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By Julie Stapleton

TimesLedger Newspapers

As a Neighborhood Coordination Officer in the New York Police Department, I spend my days strengthening the relationships between police officers and Queens communities. In my efforts to make New York a safer, stronger city, I’ve gotten to know my community inside and out, and I’ve learned a lot of important lessons.

One involves the many ways that education can affect lives. The school experience doesn’t just prepare them kids for college and their careers, it also shapes the way they interact with other New Yorkers, and helps determine whether they play a positive role in their neighborhoods.

Having seen the effects of a great education on so many children in Queens — and, sadly, having seen the effects of a bad education, too — I knew that I wanted my own son, Ayden, to get the best possible public education. So after some research, I put his name in for the lottery at Success Academy South Jamaica.

Luckily, Ayden won a seat. He loves SA South Jamaica, where he’s in first grade, and I know that his teachers are helping him grow into a good neighbor and responsible member of our community.

Unfortunately, tens of thousands of parents in New York City haven’t been so lucky. More than 48,000 families have submitted applications for their children to attend public charter schools, just as I did, but have been put on waiting lists because city charters don’t have enough room to accommodate all who want to attend. Every year, these lists get longer and longer, as more families decide that public charter schools are their kids’ best shot at a world-class public education.

Last Tuesday, dozens of public charter school parents, including many from Success Academy schools, traveled to Albany to advocate for these families. They met with state legislators and told them why it’s so critical that public charter schools are able to grow, and expressed a belief we all share: that every kid should get to go to a school where excellence is the expectation rather than an anomaly. Finally, they asked these elected officials to support our city’s charter schools.

I was proud to see so many of my fellow charter parents take a stand in Albany, and I hope to see more and more of our state and city leaders standing with us too. Working together, we can make sure that all children in New York City reap the benefits of a great public education and become forces for good in their communities.

This guest editorial was written by Julie Stapleton (South Jamaica).

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By Bill Parry

TimesLedger Newspapers

Police were searching for a man who entered an Astoria mosque earlier this month and was caught on video going through worshiper’s jacket that hung along a wall.

The suspect entered the Majid Al-Iman religious center, located at 24-30 Steinway St., during Friday prayers just before 4 p.m. on Jan. 19. He was caught on surveillance camera rifling through several of the jackets before taking one of them and fleeing in an unknown direction, police said.

The stolen property included a wallet containing a cell phone, a credit card and two identification cards, according to the NYPD.

Police described the suspect as 30 to 40 years old, around 6 feet tall and 180 pounds, clean shaven with a bald head. He was last seen wearing blue jeans and a black jacket.

Anyone with information is asked tocall the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS.

Reach reporter Bill Parry by e-mail at bparry@cnglocal.com or by phone at (718) 260–4538.

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By Gina Martinez

TimesLedger Newspapers

Police were searching for a man suspected of burglary in Flushing.

According to police, on Jan. 18, at 2:30 a.m., a suspect entered Flushing Senior Center, located at 136-82 39th Ave., and stole laptops, cell phones, tables and money. The suspect fled on foot in an unknown direction, police said.

Police described the suspect as a black male who was last seen wearing a black-hooded jacket, a gray hat and blue jeans.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477)

Reach Gina Martinez by e-mail at gmartinez@cnglocal.com or by phone at (718) 260–4566.

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By Bill Parry

TimesLedger Newspapers

The LaGuardia and Wagner Archives at LaGuardia Community College has added 122 years’ worth of historical documents donated by the Real Estate Board of New York to its on-campus repository in Long Island City.

Established in 1982, the Archives already included the personal papers and official documents of Mayors Fiorello LaGuardia, Robert F. Wagner, Abraham Beame and Ed Koch; the records of the New York City Housing Authority, the Astoria-based piano maker Steinway & Sons, and the City Council; and a Queens Local History Collection.

“REBNY’s decision to contribute this collection to our college’s LaGuardia and Wagner Archives is monumental,” LaGuardia Community College President Gail O. Mellow said. “Researchers seeking understanding about New York City will have more than 125 years of documentation about land use, ownership, design trends, and building codes — revealing the people who have built our city and lived, worked, and visited here, as well as signals about what the future may hold.”

Highlights of the collection include every REBNY Diary and Manual, an annual book that compiles changes in building codes and zoning updates, reflecting major issues facing the industry each year, and tracks REBNY membership comprising the city’s leading real estate professionals. It also features more than 300,000 property cards for houses, buildings and other private properties dating to the 1920s.

“As an educational tool, our students will have the rare privilege of studying from original documentation — an experience that should deepen their understanding of our city’s history, and how it’s linked to their current lives,” Mellow said. “It becomes an intellectually alive process, showing the students that they’re a part of history.”

