20 SEPTEMBER 7, 2017 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Budget needs hearing
tops Board 5 meeting
on Sept. 13
Community Board 5 is giving
Ridgewood, Glendale, Maspeth
and Middle Village residents
the chance to speak out on the
city’s next budget at the advisory
body’s September meeting.
As announced by District Manager
Gary Giordano, the session takes
place at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday
night, Sept. 13, in the cafeteria of
Christ the King Regional High
School, located at 68-02 Metropolitan
Ave. in Middle Village.
The session gets underway with a
public hearing regarding the Fiscal
Year 2019 capital and expense budget
needs for New York City. Giordano
explained that a capital budget item
usually relates to a construction
need, including new sewers, road reconstruction,
pr aks improvements
and other requests. Expense budget
items involve regular services such
as police patrol, fi re protection, sewer
maintenance and trash pickups.
Anyone who wishes to voice a
budget request can do so during
the public hearing; depending on
turnout, they’ll each have up to 3
minutes to make their remarks.
After the budget hearing, the
board is also slated to hold a public
hearing on a special permit application
with the city’s Board of
Standards and Appeals regarding
the operation of TSI Glendale LLC,
d.b.a. New York Sports Club, located
at 80-16 Cooper Ave. (Block 3810, Lot
350) in The Shops at Atlas Park in
Glendale. The permit would allow
the gym to amend its hours of operation
while also waiving the rules of
practice for fi ling a late application.
Thereaft er, Board 5 will proceed
with its regular meeting agenda,
which includes the public forum; a
review of liquor license applications
and demolition notices; reports by
Chairperson Vincent Arcuri and
District Manager Giordano; and
committee reports.
For more information or to register
to speak in advance, call Board 5
at 718-366-1834.
The Avenue Restaurant wants to send help
to the victims of Hurricane Harvey
BY ANTHONY GIUDICE
AGIUDICE@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
@A_GIUDICEREPORT
The owners of The Avenue Restaurant
in Glendale are expanding
their charitable causes outside the
community by giving back to the victims
of Hurricane Harvey with a Country
Night BBQ Fundraiser on Friday, Sept. 8.
Robert Schoemig, one of the owners
of The Avenue — located at 71-22
Myrtle Ave. — took an idea presented
by two of the restaurant’s staff ers and
immediately created the fundraiser.
“It was actually the idea of two of my
staff members, Elisabeth Dempsey and
Christine Arato,” Schoemig said. “We at
The Avenue try to fi nd ways to give back
to our community and with that in mind,
they said, ‘Could we do a fundraiser like
we do for the other organizations and
causes in the community?’”
Schoemig, a huge country music fan,
jumped at the idea to help the people of
Houston who are still recovering after Hurricane
Harvey plowed through their city,
leaving a path of destruction in its wake.
He still remembers all too well the
damage caused when Superstorm Sandy
hit the New York area in 2012, and
could not pass up helping those in need.
“I also saw fi rst-hand the devastation
that Sandy brought to Rockaway, going
to my brother’s house,” he said. “It was
absolutely an (awe-inspiring) moment
in my life. I was able to leave and go
home; these people had to stay and
there was nothing I could do about it.
So, with that mindset, when they asked
me to organize this fundraiser, it was
a no-brainer.”
During the fundraiser, everyone
is invited to come down and enjoy delicious
barbecue food, good country
music, and, of course, drinks.
For $30 customers can partake in
the BBQ buff et that will feature pulled
pork, chili, pasta salad, hot dogs, Jack
Daniels Boozy Beans and ribs from
8:30 to 9: 30 p.m., and the fi rst drink
is free.
Country music will be played all
night long either by a DJ or Schoemig’s
personal playlist with more than three
hours of country hits. There will also
be a 50/50 raffl e to help raise money.
All money raised through this fundraiser
will go to benefi t Team Rubicon
USA Disaster Relief. For those who cannot
make it to the barbecue, Schoemig
asks if everyone can go online and
make a donation at fundraise.teamrubiconusa.
org/fundraiser/1084856.
