The Squatter's Borough

 

 

 PIX News 

 Unwanted visitors are residing in the long-closed Triple Crown Diner in Bellerose, according to members of the local business community.

Joe, who runs a restaurant across the street, told PIX11 News the squatters enter at night via a rear staircase that leads to the roof: “You’ll see people just randomly walking out of there. I pay close attention. You’ll see a lot of garbage stacked up right there.”

 Behind the diner, there’s a shed with a mattress on the ground. The identity of the alleged squatters remained unclear as of Friday afternoon. 

 “I know it has been reported to the 105th Precinct and it’s been reported by them that they’ve come and located an opening in the ceiling, the roof, that they’ve covered with plywood,” said Richard Hellenbrecht, the treasurer of the Bellerose Civic Association. “For anyone to get inside and squat in the diner is really terrible.

Another business owner, Jack, told PIX11 the neighborhood has recently seen some changes for the worse.

“Well, they shouldn’t be living there. They’re vagrants. It ruins our business – it runs the businesses in the area. Sure, it bothers you, but what can you do about it?”

 

PIX News

 Construction of a new community center in Queens serving young adults with special needs is well underway – and long delayed, says property owner Young Seh Bae.

It’s all thanks to a squatter identified by the Sheriff’s Office as Sean Johnson.

Investigators said he set up camp in the now demolished home that once stood on a lot in the fall of 2022, and then illegally claimed residence after being there for more than 30 days.

 “They just broke into the house using the back door,” said Bae.

The Sheriff’s Office also confirmed marshals recovered a gun from inside the home where Johnson was squatting, adding he was not present to be taken into custody.

“They caused a nightmare for us. There were people coming and going. They would come on to our side of the sidewalk to intimidate us,” said Angela, who lives across the street.

Mayor Eric Adams on Tuesday said he supports updating squatters’ rights, which were originally enacted to help protect against bad landlords.

“There was a reason that squatters’ law was put in place. And I think people are starting to exploit what some of those reasons are,” said Adams.

Under current New York State law, squatters are considered tenants if they have had possession for 30 consecutive days or longer.

Bae said it ultimately took more than six months and six-figures in legal fees to finally reclaim the property her family rightfully owns.

“It was very frustrating, not only mentally but financially. I have to say about $100,000,” said Bae.

State Sen. John Liu acknowledged his newly proposed legislation may not be useful to responding police officers, but he added it will help homeowners in a courtroom.

Liu’s bill clearly defines a squatter as someone who enters onto a property or building without title, right, or permission…”

The bill bans them from accessing a tenant’s rights and protections under the law, and states squatters do not get any rights, even after 30 days of possession.

““New York State law, as it pertains to housing and property, it’s not the easiest thing — no question. We need to erase any kind of ambiguity in our state laws, and this bill will do just that,” said Liu.

PIX News

Queens residents spoke out with frustrations Wednesday about a run-down property in their neighborhood that they say is attracting squatters.

“Sometimes the front door is actually creeped open. For years, people have just been coming in, dumping garbage,” said Kamran, describing the neglected house next to the home he’s lived in since childhood.

When Kamran says “years,” he means more than a decade. During that time, he and his neighbors say there have been squatters coming in and out of the run-down home.  

The home, located at 245-04 Union Turnpike in Bellerose, is barely visible behind the tall brush. Lydia lives within eyeshot of what she says is an eyesore.

 “When I see people there that I know are squatters, or they don’t belong there because it’s been empty so long, I just call 911,” said Lydia.

This is the third time in the last week PIX11 News has reported about a suspected squatting situation in Queens, from a now torn-down home in Bayside, to squatters who allegedly entered through the roof of the closed Triple Crown Diner – also in Bellerose.

 PIX11 News took Queens Borough President Donovan Richards on a virtual tour of the property Wednesday.

The tour included a growing collection of New York City Department of Sanitation tickets issued to the registered owner – Jan Robert Fortin – who has no listed number and whose son did not answer PIX11 News’ phone call requesting comment.  

“So how do we resolve this issue? We need a change at the state law. Yes, enforcement is one key piece of it. OK, they are going to end up on Rikers on a trespass charge possibly. I also have to allude to the fact that we are in a housing crisis, and people are squatting largely because we are in this crisis,” said Richards.

