Quinn carries on Manton legacy

From the Daily News:

There's a remedy for political insurgency - incumbency.

There's nothing like winning office to turn insurgents into the best pals of the powers-that-be. "You're one of us now," the late Queens-Democratic boss Tom Manton was known to tell candidates who bucked him and won.

Christine Quinn must have learned that lesson well from Manton, who helped make her City Council speaker in 2006. In her carrot-and-stick reorganization last week of the Council's swarm of committee chairmanships, Quinn doled out committee or subcommittee chairs to 11 of the 13 newcomers to the Council, including eight who were elected with the help of the insurgent-friendly Working Families Party .

There was much talk after the November election that the new members, especially the WFP bunch, would form the nucleus of a more independent Council.

Quinn did one of her smiling burns when asked if giving chairs and lulus to so many newbies could be seen as trying to co-opt them. She said the newcomers "might bring skill sets to make a committee work well and help the Council do a good job."

In other words: "You're one of us now."

Here we go again...Bloomberg may close firehouses

From the Daily News

The FDNY is facing drastic cuts - even the possibility of closing firehouses - as the city grapples with a devastating budget crisis, the Daily News has learned.

FDNY officials and Mayor Bloomberg's staffers have met to negotiate the upcoming budget, and, while it's a last resort, firehouse closures are "on the table," Fire Commissioner Salvatore Cassano told The News.

"Everything is in play," a grim Cassano said when asked about firehouses. "We've received no assurances that anything is safe. Everything is up for discussion."

More talks are scheduled in the coming days as Bloomberg prepares to release his budget plan on Thursday.

The FDNY, like most agencies, has been told to expect significant cuts to close the budget gap, Cassano said. Much of the FDNY's budget goes toward day-to-day operations - meaning any cuts would sting.

"Our budget is 90% on the operations side. So when the mayor says to make cuts, it stands to reason that operations will be looked at," Cassano said.

Which firehouses are at risk of closing is undecided. But FDNY sources said the 16 companies targeted for shutdown during last year's budget negotiations - but ultimately spared when the City Council restored funds - are again being considered.

The check's not in the mail

From the NY Post/AP:

WASHINGTON -- Dozens of current and former corporate executives have a message for Congress: Quit hitting us up for campaign cash.

Roughly 40 executives from companies including Playboy Enterprises, ice cream maker Ben & Jerry's, the Seagram's liquor company, toymaker Hasbro, Delta Airlines and Men's Wearhouse sent a letter to congressional leaders Friday urging them to approve public financing for House and Senate campaigns. They say they are tired of getting fundraising calls from lawmakers - and fear it will only get worse after Thursday's Supreme Court ruling.

The court ruled that corporations and unions can spend unlimited money on ads urging people to vote for or against candidates. The decision was sought by interest groups including one that represents American businesses, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. They argued that restrictions on ads they could finance close to elections violated their free-speech rights, and the court agreed.

Hiram's got a God complex

From the Daily News:

Convicted girlfriend beater Hiram Monserrate on Sunday compared himself to murdered civil rights workers as he stepped up the fight to keep his state Senate seat.

Claiming he was targeted because he is Latino, Monserrate announced that civil rights lawyers Norman Siegel and Steve Hyman would take his case.

"Students from the college that I went to died to help African-Americans have the right to vote," Monserrate said. "Today, the Senate would seek to push back the clock and discredit the major movement that occurred here in the United States to protect the rights of all Americans."

Monserrate (D-Queens), who last summer likened himself to Jesus Christ, is fighting expulsion from the Senate after his October misdemeanor assault conviction for abusing girlfriend Karla Giraldo.

A Senate committee headed by Sen. Eric Schneiderman (D-Manhattan) found Monserrate unremorseful and recommended the Senate either expel or censure him.

Monserrate has vowed to fight expulsion with a lawsuit.

NYS Parks to scrap flag program

From the NY Post:

The state Parks Department had been hard at work preserving some 2,000 flags and standards carried into battle by New York military units -- most of them dating to the Civil War.

Nearly 500 flags, battered by decades of neglect, have already been meticulously conserved and made fit for display -- at a cost of only $100,000 a year.

Now, faced with budget cuts, the department is scrapping the program.

