President Biden doesn't know who the representative of East Elmhurst is

President Joe Biden came to Queens and he did not know who East Elmhurst's congressperson was.

When he realized it was @AOC he thanked her for representing the alley.

The other officials there didn't know it was her alley, er district either

Farcical pic.twitter.com/gk2M8SadM7

— This is JQ LLC (@ImpunityCity) September 7, 2021

Gazette mistakenly publishes fact checked Melinda speech

Well these are some interesting notes printed on the Gazette's website.

When the web editor wakes up and removes the mistakes, fear not, as a copy of the entire webpage has been saved by yours truly.

De Blasio jobs prediction is full of crap

From the Observer:

Nearly everyone noticed the lack of detail in Mayor Bill de Blasio’s State of the City proposal to create 100,000 “good-paying jobs”—and it appears that’s because it’s simply an extension of what the city’s mayoral-controlled Economic Development Corporation has done for the past 15 years.

The jobs proposal was the centerpiece of the State of the City address de Blasio delivered at the Apollo Theater in Harlem last Monday night. De Blasio vowed his policies would produce 100,000 positions over 10 years in a variety of sectors throughout the city, with salaries ranging anywhere from $50,000 to $75,000 a year or more.

The mayor promised work in film and TV, technology, life sciences and “advanced manufacturing,” though declined to offer much in the way of an explanation of how the city would generate these jobs.

“This new addition, this new focus on creating more and more good-paying jobs, this will be the new frontline in keeping New York City affordable,” he said.

For the mayor’s emphasis on what a “new” and ambitious undertaking this is, a 2016 report from the New York City Industrial Development Agency, a public benefit corporation that the EDC runs, credited its combination of tax incentives and bond financing with the creation and preservation of approximately 146,000 jobs since 2002. That would average roughly 10,428 jobs a year.

This would suggest that the mayor’s plan for 100,000 jobs between Fiscal Year 2018 and Fiscal Year 2028 is merely a projection of a pattern of growth the IDA and EDC established over the past decade and a half.

Council candidate calls for investigation of Katz

From the Queens Chronicle:

Queens Borough President Melinda Katz in her State of the Borough address Friday proposed the placement of a soccer and hockey arena at Willets Point, as well as a school, economic recreation center and a parking facility at the 62-acre site.

Katz, in her address, said, “… as we await the outcome of the lawsuit, let’s ponder additional options.”

“We should be unafraid we should think bigger, bolder and more comprehensively,” she later said. “We need to review positioning ourselves for success by thinking creatively about further options that address our changing borough’s needs — a new school, an eco-recreation center, more parking to accommodate simultaneous big events that we have there now, because all those big events that we have now are wreaking havoc on the soccer fields and grass in Flushing Meadows for parking.

“And to help pay for it, let's consider a soccer stadium, let's consider a hockey stadium” she said. “Just imagine if we, the World’s Borough, hosted the World Cup or the Stanley Cup.”

One opponent of the mall project quickly criticized the borough president’s proposal.

"Borough President Katz's push for yet another stadium in Willets Point on property that was essentially stolen from small businesses for the supposed use of creating a new affordable residential community — a plan that she herself negotiated in 2008 as the Land Use Chair on the City Council! — would be almost comical if it weren't so disturbing,” said Paul Graziano, an urban planning consultant, plaintiff in the lawsuit and City Council hopeful.

“Law enforcement officials should look very carefully at possible collusion between the Borough President's office and the developers in question, as this seems to be yet another attempt at grabbing our city's public property in order to further enrich a few very already wealthy individuals at our expense," Graziano, who is running as a primary opponent against Councilman Paul Vallone (D-Bayside) in September, continued.

Markey vs. Barnwell at Maspeth shelter hearing

Thought you'd enjoy these. They are quite something. Perhaps a preview of primary day?

NY delegation doesn't recognize Joe Crowley

Not too many people in the NY delegation are listening to Virginia Joe’s speech. Maybe he should move back home?

