Grand & Putnam Gets Lip Service, Maybe More
There was a big turnout–over a 100 people, we’d guess–at last night’s Town Hall meeting to discuss the problems of drug dealing, gambling and violence at the corner of Putnam and Grand in Clinton Hill. Tish James and Captain Cosgrove of the 88th spoke for the first 45 minutes or so about recent crime stats…
There was a big turnout–over a 100 people, we’d guess–at last night’s Town Hall meeting to discuss the problems of drug dealing, gambling and violence at the corner of Putnam and Grand in Clinton Hill. Tish James and Captain Cosgrove of the 88th spoke for the first 45 minutes or so about recent crime stats and the historical efforts to combat the entrenched lawlessness in this particular hotspot. (What do you know! There just happened to be a squad car, shown below, parked on the corner before and during the meeting.) In particular, Cosgrove expressed frustration at the inability to purge 435 Grand Avenue despite numerous raids and busts; he also admitted his frustration at how quickly those arrested reappear on the corner. Numerous people stood and told their own stories–mostly of being intimidated by thugs and of being treated rudely by police.
Brooklyn DA Charles Hynes showed up about half-way through the evening and promised to pay special attention to the corner, pointing to the mass arrests in the Red Hook Houses as proof of his resolve. When we got our chance we made two comments: (1) we told Cosgrove that, regardless of the degree to which it has basis in truth, his precinct has a massive p.r. problem with the community that needs to be addressed and (2) we put on the table the idea of installing a surveillance camera, something which several of us in the neighborhood formulated as a top priority a couple of weeks ago. It turns out that there may be a way to fund this privately, though it’s unclear what it would cost (possibly as little as $18,000). A show of hands revealed that more than 90% of the room was in favor of a camera. Hynes said he had no problem with surveillance cameras but cautioned the audience not to look at them as a panacea.
The message that all three speakers kept hammering home was that the residents have to stay vigilant in reporting crimes and working closely with law enforcement. It’s hard to argue with such advice, but many of the people in the audience who’ve lived in the neighborhood for a while have endured years of feeling helpless and ignored by the police; they are also aware of the potential repercussions of taking too high a profile stance against the drug dealers. It seems like there’s a lot of momentum among residents now and we hope the efforts to clean up the nabe and hold the public officials’ feet to the fire will not recede along with the memories of the recent shootings.
One suggestion that came up in conversation after the meeting was to bring in the Nation of Islam as private security. This has never occurred to us, but supposedly they did a fantastic job cleaning up Coney Island (who knew?). Does anyone know anything about how that would work?
DA Hynes Hits Town Hall Meeting [Brooklyn Record]
i don’t believe a word that tish james, the head of the 88th or mr. hynes have to say. it is all lip service. i have lived on grand avenue for over 7 years, and they said the same thing then, in years 1,2,3,4,5 and 6. they could care less about anybody but themselves and re-election. perhaps they need to see someone shot, or get hit upside the head themselves to really do anything/
otherwise, it will be the same ole same ole for years to come.
did anyone ask whether the cops are being paid off? i guess they didn’t have to, since it is so obvious that they are.
T, I don’t really get it. So he’s black. That means he couldn’t possibly have said anything racist or made a slur? Since when.
They found a body in the garbage today in Crown Heights.
This mornings incident at Putnam and Irving was a nasty car accident. The “body on the stretcher” was my son’s mother who is fine, but for a broken cheek bone. She got very good treatment at LICH, btw.
I am willing to stand corrected on my attack on the fine whiteboys of Clinton Hill. Perhaps I, being a whiteboy myself, worry too much about potentially racially charged interactions.
Altho I am a little bewildered what democrats or republicans have to do with what we are discussing, I do agree with T that it is work on the ground which will change things. Pressure on landlords to evict is probably more effective (altho we have the innocent grandmother problem). Economic change will probably have the greatest effect on drug dealing and prostitution in this area. If Fulton had a thriving restaurant row or had new housing on the empty lots, there would be less space for the illicit trade. As it is, I am amazed that Kush has survived. I hear a new coffee shop is opening in the building at Fulton and Grand, as well as perhaps another restaurant. I am just not sure my waistband can survive all the supportive eating I will have to do.
All i’m sayin’, T, is that police officers should do some soul searching and figure out why they’re doing this job and if it’s all for the pension, give it up now or there are years of misery ahead of them. There are plenty of other lines of work that can offer some retirement stability that don’t involve taking your life in your hands on a daily basis. The anectodal evidence you supplied in the form of a story about your cousin didn’t help your case – it hurt it. Sure there are some liberal community zealots who do the community more harm then good, but if the officers give up when the going gets tough, we all lose.
I agree with you 100% about grooming candidates who will do right by the community, and not being afraid to vote repub. I know a lot about the democratic party machine in Brooklyn and it’s not pretty.
CORRECTION: the incident I was asking about was apparently on the next block down Putnam, between Downing and irving. I’m told there were several cop cars, an ambulance, the sidewalk was taped off and there was at least one body on a stretcher. Or so rumor has it. Any diggers out there with 411?
I don’t feel threatened walking by the corner of Grand and St James. Been doing it without issue for 4 years now. Most that ever hapens is someone bums a cigarette on my way by. Maybe it’s not all that safe and I’ve just grown comfortable through familiarity, but even last night I was back and forth to the laundry at 2:30 in the morning. Seems to me the kids on the corner mind their own business if I mind my own business.
Use dto be you’d see deals go down in the street. Seems to me the deals have moved inside or else migrated to Classon or wherever. For what it’s worth I had until very recently felt a palpable improvement on that corner over what it was four years ago.
Anyone know what went down there this morning, by the way? I’m told there were ambulances, police cars and crime tape. All I saw on my way to work was the usual construction though.
CrownHeightsProud, by generic, i was refering to the way people usually describe perps. “Black Male”, “Hispanic Female”, “White Male” etc are generic characteristics that people use. By themselves, these ‘profiles’ are useless.
When i called 911 in my own example, the operator asked be for a description of the assailants. At first all i could think of was “young black males”. But then i thought about what i was saying. I was basically describing myself. I’m a black male in my mid 30s and could easily be confused as a “young black male”. Then i remembered the distinctive NASCAR jacket and cap, as well as other pertinenent details which lead to an arrest.
The last thing i wanted to do was get some unlucky fellow stopped for WBB(Walking While Black). However, a crime was committed on my block. It could have been one of my tenants. It could have been one of our friends. I didnt know. However, I witnessed a mugging and had to do something.
I have been stopped for WBB several times in my 10 years of FG homeownership. So when people talk about longer term residents being apathetic to whats going around them, thats simply not true. I recognize that as a homeowner, i have benefited $$ tremdendously by the reduction in crime in FG. But that still doesnt make the perceived ‘profiling’ of certain FG residents OK. But i guess you cant blame the police too much, since most people call in and give a generic description based on racial persuasion. Thats why i cant stress enough the importance of give DETAILED descriptions.
Thanks Anonymous! Very excited about my new neighborhood! I definitely plan on attending community meetings as well. 🙂
bmeterp,
I’ve lived in CH for four years. It was nice then and its only gotten better. I feel safe walking anywhere in the neighborhood at night.