People Are Already Vandalizing the BikeShare Stations
- Photo via Brownstoner
It’s seemed, throughout the stop-and-start planning process, that the pending Citi Bike program was mostly just something people were cautiously excited about. Could be a really nice thing, could be a disorganized shit show, just sort of TBD. Well, no more!
Now that the stations are in place, residents in historic districts (specifically, residents who now have elaborate bike racks right in front of their homes) are upset both that they weren’t consulted about locations, and that the racks are a historically inappropriate eyesore. On some stations, fliers have popped up reading, “RESIDENTIAL LANDMARK BLOCKS ARE NOT FOR ADVERTISING OR COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY!” Sick burn.
But really, as far as urban unrest and vandalism goes, pretty orderly and tame. While residents of buildings like 150 Joralemon in Brooklyn Heights complain that the Department of Transportation deliberately kept them in the dark about the process until the racks “just showed up” (and that they were largely ignored during the 400 planning meetings held over the past couple of years), most people are pretty hopeful about finding a happy medium.
“Few people are against bike sharing per se,” read a post on the Tribeca Commons Blog, “The issue is placement of the racks, their size, and the overbright logos and solar-lit 24/7 Citibank kiosks within the historic districts, all happening with a planning process that has featured little to no targeted consultation with residents.”
And, apparently, the Landmarks Preservation Commission has already “approved a plan for installing bike share stations in historic districts throughout the city.” So, unless more kind-of angry, all caps fliers show up, seems like there’s nothing to see here. Keep planning your bike trips, keep waiting with bated breath see if anything goes embarrassingly wrong. Whatever makes you happy.
Follow Virginia K. Smith on Twitter @vksmith.
