Catalytic converter crime wave continues

QNS 

 Officers from the 104th Precinct in Ridgewood responded to a recent 911 call of suspicious individuals under vehicles, possibly removing catalytic converters.

Upon their arrival at the location, officers from the Public Safety Team took swift action leading to the arrest of the perpetrators without incident and the recovery of tools used to remove the catalytic converters.

Theft of the automotive part rose an astonishing 325% nationwide between 2019 and 2020, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau while the NYPD reports that catalytic converter thefts have risen from 211 to 802 over that same period, and jumped to 3,705 in 2021.

Catalytic converters turn harmful emissions, such as carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxide, given off by the exhaust system into less harmful gasses or water vapor. They are necessary for vehicles to pass safety and emissions inspections in many states and replacing stolen converters can cost as much as $1,500 to $3,000.

Each catalytic converter is worth more than $300 on the black market because they contain platinum, palladium and rhodium, expensive precious metals according to Consumer Reports. The current price for an ounce of rhodium costs in excess of $20,000.

Thieves can steal a catalytic converter in a minute or two, and Councilman Robert Holden is well aware of the increase in thefts in his district.

Queens is still burning: water pressure difficulties led to supply store inferno

 

Queens Chronicle

Two fires hit Jamaica last Wednesday just hours apart. The first was at 101 Plumbing & Electrical Supplies and the second at a two-story vacant commercial building that was once used as a Nissan car dealership.

The blazes at both locations were so severe that the city Department of Buildings held an interagency meeting at the site of 101 Plumbing on Tuesday with representatives of other city agencies, the owner, Lakhinder Multani, and his private engineer, and it also issued a full vacate order for the former car dealership directly after the March 30 fire, which remained in effect after a follow-up inspection on Monday.

The DOB on Tuesday approved plans by Multani to demolish the electrical supply store, located at 138-14 101 Ave., and work was expected to begin that day, according to a spokesman from the agency. An update on the status of the demolition will be issued later this week.

The fire at the plumbing store, went to five alarms, according to the FDNY’s acting chief of department, John Hodgens.

“We had heavy smoke coming from a one-story commercial building ... and a collapse of parts of the interior of the building,” Hodgens said at press conference on March 30.

The blaze at the store, which housed a shop and an industrial warehouse, required the deployment of more than 200 firefighters and EMS workers dispatched from 44 units, according to the FDNY.

“We have no injuries reported,” Hodgens said of civilians. “Our chief concern is containing this fire and preventing it from spreading to the building on either sides of it. We are going to be here for a while.”

The city Department of Environmental Protection had to step in to help contain the fire because of water pressure issues, according to Hodgens.

“We didn’t have enough water coming out from the hydrant main system,” said the fire chief. “We needed DEP to step in and help us isolate [the problem] to get better water pressure.”

Cars had to also be moved for firefighters to put out the blaze, added Hodgens.

“Sometimes we have to use tow trucks to move them,” he said. “We need to get the apparatus into the building to be effective.”

Houses also surrounded the electrical supply store, which was also a cause of concern for Hodgens.

“We addressed that immediately,” said Hodgens. “The fire is contained to 101 Electrical Supplies.”

The fire at the supply store was under control at 1:11 a.m., according to the FDNY.

The city Department of Buildings arrived March 30 and conducted structural stability inspections, according to a DOB spokesman. Inspectors documented extensive fire damage to the property, including the collapse of the building’s roof. The adjoining premises, 138-18 101 Ave, suffered damage to its garage and due to the severity of the damage and the interest of public safety, a full vacate order was issued last Friday.

A more equitable and rational Citibike expansion proposal for Queens

 

Juniper Park Civic 

The Citibike expansion to Queens got a good do over by Juniper Park Civic. Taking DOT's original proposals which would've usurped street curb spaces from residential and commercial parking (spitefully in my opinion) onto ample sidewalk spaces nearby them instead.

 

Let's see how Transportation Alternatives responds... 

 

 

 

Hi, you're welcome to reach out anytime to collaborate on safe streets advocacy. Just email queens@transalt.org.

— Laura Shepard (@LAShepard221) April 7, 2022

de Blasio's boondoggle ferry service is mostly used by the rich and White, as expected

 

AMNY 

 Riders of the heavily-subsidized NYC Ferry system became even wealthier and whiter during the pandemic, according to city statistics.

Annual surveys by the Economic Development Corporation — which oversees the waterborne transit system — show that in 2021 the average income of passengers jumped to six figures at $100,000-$149,999, compared to $75,000–$99,999 for both 2020 and 2019.

