CB14 thinks kayaking will bring tourists

From the Queens Courier:

Community Board 14 Chair Dolores Orr said the Parks Department had presented the board’s park committee with rough plans for kayak launching bays in Rockaway, along with concession stands throughout areas that are part of Gateway National Park.

Orr said the community desperately needed the project even before Sandy, as it would bring more tourism and revenue to the area.

“We are very much in favor of that in Rockaway,” she said. “We have a very large kayaking community.”

Kayaking has tapped into the water sports subculture in Rockaway. The New York Times last summer featured a story about kayaking trips in the bay. Access, however, has been restricted for many — especially after the storm cause extensive damage and pollution.

Homeless numbers hit new high

From the Daily News:

The number of homeless people recorded in city shelters each night has topped 50,000 for the first time, a new report has found.

An average of 50,135 people — including 21,034 children — slept in shelters each night in January, the Coalition for the Homeless said.

The report released Monday said there are now more homeless people in the city than at any time since the Great Depression.

From AM-NY:

A report released Tuesday found there were more than 50,000 New Yorkers living in shelters a night in January but the city's Department of Homeless Services say there's more to the numbers than meets the eye.

The Coalition for the Homeless' annual report found that the population residing in city shelters increased 61% since Mayor Michael Bloomberg took office in 2002 and blamed the increase on his policies.

DHS Commissioner Seth Diamond remarked that the findings in the coalition's State of the Homeless report don't tell the whole story because there are fewer families entering shelters this year and finding homes for them doesn't happen overnight.

NY1 tackles Jamaica garbage problem

From NY1:

It's unsightly, but not uncommon to see garbage piled high in and around 107th Avenue near Sutphin Boulevard.

"Every time I see this it makes me more and more frustrated," one resident said.

The area is littered with tires, mattresses and all other types of trash.

Councilman Ruben Wills (D-Jamaica) said the residents are ultimately to blame.

"These are people from our community dumping," Wills said.

The dumping started more than a decade ago in abandoned lots, but it got significantly worse during the recent economic downturn, when Jamaica became the epicenter of the city's growing number of housing foreclosures.

People now litter and drop garbage on the streets and sidewalks as well as the numerous vacant lots. Some residents say the problem is spreading to other areas with very little crackdown from the Department of Sanitation.

The department has said that it is doing its part to maintain the area.

But longtime residents who have been meeting informally to try to find solutions to the problem said not enough is being done.

City breaks ground on waterfront development

From Crains:

The Bloomberg administration broke ground Monday on the first phase of a huge residential project on the Queens waterfront that is destined to become the largest such development since Co-op City was built in the Bronx over forty years ago.

First to rise in Hunter's Point South section of Long Island City will be a pair of 30-plus story apartment towers, with 925 units. Before sinking his ceremonial shovel to the soil the mouth of Newtown Creek, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that two more towers will follow. The administration is poised to kick off the second phase of the project next month, when the city seeks a developer for another 1,000 units.

Monday's ceremony is another indication that the mayor is not shirking away from the waterfront in the wake of Superstorm Sandy.

So we're subsidizing waterfront development in an area that was underwater during the hurricane. That's really smart. 27 inch sea level rise by 2050...

Mrs. Mott's Douglaston house to be drastically altered

Here's some history:

38-60 Douglaston Parkway, constructed in ca. 1865, is a two-story, 4 bay, wood frame, rectangular plan, single-family residence. The one-and-a-half-story sub-type has a strong Greek Revival presence with elements that include a heavy cornice and deep fascia boards; 6/6 double-hung wood sash windows; a hip-roofed portico with plain entablature supported by substantial wood piers, and a rectilinear transom and sidelight configuration at the front door. The cornice at the north end of the street elevation is embellished with Italianate paired brackets. Other features include a cross-gabled roofline, and louvered wood shutters. A one-story, flat-roofed wing is attached at the rear (west) elevation. An early twentieth century, two car garage is placed at the southwest end of the property.

The first documented house constructed in the Village of Marathon was the John Quade (later) house, built in 1854 and located at 39-18 Douglaston Parkway. For over one hundred and twenty years, the west side of Douglaston Parkway north of the railroad tracks up to Bay Street (originally Myrtle Place), was lived in by members of the Quade family, an extended tenant farm family originally from Ireland. The earliest remaining buildings are the John Quade House, later shown as the P. Dimmeny house on the Beers Atlas of Long Island (1873); the D. Starkings house (c. 1865), located at 38-80 Douglaston Parkway; and the Mrs. Mott house (c. 1865), which was moved from just south of the John Quade house in 1956 to its current location at 38-60 Douglaston Parkway.

Mrs. Mott's house, saved from destruction 6 decades ago, is soon to lose all of its historic value and character. A permit for "vertical and horizontal extensions" was issued this week. This will basically look like a brick box when the dust settles.

We can thank Council Member Dan Halloran for this. He has been opposed to everything that's been calendared by the LPC since he became council member.

The Douglaston Extension is the only ORIGINAL part of Douglaston left, with the original farmhouses, etc. - and he's against it because it is "our right in liberty and freedom to develop our property as we deem fit in America" and "property owners should not be forced to landmark their property against their wishes" because it's a "taking of property rights." Never mind that the extension was supposed to be included in the original designation of 1997 with the rest of Douglas Manor, and the LPC was going to follow-up on it - which they did.

