Board 7 gives its nod to ‘Femenia Way’
Approves street renaming for College Point activist, removal of Flushing handball court
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
Community Board 7
members on May 13 voted
unanimously in favor of
honoring late College Point
civic leader Joe Femenia
with a street co-naming for
his activism and dedication
to the community.
The College Point
community mourned
Femenia’s death on Jan. 30.
He passed away at the age
of 62 after suffering a heart
attack in his home.
“This was a difficult one
for us in the board for our
committee because we never
thought we would be voting
for a fellow member that we
had the pleasure of working
with,” said Nick Carrado,
chair of the Transportation
Committee.
Femenia served as
president of the College Point
Civic Taxpayer’s Association
from 2008 to 2012 and again
in 2014 to the present. He was
also a Community Board 7
member and chairperson
of the Transportation
Committee from 2006 to
2016.
Less than a month
after Femenia’s passing,
Councilman Paul Vallone
proposed a College Point
street renaming in honor of
Femenia at the intersection
of 23rd Avenue and 130th
Street. The co-naming
ceremony will likely be set
for late this summer.
Femenia’s wife,
Laura, thanked CB 7
and the College Point
community for their
support in honoring
and remembering the
civic leader with the
street sign, Joseph
Femenia Way.
“Joe was
amazing — a member
of CB 7, president of
the College Point Civic
Taxpayer’s Association,
a photographer, animal
lover and so much more.
One of his most important
priorities was his love and
devotion to our community,”
said Laura Femenia. “He
attended hundreds of
meetings and spent thousands
of hours communicating with
all of the elected officials,
city departments agencies
on behalf of the civic and
citizens of College Point. It
goes without saying
Joe made
Col lege
Joe Femenia at a protest against a
proposed homeless shelter in College
Point, shortly before his death.
File photo/QNS
Poi nt
a better
place to live and
work. I know the vote to honor
my husband by renaming
Laura Femenia speaks at the Community Board 7 meeting on honoring her late husband, Joe Femenia,
a College Point civic leader and activist. Photo by Carlotta Mohamed/QNS
23rd Avenue and 130th Street
‘Joe Femenia Way’
would be a
g r e a t
remembrance to
his dedication to improve the
College Point community.”
Board 7 Chair Eugene
Kelty said, “It was well
deserved. It’s nice when
we can do something very
special for a person that has
given back to the community
tenfold.”
Later that night, CB
7 also approved the
removal of a handball
court adjacent to
P.S. 22 in Flushing,
which doesn’t have
a playground and
will be redeveloped
into an official
playground for the
school by the Parks
Department.
“Part of the area
is under jurisdiction
of the Department
of Education, while a
larger part of the area is
under the jurisdiction of
the Parks Department,” said
Arlene Fleishman, chair of
the Education Department.
“The issue before CB 7 is the
removal of the handball court
that is on Parks Department
property and sits in the
center of the project. It is
proven to be a safety hazard
as numerous children are
running into it and the
entire community approved
removal of this wall.”
The handball court
will be replaced with a
basketball court, which is
apart of the total design
and redevelopment of the
playground, said Fleishman.
The playground will house
play equipment for fitness,
exercise and recreation as
well as an outdoor classroom
with proper drainage and
extra seating.
The project is being
funded through Councilman
Peter Koo’s office and
has been approved by the
principal of P.S. 22, the parent
association, the Murray Hill
Neighborhood Association
and Parks Department.
Reach reporter Carlotta
Mohamed by email at
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.
com or by phone at (718)
260–4526.
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