Develop Willets Point

In case you were looking for some follow up on the hearing at the Queens Borough President’s Office, you can get a pretty good idea of what the meeting was like by heading over to the Queens Ledger and the Queens Tribune.

I wish I could have been there, but it definitely sounds like there was plenty of support for the project during the hearing, despite the opposition staged outside of the Borough President’s Office.

Queens Borough President Helen Marshall’s report on the proposal is due next, and all indications say she’ll continue to support the plan as she has all along.

Hope to have some more good updates next week.  Enjoy the weekend, and Let’s Go Mets!

I missed this the other day, but as a reader was kind enough to point out, the city was able to make its third purchase of land in Willets Point.

The good news just keeps coming in…

City Hall reports on the dilemma faced by City Council members, specifically those seeking higher office in 2009, making a decision about the development plan for Willets Point.  Though 29 council members signed a letter opposing the plan, inspiring the creation of DWP, they are now torn because the plan has garnered supports from unions and other elected officials.

The article portrays Willets Points as a tough decision because these council members may risk the support of labor groups or antagonize elected officials who support the plan.

The following is a great quotation from Assembly Member Nettie Mayersohn:

“I am so glad they are finally going to do something about the area,” said Mayersohn.

Reflecting on shop owners and housing advocates who have protested the plan, she added, “I have no idea why anyone is opposed to it.”

I have no idea why anyone is opposed to this plan, either.  This City Hall article is a great, concise read.  The claims made by the opponents of the plan seem to be a far reach, and even the most ardent opponent of the plan, Councilman Monserrate, sounds willing to make some compromises on his stance regarding the development project.

Also, as previously mentioned in a comment by a reader of DWP, Fernando Ferrer is being paid to come out against Mayor Bloomberg’s plan.

There’s a very a important public hearing happening tomorrow at Queens Borough Hall.  A Land Use Public Hearing scheduled to begin at 10:30a.m. in the Conference Room on the 2nd Floor.

This is another in the series of votes that will be an important part of this project happening.  Once again, the meeting is occurring at a time when I cannot attend.  If you have any way of getting to the meeting, though, I really urge you to go out and speak from the perspective of a Mets fan.  Another passed vote would be another important victory for the Mayor’s plan.

For information on Queens Borough Hall, go here.  I’m not an expert on traveling there, but it looks to me like taking either the E or F trains to Union Turnpike-Kew Gardens is pretty much the only good way to get there.

In addition, the Politicker has a release from Fernando Ferrer, the 2005 Democratic Candidate for Mayor, stating he’ll join Councilman Hiram Monserrate outside of Queens Borough Hall in calling for the plan to be voted down.

Disagreeing with Mayor Bloomberg just for the sake of disagreeing is silly.  Honestly, I’m a little bit surprised that people are still jumping on the bandwagon fighting the plan.  With your help at this public hearing, hopefully this vote will follow along the lines of the Queens Community Board 7 vote.

As you may have heard from pretty much every media outlet in the city, Community Board 7 approved the Mayor’s plan to develop Willets Point at its meeting on June 30.

This. Is. Huge.  If anyone was out there for the meeting, I’d love to hear what you experienced there.  Either email it to me or post it in the comments section if you’d like.

The approval of the Community Board 7 certainly doesn’t guarantee smooth sailing from here on out, but failing to get their approval could have been another major hurdle which the plan would have to overcome.  It’s good to see that people can be sensible and come out to support a plan that makes a ton of sense.

If you were there, thanks for going out and participating.  I wish I could have joined…

If you’re reading this and have any means of getting to the Queens Community Board 7 meeting on Monday, June 30, 2008, I really, really urge you to show up and voice your support for the Willets Point plan.

Unfortunately, I cannot be in attendance that night, but the more supporters that show up, the better.

The full board vote on the Willets Point plan will take place during the next Community Board 7 meeting which will be held on June 30 at 6:30 p.m. at the Union Plaza Nursing Home, 33-23 Union St., Flushing.