Astoria pols beg to get bridge painted

From DNA Info:

The Hell Gate Bridge turns 100 years old this year — and its age is showing, a group of elected officials say.

Queens politicians are calling on Amtrak to repaint the Hell Gate ahead of its centennial this September, pointing to the "unbecoming appearance" of the bridge's faded and mismatched paint.

"The bridge has not been repainted since the 1990s, and stands today covered in a patchwork of pink, beige, and brown," the officials wrote in a letter sent to Amtrak President Joseph Boardman last week.

The letter — signed by Congressman Joseph Crowley, Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, Assemblywoman Aravella Simotas, State Sen. Michael Gianaris and Councilman Costa Constantinides — describes the Hell Gate as "an iconic piece of Amtrak's infrastructure."

Regulating motorized scooters

From CBS New York:

Two New York lawmakers from Queens have introduced bills to regulate motorized bicycles used commercially with safety and insurance requirements.

Sen. Jose Peralta and Assembly member Aravella Simotas are pushing for the Department of Motor Vehicles to maintain a registry, establish safety regulations, and set minimum liability insurance coverage.

Under the bills, drivers would have to register them with the DMV and traffic infractions would be punishable by fines of $25 to $100.

The scooters, according to the lawmakers, have become part of the fabric of small businessesmaking deliveries throughout New York City. They said attempts to ban them haven’t worked, and accidents can create big liability issues.

Simotas said she’s heard from too many people about near misses and being hit by riders.

Peralta told 1010 WINS the City Council banned delivery scooters in 2004, but since then the number of scooters has actually increased.

Pols actually work when pressure is on them

From the Times Ledger:

Nearly 50 demonstrators rallied for the removal of the homeless families shelter at the Westway Motel in East Elmhurst Saturday, a day after a convicted child molester was removed from the facility.

Shouting “Westway, No Way” and carrying posters that read “The Westway is not the Best Way” the protesters demanded the closure of the shelter, at 71-11 Astoria Blvd., even after the Department of Homeless Services announced plans for a new policy change.

“We really put the squeeze on DHS,” state Sen. Jose Peralta (D-East Elmhurst) said. “Costa Constantinides, Aravella Simotas and then Joe Crowley got involved. We jumped on it and in a day and a half he was voluntarily transferred.”

Constantinides is the councilman from Astoria, Simotas is the assemblywoman for the area and Crowley is the congressman for that part of Queens.

State Sen. Michael Gianaris’ Astoria office received so many phone calls from angry constituents that he joined the battle even though the Westway Motel is in Peralta’s district. “The continuing lack of information and transparency surrounding the Westway is extremely troubling and validates the community’s concerns about this location from the start,” Gianaris said.

What Queens lawmakers don't do in Albany

From the Times Ledger:

State Sen. Malcolm Smith (D-Hollis) was absent in Albany more than all his colleagues in the chamber, except for Sen. Adriano Espaillat (D-Washington Heights), who was mounting an unsuccessful bid for Congress.

But Smith was among the Senate’s top 10 drafters of resolutions adopted by both houses, the New York Public Interest Research Group’s review of the 2014 state legislative session found.

NYPIRG, a nonpartisan good government group, compiled an analysis of this year’s action in Albany. The report found lawmakers have sent fewer bills to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s desk than any state executive has received in the past century.

Smith was among seven senators who were absent and excused from at least 100 votes in 2014, NYPIRG’s report said.

Smith, who spent part of the session on trial in a federal corruption case, missed 808 votes. This put him directly behind Espaillat, an uptown Manhattan congressional hopeful who was not present during 891 votes.

Smith’s office said they believed his absences all occurred when he was in federal court and on trial for allegedly attempting to bribe his way onto the Republican line in the 2013 mayoral election.

In the Assembly, NYPIRG said four Queens lawmakers were among 18 who missed at least 150 votes, including Assembly members Aravella Simotas (D-Astoria) with 275 excuses or absences; Andrew Hevesi (D-Forest Hills) with 264; Margaret Markey (D-Maspeth) with 172; and William Scarborough (D-Jamaica) with 168.

