Borough’s pivotal projects to proceed

“The state of our city is strong, but to remain strong we must make the right choices.”
This was the message Mayor Michael Bloomberg delivered to a packed house at the St. George Theater on Staten Island on Wednesday, January 19, during his annual State of the City address.
With an eye toward the future – behind the lectern hung a banner that read “Progress at work,” Bloomberg outlined several steps to “transform our economy into a 21st century engine of innovation.”
These include launching more business incubators, creating new reasons for people and companies to invest their future and their finances in New York and partnering with Citibank to get credit flowing in all five boroughs.
And though Bloomberg did say that “some projects will have to be slowed down, some scaled back and others may need more private funding,” in Queens, several pivotal projects will proceed this year.
“Shovels will go into the ground at Hunters Point South, where we’ll begin to transform long vacant land into a new middle-class development fueled by $2 billion in private investment that will create 4,600 jobs,” he said. “All along the East River, with support from [City Council] Speaker [Christine] Quinn, we’ll begin running a new ferry service with stops at Long Island City, Greenpoint, Williamsburg, DUMBO, Wall Street and 34th Street. And at Willets Point, once the inspiration for F. Scott Fitzgerald’s ‘valley of ashes,’ we’ll begin building roadways and waterlines that will give rise to whole new neighborhoods with good jobs and affordable housing.”
Additionally, cultural institutions like the Queens Museum of Art will get new facilities in 2011.
Bloomberg stressed “simplicity” in his address, meaning that it will be easier for businesses to open and expand; restaurants earning an “A” on their health inspections will not have to pay for any violations found on that inspection; and a new category of livery cars will be established to make on-street pickups outside Manhattan.
“Because whether you’re standing on 42nd Street in Manhattan or 42nd Street in Sunset Park, Brooklyn or 42nd Street in Sunnyside, Queens, you ought to be able to hail a cab,” quipped Bloomberg.
And despite the fact that “the cuts we face are more severe than ever because of unfunded mandates and pension benefits,” Bloomberg emphasized that “we will not raise taxes to balance the budget.”
He did, however, ask for less oversight from Albany.
“Let us manage areas that should be matters of local policy, not state law, and let us achieve the savings that would result,” said the mayor, who requested specifically, “allow us to reform our pension system to make it fair for workers and taxpayers.”
“This year, we will spend $7 billion on pension costs, up from $1.5 billion in 2001,” he noted. “That means this year, the average New York City tax filer will be paying $2,400 more to cover pension costs than they did back then. And next year, we’ll be paying even more.”