Woodside Herald 5 29 15

To Advertise E-mail [email protected] or call 718-729-3772

FRIDAY, MAY 29, 2015 THE WOODSIDE HERALD PAGE 1

VOL. 82, NO. 22 WOODSIDE, L.I.C., N.Y. FRIDAY, MAY 29, 2015 FREE

SERVING SUNNYSIDE-WOODSIDE AND LONG ISLAND CITY

(continued on page 4)

BEAUTIFYINGTAKING THE SHOW THE NEIGHBORHOOD

New York City Council Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer andmembers of Sunnyside Shines Business Improvement came together toinstall flower baskets along commercial corridors in Sunnyside andWoodside. The flowers will be maintained and watered throughout thespring, summer and fall. Over 45 hanging flower baskets now help beautifythe neighborhood along Queens Boulevard and Greenpoint Avenue.

Council Member Van Bramer is joined by Peter Conti, Ownersof Avalon Florist, Rachel Thieme, Executive Director ofSunnyside Shines BID, Czarinna Andres, Community Board 2Member and owner of Bing’s Hallmark, and David Goldbergalong with team members from Atlantic Maintenance.

ON THE ROADby Patricia Dorfman

Financial expert VP BeckyBarker wisely suggested to Presi-dent Rigo Cardoso to make sure wedo what she and the much-missedLuke Adams had done for years,host a table the Queens Chamber ofCommerce Annual Biz Expo. SoBecky, VP’s Mortgage brokerManny Gomez, Real Estate BrokerDorothy Morehead, member flo-

rist Greg Psitos and I hit the roadMay 13th for Citi Field. QueensChamber COO Sophia Ganosis,with whom we always partner forour Biz Card Exchanges (two com-ing up this summer), welcomed uswith open arms. Biz Expo’s amaz-ing live music is a reason to go justfor fun and almost as exciting asnetworking and free parking.

Becky Barker, Mrs. Met, Manny Gomez

SEE PAGE 8


FRIDAY, MAY 29, 2015THE WOODSIDE HERALDPAGE 2

43-11 Greenpoint Ave., Sunnyside, NY 11104Telephone (718) 729-3772

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Crystal Wolfe, Mary Caulfield, Peter A. Ross, Rob MacKay

CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS AND PHOTOGRAPHERSJoe Gurrado, Robert Flanagan

Marlene Sabba ............................................................... Publisher

Sherilyn Jo Sabba ................................................................. Editor

Nanny/BabysitterLooking For Work

10 Years ExperienceBilingual (Portuguese) w/ Drivers License and Car

Full/part Time AvailabilitiesCall Suellen

(203) 895-3115

Weekday, Eveningand Saturday

Hours byAppointment

LASER SURGERY

AVAILABLE FOR PAINFUL SOFT TISSUE

CONDITIONS – DECREASED PAIN

& HEALING TIME

E. P. F.PROCEDURE FOR PAINFUL HEEL SPURS

USING A TINY ENDOSCOPE LENS

INSERTED TO CORRECT THE CONDITION.

– MANY INSURANCES ACCEPTED –

MAJOR MEDICAL PLANS:

BLUE SHIELD, BLUE CROSS, EMPIRE PLAN, AMALGAMATED, UNITED HEALTH

CARE, OXFORD FREEDOM PLAN, 32BJ, MDNY, MEDICARE (SURGICAL)

43-15 46TH ST.SUNNYSIDE, N.Y.718-729-2117

NEW

PODIATRY MEDICAL AND SURGICAL SERVICES

DR. DAVID GOLDHABER, DABAFSBOARD CERTIFIED IN FOOT SURGERY

– IN-OFFICE MEDICAL AND SURGICAL TREATMENT –• BUNIONS • HAMMERTOES • CORNS • INGROWN TOE NAILS • WARTS

• ULCERS • HEEL & ARCH PAIN • ANKLE SPRAINS • FRACTURES

• SPORTS INJURIES • CHILDREN’S FEET • DIABETIC FOOT CARE

• GOUT • ARTHRITIS • SECOND OPINIONS • HOUSE CALLS

NEW

CHAMBERWEEKLY

VALUABLE COMMUNITY ASSET

On May 18th, New YorkCity Council Majority LeaderJimmy Van Bramer presented aNYC Neighborhood Library

Award bestowed by the StavrosNiarchos Foundation and theCharles H. Revson Foundationto the Sunnyside Library. The

local branch received a $10,000prize for being nominated as avaluable community asset bylocal residents.

