Queensbridge Park's parkhouse to be renovated

From DNA Info:

Queensbridge Park is going green — the waterfront space in Long Island City has been allotted $2.5 million for the complete renovation of its park house, a building that’s been out of use for decades, city officials announced Tuesday.

The Parks Department will hold public scoping meetings to see what park users would like to see in the greenspace, which could include amenities like a modern comfort station, storage facilities for athletic teams and offices for the park’s staff.

City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer secured the funding for the renovation, which he says is part of a larger effort to improve and “reawaken” Queensbridge Park.

“It is extremely important that every single senior and child who lives in Queensbridge know that our City has allocated every single cent we could to make sure that Western Queens has a park that rivals Central Park in Manhattan or any other park in the City of New York,” the councilman said in a statement.

Seniors and children. Seniors and children. Everyone else is chopped liver and don't visit parks, apparently.

Read More

Dangerous trees in many parks

We have phony park advocates petitioning for funding for tweeding programs via public private partnerships instead of demanding adequate funding in the city Parks budget, and we're surprised this is happening?

Read More

Quinn funding illegal alien training

From the Daily News:

New York City plans to spend $18 million over the next two years to help immigrants who came to the United States illegally as children land legal jobs and get driver’s licenses.
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn — flexing the power of her office in the midst of a tough election fight as she runs for mayor — will announce the effort Wednesday.

It’s geared toward helping more young New Yorkers qualify for President Barack Obama’s year-old Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals initiative, which lets undocumented immigrants who came the U.S. before age 16 and were younger than 31 on June 15, 2012, get driver’s licenses and Social Security cards.

As many as 79,000 New Yorkers meet the age and immigration requirements for the program, Quinn says, but as many as 16,000 of them could be disqualified because the strict program requires applicants to have graduated from high school, earned a GED or be currently working toward a diploma.

The $18 million from the City Council will fund adult education classes and GED programs for people who need help meeting the education requirements.

Why do we need to help adults? I thought they were supposed to be welcomed because they were here "doing the jobs Americans won't do?" Haven't we heard that they and their kids are all successful and contribute positively to the economy?

Wouldn't this money be better spent helping American kids instead of helping people who don't belong here compete with American kids?

What school or park is falling apart and could have used $18M?

Read More

Silly electeds prefer tweeding to budgeting

Here we have State Senator/Public Advocate candidate Daniel Squadron promoting the idea that not only are public-private partnerships good, but that we should fund our entire park system off the back of the Central Park Conservancy. Peter Vallone has endorsed the idea in the City Council.

And then there's NYC Public Advocate and mayoral candidate Bill DeBlasio shilling for the same thing over the weekend at the Unisphere.

No morons, we shouldn't rely on money from charities. We should stop the corporate welfare and tweeding programs and use that money to fund park maintenance, as required by law. You guys also realize that forcing a charity to fund other charities is most likely unconstitutional, right?

Here's former Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe, his biggest defender, Holly Leicht of New Yorkers for Parks - a partner group with the NYC Parks Dept, and a landscape architect who reaped the benefits of working for the Central Park Conservancy, defending having charity pay for necessities, vs. Geoffrey Croft of NYC Park Advocates, who wants the city budget to allocate adequate funding.

Read More

Halloran's participatory budgeting projects will be funded

From the Queens Courier:

The district represented by indicted Councilmember Dan Halloran will receive funding for all seven participatory budget items and then some.

Nearly $3.2 million in capital and expense projects will be honored by the City Council, according to the legislative body’s Queens delegation.

“Northeast Queens is home to many of the borough’s great cultural institutions, not-for-profits and some of the best schools in the entire city,” said Councilmember Leroy Comrie, the deputy majority leader and chair of the delegation.

“I was pleased to have had the opportunity to work with my colleagues in the delegation to ensure residents can continue to thrive, and the funds we provided will make sure the quality of life in these community’s remains strong,” he added.

The Council stripped Halloran of his committee assignments and funding allocations in April when the lawmaker was charged in a conspiracy and bribery scheme.

Power to distribute his district’s funds fell to Speaker Christine Quinn’s office and the borough delegation, which said they would dole out money for 23 community projects. Those include all seven the district voted on during its second annual participatory budget process.

