Safe-Streets Advocates Press Elicker

East Rockers pelted the mayor with demands to address deadly driving — before the sky pelted them all with thunderstorms that sent them scurrying.

That happened late Wednesday afternoon at the latest neighborhood Meet the Mayor event, this one held in East Rock Park.

Before the event, large swaths of people began to gather around the pines by the entrance to the College Woods section of the park. They came with a variety of issues: some held homemade ​“Safer Streets” and printed ​“Vision 0” signs, while others put caution tape around trees to show the size of Kensington Park.

Mayor Justin Elicker opted for a group-wide discussion, beginning with remarks about the Yale Law School student who was killed a day earlier while riding a bike at the deadly York Street-South Frontage intersection.

“His death, along with the [11] others this past year, is deeply upsetting,” said Elicker. ​“It’s a tragedy for the city, especially because it could be avoided.”

The latest death propelled advocates to renew years-long calls for traffic-calming and safety measures.

Elicker, an avid cyclist, mentioned that bike safety was one of the main reasons he got invested in politics. ​“Ten years ago, I remember driving to the state Capitol and advocating for red light enforcement,” he said, referring to New Haven campaigns for a state law allowing cameras above poles to record speeders. ​“That still hasn’t happened.”

He mentioned three key improvements the city plans to make: increasing police enforcement, investing in infrastructure, and lobbying for those red-light cameras. He invited activists to work with the city to press for some of those changes at the state level.

Then he invited questions.

Organizers from New Haven Safe Streets Coalition read this letter aloud.

Kai Addae, one of the organizers, spoke separately with the Independent. ​“It’s not just people, but our friends and community members, who died,” Addae said. ​“We embrace the ​‘Vision 0’ strategy, where the ultimate goal is zero traffic deaths.”

“A key part of the solution is engineering,” said Melinda Tuhus, another Safer Streets organizer. ​“If we take away the ability to go fast on streets, that takes away the likelihood of drivers acting dangerously.”

Addae mentioned that Safer Streets support red-light camera automated enforcement.

A woman present said she has been living on Cold Spring Street for over 30 years. ​“In all my time here, I’ve never seen the police give a ticket until the accident,” she asked. ​“Why is that?”

Several of the Yale law students present visibly tittered at these suggestions.

“Just to be clear, we’re not asking for more police!” one of them called out.

​“This is a tricky issue,” said Elicker. ​“Automated enforcement has been disavowed by groups including the ACLU and the NAACP, so while some people view it as a safety measure, we want to be mindful of its effects on different communities.” Civil rights and civil liberties groups have lobbied against red-light cameras, citing fears of selective enforcement and of invasions of privacy.

He also noted that sometimes in the past the city has sometimes run into a state roadblock in trying to make streets safer. For instance, it wanted to install speed humps to slow speeders near Nathan Hale School — but the road is owned by the state, which makes that decision. He said he has been encouraged by an improved city relationship with new state Department of Transportation leadership.

Mayor Turns Down $2

Between the heated debate about road safety, the issue of Kensington Park was raised once again. The city has been advancing a proposal to give the mini-park for $1 to a developer who would in turn build low-income housing on the spot while donating greenspace elsewhere in town.

“I’m going to double our money,” Dwight neighborhood activist Pat Wallace told Elicker.

“Here are two dollars. Can we re-consider this decision to eliminate the only park space in our neighborhood?”

Wallace said the community does support affordable housing — at locations that don’t involve eliminating parks. ​“This sets a bad precedent. Parkland should not be taken for this purpose.”

Elicker declined to take the money. (Watch the interaction, and the full session with the mayor in the park, here.)

“It’s making me a bit emotional to see so much greenspace here in East Rock,” said Nia Campinha-Bacote (pictured), who has lived in the Dwight-Kensington neighborhood for the last three years. ​“It’s far beyond any green space we have. What will you say to us? To the black and brown people who enjoy the park?”

Elicker noted that the deal includes public greenspace in Newhallville.

“How is putting land in another neighborhood going to help us?” responded Campinha-Bacote.

“I understand,” replied the mayor.

“I asked a question,” she said.

Elicker noted that the project was ​“in the 11th hour” when he took office, with many public meetings at which different community groups expressed a wide range of opinions.

Finger-Snapping Not An Option

Then attendees returned to the bike debate, with the level of anger rising.

“Why aren’t the parking spots [along the roads Downtown] converted into bike lanes?” asked a cyclist.

“Look, I agree with you,” said Elicker. ​“But this is a democracy. I can’t just snap my fingers and make it happen. I’m sure other people will have thoughts; maybe they’ll even oppose this policy.” He spoke of the need for a diverse citywide coalition to press for state changes.

“Why does the state give a fraction of the funding for bike lanes that highways get?” asked another cyclist.

Elicker sighed. He noted that the city doesn’t control state funding. ​“But it’s crazy to me that people don’t think I prioritize this issue,” he said.

The cyclist hastily clarified that he ​“wasn’t talking about the mayor’s priorities.”

“It seems like for each initiative, there’s so much red tape,” said a third cyclist. ​“What if we just ignored state rules and did the projects on our own? What’s the worst that could happen?”

“Well, we want to follow the rules …” began Elicker. Another city staff member interrupted: ​“Plus, we’d probably get arrested at some point.” The crowd laughed.

“What specific measures are you going to take?” pressed a law student. ​“Can you give me three or four concrete things you’re going to contribute?”

As Elicker began to answer, the student rolled his eyes and turned away.

Another law student spoke out. ​“I’m hearing a lot of we. ​‘We can’t do this because of the budget. ​‘We can’t do that because it’s the state’s power,” he said. ​“Well, when will you say ​‘I’? You’re the mayor!”

Both students declined to be interviewed later.

As crowd inched further and further into debate, the sky darkened, and gusts of wind swirled leaves.

“Get out of the trees, out of the park!” called officials as the rain began to pour, leaving the crowd scrambling.

That ended the debate –- for now.