The good news? About an hour after PIX11 News started reaching out to multiple agencies, including the health department, Housing Preservation and Development, and the buildings and sanitation departments, a sanitation supervisor arrived at the house to assess the situation.

The war on Queens cars continues

Oakland Trailer Park

 

 

 

 

There is now a RV Camp in Bayside right next to Oakland Lake on the Cloverdale Blvd bike path !

Thanks JQ for all the work you do running Queens Crap.

 

Bayside clinic watered down vaccines to produce more inoculations

NY Daily News 

A Queens COVID-19 site systematically diluted vials of the life-saving Pfizer vaccine in order to dole out more doses, according to a new lawsuit filed by an employee claiming he was pushed out of the company after he started asking questions.

Jamie Zheng says Centers Urgent Care, the operator of the vaccine distribution site at Korean Community Services in Bayside, fired him after he learned of a policy to dilute the doses beyond the CDC’s recommendation.

“It makes me feel guilty,” said Zheng, 33, who ran the site from March to July of last year.

“Just thinking about the people waiting on line, mostly the Asian community. They were so excited. They want to get protected but in reality they’re getting a compromised dose.”

The CDC tells providers to mix a vial of Pfizer’s vaccine with 1.8 mL of a saline-based solution for adults. The lawsuit alleges Centers Urgent Care instructed distributors to mix with 1.9 mL, which allowed the company to squeeze seven shots out of each vial as opposed to six, the lawsuit claims.

Future deliveries of the vaccine from Pfizer were based on how many people the company had vaccinated in prior weeks, said Zheng, who sued in Queens Supreme Court .

Private providers who administer the shots are reimbursed for vaccinating individuals through insurance companies or Medicare.

Zheng is the second employee of Centers Urgent Care to sue over the alleged practice. Andrew Palazzo says in his suit filed last year that he was fired from his job administering the vaccines after raising similar objections as Zheng. He alleged 16,000 doses could have been diluted.

A court denied Palazzo’s bid last year for an order blocking the site from administering vaccines. Palazzo’s suit is ongoing and Centers Urgent Care has denied wrongdoing.

Airbnbullets

 

Queens Chronicle

Shots were fired at a group of teenagers’ car as they rode along 38th Avenue and 209th Street in Bayside early last Saturday morning, the New York Police Department reported. One passenger, 19, suffered a gunshot wound to the right side of his back. He was rushed to NewYork-Presbyterian Queens and as of Monday was in stable condition.

According to Capt. John Portalatin, commanding officer of the 111th Precinct, the group of teens, at least one of whom is from Nassau County, were looking for parking near an AirBnB party at approximately 2:50 a.m. when a group of four to six individuals began firing rounds at their car.

An arrest has not been made in the incident, nor is the shooters’ motive known; the investigation is ongoing. Portalatin added that the NYPD is still looking for video footage of the shooters fleeing the scene.

The NYPD’s 111th Precinct, which includes Bayside, has long been considered one of the safest — if not the safest, alongside the 112th — precincts in Queens or even the city. Saturday morning’s occurrence is the 111th’s first shooting incident this year; the injured passenger is its first shooting victim.

“The police are on top of it, we’re taking it very seriously, and we’re doing everything we can to avoid these incidents in the future,” Portalatin said.

According to the office of Assemblyman Ed Braunstein (D-Bayside), the house where the party in question was held, located at 208-16 38 Ave., has been occupied by squatters for roughly two years, and that they are renting it out on AirBnB. His office told the Chronicle that it has been working to get in contact with the bank that owns the house, which is in foreclosure.

Stephen Markowski lives across the street from that house, and heard the shots fired on Saturday morning — in fact, he initially thought it was fireworks before a neighbor corrected him. He has been monitoring the squatting situation since its beginning.

“Not only don’t they own it, but they’re making money off of it,” he said.

 

 Queens Chronicle

A rally was held in Bayside on Friday to address a recent shooting that took place in front of a foreclosed home that was being used as an Airbnb rental by squatters, according to the community.

 “This has been going on for two years,” said Stephen Markowski, who lives across the street from the house located at 208-16 38 Ave. “They tried to keep a low profile, but we were joking one day that they are probably renting it out on Airbnb. Sure enough there was the house listed on the website, not once, but twice.”