No Queens lawmaker made NYPIRG’s lists of Assembly and Senate members who prime sponsored the most legislation that made it through their respective chamber — or both. A prime sponsor is the lawmaker who first backs a measure in his or her house.

But Sen. Tony Avella (D-Bayside) was among 11 senators who prime sponsored at least 150 active bills in 2014, according to the report.

Avella, a member of the Independent Democratic Conference that had split from mainline Democrats and controlled the Senate with Republicans, was only able to get eight of these measures through both chambers, NYPIRG said.

Astoria is full of trash

From CBS New York:

Residents in one of the most booming areas of Queens have complained that their community is overwhelmed with garbage.

As CBS 2′s Janelle Burrell reported, Astoria residents said fewer trash pickups have parts of the neighborhood teeming with litter.

“Garbage everywhere! It’s really bad,” resident Martha Garvey said.

“It comes up like a cyclone. It all masses together,” resident Amanda Rothman added.

Trash can often be seen strewn across sidewalks, piled up and toppling over garbage cans on the street in the heart of Astoria, Burrell reported.

“We used to have three pickups a day here in Astoria. We are down to one,” New York State Assemblywoman Aravella Simotas, who represents the area, said.

Simotas said city budget cuts are behind the piled up trash.

Liquor license denied, now bikini club may go 100% nude

From DNA Info:

There might be bikinis, but there won't be booze.

A proposed Astoria bikini bar that's drawn the ire of local politicians had its liquor license rejected by the State Liquor Authority on Tuesday.

The owners behind Racks, at 19-26 Steinway St. between 19th and 20th Avenues, applied for a liquor license this spring with plans to open the space as a bar and grill where the female servers would don bikinis.

Several neighborhood politicians came out in opposition to the planned adult-entertainment spot, arguing Racks is an unsavory addition to the neighborhood and would negatively affect the area's property values.

"A place like Racks is wholly out of character with the family-friendly neighborhood of its proposed location," said Astoria Assemblywoman Aravella Simotas, who led the public charge against the bar, collecting signatures from local residents and holding an opposition rally at a nearby park.

"Astoria does not need scantily-clad women performing lap and pole dances a stone’s throw away from a playground, middle school, and our neighbor’s homes," Simotas said in a statement.

The bar's owners could still choose to go forward and open — even as a full-on nude adult entertainment establishment — and just not serve liquor.

Great job, Aravella! The place is in a 100% industrial zone, yet it's going to affect children? Be careful what you wish for - you just may get it.

Avella helps Astoria as local pols stay silent

Hello,

Thank you again for covering and publicizing our fight against Pali Realty, LLC and Yianni Konstantinidis.

Your advocacy and concern, and that of your readers, has meant a lot to my neighbors and I.

• Council Member Peter Vallone did nothing to help us.
• Assemblymember Simotas, though aware of our concerns, did nothing to help.
• Senator Gianaris, also aware of our concerns, did nothing to help.

Senator Tony Avella who, ironically, represents Yianni Konstantinidis' district in Whitestone, was the only elected official in Queens who cared.

He visited our homes and wrote letters to the Board of Standards and Appeals, to the Department of Buildings and to the NYC Department of Investigation.

His efforts, and bills in the NY State Senate, will help to reform the Board of Standards and Appeals.

The process used by the Board of Standards and Appeals is an incredibly flawed one, and it allows developers and architects to manipulate public officials at every single turn. Gerald Caliendo, the project architect and co-chair of the Queens Community Board #1 Zoning and Variance committee, clearly knew about the exhaust vents at the rear of the building he was working on. He was present at the December 18, 2012 meeting.

And he decided to remain silent.

A trusted architect professional in the community consciously decided to stay silent, despite his professional obligation under the American Institute of Architects Code of Ethics not to cause harm to others.

