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http://lonerangeralbany.blogspot.com/2009/07/sullivan-for-common-council-ward-14.html

Joe Sullivan

A HOT SUMMER DAY

Took Mick for a walk around the Pond Park.
Paddy remained at home on guard duty.


Carl and the summer crew were hard at work
mowing and trimming at the East End of the
pond. Told Carl they were doing a fine job.

Parents and children were enjoying the
play area just West of the Colonial Ave
parking lot.

I pointed out that the flimsey wooden
posts and rope line, bordering Berkshire
was not adequate to protect children and
parents from out of control vehicles.

Pointed out 4 new posts where a car had
recently crashed through. Also, the green
light pole, leaning over after being hit by
another out of control vehicle.

Suggested that the parents call the Mayor's
office 434 5100 and request that a more
sturdy protective barrier be installed - either
large rocks.. a stone wall, or a metal guard
rail.


Jack is on the mend and looking forward to
returning. He should not be too eager in this
heat.

Police presence continues on neighborhood
streets. They are welcomed and appreciated
in our neighborhood.

A City crew was hard at work triming trees
on Milner, South of the pond.

Pavers were hard at work on Western Avenue.



Joe Sullivan

MORE BAD NEWS FROM THE HOOD

Car break ins on Greenway.
Drug deal observed at night on Kakely.
Two black male delivery men
in wee foreign make car.
Pale rider customer in SUV.

Hookers plying trade at Crestwood Plaza.
Solicting at laundromat. Why don't you
come up and see me sometime at my place?

Adams Park- Hackett-Weis Rd absentee
owned apartments becoming Section 8
mecca. Source of perps degrading our
neighborhood, including bank
and ATM robbers, vandals, flashers
and thieves.

We rid the neighborhood of the gang
that was rolling elderly women at
the plaza market , and state workers
downtown, some years back.

Recall the trash piled high in the
streets, and litter, at the absentee
owned apartments?

Now, it is all coming back, and
much more. De ja vue.


Dude wants to open a hip hop dance club
in that portion of Crestwood Plaza that was
formerly part of food market.

Just what we don't need in our hood!

If APD can't maintain a presence in our
hood, it may be time to recruit and train
a neighborhood auxiliary force of resident
volunteers to back up the APD and Fire Dept
especially in times of
disasters, terror attacks and civil disorders.

Keep in mind that most of the Albany police
and firefighters live outside the City of Albany.
Like Katrina, they won't be here with us
when disaster or a terror attack occurs. They
will , naturally, be home taking care of their
own families.

Governor Pataki closed the New Scotland
Avenue Armory. The troops and tanks are
gone.

We will be on our own and must be prepared
to deal with that reality.

Joe Sullivan

MAYOR AT ST SOPHIA'S
LAST NIGHT:
"CRIME IS DOWN".

Neighborhoood residents don't buy it!

Tire slashings, vandalism, graffiti, home
and car breakins, knife point robberies
grand theft auto incidents, bank and ATM
robberies, flashers, hookers, prowlers
in your face drifters, pan handlers, homeless
persons, drug dealers, hit and run incidents
speeding vehicles, running stop signs and
traffic lights, passing school buses
groupies occupying single family zoned
dwellings, fish poachers in Pond Park
and more, all in our hood in recent
days, nights, weeks and months.

Our neighborhood needs a constant police
presence to deter crime and control speeding
vehicles on neighborhood residential streets.

Joe Sullivan

MAYORAL FORUM LAST
NIGHT AT ST SOPHIA'S

Well attended. Civil audience was
muzzeled. No questions allowed
from the floor. So, our neighborhood
concerns were not addressed.

For another view read:
http://albanycitizenone.blogspot.com/

However, our concerns will have to be
BEFORE the September 15 Democratic
Primary. Read prior post this topic.

If the Mayor delivers he will win.
If not? Maybe not.

Does Jerry feel lucky?

Our hood is the swing area in the
citywide elections.

Note that almost all the Jennings
lawn signs put up in lawns in our
hood, the night before the
last night's St Sophia , forum have
disappeared.

Not a good sign.

Joe Sullivan
Democratic candidate
City Council Ward 14

THE FIRST MAYORAL FACE OFF
WILL OCCUR IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD

Tonight , Thursday, 7 pm at St Sophia's
Whitehall Rd.

http://blog.timesunion.com/localpolitics/4408/jennings-ellis-and-faust-to-meet-thursday-night/

What a great opportunity to present our
concerns for action:

1. razing the derelict gas station building
Whitehall at New Scotland. Excavating
contaminated surface material. Replacing
it with a berm of clean fill, planted with
a mix of flowering bushes, conifers and
harwoods, add a flag pole and few benches
and christen the 3/4 acre Dan O'Connell
Memorial Pocket Park. Dan's home was
just down Whitehall Rd.

