To Advertise E-mail [email protected] or call 718-729-3772 VOL. 82, NO. 25 WOODSIDE, L.I.C., N.Y. FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015 FREE SERVING SUNNYSIDE-WOODSIDE AND LONG ISLAND CITY RENT REGULATIONS AND RENT LAWS by Crystal Wolfe On Monday, June 15th from 5 pm – 8 pm at the Queens Borough Hall on 120-55 Queens Boulevard, Kew Gardens, hundreds of citizens, came to the public hearing to hear from the landlords and tenants giving their testimony before the 9 Members of the Rent Regulations Board, ap- pointed by Mayor de Blasio to decide the fate of New York City housing. Over 50 tenants and less than 15 landlords gave their testimony. Two ladies from the Community Board2 of Queens spoke. “My name is Regina Shanley and I am rent-stabilized tenant in the Sunnyside/ Woodside area of Queens. Most people I know pay at least a third to half of their income or more. Over the past 10 years rents in stabilized apartments have risen considerably faster and higher. You are able to help correct this. Please vote for a rent freeze or better, a roll-back. Thank you.” Lauren Springer, one of the new members of the CB2 Board also shared her testimony saying, “I’m concerned about the future of NYC. How it’s becoming unaffordable.” Nearly all the landlords who spoke owned small apartment units with 6-10 renters. Many tenants asked why these smaller units should be held to the same laws, insurance rates and regulations as units with 100+ apartments. Only a few landlords with large apartment buildings spoke, none of the luxury sky-rise variety, one of which urged the Board to “raise prices on the tenants as much as possible because we need to be more like the Soviet Union.” Another landlord complained that one of his apartments was being rented out for $800/month and the market value for it was $1,800 and he wasn’t getting enough of a profit. One of the Board members Harvey Epstein (Tenant Member) asked the man if he would be willing to open his books to see how much profit he was really getting. (Currently the landlords who speak at the public meeting are not required to submit their books for the Board to see how much of a profit they’re really making). The landlord immediately changed his tuned and admitted he had been enjoying profits, and was “doing very well for himself” only he wanted more of a profit. The “market value” of apartments in NYC is one of the highest in the country. (continued on page 8) (continued on page 7) CALL TO D.O.T. Return 100’s Of Parking Spaces On June 12th, NYC Council Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer and residents from LIC called on the DOT to restore ap- proximately 190 public parking permits that were withdrawn from the neighborhood by the agency. Community Center Coalition of Sunnyside/ Woodside Wednesday, June 24th at 6:30pm Murphy’s Lobster Grill, 48-20 Skillman Ave For more info, please contact Mark Wilensky (917) 670-5666 ALL ARE WELCOME! See Page 4, 5, & 8
On Monday, June 15th from 5 pm – 8 pm at the Queens Borough Hallon 120-55 Queens Boulevard, Kew Gardens, hundreds of citizens, cameto the public hearing to hear from the landlords and tenants giving theirtestimony before the 9 Members of the Rent Regulations Board, ap-pointed by Mayor de Blasio to decide the fate of New York City housing.
Over 50 tenants and less than 15 landlords gave their testimony. Twoladies from the Community Board2 of Queens spoke. “My name isRegina Shanley and I am rent-stabilized tenant in the Sunnyside/Woodside area of Queens. Most people I know pay at least a third to halfof their income or more. Over the past 10 years rents in stabilizedapartments have risen considerably faster and higher. You are able tohelp correct this. Please vote for a rent freeze or better, a roll-back.Thank you.” Lauren Springer, one of the new members of the CB2 Boardalso shared her testimony saying, “I’m concerned about the future ofNYC. How it’s becoming unaffordable.”
Nearly all the landlords who spoke owned small apartment units with6-10 renters. Many tenants asked why these smaller units should be heldto the same laws, insurance rates and regulations as units with 100+apartments. Only a few landlords with large apartment buildings spoke,none of the luxury sky-rise variety, one of which urged the Board to“raise prices on the tenants as much as possible because we need to bemore like the Soviet Union.” Another landlord complained that one ofhis apartments was being rented out for $800/month and the marketvalue for it was $1,800 and he wasn’t getting enough of a profit. One ofthe Board members Harvey Epstein (Tenant Member) asked the man ifhe would be willing to open his books to see how much profit he wasreally getting. (Currently the landlords who speak at the public meetingare not required to submit their books for the Board to see how much ofa profit they’re really making). The landlord immediately changed histuned and admitted he had been enjoying profits, and was “doing verywell for himself” only he wanted more of a profit. The “market value”of apartments in NYC is one of the highest in the country.
