Feb. 9, 2022 By Michael Dorgan Manhattan’s loss will soon be Astoria’s gain. The owners of two Manhattan-based restaurants that closed during the pandemic are opening a Spanish eatery in Astoria next month. The restaurant, to be called Sala, will offer traditional dishes such as tapas, pinchos and raciones—and will open at The World Artisan… Read more »
Feb. 9, 2022 By Christian Murray Several large sites in western Queens are slated for redevelopment and Council Member Julie Won wants the chair of the City Council’s Land Use Committee to become familiar with these properties. Won took Council Member Rafael Salamanca, the chair of the Land Use Committee, on a tour of two… Read more »
Feb. 10, 2022 By Allie Griffin The Queens-based restaurateurs behind multiple popular Vietnamese and Thai eateries have opened a new spot in Williamsburg focused on serving fresh seafood from the two cuisines. Bryan Chunton and Pei Wei opened Tiger Prawn in October at 208 Grand St. in the building that once housed their pho shop… Read more »
Feb. 9, 2022 By Christian Murray New York State’s indoor mask mandate will come to an end Thursday, although it will remain in effect for schools until at least early March. The mandate for businesses is being dropped statewide Thursday, although local governments and businesses have the option to continue to keep the mask rules… Read more »
Feb. 9, 2022 By Christian Murray A body was found on the G train platform at the 21st Street-Van Alst Station in Long Island City this morning, police said. The body, believed to be that of a middle-aged woman, was discovered on a bench at around 8 a.m., police said. A subway rider found her… Read more »
Feb. 8, 2022 By Allie Griffin Council Members Nantasha Williams and Linda Lee will be leading the Queens Council Delegation. Williams and Lee were elected co-chairs of the delegation by their Queens council colleagues Friday. As co-chairs, Williams and Lee will advocate for funding for Queens during the council’s discretionary budget negotiations. They will serve… Read more »
Feb. 8, 2022 By Michael Dorgan The NYPD 114th precinct in Astoria is about to see a return of the plainclothes police team—but a local council member is opposed to these units saying they are ineffective and unfairly target minorities. The precinct is one of 30 across New York City where plain-clothes units will soon… Read more »
Feb. 7, 2022 By Christian Murray The operators of the Ravenswood Generating Station—home to the infamous red-and-white “Big Allis” smokestack in Long Island City—came under fire yet again last week. Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney held a press conference outside the Ravenswood power plant on Vernon Boulevard Jan. 31, as part of her quest to have the… Read more »
Feb. 5, 2022 By Christian Murray A high-profile Astoria resident who announced in December that he was running to represent the 37th Assembly District in Albany is no longer running for office. Huge Ma, who founded the TurboVax website last year that helped connect New Yorkers to COVID-19 vaccine sites, announced Friday that he is… Read more »
Feb. 4, 2022 By Michael Dorgan President Joe Biden visited a Long Island City elementary school Thursday to learn more about how community intervention programs can combat violent crime. Biden visited P.S. 111 Jacob Blackwell, located at 37-15 13th St., to meet with school principal Dionne Jaggon and local violence interrupter teams tasked with de-escalating… Read more »