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The RIOC Column
At the end of a productive
year on Roosevelt Island, I want to take the opportunity to extend the
warm wishes of the season to our entire community.
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Herbert E. Berman
President Roosevelt Island
Operating Corp.
e-mail: HBerman@rioc.com |
We saw great progress this year – laying the groundwork for new parkland
at Octagon and Southpoint, completing renovations on the infrastructure
at Motorgate and building on our past progress to ensure that the
Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation continues as a self-sufficient,
financially sound entity working for the benefit of the 9,000+ residents
who call our Island home.
Some of the work is physical in nature, as is evident by the
construction going on at Octagon on both the apartment building and the
renovation of the historic tower. Some is less visible, though certainly
no less important.
A prime example is the manner in which the Board of Directors uses its
leverage in renegotiating ground leases with the owners of the Eastwood
building to maintain the apartments as affordable even as the building
moves out of the Mitchell-Lama mortgage-subsidy program. That process of
monitoring the proposed Mitchell Lama opt-outs at the WIRE buildings (Westview,
Island House, Rivercross and Eastwood) will continue into next year.
Residents should be assured that our commitment to maintaining the
mixed-income community first outlined more than 35 years ago in the
General Development Plan remains unshaken.
Some of the progress came in winning the lawsuit filed by the Roosevelt
Island Residents Association concerning the Octagon project. That
cleared the legal underbrush to allow continued development of the
building, which will bring new neighbors to our Island even as it
restores one of the Island’s remarkable historic treasures to public
access.
We also moved forward in assessing issues as varied as the future of
transportation alternatives, including potentially a ferry service,
improvements in the tennis center, and the seeking of ideas about the
future for several sites on the island.
Finally, we saw a change at the top of the RIOC Board of Directors, as
longtime Chair-designee Mary Beth Labate stepped down to take a senior
budget position in the State government and was replaced with Deborah
Boatright. We thank Mary Beth for her service and look forward to
working with Deborah as we continue to improve this unique Island in the
middle of the East River that so many call home.
Happy holidays. |
