4 DECEMBER 14, 2017 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Ground broken on Midville school expansion
BY ROBERT POZARYCKI
RPOZARYCKI@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
@ROBBPOZ
When it opened in September
2009, the four-story P.S./I.S.
128 building at the corner
of 69th Place and Juniper Valley Road
in Middle Village was hailed as the
solution for the school’s overcrowding
problems.
Less than a decade later, and there’s
still not enough room to accommodate
the school’s growing population.
That’s about to change, as the city’s
School Construction Authority (SCA)
has started building a $31.8 million,
four-story expansion that will add
440 new seats and other amenities for
students.
The project’s launch was celebrated
on Monday morning with a
ground-breaking ceremony attended
by SCA and Department of Education
officials, Councilwoman Elizabeth
Crowley, Councilman-elect Robert
Holden and representatives of the
Community Education Council of
District 24.
Work on the P.S./I.S. 128 expansion
began in July, and the project is expected
in September 2020. According
to the SCA, the addition will provide
440 classroom seats for students from
Offi cials broke ground on Dec. 11 on the expansion of P.S./I.S. 128 in Middle Village.
kindergarten through eighth grade in
18 standard classrooms.
The expansion is rising out of a
portion of the P.S./I.S. 128 playground,
which was built on the footprint of the
original, one-story P.S. 128 building
that the existing four-story structure
replaced.
In 2015, the SCA informed Crowley
of its intention to consider building
Photo courtesy of Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley
a free-standing pre-K center on the
playground site. Crowley, however,
reached out to SCA President Lorraine
Grillo and asked that the authority instead
consider constructing a school
expansion, noting a stark increase in
the student population.
“Since opening in 2009, P.S./I.S. 128
could not contain its student population,
forcing kids to use the annex
across the street,” Crowley said in a
December 2015 statement. As of March
2016, P.S./I.S. 128 was at 123 percent capacity,
with fi rst- and second-graders
housed in the annex building across
the street, which lacks a gym or a
computer lab.
The SCA ultimately agreed and
moved forward with the P.S./I.S. 128
expansion instead.
Ridgewood Dems
party for the holidays
The Ridgewood Democratic
Club (RDC) held its annual
holiday party on Dec. 8,
co-sponsored by City Council
Members Elizabeth Crowley and
Antonio Reynoso. Among the
guests were Public Advocate Letitia
James, Assemblywoman Catherine
Nolan, state Senator Michael Gianaris
and City Councilman Costa
Constantinides. Shown above are
(top row, left to right) Alison Cummings,
Co-President, RDC, David
Photo courtesy of David Aglialoro
Aglialoro, Democratic District
Leader 37B, David Renz, Co-President,
RDC; and (bottom row, left to
right): Roberto Perez, NYC Mayor’s
Offi ce, Councilman Costa Constantinides,
Diane Ballek, Democratic
District Leader 37B, Councilwoman
Elizabeth Crowley, State Senator
Michael Gianaris, Assemblywoman
Catherine Nolan, Stacey Eliuk,
President, Queens County Young
Democrats, NYC Public Advocate
Letitia James.
MEDIA ADVISORY
Middle Village Preparatory Charter School
will conduct its monthly Board of Trustees Meeting
on Wednesday, December 20th.
Details are as follows:
WHO: Middle Village Preparatory Charter School
WHAT: Monthly Board of Trustees Meeting
WHEN: Wednesday, December
20, 20 17
TIME: 6:00 PM
WHERE: Multi-Purpose Room at Middle Village Prep
Door # 10
68-02 Metropolitan Avenue
Middle Village, NY 11379
All meetings of the Trustees and all committees and subcommittees
are conducted with the New York Open Meetings Law
(N.Y. Public Officers Law §§ 100-111).
