Queensboro Hill veterans getting runaround from DOB

From NY1:

The group of veterans at the VFW post says it has tried to correct the violations, but do not receive proper guidance from building officials to clear the liens. They say the bureaucratic red is putting its post in jeopardy of closure.

Stuck in bureaucratic red tape, a group of veterans say they're being unfairly fined for building violations. So much so that their community center is in jeopardy of closing. During a press conference Monday, veterans at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 34-27 in Flushing say they feel like bureaucrats are attacking their post. The post has been dealing with building code violations for more than two years.

​"There is a lawless war being perpetrated against the veterans of new York city. And this post being fined out of existence is evidence of that war," says Marvin Jeffcoat, Sergeant First Class, U.S Army (Retired).

Building code violation fines have mounted against the VFW Post to the tune of $13,000.

Proposal for community garden next to Cedar Grove

From the Queens Chronicle:

A Queensboro Hill family is pushing to make an unused city-owned lot at the intersection of 136th Street and 63rd Road a community garden.

And according to Alishia West, who is working with her husband, Zack Turck, and her daughter, Alyssa, to make the project a reality for the unused lot, the idea is popular.

“The people we talk to and the people we interact with, it’s easy to get them on board,” West told the Chronicle.

The lot belongs to the Department of Citywide Administrative Services.

West Nile spraying this week

From NBC:

To reduce mosquito populations and the risk of West Nile virus, the New York City Health Department plans to spray pesticide from trucks on Tuesday and Wednesday in parts of Queens.

The spraying is scheduled between 8:30 p.m. Tuesday and 6 a.m. Wednesday, weather permitting. In case of bad weather, application will begin Wednesday.

No human cases of West Nile virus have been reported this season.

The neighborhoods to be sprayed include parts of Auburndale, Corona, Flushing, Fresh Meadows, Kew Gardens Hills, Murray Hill, Pomonok, Queensboro Hill, Utopia, Bellaire, Bellerose, Douglaston, Floral Park, Floral Park Center, Glen Oaks, Hollis Hill, Little Neck, and Oakland Gardens.

Momentum builds to protect small rowhouses

From the NY Times:

Some blocks are graced by quaint two-bedroom, one-story rowhouses — with small front yards, tiny porches and peaked roofs. These houses have become the latest focus in a clash throughout New York between homeowners who want to develop their properties to the limits allowed by law, and preservationists lobbying for stronger laws to protect those properties from development.

The preservationists argue that single-family rowhouses imbue some neighborhoods — particularly in Queens — with their essential character. But under existing zoning laws, there is no specific designation for single-family rowhouses that provides protection against increasing the number of units, or against out-of-scale and out-of-character expansions.

“It’s an absolute disgrace,” said Richard Hellenbrecht, the vice president of the Queens Civic Congress, an umbrella association of more than 100 community groups. “Lovely, affordable homes being squeezed out by monstrosities.”

The architecture is secondary, said Paul Graziano, an urban planning consultant from Flushing. “What it is is affordable rowhouses of modest means, and for people of modest means.”

“It’s stuff worth protecting,” he said. “We’re talking about the basic character of a neighborhood.”

Ms. Lin — unwittingly, she says — thrust herself into the center of the debate soon after buying her rowhouse at 146-15 56th Road for $558,000 in 2013. She had started to renovate, but quickly determined that it would make more sense financially to tear the house down and build a bigger place.

It also made logistical and emotional sense: She wanted a home big enough to house not only her two young children but also her father and brother.

Melinda Katz, a Democrat and the Queens borough president, has vowed to press for protections for single-family rowhouses.

“The rowhouses and the communities that form around that are so important to our future,” she said in an interview. “We value the low-density portion of our neighborhoods.”

“Where will our parents live when they come over from China?” asked Lin Xin, an employee with a contracting firm that had been involved in several of the projects in Queensboro Hill. “Why do you think we work so hard? Why do we scrimp and save? This is why. We want to be reunited with our families. We want to sit around the same table together.”

Queensboro Hill nightmare continues

"Hey Crappy,

In less than one year, a third oversized house is now being built on 56th Road in Queensboro Hill. The second house I wrote to you about a few months ago is nearly complete (it went up so fast I could have swore they brought in some Amish men to build it).

It looks like all the faux grandstanding "Mr. Useless" Peter Koo did (along with the even more useless Nily Rozic) just energized another resident to build this skyscraper-esque monstrosity in-between quaint row houses. Once this third one goes up, the block is officially ruined. The aesthetic of the neighborhood means nothing to many of the new residents in the area.

