Ideas I Ponder While Picking Up Litter in Peekskill

I spend a fair — perhaps inordinate — amount of my free time picking up litter around Peekskill.  It can feel like a Sisyphean task, given how significant the problem is, but I remain hopeful that, as more and more people pass by That Woman Who Spends Her Friday Nights Picking Up Garbage Off the Sidewalk, a few of them might think twice before tossing their trash on the ground. I also do it because I believe everyone — yes, even those doing the littering — deserves to live in a clean, welcoming environment.

During these untold hours of unofficial municipal maintenance, I’ve had a lot of time to think — specifically about actions the city can and should take to improve pedestrian and biker safety and that will generally make the city more welcoming. I regularly attend and speak during City Council meetings, but three minutes at the podium is not nearly enough time to dive into the many thoughts I have.

In no particular order of importance or theme — and with the acknowledgement that this is by no means a comprehensive list of actions the city should take — here are 19 ideas:

1. Hire or designate a minimum of two city employees whose full-time jobs are to beautify and maintain green spaces in the downtown and at the riverfront.
2. Put trash cans at every bus stop and in every park. Empty them every day.
3. Clean litter at playgrounds and in other city-owned green spaces regularly.
4. Run an education campaign (social media, snail mail, posters) on the city’s private property litter code — and step up enforcement. Many property and business owners may not know that they can be fined for failing to clean up litter on their properties and sidewalks. (While I realize this may not feel fair — having to clean up trash someone left on your property — that’s the rule.).
5. When vandalism happens, such as the destruction of the ceramic roses at the Central Ave pocket park, remove the vandalized property while the city is coming up with a permanent solution. Don’t let it decay in public view.
6. Complete SeeClickFix requests in a timely manner. If this can’t be done, reconsider the use of this app until the city has the resources to address requests. (Of the 50 requests I’ve made on the app, 15 have been “archived” and one “acknowledged.” The rest are listed as “open.”)
7. Work with ConEd and Verizon to remediate the wires and junction boxes hanging dangerously from telephone poles across the city.
8. When crosswalks are paved over, paint new crosswalks immediately.
9. Survey crosswalks across the city — with specific focus on crosswalks in and around school zones — and repaint them as needed.
10. Hire more crossing guards to help students cross safely at school-area intersections.
11. Offer grants to local artists to design and paint crosswalks, fire hydrants and sidewalks. (Who wouldn’t love crosswalks that look like this?!)
12. Immediately fix the broken crosswalk signals around town and program them with leading pedestrian intervals, a no-cost solution that has numerous benefits for pedestrian safety.
13. Aggressively ticket drivers who double park and who park in emergency vehicle zones (in my seven years in Peekskill, I have seen multiple cars parked in the emergency vehicle zone every single time I’ve gone to Beach Shopping Center).
14. Commit to making the Lepore Splash Pad fully operational for the entire summer season moving forward. Splash pads in surrounding municipalities (e.g. Ossining, Tarrytown) draw in families not just from those towns but from others. Peekskill’s, on the other hand, hasn’t been functional all summer. Our splash pad is a free, fun way for families to stay cool in the summer. Fix it ASAP, and maintain it properly going forward.
15. Make Esther Place permanent (its temporary status expires on December 31, 2025). If New York City can make Times Square a permanent pedestrian plaza, surely Peekskill can do so with this 120-foot stretch that, when it was a road, existed primarily as a cut-through for those looking to avoid a traffic light.
16. Create a Pedestrian and Biker Safety Committee that can offer ideas and solutions to the city. Other local municipalities, such as Croton-on-Hudson, Greenburgh and Rye,  have already done this.
17. Create an e-bike rental program with locations at the riverfront and downtown (Project MOVER has expanded to a number of Westchester Rivertowns).
18. Create a network of bike lanes — ideally protected ones — so bikers feel comfortable and safe pedaling around town.
19. And last but not least: The city received a $90,000 grant to complete a comprehensive plan. Don’t sit idly on this windfall: Use it now to create a long-term plan to guide the city’s growth.

A lot of these ideas may require more resources and person power — but that’s what our taxes are for. The city can and should hire more people and invest the time and money needed to maintain and beautify it, so Peekskill can finally look and feel welcoming to residents and visitors alike. Have an idea of your own? Let’s talk! You can find me walking about with my garbage grabber, picking up trash and mulling my latest idea of the day.

Jen Zawacki lives in Peekskill with her husband, two children and dog. She got sick of seeing trash on walks with her young children and at playgrounds, so started picking it up. She is involved with Peekskill Walks, the local organization advocating to make Peekskill’s streets more pedestrian friendly.