| Home | Bookmark | Tell | Active petitions in over 75 countries | Follow GoPetition |
Petition Tag - new york city
1. Keep Pace University Clean of Horse Feces 
Due to the manner of their inhabitance of the university perimeter, the student body requests that the NYPD Mounted Unit please pick up after their horses, including their droppings which they have left around the school for the past two months.
It is distasteful, disgusting, and rude to current and prospective students visiting the school as well as its faculty, staff, and patrons of the university. This petition serves as a device for the university to speak out against the horse poop publicly left around the vicinity of the school campus by the NYPD Mounted Unit. We feel they have abused their power and their stay around our university campus, which has left us feeling uncomfortable and disrespected.
By signing this petition, we at Pace University stand up for our rights as students and as citizens of the United States and to take action against the conditions we must live and learn in. The continual protests of university students which have thus far gone unrecognized exemplify the university president’s and NYPD’s disregard for the University’s and surrounding community’s welfare. It is incorrect to think the university does not control or have say over the situation.
We do and our voice will be heard. This is about our health, our safety, our comfort, and most importantly, about respect as a community united under an environment of learning. It is high time for the mounted police officers to comply with our requests for decency and civility. We ask them to get off their high horse, metaphorically and literally, to clean up their horse poop. Pace University is not the NYPD's personal horse stable and we request that they do not act as if it is. Every university student has the right to live and learn in a safe and comfortable environment. This concerns all students, faculty, and staff at Pace University as well as all students nationwide. We must stand up for our rights.
We, as a student body, must unite against the disrespect and disgusting conditions we have been subjected to. We do not pay this much for Pace University to endure being brushed off by university higher ups, who have allowed us to be subjected to these disgusting conditions. Let this petition signify our endurance and persistence in the matter before us.
Please sign the petition below if you wish to not smell or see horse feces everyday on your way to class and/or work.
2. Say No to Walmart in Staten Island and all of NYC
http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/77/walmart.html?page=0%2C0
Walmart will kill businesses in Staten Island, will make no competition and will fight every person trying to start a union to help working conditions they are used to abusing. When all it's competition is killed, everything will be made outside the US and people will be forced to buy what they sell.
So a few jobs created with horrible wages will actually kill thousands of job. Please read the link above and watch the documentary, Wal-Mart The High Cost of Low Price.
3. Ban Shark Fin Products in New York City
Despite being banned in many parts of the world, Shark Fin Products are still available in New York City. Because of the wasteful manner of their harvest (the Shark's fins are cut off and then the finless animal is thrown back in the water to suffocate), because of this...Shark Fin Products have no business in Our City.
4. Please Don't Cut NYC's Parks Budget
On May 6th Mayor Bloomberg released the Fiscal Year 2011 Executive Budget. Despite the ardent testimony provided by park supporters at the City Council Parks and Recreation Committee’s Preliminary Budget hearings on March 23rd, additional cuts have been made to the Department of Parks and Recreation.
City funds appropriated to the Department have been further reduced from $258 million last year to $230 million -- almost $30 million cut. Unfortunately, the funding loss will heavily impact jobs and thus park maintenance. The reduction is a result of full-time staff loss through attrition and reductions in funding for seasonal positions.
In addition to the 377 full-time jobs cut from the Department, the budget proposes an additional 16.5% cut to the seasonal staffing budget, which represents a loss of 113 full-time equivalent (FTE) positions within the Department’s seasonal workforce. Considering that they are the main workforce during the peak spring and summer months, this will undoubtedly impact park maintenance, security, and special programs offered in parks.
The City Council works closely with the Mayor each year to develop and approve the city’s annual budget. A final budget for the next year will be adopted prior to the start of the Fiscal Year on July 1st. We urge you to sign this petition and write to your Council Members and Mayor Bloomberg in support of these essential restorations.
5. An Alternative Infill Solution for New York City's Synthetic Turf
The New York City Parks & Recreations Department is leading the way in discussing new initiatives and enacting new lesgislation that protects the health and safety of our communities by limiting the amount of hazardous materials used in construction of playgrounds, recreation areas, sports fields and landscaping.
Synthetic turf surfaces that use crumb rubber infill will no longer be installed, and current installations are under pressure to replace or remove their infill materials.
Finding a suitable alternative infill to maintain the quality, safety and performance of these fields has become an important issue for New York City residents including city officials, architects, engineers, coaches, parents and athletes.
Each of New York City’s three public library systems are facing budget cuts in excess of 22 percent in the coming fiscal year. Less money going into our libraries means fewer services than ever before, and that downgrade couldn’t come at a worse time.
