Have you driven lately on the strip of Welwyn Road between the station and the Great Neck Post Office?
If you have, then you know that, in addition to all the other problems occurring on that strip of road, the potholes are a menace to our cars and a disgrace to the neighborhood.
The street looks like an average, garden variety slum. The potholes are so numerous and so deep that it is almost impossible to drive between the Post Office and the station without injury to your car or its tires.
Maybe our FULL TIME MAYOR is unaware of the full scope of the problems; perhaps she purposely avoids the area because it is too difficult or dangerous to drive, walk or park there.
The pothole problem has existed for a number of years. A few years ago, I brought the condition of the road to the attention of the Village officials. I was informed that there was budget money set aside to repair the street.
But, instead of repairing the street properly, the village took the “chewing gum” approach, simply filling in the holes haphazardly with blacktop and/or cement. The repairs created an eyesore, and lasted for about as long as it took to fill the holes.
I wonder what happened to the money that was supposedly set aside for proper road repairs. Maybe our FULL TIME MAYOR needed it for one of her more important pet projects!
Buses run every few minutes on Welwyn Road, sometimes one directly behind another. If there weren’t buses on that part of Welwyn Road, the street wouldn’t take such wear and tear, not to mention the traffic jams and danger to the cars and pedestrians that the buses create. Several years ago, the MTA offered to create a bus terminal under a part of the railroad station to better deal with bus traffic and to serve the neighborhood better. The terminal would have taken the buses off Welwyn Road. Our FULL TIME MAYOR was not interested! The benefit to the neighborhood clearly was not a priority.
Then there is the problem of the double parkers who couldn’t care less about whom they inconvenience. Of course the code enforcement officers have no time to stop and give tickets to the offenders, as they are too busy delivering and picking up Village mail at the post office for our FULL TIME MAYOR who also has a FULL TIME ASSISTANT. I wonder if mail delivery is a part of the job description for a code enforcement officer.
Parking on Welwyn Road is a nightmare for shoppers, store owners, employees and neighborhood residents.
A few years ago, I personally contacted the commissioners of the Great Neck Park District to see if it might be viable to build a parking garage above the commuter lot on Shoreward Drive to alleviate the parking problem.
I learned that such a structure would need to be a joint effort of the Village and the Park District. The Park District commissioners were willing to discuss the possibilities with our FULL TIME MAYOR, but once again, she was not interested in serving the needs of those who live, shop, run businesses and work on this part of Welwyn Road.
Welwyn Road is clearly the “stepchild” of the Village of Great Neck Plaza. If you are unhappy with the neglect of this area, you should let our FULL TIME MAYOR know how you feel and try to form or join a committee to effect change in the area. And while you are at it, if you have sustained damage to your car because of the potholes, perhaps you should submit your repair bill to our FULL TIME MAYOR!
Muriel Pfeifer
Village of Great Neck Plaza
