BP Katz, Koo, Mayor Unveil New Memorial Design At Flushing Burial Ground
Queens Borough President Melinda Katz, City Council member Peter Koo (D- Bayside, College Point, Flushing, Flushing Meadows, Corona Park, Fresh Meadows, Whitestone) and Mayor Bill de Blasio will unveil today the new memorial design at The Olde Towne of Flushing Burial Ground.
The design proposal is from New York City Parks Department, who also maintains the Burial Ground, and has received unanimous approval from Community Board 7, with an anticipated 2020 date of completion.
The new design features a memorial wall for the 399 known individual names and will highlight four individuals whose families had purchased marble headstones in the 19th Century. Works Progress Administration workers destroyed these headstones during the 1930s when they turned the surface of the burial ground into a recreational site under orders from former Parks Commissioner Robert Moses.
The project is the culmination of decades of activism for the African American and Native American cemetery.
The event is slated for 2 p.m., today, Oct. 25, at 46th Avenue and 164th Street in Flushing.
Lancman To Hold Oversight Hearing On Attorneys in Criminal Justice System
City Council member Rory I. Lancman (D-Kew Gardens Hills, Pomonok, Electchester, Fresh Meadows, Hillcrest, Jamaica Estates, Briarwood, Parkway Village, Jamaica Hills, Jamaica), Chair of the Committee on the Justice System, will hold an oversight hearing today on pay parity for Assistant District Attorneys (ADAs) and Public Defenders in relation to other government attorneys.
The hearing comes as salaries for ADAs and public defenders routinely lag behind their counterparts in other city agencies.
The Committee will also consider Lancman’s bill Intro 1103, which would establish a temporary task force on pay parity for public defenders and assistant district attorneys, particularly in comparison to salaries of attorneys at other city agencies.
The meeting is slated for 10 a.m., today, Oct. 25, at City Hall – Committee Room, in Lower Manhattan.
Braunstein Allocates Nearly $2 Million To Local Schools
Assemblymember Edward C. Braunstein (D-Auburndale, Bay Terrace, Bayside, Bayside Hills, Broadway-Flushing, Douglaston, Floral Park, Glen Oaks, Little Neck, New Hyde Park, North Shore Towers, Oakland Gardens, Whitestone) was joined by representatives from local schools, superintendents, and officials from the United Federation of Teachers (UFT), and the Council of School Supervisors and Administrators, as he announced a $1,875,000 grant to public schools in his district earlier this week.
The 25 public schools in the 26th Assembly District will each receive a $75,000 grant for technology, including computers, smart boards, and security cameras through the State and Municipal Facilities Program.
“I am proud to represent some of the best schools in the city in Northeast Queens. I could not think of a better way to utilize state grants than to invest in our schools. This funding can be used for technology, such as smart boards, laptops, and security cameras, at the discretion of the school principals who know best what resources their students need,” said Braunstein.
“Moving forward, I will continue to fight to ensure that New York City schools get the state funding that they deserve,” added Braunstein.
