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Marty’s on a roll at State of the Borough

The Brooklyn Paper

Borough President Markowitz knows how to ride a bike — and he obviously knows how to ride a city agency.

The Beep, who famously opposed the Prospect Park West bike lane on the grounds that it is anti-car, rode a two-wheeler into his annual State of the Borough address last night at Sunset Park HS.

“As you can see, I’ve taken advantage of the Department of Transportation’s newest bike lane,” Markowitz joked about his government foe at the start of a 90-minute speech to a full-house of lawmakers, community leaders and his buddies. “Of course, I can tell it’s still under construction, because the D.O.T. hasn’t yet removed all the seats in the auditorium to make room for it!”

But aside from his brief mention of the city’s supposed pro-cyclist, anti-motorist policies, Markowitz steered clear of polarizing statements. Instead, he spoke as if he were a proud parent at Brooklyn’s bar mitzvah, raving about the borough’s recent developments. Markowitz touted gains like the revitalization of Downtown, the Coney Island amusement district and Brooklyn Bridge Park.

As usual, he promised to promote the borough as a major tourist destination and focus on the problem that’s on everyone’s minds: the economy. Brooklyn actually added more than 14,000 jobs last year, according to Crain’s New York Business, but Markowitz said that’s not enough.

“We need MORE jobs, jobs, jobs right here, right now,” he proclaimed. “Jobs should be ‘job one.’ ”

But aside from his frank economic outlook, the state of the borough generally stayed on the bright side. Markowitz glossed over the stuff that bums out Brooklynites, like public transportation cuts, public school closures and didn’t even mention the cancerous Gowanus or the federal slaughter of hundreds of geese in Prospect Park.

The crowd, however, didn’t seem to mind sitting through a 90-minute puff piece.

“He didn’t miss a beat!” said Saul Katz, a Kingsborough Community College dean. “The speech was terrific.”

Even Mayor Bloomberg showed up to praise Markowitz, saying that “Brooklyn has arrived — and it’s very much due to Marty.”

And in true Markowitz fashion, the State of the Borough address had plenty of bells and whistles. The Beep’s nostalgic look back at 2010 even featured a photo montage that included a shot of him and Beyonce, and a photo of him with Brooklyn Decker, Esquire Magazine’s “sexiest woman alive.”

“I am the perfect size for her if she needs an arm rest,” Markowitz said.

DUMBO resident Decker may not have schlepped down to Sunset Park for the speech, but another Brooklyn beauty did make an appearance: this year’s Miss Brooklyn, Christina Moore.

Moore was one of more than 20 honored “Brooklyn characters,” who also included national texting champ Brianna Hendrickson and Det. Feris Jones, who was off-duty when she busted a gun-wielding robber at a Bed-Stuy hair salon.

The extravaganza concluded with a performance by another woman who gets the Beep’s heart beeping — Bay Ridge strip-tease and exercise teacher Stephanie Mancuso. It was likely the first and only time someone pole danced on a public high school stage.

Reader Feedback

Morris from Sunset Park says:
Marty is a putz. He's an embarrassment to Brooklyn.
Feb. 4, 2011, 9:12 am
Jacob from Prospect Heights says:
He probably had it in the trunk of his SUV and then rode the last block to the school. If he knew how scary it really is to ride in the streets, he wouldn't be so opposed to the PPW bike lane. Seriously, people are dying, and this guys is complaining because cars are delayed 10 seconds.
Feb. 4, 2011, 9:13 am
Mike says:
It would be funny if he weren't actively doing everything he can to reduce safety on our streets.
Feb. 4, 2011, 9:20 am
Gary from Park Slope says:
It bears noting that I have seen a number of the teachers who work in the Sunset Park High School building using the PPW bike lane to get to work.
Feb. 4, 2011, 9:30 am
David from Brooklyn says:
Marty is our very own Hosni Mubarak -- a buffoonish petty tyrant, completely out of touch with the majority of his people. We wish he would just fly away to some sunny far-off land at this point and let us live our lives in peace.
Feb. 4, 2011, 10:09 am
Karen from Ditmas says:
Marry is a total schmuck. What a mysoginist too!
Feb. 4, 2011, 10:45 am
Joel Epstein from Los Angeles says:
Here in LA we can only dream of a city as bike friendly as NY. Markowitz and Iris Weinshall, the do-nothing former DOT Commissioner (could she be jealous of Sadik-Khan?), PPW resident, bike lane foe (and wife of Chuck Schumer) should be put to bed, though not necessarily together.

http://www.theurbn.com/2010/09/bike-route-grows-brooklyn/
Feb. 4, 2011, 10:51 am
boof from brooklyn says:
Nice ride, Marty. The extra wheel will keep you upright when you hit an icy patch.