Katz called out at her own speech

From Cleanup Jamaica Queens:

At Thursdays “State of the Borough” by Queens Borough President Melinda Katz, a reader of my blog who was at the event, wrote a comment “When she (Katz) went on and on, some female voice in the audience cried out “When are you going to mention Jamaica”. Right away, I said, has to be friend and comrade-in-arms, Pamela Hazel, since I knew she was going to be in attendance.

My comrade-in-arms, Jamaica resident and community activist Pamela Hazel, is a force to reckon with when it comes to elected officials ignoring and not addressing Jamaica’s quality of life issues, I should know, I have worked with her on several issues over the years. Now Queens Borough President, Melinda Katz, felt that force on Thursday, January 21st at her bullshit “State of the Borough” address, where Ms. Hazel interrupted Katz’s bullshit and hollow speech on Queens, not once but two times on her ignoring Jamaica’s issues.

Considering that the audience was filled with Katz's lackeys and assorted asshole elected officials, here was a fresh dose of reality thrown at Katz and the audience. I am sure she had no idea what hit her since she was expecting accolades from many of the assholes in attendance.

And then there's this tidbit:

"See the guy in the blue jacket with the official Borough President notice to Pamela’s left? That’s Bruce Adler who also doubles as the photographer for the Queens Tribune, Nussbaum’s rag. Seems to me a conflict of interest here, no? Working for a politician and then reporting on them? Visual proof that one hand in Queens washes the other." - George the Atheist

Because money grows on trees

From NYC Council Watch:

Does the Council imagine that the good times will roll on and on? When a downturn hits, it will be interesting to hear the cries of pain when these social service programs are forced to scale down.

Your Watcher was fascinated last February by the tremendous effort and resources that the Speaker’s office poured into her egregious “State of the City” address. As you may (or probably don’t) recall, she built an extremely elaborate website to livestream her speech, which was branded with a special “Lift Every Voice” theme, very much like a political campaign.

As I wrote then, there is no reason for the Speaker of the Council to give a “State of the City” speech. The mayor is supposed to give one, according to the Charter, but there is no such obligation for the speaker. Think about it: does Carl Heastie give a “State of the State” address? No. Did John Boehner give a “State of the Nation” speech? How absurd.

In any case I FOILed the Council to get information on the cost and planning of Melissa Mark-Viverito’s speech. Building fancy websites is not cheap, and livestreaming an event costs a lot too. The Council’s FOIL officer took nine months to answer my request, and what she gave me makes the release of Hillary Clinton’s emails seem like the epitome of transparent, open government. I received scores of pages of emails that were entirely redacted except for the “From” line. About twenty pages were totally black: it was only just possible to see that these pages were nothing more than screenshots of the website. So why were they blacked from view?

So much for the openness Mark-Viverito promised upon her election. Her office’s answer to my simple request to see emails pertaining to the production of the exercise in vanity that was her “State of the City” speech is an embarrassment.

Dromm only let de Blasio supporters inside town hall

From Progress Queens:

Dozens of New Yorkers showed up to a town hall meeting held by Mayor Bill de Blasio (D-New York City) at Public School 69 on Thursday evening in Jackson Heights, Queens.

But these dozens were forced to stand inside a make-shift police pen outside P.S. 69, to wait to see if municipal employees could accommodate them inside.

At least five municipal staff paced outside P.S. 69 with iPads, like they do at Apple stores, checking people's names on a reservation list that would determine if the New Yorkers would be allowed to attend the town hall meeting.

Contrary to a previous report published by Progress Queens (subsequently corrected), the town hall meeting turned out not to be open to everybody. Attendees had to apply for a reservation with the office of Councilmember Daniel Dromm (D-Jackson Heights), who would then pre-approve attendees, in order to screen out any critics of the de Blasio administration. A request was made via e-mail by the publisher of Progress Queens to Councilmember Dromm, seeking a reservation. After that request was never answered, the publisher of Progress Queens carried a protest sign outside the site of the town hall, drawing attention to the restrictive policies in effect on town hall attendees.

When the publisher of Progress Queens explained that Mayor de Blasio was holding a town hall meeting at P.S. 69, many individuals complained that their children attended P.S. 69, but the school administration hadn't informed them about the mayor's town hall. Unfortunately, the publisher of Progress Queens had to explain to the disappointed parents that Councilmember Dromm had required an R.S.V.P. from town hall attendees, from which he would screen attendees based on the degree of their political support for Mayor de Blasio.

