8 The Courier sun • may 21, 2015 for breaking news visit www.couriersun.com BROOKVILLE PARK IN ROSEDALE RECEIVES IMPROVED PEDESTRIAN SAFETY MEASURES BY ANGELA MATUA [email protected] @AngelaMatua After years of requesting changes with the Department of Transportation (DOT), Rosedale Little League welcomed last week new traffic safety devices installed on 147th Avenue between their game fields in Brookville Park. Borough President Melinda Katz, the Department of Transportation and families gathered as a pedestrian crossing signal, crosswalk and lane markings were unveiled in Rosedale on Wednesday, May 13. “There was a clear need to take action for the kids, seniors and families of Rosedale here in Brookville Park,” Katz said. “This is an example of what results when a community continues to press and doesn’t give up, and when government works together.” The DOT previously denied in 2010 requests to install these safety measures, but the Rosedale Little League, community leaders and families persisted in pressing the agency for improvements. The heavily trafficked area is prone to vehicles traveling above the speed limit. Cars travel more than 1,500 feet on Brookville Boulevard before encountering a traffic signal at 230th Place. The new signal will repeatedly flash yellow until a button is pressed by a pedestrian seeking to cross the street. The signal will turn red to stop cars and allow pedestrians to cross. The area was the scene of an April 2013 accident in which Alec Rosedale residents welcomed new pedestrian safety measures in Brookville Park. McFarlane, a then-7-year-old Rosedale Little League player, was struck by a car. McFarlane survived but needed four staples in his head; he has recovered and continues to play for Rosedale Little League. The accident spurred families and community leaders to reach out to the DOT again and the agency has also completed multiple studies on Brookville Boulevard which is located on the east side of Brookville Park between 142nd and 147th avenues. Photo courtesy of Office of Queens Borough President Melinda Katz These studies have led to the approval of new crossing signals on Brookville Boulevard at 143rd, 144th and Newhall Avenue, which are expected to be installed by the end of June. Rosedale Little League President Bernie Brown said the community began calling the DOT to request safety measures 10 years ago. The agency repeatedly denied their requests, and Brown said this was because they conducted traffic studies during the off-season and did not experience the constant traffic and dangerous conditions that the community witnessed. “I’m excited, but it’s also a process because people are still running the red light because either they’re not used to it or they don’t care,” Brown said. “It’s the right thing for us to have there and it’s not a DOT issue at this point. It’s a human being issue. They have to take the time to slow down and say, ‘I have to stop. Five minutes for me to get home is not worth it to take somebody’s life.’” More questions on proposed Rochdale Village rehab center BY ANGELA MATUA [email protected] @AngelaMatua Frustrations boiled over in Rochdale Village on May 14 as residents couldn’t get any answers about a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center that may be relocating to the community. Representatives from the Faith Mission Crisis Center and the Holy Unity Baptist Church, along with Assemblywoman Vivian Cook, were invited to the special forum to explain the proposal, but failed to attend. State Sen. James Sanders Jr. was the lone scheduled speaker to appear at the housing cooperative’s grand ballroom on May 14. Sanders said he appreciates the work the rehabilitation center is doing but that “we are going to have to draw the line on this one.” The crisis center is currently located at 114-40 Van Wyck Expwy. and is looking at possibly moving to the Holy Unity Baptist Church at 167- 10 137th Ave. The relocated center would be a 30-day, short-term residential program with 60 beds, according to Rochdale Village Community Relations Committee member Hettie Powell. Representatives from the crisis center recently conducted a walk-through of the church facilities but have not been in touch with the church since then, according to Powell. According to Community Relations Committee Co-Chair Talib Bey, a director of the Faith Mission Crisis Center was scheduled to attend the event but was told by his board members not to. Attendees lined up to express their anger over this proposed rehabilitation center and the disorganization on the part of the committee board. Resident Rodney Reid said the board should have met with the directors of Faith Mission Crisis Center before coming to the community. He was unhappy with the way the community was informed about this crisis center, he said. “I got this information from social media on a Facebook page,” Reid said. “It wasn’t like we got this information from our public officials that there was a possibility that this was coming into play, so I think it’s disingenuous to say that we were informed by our public official.” Lisa Hamlin, one of the younger residents to attend the meeting, said the church should be converted to a space for the children in the community. “This community needs something other than Popeyes or another church. Churches are necessary but we need something to bring up the community,” Hamlin said. “We need something in the community for the younger children to do something other than go to jail, get arrested, possibly get shot.” Maurice Lacey, executive director of Faith Mission Crisis Center, told The Courier in a phone interview that he was invited to the meeting at 10 p.m. the night before the meeting. He claimed he also heard that the church was negotiating a sale with another organization. “There are no contracts signed,” Lacey said. “From my understanding, another organization is getting the property.” He said the entire situation was “sad” and poorly planned by the organizers. At the end of the meeting, Powell told residents that she had a conversation with Bishop Richard Moore of Holy Unity on May 13, and that Moore was under the impression the center was only an alcohol rehabilitation center. Moore allegedly is in the process of working out a deal with another church to move in and share the services with the congregation that already exists there. The Courier reached out to the church both through phone and email for comment, but neither was in service. “There are no contracts signed. from my understanding, another organization is gett ing the property.” Maurice Lacey
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