UPDATE (2021): Although the bills we were championing did not pass, since 2018 when we delivered our petition to the governor's office, the number of signatures has jumped from about 120,000 to now nearly 150,000! That's a whopping 30,000 more people who agree that we need the Tappan Zee name returned to our bridge. This is not a dead issue, and we will continue to work hard to gather more signatures, because once we hit 200,000, that's newsworthy. 300K is a force. 400K is a mandate. And 500K would be impossible to ignore. So, be patient we must! All in good time! All we want now are more signatures. So... moving forward, instead of making donations to our organization, Save Our Tappan Zee, we ask that you please apply your money directly here on change.org to further promote this petition. Every $5 helps promote the petition to a bunch more people. Thank you! -Monroe & the SOTZ Team
UPDATE (2018): Our efforts have resulted in two bills in our state legislature: one in the senate; one in the assembly--with identical language. To change the bridge name to "The Mario M. Cuomo Tappan Zee Bridge". Yes, this is a compromise. Yes, this has upset some people that don't want Mario's name anywhere in the bridge. Alas, this petition I started (and that you signed) never was about 'removing Mario Cuomo's name'--it was about preserving the Tappan Zee name on the bridge. Would it have been great if the bridge ONLY had Tappan Zee, and didn't honor a politician? Of course. But to accomplish things in this world, sometimes you MUST compromise, or nothing will get done. These bills are a fair compromise that honor the Tappan and the Dutch, preserve NY history, avoid the spending of countless wasteful dollars to replace all the signs in NY state, and yes, allow Governor Andrew Cuomo to honor his father at the same time. Is it the ideal? No. However, it most assuredly is the only way we will ever see Tappan Zee on our bridge. So please support these bills. They are our only shot at victory.
UPDATE (2017): A fundraiser was started on December 1, 2017 to support this cause that has already raised over $8,800 from over 300 individuals making small donations to fund a full-blown advertising campaign. We have also recently started a Fundraiser here on Change.org as well. We are now officially Save Our Tappan Zee, Inc., a NY not-for-profit corporation. You can choose to support us via the Change.org fundraiser here, or you can read more and also consider supporting us at www.SaveOurTappanZee.org and [WE HAVE SHUT DOWN THIS FUNDRAISER--PLEASE PROMOTE THE PETITION DIRECTLY HERE ON CHANGE.ORG]
ORIGINAL PETITION STORY:
In the summer of 2017, the N.Y. State Legislature voted to rename the famous and now rebuilt Tappan Zee Bridge (named for the Tappan Indians and the Dutch) after former NY governor Mario Cuomo.
While Mr. Cuomo may be deserving of something named after him, it should not be at the expense of history, and the original settlers of our land: the Tappan Indians and the Dutch. And certainly not at taxpayer expense.
The name Tappan Zee has no politics associated with it. And it properly recognizes the true founders of this land: the Tappan Indians and the Dutch. Plus, it sounds cool to say, "I'm taking the Tappan Zee." It does not sound cool to say, "I'm taking the Cuomo." Come on people!
Most importantly, we should not recognize the contributions of one in history by destroying a memorial to another.
Out of curiosity, why didn't the tax payers have a direct vote since we are the ones who ultimately paid for it, and will through toll taxes? Didn't a large part of the funding come from a FEDERAL grant? That is OUR bridge. America's bridge. New York's bridge. Last I checked, Mario Cuomo and his family did not personally contribute hundreds of millions to its construction...
It is time for Albany to do the right thing: bring back the former name of the Tappan Zee Bridge.
We want our bridge's name back.
In less than one week, I have amassed more than 27,000 names to my petition to return the Indian & Dutch name to the Tappan Zee Bridge.
We are furious that the state legislature voted to rename OUR bridge the Cuomo Bridge in the dead of night without any input from the public. In 2008, the famous and historic Triborough Bridge was renamed the RFK. Now the famous and historic Tappan Zee is the Cuomo. What's next? The GW? The Golden Gate? The Grand Canyon? Politicians should not be able to do this unilaterally. Why aren't these national landmarks?
I know the Journal News has a section devoted specifically to news of the bridge once known as the Tappan Zee Bridge. Isn't it ironic, that even THEY still call it the Tappan Zee?
But not for long. Sure, our older generations may continue calling it the Tappan Zee, but Generation Z? Soon all signs will be changed. In 30 years, the Indian and Dutch heritage that inspired the naming of the bridge will be gone. And for what? For someone who had NOTHING to do with EITHER bridge and provided ZERO personal funding for the bridge.
Governor Cuomo states that because it's a new bridge, it deserves a new name. But that conflicts again with history. England's London Bridge was destroyed four times and each time, it was rebuilt anew, but the name never changed. Why? History. Place. Tradition. Florida's Cape Canaveral was renamed Cape Kennedy only to see its original name returned a few years later. Why? History. Place. Tradition. The same should and can happen here.
I hope you will join our collective outrage. We want our bridge back. Immediately.
Sincerely,
-Dr. Monroe Mann, PhD, Esq, MBA
P.S. - the original bridge was called the Governor Malcolm Wilson–Tappan Zee Bridge, known commonly as the Tappan Zee. So why can't the new one be called the Governors Cuomo/Wilson—Tappan Zee Bridge? In this way, we recognize Cuomo while not destroying the bridge's true namesake. Why shouldn't this happen? The answer: there is NO reason. It should happen immediately, at very minimum. At best, it should just be the Tappan Zee Bridge.
MEDIA COVERAGE TO DATE INCLUDES:
(Links coming soon. In meantime, just search Google or Bing)
* Front page of the NY Post
* Editorial endorsing the petition in the NY Post
* The Journal News (multiple articles, including an amazing one sharing the breathtaking contributions of the Tappan Indians on our nation)
* CBS 2 TV
* Spectrum TV NY
* Fios TV NY
* The NY Daily News
* Hamodia
* Pix 11 News
* NYStateofPolitics.com
* Tarrytown Patch
* The Los Angeles Times
* The New York Times
* The Yeshiva World
* NY1
* WestFair Online
* NewsDay
* News 12 Westchester
UPDATE: A fundraiser was started on December 1, 2017 to support this cause that has already raised over $4,500 from nearly 200 individuals making small donations. You can read more and also consider supporting us at [WE HAVE SHUT DOWN THIS FUNDRAISER--PLEASE PROMOTE THE PETITION DIRECTLY HERE ON CHANGE.ORG]
