Suozzi holds town hall meeting

Residents from various parts of the borough made their way to Maspeth to voice their concerns to New York State Gubernatorial hopeful Tom Suozzi during a recent town hall meeting.
Democrat Suozzi’s audience came from areas such as Forest Hills, Corona, Woodside, Bayside, Glendale and Astoria to attend the meeting, which took place Monday July 17 at the Knights of Columbus on Grand Avenue.
Suozzi, who is running against Attorney General Eliot Spitzer in the September primaries, began by stating his qualifications and what he hopes to accomplish if elected Governor. He is currently the Nassau County Executive, renowned for helping turn the financial outlook of the county around. Among his priorities are addressing issues that involve taxes, education, affordable housing and jobs.
&#8220I can do it because I’ve done it,” Suozzi said throughout the meeting.
A major topic of discussion between Suozzi and the audience was the state of education, with Suozzi saying he wants to put more money into the schools.
Additionally, to address the issue of overcrowding, Suozzi said that illegal housing laws should be enforced, which would help to reduce the burden being put on some schools.
Suozzi said that he would like to give incentives for the best teachers to go to the worst schools. Due to the lack of science and math teachers, Suozzi also is in favor of giving bonuses for educators who decide to teach those two subjects.
In discussing housing, Suozzi said that by enforcing existing codes and eliminating illegal housing, it would mandate the issue of affordable housing to be addressed.
Other topics brought up during the meeting were the need to revitalize Corona, the use of alternative energy sources, tuition tax credits, supporting high education and public higher education and reforming the various authorities of New York State.
&#8220I believe we can make New York State the Empire State again,” Suozzi concluded.