(continued on page 8)(continued on page 7)
CALL TO D.O.T.Return 100’s OfParking Spaces
On June 12th, NYC CouncilMajority Leader Jimmy VanBramer and residents from LICcalled on the DOT to restore ap-proximately 190 public parkingpermits that were withdrawn fromthe neighborhood by the agency.
Community Center Coalition ofSunnyside/ Woodside
Wednesday, June 24th at 6:30pmMurphy’s Lobster Grill, 48-20 Skillman Ave
For more info, please contact Mark Wilensky(917) 670-5666
Sherilyn Jo Sabba ................................................................. Editor
Bill For DangerousScofflaw Drivers
Extension Of 9/11 Health andCompensation Programs Urged for
Survivors and First Responders
(continued on page 6)
The New York State Senatepassed Senator Michael Gianaris’bill (S2484A) to crack down ondrivers who kill or seriously injureothers while driving with revoked,suspended or otherwise invalid li-censes. The bill would make suchan event a felony and is included inMayor de Blasio’s Vision Zero
agenda. Assemblywoman MargeMarkey carries both bills in theState Assembly.
“I am glad the Senate passedmy proposal to get tough on dan-gerous drivers. We must crackdown on drivers who should notbe on the road before the nexttragedy occurs, not after,” said
Senator Gianaris. “Too many fami-lies have grieved at too many vig-ils, and too many pedestrians havedied because of these bad drivers. Iurge the Assembly and GovernorCuomo to follow suit and enact myproposal into law immediately.”
“This important bill is aboutaccountability for unlicensed andchronically reckless drivers whoinjure or kill people,” said CristinaFurlong of Make Queens Safer.“We hope that the risk of steepconsequences deter these danger-ous drivers from getting behind thewheel in the first place. Now morethan ever, we are grateful to Sen.Gianaris for his leadership on thisissue and all of those that affectpedestrian safety.”
Senator Gianaris, a longtimeadvocate for safer streets, firstintroduced this bill after a truckdriver without a valid licensestruck and killed Noshat Nahian,a 3rd-grader at PS 152 inWoodside on his way to schoolon Northern Boulevard in De-cember 2013. Senator Gianarisrenewed his call for these mea-sures after Angela Hurtado waskilled by a driver with a sus-pended license in Maspeth inJanuary 2014. Most recently,Senator Gianaris implored hisfellow state legislators to act onthese measures after a pedestrianwas killed by such a driver onWoodside Avenue in February.
The House Energy and Com-merce Committee Health Subcom-mittee held a hearing on the pro-posed James Zadroga 9/11 Healthand Compensation ReauthorizationAct (H.R. 1786), a permanent ex-tension of the World Trade CenterHealth Program and the September11th Victim Compensation Fund.Nearly 14 years after September11th, thousands of first respondersand survivors are still struggling torebuild their lives, and many con-tinue to battle serious health crisesresulting from exposure to toxins atGround Zero. But the programsestablished to help them wage thatbattle are set to shut down by Octo-ber 2016 unless Congress passesthe bipartisan legislation sponsoredby Reps. Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) andPeter T. King (R-NY).
“After the attacks, thousands ofAmericans flocked to ground zeroto aid in the recovery,” said Rep.Carolyn Maloney. “Today, peoplein all 50 states bear the physical andemotional scars of their courageousefforts. They suffer from cancers,respiratory problems, and a range ofother diseases related to their expo-sure at to the toxic soup of chemicalsand pollutants at Ground Zero. Iapplaud Energy and CommerceCommittee Chairman Fred Upton,Ranking Member Frank Pallone, aswell as Health Subcommittee Chair-man Joe Pitts and Ranking MemberGene Green for shining a spotlighton these critical programs. Today’shearing is the first step down thelong road toward a permanent ex-tension of the Zadroga Act.”
The Energy and CommerceHealth Subcommittee heard testi-mony from two 9/11 heroes whourged Congress to extend the pro-grams that are helping people inall 50 states manage 9/11-relatedillnesses and rebuild their lives.
