4 THE QUEENS COURIER • AUGUST 19, 2021 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
LaGuardia AirTrain will not be derailed by Cuomo’s resignation: PA
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Th e $2.1 billion LaGuardia AirTrain
project will not be derailed by Governor
Andrew Cuomo’s resignation amid the sexual
harassment allegations made against
him, according to the Port Authority,
which confi rmed with QNS that it plans
to move forward with construction on the
1.5-mile-long light rail system connecting
LaGuardia Airport to the transportation
hub next to Citi Field in Willets Point.
“Th e Port Authority is committed to
building both the new LaGuardia AirTrain
and a new Newark Airport AirTrain as part
of the agency’s priority to provide environmentally
friendly mass rail transit links to
its airports,” a Port Authority spokesman
told QNS. “Both are priority projects in the
Port Authority’s capital plan, which was
approved by the board in September 2019.”
Th e Federal Aviation Administration
gave the green light to the project last
month, but the approval process was a turbulent
one with objections raised by elected
offi cials, community groups and environmental
organizations, such as Riverkeeper.
Th ese critics were emboldened to learn
that hours aft er Cuomo announced he
would step down, dozens of Port Authority
staff members demanded a halt to the proposed
AirTrain to LaGuardia Airport and
an investigation into “undue infl uence”
from the governor’s offi ce, according to the
Daily News.
“For too long, Governor Cuomo and
his staff have repeatedly pushed the agency
to make non-transparent, politically
motivated decisions, including decisions
that squander the truth and money of our
bondholders, customers and the general
public,” they wrote and called on the Port
Authority to “halt all projects pushed by
Governor Cuomo’s offi ce, particularly the
LaGuardia AirTrain.”
Riverkeeper had raised numerous concerns
about the project’s environmental
review, which avoided consideration of
potentially superior transit alternatives.
If allowed to move forward, they said,
AirTrain construction would require the
condemnation of waterfront parkland
along Malcolm X Promenade on Flushing
Bay in East Elmhurst.
“It’s telling that even those within the
ranks of the Port Authority are alleging
undue infl uence over the project and
calling it a waste of money,” Riverkeeper
Senior Attorney Mike Dulong said. “Th at
they had to wait until six years aft er it was
initially proposed shows a culture of disingenuousness
and fear of retaliation within
the agency. It was brave of those staff members
to come forward.”
While the Port Authority would not comment
specifi cally on the letter to its executive
director Rick Cotton, the spokesman
said, “Th e policy of the Port Authority is
that every concern reported by an employee
is taken and treated seriously. Th is will
be no exception.”
Cuomo was planning to host a ribboncutting
ceremony to launch the construction
of the project in the coming weeks.
Th at plan was scuttled as he will instead
resign on Aug. 24 and hand the reins
of power to Lieutenant Governor Kathy
Hochul.
New York City gun crime cases to be expedited as of this week
BY ROBERT POZARYCKI
rpozarycki@schnepsmedia.com
@robbpoz
New York City courts have started expediting
felony gun cases as of this week —
fulfi lling a long-standing wish from the de
Blasio administration as it seeks to clamp
down on shootings across the fi ve boroughs.
More than 4,000 felony gun possession
cases are currently pending in the city’s
courts, according to the New York State
Unifi ed Court System. Th e backlog directly
results from the various restrictions on
court activity related to the COVID-19
pandemic.
Th e court system will address this
through “a multi-prong initiative” in
conjunction with local prosecutors, the
Citizens Crime Commission and other
stakeholders. Th e program aims to move
more felony gun cases (top charge of
second-degree criminal possession of a
weapon) through the courts while also
ensuring that all defendants receive due
process of law.
Th e courts will begin empaneling more
grand juries to consider indictments for
gun felonies, assign judges in each borough
to handle felony fi rearm cases and
allow jurists to prioritize such cases on the
court calendar.
Not only will this reduce the backlog of
cases, but it will also allow judges to swift -
ly act on new gun arrests presented to the
courts in the weeks to come, according to
the Unifi ed Court System.
“With the recent rise in gun cases in
courts throughout the fi ve boroughs, this
citywide initiative will help ensure that
these important cases are resolved as swift -
ly and eff ectively as possible,” said Chief
Administrative Judge Lawrence K. Marks.
For weeks, Mayor Bill de Blasio has
urged the state court system to lift pandemic
related restrictions in order to process
more fi rearm cases and help lock
up the suspects responsible. He blamed
the backlog for allowing more gun-toting
criminals to walk the streets and commit
shootings and other crimes.
“We’re not seeing the court system at
full strength. We’re not seeing enough follow
through on the other types of off enses
and what criminal justice experts will tell
you is, if there’s not consequences, it creates
danger for communities,” de Blasio
said at an Aug. 4 briefi ng. “So we want to
see the court system at 100 percent full
strength, dealing with all off enses, making
sure there are consequences for everyone.
Th at creates the culture of accountability
we need.”
Shootings have been up across the city
for the better part of a year during the pandemic,
but the NYPD has made thousands
of gun arrests in recent months. Earlier
this month, the NYPD reported a 44.5 percent
increase in gun arrests during the fi rst
seven months of 2021 compared to the
previous year.
July 2021 also marked the secondstraight
month in which shootings and
murders decreased citywide.
Marks tapped Judge George Grasso,
supervising judge at the Bronx County
Criminal Court, to oversee day-to-day
operations of the expediting program, and
to “monitor and assess the case data to
ensure the optimal use of court resources.”
Schneps Media reached out to the mayor’s
offi ce and the NYPD for comment,
and is awaiting a response.
Th e expediting program will work as
follows:
• Th e Court System will expand grand
jury capacity and increase the number
of grand juries empaneled, beginning in
Brooklyn, the Bronx and Queens.
• Judges will be designated in each borough
to handle newly indicted felony gun possession
cases, working as a team to expedite
pretrial hearings and preside over plea
hearings and trials.
• Administrative judges will ensure that gun
felony trials are given priority status.
• Any gun possession cases previously indicated
will be fast-tracked by the judge
assigned to the case.
• All cases will be closely monitored to
ensure that all cases are processed quickly
and effi ciently in accordance with due
process.
• Additional resources will be added as
required to keep the cases moving.
File photo /REUTERS
A new “multi-prong initiative” aims to expedite felony gun cases through New York City’s courts.
Courtesy of the governor’s offi ce
A rendering of the proposed LaGuardia AirTrain.
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