TESTIMONY FOR FY 2009 CAPITAL/EXPENSE BUDGET

GREATER RIDGEWOOD RESTORATION CORPORATION 1.) Expense - $12,500 to continue our graffiti cleaning program. 425 sites cleaned in 2007. Over the past 15 years GRRC has removed graffiti 4,205 times. (10lh year request). 2.) Expense - one full time Buildings Department enforcement officer to handle our illegal building complaints throughout Community Board 5 (7th year request). 3.) Expense - one full time NYC Landmarks Commission staff person to convert Ridgewood's 2,982 Federal Historic buildings into NYC landmark status. The Landmarks Commission tells us they presently do not have the staff to honor our request, now eight years old; hence our request for one additional staff person to the Commission's staff (10lh year request 4.) Capital - $45,000 to install remote wireless cameras to catch graffiti vandals and illegal dumpers at our 33 illegal dumping hot spots (5th year request). 5.) Expense - $24,000 to continue to fund GRRC's Community Consultant contract with HPD. In 2006 we contacted and counseled 75 property owners on the final lien sale list and 75 percent of them paid their taxes; surveyed for 500 new street trees locations; removed graffiti from 322 locations; counseled 400 small homeowners and tenants; tracked 50 illegal building complaints (12th year request). 6.) Capital - $450,000 to plant 450 new street trees on Ridgewood's residential blocks to help purify the air (37th year request). RIDGEWOOD LOCAL DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION 7.) Capital - $175, 000 to plant 175 new street trees in Myrtle Avenue BID and industrial areas (south of Myrtle Avenue - SOMA) (3rd year request). GREATER RIDGEWOOD HISTORICAL SOCIETY 8.) Expense: - $8,500 to support the historical programs of the Vander Onderdonk House in Ridgewood that expose public school children to their neighborhood's history (9th year request). 9.) Capital: - $570,000 to renovate the Onderdonk House before its 300th Anniversary in 2009. It has never been renovated since its first Restoration about 35 years ago (1st request). RIDGEWOOD PROPERTY OWNERS & CIVIC ASSOCIATION 10.) Capital: - Install seven-foot high perimeter fencing around Grover Cleveland Park to protect the recent $1.5 million capital refurbishment investment ( 5th year request). 11.) Capital: - Phase II renovation of the Ridgewood Library: the adult library at one million dollars, including new exterior "up" lighting and reading benches in the garden surrounding the library ( 4th year request). 12.) Expense: - One full time Sanitation enforcement agent for Q5 (7th year request). 13.) Capital: - Shaler Avenue off-street parking for the 104th Police Precinct. Council Member Gallagher has been the lead on this matter (12th year request). RIDGEWOOD VOLUNTEER AMBULANCE CORP 14.) Capital: -An additional $300,000 for renovation of the current location of RVAC as its new headquarters, because of NYC requirements that all city capital projects utilize "prevailing wages" costs (1st request). Respectfully submitted, Paul Kerzner President

21 Mar 2008 by DGroppe