Rivera’s District Fields $4M In “Asks” for her $1M Pot of Funds
In one of the most expensive “asks” in Manhattan, eleven different groups in city council district 2 have combined to put in requests totaling over $4 million. The various groups are vying for a pot of funds of $1 million that the City Council doles out to the district that includes the East Village and part of mid-town East.
| 27 Mar 2023 | 04:32
Councilwoman Carlina Rivera’s district which includes the East Village and parts of Midtown East, is dealing with over $4 million in requests for funds for a pot of gold amounting to only $1 million. Voters got to choose the winners. Photo: District 2.
Although $1 million has been allocated to each of the 27 council members as part of the participatory budget process, it won’t be enough to satisfy the requests that landed in city council member Carlina Rivera’s district 2 office to fund everything from school and library overhauls, playgrounds, bathrooms and basketball courts. Requests totaling over $4 million are vying to get a hold of some of the $1 million allotted to Rivera’s district.
The four largest requests alone total $2 million, including $500,000 each for basketball court renovations at Peter’s Field on E. 20th St., Community Garden Resiliency Projects from Avenues A to D, Pathway lighting for NYCHA’s Jacob Riis Housing complex and a girl’s locker room upgrade at the School of the Future.
Constituents of each district will be given the chance to directly decide how to spend the money in a voting period that started on March 25th and ends on April 2.
Voting is open to everyone ages 11 (or at least in 6th grade) and older who live in one of the 27 participating Council Districts, regardless of immigration status, gender, race, ethnicity, or eligibility to vote in traditional elections.
In Rivera’s district, which stretches from Houston Street to 31st Street at its northernmost point and is bounded by 6th Avenue to the west, the citizens may choose from 11 budget items that were nominated by suggestions to the individual council members between November and March. The nominees are seeking anywhere from $235,000 to $500,000 to fund their projects. The projects with the most votes up until $1 million has been accounted for will be funded.
Carlina Rivera District Items
Union Square Park Fences and Landscape. Union Square Park. $200,000. Union Square Park Fences and Landscape Initial Funding.
Community Garden Resiliency Upgrades. Gardens between Ave A and Ave D. $500,000. Permeable Pavers and water access in community gardens
Merchant’s House Museum. 29 E 4th Street. $200,000. Improvements at Historic Merchants House Museum
Peter’s Field Basketball Courts Reconstruction. 2nd Ave and E 20th Street. $500,000. Basketball Court Reconstruction at Peter’s Field Initial Funding
Library Technology Upgrades. 4 Libraries. $235,000. Computers and Laptops for Kips Bay, Epiphany, Ottendorfer, and Tompkins Square Public Libraries
Library Upgrade - PS 64, Tompkins Square Middle School, The Earth School. 600 E 6th Street. $250,000. Renovation for the shared library for PS 64, Tompkins Square Middle School, and the Earth School.
Girls Locker Room Upgrade - School of the Future. 127 E 22nd Street. $500,000. Renovation for the Girls Locker Room at School of the Future
Bathroom Renovation - East Side Community School, PS 15, PS 63. 3 Schools. $450,000. Bathroom Renovations at East Side Community School, P.S. 15, and P.S. 63
Meltzer Towers Safety Improvements. 94 E 1st Street. $450,000. Security Cameras and Safety Improvements in Senior Housing.
Riis Houses Pathway Lighting. Ave D and 10th Street. $500,000. Upgraded LED Lighting for Pathways in Jacob Riis Houses
LES II Basket Ball Court Upgrades. 750 E 6th Street. $250,000. Renovation of Basketball Courts at Lower East Side II Houses.