DeBlasio not a fan of the first amendment

From DNA Info:

An electrician. A retired ConEd worker. A recruiter. A law enforcement officer.

These are just a few of the protesters whose messages are so disruptive to Bill de Blasio that his aides have been shooing them into a so-called "free speech zone" at the mayor's public events over the past few months — despite de Blasio's past defense of First Amendment rights.

The mayor's office has come under pressure for its so-called "free speech zones," which aides defend as a way to minimize disruption at de Blasio events.

First Amendment advocates, however, see the zone as an unseemly change for the formerly protest-friendly mayor, who has defended the right for people to protest issues ranging from Occupy Wall Street to the death of Eric Garner during an NYPD arrest on Staten Island.

The rules are different now that he's on the other side of the podium, many activists said.

Happy birthday, Mr. Washington

Washington's Farewell Address (issued as a public letter in 1796) was one of the most influential statements of republicanism. Drafted primarily by Washington himself, with help from Hamilton, it gives advice on the necessity and importance of national union, the value of the Constitution and the rule of law, the evils of political parties, and the proper virtues of a republican people. He called morality "a necessary spring of popular government". He said, "Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of peculiar structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle."

And here is the text.

Melissa not keen on housing in IBZs

From Crains:

In her State of the City speech Wednesday, Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito called for increased protections for the city's dwindling industrial and manufacturing zones, putting her on a collision course with Mayor Bill de Blasio, who is eyeing those zones for housing.
Ms. Mark-Viverito said the City Council would work to implement recommendations laid out in a report issued last November to "protect industrial space and support growth in the city's traditional manufacturing sectors, like furniture and ethnic food, and also nurture growing creative-sector industries."

Ms. Mark-Viverito's speech came amid tension between the council and Mr. de Blasio over the future of the city's 21 industrial business zones. The mayor is looking for ways to add apartments to the IBZs, which former Mayor Michael Bloomberg shielded from residential rezoning but largely ignored during his final years in office. Critics sense a similar lack of enthusiasm from Mr. de Blasio, whose first budget slashed funding for the IBZ program and whose aides talk of putting "workforce housing" in industrial areas to advance the administration's goal of creating 80,000 affordable units.

State of City speech: DeBlasio pushing forward with Sunnyside Railyard housing plans

From DNA Info:

The city is planning to develop thousands of units of affordable housing at Sunnyside Yards, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Tuesday.

In his State of the City address, the mayor said the city wants to build 11,250 affordable apartments at the 200-acre rail yard, comparing the proposal to the original mission of housing developments like Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village.

"That's enough housing for over 30,000 hardworking New Yorkers," de Blasio said during his speech. "It will be a game changer."

State of City speech: More ferries coming to Queens

From DNA Info:

Mayor Bill de Blasio announced expanded ferry service across the five boroughs in his State of the City address Tuesday, saying the rides will improve transportation as the city continues to grow.

The new ferry routes include Astoria, southern Brooklyn, the Lower East Side, Soundview in The Bronx and Rockaway Beach — and will cost the same amount as a subway ride, he announced.

The ferries will be run and funded by the city, and are expected to begin in 2017, a source said.

The mayor's office said the ferry expansion — which was first reported by DNAinfo New York Tuesday morning — was a way to accommodate the city's growing population.

It will cost $55 million, with plans to expand to Coney Island and Stapleton in Staten Island once more money is secured, the city said.

The city had already announced plans last November for a dock at the Astoria Cove development, which will be funded by the mayor's office, the Queens Borough President Melinda Katz's office and City Councilman Costa Constantinides.

Meanwhile, Peter Koo and Paul Vallone want some ferry love thrown their way.

Cuomo ready to shut down the government over reform

From Capital New York:

Governor Andrew Cuomo laid out a five-point plan to combat corruption in the State Legislature during a speech Monday at New York University, promising to use his power in the state budget process to enact new reforms, even if it means shutting down the government.

