3 THE QUEENS COURIER • APRIL 22, 2022 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Elmcor breaks ground on supportive aff ordable housing development in Corona
BY BILL PARRY
BPARRY@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@QNS
Queens elected leaders and city offi cials
joined Elmcor Youth and Adult Activities Inc.
(Elmcor) to break ground on a new supportive
housing development bringing 30 aff ordable
homes to Corona.
Th e new development will serve those recovering
from substance abuse and/or mental
health issues as well as older adults.
“Elmcor has diligently and eff ectively served
the families of Queens for decades, a mission
that continues with Th ursday’s critically important
groundbreaking,” Queens Borough
President Donovan Richards said. “By providing
those recovering from substance abuse
and mental health issues, as well as our older
residents, with supportive, aff ordable housing
right here in our community, we are creating
a model of human justice through housing for
the rest of the city to follow.”
Located at 104-10 Northern Blvd., the project
includes 21 supportive homes and nine homes
for low-income senior households.
“Safe and aff ordable housing is a basic human
need. It also serves as the foundation of
a healthy and prosperous community,” Assemblyman
Jefrrion Aubry said. “I am excited
and grateful for the construction of a new 30
units, multi-use supportive, aff ordable housing
project which will provide housing for some of
our most vulnerable residents.”
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said
she was thrilled to see Elmcor expand its reach
in the borough.
“Elmcor Youth and Activities Inc. boasts a
proven track record of providing positive, impactful
programming for the community,” Katz
said. “Anyone from preschool-aged children
to senior citizens can access much-needed assistance
through this organization, including
recreation activities, summer camp options,
workforce development, food pantries and drug
rehabilitation.”
Elmcor, the developer and supportive service
provider, is a Queens-based nonprofi t providing
comprehensive programs that serve all
populations.
“A lot of the issues that our city is facing stems
from the lack of aff ordable housing, which is
why when I set foot in the City Council creating
a true path has been a priority,” Councilman
Francisco Moya said. “Th e construction of
these new supportive and aff ordable housing
units mean less people struggling to put a roof
over their head. Grateful to Elmcor and all involved
for their work and partnership to have
this right here in Corona, one of the hardest hit
neighborhoods by COVID.”
For over 55 years, Elmcor has fostered positive
life changes for individuals and families
through skills development leading to selfsuffi
ciency, a sense of accountability and a
strong, empowered community.
“Our local elected offi cials, spearheaded by
the late Honorable Helen Marshall, worked with
us to build the funding for this initiative with so
many others over decades because they believed
in us, because they are us, and because they saw
Elmcor eff ectively respond to our community’s
needs,” Elmcor Executive Director Saeeda Dunston
said. “Now, we are breaking ground on a
mixed-use housing project for which we have
fought and fundraised for many years. Th is
building will be a home that is consistent with
who we are; a community that doesn’t separate
people but integrates groups to support the
healing and recovery that happens when we
see each other as one community. We know the
impact that the lack of aff ordable housing has
on the physical and mental health of people.”
Michael-Sean Pence, board chairman at Elmcor,
added that for 57 years the organization
has been on the front lines supporting its most
vulnerable neighbors.
“Providing access to critical resources and
programs for our older adults, youth and
friends in recovery, while scaling communitycentered
initiatives like our food pantry in response
to the critical issues that disproportionately
impact Black and brown communities like
ours, and have only been exacerbated in recent
years — like food insecurity, gun violence and
housing inequity. With this transformational
project, we will build upon Elmcor’s legacy of
service at a most urgent time — as New Yorkers
fi ght their way back from the pandemic and
seek aff ordable housing to better their path
forward.”
MTA to host virtual workshops to gain rider input on Queens Bus Network Redesign
BY JENNA BAGCAL
JBAGCAL@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@JENNA_BAGCAL
Th e MTA is conducting a series of virtual
public workshops for residents to give their input
on the Queens Bus Network Redesign, one of
the largest bus network redesigns in the country.