Council Member Van Bramer is joined by Bridget Quinn-Carey, Interim President and CEO of the Queens Library,and Joe Schiavone, Branch manager for Sunnyside Library.



BREAKINGGROUND

ON NEW DEVELOPMENTSby Crystal Wolfe


Manhattan Luxury in Queens-

A large residential apartment bringing“Manhattan-style luxury” to Sunnyside ishitting the market. Located at 41-18 43rdStreet, reports say each unit will have itsown washer and dryer, Italian kitchens withstainless steel appliances, polished marbleand porcelain flooring and a Jacuzzi. Therooftop will be a lounging area for its resi-dents. Some apartments will have a balconyand terrace. It has 14 one-bedroom rentalunits and 24 2-bedroom units with 19 park-ing spaces costing between $200 and $250.Prices will be in the range of $1,900 for aone-bedroom with 650 sq feet and $3,000for a two-bedroom at 900 sq feet. Thisbuilding is also much taller than the other 6-story buildings in the area at 9-stories. Thedevelopment has a contemporary concreteand glass façade that brings a modern-styleluxury to the elegant brown stones sur-rounding it.

King of Queens Blvd -AB Cabstone bought 47-16 to 47-24

Greenpoint Avenue last October has filedplans with the Department of Buildings tobuild a four-story building with varied use.These plans will include the demolition ofthe King Boulevard building, Azteca Restau-rant, SSS video and the upstairs apartments.

The developer of the Greenpoint Av-enue site which was once home to KingBoulevard and several local stores will in-clude approximately 6,400 sq ft of groundfloor retail stores as well as communityfacility space, such as business offices onthe second floor. The third and fourth floorswill both have five units. The total residen-tial apartment space is 7,800 square feet.The ground-breaking for the new buildingto include offices, retail stores and apart-ments will be at the end of the summer, withconstruction taking about 18-months.

Luxury Apartments at aCar Wash? -

The owners of what is currently a largecar wash facility on Queens Blvd site arelooking to develop the property at 38-15Queens Blvd. The issue is that it is currentlyzoned for manufacturing. But the site is nearto the Sunnyside district which was rezonedin 2011 allowing it for substantial residen-tial development. The owners will have totake this to the Community Board 2, theBorough President’s office Melinda Katz,the City Planning Commission and get aCity Council vote to go ahead with theirplans of development.

LONG ISLAND CITY HOSTING4TH OF JULY FIREWORKS

“After years of advocating tirelessly alongside Mayor de Blasio I am proud to announcewe are bringing the Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks to Long Island City and all of Queens!Macy’s will stage the event right in Long Island City giving millions of Queens residentsspectacular views at variety of locations along the East River. This event will not only giveour local small businesses a boost but it will draw attention to all we have to offer here inLong Island City.” – said Council Member Van Bramer.



Manny was there at 7AM to setup the new banner with updatedlogo, and the rest of us arrived at 9.The amazing Gomez brought sand-

wiches, which was nice, becausethe hotdog I bought for $6 was notfilling enough. It was nice to bragabout our bi-lingual president, RigoCardoso or Pronto Car Service,just reelected, and it was goodManny was there as many attend-ees wanted to chat in Spanish.Dorothy has the luck of the Irish,and won a $100 gift certificatefrom Astoria Bank. We met Dori


RACING TO ENDHOMELESSNESS

by Crystal Wolfe

According to the website forthe Coalition of the Homeless, to-night in New York City approxi-mately 60, 607 people will be sleep-ing in a homeless shelter. Thisincludes 14,245 homeless familieswith 24,704 homeless children.Each night thousands ofunsheltered homeless people sleepon NYC streets, in the subwaysystem, and in other public spaces.There is no accurate measurementof NYC’s unsheltered homelesspopulation, and recent City sur-veys significantly underestimatethe number.