Dan stated - flat out - during the 2009 campaign that he was against landmarking the Douglaston HD Extension in principle but understood that there were mitigating circumstances (that it was supposed to be included in 1997) that changed his opinion. As soon as he took office, he reneged on that position. He's opposed to other two designations because property owners are opposed. Sometimes there is an overriding public need to protect something. In the case of the Ahles House, it's the last remnant of the Bell family, who essentially created Bayside. Here's another example:

39-12 Douglaston Parkway, constructed ca. 1910, is a two-story, 2-bay, wood-frame, L-plan, late Queen Anne style residence. The straightforward ‘Free-classic’ farmhouse has a wrap-around hip-roofed porch on the east and south elevations supported by stylized classical columns, interspersed by a simple wood porch railing. The building is finished with wood clapboard siding and the 1/1 double-hung sash are flanked by louvered wood shutters. The two-story projection on the south elevation is gabled, but does not rise to the full height of the main roof; it contains a one-story angular bay with a hipped roof. The site drops off sharply to the west close to the street and the long lot terminates at a seasonal pond.

The pond was filled in by the owner. Then he built a horrible addition to the original house. Then the house went BOOM. Then he demolished most of the original house. Apparently, he started reconstruction today and is bricking over the remnant that's still standing.

Dan Halloran, by putting a roadblock between the LPC and the designation of these homes, is personally responsible for the destruction of one of the oldest remaining streets left in Queens - first the Huang construction explosion disaster and now 38-60 being destroyed by a developer - because his ideology - and lies - have gotten in the way of saving the history of our neighborhoods for future generations to appreciate.

Arverne residents don't want beach toilets

From the Daily News:

Years before surfers and foodies rediscovered Rockaway and made it a hip place to visit, a group of homeowners took a chance.

They purchased homes at Arverne by the Sea, a suburban-styled subdivision built on an urban renewal tract.

But now residents of that growing community say they feel betrayed by the city, which plans to place public comfort stations near the beach for the first time in the area.

Residents complain the modernistic, modular structures would block their oceanfront views and lure day-trippers to an area with scant street parking.

While beaches in Rockaway are owned and operated by the city, public access has always been an issue.

Beaches in some neighborhoods, including the more upscale sections of Belle Harbor and Neponsit, are not easily reached by non-residents. There are no real amenities for visitors and street parking is heavily restricted. The closest subway stop is miles away. Most visitors rely on Jacob Riis Park, which is run by the National Park Service.

In Arverne, however, the subway is just up the street.

So basically, they want a private beach. You live between the water and a subway. People are gonna come. Personally, I would rather have tons of beachgoers and a bit of a blight on the horizon than the ghetto that's there now. But I didn't buy a house there.

Bloomberg really wants soccer stadium

From the Daily News:

Mayor Bloomberg played goalie Monday, defending a plan to build a pro soccer stadium in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens.

The planned 25,000-seat stadium “would be absolutely great for the city,” Bloomberg said, noting the 13 acres of parkland being eyed for construction “isn’t used very much and isn’t in good shape.”

Whose fault is it that it isn't in good shape? And wouldn't that be the reason that it's not used very much? Lots of lobbying going on by MLS.

How is this legal to sell in NYC?

Ingredients listed on the label of a red bean paste filled donut from New York Cake Bakery in Murray Hill...

All trumps
Almonds Flour
Full strength flour
Soft-Silk Flour
S-500
Cake Mix
Corn Flour
Honey
Brown Sugar
Sugar
Corn Syrup
Strawberry Jam
Raspberry Jam
Margarine
Butter
Egg
Cheese
Milk
Dry Milk
Cream Butter
Mayonnaise
Oil
Whip Cream
Baking Soda
Baking Powder
Yeast
Chocolate
Fudge
Chocolate Chip
Cocoa Powder
Cinnamon Powder
Apricot Filling
Almond Paste
Red Bean Paste
White Bean Paste
Coffee
Vanilla Flavor
Orange Flavor
Almond
Pecan
Raisin
Walnut
Chestnut
Sesame Seed
Peanut Butter
Ketchup
Tuna
Sausage
Corn
Salt
Ham

Seriously? WTF is S-500? Pretty sure there was no ham, tuna, ketchup or sausage in the pastry.

Some Jamaica garbage problems are City's

So let's take a look at the 3 nominees for today, Sunday, March 3rd:




1. 90-23, 90-25 170th Street. Owners: East Elmhurst Dev. Corp., Sharon Kahen, Chetra Shiwprasad. Not quite your typical low class apartment in Jamaica at first view, but a closer look at the front yard, which can be seen from the sidewalk and you will see garbage cans piled high with no lids, garbage strewn all over the yard around the area and a broken down fence. I have complained before about this eyesore, but it just continues and of course degrades further an otherwise degrading community.

2. 89-19 170th Street. Owners: Ent. Jamaica Realty, Enayet Hossain Gazi, Muhammad Gazi, Abdur Molla. Although the photo only shows one garbage can overflowing with no lid and other cans with no lids, in a few days this will be a mess. Have reported this eyesore quality type building many times. Not only is it an eyesore with the garbage, but has no Certificate of Occupancy (and how can that be), several violations, including an illegal apartment in the basement and cramming as many people in as a pinata filled with candy.


3. AND NOW THE WINNER of the low class ghetto property owner award, drum roll please.........ta da............. The honorable Michael Bloomberg and the City of New York's , the New York City Department of Transportation Vehicle Processing Property (NYCDOT). This huge piece of property located at 92-33 168th Street directly across from the Home Depot, is a major eyesore to all that go by it and it is in plain view for all to see. I had reported this property during the summer and even the Public Advocacy office came out and took pictures.



