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Guests: Kevin Duggan; Sarah Davis
We read or hear about corruption from a lot of places and when I came across a story from Kevin Duggan from Streetsblog NYC about a prominent family in Brooklyn NY that bribed officials to kill a protected bike lane, I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to find out more.
So, who are Gina and Tony Argento and why are they so hell bent on not wanting a bike lane in their neighborhood?
The Argentos are big-whigs in the Greenpoint District of Brooklyn, NY – many high-profile television shows are shot on their “Broadway Stages” properties.
This past August, they were indicted for bribing the mayor’s assistant with not only money, but a cameo on an upcoming show episode. Ah, vanity!
According to the Grand Jury indictment handed down late August, the defendants, Ingrid Lewis-Martin, who was Mayor Adams. Right-hand gal, Gina Argento, Anthony “Tony” Argento, and Broadway Stages, Ltd. (“Broadway Stages”) are charged with the of the crime of CONSPIRACY IN THE FOURTH DEGREE, in violation of New York Penal Law § 105.10(1)…
I know I shouldn’t gloat about things like this but seeing people who are so incredibly insulated from what goes on around them as well as having such hubris as to believe they are above the law, learn that there are consequences to their actions, gives me a teeny-tiny bit of hope.
Here’s a copy of the indictment and read Eric’s coverage on the scandal.
In my conversation with Sarah Davis, the Active Transportation Senior Planner for the City of Cleveland, we unpack the Cleveland Moves initiative supported by Mayor Justin Bibb.
While Cleveland’s population was in decline for several decades, it recently seems to be trending upwards again.
But one of the consequences of fewer people and cars is that perception that you can go faster on the roads. But the greater speed has resulted in the horrific statistic of 75 traffic fatalities in 2024. Bad stuff!
Cleveland Scene is the Cleveland’s voice of arts and culture, music, city living, and more and back at the beginning of October, Cleveland Scene published an article titled: “Cleveland Set for $4 Million Grant for 15 “Quick-Build” Bike Lanes Across City”
With such a big dollar amount plus bike lanes in the headline, I dove in to find out more.
The result, my conversation with Sarah Davis, active transportation senior 
planner for the City of Cleveland.
Here is a link to the Scene’s article on our website, outspokencyclist.com.
And you can learn more about Cleveland Moves at https://www.clevelandohio.gov/transportation-mobility/cleveland-moves – mouthful!
Okay – I need to correct my comment about how long I’ve been in Cleveland – math whiz that I am… it’s been over 60 years not 50.
Next time on TOC, we’ll speak with Canadian Attorney, David Shellnutt . Oh yeah, we think we have a lot of issues with cars and bikes… woo-hoo seems Toronto might be right up there with some of the worst for some reason.
For extra commentary, head on over to my Substack.
And in fact, an extended conversation about the 2025 bike racing season with my friend Joe Lindsey from the Escape Collective, will be available exclusively on that platform on Tuesday, November 18th.
You can subscribe to my Substack for free, although I’d be honored to have you support the work with a paid subscription… it’s not very expensive!