Your guide to NYC's public proceedings.
REMARKS
Concerns about understaffing and underfunding in the Parks Department
0:02:23
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Council Member Krishnan highlights major gaps in the department's funding, particularly regarding urban park rangers, PEP officers, and natural areas funding. He emphasizes the inadequate staffing levels to cover the city's vast parkland.
- As of January, there were less than 300 PEP officers covering all NYC parks
- 50 urban park rangers rely on yearly city council funding, lacking permanent positions
- Krishnan argues that understaffing compromises park safety, cleanliness, and protection of natural areas
Shekar Krishnan
0:02:23
Now there are still major gaps in the department's funding, specifically with regard to urban park rangers, PEP officers, and natural areas funding.
0:02:34
Let's look at this very clearly.
0:02:37
If we want our parks to be safe, if we want them to be clean, if we want to protect our trees and our forests from the wildfires that we have seen happen across our city, then we need to invest in our parks workers and the areas of the budget that care for these things.
0:03:00
The urban park rangers, the PEP officers, and our forestry funding capture perfectly the fact that we need to do far more to invest in those areas of the department to make our parks safer, cleaner, and greener.
0:03:16
But as of January, the reality is that we do not have enough staff to cover the entire 30,000 acres of New York City parks.
0:03:25
As of January, there were less than 300 PEP officers covering all the parks across New York City.
0:03:33
Nowhere near the head count that is needed to provide protection for park goers and keep our parks safe.
0:03:40
Additionally, we have been fighting for urban park rangers to receive permanent funding so that 50 city employees don't have to worry about potentially losing their job every year.
0:03:53
We have seen on the federal level the way in which the budget of the National Park Service is being decimated and the impact that it's had on our rangers on the federal level.
0:04:05
Here in New York City, we are still fighting to protect our parks budget.
0:04:10
Our urban park rangers, fifty of them every year, are relying on the city council to fund them from year to year.
0:04:18
That is unacceptable.