March 16, 2021 By Christina Santucci A Queens judge dismissed nearly 700 open prostitution cases at the request of District Attorney Melinda Katz Tuesday morning. Queens Acting Supreme Court Justice Toko Serita granted Katz’s request to vacate the open warrants and dismiss the cases pertaining to people who have been charged with loitering for the… Read more »
March 16, 2021 By Christina Santucci The public will get an opportunity next week to weigh in on a developer’s proposal to build a 1-million-square-foot complex – with 1,400 apartments – on the Halletts Point peninsula in Astoria. The Department of City Planning is holding a virtual public scoping meeting, where attendees can make comments… Read more »
March 16, 2021 By Christina Santucci (updated) Corona, the Queens neighborhood once dubbed “the epicenter of the epicenter” of the pandemic, has the lowest COVID-19 vaccination rate in all of New York City. Assemblymembers Catalina Cruz, Jeffrion Aubry and Jessica González-Rojas held a news conference Friday to highlight the disparity in vaccination rates and to… Read more »
March 15, 2021 By Christina Santucci Queens Borough President Donovan Richards joined the growing chorus of New York officials calling for Gov. Andrew Cuomo to step down — following allegations that the governor harassed several women. Richards, in a joint statement issued with Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, said Saturday that Cuomo should resign. The… Read more »
March 15, 2021 By Christina Santucci St. Patrick’s Day is this week and the Sunnyside Shines Business Improvement District has partnered with a neighborhood group to highlight what local bars and restaurants will be offering on the big day. The promotion includes a series of videos, in which Sunnyside resident Ty Sullivan interviews the owners… Read more »
March 14, 2021 By Christina Santucci The family of a woman shot and killed in Astoria Friday night has received a massive outpouring of support with more than $30,000 raised for them in just one day. A GoFundMe page was launched by the family of Gudelia Vallinas, 37, who was tragically killed by a stray… Read more »
March 12, 2021 By Christian Murray Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer, a candidate for Queens Borough President, will change the make-up of community boards by appointing younger, more diverse members–if elected. He said that nearly two-thirds of the members on the 14 community boards in Queens are over the age of 55, and the boards… Read more »
March 11, 2021 By Christian Murray Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio Cortez and eight members of New York’s congressional delegation have penned a letter to Governor Andrew Cuomo expressing their opposition to NRG Energy’s plan to overhaul its Astoria power plant, saying that the plant would still rely on fossil fuels and would continue to emit dangerous… Read more »
March 11, 2021 By Christian Murray Three tax preparers—one from Flushing and two from Woodside—were busted for fraud following sting operations conducted by undercover investigators. Yachun Lin, of ETS Tax Services on Main Street, was charged with tax fraud after she filed a return on behalf of an undercover investigator that contained bogus information in… Read more »
March 10, 2021 By Christina Santucci An estimated 18 percent of adults in Queens have been vaccinated — either partially or fully — against COVID-19 vaccine, a representative from the city Health Department told borough leaders at a virtual meeting Tuesday morning. About nine percent of adults in the borough have received their first dose… Read more »