Now ride it to Borough Hall for a week and let us know how you feel.
Feb. 4, 2011, 10:53 am
Susan from Windsor Terrace says:
Seriously, a pole dancer at a speech held at a PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL?
Feb. 4, 2011, 11 am
Resident from PPW says:
Based on the limited powers that the borough president has, I think he has done a pretty decent job. Whether you agree with him or not, he is certainly a cheerleader for Brooklyn. The borough of Brooklyn used to be goofed on in the past when compared to Manhattan. Whatever the reason (due to Marty or not) Brooklyn not only holds it own in comparison, but in a lot of ways it is better than Manhattan (and the other boroughs).
Feb. 4, 2011, 11:01 am
Tal Barzilai from Pleasantville, NY says:
You have to admit that the joke he did on bicycles was very funny, but I guess some here can't take a good joke.
Feb. 4, 2011, 11:05 am
Jack from Bklyn says:
Was wondering when Tal Borzily would show up. Do you have a Google alert set for "bike lane"?
Feb. 4, 2011, 11:11 am
Henry from Park Slope says:
Maybe it would've been funny if someone threw a car door at him while he rode in.
Feb. 4, 2011, 2:04 pm
Scott from PPW says:
Marty is a schmuck. Brooklyn leads the five boros in traffic injuries and deaths and under his watch he's done nothing but rail against bike lanes. What a jerk.
Feb. 4, 2011, 3:43 pm
VG says:
I loved Marty's extravaganza. Music, literature, artists, and fitness are places you find in his borough. Let's applaud his humor sensiblity and most of all encouragement for all those that there to open a business in Brooklyn-specially the young lady with the Pole fitness studi in Bay Ridge.
Feb. 4, 2011, 5:55 pm
Tal Barzilai from Pleasantville, NY says:
Jack, knock that off already with spelling my name wrong intentionally. It wasn't funny the first time, it's not funny right now. For the record, I don't have Google alerts for anything. The only reason why I feel that there should be crackdown on cyclists is mainly because they hardly follow the rules and feel that it doesn't apply to them hence the Animal Farms reference.
Feb. 4, 2011, 6:52 pm
Steve from Park Slope says:
He is a jerk. Nothing nice about this guy whatsoever, despite the jocular image. He's ruthless and mean. Brooklyn is less safe for pedestrians than Manhattan and he's joking around, putting women on stripper poles, and making a mockery of real issues.

Tell him how you feel:

askmarty@brooklynbp.nyc.gov
Feb. 4, 2011, 7:43 pm
Jack from Bklyn says:
Louise Hainline, Iris Weinshall, and Norman Steisel are now suing the DOT over this bike lane.

http://transportationnation.org/2011/02/04/big-names-ready-a-lawsuit-to-remove-bike-lane/

We're in the middle of a budget crisis and these millionaires are suing a city agency? They are terrible, terrible neighbors. They don't like the data, they don't like the studies, so they are suing.

Louise Hainline is an embarrassment to Brooklyn College. Iris Weinshall is an embarrassment to Chuck Schumer. Norman Steisel is just an embarrassment.

Shame on them all.
Feb. 5, 2011, 10:04 am
Tal Barzilai from Pleasantville, NY says:
I find them to be heroes for the people, and I wish them the best of luck on that lawsuit.
Feb. 5, 2011, 4:39 pm
Mike says:
No one could ever have guessed that Tal would come down on the side of more cars, more driving, more traffic, and more congestion.
Feb. 5, 2011, 6:55 pm
Tahl Borziloi from Long Island says:
Heroes for the people! Two dozen millionaires who aren't in tune with what thousands of Brooklyn residents want and love. That's hilarious!

All those elites -- children, seniors, rich, poor, etc. -- teaming up against this tiny band of oppressed people: a former deputy mayor, a senator's wife and former DOT head, and a dean at Brooklyn College.

