One can't help but notice the mess left behind by the Christmas tree vendor in the Court Street and First Place corner lot.
It is almost the end of January, but there are still some unsold trees, as well as trash bags filled with old branches lying about.
That's why the new sign attached to the fence made me smile. Obviously, the neighbors are getting fed up as well. The sign reads:
Will The People
Responsible For The
X-Mas Tree Mess
Please Clean It Up?
Thank You,
The Neighborhood
Responsible For The
X-Mas Tree Mess
Please Clean It Up?
Thank You,
The Neighborhood
Kudos to the neighbor who wrote the note.
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44 comments:
That's a fire hazard. And that vendor should not be allowed back next year. I think whose property that is on is responsible to get that stuff out of there.
They're probably back in Quebec.
The owner should clean that mess right away. I hope someone calls 311.
fire hazard? where do you people come from? they're trees for goodness sakes! they still smell nice. yupsters, go clean up REAL gargage if you're so concerned!
Impa, garbage is garbage is garbage which eventually equals rats. Rats will eat anything, and goodness knows CG is already overrun by them. It doesn't matter what type of garbage it is. It has to be cleaned up, and I'm glad the sign was placed there.
Those trees have become the hosts for several squirrels, who if they don't live there at least spend a lot of their time in them. I think it would be animal cruelty to remove them.
Squirrels have a hard time in the winter. TO remove their tree homes would be tantamount to MURDER. If you want to make the neighborhood a better place you should consider throwing some bread or crackers around the trees.
@ Anonymous 1:16pm - Rats don't eat Xmas trees! And if they did it would be a good thing as they'd help break down the thousands of discarded trees into compost. If you want to look for a villain here, try the thousands of people who cut short the life of a living tree every year in order to ornament their nests for a week. Plastic trees, stored for the year are the ethical choice.
Sorry to say that if the Tree Sellers rented the corner space from the property owner, then the property owner is responsible for (or stuck with) the clean-up task. When the tickets come the landlord will be responsible for the fines.
While the Evergreen smell is still fresh & nice, the fallen unmoved trees DO make a perfect resting/nesting place for rats or even roaches (who love the sweet sap)
Uh huh. That's why pine forests are always full of rats and roaches right? The "sweet sap"? Ha.
thank you Maria! rats eating trees? these people sound crazy! there is so much garbage in the streets already. why don't these yupsters call 311 and complain instead of leaving notes on neighbors property.
10:45 - I don't know if you know this, but these are DEAD trees. They were CUT DOWN. DEAD trees are a fire hazard. They dry out and are easily ignited. Live trees still have sap moving through them. They are not dried out. Capice?
Forest Ranger
ooh, a fire hazard. what next? a ban on cheap perfume--that too is a fire hazard. please people, show some common sense and respect for your fellow neighbor before you post up a note.
Maria & Impa: Just as an aside, I never said that rats would eat the trees nor that roaches would lick the sap.
I wrote that the rats will have a place to nest.
Impa: You may consider leaving a note worse than calling 311, but at least with a note the owner/renter has time to clean up. But if 311 is called then a Ticket Happy sanitation inspector will issue a summons. So isn't a note nicer than a Rat Call - even if a yuppie put it there.
Gowanus: To consider displacing rodents, such as city squirrels, as "tantamount to MURDER" is a bit of a stretch. These squirrels are just rats with perms.
But seriously folks, squirrels by nature, are MORE agressive than rats and tend to carry more fleas than rats and are more likely to bite a human than rats. I understand that they look nicer than rats, but they typically carry rabies more often than rats do.
Natalie: How can you even joke about the possibilty of a fire?!?
You don't think the neighborhood has bored kids? Do you realize that if there were a fire the trees are along a shared property line - is it fair to that homeowner?
Maybe you're right - maybe the sign was being too pushy and showed little "respect". Maybe 'the mad sign poster' should have called 311 & the other possible city agencies. Then the owner would have been fined & ordered to clean-up days ago and then YOUR foolish blog post (and Maria's & Impa's)would never have been written.
This is what happens when greedy landlords divide perfectly good 1 family homes into rental apartments. We end-up having "too smart for their own good" renters who move in and out every lease cycle.
Well, natalie, I think the best way to "show some common sense and respect for your fellow neighbor" is to clean up after one's self! Whether or not it's a fire hazard, it's still garbage. And the simple fact is that people should pick up their garbage, bottom line.
Natalie, how can you possibly defend this vendor and property owner and say that those criticizing the mess are not showing respect to their fellow neighbors. A little backwards thinking. It is the vendor and property owner who are not showing respect to the neighbors. Talk about bad attitude on top of insult!
to court st neighbor (post 1:15)--greedy landlords chopping up bldgs to rent out? back in the day, practically every bldg in the neihborhood was 'chopped up'. why is it that landlords are 'greedy'. whatever happened to capitalism? isn't that the american way? i am a landlord (it's my livelihood) should i just let people live rent free?
are you guys serious?? you all need your heads checked if your worried about christmas trees out in the lot .. firstly the trees smell amazing why dont you use your time well spent and complain about the real garbage that is in the parks where your children play or on the corners or thrown in the street! why dont you check out that nasty broken down garage on carroll st between court and clinton and see what your fellow "neigbors" do aka yuppies by tring to "save" cats you leave cat food all over the street but thats not garbage to you? OH PLEASE! and to whoever wrote that note have the guts to sign YOUR name if YOU have a problem with it! i am apart of the carroll gardens neighborhood and i sure dont agree with your sign so dont group me in with all you yuppies!
