■NEWS BY ANGY ALTAMIRANO The owner of Long Island City’s Waterfront Crabhouse, Anthony Mazzarella, a boxing enthusiast and an avid fundraiser for people with cancer, died on Jan. 24. He was 77. Mazzarella opened the eatery, located at 2-03 Borden Ave., almost 40 years ago. It is known for its seafood dishes and walls decorated with boxing memorabilia. The LIC restaurant, housed in a building dating back to the 1800s, has made it through two disasters, each causing it to be closed for months. The first was a fire in 2009 and just two years ago the eatery was flooded by several feet of water after Hurricane Sandy hit the city. Mazzarella was also a member of the New York State Boxing Commission and the NY State Wine and Grape Foundation. He served as a member of the American Cancer Society and Queens Division, and he founded the Patty Fund for Childhood Cancer. He started an annual block party on the Fourth of July that raised thousands of dollars for cancer patients. Other events were held at the Crab House, all for the benefit of the American Cancer Society. Every year he would also host a Christmas party for kids with cancer. “He was a terrific man who really cared about his community and his neighborhood,” said Joseph Conley, former chairman of Community Board 2. “His contributions were special, as he was instrumental in Patty Fund for Childhood Cancer, just to name a few. He will be greatly missed.” Mazzarella was honored with the American Cancer Society’s St. George Medal, the highest and most prestigious award for outstanding service and leadership in the fight against cancer. Also, as a former boxer, Mazzarella started the Golden Mittens to use physical fitness as a way to keep children away from drugs. He is survived by his wife, Deanne, three children, two grandchildren and his siblings. Services were held on Jan. 29 at the Pizzi Funeral House, located at 120 Paris Ave. in Northvale, N.J. A mass was scheduled for Jan. 30 at Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church at 120 Kings Highway in Tappan, in Rockland County. In lieu of flowers, the family asks donations be made to the United Hospice of Rockland at 11 Stokum Lane, New City, NY 10956. BY LIC COURIER STAFF One local elected official is saying no thank you to a $20,000 annual stipend from the City Council. Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer, the second-highest ranking member of the Council as majority leader, has decided to return his annual stipend, also known as a lulu, to taxpayers. He is eligible for the extra pay, in addition to his $112,500 salary, for his leadership post. “Returning my $20,000 stipend as majority leader of the New York City Council is the right thing to do for me,” Van Bramer said. “While donating the stipend to charity may be noble, not taking it at all is consistent with a pledge I made when I first ran for the City Council in 2009. I serve in government out of a desire to help others and to build up the people and the neighborhoods I serve. That is what drives me to work hard and it always will.” Lulus are given to members of the City Council for leadership posts or committee assignments. According to the NY Daily News, 47 of 51 members are given the additional pay ranging from $5,000 to $25,000. The other Queens lawmaker to renounce the extra pay was Councilman Rory Lancman, who declined $8,000, joining 10 other Council members in the other boroughs who decided not to take the money, the Daily News said. Base pay for a member of the City Council was raised from $90,000 to $112,500 in 2006. But the job is technically part-time, allowing lawmakers to earn outside income. Good government groups have argued that lulus undermine the independence of individual lawmakers because, they say, the committee posts are handed out by the City Council speaker based on loyalty or other political considerations. IN MEMORY Anthony Mazzarella, owner of The Waterfront Crabhouse in LIC, dies Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer returns $20K of extra pay he gets for majority leader role
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