A one-mile run/walk marathonto raise money for the homeless willtake place this Sunday, May 31st.The cost of adults to participate is$10 (for pre-registration or $15 forregistration on the day of) and thecost of children (15 and under) is$5. All registered participants willreceive a Sunnyside Mile T-shirt atthe event while supplies last. Peoplecan pre-register at raceroster.com.All registered participants willchoose between participating in thecompetitive run or the fun walk.100% of the proceeds will go to theCoalition of the Homeless.

(continued from front page)

TAKING THESHOW ONTHE ROAD

Capace of NY State Comptroller’soffice who offered to come to May27 Tangra Luncheon try to give outover 7 million bucks the state hasunclaimed for 11104, and by thetime you read this, we hope she has!

The hall was packed as usual,with thousands of businesspeoplecoming through. We handed outthe Woodside Herald, and newflyers, “Shop, Dine and Sight SeeSunnyside, as a change fromLuke’s old, “Move your home orbusiness to Sunnyside” campaign,a message we don’t seem to needto emphasize these days!


The wonderful Sophia Ganosis in the middle made it all happen.

Sunnyside Florist BIllPsitos’ chip of the old blockson Greg got lot of love forhis floral designs.



HONORING HEROIC NYPD OFFICERS

On May 27th, Majority LeaderJimmy Van Bramer and his col-leagues honored the bravery andcourage of four officers of the 108thPolice Precinct at the New YorkCity Council’s monthly StatedMeeting at City Hall. CouncilMember Van Bramer presented aProclamation on behalf of the NewYork City Council to DetectiveMeghan Kinsella, Detective StevenStefanakos, Detective BrianHirsch, and Police Officer RichardNeumann in recognition of rescu-ing a woman who was threateningto jump off the Kosciusko Bridgeearlier this year.

“Officers of the NYPD lay theirlives on the line every single day toprotect the residents of our great

City,” said Council Member VanBramer. “It is important that ourCity recognize the selfless courageof the great men and women of the108th Police Precinct. Their excep-tional ability to personally connectwith this New Yorker allowed themto save her life. Because of theseofficers, a family remains wholeand will have the opportunity toshare many more experiences to-gether. We are grateful of theseofficers’ bravery, and honor theircommitment toward keeping theresidents of western Queens safe.”

On April 6th, a call to 9-1-1reported a woman preparing tojump from the Kosciusko Bridgeinto the Newtown Creek. Detec-tives Stefanakos and Kinsella

quickly responded and spotted asuicidal woman balancing on theoutside edge of the bridge. De-tective Stefanakos learned thewoman had two children whodepended on her. The officersshared personal details abouttheir own experiences, chal-lenges and triumphs within theirfamilies. It was the personal con-nection that allowed the respond-ing officers to connect with thewoman. After more than twohours, along with the support ofPolice Officer Neumann and De-tective Hirsh, DetectiveStefanakos and DetectiveKinsella were able to pull thewoman to safety and reconnecther with her family.

Council Member Van Bramer is joined by Public Advocate Letitia James, Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, Council Members Rosie Mendez, Margaret Chin, Paul Vallone, and Jumaane Williams, CaptainJohn Travaglia, Detective Meghan Kinsella, Detective Steven Stefanakos, Detective Brian Hirsch, PoliceOfficer Richard Neumann, officers from the 108th Police Precinct and the Emergency Service Unit.



As always, we wanted ev-eryone to see our genuinelyunique reasons to shop and dinehere and raffles helped. TimChen at Quaint Restaurant’sback garden is now open onSkillman and that gift certifi-cate was a hit. New restaurantBlu Orchid also donated, andwe advised the winner to try theCharred Edamame, Corn Soup,and Blue Mojitos.

