By Steve Mosco
A candidate for Queens borough president took to the steps of City Hall this week to highlight the plight of a storm-ravaged Rockaway population that still feels it is being ignored.
Melinda Katz joined Friends of Rockaway Beach and elected officials to call for a comprehensive rebuilding plan for the peninsula devastated by Hurricane Sandy in October.
“The key word here is ‘frustration,’” said Katz. “Residents feel like they are not being listened to and they have no input into the future of the Rockaways. If you are going to use funds to make the Rockaways better, then you ought to listen to what they need. People feel like they are yelling into the wind.”
The former state assemblywoman said in recent months she has met with community activists, religious leaders and local residents to develop a rebuilding plan she would implement as borough president. She emphasized the need to rebuild homes, businesses and infrastructure damaged by Superstorm Sandy and spur economic development and job creation in the Rockaways community.
Along with Friends of Rockaway Beach, Katz called for more community input to ensure a concrete time line for rebuilding and temporary protection until permanent rebuilding occurs. She said residents are concerned the peninsula will be caught unprepared in the upcoming hurricane season.
“There is a lot of concern about how the city will respond to future storms,” she said. “We have to build and protect as if there is going to be another major storm. Mother Nature has no rules and we need to provide protection.”
Katz also said she would focus on rebuilding the beach, with more attention given to economic development projects, job creation and new business opportunities for residents. She said if elected as borough president, she would advocate for additional investment in infrastructure projects, including transit and long-term flood protection as well as schools, parks and other community assets.
Katz, who chaired the Council Land Use Committee, said the only way to rebuild and move forward from the storm is to go into the individual communities and empower residents with the knowledge that they can have real input into the recovery process.
“Making people part of the system is a major part of public office,” she said. “It is a very important part of government, local or otherwise.”
Katz commended the peninsula’s elected officials on their response to the needs of residents, in particular state Sen. Joseph Addabbo (D-Howard Beach), City Councilman Eric Ulrich (R-Ozone Park) and state Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder (D-Ozone Park).
“There wasn’t an elected official out there that was sitting on their hands,” she said. “No one expected Sandy to be what it was and yet they managed to act quickly and efficiently to help the people as best they could. They were a godsend.”
Reach reporter Steve Mosco by e-mail at smosco@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4546.
