28 The Queens Courier • july 31, 2014 for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com New bocce courts don’t make the grade: players BY ERIC JANKIEWICZ @ericjankiewicz [email protected] Juniper Valley Park’s three new bocce courts opened on July 23 with a ribbon cutting ceremony and talk of meatballs and spaghetti. But for the players, most of whom are older Italians, the new courts don’t meet their standards. Queens Borough President Melinda Katz said that the new courts, which replaced two older ones, were “grade A.” But many of the players present during the ceremony weren’t such generous graders. “It looks nice. They spent a lot of money on this,” John Pistone, 62, said. “So I give them an A for effort but for efficiency, I give them an F.” Pistone and his fellow bocce players complained that the new $850,000 courts weren’t leveled correctly and that the design of the overhead shades didn’t prevent rain from soaking the courts. The bulk of the money came from Katz’s office, and Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley allocated another $50,000. Queens Park Commissioner Dorothy Lewandowski boasted that the shades placed on all three courts would keep the players cool. But Frank Trocchia said the shades were too small to provide any real protection from the sun. “We get here in the morning and by 11 o’clock it’s too hot for us to even play,” Trocchia, 64, said. “They didn’t consult us on this design.” Trocchia and Pistone then proceeded to argue with each other over the ineffective shades and the unbalanced field and which one truly made the bocce courts flawed. The Parks Department didn’t respond to the criticism. THE COURIER/Photo by Eric Jankiewicz New bocce courts were revealed in Juniper Valley Park on July 23. OZP street plaza not living up to expectations THE COURIER/Photo by Salvatore Licata A garbage can overflows in the plaza. BY SALVATORE LICATA [email protected] @Sal_Licata1 It started out as a beautification and community development project, but a pedestrian plaza on the Brooklyn- Queens border is an eyesore that is detrimental to business, locals say. Five parking spots were permanently removed last November when the Department of Transportation (DOT) built the plaza at Drew Street and 101st at City Line. “This plaza has totally crippled my business,” said Ahmad Ubayda, owner of the 99 Cent Ozone Park Discount Hardware store on the corner of the block. “This has been my worst year of business because they took away parking spaces for my customers but aren’t even using them.” The site has deteriorated since its opening, locals charged. Initial plans called for ample seating space, permanent bench seating and bike parking. When the plaza was first built there were plenty of chairs and tables, some even with umbrellas. But a few weeks after its grand opening much of the furniture, which was chained up to a nearby light pole, was stolen and it hasn’t been fully replaced since, according to residents. Now the plaza has just four tables, 12 chairs, two permanent benches and no bike parking space. Moreover, the Bangladesh American Community Development and Youth Services Corporation (BACDYS), a local nonprofit organization, is responsible for the plaza’s upkeep, according to the DOT. Yet garbage overflowed from several cans and littered the floors on July 28. BACDYS, which teamed up with the DOT to create the plaza, got support from local businesses and from Community Board 9 of Queens and Community Board 5 of Brooklyn before they went through with the project. Many of the businesses on the strip agreed to the proposed idea under the impression that it would be good for the growth of their stores. But Ubayda said it has done the exact opposite for his, which has put his store and livelihood in limbo. Steve Melnick, a former resident of the area, shared his concern at the meetings that were held for the plaza before it was built. He said this plaza is nothing like it was planned. “This plaza is something that this nonprofit group wanted but they are not following through,” Melnick said. “As taxpayers, we have the right to know what’s going on with the property.” Mary Ann Carey, District Manager of Community Board 9, has reached out to the DOT about the plaza, according to a spokeswoman from the board, but it is not yet known if they have responded. A phone number for BACDYS was not accepting calls; there was no answer at another number for the group. DOT also did not immediately respond for comment.
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