Monday, June 22, 2009

Bland Park is a pig sty


From the Queens Chronicle:

Trash litters the benches and ground. Casino gamblers nap on play equipment. At Bland Playground, there’s no place to play.

Located outside Flushing’s Bland Houses at 40th Road and Prince Street, tenants say the playground is used more often by adults waiting for a bus than by children.

The problems abound: a trash-strewn play area, poor drainage, lack of policing, a location near a staging area for casino buses and an ignored 9 p.m. curfew.

Ralph Johnson has lived in Bland Houses since 1964. He taught his son to play basketball there. Now he calls the area a disgrace. “The problem has been around a long time, but nothing ever gets resolved and it’s gotten worse,” Johnson said.

Councilman John Liu (D-Flushing) is frustrated by the situation and blames it on lack of coordination among city agencies. “It’s a classic case of inter-agency finger-pointing,” Liu said.

The playground is run by the Parks Department, but he believes the police and Departments of Environmental Protection, Transportation, Sanitation and Health should also be involved.

“There are many contributing factors,” Liu said. “The trash doesn’t get picked up quickly and then the wind picks it up and blows it around,” he said. “You can’t blame it all on the gamblers.”

Johnson and Donald Henton, former president of the Bland Houses Tenants Association and an active community leader, say a lot more needs to be done at the playground.

“In the evening, the playground is supposed to be closed but the gate is always open,” Henton said. “There are drug dealings and prostitution.”

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Then tell your Chinese gamblers, who take those buses to Atlantic City, that Bland isn't a staging/waiting area...C.M. Liu!

Oh...you'd rather offer free Mandarin classes to those "dark folk" in the projects so everybody can get along!

to the tune of Car 54 said...

there's animal sacrifices in Highland,
Forest Park's a gay man's paradise,
Alley Pond baseball fields are craters and sand
Bland is a dirty wasteland
there's a traffic jam in Flushing Meadows
that's backed up to Jackson Heights
Dottie Lewandowski where are you?

Anonymous said...

That song could go on and on. Dorothy Lewandowski must resign.

Anonymous said...

The Chinese newspapers are often the most littered newspapers. Their editors should tell the readers not to litter.

Anonymous said...

If you're not asian and live in Flushing be prepared to be ignored and live through hell.

Missing Foundation said...

This is what happens when you dump people into a community, chase out the solid middle class that has roots.

Hey, ask "Honest Joe" Crowley about his vision for Queens future.

How about a few questions to Mr Liu on why he should go places when his community his going to the dogs.

A nice letter to two to Gary "Burlesque House" Ackerman on how his support for Blumturd will change this around.

Share with Crappy.

Come on doormats! All you need to lose is your footprints up your backs.

Anonymous said...

Just a bunch of slobs. I went to pickup my wife from LIRR, I saw a restaurant employee taking garbage from his place and pile it into the parks garbage can.

-Joe said...

Is this that park you pass looking down (to the right) on the Manhatten bound LIRR from Port Washington

It looks like a war zone in another country
There was some gang fights & stabbings some years back. A Kid killed in the late 80's

Anonymous said...

It's the projects.. would you expect the city to care?

Anony2 said...

I'm sure the good citizens of Sky View Parc will complain to Bloomie and Liu once they move in.

Anonymous said...

These bums & crazys extend west under the parkway & LIRR ROWS to the LIRR-Shea stadium gangway.
There was so much "hut" living and walking along the LIRR ROW it seems the MTA removed all the trees to keep the 2 legged imported garbage a safe distance from the tracks

....Dont walk or bike behind the old "Fountain of The Planets" unless your ready for action and turd world desease.