Garbage thrown all over the place, garbage cans overflowing, even a Donate Your Car sign attached to the one fence, all under the watchful eyes of the city, who should be leading by example and not leading by example of that disgraced former Senator Shirley Huntley. Michael Bloomberg and company, you should bow your heads down in disgrace that this property looks like one big piece of shit. We are attempting to clean up our community and our own city is a big culprit in the garbage mess here in Jamaica. GOOD WORK! Hey Bloomy, I wonder if you allow this to happen at Gracie Mansion or City Hall. I think you need to get a broom and shovel, hop on the E train and bring Christine Quinn and clean this shit up.

So The Honorable Michael Bloomberg and the NYCDOT, you win the low class ghetto award, a fake hollow sterling silver 12 inch statue (made in China) of an individual next to a garbage can throwing down a big chicken thigh bone with a 2 litter bottle of Pepsi on a clean sidewalk while his pit bull takes a huge dump that does not get picked up.

Ah, just another typical average Sunday morning stroll in Jamaica. And it was only about 6 blocks.

Joe Moretti

DeBlasio advocates for more free babysitting

From the Queens Courier:

Not enough of the city’s school four-year-olds are going to pre-kindergarten, Public Advocate Bill de Blasio announced in a new study, especially in Queens.

For Queens, this means that for every five applicants there is one Pre-K seat –- effectively leaving many tots without the early education the public advocate believes they need.

Two of the densest Queens school zones regarding applicants per seat are District 24, in the central and southwest parts of the borough, and District 26 in the northeast.

Only 20,000 of the city’s 68,000 eligible children get to go to Pre-K, according to de Blasio’s report. The public advocate has proposed a plan to allow all four-year-olds to go to Pre-K, along with after school programs between 3 and 6 p.m. for middle schoolers.

Coming soon: skyscrapers with holes in them

From the NY Observer:

When Two Trees Management bought the old Domino Sugar site from CPC Resources and a reluctant Katan Group, a local developer told The Observer that Jed Walentas would be “crazy to go back to ULURP” for a rezoning of the site, which had already been approved for thousands of high-rise apartments.

But going back to to everyone’s favorite acronym (to pronounce, at least) is exactly what Mr. Walentas intends to do. He and SHoP, the New York-based architecture firm that Bruce Ratner tapped to design the Barclays Center and Atlantic Yards after Frank Gehry proved too expensive, called a group of reporters to SHoP’s offices near City Hall on Friday to show off their plans for the site.

The first thing Mr. Walentas spoke about was Two Trees’ desire to expand the amount of parkland included in the project—adding two new acres—and to make it more accessible to the public.

He criticized the open space in the old site plan as something that “felt very much like a privatized front lawn for people who lived there,” and spoke about his desire to pull the buildings back inland to make more space for the quarter-mile-long waterfront park, as well as add a new public street between his buildings and the waterfront.

But the extra park space comes at a price: the towers will have to rise higher to make up for the smaller footprints. The tallest tower on the site would rise to 598 feet, or about 60 stories—much taller than the 340-foot maximum height in the currently approved plan.

Bloomberg booed in Rockaway

From the Daily News:

Mayor Bloomberg was dogged by jeers as he marched in a St. Patrick’s Day parade through the Rockaways, booed by some residents frustrated with the city’s response to Hurricane Sandy.

The parade was a welcome break for the Queens neighborhoods devastated by the storm but the dozens of boarded-up businesses and damaged homes along the route were a symbol of the work that still needed to be done — and the raw feelings of the locals.

“I booed loudly,” said Margaret Wagner, 48. “We had no food, no shelter. People died here, and Bloomberg was on TV talking about a marathon. It’s appalling.”

Council Speaker Christine Quinn, the mayoral frontrunner, briefly walked with Bloomberg but then fell back along the route.

Opposing the USTA's land grab

Civic leader Ben Haber testifies during a meeting of Queens Community Board 7 held on February 11, 2013, in opposition to the proposed expansion of the United States Tennis Association in Flushing Meadows Corona Park.

And here's his letter to the NY Times from 1993...

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Paul Vallone continues to deny his past as a lobbyist

From the Times Ledger:

Community Board 7 is asking the state attorney general to investigate how unauthorized soil was dumped on a waterfront lot in Whitestone where a luxury housing development is planned, TimesLedger Newspapers has learned.

The board sent a Feb. 20 letter to Attorney General Eric Schneiderman requesting a probe into whether or not toxic material was illegally transported to the 13-acre vacant site, known as Waterpointe, where the construction of 52 homes is planned.

That soil was transported under the auspices of Massachusetts-based consulting company EBI Consulting and Whitestone-based contractor Barone Management. The two companies were cleaning the site of historic contamination as part of the state Brownfield Cleanup Program, in which private companies get financial incentives to clean sites following state Department of Environmental Conservation regulations.

The board has had several committee meetings with all concerned parties. CB 7 members Chuck Apelian and James Cervino had recused themselves from making any decisions about the process. Apelian said he had prior business relationships involving the site, and Cervino’s company was hired to import untouched soil to replace the contaminated earth. None of Cervino’s soil was questioned by the DEC.