In a system long criticized for serving largely the well-off and white living along the Big Apple’s waterfront, a mere 32% of passengers identified as non-white or multiracial last year, declining slightly from 34% in 2020, and 36% in 2019.

The city questionnaire also found that more out-of-towners are coming back to the ferries, as tourism began recovering from a COVID slump in 2021.

Last year 88% of ferry riders were residents of the Five Boroughs, compared to an all-time high of 95% during 2020, and 86% in 2019.

EDC’s most recent report gathered data from 4,100 people in early October. The figures appear to have been published in December, according to its hyperlink address, but have not previously been reported. 

The chairperson of the City Council’s Transportation Committee lamented that the ferry system has continued to leave out needier New Yorkers, despite footing the bill for the service through their tax dollars. 

“The communities that are in need, that are a part of transit deserts, and that have lower household incomes, those are not the communities, unfortunately, that have the pleasure of having a ferry system,” Queens Councilmember Selvena Brooks-Powers told amNewYork Metro. “We need to make sure that it’s not leaving out a community that could greatly benefit from the access and from it being subsidized, quite honestly.” 

The 2021 study notes that the higher incomes last year were “in line” with data the city collected in 2017 and early 2018, however that was before EDC expanded its ferry service area to more blue collar parts of the city like Soundview in the Bronx, which opened a landing in August 2018.

On that route, the majority of passengers make less than $100,000 a year and ridership has the largest share of people of color compared to other circuits — which is still less than half, according to graphics in the report.

New Mets owner lobbying for a casino on Willets Point

 

THE CITY

Steve Cohen, who bought the team for $2.4 billion in the fall of 2020, hosted Mayor Eric Adams and other top City Hall officials at Citi Field this January, where he and others presented ideas for Willets Point, the 61-acre piece of land across the street, THE CITY has learned.

Portions of the neighborhood — known for its hamlet of auto-body shops and junkyards and decades of failed redevelopment plans — are currently getting an environmental clean-up as part of a plan from 2013.

The effort is expected to bring 1,100 affordable apartments and a new school by the end of the decade. Of the 61 acres of land, 23 acres are currently owned by the city. The rest of the land is privately owned.

Cohen’s alleged desire for a casino near Citi Field first made headlines last fall, and it was reported in February that casino operators were eyeing the Flushing ballpark as one of a handful of sites in New York City where they’d like to add slot machines.

In the meeting with top city officials, Cohen discussed potential support for a casino in Citi Field’s parking lot, officials told THE CITY. Cohen’s people also discussed broader plans to beautify the area around the stadium, including potentially adding hiking trails along Flushing Creek.

“For decades, New Yorkers have known that our city can get more out of the area around Citi Field,” Tiffany Galvin-Cohen, a (unrelated) spokesperson for Cohen, said in a statement on Tuesday.

 

Glendale homeless shelter devolves into crime pit, as expected

 

QNS

The Cooper Rapid Rehousing Center has been a hot spot for crime in the Glendale area since it opened in 2020, with a staggering 808 911 calls and 71 arrests made. QNS received exclusive data regarding the operations at the shelter after Councilman Robert Holden demanded answers from the mayor’s office on its effectiveness.

There are currently 183 homeless men residing at the Cooper Rapid Rehousing Center at 78-16 Cooper Ave., none of which are from Community Board 5, Holden said. Most of the residents came from other boroughs.

Councilman Robert Holden has been a staunch opponent of the shelter since it was just an idea. Earlier this year, Holden called on the city to investigate the shelter, claiming it was not upholding its contractual obligations to provide basic benefits like employment services and life skills programming. 

“[Department of Homeless Services], the city, the Bill de Blasio administration has broken almost every promise,” Holden said. “They said this would be an employment shelter, and it’s not. It puts a lot of stress on the limited resources of the 104th Precinct.”

Holden has been battling to get data revealing the operations of the shelter, and finally after contacting Mayor Eric Adams himself, was able to get a look into the shelter’s efficiency. 

Of the 183 men living at the Cooper shelter, 52% of them are employed, according to data from the mayor’s office.

According to the city, they estimate about 64% of the unemployed men are able to work. The average stay for a resident is 314 days.

Since 2020, 71 arrests were made, mainly for assault. Most of the over 800 911 calls made were for an ambulance or a call for help.

 

Down in the hole

 

 THE CITY

Clement Bailey didn’t know what to expect when he moved from Flatbush just as the city shut down in March 2020

He’d bought a two-family house in The Hole, a low-lying neighborhood wedged between South Conduit Avenue and Linden Boulevard that straddles the border lines of East New York, Brooklyn, and Lindenwood, Queens.

