![]() Johnson reiterated that nothing in the way of FreshDirect’s numbers was binding. Traffic congestion adds to the idling of cars and trucks. “Their stuff doesn’t hold water…Even at its lowest estimate, that’s a lot of truck trips through Asthma Alley.”įive bridges and three highways already intersect the neighborhood. Presented with FreshDirect’s assertions, Johnson responded without missing a beat. In answer to the apprehension that 1,000 truck trips would impact the neighborhood, FreshDirect stated that their “green fleet” would “represent a tiny fraction of the vehicle traffic in the area.” She sent me an “official comment” and documentation from an Empire State Development memo (2/19/15). In a phone call to FreshDirect, their spokeswoman maintained that the community was behind FreshDirect. His leadership is also the reason he was chosen to be a civil society delegate at the UN Climate Summit in September 2014. Johnson’s engagement has been an unrelenting fly in the ointment to FreshDirect’s plans. This includes $140 million of taxpayer-funded subsidies to keep FreshDirect in New York State. According to Johnson, politics has played a large role in the genesis of the FreshDirect project. That comment referenced the tagline that Bill de Blasio ran on to capture the Mayor’s seat. The tale of two cities doesn’t exist anywhere else like the South Bronx.” “Over one-third of the residents live below the poverty line…We’re five miles from Wall Street, New York City’s financial district. Mott Haven-Port Morris is predominately populated by people of color, with almost 75 percent Latinos. “Enough of dumping in our communities,” said Johnson with palpable frustration. A Federal Express hub, a printing and distribution center for the New York Post and Wall Street Journal, a waste transfer station and sewage treatment operation - all impact the area’s air quality. It is here that FreshDirect has “broken ground” to site a 500,000-square-foot facility. This area is not called Asthma Alley without reason. On his side of the equation are those who live in Mott Haven-Port Morris, where elevated death rates and children with high levels of respiratory disorders are the norm. Johnson’s narrative of the facts pits him against the Bronx Democratic Machine, public officials, and big money. Mychal Johnson, co-founder of South Bronx Unite, has squared off against a formidable foe - the food delivery service FreshDirect. In the South Bronx, a father who cares about his infant son and the other denizens of his community, has taken up the call to arms. Lois Gibbs said of her fight to clean up the poisonous dumpsite Love Canal, “The government wouldn’t help me, so I decided to do it myself.” Parents want the best for their children. We are a community of over one million parents united against air and climate pollution to protect our children’s health.
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