With a New York City unemployment rate higher than 8 percent, more people than ever before are turning to libraries to make use of their job-hunting resources and to improve their professional skills. Families are looking at libraries’ vast book, DVD and video collections as affordable entertainment alternatives.
Libraries in many ways provide a foundation for community organizing – residents use their local branch’s public space as a way to connect with their neighbors, form groups and discuss issues facing the City and their community so that they can effect positive and long-lasting change.
Save the Baltic Street Community Garden!
Stop the School Construction Authority (SCA) from bulldozing the Baltic Street Community Garden and replacing the century-old school bldg at PS 133 with a new massive building.
Construction for the proposed building at Baltic/Butler & 4th Av (5-story, 115,000 sqft) followed by the demolition of the current schoolhouse (46,000 sqft) will start as early as THIS SUMMER.
What Are the Impacts On Our Community?
Known Facts:
- According to the SCA’s plan, the Baltic Street Community Garden will be demolished. The new building will cover the entire space of the current community garden, school yard, teacher parking, and half of the small children’s play area on Baltic St.
- The Baltic Street Community Garden has been in its current location for 26 years. The garden hosts a variety of trees, food crops, and flowers. See pictures of the garden at http://flatbushgardener.blogspot.com/2008/07/baltic-street-community-garden-park.html
- Concerned residents, parents and gardeners who object to the new school’s plan packed the Public Hearing session at the 78th Precinct. Since that time, no other public hearings have been held.
- Where the schoolhouse stands now will accommodate play areas for 900 students and a smaller community garden (the size will be less than half of the current one).
- The purpose of the plan is to help ease the overcrowding issue in prime Park Slope, which belongs to District 15. PS 133 is a District 13 school (Prospect Hts, Fort Green, Clinton Hill & Bed-Stuy). District 15 includes Park Slope, Carroll Gardens, Wind-Terrace, Sunset Park, & Red Hook.
- There has been no posting by SCA at the Brooklyn Community Board 6 website to facilitate the information to the public.
Areas of Concern:
- How will the Baltic Street Community Garden survive?
- Why is the new school in this location? (District 15 includes Sunset Park, Red Hook, etc.)Why does it have to be so big?
- Lack of communication (The SCA has done no outreach for local home owners and tenants)
- Safety and health issues for the current PS133 students and area residents (air pollution and noise during/after construction & demolition, asbestos, lead, buses & cars idling, lack of play areas for children during construction)
- Lack of an environmental impact study for the affected area. How can the quality of our life be protected?
- Traffic, Parking Conflict, Garbage, Rodents will be tripled. Homeowners are also worried about possible building damage or weakening of their houses’ foundations due to the scale of the operation.
For more information, visit Community Board Six’s website: http://www.brooklyncb6.org (Look for upcoming announcements or calendar listings)
8. Bring Back Composting to NYC
Question: How can you Plant a Million Trees, keep city parks and green spaces beautiful, and grow healthy food in community gardens and backyards?
Answer: Voice your support for the NYC Compost Project's Fall Leaf Collection and Compost Givebacks!
Compost—a natural soil amendment made of decomposed organic material—is one of the foundations that our gardens, parks and all green spaces depend on. It is also an efficient and green way to manage our city’s trash by diverting recyclable organic material from out-of-state landfills.
Up until 2008, the NYC Compost Project included the collection of our city’s fall leaves—roughly 20,000 tons per year, which will increase up to 3x with the Million Trees Initiative —for the production of municipal compost. This compost was given back to NYC residents and the Parks Department to revitalize our gardens and open spaces. However, the NYC Compost Project faced a lack of financial and political support for the Fall Leaf Collection and Giveback Days, and they have been cancelled entirely “until further notice.”
If we really want to be the healthier, greener city we envision, we need to reconsider the importance of composting. Let's show City Council, the Department of Sanitation and the Mayor how important leaf compost is to our soil, our environment and us… the residents of NYC!
9. Legalize Beekeeping in NYC!
CAMPAIGN UPDATE (MARCH 16, 2010)
Success!!! The Board of Health voted today in favor of lifting the ban on honeybee-keeping in NYC!! Thanks and congrats to all who supported the campaign! ~ Nadia
ARCHIVED BACKGROUND
Question: What do cities like Atlanta, Chicago, Portland, San Francisco, Seattle, Toronto, and Vancouver have that NYC does not?
Answer: Legalized beekeeping.
Bee keeping is currently illegal in New York City. The New York City Health Code under Section 161.01 prohibits the possession, keeping, harboring and selling of “wild animals.” This ban, in it’s listing of “all venomous insects” includes bees and in doing so outlaws beekeeping.
