10 THE QUEENS COURIER • MARCH 9, 2017 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM Board member defends Trump remark on Corona bike lanes BY ANGELA MATUA [email protected] @AngelaMatua Despite calls for her removal, a longtime Community Board 4 (CB 4) member who made racially charged comments during a discussion on the night of Feb. 28 about bicycle lanes in Corona, doubled down on her comments. “I see who goes by and who doesn’t, and there was a lot of people going by to work early in the morning and like about 90 percent of them are gone,” Ann Pfoser Darby, told DNAinfo on March 1. Pfoser Darby added that she thought this meant Immigration and Customs Enforcement had deported them. When a reporter asked her how she knew people riding the bike lanes were illegal she said, “You can kind of tell, especially sometimes the way they dress.” At a CB 4 Transportation Committee meeting on Feb. 28 in Elmhurst, members were examining the addition of protected bike lanes along 111th Street in Corona. Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras-Copeland provided funding for the bicycle lanes in 2013 but the creation of the lanes has been repeatedly pushed back because of criticism from CB 4. According to Juan Restrepo, a member of Transportation Alternatives, talks about the proposed improvements along the corridor had resurfaced during the meeting when Pfoser Darby said “once Community Board 4 member Ann Pfoser Darby (front) made a racist remark at a transportation committee meeting in Elmhurst. Trump removes all the illegals from Corona, there won’t be anybody to ride bike lanes.” CB 4, which consists of Corona and Elmhurst has a population that is overwhelmingly foreign born. According to city data, 66 percent of residents are foreign Photo via Twitter/juanjonjuan born, 52 percent of residents are of Hispanic descent, 34 percent of Asian descent and the remaining 8 percent identify as white, black or other. Ferreras-Copeland slammed the board member and argued that “this bigoted attitude” may be the reason for the delay in implementation of safety improvements. Councilman Daniel Dromm, who represents Jackson Heights and Elmhurst, said on Twitter that he agreed with Ferreras-Copeland and argued that term limits should be imposed for community board members. Residents and Ferreras-Copeland argued that the corridor is unsafe and should be improved for the large number of parents and children who use it to access Flushing Meadows Corona Park. Th ere have been 17 pedestrian crashes, 22 bicycle crashes and 93 motor vehicle crashes on the corridor between 43rd Avenue and Corona Avenue from 2009 through 2013. In her statement, Ferreras-Copeland demanded that Pfoser Darby be replaced. “I am demanding the immediate removal of this board member for promoting hatred and ignorance,” she said. “It is time she is removed and is replaced with someone who is serious about restoring the people’s trust in their government.” Pfoser Darby was fi rst named to CB 4 in 1987; members are appointed to twoyear terms by Queens Borough President Melinda Katz and the City Council. Th ese types of comments by public servants are never acceptable,” Katz said in a statement. Katz is scheduled to announce her decisions on CB appointments and re-appointments by the end of this month. Great rates like ours are always in season. 1.10% 7-Month CD APY1 $5,000 minimum deposit 1.25% 13-Month CD APY1 $5,000 minimum deposit To qualify you must have or open any Flushing Bank Complete Checking account.2 Get the complete access and control you desire with a competitive interest rate and banking on-the-go with our Flushing Bank Mobile3 app. For more information and to find out about our other great offers, visit your local Flushing Bank branch, call 800.581.2889 or visit www.FlushingBank.com. Small enough to know you. Large enough to help you. 1. New money only. APY effective January 19, 2017. Annual percentage yield assumes principal and interest remain on deposit for a full year at current rate. Minimum deposit balance of $5,000 is required. Funds cannot be transferred from an existing Flushing Bank account. Premature withdrawals may be subject to bank and IRS penalties. Rates and offer are subject to change without notice. 2. A Flushing Bank checking account with a $5,000 minimum balance is required to receive the advertised rate. Certain fees, minimum balance requirements and restrictions may apply. For new IRA and rollover accounts, the minimum deposit balance is $5,000. A checking account is not required for IRA accounts. Speak with a Flushing Bank representative for more details. 3. Flushing Bank Mobile Banking is available to all Flushing Bank online banking users. Mobile carrier fees may apply. Flushing Bank is a registered trademark
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