Hochul to introduce $9 toll into Manhattan with elections complete Report: Congestion pricing to return
by Michael Gannon Senior News Editor
Gov. Hochul is expected to reintroduce congestion pricing today, Nov. 14. According to information first published Wednesday in Gothamist, it will drop the basic peak toll from $15 down to $9, in order to avoid a new round of federal studies.
In the week since Election Day, Hochul has said on multiple occasions that a revamped plan to fund the Metropolitan Transportation Authority would be unveiled soon. It was presumed to be coming before President-elect Trump, who has expressed hostility toward the plan, takes office on Jan. 20.
The New York Post has reported that Hochul plans to increase the toll within three years.
“I will not be discussing any specifics today,” Hochul said at a press conference on Tuesday. She reiterated that she has been speaking with Biden administration officials since early June, when she put congestion pricing on pause 25 days before it was to go into effect.
Hochul also said that since the pause, the state has been planning for the contingency of a Trump victory; and that transportation funding issues were central to what she said was a productive phone call with Trump on Nov. 7, all while promising an announcement on final plans sometime in the future.
Without saying that the state’s plan will
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include a reduced congestion toll of $9 a car as opposed to the originally planned $15, Hochul did say repeatedly on Tuesday what she first said on June 5 — that in her opinion, $15 was and remains too high.
The study approved by the federal government examined tolls between $9 and $23.
Politico reported in June that Hochul paused the planned June 30 implementation at the behest of House of Representatives Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-Brooklyn), who reportedly did not want Democrats running in House races on Long Island and in the Hudson Valley to have to defend themselves from Republican attacks over it.
“I still believe that while inflation is starting to come down, we’re seeing some progress, $15 is still too much for hardworking New Yorkers who have to get up every day and go to work and pay additional costs,” Hochul said Tuesday. “Those who do not have public transportation available or it does not fit into their work schedule.”
Congestion pricing was intended to raise $1 billion a year for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s capital improvement plan, leveraging another $14 billion in loans, and was scheduled to go into effect on June 30.
The basic fees were to be $15 for cars and $24 or $36 per trip for trucks entering Manhattan on or below 60th Street.
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Gov. Hochul says a new funding plan for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority will be in place in time for the annual state budget discussions. NYS SCREENSHOT / YOUTUBE
Critics of the pause include environmental and mass transit groups, as well as the MTA, which says the delay has cut critical funding.
During Trump’s first administration, supporters of congestion pricing frequently accused his bureaucrats of slow-walking it through the federal review process from when it passed in 2019 until Biden took office in January 2021.
Hochul has said repeatedly in the last week she is planning a comprehensive approach for funding the MTA and its proposed five-year, $68.4 billion capital improvement budget.
Last weekend, Politico reported that Hochul has sought advice on whether asking for the lower $9 fee per trip could allow implementation of the paused plan without forcing a new round of government reviews.
Under the state law, the tolling scheme must raise a minimum of $1 billion per year. Any shortfall would have to be made up for, with an online sales tax and an increase in the payroll mobility tax among the options reportedly on the table.
Like Hochul, MTA CEO Janno Lieber also was looking to Washington in a statement issued last week.
“The MTA’s approach is businesslike, focused on running great service to move millions of people, because when New York does well the national economy does well,” Lieber said. “We will make the case in Washington, where there is a long history of bipartisanship on transportation issues — as we did during Covid, working alongside Sen. [Chuck] Schumer [D-NY], Republicans, Democrats and the first Trump administration to make sure transit was able to keep going.”
Hochul on Nov. 6 took credit for pulling
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CB 9 votes to OK Metro Park proposal
Group approves amendments, has discussion on co-namings and crime
by Kristen Guglielmo Editor
Community Board 9 on Tuesday became the first in Queens to approve city map and zoning text amendments for Metropolitan Park, an $8 billion mixed-use development proposal that would transform the 50 acres of asphalt surrounding Citi Field into a sports and entertainment complex, complete with a Hard Rock casino and open space.
The area is legally city parkland, so city map and zoning map changes must be approved in order to facilitate the project, which must also clear several other hurdles.
Because the site is considered “adjacent” to Community Districts 3, 4, 6, 7, 8 and 9, those boards will vote on the amendments before they go to Queens Borough President Donovan Richards for approval, followed by the City Planning Commission, the City Council and the mayor, as called for by the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure.
Last month, Community Board 9 hosted a public forum on Zoom to hear feedback on the plan, put forth by Mets owner Steve Cohen, which was overwhelmingly positive.
“This is a proposal which is going to cost in the billions, and the idea is that it’s going to produce billions in revenue,” said Sylvia Hack, the board’s Land Use panel co-chair.
Hack pointed out that the proposal requires one of three state casino licenses expected to be awarded downstate by the end of 2025.
“This is just an application — only one of
several groups that made applications to get the ability to have a gambling casino,” she said.
“Obviously, there are some people who are not happy about such a project, but the people who testified really saw it as a tremendous ability for the city to gain a great deal of money.”
One board member pointed out that state parkland alienation legislation is needed for the casino. Though area state Sen. Jessica Ramos (D-East Elmhurst) declined to introduce the legislation to support the project, the developers believe there are multiple pathways to reach that and thus the project is moving forward.
The Land Use Committee recommended to approve the motion, according to co-chair Andrew Taranto. The board overall voted in favor of the proposal 27-3, with one abstention. Board members Visnoonand Bisram, Ruben Cruz and Swapan Chakraborty voted against the amendments, and Warlito Deleon abstained.
In other board news, the group voted to endorse two street corner co-namings: 114th Street and 101st Avenue in honor of Sikh Guru Tegh Bahadur Marg Ji, and 117th Street and Myrtle Avenue in honor of Alfie’s Pizzeria owner Alfio Muto.
In a statement, Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar (D-Woodhaven) said she was “overjoyed” that her district’s board endorsed the 114th Street and 101st Avenue co-naming.
“This street intersection is home to Baba Makhan Shah Lubana Sikh Center, a cornerstone of South Richmond Hill’s Sikh community in my district,” Rajkumar said. “As the first South Asian American woman elected to New York State Office whose family hails from Punjab, the birthplace of Sikhism, I am proud that our community is receiving proper recognition.”
Deupty Inspector Jeremy Kivlin of the NYPD’s 102nd Precinct was happy to announce that for the latest 28-day period,
crime is down 32.5 percent versus last year.
“We’ve seen decreases in every category of crime,” Kivlin said. “The only category that we’re seeing any increase in is grand larcenies ... a small increase of about 5 percent. So when you look at a lot of the more violent crimes, like robberies and burglaries, we’re down. And that’s a really good thing.”
He added, “I think we’re doing quite well. It’s a testament to my officers and everybody that works in the 102 Precinct. I think they did a tremendous job.” Q
A drive-through could replace Esquire Diner
Eatery remains open as CB 10 hears details on chicken joint plan
by Kristen Guglielmo Editor
Esquire Diner, at 105-39 Crossbay Blvd., in the near future could turn into a fast food restaurant with a drive-through.
A Board of Standards and Appeals application was filed at that address to grant a zoning variance to Pollo Compero, a Guatemalan restaurant chain that specializes in chicken, to open a drive-through at the location.
Community Board 10 last Thursday voted to approve the application with conditions.
The property’s owner, Jimmy Athanasopoulos, told the Chronicle that the diner is still open, but he applied for a variance on the land.
He said customers have stopped coming in because they believe the location is closed due to chatter on social media, and said it was negatively impacting business.
“A lot of people posted that we were closed. But this thing takes a while to go through — if it goes through,” Athanasopoulos said. “And in the end, we may decide it’s not going to work.”
Esquire Diner, which has served customers
Though Esquire Diner, in Ozone Park, is still in business, in the future it may become a drivethrough chicken restaurant.
for more than 40 years, like other diners is struggling financially, according to Elyse Foladare, an associate attorney at Eric Palatnik, P.C., who represented Athanasopoulos at the community board meeting.
“The diner started in 1976, but this has been
an eating and drinking establishment since 1958,” Foladare. “So historically, it was an eating and drinking establishment.” She said the owners of the Ozone Park property would stay the same, but the tenant would change. “It will have 10-car queueing,”
Foladare said. She said landscaping would be placed “all around” and the appropriate amount of parking would be included.
A comprehensive traffic impact study is being prepared to ensure the drive-through would not negatively impact congestion on the boulevard, as well as a detailed queueing study to show that the 10 spaces would be sufficient to meet peak demand.
According to the city’s Zoning Resolution, board Chair Betty Braton said, if the BSA finds that the applicant has met the five findings, the variance should be granted.
The five findings are unique physical conditions that result in practical difficulties; physical conditions making it difficult to develop in a way that follows zoning rules with reasonable returns for the owner; the variance won’t alter the character of the neighborhood or district; the owner has not created the problems; and it is the minimum variance necessary. Foladare said the applicant meets the five findings. When the floor was opened to public com-
continued on page 8
Community Board 9 on Tuesday evening by a show of hands voted to recommend city map and zoning text amendments for Metropolitan Park, a mixed-use development proposal for the Citi Field lot in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. PHOTO BY KRISTEN GUGLIELMO
PHOTO BY KRISTEN GUGLIELMO
Reactions to Trump’s win vary in S. Queens
Howard Beach overwhelmingly voted red; other neighborhoods a mixed bag
by Kristen Guglielmo Editor
“Howard Beach is Trump country,” resident Frankie Serrano, 54, told the Chronicle last week. And perhaps he’s right — according to unofficial election night results from the state Board of Elections, residents overwhelmingly showed up to the polls to vote for President-elect Trump.
In Assembly District 23, which comprises Howard Beach, Broad Channel and parts of Ozone Park and the Rockaways, Trump received 25,442 votes, or 56.5 percent of the total, as of unofficial results with 97.7 percent reporting. Vice President Kamala Harris received 18,942 votes, or 40.9 percent.
In Howard Beach itself, however, Harris was massively outvoted.
In Election District 35, which encompasses some of New Howard Beach and Lindenwood, Trump received a whopping 82.7 percent of the total, with 825 votes. In ED 36, which contains the southern end of Old Howard Beach, Trump received 80.3 percent of the vote, with 770 residents voting for him. In ED 37, which encompasses Hamilton Beach, Trump got 642 votes, or 67.9 percent of the electorate.
The results aren’t a surprise to those in the neighborhood who are vocal in their Trump support. It’s not uncommon to see people wearing Make America Great Again hats or Trump signs in front of homes. Trump merchandise vendors have been spotted at community events.
In recent weeks, a pop-up Trump merchandise stand set up by Danny Merk, of “Jersey Shore” fame, has been appearing on Cross Bay Boulevard. Residents told the Chronicle the stand usually sells out within hours.
“I told my buddy that some guy was setting up a T-shirt stand for 47,” Serrano said. “My wife’s in the market for a ‘Women for Trump’ shirt.”
Last Wednesday morning, a motherdaughter duo, Diana and Francesca Castigliano, spoke to the Chronicle about their different opinions of the new president.
While Diana, a retired receptionist, was “elated” at the election results, her daughter didn’t share the sentiment, telling the Chronicle that Trump “preaches hate and division.”
“He’s made it OK for people to just say whatever they want with no repercussions,” Francesca said. “I think Americans are afraid of a woman in office.”
losing the foundation our country was built on. Our freedoms, our safety. This was a win for the people. So if they want a parade I will organize it.”
In nearby neighborhoods, the presidentelect did not poll quite as well, but still received more votes than he did in previous years.
In parts of Woodhaven, where Trump’s father, Fred, was from, Harris eked out a lead, with 53.4 percent, or 439 votes, in ED 33, and 58.5 percent, or 442 votes, in ED 34.
Ashley Ocasio, 33, a dental assistant from Woodhaven, said she voted for Harris, but is not surprised by what she called “Trump love.”
