8 The QUEE NS Courier • october 30, 2014 for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com Second Sunnyside pedestrian plaza officially opens BY ANGY ALTAMIRANO [email protected]/@aaltamirano28 Sunnyside residents will now have more room to get together and enjoy the outdoors. The second of two new pedestrian plazas opened in the neighborhood on Oct. 24 at the intersection of 40th Street and Queens Boulevard, under the elevated No. 7 train. Transformed from an underutilized underpass, the plaza includes tables, chairs and decorative plants. It was named Lowery Plaza after 40th Street’s original name, Lowery Street. “The opening of Lowery Plaza is great news for Sunnyside residents,” Department of Transportation Queens Borough Commissioner Dalila Hall said. “This new local destination will significantly improve the life of residents and the vitality of local businesses in Sunnyside and Queens.” The plaza is part of the DOT’s NYC Plaza Program and will be managed by the Sunnyside Shines Business Improvement District. “This is something that the community is starving for, more open space and more space to come together as a community,” state Sen. Michael Gianaris said. “The opening of this plaza on 40th Street, just like Bliss Plaza on 46th Street, is a sign of Sunnyside’s continued growth as a destination neighborhood for New Yorkers.” In July, Bliss Plaza opened at the intersection of 46th Street and Queens Boulevard. The site also includes tables, chairs and planters. This project included leveling out a street to create a one-level pedestrian area. “We have received such positive feedback from community members and business owners about the success of Bliss Plaza, and I’m delighted to replicate this success at Lowery Plaza,” said Rachel Thieme, Sunnyside Shines BID executive director. “The plazas are fantastic neighborhood THE COURIER/Photos by Angy Altamirano amenities and true gathering places in Sunnyside.” Conservancy group pushes local pols to fund meditation garden in Kissena Corridor Park BY ERIC JANKIEWICZ [email protected] @ericjankiewicz The Kissena Corridor Park Conservancy is trying to turn a section of the Flushing park that’s overgrown with weeds into a meditation garden. But a lack of money is keeping the group from attaining tranquility. The conservancy group is turning to local politicians like Councilman Peter Koo to help fund the project, which could cost up to $1 million to complete. In 2009, the group received $6,000 from Congressmember Grace Meng. Koo allocated $100,000 this year from the council’s budget. So far, they’ve collected $160,000. “We we want to get something in there that’s meaningful to everybody,” said Roland Wade, president of the Kissena Corridor Park Conservancy. Wade came up with the idea and in 2009 his group proposed it to the Parks Department. The department accepted the idea but they refused to fund it. The Parks Department told the conservancy that the proposed garden would need at least $1 million, according to former conservancy president Dorothy Woo. “We’re happy to work with the Kissena Corridor Park Conservancy on designing and constructing the garden, once funding is in place,” a Parks Department spokeswoman said. “Anyone who would like to see capital improvements made to their park should reach out to their local elected officials to seek funding.” The plans for the garden call for cedar of Lebanon trees, lighting, a water feature and various flowers and bushes. The garden would be across the street from the New York Hospital Queens on 56th Avenue. Wade said that the plans for the garden are completely done and once they receive the money, work can begin. “We thought, why not a memorial garden where people from the hospital can come and meditate,” Wade said. “That they could enter a garden of tranquility where there could be beauty quiet, nature, flowers.” Illustration courtesy of Kissena Corridor Park Conservancy
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