After residents, elected officials and even Mayor Bill de Blasio were disappointed by the cleanup response to Winter Storm Jonas in Jackson Heights and Corona, local politicians are holding two town hall meetings to exchange ideas for a better response plan.
Queens residents took to social media to voice their anger at the unplowed streets in the borough, especially Jackson Heights, where a record 34 inches of snow fell. Assemblymen Francisco Moya and Michael DenDekker, along with state Sen. Jose Peralta, who also expressed frustration with the city’s snow removal response, are hosting the town hall meetings tonight and tomorrow, Feb. 10 and Feb. 11, at 7 p.m.
“During the town hall meetings, we hope to both gather information on how snow removal can be conducted more efficiently in the future and provide an opportunity for residents to receive answers to their questions on this matter,” Moya said.
A host of panelists are expected to attend including personnel from the Department of Sanitation, the Office of Emergency Management, the NYPD and Community Board 3.
“Our borough was left behind during the last massive snowstorm that hit our city. During past snowstorms, Queens has been an issue because of inadequate responses to clearing snow from the city. So, why don’t we learn from experience and get ahead of the curve?” Peralta said.
The first meeting will be held in Corona at the VFW, located at 51-11 108th St. Thursday’s meeting will take place at The Renaissance Charter School in Jackson Heights at 35-59 81st St.
“Snow removal is an important public safety issue, and unfortunately, despite the hard work of sanitation workers, the cleanup in our community during the last major storm was simply inadequate,” DenDekker said. “I look forward to discussing this issue and working to ensure that this does not happen again.”