Paul Vallone, a board member and City Council candidate, also has loose ties to the property. He is a partner in his family law firm, Vallone & Vallone, and is sometimes listed in city lobbyist databases as working for Constantinople & Vallone Consulting LLC, which was hired by the previous owners of Waterpointe in 2006 to lobby the city about the zoning of the property.

Vallone said his name is sometimes listed as a lobbyist as a technicality, since he works at the family law firm, and that he has never worked at his father’s consulting firm.

“My name has nothing to do with this project,” he said.


Ok, we went through this 4 years ago, and chrome dome still hasn't gotten it through his thick skull that no one buys his B.S. on this subject. Pictured above are the partners in the Vallone law firm. Peter Vallone, Jr. is a member of the firm. He is not registered as a lobbyist. Is he breaking the law? I doubt it. The explanation proffered by Paul has been proven to be nonsense, yet he continues to stick with it. Do you really want someone with this level of dishonesty and intellect representing you in the City Council? He's running in District 19, not 30.

149th Street down the sewer

"In late 2010, at the intersection of 149th Street and 33rd Ave in North Flushing, four of the sewer catch basins on my corner were replaced, reason unknown, and by August 2011 the grass and dirt between the curb and sidewalk collapsed and created a large enough hole for someone to fall all the way down into the bottom of the catch basin, especially when the metal curb piece shifts away.
It was reported by my neighbor 3 times and myself 2 times. In January 2013, a car with "Premier Utility Services" showed up, blasting Latin music, to mark up the street, curbs and some sidewalks on all 4 corners and intersection in red and yellow paint marking electric and gas lines. The workers told me it was to fix this corner's catch basins. Nothing more has been done yet, as of this writing. Let's see what happens.

BTW, this street was repaved in April of 2011, after these basins were installed. So now the newly paved street will probably get torn up and have a patch." - Frustrated in Flushing

Brown's been served

From the Village Voice:

Lawyers for whistleblower cop Adrian Schoolcraft today served Queens District Attorney Richard Brown with a subpoena demanding that he give a videotaped deposition and turn over all documents related to Brown's finding that there was no criminal conduct when Schoolcraft was forcibly removed from his home by police commanders in October, 2009, the Voice has learned.

As the Voice's NYPD Tapes series reported, Schoolcraft was dragged out of his home by police on the orders of Deputy Chief Michael Marino on Oct. 31, 2009 and held against his will in the Jamaica Hospital psychiatric ward for six days. This took place three weeks after he reported corruption in Bed-Stuy's 81st Precinct to investigators.

Those allegations were later proven true in a report kept secret by the NYPD for nearly two years before it was disclosed in the Voice last March. Schoolcraft's lawsuit alleges he was forced into the psych ward as retaliation for talking to investigators.

It's fairly rare for a sitting district attorney to be hit with a subpoena in connection with a case he oversaw. But then, the Schoolcraft story is anything but routine. It may be the most embarrassing episode of Police Commissioner Ray Kelly's long tenure. And the list of unanswered questions about Schoolcraft's treatment could fill a book.

Brown's statement clearing police and hospital officials of criminal wrongdoing in the incident was released in mid-December. In the statement, Brown said the investigation took "three years" and was "comprehensive." "After thoroughly reviewing all of the available evidence and considering all applicable provisions of law we have concluded that there is no credible evidence to support the filing of criminal charges in this matter," he wrote.

The timing of the statement was odd. Even people intimately familiar with the Schoolcraft affair didn't know any investigation was taking place. Schoolcraft himself was only interviewed once by prosecutors in Brown's office for just 90 minutes. He wasn't even notified before Brown's office released the statement. And the announcement also came at a time when Schoolcraft was between lawyers, and therefore, more vulnerable.

"One would think that the Queens DA's office would first consult with the complainant before sending out the press release," says Peter Gleason, Schoolcraft's lawyer. "DA Brown's so-called comprehensive investigation creates more questions than answers. I'm hopeful a review of his file will lend some clarity to what I characterize as the kidnapping of Adrian Schoolcraft."

Unions against paid sick leave

From Crains:

The city's biggest construction contractors are attacking proposed city legislation that would mandate paid sick leave, fearing it will offer a costly handout to some of the highest-paid unionized workers in the city, including thousands of carpenters, electricians and plumbers.

The sick-leave law's backers say the bill is aimed at low-wage workers who receive little or no time-off benefits. Yet contractors complain that language in the legislation that cites employees "in the building and construction industries" would add additional time onto already-generous paid leave for their employees—enabling them in essence to double-dip. "This is being promoted as a law to help the busboy or the retail worker," said Denise Richardson, managing director of the General Contractors Association. "But it's also helping unions who already have great benefits."

The legislation would force contractors to pay for five more days of time off for their workers, a cost that would average about $2,500 per employee and potentially $250 million annually across the industry. Contractors charge that the added burden would push up costs at a time when the unionized construction industry is already losing market share to far cheaper nonunion competitors, as more developers seek to save money.

"This is only going to add to the burden of using union construction," said Louis Coletti, president of the Building Trades Employers' Association. "In the end, it's something that is going to get passed along to the developers."


A spokesman for the Building Construction and Trades Council, which represents the industry's major unions, declined to comment.

Ms. Richardson and other representatives of union contractors said the city's more than 50 construction unions, which together count about 100,000 members, currently receive three weeks of paid time off per year per employee on average—a far cry from the disadvantaged worker the bill is proposing to help.