“He got shot,” Ocasio said. “He won the second that photo was blasted on every front page.”
Asked why Harris had her vote, she said, “I’m also a minority woman, who believes women should have the right to bodily autonomy. I think there should be a free Palestine, and while this administration isn’t helping that, I think they’d be better at global relations than Trump. And I trust Kamala with the economy.”
South Queens residents have mixed opinions regarding the president-elect.
Still, the majority of Howard Beach residents have been celebrating throughout the past week. Some on neighborhood Facebook pages have even called for a parade to revel in the election results.
Phyllis Inserillo, speaking as a citizen and not as civic president or aide to the area’s councilwoman, told the Chronicle in a text message, “I think people feel like we were
She continued, “The federal government is under Trump’s tax plan right now, for one, and the guy’s tariffs will leave people struggling. I don’t think Trump supporters realize he intends to make things better for the billionaire class only.”
Ozone Park was relatively divided, but in the northern areas, Harris held a slim lead, ranging from around 50 to 55 percent.
Daniel Coffaro Hill, 19, a civically active Ozone Park resident, said, “I’m excited for both our community and our country. It’s a great win for America and the values that so many stand for locally.”
receiving more than 55 percent, and upwards of 60, in most of the neighborhoods’ election districts.
In parts of Richmond Hill, Harris did even better — with 60.6 percent, or 341 votes, in ED 23, and 64.7 percent, or 214 votes, in ED 25.
Rahul Debi, 60, a Bangladeshi immigrant and small business owner living in South Ozone Park, could not vote but said he would have been disappointed if Trump beat Harris in his neighborhood.
“I am upset he won,” Debi said. “But at least my neighbors did not support him.” He added, “I am a legal immigrant. I’ve been living here for a very long time, but I know some Trump voters might hope my people are deported.”
One 29-year-old South Richmond Hill voter, who declined to reveal his name, said his Guyanese mother would be angry with him had he admitted his vote went to Trump.
Hill said he had conversations with individuals at mosques and at the Cityline Ozone Park Civilian Patrol’s pantry who said they were “fed up.”
Both South Richmond Hill and South Ozone Park favored Harris, with her handily
“She thinks he’s the devil,” he explained. “I think he’s brilliant. People are put off by his honesty, but it’s refreshing. ... I know I’m in the minority. People here love Kamala.”
Asked why he voted for Trump, the resident said, “I think we were better off four years ago than we are today. The economy was better. And, I don’t know, I just like him. I think he’s smart.” Q
Hochul: MTA funds will be there
continued from page 2
MTA finances back from a cliff last year after what she said were decades of disinvestment.
Danny Pearlstein, policy and communications director for the Riders Alliance, wasn’t impressed with Hochul’s answers last week. He did not share her optimism about getting a deal in place quickly.
“This is the governor’s final opportunity to fund the MTA properly during her term,” Pearlstein told the Chronicle. “And she has to act decisively within the next two weeks. Otherwise, we’re entering a world of pain. And so far, we’re not hearing what we need to hear from her.
“And we’re leaning very heavily on our pressure campaign and our litigation due back in court at the end of next week to move the governor in real time to where we need her to be.”
He also said the need to get the 2025-29 MTA capital plan funded next year puts more pressure than usual on those who hammer out the state budget every year.
“Congestion pricing aside, it is going to take up almost the entire state budget conversation in Albany if the governor has this to deal with as well come the new year,” Pearlstein said. “Transit and New Yorkers as a whole are in a very perilous situation.”
Unpausing the plan, even as proposed at $15, does not stop the problems of Hochul and congestion pricing supporters, as there
still are five lawsuits aimed at stopping the scheme altogether.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy filed the first suit against the tolls in July 2023, with Fort Lee, NJ, Mayor Mark Sokolich doing so last November.
The United Federation of Teachers and Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella joined forces on a suit back in January.
The 400,000-member Municipal Labor Council, which represents city employees, and 18 elected officials joined the UFT-Fossella suit in February. The Staten Island chapter of the NAACP did so in March.
A class-action suit filed in January by New Yorkers against Congestion Pricing Tax, Inc., includes residents and businesses in and near Manhattan’s Lower East Side, as well as officials and Queens residents.
The Town of Hempstead, which borders Queens in Nassau County, LI, and Town Supervisor Donald Clavin filed a suit of their own in opposition on May 1.
The Hempstead, Staten Island and New Jersey suits all mention the added costs to drivers, while most of the suits also include concerns that traffic, pollution and related health problems would simply be moved to other communities.
A Manhattan Supreme Court judge in late September dismissed motions from Hochul attorneys to dismiss a pair of lawsuits filed by congestion pricing advocates seeking to compel the governor to remove the pause. Q
Danny Merk’s pop-up Trump merchandise stand sells out within hours in Howard Beach, as residents don’t hesitate to show their support for the president-elect. READER PHOTO
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What could it mean for schools in the country? Educators and experts react Trump has pledged to abolish the DOE
by Kristen Guglielmo Editor
President-elect Trump has on numerous occasions said he wishes to do away with the U.S. Department of Education.
In a campaign video from last year that recently resurfaced, Trump said the federal agency was staffed by people who “in many cases hate our children” and that he wants states to make education decisions.
“They’ll do a much better job of it,” Trump said. “We’re one of the worst, so you can’t do worse. We’re going to end education coming out of Washington, D.C.”
Trump would need congressional approval, including a supermajority of 60 votes in the Senate, to shutter the agency.
The U.S. Department of Education was established in 1979 during the Carter administration. According to its website, ed.gov, the agency establishes policy for and administers and coordinates most federal assistance to education. Its mission is to serve America’s students and promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.
In relation to lower-level education departments, such as the city Department of Education and State Education Department, the federal government provides significant funding for schools through grants under Title I and other programs supporting students with disabilities or English learners.
President-elect Trump has said he wants to dissolve the U.S. Department of Education.
what the dissolution of the federal DOE could mean for the country and for Queens.
Educators were apprehensive to speak on the record in fear of retribution. But one Queens social studies teacher, on condition of anonymity, in a text message said it would be a “nightmare.”
She said, “Leaving rules up to the states is how you’ll get students in Texas and Florida getting a washed-out lesson on the Civil Rights Movement.”
“A significant and systemic overhaul of education policy is more realistic.”
—
Brian Browne, political science professor at St. John’s University
For college students in financial need, the U.S. Department of Education oversees the federal student loan program and provides Pell Grants.
The agency also enforces laws such as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and Title IX, which require schools to uphold standards in areas such as special education, nondiscrimination and equity.
The state and city education departments did not respond to requests for comment on
Drive-through
continued from page 4
ment, Sam Esposito, president of the Ozone Park Residents Block Association, said he had spoken to businesses and residents nearby and there was no objection to Pollo Compero or its drive-through.
Barbara McNamara, co-president of the Howard Beach Lindenwood Civic, said that while her group does not encompass Ozone Park, residents reached out.
“They’re concerned about the traffic this will cause,” McNamara said. “And while I appreciate you being here tonight, I think it’s somewhat premature that the DOT
A middle school English Language Arts teacher told the Chronicle she’s concerned about book banning.
“Some of the books that challenge the way kids think — like ‘The Diary of Anne Frank’ — could be removed from curriculum,” she said.
Michael Krasner, professor emeritus of political science at Queens College and codirector of the Taft Institute for Government and Civic Education, located on the school’s campus, in an email told the Chronicle, “It seems clear that abolishing the department would mean doing away with grants specifically aimed at education and likely substituting
study hasn’t been done if the board is going to vote on that tonight, because I would have preferred that we could have intelligently spoken about how traffic would be affected.”
Braton and the rest of the board seemed to be in agreement on approval, as all but two members voted to recommend it, on the condition that the study shows that traffic would not be negatively impacted. The final decision is up to the BSA.
Foladare said she was told by the BSA that the DOT is backed up, so it may take until the end of the year to get the agency’s OK for the drive-through, which means a decision from the BSA could come next summer.
block grants or simply cutting the money from the federal budget. This would be devastating for local schools, and especially for those groups and programs that the federal government specifically funds.”
Krasner continued, “The states simply couldn’t make up that deficit since they haven’t got the taxing power of the feds. This would mean that public schools would get a lot worse. That would mean that people who could afford to send their kids to private schools would do so and that would mean the public schools would deteriorate further.”
“All of this is a recipe for increasing inequality and also for making the citizenry less capable of telling the difference between good government and bad government.”
Brian Browne, a political science professor and associate vice president of university communications and public affairs at St. Johns University, provided perspective on what abolishing the federal DOE would mean for higher education.
“In what is already a precarious time for higher education in the United States, the 2024 election demonstrated the widening political gap between American voters with a college degree and those without,” Browne wrote in an email. “College leaders would be well served to examine and respond to the root causes of the growing educational polar-
ization in our country.”
He continued, “This Election year, we saw culture wars explode and high-profile political battles over higher education issues — like diversity, equity, inclusion initiatives, free speech, campus antisemitism, the plight of undocumented students, gender issues in athletics, and student protests — resonate in local and national campaign strategies.”
He said the dissolution of the federal DOE would be a “contentious move,” but unlikely.
“A significant and systemic overhaul of education policy is more realistic,” Browne said. “If President Trump enjoys a Republican majority in the House and the United States Senate, he will have more power to take aggressive action related to higher education policies and programs.”
Browne said priorities of President Biden, such as student loan forgiveness, will end and taxes on large college endowments could be expanded.
“The debate over Title IX, a federal law that prohibits discrimination based on sex in any educational program or activity receiving federal financial assistance, including sports, is almost a certainty,” he said.
“A second Trump term will likely amplify growing concerns about college affordability, the value proposition of postsecondary education, and public anger over campus culture issues. How President Trump uses Executive Orders, especially in his first 100 days, is something to watch as all this unfolds. Public and private colleges and universities are likely in store for more examination and upheaval during the next four years and beyond,” Browne said.
When contacted for comment on the issue, the United Federation of Teachers directed the Chronicle to a statement by its president, Michael Mulgrew, released following the election results.
The statement said, in part, “Under the new administration, we will continue to focus on our core mission: fighting for what our members, our students and our communities need. What lies ahead for public school educators will no doubt be difficult, but we will protect our core values, our union, our profession and one another.” Q
Protections for the Nat’l Guard
Veterans Day is Nov. 11, and to mark the occasion, Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar (D-Woodhaven) celebrated the signing of her bill A3710, which protects members of the National Guard from job termination during deployment.
It passed unanimously and was signed by Gov. Hochul in September. There were no Queens co-sponsors.
Federal law provides protections only to National Guard members on active duty for more than 30 days, Rajkumar’s office said. For shorter deployments, 48 states enacted laws protecting National Guard
members on active duty fewer than 30 days. New York’s law only applied to members of the New York National Guard. A3710 extends the protections to members of any National Guard on short deployments, such as disaster responses.
“When our National Guard members are out defending our freedoms or responding to disasters, they must come home to a hero’s welcome, not a pink slip,” Rajkumar said in a statement. “I am proud to have expanded employment protections to every National Guard member.” Q — Kristen Guglielmo
PHOTO BY AJAY_SURESH / WIKIPEDIA
EDITORIAL AGEP
Electeds must put constituents above criminals
Our city and state lawmakers do not appear to be taking the right lessons from once and future President Donald Trump’s win last week. We’re concerned they could wind up harming not only their own futures but those of the districts, city and state they represent.
While Trump was busy putting together a cabinet of hard-liners dedicated to drastically changing the course of the government in multiple areas, many of our officials, including the governor, were soaking up the sun at Somos, the annual conference in Puerto Rico that allows them a nice, relaxing junket after an election.