2. Build senior housing on the adjacent 8
to 10 acres, so that elderly neighborhood
residents can remain in their familiar
surroundings ("or age in place"-as some
would say) when time comes to sell
their existing single family homes.

3. Crestwood Market has available space
suitable to locate a reasonably priced
neighborhood food market supplied by
Price Chopper, Hannaford or the Food
Coop on Central Ave.

People miss the former Crestwood Market.
Here is a prime opportunity to fill a void
in the neighborhood and meet a real need
for the pedestrian neighborhoods that
must emerge in response to the coming
oil crisis, and return of people to cities.

4. Create the 23 acre neighborhood green
belt bordered by Krum Kill Rd, Rte 85
NYS Thruway and Crescent Dr.

The City already owns the 10 acres on the
West. John McDermott is willing to sell the
5 acre landlocked parcel in the middle,
And the City can negotiate a Transfer of
Development Rights arrangements which
compensates the owners of the 7 acre parcel
bordering Krum Kill Rd, for deeding to the City
as Land Conservation (LC) zoning. The
owners can be given land/buildings of
equivalent value from the large register
of abandoned vacant properties downtown.
They can redevelop and profit from this TDR.

5. Establish strict speed limit control on
neighborhood streets and deter criminal
activity by increasing police presense in our
neighborhood.

6. Get Buckingham Pond Park into fine
form equal to the care and condition of
Washington Park.

7. Provide property tax relief and improve
city schools, by consolidating them with
City government, creating one property
tax roll to fund both, returning to a K-8
neighborhood school system, and making
the Mayor and Common Council responsible
and accountable for the operstion and
performance of city schools.

Ask your local Common Council Members
who attend the forum, to sponsor the
necessary Home Rule Request to the
State Legislature to amend state law to
provide for the school -city consolidation
and specified changes.

The mayoral candidate that commits to
getting the above done...deserves your votes.

Neighborhood Association residents of
wards 14 and 8, this is your chance to
achieve the above improvements to
the residential integrity and life quality
of our home turf.

Go for it! Get something for your votes!

Joe Sullivan

NEIGHBORHOOD WALKS
WITH MICK AND PADDY

Mick and me walked to the pond park.
Weeds and brush have been trimmed
along the wooded path, Lenox to Holmes
Dale.

Work is underway on the Milner Ave
footpath. Improving water quality of
the putrid, small holding pond, securing
it to prevent drownings of kids or elderly
persons who might fall in fall in and
reparing the split rail fence and pathway
are priorities.

Noticed that some people are leaving
dog droppings ( of large dogs) in the
grassy area to the east of the Milner
Ave footpath. Clean up after your dogs.

The grass is neatly trimmed , N side
of Pond from the Mlner Ave path to
the Colonial Ave parking semi-circle
including the children's play area.
Good job.

The perimeter grass to the West and
along Davis Ave park boundery needs
to be cut.

Returning by way of Buckingham Dr
noticed that the conifer and hardwoods
planted along the backlot property lines
of homes along Buckingham Dr, from
Milner to Friebel, at our urging, are
being choked by weeds and brush. The
City should get the contractor building
the Buckingham Mews extension to care
for these plantings, so that they mature
nicely to the benefit of residents of the
Mews and bordering homes alike.

Paddy and me walked along New Scotland
to S Manning and back through Greenway.

Big dog droppings left by careless walkers
in the Greenway grass.

Lots of cars parked around Greenway as
young people party at Andy's on New
Scotland Ave.

Euclid and Lenox were ok. Observed
APD motorcycle patrol passing inbound
on New Scotland Ave. Continued police
presence is good for our neighborhood.
Thank you APD.

Prowler was trying car doors along
New Scotland the other night, late.

Neighbors do your part. Get up from
the telly and look out your doors a few
times during the evening.

Call APD Center Station 458 5668 as
required.

Perps will get out the word to their
fellow perps to stay out of our
neighborhood because we are alert
vigilant and take immediate action
when we observe loiterers, persons
casing neighborhood streets on garbage
nights, prowlers , vandalism and
speeding vehicles.

Report graffiti and have it immediately
removed...this is our hood, not the turf
of gangbangers and vandals!

Notice some people are burning trash
in burn barrels in their backyards.
Examples: near the wall of Maria College
and Hillcrest Ave between Western and
Berkshire.

This is unlawful and unhealthy too.
Burning plastics creates sulfuric acid
and releases other toxins into the air.
Not good to breathe these.

Call the Albany Fire Department if
burn barrel burnings persist.

There is a foreclosed home on Daytona
Ave, South of Berkshire that has an
above ground pool. Stormwater has
collected in the canvas cover. A small
child could down in it. The standing
water is breeding mosquitoes which
pose a health hazard to neighbors.
West Nile. Heartworm for pets.

