4 THE QUEENS COURIER • JUNE 17, 2021 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
City completes $20.5 million sewer project in SE Queens
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Southeast Queens leaders are
hailing the completion of a $20.5
million sewers and water main
project that upgraded infrastructure
in Hollis and Queens
Village.
Th e city announced the construction
that started in March
2019 has been fi nished fi ve
months ahead of schedule.
“As a homeowner in southeast
Queens, I understand the
anguish of local residents who
experience constant fl ooding of
their basements,” Councilman
I. Daneek Miller said. “Back in
2016, I worked with now-Queens
Borough President Donovan
Richards to secure $1.9 billion
if funding for fl ood remediation
infrastructure, which includes
an unprecedented online portal
that provides oversight of the
initiative. Th anks in part to our
advocacy and the cooperation
of local residents, I am pleased
that this project has been completed
under budget and ahead
of schedule.
“We look forward to the continued
work to end the tremendous
suff ering many homeowners
have had to endure over the
last several decades,” Miller said.
Work occurred on 20 individual
blocks to replace more than
one mile of water mains, some
of which were installed before
World War II.
“Th ese improvements are a
signifi cant investment in the
future of Hollis and Queens
Village, and their early completion
greatly benefi ts the hard- working families of these vibrant
neighborhoods,” Richards said.
“Th is work underscores the city’s
strong commitment to alleviate
chronic fl ooding and addressing
the other chronic infrastructure
problems in southeast Queens.”
Th e project is part of a $1.9
billion investment by the de
Blasio administration to build
a comprehensive drainage system,
improve street conditions
and alleviate fl ooding in numerous
southeast Queens neighborhoods.
Th e program — the
largest of its kind, according to
the city — consists of 44 projects
overall, including 16 that are
substantially completed and fi ve
that are in active construction.
“Th e enhancements completed
on sewer and street infrastructure
in Queens Village and
Hollis are already making a positive
diff erence in the lives of my
constituents who live and work
in the area,” state Senator Leroy
Comrie said. “I commend DDC,
DOT and DEP for working collaboratively
to get this signifi cant
project completed under budget
and ahead of schedule.”
To better capture stormwater
that has plagued southeast
Queens for generations, the project
installed 18 new catch basins,
and 40 older ones were replaced
and two new underground chambers
were installed to increase the
holding capacity of sewer discharge
and stormwater runoff in
Hollis and Queens Village.
“Many neighborhoods in our
city are in desperate need of
improved infrastructure especially
in southeast Queens,”
Congressman Gregory Meeks
said. “Th anks to the hard work
from our city agencies, residents
and business owners in Hollis
and Queens Village will experience
relief from the upgraded
infrastructure in the neighborhoods.”
Queens pioneer honored with East Elmhurst street co-naming
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Th e fi rst African American female
funeral director in Queens history was
honored during an East Elmhurst street
co-naming event on June 5.
Family and friends of Vera E. Th ompson
gathered on the corner of 94th Street and
Astoria Boulevard, along with members
of the community she inspired and supported
with her trailblazing service.
“We want everyone in East Elmhurst
to know that Vera E. Th ompson was
not only the kindest woman who served
countless during diffi cult times, but also
someone who broke barriers to become
the fi rst African American funeral
director in Queens in a then-white and
male-dominated industry,” Councilman
Francisco Moya said. “From this day forward,
Vera E. Th ompson Way will be a
symbol of compassion and empathy, and
what it means to lead a life of service. I’m
humbled to join her children Belvery,
Edward, Leonard and Elana in honoring
their mother.”
Th ompson opened her funeral home at
94-08 Astoria Blvd. while balancing her
profession, raising fi ve children and serving
her community.
“Vera E. Th ompson’s name adorned
94th Street and Astoria Boulevard
for over fi ve decades as she dedicated
her life and profession to serving
the East Elmhurst Queens community,”
Th ompson’s son Leonard E. Brown
said. “And now with the blessings of
Councilman Francisco Moya and the
City Council, her name returns and will
remain in perpetuity.”
For more than half a century, Th ompson
provided comfort and resources to countless
families during their time of loss. She
was a devoted and standing member of
St. Gabriel Catholic Church and school
where she raised her children.
“Dedicated to service — fi rst three
words my siblings and I learned at our
mother’s knee,” Th ompson’s daughter
Belvery Garner said. “My family and I
are so proud our mother is being recognized
with such a historic gesture.”
Th ompson died on June 5, 2005, leaving
a void in the community that she
“truly loved and endeared,” her children
said.
“Her story will forever be cemented
in the history of the county of Queens,”
Th ompson’s son Edward Brown said.
“Her grandchildren are honored and
overjoyed to know her legacy is being
acknowledged. I’m pleased to share my
mother’s great accomplishments with
East Elmhurst and beyond.”
Th ompson’s youngest daughter Elena
E. Brown remembered her mother as a
“phenomenal and inspirational” woman.
“My mother continues to be a testament
of accomplishing goals through any
amount of adversity,” she said.
Photo courtesy of Moya’s offi ce
Family and friends of Queens trailblazer Vera E. Thompson join Councilman Francisco Moya at the
street co-naming ceremony.
Photo courtesy of NYC DDC
Multiple city agencies have completed a massive infrastructure project in Hollis and Queens Village.
Photo courtesy of NYC DDC
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