I've attached pictures of the house being prepared for demolition, along with images of the nearly completed second building. You can see the dramatic difference. It's astonishing to many residents how rapidly and dramatically the neighborhood has gone down hill and turned into the wild west of overdevelopment. RIP Queensboro Hill." - anonymous

More mosquito spraying tonight

From the Queens Courier:

On Monday, Sept. 8, there will be West Nile spraying in parts of Queens to help reduce the mosquito population and the risk of the disease.

The spraying will take place between the hours of 8:00 p.m. and 6 a.m. the next morning. In case of bad weather, the application will be delayed until Tuesday, Sept. 9 during the same hours.

The following neighborhoods are being treated due to rising West Nile virus activity with high mosquito populations, according to the city’s Health Department:

Parts of Auburndale, Flushing, Fresh Meadows, Murray Hill Pomonok, and Queensboro Hill (Bordered by 46th Avenue, Holly Avenue and Kissena Boulevard to the north; Main Street and Elder Avenue to west; Long Island Expressway to the south; and Hollis Court Boulevard to the east).

Parts of Astoria, Jackson Heights, Steinway and Woodside (Bordered by 19th Avenue and 81st Street to the north; 45th Street to the west; 25th Avenue and Brooklyn-Queens Expressway West to the south; and Brooklyn-Queens Expressway East, 25th Avenue, 77th Street and Grand Central Parkway to the east).

Rowhouses, interrupted

From the Times Ledger:

A second house is about to spring up on a Flushing block where neighbors have been raging over another recently constructed, two-story dwelling which they said dwarfs the size of their own homes.

The new house, at 146-21 56th Road, like its predecessor three doors down, will replace a one-story dwelling that was built in 1935 in a row of attached houses, according to city Department of Buildings records.

“I’m gonna fight like hell to stop what they’re doing up there,” said Mildred Higgins, who has lived on the block for 38 years with her husband John. “I was so upset when they put up the crane to rip out the front of that first house, I almost had a heart attack.”

Neighbors have said the new houses will completely change the character of their Queensboro Hill block and have caused a number of residents to sell their longtime homes.

City Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing) has called for a moratorium on any more houses being built on the block before the Department of City Planning conducts a zoning study of his district, which he has requested but the department has not committed to.

Koo’s office is set to meet with Planning officials in August over the issue.

Queensboro Hill monstrosity getting a twin

Hey Crappy,

It looks like the huge eyesore that is causing all the controversy on 56 Ave in Queensboro Hill is getting a twin just a few doors down.

I passed today and noticed foundation poured in the front of the house and signs with illustrations showing the huge monstrosity set to be built.

These pictures were taken on the weekend, and the whole right side of the work area was exposed as seen in the pictures. I would think there should be boarding surrounding the entire work site.

The ironic part is I know the people who used to live in this house -- and the huge eyesore down the block was a prime reason they moved. And, I know for a fact they were told by the new owners that no expansion would be made to the original house. Lies Lies Lies.

As someone who grew up on Queensboro Hill, watching a once well maintained working class neighborhood turn into the mess it is today is truly sad. It's too late for Queensboro Hill -- Peter Koo is absolutely useless -- but hopefully other neighborhood can take action to prevent what is happening here.

Thanks for your great website!

- flushingstreetsafety@gmail.com

Koo takes on overdevelopment

From the Times Ledger:

City Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing) has requested that the Department of City Planning take a look at overdevelopment in his district.

The councilman has asked the agency to conduct a study to determine areas that have “out-of-context” developments and to then make zoning amendments based on the study’s findings.

“My constituents deserve the best possible protections against overdevelopment in their neighborhoods, and I want to make sure no block is left behind,” Koo said.

The councilman’s appeal came after a group of Queensboro Hill neighbors became irate about a new two-story house on their block, at 146-15 56th Road, which they said dwarfed the small, single-story homes around it.

Don Capalbi, president of the Queensboro Hill Civic Association, forwarded the residents’ complaints to Koo’s office in February.

The new 2,290-square-foot house, which has been built legally under current zoning regulations, will replace an 899-square-foot home that was built in 1935 in a line of rowhouses, according to city Department of Buildings records.

The crap stops here

From the Queens Chronicle:

The Queensboro Hill Flushing Civic Association announced plans Monday to attempt to stymie illegal development in neighborhoods.

