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 Op-Ed By Emily Sharpe I would like to address two errors contained in Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer’s op-ed explaining why he has decided to approve Phipps’ Barnett Avenue rezoning application. First, Councilmember Van Bramer stated: “all of this housing is for people who are at, near or below minimum wage earners.” That… 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 »
March 10, 2021 By Christina Santucci Bike advocates are inviting the public to ride around western Queens this weekend with nearly a dozen political candidates who are vying to replace Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer. The activities will begin with a rally Sunday, March 14 at 11 a.m. at Queensbridge Park, followed by a five-mile ride… Read more »
March 9, 2021 By Christian Murray The fashion shoe company Steve Madden is threatening to leave Sunnyside if the seven story, 167-unit building development planned by Phipps Houses on Barnett Avenue goes up. Steve Madden, which penned a letter to Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer Jan. 14, said that it employs more than 400 people… Read more »
March 9, 2021 Op-Ed By: Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer Four years ago, Phipps Houses withdrew their application to build an affordable housing complex in my Sunnyside neighborhood after I had come out against it. It was a project that the community board voted against and which faced significant community opposition. I too was opposed,… Read more »
March 8, 2021 By Christina Santucci Queens Borough President Donovan Richards visited the site of last-week’s four-alarm fire Sunday afternoon and met with some of the 15 Jackson Heights shop owners whose businesses were damaged in the massive blaze. Richards toured the area along with a representative from the city’s Department of Small Business Services… Read more »
March 6, 2021 By Christian Murray A crowd of more than 125 people congregated under the 46th Street–Bliss train station Saturday to express their outrage about the spike in Anti-Asian violence–and to make clear that there is a united front of residents in Sunnyside who aim to stamp it out. The event was organized by… Read more »
March 4, 2021 By Christina Santucci An Astoria education center opened in September and is teaching kids about coding — by showing them how to make their own video games. Code Ninjas, located at 31-35 31st St., is offering classes where children get to learn programing languages like Javascript, Lua and C# by completing projects… Read more »
March 3, 2021 By Christian Murray A proposal for a seven-story affordable housing complex in Sunnyside is one step closer to becoming a reality. The City Planning Commission voted today to approve a rezoning application that would make way for a seven-story, 167-unit building at 50-25 Barnett Ave. The vote was unanimous, 12-0. The fate… Read more »