What’s the Delay on the Bus for Seniors in Bay Ridge?
For at least a year, we have been hearing on social media that only fourteen seniors at the Bay Ridge Center were able to take day trips. A lottery decided who could go on these trips because there were only 14 seats on the van. That meant sometimes seniors couldn’t go on the trip with their close friends or the same people were chosen repeatedly.
One Bay Ridge resident, named Debbie, persistently kept the issue in the spotlight because Debbie was aware that another vehicle was available and it wasn’t being used. Debbie also knew that many seniors were unhappy, but weren’t complaining loud enough. She contacted Councilman Brannan about this repeatedly because she wanted more seniors to be able to go on the day trips.
In May, Councilman Brannan gave a grant to the senior center so another van could be purchased to transport the seniors on the day trips. That was the good news Debbie needed to hear and she thanked Brannan for understanding and responding to the seniors need. The bus was supposed to be purchased by the end of July.
In the beginning of August, Debbie announced that although the Senior Center received the money in May, they hadn’t purchased a van. Very soon after she wrote that, a picture of a new van was shared on social media. Again, everyone cheered. But the van wasn’t ready for use. On August 20th, Debbie was told that the van needed to be painted and it will be ready in two weeks.
It’s now September 7th and the van is still not available. Debbie asked about it again because she knows the weather is perfect for the seniors to take trips! Councilman Brannan responded that the van will be ready at the end of September and they will have a celebration. What is causing the delay in the senior center being able to use the van? Whose holding the red tape? Why does a bus need a celebration…..Why can’t the seniors just get on their bus and go?!
Here’s the strange thing…after watching for awhile, I realized if there aren’t people like Debbie watching issues closely, money just disappears. Recently, Councilman Brannan wrote about how 40 million dollars was funded to Calvert Vaux Park in 2009, but that only 20 Million was actually given for the Park. Mark Treyger has been the Councilman for Coney Island for a long time and he should have been on top of this before allowing a decade to go by! See story here.
Hugs,
marlene
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