Assets from the LaGuardia and Wagner Archives’ 14 collections, which total more than 2.3 million documents, are regularly studied by students, journalists, policy makers, and other researchers.

“Having the REBNY collection exist next to the records on both NYCHA and the City Council is entirely apposite,” said Richard Lieberman, professor of history and director of the LaGuardia and Wagner Archives. “Researchers will have a single source from which to access New York City’s public and private real estate history for the past 125 years, and to examine the legislative policies from the City Council that impacted this history. Both NYCHA and REBNY, representing public and private housing, are essential parts on New York City’s story — together revealing how our neighborhoods were shaped, community revitalizations, and much more.”

Reach reporter Bill Parry by email at bparry@cnglocal.com or by phone at (718) 260–4538.

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Source: Times Ledger

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By Mark Hallum

TimesLedger Newspapers

The East Elmhurst man who authorities say was responsible for lifting a rare tortoise from its Douglaston habitat was sentenced to six months behind bars last Friday on charges of fifth-degree criminal possession of stolen property.

Shawn Waters, 37, pleaded guilty last month to that charge, which stems from his sale of the stolen tortoise to a man in Connecticut. Authorities say Waters broke into the Alley Pond Environmental Center in July by creating a hole in the pen holding the 17-year-old tortoise, Millenium.

“Millenium the tortoise’s summer escapade that included crossing state lines has drawn to a close with today’s sentencing of the defendant,” Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said. “The rare reptile is safely ensconced in his habitat, and now the defendant, who admitted to possessing the stolen tortoise, will be confined to Rikers Island for the next six months. This should serve as a warning to everyone that my office will pursue justice for all those in Queens County — whether they are warm- or cold-blooded citizens.”

The African spurred tortoise has a value of $2,500, Brown said.

After the tortoise was stolen, Waters posted on Craigslist that Millenium was for sale, and after some bartering, he exchanged the animal with a man at the Metro-North station in Fairfield, Conn., for $300 plus a musk turtle.

Millenium’s new owner came to believe the tortoise was stolen after seeing news reports. He then alerted the authorities that he had the amphibian they were looking for.

Millenium was turned over to the care of the 111th Precinct, which returned it to the environmental center.

Police tracked Waters by the cellphone number used to arrange the exchange.

The theft of Millenium sparked strong reactions in Queens and beyond. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals even offered a $5,000 reward for information leading to the tortoise’s safe return.

“Millennium was the victim of a brazen kidnapping, and his fate now is unknown,” PETA Vice President of Communications Colleen O’Brien said at the time.

Sasha Sicard, executive assistant at the Alley Pond Environmental Center, expressed grief at the loss of the animal and said many in the community shared her distress.

“We’ve had him for over 10 years,” Sicard said. “He was part of the community. We have some very upset children and adults who miss him. We would just like to have him back.”

Thousands of schoolchildren make the trek to Alley Pond to see Millenium every year, Sicard said.

Reach reporter Mark Hallum by e-mail at mhallum@cnglocal.com or by phone at (718) 260–4564.

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By Gina Martinez

TimesLedger Newspapers

Assemblywoman Nily Rozic (D-Flushing) has introduced a bill that aims to increase the number of women on state public boards.

The bill will target all statewide public authorities, local development corporations, and industrial development agencies and would ensure adequate female representation and appointments of commissioners to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

Rozic has partnered with the New Jersey State Legislature on the bill, including Assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt (D-Cherry Hill), who will be introducing similar legislation in the New Jersey Assembly.

Rozic said she was inspired to introduce this bill after reading accounts about a lack of diversity on the Port Authority’s Board of Commissioners in 2016. Just last week, Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Council on Women and Girls announced their agenda to increase the number of women on state boards.

“I decided to take an in-depth look into women’s leadership positions across state boards,” she said. “Since then, three women have been appointed to PANYNJ’s board, but New York has a long way to go in closing the gender leadership gap. I applaud Governor Cuomo for including this issue among his priorities this year and look forward to increased diversity on our public boards.”

Rozic’s bill would direct appointing powers, including the governors of New York and New Jersey, to make appointments of commissioners that ensure that women make up 50 percent of appointed commissioners. Data compiled by the state Authorities Budget Office in 2015 showed that although women make up more than half of New York’s population, they constitute only 21.7 percent of positions on local development corporations, 20.26 percent of industrial development agencies, and 20.9 percent of other LDCs and state public authorities.

The Port Authority is led by a board of 12 commissioners, three of them women, and no public state board in New York consists of a majority of women.

Rozic said that while gender-quota directives are more common to increase women’s leadership on corporate boards in the private sector, their enactment has proved successful in closing the leadership gap.

Lampitt, of New Jersey, said more should be done this year to ensure equal representation.