The rental of the home by squatters has been a cause of public safety concern for the surrounding homeowners who live within the 111th Precinct, which has been considered one of the safest if not the safest precinct in Queens, according to the NYPD. Saturday morning’s shooting was the first shooting of the year within the precinct. 

Nearly 20 shots were fired at a car the victim, 19, along with a group of other teenagers rode along 38th Avenue and 209th Street in Bayside as they were going to the Airbnb for a party, according to officials. The victim was later sent to NewYork-Presbyterian on Monday and was in stable condition. 

“Twenty shots,” said Markowski. “What is it going to take for a public official to act on it?”

Robbie Schecter, 74, was out of town during the shooting, but lives around the corner from the foreclosed home. 

“We’ve been here for 43 years,” said Schecter. “We’ve never seen anything like this happen before. It’s an incredibly peaceful place. We take walks around here to go to Bell Boulevard to go to the restaurants. Our kids love to come here to visit us from Long Island because there it’s just a bunch of strip malls. This is a neighborhood.”

Schecter’s neighbor Donald Chen, 73, agreed. 

“I’ve lived here since 1983,” said Chen. “The worse thing that happens sometimes was a set of robberies. We are very close to Clearview Expressway, so it’s easy to get away, but something like this? No.”

The squatting has become a scourge, according to state Sen. John Liu (D-Bayside).

“The transient occupants have held late night parties and threatened the neighbors here,” said Liu. “We’ve seen just last week shootings on this block — could you imagine 19 shots being fired on this block — one shot landing in someone’s stomach. Another landed in a car seat. Thankfully there was no baby in that car seat.”

Liu and Assemblyman Ed Braunstein (D-Bayside) said they have called upon the city, specifically the Department of Buildings to take a look at what is happening at the house and to issue a vacate order. 

The DOB sent inspectors to the home ahead of the press conference, according Liu. He said he is giving them to time to make a determination on a vacate order. 

“We are exploring every option to get these people out of this neighborhood,” said Braunstein. 

Liu said he was demanding that Airbnb stop listing the property. 

Markowski said that the squatters use different names for every time they list the house. 

“Every time we get Airbnb to take down a listing they put one back up,” said Braunstein. “We have also been in contact with the bank to expedite eviction proceedings and foreclosure proceedings. This has been going on for two years now and this past weekend this issue has reached a new level of urgency.”

U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D-Flushing), who lives a few blocks from where the shooting took place, called into the meeting from Washington, DC. 

“I received calls from some of my neighbors about the horror that happened,” said Meng. “This has been a nightmare for our community. Bullets were literally flying around in the middle of the night. It could have hit any of our family members, friends or neighbors. Airbnb needs to take this problem more seriously, otherwise they have blood on their hands.”

Hours after the rally, Airbnb said that it has cancelled all bookings for that house and will continue to do so in the future, according to the congresswoman via Twitter. She further iterated that Liu and Braunstein will be watching closely to make sure the company keeps its word.

As the rally concluded, former homeowner Joe Carrollo spoke to residents, police and elected officials to clarify that he cannot evict the homeowners himself because the house has been the property of Citi Bank and Bank of America since 2018. He personally handed over documents to the 111th Precinct to prove that he is no longer responsible for the property and said he was equally upset about what has happened to his former home of 15 years. 

He later noted that one of the banks has plans to auction the house on June 16 and who ever takes over the property will become the person who has to evict the squatters unless Citi or Bank of America steps in to evict.

Stephen Markowski lives across the street from that house, and heard the shots fired on Saturday morning — in fact, he initially thought it was fireworks before a neighbor corrected him. He has been monitoring the squatting situation since its beginning.

“Not only don’t they own it, but they’re making money off of it,” he said.

Developer donates 5 large for improvements and entertainment at Crocheron Park

 

Queens Post

A volunteer group that works to maintain the upkeep of Crocheron Park in Bayside has just pulled in its first major sponsor.

Friends of Crocheron & John Golden Park, which works alongside the Parks Dept. to improve the 63-acre space, announced Tuesday that a local real estate development company will be sponsoring many of its events this year.

The sponsor, Cord Meyer Development, will allocate $5,000 to the group that will go toward organizing events and upgrades to the park, which is situated at 214th Street and 35th Avenue. The real estate firm reached out to the non-profit group after learning what it does.

