Board Member Janet Chan Smith (left) and former WRBA President Arlene Annunziata (right) 

Project Woodhaven was on site this week and here is our report on the topics that were covered:

The Proposed Elimination of the Q56 

The first question comes from a longtime resident of Woodhaven named Sal regarding the proposed elimination of the Q56 bus line that services Jamaica Avenue.  This is clearly an important issue to our community as the businesses that line Jamaica Avenue would suffer greatly without it.  Also, many elderly or handicapped resident of Woodhaven depend on the bus line as the train steps are either too daunting, or too far away.

Consider the following . . . you live a block or two off of Jamaica Avenue on 88th Street.  Right now, you are 1 block away from transportation that is handicapped accessible.  Take away the Q56 and once you get to Jamaica Avenue, you've got to walk 3 or 4 blocks to a train station, and then up 2 large flights of stairs. . .

In any event, a representative from Joe Addabbo's office was on hand (battling laryngitis) to explain Mr. Addabbo's position:

U-Turns on Jamaica Avenue and Noise Pollution

Shortly thereafter, WRBA President Vance Barbour arrived and took his place at the front.  Meanwhile, Sal brought up another issue (one that's a pet peeve of Project Woodhaven) -- drivers making U-Turns on Jamaica Avenue.   We've seen a lot of this lately and, while we don't condone it, we can understand the reason for it when people are trying to get a parking spot.  But we've seen people who are pulling out of parking spots make U-Turns, just because they want to head in the other direction, instead of simply going around the block. 

Here, Mr. Barbour makes an excellent point about these meetings, and why it's important that residents make the time to attend these meetings:

The point being that if you have a complaint, these meetings are a ideal forum for you to bring them up.  There are representatives from the 102nd Precinct at every meeting and they are open and approachable -- it's a terrific opportunity to bring 'quality of life' issues to the attention of folks who may be able to help.  One example Mr. Barbour gave was the "noise car" from the 102nd that patrols our neighborhood giving out tickets to those that are inconsiderate of their neighbors -- this was welcome news to us as we've had first hand experience of how a noisy neighbor can really "damage your calm."

The Parking Meter Issue

Next, another long-time resident of Woodhaven voiced a concern about the possibility of parking meters being installed on his block (parking meters are allowed within the first 100 feet of Jamaica Avenue).  However, it appears that this plan has been abandoned, though Mr. Barbour explained how the community needs to balance the concerns of the businesses with the concerns of the residents.  Also discussed was the recent decision by the Department of Transportation to reduce the time you get on a meter for each quarter down to 20 minutes.

WRBA President Vance Barbour (center)

Next on this gentleman's plate was an issue I'm sure many of us can identify with - and that's the habit that some people have of taking up two parking spots, instead of one.  Mr. Barbour pointed out that there isn't very much that can be done about that, though this resident did offer up a tongue-in-cheek solution that elicited a few laughs.

The Jamaica Avenue El Paint Job

Maria Thomson, Executive Director of the Greater Woodhaven Development Corporation, arrived and she and fellow WRBA Board Member Janet Chan Smith broke the good news that the Jamaica Avenue Elevated Train is getting a new coat of paint this year. 

It's been a while between coats, and the El has started to look pretty sad - and some structural repairs need to be taken care of.  Here's how the Jamica Avenue El currently looks:

But a few details need to be ironed out.  First off, they need to decide how and when it will be painted and it needs to be done in a way that will least impact the businesses on Jamaica Avenue.  And then, secondly, the new color needs to be picked.  What do you think?  Should it be Green?  How about a nice shade of Blue?  Or maybe something different, like Orange?  Or do we just all grab a can of paint and go all Partridge Family on it?

It'll be very interesting to see what they come up with - we'll keep you posted.  Congratulations to the WRBA for getting this done - they've been fighting for this for a long time.

Foreclosures and The Stimulus Package

Next, we had a few guest speakers - the Hon. Frank P. Gulluscio, Democratic District Leader (23 A.D.) and attorney and community advocate Albert Baldeo.

Mr. Gulluscio spoke about the stimulus package, how it effects Woodhaven and he encouraged us to contact our elected representatives in order to have a say in how this money will be spent.  Mr. Baldeo spoke about the Neighborhood Preservation Act which helps homeowners keep their homes in the face of foreclosure.  He encouraged us that if we know of anyone facing foreclosure, that we pass along the word and advise them to contact the office of Congressman Gregory Meeks, who has an ongoing program in his office (every Wednesday) where you can meet with a team of Mortgage Modification Specialists that will help you deal with the banks in an effort to re-write the loans. 

This could be an important piece of information if you are, indeed, facing foreclosure -- but it is also important if you're not facing foreclosure because every house that is foreclosed upon will adversely impact the neighborhood, and the value of your home. 

Dancing & Wasteful Spending

The next 10 minutes were pretty interesting -- you know, you never quite know what to expect at these meetings.  The Hon. Lew Simon from the 23rd Assembly District got up to announce that "Dancing Under The Stars" will be returning to the Woodhaven-Richmond Hill Volunteer Ambulance Corps this summer.  There will be 8 evenings of dance, and free dancing lessons will be provided.  Sounds like this will be lots of fun. 

After this announcement, Mr. Simon turned to finding funds for things like the Q56 Bus and when one of the attendees raised her hand, the conversation turned to government oversight, and wasteful spending. 

Woodhaven History & The Future of Niers

And, finally, to wrap up the meeting, Mr. Barbour was touching upon the rich history of Woodhaven when the question arose -- what is going on with Niers?  For those of you who are unaware, Niers is a bar on 78th Street which was formerly known as "The Union Course" and it is the oldest bar in Queens (we'll be having a separate special feature on Niers in the coming weeks).  Niers closed suddenly a few months ago and many wondered what was going to happen next.  By the way, Niers has achieved landmark status, so it is protected:

Anyway, Mr. Barbour took this question on and broke the news that Niers is being worked on right now and will be re-opening in a few months.  But the exciting part of this news is that the owner, Executive Music Producer David Kenneth Eng, is renovating Niers (with a keen eye towards preserving its' history) and it's going to be a venue for live music.  If you've ever been to Niers, it may have looked quite small -- but there was a whole section in the back that you probably never saw.  This is where the shows will be held and, from what we heard, there will be enough seating for a few hundred people.  They've already opened a recording studio inside and, as Mr. Barbour explains, Eminem recently recorded there. 

Mr. Eng is also affiliated with Little Steven's Underground Garage (heard locally on Q104.3-FM) and has also been working with the Parks Department to bring some concerts to the Seuffert Bandshell in Forest Park this summer.  This sounds like a wonderful opportunity for some of our local bands to be heard.  (As a side note, if you are a Woodhaven Band and you would like to be profiled on Project Woodhaven, drop us a line and we'll see what we can do.)

And with that, the meeting was wrapped up.  We had the 50/50 which is a tradition at these meetings.  Basically, you buy a raffle ticket for a buck and the winnings are split - you get half and the other half goes as a donation the Woodhaven-Richmond Hill Volunteer Ambulance Corps.  This month's winner was the Hon. Lew Simon who graciously donated his winnings to the WRHVA.

Before we left, Maria Thomson reminded us about the Woodhaven Spring Dance to be held at the newly renovated Le Cordon Bleu (we blogged about this previously and you can read about it here). 

Meeting Schedule

The meetings are held on the 3rd Wednesday of every month - next month's meeting is on May 20th.  We hope that over the next few months, we'll start seeing more new faces there -- we hope one of them is yours!