Jorge Calle of Flowers byGeorgie presented huge, elegantbouquet, all in tones of coral, fitfor a Vogue cover. SunnysideFlorist Greg Psitos brought hiswitty new designs, popular withhipsters as well the rest of us,and they were showstoppers

TAKING THESHOW ONTHE ROAD

(continued from page 4) with people trying to buy themoff the table. Ron Spinelli ofCon Ed said happily, “Wow, Inever win anything!” as histicket was drawn for the gener-ous Butcher Block gift basket,which actually included deli-cious items just flown in fromIreland. Ron said he intends tobe a regular at our ShowcaseLuncheons and that Con Ed stillhas small biz money to give outto fund changing store lightingto save us money.

Our table theme was“Sunnyside History,” andmany, including three nostal-gic boxing fans, enjoyeddinging the original SunnysideGarden arena-boxing bell. Ex-cellent attorneys Marc Leavittand Ira Greenberg kindly loanedhistoric photographs ofSunnyside and a framedSunnysideopoly board.

Some stopped to talk aboutour SAVENYC sign to boost

the SBJSA, the Small Busi-ness Jobs Survival Act bill, forwhich the Chamber has for-mally asked Councilman /Ma-jority Leader Jimmy VanBramer to help get passed.Losing one’s small businesslocation was on many minds,as there were attendees wor-ried about getting displaced inQueens’ rising commercial realestate turnovers.

Becky and Manny with theirgift of gab were excellent am-bassadors, and a few people com-mented, “Yours is the best table!”and took photos of the array ofitems. But mainly, we broughtour genuine camaraderie fromour “Small Town in the Big City,”and met old friends and madenew ones. Local businesspeoplewith showmanship: You’re onnext! A table theme of our uniquedrinking establishments is inplanning: “Small Town. Big City.Best Bars.”



Macy’s and New York City Mayor Billde Blasio announced that on Saturday, July4th, the 39th annual Macy’s 4th of JulyFireworks® will rumble to life over NewYork City, igniting the skyline over the EastRiver with the nation’s largest Indepen-dence Day pyrotechnic display. This year,extending to two locations, the show willbegin at approximately 9:20 PM and dazzlethe shorelines of Manhattan, Queens andBrooklyn with an unparalleled spectacle ofcolor, light and sound set to commemoratethe holiday with a very big bang!

America’s most explosive party will takeplace from two locations on the East Riverin midtown and within the South StreetSeaport historic district. Brave, the theme ofthis year’s show, will fire more than 40,000pyrotechnic shells during a 25-minute syn-chronized display. Designed in collabora-tion with PyroSpectaculars by Souza, theshow will be fired from four barges posi-tioned between 23rd and 37th Streets inMidtown and from one double-barge posi-tioned below the Brooklyn Bridge.

“Last year, we brought Macy’s incred-ible fireworks back to the East River – andthis year, with barges up and down the river,even more New Yorkers will be able to takepart,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “This cel-ebration will light up the sky for millions inQueens, Brooklyn, and Manhattan. There’sno question: this will be a dynamite 4th ofJuly for New Yorkers across the city.”

“Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks are thenation’s premiere Independence Day cel-ebration and we are thrilled to once againbring the City of New York a front rowview to this one-of-a-kind nationwidespectacle,” said Amy Kule, Executive

(continued from page 2)

LONG ISLAND CITY HOSTING4TH OF JULY FIREWORKS

The event starting line is in front of theLou Lodati Park and 43rd Street at 10 amwhere elected officials such as Council Mem-ber Jimmy Van Bramer who has already pre-registered and who is a dedicated advocatefor the homeless, are invited to speak. Par-ticipants will then follow Barnett Avenuethrough to 50th Street before finishing atSkillman Ave on 44th Street. The roads willbe closed for the event.

10:30 am is the scheduled time for theAdult Competitive race to start. 10:45 am isthe scheduled time for the Youth Competi-tive race to start. 11 am is the scheduled timefor the Fun Walk to begin. In the competitiverace, medals will be awarded to the top 3females and the top 3 males as well as the top3 females and top 3 male youths in eachcategory. The medal ceremony will be around11:30 am near the finish line. Timing ser-vices will be available.