Electeds tell USTA that their support can be bought

Crowley-Moya-Ferreras letter to USTA by

Summary:

"Build it union, publicize some free clinics and drop a bundle into the coffers of the Flushing Meadow-Corona Park Conservancy and we'll let you do whatever the hell you want.  Just make it look like we got something out of you so the stupid voters keep returning us to office.

Yours truly,

The Three Tweeding Stooges."

So it's come to this...

From DNA Info:

David Boyle and his wife Michele Bertomen were worried they would never be able to afford to build their own home in Brooklyn.

The couple bought a 20-by-40-foot piece of land at 351 Keap St. in 2008, trying to get ahead of the wave of gentrification they feared would soon price them out of Williamsburg. Initially, they planned to build a tiny home out of bricks and mortar, but when they put out a bid, it came back as potentially costing half a million dollars.

"We were just sitting around one night, bottle of wine, just feeling like we couldn't do it," said Boyle, a 55-year-old contractor whose wife is an architect. "And then just, 'How about shipping containers?' came up. So Michele just sat down and did the calculations, in the terms of the size, fire ratings, how you can stack them up… And she said it would work."

The couple, who have been together for about 20 years, bought six shipping containers at $1,500 apiece and began work on what they believe is the first private residence in the city made out of shipping containers.

They worked on the design, which has the three containers stacked on top of each other with a stairwell connecting them in the middle, and erected the nearly 1,600-square-foot structure in late 2009 in about three hours.

Pressure getting to Johnny?

From the NY Times:

John C. Liu, New York City’s comptroller, turned his performance at a neighborhood forum for mayoral candidates into an ultimatum to federal officials investigating his campaign fund-raising, demanding on Thursday night that they “put up or shut up already” after a multiyear inquiry.

Mr. Liu’s forceful critique of the federal agents looking into the legality of his donations, unprompted by a moderator or his rivals, captured his mounting frustration with an investigation that has cast a shadow over his fledgling campaign.

“Despite my record and despite my vision for the city, which I think is the right vision, there are still whispers about this cloud hanging over my head,” Mr. Liu said in his closing statement at the forum, focused on poverty and income inequality.

His voice rising in anger, Mr. Liu listed his grievances: “Three years of investigating. They wiretapped my phones for 18 months. They reviewed a million documents and messages. They interrogated thousands of my supporters. And yet, what do they have to show for it? It’s time to put up or shut up already. Because I have an election to win!”

No respect for Flushing Meadows

From the Queens Chronicle:

We’re tired of Flushing Meadows Corona Park being the Rodney Dangerfield of the city’s crown jewel green spaces. Why do we in Queens get no respect?

For weeks we’ve been covering Major League Soccer’s plan to eat up about a dozen acres of the old fairgrounds for a new stadium. Even leaving aside the myriad logistical, environmental and economic problems with the very vague plan, we’ve concluded that simply proposing it is offensive because Flushing Meadows is a public park —one that’s already suffered enough through city neglect.

Note that one selling point for the stadium is that MLS would refurbish the soccer fields in the park if its plan is approved. That should be a city function. But it’s no surprise that the city isn’t doing its municipal duty at FMCP. Though it’s far larger than the city’s true crown jewel, Central Park, the latter gets much more funding and much more staffing.

Underappreciated by the power brokers, the cocktail hour class and even our elected officials, yes. But not by the working-class and poor people, many of them immigrants, who live in the neighborhoods surrounding FMCP. Yes, the fact that they litter and tend to damage trees when they dump hot coals out of their barbecue grills is an affront — but one that better code enforcement could put a damper on. Still, the people who come to the park for a break from the concrete and steel of their neighborhoods love the place. Look at how adamantly many of them oppose the MLS plan —not to mention the much smaller, much more reasonable, much more feasible bid by the United States Tennis Association to take just another two-thirds of an acre.

While Central Park’s amenities are kept pristine, our Queens landmarks in Flushing Meadows, such as the New York State Pavilion, continue to deteriorate as if this was still the crumbling New York City of 1977. Meanwhile, the city plans to spend $4.5 million to turn the old Astoria Pool diving well into an amphitheater, in one of the more overpriced, harebrained schemes we’ve heard of late. How much plain old park maintenance would that money buy at FMCP?

As this page has said before, it’s City Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras who holds the key to saving the park from the MLS plan. If she says no, the rest of the Council will fall in line and that will be that. She’s been noncomittal, and never said a word to us about laying the future of the park at her feet. We again urge you to urge Ferreras to reject the soccer stadium. And now we take it a step further: Demand that she and the rest of our City Council delegation start treating our park the way it should be treated. Fix the soccer fields. Restore the historic structures. Maybe even landmark the park, as state Sen. Tony Avella is asking — the first person ever to do so, according to the city (Prospect Park was landmarked in 1973, Central Park in 1974). And above all, pledge that the long period of neglect at FMCP is over.

Resorts World paid for Vallone-friendly poll

From the Times Ledger:

A new poll from earlier this month shows City Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. (D-Astoria) leading the pack for borough president, though its relevancy was questioned by the councilman’s competitors.

The poll was paid for by Resorts World Casino to get the city’s pulse on gambling in the borough, but the survey also questioned 300 likely Democratic voters in Queens in late January to see who they liked for beep.

The poll found Vallone held an 11-point lead over his competitors in the race: state Sen. Tony Avella (D-Bayside), City Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans), Queens Director of Community Boards Barry Grodenchik, former Councilwoman Melinda Katz and Sen. Jose Peralta (D-East Elmhurst). The margin of error was 5.6 percent.

