Parks Dept. Unveils Plan To Renovate Mary Whelan Playground Sunnyside Library Repairs Ben Carson News & Opinion -CONTINUED FROM PG. 4- their own, and others would be less tempted to attempt illegal entry. Detractors will say that if it were that simple, it already would have been done and we wouldn’t be having this discussion. What they fail to account for is the fact that the issues have not been addressed. A national guest-worker program makes sense and seems to work well in Canada. Noncitizens would have to apply for a guest-worker permit and have a guaranteed job awaiting them. Taxes would be paid at a rate commensurate with other U.S. workers, and special visas would allow for easy entry and egress across borders. Guest-worker status would be granted to individuals and not to groups. People already here illegally could apply for guest-worker status from outside of the country, meaning they would have to leave first. They should in no way be rewarded for having broken our laws, but if they are wise, they would arrange with their employer before they leave to immediately offer them a legal job as soon as their application is received. When they return, they still would not be U.S. citizens, but they would be legal, and they would be paying taxes. Only jobs that are vacant as a result of a lack of interest by American citizens should be eligible for the guest-worker program. It is essential that employers bear some responsibility for making sure that no illegal immigrants are hired. Employers who break the rules should receive swift, severe and consistent punishment that constitutes a real deterrent and not a mere inconvenience. A second infraction should be a criminal offense and treated as such. All of this is irrelevant unless we have secure borders. There is much that can be learned from security personnel in prisons and other secured facilities, and there is a great deal of smart technology that could be employed to achieve secure borders. It is a matter of will rather than ability. As long as we reward people who break laws, they will continue to break laws. We do need a continual flow of immigrants, but choosers need not be beggars. We make decisions based on our needs. People who refuse to comply with the rules must forfeit chances of legalization in the future. Anyone caught involved in voter fraud should be immediately deported and have his citizenship revoked. The point is this: We must create a system that disincentivizes illegal immigration and upholds the rule of law while providing us with a steady stream of immigrants from other nations who will strengthen our society. Let’s solve the problem and stop playing political football. * * * Ben S. Carson is professor emeritus of neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins University and author of the new book “One Nation: What We Can All Do To Save America’s Future.” became more prominent in recent years, according to Hinkl. The asphalt area surrounding a spray shower is cracked; a concrete retaining wall around the swing areas near Park Lane South is eroding. Certain playground equipment is also outdated, Hinkl advised, noting the 10’ swings for older children and teens do not meet American Society for Testing Material standards. Moreover, a ramp leading into Whelan Playground has a 20 percent slope, far too steep to be considered compliant with provisions in the Americans with Disabilities Act, he added. “The asphalt is in poor to fair shape. The retaining wall is in poor shape. The fencing is in poor to fair shape.,” he told the audience. “So everything needs to be replaced.” The playground’s cumbersome design requires correction, Hinkl added. Play areas for young children lie in the rear of the playground, far away from the street; swingsets for both preschoolers and older children face the street; and teenagers tend to use an open asphalt area at the heart of the playground, getting in the way of younger children. Crowley provided $1 million in City Council funding for the project, while Queens Parks Commissioner Dorothy Lewandowski earmarked $180,000 in the department’s budget toward repairing fences and retaining walls. The Parks Department will install a secondary ramp leading into Whelan Playground from Park Lane South with a grade of 1 to 2 percent, as required in the ADA. New trees will be provided around the playground to increase a natural, cooling canopy during the spring and summer. New play units for preschoolers (two to five years old) and elementary school children (ages five through 12) will be installed near the fencing facing Park Lane South, while preschool and new 8’-tall swings will be installed in the southwest and northeast corners of the playground, respectively. A new teen court play area will be created in the rear of Whelan Playground; the children will choose how it is used based on the activities they hold there, Hinkl added. The Parks Department will also include a new water play feature in the center of the park. All of the new equipment and features to be installed will reflect the nature of Forest Park and the Terminal Morasse, the steep hill on which the playground sits, Hinkl stated. Play equipment will be painted in natural colors such as brown and spring green and boulders will be sporadically placed in and around the playground. The new trees coming to the playground also match those currently found throughout Forest Park, including the sugar maple and the scarlet oak, reflecting the park’s natural history. “We’re reusing as much of the infrastructure as we can to save money and reduce debris,” Hinkl added. “We’re trying to keep what we can and replace what we can’t.” While residents warmly received the proposal, others—such as Ed Wendell of the Woodhaven Residents’ Block