Public Hearing on Access to the Jerome Park Reservoir

      On June 2^nd a public hearing was held by Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. on the subject of access (or lack of) to the surrounding area of the Jerome Park Reservoir. On hand were local elected officials, members of the Croton Monitoring Committee, as well as representatives of the Department of Environmental Protection including Deputy DEP Commissioner Tim Walters.

     BP Diaz said first that DEP needs to live up to their promise of pedestrian access to the perimeter of the Jerome Park Reservoir. He added that the report done by the DEP for only three days of access to the reservoir was not enough, and that the reservoir was a major civic amenity for the surrounding community that should be enjoyed.

     Councilman G. Oliver Koppell said that upstate people fish and swim in the Croton Reservoir area, and the fences around the Jerome Park Reservoir were not protecting the water here. Ha asked for a reasonable plan of more than just three days of public access.

   Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz spoke of growing up by the reservoir, and the wonderful view that his family had from their windows. He added “this is our lake, and that we the people of the Bronx want access to our lake”.

    Father Richard Gorman (Chairman of Community Board 12) said that he never thought that the water filtration plant for the Croton water supply should have been built in Van Cortlandt Park. He added that CMC members (like himself) are not getting information in a timely fashion, and wanted to know why the DEP spent thousands of dollars on a thirteen page report filled with pictures.

     Mark Lanagan of the DEP said that the DEP feels that public access to the reservoir is not feasible, and that the DEP can explore what it is that the public want, to modify the pilot access program of three days after the construction is done in 2013. Another DEP engineer spoke about why the Croton water system had to be filtered, and that for the past 30 years there was no public access to the JPR. He added that the roadway around the JPR is very narrow and filled with potholes.

     Kevin Mcbribe of the DEP Police spoke of the danger of terrorist attacking the infrastructure of the city water system, and that the Homeland Security bases JPR as a national defense thus not allowing public access.

     Then it was the communities turn to speak, and one after another residents mentioned how wonderful it would be to enjoy the JPR as people in Manhattan enjoy the Central Park Reservoir, and its jogging track around that reservoir. There was mention of the JPR being empty for years now, and how lax security was by reports of a cut security camera cable (for an undetermined time) by local elected officials. Representatives of Bronx High School of Science mentioned the great potential of an ecology lab at JPR. Speaker after speaker mentioned how important access to JPR is, that the DEP had lied to the community, no filtered water would be at JPR, and that the outer fence should be replaced with concrete barriers that would allow people more access while really stopping any vehicle that could break through the current outer fence.

     The best line of the night however had to come from Gary Axelbank when in comparing JPR to former President Regan's speech about the Berlin Wall by saying “MAYOR BLOOMBERG TEAR DOWN THIS FENCE”. BP Diaz closed the meeting by thanking all who came out, and said “THIS IS TO BE CONTINUED”.