16th Street Bike Parking

4 members. west village, ny ny Join Group

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The Goal

I live in Brooklyn, on 16th Street, between 4th and 5th Avenues. We need bike racks on this block. I am working to get some installed.

The Context

A condo tower ('Vue' ) was recently built at the end of my block, and the area is just too dense for everyone to have a car. More residents on the block will likely mean more cars. Cars already line the block. Each day, during 'street cleaning,' cars double park and somehow are not ticketed. Whack.

Also, a new bar just opened up on this block. It's called Sidecar, and it's been pretty busy lately. But there isn't enough bike parking outside, so bar-goers lock their wheels to lightposts, meters, and other stuff. I wouldn't want visitors to resort to driving, since they will be drinking. And I want to encourage bike lock-up that is safe and that will be supported by folks who live on the block. One of my neighbors complained the other day about the bikes that are often locked to her front gate. Don't want to breed haters!

I would like to encourage residents and visitors to bike. Sadly, there currently isn't anything public, sturdy, and appropriate for using as a bike rack. We need bike racks!

The Plan

Fill out the CityRacks form on the DOT website. Do follow up via a letter and calls to 311.
Talk to my neighbors about this issue.
Let Streetsblog know about the plan.
Get in touch with Park Slope Neighbors and let them know about this project. See if anyone is interested in helping.
Write a letter to the condo developer asking that they install bike parking. See draft of letter . Follow up with them to see if I can talk to someone.
Put up flyers in the vicinity that encourage others to make similar requests. See flyer draft+ for more info.
Once a condo co-op has been put together, talk with the people in charge to request that the condo set aside space/resources for bike parking. Let them know that this is a community issue and that the neighbors really support it. If they want some help or rack/storage info, get it to them.

Easy Ways You Can Help

Are you interested in helping with this project? It helps everyone stay up-to-date, and it's where we have a lot of discussions. We're all busy, so we don't meet often. The mailing list is usually a good way to start a conversation about something.
Add your ideas to the idea area . As we've discussed ideas on the mailing list, we'll get started on the best ones.
Fill out the CityRacks form.
Design a flyer or help put it up. Email me and we can work out the details.
Volunteer an hour to knock on doors and talk to neighbors.
Do you know of a group / person that might be a supportive contact? Know someone moving into this condo tower? Let me know! You can email me at vhamer@gmail.