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QC11052015

for breaking news visit www.qns.com NOVEMBER 5, 2015 • The queens CourieR 29 oped  A Look Back A LOO K BACK letters Transit tax break notice is a waste of time and money NYC Consumer Affairs Commissioner Julie Menin announced her campaign to encourage all business owners with 20 or more employees to sign up for federal transit benefits worth up to $130 per month or face fines up to $250 per day, and it may be an abuse of power. This program, popularly known as Transit Check, has been previously marketed since 1993 by many other organizations. That is why today over 700,000 New Yorkers are already active participants. Menin will waste taxpayers’ dollars to launch a public advertising campaign to inform both businesses and their employees of a program virtually everyone has been already aware of for years. Strange that Menin overlooks NYC’s largest employer with over 300,000 employees, the City of New York along with City Hall and the NYC Council. Real leaders set an example for others. Has Commissioner Menin given up her municipal car to use public transportation and previously signed up for Transit Check? How many of her agency employees have signed up? Will Commissioner Menin send out notification letters to Mayor Bill de Blasio, NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer, Public Advocate Letitia James, NYC Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and her 50 Council colleagues along with all other NYC agency commissioners to sign up along with all their respective employees as well? Larry Penner, Great Neck QNS.com user arthur: “So Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer is jumping on the congestion pricing bandwagon, claiming he’s fed up with traffic around Long Island City and the Queensboro Bridge. But no hard data supports the claim that East River bridge tolls will reduce the congestion in Queens. Besides, where would those displaced vehicles go? Unfettered construction in Long Island City has increased density and replaced almost every parking lot in the district. With no place to park, where can drivers leave their cars? And much of the new construction was “incentivized” by real estate tax breaks. The real estate industry gets annual 421a property tax exemptions in the billions; over $1.1 billion for 2013, says the NYC Independent Budget Office. If construction tax breaks contribute to congestion why should outer borough businesses and motorists pony up the estimated annual $1.5 billion that MoveNY claims its congestion pricing plan will raise to pick up the slack? We’re all for smart development, but in the discussions to raise money for mass transit and our decaying infrastructure everything should be on the table.” QNS.com user Chicklet: Regarding the proposed high school at Bayside Jewish Center: “Notice what the councilman does NOT say — he does NOT say he supports the neighbors who ‘know the neighborhood’ and rightfully know this is an awful site for a high school. Vallone does NOT support the neighbors (who he supposedly represents) and demand the ‘authority’ look elsewhere for the school. The councilman does NOT offer to study the traffic, evaluate the extremely crowded narrow streets, he does NOT know that the slow, overcrowded buses expected to serve this school are already packed with Bayside High School students. Too little, too late. Voters will remember this and make sure he is a one-term councilman. His proposal does nothing to help the district and the community, it’s rubbish.” Congress must not forget the heroes of September 11 BY CON GRES MAN JOE CRO WLEY On Sept. 11, 2001, firefighters, police officers and rescue crews rushed to Ground Zero from across the city. Many were from Queens. Too many never returned. And those who did return often returned with what would become serious, chronic health conditions caused by their work at Ground Zero. In those days after the attacks, we came together not just as a city, but as a country. We recognized the bravery and sacrifice of those we lost, and those who continued to work on rescue, recovery and eventually cleanup efforts. My colleagues in Congress from all over the country promised that we would stand with those first responders, cleanup workers and volunteers. They promised that we would take care of those who took care of us. They promised we would never forget. We now need to turn those words into actions. Almost a decade after the Sept. 11 attacks, Congress enacted the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act to provide our first responders with the health care they need and deserve. That program has helped so many people who have benefited from the specialized, personalized care it provides. It has given them peace of mind for themselves and their families as they navigate difficult diagnoses and treatments. But tragically, Republicans in Congress let this program expire on Sept. 30. While it can continue to serve people for the immediate months to come, if Congress doesn’t act soon, our brave first responders and other local residents will be turned away in their time of need. This is beyond unacceptable — this is offensive. It is offensive for any member of Congress to say “never forget” one day, and refuse to extend this program the next. It is offensive for them to show our 9/11 first responders that they’re not a priority. It is offensive to let petty politics get in the way of extending such a vital and meaningful program. We can — and must — do better. More than 200 members of Congress, from all over the country, have added their names to a measure that would permanently renew and extend the Zadroga Act programs. We need the speaker of the house to bring this measure up for a vote. Yes, we should never forget. We should never forget the heroes of Sept. 11. We should never forget how much they have given to us — to our country. I know I will never forget — all of Queens will never forget. We must also never forget the importance of doing the right thing, and our responsibility to care for those in need. Now, it’s time for Congress to show that they have not forgotten. Congressman Crowley represents the 14th Congressional District, which covers all of parts of Astoria, College Point, Corona, East Elmhurst, Elmhurst, Flushing, Jackson Heights, Sunnyside, Woodside and the Bronx. Here’s how I.S. 93, located on Forest Avenue in Ridgewood, looked 75 years ago on a cold, wintry day. Then known as P.S. 93, the Ridgewood school currently educates more than 1,100 children in grades six through eight and often serves as home to meetings of the Ridgewood Property Owners and Civic Association. Have a historic photo of Queens that you’d like to share with us? Email it to editorial@queenscourier. com, or write to The Queens Courier, 38-15 Bell Blvd., Bayside, NY 11361, Attn: A Look Back. All mailed photographs will be carefully returned to you upon request.


QC11052015
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