Many Sunnyside and Woodside bars andrestaurants will be offering special menuitems that day to participants of the marathonwearing the Sunnyside Mile T-shirts. LeonorWhite, one of the main organizers of theevent said, “I think that this is a great way tobring the community together. I also thinkthat homelessness is an ever growing prob-lem in NYC especially among minors and Iam hoping to raise awareness through thecharity run.”

Families comprise nearly four-fifths ofthe homeless shelter population here. Re-

RACING TO ENDHOMELESSNESS

SIDEWALK SALESaturday, June 6th 9a-4p

BERKELEY TOWERS52-30 39th Drive, Woodside(Between 52nd & 54th Street)

Various Items Including Antiques, Comics,

Baseball Cards, Records and more…

(Rain Date, Sunday June 7th)

Producer of Macy’s 4th of July Fire-works. “With two locations, firing 1,600shells per minute, this year’s show willcover a large stretch of the City’s famedskyline with incredibly vibrant color andfantastic effects.”

“Once again the Macy’s 4th of JulyFireworks spectacular will light up theEast River skyline!” said Council Major-ity Leader Jimmy Van Bramer. “I haveadvocated tirelessly for years alongsideMayor de Blasio to bring the fireworksback to the borough of Queens. Today weare delivering on our promise and bring-ing borough residents an opportunity toenjoy one of our nation’s most spectacu-lar events. Residents from Hunters Pointin Long Island City and all of westernQueens will rejoice welcoming thousandsinto their neighborhoods to celebrate.Staging the fireworks along the East Riverwill give our local small businesses aboost and draw attention to all we have tooffer here in Long Island City. I want tothank Mayor de Blasio and Macy’s forhelping us keep this promise and makingthis day a reality.” Revelers enjoying theshow are encouraged to enjoy the full explo-sive experience by tuning in to radio station1010WINS-AM to hear the musical score towhich the show is choreographed.

Independence Day spectators from coast-to-coast can catch all the action by tuning toNBC’s two-hour national broadcast ofMacy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacularbeginning at 8:00 PM ET (check local list-ings). In addition to the pyrotechnic splen-dor, the 4th of July’s most popular entertain-ment special will feature performances fromthe nation’s hottest musical acts.

(continued from page 4) search shows that the primary cause ofhomelessness, particularly among families,is lack of affordable housing. Surveys ofhomeless families have identified the follow-ing major causes of homelessness are: evic-tion; doubled-up or severely overcrowdedhousing; domestic violence; job loss; andhazardous housing conditions. A representa-tive from the Coalition for the Homeless willbe at the marathon to thank participants fortheir support and provide a synopsis of thehousing crisis we’re facing here.

In recent years, homelessness in NewYork City has reached the highest levelssince the Great Depression of the 1930s.Christian Amex, another main organizer ofthe marathon stated, “We’re happy to put onthis event, which will raise funds to helpcombat the increasing epidemic ofhomelessness all across the city.”

Paid AdvertisementLetter/ Op Ed Writers are entitled to their own opinions, but not their own facts. As with any

letter, writers speak only for themselves or their organizations: publication should not be taken asan endorsement of that view by Woodside Herald. The aim is to stimulate discussion, not end it.

Co-Naming For Tony MazzarellaDear Editor,This is a letter to The Members of the Board - Community Board 2

On behalf of the members of V.B.A. Ring 8 NY, we wish to request that CommunityBoard 2 consider the proposal of having Borden Avenue co-named Anthony MazzarellaWay, in honor of our past Treasurer and member of Ring 8, as well as the owner of theWaterfront Crab House, which has been a staple in Long Island City for over 30 years. Mr.Mazzarella, Tony, has always been a hands on member of the community, actively involvedin Community Board 2 and was always the first one to assist and aid in all the endeavorsproposed by Community Board 2 and Ring 8 board. As one of the most generous membersof the community, he also was a contributor of the Veterans Home on Borden Ave, a co-founder of the Patti fund, which through his tenure as co-founder, donated thousands ofdollars for Children with Cancer. There were countless other charities that succeededthrough the efforts of Tony. As a friend for over 32 years, I think it is only befitting to haveBorden Ave changed to Tony Mazzarella Way and it will serve as the ultimate thank youto a great human being, from community board 2 and Ring 8. This letter is endorsed 100percent from Ring 8 Board of Directors and membership on May 19, 2015