One of the hot topics at this year’s event is whether the state Legislature should hold a special session to pass new laws designed to thwart the federal government, according to reporting in City & State. The agenda is not concrete, but a top concern seems to be protecting unauthorized immigrants, referred to as “our most vulnerable New Yorkers” by their supporters, from deportation. At least one lawmaker would like a stronger safe-haven law for transgender people.
Trump just did better in New York City than any Republican presidential candidate since 1988. While he did not come close to winning the state, he made serious inroads,
especially in places such as Queens. Much of the county is red and getting redder. It’s not just Howard Beach, Whitestone and Glendale, either. There’s a Forest Hills election district where Trump won 327 to 155, and it’s not alone.
That doesn’t mean supporting every policy of his, not at all, but our lawmakers have to understand that people went to Trump in large part because of the chaos and illegality they’ve been seeing all around them. It’s the stores with things like toothpaste under lock and key. It’s the illegal “smoke shops” selling marijuana openly. It’s the bust in Long Island City they read about this week at qchron.com that yielded 850 pounds of weed and three arrests. It’s the unregistered, uninsured mopeds and scooters zipping all over the place. And it’s certainly the flood of migrant laborers and asylum seekers who crossed the border illegally.
So now our tone-deaf electeds want to pass some kind of law that ostensibly would prevent undocumented people from being deported but instead could set off a constitutional crisis. And it’s not a crisis from which New York would emerge victorious, thanks to the jurisdiction the feds have over immigration and the principle of federal supremacy.
We’re not talking about trying to deport everyone and
would not want to. But members of the Legislature have to realize it is not a good idea to double down on the idea of protecting illegal aliens who have committed crimes from Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE should be able to take those types into custody in our jails and prisons so it doesn’t have to do it on Roosevelt Avenue or Main Street.
Some are calling for cooperation with the incoming Trump administration, key among them Mayor Adams. We can’t say if he’s thinking to wrangle a pardon out of Trump, but he’s always been more moderate than many of his fellow Democrats, and he’s warned of the dangers of unfettered immigration from the start. Gov. Hochul is of course also a key player, though, like Adams, she’s relatively weak. And she’s busy trying to impose congestion pricing tolls on travel into Manhattan, another very unpopular idea in the outer boroughs. It’s even possible Trump could halt it.
People don’t want to see their quality of life erode while select groups, especially people here illegally, get taken care of with their tax dollars. Many believe that’s exactly what’s happening. Our officials need to read the room, change course and make sure to put their constituents first. Otherwise they’ll pay an even bigger price at the polls next time.
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LETTERSTO THE EDITOR
Red-light revenue
Dear Editor:
Shalom Weberman’s Nov. 7 letter, “Red-light law flawed,” is 100 percent correct.
I agree that we need to stop people from going through red lights. However, hidden cameras do nothing to prevent this from happening unless there is signage about them before an intersection. Otherwise, it is just a money grab.
In many cases, the yellow light is not long enough to give drivers adequate time to stop safely. There is a formula the city Department of Transportation is supposed to use, which takes the speed limit into account to set the length of time the yellow signal is on. At intersections with arrows, the green light must be on long enough to give cars enough time to make the turn, and the yellow light must give adequate time to stop.
Personally, I just got hit with a red light camera ticket on Queens Boulevard, turning left onto Grand Avenue. The traffic backs up because the green arrow is not on long enough to allow more than a few cars to turn. In addition, the yellow light flashes on for just a few seconds. After waiting for three light cycles, I tried to make it through, but as I began moving, the yellow light changed to red and the camera got me.
Here is proof that the DOT is more concerned with collecting money than providing
safety. There is a dangerous intersection in Middle Village. It is next to a park and around the corner from an elementary school. The community board made a request for a speed bump, which would slow traffic down and enable cars to safely enter the intersection. It was turned down, with this explanation; “The New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) requires that a street be at least 1,000 feet clear of a speed camera when installing a raised speed reducer.”
Why would the DOT object to slowing traffic down near a speed camera? Isn’t that the goal? Or is it actually to generate revenue?
Lee Rottenberg Middle Village
Smart Marine training
Dear Editor:
I agree 100 percent with what Frederick Bedell Jr. wrote in his Nov. 7 letter, “Penny was a protector.” There is nothing more I can add
except for the fact that I’ve been choked to the point of being rendered unconscious more times than I can count — and I’ve done the same to many of my fellow recruits in Platoon 269 as part of my Marine Corps training at Parris Island back in the early 1960s. No one ever suffered any ill effects from the training. Of course, none of us had any illegal drugs in our system. It is the most painless, humane method of disabling someone. Much more civil than smashing someone in the head with a rifle butt, or kicking him in the head. It’s a blood choke. It merely cuts off the brain’s supply of blood.
If the U.S. government teaches this method, it is obvious that any Marine trained at Parris Island would use it as the first choice of painlessly disabling someone threatening them or other passengers on a subway train. If anyone from my platoon is still alive and reads this, feel free to chime in.
Paul Slapikas Woodside
LETTERSTO THE EDITOR
Don’t punish Penny
Dear Editor:
Re Frederick Bedell’s Nov. 7 letter “Penny was a protector”:
I agree with Mr. Bedell that Daniel Penny deserves a tribute, not a trial. But thanks to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s perverted priorities, he is being tried as a criminal, facing up to 15 years in prison, instead of being hailed as a hero. Prosecutors and Jordan Neely’s misguided supporters present a false narrative that must be corrected.
They portray Neely as a misunderstood Michael Jackson impersonator who didn’t get the help that he needed. Not true. He was a moonwalking monster who chalked up 42 arrests, including one for punching an elderly woman in the face and breaking her nose (Wikipedia). After one of those arrests, a judge sentenced Neely to 15 months of psychiatric treatment as an outpatient, instead of jail. But Neely left the program after two weeks (New York Post, May 9, 2023). Had he been sent to a secure inpatient psychiatric facility and completed treatment, he might be alive today.
Some of the riders on that fateful F train testified in court that they feared for their lives and were grateful that Penny intervened to subdue Neely (Post, Nov. 9, “Terror train testimony”). “If Jordan Neely would have gotten up, who knows what he would have done,” one passenger said.
Mr. Bedell said he is a Vietnam era military veteran. So am I (Air Force, 1964-68). Daniel Penny is a Marine veteran who defended his country as an infantry squad leader and protected New York subway riders as a private citizen. He deserves the support of all NYC military veterans. Alvin Bragg deserves the contempt of all law abiding New Yorkers. He should be voted out of office when he runs for re-election in 2025.
Richard Reif Kew Gardens Hills
NYS women lose out
Dear Editor:
I must start off by saying, this is no longer a political issue; this is now a legal issue, Since the passing of the misleading titled “Equal Rights amendment,” I have been consumed by the ramifications of its passage. It is presently 4 a.m. and I can’t sleep.
I want answers, especially from our elected representatives who sponsored and supported this legislation, a New York constitutional amendment, on my strict interpretation of it.
There are no longer any facilities designated for women only! This includes all public and private and state facilities. By simply stating, “I identify as a woman,” I, as a biological male, cannot be discriminated against. That gives me access to any and all designated women’s spaces, including but not limited to: bathrooms, locker rooms, showers, gyms, sport competi-
tions, prisons, jails, homeless shelters and facilities for abused women and children.
I am demanding answers from our politicians who supported this legislation. Am I correct? I want so much to be wrong about this, but I fear I am not. If I’m correct, the women of New York State are no longer a protected class.
I implore each and every one of you to question your elected representatives about this, and, if I am correct, fight like hell to have this overturned, for the sake of every woman in your life!
John Bluemke Howard Beach
Liberal racism at play
Dear Editor:
Re: “Speaker’s Office releases housing plan,” Nov. 7:
Thanks to the Chronicle for inserting famous actor Wendell Pierce’s account of being denied housing by a white landlord, despite having high income and plenty of assets, because he was Black. Go back to the June 4 New York Times story in which Mr. Pierce relates further that the apartment was “in Harlem, of all places.”
This all-too-familiar situation, here otherwise essentially deep-sixed in media ever since, is customarily the province of liberal elites cheaply boosting their moral supremacy vis-à-vis deplorable middle class types. In fairness to the burgeoning Harlem liberal cafe society, they can’t match the smooth hypocrisy and deep political bench of the master segregationists in Park Slope, essentially racially cleansed without a hitch systematically going back to the eighties.
Bill de Blasio naturally arrived late to the party, but as City Council rep of the place helped pushed through the 2003 Park Slope rezoning, per curbed.com resulting in a decrease of 5,000 Black and Latino households between 2000 and 2013, even as the area’s population grew by more than 6,000 during that same period. “I think it could be improved by explicitly creating incentives to build affordable housing,’’ lied de Blasio at the time. The formerly uxorious de Blasio is now domiciled in even whiter Manhattan’s Upper West Side in the tony Lincoln Square, reportedly dating a white chippy.
Edwin Eppich Glendale
Equity over education
Dear Editor:
I am absolutely stunned that the State Education Department has seen fit to further dumb down the requirements for a high school diploma (“Regents may not be required to graduate,” Nov. 7). This is being done in the interest of equity. What is being done in the interest of quality?
One of the new factors that will be considered in awarding diplomas is community service. Since when did the school system become a social welfare agency? The purpose of school is to provide intellectual training. In this endeavor, some students will excel, and others will not. The diploma signifies that students have reached a certain level of acacontinued on next page
LETTERSTO THE EDITOR
demic proficiency.
Even now, the number of graduates who fall below a reasonable level of proficiency is mind-boggling. As an example, I once walked into a store, purchased some items and gave the clerk a $20 bill. She gave me back over $23 because she had punched in the wrong numbers. The thought that the amount showing on the register could be wrong never crossed her mind. I can give you several other examples of the inability of people to perform simple arithmetic procedures, including bank tellers, who have to call over supervisors to make change.
Our leaders and educators have to realize that we are engaged in a new Cold War in which brainpower will determine the outcome. Computers, math and science, are the weapons in this war. The ability to protect one’s own water supply, electrical grid, banking system and weapon systems from being hacked, and destroyed, while being able to destroy an opponent’s infrastructure will determine the outcome. We can be reasonably sure that Russia, China and North Korea are not concerned about equity in their school systems.
Michael Gallagher Forest Hills
GOP trumps the Dems
Dear Editor:
The silent majority is silent no more. It has spoken loud and clear: “We are mad as hell and we are not going to take it anymore.”
In the days and weeks ahead, the Democratic Party will offer us all kinds of excuses for the devastating loss in what was called a “fight to save our democracy” election. They will say that Vice President Kamala Harris had three strikes against her from the start, being a woman, being black and being married to a Jewish man. That there wasn’t enough time for people to get to know Harris. That former President Trump didn’t fight fair.
One excuse they can’t use is our archaic Electoral College. Trump won the popular vote by about 3 million, according to the count so far, and Harris received many million fewer votes than President Biden did in 2020. Many people are turned off to our “democratic process.”
While the Republicans were able to band together, speak with one voice and fully back their candidate, Democrats had too many competing factions, seemed to forget they once were the party of hardworking Americans and failed to change their tactics where needed. All this resulted in Trump recapturing the presidency, regaining the Senate, holding the House and receiving an overwhelming mandate going forward.
Einstein said, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” The Democrats better take heed or it will be a cold day in hell before they regain power.
As for me, “Mad Mel” Moskowitz, I am angry, confused, disappointed and still mad — but feeling lucky to be 81. I don’t expect to be around for the coming “Apocalypse.”
Disclaimer: The above is in no way an endorsement of the misogynistic, racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, hateful, and convicted felon, Donald J. Trump, and all his pathetic sycophants!
Mel Moskowitz Forest Hills
My fellow Dems blew it
Dear Editor:
Republicans should be grateful for Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s work to ensure their victories. Her visits to Pennsylvania sealed the Trump victory there. She and other members of the Squad seemed to appear in as many ads for Republican candidates as the candidates themselves.