“Since its establishment, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Board of Commissioners has been disproportionately comprised of white males,” she said. “This is unacceptable in this day and age, and we must do more to foster diversity and promote equal representation within our public institutions.”

Reach Gina Martinez by e-mail at gmartinez@cnglocal.com or by phone at (718) 260–4566.

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By Bill Parry

TimesLedger Newspapers

Assemblywoman Aravella Simotas (D-Astoria) secured $1 million in capital funding for three projects at Mount Sinai Queens in Astoria that she nominated for support from the New York State Assembly. The investment helps further the expansion that built a five-story Pavilion with new operating suites, facilities for primary care and an expanded emergency room with an off-street ambulance bay.

“I’m proud to support the hospital’s expansion of treatment resources that will save lives and preserve the health and well-being of western Queens residents,” Simotas said.

The money she secured include $500,000 toward the construction of the Pediatric Emergency Room, which provides a dedicated, family-friendly space for rapid evaluation, stabilization and treatment of babies and children. The space ensures that children don’t have to wait with adults and can be given specialized treatment while their families are accommodated.

Simotas also secured $250,000 toward the construction of the Interventional Radiology Unit, which uses state-of-the-art technology to offer the safest minimally invasive treatment options for cancers, kidney and vascular diseases, and uterine fibroids, among other maladies. Another $250,000 goes toward construction of the Cardiac and Critical Care Resuscitation Unit, which is a key area of the emergency department for life-threatening illnesses and injuries, including complex traumatic injuries and heart attacks.

“It’s wonderful for our community that Mount Sinai Queens is now delivering the same world-class medical care that is available across the river,” Simotas said. “When my father needed vascular surgery many years ago, he had to go to Manhattan, so I know how much it means to families to have their loved ones treated nearby.”

The $125 million expansion began in 2013 behind the original building at Crescent Street and 30th Avenue, site of the original Astoria General Hospital. The closest hospital is more than three miles away.

“Mount Sinai Queens continues to transform health care in our great borough,” Mount Sinai Executive Director Caryn Schwab said. “The expansion of services in our new state-of-the-art Pavilion has allowed us to improve the quality and complexity of health care offered right here in Queens. We couldn’t do this without great partners like Assemblymember Aravella Simotas. The funding she’s helped secure is going to make a real difference in the lives of our residents. We are incredibly grateful for her efforts and support.”

Reach reporter Bill Parry by e-mail at bparry@cnglocal.com or by phone at (718) 260–4538.

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By Naeisha Rose

TimesLedger Newspapers

Councilman I. Daneek Miller (D-St. Albans) has been reappointed as the chairman of the Committee on Civil Service and Labor. He was also appointed to the Committees on Land Use, Public Safety and Immigration and the Subcommittee on Landmarks, Public Siting and Maritime Uses.

“When I took office in 2014, a full one-third of the city’s workforce was eligible for retirement within a few years,” Miller said. “We engaged our partners in government and labor to provide Civil Service 101 workshops throughout the city. I am proud to say that today, following years of decline, the municipal workforce has increased by 20 percent.”

One of the ways Miller managed to engage the community in getting careers in civil service was by helping to open a testing center at 118-35 Queens Blvd. in Forest Hills, according to the councilman’s office.

Previously, Queens residents who wanted to work for the city had to travel to Manhattan or Brooklyn, according to the Department of Citywide Administrative Services.

The Civil Service Center in Forest Hills has computerized tests and is open six days a week, according to DCAS. The center also offers vocational training and seminars.

In 2014, the civil exams were decentralized, allowing management more flexibility in the hiring process and online job listings as well as applications, thanks to a push from state and city elected officials, according to Randy Paul Battaglio, the author of “Public Human Resource Management.”

“The opening of a new testing center in Queens, as well as the streamlining of testing processes, has significantly improved the civil service exam experience for everyone,” Miller said.

Worker protection and retentions laws by Miller and several elected officials across the state also helped thousands of jobs in the hotel, bus and grocery industries, by advocating for initiatives like paid sick leave.

“We championed the passage of an ambitious Paid Sick Leave provision that enabled working families to no longer choose between earning a living and caring for either themselves or a loved one,” said Miller said.

Reach reporter Naeisha Rose by e-mail at nrose@cnglocal.com or by phone at (718) 260–4573.

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By Bill Parry

TimesLedger Newspapers

A Long Island City strip joint was closed down last Friday by members of the NYPD vice squad by order of the Queens Supreme Court.

Show Palace, at 45-20 21st St., was shuttered because of alleged prostitution one month after elected officials and community leaders called for action by the NYPD and the Queens District Attorney’s Office under the city’s nuisance abatement laws.

The rally followed a Dec. 1 sweep by police in which five women were arrested on prostitution charges. State Sen. Michael Gianaris (D-Astoria), who called the all-nude nightclub “a thorn in our community’s side” and helped lead the fight to close it down for more than half a decade, wants it to stay closed.