“We were thrilled when Cord Meyer approached us and asked about sponsorship opportunities,” said Jessica Burke, the president of the volunteer group that was established in 2020. “Having Cord Meyer as a partner will benefit our monthly service events, expand the reach of our historic archive, and enable us to show our appreciation to our volunteers with T-shirts and other items.”

Founded in 1904, Cord Meyer is a developer, owner, and operator of retail, commercial, and residential properties in Queens, including its historic Bay Terrace Shopping Center, located less than one mile from Crocheron Park.

The park is named after the Crocheron family who lived on the edge of Little Neck Bay in Bayside for generations—going as far back as 1695.

“Like the Crocheron family for whom the park is named, Cord Meyer’s roots in Queens go back generations,” said Joseph Forgione, Cord Meyer’s vice president and company controller. “We are proud of our deep connection to the community and actively seek partnerships with groups that are committed to improving the area for residents and visitors alike.”

Some bike lanes approved in Bayside

Queens Chronicle 

Community Board 11 unanimously voted to approve its Transportation Committee’s recommendation for 11 new bike lanes in the area.

Residents’ support for the committee’s recommended plan was also readily apparent; all of those who took part in public participation spoke overwhelmingly positively of it.

The recommendation comes after a months-long, immensely detailed process; according to Victor Dadras, first vice chair of the board and chair of the Transportation Committee, the committee worked with the Department of Transportation at length in addition to conducting its own research.

Bike lanes have long been a contentious issue in Queens, often regarding single streets. To have not only passed a recommendation of this size, but to have done so unanimously, then, is quite a feat — for bike supporters and board members alike.

“See? We can conquer anything,” said Christine Haider, the board’s second vice chair.

But in Dadras’ view, the debate should never be so complicated. “To me, it’s not about us versus them, bikes versus cars,” he told the Chronicle. “It’s about safety and equity — reimagining our streets as public spaces that everyone can share safely.”

The lanes approved by the board are predominately in the western part of the district, most of which the committee said should be protected ones. That is a departure from the DOT’s proposal, which has called for many class one and two lanes; both of those put cyclists between drivers and parked cars, whereas some other types offer more protection.

Perhaps the most significant addition is the committee’s approval of a protected bike lane with floating parking on Utopia Parkway across the full length of Community District 11. Previously, the DOT had recommended it span 47th Avenue between Utopia Parkway and 188th Street and southbound on 188th Street to the Horace Harding Expressway.

Many bikers are opposed to class two and three lanes, the former of which use sharrows, markings that indicate that bikers and drivers are required to share the road. The fact that this plan calls for many protected lanes, then, has been applauded.

“This unanimous vote shows the broad, popular support for protected bike lanes throughout Queens,” said Laura Shepard, Queens organizer for Transportation Alternatives and a Bayside native. “As the bike boom continues, more New Yorkers are biking for transportation and people of all ages are discovering the joy of riding through our parks and on our greenways.”

It’s no secret that the Transportation Committee went to unprecedented lengths to make it happen. Not only was a new infrastructure subcommittee formed, but CB 11 staff conducted their own study. District Manager Joe Marziliano and staffer Christina Coutinho drove along all of the routes DOT proposed, took pictures and measured the distance to the curb. From there, Bernard Haber, who chaired the Transportation Committee for many years and specializes in transportation engineering, looked at those measurements on city maps in order to advise the subcommittee.

“We’ve seen here what good committee work can do,” Board Chair Michael Budabin said in reference to the panel’s recommendation.

There were three routes proposed by the DOT, however, that the board did not recommend, per the committee’s safety concerns.

The Grinch that killed a pizzeria

 

QNS

 
A longtime Bay Terrace pizza shop is closing its doors after nearly 50 years in business.

Earlier this week, it was reported that Jack’s Pizza and Pasta would be going out of business amid a dispute between the restaurant’s owners and Cord Meyer, the development company that owns the Bay Terrace Shopping Center where Jack’s is located.

The owners of Jack’s Pizza posted a sign outside of the establishment at the shopping center claiming that Cord Meyer’s CEO Matthew Whalen refused to renew the restaurant’s lease, effectively forcing them out after decades of business. The sign also stated that Jack’s had stayed open “at the height of the COVID pandemic.”

But Cord Meyer issued a statement saying that the restaurant’s lease had expired in September 2020 and they had failed to renew it.