The standards are vital markers of New York's critical role at places like Gettysburg and Antietam. And New York has so many of them only because of its outsized contribution to the Union cause.

That needs remembering.

Save the battle flags -- now.

Schumer wants to limit visas

From NY1:

Senator Charles Schumer wants to make it harder for international travelers from 14 countries to get what he calls "revolving door" visas.

He proposes stricter limits on tourist and business visas for people from countries the United States considers dangerous, including Yemen, Pakistan, Iraq and Iran.

Currently, people can come and go as they please for the length of the visa.

The change would require visitors to get a visa every time they wanted to enter the United States, something the senator says would have prevented alleged terrorist Umar Farouk Abdumutallab from boarding a U.S. bound plane with explosives on Christmas Day.

"If the proposal we're making here today were adopted, the odds are very high Abdulmutallab wouldn't be allowed to get on that plane in Nigeria and the terrorist scare would never have happened," said Schumer.

The senator also said seven of the September 11th hijackers entered the United States using open-ended visas.

Titanic Joe has left the building!

Rumor has it that 11th Street's Titanic Joe has set sail and donated his collection to the Greater Astoria Historical Society.

Aw, hell, it's not a rumor!

From "Titanic Joe" Colletti:

"I am extremely happy that GAHS is going to preserve this collection for future generations. I did it for the people that died on the boat - NY has very few memorials to the Titanic and after speaking to one of the survivors who mentioned this to me, I decided to create something dedicated to their memory."
Joe grew up in Hunters Point but has moved to Sunnyside.

GAHS will be working with him on various ideas to keep the memorial alive.

Woman dies during abortion in Jackson Heights

Queens Clinic Under Scrutiny after Woman Dies Getting Abortion

NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- An investigation is underway after a woman died undergoing an operation, believed to be an abortion, at a clinic in Queens.

The 30-year-old woman bled profusely after an artery was severed during the procedure Monday afternoon at A1 Medicine at 95-45 Roosevelt Avenue in Jackson Heights, sources tell 1010 WINS.

The woman was rushed to Elmhurst Hospital where she was pronounced dead.

The clinic advertises plastic surgery and gynecology on a sign outside of the office.

The incident is under investigation.

LIC restaurant owner's revisionist history

From the Daily News:

TRENDY HAS a new address, and it's in Long Island City.

In the neighborhood's formerly industrial Hunters Point section, new businesses and eateries are opening, even amid a recession.

Locals said they hope they will spur even more economic growth.

The new restaurants include the highly-anticipated Breadbox Cafe, which opened in a former auto mechanic's shop on 11th St. and 47th Road.

"We had a vision of changing the neighborhood from industrial to residential," said co-owner Tal Shuster, 34. "We believe in the neighborhood."

"We took something that was a dump and we made something that was needed," said another one of Breadbox's three co-owners, Moshe Mizrahi, 47. "For years, people didn't have any place to eat."

Wow, hear that, Manducati's, Jackson Avenue Steakhouse, Waterfront Crabhouse, Water's Edge, Dorian's Cafe and McReilly's? (Oops...scratch McReilly's...) Your neighborhood has arrived because a group of pretentious assholes has opened a restaurant in an old service station (service stations being dumps that serve no useful purpose). And Hunters Point had been erased from the map until a bunch of luxury condos were built there. Living in dreamland must be fascinating!

The picture isn't all rosy, said Brian Adams, chairman of the Hunters Point Merchants Association.

"We've lost a lot of businesses," Adams said.

He blamed the closings on a poor economy, coupled with rising commercial rents. He also said construction on the Borden Ave. Bridge and the No. 7 train on weekends hampers pedestrian traffic.

Hmmm...You'd think the influx of new people who are now stuck in their neighborhood would lead to more foot traffic, not less. Why don't they support their local merchants?

Photo from ourlic.com

Rapist caught with his pants down

From DA Richard Brown:

Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown announced today that a 22-year-old Corona man has pleaded guilty to brutally sexually assaulting two women in unrelated incidents during a three-month period
in 2007-2008.

