CITY ISSUES OVER A DOZEN VIOLATIONS
TO UMBRELLA HOTEL IN KEW GARDENS
St. John’s Episcopal Hospital staff donates
Thanksgiving meals to patients in need
TIMESLEDGER | QNS.COM | DEC. 4-DEC. 10, 2020 17
BY JACOB KAYE
The staff at St. John’s Episcopal
Hospital came together
to donate more than 90 meals
to patients and their families
this holiday season.
The hospitals staff prepared
and decorated baskets,
which included turkey, chicken,
ham, potatoes, rice, vegetables,
stuffing mix, gravy,
macaroni and cheese, dinner
rolls, cranberry sauce and
desserts for each patient. The
meals were distributed at a
tent outside the hospital.
“It brings us great joy to
know that we were able to help
make this year’s Thanksgiving
both enjoyable and nourishing
for more than 90 families,”
said Sharika Gordon,
the hospital’s vice president
and chief human resources
officer. “We care deeply about
our patients and community
members, and the hospital’s
staff wanted to do all that
they could to make sure that
no person is left hungry this
Thanksgiving.”
The COVID-19 pandemic,
which has hit the hospital’s
home neighborhood of Far
Rockaway hard, has caused
an alarming increase of food
insecurity across the country.
In 2020, more than 50 million
people will experience
food insecurity at some point
during the year, a nearly 50
percent increase when compared
to 2019, according to
Feeding America.
“For us, it is not only about
providing excellent health
care strictly within the confines
of our hospital and community
medical practices. We
take great pride in providing
needed resources within the
community itself, which is
what this food initiative is all
about,” said Renee Hastick-
Motes, the hospital’s vice
president of external affairs.
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
The troublesome Umbrella
Hotel in Kew Gardens, which
was thrusted into the spotlight
amid a string of violent
incidents, has been hit with
more than a dozen violations
from the city.
The mayor’s office approved
a Multi-Agency
Response to Community
Hotspots (MARCH) Operation
this past weekend. Participating
agencies included the
NYPD, FDNY, DEP, DOB and
the Sheriff’s Office. The initial
operation yielded 13 summonses
from the NYPD, FDNY
and DOB.
The hotel, located at 124-18
Queens Blvd., was given court
appearances tickets and several
fines. A second inspection
was conducted this week
where FDNY found multiple
fire safety violations including
defective fire alarm systems
and pumps.
The hotel was also issued
two criminal summonses in
addition to the earlier violations.
The operation comes after
months of community outrage
and public statements from local
elected officials, who issued
a letter to the mayor’s office
in August requesting action
and assistance for the 102nd
Precinct in shutting down the
hotel, according to Assemblyman
Daniel Rosenthal.
“The MARCH operation
was a good first step in bringing
these concerns to the forefront
of enforcement, but we
need continued cooperation
from the city to ensure that violent
crimes and public health
violations come to an end at
this location. We cannot accept
anything less,” Rosenthal
said.
In August, the front door
of the hotel was sprayed with
bullets, as it was the scene of
a drive-by shooting, according
to officials. A separate shooting
incident took place at the
hotel on July 3. Residents had
complained of illegal activity
and loud parties taking place
at the hotel, disrupting the
quality-of-life in the neighborhood.
According to Senator Leroy
Comrie, the 102nd Precinct
has remained laser-focused
on containing and preventing
criminal activity at the hotel.
“I am pleased to see that
Captain Fidacaro and his
command are beginning to receive
the multi-agency support
that they need to put an end to
this nonsense,” Comrie said.
“I remain in lockstep with
the 102nd Precinct, Assemblymember
Rosenthal, and my
locally elected colleagues in
working towards a full resolution
to this problem.”
On behalf of the Kew Gardens
community and herself,
Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz
issued a sincere thank-you
to Ficadaro for his resolute
determination to bring the
“indefensible and outrageous”
situation at the hotel under
control.
“Hopefully, this mayoral
multi-agency response under
the Captain’s leadership will
provide the impetus for shutting
down the Umbrella Hotel,”
Koslowitz said.
QNS contacted the Umbrella
Hotel and is awaiting a response
from management.
Reach reporter Carlotta
Mohamed by e-mail at cmohamed@
schnepsmedia.com or
by phone at (718) 260–4526.
The Umbrella Hotel Photo via Wikimedia Commons
Courtesy of St. John’s Episcopal Hospital
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