- Adam Malitz, one of three people newly appointed to Community Board 1, works in the Financial District and has lived at Independence Plaza North in Tribeca all his life.
BY TERESE LOEB KREUZER | Three new Community Board 1 appointees with a range of backgrounds and interests take their seat on the board this month. One, Adam Malitz, 24, is a life-long resident of Independence Plaza North who works in government relations for a non-profit organization. Another, Linda Gerstman, 41, moved to the Financial District “five or six years ago” and is interested in the issues that confront it as it grows and evolves. The third, Tammy Meltzer, who has lived in Battery Park City for 16 years and is the mother of young children, is particularly interested in Battery Park City and World Trade Center Redevelopment issues.
Manhattan has 12 community boards, each with 50 members, all volunteers, who are appointed by the Borough President, Scott Stringer, in consultation with the City Council member for the district. In District 1 that would be Margaret Chin. Board members serve two-year terms.
Community Boards have an advisory role to city lawmakers on land use, transportation, quality of life problems, business development and more.
There were 82 new community board appointments this year in Manhattan, half of them, like Adam Malitz, under the age of 40.
Malitz attended P.S. 234 and I.S. 89. He graduated from Hobart College in 2009 with a major in American Studies. He also studied public policy, political science and human relations. “I want to be active in my community,” he said, explaining his interest in the community board. He is already on the board of Washington Market Park, which borders Independence Plaza North, and is running for secretary of the Downtown Independent Democrats.
Malitz said that he is interested in affordable housing and education. “I want to be sure that there are the same opportunities and access available to future generations and Tribeca residents as I had,” he said. “I had a very positive experience with the schools down here.”
Malitz also said that he’s interested in infrastructure and development projects and in how the neighborhood is changing — “making sure that it’s livable for everyone. I would like to sit on the Tribeca and the Planning and Community Development Committees and I would like to be active on the Affordable Housing Committee.”
Linda Gerstman grew up on Long Island but has lived in Manhattan for 22 years. She is on the board of the Financial District building where she lives. “I own a retail services company,” she said. “We do merchandising, fixture installation and store remodeling for big box retailers. It’s a family business.”
She graduated from the University of Rochester where she studied political science and psychology and was formerly a vice president at the New York advertising agency Jordan, McGrath, Case & Partners.
Gerstman is a co-founder and member of the Board of Directors of the Lisa Beth Gerstman Foundation, named for an older sister who was killed in a bus accident before Linda was born. The Lisa Beth Gerstman Foundation enables children with special needs in the New York Metropolitan Area and the Northeast United States to go to summer camp. Gerstman and her dog, Luca, are also a certified therapy team with The Good Dog Foundation, visiting schools to help struggling readers improve their reading skills.
“There are a lot of new homeowners living in the Financial District that need a voice,” she said. “I’m interested in being on the Financial District and Quality of Life Committees. I hope to ensure that services continue to expand to meet the needs of this rapidly growing residential neighborhood.”
Tammy Meltzer, in early 40s, lives in Gateway Plaza. She graduated from Cornell University, where she studied hospitality. She has three young children. The oldest, Leila, 7, attends P.S. 276. Meltzer said that she has connected with the downtown community in many ways — first as a single woman working at Windows on the World in the World Trade Center, then as a wife and mother, and as the daughter of an aged parent who lived at the Hallmark residence before he passed away.
“When my dad passed on, it changed a lot of my perspective,” she said. “It reminded me of what I really love doing. I worked on the Battery Park City block party for the first three or four years, and then I helped again last year. At the end of the day, I love the community. I love Lower Manhattan over all. I like the diversity of it. I love having my kids here. It’s a great place to live. Lower Manhattan is fabulous.”
Malitz, Gerstman and Meltzer replaced Elizabeth Williams, Tiffany Winbush and Peter Glazier on C.B. 1.
Community Board 1 chair Julie Menin said, “We welcome the new members to the community board and look forward to working with them. Tammy Meltzer, in particular, as a P.S. 276 parent will provide increased input from the parent body there, which is very important. Adam Malitz, who is a community activist, provides a needed perspective of young people living downtown. Over the years, several members in the Financial District have cycled off the board, and Linda Gerstman will represent that area, which is the fastest growing in the board. I look forward to working with them.”
Menin is precluded by law from running for chairman of Community Board 1 again when her current term expires but said, “I have been asked by many members of C.B. 1 to run for Vice Chair and I have agreed to do so.” As for her future plans, Menin added, “We have a terrific borough president and should he decide to run for higher office, I will seriously consider running for Manhattan Borough President.”
Community Board 1’s current vice chairman is Catherine McVay Hughes. “Many of my fellow board members as well as community leaders, residents and Lower Manhattan business owners are urging me to run for Chair,” she said. “I am happy to have their support as it reflects the work I have done in the community for almost 25 years — bringing people with different perspectives together to reach consensus and positive solutions on the many issues we have faced — especially in the decade following 9/11. Should I decide to run for Chair, I will follow the nominating process established in the Community Board 1 by-laws. The Nominating Committee has not yet met, and will not meet till the end of April. They have not yet elected their Chair. Elections are almost three months away. For the time being, there are many urgent matters to focus on. My immediate focus is serving the community in my current capacity as vice chair of C.B. 1, chair of the World Trade Center Committee, and as a partner to my fellow board members and other community leaders.”
