42 The Queens Courier • AUGUST 8, 2013 for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com TRACKING SANDY Stringer proposes bureau to follow the recovery $ BY MAGIE HAYES mhayes@queenscourier.com Manhattan Borough President and City Comptroller candidate Scott Stringer announced a plan to create a Sandy Audit Bureau within the Comptroller’s office if elected. The Sandy unit, a team of “professionals and experts,” would track the incoming $15 billion in federal aid and ensure the post-storm recovery money is spent “wisely and efficiently.” Stringer said when that amount of money comes in, there must be a “laser focus on every single dollar.” “Nine months after Sandy, the winds have subsided but we still have to confront the challenge of protecting our shoreline communities from the next great storm,” Stringer said. “The Comptroller’s office is uniquely positioned to serve as the city’s watchdog over all Sandy-related funds.” Furthermore, Stringer plans to provide an online resource, The Sandy Tracker, that will allow residents to follow how the city is spending stormrelated dollars. In the event of fraud or abuse, there will be an established 24-hour hotline for taxpayers to report any instances of the sort. “Since Sandy, the Rockaways has seen an increased flow of resources dedicated to addressing post-storm issues,” said State Senator James Sanders. “Merely having these resources, THE COURIER/Photo by Maggie Hayes City Comptroller candidate and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer announced his plan to implement a Sandy Audit Bureau in the Comptroller’s office if elected. however, is not enough. There needs to be a system of accountability.” Sanders, Councilmember Donovan Richards and Assemblymember Phillip Goldfeder joined Stringer during his announcement on Tuesday, August 6 and reiterated their endorsements for Stringer’s candidacy. “Every penny that was raised for Sandy victims and every government dollar that was spent during the relief and recovery effort must be accounted for,” Goldfeder said. Richards said his constituents simply want “a hand up, not a hand out.” “This is a common sense bureau,” he said. “During our recovery, accountability and transparency are extremely important.” Manhattan MLS renderings leaked BY LIAM LA GUERE lguerre@queenscourier.com Renderings of a possible Manhattan stadium for the new Major League Soccer (MLS) team, the New York City Football Club (FC), made their way onto the Internet. The league made the graphics in 2012, but it is not known who leaked them online. “This rendering was a conceptual design that Major League Soccer produced when considering Pier 40 as a potential soccer stadium,” said Dan Courtemanche, MLS executive vice president of communications. “On a daily basis, New York City FC is working on a long-term stadium solution.” MLS has considered building a 25,000- seat stadium in Flushing Meadows- Corona Park, an idea that was supported by a few politicians but panned by numerous civic leaders and residents. Recently, the idea of a Queens stadium has seen numerous kickbacks. The Flushing Meadows-Corona Park proposal has also drawn opposition from Councilmember Leroy Comrie, chair of the council’s Land Use Committee, and Senator Tony Avella, who suggested the stadium be built in the Rockaways. “Flushing Meadows-Corona Park is used by residents from all across Queens, and this usage by Major League Soccer would negatively impact park life,” Comrie previously said to The Courier. “While there are many soccer fans here in Queens, there are more appropriate places to build this stadium.” Avella recently penned a bill aimed at preventing proposals to change parkland use, which would require parkland taken for projects to be replaced with three times the space and within one mile of the project. If passed by the Legislature after the summer recess, it would lower the chances of getting the stadium in Queens. 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