A participatory budgeting voter and volunteer in 2018 (Photo: Costa Constantinides/Twitter)
March 21, 2019 By Christian Murray
Astoria residents will get to decide how to spend $1 million in coming weeks.
Council Member Costa Constantinides announced the launch of the latest round of participatory budgeting today, allowing residents to vote on what capital improvements they would like to see in the greater Astoria district.
Participatory Budgeting is a process that allows constituents to vote on how $1 million of capital dollars are to spent in their district on items such as school improvements, libraries and parks.
The voting this year will kick off on March 30 and continue through April 6 at six locations throughout the 22nd Council District, which covers Astoria, East Elmhurst, and parts of Long Island City and Woodside. Residents can also vote online at the following site.
Proposals on the ballot include:
The resurfacing of the handball court walls at Woodtree Playground
The installation of benches and gardens at 21st Street & Hoyt Avenue North
Ground beautification at Astoria Houses
Upgrades to the equipment and various fixtures at Astoria Library
Classroom electrical upgrades at P.S. 70 at 30-45 42nd St.
The 13 proposals were determined by residents after a series of community brainstorming sessions in the fall. During those meetings, community members put forward their ideas that were whittled down with the assistance of city agencies.
District residents ages 11 and up can vote, and they are permitted to select up to five projects they would like to see funded.
The most popular items will be announced in June and will be funded out of Constantinides’ discretionary budget for the 2020 fiscal year.
Last year, about 3,200 residents voted, with about 2,000 of those online.
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