Queens Community Board #1 was snookered and misled into believing that exhaust vents were merely "mechanical equipment". Then, after garnering Community Board approval, Pali Realty voided the original application and added details to the BSA copy to make it appear that nothing at all had been hidden.

In addition, the Department of Buildings approved the plans despite being well aware of the new Astoria Rezoning in May 2010. I rarely think New York City should be responsible for looking out for the well-being of its citizens, but in this case the city failed miserably and they, ultimately, should be held accountable for decimating the properties my neighbors have worked so hard to purchase.

Please find the BSA resolution, attached, which spells out the restrictions. It is the best we can hope for at this time.

My neighbors still have broken homes and a resolution does not appear to be on the horizon.

Despite my anger, frustration and hurt, thank you again for maintaining a website and blog that shines a bright light on this insanity.

Sincerely,

Norm Sutaria

315 12 BZ Resolution

Bikini bar near sewage plant upsets locals

From the Daily News:

An Astoria bikini bar that local leaders fear will turn into a strip joint is facing an uphill battle for a liquor license.

Racks, at 19-26 Steinway St. on the outskirts of residential Astoria, withdrew its state liquor license application Wednesday. The bar then re-applied under a different license category.

“I’m going to fight against an establishment that doesn’t fit the character of our family-oriented community,” said Assemblywoman Aravella Simotas (D-Astoria), who has led the charge against area adult entertainment venues.

Racks is less than 400 feet away from a playground, she pointed out, and on the same block where a residential building is going up.

“These types of businesses are harmful to residential communities,” Simotas said.

Community Board 1 unanimously voted against supporting Racks’ liquor license application at its September meeting.

But District Manager Lucille Hartmann pointed out that the neighborhood has changed since the area was zoned for adult entertainment.

“When that zoning was created, the new housing wasn’t there,” she said.

And why did CB1 approve the variance application for the new housing in an industrial zone? I'm not a fan of strip clubs and no one wants them in their neighborhood, but where should they go if not in the manufacturing area? Furthermore, do you really think the electeds here are trying to protect Astoria, or protect the bottom line of the developer that is building the apartment complex?

Hope springs eternal for Steinway Mansion

From DNA Info:

The sprawling Steinway Mansion, once home to the world's most famous piano-making family, has had a "For Sale" sign perched on its stately lawn for the past several years.

Now a newly-formed coalition of Queens stakeholders have banded together to seek a buyer for the landmarked Astoria property, in the hopes that it could be used as a public museum or cultural center.

"The Steinway Mansion is indeed a place of significance, and should be saved for the benefit of future generations," said Bob Singleton, head of the Greater Astoria Historical Society, which announced the formation of the Friends of Steinway Mansion earlier this week.

The 27-room mansion, an Italianate-style villa situated atop a hill at 18-33 41st St., not far from the Steinway & Sons piano factory, was built in the 1850s. It was home to the Steinway family from the end of the 19th-century until 1925, and declared a New York City landmark in 1967.

Local groups have been calling for a public use of the building for years, Singleton said, but this is the first time an official effort has been launched. So far, the coalition's members include Assemblywomen Margaret Markey, Astoria Assemblywoman Aravella Simotas, the Long Island City-based Artisans Guild of America as well as the Steinway and Sons company itself.

Singleton said the coalition is working to garner public support for their vision, and is hoping a strong candidate will come forward soon to purchase the home for the purpose of a community use.

What about Vallone?

Continued hysteria over Greek Nazis

From the NY Times:

The evidence was elusive: late last month, a professional Web site suddenly appeared, showing the party’s swastikalike logo set against a dark Manhattan skyline and calling on the city’s Greek diaspora to donate food and clothing to a charity drive to benefit struggling poor people in Greece. There were pictures on the site: one was of a group of men with their backs turned to the camera, wearing black T-shirts reading, in Greek, “Golden Dawn New York.”

