8 JANUARY 6, 2022 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Top stories to watch for in 2022
Friends of Mafera Park asked Councilman Robert Holden to help replace
playground equipment. Photo by Julia Moro
testing in their districts.
$500,000 INVESTED TO
RENOVATE MAFERA PARK
The community-based group
Friends of Mafera Park worked hard
this year to get the attention of local
lawmakers in order to secure funding
for necessary renovations to the park
in Ridgewood.
Local elected offi cials and residents
are working with the Parks Department
to decide how to spend the
$500,000 in state funds.
“It is great to see a community
playground receive the resources
necessary to keep it a safe and funfi
lled place for residents of all ages to
gather,” state Senator Joseph Addabbo
said. “Mafera Park was in need of restorations,
and because the residents
spoke out and were heard by their local
electeds, $500,000 in state funding to
reconstruct the park for the betterment
of the entire community has been allocated.
I look forward to when the
renovations get underway and we can
give the community a brand new park
to visit.”
Linda Byszynski, the leader of
Friends of Mafera, said that this funding
was a long time coming for the park
and for her neighborhood.
“What has really been wonderful
about it is having this grow and bloom.
More and more local residents are coming
out and showing support,” Byszynski
said. “I’m glad that the process is
starting to secure funding.”
What will happen to local food pantries
as the new mayoral administration
takes over?
Local food pantries like Woodbine,
Fenix Community Fridge and Hungry
Monk rely on the Pandemic Food
Reserve Emergency Distribution Program
(P-FRED) to provide for families
struggling with food insecurity.
As the new mayoral administration
takes over Jan. 1, these local pantries
are unsure that funding will still be allocated
to this program — even though
they say there is still a great need for it.
Matt Peterson, an organizer at
Woodbine, said there is a concern for
the future of their pantry without the
P-FRED program.
“The line for our food pantry hasn’t
shrunk much over the last year, the
need and the demand is still high, but
donors and suppliers have dried up,”
Peterson said. “There’s still a need to
maintain this funding and to not abandon
these families and communities.”
Peterson said if this funding is allocated
elsewhere due to the mayor’s
other priorities, they doubt they will be
able to maintain the food pantry.
NEW BUSINESSES
POPPING UP, CHANGING
THE CULTURE OF
RIDGEWOOD
Just this past fall, two psychotherapists
and licensed clinical social
workers teamed up to open Get Right
Wellness to provide accessible, aff ordable
mental health services for the
community.
Located at 1025 Seneca Ave. in Ridgewood,
Jessica LaHood and Lauren Urban
saw a need for wellness and holistic
services in their neighborhood.
“We both live in Ridgewood and have
lived in Ridgewood for some time and
love it here,” LaHood said. “We want
to be able to serve our neighbors and
make sure they’re getting what they
need to be well and access healing. We
just weren’t seeing very much of that in
the neighborhood.”
Lahood and her partner Urban
wanted to take down the barriers to
mental health services that prohibits
people from getting help. Specifi cally,
the pair have created a fund to cover
treatements and services for people in
need. This fund allows more affl uent
customers to donate and cover the costs
for those in need.
On top of Get Right Wellness, a new
business opened up on Catalpa Avenue
in Ridgewood to provide art supplies.
Tiny Arts Supply, located at 58-42A
Catalpa Ave. opened in April in order
to make creativity accessible to the
neighborhood. The store, owned by
Vanessa America, off ers many diff erent
mediums and even has a section
where people can donate new or used
supplies.
If customers can’t fi nd what they’re
looking for, America said she can point
them to one of the hardware stores in
the neighborhood.
“I really wanted to open a business
that would enhance the neighborhood
and not take away from anyone’s business,”
America said, adding that fellow
business owners have been a great help
as she embarks on her fi rst business.
BY JULIA MORO
EDITORIAL@QNS.COM
@QNS
The greater Ridgewood area saw
a lot of action this year, from a
contentious local City Council
race to new businesses opening up to
residents fi ghting for more community
investment.
Here’s what to look out for in the
greater Ridgewood area in 2022.
LOCAL LAWMAKERS PUSH
FOR MORE TESTING SITES
Councilman Robert Holden announced
this week that he’s working
with the NYC Department of Health
and Mental Hygiene and the mayor’s offi
ce to expand testing sites in his district
— consisting of Ridgewood, Maspeth,
Glendale, Middle Village, Woodhaven
and Woodside. The area is seeing more
than 16% of COVID positivity rate amid
the citywide surge.
A spokesperson for Holden said that
The Shops at Atlas Park would be used
as a micro-testing site at the beginning
of January.
Holden, state Senator Joseph Addabbo
and Assembly member Jenifer Rajkumar
partnered to bring a temporary
testing site to the Woodhaven Business
Improvement District, located at 89-07
Jamaica Ave. This site will be open from
11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Rapid and PCR tests are
available until the end of the week.
New York City decreased its testing
capacity from 54 to 34 sites, as reported
by The City. Now lawmakers all over
the borough are working to get more
GREATER RIDGEWOOD RESTORATION REMOVES
GRAFFITI FROM 376 LOCATIONS IN 2021
Greater Ridgewood Restoration Corporation (GRRC) had one of its most
productive years for graffiti removal in 2021. They were able to power wash 126
properties and paint over 250 properties in Ridgewood, Glendale, Maspeth,
Middle Village and Bushwick.
GRRC is a non-profit community organization that provides housing services
free of charge. One of its most important programs, is the graffiti removal
program. The program works to beautify the neighborhood, and encourage
business growth and stability, by cleaning graffiti free of charge. Cleaning on
commercial streets attracts shoppers, and encourages business retention. The
anti-graffiti program began on May 4, 1992, has cleaned over 7,000 sites. The
crew uses professional paint remover and a hot water pressure washer to
clean washable surfaces such as brick, and paint non-washable surfaces such
as roll down gates and doors. Their crew will continue to paint over graffiti in
January and February, and resume power washing in March, 2022.
Angela Mirabile, GRRC Executive Director, said “GRRC’s expenses, such as
insurance, fuel, cleaning supplies and paint, continue to rise but thanks to
funding from Councilmen Robert Holden and Antonio Reynoso, local banks, and
private donors, the graffiti cleaning program was able to operate five days a
week. We have received individual donations ranging from $25 to over $500.
The people of our community support our effort.” GRRC would also like to
thank the Myrtle Avenue Business Improvement District for their assistance in
cleaning and maintaining the properties in the Myrtle Avenue BID.
If you would like to support their programs, you can make a donation by check
or through their website at www.ridgewoodrestoration.org through PayPal.
You can also make a donation through Amazon Smile on their Facebook Page.
If you would like to support Greater Ridgewood Restoration Corporation, or
have graffiti removed free of charge from your property, please contact the
office at 718-366-8721, open Monday through Friday from 8:30am-5:00pm. All
contributions are fully tax-deductible. Property owners with graffiti on their
buildings, or concerned citizens can report graffiti to the telephone number
above, or email to ridgewoodrestoration@gmail.com
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