Brent O’Leary, president of the Hunters Point Civic Association (left), at food drive
March 3, 2017 By Hannah Wulkan
A community meeting will give LIC residents the chance to share concerns with their political representative.
The monthly Hunters Point Civic Association meeting on March 10 at 6:30 p.m. at the New York Irish Center at 10-24 Jackson Avenue will function in part as a town hall meeting with Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney. It will also take time to address a gun that was found in Hunters Point South Park earlier this week.
“The town hall will give her a chance to speak on her legislative priorities and what the situation in D.C. is like under the new administration, and will be a chance for people to express their concerns and needs to their representative,” said HPCA president Brent O’Leary.
One of the leaders of the local activist group LIC Opposition Melissa Lirtsman said that she and other members are very excited for the chance to speak with Maloney, and ask her to be more vocal in her opposition to President Donald Trump and his agenda, and expects about 10 or 15 members to attend.
“She has years of service and a great voting record, but we think she could be more vocal in her opposition to Trump and more accessible to her constituents,” Lirtsman said, claiming that following the election Maloney was fairly quiet on issues regarding the new administration.
The LIC Opposition group focuses specifically on concrete actions to local politicians whose districts include Long Island City accountable and push them towards a more progressive agenda. Last month, the group hung “Missing” signs, asking to locate Maloney and Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Chuck Schumer, who had not yet held town halls in the area to speak with constituents.
In addition to functioning as a town hall with Maloney, the HPCA meeting will also address the discovery of a gun in Hunters Point South Park on Tuesday Morning.
According to O’Leary, a community member found the gun while walking their dog in the park around 9 a.m. on Tuesday morning, and immediately reported it to the police.
An officer from the 108 precinct confirmed the discovery of the gun and said it was not linked to any criminal activity, but said that he was not allowed to speak further on the matter given that it was still under investigation.
For more information on the meeting see the flyer at http://myemail.constantcontact.com/Local-meeting-with-our-Congress-Member-Carolyn-Maloney.html?soid=1108194616638&aid=RyQg91qyc6M.
