for breaking news visit www.qns.com FEBRUARY 11, 2016 • times 13 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com FEBRUARY 11, 2016 • THE COURIER SUN 19 ooppeedd “ The problem is be carefully returned to you! letters & comments NOT A FAN OF ‘EPIC’ FLUSHING I read with horror that another huge building is to go up in this already congested area. The monstrosity on Union Street (behind the projected Epic Tower) took years to build with attendant street obstructions and is still not fi nished. Now the same thing is going to happen on Bowne Street. No, no, no. Trude Hassberg, Flushing HOMELESS VETS DESERVE A BOOK OF RECOGNITION There are many of our veterans who are homeless today across America and a number of books on this issue. There are a number of estimates and it is somewhere around 62,000. But I propose a book that takes into account on maybe a different perspective. This, I feel, would include maybe hundreds of interviews and include how they got there and to include their hopes and dreams. There are many reasons how some of these brave men and women became homeless and should be explored in depth from personal observations. These men and women have served our country with pride, honor and dedication in the belief they were serving the greater good as well as preserving democracy. This book, if it hasn’t been written yet and if successful, should direct its profi ts toward building homes for these homeless veterans. By doing so, we would show our veterans that they are not forgotten and validate the fact that their service was not in vain. I hope and pray there is a writer out there who would take up this noble quest. As for myself, I feel deeply about this cause because on Feb. 4, 1975, after being discharged from the U.S. Navy and having served during the Vietnam War, I found myself homeless. So let’s not forget our veterans, for they need jobs and homes. Frederick R. Bedell Jr., Glen Oaks Village DERELICT CARS A FRONT FOR IN JAMAICA Regarding the 103rd Precinct’s bust of a man who kept guns in an abandoned parked car: Here is a shining example of when a illegally derelict car is parked in Jamaica (which there are many in this area), something needs to be done about it. Who the hell knows what is in some of these cars, especially the covered up ones (which by the way is illegal), it could be a body. This time a body was not found, but illegal guns and a drug, that needs to be made legal here in New York, were found. The car was at the corner of 153rd Street and 109th Road in Jamaica. I mean what the hell, if some of us are going to the trouble to report all this bs in Jamaica, the least that can be done is investigate it and then do something about it. As usual the 103rd Precinct went into action. But if we are going to have a huge population of low-life folks in this area, hire more police offi cers in the area. Dump several of these wasted elected offi cials jobs. In the meantime, when you see these damn cars, which, like I said are all over, report them at http://nypd113.ideascale.com/. QNS user Joe TWO ISSUES IN COP CRACKDOWN ON FOOD DELIVERY SCOOTERS There are 2 separate issues. If the bikes are illegal, they should be made legal. There is no reason in the world that they should be inherently illegal. The second issue is safety. The drivers have to obey the rule of the road for motorized vehicles. But to blanket ban these bikes serves no one any good. QNS user Art FOR MORE NEWS VISIT QNS.COM $2.5 BILLION FOR MIGHT USED BY JOSEPH B. RASKIN Last year, Mayor de Blasio called for the revival of plans for a subway line along Brooklyn’s Utica Avenue, fi rst proposed over a century ago. This year, in effect, he brought back an older plan for the development of a streetcar line along the Brooklyn and Queens waterfront. The streetcar plan isn’t a bad idea. There is a need to expand transit service to this area, and light rail transit such as streetcars or trolleys shouldn’t have been removed from this city to begin with. The problem is that other parts of Queens have equal — if not greater — needs for an expansion of the rail transit system. For over a century, plans were made to extend the subway lines serving Queens beyond their terminal points and build other lines. The 7 line was originally planned to run to northeast Queens. The Queens Boulevard line was meant to run to eastern Queens. The Archer Avenue line was meant to run to Rosedale. For reasons discussed in my book, “The Routes Not Taken,” this didn’t happen, and today close to half of the borough lacks suffi cient rail service. The need for the extension of these routes and more continues to grow. It hasn’t diminished. Every day, huge numbers of people ride buses into downtown Flushing to transfer to the 7 line and stations in Jamaica to transfer to the E, F and J/Z lines. There are other Queens stations that are major connection points for bus riders coming from areas out of reach of the subways. Elected offi cials and civic groups have strongly called for the reactivation of the The Long Island Rail Road’s Rockaway Beach branch and for the development of a light rail line along the LIRR’s Montauk line. These are areas that need relief and must take priority. Obviously, other boroughs have similar needs. Don’t get me wrong. Any expansion of the rail transit system, light or heavy, is good. However, given the estimated price tag of $2.5 billion for the waterfront streetcar project, we should fi rst make sure that the money for a project of this scope is best spent there, or if it would have a greater impact fi nancing an extension of the 7, E or F lines or developing new rail service elsewhere. Under any circumstances, Queens’ transit needs extend well beyond the waterfront streetcar line. Joseph B. Raskin was in the MTA’s Division of Government and Community Relations before retiring last year. He is the author of “The Routes Not Taken: A Trip Through New York City’s Unbuilt Subway System.” A LOOK BACK How many of our readers remember seeing these concrete silos in Glendale? These towers once stored thousands of pounds of coal for the Eagle Coal Company located on 80th Street off 71st Avenue, on the north side of the Long Island Rail Road tracks. Coal once was the popular source of heat for homes and businesses across Queens, but demand fell with the advent of cleaner fuel systems such as natural gas. The Eagle silos are long gone, as commercial buildings now stand in their place on 80th Street, by the overpass across the LIRR tracks. We want your historic photos of Queens! Email them to editorial@ queenscourier.com, or write to The Queens Courier, 38-15 Bell Blvd., Bayside, NY 11361. All mailed pictures will that other parts of Queens have equal, if not greater needs for an expansion of the rail transit system. BILLION STREETCAR MIGHT BE BETTER USED ELSEWHERE NOT A FAN OF ‘EPIC’ FLUSHING DEVELOPMENT HOMELESS VETS DESERVE A BOOK OF RECOGNITION CARS A FRONT FOR CRIME IN JAMAICA TWO ISSUES IN COP ON FOOD DELIVERY SCOOTERS
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