“The closure of Show Palace is an important and hard-fought success for our community,” Gianaris said. “Thanks to the NYPD and the Queens district attorney for continuing to protect our neighborhoods. I will remain vigilant in case this establishment attempts to open again.”

The club is owned by the same group that owns Sin City in the South Bronx, which was known for gang activity, shootings and prostitution before losing its liquor license last May. The owners would have to go to court in order to reopen the venue.

“I am pleased to that Show Palace has finally been shut down for good,” City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer (D-Sunnyside) said. “For years, this establishment was a blight on a fantastic neighborhood that serves as the gateway to Queens. Show Palace had brought unwanted violence and crime to this community for years, and its closure has finally rid Long Island City of a bad actor that only served to harm an otherwise great neighborhood.”

Reach reporter Bill Parry by e-mail at bparry@cnglocal.com or by phone at (718) 260–4538.

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By Mark Hallum

TimesLedger Newspapers

Newly appointed New York City Transit President Andy Byford attended his first Metropolitan Transportation Authority board meeting on Monday as the Fix NYC proposal to enact congestion pricing in Manhattan was unveiled.

Byford expressed interest in a “relentless” pursuit to restore adequate service to the subways while placing a high priority on stopping declining bus ridership by calling for more cars to be removed from the road in order to streamline commutes.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s congestion pricing proposal, with an $11 surcharge for cars and $25 for trucks during peak hours entering Manhattan, is intended to make traffic flow more freely and to raise up to $1 billion per year for the MTA so it can upgrade its aging and failing infrastructure.

Byford admitted that stabilizing and modernizing the ailing transit system, the largest in the world, will be the challenge of his career, in which he has led the metros of London, Sydney and Toronto.

The Fix NYC proposal leaves East River bridges, which have been toll-free since 1911, exempt from the surcharge. But motorists continuing south of 60th Street in Manhattan after crossing the bridge may be charged.

One topic of discussion between board members and executives was whether there was precise language for defining the cause of transit failures. Overcrowding is one major reason for trains to fall behind schedule but is often labeled as a power-related issue. Executives were asked several times why there has never been a distinction, but board members needed repeated clarification as to why overcrowding is not being tracked specifically being one of the many hardships that straphangers face.

“Its not unusual — in fact, it’s typical — that a transit authority would have a category related that does relate to the inability of the system on a particular day to carry the number of people wanting to travel,” Byford said, explaining how congestion from trains dwelling in the station can be an indicator of overcrowding. “The key thing for me, in all of this debate, is to get to the root cause.”

Byford said new signal technology would possibly help with overcrowding to run trains closer together.

Long Island Rail Road President Patrick Nowakowski reported during the LIRR committee meeting that December and January brought more setbacks for commuters during the recent bouts of inclement weather than there were during the “summer of hell,” when emergency track repairs disrupted schedules at Penn Station.

Up to 210 train cars had to be removed from service in early December because wheels flattened out from leaf residue with cold, dewy conditions, causing the trains to skid as the brakes were applied. A secondary examination revealed that 157 additional cars needed repairs for flat wheels.

Nowakowski said the wheels simply need to be rounded out on a lathe to be put back into service.

“We suffered a tremendous number of train cancellations over a several-week period,” Nowakowski said. “We operated with a number of trains short cars, which caused severe crowding on the trains that were able to run.”

Later, in January, the power in one of the East River tunnels went out three times in one day, causing trains to stall for 20 minutes at a time.

Much of the equipment used by the railroad is pneumatic and sensitive to cold, Nowakowski said, and addressing that issue would be a first step toward resolving the weather-related setbacks.

The LIRR had time to understand and plan for the setbacks it would face during the “summer of hell,” Nowakowski said, and was able to surpass the expectations of commuters during that time. But unforeseen circumstances in the winter set trains further back than expected with just snow. In one case, for example, a train equipped with a snowplow derailed when it collided with car at a grade crossing.

MTA board member Ira Greenberg said that continuing infrastructure issues within East River tunnels maintained by Amtrak might not be resolved before East Side Access is achieved for the MTA to have its own right of way leading to a soon-to-be Penn Station annex on the site of the Farley Post Office building. But with no set completion date for East Side Access, Greenberg and other board members recommended MTA investigations to hold Amtrak accountable for repairs.

A combination of around 233,000 Long Island Rail Road riders per day traveled through Penn Station in 2016, with 5,920 taking the train to and from Hunters Point. For many in eastern Queens, the LIRR is the best and only option for getting to jobs in Manhattan. LIRR runs an average of about 740 trains per day.

Reach reporter Mark Hallum by e-mail at mhallum@cnglocal.com or by phone at (718) 260–4564.

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