North Shore Towers Courier n September 2013 19 Comptroller candidates outline plans BP candidates address Queens-centric issues Queens Borough President candidates continue to push through campaign season and participated in the Focus on Queens Forum at the North Shore Towers. The three candidates were asked various borough-centric questions by moderator and NY1 anchor Tamani Wooley. Aurelio “Tony” Arcabascio came out as the sole Republican candidate and first discussed his history as a businessman, currently working with North Shore LIJ Hospital. “I thought it was important for the Republican Party to have a voice,” he said. Democrat Melinda Katz, former assemblymember and city councilmember, said Queens needs a borough president who can “bring equity to this borough.” Councilmember Peter Vallone Jr. said he has spent his life “protecting Queens” and will be the “independent Democratic voice for you.” Proposals currently floating around the borough were first addressed, namely the United States Tennis Association (USTA) development in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park; a Major League Soccer (MLS) stadium also in the park; and redeveloping Willets Point. All candidates agreed that first and foremost, parkland needs to be protected. “I will fight to get money from private companies that make money off of our public spaces,” Arcabascio said. All candidates support a soccer stadium in Queens. Katz supports the Willets Point redevelopment and said “hopefully in January we’ll be able to take a fresh look and put a shovel in that ground.” Vallone said we need development there, but he doesn’t support the current plan, and Arcabascio doesn’t think Willets Point is a good site for the project. Regarding hospitals and health care, all candidates agreed there should be more emergency care, multi-specialty facilities throughout the borough, and that hospital emergency rooms should not be the first go-to place. “I do believe we need to take a lot of the pressure off of the existing emergency rooms,” Katz said. Vallone added that if elected he would work with the district attorney and attorney general to reduce fraud and in turn give hospitals the funding needed to stay open. Next, Wooley, as moderator, brought up the controversial Community Safety Act. Katz supports the bill that would reform the practice. Vallone said when the bill takes effect, “judges will take over the NYPD.” “Then we will turn into Detroit,” he said, and called the bill the “most dangerous in the history of New York City.” Arcabascio took a similar stance and said you “can’t ask the Police Department to not stop someone based on your instinct as a trained police officer.” During the September 10 primary, voters can decide between Democratic candidates Katz, Vallone or Everly Brown, not present at the forum. Then the Democratic or Republican candidate in the general election on November 5. Candidates for City Comptroller joined the Focus on Queens Forum at the North Shore Towers and detailed ways they would approach office as the city’s chief financial advisor. “The economy of the city is going to rest on places like Queens,” said Scott Stringer, Democratic candidate and Manhattan Borough President, at the forum on Wednesday, August 21. As Comptroller, Stringer said he would put all contracts and subcontracts online for citizens to see. “It’s time to end this whole notion that the budget is too complicated for New Yorkers to understand,” he said. Among other ideas, he made note that if elected, he would bring in community people of expertise in a specific area who would review city contract applications, such as seniors and senior housing. Stringer said he has two skill sets for the job: “somebody who has been able to work collaboratively to get real things accomplished,” as well as being “fiercely independent” in order to hold city agencies accountable. “You have to root out waste,” he said. John Burnett, Republican candidate with a heavy financial background, also attended and spoke about various ideas such as unifying the current five-pension system in city finances. “It’s five redundant costs,” he said. “Each time the pension fund doesn’t earn its discount rate, we have to cut a check with taxpayer money to find it.” Burnett, who has a 23 years of Wall Street experience at companies such as Smith Barney and Merrill Lynch, said he has the understanding of investments in order to manage the $70 billion annual city budget. “You have to know how to audit and hold people accountable with respect to the budget,” he said. Hesham El Meligy is the only Libertarian candidate and also the only accountant, he said. As Comptroller, he would continue current Comptroller John Liu’s participatory budgeting layout as well as take a second look at the MTA, following Liu’s initial audit of the transportation agency. “It’s taking a look at how the city works,” he said. “The structure of the city itself leads to a lot of waste. We need to put resources in other parts to serve the people better.” Eliot Spitzer, Democratic candidate, declined to attend the event. THE COURIER/Photo by Maggie Hayes Comptroller candidates Hesham El Meligy, Scott Stringer and John Burnett participated in a candidates forum at the North Shore Towers.
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