The District Attorney identified the defendant as Robinson Fana, 22, of 104-53 Roosevelt Avenue in Corona, Queens. The defendant pleaded guilty yesterday to first-degree rape and first-degree criminal sexual act before Queens Supreme Court Justice Gregory L. Lasak, who indicated that he would sentence the defendant to a determinate term of 23 years in prison at sentencing on February 24, 2010.

In the second incident Fana sexually attacked a 27-year-old woman he had just met at a nearby nightclub in back of 23-31 94th Street just after 2:00 a.m. on January 26, 2008. As in the earlier incident, Fana ordered the woman to perform a sexual act on him and when she refused, he forced her by repeatedly punching her with a closed fist in the face – breaking her nose. When police arrived at the scene, they found the victim bent over a car and Fana standing behind her with his pants down. The victim was crying and screaming, “Help me, help me, he’s raping me.” She had a bloody nose and swollen and bruised eyes, lips and cheeks.

Gangbanger gets 38 years in mistaken identity killing

MS-13 member gets 38 years for killing wrong man
By JANON FISHER, NY Post

A Brooklyn federal judge sentenced a ruthless, unrepentant MS-13 street gang member to 38 years in prison for murdering the wrong man in a 2006 Christmas Eve revenge killing in Flushing, Queens.

Hector Portillo, 20, pleaded guilty last September to standing over the body of Pashad Gray and repeatedly firing bullet after bullet into the body of the man he mistakenly thought was a Bloods gang member who had previously stabbed him.

The diminutive street hood showed no remorse as he shifted restlessly and looked around the courtroom when Grays sister asked for an apology.

“Can me and my family get an apology?” Rynadia Whittingtondo asked Judge Sterling Johnson.

“I gave him the opportunity, but he declined to speak,” said Johnson when issuing his sentence. “It would be good for his soul to do so. Whether it’s here in open court or locked behind bars, he has 38 years to [apologize].”

Portillo, who has been part of the Central American-based gang since he was 11 years old, had also pleaded guilty to repeatedly stabbing another man that he had thought was badmouthing MS-13.

Limo driver smokes pot with clients

From the Daily News:

The '70's live inside the four doors of Al's white Cadillac.

For $100 an hour, late-night club crawlers can spread across its red leather seats, roll up its tinted windows and share a fat joint with the driver - Al, the affable cannabis chauffeur.

Al's dope limo service is a semisecret in the Manhattan after-hours party scene. To arrange a tour, you call Al on his cell phone and book a ride.

"I've been doing this a long time: 11 years," he said. "I take you where you need to go in the city in an enjoyable atmosphere."

The reporter - who did not smoke weed - watched as Al lit and passed a marijuana blunt while driving up Eighth Ave. towards Times Square on Thursday night.

The News is withholding Al's last name since his extra-special service isn't exactly legal.

It not being exactly legal is exactly why you should report his name. Haven't you ever seen "Shame On You"? Is DUI still illegal and highly dangerous or am I missing something?

He's killing us with taxes

From the Daily News:

Today, New York City faces a frightening economic future because it has priced itself as a luxury product dependent on a narrow set of customers, namely Wall Street firms and those businesses which lived off the once-thriving work provided by the finance industry, like corporate lawyers or high-powered consultants. But with Washington eyeing a flurry of new regulations and taxes on financial firms that could limit future profits and growth in the industry, New York may be hard-pressed to find other industries that can boost its fortunes.

Let’s start with property taxes. Thanks to the mayor’s tax increases, as well as sharp boosts in assessments, firms located in Midtown Manhattan pay, on average, $15.20 a square foot in property taxes, up 53% since 2001, according to research by the Studley real estate firm.

That bite is more than triple the national average of $4.48 a square foot for major cities, and it’s five times the average of commercial property taxes per square foot in northern New Jersey, resulting in millions of dollars of extra taxes for big companies The bottom line: Since 2002, total real estate tax collections in New York have almost doubled, from $8.6 billion to $16.1 billion — a rate of growth nearly three times the rate of inflation.

Even more troubling is that the city taxes have grown under Bloomberg, who constructed the city’s budget as if the housing and finance bubbles of a few years ago would go on forever. A previous IBO study estimated that the local tax burden in 1997 was 79% higher than other cities, but the burden then shrank because of tax cuts enacted by the Giuliani administration and the City Council in the late 1990s. Between 1997 and 2000, the burden declined by about 8%, before starting to rise again under Bloomberg.

