FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM MARCH 22, 2018 • THE QUEENS COURIER 3
Private Sunnyside
playground becomes
city park
A private lot in Sunnyside will soon be purchased by
the city to create a public park for Queens residents.
City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer announced in
a press conference on March 19 that the site at 50-02
39th Ave. will be purchased for $3 million aft er going
through a rezoning process to turn it into public parkland.
Th e Sunnyside Gardens property was previously
used as an outdoor nursery and playground, one of the
few Depression Era play areas left in the city. Th e property
was sold in 2007 aft er it became a part of the historic
district.
For years, residents have been calling on the city to
buy back the land and turn it into a park. It’s currently
fenced off and not accessible.
“Th e Phipps property holds an important place
in Sunnyside history, but for too long the space
has been overlooked and inaccessible,” said Queens
Parks Commissioner Dorothy Lewandowski. “Parks
is thrilled to move forward on purchasing and restoring
this parcel, and give it back to the community for
their enjoyment. With the support from our dedicated
elected offi cials, and a little extra TLC, we can create
a viable public space.”
In 2013, property owner Harry Otterman proposed
relocating the Aluminaire House – an all-aluminum,
historic home built in 1931 for a New York City exhibition
– to the current site. In addition, a total of eight
apartment buildings would be constructed around the
house.
Community Board 2 and the city’s Historic Districts
Council both shot down the plan. Recently, the City
Planning Commission certifi ed the Unifi ed Land Use
Review Procedure (ULURP) application and the rezoning
will go before Community Board 2. When the
rezoning is complete, the city will offi cially purchase
the property with money allocated by Van Bramer.
Angela Matua
LIRR outlines plan to
improve on poor service
Aft er a disappointing and record high year of delays
and cancellations, the Long Island Rail Road issued
on Monday a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP)
to the MTA Board detailing how they plan to prevent
the signifi cant and numerous delays and cancellations
experienced in 2017.
Th e LIRR listed 60 actions which focus on three
overarching goals: service reliability, seasonal preparedness
and customer communications.
Th e service reliability plan focuses on targeting
investments that will deliver the most improvements
such as improving fl eet reliability and maintaining and
upgrading critical infrastructure, according to the PIP.
Th is plan includes improving tracks systemwide and
improving the ties at Queens high-speed crossovers.
Th e seasonal preparedness plan mentions improving
recoverability from weather-related service disruptions
and preventing weather-related delays with preparation.
Th e plan indicates specifi c spring, summer,
autumn and winter adjustments and developments,
while also listing three year-round additions such as
signal system grounding, signal personnel and overnight
track emergency crews, and drainage systems.
LIRR’s third primary goal is improving customer
communications, which they plan on doing by providing
customers with more timely, accurate and easily
accessible information during service disruptions. Th is
includes increasing coverage, visibility, branding and
tools for customer ambassadors and ushers at Penn
Station, Jamaica and Atlantic Terminal.
Madeline Nelson
Photo via Pixabay/Inset courtesy of NYPD
Serial purse snatcher targets
women in northeast Queens
BY ROBERT POZARYCKI
rpozarycki@qns.com / @robbpoz
Police released images on Monday
of a man allegedly responsible for
a series of purse snatchings across
northeast Queens.
Law enforcement sources said the
perpetrator approached each victim
from behind on the street and
forcibly removed their handbags.
On a few instances, he was observed
entering a waiting sedan — operated
by an unknown driver — that
fl ed the scene. Most of the robberies
occurred during aft ernoon or evening
hours.
According to authorities, the
fi rst robbery occurred at 8:45 p.m.
on Dec. 16, 2017, when the crook
attacked a 46-year-old woman in
the area of Oak Avenue and Parsons
Boulevard in Flushing. He grabbed
the woman by the neck and removed
her handbag, which contained her
wallet and cellphone. Th e victim was
not injured.
Five days later, at 6:50 p.m. on
Dec. 21, the bandit returned to
Flushing and robbed a 26-year-old
woman in the vicinity of Burling
Street and Oak Avenue. Police said
that he grabbed the woman’s purse
from off her arm; the bag contained
her wallet and personal aff ects. No
injuries were reported.
Detectives said the robber waited
until aft er the new year before
striking again in Flushing. At 11:50
p.m. on Jan. 11, authorities stated,
the suspect grabbed a 39-year-old
woman by the neck at the corner of
Booth Memorial Avenue and 150th
Street and removed her purse, which
contained her wallet and personal
eff ects. Th e woman was not injured.
Twelve days later, at 4:50 p.m. on
Jan. 23, law enforcement sources
said, the crook returned to the same
location and snatched a purse off the
arm of a 44-year-old woman, then
fl ed the scene. Th e bag contained
the victim’s phone and various personal
items.
Police said the bandit traveled to
Little Neck for his next robbery,
which occurred at 6:20 p.m. on Jan.
25 at the corner of Manor Road and
East Drive. Th e suspect encountered
the 56-year-old woman and yanked
her purse off her arm.
Law enforcement sources said the
suspect then visited Fresh Meadows
at 6 p.m. on Feb. 15 and robbed a
50-year-old woman in the area of
181st Street and Union Turnpike.
Th e suspect forcibly removed the
victim’s purse off her arm.
Finally, at 4:45 p.m. on March 5, the
crook robbed a 59-year-old woman
in the vicinity of 41st Avenue and
College Point Boulevard in Flushing.
Police said the bandit, while forcibly
removing the victim’s purse, caused
the woman to fall to the ground. He
was last seen heading on foot westbound
along 41st Road. Th e victim
was taken to NewYork-Presbyterian
Queens hospital for treatment of
cuts and bruises.
A security camera near the scene
captured the suspect’s image as he
walked through the area.
Police described the purse snatcher
as a black man between 20 and 30
years of age, standing about 6 feet 1
inch tall and weighing 180 pounds.
He was last seen wearing a gray
baseball cap, a black hooded sweatshirt,
a red jacket and black pants.
Anyone with information regarding
the pattern or the suspect’s
whereabouts is urged to call Crime
Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (for
Spanish, dial 888-57-PISTA), visit
nypdcrimestoppers.com or send a
text message to 274637 (CRIMES),
then enter TIP577. All calls and
messages are kept confi dential.
The suspect wanted for a series of northeast Queens purse snatchings.
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