By Sarina Trangle
Glendale and Middle Village are hoping a lawyer can help them raise the bar on a shuttered factory’s future.
A coalition of civic groups, business organizations and western Queens residents near a proposed homeless shelter, at 78-16 Cooper Ave., have hired attorney E. Christopher Murray to represent them and are attempting to raise $100,000 for legal fees via the Go Fund Me online fund-raising hub.
The new Glendale/Middle Village Coalition has raised about $20,000, according to the Middle Village Property Owners Association and Middle Village Chamber of Commerce President Salvatore Crifasi.
The group, which describes a proposal to house 125 families in the vacant sewing mill and airplane parts factory as “warehousing,” has scheduled an Oct. 1 meeting in Christ the King High School to discuss its plans.
Crifasi said the attorney is examining all possible uses for the property, including using it for a school and acting as what he described as a much-needed liaison between the city and coalition.
“We’re basically turning around to try to get the proper response that we should be getting from the government,” he said. “The proper response is to give us the best use for the property.”
“District 24 is the most overcrowded in the city,” Crifasi added. “Local schools do not have enough room, so that should be one of the priorities.”
Glendale, Middle Village and other nearby communities have long opposed the city’s plans in an up to $27.5 million contract with Samaritan Village, a Briarwood nonprofit, to operate the shelter for five years.
Residents and elected officials argued the facility may not be safe and an influx of residents would overwhelm packed classrooms, crowded buses and trains and taxed sewage systems.
But a study commissioned by the city this July determined opening a 51,000-square-foot residence where a four-story, red brick building now sits would not come with significant adverse environmental impacts.
Since then, the coalition has banded together the Middle Village Chamber of Commerce, Middle Village Property Owners Association, Glendale Civic Association, Glendale Chamber of Commerce, Glendale Property Owners Association and Juniper Park Civic Association, among other businesses, residents and partners.
Murray said he anticipates filing an Article 78 proceeding challenging the city’s study and arguing a more thorough one was necessary. The coalition would have until roughly Oct. 12 to do so.
Reach reporter Sarina Trangle at 718-260-4546 or by e-mail at strangle@cnglocal.com.
