Minutes of the Gowanus Canal CAG Outreach Committee’s May 11, 2026 Meeting

Attendees: Jason Schwartzman (Facilitator), Emily Mitchell, Joan Salome-Rodriguez, Erica Eliason, Lisa Bowstead, Alexandra Dadourian

1. Review Outreach’s Information Dissemination

The committee reviewed the existing two-page Superfund fact sheet (last content-approved November 2017). The content remains largely accurate, but the Committee agreed that some updates are required. 

Actions: Natalie Loney/EPA will be asked to provide dates for the timeline, and once we have that, Emily will incorporate the updates. (Further Update as of 5/15 – Natalie agreed to provide the updated info, and it turned out that Andrea Parker has the original InDesign document and agreed to update the document once we hear back from Natalie).

2. Outreach Committee Priorities for 2026

The committee reviewed an existing list of Outreach Committee priorities toward understanding each and figuring out if the list remains our commitment – anything to add or drop?

Public Meetings and Town Halls: The CAG is expected to hold four in-person monthly meetings per year open to the public. Separately, a town hall — a larger, advertised event with EPA/DEC/DOH/DEP officials, as relevant, presenting to the broader community — is a distinct goal. The Thomas Greene Park outdoor event is scheduled for October 3rd and is an opportunity for outreach on the planned remediation of the park.

Creating Materials for Outreach: The Committee identified opportunities for outreach that include meetings with tenant associations in new canal-adjacent buildings, businesses within a block of the canal, community centers, schools, and warm-weather events like Carroll Park’s Flea Market, and events hosted by the Gowanus Dredgers.

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Missed our April 2026 General Meeting? You can find a recording here.

If you were unable to join us via Zoom for our April 28th general meeting, you can view a complete video recording of the meeting below, or open it in a new window here.

Please click on any of the following dates for recordings of our March 24th, February 24th, January 27th, December 2nd, and October 28th general meetings.

For recordings of our June, July and September 2025 meetings, please click here.

And for video of most of our meetings from April 2020 to April 2025, please visit our Vimeo page. Click on any of the videos to view the recording of the desired meeting.

Gowanus Canal CAG April 28, 2026 General Meeting

Minutes of the Gowanus Canal CAG Outreach Committee’s April 13, 2026 Meeting

Attendees: Jason Schwartzman (Facilitator), Joan Salome-Rodriguez, Alexandra Dadourian, Lisa Bowstead, Erica Eliason, Katie Bishop, Celeste LeCompte

1. April Thomas Greene Park Event & Outreach Opportunity

Alexandra shared the flyer for the upcoming Gowanus Spring Festival at Thomas Greene Park, which is an opportunity for outreach. A one-page update on the plans for the Park’s remediation was drafted and shared after the meeting (included in these minutes), which Friends of Thomas Greene Park will make available at the event. It was decided to additionally make available as a handout the Gowanus Superfund Info Sheet (also included in these minutes).

Alexandra invited CAG members to use the event for outreach, and several members expressed interest.

2. Event Posting rubric–are we good with it? Next steps?

The CAG website includes announcements about events, and the Outreach Committee was asked to clarify the rules for what’s in- or out-of-scope for posting. We reviewed a decision-making rubric that was generated at our March committee meeting, and it was approved to send to the full CAG for approval (included in these minutes).

According to the rubric, the Thomas Greene Park event is eligible for posting, but requires a CAG vote. Celeste volunteered to create a Google Form that Jason will use to get a decision from the full CAG.

3. Where are we with the website? Next steps?

The Outreach Committee is responsible for updating the CAG website. Celeste shared the details of what is the bottleneck in terms of transferring “ownership” and content of the website to a new platform. She shared the Google Drive’s folder where the website material is saved, with the following addresses:

· Gowanus CAG Outreach Folder: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1HjC-sXqNtLcAxE8JO3mLwis_j2krEvaO

· Gowanus CAG Outreach Folder/Outreach Resources/Website Relaunch: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1R7Od9R5oxUluaiYZ2Mr9UiUk2K_l1O-A

· Approved 2024 CAG Document Outlining Updated Website: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1tU0ilJp7z_p0Ov07P98-GlC4JYdcuQ2ZdxbQF7Bq8y4/edit?tab=t.0#heading=h.6hhi9anvwei2

Missed our March 2026 General Meeting? You can find a recording here.

If you were unable to join us via Zoom for our March 24th general meeting, you can view a complete video recording of the meeting below, or open it in a new window here.

Please click on any of the following dates for recordings of our February 24th, January 27th, December 2nd, and October 28th general meetings.

For recordings of our June, July and September 2025 meetings, please click here.

And for video of most of our meetings from April 2020 to April 2025, please visit our Vimeo page. Click on any of the videos to view the recording of the desired meeting.