Called Fight the Blight, the plan will allow residents concerned about overdevelopment on their streets to identify addresses of recent construction in the area.

Don Capalbi, civic president, made the announcement at a meeting of the Mid-Queens Community Council that includes 40 area organizations. He said that residents can provide the information at Fighttheblightqueens@gmail.com.

Capalbi will monitor the address and take pictures of the locations, which he will then forward to Jonathan Chung, chief of staff for Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing). Chung has agreed to spearhead the effort with City Planning.

“I’m not against development, but some of it is so egregious,” he said. “It then becomes more prevalent and ruins a neighborhood.”

Capalbi is also behind a proposal by the Queens Civic Congress to change the zoning for row houses that would limit occupancy to one family.

Squatters evicted from church

From WPIX:

A Queens church has evicted two women who were offered a temporary place to stay but never left.

Judy and Mary, who asked us not to use their last names, were offered a room in the basement of the Queensboro Hill Community Church in 2011. The pair had been roommates for years but were recently evicted from their apartment after Mary lost her job.

Church leaders said they felt for the women but after six months, they felt taken advantage of. They could no longer use the stage for performances and the women would use the heat in the winter. To make matters worse, anytime the Pastor would ask them to leave, they would makes excuses as to why they could not.

Last Friday, a court ordered the women be out. They promised PIX 11 they would be. But today, the women were still at the church and a city marshal arrived and evicted them.

No good deed goes unpunished

From the Queens Courier:

Leaders of a local Christian church are bemoaning an act of kindness after spending $2,000 in legal fees and close to two years to try to evict a pair of stubborn squatters they say have no plans to leave.

The Queensboro Hill Community Church of Flushing opened its doors to two homeless women and their dog a year-and-a-half ago when church officials found the down-on-their-luck duo sleeping on a mat in a 4×8 room in the basement, said Joe Illigasch, who has close ties with the church.

The pair, Illigasch said, promised they only needed a short amount of time to get back on their feet. But five months later, it was clear to the congregation the mooching mates had no plans to hit the road, Illigasch said.

Illigasch, 70, said he went to the police, who told him the church could not legally boot the ladies after housing them for more than 30 days. The church, he said, then hired a lawyer who said the unwelcome, non-rent paying tenants might not have to leave until an agreement is reached between them, the church and housing courts on a mutually agreed upon date.

The two women have until Friday, August 3 to move out, according to an order by a Queens County Housing Court judge.

“It’s incredible what they’ve done to us,” Illigasch said. “That church will never let anybody in again.”

Palace Diner closing

From the Times Ledger:

The Palace Diner, one of the last bastions of greasy-spoon fare in Queensboro Hill, will be closing Dec. 30 after nearly four decades of serving the community.

The Main Street institution, located off the Long Island Expressway, will soon become an upscale Chinese restaurant and will leave longtime patrons, politicians and civic associations without a hangout.

“It is a catastrophe for the community,” said Myra Baird Herce, past president of the Flushing Chamber of Commerce and a well-known leader in the community. “I never ever saw such a reaction from people.”

The diner at 60-15 Main St. served as an accessible, after-church brunch spot and ladies’ night out for the ageing population of Queensboro Hill, who stopped driving years ago, according to Baird Herce.

It also served as a meeting place for political clubs, she said, and undoubtedly was a meeting place for countless, more surreptitious political discussions.

Ackerman goes apeshit

Press release from Milano campaign:

(Queens, NY) – Rep. Gary Ackerman was present at a Candidates Night Debate at the Palace Diner in Queens, hosted by Queensborough Hill Civic Association along with his Republican opponent, Dr. James Milano and Liz Berney running on the Taxpayers Revolt Line. The original format of opening statements by the candidates followed by rebuttals and questions to the candidates to be read from pre-written cards from the audience was turned on its head as Ackerman became increasingly antagonistic and in a disgraceful show of contempt for his constituents, stormed out of the room before answering any questions.

The hour long event was often heated and passionate, punctuated by periodic interruptions from hecklers in the crowd of about 60 folks composed of both Milano and Ackerman supporters. The most chilling moment occurred when Ackerman interrupted Milano’s presentation and threatened to sue him for libel. This occurred during Milano’s statement, when he mentioned Ackerman’s well documented ethics violations in Congress. The alleged violation stems from Ackerman’s use of his political influence to help enrich a company he invested in. While promoting the technology of defense contractor, Xenonics in his congressional office, he made a no-money-down purchase of private stock in the firm and reaped windfall profits from the shady deal. In addition, subsequent use of his campaign re-election funds to pay personal legal fees to extricate himself from the ethics violations may be legitimate grounds for criminal charges in violation of federal election law.