Hey, Natty,
Enough with the name calling, please.
katia, please don't take it personally. being a newbie does not make you a yuppie. anyway, natty wasn't using profanity. natty does have a point though. the garage mentioned is surely an offense to the senses.
Someone just pick it
up. Or
call 311
Katia, if you walk like a duck you are a duck
Dear Natty:
I've said it before and will say again. Open your heart and brain a bit. Take a deep breath and quit being so snotty. You must have been terribly hurt to feel that it's okay to be so unkind. Katia does not deserve this and I feel sorry for you.
Wow, this post has gone from cleaning up xmas trees to being snotty with landlords inbetween the mix. I think the yuppies are out of control! And what does that have to do with Katia?!
I am neither a yuppie and will be counted by some as a newbie no matter how long I live here, which I intend to be for the rest of my life. Don't see the intent as going after Katia so much as a persistent desire to dis yuppies whenever possible. I am way more of a Pollyanna than Katia and for goodness sakes, life is hard for all of us is different ways. Petty stupid waste of time and energy. Try living with love. Takes a lot of effort, but is worth it, and stop the name calling!
The funny thing is that the sign was pulled down about a day after it was put up.
The trash is still there so someone might as well call 311. Leaving the note (signed or not) was a heads-up to the owner or renter, which they chose to ignore.
That Garage on Carroll Street: There's a big difference between the Commerical Lot on Court Street with trash (trash aside from the trees) and an old private garage with a missing panel - which I won't go into on a public forum. But if you feel so strongly about it, leave a neighborly note of warning then (and/or)call 311.
Anon i am not going after katia im simply stating a fact ... its people like YOUU who bring out your true yuppie character after insisting that your not
Impa - I see by how defensive you are that you must be one of the greedy I spoke of.
You probably inherited your house from very nice people who worked for a living and still provided a nice place to live for others by renting apartments at resonable rates.
And although you didn't have a mortage when you took over the house, you probably threw out as many older people as you could (because they were ONLY paying $500, 600 or even ONLY $900 per month) so you could rent to people willing to pay $2,500+ every month.
News Flash: People who pay $2,500+ per month are not going to stay for long; hence my comment 'they move out every Lease Cycle.'
Those who can afford to stay in C.G. Long Term become neighbors (newbie or not - yuppie or not - original NY'ers or not)
Those who pay rents so high that they can't afford to eat-out or shop in the area in which they live (called "Rent Poor") are just young faces that we all smile at for a year or so, then they move away. But before they move away they get angry & bitter and they complain and tend to be nasty. Not becasue they are newbies/yuppies - but becasue they feel an economic squeeze that YOU put on them.
But this is what YOU prefer because as soon as they give up thier $2,500 a mo apt, you tell the next renter that you want $2,750.
BTW: I own 4 C.B. buildings, all with tenants. I never chased out an original tenant ESPECAILLY when they're on S.S. - - some still pay $150 p/ month.
I, of course, get higher rents when apartments become available; when tenants choose to retire to Fl or pass away. And my NEW rents are fair and my new tenants stay for years & years & years. And guess what, these new tenants help the older ones & smile all the time and eat at Joes, & Red Rose and spend thier money in the area.
To Anon - 1/21/10 @ 10:37p/m
I don't consider newbies as bad people nor do I consider Yuppies as bad people.
People who act neighborly I consider GOOD Neighbors and those who act like snots or bizzy-bodies I consider BAD Nieghbors. And from what you wrote, I can guess your a Good Neighbor and a Good Person.
Meanwhile, I've met many GOOD neighbors who have lived in Carroll Gardens for barely a year. In turn, I've met many, many BAD Neighbors who were born here, like I was, many decades years ago.
Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of Bad NEW Neighbors and Mucho Plenty Good OLD Neighbors.
How about we all forget the names Newbie/Yuppie or forget about Race/Nationality or forget about Money Status as adjectives for our neighbors. Let just step back and see if this person is a good neighbor or a bad neighbor. OK?
By the way, Good Neighbors can have bad ideas or say bad things every now and again. Lets not hang them by thier thumbs from Evergreen trees!
(Sorry Katia, I've been ignoring this blog post for some time because, while each of the earlier points all had merit, I thought it was all kinda silly. Then I saw what it turned into, so I had to chime-in today. sorry!)
if you're not from a big city you'll never 'get it'. this is a big city. you must have respect for your neighbors. i agree that people should clean up their messes. i just don't agree with the methods that 'newbies' use. capice? this isn't a suburb, please remember that.
