FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM NOVEMBER 9, 2017 • THE QUEENS COURIER 3
Chicken soup cookoff in
Flushing
Dive into Greek, Italian, Jamaican and other
variations of chicken soup at this fundraising event
in Flushing this weekend.
Th e top restaurants, delis and diners from
Queens and Long Island will bring their best to the
second annual Chicken Soup Cook-Off at Temple
Beth Sholom on Nov. 11, according to organizer
Barry Packer.
A panel of celebrity guest judges will award “Best
Chicken Soup,” while attendees will help determine
who gets “People’s Choice Award.”
For $18 a person, $6 per child aged fi ve to 13,
or a $50 family ticket deal, attendees can sample
soup from all 18 vendors and enjoy bagels from
Th e Bagel Shoppe, ice cream from Maggie Moos
and other appetizers over the course of the threehour
event.
Temple Beth Sholom is located at 171-39
Northern Blvd. and the event will run from 6:30 to
9:30 p.m. Th ose interested in attending are asked to
call the temple at 718-463-4143 to RSVP.
Suzanne Monteverdi
Safety inspector from
Whitestone cuff ed
City investigators slapped the cuff s on a
Whitestone man accused of having fake safety certifi
cation while supervising a Manhattan community
center’s reconstruction.
Andreas Tsamos, 49, served as site safety
supervisor for renovations to the Fulton Houses
Community Center in Manhattan, according to the
city Department of Investigation (DOI). Inspectors
visited the site on Nov. 2 and found many safety
problems including a locked emergency fi re exit
door, a missing fall protection guardrail system in
a work zone and an improperly installed scaff old.
Investigators returned to the site on Nov. 3
and asked Tsamos, an employee of Gem Quality
Corporation in Brooklyn, for his safety credentials.
He allegedly produced two safety certifi cates
indicating that he completed 10-hour and 30-hour
OSHA courses, both of which proved to be fraudulent.
Tsamos was charged with criminal possession of
a forged instrument and faces up to a year behind
bars if convicted.
Robert Pozarycki
New traffi c light at
Flushing intersection
A new traffi c signal will be installed at a dangerous
Flushing intersection early next year, according
to lawmakers.
Th e city’s Department of Transportation (DOT)
will install a new traffi c control at Parsons Boulevard
and Rose Avenue by the end of February 2018,
according to Councilman Peter Koo’s offi ce. Th e
intersection is located directly along the perimeter
of Kissena Park.
In 2015, 77-year-old pedestrian Min-Tsu Lin was
struck by a motorcyclist at the location. Th e driver
fl ed the scene and Lin needed to have his leg amputated
aft er being transported to an area hospital in
critical condition, according to reports.
“Obtaining the right traffi c controls at this intersection
has been a priority of many elected offi cials
and community members for a long time, and I
want to thank the NYC DOT for working with an
open mind to come up with the best solution for
everyone,” Koo said.
Suzanne Monteverdi
Photos by Suzanne Monteverdi/QNS
Mayor de Blasio talks bike
lanes in eastern Queens
BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI
smonteverdi@qns.com / @smont76
Ahead of Election Day, Mayor Bill
de Blasio headed to Queens Village
for a three-hour town hall meeting
with residents.
In front of a full audience in the
gymnasium of Martin Van Buren
High School, the mayor and commissioners
of various city agencies fi elded
individual questions on a number
of topics, including immigration,
over-development and bike lanes.
The city’s Department of
Transportation is currently working
on two protected bike lane projects
in Douglaston and Bayside: along
Northern Boulevard between 223rd
Street to Douglaston Parkway and
along the western edge of Alley Pond
Park, as well as along Oceania Street
and 210th Street.
Attendees on both sides of the issue
spoke up at the Nov. 2 event. Th e
fi rst person to breach the subject told
the mayor how much she appreciates
both bike lane projects — which was
immediately met with both boos and
cheers from some in the crowd.
Th e resident told the mayor the
bike lane creates a safer condition for
cyclists using the busy roadway and
said she looks forward to more bike
lane projects in the future.
Aft er assuring those making heckling
comments “everyone’s gonna get
heard,” de Blasio said he believes bike
lanes “done right” off er important
transit alternatives, protect the environment
and reduce congestion.
“I also want to say, we look at
bike lanes constantly to see if they’re
working,” he continued. “If something’s
not working, we also have
to have the decency to say, ‘Hey,
that didn’t work,’ and we’ll make the
change.”
A representative from Bayside’s
Windsor Park co-op followed up,
stating the community was not given
adequate notice about the project,
which “displaced” hundreds of residents’
cars.
De Blasio promised the resident
that DOT Commissioner Polly
Trottenburg would come to the
site to “see it with her own eyes.”
Trottenburg, who was in attendance,
agreed.
About a half hour later, the
Northern Boulevard bike lane was
brought up again by another resident.
Th e bike lane there has been
under scrutiny by certain Community
Board 11 members, residents and
state Senator Tony Avella, who has
been particularly vocal in his opposition
to the current DOT plan, since
June.
Earlier in the week, the lawmaker
commented on an accident at the site
involving a school bus carrying special
needs adults. While there were no
reported injuries, the lawmaker said
the accident has left the community
“worried that the next incident will
not be so lucky.”
Th e next speaker at the town hall
said while he “philosophically” agreed
with the bike lane and the protection
it provides cyclists, he believes it
was “not well thought out.” Since the
installation of the bike lane — which
eliminated one lane of westbound
traffi c — the resident’s commute has
increased from two minutes to 20
minutes, he told the mayor.
“Northern Boulevard is a major
artery throughout northeastern
Queens,” he said.
De Blasio and Trottenburg again
assured attendees that the city would
“continue to monitor the lane.” Th e
DOT commissioner also reminded
the crowd that a fatality had occurred
at each of the sites, triggering the city
to study the area and make the decision
to install the protected lanes.
“If it really isn’t working, we’ll
continue to make adjustments,”
Trottenburg said.
On the topic of the property tax system,
which de Blasio called both “a
mess” and “inconsistent,” the mayor
promised attendees reform eff orts
would be a top priority should he be
re-elected. He also reminded attendees
multiple times that property
assessments, not rates, have increased
under his administration.
De Blasio started the evening touting
his approach to aff ordable housing,
a property tax break for seniors
and the city’s low crime numbers.
He also held a moment of silence for
the victims of the recent terror attack
in Manhattan, which left eight people
dead.
Prior to the town hall event, City
Council candidate Joseph Concannon
and a group of protesters assembled
outside of the venue. Upon the mayor’s
arrival, the outspoken group
began chants of “lock him up” and
“dump the mayor.”
Mayor de Blasio addresses the crowd at Martin Van Buren High School in Queens Village.