4 THE QUEENS COURIER • OCTOBER 28, 2021 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Toddler, 2,
fatally struck
by driver in
Bayside
BY ROBERT POZARYCKI
rpozarycki@schnepsmedia.com
@robbpoz
A 2-year-old girl died Sunday night
when she was struck by a driver aft er
wandering away from her mother on
a Queens street in a horrifi c collision
in front of their home, police
reported.
Law enforcement sources said the
tragedy occurred at about 10:09 p.m.
on Oct. 24 in front of a home on 216th
Street off 38th Avenue in Bayside.
According to law enforcement sources,
the child’s 23-year-old mother
brought her daughter, Leilani Rosales,
outside a 2021 Nissan Rogue, operated
by a 23-year-old man, and was removing
packages from the rear when the
toddler wandered to the frontside of
the SUV.
Seconds later, cops said, the driver
moved the vehicle forward while
attempting to leave the location and
struck Rosales. Th e driver stopped his
vehicle and remained at the scene.
Offi cers from the 111th Precinct,
in responding to a report about the
vehicle collision, found Rosales on the
pavement with severe head trauma.
EMS rushed her to Flushing Hospital,
where she was pronounced dead.
Police have not charged the driver
with any wrongdoing at this time.
Th e case is now in the hands of the
NYPD Collision Investigation Squad
for further examination, police said.
File photo/Lloyd Mitchell
Photo courtesy of the Queens borough president’s offi ce
(From left to right) NYC DOT Queens Borough Commissioner Nicole Garcia, NYC DEP Borough Coordinator Karen Ellis, Councilman I. Daneek Miller,
Borough President Donovan Richards and state Assemblywoman Alicia Hyndman.
Residents voice quality-of-life
issues during Jamaica town hall
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
As part of an eff ort to address issues
impacting the residents of southeast
Queens, Borough President Donovan
Richards hosted a regional town hall
meeting in Jamaica on Tuesday, Oct. 19,
with representatives from city agencies.
Th e town hall was held at the Milton
G. Bassin Performing Arts Center at York
College, located at 94-45 Guy R. Brewer
Blvd., with local elected offi cials and representatives
from community boards who
gathered feedback on issues from the
community.
Representatives from the NYPD,
Department of Housing, Department of
Sanitation, Department of Transportation.
Department of Environmental Protection,
Department of Parks, Federal Emergency
Management Assistance (FEMA) and
Department of Small Business Services met
with residents to address their concerns.
During the meeting, the representatives
were informed of illegal dumping of
trash in certain areas, abandoned vehicles
on the streets, infrastructure upgrades at
parks, pedestrian safety and the Jamaica
busway system, and fl ooding in parts of
southeast Queens from the remnants of
Hurricane Ida in September.
Springfi eld Gardens resident Keisha
McGregor, whose basement was fl ooded
during the tropical storm, said there is no
sewer or drainage system on her block of
224th Street, where her neighbors experience
fl ooding during a regular rainfall.
“It’s been like that for 40 years. We’ve
called 311 and nothing has been done.
My neighbor just bought his house fi ve
months ago, and when it rains, his home
is fl ooded,” McGregor said. “We have a
belly in the street. When the rain falls,
it stays like a lake and takes a while
to recede. When Superstorm Sandy hit,
everyone was fl ooded and even with Ida,
every street was fl ooded.”
According to McGregor, her basement
is fi lled with mold. She paid out-of-pocket
to clean up her basement following
Tropical Storm Ida, and is hoping the
city will address the sewage problem in
the area.
In response to another residents’ question
regarding fl ooding on the Snake
Road section of Brookville Boulevard,
Richards said there will be a $62 million
project to begin work on phase 2 of
Brookville Triangle next year.
According to Richards, there are some
complications to raise the level of Snake
Road due to its location and three levels
of jurisdiction that includes the city, state
and federal government — which can be
a slow and deliberate process.
“When you think of bureaucracy, that
road is the greatest example of bureaucracy.
Under the Trump administration, it
was hard to get anyone at the table, and it
is something we can examine again under
the Biden administration,” Richards said.
“Th e city can’t just go in and do whatever
they want to do to the road.”
Councilwoman Selvena Brooks-Powers,
who represents the 31st Council District,
is working with her colleagues to send a
joint letter to Gov. Kathy Hochul to invest
in elevating Snake Road.
“Th is is a personal dynamic for me,
going down Snake Road as a child and
seeing how it’s been through the years, we
all agree it needs to be elevated,” Brooks-
Powers said.
When it comes to illegal dumping of
trash in the community, a sanitation representative
said their enforcement team
is conducting stakeouts and a prolonged
investigation at chronic dumping sites
citywide.
In southeast Queens, Richards is
encouraging residents to report those sites
as they’re working on an initiative to purchase
and install cameras in locations to
catch and prosecute dumpers, he said.
In regards to transportation issues, residents
discussed placing a speed bump by
P.S. 48 at 157th Street, which is feasible
and can only be done during the warm
weather months.
As the MTA is planning to redesign the
bus routes in Jamaica, Richards said the
plan is currently on pause due to the pandemic.
Th e transit authority will return
next year with revisions to the plan.
Th e redesigning of the bus routes does
not help the neighborhood, a resident
said.
“Th e transit authority has the plans
back on the table and they’re looking to
cut the runs and merge the lines,” the resident
said. “Th ey need to add buses to
the routes, so everyone can get the buses
when they need to get to work.”
Following the meeting, residents say
they hope the city agencies follow through
with their concerns about the quality-oflife
issues in the communities.
Senator James Sanders Jr., who commended
the borough president for organizing
the event, cited the need for a functioning
vocational school, creating jobs to
tackle crime, and preparing for the next
big storm.
“Now is the time to dream big and deal
with the problems in southeast Queens. If
you dream small, you get little progress.
But if you dream big, you will make big
progress,” Sanders said.
Richards is encouraging residents to
stay connected with the borough president’s
offi ce, and to attend community
boards and civic association meetings
to raise awareness about the issues in the
community.
“Th e more organized we are, the more
we can hold agencies accountable, and
also hold elected offi cials accountable
because we are accountable to you as
well,” Richards said.
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