By John Tozzi
The proposal the board approved would make the block of 60th Avenue directly south of PS 221 in Douglaston one-way westbound between Marathon Parkway and 246th Place. The school requested that change to make it safer for students going to school and being dismissed. A related request to make 246th Place one-way was rejected, however, because of objections from the residents on that block.The board also turned down two other proposed roadway changes. A plan to make 193rd Street one-way north and 194th Street one-way south each for a block between Northern Boulevard and 45th Avenue was rejected after residents opposed it and board members said it would be arbitrary.”I don't think it's good traffic or transportation engineering to just take an isolated block and make it one-way,” said Bernard Haber, chairman of the transportation committee who is a bridge engineer.Two other blocks of 195th and 196th streets have been changed to one-way, and board members unanimously agreed that changing the next two blocks, to create a series of alternating one-way streets, would not benefit the neighborhood.The third proposal to make 202nd Street between Rocky Hill Road and Northern Boulevard a one-way street was also resoundly voted down.”There was no rationale that we could find to turn that particular street one-way,” Haber said. “We're not even sure where that came from.” The three one-way street proposals were held over from Community Board 11's December meeting, which ran late as members debated a pair of controversial group home proposals.The board also approved a variance for a one-family home to add a second floor even though the expansion would slightly exceed the floor area permitted for the size of the lot. The expansion for the home at 54-07 254th St. in Little Neck was permitted because neighbors had no objection and the lot size was irregular.Reach reporter John Tozzi by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300 Ext. 174.
