Mar. 7, 2024 By Anthony Medina Assemblywoman Catalina Cruz, who represents Corona, Elmhurst, Jackson Heights and portions of Middle Village and Rego Park, is urging Governor Kathy Hochul to consider adding more protections for cable television subscribers affected by service blackouts. A letter sent to Hochul on Tuesday, Mar. 5, references the contract dispute between Charter Communications…
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Feb. 13, 2024 By Ethan Marshall Queens residents and elected officials, including New York State Governor Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Eric Adams, gathered in Flushing to watch the parade celebrating the Year of the Dragon on Lunar New Year Saturday. The event which is hosted and organized by the Flushing Chinese Business Association along with many other local groups, sees thousands of attendees each year. Hochul expressed a commitment towards making the holiday a state-wide celebration. “We want everyone from Asian backgrounds to feel included and welcomed,” Hochul said. This sentiment was reinforced by many of the…
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Dec. 7, 2023 By Iryna Shkurhan A newly unveiled plan for the Creedmoor campus in eastern Queens seeks to bring 2,800 housing units alongside community amenities to the underutilized plot of land. The 93-page Creedmoor Community Master Plan, made public by Governor Kathy Hochul on Dec. 6, proposes the revitalization of 48 acres of the 125 acre plot of the state-owned land. Currently 19 of the 25 buildings are sitting vacant. And in the past year, the site began to shelter some of the city’s new migrants in tent structures. The plan proposes a grand total of 2,873 housing units…
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Nov. 28, 2023 By Iryna Shkurhan Earlier this month, Gov. Kathy Hochul vetoed a bill that would have authorized a transportation study to examine the plausibility of expanding the Vanderbilt Motor Parkway greenway from eastern Queens to Nassau County. Senate Bill S3011, sponsored by state Sen. John Liu, who represents eastern Queens from Bayside to Flushing, passed with unanimous support during a floor vote on June 1. But on Nov. 17, the governor vetoed it alongside other bills that proposed studies conducted by state agencies due to a lack of appropriated funding. The historic Vanderbilt Motor Parkway, also known as…
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Nov. 27, 2023 By Anthony Medina Assemblymember Jenifer Rajkumar’s bill to establish the first-ever New York State Asian American and Pacific Islander Commission was officially signed into law by Governor Kathy Hochul in November. Rajkumar’s bill (A3301) bridges the divide between Asian Americans and the state by instituting a 15-member commission that will develop policies…
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Nov. 15, 2023 By Bill Parry Two Queens lawmakers stood alongside Governor Kathy Hochul as she signed their bills into law on Nov. 14, making Diwali a school holiday for New York City public schools. Legislation S7574/A7769 amends the education law and requires that all public schools in the five boroughs be closed on the…
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Nov. 1, 2023 By Bill Parry Governor Kathy Hochul recently announced the completion of a $17.8 million project to construct Maspeth Park, located within walking distance from surrounding residential neighborhoods including Sunnyside and Blissville. It is the first park to be built in the western portion of Maspeth. The park was built on nearly one…
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Oct. 27, 2023 By Ethan Marshall Gov. Kathy Hochul signed into a law a legislation authorizing a tax abatement program to provide improvements to affordable housing on Monday, Oct. 23. The legislation was sponsored by Queens state Sen. Toby Ann Stavisky and Assemblymember Edward Braunstein. This legislation is meant to improve upon the J-51 Tax Abatement Program, which provided a property tax discount for co-ops and condos that needed to make certain capital improvements, while also helping to offset costs. The J-51 Program expired on June 29, 2022. The J-51 Affordable Housing Rehabilitation Legislation improves upon the program by increasing…
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Sep. 19, 2023 By Bill Parry
Sep. 19, 2023 By Ethan Stark-Miller
A group of lawmakers, largely comprised of Republicans, have filed a suit to stop the city from erecting a new mega-migrant shelter at Floyd Bennett Field, after the Adams administration finalized a lease with the White House last week to use part of the federally-owned parkland in Brooklyn to house migrants.