I noted in my July 25 letter to the editor, “Past VP Failures,” that there should have been an open Democratic Convention to vet possible presidential candidates. (As promised in my letter, I did vote for Kamala Harris.)
Far-left New York City Democrats are now trying to rip the local Democratic Party apart by refusing to allow Mayor Adams to have his day in court. The approval of four of the five ballot proposals backed by Adams should be viewed as the public’s approval of Adams.
When will the local Democratic leadership realize the future of the party should be in the hands of individuals such as Ritchie Torres, as noted in your Nov. 7 editorial, “Democrats can’t live in their own left-wing world,” and have people like Brad Lander, Tiffany Cabán and Jumaane Williams step aside?
If this trend of the far-left minority dictating the direction of the Democratic Party continues, I worry we will see Rudy Giuliani as our next mayor.
David Soukup Sunnyside
Season of kindness
Dear Editor:
Thanksgiving, Christmas and Chanukah are upon us. It is a time of good friends and a time of giving and sharing. But it is also a time to show acts of kindness to those less fortunate in our communities.
Think of donating to and even volunteering with those faith-based groups and both civic and religious organizations that help the needy. There are also food kitchens and food pantries that need your help year-round.
Also, think about donating blood, the gift of life, for those in need.
In your travels this holiday season, try smiling and saying hello to those you meet and those at stores you go to. Also, try saying, “Have a nice day.” This will go a long way spreading a wave of kindness and maybe making a better community. Now, I have one other idea: When you get on a bus or train, try giving up your seat to a senior citizen or person with disabilities.
By doing all this, maybe you will understand the reason for the season.
Frederick R. Bedell Jr. Bellerose
A wreath to honor lives lost
Nearly 30 residents joined the General Stephen Moylan Assembly 715, 4th degree, of the Knights of Columbus to honor Veterans Day last Saturday with a ceremonial wreath laying at the Richmond Hill War Memorial in Forest Park.
Known to residents as the “My Buddy” statue, the sculpture commemorates those who died serving in World War I.
It was the 10th year Assembly 715 hung a wreath on the memorial statue for Veterans Day.
— Kristen Guglielmo, with reporting by Michael Shain
Howard Beach pays tribute to veterans
Patriotic event at Coleman Square
by Kristen Guglielmo Editor
A small but sincere crowd gathered Monday at Coleman Square in Howard Beach, where families and veterans paid tribute to those who have bravely served the nation. Organized by Bernard J. Coleman VFW Post 2565, the intimate Veterans Day ceremony offered a quiet moment of gratitude and reflection for the sacrifices made by servicemen and women.
Before the flag raising ceremony, elected officials gave their remarks.
State Sen. James Sanders Jr. (D-South Ozone Park), a veteran of the Marines, could not be in attendance, but a representative, Faran Sharif, said the senator “wanted to thank every single person that has served our great country and has worked to keep this country preserved and make this country great.”
Councilwoman Joann Ariola (R-Ozone Park), who sits on the Council’s Committee on Veterans, called for continued support .
“We fight for veterans to have better living conditions in shelters,” Ariola said. “Isn’t that a shame? But we do get them better living conditions. ... We just recently delivered to the Borden Avenue shelter over 100 sets of sheets donated by many of you standing here, so that our veterans have basic needs
[met] that are not being provided for them.”
She continued, “I know we all like to say we support our veterans, but we have to do it — not just in words, but in action.”
Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato (D-Howard Beach) said, “This is a great show of what our country is about: freedom.”
Pheffer Amato, a member of the Assembly’s Veterans Committee, added, “We thank our veterans for fighting for those freedoms that are so important to our country. And now with our new election, we have to bless our country, because there’s new leadership and I’m looking forward to the direction our country will be going into.”
U.S. Army veteran and specialist Sean McCabe thanked those who help VFW Post 2565 organize and promote its events, including the area’s civic groups, the Howard Beach Lindenwood Civic and the West Hamilton Beach Civic Association.
“I’d just really like to recognize a lot of you who do not get recognized enough,” McCabe said. “The NYPD 106 Precinct, you guys have always been with us. They are always there for us. The West Hamilton Beach Fire Department. There’s a lot of what we do here that we cannot get done without them, and you have our love and our respect.”
Brother’s Italian Food World owner to retire
DeBlasi to step away, but the Howard Beach institution will remain open
by Kristen Guglielmo Editor
After Thanksgiving, a friendly face will depart Brother’s Italian Food World, at 16110 Cross Bay Blvd. in Howard Beach.
Nick DeBlasi Jr., the owner of the neighborhood institution specializing in meats and produce, is set to retire after 33 years of sole ownership of the business. The store will remain open.
“My manager [Rob] has been with me for 22 years,” DeBlasi said. “He’s taking over the store, and he’s going to bring new life into it.”
Brother’s Italian Food World opened 42 years ago, DeBlasi told the Chronicle, under the ownership of his father and uncle, Nick Sr. and Joe. His uncle retired in 1991 and his father moved onto other endeavors, leaving DeBlasi at the helm.
Since then, residents of Howard Beach could rely on DeBlasi for top-notch meats, Italian specialities and fresh produce.
He said his fondest memories of the store include serving the community — not just in
Queens in the store, but beyond.
“We’ve been involved in the community forever,” he said. On 9/11, DeBlasi said he and his father brought water, towels, flashlights, batteries and other aid to the NYPD’s First Precinct in Manhattan.
The store then had a fundraiser for families of the fallen, DeBlasi said. The Brother’s Relief Fund at the time raised more than $25,000.
Among the beneficiaries were the Police Benevolent Association Widows and Children Fund, the FDNY’s 9/11 Disaster Relief Fund and the Port Authority Police’s Disaster Relief Fund.
“When I gave the checks to the Port Authority, they didn’t understand what I was there for or what I was giving them,” DeBlasi said. “I gave them a check and all this other stuff, and they gave me a tour of the facilities and everything. It was really, really cool.”
DeBlasi said Brother’s also sent food to the Rockaway Peninsula after the crash of American Airlines Flight 587, 23 years ago.
“The mayors all came here,” DeBlasi said. “All the politicians used to stop by. There’s so many memories.”
He also has fond memories of customers — the first person he served at age 15 still shops there today. Still, DeBlasi said the store will be in good hands after his departure.
“It’s so upsetting [to leave], but it’s been a privilege and an honor to be involved in so many people’s lives for so many years,” DeBlasi said. “I’m actually humbled by it. It’s amazing.” Q
Brooklyn man killed in Howard Beach crash
by Kristen Guglielmo Editor
A man was killed in a high-speed collision on Nov. 5 in Howard Beach.
Police said they responded to a 911 call at approximately 11:12 p.m. regarding a vehicle collision on the Belt Parkway at 79th Street, near Spring Creek Park and within the confines of the NYPD’s 106th Precinct.
Upon arrival, officers observed a male, later identified as Nicolas Blagovisny, 25, of Brooklyn, unconscious and unrespon-
sive with bodily trauma.
EMS transported Blagovisny to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where he was pronounced deceased, police said.
Further investigation by the NYPD Highway District’s Collision Investigation Squad determined that a 2024 BMW X5, operated by Blagovisny, was traveling in the right lane of the eastbound Belt Parkway at a high rate of speed, according to the authorities.
He attempted to merge to the center lane and struck the driver’s side rear of a 2024
Acura Integra, operated by a 45-year-old male also traveling in the right lane of the eastbound Belt.
After striking the Acura, Blagovisny’s vehicle veered to the right, police said, hitting the guard rail along the south side of the roadway, becoming airborne and then slamming into a tree.
Blagovisny was traveling with a frontseat passenger, an unidentified 21-year-old male, who was transported by EMS to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center in stable condition, police said.
The unidentified operator of the Acura was not injured and remained on the scene. There were no arrests and the investigation remains ongoing.
According to NYPD CompStat, traffic fatalities were down this year to date in the 106th Precinct as of Nov. 3.
There were six total traffic fatalities up to this time last year, and four as of the most recent data for 2024, a total decrease of 33.3 percent.
Balgovisny’s death will bring the total to five.
Nick DeBlasi Jr., the owner of Brother’s Italian Food World in Howard Beach, is retiring after this Thanksgiving.
PHOTO BY MICHAEL SHAIN / FILE
Residents of Howard Beach took some time out Monday morning to honor Veterans Day at a ceremony in Coleman Square. PHOTOS BY KRISTEN GUGLIELMO
Hochul, James not all aboard Trump train
Governor, attorney general say they are prepared to challenge DC GOP
by Michael Gannon Senior News Editor
Even with President-elect Trump scoring significant inroads in New York State during his landslide victory on Election Day, Gov. Hochul and longtime Trump nemesis state Attorney General Letitia James do not appear ready to throw in the towel anytime soon.
Speaking at a joint press conference the day after the election, Hochul and James congratulated Trump. The governor said she would work with him or anyone else from either party to advance things like funding for major transportation projects and upstate manufacturing opportunities.
“And I will be very clear, while we honor the results of this election, and we’ll work with anyone who wants to be a partner in achieving the goals of our administration and our state, that does not mean we’ll accept an agenda from Washington that strips away the rights that New Yorkers have long enjoyed,” Hochul said in a YouTube video available on her official website.
“I need to remind everyone, this is the birthplace of the women’s rights movement, the environmental justice movement, the LGBTQ rights movement and the American labor movement. With that as part of our history, our story, New York will remain a bastion for freedom and rule of law. And over the next coming
weeks, and indeed years, I’ll do everything in my power to ensure that New York remains a bastion from efforts where those rights are being denied in other states.”
“We did not expect this result, but we are prepared to respond to this result,” James said.
“And my office has been preparing for several months, because we’ve been here before. We faced this challenge before and we used the rule of law to fight back. And we are prepared to fight back once again.”
Hochul and James made particular mention of abortion, birth control and reproductive rights.
And both pointed to state Proposition 1, which preserves those rights and others in the state Constitution.
The ballot measure passed with 62 percent of the vote. It also protects against unequal treatment based on ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and pregnancy.
Taking questions after their prepared remarks, the two were asked if Proposition 1 could stand up in the face of conflicting measures out of Washington. Republicans will take control of the Senate in January and are expected to win the necessary 218 seats to retain the House of Representatives.
James said it depends
“The question you are asking is whether
New York would be preempted by federal policy or regulation,” she said. “You have to draw a distinction between a regulation and a law. [With a] regulation, I would say no. A law would be a different outcome.”
A reporter also asked James for a response to
Queens Blvd. redesign done
Ribbon cut on new and improved ‘Boulevard of Life’
by Stephanie G. Meditz Associate Editor
The city Department of Transportation announced Tuesday that the final phase of its Vision Zero Queens Boulevard redesign project has been completed.
The initiative started in 2015 to enhance safety along the thoroughfare formerly known as the “Boulevard of Death.”
Elements of the redesign include curbside bike lanes, pedestrian islands to shorten crossing distances and adjustments to traffic signals to give pedestrians more time to cross before cars have a green light.
DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez said at a press conference at 40-20 Queens Blvd. in Sunnyside that traffic deaths have decreased by 68 percent and injuries by 35 percent since the project began.
“These are not just numbers, these are real people. They could be our friends, our loved ones, they could be our neighbors who are alive today or who didn’t suffer lifechanging injuries all because of how this street was redesigned,” Rodriguez said.
He later added that the DOT will build on the project’s success using $23.7 million in federal funding and $1.5 million in capital funding from Queens Borough President Donovan Richards and Councilmember Julie Won (D-Sunnyside).
Lizi Rahman, whose 22-year-old son died
cycling on Queens Boulevard in 2008, said the completed redesign should be a model for all dangerous streets. YOUTUBE SCREENSHOT
The agency will upgrade the section of Queens Boulevard it first redesigned in 2015, from Roosevelt Avenue to 73rd Street,
in a nearly $150 million project, a press release states.
