Community Corner

🗳Voters Should Flip Over Ballot + $15mil Community Center Renovation

The quickest way to get caught up on the most important things happening today in Queens.

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Good morning, Queens! ☺️

  • 🗳 Queens Councilwoman Nantasha Williams has been reminding voters to flip over their ballots and make sure to answer the "yes or no" questions on four major proposals.
  • ⚒️ Queens Community House (QCH), one of the largest community-based organizations in Queens, recently unveiled its $15 million renovation.
  • 🏃‍♀️ Enjoy some scenes from Queens during yesterday's NYC marathon. Only about two miles of the marathon run through the World's Borough, from the Pulaski Bridge to the Queensboro Bridge.

🌤 Partly sunny and warm. High: 76 Low: 47.

🏡 Attention, real estate pros in Queens! We're now offering an exclusive sponsorship opportunity for an agent interested in attracting local clients and standing apart from the competition. Click here to learn more.

Here are the top stories in Queens today:

1. Queens Councilwoman Nantasha Williams appeared Sunday on "In Focus," a segment on Spectrum News, to discuss what voters need to know before this week's midterm elections, and to familiarize people with the three important proposals on the back of their ballots. Williams, the chair of the Committee on Civil and Human Rights, is urging people to flip their ballots over to their backsides where four proposals are listed — three of which were put forth by the Racial Justice Commission. These major ballot proposals include creating a racial equity office, adding a statement of values of the city charter, and, importantly, calculating the true cost of living an NYC, a number that is chronically misreported. "This, we feel, would really shine light on a lot of the economic disparities that we have in our city, and allow us to find really good solutions to addressing this disparity," Williams said. Williams also discussed her new pay transparency law that went into effect this week, which requires New York City employers to disclose a pay range, salary or hourly wage on all job postings.

Spectrum News NY1

2. Queens Community House (QCH), one of the largest community-based organizations in Queens, has renovated its longtime Forest Hills Community Center headquarters, and held an Open Day there on Saturday to show off the welcoming new facility. The $15 million improvement modernized the center by overhauling its programming rooms and recreational area, constructing new meeting rooms and a new neighbor's lounge, and installing accessibility upgrades including a new elevator and better walkways. QCH currently houses a senior center and a teen center, offers a range of programs including English language classes, after-school programs, youth leadership programming, and also provides housing services and family support services. The non-profit organization has run the center since 1976.

Queens Post

3. Authorities on Sunday pinpointed the cause of Saturday's high-rise fire that injured over three dozen people to a faulty lithium-ion battery related to a "micromobility" device, a term that can refer to e-bikes and electric scooters. The blaze at 37-story apartment building on Manhattan's East 52nd Street was the latest in a series of fast-growing series of battery fires that have officials concerned. Chief Fire Marshal Daniel Flynn said there were at least five bikes in the apartment where the fire started, and that e-bike batteries have been linked to nearly 200 blazes and six fire deaths, marking "an exponential increase" in such fires over the last few years. In September, an 8-year-old girl was killed in Queens when an electric scooter battery sparked a massive fire in her home. And in October, a Queens bike shop was destroyed by a fire likely sparked by an e-bike battery.

The Washington Post ; NBC New York

4. A Jamaica man was arrested and charged with possessing child sex abuse material after his cryptocurrency transactions on the dark web were traced in a dual investigation by Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. Katz said that during the course of the probe, law enforcement partners at the Manhattan DA's Cybercrime and Identity Theft Bureau tracked the movement of funds from several websites selling child sex abuse material using Bitcoin addresses to determine the buyers of the illicit images and videos. Andre Hyman, 27, was taken into custody following a Thursday, Nov. 3 court-authorized search of his residence after prosecutors from the Queens DA's Major Economic Crimes Bureau determined he had allegedly purchased, downloaded, and possessed child sex abuse materials on his computer. Hyman allegedly confessed to his horrific crimes upon arrest. "This case should serve as a warning to all those who think they can safely hide behind their digital wallets to purchase and promote materials depicting the sexual abuse of children," Katz said. We will use all tools at our disposal, including tracing illegal activity through the digital marketplace, to investigate and prosecute these abhorrent actions."

