QCA wants artists' housing, but Katz wants a soccer stadium

I went to the Queens Borough President’s office today to pitch affordable housing for artists. They’re building a soccer stadium.

— Kelly Olshan (@KellyOlshan) June 22, 2018

And there you have it.

Queens Council on the Arts now lobbying for liquor licenses

From the Queens Ledger:

The Knockdown Center continued its years-long fight to secure a liquor license at the Community Board 5 meeting last Wednesday, during which affiliates, employees and the owner of the center all took to the microphone and handed out pamphlets advocating for the board to reconsider their vote last year to deny the license.

The move comes after the center’s recertification hearing last month with the State Liquor Authority, during which a vote on the license was postponed until the SLA’s June 2nd session. The SLA had previously denied the center’s initial application in May of 2014.

A handful of other community members attended the meeting to make the case for the center, however a board rule limiting the number of people who can advocate for a certain issue during a public forum to three precluded many from speaking.

In a letter she was unable to read aloud but passed on to this newspaper, Lynn Lobell, Grants and Resource Director for Queens Council on the Arts, said her organization was a strong supporter of the center.

“Local artists value Knockdown Center as an important arts resource,” the letter read. “QCA supports the Knockdown Center because they are committed to be a positive force in the community.”

Pardon me, but why in hell is the grants director for a tax exempt not-for-profit arts organization such as QCA lobbying a community board for a liquor license?

Recipe for tweeding

• Take a charity founded by Melinda Katz's mother
• Throw in this cast of characters
• Add elected officials bending over backwards to give their funding to them
• Top it off with $14,500 in donations from the Argentos and Dave Sklar to Melinda Katz

and this is the result:

Public dollars going toward a place that the community board and community-at-large, oppose, that's not actually an arts center, but a niteclub for Brooklyn gentrifiers.

Could it be that I have it all wrong and the KDC is actually a place where Katz will hone her singing skills and Curtis will host erotic poetry readings? (BARF!)

Don't donate to Queens Council on the Arts. Or any elected official that gives them money, for that matter.