Although the site went down within days of its emergence — targeted, it was reported, by Anonymous, the hackers’ group — it provoked sufficient outrage that local politicians, doing what they do, rallied at a news conference to condemn the right-wing party, and a grass-roots protest movement sprang up in an effort to oppose it.

The problem was — and, indeed, still is — that almost nothing is known about the party’s actual presence in the neighborhood. Does Golden Dawn really have an office in Astoria, the center of the city’s Greek community? That is not clear. What are its goals? Also unclear. Is its membership significant or minimal? No one knows for sure.

...a phone call in search of some specifics to Peter F. Vallone Jr., the local city councilman, produced an e-mail from a spokesman saying that Assemblywoman Aravella Simotas, who represents Astoria, knew more about the group. While trying to be helpful, Ms. Simotas said, “I only know a little — and it’s all secondhand.”

What if they do? You can't legislate against free speech. The pols in this town, and everywhere, for that matter, LOVE to play on people's fears. We have Latin gangs, neo-Nazi skinheads, Black Panthers, Al Qaeda, the City Council, etc. in this town. So what is the big deal about adding fascist Greeks to the mix?

Greek neo-Nazis moving into Queens

Don't normally post politician press releases, but this one is a doozy...

"Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, Councilman Peter F. Vallone Jr, Assembly Member Aravella Simotas, community and religious leaders today rallied at a press conference to protest Greek Neo-Nazi Party Golden Dawn’s expansion into New York City. Golden Dawn announced in late September that they would be opening up a headquarters in New York, and there have been reports of activity and sightings of their hateful literature around Astoria, Queens, home to one of the biggest Greek communities in the country.

The Golden Dawn party, an extremist right-wing party in Greece, recently made inroads this past August in Greek elections, winning 18 of Greek Parliament’s 300. The party leader, Nikos Michaloliakos, has denied that German Nazis used gas chambers to systematically kill Jews, and the party has been accused by Human Rights Watch of inciting violence against immigrants in Greece.

“I am standing here today with a broad coalition of Greek and Jewish leadership, and with members of the greater Astoria community, to send a clear message to the Golden Dawn party that is trying to make inroads in New York City,” said Public Advocate Bill de Blasio. “You are not welcome in this community, this city, or this country. Your hatred and bigotry will fall on deaf ears in Queens, the most diverse county in America, where people of every race, creed and nationality live side by side in harmony.”

State Senator Michael Gianaris said, “The painful lessons of our own history have taught us that extremism and intolerance beget violence, oppression and suffering. I stand with Greek-American leadership like the American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association, who have made clear that extremist and divisive groups like Golden Dawn are not welcome in our community. There is no place more inappropriate for a group like this than western Queens, which celebrates its diversity and openness to all peoples.”

Assembly Member Aravella Simotas said, “New York City, and Astoria in particular, are models of diversity and tolerance. There is no room for any kind of hate group to promote an anti-immigrant agenda in our city, especially here in the heart of our community,” Simotas said. “I immigrated to this country from Greece with my parents 33 years ago, and we were welcomed in Astoria with open arms by the generations of immigrants that came before us. This is what we in Astoria stand for as a community – not hatred and violence against immigrants, women and those who may be different from us.”

“While we vigorously defend freedom of speech, the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, together with all freedom-loving New Yorkers, are deeply offended by the presence here in Queens, the most diverse borough in the most diverse city in the world, of this xenophobic, racist and anti-Semitic movement. Their ideology is rejected by the Greek community here in Queens and we will continue to work with our local ethnic and faith partners to combat all forms of racism and intolerance,” said Alan S. Jaffe, President of Jewish Community Relations Council of New York."

Pols fear new titty bar in Astoria

From the Queens Courier:

Residents are worried that an uncovered bid for an Astoria bikini bar may be a scantily-clad plan to wiggle a strip club into their neighborhood.

Racks, the club located at 19-26 Steinway Street, was recently leased to a company called 8G Inc. Formerly a billiard parlor, the establishment sits just half a block from homes, several hundred feet from a park and two blocks away from a school.