Minutes of the March 2, 2026 Meeting of the Gowanus Canal CAG’s Water Quality & Technical Committee

Attendees, CAG Members: Joan Salome-Rodriguez (Moderator), Erica Eliason, Corinne Jenner, Katia Kelly, Emily Mitchell, Jason Schwartzman

Guests: Irene Baker, National Grid; Aaron Kaufman, Gowanus Remediation Trust.

You can view a video recording of the meeting here. Please enter code 7+AkN60k when prompted for access.

Joan shared the outfall map provided by Victoria at EPA at our request. Follow up question – how many of the outfalls are from new construction? Joan replied to ask Victoria, “How many of those outfalls, if any, are from new construction?”

We also wanted to know what Brian Carr meant by “first flush,” “second flush” when he used those terms at the General CAG meeting when discussing CSO events. Joan wrote him an email to ask.

What is the objective for the level of clean water once the canal is cleaned? 

Implementation of the remedy will improve the surface water quality of the Canal by controlling and substantially eliminating sheens and preventing contact of the surface water with the contaminated sediment.  

Joan sent emails to Victoria and Natalie covering a few questions – can CSO be measured at the outfalls with real-time data? Also sent email to DEC and DOH re: flood kits for basement flood testing. 

Follow-ups on Action Items

1. Any acknowledgement from Fagel, Waldron or Smith to our resolution re: dissolved oxygen levels? – Erica reported – no response.

2. What is EPA’s demand for responsible parties to maintain an operation and maintenance plan (OMP) for the Gowanus Canal clean-up strategy? Who will ensure that the OMP is done going forward? Will EPA continue to check that the water quality remains good and that the cap is intact? Does EPA have an OMP Plan? Where is it? Katia followed up on these two questions – any answer? Not yet.

3. To the best of the Committee’s knowledge, neither the DEC nor NYSDOH has ever performed a comprehensive hydrology and hydrographic study for this neighborhood as the Gowanus is in a FEMA flood zone A. According to EPA, DEC is currently completing a Gowanus Canal areawide groundwater study to evaluate the current hydraulic conditions, including groundwater elevations and flow direction. This study was scheduled for completion in late 2024. Joan & Steve & then the entire CAG with an inquiry by Emily Mitchell followed up with Aaron Fischer. Aaron answered. Joan drafted a follow-up for committee review as to whether contaminant sources would be included in the report. So did Jason. I include Jason’s here because it is better.

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Minutes of the March 2, 2026 Meeting of the Gowanus Canal CAG’s Archaeology & Historic Preservation Committee

Attendees, CAG Members: Joan Salome-Rodriguez, Moderator. Katia Kelly, Michael Kilian, Peter Reich, Jason Schwartzman.  

Guests: Irene Baker, National Grid; Aaron Kaufman, Gowanus Remediation Trust.

You can watch a video recording of the meeting here. Please enter passcode +D$t3q8= for access.

1. Checked status of the Storyboard with GRT. Chronical Heritage is working on setting up an account with a platform for activity. No certain date yet. Arts GIS is a multi-media platform that allows photos, video, text and audio and the Story Map is the history of the Gowanus Canal. Aaron reports that it is undergoing final internal review and may be published later in March.

Getting our stuff out there

2. Peter shared info on the Affordable Arts Fair at the Starrett-Lehigh Building – 621 West 26th Street in Manhattan.

3. Share materials with committee to send first tranche to Johnny and Emily (Arts Gowanus) for the Walkabout Tour. Joan has gathered her Gowanus Graffiti photos and put them in a zip drive for Johnny and Emily. Everyone else should start to do the same. Michael to help her put it in a Google Doc so it can be shared and maybe have locations?

4. How the WalkAbout works – There will be a QR code there that folks can use that takes one to a website with a map the viewer uses to find their current location and see what was there before the re-zone. Will invite Johnny and Emily to an upcoming meeting. https://gowanusimprovementdistrict.org/get-involved is where the Walkabout link lives. The actual Walkabout link is here: https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/c878d7e5ed124f27942a436244695ebb

5. Jason created an excel document that compares what materials already exist in various walking tours. It gave us a good starting point to decide on materials. We went over it together.

NYS DEC Public Meeting on Proposed Brownfield Cleanup of Public Place Site, Wednesday, March 25, 7 p.m.

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) will hold a public meeting at P.S. 32 at 420 Union Street in Carroll Gardens on Wednesday, March 25th, at 7:00 p.m., to discuss the proposed brownfield cleanup plan for a portion of the Public Place/former Citizens MGP site.

Members of the public are invited to provide comments on the proposed cleanup effort, described in the project fact sheet, at the meeting and during a 45-day comment period that concludes on April 25th.

The Draft Remedial Action Work Plan and related project documents can be found at https://extapps.dec.ny.gov/data/DecDocs/C224012/.

You can sign up for site-specific email updates from NYSDEC here.