Association—urged the Parks Department to fund the construction of a new comfort station. Reportedly, Whelan Playground once had a bathroom area, but it was torn down decades ago. Parks officials indicated it would investigate whether to construct a -CONTINUED FROM PG. 6- 27 • TIMES, THURSDAY, JUNE 19, 2014 Project Manager Ricardo Hinkl presented plans for renovations to Mary Whelan Playground at Forest Park during a session held by City Council Member Elizabeth Crowley last Tuesday, June 10, at Oak Ridge headquarters. (photo: Marcin Zurawicz) bathroom at the location as a separate project. Community Board 9 member James Coccovillo agreed. “The neighborhood has always said, ‘Let’s do something with the playground,’” he said. “This is an excellent layout and design. ... The comfort station would be great, but we don’t want to slow down progress.” Board 9 is expected to offer its recommendation for or against the project at an upcoming meeting. Once the review and contractual bidding process is complete, the reconstruction will begin. Hinkl estimated a shovel will be in the ground at Whelan Playground within the next year, and work should take a full year to complete. The latter two locations have 24- hour, self-serve return kiosks, allowing borrowers to return books, periodicals or digital media at any time. Customers can also renew borrowed materials online at www.queenslibrary.org or by calling 1-718-990-0700. City Council Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer provided funding for the new roof, which is being installed under the direction of the city’s Department of Design and Construction. -CONTINUED FROM PG. 6- 106th Pct. Council Eyes ‘Silent Night’ Campaign police. This is the first time trying this system for Schiff, who hopes to keep utilizing the tool in order to fight crime in the 106th Precinct and keep residents informed and safe. Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder, spoke briefly commending the 10 th Precinct and Schiff’s use of social media, and encouraged the public to use the tool. “Take advantage ... This precinct is on the forefront of change,” Goldfeder said. Schiff’s Twitter account has other posts and pictures of confiscated weapons, criminals at large, personal goods confiscated in robberies, arrests, events and real-time criminal activity. Cop of the Month June’s Cop of the Month Award went to P.O. Collin Dyer for arresting a gun-toting man at 111th Avenue and 120th Street in South Ozone Park. Dyer and his partner saw the man walking along the road during a downpour without wearing a raincoat, which he reportedly had bundled up under his arm. Due to the “totality of the circumstances,” according to Schiff, Dyer approached the man under reasonable suspicion asking him to shake out his raincoat. Reportedly, when officers inspected it, it appeared to have some extra weight to it. When the suspect shook the coat, a .38-cal. revolver flew out of the bundle. Dyer chased the man to a Lefferts Boulevard location, where he made the arrest. Schiff and Frank Dardani, president of the 106th Precinct Community Council, presented Dyer with a plaque donated by the Times Newsweekly for his efforts. Other arrests The precinct has been busy with major burglaries and big arrests in the southwest, northwest and central corridors of the 106th Precinct. Eighteen arrests for burglary were made in the past month, Schiff stated, which is up 500 percent. The suspects arrested include the following: • Howard Garcia, called a lifetime burglar, was found leaving a house he allegedly broke into in South Ozone Park. After his arrest, police searched his car and found gold chains, necklaces, rings, watches, a play station, and other jewelry from multiple burglaries. Schiff posted the items on his Twitter asking residents to call if anything looked familiar. • Claud Clark, 24, was arrested behind a Liberty Avenue location for an alleged knifepoint robbery and was charged with robbery and criminal possession of stolen property. • On May 3, on Liberty Avenue three 17-year-old males were arrested on robbery charges. One displayed a knife to threaten victims, while another got the victims valuables, and the third acted as a lookout. • Another arrest was made after a man conducted four robberies in one day two of which were in the 106th Precinct the other two in the 109th Precinct. Other news Schiff informed residents that La Bella Vita, a catering hall at 106-09 Rockaway Blvd., was shutdown after a joint investigation between the 106th Precinct and the State Liquor Authority discovered the owner had been operating under a forged liquor license. Capt. John Gavley, the 106th Precinct’s executive officer, heads the traffic program and informed the meeting of the precinct’s first pedestrian fatality of 2014 at 130th Street and North Conduit Avenue, where a man was struck crossing the intersection against the light. In light of the mayor’s Vision Zero program, Gavley’s traffic detail has been cracking down on drivers texting and using their cell phones while driving. Texting tickets are up 157 percent and speeding citations are up 250 percent in the last 28 days. The precinct is also up in collisions and injuries which Gavely partly attributed to cell phone use, but mostly to victims not using their seat belt. “It only takes a second, and it could save your life,” said Gavely on seat belts. The next 106th Precinct Community Council meeting is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, July 9, at 8 p.m. at the stationhouse located at 103-53 101st St. in Ozone Park. For more information, call the 106th Precinct Community Council at 1-718-845- 2228, or follow the precinct on Twitter, @NYPD106Pct. -CONTINUED FROM PG. 8-
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