Advised neighbors to call the Mayor's
office 434 5100 for prompt action.

Neighbors on Linden Rd should do
the same regarding a home hosts
well attended week end social events
and which appears overpopulated
with humans and small cars.

Called this to attention of the ward
leader, who lives around the corner.
Maybe he has done something to
address neighbor concerns??

We all benefit from a safe, nice
residential neighborhood. Let us
keep it that way.


Joe Sullivan

LOST KITTEN FOUND

Gentlemen –

I’d like to ask you a favor. Could you please send the message below to neighborhood leaders or other e-mail contacts in the St. Peter’s Hospital area. The animal described below is very friendly and may reside with someone who is currently missing him very badly. It would be nice to get owner and pet back together.


Our secretary found a very nice young male cat who appeared scared and lost in our parking lot this morning. Description follows:
Found male orange and white tabby cat (wearing blue bell collar). He appears to be young, is very outgoing, extremely friendly and has been well cared for. He was found in the parking lot at 310 South Manning Blvd. Photos attached. Please call 525-1232.

Elmer Streeter


Joe Sullivan

NICE AFTERNOON FOR A STROLL

Took Mick around Buckingham Pond Park.

The wooded path, Lenox to Holmesdale is
in sad shape. Weeds along the path need
to be cut back. Leaves raked. No effort to
cut vines that are stangling trees.

The Rafts Way sector looks good. Flower
pots on poles are blooming. Yesterday
a young man from City OGS mowed the
grass.

The footpath has four wet, slippery
spots that need coarse bluestone applied.
Vines and underbrush are killing young
conifers and hardwoods. No effort has
been made to cut vines, clear brush.
Young Hemlocks can be moved to sites
more conducive to their growth in the
late Fall, early winter.

The Milner Ave footbridge rails are
broken and scattered. The smaller
holding pond is putrid. It should be
fenced off, or at least have some
danger signs posted, before a child
or elderly adult falls in and disappears.

A number of families were enjoying
the play and picnic area near the
parking semi-circle at the foot of
Colonial, North side.

Yesterday, met Carl who is filling
in for Jack, the latter out for a rest.
Jack has been overworked caring
for the North side of the Pond
from the Milner Ave footpath to
the East End. Too much for one
man!

Excellent police presense. One
patrol car at the semi-circle
parking area. Two more patrol
cars observed, one on Berkshire
the other at Buckingham. Also,
an unmarked car on Euclid.
Suspect they were looking out
for a perp. That's good.

The South shore path Euclid
to Lenox is about to disappear.
Bulkheading needs to be
installed. Stones, not wood.
Add some fill and plant some
Red Osier Dogwoods to stabilize
the shore and reduce further
erosion.

Cut the grass and brush along
the path.

The huge dead Cottonwood is
still overhanging the sloping
path that leads up to Lenox.
Suprised that it hasn't fallen
on someone in recent storms.
Maybe soon.

The floury material recently
applied to the sloping footpath
is already eroding away.




Weed killer aroma emanated
from a lawn on Lenox. No warning
signs posted.

Mick went on guard duty at the
house, while Paddy and me went
for a stroll along New Scotland
S. Manning, Myrtle and Marion
Ave.

A utility pole wrapped in yellow
crime scene tape, at the entrance
to Maria College parking lot, was
leaning across the sidewalk. Not
good. Live wires above. Probably
hit by a car.

Two dead maple street trees on
New Scotland, near S. Manning
are falling apart and need to be
removed.

The City has done a good job
cutting the grass medians on
S Manning and Marion.

There are a number of 4 sale
signs on both streets. Owners
cite, property taxes, schools
and crime as reasons for sales.

It is not good for the future of
Albany when people with means
flee the city.

Who will be left to pay the
property taxes that support city
schools and government?

Paddy visited a front porch
where two female Aussies were
at the screened front window.
The owners were not home.
The two females howled after
handsome Red Paddy as we
walked away.

Reminded me of the Tommy
Makem song..."If I were a Dog"...

A sidewalk on Marion, near
Woodlawn was covered in mud
and quite slippery.

We are home now, and both
boys are content and resting easy.

Joe Sullivan

SULLIVAN FILES PETITIONS
FOR COMMON COUNCIL FROM
WARD 14.

Read:

http://lonerangeralbany.blogspot.com/

JPS

WARDS 14, 8 and 9 ARE KEY IN
THE 2009 ALBANY ELECTIONS

Read: http://lonerangeralbany.blogspot.com/

Joe Sullivan

GOT DRUGS?

Perp hits local pharmacies.
Read:http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=816524&category=&BCCode=&newsdate=7/3/2009

Joe Sullivan