Thank you for your consideration in this matter

QUEENS VOCATIONAL & TECHNICALBASEBALL HAS HOPEFUL FUTURE

by Peter Friel

NYC’s PSLA — Public School AthleticLeague — set off the 2015 playoff season forBoy’s Varsity A Division baseball this week.On Tuesday May 19, Queens A North divi-sion champions Queens Vocational & Tech-nical met Robert H Goddard High School ofCommunity Arts and Technology at CoronaPark on field 10.

Goddard’s starting pitcher, BrianCortorreal, made a discrete statementstriking out two of the first three battershe faced. From there, he seemed to be onone, allowing only one hit and strikingout five more leading his team to a com-manding 10-0 victory. The poisedCortorreal didn’t face a Queens Voca-tional team at 100% though as they lostnotable players due to fail offs with thelast report card.

The Queens Vocational team is unusuallyyoung — starting a lot of Freshmen and Sopho-mores this year — creating a lot of room forfuture success. Head coach Robert Schimenzis hopeful for the future, and his priority is to:“make sure everyone is on the same mes-sage.” He has lead his team to city champion-

ships twice in his long and respected career.Queens Vocational’s Chris Ruiz, a senior

and three-year veteran pitcher, ended the sea-son 4-1. While he had a lot of convincing andcommanding pitches throughout the game,perhaps some kind of nerve got to him as hehit the first two batters he faced. After that, heallowed 8 hits and struck out 5 for the game.He added 40 more strikeouts during the sea-son on a 2.50 ERA.

Schimenz emphasizes the importance ofteam community activities. Most recently,the team participated in the ”It’s My Park!Day” event at Flushing Meadows Park, wherethey cleaned the park and also painted infra-structure and planted plants. This year theywere joined by New York Mets players LucasDuda, Sean Gilmartin, and Erik Goeddel. Inaddition to the park program, the team held awinter baseball clinic and worked with Abovethe Influence to develop a school-based projectto address student stress and concerns. Since2008, Queens Vocational has been an ActionTeam (ActionTeam.org).

It seems convincing that Schimenz’s teamwill succeed in his mission to “make sure[they] come in really united next year.”

”It’s My Park! Day” event at Flushing Meadows Park courtesy of Robert Schimenz

Letters To The EditorThe following letters are the opinions of its authorand not necessarily those of the Woodside Herald.

Bob DuffyPresident of Ring 8



WOODSIDE’S ANNUAL PACKOn May 25th, New York City Coun-

cil Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramermarched in St. Sebastian’s Catholic WarVeterans Post 870’s Annual MemorialDay Parade. Local residents and veter-ans participated in the commemorativemarch. After a Memorial Day service atSt. Sebastian’s Church parade attendeeswalk along Woodside Avenue toDoughboy Park where a remembranceceremony is held. Each year the paradehonors local war veterans who served inour nation’s armed forces.Council Member Van Bramer is joined by Shawn Park, of The U.S. Naval Academy atAnnapolis, Maryland, and local U.S. Marines, Kenneth Bobby and Sergeant Michael Bobby.

REMEMBERING THE FALLEN

MEMORIAL DAY PARADE 390On Memorial Day, following the

memorial ceremony held at DanielSquare Park, scouts of Pack 390Woodside traveled to City Hall andcrossed the Brooklyn Bridge on foot.

The two-mile hike covered his-torical facts, safety proceduresand fun in the sun at BrooklynBridge Park.Photo Left: Alex, Henry, Anthony, Elias,Isamu, Kazuki, Steven and Charlie

Photos by Joseph Gurrado

Hosted by the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2813and the Ladies Auxiliary, veterans and supporterscelebrated Memorial Day at the John VincentDaniels Park located at 53 and 43 Ave in Woodside.

Woodside Herald 5 29 15

Documents

Transcript of Woodside Herald 5 29 15