EDITORIAL
HOW TO REACH US
TIMESLEDGER | QNS.16 COM | JAN. 17-JAN. 23, 2020
READERS WRITE
I only recently became
aware of major changes the
MTA is planning to make on
Queens local and express bus
lines. In spreading the word to
my neighbors and fellow commuters,
it seems that many
were also unaware, or had only
just found out.
The MTA has a draft proposal
in place with drastic changes
to bus lines, both local and express.
Some are good, positive
changes, but others are not.
Queens residents who ride MTA
buses need to know about these
impending changes, and how
they will be affected by them –
be it positive or negative.
For those of us living the
furthest from any subway, note
that on express service, hours
would be cut and Sunday service
eliminated. And certain
local lines would require transfers,
even for only a couple of
stops.
I urge all to go to the
MTA’s site for the Queens
Bus Redesign: new.mta.info/
queensbusredesign. The draft
document is detailed and complicated,
be sure to read about
all substitutes to your line, as
in some cases there is more
than one line replacing it.
Before this is a done deal,
please make your voices heard
by submitting feedback. There
will also be public meetings in
January and February for anyone
who can attend.
Susan Simons
Bayside
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Make sure your voices are heard
They toasted, they cheered, they shook hands
and patted backs, celebrating the salvation of
a nearly 200-year-old bar in Queens threatened
with closure.
Victory flowed through Neir’s Tavern Friday
night like taps full of beer after a deal was reached
to keep the endangered business afloat. Just a day
earlier, news spread that Neir’s was about to fold
under the crushing weight of higher rents.
The impending doom of such a grand and historic
institution shook many heads around town
-- and shook city government and business leaders
into action. By Friday night, a pact was reached to
keep the good times rolling at Neir’s. Mayor Bill
de Blasio even visited Neir’s to announce the pact,
reached with the help of the Queens Chamber of
Commerce and local lawmakers, and clang glasses
with the faithful.
Indeed, it was a sweet victory. The bitter reality,
however, is that Neir’s Tavern is but one business
in a city where many other small businesses are
suffering and straining under the crippling weight
of high rents.
The majority of these stories go virtually untold
until it’s too late for them to be saved. Fortunately,
it doesn’t have to be this way.
The City Council has a bill called the Small
Business Jobs Survival Act, which seeks to help
reduce rent costs by empowering businesses with
stability. It would enable them to agree to long-term
leases which keep costs level, and ensure that they
have either a chance to succeed or continue thriving.
Rent regulation for commercial space is long
overdue. Yet the Small Business Jobs Survival Act
is stalled at City Hall, the victim of special interests,
according to the bill’s most ardent defenders.
Small businesses in New York City need the
same kind of break Neir’s Tavern just received.
The city’s Department of Small Business Services
notes that 98 percent of the 220,000 businesses in
New York City have fewer than 100 employees; 89
percent have fewer than 20 employees. Every one
of these businesses, and every one of their employees,
are critical to the vitality and success of our
economy.
It’s time for City Hall to get on board with the
Small Business Jobs Survival Act, and clear the
way for common-sense rent regulations that will
keep small businesses thriving, and jobs secure,
for years to come.
HELLO, PANDA!
On Jan. 3, 1,000 young people from Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) funded afterschool
programs attended the Hello Panda Festival at Citi Field for free. Courtesy of DYCD
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