According to the agency, the new draft plan
will focus on routing, bus stop locations and
frequency proposals that will take into consideration
population growth, travel patterns,
commute times and off -peak ridership.
From Monday, April 18, to Th ursday, June 2,
from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., riders will get to share
their questions, comments and concerns on
Zoom workshops in each of the 14 Queens
community boards.
Workshops will be in English with captioning
in other languages. Th ere will also be additional
language interpreters available upon
advance registration, no later than fi ve business
days before the workshop.
“Th ese public workshops are a chance for
Queens bus riders to learn more about our
ambitious plan to speed up bus service and deliver
a better bus network for the borough,” said
MTA Bus Company President Acting President
and New York City Transit Department of
Buses Senior Vice President Frank Annicaro.
“We are excited to reach this critical next step
in the bus redesign process and encourage New
Yorkers to attend these workshops and share
their input with the MTA.”
Workshops will be on the following dates
from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.:
Tuesday, April 26
Community Board 3: East Elmhurst, Jackson
Heights, North Corona
Language assistance in Spanish, Mandarin,
Bangla
Thursday, April 28
Community Board 4: Corona, Corona
Heights, Elmhurst
Language assistance in Spanish, Mandarin
Wednesday, May 4
Community Board 5: Ridgewood, Maspeth,
Middle Village, Glendale, Fresh Pond, Liberty
Park
Language assistance in Spanish, Mandarin
Thursday, May 5
Community Board 6: Forest Hills, Rego Park
Language assistance in Spanish, Mandarin
Tuesday, May 10
Community Board 7: Kissena Park,
Flushing Meadows, Corona Park, Bay
Terrace, College Point, Beechhurst,
Queensborough Hill, Willets Point
Language assistance in Spanish, Mandarin,
Korean
Thursday, May 12
Community Board 8: Briarwood, Cunningham
Heights, Flushing South, Fresh Meadows,
Hillcrest, Hilltop Village, Holliswood, Jamaica
Estates, Jamaica Hills, Kew Gardens, Pomonok,
Utopia
Language assistance in Spanish, Bangla
Monday, May 16
Community Board 9: Richmond Hill, Woodhaven,
Ozone Park, Kew Gardens
Language assistance in Spanish, Bangla
Wednesday, May 18
Community Board 10: Howard Beach,
Ozone Park, South Ozone Park, Richmond
Hill, Tudor Village, Lindenwood
Language assistance in Spanish, Bangla
Tuesday, May 24
Community Board 11: Bayside, Douglaston
to Little Neck, Auburndale, East Flushing,
Oakland Gardens, Hollis Hills
Language assistance in Spanish, Mandarin,
Korean
Thursday, May 26
Community Board 12: Jamaica, Hollis,
St. Albans, South Ozone Park, Springfield
Gardens
Language assistance in Spanish, Bangla
Tuesday, May 31
Community Board 13: Bellaire, Bellerose,
Brookville, Cambria Heights, Floral Park,
Glen Oaks, Laurelton, Meadowmere, North
Shore Towers, Queens Village, Rosedale,
Wayanda
Language assistance in Spanish, Bangla
Thursday, June 2
Community Board 14: Breezy Point,
Belle Harbor, Neponsit, Arverne, Bayswater,
Edgemere, Rockaway, Rockaway Park,
Far Rockaway
Language assistance in Spanish
Th ose interested can join a workshop at this
link: mta.zoom.us/j/86541509211?pwd=Qk5
MZUpZa2k2SmRBMldtRUVmZnVzUT09
Meeting ID: 865 4150 9211
One tap mobile +19294362866,,86541509
211#,,,,*6256615911# US (New York)
Courtesy of NYC Community Preservation Corporation
Elected offi cials join Elmcor to break ground on a supportive housing development in Corona.
Photo by Tdorante10/Wikimedia Commons
/86541509211?pwd=Qk5
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