tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post7352772240154635048..comments2024-02-19T05:18:27.849-05:00Comments on <center>the Q at Parkside</center>: Community Board Moves To Oust District Manager Pearl MilesClarkson FlatBedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13463744536115119388noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-79586249968821072852015-10-28T15:27:37.386-04:002015-10-28T15:27:37.386-04:00I had a wonderful experience working with Pearl. ...I had a wonderful experience working with Pearl. She was the first person I've met in my decade living here that seemed as genuinely concerned as myself about stopping the lakes of sewage that back up in the basements scores of building along Ocean avenue whenever it rains. Let's hope that, however this turns out, there'll still be somebody we can count on to help solve this issue... Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-23451043464901874312015-10-22T14:11:41.851-04:002015-10-22T14:11:41.851-04:00About Pearl and historic preservation; when I was ...About Pearl and historic preservation; when I was a CB9 member she was receptive to the Ocean on the Park landmarking request, which was the issue I was most interested in. Unfortunately landmarking in Crown Heights South is likely to be a non-starter, however worthy the neighborhood may be in the abstract. AFAIK the Landmarks Preservation Commission will not proceed in designating an area that lacks strong support from residents. When I was trying to lined up votes in favor of the Ocean Avenue HD I was told by a number of Chassidic members that they'd vote in favor as long as I wasn't also advocating landmarking for their neighborhood. <br /><br />I strongly suspect that the LPC's reluctance to designate areas where there isn't strong community support must have a lot to do with the abortive Steinway Historic District in Queens in the mid-'70s which was designated by LPC in 1974, but overturned by the old Board of Estimate the following year because of opposition by residents.<br /><br />All things being equal I'd love to see an Historic District designation in the neighborhood to our north, but I don't think it's politically practicable and I'd much rather see designations proceed in places like Parkside Avenue, and the south side of Fenimore St. in our neighborhood where residents actually WANT designation.Bob Marvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12734112800580467028noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-60601525603655836252015-10-22T13:11:25.427-04:002015-10-22T13:11:25.427-04:00Pearl Miles a champion of historic preservation? H...Pearl Miles a champion of historic preservation? Hardly! She didn't even know the boundaries of the PLG Historic District as recently as four years ago, and she's certainly always come down on the side of anti-landmarking for Crown Heights South, as are the area's residents, who want to continue maxing out their FAR and altering their houses with impunity.<br /><br />I do admire how she handled the whole Alicia Boyd/MTOPP fiasco; it was probably the best work she's done in her 20-year tenure. However, that's not saying much and it's a case of too little, too late.babshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08365488181982105888noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-90374830507972872572015-10-22T07:05:23.681-04:002015-10-22T07:05:23.681-04:00Oh, and CB14 managed to change their zoning to pre...Oh, and CB14 managed to change their zoning to prevent outsized development. Don't know if that happened during Shawn's tenure, but it does indicate that CB14 functions better than CB9.Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00792646871333738725noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-71064780834995349942015-10-21T17:45:43.657-04:002015-10-21T17:45:43.657-04:00Alex: CB14 is different from CB9. Apples and orang...Alex: CB14 is different from CB9. Apples and oranges really. CB14 success is because of head Alvin Berk. He runs a tight ship and 14 was doing great under Doris and Terry. Let's get Alvin Berk if you want a shakeup. But be warned he is insular. Tough. I know Shawn enough to know she's not a good fit. We have demanding people in 9 and lip service and stalling won't work here. No offense to you or your friend. Things are different out here.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-68034208529073961152015-10-21T15:44:08.870-04:002015-10-21T15:44:08.870-04:00Pearl and her work in the community has been sensa...Pearl and her work in the community has been sensational. Especially with dealings over Alicia Boyd MTOPP and her gaggle of incendiary race-baiting clowns. I hope she dominates the naysayer. She is a champion of historic preservation. junebuggynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-31381772768411979932015-10-21T14:23:29.746-04:002015-10-21T14:23:29.746-04:00Shawn's a friend and she's fab. CB14 seems...Shawn's a friend and she's fab. CB14 seems to do better than CB9.Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00792646871333738725noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-30137600016211106232015-10-21T09:49:02.765-04:002015-10-21T09:49:02.765-04:00Alex: We need a local resident DM. What's so g...Alex: We need a local resident DM. What's so great about Shawn's performance at CB14? It's been average at best.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-74364740956973743802015-10-20T12:15:47.877-04:002015-10-20T12:15:47.877-04:00Best interest will be determined by her replacemen...Best interest will be determined by her replacement, no? Is there anyone lined up?<br /><br />SHAWN CAMPBELL FOR CD9!!Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00792646871333738725noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-42048352453813890012015-10-20T11:18:56.433-04:002015-10-20T11:18:56.433-04:00Please keep the comments coming! Looks like we'...Please keep the comments coming! Looks like we're going to have to vote on this and I'm not sure at this point what's in the best interest of the neighborhood. But I do know that it will be very awkward to move forward knowing that the Chair and Exec have publicly expressed their desire to can her.Clarkson FlatBedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13463744536115119388noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-72932368143103781582015-10-20T10:26:42.573-04:002015-10-20T10:26:42.573-04:00I'm a retired career City employee (30 years, ...I'm a retired career City employee (30 years, ending as an Administrative Staff Analyst). Pearl's gruffness reminds me of the "depression babies" (career employees who started in the 1930s and were very highly qualified because private sector jobs weren't available). They knew EVERYTHING and were great teachers but one of their lessons that I (and many others who started during the Lindsay administration) chose not to follow was "always say