“There is no question in mymind that if it were not for the 9/11Health Care Program and Dr.Udasin in particular, I would notbe sitting here in this chair today,”said David Howley, a retired NYCPolice Officer who has battled ahost of ailments, including cancer.“What happened on September 11,2001 with concern to the mixtureof concrete, glass, chemicals etc.plus the fire at temp over two thou-sand degrees had never before oc-curred in history. As a result, theillnesses and cancers that haveoccurred had not previously beenseen by the medical community.The men and woman who workedtirelessly, day and night at the tow-ers and then became sick haveevery reason to expect their coun-try will provide assistance to them,the same way they provided assis-tance and protection to the peopleof the New York City.”
Barbara Burnette, a formerNew York Police Detective testi-fied about her experience: “Mycareer came to an end because ofillnesses I developed from the timeI served at the World Trade Centersite. I live with the consequencesof 9-11 every day. I have beendiagnosed with interstitial lung dis-ease, more specifically hypersen-sitivity pneumonitis with fibrosisin my lungs. I have failed the pul-
monary function tests that doctorshave given me. The inflammationin my lungs interferes with mybreathing and destroys the tissuesthat get oxygen to my blood. Mylungs are permanently scarred. Icannot move around my home with-out wheezing or gasping for breath.I take large doses of steroids thatadd to my weight. I start each morn-ing connecting to a nebulizer andinhaling multiple doses of medica-tions. I am told I will eventuallyneed a lung transplant. The JamesZadroga 9-11 Health and Compen-sation Reauthorization Act is a life-saver for me and thousands of otherfirst responders and 9-11 survivors.
“Before the 9/11 attacks, I wasa healthy 28 year old paralegalworking about a 10 minute walkfrom the World Trade Center. Ievacuated from my office shortlyafter the North Tower collapsedand returned to work one weekafter 9/11, determined to do theright thing during a time of na-tional crisis,” said Margily Garcia,an affected area worker and patientin the survivor program in theWorld Trade Center Environmen-tal Health Center. “The dust andchemicals I inhaled on 9/11 and inthe days thereafter permanentlyimpaired my health and I know Iwill never be like I was before. Ihave been diagnosed with chronicasthma, sinus inflammation, andmy heart has been scarred by sar-coidosis which has meant that Ilive with the possibility of a suddendeath and rely on a pacemaker/defibrillator to help keep me alive.
Honoring Great LeadershipOn Thursday, June 11, Assemblywoman Catherine Nolan and the Ridgewood Demo-
cratic Club held its Annual Dinner Dance by honoring several individuals who have showngreat leadership throughout their careers. The honorees were recognized from all sectorsof our community including Labor Leaders, Business Owners and Community Leaders.
Top Row: Stephen McInnis, James T. Slevin, Thomas Bornean, Board Member and formerDistrict Leader, RDC, City Council Majority Leader & State Committeeman Jimmy VanBramer, Edward C. Peters, R. Ph. Bottom Row: Jim Grayshaw, President, RDC, ClaudiaChan, Patricia Stryker, Don McCallian, Assemblywoman Catherine Nolan, Sarah Feldmanand David Aglialoro, Democratic District Leader 37B.
(continued on page 7)
Photo Credit: Edwin Cadiz
The Honorees included:Stephen McInnis, President, NYC District Council of Carpenters
James T. Slevin, President, Utility Workers Union of America - Local 1-2Patricia Stryker, Recording Secretary/Political Director, Teamsters Local 237
Don McCallian, President/Director of the United Forties Civic AssociationClaudia Chan, former Aide, New York State Assembly
Sarah Feldman, Founder, Ridgewood Social & Ridgewood MarketEdward C. Peters, R. Ph., Owner, Mil-Rue Chemists
Language Really Does MatterAssemblywoman Catherine Nolan is pleased to report that last week the State Senate
unanimously passed her bill A.7013, which changes the language used in state law thatrefers designates schools as “failing” to “struggling”. This bill, which passed the Assemblyby a wide margin in April, now awaits the Governor’s approval.
“The language we use when we talk about our children’s schools matters” saidAssemblywoman Nolan, Chair of the Assembly’s Education Committee. “There is stillmuch work to be done to get all of our schools the resources and attention they need, andthat continues to be a priority of the New York State Assembly. This legislation is inresponse to a message we heard from parents and students across the state; telling studentsthey attend a failing school has a negative effect on children and is not a productive way tobegin a conversation about improving a struggling school.”
“We are thrilled to see that the state Assembly and Senate changed the negative labelplaced on our schools by Gov. Cuomo,” said Dionne McNeil, a parent whose son goes toAugust Martin High School in Queens. “Calling my child’s schools ‘failing’ was devastat-ing to him. It discouraged him from even attending. He felt that he was being labeled as afailure. This goes a long way to boost the morale of both our school and the students whoattend it. For that, we thank our state legislators.”