Some call it the “Jewel Streets” neighborhood, for thoroughfares with sparkling names like Sapphire, Emerald, Amber and Ruby. But the area sits below the city’s municipal sewer network. With swampy flooding, septic seepage and illegal dumping, the atmosphere is lackluster.

“I can’t stand these conditions, honestly. I’m not used to living like this,” said Bailey, 29. “Everything inside the house is pretty peaceful, but when you step outside the door, you have to deal with all the water issues, the garbage issues. It’s not really appealing.”

A construction worker, he bought the house for his mother and sister to live in. But his mother died last year, and so he’s been living there with his sister.

In The Hole, many homes aren’t serviced by the city’s sewers and instead use septic tanks, which tend to overflow when there’s rain. There are no stormwater drains, so Bailey and his neighbors often navigate lakes of standing water in the streets. Abandoned vehicles sit in empty lots. Paved roads are inconsistent. Strewn trash abounds.

And it’s been this way for decades.

Plans to address the issues have long been stuck in the muck: Twenty years ago, the Giuliani administration proposed elevating the streets and installing sewers in the area. The plan’s been included in the city’s capital budget for at least two decades. Yet nothing was ever done. The most recent “request for proposals” on the project went out in 2019, but remains on hold, according to the Department of Environmental Protection.

de Blasio's boondoggle COVID hotel inmate shelter security contract deemed antiquated by elected officials

 

THE CITY

Since the start of the pandemic, 1,700 inmates released from city jails and state prisons have stayed in hotel rooms at taxpayers’ expense, including more than 200 who have been checked in for more than a year, according to new data obtained by THE CITY.

THE CITY previously reported on the dramatic expansion of the program run by Exodus Transitional Community, including at a Fresh Meadows, Queens, hotel where a former inmate alleged she was sexually assaulted by an Exodus employee. THE CITY also found that the security firm hired by Exodus operated without the required state license.

Now, Queens elected officials are demanding that Mayor Eric Adams pull the plug on Exodus, which has run the hotel-release program since 2020 and which recently scored a new $40 million deal.

U.S. Rep. Grace Meng, state Sen. Toby Ann Stavisky, Assemblymember Nily Rozic and Councilmember Linda Lee — all Democrats — wrote to Adams Monday demanding that he reevaluate the effort, which began in an attempt to curb the spread of COVID.

“It has been nearly two years now, COVID-19 rates are at the lowest they have been since last summer and these disturbing reports by THE CITY make it imperative that the contract be terminated immediately,” they wrote.

Last week, two years after the program started, there were still 800 former inmates staying in six hotels scattered across the city, and the mayor’s office could not say how much money has been spent to date on hotel rooms alone.

 peaking with THE CITY Tuesday, Rozic stated, “Our understanding is the housing situation was always intended to be temporary and always contingent on there being a pandemic. Because there’s no metric, they’ve been able to extend and extend no matter how many times we ask them to provide us with an end date.”

Rozic noted that “this state of emergency narrative is what the city hid behind for the hotel to be used,” and added: “We’re ending all sorts of other [pandemic-related] protocols and for one reason or another this one hasn’t ended.”

And though city officials said the hotel program would end once the state of emergency was over, Adams aims to keep it going, even as it’s no longer designated as pandemic related.

The Queens officials pointed to an August 2020 letter to them from Elizabeth Glazer, then-director of the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice, who wrote, speaking of the Wyndham hotel in Fresh Meadows: “There are no future plans for use of this hotel beyond the COVID-19 response.”

THE CITY found that the initial COVID contract with the non-profit Exodus Transitional Community to run the program expired in December, but Mayor Eric Adams awarded a second contract in January as a way of “keeping 800 people from flooding the homeless system,” according to mayoral spokesperson Jonah Allon.

That decision contrasts with an effort that began nine months ago in the de Blasio administration to begin moving homeless shelter residents out of hotels where they’d been placed during the pandemic back into shelters as part of the effort to re-open the city.

This falls right in line with Adams keeping mask mandates for toddlers and allowing employers to extort their employees into getting vaccinated. But they are saying nothing about those systems that also abuse pandemic protocols.

Caption this p.r. moment of NYPD and "bike" rider "interaction"

This is part awkward and part surreal.

Why would the NYPD use a bike rider emoji for what is clearly a motorcycle. Even if it's a miniature version of a ninja bike.

Take the A(xe) train

 

NBC New York

It was a frightening scene after a man began swinging an ax onboard an A train Friday, police said.

According to the NYPD, police received a 911 call of a person acting erratically and swinging the weapon onboard an A train, heading to Rockaway, shortly after 4 p.m.