I cannot believe the bickering over the Christmas tree lot. I no longer live in CG, but I grew up there. One thing my mother always told me not to do was litter.
It doesn't matter if the trees smell good or if they provide a home for squirrels; the point is someone should be responsible for cleaning up the mess he/she made. Some people appear to be saying that if the mess doesn't smell bad or attract rodents, it's okay to leave it?
Who, then, decides what the definition of garbage is? How many people would complain if people were allowed to dispose of their Christmas trees in front of their houses? Everyone!
And all this "garbage" about yuppies and newbies. My Lord, people -- it's a free country, which means we can live where we want to live.
Natives always gripe when new people move into the area. They don't like change, even if it's for the better. Terrible, terrible behavior from adults.
to court st neighbor--i did not 'inherit' any of the properties that i own (and rent). what makes you think i'm greedy? the fact that i purchased these homes from oldtimers that wanted to cash in? would you call them greedy? i think you're bitter because you own bldgs with rent control tenants that YOU can't KICK OUT! i am a capitalist and proud of it. if you don't know how to maximize your profits that your tough luck.
Impa - Wrong, again. None of my properties have rent controlled or section 8 tenants.
They're all there by choice: Theirs & mine.
Some of my buildings have Sr. Citizens who I won't take advantage of. If I recall, a couple of them moved OUT of your heat-less, dirty buildings.
(I wouldn't pull the stunts you pulled to get rid of the old folks.)
As you noted, you make your livelyhood from the rents of your tenants, so you have a different view point. I can almost bet that you wouldn't rent to an older couple for $1,500 when you can get $2,500 from 3 singles sharing a flat.
to saint court street neighbor: how do you know they moved out of MY bldg? none of my properties are heatless and dirty. what your say doesn't make sense. i guess if it isn't true, you just make it up. also, none of my rents are below $2500 AND i refuse to rent to 3 singles. i rent to anyone with good credit and $. i don't care about age,sex,race, blah blah blah. it's all about the $.
TO court st watever! .. your talking about people being rude ur the most rude of them all! .. who are you to say impas buildings are heatless n dirty? have u lived there? is it so wrong that impa is going for what everyone else is out for .. MONEY .. she seems like the smartest one here in this dog eat dog economy its the survival of the fittest and she does what she has to to stay on top its not illegal or against any books but your own .. i dont care how many buildings you own you arent taking full advantage of them if you arent renting them out to the fullest amont they are worth it wouldnt be something i would be bragging about on a blog site being a "nice" isnt going to put food on your table at the end of the day
Hmmm, with all this discussion about making money I am confused, I thought that was what was wrong with the "yuppies". It's OK for the "locals" to be capitalists, but not the "yuppie's", or what is it exactly that you dislike about them if it isn't their "upward mobility"? For loving this neighborhood and buying the brownstones that other "locals" have sold for an enormous profit? Please enlighten us.
I was wondering the same thing, Anon.
I am glad you pointed this out.
How a post on discarded Christmas trees can turn into a discussion about real estate and rentals properties is rather humorous to me.
yupsters have a holier than thou attitude that (usually) isn't seen in a city born/bred capitalist. making $ isn't the issue that i have with newbies. they just don't know how to behave in a city. if a person has something to say--just say it or leave a note in their mailbox--don't leave an anonymous note up where everyone can see it. it seems to me that yupsters are afraid to be confrontational. it's easier to sit in their underwear and write stuff up on the internet!
I think that while that is a point well taken concerning confrontation Impa, you have posted to this site like five times in the past five days...are you in your undies too?
But really, what are some of the things that we "newbies" do that make you crazy??
I will even start the list off for you: huge "suburbanish" strollers taking up the sidewalks and the aisles of the Met.....
As I saw noted by someone: "The funny thing is, the sign was pulled down about a day after it was put up."
Also: "People who act neighborly I consider GOOD Neighbors and those who act like snots or bizzy-bodies I consider BAD Nieghbors."
And:"Wow, this post has gone from cleaning up xmas trees to being snotty..."
In my opinion (which is really what this blog - or any other blog - is all about: Anyone's & Everyone's Opinion) I feel there's no reason why people can't clean their own mess; albeit they may need to be 'reminded' AND no one should go broke renting to thier tenants. BUT if people choose to make a "Modest Profit" instead of going for the throat then more power to them.
Impa or Natty (I forget who) is NOT wrong to charge High Rents and Ct.St. Neigh. is certainly NOT wrong for giving rent breaks to Older People.
So why attack each other?
(Katia, sorry I butted in again.)
katia, you don't post all comments. i did not leave any with deragotory/profane language. it's interesting what you post (or don't). i know you're a newbie, don't be ashamed.
This reminds me of how mean girls can be in 5th grade. There have been some nice things said too. Lots of touchy issues brought up that go way beyond Christmas trees.
Katia, has this thread broken the PMFA record for number of comments?
42 comments? Yea, I would say that is the record.
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