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April 1 - April 7, 2022
Bayside lawmakers share residents’ frustration, concern
regarding local squatters following recent shootings
BY ETHAN MARSHALL
Queens Senator John Liu and
Assemblyman Ed Braunstein
were among the handful of people
to speak during a rally on March
25, joining members of the Bayside
community in venting their
frustration regarding squatters
who have been illegally occupying
and renting out a home on
Airbnb for two years.
Other speakers included Congresswoman
Grace Meng (via a
phone call from Albany), Community
Board 11 District Manager
Joe Marziliano, Roseann Foley
Henry of the Bell Court Civic Association
and Stephen Markowski,
one of the more vocal voices in
the neighborhood.
While they’ve all been trying
to get the squatters evicted from
the property — located at 208-16
38th Ave. — for two years, there
is now a heightened sense of urgency
following an incident last
weekend near the property in
which a group of transient residents
allegedly fired at least 19
gunshots around the neighborhood,
injuring one and damaging
a lot of nearby property.
“We’re calling upon the Department
of Buildings to issue a
vacate order,” Liu said.
Additionally, Liu called upon
Airbnb to stop advertising the
house on their site. There have
been repeated instances of Airbnb
New York Senator John Liu (r.) and Assemblyman Ed Braunstein speak at the rally, with neighborhood residents
behind them. Courtesy of Senator Liu’s offi ce
taking down the posting, only
to allow the same home being
advertised under a different account.
Braunstein called upon the
bank to expedite foreclosure and
eviction proceedings on the property.
He also called out Airbnb for
allowing the house to be advertised.
“While authorities continue
their investigation to apprehend
the individuals responsible for
the shooting, Airbnb must permanently
ban listings at this location,”
Braunstein said. “We are
not going to rest until this situation
is resolved.”
Braunstein also revealed that
he reached out to ConEd to see if
they can do anything about the
property, such as possibly disabling
the electricity. While he is
waiting to hear back from them,
some in the neighborhood believe
the squatters may already be prepared
for it. The squatters have
been seen bringing large jugs
of gasoline to the home, leading
many to believe they are using a
generator for electricity.
Meng reached out to Airbnb
CEO Brian Chesky asking for insight
following the shooting.
In a letter to Chesky, Meng
asked what the company intends
to do to rectify the fact that the
house was able to get posted on
Airbnb by illegal squatters who
just had to change the name of the
accounts. She also asked why the
property itself hasn’t been banned
from being listed on the site.
“Neighborhood residents must
not have their safety put at risk
and their quality of life disrupted,”
Meng wrote. “This problem
must be addressed at once, and my
colleagues and I stand shoulder to
shoulder with the community as
we push Airbnb for answers.”
Marziliano discussed how the
property itself has caused problems
since the old homeowner
left.“
For five years, this problematic
property has plagued our
neighbors, first as a zombie home,
then as an alleged squatter’s den,
and now as an illegal Airbnb with
a shooting spilling over into the
streets,” Marziliano said.
Liu provided some details into
some of the roadblocks that have
prevented the squatters from being
evicted sooner. The bank had undergone
foreclosure proceedings,
but they botched the paperwork.
Joe Carollo, the former owner
of the property, spoke during the
rally and said that he had relinquished
his rights to the house
over to Citi Bank. Since he was no
longer the landlord of the property,
Carollo was unable to approve
eviction proceedings.
The squatters were previously
Carollo’s tenants. When Carollo
left, they allegedly stopped
paying rent. Now, the squatters
barely stay at the house, choosing
instead to rent it out via Airbnb,
making money on a property they
don’t even own.
Read more on QNS.com.
Vol. 88 No. 13 40 total pages
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