“Their lease expired in September 2020, but in acknowledgment of their long history, we agreed to let them stay until the end of 2021 and offered them generous rent concessions. We are disappointed that our relationship with Jack’s has been mischaracterized. If a tenant refuses to meet agreed-upon obligations, we need to focus on ensuring that the Bay Terrace remains a vibrant shopping center,” said a Cord Meyer spokesperson.

Laura, the daughter of Anna and Jack Sapienza who opened the business in 1972, told Patch that finances were tight when they ran a takeout-only operation during the pandemic. During that time, Laura claimed that the Sapienzas paid Cord Meyer “as much as we could” from March through December 2020 but had their rent check returned in January 2021 followed by a 30-day eviction notice.

Several reports claimed that the owners of the pizzeria were planning to pay back Cord Meyer for the missing rent, which the company allegedly approved during COVID.

Cord Meyer said that they will allow Jack’s Pizza to stay in its current location until Jan. 15 before shutting down the operation for good.

 

Structual problems at Bayside LIRR station are being neglected

There are ongoing problems at the Bayside Long Island Rail Road Station that impact several thousand dally riders. I give the LIRR full credit for installation of new concrete ties and ballast.  This will insure a safer and more comfortable ride. They have also recently completed repairs to sections of the west bound platform edge.

As you can see by the accompanying photos, there is still other significant outstanding maintenance and repair work to be done. The original wooden support beams for various sections of the canopy have deteriorated.  Pigeons have moved into the rotting bottom section of the west bound canopy stairs roof. Other portions of the canopy roof are also in need of repair.  Pigeons droppings can be seen at the bottom of the west bound stairs and second set of stairs for the east bound platform.  The metal structure supporting the over pass connecting the east and west bound platforms have begun accumulating rust.  There is also a hole in one of the east bound steel stair cases.  Pigeons have also found a second home in the hole on the roof over the ticket office side facing the platform.

Why has the LIRR waited so long to allow these issues to grow even worse? When will the necessary repairs to these structural deficiencies be dealt with and completed? - Larry Penner

Larry Penner is a transportation advocate, historian and writer who previously worked 31 years for the US Department of Transportation Federal Transit Administration Region 2 NY Office.  This included the development, review, approval and oversight for grants supporting billions in capital projects and programs on behalf of the MTA, NYC Transit bus and subway, Long Island and Metro North Rail Roads, MTA Bus and NYC Department of Transportation along with 30 other transit agencies in NY & NJ).

 

East Queens nabes get vac sites

 

 QNS

Governor Cuomo’s office announced Tuesday that several pop-up vaccination sites will be available to Queens residents this week.

Beginning Thursday, Feb. 11, three locations — Korean Community Services in Bayside, NYCHA Shelton Houses in Jamaica and the Sikh Cultural Society in South Richmond — will provide eligible Queens residents with the COVID-19 vaccines.

These sites are three of 11 citywide popup locations, which provides 3,100 first doses for New Yorkers. Cuomo’s office reported that since Jan. 15, approximately 30,000 residents have been inoculated at similar pop-up sites throughout the state.

 After Queens residents get their first doses, the sites will be reestablished in three weeks to administer second doses.

Slow down, ZWEET, your neighbors

 
I hope the attached video comes through to you. Here in Flushing and Bayside this guy speeds through the streets like our neighborhood is his own personal speedway. His car is LOUD. He's a menace to our quiet neighborhoods. It's a growing trend. 
 

BLM's hilarious lack of historical knowledge

Bayside BLM protest:

an organizer speaks about the PBA, whiteness, and Blue Lives Matter. pic.twitter.com/FZ09F20UuL

— Angélica M. Acevedo (@angacevedo15) August 20, 2020

History 101:
Columbus was, indeed, Italian.
Hitler poisoned and shot himself.

Also, while it may make you feel good to scream ethnic epithets about Italians and Irish in a white neighborhood, it's not really a good look for an "anti-racist" group.

Wheels are coming off in Northeast Queens crime wave

Bayside Patch

  A borough-wide spike in tire and rim thefts is hitting northeast Queens hard, according to the police.
The NYPD's 111th precinct, which covers a region of northeast Queens that includes Bayside and 

Douglaston, has gotten reports of 37 such thefts so far this year, up from 16 last year.
In 2017, there were 43 thefts by this time of the year, precinct officers say.

