Pedestrians making there way across a greenstreet in Van Nest will now be walking a little bit easier.
Part of the sidewalk on a traffic triangle located next to Van Nest Park on Van Nest Avenue at the intersection Victor Street was in poor condition for many years. leaving the potential for tripping,, said Community Board 11 district manager Jeremy Warneke.
On Friday, July 15, The Parks Department replaced a curb cut and added new concrete to the sidewalk that had eroded over several years, Warneke said.
“I am really happy that something was finally done to repair the sidewalk at this location,” Warneke said. “We had requested that it be repaired last fall because much of the concrete was missing and there was damage to the sidewalk.”
Community activist Joe Bombace said that he was glad to see the repairs made, as the sidewalk had been unsafe to walk on for several years.
“In the past, only patchwork repairs were made to the sidewalk, which did not make it very safe for the community to use,” Bombace said.
Parks said Greenstreets are reviewed once a year to make sure that they are safe and attractive to visitors, said a Parks Department spokesman. In addition to district supervisors who visit locations in their service area on a weekly basis, he said.
“Our park supervisors regularly inspect all properties to ensure that they remain clean, safe, attractive, and well-functioning,” the Parks Department spokesman said. “In addition, we randomly inspect each park at least once a year under our Parks Inspection Program.”
During those inspections, any hazardous conditions found are addressed as soon as possible, while less urgent ones are prioritized in terms of their severity and complexity for future care, the Parks spokesman said.
The agency also takes into account the number of 311 complaints called in regarding a park’s condition, he said.
Warneke said that he was pleased that the Parks Department had been able to turn the request around so fast, since he first filed a complaint last fall while working for Councilman Jimmy Vacca, in conjunction with the Van Nest Neighborhood Alliance, before his appointment as CB 11 district manager at the beginning of the year.
Bernadette Ferrara, of the Van Nest Neighborhood Alliance, said she would like to see a street tree planted on the sidewalk, and added that she had wished that the entire sidewalk on the greenstreet had been replaced.
