January CB14 Meeting Recap

By Katie McFadden

The January Community Board 14 meeting was held at Bayswater Jewish Center in Far Rockaway on Tuesday, January 13.

The meeting began with updates from the local precincts. Captain George Ng of the 101st Precinct announced that there was a 4% reduction in major crimes for 2025, including a 25% decrease in shooting incidents. There was an increase in retail theft and property crimes, so their focus for now will be on those crimes. For the 100th Precinct, Captain Sachi Singh said for the last 28 days, there were no murders or rapes, seven robberies, six felony assaults, three burglaries, eight grand larcenies, and three grand larceny autos, making for a 27% increase in crime overall. With the grand larceny auto incidents, the victims left their keys in the cars, so Captain Singh advised people to avoid leaving keys or any valuables inside cars. In 2025, crime decreased overall by 20% and Captain Singh hopes to keep that steady.

Next was updates from elected officials and their representatives. Jose Reina of Congressman Gregory Meeks’ office announced that the U.S. Department of Education will begin garnishing wages for federal student loan borrowers who are in default. Those in default who need assistance can call 1-800-261-3115 to explore options. Tax season begins January 26 and ends April 15. Those with an income below $89,000 can use the IRS’ free file program at irs.gov/freefile. The IRS will not issue paper check refunds, so people are encouraged to set up an electronic payment system. The TSA is launching a new program on February 1 in which travelers can get additional screening for a $45 fee if they don’t have the REAL ID.

From Senator James Sanders’ office, Latoya Lagrange announced some of the senator’s bills that were passed including one preventing the use of credit history for employment, and one penalizing businesses that don’t accept cash.

Assemblyman Khaleel Anderson had just arrived from Albany’s State of the State address. The governor announced possibly adding chip technology to SNAP cards to try to prevent skimming, something that has impacted local residents. Anderson will be introducing a package of bills to try to protect food assistance programs. The governor also announced expansion of the SCRIE program to help freeze rents for senior citizens. Anderson hopes it can be expanded for disabled homeowners. He encourages residents to submit testimony in response to the governor’s budget proposals. He’ll be holding a State of the District event at P.S. 105 in Edgemere on February 27. Applications are open for discretionary funding. Nonprofits can apply through February 9, but they must attend a nonprofit training. His office is accepting nominations for women of distinction in District 31 for Women’s History month. Lastly, Anderson announced that MCU would be making a presentation, a credit union that he worked to bring to Arverne by the Sea.

A representative from Stacey Pheffer Amato’s office said she was in Albany. In 2025, the assemblywoman had 13 bills signed into law, the most of any elected officials in Queens. The representative reiterated that Pheffer Amato is not running for reelection but is continuing to serve out her term this year.

Rodney Reid from Councilwoman Selvena Brooks-Powers’ office said the councilwoman and Anderson met with Health and Hospitals and the state regarding the trauma center plan and things are moving in a positive direction to receive funding for the center. Brooks-Powers’ bill, Intro 1297, regarding domestic violence and crimes motivated by gender, passed city council but was vetoed by Mayor Eric Adams, so there will be a vote to override the veto at the next stated meeting.

Dolores Orr, the chairperson of CB14, announced that the chair of the Youth Service and Education committee stepped down and Beverly Childs has agreed to step in. Orr attended the Borough Board meeting where Queens Library attended and announced that the Rockaway Park library, closed for two years for HVAC work, is expected to open on February 1. She also attended a JFK Redevelopment advisory board meeting and learned that as work is done, environmental precautions are being taken so Rockaway is not impacted.  At the Queens Borough Hall meeting, Orr learned that buildings with 10 units or less are still required to compost even though fines are currently waived, but only 6% of eligible buildings in Rockaway are composting. She hopes to boost those numbers.

District Manager Felicia Johnson then provide updates. CB14 sent a letter to the School Construction Authority, requesting that they inspect P.S. 43 for a temporary pool as Far Rockaway High School’s pool will be under renovations for several years. They sent a letter to the MTA and Assemblyman Anderson regarding the OMNY system not being implemented on the Nassau County bus system, causing commuters to pay two different fares. The Nassau County buses have since been outfitted with OMNY. CB14 received a response from OEM answering some of the questions they had about Rockaway’s evacuation plan. Johnson will email the information to those on CB14’s email list. Call the CB14 office to be added to the list.

A letter was sent to MTA regarding concerns over the Q22 bus skipping stops during school hours because they’re so full since the new bus redesign plan rolled out in August. MTA confirmed they saw the letter but has not announced any plan. A letter was sent to DSNY regarding trash blocking parking spots at 4419 and 4519 Rockaway Beach Blvd. Both locations have been issued violations, but the issues persist. Department of Transportation looked into traffic flow near P.S. 183 and they’re going to turn Beach 80th between Rockaway Freeway and Beach Channel Drive, a two-way street, into a one-way northbound street and Beach 79th Street between Rockaway Freeway and Rockaway Beach Blvd. into a one-way southbound street to enhance safety. On January 1, DOT also started construction on Rockaway Freeway.