"It must’ve been a harrowing call for our 911 operator to hear & relay - a report by a straphanger of a man swinging an axe on an A-train. Thankfully with our enhanced deployment, District 23 officers were at the ready, intercepting the moving train & taking the man into custody," NYPD Transit police tweeted Saturday along a photo of the large ax that appeared to be a couple of feet long.

Police responded and canvassed the area before arresting Obadiah Lashley, 27, at Beach 67 St Station. Lashley was apparently still on the A train when he was apprehended.

It is unknown what charges, if any, Lashley faces or if he has an attorney. It is also unclear how many passengers were on the train or if anyone was in immediate danger.

Any data on how many people bought a car after this incident? 

Endangered Spaces

New York Times 

Don Riepe pointed to the line on the wall five and a half feet above his kitchen floor. That was where floodwaters reached during Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

His home, a humble two-story wooden structure, is decorated with nautical maps, horseshoe crabs and assorted maritime paraphernalia. It sits right on Jamaica Bay, with a small dock at the water’s edge, where he moors his 22-foot boat. He has a spectacular view of the east end of the bay with the spires of Manhattan in the distance.

Mr. Riepe, a former manager of the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, considers himself blessed to be surrounded by nature and still have all the perks of a big city a subway ride away. But he knows his neighbors’ time there may be coming to an end. During his four decades living in the area, Hurricane Sandy was the worst Mr. Riepe has seen; the flooring and all the electrical appliances on the first floor of his house were destroyed. Since then, during lesser storms and even high tides, he moves his computer and furniture upstairs, where he sleeps — and he hopes for the best.

Mr. Riepe is just one of tens of thousands of residents who live on the wild fringes of Queens, in communities like Hamilton Beach, Edgemere and Howard Beach, where the ocean threatens to encroach as sea level rises and coastal storms intensify owing to climate change. It is also the focal point of a major environmental restoration project that aims to protect the area — and in fact the whole city — by returning salt marshes and sand dunes to their natural states. How this will affect the community of Broad Channel (the only inhabited island in Jamaica Bay) remains to be seen.

Already, Mr. Riepe’s neighbors are scrambling to adjust to their new climate-changed reality — moving their cars to higher ground on high-tide days, and in some cases converting their ground floors into garages and shifting their living quarters upstairs and out of harm’s way. One thing that they are not yet prepared to do, however, is move out.

 

Crains New York 

Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, one of the most frequently flooded green spaces in the city, is getting a comprehensive plan on how best to adapt Queens’ largest park to climate change.

This month a congressional spending bill green-lit a $530,322 grant for the Waterfront Alliance to lead a climate resilience plan for the 897-acre park. Those federal dollars, which Queens Rep. Grace Meng requested from Congress last year, will enable the alliance to develop a road map of infrastructure projects and priorities to stymie prolific park flooding, which is only expected to worsen with increasingly heavy rains and sea level rise.

After heavy rainfall, it’s common for huge puddles to transform park basketball courts and fields into ponds for days. Overflow from both Meadow and Willow lakes frequently engulfs trails, making the park a challenge to navigate. Hurricane Ida laid those challenges bare with torrential rains that flooded the park and overflowed onto the Van Wyck Expressway and Grand Central Parkway, which spurred emergency rescues for drivers trapped on the roads.

That’s nothing compared to what’s on the horizon. Without upgrades, much of the green space, which is a former tidal wetland, could be permanently inundated by 2080, the New York Panel on Climate Change said.

Karen Imas, vice president of programs at the Waterfront Alliance, said the city must ensure the park is “prepared for our climate future.” The best way to do that, she said, is by developing a plan with those who know the park best.

“This is really an opportunity to work hand in hand with the community in and around the park and with city agencies to identify what are the greatest hazards and vulnerabilities, and how they can be addressed,” Imas said. That will likely be through a mix of projects, including wetland restoration, bioswales and revamped sewage infrastructure, she added.

 

 

 

Hold the lines

 

Queens Chronicle

A New York State judge struck down the recently agreed upon legislative maps Thursday afternoon, sending state lawmakers back to the drawing board. They have until April 11 to agree upon new maps, the ruling says; the previously approved maps are not to be used in the upcoming election cycle. 

This comes hours after legislators left Albany for the weekend, doing so without the state budget — which expires at midnight — approved. 

The maps just nixed by Acting Supreme Court Justice Patrick McAllister of Steuban County were the culmination of a drawn-out redistricting process following the 2020 Census. For the first time in its history, the state had given an Independent Redistricting Committee the task of drawing the lines; when the committee failed to reach an agreement, at the end of January, the Democrat-controlled Legislature took up the mantle as it had in years past.

The ruling includes the proposed maps for New York’s congressional, state Senate and Assembly districts.