Rodriguez said the improvement will expand and reconstruct service road medians with a continuous, raised pedestrian mall and grade-separated bicycle path, reconfigure slip ramps and enhance accessibility at bus stops. It will also install a planted buffer and vertical barrier to protect pedestrians from traffic and add new lighting, public seating and landscaping.
Construction is slated to begin in 2025, according to a DOT press release.
“I’m proud to say that Queens Boulevard is not the Boulevard of Death anymore. It’s the Boulevard of Life,” Rodriguez said.
“Today is really indeed a great afternoon for Queens as we celebrate the completion of the transformational redesign of Queens Boulevard,” Richards said.
Lizi Rahman said she has been advocating for bike lanes since her 22-year-old son, Asif, died cycling on Queens Boulevard in 2008.
Rahman said the Queens Boulevard redesign should be a model for dangerous streets throughout the state and country.
“My son lost his life, but it didn’t go in vain. It worked to get something that would benefit the whole new generation, years after years,” she said. Q
remarks from a spokesperson from former Gov. Andrew Cuomo who said James and her many legal actions “basically revived Donald Trump when he was no longer politically a factor ...”
“No response on comments from the former governor,” James said. Q
Trash bins the law for many
The city’s newest regulation on taking out the trash took effect Tuesday, requiring people who live in single-family homes and other residential buildings with up to nine units to put their garbage in a bin with a secure lid.
The container may be up to 55 gallons. The city recommends buying its official model, the NYC Bin, and says nearly 400,000 have been purchased since July.
A warning period runs through the end of the year, according to the Department of Sanitation. As of Jan. 2, violators will be subject to tickets of $50 the first time, $100 the second time and $200 after that. People will be able to report violations to 311.
The rule is part of the city’s “Trash Revolution,” and the DSNY says 70 percent of Gotham’s garbage must now go in bins. The regulation also covers city agencies, houses of worship and nonprofit offices.
As of June 1, 2026, the official bin will be required for buildings with up to nine units. The city intends for larger buildings to use dumpsters that will be placed on the street, permanently. A key goal is to reduce the rat population. Q — Peter C. Mastrosimone
Gov. Hochul, foreground, and state Attorney General Letitia James say they are prepared to stand up to any perceived overreaches from a second Trump administration that they feel are harmful to the state.
PHOTO BY SUSAN WATTS / NYS GOVERNOR’S OFFICE
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The Middle Village community marched down Metropolitan Avenue on Sunday to honor those who have served the nation at the annual Queens Veterans Day Parade.
Grand Marshal Alphonse J. Ranni, center left, was honored for his service in the U.S. Army Reserve during the Vietnam War. Ranni, 76, was awarded two Bronze Star medals, two Purple Hearts, two presidential unit citations, a Combat Infantry Badge and several Army commendation medals during his tour.
Marking its 72nd year of service, the Kiwanis Club of Glendale, right, received this year’s Anthony Pace Humanitarian Award and marched in the parade.
One of the parade’s organizers, Lynda Metzger, at top left, distributed American flags to attendees along the route.
Among those also in the procession were the Vietnam Veterans of America, Moves & Motions School of Dance, Girl Scouts Troop 4038 and Christ the King High School’s Marching Band. — Stephanie G. Meditz
PHOTOS BY MICHAEL SHAIN
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100 years of good cheer at Gottscheer Hall
R’wood’s iconic German club celebrates
by Jessica Meditz Chronicle Contributor
A crowded dance floor, German music by Die Heimatklänge and raised glasses with cheers of prost set the scene at Ridgewood’s Gottscheer Hall on Sunday.
A sold-out gala to commemorate the German bar and catering hall’s centennial is what brought about 300 Gottscheers and their loved ones together in the building that marked their arrival to Queens in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Gottscheer Hall’s name refers to Gottschee, a former German-speaking region in what’s now considered Slovenia. The effects of World War II left Gottscheers displaced, and many of them fled to settle in Queens — where the majority of Gottscheers and their descendants now live — along with Cleveland and Kitchener, Canada.
“In 1924, a group of Gottscheers got together and decided to buy a little building on Fairview Avenue because they had no meeting place, no clubhouse,” said Joe Morscher, president of Gottscheer Central Holding Co. Inc., the corporation and group of shareholders that has owned and overseen the property since 1924.
“They did this so they’d have a place to meet and do things from their culture, like host dances or sing,” Morscher continued. “When more Gottscheers started immigrating here in the ’50s, they needed a larger space, so they sold more shares, bought the nextdoor property and renovated it into what it is today.”
Today, Gottscheer Hall is home to its various clubs and organizations, including the Gottscheer men’s and women’s choirs; the Gottscheer Kranken Unterstützungs Verein, founded to provide sick and death benefits to Gottscheer immigrants; the Gottscheer Rod & Gun Club; Die Erste Gottscheer Tanzgruppe, a German dance group; the Gottscheer Bowling Club; the Gottscheer Hall Fishing Club, Blau Weiss Gottschee Soccer Club; and the Gottscheer Relief Association, which runs the annual Miss Gottschee contest.
joining generations of Miss Gottschees since 1964.
“I grew up within the community ... I was in the dance group for many years, went to German school with a lot of the Gottscheer children and would attend many events at the Clubhouse,” Schemitsch said. “It’s a wonderful opportunity for me to now be Miss Gottschee and represent the community during this time, celebrating this wonderful achievement that our ancestors have gifted us.”
Her mother, Erika Schemitsch, served as Miss Gottschee 1990.
“It’s a proud moment for me as a mom, after contributing all the years to the heritage and being part of the Gottscheer community,” Schemitsch said of her daughter following in her footsteps. “It means a lot that everything we did as parents did have an impact.”
Gottscheer Hall has always been open to the public. However, it was mostly the local German community that patronized the business until recent years when transplants discovered its charm, according to bartender Danny Kikel.
While Gottscheer Hall’s 100th anniversary gala saw the traditional polka dancing, dirndl dresses and lederhosen, Gen Z’ers in cowboy boots line danced on that same floor just two nights prior. Gottscheer Hall has been the primary venue for Honky Tonkin’ in Queens, the hip country music concert and two-step dance party.
“Here, you felt the comfort of a common heritage.”
— Albert Belay
Krista Schemitsch, 22, from Middle Village represents Gottscheer Hall’s organizations as Miss Gottschee during its 100th anniversary year. Her portrait hangs in the building’s foyer,
“Business is better than it ever was,” Kikel said regarding the new demographic’s appreciation.
“We’re able to continue to prosper and keep the place running, keep the lights on,” Morscher added.
Sunday’s packed celebration evoked a sense of nostalgia for days gone by, according to Sonia Juran Kulesza, president of the Gottscheer Relief Association. It was once the norm for dances to put Gottscheer Hall at capacity, but that lessened as more native Gottscheers passed on.
“It was wonderful to see so many of the ‘original’ Gottscheers instrumental in helping to build the foundation of our Gottscheer community as it exists today in attendance. I felt a true sense of gratitude and love for the legacy that they have left behind for our generation and the next,” Kulesza said. “It is up to the current
first generation of Gottscheer-Americans, as well as the upcoming second generation of Gottscheer-Americans, to keep the legacy alive albeit with some modern touches. It is hard for me to describe the immense pride I feel when I see our Gottscheer community come together in unity and purpose.”
At the gala, Gottscheer Central Holding Vice President Fritz Neubauer described everyone in the room as a “brick that built this building,” but described Albert Belay as one of its cornerstones.
Belay, 99, was born in Lienfeld, Gottschee, and came to the U.S. to settle in Ridgewood in 1950 at age 25.
He is one of the last remaining speakers of Gottscheerish, his native language — an Upper German dialect that was the main language in the enclave. UNESCO classifies it a critically endangered language.
“The Gottscheer Hall was a place where you could go to meet old friends and new ones,” Belay said. “Here, you heard the sound of your Gottscheer language. Here, you felt the comfort of a common heritage. Here, you felt a piece of home.”
Belay has devoted most of his life to his heritage — celebrating milestones at Gottscheer Hall and making an impact on its clubs — from becoming the first president of the Blau Weiss Soccer Club, to serving as the Gottscheer men’s choir president for almost 40 years.
“You can imagine how much time I spent at Gottscheer Hall, and I’m proud to say the Gottscheer language is still kept alive in song,” he said. “Gottscheer Hall is a place where the Gottscheer culture and traditions are honored. Like their new T-shirt logo states, it is a place where you find ‘Good Food, Good Cheer, Good Friends.’” Q
Bartender Danny Kikel pulls the tap for a packed house at Gottscheer Hall’s 100th anniversary celebration, above. At right, just one happy table at the event and, far right, a vintage shot of the Ridgewood landmark.
PHOTOS BY JESSICA MEDITZ; COURTESY PHOTO, FAR RIGHT
At left are Joe Morscher, left, president of Gottscheer Central Holding Co., Miss Gottschee Krista Schemitsch, Miss Alpine Brookelynn Schleimer and Gottscheer Central Vice President Fritz Neubauer. At center, past and present members of Die Erste Gottscheer Tanzgruppe. And at right, Albert Belay, 99, an icon in the G ottschee community, and his daughter, Heidi Belay Juettner.
