July 21, 2019 Your Neighborhood — Your News®
LOCAL
CL ASSIFIEDS
PA GE 15
Census Bureau grilled over count
Katz, Borough Board press reps to ensure 2020 Census is fair and accurate
BY MAX PARROTT
Queens Borough President
Melinda Katz and Community
Board representatives across the
borough grilled the New York
Regional Census director on
July 15 about the obstacles that
the “World’s Borough” faces to
receiving a fair count in 2020.
During the meeting at
Borough Hall, Jeff Behler, the
director of the New York branch
of the Federal Census Bureau,
presented a plan detailed the
bureau’s plans to open four offices
in Queens, hire around 10,000 of
workers and roll out programs
that are designed to collaborate
with local groups.
In a question and comment
period after the presentation, the
group of board representatives
and Katz treated it as a forgone
conclusion that the borough
will be undercounted in the
survey. They identified two
major obstacles toward ensuring
a fair count: foreign language
access and getting funding to
community-based groups.
“I know this is probably
a ‘no,’ but is there any safety
net? What if the numbers come
back that are clearly wrong?
What if Queens shows an
undercount of a mass amount?
Because I’m just telling you
that’s going to happen,”
said Katz.
“This is really it. You get
one count every 10 years,”
Behler responded.
In addition to setting the
time frame of the census rollout,
Behler’s presentation emphasized
the importance of the data, which
will determine the number of
Congressional seats Queens gets
in addition to its portion of the $675
billion dollars in federal funding
that is allocated across the
entire country.
Anticipating the suspicion
Douglaston
eatery served
its last meal
BY JENNA BAGCAL
After 27 years, a Douglaston
restaurant known for
delivering fine Italian dining
shut its doors on June 30.
Giardino’s website displayed
a heartfelt message from owner
Frank Russo Jr., executive chef
Mike Competiello and manager
Joe Competiello letting
patrons know that this was not
goodbye forever.
“It is with a heavy heart
that after 27 years of great
food, delicious wine, wonderful
people, fun times, hard work,
ups and downs, we have
decided it’s time to move on to
the next life adventure,” read
the message on the website.
Russo encouraged regulars
of his restaurant at 44-37
Douglaston Pkwy. to dine at
another one of his eateries,
Vetros in Howard Beach. The
website message stated that
Mike and Joe Competiello
would be joining the Vetros
team as chef de cuisine
PARENTS & POL CLASH OVER VACCINE LAW
State Senator John Liu met with protesters outside a Bayside fundraiser on July 9 who were angry
that the lawmaker voted for a bill eliminating religious exemptions from the state’s vaccine laws.
Photo: Jenna Bagcal/QNS
Continued on Page 14 Continued on Page 12
Skimmer scammers
wanted in Ridgewood
BY MARK HALLUM
Detectives are looking for two suspects seen
on camera installing a skimming device on an
ATM at Duane Reade pharmacy in Ridgewood
last week.
Meng: Give Qns. top mailboxes
BY JENNA BAGCAL
A Queens lawmaker
wants to battle mailbox
fishing on a national
level with a new piece of
proposed legislation.
A high-security mailbox is installed Last week,
measuring three-eighths
in Bayside. Photo via Facebook.
Congresswoman Grace
com/BaysideHills
Meng introduced a new bill
called the Keep Mail Safe
Act, which calls on the U.S.
Postmaster General to study
the feasibility of retrofitting
all blue mailboxes in the
United States with narrow
mail slots.
The retrofitted boxes
have been deemed the
“Cadillac of mailboxes” by
the United States Postal
Service, who have installed
them across Queens over
the past year. Each box
will have a narrow slot
Continued on Page 12 Continued on Page 14
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