Soon after that, Republicans filed a lawsuit challenging the lines, as many anticipated. Asked about a possible challenge at the time, state Sen. Mike Gianaris (D-Astoria), who has been on the front lines of the redistricting fight, told WNYC’s Brian Lehrer, “When the time comes, we’re confident we’ll make our case to the court and be successful.”

Here's your new bus map Queens

MTA 

Here are what the MTA are calling the "remixed" express and the local lines

And Crappy pointed out that the transit agency made up a town called Fresh Pond in these maps. 

 

Queens Chronicle 

Proposals in 2019 by the Metropolitan Transportation to rework the entire bus system in Queens were roundly hammered by the public and elected officials.

In the two years that Covid-19 put the project on the far, far back burner, the MTA, as promised, reviewed the feedback it collected.

The preliminary draft was unveiled Tuesday at a Jamaica press conference that included MTA CEO and Chairman Janno Lieber, Borough President Donovan Richards and city Transportation Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez.

“The Queens New Draft Plan is the third to be released, but in some ways, may be the most important of the five because Queens has, historically, had less subway service relative to its size and population than the other boroughs,” Lieber said. “So many people depend on buses for access to jobs, education, culture and everything else New York has to offer.”

Lieber acknowledged that the 2019 proposal was not well-received by the public. He said the new plan is an effort to increase the speed and frequency of service, balanced with convenience. He said the new plan applies to local and express service and emphasized that it still is a draft “to address the evolving needs of Queens communities, with a focus on more reliable service, faster travel, better connections, and ease of use.”

“A bus is mass transit in many parts of Queens,” he added. “It is the only way [in some areas] to connect to the subway system and the commuter rail system, so we are really emphasizing this.”

Craig Cipriano, New York City Transit’s interim president, also emphasized the draft nature of the document.

“This is going to be one of the largest bus redesigns in the country, with over 100 routes serving over 800,000 customers a day,” Cipriano said. “We’re eager to hear what you have to say, and there’s lots of room to make changes.”

Richards said the selection of Jamaica for the unveiling was no accident.

“For the residents of Queens who get up every day and go to bus stops, today is a great day,” Richards said. “If you come from Southeast Queens, like I do, you know it can take an hour just to get to one of the train stations here on Jamaica. I often joke, and it’s really not a joke, that it is easier to get to Florida by plane than it is to get to Manhattan from here on some days.”

While Richards said buses are a lifeline to parts of Eastern, Southeast and Southwest Queens, they often are unreliable, overcrowded and slow.

“The routes are outdated, and the schedules haven’t changed with our neighborhoods,” the borough president said. “They not only went back to the drawing board, they’re coming to us with a better product.”

One of the major complaints heard throughout community meetings in 2019 is that while eliminating some existing bus stops speeds up each bus trip, those who use those stops regularly will be at least slightly, maybe greatly, inconvenienced.

Lieber and Cipriano said the idea is to focus on stops that are closer together, which cost riders time at the curb.

“The focus is on connecting people more quickly to the subways and commuter railroads,” Lieber said in a question-and-answer session. “It also tries to balance the needs to move buses more quickly with the elimination of some bus stops while maintaining local bus service, especially with seniors.”

He said that is essential for anyone who does not live in an area close to subway lines.

“Buses have to be faster than walking,” he said.

Among the things Lieber said the city can do to help are things like signal prioritization for buses at traffic lights, and especially bus lanes.

Ex-TransAlt CEO presents scooters for the handicapped

 

Bronx Times

It’s electric!

On Thursday, e-scooter company Bird launched a program that can make wheelchairs electric.

People who use wheelchairs and live in the east Bronx neighborhoods included in the city’s e-scooter pilot can now receive a free attachment for the duration of the City Council-mandated program, which began in August 2021 and will run up to two years.

The three companies participating in the pilot: Bird, Lime and Veo are all offering options for people with disabilities, as required by the city as part of the pilot. But Bird’s newly launched program is unique because it offers free devices that users can hold on to for the rest of the pilot period.

Bird has been offering four-wheeled electric power chairs that can be rented through the company’s app for 1-14 day intervals at $10 per day and can be picked up or delivered for a fee depending on the location.

Lime has been offering a similarly structured program, but for free, with a $5 refundable deposit. The company’s three-wheeled seated scooters can be reserved in advance online or through the app 24 hours to 7 days in advance, and be used for 24-hour periods, with free delivery.

Veo offers free adaptive wheelchair attachments — like the ones Bird is now offering — by reservation for up to a week with free delivery, and customers arrange everything through Veo customer service.

Bird’s new program will offer 350-watt motor lightweight removable li-ion battery-powered attachments that are compatible with most wheelchair models, according to the company.

