Rosen: Parks Department Keeps Its Promise

It’s not fair to city workers that we report only when they don’t do their jobs. So here’s a little report from Allan Rosen about the Parks Department responding to his concerns.

This tree limb fell at 10 a.m. on May 31, as I stood across the street. Luckily, unlike Memorial Day when Manhattan Beach Park was packed with picnickers, the nearest person was about 10 feet away. It surely could have killed or injured someone standing under it.

This tree was located on the same block I complained about last year. After many calls to 911 and waiting several months for a response, I finally received a word from the Parks Department the week Brooklyn Parks Commissioner Jeffrey assumed his position. They responded that the problem would be addressed in spring 2011. I waited with my fingers crossed that no one would be injured before the crews showed up.

Then, on May 16, I saw a site rarer than the Maytag repairman, so I felt obliged to snap a photo of the sign on the truck. However there still was a problem. Although three or four trucks worked diligently for about three hours sawing down dead tree branches, they only worked on one side of the street. Due to the rainy weather, I waited several weeks before saying anything, thinking they would return to complete the job. They did not. So I fired off the following e-mail to Parks hoping they wouldn’t tell me to wait another 10 years, the current cycle for tree trimming in this city.

This is to put you on official notice that you have created a potentially dangerous situation forcing us to play Russian Roulette with our lives every time we walk down a city street lined with trees that have not been properly maintained.

Last year you promised me that the dead tree limbs along Ocean Avenue on the park side of the street would be removed this spring. On May 15, several trucks worked diligently for several hours trimming the trees. However, they only trimmed the west side of the street and thus far have not returned. There are still 22 dead tree limbs that need to be cut down. That number would have been 23, but at 10 a.m. this morning, a bright sunny windless day, one of them thunderously fell to the ground. Had this happened yesterday when the park was filled with hundreds of picnickers, the results may have been disastrous.

Please inform me when the trucks will return to complete their work. Thank you.

I received a response the same day that they will try to get the contractor to return and complete the job by the end of the month. I am pleased to report that in early June, two trucks did return and completed the job.