By Anna Gustafson

TimesLedger Newspapers

A federal appeals court on Friday denied former state Sen. Hiram Monserrate’s request to restore his position in the state Legislature and cancel the upcoming election for the 13th Senate District.

The panel of three judges made the decision following a hearing Friday at the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan.

“I’m disappointed,” said Monserrate’s attorney Normal Siegel, who added he plans to challenge the decision.

Siegel argued in court that the former senator should be allowed to return to his former seat representing western Queens and asked judges to call off the election between his client and state Assemblyman Jose Peralta (D-Jackson Heights), whom Monserrate trails in the polls.

Monserrate was expelled from the Senate based on an incident involving his girlfriend Karla Giraldo, whose face was slashed with a broken glass during an argument she had with him in his Jackson Heights apartment in December 2008. He had represented the 13th Senate District, which covers Corona, East Elmhurst, Elmhurst, and Jackson Heights.

Siegel said the “crux of this case is not solely about Monserrate,” but rather about the authority of the state Legislature to dispel an elected official based on a misdemeanor conviction. He argued the expulsion was unconstitutional and said state law sets no standards for removing a state senator because of a misdemeanor. A State Supreme Court judge in Queens decided not to find him guilty of a felony.

“We have now a legislature that can willy-nilly decide to expel someone,” Siegel said. “…If Monserrate was convicted of a felony, that would be automatic expulsion, but we don’t have the situation here.”

Barbara Underwood, the solicitor general in the state Division of Appeals and Opinions, said Monserrate was justly expelled “because of misconduct well within the heartland of unfitness.”

The attorney from state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo’s office further argued that New York law states an elected official can be removed should they violate their oath of office, which she said Monserrate did.

Justice Gerard Lynch questioned whether Monserrate would once again be expelled if he won the special election. About 60 percent of residents in the 13th Senate District said they would vote for Peralta, according to a recently released Siena College poll.

“Because they found him unfit does not mean they would find him unfit again,” Underwood said.

Comment on this story.

By Stephen Brown

The Brooklyn Paper

Bruce Ratner and a deep bench of supporters of his Atlantic Yards mega-project broke ground on a basketball arena for his Brooklyn-bound New Jersey Nets on Thursday afternoon, drawing to a symbolic close to more than seven years of delays for the developer.

Gov. Paterson, Mayor Bloomberg, Borough President Markowitz, and rap mogul, Jay-Z, an owner of a very small portion of the Nets, were the luminaries on the dais. Meanwhile one hundred or so protesters rallied within earshot, calling the project a boondoggle.

But the day belonged to Ratner and his partners in the Barclays Center arena, the first piece of his proposed 16-tower mini-city containing more than 6,600 units of housing, a portion of them set aside at below-market rates.

The builder got a standing ovation from the 1,000 invited guests — a strange bedfellows of supporters from organized labor, the community group ACORN, sports fans, black leaders, and elected officials — gathered in a tent on the sprawling project site, which covers a 22-acre area between Flatbush and Vanderbilt avenues, from Dean Street to Atlantic Avenue.

The arena will accommodate 19,000 fans. It is slated to open during the 2011-2012 NBA season.

Forest City Ratner executives say that the first residential building — whose design has not been announced — will begin construction next spring.

“This is the type of job creation that we need,” said Paterson, who strongly supports the project, though he is an opponent of the use of eminent domain, which is being used by the state to remove a handful of remaining residents and businesses within the Atlantic Yards footprint. “As buildings rise, the jobless rate will drop.”

Paterson specifically praised Ratner for his commitment to funneling contracts to minority- and women-owned businesses.

“This is a big project that will even the score,” he said.

Markowitz was in his usual role of emcee-in-chief, employing his inimitable style to cheer Ratner for steering the project through dozens of lawsuits, a challenging economy and soaring costs.

Ratner singled out Markowitz for praise — indeed, the Beep was the person who persuaded the builder to buy the Nets and build their new home.

“Marty, you pestered me every day,” Ratner said. “It took seven years, but we got there together.”

Later, Ratner praised his lawyers — all 150 of them — whom he jokingly called “New York’s Finest.”

“Thank you, all you brilliant litigators,” he said, referring to the cases that they won. “You’re amazing.”

As it was in Ratner’s remarks, a hint of opposition was never far from the surface. So even as all of the speakers focused on the future of the Atlantic Yards site, which will change the heart of Brooklyn, most also addressed the protesters, who hooted within earshot.

