March 31, 2022 By Allie Griffin The city cleared more than 200 homeless encampments across the five boroughs in the past two weeks, sparking criticism from some Queens officials and homeless advocates. From March 18 through March 30, multi-agency teams removed 239 encampments throughout the city in an effort to connect people living on the… Read more »
March 29, 2022 By Allie Griffin The Metropolitan Transportation Authority unveiled a revised draft bus plan Tuesday that would overhaul the existing bus network in Queens. The 515-page updated plan replaces an original 2019 draft plan that the MTA decided to scrap because it was highly unpopular among borough residents and officials. MTA officials, Queens… Read more »
March 25, 2022 By Allie Griffin About three-quarters of Asian seniors in New York City are afraid to leave their homes due to the recent spike in anti-Asian violence, according to a report released Thursday. The Asian American Federation (AAF) surveyed 153 Asian seniors as well as 15 community-based organizations across the city and found… Read more »
March 23, 2022 By Allie Griffin The Department of Transportation plans to install more than 50 Citi Bike stations in Maspeth and Middle Village beginning this summer. The DOT released a draft plan map last month that provides the location of the bike stations that it anticipates installing throughout the two neighborhoods. The map —… Read more »
March 17, 2022 By Allie Griffin Nearly a dozen council members, including three from Queens, along with scores of community-based groups are pushing back against cuts proposed by the mayor in the preliminary budget he introduced last month. The elected officials and groups said Mayor Eric Adams’ $98.5 billion budget cuts funding to important services… Read more »
March 15, 2022 By Allie Griffin Congress Member Grace Meng has secured nearly $10 million in federal funding for local projects throughout Queens, she announced last week. Meng earmarked a total of $9,579,000 for 10 borough projects through a new government spending package the House passed Wednesday night. The legislation is expected to pass the… Read more »
March 10, 2022 By Allie Griffin The Department of Education is pushing ahead with its controversial new admissions process for the city’s top high schools — angering some Queens officials as a result. Schools Chancellor David Banks announced Wednesday that he has decided against any last-minute changes to the admissions process after suggesting last week… Read more »
March 8, 2022 By Allie Griffin A new music festival aimed at uplifting Black, Brown, Indigenous and Asian American Pacific Islander artists is coming to Queens this summer with ticket sales going live tomorrow. LetsGetFr.ee — a project of Afropunk festival founder Matthew Morgan — will enliven Flushing Meadows Corona Park with the music of… Read more »
March 8, 2022 By Allie Griffin Queens residents can donate supplies to Ukrainians under the daily threat of Russian violence without leaving the borough. Several Queens officials are collecting donations of medical supplies, food, clothes, toiletries and other necessities to send overseas to Ukrainian families as they face Russian forces or flee their homeland. Queens… Read more »
March 3, 2022 By Allie Griffin The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey released new public transit proposals Wednesday to get travelers to and from LaGuardia Airport — including the largely unpopular AirTrain plan. The Port Authority has put forward 14 potential mass transit options for the public to consider after the agency… Read more »