Ackerman denied any wrongdoing saying that he knows the doctor undoubtedly has malpractice insurance to protect himself from lawsuits, but he had better watch out since he may not have libel insurance. In a sudden hush that swept the room, both opposition parties and supporters alike must have been thinking that Ackerman will do anything to hold on to power, to win no matter what, even threaten his opponent. The stunning arrogance of power that Ackerman displays is an unspoken warning to watch out for one’s personal well being if you dare to go against the powers that be. More people left the event convinced that Ackerman has been in office for so long that he feels the representative’s job is an entitlement.

Throughout the evening, Ackerman frequently interrupted his opponents while they were speaking and insulted and berated the crowd as the same Tea Partiers and Republicans who come from outside the district and go around making trouble for him. He continued to raise his voice in defense of his record as a rubber stamp for Speaker Pelosi’s reckless spending agenda. He showed his contempt for firefighters, police and teachers complaining about their fat pensions, and that his relatively small pension as Congressman should be greater than theirs. All the UFT volunteers working hard for his re-election should take note of his true colors.

As a contrast to Ackerman’s disgraceful behavior, Dr. Milano did not interrupt his opponent’s speech. He behaved in a proper manner, as a gentleman throughout the evening. At one point, he got up and urged the crowd to show more decorum and behave in a respectful manner toward whoever is speaking. Since the polls show that Ackerman is in a very close race with Milano, he should be justifiably nervous, but it is no excuse for a lack of decorum on the part of the Congressman.

Tonight Ackerman’s hissy fit reveals that he is unworthy of a leadership position in the United States House of Representatives. Heckling the audience, interrupting his opponents, threatening scare tactics, and storming out of the room, are more like adolescent behavior in the schoolyard. Regardless of the differences in political agenda and policy, it is the lack of statesman-like behavior on Ackerman’s part that reveals he is no longer worthy to serve the constituents of District 5 as their representative.

Photo from Queens Tribune

Child rapist caught via DNA

From NY1:

An alleged serial rapist was arraigned Thursday in Queens, after police linked the suspect's DNA evidence to at least two sexual assaults, including one on an 11-year-old girl.

Rosales pleaded not guilty in Queens Criminal Court to two counts of first-degree rape, and charges of sexual assault, robbery and burglary. He now faces up to 50 years in prison.

Officials say they obtained the DNA after Mauricio Rosales, 32, of Woodhaven was arrested and convicted of petty larceny in November, in connection to stealing money from the restaurant where he worked.

According to the Queens district attorney's office, back in 2000 Rosales allegedly snuck into a house near 86th Avenue and 98th Street in Richmond Hill and raped an 11-year-old girl at knifepoint in her own bedroom.

The other incident in 2003 involved the alleged rape and the robbery at knifepoint of a 19-year-old woman in her Queensboro Hill driveway.

In 2004, Brown indicted Rosales as "John Doe," using the two incidents' matching DNA in the hopes that the suspect would one day be arrested and to avoid the statute of limitations from running out.

Sources say Rosales's DNA was also a match with other cases, but that the statute of limitation ran out on those cases.

Brown said that about 46 percent of convicted criminals are required to give DNA samples, and that he is urging the state Legislature to require anyone convicted on a misdemeanor to submit a DNA sample.

It was fun while it lasted

From the NY Times:

The Queens Library announced on Monday that beginning next month, 14 library branches in Queens will no longer serve customers on the weekends.

The Central Library in Jamaica will remain open on Sundays from noon to 5 pm, and the other 48 locations will keep their hours on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

The libraries that will be open only Monday through Friday are Arverne, Astoria, Baisley Park, Court Square, East Elmhurst, East Flushing, Kew Garden Hills, Lefrak City, North Forest Park, Ozone Park, Queensboro Hill, Ridgewood, South Hollis and Windsor Park.

Queensboro Hill crap: loved and hated

Queens Crap, a blog dedicated to gripes about “overdevelopment” in the borough, recently lamented the “crappification” of Queensboro Hill, “once a beautiful suburb of Flushing.” (Actually, it was back in February, but who's keeping track?)

City blocks: 59th Avenue between Main and 138th streets, Queens

Washing his parents’ van yesterday, 17-year-old Andrew Hubert also noted the signs of encroachment: A few lots down, a house was torn down to make way for a three-story luxury condo building.

