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QUEENS WEEKLY, AUGUST 11, 2019
The Holiday Inn Express on 55th Road in Maspeth.
Photo: Holiday Inn Maspeth
BY MARK HALLUM
Residents of Maspeth
opposed to the use of
hotels as homeless shelters
may be happy to learn
that “working homeless”
have been removed from
the Holiday Inn Express,
according to Councilman
Robert Holden.
Holden’s office put out a
release on Aug. 2 claiming
that the relocation of the
homeless residents from
the hotel at 59-40 55th
Rd. was revealed in a
discussion the lawmaker
had with Department
of Homeless Services
(DHS) Commissioner
Steve Banks.
“I will continue to work
with local faith-based
organizations to come up
with solutions for housing
our neighbors who have
fallen on hard times,”
Holden said. “Smaller, more
personal settings are the
most effective way for us to
take care of our own, as the
mayor has requested.”
According to Holden,
the property owner, KCM
Realty Company, filed a
lawsuit in Queens Supreme
Court in which it was ruled
that the operator of the
hotel, New Ram Realty, as
well as DHS and service
provider Acacia Network,
were violating the terms of
the lease.
Not only that, but to
house a large number of
people for more than 30 days
was violation of the zoning,
according to Holden.
When QNS reached
out to DHS for comment,
we were told to send our
request by email. DHS did
not respond to a request for
comment before press time
on Friday. We will update
the story once it’s received.
Controversy surrounded
the use of hotels as shelters
starting in 2016 when
the Juniper Park Civic
Association under the
leadership of Holden at the
time performed protests
outside the Holiday
Inn Express.
The arguments against
housing homeless in
certain communities have
ranged from hotels not
being suitable for families
or individuals in recovery
to neighborhoods lacking
resources for homeless
people to proximity
to schools.
But the de Blasio
administration launched a
push to house the city’s most
indigent as it came to light
that there was a homeless
crisis with the population
ranging anywhere between
60,000 to 70,000.
Part of this push was
a 2017 pledge by the de
Blasio administration to
phase out the use of hotel
conversions by 2019 paired
with the Turning
the Tide on
Homelessness initiative.
Turning the Tide
aims to places shelters
in communities where
homeless individuals come
from in order to help them
maintain ties to family.
Reach reporter Mark
Hallum by email at
mhallum@schnepsmedia.
com or by phone at (718)
260–4564.
A sick summer in the park
Flushing Meadows water playground cleaned after 32 catch bug
The spray area at the Playground for All Children in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. Photo via Wikimedia Commons/Tdorante10
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
A Flushing Meadows
Corona Park playground
has been sanitized following
an investigation by the
city Health Department
into a bacterial infection
outbreak that sickened
32 people.
The bacteria,
identified as shigella, was
investigated by the Health
Department after several
individuals reported
symptoms after playing
in the Playground for All
Children’s spray shower
and other water features to
their specifications.
“We worked with the
Parks Department to
sanitize the splash pad
and fountain areas, and
these areas are now no
longer a risk for shigella
transmission,” a Health
Department spokesman
told QNS in a statement.
“The Unisphere, the
Playground For All
Children, the Lawrence
Street Playground, and the
Jurassic Playground were
all sanitized.”
A spokesman from
the Parks Department
confirmed to QNS that the
playground was cleaned on
July 20, working with the
Health Department.
“As an additional
p r e c u a t i o n ,
staff also cleaned and
disinfected all other spray
showers in Flushing
Meadows Corona Park,”
a Parks Department
spokesman told QNS.
Shigellosis is an
infection that affects the
intestines. It is caused
by the bacteria (germs),
shigella, and is a fairly
common infection,
especially among young
children, according to the
Health Department.
A mother told NY1 News
that all four of her children
tested positive for the
bacteria after playing in
the park earlier this month
and were admitted to the
hospital.
However, another
parent said their child has
never become sick playing
at the park at least four
times a week.
There have been 32
reported cases of shigellosis
associated with Flushing
Meadows Corona Park,
the Health Department
told QNS.
Anyone can get
shigellosis, but it is seen
most often in young
children. The germ is
spread by eating or drinking
contaminated food or water,
or by direct contact with an
infected person.
People exposed to
the shigella germ may
experience mild or severe
diarrhea, often with fever,
nausea and cramps. There
may be traces of blood or
mucous in the stool.
Some infected people
may not show any
symptoms, according to the
Health Department.
To prevent the spread
of shigellosis, the Health
Department recommends
washing hands often.
“Since germs are
passed in stool (feces),
the single most important
prevention activity is
frequent and careful
hand washing with soap
and warm running water
after using the toilet or
changing diapers,” the
Health Department said.
Reach reporter Carlotta
Mohamed by email at
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.
com or by phone at (718)
260–4526.
Pol: Homeless out
at Maspeth hotel
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