Jackson Heights taxi graveyard is an eyesore

From CBS 2:

If you’re looking for a taxi ride in New York City, you may have to look elsewhere. There are a whole lot of taxis, but none of them parked at the block-long abandoned gas station have license plates or even medallions.

It’s become a makeshift taxi graveyard, and frustrated people who live and work in the area have been unable to get the city to do anything.

Political Reporter Marcia Kramer demanded answers from a number of city agencies. Officials claim many of the taxis were owned by Gene Friedman, a controversial Russian-American businessman once dubbed the “Taxi King.”

In his heyday, Friedman was a major donor to Mayor de Blasio who raised more than $70,000 for hizzoner. He partnered with President Trump’s personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, who city officials believe may now own some of the abandoned vehicles.

Engineer volunteering to help Kew Gardens bridge businesses

From the Queens Tribune:

A once-dim future for the Lefferts Boulevard bridge businesses in Kew Gardens appears to be getting brighter.

Recently, three engineers—from the MTA, city Department of Transportation and a volunteer retired engineer from Kew Garden—examined the bridge after the Metropolitan Transportation Authority told the business owners that the platforms on which their buildings are located must be demolished.

Al Brand, the retired engineer, floated the idea that an additional concrete slab could be installed underneath the bridge.

Concerns regarding this proposal include whether the slab would allow adequate clearance for Long Island Rail Road trains underneath and the possible cost of the project.

Michael Cohen, communications director for Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz (D- Forest Hills), said that Brand is volunteering his expertise and acting as a representative for the Kew Gardens community and Koslowitz in the MTA’s discussions.

Cohen noted that there are still many questions that need to be answered regarding the site. He said that Koslowitz is pleased that the MTA is considering the alternative. He added that the agency has committed to hosting a meeting before Aug 1. to discuss bringing in a third-party consultant to review this matter and making a recommendation.

New plan for old Parkway Hospital

From DNA Info:

Developer Jasper Venture Group LLC, in partnership with Auberge Grand Central LLC, purchased the hospital's mortgages for about $6.5 million in 2012 and two years later snatched up the site with a $1 million bid during a foreclosure auction, according to published reports. Now developers plan to renovate it into affordable housing for seniors.

Builders plan to gut the original six-story hospital building, which features two basement levels, and turn it into 70 apartments for seniors, according to Michael Cohen, a spokesman for Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz. The company would also build an additional three floors atop the building to include 27 market-rate units.

The owners are also planning a 12-story tower in the parking area between the former hospital and the Grand Central Parkway that would feature 200 market-rate apartments, Cohen said.

According to DEC, the soil has "low concentrations (ppb) [parts per billion] of petroleum compounds in groundwater on the site."

"DEC is planning to request that the applicant gather more data to determine if remediation is necessary to protect the public and the environment," Kevin Frazier, a spokesman for DEC said in an email Monday.

The application, according to DEC, is currently “undergoing a 30 day public comment period.”

Comments are closed December 30. Info is here, site code is C241193

Drivers ignore fact that pedestrians have the right of way

From DNA Info:

Dozens of complaints have been made about reckless drivers in Kew Gardens and Forest Hills this year, and parents say they're increasingly fearful to cross the streets with strollers.

A group of several mothers from Central Queens, an area with a growing population of young families with children, said crossing the street with kids can be a terrifying experience, especially along Queens Boulevard and Kew Gardens Road.

Michael Cohen, a spokesman for Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz, said reckless drivers are a big problem in the neighborhood. In this year alone, he said, the office received about 75 complaints from residents being concerned “either with lack of observance by motorists or the need for enforcement or the need for new or modified traffic restrictions.”

One of the most dangerous spots is Queens Boulevard at the intersection with 71st/Continental Avenue, where two pedestrians were killed in the past two years. Some 28 pedestrians were injured there between 2008 and 2012, according to the DOT.

The good news is that DOT is reviewing the intersection.

Council District 29 debate video

From BoroPolitics:

The six Democrats running in a packed race for City Councilwoman Melinda Katz’s (D-Forest Hills) seat called for better health care and more schools in the district at a TimesLedger Newspapers debate last week during which the candidates also tackled the Cord Meyer rezoning, ethnic tensions and term limits in the run-up to the Sept. 15 primary.

District 29 candidates Heidi Harrison Chain, Albert Cohen, Michael Cohen, Mel Gagarin, Karen Koslowitz and Lynn Schulman gathered at the Flushing Library Friday for the one-hour debate held by Community Newspaper Group, the TimesLedger’s parent, which was mostly cordial and during which the candidates frequently agreed with one another.

For more coverage of Queens politics, visit the Queens Campaigner.

Liberal Party boss in pay-to-play

From the NY Post:

Attorney General Andrew Cuomo today revealed the inner workings of an $800,000 pay-to-play kickback scheme at the state comptroller's office involving former Liberal Party boss Ray Harding and the selling of a state Assembly seat for Alan Hevesi's son.

The felony complaint alleges that Harding obtained the large amount in illegal fees on state pension fund investments as a reward for opening up a state Assembly seat for then- Comptroller Alan Hevesi's son and for over 30 years of political endorsements.

And from the Daily News:

Queens Democrat Michael Cohen has no plans to end his City Council bid despite being named today in AG Andrew Cuomo's felony complaint against former Liberal Party boss Ray Harding.

Michael Tobman, Cohen's political consultant, said his client is "still a candidate."

Tobman could not go very far in responding to Cuomo's allegation that Harding worked with unnamed aides to then-Gov. George Pataki to land Cohen a six-figure job with the Health Insurance Plan of New York in exchange for his agreement to give up his Assembly seat so Andy Hevesi could run for it.