26 The QUEE NS Courier • MARCH 31, 2016 for breaking news visit www.qns.com Ask the MAYOR The Queens Courier and the Mayor’s Office are proud to present a weekly column in which Mayor Bill de Blasio answers your questions about issues that concern you the most. If you have a question aboutanything going on in the city, in your neighborhood or on your block, we want to hear from you! Email us at editorial@qns.com and Mayor de Blasio will get you an answer! There’s a push among some advocates in the city to close Rikers Island. Are you considering such a measure or, as an alternative, instituting other reforms at Rikers? The Mayor believes closing Rikers is a noble goal, but the Mayor has also made clear many significant challenges must be addressed before that can be achieved. For years, an environment of violence, abuse and neglect has been tolerated at Rikers. We are not tolerating the status quo any longer. The situation is unacceptable and must change now, not another decade from now. We are putting into place serious reforms, which are reducing violence in targeted areas and keeping the population down. We are fixing the problems now because we can’t afford to wait. Additional background information on the de Blasio Administration’s reforms on Rikers: Current plans to shrink the jail population by at least 2,000 people: • Expanding supervised release citywide and making it easier to pay bail • Cutting case processing times • Providing permanent supportive housing for people frequently arrested on low-level crimes • Enacting summons reform to reduce open warrants How do residents apply to have a block party this summer? What criteria must they meet in order for the city to approve a block party permit? Residents can apply for a block party permit through the Mayor’s Office of Citywide Event Coordination and Management. A block party is defined as a community sponsored event that requires the closure of one city block (or a portion of block) during which there is no sale of goods or services. Applicants must apply 90 days prior to the desired date online at: https:// nyceventpermits.nyc.gov/cems/Login. aspx. If you are unable to apply online please contact 212.788.0025. FDNY TAKE S ON IRISH The FDNY’s Bravest Boxing Squad squared off Saturday night against the Irish National Police Service’s Garda Siochana Boxing Club at Webster Hall to celebrate the 100-year anniversary of Ireland’s Easter Rising against Britain, a fateful rebellion that reduced parts of Dublin to ruins and fired the country’s flame of independence. The day before the Webster Hall-hosted bout, I partook in what could only be described as a Good Friday “100-proof lunch” at O’Neill’s Restaurant in Maspeth with event sponsor Martin Silver from Georgi Vodka supplying the international goodwill fighters with plenty of Donegal Irish Whiskey to make them feel at home. “Nothing quite gets you into fighting shape like whiskey,” Martin was heard quipping throughout the afternoon. The drinks, followed by a woozy face-toface Queens Politics & More BY MIKE FRICCHIONE weigh-in, not only highlighted the international bond of brotherhood shared between two countries and among law enforcement, but also further underscored Queen’s significance as an international world-wide hub. One of of the Irish boxers even commented that the Maspeth bar reminded them of Barney Kiernan’s pub, one of the famous settings from James Joyce’s iconic work, “Ulysses.” I thought it very fitting since Joyce wrote of it as a place with “whiskey and water on the brain.” After some much needed recovery, we made the trek the next day over the Queensboro Bridge for what announcers described as the “Easter Eve Uprising.” I watched as more than a few smokeeaters took some pretty hard hits from the quickjabbing Emerald Islanders. Luckily, Firefighter Dan O’Lega of Engine 258 in Long Island City, saved the evening with a TKO in the final round, leaving the crowds ready for more next year. A f t e r w a r d s , despite some questionable scoring from the judges table, the FDNY at least declared it a victory for charity, as all proceeds went to “Building Homes for Heroes.” a non-profit that gives mortgagefree homes to veterans who were severely injured while serving in Iraq. Who ever said drinking and fighting doesn’t solve anything? Watch movies for free every Wednesday at Jackson Heights’ Diversity Plaza BY ANGELA MATUA amatua@qns.com/@AngelaMatua A Jackson Heights resident and authority on food and culture in Queens, will start showing films at Diversity Plaza every Wednesday. Located at 73rd Street and 37th Road, the plaza is home to other events such as the Momo Crawl, a food event hosted by Jeff Orlick to promote the neighborhood’s Himalayan cuisine. It was also used as a gathering place to mourn the victims in the Paris terrorist attacks earlier last year. Orlick said he wanted to use the space to create something for the eclectic mix of people who frequent Diversity Plaza and live in the neighborhood. “I love the challenge of creating something that will appeal to people from many cultures,” he said. “Also the challenge of doing an event for people who are not connected to the same social networks as I am.” He aims to showcase movies that “transcend dialogue” and that do not depend on the spoken word. Orlick said he plans on showing movies featuring Buster Keaton, an actor and director best known for his silent films featuring physical comedy, and musicals like Fantasia. He will kick-off Movies in the Plaza tonight at 8 p.m. with showings of the 1921 Buster Keaton film “The Boat” and “Metropolis,” a science fiction silent film from the 1920s. “This series is also part of my own education of film, so they are movies that I want to see ― that is why I appreciate if people just come with a blanket and chill out on the plaza because I want to watch the movies, too,” Orlick said. Orlick has set up a Facebook event page and will update it every week with the new movies.
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