Pol Looks To Future Replacement
The remains of a collapsed building near the Woodhaven- Richmond Hill Volunteer Ambulance Corps will be demolished within the month, a local lawmaker told Woodhaven Residents’ Block Association (WRBA) members during the group’s meeting last Thursday, Apr. 24, at American Legion Post 118.
State Sen. Joseph Addabbo stated 78-19 Jamaica Ave. is ready for demolition within the month after inspectors found minimal asbestos within the structure. The building suffered a partial collapse in April 2013 which damaged the nearby ambulance corps headquarters, impacting the organization’s operations and the Woodhaven-Richmond Hill Senior Center, which offered its services at the location.
The building’s owner was scheduled to appear in court last Friday, Apr. 25, to stop the city and fight for a restraining order which would put the demolition on hold indefinitely, Addabbo said. Regardless, he noted, the time and date of the demolition will be released for public viewing.
The next conversation is what to do with the space, the senator noted.
“It will still be private property owned by an individual,” he said. “It’s a great conversation to have … We will have to see what can be done at that site.”
The property owner has not been responsive, but Addabbo pledged to not let the site turn into a neighborhood eyesore and would secure funding for the flanking structures.
Police matters
Representatives of the 102nd Precinct warned residents about a “Green Dot” scam in which suspects masquerading as the utility company, IRS and Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) phone victims and hreaten them into purchasing a Green Dot Money Pass to pay a purportedly late bill.
The suspects then demand the serial number to electronically obtain the cash value, which can be as high as $5,000 per card.
One resident suffered $15,000 in losses due to the scam. Seniors and “people in the immigrant community” are being targeted, law enforcement sources said.
Woodhaven resident Nydia Gelgado and other attendees pressured the precinct to do something about cars being parked and painted on the sidewalk at Atlantic Avenue and 85th Street in front of several garages, half of which are used by purportedly unlicensed businesses. The paint runs in the streets and the smell lingers, they claimed.
Seemingly abandoned cars on Atlantic Avenue between 87th and 88th streets are causing significant congestion for both vehicles and pedestrians.
Officers promised to look into both issues.
Woodhaven resident Salvatore Congemi said his house suffered $4,400 in damages when rowdy teens vandalized the neighborhood; he claimed reports of the mischief received little police response. Addabbo called for more police to be dispatched to the neighborhood to prevent such crimes.
Ulrich on budget, SBS
City Council Member Eric Ulrich announced winning items of District 32’s participatory budgeting votes, including school improvements such at P.S. 30, installation of real-time bus clocks at some stops on Woodhaven Boulevard, over $300,000 in street paving and resurfacing on Woodhaven streets and improvements to the Richmond Hill Library.
Ulrich also recapped the Apr. 23 DOT presentation on the possibility of bringing MTA’s Select Bus Service (SBS) to Woodhaven Boulevard in an effort to improve travel time and safety conditions on Queens’ most congested corridor. The DOT proposed installing bus lanes at no expense to parking on the boulevard near St. John Cemetery and between Park Lane South and Liberty Avenue.
“It would ultimately mitigate a lot of the bottle-necking situations … where cars and busses play dodgeball with each other,” said Ulrich, who noted Queens is the only borough without an SBS route.
Curbside fare payment, signal light priority, comfortable buses and real time passenger information are some of the amenities that come with SBS.
Other news
Circle Academy Charter School will be moving into 85-27 91st St. as Woodhaven’s first charter school, according to school representative Michael Estep. It will start in 2015 with 144 students in kindergarten and first grade, adding a grade each year. Classrooms will have 24 students, a teacher and an assistant teacher.
The school will focus on the needs of the community’s children; however, all Brooklyn and Queens students by law are eligible to be apply for admission, which will be determined (if necessary) by lottery. Marketing will target local newspapers and day care centerss.
The school’s principal, Dr. Ann Marie Ginsberg; executive director, David Esfhani; and lead applicant Michelle Pascucci were also at the meeting and expressed their excitement for the new school.
New York attorney Jeff Kurzon is running for the Seventh Congressional District in a June primary against the incumbent, Rep. Nydia Velázquez. He pledged to fight against corporate campaign funding, believing it is a major cause of a slow growing middle class and lack of voters.
The 102nd Precinct is accepting applications for this year’s Youth Police Academy. Kids 10-16 years can get a glimpse into the NYPD with field trips and activities for six weeks starting July 7. Sessions are Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. until 2 p.m.
Addabbo also announced he is holding a seniors-only job fair on May 30 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 80- 02 Kew Gardens Rd. in Kew Gardens. Up to 30 vendors will be there looking to hire applicants 50 years of age and older.
Additionally, the senator said, he would hold mobile office hours at the Woodhaven library (85-41 Forest Pkwy.) on Thursday, May 15, from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
The next Woodhaven Residents’ Block Association meeting is scheduled to take place on Saturday, May 17, at 1 p.m. at American Legion Hall, located at 89-02 91st St. For more information, call 1-718-296- 3735 or visit its website, www.woodhaven-nyc.org.
