With another snowstorm on the way, New York City officials are hopefully being smart about preparations for this one which comes on the slushy heels of the last botched snow recovery when days after Christmas  snow crippled the outer boroughs and parts of Manhattan.

The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning from Tuesday evening through Wednesday at 6PM. The heaviest snow is supposed to begin after midnight tonight.

The National Weather Service is saying that New York City and Northeast New Jersey could get 8 to 14 inches of snow.

Yesterday’s hearings at the City Council revealed what too many citizens already ascertained: things were seriously mismanaged if they were managed at all during the Blizzard of 2010.

The mayor was missing in action.

His deputy wasn’t in town and he made a bunch of mistakes.

Our own city councilman, Brad Lander, was on vacation and there was definitely the feeling in Park Slope that we could call 311 and be told that there were just too many calls or we could, well, just sit in the snow and suffer. Councilman Steve Levin was around and he issued complaints about the city’s slow response early and loud.

Politicians have every right to go on vacation but they must leave their offices in good hands in the event of an emergency. That’s just plain common sense.

The sanitation department was not plowing in the outer boroughs and the outer boroughs really felt like outer I don’t know where. Streets in Manhattan looked pretty darn tidy compared to what was going on out here in Park Slope.

It’s not that we didn’t enjoy a couple of quiet snow days. But many of us feared what would happen if there was a health or fire emergency or some other kind of personal or civic disaster.

This is a big wake up call for emergency relief efforts in New York City and hopefully things will get worked out before another disaster comes our way.