18 THE QUEENS COURIER • DECEMBER 15, 2016 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM Katz still against big-ticket music fests at Flushing Meadows BY ANGELA MATUA amatua@qns.com @AngelaMatua Queens Borough President Melinda Katz thinks for-profi t companies should not be able to rent Flushing Meadows Corona Park next summer. Th is statement comes in response to a handful of companies applying for permits to hold large-scale events. Th e city’s deadline to approve permits for next summer is on Dec. 19. Last year, companies including Goldenvoice and Founders Entertainmentexpressed interest in holding music festivals at the massive park. Goldenvoice, the concert arm of AEGLive, announced last September that they were looking to host Panorama Festival, a three-day music festival. Shortly aft er, Madison Square Garden also announced their intention to hold a “world-class” music festival on park grounds. Founders Entertainment, the company that runs Governor’s Ball, also threw their hat in the ring and fi led a permit to host a two-day festival at Citi Field called Th e Meadows Music & Arts Festival. Th e Meadows was the only festival approved since it was taking place on the Citi Field parking lot. Katz repeatedly said that the city does not have a policy outlining how to handle these events so she could not approve any events until it was put in place. She also urged the Parks Department to deny any permits. “Without a fair policy in place, I remain opposed to any applications from for-profi t organizations to run paid-admission events in Flushing Meadows Corona Park,” she said. “Th e absence of a revised policy, including a set selection criteria and process approved by the community, renders the process arbitrary and unfair. Cutting off public access to our treasured parks fl ies in the face of the very principle behind our parks, which is space designated for public access and equity.” Goldenvoice went ahead with Panorama Festival last year but held it at Randall’s Island instead. Organizers told QNS that they would like to hold it in Queens in summer 2017 but have already announced that the festival will be held at Randall’s Island Park again. AEGLive, Founders Entertainment and Madison Square Garden have again submitted permit applications for festivals next summer, the Parks Department said. “NYC Parks is confi dent that our existing rules strike the right balance between accommodating exciting special events in our parks and preserving park spaces for all New Yorkers to relax, explore and play,” said Meghan Lahlor, spokesperson for the Parks Department. Th e department will look at all permit applications and make a decision later this month. Photo via Shutterstock Councilwoman proposes bill to reform the Board of Standards and Appeals BY AWURA AMA BARNIE-DUAH editorial@qns.com @QNS Th anks to Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz’s proposed bill, the Board of Standards and Appeals could fi nally be reformed. Th e Board of Standards and Appeals, or BSA, testifi ed before the New York City Council that they granted 97 percent of all the applications they receive by developers in 2012. However, there have been objections by community boards and elected offi cials that developers have been able to get around city zoning laws. Normally, the BSA would refer a property owner’s application for a special permit to the local community board and also the borough board for their opinion of the application. Following this, there is supposed to be an in-depth review of the application. Th e plans, statements and testimony written by all parties interested in receiving a permit are looked at for consideration. However, the board has been known to completely disregard applications recommended by these local borough boards without any explanation. Th is has prompted Koslowitz to propose a bill called Intro 418, which would require the BSA to provide a written explanation to accompany any action they take regarding an application for a special permit that is opposed to the recommendation fi led by the community or borough board. “Community and borough boards make a serious investment in time and eff ort in reviewing BSA applications before making a recommendation,” Koslowitz said. “Th ose recommendations need to be treated by the BSA with the respect that they deserve.” Intro 418, along with nine other bills, will be heard by the Committee on Government Operations on Dec. 14. Th ey each deal with some aspect of the BSA not being as responsive to the opinions and concerns of the community as they could be. Astoria lawmakers call on power plant operators to stop burning dirty oil BY ANGELA MATUA amatua@qns.com @AngelaMatua More than 50 percent of the city’s power comes from power plants located in Astoria and Long Island City, and lawmakers in those neighborhoods are asking operators to stop using the dirtiest grades of oil to power them. Councilmen Costa Constantinides and Jimmy Van Bramer, along with state Senator Michael Gianaris, held a press conference on Friday, Dec. 9, to call for an end to using number 4 and number 6 oils, which can cause serious health eff ects for people living near these plants. The Ravenswood Generating Station or Big Allis, located at 36th Avenue and Vernon Boulevard, currently burns 3,264,000 gallons of number 6 fuel oil a year. Astoria Generating Station, located at 31-01 20th Ave., burns 3,039,000 gallons of number 6 fuel oil a year. Local Law 38, which was passed in 2015, requires power plants in the city to stop using fuel oil number 6 by 2020. Lawmakers called on operators to explain how they plan on complying with the code. Number 4 oil is required to be phased out by 2030, but the offi cials said they want operators to work toward fast-tracking the phaseout. Number 4 and 6 fuel oils usually contain several contaminants such as nickel and sulfur. Operators use these oils because they are cheaper than others and using other fuel requires plants to replace oil burners and switch heating systems. “For decades, power plants in our communities here in western Queens have strongly contributed to increased asthma rates and increases in hospitalizations and ER visits that exceed the average in Queens,” Constantinides said. “Our city has made great progress on ending the use of dirty fuel oil in buildings. Now more than ever, these plants must become better neighbors and stop the practice of burning number 6 and number 4 oil while looking to repower these older facilities.” According to the Department of Health, Astoria and Long Island City have a higher air pollution rate than the rest of the borough and the city. Th e levels of PM2.5, the most harmful air pollutant, are 8.9 micrograms per cubic meter, compared with 8.4 in Queens and 8.6 citywide. The Environment New York Research & Policy Center found in 2014 that the Ravenswood Generating Station was the largest carbon polluter in the state. “Astoria and Long Island City have one of the highest childhood asthma rates in New York City,” Van Bramer said. “Th is is unacceptable. Our communities should not be known as ‘asthma alley.’ If these power plants reduce their emissions, we can make our communities stronger and more healthy.” Approximately 60 percent of the power plants in the city are more than 40 years old and use ineffi cient designs, lawmakers said. Constantinides, the chair of the Council’s Environmental Protection Committee, held a committee oversight hearing on power plants on Nov. 28 to investigate the emissions that are produced by the city’s power plants, what type of fuel is being burned, and what the operators are doing to lower emissions. Th at meeting marked the fi rst time city council has held an oversight hearing on power plants within the city. No power plant operators showed up to the meeting. Several large public housing projects are located near these plants. Th e lawmakers argue that this is an environmental justice issue “as many power plants are concentrated in proximity to public housing and low-income communities or communities of color, or both,” according to a release. “For too many years, these power plants have been in our area and we really don’t know what chemicals are escaping from them,” said Queensbridge Houses Tenants Association President April Simpson, Astoria Houses Tenants Association President Claudia Koger and Ravenswood Houses Tenants Association President Carol Wilkins. “One thing is for sure is, our residents are experiencing failing health issues, oft en caused by emissions from the power plants. We don’t want to wait until a news report comes out 10 years from now with even worse details about the eff ects of living around them.” The Courier reached out to Ravenswood Generating Station and Astoria Generating Station and is awaiting comment. Photo courtesy of Flickr/Wally Gobetz Elected offi cials are calling on power plant operators like the Ravenswood Generating Station (pictured) to phase out their use of number 6 and 4 fuel oils.
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