Vallone would garner 26 percent of the vote, according to the poll, with Katz netting 17 percent, Comrie 13 percent, Avella 12 percent and Peralta 7 percent. Grodenchik was not included in the poll and 28 percent of voters were undecided.

But Avella questioned why a casino group would go out of its way to include questions about the Queens borough president race in a marketing survey.

“You’re obviously trying to influence the election by releasing that information. One has to question if this was a backdoor approach for the candidate who the poll favors,” he said of the survey, conducted by Global Strategies, a national political consulting and public relations firm. “I don’t consider any poll they do reputable. I consider it geared for specific political clients.”

Peralta’s camp noted the margin of error, saying what the poll “essentially says is that back in January you had a five-way statistical dead heat.”

The poll did not rile Katz’s camp, according to spokesman George Artz.

“We are well-positioned and we have only just begun to campaign,” he said in a statement. “The poll itself is a very small sample, with a huge margin of error, put out by a gaming client. At this point, it really only demonstrates name recognition.”

Bottom line is that consulting and public relations firms don't do polls without getting paid to do so, and without being authorized to release the results. In polling, there's also such a thing as confidence interval, and a sample size of 300 falls way below what is needed to accurately gauge the feelings of the target population. With the poll's methodology not published, there's really no way to analyze the data. What parts of Queens were polled? How were the questions asked? Why was Barry Grodenchik left out when he announced his candidacy before Halloween? What we have here is a statistically insignificant survey published by a supposedly "independent, reputable" firm.

Waiting on the City for sidewalk repairs

Repairs increase property taxes

From NY1:

Homeowners who decide to rebuild after Hurricane Sandy may find that they are paying for the privilege.

State property tax law treats repairs to a home in the same way it does improvements, like a deck or an addition. Which means New Yorkers looking to restore their home to the same state it was in before the storm, could see a spike in their property tax bill.

"Many of these people, their position is, 'Even if I do build, my taxes are going to go up. I can't afford it. I'm being taxed out. I'm being taxed out,'" said Brooklyn Councilman Domenic Recchia. "And that's what we in government have to stop."

The issue was raised at a City Council hearing Thursday.

On the heels of that hearing, Council Speaker Christine Quinn came out in favor of changing the law, which would require approval from Albany. She said it is the fair thing to do to distinguish between the different kinds of construction work.

"Clearly, one person is improving their property at their discretion, and the other is trying [to] restore their life and home after a devastating event outside of their control," Quinn said in a statement.

Mayoral candidate has honest graft experience

From the Daily News:

As a top city official, mayoral hopeful Adolfo Carrion went to bat for a major developer who had arranged to provide an architect for renovations to Carrion’s Bronx home, the Daily News has learned.

Carrion provided the help to developer Peter Fine when Carrion was Bronx Borough President and the developer was wrestling to win city approval for a $300 million project of apartments and retail space, Boricua Village.

Carrion arranged an “urgent” meeting with two city agencies in late 2006 after Fine complained that the project was “not moving forward” because of outstanding issues in the approval process, according to a secret report by the city Department of Investigation.

After Carrion’s intervention, the project, in the Melrose section of the Bronx, began moving again, and five months later, Carrion signed off on the development in his role as borough president.

Poorly planned bike lanes installed at Astoria Park

From DNA Info:

Parks advocates say the new bike lanes that the city installed in Astoria Park are too narrow and will be ripe for collisions between cyclists and pedestrians once the weather gets warm and the park is crowded with visitors.

They also say that the placement of the lanes on grass inside the park, instead of next to the waterfront on Shore Boulevard, will invite pedstrians to stroll on them, creating a dangerous situation.

"It's just too narrow — it doesn't seem to be big enough for pedestrians and bikes," said Martha Lopez-Gilpin, co-chair of the local group Astoria Park Alliance.

She said the group was originally thrilled with the idea of bike lanes being installed in the park, part of the city's Queens East River and North Shore Greenway, a $3.46 million urban trail project to connect the Queens waterfront.

But they were surprised this fall with the Parks Department's placement of the 4-foot wide lanes on park land, contrary to earlier dicussions that hinted they would be on the other side.

"It's where a greenway belongs — it belongs on the road," said Jules Corkery, the Alliance's other co-chair.

"By putting a bike-way into the park, you’re inviting bikes into the parkland," she said, saying it will inevitably lead to standoffs between cyclists and strolling pedestrians, or even between two bikes.

"You cant leisurely ride with a friend in the bike lane, side by side, the way you would in a park. It's too narrow," she said.

A spokesman for the Parks Department said the new bike lanes are intended for cyclists only, and that pedestrian lanes were added to the parts of the path that bordered the park's pedestrian walkways.

The bike-only lanes have been stenciled with a bicycle symbol to let pedestrians know to stay off, the spokesman said.

But Lucille Hartmann of Community Board 1 said that even with the markers, it's likely the lanes will be used by pedestrians making their way from inside the park to the waterfront.

"You're going to have people walking with carriages. They're not planned well," she said. "It doesn’t look like it's going to be safe for the bikers or for the pedestrians."

Lots of day care centers are under the radar

From the Queens Courier:

A little known law may be keeping some Queens day care centers from operating legally, The Courier has learned.

