Speakers from the neighborhood addressed a range of local concerns, including environmental friendliness, bad landlords and gun control, which residents considered particularly important following the Dec. 14 shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

“I’m wondering why we can’t register and inspect every weapon that is not going to be under an assault rifle ban, and why we can’t insist upon some kind of liability for gun holders, just like we have for driving a car and driving a power boat,” said Joyce Silver, a Columbus Avenue resident. “And why don’t we have schools for people who have guns, so that they have to pass safety and handling regulations?”

New York state Sen. Adriano Espaillat was sympathetic to Silver’s worries about guns’ accessibility. He said that he and Brewer were pushing in City Hall to establish gun buyback programs in neighborhoods across the city. “I think that locally, at the ground level, we have to do the best we can to bring back every gun possible,” he said, mentioning that political debate was not enough. “We want to do this at the grassroots level and bring it from the bottom up. … Every community must do what they can to eradicate guns.”

He noted, “I don’t see why people should have a semiautomatic rifle in their closet. I just don’t understand. It’s not part of my psyche or my culture.”

Assembly Member Richard Gottfried also spoke out against lax gun laws, saying, “It is outrageous that it has taken such an escalated series of mass murders to apparently put this issue on the front burner. We hope that it will produce results.”

Brewer voiced her support of stricter gun regulation as well. In response to a question about funding a march in Washington, D.C., to lobby for change, though, she said that the approach had to be tactical: “If we went to Washington, we would have to make sure that it included people from other parts of the country where there is stronger NRA [National Rifle Association] support, even upstate. Sometimes I feel like we’re talking to ourselves. I obviously think it’s a good idea from my perspective. The question would be, if we could pinpoint what legislation we could pass to actually do the kinds of things that we’re concerned about.”

One of her main concerns, she said, was firearms getting into the hands of people with mental health conditions, like the mental and personality disorders Sandy Hook shooter Adam Lanza is rumored to have been suffering from. “That can be lethal,” Brewer said.

In addition to guns, many locals talked about rats. Residents from West 89th, 80th, 72nd and 60th streets complained about the creatures taking over parks and garbage receptacles, and worried that even with the city’s recent efforts to curb infestations—including the “West Side Rat Academy”—not enough has been done.

“We’re quite good at getting rid of rats when we have a specific situation,” said Brewer, noting that she and the Department of Health do building-specific walkthroughs and then collaborate with building owners to address problems. Department officials further stated that the city was installing many “rat-proof” trash compactors and improving garbage cleaning and collection efforts around the neighborhood to prevent rats from prospering in residential areas.

The final heavily discussed issue of the evening was what city officials were doing to reduce the neighborhood’s environmental impact. With urgent concerns about climate change in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, locals asked about ways of switching to alternative energies and reducing carbon emissions.

Brewer was optimistic that the City Council would begin tackling the issue. “The discussion of Hurricane Sandy is going to be formal,” she said. “I think we could use that as an opportunity to try to get other aspects of a more appropriate environmental approach involved. It would be like a whole series of hearings to be planned out on the hurricane, and the ways in which the energy situation should be addressed in every single building. I think that’s the way to approach it.”

She added that this improved environmental approach could be a “silver lining in a horrific situation.”

APPLE SEEDS HOLDS WINTER CONCERT
Apple Seeds, an indoor children’s playground and development center, is hosting a winter concert on Sunday, Dec. 16, at Stage 72. According to the company, the show—which it says will be “highly interactive” with dance- and sing-alongs—will feature original music by Mr. Ray, popular kids’ songs, top 40 hits and Christmas classics. The event promotes Apple Seeds’ “Songs for Seeds” program, a group music class for children up to 5 years old that introduces them to music basics by focusing on different international music cultures. The show begins at 11 a.m. at 158 West 72nd St., and tickets can be purchased online at www.stage72.com.

LAPPIN PROPOSES GRADES FOR CITY BUSES
City Council Member Jessica Lappin introduced a resolution to the Council on Monday that calls for a letter-grading system for buses. Like restaurant grading, Lappin’s measure would rate individual bus lines from A (excellent) to F (terrible) based on criteria like cleanliness, timeliness and seat availability. The idea for bus ratings was inspired by Susan Giles, an Upper East Side resident who suggested it to Lappin over the summer.

“Grading buses is an easy way to let commuters know what they’re getting, and let the MTA know where they need to improve,” Lappin said in a statement. “For the past two years, I’ve issued a report card on Select Bus Service, and it’s been a great transparency tool. Why not extend it to all bus lines?”

Earlier this year, Lappin issued a report card that gave Select Bus Service (SBS) a “B” for its quality of service. MTA itself conducts customer satisfaction surveys for its overall service on buses, but does not rate individual bus lines.

STRINGER SEEKS NEW BOARD MEMBERS
Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer is selecting next year’s class of Community Board members. Manhattan is divided geographically into 12 communities, each of which has its own board of up to 50 unpaid local members appointed by Stringer. The boards have no administrative rights, but present requests to the city’s administration that address neighborhood quality of life, business and residential issues. Stringer is holding information sessions about the application process on Thursday, Dec. 13, and Tuesday, Jan. 8, in the Municipal Building at 1 Centre St., and on the Upper West Side on Tuesday, Dec. 18, at 163 W. 125th St. All sessions are from 6:30 to 8 p.m. RSVP to cbinfo@manhattanbp.org.

The New York state budget crisis, public school closings and potential cuts to senior centers were just some of the subjects discussed during a July 13 Upper West Side Town Hall Meeting at Goddard Riverside Community Center.

More than 300 West Siders packed the center to hear Upper West Side elected officials, including Borough President Scott Stringer, Assembly members Linda Rosenthal and Richard Gottfried, Council members Gale Brewer and Inez Dickens, as well as representatives from the departments of Education, Transportation and Environmental Protection.

After a short introduction, Stringer turned the floor over to the audience.

Many of the people in attendance wanted to know how the New York State budget crisis would affect the Upper West Side, from the closings of senior centers and public schools to inadequate unemployment benefits. The city’s $63 billion budget, which passed two weeks ago, includes a 20 percent decrease from last year in discretionary funding for community organizations.

Stringer promised the audience that he is trying to avert the public school closings Mayor Michael Bloomberg has proposed.

“When there are not enough seats in public schools, parents leave New York City, taking their tax dollars and their children,” Stringer said.

He also apologized on behalf of the government for proposed budget cuts to senior programs. Council Member Inez Dickens said her office has succeeded in saving three of the seven senior centers that were scheduled to close in her district, which includes parts of the Upper West Side and Central Harlem.

Residents also expressed their concerns about overdevelopment in Park West Village, with community advocates addressing the prospect of Jewish Home Lifecare, a nonprofit health care provider, building a 22-story nursing home on West 100th Street.

“It’s a disgrace,” Stringer said of the overcrowding of Park West Village.

But the topics were not all doom and gloom.

One woman proposed a law against putting spikes on ledges, saying that they injure people when they sit down. Stringer joked that he would introduce a “tuchus law.”

At one point, a former high school classmate of Stringer’s mentioned his recent engagement from the audience.

“I can’t believe you’re engaged,” she said. n