New Vision ZeroTraffic Study Required
Local Law Will Require Comprehensive Study of Truck Routes,Tolling and Pedestrian and Cyclist Safety
Mayor Bill de Blasio signed into lawlegislation (Intro 641) by Council MembersMargaret Chin and Ydanis Rodriguez, Chairof the Transportation Committee, and Ma-jority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer. Intro 641will require the New York City Departmentof Transportation (DOT) to conduct a com-prehensive study of pedestrian and cyclistsafety along the city’s truck routes.
“It’s time for our city to reexamine itstransportation policies when it comes toencouraging heavy thru-traffic on streetsused by pedestrians and bicyclists,” saidCouncil Member Margaret Chin. “In mydistrict, we have already seen too many fatalcollisions. I thank the Mayor for signing thisimportant legislation, which will enable ourcity to take a systemic look at the underlyingtransportation policies in our city and de-velop new strategies to improve safety andsave lives in our neighborhoods.”
“In order to truly understand how trucksuse and abuse our roadways our city mustunderstand the impacts of tolling policiesamong other issues on trucks navigatingboth designated and non-designated truckroutes,” said Transportation ChairmanYdanis Rodriguez. “My and Council mem-ber Chin’s legislation will ensure that wearm our city with the information necessaryto make changes to better alleviate heavilycongested roadways and understand what
causes them. I could not be more pleasedwith the enactment of this legislation andlook forward to evaluating the findings ofthis study come 2016.”
“Unruly truck traffic continues to plagueour neighborhood streets putting the livesof children, seniors and cyclists in danger,”said Council Majority Leader Jimmy VanBramer. “This law will enable our City tosecure detailed data about our most dan-gerous truck routes allowing us to developa comprehensive strategy to protect NewYorkers and ensure our residential streetsand neighborhoods are safe from exces-sive and reckless truck driving. I am proudto have worked alongside TransportationChair Ydanis Rodriguez and Council Mem-ber Margaret Chin to get this transforma-tive bill passed and thank my colleaguesfor supporting our efforts to enhance ourCity’s Vision Zero initiative.”
Alongside transportation and commu-nity leaders, the Council Members hailedthe enactment of the legislation as a seriousstep forward for traffic safety policy. Desig-nated truck routes like Canal Street in LowerManhattan, represented by Council Mem-ber Chin, and Queens Boulevard in CouncilMember Van Bramer’s district, have beenplagued with pedestrian and bicyclist fatali-ties and injuries.
SUMMONS, NOTICE ANDBRIEF STATEMENT OFNATURE OF ACTIONCONSUMER CREDITTRANSACTION SUPREMECOURT OF THE STATE OFNEW YORK COUNTY OFQUEENS INDEX NO. 703743/2014 M&T BANK, Plaintiff, -against- EDMUND MCRAE, JR.;ALL UNKNOWN HEIRS,DEVISEES, AND PERSONALREPRESENTATIVES OF THEDECEASED EDMUND MCRAEAND ANY OF HIS, HER ORANY OF THEIR SUCCESSORSIN RIGHT, TITLE ANDINTEREST; ET AL., Defendants.TO THE DEFENDANTS ALLUNKNOWN HEIRS, DEVISEES,AND PERSONALREPRESENTATIVES OF THEDECEASED EDMUND MCRAEAND ANY OF HIS, HER ORANY OF THEIR SUCCESSORSIN RIGHT, TITLE ANDINTEREST; Edmund McRae, Jr.as Heir to the Estate of EDMUNDMCRAE: YOU ARE HEREBYSUMMONED and required toserve upon plaintiff’s attorneys ananswer to the complaint in thisaction within twenty (20) daysafter the service of this Summons,exclusive of the day of service, orwithin thirty (30) days after serviceis complete if the Summons is notpersonally delivered to you withinthe State of New York. The UnitedStates of America, if designatedas a defendant in this action, mayanswer or appear within sixty (60)days of service hereof. In case ofyour failure to answer, judgmentwill be taken against you for therelief demanded in the complaint.