Marty's sense of entitlement

From the NY Post:

Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz's SUV was seen last week zooming through red lights in Flatbush as if it were an emergency vehicle, on the way to a press conference with Mayor Bloomberg.

Markowitz defended the use of lights and sirens as "appropriate."

"They are only used with great discretion," insisted Mark Zustovich, the beep's spokesman.

He has been caught before blazing through Brooklyn.

In October 2004, one of his constituents complained that Markowitz's SUV whipped through a red light at Third Avenue and Sackett Street. An aide later said the beep was on his way to a speech.

When asked why Markowitz has lights and sirens in the first place, his spokesman replied, "They were authorized by the city of New York."

Not according to the mayor's office, which says it has nothing to do with what elected officials install in their vehicles.

Not according to the state motor-vehicle law, which makes no provision for elected officials to use equipment reserved for emergency vehicles such as ambulances and police cars.

And not according to the NYPD.

Men arrested for candy possession

From the Daily News:

Cops accused Cesar Rodriguez and Jose Pena of having crack cocaine in their work van, but it was only coconut candy, they said Friday.

Charges were dropped after tests showed they were telling the truth, but the two men plan to file a $2 million suit against the NYPD.

"I spent five days in jail for possession of coconut candy," said Rodriguez, 33, an ex-con who works as a plumber's assistant.

He and Pena were parked near an Arthur Ave. bodega Jan. 15 when two police officers asked to search their green Chevy Venture van, the men said.

The cops found pieces of the crystalline candy - known as crema de coco and sold in bodegas across the city - in a plastic baggie.

Officer Anthony Burgos of the 48th Precinct arrested the duo for drug possession despite their insistence they were guilty only of a sweet tooth, Rodriguez said.

"I kept telling him it is candy," he said.

Does this scare you? It should.

From the NY Times:

He had written “The Jerk,” about three inches high, on a campaign poster for James P. Molinaro, the Staten Island borough president. The undercover officers had taken a picture of the poster. There was no question that Mr. Sullivan had written it; moreover, there was no doubt that for weeks before that, he had launched far more pungent strikes against Mr. Molinaro in letters to a newspaper and public officials, criticizing the borough president’s plans to develop part of the Staten Island waterfront.

Somehow the police had begun an investigation of Mr. Sullivan, 52, a former merchant marine who is now an advocate for environmental protection. He was brought to the 120th Precinct and charged with criminal mischief, a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail. Once the case came to court, the Staten Island district attorney declined to prosecute him.

Who gave the orders for the police to investigate him? Why would a nearly broke city squander resources on this? And by the way, what about freedom of speech?

The posters themselves appear to have been put up illegally. Given that, it is unlikely that writing on one of them, as Mr. Sullivan did, would violate any law.

The circumstances of his arrest are too important to be explored only in a civil case, which often winds up being simply a matter of dollars and cents. The City Council is supposed to watch over the executive branch of government, including the police. A lawsuit does not freeze the rest of democracy. Nor is it a substitute.

Jamaica High School teachers speak out

The ‘Unit’ Opposes Hardship Claim by Hotel Developer Shut Down By City

DUTCH KILLS COMMUNITY ADVOCACY UNIT: THE UNIT
PO BOX 8070 LONG ISLAND CITY NY 11101

For Immediate Release

The ‘Unit’ Opposes Hardship Claim by Hotel Developer Shut Down By City

Dutch Kills Residents to Defend Community Against Developer at Board of Standards & Appeals Hearing. Press Invited.


Public Hearing: #300-08A (21 of 150 on the agenda)
Date: Tuesday, January 26 2010
Time: 10:00 AM
Location: 40 Rector Street, 6th floor, Hearing Room E.

Hotel developer Steven Bahar is asking the Board of Standards & Appeals (BSA) in an upcoming public hearing to overlook the problems and violations that plagued his hotel project in Dutch Kills on the basis of “financial hardship”, thus allowing continual construction of his hotel even though it will violate the new zoning laws that limit tall buildings.

