FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com APRIL 28, 2016 • The Queens Courier 3 Whitestone residents urged to sign a petition demanding a supermarket at closed Waldbaum’s site By Briana Ellis bellis@qns.com/@briinformed Public pressure is mounting to bring a supermarket back to the former Waldbaum’s location at the Whitestone Shopping Center, which closed six months ago and remains vacant. During a We Love Whitestone town hall meeting on Wednesday night, state Senator Tony Avella encouraged the civic association and residents to sign a petition, which urges the property owners, The Feil Organization, to reserve the location for “any prospective supermarket,” he said. A spokesperson of the Whitestone office of The Feil Organization told QNS that the company is still seeking a food retailer to take over the vacant supermarket at 153-01 10th Ave. Some Whitestone residents speculate that a Trader Joe’s may be coming next, but a grocery store’s spokesperson, told QNS last month that Trader Joe’s was not pursuing the location. Others predict that a Stop & Shop supermarket will surface. One worker at the mall, who wished to remain anonymous, told QNS that the property will be divided into a supermarket and a CVS Pharmacy. Only a desolate space remains where the Whitestone Waldbaum’s used to be on 10th Avenue. “Well, I kind of miss it, but I heard they’re opening a Trader Joe’s,” said local resident Robert Smith, who reflected on the old Waldbaum’s. “It was nice to come in here and make my own sandwiches instead of coming to this crappy place,” he said while pointing at Subway. “None of these places have healthy drinks. Who wants to drink a soda?” Smith continued. Waldbaum’s marked its stamp on the Whitestone community for more than 30 years before closing on Nov. 23 last year. It was the result of the demise of its parent company, the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company (A&P), which filed for bankruptcy in July 2015. Numerous supermarkets owned by A&P that operated under the PathMark or Waldbaum’s brands were sold to rival chains such as Stop & Shop and Key Food; other markets, such as the Whitestone Waldbaum’s, simply THE COURIER/Photo by Brianna Ellis closed. “Well it’s kind of an inconvenience,” shopper and Whitestone resident Jackie Davis remarked about the supermarket’s closing. “It’s close to our house but my husband does most of the shopping anyway. He’s more mad about it than I am.” Police officers help to reunite a lost autistic boy with his family in Little Neck By Briana Ellis bellis@qns.com/@briinformed The NYPD‘s mantra of serving and protecting Queens residents proved true on April 25, when police officers successfully helped a lost autistic child reunite with his family in Little Neck. At about 4:30 p.m. on April 25, the 111th Precinct received a 911 call from a public school custodian who informed officers that an adolescent was running around the Little Neck neighborhood alone. When police arrived at the scene, the boy was found by himself in a fenced park of Public School 94, located at 41-77 Little Neck Pkwy. “When we arrived we realized the child was autistic and not able to communicate. There was no sign of parents or guardians. Concerned for his well-being, we walked with him into our police vehicle so that we can search and bring him to his caretakers,” said Police Officer Daniel Kim in reference to the heroic effort. “We kindly approached him using body language, we were able to bring him to the vehicle and he was happy,” he added. “Absolutely, he was very comfortable.” Kim and his partner, Police Officer Nick Leo, drove around the neighborhood with the boy in search of his loved ones. While they canvassed the area, Kim created a paper plane for the child. After about 30 minutes of driving around, the officers received an emergency call stating that a man was searching for his missing relative at a nearby shopping center. The dynamic duo were then able to find the child’s worried uncle at a local Stop and Shop, a short distance from the park. “The child’s uncle was a little surprised at first that we were able to find him … To be able to find or reconnect with your family member is probably an unbelievable feeling. We’re glad that we’re able to assist accordingly,” Kim said. “We’re also doing our best not only as a member of NYPD but as a member of the community. It was a good moment.” Photo by a Little Neck resident Police officer Daniel Kim helps to reunite an autistic boy with his family in Little Neck.
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