FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM JULY 26, 2018 • KIDS & EDUCATION • THE QUEENS COURIER 29
kids & education
Photo courtesy of the offi ce of Councilman Costa Constantanides
Newly renovated basketball court at Astoria
Houses makes its long-awaited debut
BY JENNA BAGCAL
jbagcal@qns.com/ @jenna_bagcal
Councilman Costa Constantinides
unveiled the newly renovated basketball
court at the Astoria Houses on July 20.
Th e councilman, along with members
of the Astoria Houses Tenant Association,
the New York City Housing Authority,
(NYCHA) Urban Upbound and HANAC
Cornerstone gathered at Astoria Houses
(4-25 Astoria Blvd.) to showcase the renovations
made to the complex’s basketball
court.
Improvements to the Astoria court
included new asphalt, newly painted shot
lines and lanes, steel benches, a new water
fountain, an electronic scoreboard and a
shot clock.
“Th is beautiful, state-of-the-art basketball
court will provide generations
of Astoria Houses residents with
a safe environment to gather and play,”
Constantinides said. “Th ree years aft er we
fi rst secured funding for this much-needed
refurbishing, I am happy to see this is
a slam dunk for the community.”
Funding for the basketball court came
from the approximately $600,000 that the
councilman has allocated for this crucial
community use.
“It’s been a long time coming. It’s been
a lot of work. It’s been a lot of hands in the
pot, but we have arrived,” said Claudia
Coger, president of the Astoria Houses
Tenant Association. “Th e Council member
has been excellent, that he’s given us
his attention here not just by words but
by deeds. He has stuck to his word. And
we are still going forward. Th ere’s a lot
more to come.”
Astoria Houses is a 2,400-unit NYCHA
apartment complex located in the Hallets
Point Peninsula. Since he was elected
in 2014, Constantinides has been taking
part in broader investments on the
Peninsula, including the reopening of a
boat landing that brought ferry service
back to Astoria aft er more than a century
and new developments that are presenting
more options for aff ordable housing.
In total, $25 million has been secured
over the last few years for investments on
the Peninsula.
In addition to the basketball court, construction
on a multipurpose court will
begin this fall at the Astoria Houses. Th e
councilman has also secured $250,000 in
the Fiscal Year 2019 budget for new lighting
and additional security cameras at the
complex’s community center.
“In the midst of the negative things
happening at NYCHA, I’m glad that we
still have advocates like Ms. Coger and
Councilman Constantinides that somehow
manage to bring a ray of hope to
our young people,” said Bishop Mitchell
Taylor, co-founder and CEO of Urban
Upbound. “Th is newly renovated basketball
court and playground will be a beacon
of positive activities for the young
people in Astoria.”
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