NYC MAYOR DEBLASIO GIVES UP ON CARRIAGE BAN
TOO WEAK TO CONVINCE CITY COUNCIL
(please write letter posted below - all info provided)
Just before the 2015 Thanksgiving holiday, when fewer people were paying attention,
the NY Times reported that Mayor deBlasio plans to REDUCE not BAN the
carriage trade. This took us by surprise. The Coalition to Ban
Horse-Drawn Carriages started this campaign in 2006 - a culmination of
15 previous years of working on this issue. Yet the Mayor has never
once reached out to us to consult or ask our opinion. Why? MONEY TALKS
and without it, you do not have a seat at the table. Unfortunately
this is what our mayor is all about. Remember his campaign phrase
"tale of two cities?" Sounded catchy at the time, but he is the worse
offender - exacerbating the "two cities" concept by only listening to
big donors.
Here are some of the recent articles.
THIS IS A TERRIBLE IDEA FOR MANY REASONS.
For starters - please accept that this will not happen. The
carriage trade is already opposing it because it cuts jobs. It would be
easier to get a total ban than to go through these kinds of
machinations.
While the details have not been released yet, the Mayor is talking
about reducing the number of horses in the industry to 70 - down from approximately 200 and moving
them into Central Park. Will the City build a costly new stable on
public park land for a private industry -- built with public money? Or
will they try to cram these horses into the existing stables in
Central Park that were used to house 5 horses? Anything is possible.
If you think this will come with pasture turnout and appropriately sized
stalls - think again and take off your blinders.
This will not only require approval by the City Council but because
of state law governing parks -- if the plan is to build, it will also
require the approval of the NYS legislature and Governor Cuomo -- unless
they figure out a way around it. Very possible.
TRANSPARENT PLOY TO SHUT YOU UP - DON'T FALL FOR IT!
Mostly, this is a transparent ploy to stave off criticism by
activists (letters, public protests) that Mayor deBlasio has not
fulfilled his promise of banning the inhumane and unsafe carriage trade –
because he is too weak. deBlasio’s ratings have sunk and he is trying
to do damage control. The mayor has two years to reelection and he
wants to keep the activist community at bay. Will you fall for it?
That is the question to answer.
The Mayor is quoted in the NY Times as saying "he made a commitment to his supporters and wants to show he is a man of his word." News flash. He promised to BAN the inhumane and unsafe trade - nothing less. That is not being true to his "word" at all.
IT IS ABOUT MUCH MORE THAN "HORSES IN TRAFFIC"
For some reason, the mayor and his staff, who do not have much
knowledge about the horses, are suggesting that this is all about the
"horses in traffic." They would be wrong although that is certainly one
of the concerns. It is about so much more -- the punishing existing of
working 9 hours a day, 7 days a week - in all kinds of weather; the
inadequate sized stalls - 1/2 the size that experts recommend; no
turnout to pasture; being sent to kill auctions when no longer wanted ;
little to no law enforcement - allowing the drivers to make illegal
U-turns; leaving their horses unattended and untethered; overloading
carriages, etc.
The horses' nature will not change. They are
still prey animals and can spook at the slightest provocation, becoming
unwitting weapons when they bolt - able to cause injury or death to
themselves or innocent passersby. This is not going to change because
they live in Central Park.
The hack line on Central Park South
will most likely remain because this is where the drivers get their
customers. But this is also where many of the accidents occur.
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT STUDY?
This was a study of the carriage trade required by the proposed
bill, Intro 573. We do not know what it "studied" because that
information was never released. It was completed in June, 2015 but
never officially published. Months ago, we put through a Freedom of
Information request - (FOIL) but continue to get monthly e-mail
responses saying it is delayed until "next month." Why the lack of
transparency? We want to know what the Mayor is hiding?
COINCIDENCE? WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Although we have never thought the existing stable property in
Hell's Kitchen was a consideration in banning the horse carriage trade,
this proposal is suspicious – if the drivers buy it – and they probably
will not – their four stables will be freed up – and they will probably
sell them. Interesting? We think so.
RETROFITTED CARRIAGES WERE THE SOLUTION.
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| http://www.andrescarriagetours.com/ |
The Mayor could have done this right if he had listened to us and
others at the beginning – instead of those who gave him big donations.
He could have opted for the proposal to replace the horse carriages with
RETROFITTED CARRIAGES –
with no horses. (NOT ELECTRIC CARS) The drivers should have jumped at
this opportunity. They complain that people insult them and call them
horse abusers but as long as horses are involved, this will not change
whether they move into the park or not. They will never work in an
industry where they and their families can be proud of what they do
because of the ongoing attacks. Liam Neeson can try to defend them by
saying they love their horses like children, but this will not stop a
passerby from shouting "get a real job, horse abuser." The drivers need
to face facts - This is simply the way it is.
if they were
serious about this complaint, they would look for viable ways to
continue in something that closely resembled their current business but
did not have horses. Retrofitted carriages would allow them to continue
with the same business model; they would have been in control; still
kept their stables to store the same carriages they always used but now
would be retrofitted. The cost was a fraction of the electric cars –
Maybe $20,000 each compared to $200,000 for an electric car. Instead the
drivers foolishly dug in their heels saying “no compromise.”
Now they run the risk of losing everything.
PLEASE DO NOT FALL FOR THIS PLOY
The Mayor is not keeping his word and this is NOT a step in the
right direction. Don’t be fooled. We want ALL the horses retired to
sanctuaries – after all when slavery was abolished, no one agreed to
reduce the number of people kept as slaves – it was total abolition. We
will accept nothing less.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Please contact the people below who are in the deBlasio
administration and tell them that the Mayor must show the leadership
abilities for which we elected him and that he must make this ban
happen. A promise made is a promise made to be kept - See sample letter
below:
If you do not contact these policy makers, nothing will happen. So please do it!
Anthony Shorris - First Deputy Mayor
ashorris@cityhall.nyc.gov
Marco Carrion - Commissioner of Community Affairs
mcarrion@cityhall.nyc.gov
Emma Wolfe - Intergovernmental
ewolfe@cityhall.nyc.gov
Jeffrey Dupee - Community Affairs
jdupee@hhspartner.nyc.gov
Ramon Martinez - Speaker's Office
rmartinez@council.nyc.gov.
ashorris@cityhall.nyc.gov, mcarrion@cityhall.nyc.gov, ewolfe@cityhall.nyc.gov,
jdupee@hhspartner.nyc.gov, rmartinez@council.nyc.gov.
This is a sample letter -- just copy and paste:
Honorable Officials,
I am writing to express my extreme
disappointment and displeasure over the failure in leadership
demonstrated by Mayor DeBlasio, concerning the issue of the carriage
horse ban. While the Mayor claims he has done everything possible to
move this forward, and ban supporters have made every effort to contact
their own Council members, it appears that he has absolutely no clout
with the City Council in getting them to support his bill. Why then
would New Yorkers want to re-elect someone who is so weak?
We do
not support the new plan to reduce the size of the industry. It
appears to be a ploy to keep the activist community at bay.
The
Mayor must show the leadership abilities for which we elected him and
must make this ban happen or I will certainly not support or vote for
him again. A promise made is a promise made to be kept!
Sincerely
Name
Address
