FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM JANUARY 30, 2020 • THE QUEENS COURIER 33
One Stop Richmond Hill Community Center receives $125K grant
Photo by Carlotta Mohamed/QNS
The One Stop Richmond Hill Community Center at 110-08 Jamaica Ave. will open its doors on Feb. 10 after undergoing a
renovation.
Mobile sports betting could help solve state budget deficit: Addabbo
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
As he delivered his annual
State of the State message to the
Legislature,Governor Andrew
Cuomo off ered few specifi cs on
how he would deal with the second
largest budget defi cit of his
10 years in offi ce.
Meanwhile, state Senator
Joseph Addabbo, the chairman
of the Senate Standing
Committee on Racing, Gaming
and Wagering, has a way to raise
signifi cant state revenue and he
will renew his push to pass his
mobile sports betting legislation.
“As we go into a very diffi cult
fi scal year, facing a state budget
defi cit of more than $6 billion,
and working on my initiatives
mentioned in the governor’s
State of the State, I look forward
to working with Governor
Cuomo and my legislative colleagues
to identify new sources
of revenue to help close the
budget gap, revitalize our economy,
support local families and
businesses, increase educational
funding and continue to provide
vital services to New Yorker
in need.”
While he enjoys watching
sports, Addabbo doesn’t bet on
sports, but he sees New York
missing out on revenue and jobs.
“First and foremost, to address
these issues, I will continue to
advocate for the implementation
of mobile sports betting in
New York State, which will curb
the fl ow of dollars to nearby
states, that could be used, now
and in the future, to balance the
state budget and provide needed
funding support for education
and create jobs,” Addabbo said.
“We took a step forward last year
in permitting sports betting in
several upstate casinos, but adding
the mobile wagering component
is crucial to reaping the
benefi ts of this gaming activity
and enabling us to compete with
other states.”
New Yorkers travel to New
Jersey so they can place bets on
their mobile phones and while
the December numbers yet to be
reported, New Jersey sports betting
is on track to rake in about
$40 million.
Addabbo has other revenue
generating initiatives up his
sleeve, too.
“I also intend to explore
options that may be pursued
with regard to the three unused
casino licenses that are still available
to launch gaming facilities
in the downstate region,”
Addabbo said. “Th ese licenses
represent an untapped source
of revenue for New York State,
which could also be directed to
important state programs and
funding for our schools.”
Th e three downstate casino
developers, including Resorts
World Casino New York City,
in Addabbo’s district, are said to
be willing to pay $500 million
for a full-scale casino license,
which allows dealer-manned
table games such as poker, blackjack,
roulette, and baccarat as
opposed to the video gaming
which it currently has. Such a
transition for the downstate casinos
would create hundreds of
good-paying union jobs and
hundreds of millions of dollars
each year in additional revenue
for the state.
“I will be holding a public
hearing of the Racing, Gaming
and Wagering Committee on
Jan. 22 to begin gathering public
and industry input on how
we can best place these casino
licenses on the front burner,”
Addabbo said. “Th is will be
a challenging year on many levels,
and I am pledged to pursuing
initiatives that will be part
of the solution to the fi scal and
public policy issues we are confronting.”
Photo via Flickr.com
State Senator Joseph Addabbo will renew his push for mobile sports betting
and full-scale casino licenses in the city to alleviate the state budget defi cit.
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Th e One Stop Richmond Hill
Community Center is undergoing
a much-needed renovation
aft er receiving a $125,000
grant from state Assemblyman
Mike Miller.
Simcha Waisman, president
of One Stop and a community
member for 41 years, is at
the site every day overseeing
the renovation. Th e center is
expected to open Feb. 10.
“You want the job to be done
the right way, you have to
oversee it. Th ey the workers
were here early in the morning
and did the wall, it’s still
wet. Yesterday, they lift ed up
the fl oor,” Waisman said.
Th e One Stop Center, located
at 110-08 Jamaica Ave., was
transformed by volunteers who
built it from the ground up. Th e
space was formerly occupied
by a photography store, said
Waisman. Today, it serves about
12 to 35 children who participate
in aft er-school programs
and events held in the center’s
meeting space.
“What they get here they
don’t get in school,” Waisman
said. “We have 27 laptops so
kids can do their work and
research before they do a video
conference with NASA.”
One Stop has an educational
relationship with NASA, where
kids in the aft er-school computer
technology and science
video conferencing classes are
able to communicate with other
space stations and personnel.
Other benefi cial programs
at the center include Mommy
& Me classes that are held
Wednesday and Thursday
mornings and a free children’s
summer camp. It also
hosts the Richmond Hill Block
Association meetings once a
month to give civic updates
as well as the Community
Emergency Response Team
(C.E.R.T.) meetings.
According to Waisman, the
center has had trouble gathering
basic funds to maintain its
activities and has managed to
stay afl oat with funds received
from the city, state and local
elected offi cials.
With the exception of teachers,
most of the people who
work at the community center
are unpaid, willing volunteers,
such as Waisman.
“Every grant that we get, I ask
for it. If we get a grant for computers,
we use the money for
that. If we get a grant for summer
camp, we use it for that.
We use every penny; that’s why
I don’t want to get paid, because
everything goes to the kids,”
Waisman said. “We do it for the
kids and the community and
that’s most important.”
In a statement to QNS, Miller
said he’s proud to allocate
$125,000 in capital funding for
the One Stop Richmond Hill
Center.
“With these improvements,
One Stop can better serve the
community with their array of
services, such as the Mommy
and Me program, aft er-school
technology program and free
summer camp for children,”
Miller said. “I have attended
many of their events and
even held my Annual Women
of Distinction and Annual
Hispanic Heritage events at the
One Stop Center. I look forward
to seeing the completion
of this project.”
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