The NYC Department of Buildings, for reasons ranging from unsafe working conditions to damaging neighboring properties, repeatedly stopped Mr. Bahar’s project, currently under construction on 27th Street in Dutch Kills, Long Island City. As a result of being shut down by the City, Mr. Bahar was unable to finish the foundation of his hotel before Dutch Kills was re-zoned in October 2008 to restrict the construction of tall buildings.

The Dutch Kills Community Advocacy Unit (aka The Unit) urges that this public hearing be covered by the media. We believe that Bahar will be the first of many hotel developers who will cry “hardship” to circumvent the Department of Buildings and the zoning laws to allow their stalled projects to go forward. We are confident that Mr. Bahar’s “hardship” claim will be turned down and the ensuing publicity will discourage other hotel developers from trying the same.

The Unit was formed in October 2009 as an advocate for the needs for the local resident of Dutch Kills. This was in the wake of the re-zoning process that was urged by Dutch Kills residents to preserve the residential ambiance of our neighborhood. The re-zoning was repeatedly delayed. During the delay, permits were issued to no less than 14 hotel projects, including Mr. Bahar’s, thus allowing out-of-scale commercial buildings to invade quiet residential blocks. A large portion of these hotels is in foreclosure; many are now half-built hulks, blocking the light of many Dutch Kills residents.

Our legal counsel, Stephen A. Harrison, Attorney-At-Law, advised us that the claim of financial hardship is often successful at a BSA hearing unless the community makes a good showing in protest of it. Thus we would like to stress again, the importance of the media covering this hearing. The local residents of Dutch Kills have to abide by the law and there is no reason why developers cannot do the same.

For additional information, please contact:

Barbara Lorinz, Director
The Unit
(347) 448-0094

Stephen A. Harrison, Attorney-At-Law
718-745-1797
544 Bay Ridge Parkway
Brooklyn, NY 11209

LIC artist's murderer caught, charged

From the Times Ledger:

The boyfriend of the late Long Island City artist Susan Woolf allegedly used two different knives to murder her and then fled to Florida where he was arrested last week, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said.

Tambiev Tigran, 43, lived with Woolf, 49, in the apartment at 43-35 10th St., Brown said. He was charged with second-degree murder, aggravated criminal contempt and weapon possession, the DA said. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 25 years to life in prison.

“This brutal and senseless stabbing resulted in the death of a talented sculptor,” Brown said in a statement. “This case will be vigorously prosecuted to ensure that justice is served for the victim and her family.”

A limited order of protection had been issued against Tigran last September prohibiting him from assaulting or harassing Woolf, Brown said. But on Dec. 11, Tambiev allegedly attacked her, using two knives to stab her 18 times in the back and chest and knocking her two front teeth out, Brown said. She was found the next day with packing tape around her neck by a friend who was concerned about her, authorities said.

Police sought Tigran for questioning after the murder but were unable to immediately locate him. He turned up at an apartment in Miami, the DA said. He was arraigned Friday and remanded without bail after being extradited from Florida, authorities said. His next court date is Feb. 2.

Hevesi may have a primary challenger

From the Times Ledger:

Forest Hills resident Lilianna Zulunova said she plans to challenge state Assemblyman Andrew Hevesi (D-Forest Hills) in this year’s Democratic primary and is going around the community to spread word about her platform issues that include job creation, affordable housing and education.

Zulunova, 26, has been a familiar face on the borough’s political scene and most recently was the campaign manager for Democratic City Council candidate Albert Cohen. She has also worked as deputy chief of staff for former state Sen. John Sabini, been the campaign coordinator for Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley (D-Middle Village) and worked for state Sen. Malcolm Smith (D-St. Albans).

“Seven years ago, when I had the opportunity to be an intern at Sen. Sabini’s office, I made the decision that this is what I want, this is how I can be effective and help my community,” said Zulunova, an adjunct communications professor at LaGuardia Community College in Long Island City.

Zulunova said she seriously began thinking of running in September’s primary against Hevesi, who has held the seat representing the 28th Assembly District since 2005, while working as the campaign manager for Cohen, who lost to Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz (D-Forest Hills), the first Bukharian to run for Council. Zulunova is also Bukharian.

The 28th District covers Forest Hills, Rego Park, Middle Village and Glendale.