Permits from the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH), a certificate of occupancy from the Department of Buildings and a fire inspection pass are needed for city child care providers who fall under certain categories. These include those who look after three or more kids unrelated to them either in a private home or institution for more than three hours a day, on a regular basis.

But a less familiar rule requires these centers also give written notification to local precincts and fire departments within five days of receiving certifications, the agencies said.

“The day care centers are kind of off our radar. For safety reasons, we’d like to know where they are,” said Special Operations Lieutenant Daniel Heffernan of the 111th Precinct.

According to Heffernan, about 26 centers in the Bayside-based precinct are legally licensed with the city. The precinct’s list is still being updated, but only eight were registered with police as of press time.

It's all connected

From the New York World:

Most political candidates in Queens whose campaigns have done business with the political consultancy Multi-Media Advertising from 2009 through 2012 also received the endorsement of the company’s affiliated newspaper the Queens Tribune.

A New York World review of campaign finance records and endorsements found that of the 15 candidates who purchased services from Multi-Media in competitive races for amounts exceeding $1,000, 11 also received a public endorsement from the Tribune in that race.

Of the remaining four, two were sitting state senators who ran for re-election in 2010. That year, the paper — as a political statement against “enemies of reform” of the state’s redistricting process — made no endorsements of incumbents in state legislative races, even as its sister company printed literature at the behest of the two campaigns and carried out consulting for them.

The other two who did not receive endorsements found themselves facing off against other Multi-Media clients in the same races. In both cases, the paper’s nod went to the client who ended up spending more money — in one case, seven times as much as his opponent.

In all, since 2009 Multi-Media has collected $460,000 from the 11 candidates who received the Queens Tribune’s endorsement in the same races, and an additional $281,000 from the remaining four clients.

Both the Tribune and Multi-Media are properties of a company called Tribco LLC. In January, the company announced that the paper had been sold to PFH Media Group, an investment firm based in Washington, D.C, only to pull out a month later as the Department of Labor investigated payroll practices at another newspaper acquired by the investor.

Tribune editor Michael Schenkler and former publisher Michael Nussbaum declined to comment for this story, following repeated emails and phone calls.

Paul Graziano announces City Council candidacy

From the Times Ledger:

When discussing his decision to enter a crowded Democratic primary race and challenge City Councilman Dan Halloran (R-Whitestone), Flushing’s Paul Graziano did not hesitate to emphasize his focus on fighting over-development in northeast Queens.

For nearly two decades, the urban planning consultant has kept a close watch on the borough’s historic buildings and landmarks and has become a known name in the civic association community because of it. In an interview with TimesLedger Newspapers, the borough activist said he hoped to address quality-of- life issues in northeast Queens by taking a look at zoning laws and considering designating historic districts.

“I believe in property rights, but we need to save the things that are important to us,” Graziano said. “There has to be a balance. It is outrageous that we have had to fight tooth and nail for our districts.”

After attending college at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Graziano returned home to Flushing to realize new concerns over his hometown’s future landscape. With his interest piqued, he then went on to educate himself on zoning law as well as the civic community, earned a masters of science in urban affairs and planning from Hunter College and helped form the North Flushing Civic Association.

Graziano spent the better part of the last 20 years working in various civics throughout northeast Queens and even teamed up with state Sen. Tony Avella (D-Bayside) as a land use and planning consultant in his earlier days as a councilman to help draft a zoning study of the 19th Council District, where he is now running. The redrawn district now includes Little Neck, Bayside, Douglaston, North Flushing, Whitestone, Auburndale and College Point.

That study eventually went on to ensure that any new development in northeast Queens would remain respectful, or in-context, to the surrounding community, Graziano said.

“It was a huge change. Now, areas have stabilized dramatically,” Graziano said. “This still allows for development, but creates a more predictable outcome. It is about saving neighborhoods that deserve to be saved.”

And from Bayside-Douglaston Patch:

In September, he will face off in the Democratic primary for the City Council’s 19th District against Paul Vallone, who is the brother of Councilman Peter Vallone Jr., Empire State Development’s Austin Shafran, Democratic state committeeman Matthew Silverstein and former state Assemblyman John Duane.

“I’m involved in the Democratic Party but all of the other people I’m running against are either in elected office or part of the machine,” Graziano said. “I’m not connected with any of that.”

Graziano, who has a master’s degree in urban affairs, left the Green Party in 2009 to assist then-Councilman Tony Avella in his bid for mayor. But he said the communities that he hopes to represent are not driven by political party loyalty.

“It’s a very apolitical district that focuses on quality of life issues,” said Graziano, who listed education and neighborhood preservation as two of his top campaign issues. “As someone who went to the public schools here and, as someone who is about to get married, there are great concerns about the way the schools have been moving. Districts 25 and 26 have typically been the gold standard, but 25 was recently listed as a district in need. It’s very distressing.”

This photo from the Queens Examiner shows that Graziano attended Tony Avella's press conference on 149th Street last Friday:



Curiously, the Queens Gazette used a cropped shot:

Then you look at their main page and see this:


There actually are 8 Vallone mentions on the online cover of the Gazette this week. Granted, they are Peter Vallone, Jr. mentions, not Paul Vallone.  Pete's head must have exploded when he saw another Italian-American vying for "his brother's seat."

And then the cherry on top of the hysteria over this particular candidate entering the race comes from Queens Politics, courtesy of blogger Adam Lombardi:

Rumor has it Tony Avella propped up a lobbyist for the City Council primary to divide the voting blocs in district 19.