8G Inc. sought to obtain a liquor license, which was voted against unanimously by Community Board 1 in early September. District Manager Lucille Hartmann attributed the board’s decision to the establishment’s inability to benefit the community. Racks’ fate will be decided by the New York State Liquor Authority, advised by recommendations made by the community.

Assemblymember Aravella Simotas, who lives three blocks from Racks, said the neighborhood is an absolutely inappropriate place for a skin-based business.

Simotas, whose campaign against Racks garnered support from Congressmember Joe Crowley and Senator Michael Gianaris, said she remains confident the State Liquor Authority will consider their side and heed their warning.

Too many bird strikes for transfer station

From the Daily News:

A recent spate of high-profile bird strikes has added fuel to the cause of opponents of a waste transfer station being built near LaGuardia Airport.

Elected and community leaders said the North Shore Marine Transfer Station, in College Point, will attract birds — which could be hazardous for planes flying in and out of nearby LaGuardia.

The station’s existing state permit expires in September.

“Putting a waste transfer station in a location that could cause additional bird strikes is negligent,” said Assemblywoman Aravella Simotas (D-Astoria).

Simotas said she plans to draft a letter with local residents to the Mayor’s Office opposing the plan.

Once up and running, the station will haul about 3,000 tons of waste by barge to landfills every day, a city official said. The facility — where the trash is handled within an enclosed building — is set to open in the spring of 2013.

Simotas supports new rape definition

Aravella Simotas has kept a pretty low profile in the Assembly since being hand-picked by the Vallones for the job. But here she is talking about how she's against rape, which is really sticking her neck out there!

I am not sure that the wisest thing to do is legislate based on the outcome of court cases you don't agree with. If Michael Pena had been one of her Albany tweeder friends and was found not guilty, she'd be throwing a party, not trying to toughen up the law, dontcha think?

Aravella all alone now

From the Daily News:

AND THEN there was one.

Democratic Assembly candidate John Ciafone has officially dropped out of the race for the 36th Assembly seat in Queens.

Ciafone is the second Democrat to skip the race for the spot currently held by Michael Gianaris, who is seeking the seat of retiring state Sen. George Onorato.

Last month, lawyer Jeremiah Frei-Pearson said he was stepping out of the three-way contest to avoid a messy primary battle.

Ciafone's decision leaves just one candidate in the race - lawyer Aravella Simotas, who is supported by the Queens Democratic Party.

Photo from the Times Ledger

Astoria assembly race now down to 2

From the Daily News:

Just confirmed that Jeremiah Frei-Pearson of Astoria is dropping out of the three-way Democratic primary for state Assembly in District 36.

"Because the dynamics of the race have recently changed and the only path to victory would contrast our shared values as Democrats, Jeremiah Frei-Pearson has decided to end his Assembly campaign. I commend him for putting the principles that unite us as Democrats ahead of one election. It has been my great honor to work on his campaign and I look forward to his continuing leadership in our community," spokesman Michael Murphy told me.

Frei-Pearson, a lawyer, has been competing against two other candidates for the Assembly seat being vacated by Michael Gianaris, who's looking to move up to the state Senate.

Aravella Simotas, a lawyer who seeks to become the first Greek-American woman elected to the Assembly, has the backing of Gianaris and Rep. Joe Crowley, the county chairman, as well as locking up a slew of institutiional and labor support, including Rep. Carolyn Maloney, state Sens. George Onorato and José Peralta, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, former Council Speaker Peter Vallone, Sr. and his son, Councilman Peter Vallone, Jr., Councilmen James Van Bramer and Daniel Dromm and Assemblymembers Grace Meng and Micah Kellner.

Also vying for the seat: John Ciafone, who has faced questions -- including from the Daily News -- about his legal residence.

Wow, what a choice... Apparently Frei-Pearson didn't want to go negative.