New York Daily News ; Queens Courier

🗞 Hungry for more news?🍴Snack on these headlines:

  • NYC becomes battleground as Hochul works to toughen Blue Wall: 'It's all turnout' (New York Daily News)
  • 'A little mix of everything': Love's Kitchen, a new fast-casual Latin American restaurant, opens in Kew Gardens (Queens Courier)
  • City Council passes bills to improve diversity in the FDNY (Spectrum News NY1)
  • NYC Marathon: These photos captured the intensity of thousands running for glory through the Five Boroughs (AM New York Metro)
  • How an 'untouchable' Chinatown informant played the feds, NYPD for nearly two decades (New York Post)
  • Man struck by car and shot at while fleeing car wreck in Queens, police say (PIX11 News)

🗓 To Do Today in Queens:

  • Adult Open Basketball (6 a.m.)
  • Compost Build Community Volunteer Days 2022 (9:30 a.m.)
  • Tiny Tots (11 a.m.)
  • Mandala Art Workshop (12:30 p.m.)
  • Detective Keith Williams After School Program (3 p.m.)
  • Youth Fitness Program (4 p.m.)
  • Circus Vazquez Brings Big Top Fun To Queens (7:30 p.m.)

🗣 Queens Chatter:

  • 🏃‍♀️ A huge congratulations to yesterday's marathon runners from Queens: "Best of luck to all our #Queens runners and everyone running through Queens in today's @nycmarathon! The World's Borough is cheering you on for all 26.2 miles! #TCSNYCMarathon" (Queens Borough President Donovan Richards via Twitter)
  • 🕯 Spend an evening at an 18th century tavern: "18th Century Tavern Nights kick off this coming Friday! Tickets are selling fast; make sure to reserve yours while you still can at https://www.queensfarm.org/18th-century-tavern-night/. History comes alive at this authentic 18th-Century Tavern Dinner held in the farm's historic Adriance Farmhouse, built circa 1772. Unplug and unwind as you enjoy a candlelit feast featuring traditional recipes cooked over an open hearth and served on period tableware. Traditional recipes and the unique historic interior setting make this event a night to remember!"(The Queens County Farm Museum)
  • 📚 Join the First Lady of Queens at her Book Club: "The First Lady of Queens, Tameeka Richards, invites you to her special Book Club. Get ready for a journey of wellness through reading and engaging discussions. Join us in person at Central Library on Thursday, Nov. 10 at 6PM. RSVP here! https://eventbrite.com/e/queens-first-lady-book-club-fall-series-chapters-10-15-tickets-449810193397…" (Queens Public Library via Twitter)
  • 🙏 A big thank you to the Socrates Sculpture Park Grounds Team: "Socrates would not look as great as it does without our amazing Grounds Team! Director of Grounds & Horticulture Eric Mathews, Attendants James Stewart and JJ Stewart, and Grounds & Operations Coordinator Terrence McCutchen all keep the Park green & growing, artworks in good condition, events running smoothly, and visitors entering & exiting during the morning and night safe. We couldn't help resharing the team's 2022 Annual Benefit Party looks also . Thank you for all that you do!" (Socrates Sculpture Park via Twitter)
  • 🦬 Happy belated National Bison Day: "On #NationalBisonDay, celebrate our National Mammal with a trip to the Queens Zoo to visit our herd of American bison. The WCS legacy with bison dates back to the early 20th century when the Bronx Zoo sent 15 bison to the Wichita Reserve Bison Refuge in Oklahoma to start the reintroduction of this iconic species to the great plains. This was the beginning of a larger conservation movement to save the species from extinction. bit.ly/3WtANiV" (Queens Zoo via Facebook)

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That's it for today. See you all tomorrow for another update!

— Emma Radu Fighera

About me: Emma Radu Fighera is a reporter born and raised in Queens, New York. She studied Literature and Studio Art at Hamilton College, where she helped run the only daily publication on campus, The Daily Bull newsletter. This past spring she earned her M.S. from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Queens Daily? Contact me at queens@patch.com

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