Sanders Distributes Valentine’s Gifts To Veterans
State Sen. James Sanders Jr. (D-Rochdale Village, Far Rockaway), a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, in celebration of Valentine’s Day distributed special gifts to residents at the New York State Veterans Home at St. Albans last Friday.
“Valentine’s Day is a celebration of love and affection, a golden opportunity to let our veterans know that we care about them and that they are not forgotten,” Sanders said. “It is always a great joy for me to thank them for their service to our country and to offer them a small token of our appreciation.”
Sanders distributed greeting cards, gloves, hats, scarves, socks, towels and other items which were donated by community members and groups such as P.S. 104 (The Bayswater School) – Far Rockaway, P.S. 176 (Cambria Heights), Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority (AKA), August Martin High School, Blaque Resource Network, Females Making Moves, Flowers of Hope, House-A-Soldier, New York Racing Association (NYRA), Queensborough Community College and Success Academy.
“I would like to extend a special thank you to all of our donors, without whom this event would not have been possible,” Sanders said. “Their generosity and commitment to helping this community will not soon be forgotten. I would also like to thank the New York State Veterans Home at St. Albans for their hospitality and allowing us to use their space to interact with their residents.”
The patients at the New York State Veterans Home at St. Albans have served in either World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam War, or Gulf War and have suffered a service-related injury that requires skilled nursing care. Others are spouses or dependents of military personnel, who receive medical or rehabilitative care. Residents range in age from 45 to 100 years old, and their stay can last anywhere from 6-8 weeks to the rest of their lives.
Nadler, Maloney, Velázquez Urge Adoption Of Helicopter Safety Rules
U.S. Reps. Jerrold Nadler (D-Brooklyn, Manhattan), Carolyn B. Maloney (D-Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn), and Nydia Velázquez (D-Brooklyn, Queens, Lower Manhattan) on Friday urged Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Stephen Dickson to adopt all of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recommendations for doors-off helicopter sightseeing tours.
The urging was borne from the Board’s investigation of the March 11, 2018 crash of an Airbus AS350 helicopter in the East River that caused the deaths of all five passengers. The congress members than introduced the Improving Helicopter Safety Act of 2019 on October 28, 2019 to address recent deadly helicopter incidents in the city.
In their letter to Administrator Dickson, the members note, “The NTSB investigation has cast light on several unacceptable oversights by the FAA that must be addressed in order to better ensure the safety of passengers, pilots, and innocent bystanders. The NTSB made ten recommendations to the FAA to address and correct those oversights in its final report on this accident, which was released in January 2020.[1] We strongly urge you to adopt the NTSB recommendations.”
They also requested “information about the steps FAA is taking to better ensure that when it discovers dangerous or unauthorized operations, such as those found with the Liberty, Inc./NYONAir doors-off sightseeing tours, they are immediately reported to the proper authorities.”
Addabbo Bill To Cover Waste on Railroad Cars Passes Committee
State Sen. Joseph P. Addabbo, Jr. (D-Howard Beach, Ozone Park, Woodhaven, Glendale, Middle Village, Maspeth, parts of South Ozone Park, Ridgewood, Woodside, The Rockaways) on Friday saw his legislation (S.2490) requiring hard lids or sturdy tarping on top of “trash trains pass the Senate Environmental Conservation Committee.
“Apart from the foul odors and spilled garbage that many of my constituents are burdened with on a regular basis, the trash trains have other negative repercussions on the environment, local property values and the public health,” said Addabbo. “My bill addresses these issues by requiring that garbage being transported by rail be effectively covered and contained.”
Under Addabbo’s bill, trains carrying putrescible waste – or trash which is subject to decay – would be covered with hard, sealing lids before leaving their transfer stations. Non-putrescible waste would be covered with hard tarping.
“Although transporting trash by rail may be environmentally and economically preferable to trucking, the practice certainly has its drawbacks,” Addabbo said. “However, I believe that putting a sealed lid on the trains would offer an effective, easy resolution to cut down on pollution, reduce the unpleasant odors and the other undesirable side effects.”
The bill now moves to a vote before the full Senate. The same bill in the Assembly bill (A.3269), is under review by the Assembly Environmental Conservation Committee.
Vallone Committee Looks At Establishing Office Of Food Policy
City Council Member Paul Vallone (D-Alley Pond Park, Bay Terrace, Bayside, College Point, Douglaston, East Elmhurst, Flushing, Fresh Meadows, Little Neck, Whitestone), chair of the council’s Economic Development Committee, today will hold a hearing on legislation that would establish an Office of Food Policy.
The office would be responsible for, among other things, providing recommendations to the mayor and agencies regarding food policy; coordinating multi-agency initiatives relating to food policy; performing outreach to food policy advocates, community-based organizations, academic institutions, and other entities to advance the city’s food policy; and supporting initiatives that are designed to promote access to healthy food.
The public hearing is slated for 11 a.m., today, Feb. 10 on the 16th Floor Committee Room of 250 Broadway in Lower Manhattan.
