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QC12172015

8 The QUEE NS Courier • DECEMBER 17, 2015 for breaking news visit www.qns.com Outspoken Woodside activist Al Volpe dies at age 90 BY ANGELA MATUA amatua@queenscourier.com @AngelaMatua Al Volpe, a Community Board 2 member and advocate, has passed away at the age of 90. The Woodside resident was also a board member of Woodside on the Move, a nonprofit organization that runs free community programs. Volpe was most vocal on transportation issues in the community, voicing his concerns about bike routes along Vernon Boulevard and Skillman Avenue. “Al Volpe was a force to be reckoned with when he took on an issue he was passionate about,” CB 2 Chair Pat O’Brien said in an email. “Never accepting nothing less than the very best for his community, Al would lobby elected officials and government agencies and would never take no for an answer.” Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer, who served on the board of CB 2 with Volpe for four years, said that “few people cared as much about Woodside for as long as Al did.” “He cared about quality-of-life issues and loved promoting local restaurants and businesses,” Van Bramer added. “He loved Woodside so very much.” Volpe is survived by his wife, Catherine, his daughter, Alison Michaels, his sister, Rose, and four grandchildren. His funeral was held on Dec. 12 at St. Sebastian Church in Woodside. Photo courtesy of Facebook/Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer Al Volpe, a local advocate and CB 2 member, passed away at the age of 90. THE COURIER/Photo by Alina Suriel Council members Peter Koo and Karen Koslowitz have joined Rory Lancman in speaking out against the selection of board directors in the newly formed Flushing Meadows Corona Park Alliance. THREE COUNCIL MEMBERS SPEAK OUT AGAINST MAYOR’S FLUSHING MEADOWS ALLIANCE by ALINA SURIEL asuriel@queenscourier.com @alinangelica Two more City Council representatives have joined Rory Lancman in speaking out against the mayor’s choice of representatives on the newly formed Flushing Meadows Corona Park (FMCP) Alliance. Council Members Karen Koslowitz, Peter Koo and Rory Lancman sent a joint letter to Mayor Bill de Blasio last week to express their “extreme dissatisfaction” with the lack of transparency in the creation of the FMCP Alliance. The representatives also took issue with the fact that they were not included on the board to advocate for their respective areas. “Unfortunately, the board’s structure was negotiated in secret and fails to include fair City Council representation, ignoring the concerns of hundreds of thousands of park users,” the letter read. The southern half of the park is represented in the City Council by Lancman, the southwestern communities near the park are represented by Koslowitz and the communities near the northeastern part of the park are represented by Koo. The three have asked de Blasio to reconsider the structure of the Alliance’s board of directors by adding seats for additional members. While Lancman was among the initial critics of the selections for the board of directors, this marks the first time that Koo and Koslowitz have spoken out against the arraignment. Both were present for the mayor’s Nov. 16 launch of the Alliance. The alliance’s board of directors is comprised of 15 leaders in government, community and business, including Danny Zausner, chief operating officer of the National Tennis Center; Carol Conslato, director of public affairs of Con Edison; and Javier Valdes, co-executive director of Make The Road New York, a nonprofit reducing poverty in low-income Latino communities. It also includes a representative of the Community Advisory Board which will host regularly scheduled meetings in order to hear community concerns and discuss potential projects. Additionally, the board includes five ex-officio members: First Deputy Mayor Anthony Shorris, Parks Commissioner Mitchell J. Silver, FAICP, Acting Cultural Affairs Commissioner Edwin Torres, Speaker Melissa Mark- Viverito and Queens Borough President Melinda Katz. Queens housing market to see rise in demand; five neighborhoods top ‘hot’ list BY ANGELA MATUA amatua@queenscourier.com @AngelaMatua The housing market in Queens has been hot for some time, and it figures to stay that way in 2016. StreetEasy, a blog that reports on real estate trends and data, released its “2016 New York City Housing Market Trends,” which projected that housing in the “World’s Borough” will remain in high demand in the new year. Alan Lightfeldt, a data scientist at StreetEasy, predicts that five of the city’s top 10 “hottest neighborhoods” in 2016 “Demand and value continue to rise in Queens.” will be in Queens. Topping that list is Jamaica. Factors that place the neighborhood in the number one spot include low prices, easy access to the subway and Long Island Rail Road, a “healthy growth in population since 2011” and a growth in interest among renters and buyers. “Strong competition in Manhattan and the Prospect Park submarket of Brooklyn may push more buyers to Queens, but there is a pull factor as well,” Lightfeldt said in his analysis. “Relatively lower prices, easy access to large job centers in Midtown Manhattan and Long Island City, and more living space for families will pull more New York buyers and renters towards Queens in 2016.” Queens will also see the largest “cooling in price growth” of all the boroughs next year. While rent growth was at 6.6 percent in 2015, next year, prices will only grow by 4.5 percent. For home sales, the price growth will be 1.8 percent in 2016 compared to 6.3 percent this year. Jamaica Estates is the fourth hottest neighborhood on the list, followed by Woodside. Elmhurst and Kew Gardens Hills round out the list at eight and 10 respectively. The list was calculated using the StreetEasy Hot Market Index, which analyzes four key indicators: annual change in sales price, annual change in rent price, recent population growth and annual change in StreetEasy page views per listing. “Demand and value continue to rise in Queens,” said Borough President Melinda Katz. “It is of no surprise that Queens’ neighborhoods will lead among the city’s hottest markets. The strong growth is a testament to the borough’s appeal, especially for families. While the growth is necessary and encouraged, the challenge for government will be to aggressively expand affordable housing stock to meet the evergrowing demand. When we do, however, it must be done right.” Borough President Melinda Katz


QC12172015
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