“People don’t like it,” said Hubert, who has lived here his entire life. “My parents think it’s too big and it will bring more cars on the street.”

Last year the city passed zoning changes to ensure that “future residential development is consistent with its surrounding context.” But while longtime residents may have hated new development, recent homebuyers were more welcoming, said Mario Arraya, 20, who was visiting his parents. “The new houses raised values,” he said. “People are moving in.”

Must get a quote from someone who thinks overdevelopment is great, even if it doesn't make sense! First of all, there are no "luxury" condos in Queensboro Hill - we know what's there and that the term "luxury" used to describe them is nothing more than a marketing gimmick. These are three or four-family piles of Queens Crap. Notice how they don't show a photo of the building in question, but of the non-crappified part of the nabe to show it ain't that bad. Replacing one family with four or five families doesn't benefit a neighborhood or residents that are lacking in services as it is. And the fact that developers want to build the previously mentioned piles of real estate dung certainly is not what artificially raised values of existing homes in the area. This Arraya kid has a great future in the Bloomberg administration.

Queens deluged by Bloomberg bullshit

The new Emergency Flood Response plan will be directed toward “rain events significant enough to to cause damage, but not catastrophic,” Bloomberg added. The city’s existing Coastal Storm Plan will remain in place, and will supersede the new plan in more extreme cases.

Mayor Unveils New Plans To Stem Flash Flooding

He cited three storms last year — April 15, July 18 and Aug. 8 — as the impetus for the task force’s study, and noted that global climate concerns added urgency to the issue.

DEP Commissioner Emily Lloyd agreed, calling flash floods “one of the early effects of climate change that we’re going to feel rather quickly.” She emphasized the need for more green space and more trees, noting that runoff had increased by 50 percent over the last 20 to 30 years because of urban development.

The issue is a familiar one in many Queens neighborhoods where last summer’s storms affected places like Glendale, Jackson Heights, Middle Village and Woodside.

As part of their work, the taskforce designated 10 pilot-phase Stormwater Mitigation Study Areas, defined as having “experienced repeated flooding events in the past several years.” All 10 areas are in Queens, specifically: Jackson Heights, Woodside, Elmhurst, Middle Village, Yellowstone Boulevard in the Forest Hills area, Jamaica, Cambria Heights; and Queensboro Hill, Hillcrest Utopia and Flushing Field, in Flushing.

Longer-term strategies vary from area to area, in terms of method and completion time. For example, in Jackson Heights, plans to replace existing combined sewer lines along 30th Avenue are projected to reach completion by 2010; in Middle Village, yet-to-be-identified upgrades to the Lutheran and Penelope avenues sewer system could take place over the next 30 years.

Only 30 years, eh? We especially like the fact that you are blaming overdevelopment for the flooding yet are encouraging more of it. Excellent job, Mr. Bloomberg.

Crappification of Queensboro Hill

Queensboro Hill was once a beautiful suburb of Flushing, with lush lawns and views of the city. Gradually, crappification is reaching the neighborhood.
The Silver Pond Seafood Restaurant, a Chinese diner, has closed and slated to be replaced with apartments on a very crowded intersection of Booth Memorial Avenue and Main Street.

Across the street from the former Chinese diner, a residential house has a billboard promoting accident lawyers, and a good intersection for such an ad. Doesn't this billboard need a permit?
Across the Street, the Booth Memorial Hospital (or whatever its new name) is expanding. Having already built one parking lot on Kissena Corridor Park, its encroachment into the park is continuing. Forget about parks expansion and a million new trees, cars need parking!
Finally, a growing industry in the neighborhood is can collecting. Just look at the wealth these old ladies have accumulated!
Their shopping carts are overflowing with other people's cans! Now that's a living! Just a few more cans, and they'll be able to afford a unit in the condo being built on the site of the Chinese diner!

All of the above photos are in the district represented by John C. Liu.

-mazeartist

More skeeter spraying for Queens

The city's Health Department will spray parts of Queens and Staten Island for mosquitoes starting Tuesday to reduce the risk of West Nile virus.

On Tuesday, the following areas of Queens will be sprayed:

South Flushing
Murray Hill
Auburndale
Fresh Meadows
Kissena Park
Pomonok
Queensboro Hill

On Wednesday and Thursday the following parts of Queens will be sprayed:

Cambria Heights
Saint Albans
Springfield Gardens
Laurelton

Photo from NY1