Richards begins boroughwide town hall series

Queens Borough President Donovan Richards hosted a town hall meeting in Astoria on Wednesday, Sept. 22, 2021.  Eagle photo by Jacob Kaye

By Jacob Kaye

During the same week Mayor Bill de Blasio brought City Hall to Queens, Borough President Donovan Richards brought Queens Borough Hall to Astoria.

Richards hosted the first in a series of town hall meetings on Wednesday evening.

Camped out in the Variety Boys & Girls Club of Queens in Astoria, the borough president and representatives from agencies ranging from the Department of Transportation to the comptroller’s office fielded questions from Western Queens residents.

Residents homed in on quality life issues including troublesome intersections, the proliferation of illegal dirt bikes and the need for clean catch basins.

Government representatives promised on several occasions to take action.

One resident asked about the crowded intersection of Hoyt Avenue, Astoria Boulevard and 31st Street, which is frequented by drivers looking to get on either the Grand Central Parkway or the RFK Bridge.

Asking for a change in the traffic light pattern, the resident was told that DOT Queens Commissioner Nicole Garcia and her staff would look into it.

“But can we get it done?” Richards asked the DOT.

In the end, the resident was promised an expedited study on the intersection, expected to take around three months.

“Constituent services, to me, is the bread and butter – it's why we’re here,” Richards told the Eagle. “I thought it was a good turnout.”

Around half of those in attendance were from the Western Queens community, while the other half came to represent the various agencies tasked to field constituents’ questions. City Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer jokingly thanked “half of the NYPD” for coming out.

The Western Queens town hall won’t be the last time Queens residents can ask questions of their government representatives. Richards plans on holding events throughout the borough in the coming months to connect residents with resources, he said.

It all centers around a new way of operating borough hall, according to Richards.

“One of the things I've also tasked the office with is to ensure we're not stuck in Borough Hall, we need to be in the streets,” he said. “This is the way I envisioned Borough Hall working. We should never be stuck at our desks.”