Residents in the phase one e-scooter pilot area — which includes the northeast Bronx, spanning from Woodlawn to Eastchester down to Van Nest and Pelham Bay — can utilize the program. When the second phase begins this summer, residents in the phase two area, which spans from Parkchester to Country Club down to Clason Point and Throggs Neck

The motors can make wheelchairs go up to 12 mph, according to a Bird spokesperson.

 People who use wheelchairs will be able to navigate hills, inclines and long distance trips throughout the city, according to Bird.

12 mph is about the average speed a bike rider can go. This attachment kind of turns a wheel chair into a makeshift ATV. Can't wait to see gangs on these things rolling on the streets like the motorcross and ATV gangs do.

Pizza avengers

NY Post 

A heroic pizzeria owner and his father are fighting for their lives after being stabbed multiple times when they jumped in to stop a 61-year-old woman from being robbed outside their Queens restaurant, relatives and police told The Post on Tuesday.

Louie Suljovic, a 38-year-old military veteran, was working behind the counter of his Elmhurst pizzeria, Louie’s, when he and his father, Cazim Suljovic, saw the elderly woman being robbed by two men Saturday night.

Without hesitation, Suljovic and his 68-year-old father jumped in to help — but ended up being stabbed and struck with an unidentified object, cops said.

Both father and son suffered punctured lungs in the attack, a relative told The Post.

“Cazim is in a serious situation … Louie is improving, he’s hanging in there and I believe he’s going to be okay,” said Cazim’s cousin, Remzija.  

Robert Whack, 30, and 18-year-old Supreme Gooding were taken into custody over the attack. Both were charged with robbery, assault and criminal possession of a weapon.  

Whack was also found with a large amount of what cops believe was heroin and was hit with a criminal possession of a controlled substance charge, police said.

The father and son are being treated at Elmhurst Hospital — the same facility where the pizzeria donated meals to staff and first responders during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bills Mafia's goumada

 

 Times Union

Gov. Kathy Hochul and western Democratic lawmakers on Monday announced a plan to publicly finance about $850 million of a new $1.4 billion stadium in Orchard Park for the Buffalo Bills.

The plan, which includes $600 million from the state and $250 million from Erie County, came out in the final days of state budget negotiations and rankled progressive advocates and left-leaning economists who view it as a poor use of taxpayer dollars at a time when the state is flush with cash from federal aid and there are competing interests for how to spend that money.

The deal would target opening the stadium in 2026 and keep the professional football team there for at least 30 years; if the team received court authorization to leave that location, it would have to pay back all of its public subsidy, according to the governor's office.

Further, the Bills are required to pay any cost overruns during construction, a provision that was not included in the development of other facilities in the state, including Yankees Stadium, which ran at least 30 percent over its budget.

The $850 million public subsidy would be the largest for any NFL facility on record, according to the Associated Press, but the state and Erie County would be paying a smaller share of the construction costs than other taxpayer-funded stadiums. The current facility, Highmark Stadium — which was previously known as Rich Stadium and Ralph Wilson Stadium — opened in 1973 and was buoyed by taxpayers footing nearly three-quarters of the construction costs.

 

Red Light Camera Obscura

 

 Impunity City

As we all know from the past decade since it was implemented, the Vision Zero program to bring down traffic accidents and fatalities initiated by the abominable Mayor Bill de Blasio failed in its mission to do just that as more people got maimed and killed since it’s implementation as the years went on and exacerbated to new extreme numbers during the last two years of the pandemic. Well, look no further on why Vision Zero as well as enforcement and punitive charges traffic violations continue to fail New Yorkers with the condition of this red light traffic camera post; which has been violated with those obnoxiously ubiquitous Cash for Cars advertisements that are always illegally posted on traffic and electric utility poles all over the five boroughs.

 

 

AOC's optical illusion open street campaign rally

If you ever feel discouraged or question if organizing is worth it, just take a look outside. Peoples’ movements and successes rarely make the mainstream, but the ground we’re gaining is powerful.

Thank you NY for an incredible day. Let’s get that ballot!
📸IG: christopherhall__ pic.twitter.com/3yGQ42QGKi

— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) March 27, 2022

AOC's perception of a movement...and the reality of one she tried to hide

 

Airbnbullets

 

Queens Chronicle

Shots were fired at a group of teenagers’ car as they rode along 38th Avenue and 209th Street in Bayside early last Saturday morning, the New York Police Department reported. One passenger, 19, suffered a gunshot wound to the right side of his back. He was rushed to NewYork-Presbyterian Queens and as of Monday was in stable condition.

