SHELTER WAR RAGES ON Glendale-based attorney Frederick Haller announced that a hearing date for the ongoing Article 78 legal action is set for Apr. 8. The coalition filed the proceeding last year in an attempt to force the Department of Homeless Services (DHS) into performing a full environmental impact statement (EIS) at the proposed shelter site at 78- 16 Cooper Ave. In addition to the filing, Haller announced that the coalition is looking into launching a federal lawsuit. The second legal action would take aim at what Haller called the “overall theory of simply taking people and putting them into a warehousing situation” without providing proper accommodations. “We’ve already interviewed another law firm to bring about a separate federal action to stop this project and to bring up the issue of whether it’s a good method for caring for these people at all,” Haller stated. The proposed federal lawsuit would be much broader in scope than the current Article 78, but may also include some of the environmental issues and concerns presented in the first legal action. The coalition hopes that a federal magistrate will agree to take on the matter and oversee it. “Because of the injustice that is done with the warehousing of people and the way the program is working, we hope that they will come on and review the situation and our particular matter,” Haller added. Coalition co-founder Salvatore Crifasi echoed this sentiment: “We’re trying to block the system and the system is not working.” Crifasi believes that a federal lawsuit would be larger in nature and therefore need to encompass neighboring communities. “If we do decide to go federal, we’re going to try and get other communities involved because this is not just going to be a Middle Village-Glendale situation,” he explained. “We’re going to try to bring in other communities because then it becomes more of a class action suit.” According to coalition members, the city and DHS has encountered recent impediments regarding the shelter site and its location. “They’re running into some hurdles at the Buildings Department,” Haller stated. One major area of concern is the location’s close proximity to nearby Long Island Rail Road tracks. “They’re having an issue with the railroad,” Crifasi explained, “They have to do footings and reinforce the building and that might effect the railroad.” Crifasi added that the city and DHS reported incorrect facts and inaccurate claims in their official response to the Article 78. “They stated that there was more than one building with more that 125 units within 1,000 feet from the area,” he stated, “We did our research and there’s nothing more than 50 units here.” “Our biggest argument on the zoning is that it’s so out of character,” added Robert Holden, coalition co-founder and Juniper Park Civic Association (JPCA) president. “We did fight to down-zone the area and try to keep our housing stock similar, to three and four stories, but nothing like this. This is not made for housing.” The majority in attendance at last Tuesday’s meeting were coalition block captains, local residents who volunteered to raise funds and awareness for the coalition. Some block captains reported that many homeowners believe the shelter plan is a “done deal” and that nothing can be done to stop it—a claim Holden and Crifasi staunchly denied. “I’ve been through a lot of battles,” Holden explained, “We have really talented people in the neighborhood fighting against this.” “If we didn’t do this, then we would have just put our white flag up and it would have happened already,” Crifasi added. The coalition has raised approximately $75,000 since its creation in 2014 and hopes to reach its $130,000 goal. Recent fundraising efforts, however, were hampered by the holidays and winter weather. Coalition member Stacie Maher announced plans to hold another fundraising event in Middle Village similar to the one held at Yerman’s Pub last October, which yielded an estimated $9,000 in donations. Crifasi estimated that only about 10 percent of the local population has donated to the Coalition and their legal fund. “A lot of people believe this is not going to effect Middle Village, but it is,” Maher explained. The group hopes to host the upcoming fundraiser at Villa Erasmo restaurant, located on Juniper Boulevard South, as a way to get more Middle Village residents involved in their cause. “Neighborhoods lose battles when they run out of money,” Holden added, “The neighborhood gets stronger when they ban together.” An official date for the event has yet to be announced. TIMES, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2015 • 10 Glendale Middle Village Coalition Maps Out Legal Strategies Block captains for the Glendale Middle Village Coalition met at The Shops at Atlas Park community room last Tuesday, Feb. 3, to further discuss the organization’s efforts to stop a proposed homeless shelter for up to 125 families from opening in the area. story and photo by Kelly Marie Mancuso The Glendale Middle Village Coalition continued its work to stop a proposed homeless shelter in their neighborhoods during a meeting among civic leaders, local business owners and residents last Tuesday, Feb. 3, at The Shops at Atlas Park in Glendale. RIDGEWOOD HAIR STYLISTS 57-01 Catalpa Ave. (Cor. 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