I am happy to announce that the Tram is back in service. The staff there worked hard to ensure that all of the necessary maintenance work was completed on time. I want to take this opportunity to thank them and all of the Island residents who were so patient during this necessary outage.

The Tram's being back in service is particularly helpful now that the Roosevelt Island Bridge is being raised and lowered up to several times a day. Based on a request by the Coast Guard, the Department of Transportation is manning the bridge around the clock to allow shipping traffic to be rerouted down the east channel. Several requests have been made to limit the number of times that the bridge needs to be opened each day, but so far all of those requests have been denied.

As many of you are aware, there are two other parts to this issue. The first is that the bridge was stuck in the upright position twice last week. DOT personnel worked to repair the problem after the first outage, and replaced the part that they thought was malfunctioning. A subsequent opening occurred without any problems, but the next opening saw the bridge get stuck again. From what we have been told, the DOT needed to perform some work before lowering it, which led to the long delay. We have been assured that there will be trained personnel on duty to lower the bridge manually and/or perform all necessary repairs between now and the time when the bridge will no longer have to be raised and lowered so frequently.

The second part of the issue involves having emergency services personnel on the Island when the bridge is in the up position. DOT always notifies the various emergency services divisions that the bridge is going up. During testing this is not a problem, and the FDNY stations a truck and ambulance on the Island. The logistics become more difficult when the bridge is being raised and lowered several times a day.

Based on the incidents of last week, and repeated requests, the FDNY agreed to leave an unstaffed pumper and ladder on the Island in case there is a need when the bridge is raised. There will also be an unstaffed ambulance on the Island during this time period. The personnel can get to the Island via other means if there is a need.

RIOC will continue to lobby for proper emergency services coverage for the Island. We share the concerns of the residents and will make repeated contact with the agencies involved to ensure that the needs of the Island are being met. The bridge and the emergency services agencies are not within the control of RIOC, but we will continue to contact the appropriate agencies to make sure that our unique needs are met.

Besides the opening and closing of the bridge, Roosevelt Island will be affected in another way as the convention approaches. The Police Department specifically requested that Southpoint be closed for the duration of the convention, from August 30 through September 2. We apologize for any inconvenience that this may cause and anticipate that the area can be reopened on September 3.

I am happy to say that there is also good news to report this month. The three plans developed for Southpoint by the landscape architects will be posted on the Island in early September. There will also be a public meeting where all residents and other interested parties can comment on the plans. For a first look at the plans, you can go on line to www.markkmorrison.com/roosevelt/pdf/concepts.pdf. This is a very exciting project and I look forward to seeing the final results.

There is more news to report regarding recreational areas on the Island. As many of you are aware, the tennis courts are being temporarily relocated during the construction of the Octagon project. The Hudson and Related Companies have agreed to have the temporary courts built on the site of what will be Southtown buildings 7, 8, and 9. We look forward to working with the Island's tennis players and Becker and Becker Associates (the developers of Octagon), to have acceptable temporary courts in place as soon as possible.

I hope that this summer has been a good one for everybody. I appreciate everybody's good wishes during my kidney stone episode and am happy to say that I think that it is finally behind me. I wish everybody a happy end of the summer. Enjoy the Labor Day weekend!