Meng Reports To Residents At Corona Meet
Rep. Grace Meng was the guest speaker at Monday’s (Apr. 21) 110th Precinct Community Council meeting at Flanders Field VFW Post 150 in Corona.
Meng, who has served parts of Queens in the Sixth Congressional District for a little over a year, serves on the Small Business and Foreign Affairs committees. She is the first Asian-American from New York to be elected to Congress.
Three pieces of Meng’s legislation have passed the House, each of which she spoke about at Monday’s meeting:
– Houses of worship would be eligible to receive FEMA funding in the aftermath of a disaster such as Hurricane Sandy. Currently they do not receive funding while libraries, arts centers, and schools receive such funds.
– Inspired by the September 2012 U.S. Embassy attack in Benghazi, Libya, another Meng bill would close loopholes providing more safety for future state workers in embassies across the world.
– New York City veterans wait up to 500 days for benefits compared to the national average of a little over 200 days. A third Meng bill, a part of a package of bipartisan bills, would force regional Veterans Administration (VA) offices to be more accountable and transparent to other offices and their community.
Other legislation in the works, she explained, includes criminalizing “spoofing” done outside the country. Spoofing is the act of calling or texting as an official such as the I.R.S., immigration service, or even the local police in an attempt to get money.
Meng’s Kid Safety Caucus is working on legislation that would make it illegal for stores to sell expired baby formula which can clump, causing choking and reducing nutritional value.
Ideas from the community are strongly encouraged, Meng noted.
“I really appreciate being able to come back and talk to all of you and meet with you because everyone of our legislative ideas have come directly from constituents of community leaders like you,” she said. “We really appreciate and need to hear from all of you.”
Meng has offices in Forest Hills (1-718-445-7861) and Flushing (1- 718-455-7860).
Cop of the Month
P.O. James Droge was March’s Cop of the Month for recently making a robbery arrest on Mar. 18 at 4:40 a.m., when a woman’s iPhone was stolen.
“Officer Droge saw a commotion, figured out what was going on, went and looked for the guy, found the guy and recovered the phone, actually found the phone in the guy’s pocket,” explained Deputy Inspector Ronald Leyson, 110th Precinct commanding officer. “So, he did an excellent arrest.”
The suspect is a first time offender, which is not uncommon in the area especially with small electronics. Leyson went on to warn, “What do I always tell you? Pay attention to your surroundings.”
Droge could not make Monday’s ceremony. He will be properly recognized at the council’s May meeting, during which he will be awarded with a plaque donated by the Times Newsweekly.
Other news
City Council Member Julissa Ferreras is meeting with local police and fire officials to inform them on what the community needs most. In May, she will be stationed at City Hall for the budget hearing as over 30 committees will present their proposals.
She encouraged the community to come to meetings they care most about and voice their needs. Meeting schedules can be found by calling her office at 1-718-651-1917.
A scammer at large in the Queens area has taken anywhere from $100- $31,000 from victims, according to Leyson. Residents have received calls from supposed IRS agents, Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS) agents, distressed family and local police threatening fines, deportation, back taxes, utility shut off and imprisonment if they don’t pay via a purchased money card.
“Don’t fall for it,” he warned. “Hang up the phone, let us know about it. [Nobody] is going to call and ask you to make a payment over the phone immediately in anyway shape or form. . . Once you give them that serial number, they have access to that money immediately.”
Home security surveys are available for free from the 110th Precinct, coming with suggestions on how to better fortify their homes from robberies.
In conjunction with the Mayor’s Vision Zero, it was announced, the 110th Precinct will be educating the public between Apr. 28 through May 3 on traffic crime prevention with members of Community Affairs and Department of Transportation. This will be followed by a week of strict enforcement May 5-11. Police will be targeting intersections with historically high pedestrian injuries and deaths.
Crime is down 14 percent overall from 2013. Burglary is up 37 percent from 2013 but declined by 50 percent in the last week, Leyson noted.
Wednesday, May 21, is the 110th Precinct Community Council’s annual fundraiser. Tickets are $55 per person which includes dinner, unlimited beer, wine and soda. Businesses can also help support by purchasing an ad in the souvenir journal.
On Sunday, Apr. 27, a benefit for Sgt. Paul Ferrara is being held at 345 Deer Park Ave. in Babylon. Ferrara was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer and the benefit is to help his medical expenses. He has served the department for 22 years.
Finally, the 110th Precinct Community Council will hold its annual barbecue at its June meeting on Monday, June 16, to be held at Flanders Field Post 150.
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The 110th Precinct Community Council generally meets on the third Monday each month at 7 p.m. at Flanders Field VFW Post 150, located at 51-11 108th St. in Corona. For more information, call the 110th Precinct Community Affairs Unit at 1-718-476-9310.
