BP candidate Constantinides says city must “do better” with borough accessibility

Borough president candidate and Councilmember Costa Constantinides says he will make boroughwide accessibility a priority if elected. Eagle photo by Jonathan Sperling.

By Jonathan Sperling 

Standing in front of the newly opened Hunters Point branch of the Queens Public Library, Councilmember Costa Constantinides said that ensuring broader boroughwide accessibility would be one of his priorities if elected borough president. 

Constantinides used the library, which opened after nearly two decades and $41 million in renovations, as just one example of a public space in Queens that he says suffers from inaccessibility. Earlier this month, people with disabilities pointed out that the library’s fiction section was only accessible by stairs, despite the fact that the library has an elevator.

The section was eventually relocated to an accessible part of the library.

“We have to take everyone into account when building public spaces,” Constantinides said. “For too long we’ve had an inequitable system where ADA-compliance was a box that we click.”

Constantinides said he has a three-point plan for fixing Queens’ accessibility issues: prioritizing accessibility in zoning decisions and capital investments, as well as demanding the MTA make all subway stations compliant with the Americans With Disabilities Act. These two points can be better realized with the appointment of a boroughwide accessibility coordinator, Constantinides said.

“We have to get things right the first time,” he added. “We have to take accessibility into account in the first place and we have to make sure things are getting done in time.”

Transit accessibility has long been considered a pressing issue throughout Queens, where entire neighborhoods lack ADA-accessible subway stations. The N and W line, which runs through Constantinides’ Council District 22, currently has zero ADA-accessible stations, though the MTA announced plans to begin construction on elevators at Astoria Boulevard station this year.

MTA officials told the Eagle earlier this year that the MTA’s 2020-2024 Capital Plan will include funding for enough ADA-accessible stations such that riders are no more than two stations away from an accessible station.

Constantinides said that he would make sure the borough president’s office was “accountable” to the needs of residents with disabilities, as well as parents with strollers and seniors.

Two people with disabilities who attended the press conference told the Eagle that transit was a major hurdle for them. Arnold, who uses a wheelchair, told the Eagle that he often faces difficulty in knowing which subway elevators are working. Another man, Zayzay, who is blind, told the Eagle that he uses Access-A-Ride, but has had to wait as long as three hours to be picked up.

“There should be cars to take my to my destination as soon as possible. I shouldn’t have to wait for that long, for three hours,” he said.