Treyger Formally Announces Cleaning Services Throughout Our Area

BROOKLYN – Council Member Mark Treyger, co-chair of the New York City Council’s Brooklyn Delegation, joined Assembly Member William Colton, community activist Pam Harris, and representatives from The Doe Fund, Wildcat Service Corporation, the Alliance for Coney Island, the Federation of Italian American Organizations, the Kings Highway Beautification Association, and the District Managers of Community Boards 11 and 13, Marnee Elias-Pavia and Eddie Mark, as well as merchants and small business owners from the community to announce the allocation of more than $130,000 for scheduled cleaning of 86th Street and 18th Avenue in Bensonhurst, Avenue U in Gravesend, and Mermaid Avenue in Coney Island, thanks to funding secured through the City Council’s Cleanup NYC Initiative.

“The Cleanup NYC Initiative is one of the most successful initiatives to come out of the City Council,” said Treyger. “Cleanliness is one of the top neighborhood complaints my staff and I receive, and to be able to directly respond to that by beautifying our neighborhood with scheduled cleanups is something we can all be proud of. This is a win-win for both residents and small businesses, which rely on clean and attractive commercial corridors that are enticing for potential customers.”

Beginning November 1st, cleaning services will take place four times a week on 86th Street, between 18th and 26th Avenues, and three times a week on Avenue U, between McDonald Avenue and Ocean Parkway. Cleaning on Mermaid Avenue, between Stillwell Avenue and West 33rd Street, as well as the streets between Mermaid and Surf Avenues from Stillwell Avenue to West 19th Street, will take place on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. This service compliments the scheduled cleaning of Surf Avenue, funded by the Alliance for Coney Island. Treyger also allocated funds for an extra day of cleaning along 18th Avenue, between 68th and 86th Streets, where cleaning is already taking place several times a week.

“We take these concerns very seriously,” Treyger said. “The small business owners here have invested their lives and their savings to make sure that our commercial corridors are filled with great small businesses. Our neighborhood residents deserve to have a clean, thriving, beautiful community. This is a great day for Southwest Brooklyn.

“The inspiration for my support of the Initiative came from my experience working with Assembly Member William Colton on his Speak Up and Clean Up campaign, where together, we organized an effort with hundreds of local high school students to clean up commercial corridors and beautify our neighborhood.”

“I want to commend my colleague in government, Council Member Mark Treyger. This is an issue that we have both worked on together for years, and it is an issue that we must find a solution for. We have been trying to create awareness amongst store owners, residents, community organizations, schools. We are taking a multipronged approach. We have always believed that when you have littering on commercial streets, it does great damage to the community. It creates a climate and an environment which is not conducive to quality of life. It affects more than just the street or the attitudes of the people forced to walk on this street. It affects business and residential life. This is a broad approach that includes work in multiple neighborhoods in an entire section of Brooklyn, and it is possible because we have elected officials working together to make it possible.” – Assembly Member William Colton

“Clean streets mean safe streets. The kids that are part of my organization, the Coney Island Generation Gap, have been out in the district, out in Kaiser Park, doing this kind of work. I’m thankful that Council Member Mark Treyger is working to make our community a place where business can thrive and where residents can enjoy beautiful streets.” – Community Activist Pam Harris

“Council Member Treyger is not only improving the quality of life for residents of District 47 — one our city’s most diverse and vibrant districts — he’s also creating jobs that pay above the minimum wage for New Yorkers who need them most. All of us at The Doe Fund are so grateful to him and to the residents of District 47 to be able to service this community and help create a cleaner, safer, stronger New York City along the way.” – George T. McDonald, Founder and President, The Doe Fund

“Wildcat, a division of Fedcap, is grateful to Council Member Treyger for his support of our Neighborhood Improvement Program (NIP), and of the extensive clean-up initiatives that will be taking place in the 47th District this year and beyond. Through his strong support of NIP in the 47th District, Council Member Treyger has paved the way for Fedcap and Wildcat to provide job opportunities and a path to economic independence for people with barriers, and to provide invaluable clean-up services to the community. In partnership with Council Member Treyger, Fedcap and Wildcat will continue to work to improve the quality of life for all stakeholders involved in this important initiative.” – David Saturn, Director of Social Enterprise, Wildcat Service Corporation.

“The Alliance for Coney Island is thrilled to have been selected as a recipient of the Clean-up Initiative Grant program. Through this program we are able to employ locally and dedicate resources to the Mermaid Avenue corridor to keep the streets clean. We would like to thank Councilman Mark Treyger, the City Council and elected officials for providing funding and making it possible to continue the supplemental sanitation program. We look forward to again working in coordination with DSNY and re-implementing the program in 2016.” – Johanna Zaki, Executive Director, Alliance for Coney Island

“One of the biggest complaints that Community Board 11 receives is about quality of life. We frequently hear from business owners and residents about litter. Thanks to Council Member Treyger, we will see additional resources coming to our neighborhood. We know that cleaner streets are good for the neighborhood and even better for business.” – Marnee Elias-Pavia, District Manager, Community Board 11

“I would like to thank Council Member Treyger. After Sandy, we were devastated. Streets have been unkempt, but with this new program, thanks to the Council Member and the Alliance for Coney Island, streets will be cleaner in the days to come.” – Eddie Mark, District Manager, Community Board 13

“I am really happy that 86th Street will finally be clean and safe for the entire community. It has been a long time that we have waited for this, and we are all very excited about this.” – Josephine Giordano, owner of Lenny’s Pizzeria

“The Council Member has done so much for our community and I want to thank Mark Treyger for continuing to do everything to help our neighborhood.” – Seyran Say, owner of Istanbul

“I want to thank the Council Member and the workers from the Doe Fund. I meet the guys in the blue and red jackets all the time and they are gentlemen. They are fine people who do a great job cleaning up our neighborhood.” – David J. Hidary, Co-President and Co-Founder, Kings Highway Beautification Association.

“I’m here to testify that people call our office also about these cleanliness issues. We address these concerns to both Council Member Treyger and Assembly Member Colton. They immediately met with us to hear about these issues, and since then, the condition on the street has been one thousand percent better. You can walk 18th Avenue now without having to step over garbage. This is all thanks to elected officials who are responsible and responsive to the issues that concern us. Unity is strength.” – Dr. Joseph Rizzi, Federation of Italian American Organizations.