File No.: 2013-3820/ACITATION THE PEOPLE OFTHE STATE OF NEW YORK BYTHE GRACE OF GOD, FREEAND INDEPENDENTNYC Human ResourcesAdministration,Edward Moschak,Verizon Benefits Center,Attorney General of the State ofNew YorkTo:The unknown distributees,legatees, devisees, heirs at law andassignees of JUDY SCHMANIA,deceased, or their estates, if anythere be, whose names, places ofresidence and post office addressesare unknown to the petitioner andcannot with due diligence beascertained. Being the personsinterested as creditors, legatees,distributees or otherwise in theEstate of JUDY SCHMANIA,deceased, who at the time of deathwas a resident of 144-61 38thAvenue, Flushing, NY 11354, inthe County of Queens, State ofNew York.SEND GREETING:Upon the petition of LOIS M.ROSENBLATT, PublicAdministrator of Queens County,who maintains her office at 88-11Sutphin Boulevard, Jamaica,Queens County, New York 11435,as Administrator of the Estate ofJUDY SCHMANIA, deceased,you and each of you are herebycited to show cause before theSurrogate at the Surrogate’s Courtof the County of Queens, to beheld at the Queens GeneralCourthouse, 6 th Floor, 88-11
Trial is desired in the County ofQueens. The basis of venuedesignated above is that the realproperty, which is the subjectmatter of this action, is located inthe County of Queens, New York.The foregoing Summons is servedupon you by publication pursuantto an order of Honorable Kevin J.Kerrigan, Justice of the SupremeCourt of the State of New York,signed on the 17th day of May,2015, in Jamaica, New York andto be duly entered in the QueensCounty Clerk’s Office, in Jamaica,New York. The Nature of thisaction pertains to a note andmortgage held by Plaintiff on realproperty owned by the abovenamed defendants as specified inthe complaint filed in this action.The above named defendants havefailed to comply with the termsand provisions of the saidmortgage and said instrumentssecured by said mortgage, byfailing and omitting to pay thebalance due and owing and thePlaintiff has commenced aforeclosure action. Plaintiff isseeking a judgment foreclosing itsmortgage against the real propertyand premises which situates in theFourth Ward of the Borough andCounty of Queens, City and Stateof New York and is commonlyknown as 235-33 148th Avenue,Rosedale, NY 11422 and all otherrelief as to the Court may seemjust and equitable. DATED: May12, 2015 SCHILLER & KNAPP,LLP BY: WILLIAM B.SCHILLER, ESQ. Attorneys forPlaintiff 950 New Loudon RoadLatham, New York 12110Telephone: (518) 786-9069 14-
1538. 6/5/15, 6/12/15, 6/19/15, 6/26/15
Sutphin Boulevard, Jamaica, Cityand State of New York, on the 16th
day of July, 2015 at 9:30 o’clockin the forenoon, why the Accountof Proceedings of the PublicAdministrator of Queens County,as Administrator of the Estate ofsaid deceased, a copy of which isattached, should not be judiciallysettled, and why the Surrogateshould not fix and allow areasonable amount ofcompensation to GERARD J.SWEENEY, ESQ., for legalservices rendered to petitionerherein in the amount of $5,320.53and that the Court fix the fair andreasonable additional fee for anyservices to be rendered byGERARD J. SWEENEY, ESQ.,hereafter in connection withproceedings on kinship, claimsetc., prior to entry of a final Decreeon this accounting in the amountof 6% of assets or income collectedafter the date of the withinaccounting; and why the Surrogateshould not fix and allow an amountequal to one percent on saidSchedules of the total assets onSchedules A, A1, and A2 plus anyadditional monies receivedsubsequent to the date of thisaccount, as the fair and reasonableamount payable to the Office ofthe Public Administrator for theexpenses of said office pursuantto S.C.P.A. §1106(4); and whythe claim from NYC HumanResources Administration in theamount of $44,116.86 should notbe paid; and why the VerizonBenefits Center should not beordered to turn over the sum of$231,817.23 to the Estate of JudySchmania plus accrued interest and
benefits; and why each of youclaiming to be a distributee of thedecedent should not establishproof of your kinship; and whythe balance of said funds shouldnot be paid to said allegeddistributees upon proof of kinship,or deposited with theCommissioner of Finance of theCity of New York should saidalleged distributees default herein,or fail to establish proof of kinship.Dated, Attested and Sealed 15th
day of May, 2015 HON. PETERJ. KELLY Surrogate, QueensCounty, Margaret M. GribbonClerk of the Surrogate’s CourtGERARD J. SWEENEY, ESQ.(718) 459-9000, 95-25 QueensBoulevard, 11th Floor, Rego Park,New York 11374This citation is served upon youas required by law. You are notobliged to appear in person. Ifyou fail to appear it will beassumed that you do not objectto the relief requested unless youfile formal legal, verifiedobjections. You have a right tohave an attorney-at-law appearfor you.Accounting Citation 6/12/15, 6/19/15, 6/26/15, 7/3/15
My story is just one example of thethousands of survivors and re-sponders being treated through thefederally funded programs. Ourvery lives depend on having thespecialized expert care providedthrough the 9/11 Health and Com-pensation Act be reliable and al-ways available for us.”