For project related questions, please contact:

Aaron Fischer, Project Manager
NYSDEC, Division of Environmental Remediation
625 Broadway
Albany, NY 12233
(518) 598-7799
aaron.fischer@dec.ny.gov

For project-related health questions, please contact:

Michele Dolan
NYSDOH, Bureau of Environmental Exposure and Investigation
Empire State Plaza
Corning Tower Room 1787
Albany, NY 12237
(518) 402-7860
beei@health.ny.gov

Gowanus Canal Community Advisory Group Resolution Asks NYSDEC to Reject Proposed Amendment to Brownfield Cleanup Agreement for Citizens MGP Site and Place Site Parcels I, II & III into the NYS Superfund Program

At its February 24, 2026 general meeting, the Gowanus Canal Community Advisory Group passed the following resolution asking the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) to take certain actions regarding the environmental remediation of the former Citizens Manufactured Gas Plant (MGP) Works site.

The resolution reads as follows:

To: Amanda Lefton – Commissioner, New York Department of Environmental Conservation

Date: February 24, 2026

Resolution Supporting Assembly Member Simon Regarding the former Citizens MGP Works Site

By the Gowanus Canal Community Advisory Group (CAG) members voting in favor of this resolution, members are expressing support for Assembly Member Jo Anne Simon’s August 19, 2025, and January 4, 2026, letters to NYSDEC. The resolution urges NYSDEC to reject the proposed amendment to the Brownfield Cleanup Agreement and to place Parcels I, II and III of the former Citizens Manufactured Gas Plant (MGP) Works site into the New York State Superfund Program so that the entire site is managed under a unified, enforceable framework appropriate for its level of contamination and long-term risk.

Background

The former Citizens MGP Works site contains deep coal tar contamination that poses a long-term threat to nearby residents. NYSDEC and EPA investigations have documented mobile coal tar and contaminated groundwater extending across parcel boundaries, requiring off-site monitoring and long term source control. This former MGP site also represents a significant threat of recontamination to the Federal Superfund remediation of the Gowanus Canal.

The site is divided into four parcels. Parcels I, II, and III are currently in New York State’s Brownfield Cleanup Program, Parcel IV is in the State Superfund Program, and the Gowanus Canal is in the federal Superfund Program. Although the site functions as a single contamination system, it is governed under these multiple programs, agreements, and owners.

In June 2025, the Public Place site applicants submitted an application to NYSDEC to amend its Brownfield Cleanup Agreement, requesting that the existing Brownfield site (C224012, aka Parcels I & II) be subdivided into two separate Brownfield sites to facilitate redevelopment (to become C224012 and C224012C). NYSDEC opened a public comment period on the proposed amendment, which closed on January 4, 2026.

Cleanup relies on engineered controls and monitoring systems that must operate and be maintained for decades. These controls will sit beneath multiple buildings, including low income housing, a school, and public spaces, and responsibility will eventually be distributed among multiple owners and operators. This creates long-term legal and practical challenges for ensuring that monitoring continues, systems are maintained, corrective action occurs when needed, and accountability does not weaken as properties change hands.

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Missed our February 2026 General Meeting? You can find a recording here.

If you were unable to join us via Zoom for our February 24th general meeting, you can view a complete video recording of the meeting below, or open it in a new window here.

For our January 27th general meeting, you can view a recording here.

For our December 2nd general meeting, you can find a video here.

For a recording of our October 28th general meeting, please click here.

For recordings of our June, July and September 2025 meetings, please click here.

And for video of most of our meetings from April 2020 to April 2025, please visit our Vimeo page. Click on any of the videos to view the recording of the desired meeting.

Minutes of the February 2, 2026 Meeting of the Gowanus Canal CAG’s Archaeology & Historic Preservation Committee

Attendees, CAG Members: Joan Salome-Rodriguez, Moderator. Peter Reich, Katia Kelly, Michael Killian, Joseph Alexiou, Jason Schwartzman.  

Guests: Irene Baker – National Grid. Sean Downey – GRT. Nick Bello – Park Slope Living.

You can view a video recording of the meeting here. Enter passcode 2@Q%VvI= for access.

1. Checked status of the Storyboard with Sean.  Chronical Heritage is working on setting up an account with a platform for activity.  No certain date yet.  Arts GIS is a multi-media platform that allows photos, video, text and audio and the Story Map is the Hx of the Gowanus Canal.  Asked them to expedite, please.

Getting our stuff out there

2. We had a long discussion on the fresh start on working with Johnny Thornton (Arts Gowanus) and sharing material for the Walkabout Tour.   Joan & Peter reported on their meeting with Johnny and Emily.  They, too, are looking for space as their grant has expired and been spent.  But there is a website we can use for things we would like shared and we will gather an initial tranche of materials to send to them.  We discussed what we want out there.  The initial tranche can be what was pulled from the Canal as we have info on what the items are and where they came from.  We want the building where the CSO tank is going in first.

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