Paul Graziano, who works at an architectural firm in New Jersey as an urban planner (and also worked for Avella) could be part of a massive scheme of voter manipulation with Tony Avella at the helm.

Was Graziano influenced by Avella to run? It’s the million dollar question. The relationship is there and is very concerning.

Questions arise like did Tony Avella hand out proclamation in return for bankrolling his campaign as Graziano did time and time again? Is it favor for a favor? Are the voters going to buy into this power play? After all, seems like Graziano often rewards his former boss in campaign donations for such recognition.

Graziano is an activist, a good activist at that, and we don’t want to see him promoted beyond his level of ability. But to see him being used as a pawn in Avella’s devious political manipulation of the electoral system speaks volumes about his character. 

It’s not rocket science folks.

There is no rumor that this happened, because Paul Graziano is not a lobbyist. The only former lobbyist in the district 19 race is in fact, Paul Vallone. I highly doubt that people other than Lombardi and the Vallones are so delusional that they believe Tony Avella pushed Graziano into the race. Graziano ran for City Council in 2001, has long been mentioned as a possible candidate this year and has been urged by many residents of the newly drawn 19th council district to throw his hat into the ring.

Lombardi seems to be seriously suggesting that Graziano donated money to Avella and is running for Council as a favor to him in return for proclamations which have no monetary value. This kid should lay off the funny cigarettes.  He actually sits on the board of the Bayside Historical Society, yet insinuated on his blog that there was some kind of backroom deal involving awards given out at their meeting.  All to show allegiance to the Vallones.  Now that's kinda sick, dontcha think?

The ultimate stupidity: "Graziano is an activist, a good activist at that, and we don’t want to see him promoted beyond his level of ability."

Lombardi fancies himself some sort of reformer, but instead is doing a wonderful job of being Paul Vallone's Mini-Me, and is blogging about things that are WAY beyond his own level of ability or comprehension.

In simpler language: When this troll doesn't like what he sees, he simply makes shit up.

Many with whom I have spoken feel that Graziano is more than qualified to be a council member. And judging by what's in the council now, I totally agree with them!

[That's right folks, I have Photoshop again.  Let the fun begin.  Lots more where this came from...]

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?

MLS threatens to walk

From the Daily News:

Don Garber, commissioner of MLS, warned the city on Wednesday that his soccer league will look elsewhere to expand if it can't cut a deal with officials for a new Corona Park stadium in a relatively short period.

"If we're not successful we'll throw our hands up, and it'll be far sooner than three years we throw our hands up," Garber said, after his opening season address.

"Then we'd take a step back and see if there's another market. Three years is too long. I don't want to put a year limit on it. But if it's not making progress, the time will come. There's a lot of activity in other markets."

Orlando has been mentioned as a possible alternative site for a 20th MLS team, though Garber sounded committed for now to Flushing Meadows.

"It's the biggest challenge we've ever faced," Garber said. "But you ask Bruce Ratner, Jim Dolan, Charles Wang of the Islanders or Jeff Vanderbeek of the Devils, they'll tell you this is an incredibly valuable market. If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere, so it's worth the effort."

Garber said negotiations continued with several private investors, and that the project would be built exclusively with private financing, for a relatively modest $350 million, including the replacement of parkland and soccer fields. Garber said he thought the league deserved some public monetary support, but "we get that's not going to happen."

New development proposed - but there's a catch

From the Queens Chronicle:

After much speculation, plans were announced at Monday’s meeting of Citizens for a Better Ridgewood to construct a residential building at 176 Woodward Ave.

Developers “propose to rezone the site,” according to Steve Sinacori, an attorney with Akerman Senterfitt, LLP.

Plans call for a 90,000-square-foot building which will reach four stories at its highest point and include retail space and an underground parking garage.

“This will be a vast improvement over what is there,” Sinacori promised.

What is currently there is a parcel of land owned for the past 24 years by businessman Frank Curtin, who rents space on the property to trucks for parking, and which, thanks to its nighttime desolation, Sinacori said, has been used for “illegal dumpings” and prostitution.

“The block is all residential on all four sides of the property. Historically, it has been a storage yard,” Sinacori said. “The neighbors are tired of the trucks and fumes.”

The site is, however, in an Industrial Business Zone, a designation the Bloomberg administration established “to foster industrial sector growth by creating real estate certainty.”

As one area civic leader pointed out after the meeting, City Planning Commissioner Amanda Burden had said when the IBZs were established that they represent an “ironclad commitment to maintain manufacturing zoning in key industrial areas and not permit residential use.”

Ariel Aufgang, an architect with Aufgang and Subotovsky, indicated at the meeting that the building will contain 88 units of housing. Rents will be around $1,000 for a studio and $1,200, $1,500 and $1,700 for one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments, respectively, he said. Utilities and parking would be additional.

On the one hand, eradicating hookers and dumpers is good. On the other hand, the City said it would not rezone manufacturing properties in the Industrial Business Zones for residential. And 88 units is a lot of people in an area with little infrastructure.  Did the City make rules that it intended to be broken?

Presto, chango! Garago to crappo!

"When in Astoria, be sure to pass by 31-84 30th Street and witness this amazing conversion of a 3-car garage into a 4-story apartment building and all within a 30' by 20' lot. The architect of record is CB1’s Zoning Chair John Carusone." - Anonymous


Here are the plans...

Zoning Map 31-84 30th Street by

Carusone's office just so happens to be across the street...