4 The Queens Courier • june 25, 2015 for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com City budget agreement brings more cops, six-day library service BY ROBERT POZARYCKI [email protected] @robbpoz More than a thousand new police officers will be hired and six-day library service will be restored in Queens and elsewhere under a $78.5 billion budget agreement that Mayor Bill de Blasio and City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito announced late Monday night. “This budget is a reflection of the responsible, progressive and honest process we’ve built over the last year and a half,” de Blasio said. “We’re strengthening the NYPD’s ranks, devoting new officers to counter-terror Photo via Twitter/@JimmyVanBramer Mayor Bill de Blasio and members of the City Council announce a $78.5 billion budget deal Monday night at City Hall. Base of Civic Virtue statue to be restored, dedicated to women BY LIAM LA GUERE [email protected] @LiamLaGuerre Plans are set to begin soon to spruce up the former base of the controversial Triumph of Civic Virtue statue near Queens Borough Hall as a planted fountain. The base, which has sat neglected for nearly three years after the statue atop was moved, will be restored and new plants, shrubs, trees, benches and lighting will be added to the site, according to plans by the Department of Design and Construction. The city agency collected bids from construction companies until May 18 and is still reviewing the proposals. A bronze plaque will also be added that will read, “This fountain plaza is dedicated to the women of Queens,” long after politicians, including disgraced former Congressman Anthony Weiner, and women’s rights activists condemned the statue as sexist. The artwork by renowned sculptor Frederick William MacMonnies featured a naked Hercules — representing virtue — standing firm as mythical Sirens, which symbolized corruption, curled around his legs. The sculpture was intended to reflect virtue as a young man avoiding temptations of females, represented by the Sirens, so naturally feminists took issue with it. The fountain base that “Triumph of Civic Virtue” rested on for more than 70 years. In 2012, the statue was shipped to Brooklyn’s Green-Wood cemetery. It cost the city about $100,000 to renovate and move it, according to published reports. It wasn’t the first time it was moved. The statue was originally at City Hall when it was completed in 1922, but in 1941, then-Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia moved it adjacent to Queens Borough Hall and mounted it on an existing classical fountain. The statue did have many supporters though, including former Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. and Community Board 9. Some supporters wanted it returned to Queens. However, restoring the fountain and dedicating it to women — without THE COURIER/Photo by Liam La Guerre the return of the statue — has the support of Borough President Melinda Katz. “The site will soon host a visible, meaningful tribute to the women of Queens and become a public space utilized and enjoyed by all,” a spokesperson for Katz said. “Once the winning bid is announced, we hope the vendor will begin expeditiously.” work and neighborhood policing, while securing vital fiscal reforms in overtime and civilianization.” “This early, fiscally responsible budget will uplift New Yorkers in every neighborhood across the five boroughs,” Mark-Viverito added. “From establishing a citywide bail fund, to creating new jobs for young adults, to strengthening the city’s commitment to veterans and hiring 1,297 more NYPD officers to keep us safe, our budget makes New York City a better place to call home.” The spending plan allocates $170 million toward the NYPD to bolster its roster by 1,300 officers. In the weeks leading up to the agreement, the mayor and speaker differed on how many new officers to hire (de Blasio initially sought 500; Mark- Viverito wanted 1,000). According to the mayor’s office, the city stands to save $70 million by reforming NYPD overtime and increasing the number of civilian employees within the department. The city will also allocate an additional $36 million to the Queens, Brooklyn and New York public library systems, enabling them to offer six-day library service at all branches. The Queens Library last had six-day service in 2008; the policy was eliminated as a result of budget cutbacks in subsequent years. Other components in the budget agreement include the following: • $17.9 million toward implementing a breakfast in the classroom program at 530 schools, serving over 339,000 children; • a $1.8 million expansion of the city’s Emergency Food Assistance Program; • $1.5 million to expand the Mayor’s Office of Veterans Affairs efforts to eliminate veteran homelessness; • $5 million to expand inspections of and make improvements to dilapidated conditions at boarding homes across the city; and • Narcotics Prosecutor for efforts to stop drug-related violence. The budget covers the city’s 2016 fiscal year, which begins on July 1 of this year; city lawmakers had until June 30 to reach a budget agreement.
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