By Bill Parry
One of the smallest crowds in recent memory turned out for the 16th annual St. Pat’s for All Parade in Sunnyside. Organizer Brendan Fay put the blame on the heavy snow that began falling an hour before the parade stepped off at 2 p.m. after the route was shortened by three blocks by the NYPD.
“It was probably our smallest crowd in many years but we never considered postponing it, not for a moment,” Fay said. “The joyful energy and exorbitant spirit of the crowd made up for its sparsity.”
City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer (D-Sunnyside), who lives in the neighborhood, praised the crowd for coming out in a “blizzard” and “despite the MTA,” which had suspended the No. 7 subway line during the weekend for ongoing repairs. “Shame on the MTA for not having the 7 train running today,” Van Bramer said. Bad service on weekdays, no service on the weekends, unacceptable.”
Mayor de Blasio led the parade for the second straight year and he got an earful from pockets of spectators along Skillman Avenue who object to his plans to deck over the Sunnyside Yards and build more than 11,000 units of affordable housing. Shouts of “Say no to the Sunnyside Yards” and “Build it in Brooklyn” could be heard clearly by the marchers.
“I did hear them,” de Blasio said. “In a democracy, people have the right to their opinions. I happen to believe that Sunnyside Yards opens an opportunity for a huge amount of affordable housing so people can continue to live in Queens, many of whom are being forced out right now by rising prices.”
The mayor was seen having an animated conversation with Van Bramer as they marched. The councilman opposes high-rise buildings that would be out of character with the Long Island City and Sunnyside neighborhoods that surround the yards. Boths are in his district.
“As we’ve said many times – and the elected officials who’ve said this, to their credit – any development in Sunnyside Yards will have to be done with the community in a way that really considers the needs of the community and the height – and the scale of the communities around it,” de Blasio said. “But it’s a huge site. Some parts of that site can accommodate some height and density, others less so. But I think it’s the kind of thing we should have a real conversation about — how to get it right because we need the affordable housing.”
The mayor’s attempts to ban the horse carriage industry from city streets was another subplot during the parade. Stephen Malone, the spokesman for Historical Carriages of Central Park, drove his horse-drawn carriage up Skillman Avenue. Many of the shops and restaurants along the route had signs saying “We Support NYC Carriages” on doors and windows.
“It was magical to go back to the neighborhood and be recognized by the community and the elected officials up and down Skillman Avenue,” said Malone, who was born and raised in Sunnyside. “I really appreciate it, and we hope to go back and do it every year. It may have been freezing but the snow made the day that much more magical.”
Malone doesn’t think his group’s reception along the parade route would do anything to change the mayor’s opinion. “I don’t know if he hung around to talk to any of the people that were supporting us,” he said. “I hope he does come around and reaches out to us for a discussion, of which there’s been zero.””
De Blasio stood by his efforts to enforce the ban and promised that there would be a “vigorous debate” in the City Council.
The mayor said that he will march in the 40th annual Queens County Parade in Rockaway Saturday but that he would not take part in Manhattan’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade unless this year’s event becomes more inclusive. He suggested the parade organizers should include more than one group of LGBT NBC employees.
“I hope for some more progress with the parade in Manhattan, but there is still time,” de Blasio said. We look forward to some additional discussion and I certainly welcome any discussions with anybody who wants to make it more inclusive.”
Reach reporter Bill Parry by e-mail at bparr
