8 THE QUEENS COURIER • MAY 11, 2017 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM A New Chapter Book Culture on its way to Long Island City BY ANGELA MATUA measure 2,300 square feet and according amatua@qns.com to Th e New York Times, the company will off er discounted rent aft er it opens When the last Barnes & Noble store in 2018 until the store turns a profi t. in Queens closed its doors at the Bay “We think it’s important for the soul of Terrace Shopping Center in 2015, the the neighborhood,” Justin Elghanayan, only bookstore left in the borough was president of Rockrose told the paper. Th e Astoria Bookshop. Barnes & Noble in Fresh Meadows But now, a bookstore with locations closed in 2014 and the chain locations in Manhattan will be moving to Long in Bayside and Forest Hills followed Island City. Book Culture, which was soon aft er. Book lovers tried keeping founded in 1997, is an independent the stores open by signing petitions, but and academic book store that will add none were successful. a fourth location at 26-09 Jackson Ave. Th ree Queens residents who worked Th e space, owned by Rockrose, will at the Forest Hills location announced last year that they would raise money to open Th e Queens Bookshop Initiative, a bookstore in Forest Hills or Kew Gardens. Queens residents have donated more than $70,000 for the project and they are currently looking for a brick-and-mortar space for the new bookstore. Book Culture will fi ll a large void in the Queens bookstore landscape. Th e Astoria Bookshop, located at 31-29 31st St., is currently the only independent bookstore in the borough. Book Culture did not respond to a request for comment as of press time. N train to shut down for 8 weekends Th e N train will be shut down for eight non-consecutive weekends in Astoria starting this month so that crews can replace tracks and switches between Astoria-Ditmars Boulevard and Queensboro Plaza stations. MTA crews will work on the $12.4 million project, which includes replacing a 730-foot span of elevated track panels and steel girders, from May through September. From 12:01 a.m. on Saturday through 5 a.m. on Mondays, free shuttle buses will make stops at all the stations. According to the MTA, this work is being done partly to reduce delays and also decrease the noise coming from trains since the N line runs through residential and commercial areas. Councilman Costa Constantinides called the work “long-anticipated.” Angela Matua New park under the Kosciuszko Bridge Two parcels owned by the state Department of Transportation will be turned into a destination park with views of the new Kosciuszko Bridge. Representatives from the DOT and State Parks Department outlined a plan for the park at the Community Board 2 (CB 2) meeting in Sunnyside on May 4. Th ough the departments are at the very early stages of planning, they have been speaking to the community about what amenities they would like to see. CB 2 voted to approve the location of the park, which includes two stateowned parcels at 54th Road and Laurel Hill Boulevard in Maspeth. Th e larger parcel spans 24,000 square feet and the smaller parcel across the street is 8,000 square feet. Jim Lau, a supervisor for the project, said the smaller space will include a comfort station that will be staff ed by a Parks Department employee and can feature parking if residents would like. Th e park will open in 2020 to coincide with the opening of the Brooklyn span, which will have a 20-foot-wide pedestrian and bicycle path that connects to the Queens side. Board members also looked at a site in Blissville bordered by Van Dam Street, Borden Avenue and Bradley Avenue. Angela Matua 6/2/17 6/2/17 6/2/17 6/2/17 SPRING INTO SAVINGS! Encore Premium VARILUX PROGRESSIVE LENSES $169 (No-Line Bifocals) w/metal frame.Select frames with clear plastic no-line lenses +/- 4 sph, 2 cyl. Not valid with any other offers, sales, vision plan packages. Must present prior to purchase. Offer valid at location only. Some restrictions apply see store for details. Offer ends 6/2/17 QC
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