According to Capt. John Portalatin, commanding officer of the 111th Precinct, the group of teens, at least one of whom is from Nassau County, were looking for parking near an AirBnB party at approximately 2:50 a.m. when a group of four to six individuals began firing rounds at their car.

An arrest has not been made in the incident, nor is the shooters’ motive known; the investigation is ongoing. Portalatin added that the NYPD is still looking for video footage of the shooters fleeing the scene.

The NYPD’s 111th Precinct, which includes Bayside, has long been considered one of the safest — if not the safest, alongside the 112th — precincts in Queens or even the city. Saturday morning’s occurrence is the 111th’s first shooting incident this year; the injured passenger is its first shooting victim.

“The police are on top of it, we’re taking it very seriously, and we’re doing everything we can to avoid these incidents in the future,” Portalatin said.

According to the office of Assemblyman Ed Braunstein (D-Bayside), the house where the party in question was held, located at 208-16 38 Ave., has been occupied by squatters for roughly two years, and that they are renting it out on AirBnB. His office told the Chronicle that it has been working to get in contact with the bank that owns the house, which is in foreclosure.

Stephen Markowski lives across the street from that house, and heard the shots fired on Saturday morning — in fact, he initially thought it was fireworks before a neighbor corrected him. He has been monitoring the squatting situation since its beginning.

“Not only don’t they own it, but they’re making money off of it,” he said.

 

 Queens Chronicle

A rally was held in Bayside on Friday to address a recent shooting that took place in front of a foreclosed home that was being used as an Airbnb rental by squatters, according to the community.

 “This has been going on for two years,” said Stephen Markowski, who lives across the street from the house located at 208-16 38 Ave. “They tried to keep a low profile, but we were joking one day that they are probably renting it out on Airbnb. Sure enough there was the house listed on the website, not once, but twice.”

The rental of the home by squatters has been a cause of public safety concern for the surrounding homeowners who live within the 111th Precinct, which has been considered one of the safest if not the safest precinct in Queens, according to the NYPD. Saturday morning’s shooting was the first shooting of the year within the precinct. 

Nearly 20 shots were fired at a car the victim, 19, along with a group of other teenagers rode along 38th Avenue and 209th Street in Bayside as they were going to the Airbnb for a party, according to officials. The victim was later sent to NewYork-Presbyterian on Monday and was in stable condition. 

“Twenty shots,” said Markowski. “What is it going to take for a public official to act on it?”

Robbie Schecter, 74, was out of town during the shooting, but lives around the corner from the foreclosed home. 

“We’ve been here for 43 years,” said Schecter. “We’ve never seen anything like this happen before. It’s an incredibly peaceful place. We take walks around here to go to Bell Boulevard to go to the restaurants. Our kids love to come here to visit us from Long Island because there it’s just a bunch of strip malls. This is a neighborhood.”

Schecter’s neighbor Donald Chen, 73, agreed. 

“I’ve lived here since 1983,” said Chen. “The worse thing that happens sometimes was a set of robberies. We are very close to Clearview Expressway, so it’s easy to get away, but something like this? No.”

The squatting has become a scourge, according to state Sen. John Liu (D-Bayside).

“The transient occupants have held late night parties and threatened the neighbors here,” said Liu. “We’ve seen just last week shootings on this block — could you imagine 19 shots being fired on this block — one shot landing in someone’s stomach. Another landed in a car seat. Thankfully there was no baby in that car seat.”

Liu and Assemblyman Ed Braunstein (D-Bayside) said they have called upon the city, specifically the Department of Buildings to take a look at what is happening at the house and to issue a vacate order. 

The DOB sent inspectors to the home ahead of the press conference, according Liu. He said he is giving them to time to make a determination on a vacate order. 

“We are exploring every option to get these people out of this neighborhood,” said Braunstein. 

Liu said he was demanding that Airbnb stop listing the property. 

Markowski said that the squatters use different names for every time they list the house. 

“Every time we get Airbnb to take down a listing they put one back up,” said Braunstein. “We have also been in contact with the bank to expedite eviction proceedings and foreclosure proceedings. This has been going on for two years now and this past weekend this issue has reached a new level of urgency.”

U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D-Flushing), who lives a few blocks from where the shooting took place, called into the meeting from Washington, DC. 

“I received calls from some of my neighbors about the horror that happened,” said Meng. “This has been a nightmare for our community. Bullets were literally flying around in the middle of the night. It could have hit any of our family members, friends or neighbors. Airbnb needs to take this problem more seriously, otherwise they have blood on their hands.”

Hours after the rally, Airbnb said that it has cancelled all bookings for that house and will continue to do so in the future, according to the congresswoman via Twitter. She further iterated that Liu and Braunstein will be watching closely to make sure the company keeps its word.