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SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF QUEENS Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, as Trustee for the benefit of the Freddie Mac Seasoned Credit Risk Transfer Trust, Series 2019-4, Plaintiff, -against- Lourdes Marie Dorce’s unknown heirs-at-law, next-of-kin, distributees, executors, administrators, trustees, devises, legatees, assignees, lienors, creditors, and successors in interest, and generally all persons having or claiming, under, by or through said defendant, who may be deceased, by purchase, inheritance, lien or otherwise, any right, title or interest in and to the premises described in the complaint herein, Steven Fequiere as Heir to the Estate of Lourdes Marie Dorce, Ernest Fequiere a/k/a Ernest Fiquiere a/k/a Ernest Figuiere, Commissioner of the Social Services of the City of New York Social Services District, New York City Parking Violations Bureau, New York City Environmental Control Board, New York City Transit Adjudication Bureau, New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, United States of America - Internal Revenue Service, Natasha “Doe” (Refused Last Name), John Doe (Refused Name), John Doe (Refused Name), John Doe (Refused Name), John Doe (Refused Name), John Doe (Refused Name), Defendants. Index No.: 725737/2023 SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS
Plaintiff designates Queens County as the place of trial. Venue is based upon the County in which the mortgage premises is situated. TO THE ABOVE NAMED DEFENDANT(S): YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to answer the Complaint in this action and to serve a copy of your Answer or, if the Complaint is not served with this Summons, to serve a Notice of Appearance on the attorneys for the plaintiff within twenty (20) days after service of this Summons, exclusive of the day of service; or within thirty (30) days after service is complete if this Summons is not personally delivered to you within the State of New York; or within sixty (60) days if it is the United States of America. In case of your failure to appear or answer, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief demanded in the Complaint. NOTICE OF NATURE OF ACTION AND RELIEF SOUGHT THE OBJECT of the above captioned action is to foreclose a Mortgage to secure $240,000.00 and interest, recorded in the office of the clerk of the County of Queens on July 18, 2008 in CRFN 2008000285943 covering premises known as 21512 Murdock Avenue, Queens Village, NY 11429. The relief sought in the within action is a final judgment directing the sale of the premises described above to satisfy the debt secured by the Mortgage described above. NOTICE YOU ARE IN DANGER OF LOSING YOUR HOME If you do not respond to this summons and complaint by serving a copy of the answer on the attorney for the mortgage company who filed this foreclosure proceeding against you and filing the answer with the court, a default judgment may be entered and you can lose your home. Speak to an attorney or go to the court where your case is pending for further information on how to answer the summons and protect your property. Sending a payment to your mortgage company will not stop this foreclosure action. YOU MUST RESPOND BY SERVING A COPY OF THE ANSWER ON THE ATTORNEY FOR THE PLAINTIFF (MORTGAGE COMPANY) AND FILING THE ANSWER WITH THE COURT. Dated: Bay Shore, New York. April 11, 2024 Frenkel, Lambert, Weiss, Weisman & Gordon, LLP /s/BY: Linda P. Manfredi Attorneys for Plaintiff 53 Gibson Street Bay Shore, New York 11706 (631) 969-3100 Our File No.: 01-095958-F00
SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, COUNTY OF QUEENS – U.S. BANK TRUST NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, NOT IN ITS INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY BUT SOLELY AS OWNER TRUSTEE FOR VRMTG ASSET TRUST, Plaintiff, -against- MIGNON PALMORE FOSTER; GAIL MIGNONE ARCHER, JR.; NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION AND FINANCE; THE UNKNOWN HEIRS-AT-LAW, NEXT-OFKIN, DISTRIBUTEES, EXECUTORS, ADMINISTRATORS, TRUSTEES, DEVISEES, LEGATEES, ASSIGNEES, LIENORS, CREDITORS, AND SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST, AND GENERALLY ALL PERSONS HAVING OR CLAIMING, UNDER, BY OR THROUGH THE DECEDENT GAIL PALMORE ARCHER BY PURCHASE, INHERITANCE, LIEN OR OTHERWISE, ANY RIGHT TITLE OR INTEREST IN AND TO THE PREMISES DESCRIBED IN THE COMPLAINT HEREIN; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA O/B/O INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE; NEW YORK CITY ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL BOARD; NEW YORK CITY PARKING VIOLATIONS BUREAU; “JOHN DOE #1” through “JOHN DOE #10” inclusive, the names of the ten last name Defendants being fictitious, real names unknown to the Plaintiff, the parties intended being persons or corporations having an interest in, or tenants or persons in possession of, portions of the mortgaged premises described in the Complaint, Defendants - Index No. 718971/2023 Plaintiff Designates Queens County as the Place of Trial. The Basis of Venue is that the subject premises is situated in Queens County. To the above named Defendants– YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to answer the Complaint in this action and to serve a copy of your Answer or, if the Complaint is not served with this Summons, to serve a Notice of Appearance upon the Plaintiff’s attorney within twenty (20) days after the service of this Summons, exclusive of the date of service or within thirty (30) days after the service is complete if this Summons is not personally delivered to you within the State of New York. If you fail to so appear or answer, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief demanded in the Complaint. That this Supplemental Summons is being filed pursuant to an order of the court dated September 25, 2024. NOTICE-YOU ARE IN DANGER OF LOSING YOUR HOME – If you do not respond to this summons and complaint by serving a copy of the answer on the attorney for the mortgage company who filed this foreclosure proceeding against you and filing the answer with the court, a default judgment may be entered and you can lose your home. Speak to an attorney or go to the court where your case is pending for further information on how to answer the summons and protect your property. Sending a payment to the mortgage company will not stop the foreclosure action. YOU MUST RESPOND BY SERVING A COPY OF THE ANSWER ON THE ATTORNEY FOR THE PLAINTIFF (U.S. BANK TRUST NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, NOT IN ITS INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY BUT SOLELY AS OWNER TRUSTEE FOR VRMTG ASSET TRUST) AND FILING THE ANSWER WITH THE COURT. The foregoing summons is served upon you by publication pursuant to an order of the Honorable Phillip Hom, J.S.C. Dated: September 25, 2024 Filed: September 27, 2024. The object of this action is to foreclose a mortgage and covering the premises known as 107-29 and 107-27 165th Street, Jamaica, NY 11433. Dated: September 20, 2023 Filed: September 20, 2023 Knuckles & Manfro, LLP, Attorney for Plaintiff, By: Mark R. Knuckles, Esq., Of Counsel, 120 White Plains Road, Suite 215, Tarrytown, New York 10591 Phone: (914) 345-3020
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF WESTCHESTER, INDEX # 726557/2023
Property: 62-48 Mount Olivet Crescent, Unit 3B and Parking Space 31P, Middle Village, New York 11379, Supplemental Summons with Notice of Action to Foreclose a Mortgage, Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, as Trustee for the benefit of the Freddie Mac Seasoned Credit Risk Transfer Trust, Series 2019-2, Plaintiff(s), against Jose Molina if living, and if he/she any and all persons unknown to plaintiff, claiming, or who may claim to have an interest in, or generally or specific lien upon the real property described in this action; such unknown persons being herein generally described and intended to be included in wife, widow, husband, widower, heirs at law, next of kin, descendants, executors, administrators, devisees, legatees, creditors, trustees, committees, lienors, and assignees of such deceased, any and all persons deriving interest in or lien upon, or title to said real property by, through or under them, or either of them, and their respective wives, widows, husbands, widowers, heirs at law, next of kin, descendants, executors; administrators, devisees, legatees, creditors, trustees, committees, lienors and assigns, all of whom and whose names, except as stated, are unknown to plaintiff; Jose Molina a/k/a Jose D. Molina, JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., The Board of Managers of Middle Village Meadows Condominium, United States of America (Eastern District), New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, Criminal Court of the City of New York (Queens), Capital One, N.A., New York City Environmental Control Board, New York City Parking Violations Bureau, New York City Transit Adjudication Bureau, The People of the State of New York, The United States of America, and “JOHN DOE #1,” through “JOHN DOE #12,” the last twelve names being fictitious and unknown to plaintiff, the persons or parties intended being the tenants, occupants, persons or corporations, if any, having or claiming an interest in or lien upon the premises being foreclosed herein, Defendant(s) WE A R E ATTEMPTING TO COLLECT A DEBT AND ANY INFORMATION OBTAINED WILL BE USED FOR THAT PURPOSE TO THE ABOVENAMED DEFENDANTS: YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to answer the complaint in this action and to serve a copy of your answer, or, if the complaint is not served with this summons, to serve a notice of appearance on the Plaintiff’s attorneys within 20 days after the service of this summons exclusive of the day of service or within 30 days after completion of service where service is made in any other manner than by personal delivery within the State. The United States of America, if designated as a defendant in this action, may answer or appear within sixty (60) days of service hereof. In case of your failure to appear or answer, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief demanded in the complaint. NOTICE YOU ARE IN DANGER OF LOSING YOUR HOME If you do not respond to this summons and complaint by serving a copy of the answer on the attorney for the mortgage company who filed this foreclosure proceeding against you and filing the answer with the court, a default judgment may be entered and you can lose your home. Speak to an attorney or go to the court where your case is pending for further information on how to answer the summons and protect your property. Sending a payment to your mortgage company will not stop this foreclosure action. YOU MUST RESPOND BY SERVING A COPY OF THE ANSWER ON THE ATTORNEY FOR THE PLAINTIFF (MORTGAGE COMPANY) AND FILING THE ANSWER WITH THE COURT. Sheldon May & Associates, P.C. by Ted Eric May, Esq., Attorneys for Plaintiff. 255 Merrick Road, Rockville Centre, New York 11570. Phone: 516-763-3200. File # 39120
November 14, 2024
ARTS, CULTURE & LIVING
by Naeisha Rose
Forest Park circus delights
“Every year the show is different,” said Alexa Vazquez, spokeswoman for Fl!p Circus and a fourthgeneration performer. “We have artists from all of the world that are performing.”
Fl!p is produced by the Vazquez family entertainment company, which was founded in Mexico. Alexa Vazquez puts on a hula-hoop display for the show, which is now being performed daily in Forest Park.
Citi Field up next
from the Czech Republic, dazzles with a one-, threeand 15-wheel unicycle.
Ukraine’s award-winning Bingo Troupe showcase an electrifying mix of dance and acrobatics throughout the evening.
From Chile, the Reyes Brothers demonstrate their fast-paced juggling skills.
Tickets are $30 for children and $50 for adults at flipcircus.com. Discounts are available for seniors, people who with disabilities and members of the military.
The crowd loves the Fl!p show, as seen last Saturday, with families awed by the feats of the performers.
Hasan Ansari from India thrills the audience with body-bending maneuvers on Pole Mallakhamb, a balancing act.
Pavel Valla Bertini, a fifth-generation performer
Bubi Guiner, a clown from Brazil, leads the affair, with live music from Orchestra Vazquez.
“The clown does not speak at all, but he is very interactive,” said Vazquez.
The orchestra consists of people on the piano, drums, bass and trumpet.
The family-friendly attraction will be in Forest Park until Nov. 26.
The big top is located at Victory Field, at Myrtle Avenue and Woodhaven Boulevard. People using public transportation can take the Q11 and 21 buses, along with the Q52 and Q53 select bus service to get there. On weekdays shows start at 7 p.m.; Saturday performances are at 1 and 4 p.m.; and Sunday times are 12, 3 and 6 p.m.
Vazquez says the performers, some of whom are complete strangers, meet at the beginning of the year and by the end are like one big family.
continued on page 29
King Crossword Puzzle
WALKED
A true case of ‘Double
in Queens Village I HAVE OFTEN
Indemnity,’
by Ron Marzlock
Chronicle Contributor
May Ruth Brown was born in Harlem on March 27, 1895. At age 19 she was excited to get a job at Motor Boating magazine.
She met the 32 year-old art editor Albert Snyder; they fell in love and were married in 1915. A daughter was born Nov. 15, 1917, named Ruth Lorraine.
As Albert advanced in his career he bought an automobile, a radio, a boat and a new home at 93-27 222 St. in Queens Village. Albert became a very vanilla kind of man while May, who preferred the name Ruth, was still full of zest and life. She secured worldly joy through sin with a brassiere and corset salesman, Henry Judd Gray, starting a relationship in 1925.
Ruth convinced her illicit paramour to get a forged double indemnity insurance policy and kill her husband.
Together they murdered Albert in the
house on March 20, 1927. It was a sloppy murder; they were both easily convicted and both died in the electric chair Jan. 12, 1928. Ruth Lorraine, then known simply as Lorraine and living with her grandmother, inherited a net $12,101 in 1932.
After more than 100 years, the house still appears to be in pristine condition today.
The case inspired the novella and later film noir classic “Double Indemnity.” Q
The home of Albert Snyder and his wife, Ruth, inset, at 93-27 222 St. in Queens Village, as it looks today. She conspired with her lover to kill Snyder. GOOGLE MAPS IMAGE; INSET PHOTO VIA WIKIPEDIA
Rumors fly at Douglaston Community Theatre
by Stephanie G. Meditz associate editor
If you haven’t heard, Douglaston Community Theatre’s production of Neil Simon’s “Rumors” at Zion Church’s Parish Hall provides a witty, belly-laughing escape from and commentary upon reality for seasoned theatergoers and newcomers alike.
The farcical play from 1988 follows the eccentric, aristocratic guests at a 10th anniversary party for New York City’s deputy mayor, Charley Brock, and his wife, Myra.
Lawyers Chris and Ken Gorman, played by Monica Maddock and Christopher Tyrkko, arrive first and see Charlie with a selfinflicted bullet wound through his earlobe.
As the couple paces and tries to determine their next move, with Chris tempted by the pack of Marlboros on the coffee table, Claire and Lenny Ganz show up. Played by Rebecca Drew and Dany Stravino, the two enter the party fresh from a car accident with a swollen lip, severe whiplash and a gift set of broken glassware.
As more and more guests arrive, each pair becomes suspicious of those who had just entered as they simultaneously try to reveal and conceal the truth to protect their own reputations.
“It’s such a relatable play in the sense that everyone’s been to a crazy dinner
COURTESY
party where something wrong has happened before and all of the hilarity that you can possibly expect to ensue out of that comes and even more,” director JK Larkin said.
