June 3, 2020 By Christian Murray Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz has established a new bureau tasked with investigating and prosecuting predatory lenders, housing scammers and contractors who fail to pay their employees prevailing wage. The new unit, called the Housing and Worker Protection Bureau, will work with other agencies to prosecute con artists and… Read more »
June 2, 2020 By Christian Murray Denise Keehan-Smith was unceremoniously dumped as Community Board 2 chair late Sunday. Keehan-Smith was in Pennsylvania when she received a phone call at 10:16 p.m. from Acting Queens Borough President Sharon Lee. Lee called her to tell her she was out—that she would no longer be on the community… Read more »
June 1, 2020 Staff Report Council Member Costa Constantinides, who represents Astoria and East Elmhurst, is running to be the next Queens Borough President. We spoke to Constantinides early last week, before the national outrage following the death of George Floyd took hold. The focus of the discussion was largely about the looming budget problems… Read more »
June 1, 2020 By Christian Murray Demonstrators came out in Queens over the weekend to voice their anger over the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer. Hundreds took to the streets of Jackson Heights Saturday in a protest that formed in Diversity Plaza. Protesters in Jackson Heights chanted “black… Read more »
May 31, 2020 By Christian Murray Three people were found dead in an apparent murder-suicide inside a North Corona home today. Police responded to a 911 call and discovered a 30-year-old female and two boys—ages 10 and 3—unconscious and unresponsive inside 37-17 111 St. EMS responded and pronounced all three of them dead at the… Read more »
May 31, 2020 By Christian Murray A man is found dead on Sunday after police discovered him in an alleyway in North Corona with trauma to his head. Police received a 911 call at around 9:15 a.m. that there was an injured man in the vicinity of 104-19 35th Avenue. Upon arrival, police found a… Read more »
This story was originally published by Chalkbeat, a nonprofit news organization covering public education. Sign up for their newsletters here: ckbe.at/newsletters By Christina Veiga, Chalkbeat Every public school student in New York City will soon receive more than $400 to help pay for food while school buildings are shut down, regardless of family income. Through a federal… Read more »
May 21, 2020 By Christian Murray A group of developers looking to build on a 28-acre section of land surrounding Anable Basin provided an overview of their plans at a Community Board 2 Land Use Meeting Wednesday night. The developers announced that they are looking to build 10-to-12 million square feet of space on the… Read more »
May 19, 2020 By Christian Murray The Queens Borough President and Queens District Attorney will be hosting a virtual Memorial Day Observance Ceremony on Thursday. The ceremony, which will be live streamed at www.queensbp.org , will start at 11 a.m. and the public is invited to view. “Queens is eternally grateful to the women and… Read more »
May 17, 2020 By Michael Dorgan Desperate Queens residents have been forming long lines outside a Sunnyside food pantry in recent weeks. The queue for food outside the Mosaic Church Office on 43rd Avenue stretched an entire block Friday and demand is surging, according to local volunteers. “Friday was by far the biggest we have… Read more »