Summer ’25 Outlook From Councilwoman Ariola

By Katie McFadden

With Memorial Day weekend and beaches opening in just a little more than a week, Councilwoman Joann Ariola spoke with The Rockaway Times about some of the happenings and updates for summer 2025.

Ariola had met with senior Parks officials including NYC Parks First Deputy Commissioner Iris Rodriguez-Rosa, Queens Parks Borough Commissioner Jacqueline Langsam and new Rockaway administer Elizabeth Walsack a few weeks ago to discuss some summer updates.

With NYC Parks’ proposed policy to ban bikes from the boardwalk between Beach 73rd and Beach 108th Street causing controversy, Councilwoman Ariola weighed in on the issue. She said she was still awaiting to hear an update on Parks’ policy at the May 13 Community Board 14 meeting, as they were adjusting their policy after receiving feedback, but Ariola said the most important thing is making sure people are safe. “I really want safety to be first. I think many good suggestions came out of initial meeting that Parks had with the CB14 Parks Committee like the need for better signage. Signage should be more evident and clear. They have contradictory signage on the boardwalk. Where it begins, there’s one sign that says no motorized bikes and an adjacent sign says motorized bikes permitted. I urge Parks to walk the entirety of the boardwalk and make sure all of the signage is in line with their policy. We cannot have conflicting signs,” she said. She also agreed with barriers near the concession areas urging riders to dismount and that there should be better enforcement of keeping motorized bikes and scooters off on the boardwalk.

Mobimats are a regular complaint, including one this week on Beach 135th Street, that was so disheveled that a man allegedly fell and injured himself, and Ariola is no stranger to those complaints. But she’s staying on top of it. “I’m very involved in constituent complaints whether they’re coming to us by phone, email or Facebook. I’m responding immediately and connecting with the right agencies to get complaints taken care of,” she said. “Most complaints are coming from the Belle Harbor area, and we’ve been addressing those complaints. Beach 135th will be addressed by the end of the week. Parks has secured a cleanup crew that’s going out so there’s more people getting mobilized quickly and cleaning up the mobimats.”

Another ongoing issue of sand blowing on to the boardwalk because of the new elevated dunes, is also being addressed. “We’re hoping with a secondary team of maintenance people, it won’t be so bad. We have a concrete boardwalk so there’s nowhere for the sand to go now and it’s going to be addressed as it happens,” she said, adding that it’s expected that the issue will lessen over time as vegetation grows on the dunes to keep more sand in place.

The lifeguard shortage seems to be an ongoing issue, but Ariola says things are looking a bit better than past summers. “I’m happy to say that through efforts from our office and meeting with lifeguards and leadership and First Deputy Commissioner Iris Rodriguez-Rosa, we’ve been going into schools and telling kids what lifeguarding is and how great it is. They did massive outreach this time. Iris has made it her mission to make sure we have enough lifeguards to service all of our beaches and pools because we don’t want to lose any lives. In an effort to gain more lifeguards, Parks has raised the hourly rate to $22 an hour with $1000 bonuses in August, so hopefully we don’t lose our lifeguards to any entity paying more. They’ve been doing training classes and estimated that they have 400 lifeguards that are still in school and will be taking the test,” Ariola said. “Like last year, there may be rolling openings. I’d like to see Belle Harbor and Neponsit get its fair share because they didn’t have any lifeguards last summer.”

As far as U.S. Army Corps of Engineers construction goes, Ariola was told that they will not be doing construction until the fall, so she’s hoping the staging area, that has long been positioned at Beach 116th Street, can be moved so construction isn’t impacting Beach 116th businesses for another summer. “We’d like them to move the staging area from where it is so people on Beach 116th, 117th, 118th and into the 120s can use them,” she said. She’ll be attending a stakeholder meeting with USACE on Thursday, May 15, to make sure this is done.

As far as the new sound policy for the Beach 94th Plaza goes, Ariola says better enforcement is expected so neighbors aren’t dealing with the same disruptions as last summer. “Parks is going through all of the bad actors and those bad actors will not be getting permits. They’re trying to work with only people who work within the guidelines, so neighbors are not negatively impacted. Parks is working closely with Community Board 14 on the new policy,” Ariola said.

As far as the issue of cars parking on the south side of Shore Front Parkway goes, Ariola made it clear that “there is no parking in those areas.” A recent video on Friends of Rockaway Beach featured an alleged tow truck worker who said tickets were being thrown out in court because the No Standing signs are technically for the bike lane, instead of the drop off lane. Ariola claims this is not true, and enforcement will continue with towing, ticketing and windshield barnacles being put on cars parked in that lane. She’s also working with the Department of Transportation to try to get better signage in the area.

As public safety is always a concern, Ariola is pleased to share that the 100th Precinct is expecting about 40 summer detail officers, and she trusts Deputy Inspector Carol Hamilton will deploy them to areas where they’re most needed. She’s also happy with the foot detail that has been patrolling Beach 116th Street five days a week to keep constituents safe on the commercial block.

In some summer fun, Ariola will be hosting several community events coming up next month. On June 1, from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m., Beach 116th between Newport Ave. and Rockaway Beach Blvd. will be shut down to cars for the annual Summer Kickoff event. There will be a DJ, food, vendors and more. Ariola used to hold a summer kickoff event at the Beach 108th hockey rink, but she’s happy to announce it won’t be happening there this summer, as the hockey rink is finally being renovated. It will be resurfaced, and new scoreboards will be installed thanks to the Timmy Klein Foundation. There will be a dedication for late firefighter Timmy Klein once it is complete.

On June 5, she is hosting a movie night. “Moana” will be screened at the Beach 94th Plaza after sundown. Ariola is also bringing back the extravagant Flag Day fireworks event! On June 14, ‘80s band White Wedding will play at the Beach 94th Plaza starting at 7 p.m. and the fireworks show will begin at 9 p.m. “Bring the kids and enjoy our beach community,” Ariola said.

For any concerns, Ariola’s office can be reached at 718-318-6411.