Background:The James Zadroga 9/11Health and Compensation
(continued from page 2)
9/11 Health andCompensation
Programs
Reauthorization Act would:*Continue the World TradeCenter (WTC) Health Program*Continue to Provide Monitor-ing and Treatment for Commu-nities Throughout the Nation*Continue the September 11thVictim Compensation Fund*Make the programs permanent*Continue New York City’sCost Share. The City of NewYork would continue to contrib-ute a 10 percent matching costshare of the total costs of theWorld Trade Center HealthProgram.*Continue to Research NewConditions
CB 1 MEMBERS HONOREDFOR DECADES OF SERVICE
On June 16th, Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer joined CouncilMember Costa Constantinides to honor Vinicio Donato, Chair of Commu-nity Board 1, and Lucille Hartmann, District Manager for Community Board1. A Proclamation was presented to Mr. Donato and Ms. Hartmann for theirdecades of service to the community as members of the board.
Council Member Van Bramer is joined by Council MemberConstantinides, Mr. Donato and Ms. Hartmann.
FIFTH ANNUAL LGBTPRIDE MONTH BRUNCHOn June 14th, New York City Council Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer hosted his Fifth Annual LGBT
Pride Brunch at Riverview Restaurant in Long Island City. Each year, the event draws hundreds of NewYorkers, elected officials and advocates from across the City to the 26th District to celebrate the achievementsand progress of the LGBT movement.
Local Kiwanis Club To Give Away FundsThe Kiwanis Club of Woodside is currently accepting applications for its 2015Scholarship Program. The award is open to all graduating high school seniors
who live in the 11377 zip code and/or members of the William Cullen Bryant HighSchool Key Club, regardless of residence.
To apply, a student must submit a final high school transcript showinggrades for all years, and a copy of SAT scores.
Selected candidates will then be called for an interview.To request an application, contact
Trucks make up over 3.6 per-cent of vehicles on city streets, butaccount for 32 percent of cyclistfatalities and 12.3 percent of pe-destrian deaths. The presence ofheavy thru-traffic in an area uti-lized by pedestrians can also po-tentially contribute to congestion
Vision Zero TrafficStudy Required
Sunnyside Reformed Church IsHaving A Street Sale!!
Saturday June 20th, Starting at 11:00 AMWe’ll have books, clothing, furniture, records, jewelry and more!
There will be food for sale prepared by Chris and Karen Demarecauxand
Plenty of surprises!
And...we also could use some donations, so if you havegood stuff that’s taking up room in your home...bring it tochurch! We’ll get it sold and put the money to good use.
(continued from page 3) and dangerous conditions. In 2014,two pedestrians were killed alongCanal Street.
Intro 641 requires a compre-hensive study that includes but isnot limited to:
- The impact of tolling policesand truck route designation on theuse of truck routes within the city
-The number and types ofcrashes involving pedestriansand bicyclists on truck routes inthe last five years
-A review of policies and strat-egies utilized by the city to in-crease safety on truck routes
- Recommendations for im-proving safety on truck routes
A study of truck routes is over-due: despite having more than 1,000miles of truck routes, the last timethe DOT released any comprehen-sive study regarding truck routeswas in 2007. The comprehensivestudy is required to be submittedno later than June 30, 2016.
NY METS FANS
Be Heard!To submit your
Letters to the Editor:Mail to 43-11 Greenpoint Ave.
Please include your fullname, mailing address,phone number and emailaddress. Letters that do notcontain full contact infowill not be published. Edi-tor reserves the right toedit and/ or decline lettersto be published.
The following letters are the opinionsof its author and not necessarily those
of the Woodside Herald.
Letters To
The Editor
Middle School(Article on 6/5/15)Dear Editor,
Thank you for publishing thearticle by Crystal Wolfe, regard-ing the need for a middle school inour school district. This is an issuethat needs attention, since morepeople should be made aware of it.Current first graders will be inmiddle school in five years: Thereis limited choice available at thepresent time.
Crystal Wolfe’s article was
timely and well-researched.Thanks to her for focusing on thisimportant community matter.