As the rally concluded, former homeowner Joe Carrollo spoke to residents, police and elected officials to clarify that he cannot evict the homeowners himself because the house has been the property of Citi Bank and Bank of America since 2018. He personally handed over documents to the 111th Precinct to prove that he is no longer responsible for the property and said he was equally upset about what has happened to his former home of 15 years. 

He later noted that one of the banks has plans to auction the house on June 16 and who ever takes over the property will become the person who has to evict the squatters unless Citi or Bank of America steps in to evict.

Stephen Markowski lives across the street from that house, and heard the shots fired on Saturday morning — in fact, he initially thought it was fireworks before a neighbor corrected him. He has been monitoring the squatting situation since its beginning.

“Not only don’t they own it, but they’re making money off of it,” he said.

Rockaway civics hyper pissed about rampant hyperdevelopment

Obscenity building photo by JQ LLC

 

Rockaway Times 

 As the Belle Harbor Property Owners Association reconvened, the hot button issue of the night was building, building, building.

About 50 people gathered at P.S. 114 on Tuesday, March 15 for the BHPOA’s first meeting since November. BHPOA President Paul King immediately addressed the main topic of the meeting saying, “There’s been a lot of overdevelopment on the peninsula. Some of those projects are closer to home,” he said. Those projects closer to Belle Harbor were later discussed, but King first provided some updates on the beach action. He said with new leadership at the Parks Department, the civic and Councilwoman Joann Ariola are hoping to hold a meeting with them soon. He announced the Army Corps of Engineers would be at their next meeting in May or June to provide updates. In the meantime, King said that groin work planned for Beach 125th and 130th this summer, will instead happen next year, as work is currently taking place further downtown, and expected dredging and sand replenishment later this year will change the original schedule.

Next, Belle Harbor’s elected officials, Senator Joe Addabbo, Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato and Councilwoman Joann Ariola were all on hand to provide updates. Addabbo explained that Albany is currently negotiating its $216B budget and he addressed a topic of concern for the meetings—Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs). Legalizing ADUs would allow homeowners to turn things like attics, basements, garages or backyard sheds into additional apartments. After seeing the effects of flooding from Hurricane Ida causing deaths in illegal basement apartments in Queens, locally, the legalization of ADUs doesn’t have much support. “I don’t agree with ADUs,” Addabbo said. He explained that Governor Hochul took it out of her budget as a statewide issue, but $25 million had been allocated for localities to decide whether they want to legalize ADUs.

 The meeting then switched gears to focus on all of the new developments taking place or in planning stages. A neighbor named Eric Rasmussen, who is on a committee focusing on the Neponsit Home, provided some updates. The building, which hasn’t been used since 1997, is slated to be demolished. Once that happens, the property, currently overseen by NYC HHC, will be transferred to the Parks Department, as a covenant in the property deed says it must be used as a healthcare facility or parkland. Demolition was expected to begin this spring but will instead begin after the summer is over as NYC Lifeguards currently utilize this property as a shack and storage facility. The BHPOA says they will keep a close eye on anything going on with the property as progress is made.

John Signorelli provided some updates on the demolition of the old PS 256 building and development of a playground. Abatement will be completed this month and the demolition is expected to be complete by September, six months ahead of schedule. The playground is expected to be complete by February 2023. While the building is demolished, a wooden fence and netting will go up around the area to protect surrounding homes from debris.

Another development of concern is the plan for ALMA’s Surfside property from Beach 105th to Beach 108th Street. The tenant association SHAFT asked the BHPOA for their support in fighting against a proposal to build four new buildings on the property that would bring an additional 2,000 units with only 1,500 parking spaces, while eliminating current parking for the existing units, the dog run and the pool on the property. A Rockaway Civic Association survey showed 94.3% of people are against this project. Councilwoman Joann Ariola chimed in, saying she’s been on top of it with meetings and when it comes to the ULURP process for the zoning changes for this development, she will do everything to make sure it doesn’t become reality. “That’s the most narrow portion of the peninsula. It cannot support a project like that, but beyond that, they’re not talking about infrastructure, roadways, schools, everything else that’s needed. We’re a hard no on this. That’s not happening,” she said.

A plan to demolish the Chai Home on Beach 125th and replace it with a nine-story rental property was also addressed. The 90-foot building, thirty feet higher than neighboring oceanfront buildings, would have 58 units and 29 parking spots on a street that doesn’t allow summer parking. A Rockaway Civic Association poll showed 88.5% of people are against this proposal. Ariola said she would not back the project. “I will not support the proposal as put forth,” she said.