Sept. 23, 2019 By Allie Griffin As Climate Week kicked off Monday in New York City, Council Member Costa Constantinides announced that P.S. 171 in Astoria is getting more than 500 new solar panels installed on its rooftop. The 516 panels will generate more than half of the school’s annual energy consumption and drastically reduce… Read more »
Sept. 23, 2019 By Allie Griffin Developers have released the design plan and renderings for a $400 million production studio in Astoria, backed by the actor Robert De Niro. Wildflower Studios, a 650,000-square-foot building, will takeover the site of the former Steinway & Sons piano storage facility at 87 19th Ave, located along the Steinway Creek. … Read more »
Sept. 23, 2019. By Shane O’Brien The MTA announced last week that two stations in Astoria would receive ADA compliant elevators as part of its 2020-2024 capital plan– but Council Member Costa Constantinides said that more are needed. The MTA plans to add ADA compliant elevators to 70 stations across the City by 2024 under… Read more »
Sept. 21, 2019 By Christian Murray A 14-year-old Astoria boy is dead after being hit by a truck while riding his bicycle in Long Island City Saturday. Mario Valenzuela, of 35th Street in Astoria, was riding eastbound on Borden Avenue at about 1:50 p.m. when he was struck by a truck. The truck was also… Read more »
Sept. 20, 2019 By Shane O’Brien Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a Queens legislator’s bill into law Wednesday that extends the statute of limitations for certain sex crimes. The bill, which was sponsored in the assembly by Aravella Simotas, extends the statute of limitations for reporting second-degree rape to 20 years, while the period for third-degree… Read more »
Sept. 20, 2019 By Allie Griffin An off-duty NYPD officer was charged Wednesday with selling and possessing cocaine for allegedly moonlighting as security for dealers transporting cocaine in Astoria and Maspeth this month. Ishmael Bailey, 36, took money from an undercover officer posing as a dealer in exchange for his security services to transport cocaine… Read more »
Sept. 18, 2019 By Allie Griffin A man spat on a gay pride flag hanging outside of Queen’s oldest LGBTQ bar and recorded a video of it which he posted online Monday — and now the bar’s owner and staff are asking the public for help identifying him. The owner of Albatross Bar, located at… Read more »
Sept. 17, 2019 By Allie Griffin Astoria is in the top 10 coolest neighborhoods in the world, according to a new report by Time Out. After surveying more than 27,000 people around the world and gathering local Time Out editors and city experts’ opinions, the global media and entertainment brand ranked Astoria at number eight… Read more »
Sept. 17, 2019. By Shane O’Brien The New York City EDC released a number of design concepts for the Sunnyside Yard at a public meeting in Long Island City last night as the planning process for the gigantic site continues. The three-hour meeting held at Aviation High School was attended by more than 200 people… Read more »
Sept. 17, 2019 By Allie Griffin Council Member Costa Constantinides is the latest to join the Queens Borough President race, announcing his bid Tuesday morning. Running on an environmental platform, Constantinides joins Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer, former Council Member Elizabeth Crowley and Assembly Member Alicia Hyndman in the race to be the next borough… Read more »