Cordially,Regina Shanley
Sunnyside
FUNDRAISER
by David Frenkel
Sunnyside Reformed Church led by Sunday School Teacher, StephanieKelly, had a Nepal Fundraiser. The Sunday School children raised$265.60 in support of relief efforts for Nepal, the children and Stephanieused Free will donations, it was warmly supported by Sunnyside residents.Sunnyside Reformed Church is proud to donate the money to help thosewho are bereaved by the Nepal Earthquake. The community was enrichedby the delicious, spinkled ice cream and the mission spirit of the event!
ATTENTION:
Every eligible donor who fills out the medical form application todonate blood will receive 2 FREE NY METS tickets. The NY BloodCenter will be holding a Sunnyside Community Blood Drive onTuesday, July 28, 2015 from 2:00 PM -8:00 PM on 46th Streetbetween Queens Blvd. and Greenpoint Avenue (under the Sunnysidearch). For more information or to arrange an appointment pleasephone the NY Blood Center at (800) 688-0900.
Many organizations, politi-cians, and political representativesspoke; ALL of which were in fa-vor of the rollbacks. Queens Bor-ough President Melinda Katz saidin a statement, “Thousands of ten-ants throughout the city – includ-ing Queens – simply cannot affordany upward adjustment in rent atthis time, no matter how modest itmay seem. As a city we cannot ingood faith push to build and pre-serve affordable housing while si-multaneously increasing rents andeffectively pricing families out oftheir homes. We urge the Board toenact either a rent rollback or arent freeze at this critical time.”Martha Flores-Vazquez, 40th Dis-trict Leader State Assembly alsospoke in favor of the rollbacks.
Ilana Maier of the Met Councilon Housing said, “After 9 years ofrecord landlord profits during theworst recession in recent historyit’s time for the Board to do theright thing and vote these roll-backs.” Maxine Safeman, a ladywho has volunteered with tenantorganizations said, “I want to makea point—real estate in NY State iswhat oil is to Texas. It is a trilliondollar industry that is very profit-able. NYC is great, we have scien-tists, artists, doctors, researchers—now we need affordable housing.”One person asked, “How will wesurvive if the rent prices go up?”Another person said, “We all lovethe diversity here, but can’t therebe housing in different price rangesto sustain everyone?”
In one man’s testimony he said,“These are elderly, immigrants, andgood people struggling to makeends meet. Many of these elderly
built this city shouldn’t we takecare of them now? Holistically wecan’t afford food, so we live onjunk food and get sick and then wecan’t afford the medical bills. Havea heart so that we don’t becomehomeless. The landlords complaintheir prices are going up and so arethe tenants’ costs of living, evenmore so. Middle and lower-classfamilies are being pushed out.Where are we going to go? There’snowhere left to go!”
Catrina Cortez in JacksonHeights said, “I’m only 22 and I livein a rat-infested apartment buildingand many of us are being pushed outof our homes there in disgustingways. The landlords are changinglocks without tenant’s knowledgeand walking into their apartmentswithout notice or warrant. Land-lords are also raising rents unlaw-fully. Landlords are doing this stra-tegically to get current tenants outso they can get new tenants in withhigher rent up prices.”
Alexandria Tome shared heremotional and personal story. “Asa mother to two sons and a daugh-ter who lives in a rent-stabilizedapartment I fear losing this hous-ing. I had a good early childhooduntil my father left us and mymother was forced to work mul-tiple jobs and worked hard to get usinto public housing. I had to expe-rience a lot of horrors where I grewup, like people doing drugs in theopen hallways. Now I myself ama single-mother working multiplejobs. If I lose my rent-stabilizedhome I will leave NYC.” Oneblue-collar working man madesome interesting points. “Cellularprices have gone done due to com-petition, yet with rent prices, inspite of the competition they areALL still high. I’ve working inconstruction in NYC for 10 years.In that time we’ve gotten new ma-terials that make building newbuildings much cheaper than be-fore. So why are the prices for thehousing getting to be more andmore expensive?”
Kenny Shafer, Vice Chair ofthe Metro Department Council forhousing said, “Landlord’s profitsare at records levels, up drasti-cally in the last 9 years, up by34%. I have an illustration toshow of a cat thinking outside the
box, only the box is empty. I’masking for drastic rollbacks of atleast 5%-10%. I’m asking you todo your job and protect these ten-ants.” The crowd was clearly onthe side of the tenants, as mosttenant speakers received raucousapplause and some landlords re-ceived no applause at all. One ofthe Board Members Sara Will-iams countered Mr. Shafer sayingthe tenants’ needs were not theonly concern they were looking atbut the board represented tenants,owners and the public.
