In recent years the neighborhood has twice approached (then Commissioner) Mayor Adams with concerns about street plans or traffic issues.  In the first case, the City was updating it’s Freight Master Plan (essentially planning where trucks should drive) and we had serious concerns with a recommendation to bring heavy truck traffic to Milwaukie Avenue.  Sam Adams Chief of Staff, Tom Miller, met with us and promised some action and we coupled that with a terrific neighborhood wide letter campaign.  Mayor Adams came to our meeting with a stack of postcards and immediately announced that the City would change their planning document to protect our stretch of Milwaukie Ave.

The second occurence was more recent (while he was still a Commissioner however).  Neighbors along SE Long St. have suffered for years with their little street being used inappropriately as an on ramp to Mcloughlin.  With children on the street and dozens of bad accidents at Long and Milwaukie there was a real safety issue that no other City official would bother to deal with.  A group of determined neighbors and the BAC approached Mayor Adams office and they pledged to help.  Mayor Adams gave us an incredible amount of man power from PDOT and in the end we achieved our goal.

I’m not writing this on behalf of the Brooklyn Action Corps, just as a very involved neighbor who has seen what good can come from a hard working elected official (who expects action from his office) and an equally hard working neighborhood (who expects action from the City).  I completely understand both sides of the current crisis.  Some Brooklynites will want the Mayor gone ASAP, I understand.  Some Brooklynites will want him to weather this storm and deliver on his campaign promises, I understand.

Either way, I want to make sure that when we’re muling over the future of our City’s leadership that we’re armed with the facts as they’ve affected Brooklyn.