Pump Brakes On Red Hook E-Commerce Delivery Centers, Local Leaders Say
As 1,200 vehicles for Amazon and other companies choke Red Hook's streets daily, a local board wants a moratorium on more delivery centers. A letter to Mayor Eric Adams from Brooklyn's Community Board 6 has called for a moratorium on the opening of more "last mile" delivery centers in Red Hook, due to the neighborhood's air and traffic congestion. The letter also states that it is "unconscionable" that other Brooklynites should bear the brunt of Amazon's predilection for quick home delivery of online purchases. A recent report by Consumer Reports and the Guardian adds support to many long-standing local complaints and fears that e-commerce distribution centers will overwhelm the waterfront neighborhood's streets. The Community Board has sent a torrent of letters to city officials since 2020 calling for traffic studies on the impact of delivery centers, delisting of certain streets as truck routes and changes to zoning rules that allow last-mile distribution centers to sprout up with ease.
gepubliceerd : 11 maanden geleden door Matt Troutman in Politics
NEW YORK CITY — E-commerce companies such as Amazon shouldn't be allowed to open more "last mile" centers in Red Hook because the neighborhood's streets and air are already dangerously choked by delivery trucks, a local board contends.
A letter to Mayor Eric Adams from Brooklyn's Community Board 6 sent Thursday asks city officials to place a moratorium on the new delivery facilities in Red Hook. The letter signed by Chair Eric McClure and District Manager Michael Racioppo comes after a damning recent report that found more than 1,200 delivery trucks and vans driving on the neighborhood's streets on several days.
Those delivery vehicles are major contributors to poor air quality and traffic congestion in Red Hook, which not only has one of the city's highest concentrations of NYCHA residents, but also historic cobblestone streets, the letter states. "It’s unconscionable that this environmental justice community should bear the brunt of other Brooklynites’ predilection for quick home delivery of online purchases," the letter states.
Amazon, which has multiple delivery facilities in Red Hook, didn't return a request for comment. A recent report by Consumer Reports and the Guardian adds support to many long-standing local complaints and fears that e-commerce distribution centers will overwhelm the waterfront neighborhood's streets.
Community Board 6 members have sent a torrent of letters to city officials since 2020 calling for traffic studies on the impact of delivery centers, delisting of certain streets as truck routes and changes to zoning rules that allow last-mile distribution centers to sprout up with ease. Their latest letter states the Consumer Reports and Guardian investigation "only confirms our fears."
"At this stage, we believe a moratorium on the opening of last-mile facilities in Red Hook is necessary to address these issues," it states. May 2023 Red Hook Truck Letter PDF by Matt Troutman on Scribd