 
The spike prompted the precinct to add staff to its midnight shift, police wrote in a Facebook post

Dead baby abandoned in Bayside park turns out to be a toy.

 

QNS


An infant who was allegedly found dead in Bayside’s Crocheron Park turned out to be a lifelike doll set up by a sick prankster, according to police.

Multiple sources confirmed that what was initially believed to be the body of a deceased infant was actually a doll “made to look like it was decomposing.”

At around 8:15 a.m. on June 18, officers from the 111th Precinct responded to a call about a baby who was unconscious and unresponsive in the vicinity of 215th Street and 35th Avenue. A runner had reportedly stumbled upon the baby’s body around 7:40 a.m.

The report triggered a massive response by the NYPD and the Fire Department. Nearby residents were alarmed by the response. People in Bayside who heard about what had allegedly occurred took to social media to express their shock and condolences.

But then the truth was uncovered.

 

Reports later confirmed that the “baby” was actually a doll that was colored pink and blue, which police described as “very realistic.” The fake baby was so realistic that it initially fooled NYPD and EMS personnel who responded to the scene.

It’s not clear, at this point in the investigation, who planted the doll in the park and called in the “dead baby” report, nor did police know of a possible motive for the sick ruse. They are currently searching for cameras in the park to see if they can catch the culprit.

Despite this being a warped prank played by some stupid asshole(s) that wasted emergency service time from the citizenry, how the living hell the cops and the EMT's could not tell that it was a doll?

Bayside streets are a lunar landscape

QNS


Residents are criticizing the poor street conditions in Bayside, as cars traveling down local streets run into potholes, large cracks and uneven roads.

Some like Danielle Chase, blame the ongoing sewer and water main replacement for the pothole hell plaguing the neighborhood.

“Most of the poor street conditions are due to the never-ending construction going on. 38th Avenue from the service road to 217th [Street] is a warzone,” Chase told QNS.

 According to nyc.gov, residents can file complaints about potholes, cave-ins, utility damage and hummocks — roadway asphalt that has been pushed into a wave shape — online or by calling 311. But area resident Arlene Mordjikin said the complaints have not made a difference.

“Bell Boulevard between Horace Harding Expressway and 48th Avenue needs to be repaved. I’ve reached out to 311 since 2016 and I’m still waiting,” said Mordjikian.

State Corrections Department drops a bunch of sex offenders in a Bayside motel

QNS


Following the alarming news of eight registered sex offenders allegedly placed at a Bayside motel, local elected officials on Thursday called for immediate removal of the individuals by the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS).
Standing in front of the Anchor Inn Motel, located at 215-34 Northern Blvd, state Senator John Liu joined by Assemblymembers Nily Rozic and Ed Braunstein and City Councilman Paul Vallone addressed concerned residents at the site, where families take their children to a day care center across the street.

“We are extremely concerned to learn about the eight registered sex offenders placed in the Anchor Motor Inn last week by the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision,” said Rozic. “The Inn, located on Northern Boulevard is diagonally across the street from an Academy of Early Education. As the safety of our community and our children is paramount, we urge DOCCS to find immediate alternative housing for these individuals.”
The eight registered sex offenders are listed on the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services sex offender registry. They are men who range in age from 33 to 66. Four of the individuals were said to be level 3, sexually violent offenders.
 
“It’s always a cause for concern when sex offenders are placed in a community, but it becomes truly alarming when their crimes are particularly heinous and violent,” said Vallone, whose office has been receiving phone calls about the issue. “Several of the offenders placed at the Anchor Inn have been convicted of sex crimes against children and the elderly, and placing them in direct proximity to a Pre-K and elementary schools in unacceptable.”
According to the Department of Criminal Justice, the Sex Offender Registration Act does not restrict where a registered sex offender may live. However, if the offender is under parole or probation supervision, other New York State laws may limit the offender from living within 1,000 feet of a school or other facility caring for children.
In a statement to QNS, a DOCCS spokesman confirmed that the men were recently re-located to the Anchor Inn, which is compliant with the state’s Sexual Assault Reform Act (SARA) restrictions, following the closure of their previous transitional housing by New York City agencies.
“To date, the individuals have abided by their conditions of supervision, which include reporting any change in residence. The Department’s parole officers will continue to actively supervise these individuals and impose any special conditions required, in accordance with the law and agency policy,” the DOCCS said. 

