FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM MARCH 10, 2022 • THE QUEENS COURIER 19
Schumer, Meng rally in Rego Park, call for accessible subway renovations
BY JULIA MORO
EDITORIAL@QNS.COM
@QNS
U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer, Congresswoman
Grace Meng and transit activists
gathered at the Rego Park 63rd Drive
station to urge New York state to make
accessibility upgrades to subway stations
across the city.
Th e Infrastructure and Jobs Act that
was passed last year will send an estimated
$11 billion to the MTA, and federal leaders
Schumer and Meng are now calling on state
representatives to do their part and allocate
the money to much-needed transit upgrades.
“Unfortunately, in this diverse city, public
transit has fallen short on meeting the
needs for a part of our community for far
too long and that has to change,” Schumer
said. “Th is station in Rego Park is located
on a subway artery that’s essential to moving
residents into Manhattan, but it is not
accessible — that makes it impossible for
all riders to use it. It isn’t public transit
unless the whole public can use it.”
Community members and grassroots
organizations spoke about how diffi cult
it is to get around the city when a subway
station does not have an elevator. Currently,
only 114 subway stations out of 472 total
stations are following the Americans with
Disabilities Act regulations.
Eman Rimawi, an organizer with New
York Lawyers for the Public Interest and an
amputee, said that she has never lived near
an accessible train station.
“If only 24% of the system is accessible
and Access-A-Ride is horrible that leaves
us with no options,” Rimawi said. “I can
take an Uber every once in a while, but not
everybody has that luxury. It is federal law
by ADA compliance that they upgrade
stations. We’re not asking for a handout,
we’re asking you to follow federal law.”
Governor Kathy Hochul announced
major transit infrastructure investments
that would upgrade Penn Station and expand
the Second Avenue subway. However,
riders are asking leaders to prioritize installing
an elevator at every subway station
across the city.
“As money from the federal infrastructure
bill continues to fl ow to New York, it
is critical for the city and state to make sure
that funding is directed towards installing
elevators at the Queens subway and LIRR
stations that need them,” Meng said. “All
of my constituents deserve easy access to
our subway and LIRR stops. Th ey should
not be out of reach to anybody. It is time
to fi nally ensure equal access to our mass
transit system.”
Assemblyman Andrew Hevesi also
joined the federal representatives and
activists, promising to hold his state
colleagues and the MTA accountable to
make these changes.
“We are going to be all over the MTA
to make sure that the money our federal
colleagues fought for and brought back
doesn’t get wasted, sitting in some account
somewhere; instead it goes to elevators
here and other places in Queens,”
Hevesi said.
MTA Construction and Development
President Jamie Torres-Springer said
that the MTA hears the voices of the
community and agrees that these accessibility
improvements needs to be made.
“The MTA’s budget reflects this priority,
dedicating $5.2 billion throughout
2020-2024 in capital spending to complete
accessibility upgrades at 70 subway
stations and another $580 million to
replace elevators at another 35 — the
largest investment in accessibility in
New York City Transit history,” Torres-
Springer said. “So does our focus on
using innovative methods like designbuild
and public-private partnerships
to deliver projects more efficiently, onbudget
and with the highest long-term
maintenance standards.”
Photo by Julia Moro
U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer joined Congresswoman Grace Meng and local activists to call on the
state to add elevators to subway stations around the city.
Borough Hall receives nearly 900 community board applications
BY BILL PARRY
BPARRY@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@QNS
Nearly 900 applications from a diverse
group of civic-minded individuals seeking
appointment to one of the borough’s
14 community boards have been received
this year, accorduing to Queens Borough
President Donovan Richards.
It is the second most applications
received in the offi ce’s history, following
2021’s community board application
process which saw a record-breaking 941
applications submitted.
The enthusiasm in the application
process builds on reforms the offi ce implemented
last April in an eff ort to make community
boards better represent the diverse
neighborhoods they represent.
“Government must not only work handin
hand with the communities it serves in
order to be impactful, it must also be justly
representative of those very communities,”
Richards said. “Aft er yet another successful
application process, I believe we’re
well-positioned to build on the progress
we made last year to diversify Queens’ 14
community boards and create a fairer,
stronger borough for all our families. I
am deeply grateful to all 884 individuals
who stepped up and applied to serve
their communities, and I look forward to
working with all of them to carry Queens
into the future.”
Th is year’s 884 applicants include 610
people who are not currently members
of a community board — just shy of last
year’s 698 new applicants, but more than
double the number of new applicants during
the 2020 community board application
process — while 274 individuals applied
for reappointment to a community board.
Th e borough president’s offi ce began
receiving applications in early January
for two-year terms of community board
service, which will begin on Friday, April
1. As part of Richards’ eff orts to make the
application process more accessible as
well as safer amid the ongoing COVID-19
pandemic, applications were once again
simplifi ed to a digitized and simplifi ed
format, one of the reforms put in place last
year. In prior years, applications had to be
prepared on paper and be notarized before
they were turned in at Borough Hall.
Th e simplifi ed process led to a signifi cantly
more diverse pool of applicants in 2021 than
in years before, which enabled Richards to
select 110 community board members who
were diverse in terms of gender identity, age,
race, sexual orientation, economic status and
immigration status.
“Queens has never been closer to community
board representation that is truly
refl ective of our borough’s diversity than
it is today,” Richards said aft er the appointment
last April. “Democracy is at its
strongest when the voices of all the people
it serves are elevated, a principle we are
proud to strive toward with this new class
of appointees.”
Community boards have a variety of
responsibilities, including but not limited
to land use and zoning issues. Th e boards
have an important advisory role and must
be consulted on the placement of most municipal
facilities in a community. Applications
for zoning changes or variances must
also come before the boards for review.
Th e boards hold hearings and make
recommendations about the city budget,
municipal service delivery and other matters
that impact their communities.
All Queens community board members
are appointed by the Queens borough
president, with half of the appointees nominated
by the City Council member representing
their community district. Each
board has up to 50 unsalaried members
who serve two-year terms. Each member
is required to reapply at the conclusion of
their term if they wish to continue serving
on the board.
QNS fi le photo
Queens Borough Hall has received more than 1,800 community board applications during the
Richards administration’s fi rst two years.
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