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QC03232017

FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM MARCH 23, 2017 • THE QUEENS COURIER 19 Still no vote on Corona street improvements BY ANGELA MATUA amatua@qns.com @AngelaMatua In yet another contentious meeting to decide the fate of 111th Street in Corona, Community Board 4 (CB 4) decided to table a vote that would bring safety improvements to the corridor. Th e plan to add safety improvements to 111th Street were fully funded by Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras-Copeland in 2013 and Mayor Bill de Blasio has made the corridor, which runs along Flushing Meadows Corona Park, a Vision Zero Priority. But each plan presented by the Department of Transportation (DOT) since March 2015 has been shot down or tabled by CB 4 due to concerns about increased congestion or bicycle lanes. 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Some restrictions may apply. Not to be combined with any other offer. ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������� �������������������������������������������� ���������������������������������������������������������������������������� Clifford ������������������������������������������������������������������������������ Optical 38-19 BELL BOULEVARD, BAYSIDE ������������������������������ OFFERING THE LOWEST PRICES ON CONTACT LENSES studies to dissect traffi c patterns, demanded that a car lane be re-added on the southbound side and asked for a study to check the feasibility of an exit off of the Grand Central Parkway into Flushing Meadows Corona Park. To appease board members, the DOT complied with their various requests. But at the CB 4 meeting on March 21, some members said they were unhappy with the plan because some intersections did not have marked crosswalks, especially in front of 47th Avenue where a new Pre-K center is expected to go up in 2019. Th e original plan, which removed one southbound and northbound car lane included marked crosswalks at each intersection. WINTER SAVINGS 10% OFF ANY PURCHASE With Coupon. Not combinable – New Orders Only. Limit 1 per customer. $150.00 max for discount. Excludes Repairs, Re�� nishing, Rewiring. Exp. 3/31/17 Th at was removed when DOT honored a request by the board to keep the second southbound lane. James Lisa, chair of the transportation committee, said he again could not support the plan because “111th Street is the escape valve for people to leave Corona.” “Fire departments, EMTs, all of these city agencies use 111th Street to get in and out of Corona fast because it’s the only way to get in and out because of all the traffi c on 108th Street,” Lisa said. “All of this that they’re talking about is going to destroy the Corona Heights community’s ability, the cars’ mobility to get in and out of Corona.” Dozens of people showed up to testify in favor of the improvements, holding up signs that read “We want a safer 111th Street” and “We deserve to have a voice.” Mujeres en Moviemento, a group of Spanish-speaking mothers who live in Corona and advocate for bike lanes, brought a translator to the meeting and wore headsets so they could follow along. But the board voted to table the motion before they heard one comment from the community. A handful of board members said they liked the plan and argued that the discussion had gone on long enough. Jen Gutierrez, a lifelong Corona resident and board member, said she has visited Flushing Meadows Corona Park “every single day for like the fi rst 20 years of my life” and that safe access to the park is paramount. “I wholeheartedly support this proposal,” she said. “I don’t understand why every time we talk about safety improvements at CB 4 we dissect and dissect and only focus on bike lanes. It’s insanely dangerous for anyone crossing the street as a pedestrian, as a cyclist and for us to sit there and nit pick numbers versus percentages and devalue humans that could endanger themselves is not a refl ection of every board member of Community Board 4.” Ultimately, the board overwhelmingly voted to table the vote, and even members who expressed support for the plan agreed to table it. “We’re going to discuss this internally,” said Queens DOT Commissioner Nicole Garcia. “It’s been said by my commissioner and other people that community board vote is advisory but we got a lot of great feedback here. Th ere were some themes that we’ve heard throughout this process so we’re going to take the feedback that we heard here tonight and discuss and we’ll be in touch with the board.”


QC03232017
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