 Can't help but notice that the motel looks like a post office and is also AAA certified if that helps anyone.

DSNY, please clean this up!

"Driving home today in Bayside on 43rd Ave. and 223rd Street a home made sign caught my eye. I had to stop get out and snap a picture that I hope you share on Queens Crap. People are feed up with the inordinate amount of littter and their do nothing local government.
Thanks..."

- anonymous

Grace's tangled real estate web

From Crains:

A rising power in city politics for years reported owning a piece of her parents' home, but now says she was wrong about that.

That's just one of the oddities Crain's found upon examining personal-finance, campaign and property records of Rep. Grace Meng, who is perhaps positioning herself to become head of the Queens Democratic organization.

Reports have suggested that Meng could take over the vaunted party machine from Rep. Joseph Crowley, who lost the Democratic primary for his seat in June to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

The nexus of the Meng clan's holdings is the house where the congresswoman's parents apparently reside, at 211-18 34th Avenue. From the first time she ran for her Flushing-based seat in 2012, Meng listed this property—then valued at $500,000 to $1 million—among her assets in personal financial disclosures to the House clerk's office. But on August 14 of this year, Meng filed multiple amendments with the overseer requesting to remove the Bayside home from her official list of possessions, despite having claimed it for the five previous years.

Meng's spokesman said the congresswoman recently confirmed by consulting with her accountant that she never had any ownership stake in the home.

City property records show no change in deedholder for 211-18 34th Avenue since 2002. But they do show an elaborate and idiosyncratic ownership structure, and a network of real estate limited-liability companies involving the congresswoman, her mother Shiao Mei Meng and her father Jimmy Meng.

Jimmy Meng made his fortune as a lumberyard owner and became prominent in his community as president of the Flushing Chinese Business Association. New York politicos remember him as an ex-state assemblyman who resigned amid a voter fraud scandal in 2006 and pleaded guilty in 2012 to soliciting bribes. His daughter served as his campaign manager and later succeeded him in the state Legislature before winning election to Washington with Crowley's support.

Bayside cyclist thinks Alley Pond bike lane is stupid

From QNS:

Longtime Bayside resident Helina Cheung, an avid cyclist and runner, said she and neighbors are left befuddled by a bike lane project recently installed in the neighborhood.

“When my husband and I saw the project, we said, ‘This project doesn’t make sense at all,'” Cheung told QNS while onsite.

The project along the Alley Pond Park edge, between Northern Boulevard and Springfield Boulevard, was installed by the city’s Department of Transportation (DOT) this past winter. It is one part of a larger safety project presented by the DOT to Community Board 11 in June 2017.

Community board members voted unanimously in favor of the Alley Pond segment of the project, while support for the Northern Boulevard segment, which has faced community scrutiny, has since been revoked. In March, QNS spoke with a local property owner who claimed the project causes “mass confusion” for drivers and pedestrians.

The Alley Pond safety project flipped the existing bike and parking lanes at the location and installed a four-foot protective buffer between the two. The bike lane is now situated closest to the park’s edge and cars are to park in a “floating parking lane.” A lane for moving traffic is situated next to the floating parking lane.

According to Cheung, many cars drive in the floating parking lane or bike lanes, creating dangerous conditions. A lack of signage and worn paint at the site add to this confusion, she said.

Bayside pimp pinched

From the Times Ledger:

Three people are facing prostitution charges following an April 21 arrest in Bayside in which the alleged ringleader offered two of his “employees” to two undercover cops from Queens Vice Enforcement Division for sex acts in exchange for money, the Queens district attorney said.

Cheolryong Shin, 31, was identified in the criminal complaint filed by the DA’s office as the man who allegedly attempted to sell two officers on a full body massage complete with sexual gratification before being arrested alongside Ting Ting Wen, 27, and Yan Yan Hong, 40.

After Shin allegedly offered the services of the two women for a fee of $160, the undercover cops were led into the basement of a business at 211-54 45th Drive, where the fee was discussed again with the female defendants, the complaint said.

The location is an inconspicuous office space with no exterior signage indicating there was a massage parlor of any kind occupying the building, which also houses a dental business. It is on a quiet residential street west of Bell Boulevard.