Read More

Ridgewood Reservoir project goes bust

From the Daily News:

Residents are irked that the latest scaled-back master plan to transform Ridgewood Reservoir to a park arrived without any cash to actually pay for it.

Three new design options were unveiled last week — one including features such as boating, a rock climbing wall and natural turf fields on the 50-acre site but another mimicking community calls for passive features such as paths and viewing platforms.

But that victory rang hollow given the lack of funding. And some civic leaders were still troubled by proposals that would disturb the natural scene for playgrounds and boating.

In 2007, the city unveiled an ambitious $50 million plan that would have cleared 20 acres for ballfields. But that died for lack of cash, too.

Now the city is close to completing a smaller scale project to fix lighting and pathways around the reservoir and make it more handicapped accessible.

“It’s shameful and ironic that now they are finally representing plans that the community wants and they have no money,” said Geoffrey Croft of NYC Park Advocates. “How much has been spent on contracting out plans and designs?”

It's all about the contracts. Not the actual work.

Read More

Quinn funds private park with discretionary funds

From Sunnyside Post:

Friends of Sunnyside Gardens Park, the fundraising arm of the membership-based park, received $25,000 through Council Speaker Christine Quinn. Those funds were for items such as “installing playground equipment and other recreational equipment.” Since 2010, Friends of Sunnyside Gardens Park has received $142,600 in city funds, most of it through Quinn. Park membership is not always open to all those who can afford the modest fees, such as with a YMCA or other non-profit. Members have to live in a geographical location to join.

Read More

FMCP to gets new volleyball courts - but still looks like crap

From Forest Hills Patch:

Flushing Meadow Corona Park will get some new volleyball courts this summer, and they're opening Tuesday!

Queens Parks Commissioner Dorothy Lewandowsi will join Borough President Helen Marshall in the park Tuesday morning to celebrate the opening of the volleyball courts, which are the first on the Corona side of the park.

The money for the parks came from the discretionary budget of the borough president's office, and the courts cost a reported $450,000 to construct.

Read More

Park maintenance shouldn't rely on discretionary funding

Photo from Times Ledger

From the NY Times:

Of the 51 Council members, at least three — the Democrats Charles Barron of Brooklyn, Peter Koo of Queens and Annabel Palma of the Bronx — gave no money to parks in the past three fiscal years. Another three — the Democrats Gale A. Brewer of Manhattan, and Albert Vann and David G. Greenfield, both of Brooklyn — allocated $8 million to $9 million each over the same period.

The amount of money they have to disburse is determined, in part, by the speaker of the City Council, Christine C. Quinn, who is now running for mayor (and who has been a major supporter of parks). Some members may perceive more pressing demands, like affordable housing or public safety.

Some City Council members chafe at the requests to finance basic park infrastructure. “Why should we be paying for it?” said Mark Weprin, a Queens Democrat, who recently designated money for protective netting at a public golf course. “They come to us with a list of projects, and I always find that offensive. These are the basic needs of an area. It shouldn’t be up to the local councilman to fix up parks.”

Agreed.

Read More

Community cleans up what Crowley left an eyesore

From the Juniper Berry:

In December 2009 our Council Member, Elizabeth Crowley, organized a press conference on the corner of Metropolitan Avenue and Fresh Pond Road to call for the area to be made into a community garden. On the site was an abandoned newsstand, a graffiti covered 200 ft. LIRR retaining wall, weeds and a good deal of dumping. Crowley invited State Senator Joe Addabbo, Assembly Member Mike Miller, Community Board 5 District Manager Gary Giordano and community leaders. After the press conference nothing happened. Surprise, surprise. Is anyone out there shocked by the inaction? The elected officials got some face time in the Dec. 13, 2009 Daily News with the headline "Blighted area at Metropolitan Ave., Fresh Pond Rd. intersection to become green site." However as usual, the community once again got nothing except a lingering eyesore.

On Saturday, May 18th, volunteers from the Juniper Park Civic Association and the Juniper Juniors took matters in their own hands. About 20 volunteers descended on the area armed with brooms, garbage bags, weed wackers and 15 gallons of puritan stone colored paint and transformed the area.

The JPCA funded the clean-up. Council Member Crowley did not.

Special thanks to JPCA Board Member Len Santoro and his wife Barbara for organizing another great cleanup.

Can anyone out there name one - just one - thing that Liz Crowley has done to improve her district?

Read More