“A governor’s maximum leverage, vis-a-vis the Legislature, is the budget process. In that exchange, the governor can effectively say to the Legislature, ‘Either pass my budget, or shut down the government,” Cuomo said, recalling the federal shutdown that occurred during his time working for the Clinton administration. “It was ugly, but sometimes ugly is necessary.”

The governor’s speech comes shortly after Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver was arrested by federal law enforcement officials and accused of taking millions in bribes and kickbacks as part of his work with two outside law firms. U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara, whose office is prosecuting the case, said he is continuing to investigate lawmakers in Albany, which he has deemed a “cauldron of corruption."

Asked after the speech if he had “any clue of what was to come regarding Sheldon Silver,” Cuomo denied any prior knowledge.

“Absolutely not,” said Cuomo, whose Moreland Commission probed legislators' finances before it was disbanded. “No one had any clue. I was totally shocked on a number of levels.”

At the heart of Cuomo’s proposals are changes he’s previously presented: the creation of more robust campaign finance restrictions, alongside a public financing system and far greater disclosure of legislators' outside income.

The governor also said he would push for a change to the state constitution that would deprive a convicted public official of a pension, end the use of campaign funds for personal use and curtail legislative “per diem” payments to cover only actual expenses.

Airport improvements on Cuomo's agenda

From the Wall Street Journal:

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants the state to take over construction projects at LaGuardia Airport and Kennedy International Airport.

Cuomo made the announcement during his state of the state address in Albany Wednesday. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey runs the airports.

The governor said LaGuardia and JFK are busy but rate poorly in design and passenger experience.

He says the development of a new central terminal at LaGuardia has been "frozen in time."

He says both airports also need upgrades that will bring retail shopping, restaurants, on-airport hotels and free Wi-Fi.

He says he's planning to redevelop JFK's cargo capacity, which already supports about $6.3 billion in economic activity.

A spokesman for the Port Authority didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Helen's words of wisdom

From the Queens Chronicle:

Queens Borough President Helen Marshall referred to Rep. Grace Meng (D-Flushing), the first Asian-American congresswoman from New York, as “Chinese” at a rally for the Voting Rights Act on Friday.

“We have this wonderful young Chinese woman who works in this borough,” Marshall said to Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), who also spoke at the event, held at Borough Hall. The borough president was speaking of the greater role minorities have come to play in the electoral process in recent years.

Marshall’s aides were quick to jump in and mention it was Meng — who was not in attendance — the borough president was referring to.

“Yes, she has done wonderful things for our borough and is a prime example of the strides our borough has made,” Marshall said after she was reminded.

Her office later added that the borough president’s statement was not malicious but that Meng’s name had briefly slipped her mind.

In fact, Marshall spoke quite highly of Meng during the rally and quickly corrected herself by saying, “Oh yes, Grace Meng,” after the initial statement was made.

The congresswoman’s office could not immediately be reached for comment.

Shortly after, Helen made an endorsement:

Shafran campaign unintentionally funny

- He tells the Bay Club that he's been preparing to run for City Council his entire life
- The biggest hand he got was for mentioning the need for a traffic light on Corporal Kennedy street
- His "inspiring" story is just lame, and he's reading from prepared notes.
- He's speaking about himself in the 3rd person.
- People on the way to the buffet table cross in front of him while he is speaking.
- At the very end of the video, a woman yells out, “THANK YOU FOR BREAKFAST!” So that's how he got them to listen to him. Captive audience.

Here's his latest mailer:



Austin needs to understand that you can't ban outside employment unless you get the council job description changed from part-time to full-time.
The problem is not that the districts do not get an equal amount of ice cream money to spread around to local not-for-profits, the problem is that certain council members have been funneling this money to their relatives and friends. Evening out the playing field won't end political slush funds, it will just even out the playing field.
Does it really matter if lobbyists can't lobby their own family members in elected office? (This is currently illegal, anyway.) If they are family, it will behoove the family's long term financial picture for the elected official to vote in favor of whatever the firm's pushing for. Example: At some point, Pete Jr. and Paul are going to inherit the money Pete Sr. made lobbying. So of course they're going to vote yes on his projects without having been lobbied themselves.

Does anyone really believe that Austin spent time with his grandmother at the senior center?