Larkin said one of the biggest challenges with the show was that the set includes a lot of doors — each character’s entrance and exit through the front door, bathroom door, kitchen door and the upstairs door leading to a bleeding Charley is crucial for the audience’s understanding.
“The biggest challenge with that really is making sure the actors know where they’re coming from, where they’re going and how to understand an entrance as a cue when there might not necessarily be an accompanying line with that,” he said.
After a long evening of gossip, varying levels of pain and snide remarks on wearing the same dress twice, police get involved and drive the show to its remarkable, hilarious conclusion.
The cast last Saturday got just as much
joy out of performing as the audience did from watching, with a standout performance from Stravino for his clever delivery and body language as Lenny Ganz.
Larkin said “Rumors” had the best audition turnout that he has seen for any community theater play in his many years of involvement.
“I have such a strong cast. Most of them are people I’ve worked with in some capacity, one way or another, before,” he said. “And it really has been such a wonderful experience. I got very fortunate.”
“Rumors” marks Larkin’s first time directing a full-length play — he had worked with Douglaston Community Theater last year on its fall production of Sean Grennan’s “Making God Laugh.”
“I just feel really grateful that between having such good community theater to be working with and having such a good cast behind me, I have had a very easy job going at it,” he said. “I really hope that audiences are able to see as much good in this production and in my cast and in our storytelling as I do.”
The remaining performances of “Rumors” will take place Nov. 16, 17, 22 and 23.
To learn more or reserve tickets, visit dctonline.org or call (718) 885-4785. Q
Fl!p Circus big top touches down at Forest Park
continued from page 27
“It’s a lot of entertainment for the whole family,” said Vazquez, who said there are also people from South Africa, Colombia and Spain. “We never had artists from South Africa before, so it is going to be quite fun. All of the artists’ performances are filled with thrills. The music also plays a big part of it ... Each act brings a different feeling, different music and different energy.”
Bilal Abdo Surur and Tsion Getachew Zer-
Crossword Answers
hun of South Africa perform some death-defying stunts on rollerblades.
Vazquez said her favorite part of being with the circus are the snacks.
“We have popcorn, nachos, churros, all the healthy food you are going to need,” joked the hula-hooper. “There are also funnel cakes and sodas.”
The Vazquez family also owns Circus Vazquez, which will be anchoring its big top outside Citi Field this holiday season from Nov. 15 to Dec. 15. For tickets to that show, visit circusvazquez.com.
That cast includes clown Boris Nikishkin from Russia; the flexible Bone Breakers quartet from Guinea; Colombia’s Wheel of Wonder daredevils Duo Vanegas; Liazeed Angels, a troupe of athletes of various nationalities, featuring Russian Olympian Natalia Kapitonova; and Brazil’s hand-bal-
A family watches as Bilal Abdo Surur and Tsion Getachew Zerhun, perform extraordinary stunts on rollerblades at Fl!p Circus. At left, clown Bubi Guiner of Brazil brings a kid to the big top stage. On the cover: Members of Fl!p Circus wave goodbye to the crowd from last Saturday’s performance.
ancing Duo Marruffo. Several fourth-generation Vazquez family members, juggler Jose Alberto Vazquez, and siblings Jan and Caro-
lina Vazquez on the rolla bolla, a traditional circus apparatus, will also be performing, with music by the Circus Vazquez Band. Q
Douglaston Community Theatre’s production of Neil Simon’s “Rumors” has all the hilarity one would expect from a dinner party gone awry, director JK Larkin said. The show runs for two more weekends.
PHOTO
MICHAEL WOLF
PHOTOS BY NAEISHA ROSE
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NOTICE OF SALE
SUPREME COURT: QUEENS COUNTY FRANK BIANCANIELLO and JOSEPH GULOTTA v. ZDE ENTERTAINMENT GROUP LLC, et al. Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated September 17, 2024 and filed with the Clerk of the Supreme Court, Queens County on October 9, 2024, bearing Index no. 715701/2022, I will sell at public auction on December 6, 2024 at 11:00 am in the second floor, Courtroom 25 of the Queens County Supreme Courthouse, 88-11 Sutphin Blvd., Jamaica, NY 11435, the premises known as 25-54 12th Street, Unit 5A, Astoria, NY 11102 (Block: 904, Lot: 1013) and 25-54 12th Street, Unit 5C, Astoria, NY 11102 (Block 904, Lot: 1015). Premises sold subject to filed Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale and Terms of Sale. Judgment amount $1,031,821.72 plus interest and costs. The foreclosure sale will be conducted in accordance with the Unified Court System Safety and Operational Protocols in effect at this time. Auction location and time are subject to revision based on Court policy, current protocols and health conditions. Arthur Nicholas Terranova, Referee. Harry Zubli, Esq., attorney for plaintiff (516)
Legal Notices
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF QUEENS DEUTSCHE BANK
NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, AS TRUSTEE FOR AMERICAN HOME MORTGAGE ASSETS
TRUST 2007-5, MORTGAGEBACKED PASS-THROUGH CERTIFICATES SERIES 2007-5, -against - BEULAH FIGEROUX F/K/A BEULAH BLAKE, ET AL. NOTICE OF SALE NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN pursuant to a Final Judgment of Foreclosure entered in the Office of the Clerk of the County of Queens on October 1, 2024, wherein DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, AS TRUSTEE FOR AMERICAN HOME MORTGAGE ASSETS TRUST 2007-5, MORTGAGE-BACKED PASS-THROUGH CERTIFICATES SERIES 2007-5 is the Plaintiff and BEULAH FIGEROUX F/K/A BEULAH BLAKE, ET AL. are the Defendant(s). I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the QUEENS COUNTY SUPREME COURT, 88-11 SUTPHIN BLVD, COURTROOM 25, JAMAICA, NY 11435, on December 13, 2024 at 11:00AM, premises known as 14306 FERNDALE AVENUE, JAMAICA, NY 11435; and the following tax map identification: 11935-3. ALL THAT CERTAIN PLOT, PIECE OR PARCEL OF LAND, WITH THE BUILDINGS AND IMPROVEMENTS THEREON ERECTED, SITUATE, LYING AND BEING IN THE BOROUGH OF QUEENS, COUNTY OF QUEENS, CITY AND STATE OF NEW YORK Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index No.: 714058/2020. Michael A. Cervini, Esq. - Referee. Robertson, Anschutz, Schneid, Crane & Partners, PLLC, 900 Merchants Concourse, Suite 310, Westbury, New York 11590, Attorneys for Plaintiff. All foreclosure sales will be conducted in accordance with Covid-19 guidelines including, but not limited to, social distancing and mask wearing. *LOCATION OF SALE SUBJECT TO CHANGE DAY OF IN ACCORDANCE WITH COURT/CLERK DIRECTIVES.
STATE OF INDIANA COUNTY OF LAKE IN THE Circuit COURT CAUSE NO. 45C01-2407DN-000407 IN RE THE MARRIAGE OF: ERVINNA HALIM, Petitioner. V. HERU FNU, Respondent. Filed in Clerk’s Office July 24, 2024. Michael A. Brown Clerk Lake Circuit Court. PUBLICATION SUMMONS (For Dissolution of Marriage Cases Only). The State of Indiana to Respondent: HERU FNU. You have been sued by your spouse for dissolution of marriage. The case is pending in the Court named above. If this summons is accompanied by an Order Setting Hearing, you must appear in Court on the date and time stated on the Order Setting Hearing. IF YOU DO NOT APPEAR, EVIDENCE MAY BE HEARD AND A DECISION MAY BE MADE BY THE COURT. If a Temporary Restraining Order is issued, it is effective immediately upon your receipt or knowledge of the Order. If you wish to retain an attorney to represent you in the matter, it is advisable to do so before the date stated on the Notice of Provisional Hearing. If you take no action in this case after receipt of this Summons, the Court can grant a Dissolution of Marriage and/or make determinations that may include but not limited to any of the following: paternity, child custody, child support, maintenance, parenting time, property (real or personal), and other distribution of assets and debts, attorney fees and costs. Dated: July 24, 2024. Michael A. Brown, Clerk, Lake County
Notice is hereby given that license# CL-24-107439-01 for liquor has been applied for by the undersigned to sell liquor at retail in a tavern under the ABC law at 37-14 31st Ave., Astoria, NY 11103, Queens County for on-premises consumption. AMORFATI LLC 37-14 31st Ave., Astoria, NY 11103
NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT–COUNTY OF QUEENS BLUE IRIS HOLDINGS CORP., Plaintiff against WAAA MIDDLE VILLAGE PROPERTIES, LLC, THE BOARD OF MANAGERS OF MIDDLE VILLAGE CONDOMINIUM and KEYU LONG, Defendants. Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered on April 22, 2024 I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction on the Courthouse Steps of the Queens Supreme Court, located at 88-11 Sutphin Boulevard, Jamaica, New York on the 13th day of December 2024 at 11:00 in the forenoon. Premises description as follows: All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land situate, lying and being in the Borough and County of Queens, City and State of New York Said premises known as 62-48 Mt. Olivet Crescent, Units A and B, Parking Spaces 15P, 16P, 17P and 18P, Middle Village, New York 11379 a/k/a Block 2773, Lots 1001, 1002, 1045, 1046, 1047 and 1048. Approximate amount of lien: $379,696.20, plus interests and costs. Premises will be sold subject to the provisions of the Judgment and terms of sale. Index No.700506/2023
Scott H. Siller, Esq., Referee. Kye Law Group, P.C. Attorneys for Plaintiff 201 Old Country Road, Suite 120, Melville, NY 11747 631-616-8200
Dynamics Werx LLC filed 10/10/24. Cty: Queens.
SSNY desig. for process & shall mail to: c/o Kritika Kumar, 8900 Sutphin Blvd., #LL5, Jamaica, NY 11435. Purp: any lawful.
Notice of Formation of Jake7716Investing LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/08/24. Office location: Queens County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Clifford Schlosser, 313 Tuscarora Ave., Ocean, NJ 08005. Purpose: Real estate holding
Real Estate
EQUAL HOUSING. Federal, New York State and local laws prohibit discrimination because of race, color, sex, religion, age, national origin, marital status, familial status or disability in connection with the sale or rental of residential real estate. Queens Chronicle does not knowingly accept advertising in violation of these laws. When you suspect housing discrimination call the Open Housing Center (the Fair Housing Agency for the five boroughs of New York) at 212941-6101, or the New York City Commission of Human Rights Hotline at 718-722-3131. The Queens Chronicle reserves the right to alter wording in ads to conform with Federal Fair Housing regulations.
SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF QUEENS. NYCTL 19982 TRUST, and THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON, as Collateral Agent and Custodian for the NYCTL 1998-2 Trust, Plaintiff -against- FARWAY MARINA, INC., et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated January 23, 2023 and entered on January 27, 2023, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Queens County Supreme Courthouse, 88-11 Sutphin Blvd., in Courtroom # 25, Jamaica, NY on November 22, 2024 at 10:00 a.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Queens, County of Queens, City and State of New York, known and designated as Block 16110 and Lot 51 on the Queens County Tax Assessment Map. Block: 16110 Lot: 51 Said premises known as 341 BEACH 84TH STREET a/k/a 3-41 BEACH 84TH STREET, ROCKAWAY BEACH, NY Approximate amount of lien $32,673.61 plus interest & costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale. Index Number 710318/2022. DONALD E. CLARKE, ESQ., Referee Bronster, LLP Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 156 West 56th Street, Suite 703, New York, NY 10019
Apts.For Rent
Howard Beach, Modern Studio Condo for Rent. Available immediately. $1,500. per month. Call owner: 718-847-0054
Howard Beach/Lindenwood, studio, duplex, close to all. Call owner for details. Avail immed. TEXT ONLY 917-855-7390
Howard Beach/Rockwood Park. Sun 11/17, 12-2pm, 160-31 90 St. Totally updated, mint cond, HiRanch, 35x100 lot. 4 BR, 2 full baths. Asking $950K. Connexion Real Estate 718-845-1136
Howard Beach, Sat 11/16, 2pm-4pm, 159-29 92 St. Updated Mother/Daughter Hi-Ranch. 5 BRs, 3 bathrooms, Solar Panels, Large above-ground swimming pool, private drive. Jerry Fink Real Estate, Call Richard 347-600-5860
Howard Beach/Rockwood Park, Fri 11/15, 4:30-6pm, 161-35 90 St. Lovely Hi-Ranch, 4 BR, 3 full baths, 41x100 lot. Ex-lg master BR w/walkin closet & new bath. 2 more BRs upstairs w/full guest bath, CAC & more! Asking $999,999. Connexion Real Estate, 718-845-1136
Howard Beach/Rockwood Park, Move-in cond, 5 BR, 2 full baths, A-Line Cape, 40x100 lot.Full finished bsmnt, beautiful flrs. Low taxes. Asking $839K Connexion Real Estate, 718-845-1136
We Buy Houses for Cash AS IS! No repairs. No Fuss. Any condition. Easy three step process: Call, get cash offer and get paid. Get your fair cash offer today by calling Liz Buys Houses: 1-888-704-5670 House Wanted
The New York City Department of Transportation, Executive and Admin Division cordially invites your company to submit Proposals for the following contract: PIN: 84125P0002
Event Planning Contract (Specifications) available for download free of charge starting 10/23/24.
To access the RFP, vendors should visit the PASSPort public Portal at https://www.nyc.gov/site/mocs/passport/aboutpassport.page
Click on the “Search Funding Opportunities in PASSPort” blue box. Doing so will take one to the public portal of all procurements in the PASSPort system. To quickly locate the RFP, insert the EPIN, 84125P0002 into the Keyword search field. In order to respond to the RFP, vendors must create an account within the PASSPort system if they have not already done so.
A pre-bid conference via Zoom is scheduled for 10/30/24 11:30am.
Those who wish to attend the pre-bid meeting must email the authorized agency contact for a link no later than 10/29/2024 by 4pm.
The deadline for the submission of questions via email is 11/6/24 by 4:00 pm to the authorized agency contact person. This procurement is subject to participation goals for MWBE Goals of 30%.
Any inquiries concerning this IFB should be directed by email, under the subject line “84125P0002/84124MBAD654-Event Planning Contract” to the email address of the Authorized Agency Contact, Kathy Cornwall-Wilson, at kcornwallwilson@ dot.nyc.gov or through the PASSPort communication function. Responses to this RFP must be submitted via PASSPort. All Bids must be received via Passport before the Bid Due Date, 11/22/24, no later than 11:00 AM.
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At a lAS Part 11 of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, held in and for the County of Queens, at the Courthouse located at 88-11 Sutphin Blvd., Jamaica, NY 11435, on the 31st day of Oct., 2024. ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE Index No.: 721867/2024
PRESENT: HON. DENISE N. JOHNSON J.S.C. SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF QUEENS In the Matter of the Application of THE ADVISORY BOARD OF THE NEW YORK DISTRICT OF THE CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE n/k/a THE METRO NEW YORK DISTRICT CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE. and SOLID ROCK CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE, Petitioner, For Approval of the Sale and Mortgage of Real Property Located in the County of Queens, State of New York and Owned by a Religious Corporation pursuant to Section 12 of the Religious Corporations Law and Sections 510 and 511 of the Not-For-Profi t Corporation Law “PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that THE ADVISORY BOARD OF THE NEW YORK DISTRICT OF THE CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE n/k/a THE METRO NEW YORK DISTRICT CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE, a New York religious corporation, and SOLD ROCK CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE, a New York religious corporation will on the 17th day of December 2024, apply to the Supreme Court of the State of New York, the County of Queens at a Term, Part, 11 thereof, to be held in and for - at 10 o’clock in the forenoon of that day, for an order to (1) approve and authorize the sale of the Property by Metro Petitioner in accordance with the Contract of Sale pursuant to the Religious Corporations Law § 12 and in accordance with New York Not-For-Profit Corporations Law§§ 510 and 511, (2) approve and authorize the mortgage of the Property by Solid Rock Petitioner, pursuant to the Religious Corporations Law § 12 and in accordance with New York Not-For-Profit Corporations Law §§ 510 and 511, and (3) grant Petitioners such other and further relief as this Court deems to be just pursuant to Religious Corporations Law§ 12 and in accordance with New York Not-For-Profit Corporations Law§§ 510 and 511.”
Notice of Formation of KUHINUR JAHAN LLC Articles of Organization were filed with the Secretary of State of New York (SSNY) on 09/13/2024. Office location: Queens County. SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy of process to: KUHINUR JAHAN, 15123 12TH ROAD, WHITESTONE, NY 11357. Purpose: For any lawful purpose.
Notice of Formation of Limited Liability Company (LLC). Name: PATOKILO LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of New York (SSNY) on 10/14/24. Office Location: Queens County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of any process to LLC at: 2 Bay Club Drive 6Z1, Bayside, NY 11360 US. Purpose: Any lawful activity or purpose.
NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF QUEENS WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION AS TRUSTEE FOR STRUCTURED ASSET SECURITIES CORPORATION, MORTGAGE PASSTHROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2006-OPT1 Plaintiff, Against DIOVANI GUTIERREZ; ET AL Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale, duly entered 12/19/2023, I, the undersigned Referee, will sell at public auction, at Queens County Supreme Courthouse located at 88-11 Sutphin Boulevard, Jamaica, NY, on the second floor in Courtroom 25, on 12/6/2024 at 10:00AM, premises known as 9124 85th Street A.K.A. 91-24 85th Street, Woodhaven, New York 11421, And Described As Follows: ALL that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough And County Of Queens, City And State Of New York. Block 8978 Lot 17 The approximate amount of the current Judgment lien is $540,301.45 plus interest and costs. The Premises will be sold subject to provisions of the aforesaid Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale; Index #713967/2019 Lois M. Vitti, Esq., Referee. MCCABE, WEISBERG & CONWAY, LLC, 10 Midland Avenue, Suite 205, Port Chester, NY 10573 Dated: 10/21/2024 File Number: 19-301355 CA
NOTICE OF SALE
SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF QUEENS PNC BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, SUCCESSOR BY MERGER TO NATIONAL CITY BANK, Plaintiff AGAINST ROGER LEE, ET AL., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered October 10, 2024, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Queens County Supreme Courthouse, on the second fl oor in Courtroom 25, 88-11 Sutphin Boulevard, Jamaica, New York on December 13, 2024 at 11:00AM, premises known as 15720 27th Avenue, Flushing, NY 11354. All that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough and County of Queens, City and State of New York, Block: 4868 Lot: 14. Approximate amount of judgment $84,578.26 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #702009/2023. The aforementioned auction will be conducted in accordance with the QUEENS County COVID-19 Protocols located on the Office of Court Administration (OCA) website (https://ww2. nycourts.gov/Admin/oca.shtml) and as such all persons must comply with social distancing, wearing masks and screening practices in effect at the time of this foreclosure sale. For sale information, please visit Auction. com at www.Auction.com or call (800) 280-2832. Gregory LaSpina, Esq., Referee Fein, Such & Crane, LLP, 28 East Main Street, Rochester, NY 14614 PNNYC015 83087
Plaintiff against ELAINE HUITT, et al Defendant(s) Attorney for Plaintiff(s) Leopold & Associates, PLLC, 80 Business Park Drive, Suite 110, Armonk, NY 10504. Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered October 10, 2024, I will sell at public auction to the highest bidder at the Queens County Supreme Court, Courtroom #25, 88-11 Sutphin Boulevard, Jamaica, NY 11435 on December 13, 2024 at 10:00
AM. Premises known as 18918 Keeseville Avenue, Saint Albans, NY 11412. Block 10440
Lot 9. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Queens, City and State of New York. Approximate Amount of Judgment is $116,642.80 plus interest, fees, and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index No 712333/2020. The foreclosure sale will be conducted in accordance with 11th Judicial District’s Covid-19 Policies and foreclosure auction rules. The Referee shall enforce any rules in place regarding facial coverings and social distancing. Referee will only accept a certified bank check made payable to the referee. Michael Cervini, Esq., Referee File # 6918741
NOTICE OF SALE
SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF QUEENS, U.S. BANK TRUST NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, NOT IN ITS INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY, BUT SOLELY AS TRUSTEE OF THE TRUMAN 2021 SC9 TITLE TRUST, Plaintiff, vs. PRIVTHI RAJ ARORA, ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered on September 17, 2024, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Queens County Supreme Courthouse, on the second floor in Courtroom 25, 88-11 Sutphin Boulevard, Jamaica, NY 11435 on December 6, 2024 at 10:00 a.m., premises known as 5822 84th Street, Middle Village, NY 11379. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Second Ward of the Borough and County of Queens, City and State of New York, Block 2910 and Lot 15. Approximate amount of judgment is $506,887.06 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #704877/2019. Lois M. Vitti, Esq., Referee Friedman Vartolo LLP, 85 Broad Street, Suite 501, New York, New York 10004, Attorneys for Plaintiff Firm File No.: 231611-1
Trankoskla LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 9/16/24. Office in Queens Co. SSNY design. Agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to 3906 47TH ST, FL 1, SUNNYSIDE, NY, 11104. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
B SPORTS EAT
Put them all in the Hall
by Lloyd Carroll Chronicle Contributor
It was overshadowed by both the election and the just concluded baseball season, but the National Baseball Hall of Fame released its Veteran Committee ballot for what is termed “baseball’s classic age.” On it are names of players familiar to baby boomers and Gen X, and whose baseball cards they eagerly sought when they were young fans. Also on the ballot are Negro League legends Vic Harris and John Donaldson.
Steve Garvey, who just lost his California U.S. Senate bid to Rep. Adam Schiff, competed with Reggie Jackson for the distinction of being the best-known baseball player during the Carter and Reagan presidential administrations.
With his matinee idol looks, MVP Awards and multiple World Series and All-Star Game appearances, the media-savvy Garvey should have been a lock to have been elected to Cooperstown by the Baseball Writers Association of America. It was off-field allegations of extramarital affairs and fathering children out of wedlock that sullied his image. I asked Garvey years ago if he felt “the TMZ stuff” might have hurt his Hall of Fame candidacy. He hoped it didn’t but conceded it was a distinct possibility.
The late Phillies first baseman Dick Allen was known as Richie when I first started following baseball. For my money, Allen was a feared slugger right up there with contemporaries Wil-
lie Stargell and Willie McCovey, both in the Hall of Fame. Allen had a rocky relationship with the Philadelphia media and fans, even though he grew up in nearby Wampum, Pa.
St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Ken Boyer was a five-time Gold Glove winner, a fixture on National League All-Star teams and the 1964 NL Most Valuable Player. Few third basemen are in the Hall of Fame, but I would put Boyer up against both Ron Santo an d Brooks Robinson. Boyer was a chain smoker, and his death from lung cancer, at age 51 in 1982, may have put him out of the minds of many with the passage of time.
The biggest oversight has been the omission of Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Dave Parker, a feared hitter who had a cannon for an arm.
Luis Tiant died last month at age 83. He was a top American League pitcher for 19 seasons. The Cuban-born Tiant began his career at a time when few in the majors spoke Spanish, and Telemundo and Univision did not exist. It could not have been easy for him.
Tommy John pitched for 26 years in the majors and compiled 288 wins. If that weren’t enough, he is even more famous in orthopedic medicine for being the first to undergo the surgery that repairs arm ligament damage. That procedure is now named in his honor. Q
See the extended version of Sports Beat every week at qchron.com
