Sept. 17, 2020 By Allie Griffin The City Council passed a bill Wednesday that will require the city to explore the use of drones for building facade inspections. The bill, co-sponsored by Northeast Queens Council Member Paul Vallone, will require the Department of Buildings (DOB) to study the safety and feasibility of using drones to… Read more »
Sept. 17, 2020 By Allie Griffin The start of in-person classes at the city’s public schools has been delayed yet again for the majority of students. Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that the reopening of most school buildings will be pushed back further — on a rolling basis — just four days before they were… Read more »
Sept. 17, 2020 By Michael Dorgan Police are searching for a man who allegedly robbed an electronics store in Ridgewood earlier this month and took off with cash. The suspect walked into Marjan NY Inc., located at 67-18 Fresh Pond Rd., on Sept. 4 at around 11 a.m. before stating that he had a gun… Read more »
Sept. 17, 2020 By Christian Murray The School Construction Authority, which stopped work on building new schools when COVID-19 took hold in March, will be restarting work on P.S. 384Q in Long Island City, with a completion date of September 2021 still in tact. The SCA had put the construction of new schools across the… Read more »
Sept. 17, 2020 By Allie Griffin A Northeast Queens Senator is leading a call to demand the city postpone schools reopening in-person classes on Monday. State Sen. John Liu, Chair of the Education Committee, penned a letter to Mayor Bill de Blasio to defer in-person learning and instead focus on ensuring remote learning is fully… Read more »
Sept. 16, 2020 By Allie Griffin Council Member Robert Holden has secured funding to keep the commercial corridors of Ridgewood clean and litter-free. Holden has allocated discretionary funds toward a non-profit organization that is now in charge of keeping the sidewalks on select streets clean seven days a week. The non-profit employs homeless New Yorkers… Read more »
Sept. 16, 2020 By Christian Murray At the end of next year, 11 council members in Queens will be forced to step down due to term limits. Dozens of candidates have already come forward looking to replace them, and will be competing in next June’s Democratic primaries for those spots. In Queens, only four council… Read more »
Sept. 16, 2020 By Allie Griffin A Forest Hills block will close to traffic daily so restaurants in the area can expand their outdoor seating onto the roadway each day of the week. A stretch of 70th Road, between Austin Street and Queens Boulevard will be turned over to diners seven days a week —… Read more »
Sept. 16, 2020 By Allie Griffin Staffers at 10 Queens public schools have tested positive for COVID-19 since teachers and administrators returned to schools across the city on Sept. 8. The 10 schools are among 56 citywide, where positive coronavirus cases have been confirmed, according to a list the Department of Education provided from Sept…. Read more »
Sept. 16, 2020 By Michael Dorgan Restaurants will soon be able to add a 10 percent service charge to the tab. The City Council voted Wednesday to approve legislation that would temporarily permit restaurants to add a “COVID-19 Recovery Charge” to customer checks. The legislation is expected to be signed by the mayor – which… Read more »