Honeybees are garden heroes! Honeybees help gardens grow more fruit and vegetables and produce sweet honey. They are nature’s best pollinators and contribute to productive harvests in community gardens, public parks and nature centers.
In order to improve the health and well-being of our urban environment and populace, Just Food proposes that honeybees be removed or exempted from Health Code 161.01.
To find out more about the benefits of legalized beekeeping, read our honeybee fact sheet at: http://justfood.org/issues/
10. Support Permanent, Supportive Housing for LGBT Youth in Central Harlem
In New York City a very disproportionate number (up to 40%) of homeless youth identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT).
Even more disturbing are reports that these young people often face discrimination and at times physical assault in some of the very places they have to go for help. Despite this, there is currently no permanent housing with supportive services for this population in New York City.
West End Intergenerational Residence, in collaboration with musical artist Cyndi Lauper and her manager, Lisa Barbaris, is seeking to address this issue by creating the True Colors Residence (TCR), a new construction with 30 studio apartments and program space on 154th Street in Central Harlem.
We’ll be building it from the ground up so our residents will have a brand new, modern building with studio apartments for each resident, as well as both indoor and outdoor community space to socialize or attend education and recreation programs. Each resident will be responsible for paying affordable rent based on their income and will receive ongoing assistance in obtaining employment best suited to their individual interests and skills.
Although TCR will not require participation in its programs, a variety of social and educational support services will be available to all who request them. Our primary goal is to provide a physically and emotionally safe and supportive environment that will empower our young residents to be the self-loving, happy, and successful individuals they were meant to be.
ONLY MEMBERS OF MANHATTAN'S COMMUNITY BOARD 10 SHOULD SIGN THIS PETITION. Manhattan Community Board 10 encompasses Central Harlem and the Polo Grounds – bounded approximately by Fifth Avenue (on the east) and St. Nicholas Ave (on the west) and Central Park North (on south) and 160th Street and/or the Harlem River (on north). If you are unsure whether or not you live in CD10, please check here: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/pdf/lucds/mn10profile.pdf.
You must include your home address along with your name for your signature to be valid. WE MUST BE ABLE TO VERIFY THAT YOU LIVE WITHIN COMMUNITY BOARD 10. Please note, however, that street addresses will not be viewable by the public and will only be seen by representatives of West End, TCR, and Community Board 10.
For more information on West End and the True Colors Residence, please visit www.intergenerational.org.
Thank you for your support!
11. Mayor Bloomberg - Withdraw From The Mayoral Race
The New York City Council has voted to extend the two term limit for themselves, as well as for the Office of Mayor. Mayor Bloomberg, who, himself, said that it was "disgusting" to try to overturn term limits, has won his battle to extend the term limits by legislative fiat. NYC voters TWICE voted on keeping term limits for any Mayor or member of the City Council to TWO terms, not three.
By seeking a third term exclusively for himself, the Mayor has completely disregarded the will of the people of the City of New York
Through legislative fiat, the Mayor has succeeded in overruling the voice of the people, and has subverted the law to suit his own interests.
12. Put Pre-K and Kindergarten Admissions Back in the Hands of the Schools
When the DOE centralized admissions for Pre-K, many mistakes were made. Here are just a few examples:
• As many as 200 siblings were denied spots in their brother's or sister's schools even though they were supposed to have been given first priority on acceptance. (This is still being rectified, some of these children will get seats in their siblings’ schools and some may not).
• In at least one Brooklyn school, PS 10, students out-of-the-zone were accepted, while in-zone students (who put the school first) were rejected. In-zone students were supposed to receive priority over out-of-zone students.
• Though we were told that this process was about equity, many, many families were left out of the process because they never found out about the application. According to a Daily News article by Rachel Monahan on June 10th, “Bedford-Stuyvesant's Public School 3 has space for 54 pre-kindergarten students for next fall, but parents didn't know about the new application rules - so only 18 slots were filled.”
The current school budget crisis does not warrant spending money on a centralized admissions process. (For example: because it took the DOE so long to determine Gifted and Talented placements, they were forced to messenger the acceptance letters).
When schools controlled their own admissions process, families applied to their zoned school and often applied to lottery or magnet schools, as well. By the end of the admissions season, they might have two or three schools to choose from. Under the current structure, putting anything other than our zoned school first might mean that we might not make it into our first choice or our zoned school.
One of the reasons the DOE wanted to take control of the admissions process for Pre-K is to have a better understanding of how many Pre-K placements are needed. The DOE now has the data, “Of the 20,000 children who applied for pre-K under the new enrollment process, 15% got no seats.”*
According to Joel Klein, the DOE instituted centralized admissions so that families could be "given information about all the programs available to them" and "to prevent the need for camping out" for pre-k admission.** Distributing pre-k directories and establishing fair guidelines for school-based admissions will prohibit inequitable practices like first-come, first served.