Maria Carmen-Cruz said, “Theonly power we tenants have is to behere and speak at this meeting soour voices will be heard.” Wednes-day, June 24th at 6 pm at the GreatHall at Cooper Union in Manhat-tan on 7 East 7th Street at thecorner of 3rd Avenue in the Base-ment will be the last public meet-ing where the Board will announcetheir decision to be instated fromOctober 1st 2015- September 30th,2016. Additional information canbe found on the Rent RegulationsBoard Website is: nycrgb.org/.
If you are one of the morethan two million NewYorkers who live in rent-regulated housing, here’swhat you need to know:-Your lease is still ineffect and remains ineffect through the termof the lease.-There are still laws onthe books protecting youfrom harassment, and theCity is enforcing thoselaws.-We have put together anemergency hotline: Call 311if you have any concerns orquestions about yourapartment.-If your landlord isharassing you,withholding services, ortrying to exploit anylapse in the rentregulation laws to getyou to leave yourapartment, you shouldcall 311 immediately.
OF LOVE
Council Member Van Bramer isjoined by Gerry and Peggy Perrin,who celebrated their 56thAnniversary. Council Member VanBramer surprised the Sunnysidecouple at his annual brunch with adessert on their special day.
SUNNYSIDE HONORS(Story from pages 4 & 5)
OLD GLORY
by Crystal Wolfe
In 1916, President WoodrowWilson issued a proclamation of-ficially establishing June 14 asFlag Day to commemorate theadoption of the flag of the UnitedStates. The Sunnyside commu-nity celebrated their 46th AnnualFlag Day of the United States ofAmerica on Saturday, June 13,2015. Joe Sabba, founder of theWoodside Herald, initiated theparade in 1969, and the KiwanisClub of Sunnyside keeps the tra-dition going strong.
Each year the Flag Day Pa-rade grows in popularity; this yearwell over 1,000 residents cameout to enjoy the festivities. GrandMarshal Tony Lana led the pa-rade shortly after 11 am with thenonprofit Sunnyside Drum Corpshe runs as a volunteer, from 41stand Greenpoint Avenue, endingwith a grand flourish at the Veter-ans Memorial Plaza at the SabbaPark on Queens Blvd and 49thStreet. Ceremony speakers in-cluded Senator Michael Gianaris,councilmembers Jimmy VanBramer and Danny Dromm, As-semblywoman Cathy Nolan, andtwo speakers for Kiwanis, Will-iam Sadd and J.P. Di Troia. Rev-erend Brian Dowd of the Queenof Angels Roman Catholic Churchled the invocation, and FatherJerome of All Saints EpiscopalChurch gave the final blessing.
The celebrations were filledwith music. Alysia Quan sang theNational Anthem and the Inter-mediate School 125 Chorus andthe Chorus of PS119Q sang songsthat touched and invigorated thecrowd. The VFW fired their rifles
in respect for our country andlocal organizations like theSunnyside Kiwanis, theSunnyside Chamber of Com-merce, the Pipes and Drums ofCounty Armagh (enlivening thecrowd with drums and bagpipes),the Francis Lewis High SchoolMarching Band, Aviation HighSchool Color Guard and DrumLine, and the local Sunnyside Boyand Girl Scouts marched. JimmyVan Bramer made the announce-ment that our own Editor of theWoodside Herald, SherilynSabba, is pregnant with her sec-ond son, so the legacy of Flag Dayand the Sabba Park is sure to livein on in the community and theWoodside Herald family too!
Another big event forSunnyside was held on Saturdayby the All Saints EpiscopalChurch, which hosted their 50thannual Strawberry Festival andStreet Fair from 10 am - 5 pm on46th Street between Queens Blvdand 43rd Avenue. Over 35 localvendors sold makeup, shoes, jew-elry, movies, clothes, art, toys,and more in booths as thousandsof people shopped. The churchserved hot dogs and hamburgers,and there was a strawberry cheese-cake served with coffee and tea inthe garden area. “I’ve been thepriest here for 13 years and I lovethe people, the location of thechurch, our garden andSunnyside,” said Father JosephJerome. The next event for thechurch will be the October Pump-kin Festival. The Flag Day Pa-rade and Strawberry Fest made avery sunny, positive day for thecommunity of Sunnyside.
