8 JUNE 22, 2017 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Senator wants
tax break to
get rid of
cocklofts
BY ANTHONY GIUDICE
AGIUDICE@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
@A_GIUDICEREPORT
Cockloft s — spaces between
the upper fl oor and roof of
many older Queens homes
— have helped fan the fl ames of
numerous severe fi res throughout
Queens in recent years, including
one in Middle Village in 2013 and
a fi re in a high-rise building in
Elmhurst this April.
Now, a Queens elected offi cial is
looking to help residents get a tax
break for removing the potentially
dangerous cocklofts from their
dwellings.
Many homes constructed in the
last century had cocklofts to allow for
drainage and temperature control.
Although connected row houses are
no longer designed and built with
cocklofts, many homes in the borough
still have them, and they could
prove dangerous if a fire breaks out.
In 2013, a fi ve-alarm blaze in Middle
Village spread through cockloft
s and damaged seven homes
while also injuring 11 fi refi ghters.
Since then, state Senator Joseph
Addabbo introduced, and recently
passed, legislation (S.3065) in the
Senate that would provide homeowners
with economic incentives
to remove cockloft s in their homes.
“At that time, I decided to introduce
legislation to aid homeowners
in making structural modifi cations
to their properties to eliminate
these serious fi re hazards,” Addabbo
said. “Over the years, there has
been growing evidence that cockloft
s lead to extremely fast moving
and hard-to-control flames that
put both residents and fi refi ghters
at extreme risk, and we need to
address these dangers.”
Under this piece of legislation,
residents with cockloft s in their
homes would be able to apply for
a 30 percent tax credit in order to
repair them. Refundable credits
of up to $500 would help eligible
homeowners afford the cost of
making these improvements and
getting rid of the dangerous the
fi re hazards.
M.V. teen among 6 Queens students joining U.S. Service Academies
Pictured from left to right: Mother of Karim Ahmed, Justin Sells, Ted Colter, Lieutenant Ben Clay of the U.S.
Navy, Congresswoman Grace Meng, Allison Lee, Jacqueline Girardin, and Sung Ho Chong.
BY ANTHONY GIUDICE
AGIUDICE@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
@A_GIUDICEREPORT
Six students from across Queens
will be attending the United
States Service Academies later
this month aft er they were selected
from a group of elite college-age students
from around the country.
In order for students to attend
the nation’s service academies, they
must fi rst by nominated by their local
member of Congress, and are required
to meet the highly competitive educational,
physical and extracurricular
standards for the institution to which
they are applying. The institutions
then evaluate the nominations received
from across the nation, and
decide which nominees to accept.
This year, Congresswoman Grace
Meng nominated a total of 23 students
Photo courtesy of Congresswoman Grace Meng's offi ce
for the application process; in the end, six
were chosen to attend academies. They
included Ted Colter from Middle Village,
who was selected to attend the U.S. Naval
Academy in Annapolis, MD aft er graduating
from Xavier High School.
Also chosen was Justin Sells of Forest
Hills, who was selected to attend
the U.S. Military Academy at West
Point aft er graduating from Virginia
Military Institute.
“It is an honor to have nominated
these exceptional young men and
women to attend our nation’s elite
service academies,” Meng said. “These
outstanding students are among the
best and brightest in our community
and I’m confi dent that they’ll make us
proud. I congratulate each of them, and
wish them the very best for success.”
The nation’s service academies
work to prepare American college-age
student to be officers in the U.S.
uniformed services. Aft er four years
of study at the institution, graduates
become commissioned as offi cers in
the active or reserve components of
the U.S. military or merchant marine
for a minimum of fi ve years.
All six students were honored at a
reception at Meng’s Flushing offi ce
on Monday, June 19, where they each
received a Certifi cate of Congressional
Recognition for their hard work. Lieutenant
Ben Clay of the U.S. Navy was a
special guest speaker at the reception.
Meng plans to sponsor another “U.S.
Service Academy Information Night”
later this fall for Queens students who
are interested in applying to the U.S.
Service Academies. The date and location
for the event have not been fi nalized
as of yet and will be announced
in the coming months. Last year, Meng
hosted the event in October at Forest
Hills High School.
Cops cuff Ridgewood purse thief with a box cutter
BY ROBERT POZARYCKI
RPOZARYCKI@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
@ROBBPOZ
It only took cops a half-hour to
catch up to a man who allegedly
used a box cutter to rob a woman
on a Ridgewood street last week.
Law enforcement sources said
Dajohn Sanchez, 26, of Kosciuszko
Street in Brooklyn held up the
48-year-old female victim at the corner
of 60th Street and 67th Avenue
just aft er 12:30 a.m. on the morning
of June 16.
According to police, Sanchez allegedly
displayed a box cutter at the
woman and demanded her purse.
The victim complied with his request
and handed over her bag, which
contained an iPhone, bank cards and
her driver’s license. The suspect then
fl ed the scene on foot.
Offi cers from the 104th Precinct
responded to a report about the
robbery; the woman was not injured.
In searching the surrounding
area, authorities said, officers
located Sanchez at the corner
of 60th Lane and 70th Avenue
at about 1 a.m. on June 16. After
being positively identified by
the victim as the alleged thief,
Sanchez was taken into custody
on charges including robbery,
menacing and criminal possession
of a weapon.
Police sources said Sanchez has
eight prior arrests.