* Wisloski, Jess (2008, June 17). New pre-kindergarten selection process keeps kids out of nearby seats. Daily News. This number does not take into account the number of families who never applied because they did not know about the new process.
** Joel Klein in an interview on June 18, 2008 http://www.brownstoner.com/brownstoner/archives/2008/06/chancellor_joel.php
13. Please fix and maintain our NYC streets
While new houses are being built, contractors are digging up side walks and roads in attempts to fix underground plumbing and pipes while permanently damaging the NYC streets.
After their renovations in one specific area the merely patched sections being worked on leave the rest of the streets filled with bumpiness, rockiness potholes and uneven pavements.
After some time these patched sections begin to erode similar to the rest of the road creating more damage to the streets causing major car damage such as improper wheel alignment, control arms of the wheel axle become damaged therefore creating overall axle damage which leads to long term damage.
Due to these problems many accidents are caused.
14. Increase New York City's Pooper-Scooper Fine to $1000
What a waste: New York City's pooper-scooper fine hasn't gone up since the Carter administration.
The city's first ordinance that mandated picking up your dog's poop went into effect in 1978. “If you’ve ever stepped in dog doo, you know how important it is to enforce the canine waste law,” former mayor Ed Koch said.
The fine for violating the law has held unchanged at $50-100 ever since.
Fifty bucks may have gone a long way thirty years ago, but it's downright laughable now. Get caught, and what's the big deal -- you'd lose the equivalent of a half a night's drinking money. With the cost of inflation, a $50 fine back then should be about $160 in 2007 dollars. Other cities have long surpassed even that amount. Atlanta, for example, hits poop scofflaws with a $1,000 fine. Boulder, Colorado, charges $500. With the possibility of losing that kind of cash, wouldn't you think twice about looking the other way when your mutt pooped on the sidewalk?
Santa Monica, California, by the way, goes as far as to order dog walkers to have bags or scoopers in plain sight at all times!
NYC Sanitation Commissioner John Doherty is on the right track: He plans to mandate the city's maximum $100 fine beginning this fall, then lobby the state legislature to amend the law (Section 1310 of the New York State Public Health Code) to further increase the fine.
Good for Doherty. Unfortunately his plan doesn't go far enough. He eventually wants to see a $250 fine. But why stop there? A larger fine -- say, $1,000 -- would send a clear message that failing to clean up after your pet will no longer be condoned and will carry serious consequences.
The vast majority of New Yorkers are dutifully picking up after dogs. It's the responsible thing to do. But some aren't. And in a city of 8 million people, and millions of dogs, we owe it to ourselves to make sure our sidewalks are free of smelly and unsanitary waste.
So if you live in the state of New York, please take a moment to sign our petition; help us lobby the legislature to increase the fine to $1,000. Sign it, and then send a link to all your friends.
From the BryantPark.org website...
"As the only large-scale public park in midtown Manhattan, Bryant Park is a much sought-after location for concerts, performances, product launches, and many other types of public and private events. With its seasonal plantings, neo-classical sculptures and structures, gravel promenades, and—of course—its elegant slatted chairs, the park offers New Yorkers a uniquely European-feeling outdoor space.
Bryant Park has a commitment to serve the public and enhance the neighborhood by providing green space and cultural enrichment. The Bryant Park Corporation (BPC), a non-profit organization, carefully considers proposals for events in the park in light of their potential to support this commitment."
As the only midtown public space, we believe that a small portion of the park should be set aside for dogs to run off leash.
16. Manhattan to the Aid of Avians
We, the people of New York City, are outraged that we are being harassed and ticketed by NYC personnel for doing the benevolent act of feeding outdoor birds and squirrels. We are made to feel like we are criminals, and this goes against our civilian rights to feed whomever we please.
17. We Won't Go from Surf Ave, New York City
Housing Dept of New York City wants to move tenants who have been living in these apts. for over 20 years into smaller apts. Tenants do not agree.
The purpose of this petition is to relocate New York City's famous Chinatown area, uptown to a more convenient location. Ever since the tragic events on 9/11/01 traffic has been a mess in the downtown area. By moving the better restaurants uptown I would be able to enjoy fine Chinese dining three or four times a week and spend more money which would help the restauranteers during these perilous economic times.
19. Re-name West Sid Highway to the WTC Memorial Highway in New York City.
I would like to rename the West Side Highway in Manhatten, New York. Since the September 11 attacks New York City has not been the same. I think the new name should be the world trade center memorial highway or wtc memorial highway since the west side highway ran right past the twin towers.
