Once again, it seems, Queens will get the short end of the stick.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
A decent representation of local papers and TV reporters showed up, including the ever present NY1, Fox, WPIX.
This was probably the largest group I’ve ever seen gathered around this part of the Creeklands, with the exception of some of the walking and bus tours I helped to conduct last year.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Not discussed, of course, was the fact that the City was planning on siting it’s Access A Ride vehicles- which are utilized by those infirm, ill, or otherwise disabled at a yard directly opposite Maspeth Creek and sitting quite nearly on top of one of the largest CSO’s (Combined Sewer Outfall NC-077, Maspeth Creek, discharges 288.7M gallons per year into English Kills, Ranked 25 out of over 400 in terms of volume) in the City of New York.
(for another view of 49th street- from the CSO POV, click here)
The Newtown Pentacle 