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Central Queens Residents Can Vote for More Bus Trackers or a Park Trail

By Ewa Kern-Jedrychowska | March 25, 2015 5:03pm
 MacDonalds Park in Forest Hills could be getting a workout station.
MacDonalds Park in Forest Hills could be getting a workout station.
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Michael Perlman/Rego-Forest Preservation Council

QUEENS — Cool schools, playground upgrades, doors for the disabled in area libraries, these are just a few changes you can make to your neighborhoods under the participatory budgeting program.

Voters in City Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz's 29th District — which includes Forest Hills, Kew Gardens, Rego Park and Richmond Hill — will soon get a chance to decide which of these projects should get $1 million.

In April, residents will vote for their favorites from a list of 13 projects that made the ballot after a series of participatory budgeting sessions held throughout the district last fall. The top five choices will be funded from Koslowitz's discretionary budget.

Three area schools — P.S. 139, P.S. 175 and P.S. 99 — need nearly $700,000 for electrical upgrades so air conditioning can be installed in their common areas.

Another project would put $300,000 towards a workout station in MacDonald Park, where residents would be able to use fitness equipment for free.

Forest Hills, Rego Park and Richmond Hills libraries want $200,000 to install automatic doors for the disabled and the elderly.

Other projects include a request for $300,000 to put toward installation of electronic bus trackers on eight major stops along the Q60 and Q23 bus routes, which would inform riders when the bus is arriving in real time, according to the councilwoman's office. 

A similar proposal asks for $91,000 to install a subway countdown system at several train stations in Forest Hills, Rego Park and Kew Gardens.

A sample of the ballot and all 13 projects

Other choices include using $350,000 to place security cameras througout the district, $275,000 to install a curb extension at the dangerous intersections on Junction and Queens boulevards, and $300,000 to restore a trail around Willow Lake in Flushing Meadows Corona Park.

Residents can also vote to install wayfinder signs along Queens Boulevard. The $35,000 project would place signage around busy areas on Queens Boulevard, informing pedestrians of where they are and what they can find in the area. 

Voting will take place between April 11 and 19. Voting sites will include the Forest Hills Greenmarket (April 12 and 19, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.), Richmond Hill Library (April 16, from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.), Forest Hills Library (April 14, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.) and Rego Center Mall (April 11 and 18, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.). Residents can also vote at Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz's district office (118-35 Queens Blvd, 17th Floor) from April 13 to 17 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information call 718-544-8800.