From the Times Ledger:
Over the past week, state Sen. Tony Avella (D-Bayside) has taken steps both to bring new recreation options to Whitestone and preserve a historic building in College Point.
Support is growing within the Whitestone community for a proposal to convert six vacant acres there into a community space with possible features such as a sports field and a clubhouse.
Avella convened a meeting Monday evening with Alfredo Centola, president of the Malba Gardens Civic Association; Marlene Cody, a vice president of the Greater Whitestone Taxpayers Association; and Debra Markell, president of the Waterside Estates at Cresthaven Homeowners Association in Whitestone, in order to gauge their opinions on the possible plan and to discuss their next steps.
Avella’s office is working to determine who owns the site, which is in foreclosure and bounded by Powells Cove Boulevard, 6th Avenue, 150th Street and Waterside Estates.
Centola said the meeting was short but constructive.
In an unrelated matter, Avella took the rare step of writing the city Landmarks Preservation Commission Sept. 9 to implore the group to grant landmark status to a five-story College Point building currently being converted by a developer into a mixed-use project.
Architect Raymond Chan has plans to redevelop the site of the former Gelmart building, at 20-07 127th Street, to include a boutique hotel, restaurants, retail stores and a rooftop cafe. Slated to be completed early next year, the development will cost more than $7 million, Chan said.
But Avella wrote that it was constructed by the 19th century’s noted German immigrant and resident Conrad Poppenhusen as the first manufacturing building in the College Point area and therefore should be protected.
23 comments:
was not D.Markell a CAU with the Rino Doomsberg Admin?
CAU/high rise buildings? i predicted this.
A hotel in front of La Guardia Airport runway landing approach ?
is this funding coming from obama's new $5billion (STIMULUS) jobs bill,that he wants signed immediately ?
thank you AVELLA!
Good luck Al , hope you get this thing done. The support amongst the sports leagues in the community is strong.
Hopefully Tony can help make it happen. Our kids need this.
Way to go Al, keep up the good fight.
Yes Markell is involved with the Bloomberg Administration and I think she is a CB District Manager in Manhattan but she lives in Whitestone.
She might have been a CAU, not sure.
What is that called? Eminent Domain? in this case it is a legitimate and legal reason to do it. Not to take it and give it to a Developer, but to give it back to the Community for the Community. Isn't that exactly what eminent domain was intended for? The Banks would make their money and worse case take a little loss as a tax write off. Sounds like a win win.
Al Centola for write in Councilman next election. Thanks Tony! You guys keep up the good fight.
Anon. No. 4: District Manager of Community Board No. 2 in Queens. Hunters Point is in that District, so you have a bunch of people there who think they're living in Manhattan.
Anon No. 1: You just noticed that there are hotels near the LaGuardia runways? Where have you been?
This is private property, what the hell are you talking about?
This is private property, what the hell are you talking about?
SO IS WILLETS POINT YET EMINENT DOMAIN IS BEING USED TO TAKE THE PROPERTY AND GIVE IT TO A DEVELOPER.
This property needs to be returned to the children of the community! If not in a straight forward deal then by Eminent Domain. It is a legitimate use!!!
Al Centola Whoever you are, keep it up!
Al Centola for write in Councilman next election. Thanks Tony! You guys keep up the good fight.
HELL YES
Here you have a guy who has come out and stayed out. Every thing he has ever gotten involved in has been for the children of the community. Unlike the other wanna be community leaders that are only looking for a job, Al keeps plugging along for his community. Avella should really do the right thing and not just talk the talk.
This one is a no brainer, all the elected officials should be jumping all over this trying to help. That of course won't happen because these egotistical morons are too scared to work in true bipartisan fashion. The Dems, Republicans, will not play nice in the sandbox, or in this case little league sports box.
Braunstein, Halloran, step up to the plate and put your money where your mouths are. Pool the funding, Eminent Domain, whatever it takes, make it happen.
H-m-m-m....
another toxic ball field in the works?
Markell is an old 109th PCT groupie.
And she's a perennial candidate for whatever office is out there.
What a dim wit.
Pray she never gets elected!
LOL...
Avella and Centolla...what an act!
I'd rather catch
the Flying Wollendas
then take a late snack at Dunkin Donuts.
Tony will never get a Tony...or ever score a hit...even in Whitestone.
Big talk...a lot of tap dancing around the cameramen...
then the show closes a week later.
Cut, print...next please!
eminent domain, in this case, will not push any estlished businesses off of their property or make anyone homeless, this is vacant land. It is currently a breeding ground for rats and racoons and should be used by the public for the public good. To the contrary, this is not toxic land, it has never been developed or used for manufacturing, it's clean and once it is in use for the children it will be kept up. Debbie and friends will just have to live with Whitestone youth.
eminent domain, in this case, will not push any estlished businesses off of their property or make anyone homeless, this is vacant land. It is currently a breeding ground for rats and racoons and should be used by the public for the public good. To the contrary, this is not toxic land, it has never been developed or used for manufacturing, it's clean and once it is in use for the children it will be kept up. Debbie and friends will just have to live with Whitestone youth.
Nicely said and so true. Why is this Debbie such a big part of this discussion? If she is the CB2 manager, why is she involved with Whitestone? Is she friends with the developers? Is she another Appelian? Why is she even speaking? I know she is friendly with the Mattones and they developed Waterside Estates, Andrew was the Mattone, I think. What gives?
I know she is friendly with the Mattones and they developed Waterside Estates, Andrew was the Mattone, I think. What gives?
Thousands of dollars in "campaign" contributions. check it out online.
LOL...book of the month...fruit of the month...Avella unveils his latest cause of the month.
Don't forget...he voted against capping NYS property taxes!
What's he done for you when he was an NYC councilman besides introducing bills that went nowhere?
And...oh...those bills he still owes Parkside!
No matter...he can pay Senator Toby and she can forward the money to her (still childless) son Evan's abode in Rockland county.
How does Phony Avella plan to paying for this new park? Parks are expensive. The city cannot afford to maintain the properties it has now.
This is one more Whitestone photo op for the non-doing people like Avella. Nothing, within this town, he is involved with happens, nothing. He can't do the work of the people, to hard, so he calls the press for this nonsense. The record will always show, the one doing it can get it done. Doing is not talking. Great place to vent, Queens Crap.
How does Phony Avella plan to paying for this new park? Parks are expensive. The city cannot afford to maintain the properties it has now.
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
City has monies under Greenspace funding to purchase it, if not EMINENT DOMAIN.
The real green space in NYC can be found in all those crooked pol's pockets.
AND....the city ONLY USES eminent domain in places like Willets Point where it benefits various pol's developer friends!
C'mon troll stop conning us.
The city's broke!
It needs its money for emergency services not to put in a park and dog run for Al Centola.
There are already enough parks in that area already.
How about that promised park on the St. Saviour's site where it's really needed?
Post a Comment