Not So Fast, Say Transit Advocates
Advocates of the QueensWay park proposal unveiled their blueprint on Tuesday, Oct. 14, for a proposed 3.5 mile linear park atop the abandoned LIRR Rockaway Beach Line (RBL) running from Forest Hills to Ozone Park.
During the press conference at the Metropolitan Avenue school campus in Forest Hills, supporters of the QueensWay plan unveiled a polished vision of the park–while opponents standing steps away held their ground that the rail line should be reactivated.
Those opposed to the plan have argued at info sessions held over the last year by Friends of the Queens Way to garner community feedback, and again Tuesday, that wiping away a possibly vital transportation option and building a park instead is not the best use for tracks that have not carried a railcar in more than 50 years. QueensWay supporters, many living in communities that would neighbor the proposed park claim that when finished the project could mirror Manhattan’s Highline, bringing visitors, along with their pocketbooks and wallets to Queens, and neighborhoods that border the 3.5 mile stretch.
Though supporters included statements in promotional materials from several elected officials, none were present at Tuesday’s announcement. Several members of the Friends of the QueensWay Steering Committee did speak at the event, again touting the recreational, ecologic, cultural and economic benefits of building the park.
Phil McManus, a Rockaway resident and founder of the Queens Public Transit Committee supports reactivation of the rail line to ease congestion on borough streets. He believes it can provide a link between southern Queens and the rest of the borough, would ease travel times into Manhattan and offer a real option linking several disparate subways lines in the borough.
When McManus was asked if he agreed with Friends of the QueensWay members’ that reactivation was infeasible, he scoffed and said, “if you have the will you have the way.”
He also compared the assertion to arguments made by opponents of the Second Avenue subway line in Manhattan and the 7 line through Queens, which he said were called “infeasible for years.”
“That’s politics, that’s pure politics,” McManus said. “I think people need trains more than they need parks. I think that we have plenty of parks in Queens, and I think that they need to be repaired before they start putting a new park in.”
“That takes away mass transit,” he added.
Advocates of the QueensWay are supported by Representatives Grace Meng and Joe Crowley, State Sen. Toby Ann Stavisky, City Council Member Karen Koslowitz, the Queens Chamber of Commerce, Transportation Alternatives and nearby business owners, including Ben’s Best Deli in Rego Park.
In a statement Friends of the QueensWay claimed the proposal is supported by over 3,000 residents in central and southern Queens, will provide safe, easy access to Forest Park; new recreation opportunities for the 322,000 people living within a mile; provide a boost to local businesses and will become a high-profile showcase for the borough.
Speakers at Tuesday’s event reaffirmed their belief that the park will bring economic benefits to southern and central Queens.
“It makes sense for the community, it’s something that makes sense for businesses, it’s going to be a tremendous driver of economic activity and we look forward to it coming to fruition,” Jack Friedman, executive director of the Queens Chamber of Commerce said.
Forest Hills resident Andrea Crawford has volunteered on the steering committee for 10 years, since the project was first imagined.
“We started looking at this project ten years ago, and its a great repurposing of derelict land that will continue to erode, degenerate, be an unattractive nuisance,” she said.