no; you can change and say yes later". Bob Marvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12734112800580467028noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-82127836946353058382015-10-20T10:14:58.721-04:002015-10-20T10:14:58.721-04:00I agree about Pearl having "turned a corner&q...I agree about Pearl having "turned a corner" RE: our neighborhood. My first contacts with her, when I was president of LMA in the '90s, left something to be desired, but she was far more receptive to PLG concerns when I served on CB 9 a few years ago.Bob Marvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12734112800580467028noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-11728542382286570012015-10-20T00:48:03.764-04:002015-10-20T00:48:03.764-04:00I can't have an opinion on Pearl Miles because...I can't have an opinion on Pearl Miles because I have never met her. <br /><br />I've never seen her at a community event - an art show, a street fair, a store opening or what-have-you. I have never seen a post from her on a neighborhood discussion group. What she looks like I couldn't tell you even though I know Eric Adams, Diana Richardson, Kevin Parker, Geoffrey Davis, Tim Thomas etc on a first name basis.<br /><br />It's true I could obviously go to a community board meeting but until recently I never found the CB to be an important part of our neighborhood. Is that due to Pearl? I don't know. But her lack of engagement with the district has always troubled me. As someone very involved in the community I have not found her or the board to be a particularly strong force affecting change one way or another in the long term. <br /><br />On the PLG Facebook group where people will argue about <i>anything</i>, a post about her potential ouster drew <i>zero</i> comments. Nothing. Nada. Crickets chirping. <br /><br />Maybe she does a good job in the midst of those who are board members and conduct its business. But that's not enough. Other CB heads are well known throughout their areas and are intimately involved with the people their efforts impact.<br /><br />It's time for someone new.Sethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12696161435787029985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-7990896725953901422015-10-19T15:30:03.513-04:002015-10-19T15:30:03.513-04:00There's human and there's competent. If yo...There's human and there's competent. If you manage a Community Board you should be familiar with every part of it - every block and every neighborhood (She told a neighbor of mine that his house wasn't in the historic district (it is & has been since 1979) & he started some alterations & got a violation from the LPC. His wife still blames Pearl for making him so angry he had a stroke & died.), whether the people who live there conform to your priorities or not. She doesn't live in the area and she's had the job for 20+ years. Times have changed and we need someone who really knows her job. Conduct at CB meetings is a joke - if the Chair isn't familiar with proper meeting procedure, at least the PAID District Manager should be. This is the only paid position on the board and we deserve much better.babshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08365488181982105888noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-2276297129890138292015-10-19T09:53:33.829-04:002015-10-19T09:53:33.829-04:00Like any human being, Pearl responds to kindness a...Like any human being, Pearl responds to kindness and gratitude. Almost no one ever thanks her, and people are generally not nice to her. I think through the years the gruffness has grown as a direct result. Not saying it's justified, but she is human after all.Clarkson FlatBedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13463744536115119388noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-86332752526995841032015-10-19T09:47:32.963-04:002015-10-19T09:47:32.963-04:00I too heard Pearl once claim that Leffertts Garden...I too heard Pearl once claim that Leffertts Gardens was "not a contiguous neighborhood," so why should she listen to our concerns? At one time she was a real roadblock to getting anything done in our hood, but at some point she turned a corner and became more responsive to those of us below Empire.Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00792646871333738725noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-18539496019218285302015-10-19T09:12:43.631-04:002015-10-19T09:12:43.631-04:00Poach Shawn Campbell from CB14!Poach Shawn Campbell from CB14!Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00792646871333738725noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-6986031474044828992015-10-18T22:35:56.762-04:002015-10-18T22:35:56.762-04:00Once upon a time, only residents of Crown Heights ...Once upon a time, only residents of Crown Heights South attended CB meetings, and the CB and its manager catered to them. Then these pesky types from a neighborhood they called PLG started showing up and, boy, was that a problem. They started asking for things like bike lanes, speed cameras, and an increased police presence south of Empire Blvd. and those things made the old guard CBers angry, and they made Pearl angry because now she had to figure out where exactly this "new" neighborhood was. I have heard her publicly admit that she'd never heard of Prospect-Lefferts Gardens, despite the fact that it's been known by that name since at least 1979 when the Historic District was designated (and the person who introduced her to the name was a board member from PLG). We've been overlooked and slighted for too long. I admire Pearl's performance in withstanding the past year's idiocy thanks to MTOPP & co., but she said she was retiring a few years ago and it's time.babshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08365488181982105888noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-17715917815647055062015-10-18T19:00:25.397-04:002015-10-18T19:00:25.397-04:00I agree, I hope Pearl Miles prevails....I agree, I hope Pearl Miles prevails....junebuggynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1541468051247516447.post-51539278513522342052015-10-17T18:52:48.231-04:002015-10-17T18:52:48.231-04:00There are numerous ways to make sure that CB 9 rem...There are numerous ways to make sure that CB 9 remains dysfunctional; one, which has been tried many times is the past year is to disrupt meetings and shout down speakers. This approach, obviously, has worked, but has the disadvantage of inviting arrest and, ultimately, exposing the foolishness of it's practitioners. Another, somewhat more subtile, or perhaps insidious, approach would be to remove one of the few people associated with the board who actually knows how City government works. Not withstanding Pearl's sometimes abrasive personality, I really hope this effort to remove her does not succeed.Bob Marvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12734112800580467028noreply@blogger.com