Oct. 8, 2021 By Allie Griffin Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Friday that the city will phase out the gifted and talented program at city public schools — sparking criticism from several elected officials in Queens. The highly competitive program, which requires kindergarteners to take a screening test, has been criticized by experts for exacerbating… Read more »
Oct. 8, 2021 By Allie Griffin The New York City Department of Education is facing backlash for not releasing public school enrollment and attendance numbers for the school year thus far. City Council members along with the head of the city’s powerful teachers union criticized the DOE for what they say is a lack of… Read more »
Oct. 7, 2021 By Allie Griffin More than 15,500 New Yorkers have received a total of $107 million to help bury their loved ones who died of COVID-19. The recipients were able to tap into the funds from the federal COVID-19 Funeral Assistance Program, which recently expanded eligibility after facing pressure from two local legislators…. Read more »
Oct. 6, 2021 By Allie Griffin A man was killed in a hit-and-run collision while riding his e-bike on the Belt Parkway in South Ozone Park early Wednesday morning. The unidentified victim was riding an e-bike westbound on the Parkway when a driver of a 2019 Dodge Charger struck him from behind near Exit 18B… Read more »
Oct. 5, 2021 By Allie Griffin The Queens County Farm Museum is offering a variety of fun fall activities for Queens families this month ahead of Halloween. Families visiting the farm can pick out a pumpkin from the pumpkin patch; munch on apple pies, donuts, cider and the fruit itself; take a hayride around the… Read more »
Oct. 5, 2021 By Allie Griffin Several Queens lawmakers want Gov. Kathy Hochul to kill the controversial LaGuardia AirTrain project altogether after she announced Monday that she has directed the Port Authority to review other options. The lawmakers want Hochul to officially slam the lid on the $2 billion plan to build a 1.5-mile rail… Read more »
Oct. 5, 2021 By Allie Griffin The city’s three public library systems—Queens, Brooklyn and New York—are eliminating late fees and scraping all users’ existing balances. The libraries have suspended late fees since March 2020 due to the pandemic and announced Tuesday that they will permanently end late charges — which have been in place since… Read more »
Oct. 4, 2021 By Allie Griffin A street in Woodhaven has been co-named after historic neighborhood bar Neir’s Tavern. The corner of 78th Street and 88th Avenue was co-named “Neir’s Tavern Way” during a ceremony Saturday hosted by Council Member Robert Holden. The establishment, located at 87-48 78th St., is credited by some historians as… Read more »
Oct. 4, 2021 By Allie Griffin Dozens of Queens residents rallied for reproductive rights outside Queens Borough Hall Saturday as part of a nationwide day of action for abortion justice. The rally — and more than 600 similar protests across the country — was organized in response to the recent Texas law that effectively bans… Read more »
Oct. 4, 2021 By Allie Griffin A Queens college student and organizer is fighting for New York state to make Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha public holidays. Tanbir Chowdhury, a 20-year-old Jamaica resident and John Jay College student, is calling on state legislators to sign onto to a bill to make the Muslim holidays —… Read more »