34 The Queens Courier • NOVEMBER 15, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com
34 THE QUEENS COURIER • NOVEMBER 8, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
sun
THE QUEENS
editorial
WWW.COURIERSUN.COM
PUBLISHER & EDITOR
CO-PUBLISHER
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
ART DIRECTOR
SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER
STAFF REPORTERS
CONTRIBUTING REPORTERS
PRODUCTION MANAGER
INSIDE SALES MANAGER
CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
PRESIDENT & CEO
VICE PRESIDENT
VICTORIA SCHNEPS-YUNIS
JOSHUA A. SCHNEPS
BOB BRENNAN
ROBERT POZARYCKI
NIRMAL SINGH
EMILY DAVENPORT
JENNA BAGCAL, MARK HALLUM, KATRINA MEDOFF,
CARLOTTA MOHAMED, ALEJANDRA O'CONNELL-DOMENECH,
BILL PARRY, NAEISHA ROSE
CLIFF KASDEN, SAMANTHA SOHMER, ELIZABETH ALONI
DEBORAH CUSICK
CELESTE ALAMIN
MARIA VALENCIA
VICTORIA SCHNEPS-YUNIS
JOSHUA A. SCHNEPS
Schneps Communications, 38-15 Bell Blvd., Bayside, NY 11361
718-224-5863 • Fax 718-224-5441
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STORY: Howard Beach’s Ragtime supermarket closes up shop after 53
years of business
SUMMARY: Ragtime Gourmet Supermarket in Howard Beach closed
its doors for good recently.
REACH: 23,441 people reached (as of 11/12/18)
Delivering a big deal to Queens
Th e ink was barely dry on the agreement between Amazon, the city and
state on creating part of the retail giant’s second headquarters in Long Island
City when the critics began crying foul.
To be sure, there are plenty of concerns about this multibillion-dollar deal
and its profound impact on Queens. Where do you fi t at least 25,000 new
commuters on the borough’s already overwhelmed public transit lines? What
kind of eff ect will it have on the real estate market?
While all these questions are valid, in our opinion, there’s no way the city
and state could have aff orded to pass this opportunity by.
First, the total number of jobs to be created is quite staggering. Amazon
fi rst said it would create about 25,000 jobs at the LIC headquarters, but
Governor Andrew Cuomo indicated that number could actually be about
40,000 jobs by 2034. Th ese aren’t low-wage jobs, either; Amazon reported the
average salary for each employee at $150,000 a year.
Th e economic activity generated from these new jobs will pump hundreds
of millions of dollars into the city and state. Cuomo estimated that for every
dollar spent by taxpayers on tax incentives to Amazon, the city and state
would reap nine dollars back.
We’re talking billions upon billions of dollars in new revenue for a city and
state always wanting to rebuild its infrastructure — including modernizing
rail lines and creating new transit alternatives — but lacking the necessary
funds to do it. And there should be plenty of funds left over to boost local
schools and help incentivize aff ordable housing development borough-wide.
Th e critics of this plan — namely Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer and
state Senator Michael Gianaris — sounded their distaste for the deal, calling
it a “corporate welfare” giveaway. Th ey also claimed the state and city
were ramming the project through without going through the proper zoning
review process, which requires a litany of public hearings and votes.
We believe in the process, and that process should be followed through.
However, as Cuomo pointed out on Nov. 13, every city and state in the
nation competed for Amazon HQ2 — and every city and state off ered what
it deemed was the best benefi t package possible to lure the giant their way.
Of course, that means tax breaks and incentives, which is nothing new. It’s
par for the course, and not unlike public subsidies for creating a new stadium
for a sports team.
But instead of subsidizing franchises featuring million-dollar ballplayers,
in this Amazon HQ2 deal, Queens gets the promise of thousands of new jobs
and a surge of economic activity.
Next to the 1986 Mets, we can’t think of a bigger win for this borough.
Publisher & E ditor Victoria Schneps-Yunis
Co-Publisher Joshua A. Schneps
Chief Operating Officer Bob Brennan
E ditor-In-Chief Robert Pozarycki
Art Director Nirmal Singh
S ocial Media Manager Emily Davenport
S taff Reporters Katrina Medoff, Ryan Kelly, Angela Matua
Contributing Reporters Cliff Kasden, Samantha Sohmer, Elizabeth Aloni
Production Manager Deborah Cusick
I nside Sales Manager Celeste Alamin
Chief Financial Officer Maria Valencia
President & CEO Victoria Schneps-Yunis
Vice President Joshua A. Schneps
Schneps Communications, 38-15 Bell Blvd., Bayside, NY 11361
718-224-5863 • Fax 718-224-5441
www.qns.com
editorial e-mail: editorial@qns.com
for advertising e-mail: ads@qns.com
Entire Contents Copyright 2017 by The Courier Sun
All letters sent to THE COURIER SUN should be brief and are subject to condensing. Writers should
include a full address and home and office telephone numbers, where available, as well as affiliation,
indicating special interest. Anonymous letters are not printed. Name withheld on request.
No such ad or any part thereof may be reproduced without prior permission of THE COURIER SUN. The
publishers will not be responsible for any error in advertising beyond the cost of the space occupied by
the error. Errors must be reported to THE COURIER SUN within five days of publication. Ad position
cannot be guaranteed unless paid prior to publication.
VIctoria Media Services assumes no liability for the or reply to any ads. The advertiser assumes
all liability for the content of and all replies. The advertiser agrees to hold The Courier SUN and its
employees harmless from all cost, expenses, liabilities, and damages resulting from or caused by the
publication or recording placed by the advertiser or any reply to any such advertisement.
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