Upper Green Side

Dining Out Green

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In the hustle and bustle of everyday life in the city, many folks just simply don’t have the time to obtain all the ingredients at a Greenmarket or CSA and prepare a meal. But this doesn’t mean you can’t still support local/organic food producers or eat in an environmentally friendly manner. There are many different ways to promote a cleaner environment in the restaurants at which you choose spend your money and the menu items you select.

We at Upper Green Side are happy to announce that we are going to start a local campaign to “Eat Out Green” which is a collaboration between UGS and the Green Restaurant Association (GRA). GRA certification is a way for restaurants to learn how to become more environmentally friendly. Their approach looks not only at the ingredients that go into the food, but also looks at energy conservation/efficiency, recycling/composting and helps them locate green products and suppliers in their area. We hope to create a network of GRA certified restaurants in the Upper East Side.

Continue reading Dining Out Green…

Citizens for NYC Grants Upper Green Side $1000

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Yesterday a small ceremony was held to mark Upper Green Side’s first funding, two grants from Citizens for NYC totalling $1000. Following are some photos from the event. In the first, Upper Green Side’s founder Glenn McAnamana reads our statement while Peter Kostmayer, Executive Director of Citizens for NYC, to his right, and Matthew Roth from Transportation Alternatives, on the far right, look on (two assistants hold up the sign in the middle):

Next Matthew Roth from Transportation Alternatives, which is assisting Upper Green Side with organizing, read a statement:

Then Peter Kostmayer from Citizens for NYC gave some words as he prepared to hand the check to Glenn. Jonathan Moody, a representative from Council Member Jessica Lappin’s office, was also on hand to Glenn’s left:

Here’s a nice shot of Glenn accepting the check for Upper Green Side:

Finally, everyone posed for a shot with the Citizens for NYC banner:

Upper Green Side Statement on Grant from Citizens for NYC

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Upper Green Side Statement on Grant from Citizens for NYC

Upper Green Side is proud to accept this grant from Citizens for NYC to conduct a transportation survey in our area and educate the public about environmentally friendly forms of transportation. We look forward to working with local community leaders, elected officials and other stakeholders in developing the survey, collecting data and using the information collected to inform transportation policy decisions for the Upper East Side. We hope that this survey will give decision makers a more holistic view of the transportation needs of our neighborhood based on the views of the diverse community that lives in the area.

Our draft plan for the survey is to first analyze all existing data and information that is publicly available. We will then conduct qualitative research to obtain input from a variety of sources about the concerns that local residents and businesses have about moving people and goods around our neighborhood to design a quantitative survey instrument. Following the fielding of the quantitative data from local residents, we will issue a report by April 1, 2007 and present the findings to the Community Board, local elected officials, the City Department of Transportation (cDOT) and the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA).

New York City and the Upper East Side are both at a pivotal decision point about the future of transportation policy. On the one hand we have the growing concerns over global warming, rising fuel prices, street level noise and pollution from automobile traffic congestion, traffic incidents claiming the lives of cyclists and pedestrians, high asthma and obesity rates. On the other hand we have new large projects like the Second Avenue Subway and Bus Rapid Transit that will hopefully come online over the next 5-10 years. Our survey’s focus will be on what positive changes local residents would like to improve their mobility in a safe and environmentally friendly manner.

Anyone interested in providing input or volunteering for this survey effort to make it the best it can be should contact us (information below)

Contact Information:

Glenn McAnanama, Founder, Upper Green Side

Website: www.uppergreenside.org

Email: glenn@uppergreenside.org

Cell phone: 646-932-6344

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Upper Green Side is a local community organization promoting more sustainable living by educating individuals, advocating for sensible public policies and encouraging the installation of infrastructure and systems that allow everyday environmentalism. Upper Green Side was instrumental in advocating for bringing two greenmarkets to the Upper East Side

Looking for Leadership On Noise, Pollution, Trash

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Citizens for NYC has released a study concluding that Street Noise, Trash/Litter and Air Pollution are Manhattan’s most frequently cited Quality of Life Complaints from Residents. The Daily News and NY Post have articles on it and Streetsblog has some comparisons to what European cities like London have done to combat noise by measuring and tracking it.

It is almost impossible for us to think of solutions to Noise and Air Pollution without reducing the number of cars that enter Manhattan everyday. And it is impossible for us to think about solutions to street litter and smelly trash without reducing the enormous amounts of unnecessary waste generated by residents and businesses everyday.

Continue reading Looking for Leadership On Noise, Pollution, Trash…

Grant Award to UGS from Citizens for NYC

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We have received our first official grants from Citizens for NYC and we will be having an announcement ceremony at the site of our first Green Market victory - St. Stephen’s Church on 82nd Street between First and York on July 19th at 6:30pm. We expect media, local elected officials and members of the local community board to be on hand for the event as we celebrate a big milestone for our small organization. These grants will allow us to have an even greater impact on making the Upper East Side more sustainable.

 Please RSVP on the Meet-Up site!

Big Crowds At 82nd St Greenmarket Opening

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The weather smiled on the new Greenmarket at St. Stephen of Hungary (82nd St. between First and York), which drew large crowds for opening day. Two vendors back in the courtyard sold cheese, baked goods and veggies while three vendors out on the street sold fruit, more veggies, juice, flowers and more:

A long line stretched out in front of the church — shoppers were eager to have their chance at the vendors’ fresh fruits and veggies:

The crowd filled the sidewalk in the other direction, and it was great to see so many people talking, sharing recipes, bringing their dogs and children with them to shop:

The three vendors on the sidewalk were definitely kept busy; the two vendors in St. Stephen’s courtyard — selling cheese and baked goods — were more secluded:

Council Member Jessica Lappin, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and St. Stephen’s Pastor Angelo were on hand for a special ribbon-cutting ceremony:

Not pictured, but also present, were representatives from the Council on the Environment for NYC, members of Community Board 8, and of course, Glenn McAnanama, founder of Upper Green Side, who received some much-deserved praise from Lappin and others.

82nd St Greenmarket Ribbon Cutting

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Via Community Board 8 [PDF], and also covered by The Upper East Side Community Corner:

City Council Member Jessica Lappin, who has been instrumental in bringing Greenmarkets to the Upper East Side, will celebrate the opening of a Greenmarket at St. Stephens of Hungary Parish on Saturday, July 8th at 9:30am. St. Stephens is located at 414 East 82nd Street (between York and 1st Avenues).

Council Member Lappin will be joined at the ribbon cutting ceremony by officials from the Council on the Environment of NYC, Community Board Eight and other elected officials.

The Greenmarket will usually run every Saturday from 10:00am to 3:00pm through December and will include organic fruits and vegetables, cheese products, and baked goods.

“I am thrilled to have a Greenmarket in our community that will bring fresh and healthy produce to area residents,” Lappin stated.