Heroes for the people! Funniest thing I've heard in a while.
Feb. 5, 2011, 8:04 pm
Tal Barzilai from Pleasantville, NY says:
I know that's you Jack, so stop with that already, and Bloomberg has been proven to be even more of an elitist than they have.
Feb. 5, 2011, 10:07 pm
Scott from Park Slope says:
Marty Markowitz is not even competent enough to ride a bicycle for his joke, apparently, since the vehicle he's sitting on in the picture is a tricycle. So this buffoon who's run weight-loss competitions in the past because he's too darn fat opposes one of the best ways to trim your waist, ie. biking? Can we now, at last, please vote him off the island and banish him to a place more suited to his attitudes, like, shudder, Manhattan or New Jersey?
Feb. 6, 2011, 8:50 am
Tahl Borzilay from Lohn Eye-land says:
That's fine that Bloomberg is more of an elitist than Weinshall, Steisel, Hainline, and friends, but to say that they are heroes for the people is laughable.

Even if I agreed with their position, and I can see their side a bit, I still couldn't say that they are heroes to anyone but other wealthy property owners. Steisel is worth hundreds of millions, Louise Hainline lives at 9 PPW in a place worth at least 3 million, and Weinshall is the wife of Chuck Schumer. Hardly working-class heroes.

So, Tally, I'm not saying you might not have a point, only that you should try to make it better. If you agree with them, fine, but don't try to pass off this crew as representing anyone other than themselves.

You get so many people making fun of you because you don't really try to reconcile the illogical fallacies of your arguments! Try harder and you might do better.

Oh, and this is not Jack.
Feb. 6, 2011, 9:54 am
Tal Barzilai from Pleasantville, NY says:
To answer Mr. Imposter, these people have done a lot when they were serving their postions, which is more than those who have been complaining about them. Even if they aren't working class heroes, at least not to the radical cyclists, it's the working class that seems to be supporting them, not the elite. Keep in mind that JSK does have a history of skewing data to favor what she wants if it's not already in her favor. Remember that she goes on record for scapgoating Police Commissioner Ray Kelly for the blizzard when it was clearly her fault. On a sidenote, spelling my name wrong intentionally and using it as a way to make fun of me is very unprofessional where I come from, not to mention unintelligent. I find that a path of the weak and cowardly.
Feb. 6, 2011, 4:49 pm
Stall Barshilai from Unpleasantville says:
You are fun.
Feb. 6, 2011, 5:34 pm
Mike says:
Wait, if the blizzard was JSK's fault, does that make her... God? Tal, how dare you say bad things about your self-proclaimed god?
Feb. 6, 2011, 6:07 pm
Tal Barzilai from Pleasantville, NY says:
Just to let you know, Schummer himself has stated oppostion to the bike lane on PPW according to the NY Post.
Feb. 6, 2011, 6:23 pm
Tal Barzilai from Pleasantville, NY says:
Sorry. I did a little more research and found out that Schummer is phoning in favors for his friends and wife on PPW. He loves biking, according to the NY Post.

The bike people drive her crazy, but they know they have an ally in me," Schumer says.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/item_wQdvi3ursYnx98j7qqF3CP#ixzz1DIZZVEX7

Sorry, I was mistaken.
Feb. 7, 2011, 1:21 pm
Tal Barzilai from Pleasantville, NY says:
Quit using my name, and go back to Streetsblog and tell your best friend Mark Gorton that you failed imposter.
Feb. 7, 2011, 4:52 pm
Tal Barzilai from Pleasantville, NY (that's in Brooklyn!) says:
Stop using my name, imposter who called the real me an imposter!!!
Feb. 7, 2011, 6:02 pm
Tal Barzilai from Pleasantville, NY says:
State your real name, or you will be reported.

(Too late, you already were!)
Feb. 7, 2011, 6:36 pm
Other Michael from Park Slope says:
Tal, said "You have to admit that the joke he did on bicycles was very funny, but I guess some here can't take a good joke"

No not funning. Especially to the friends and family of Liz Padilla.
Feb. 8, 2011, 5:57 am
Moxie from Red Hook says:
>rode a two-wheeler?
Your photo shows a three-wheeler, aka a tricycle.
Feb. 8, 2011, 9:43 am
Tal Barzilai from Pleasantville, NY says:
If you really want a good cartoon of the bike lanes, the I suggest going over to the Daily News and seeing what Bill Bramahall had for that yesterday.
Feb. 9, 2011, 7:23 pm
Other Michael from Park Slope says:
Hay Marty, you constituents are dying and you are riding a tricycle.

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=202587965129817768706.000491e054b29b9d716f3&ll=40.652513,-73.945541&spn=0.134403,0.308647&z=12

Next year you should have the Grim Reaper stand next to you.
Feb. 10, 2011, 6:31 am

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