Johnson attended the Brookville Blvd. mitigation meeting and she’s optimistic that flood mitigation options like street raising will be implemented. Johnson attended a District Cabinet meeting with the Department of Design and Construction. There are two projects that are getting capital funding including the ongoing lining interceptor project and funding to redo sections of Beach Channel Drive, a $34 million project slated to start in fall 2027, that will replace water mains and storm sewers uptown. The BCD project is in the design phase.

New York State has designated the Richard Mott house to be added to the New York State register of historic places. Most of the clients at the Neponsit Adult Day Health program have been redirected to other programs since it closed.

Upzoning for 1410 Beach Channel Drive was approved by City Planning despite CB14 rejecting the plan. Another development is going up at 1811 and 1815 Cornaga Avenue with construction beginning in April. They can build as of right, but they will be making a presentation at a future CB14 meeting. It will be 93 units with commercial space on the first floor. Of the units, 20 will be affordable and the rest will be market rate.

Community Board applications are open through February 13. Those interested are encouraged to complete the application online. She reiterated that CB14 does not select members, Queens Borough President does. She requested his office to send them a list of current members whose terms are up and need to reapply.

There will be an Economic Development Committee meeting to discuss a liquor application for a lounge that wants to open near the Redfern Houses on a block where there are three churches. NYPD has expressed concerns over the lounge, so there will be a discussion on the proposal. Homeowners will start to receive their property tax assessments soon. Anyone who wants to appeal an assessment can do so by March 16.

For public speaking, Mia Manhoor of Onyx briefly spoke about her efforts industrialize Fort Tilden, starting with trying to get a bill passed to transfer the area from a federal park site to an industrial site for a seawater desalination plant to create drinking water for the community. She is in negotiations with companies that have the technology to produce such an operation and said it would create jobs and would reduce the reliance on upstate water reservoirs. She is seeking feedback on the project.

A representative named Deborah from MCU spoke about their future location at Beach 68th Street in ABTS. MCU can help people start accounts with no minimum balance or fees. They offer savings accounts, CDs, high-yield savings accounts, lower interest rates, auto loans, a homebuyer’s program, financing up to 97%, a homeowners’ seminar, refinancing and more.

Ray Williams, owner of Rock Billiards, said they’ll be offering an appreciation brunch for the community board with free drinks, food and entertainment at a later date. He said Rock Billiards offers happy hours, comedy shows and more. He also hopes to bring in the youth to future CB14 meetings so they can be more involved in the community.

Mike Scala, who is running for Assembly District 23, spoke as chairman of the board for Queens Defenders, as he was brought in to stabilize the organization. They’re currently focusing on housing issues and provide support to folks in housing court who can’t afford attorneys. They also offer services to all tenants and landlords through their housing resource center. He hopes more people stop by 1857 Mott Avenue with housing issues, so they can keep this resource open.

Ms. Campbell has been working with residents on issues with the Inwood Material Terminal, as Redfern residents have been subjected to dust and debris from the facility. She has been working with local organizations on the Let Us Breathe campaign and elected officials to try to stop the company from receiving a permit to continue operations.

Genevieve Appolon of Ocean Bay Development Corporation spoke about two upcoming programs including their Housing Our Purposeful Elders (HOPE) program to provide housing navigation support, financial literacy and digital literacy support to seniors 60+ so they can access services, and Building Equity through Arts and Truth (BEAT) program for youths ages 16 to 25 to promote civic engagement in the community through arts such as storytelling, podcasting and other multimedia tools.

Ben Guttman, the new executive director of the Queens economic Development Corporation introduced himself and spoke about what the organization that started in 1977 does. The organization aims to make Queens thrive by offering business services, neighborhood development, tourism and marketing. Most of the programs they offer are free or subsidized. For instance, they offer counseling and technical assistance to those who’d like to start businesses. They also offer classes and workshops for business owners. They have a food business incubator for entrepreneurs in Long Island City to let those starting a food business access a 12,000 square foot kitchen with giant ovens, mixers and freezers to help them create products. They have startup competitions, run a Corona Plaza Market for vendors, do graffiti removal, and more. They also run the Queens Tourism Council and hold events and fundraisers. For more info, see: http://queensny.org/

CB14 members held a vote for second vice chair for the board, providing paper ballots to board members, to vote for Rose Marie Gulston or Damara Lee. The winner was not announced.

Jack Epter gave a Parks Committee report from their meeting in October. Bay Breeze Park at Beach 88th is 80% complete. It was supposed to be finished in September 2025, but a new completion date will be provided. There was a discussion regarding the strict permitting for events at the performance spaces at Beach 94th and Beach 17th Street, and there was a unanimous committee request to lessen the restrictions at Beach 17th Street, so more events can be held there. Portions of Bayswater Park are closed until 2027 due to construction in the area. Parks will provide updates to the community on what portions are usable. A request was made for Parks to stock poop bag dispensers to try to reduce the amount of dog feces on the boardwalk. There may be a lifeguard stand at Beach 38th Street next summer since there were no lifeguards around that area last summer.

At the end of the report, the full board held a vote on a motion to allow for less restrictions on permitting for events at Beach 17th Street. With an exception of one abstention and one no vote, the motion passed.

The meeting culminated with the board discussing changes to their bylaws.