New sanitation proposal would trade Riverdale parking spaces for sealed trash containers

New York City recently released plans to replace at least 543 parking spaces in greater Riverdale with 1,272 new “Empire Bins,” or on-street, sealed trash containers.

The plan is part of the New York City Department of Sanitation’s efforts to improve quality of life by reducing the amount of plastic-bagged trash that piles on the sidewalk, often spilling into the street and attracting rats, the plan said. The announcement comes as some Riverdale residents express frustration over the shrinking number of available parking spots in the neighborhood, particularly amid the addition of new Citi Bike stations and ongoing Metropolitan Transportation Authority construction along Broadway.

The “Citywide Containerization Program” is a draft environmental study by the department released July 1. The plan still needs approval from city and state agencies, and to undergo a public hearing July 28. If approved, the changes would roll out over the next six years.

A pilot of the program launched in West Harlem last June, and has been successful, according to the mayor’s office.

The city is focused on schools and residential buildings with more than 30 units, and Empire Bins would be mandatory for them, the report said. Buildings with 10 to 30 units can choose between Empire Bins or single, official city bins, the report added. The department also said it would avoid putting bins in spots like bus stops, hydrants, bike lanes or intersections.

In total, Bronx Community District 8 — which includes Riverdale, Kingsbridge, Spuyten Duyvil, Marble Hill, Van Cortlandt Village and part of Kingsbridge Heights — has 21,732 legal on-street parking spaces, the report found. At most, the neighborhood would lose 597 spots for 1,390 bins, or about 2.8 percent, according to the study.

Community members The Press spoke to had mixed reactions on the proposal.

Orlando Peña, a professional driver in the area for more than 10 years that routinely parks by the West 231st Street 1 train stop, said he supports the plan as long as it doesn’t impact his spot. Residents getting off the train rely on drivers to make it back to their homes in North Riverdale, he said.

“It’s good to keep the rats away because it’s very non-hygienic,” Peña said, but, he added, “the people, the community of Riverdale, they need us.”

Another longtime professional driver, Raed Khalil, said being able to park on a corridor where drivers can rest, eat and use the bathroom is also a priority.

For Victor Casanova, who owns and runs Nueva Moda Fajas at 5561 Broadway, the damage from lack of parking has already been done, he said. Casanova said he plans to close in a few weeks, citing a steep drop in revenue due to ongoing construction.

“If you’re a customer, you have to double park just to get one [pair of] jeans or one bra,” Casanova said. “You got to spend more for the ticket than buying the jeans.”

But others, like Sierra Jordan, a regular at hair braiding salon CFC African Boutique at 5616 Broadway, believe the plan is important to cleaning up a historically underserved borough. But, only as long as the city is committed to emptying the bins on a consistent basis, she said.

Jordan doesn’t drive, and usually takes an Uber from the west Bronx to get her hair done.

Areas in the Bronx near transit or highways, or near public housing and apartment buildings, are neglected when it comes to reporting quality of life issues to the city, Jordan said. It’s escalating, she added, as rodents are “going through evolutionary states like Pokemon.”

“It just diminishes the faith that we have in our community officials, in our building officials that are supposed to represent our communities,” Jordan said. “But I wish it would be better.”

Vincent Gragani, press secretary for the city’s department of sanitation, said the plan is not necessarily a “loss of parking,” but repurposing public curb space where private vehicles park. The percentage of spots lost, “necessary to finally stop forcing us to live around piles of smelly, disgusting trash bags,” is small, especially in Bronx Community District 8, he said.

“This is an extremely worthwhile trade off,” Gragani said.

Citywide, the new proposal would eliminate at least 21,485 parking spaces to make room for 49,725 bins, according to the report. At most, it would trade 29,842 spaces for 66,817 bins, the report said.