“We have recognized that there was strong opposition that was based on merit and that was real for this project. We respect that,” said Paterson. “But the economic opportunities here are undeniable.”

Markowitz merely derided the protesters as “disgruntled Knicks fans.”

The Rev. Herbert Daughtry of the House of the Lord Pentecostal Church, another strong supporter, offered some words of caution in his invocation.

“God will be angry if we misuse the people’s resources,” he said, referring to the promised affordable housing, open space and economic opportunity for the thousands of jobless in the vicinity of the arena. “Generations of the yet unborn will rise up and curse this project.”

Ratner’s official groundbreaking is the symbolic delivery for a $5-billion project that has had a difficult birth — a metaphor, in fact, that the Rev. Al Sharpton employed in his remarks.

“You can’t have a baby without labor pains,” said Sharpton, who added that he had set aside some of his initial reservations about the project. “But let the baby be born!

“I support this project despite the issues that gave some discomfort,” he added. “I sat at the table and watched Bruce Ratner wrestle to bring about something that would have long-term change for the borough that I came from. I believe that the jobs and the contracts and inclusion that this project represents is something that we should bring around this country.”

He also evoked Jackie Robinson, the last great professional athlete to grace the Brooklyn stage, as a spirit that lingers over the project, which would bring a sports team back to the largely African-American center of Brooklyn.

The event — complete with lobster rolls and other fancy canapes — had a “to the victor belong the spoils” atmosphere, but a block away from the festivities, the roughly 100 protesters blew whistles and chanted, “Shame on you!” from Atlantic Avenue.

The protesters decried the project as an unneeded, traffic-choking eyesore that could not have been built without massive public subsidies.

“It’s horrifying,” said Sarah Edkins. “Buildings made just for profit to create a few temporary jobs erode local community.”

At the Prohibition-era Freddy’s Bar, some were solemn as they acknowledged that the final months are at hand for the watering hole that will be torn down. Other activists mocked the “villains” of the Atlantic Yards — Markowitz, Ratner and Bloomberg among them — by wearing huge masks and delivering satirical speeches.

“Who ever though that a former tenant activist — me! — could preside over eminent domain to kick tenants out of their homes?” said a man dressed as Markowitz. “What a country! What a borough!”

But back at the groundbreaking, Jay-Z, who grew up in the Marcy Houses in nearby Fort Greene, said pretty much the same thing — without the sarcasm.

“I stand here representing hope for Brooklyn,” he said.

Comment on this story.

By Jeremy Walsh

TimesLedger Newspapers

Voters in Corona, East Elmhurst, Elmhurst and Jackson Heights are awash in mailers this week as former state Sen. Hiram Monserrate battles state Assemblyman Jose Peralta (D-Jackson Heights) in a special election set for Tuesday.

Monserrate was expelled from the Senate based on the events surrounding his girlfriend Karla Giraldo, whose face was slashed with a broken glass during an argument in Monserrate’s Jackson Heights apartment in December 2008.

After losing an appeal seeking an injunction against the expulsion in Manhattan federal court, his attorney, Norman Siegel, was expected to argue the case in the Second Circuit Appeals Court Friday. If the court issues an injunction, the election and the replacement process will be postponed indefinitely.

The voting will take place at the same polling places used in standard elections. The polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Peralta, who has the endorsement of the Queens Democratic Party and many public employees unions, has raised $389,032, according to the state Board of Elections. Monserrate has raised $112,366 during the same time. The Republican candidate, Administrative Law Judge Robert Beltrani, did not have an official campaign fund listed on the state BOE Web site by press time Tuesday.

One Monserrate mailer referred to Peralta, a supporter of same-sex marriage rights, as the “gay caballero.” Monserrate, in turn, has been attacked by mailers from the political action committee Fight Back NY, which is dedicated to replacing the state senators who voted against same-sex marriage last year.

Monserrate also came under fire for his campaign’s logo — a “Q” shape that closely resembles the emblem used by President Barack Obama during his 2008 campaign.

Monserrate touted his contributions to the community, including helping to bring new schools to one of the most overcrowded districts in the city and procuring $5 million to renovate Travers Park in Jackson Heights.

“These are all real tangibles I can point to directly,” he said, referring to Peralta as “the other guy who has delivered close to zero for our community.”

“I will be more than happy to match my legislative record of protecting women’s right to privacy in the workplace to Monserrate’s record of assaulting his girlfriend in his bedroom,” Peralta said in an e-mailed response.

The election has also created a rift between Monserrate and his former chief of staff, City Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras (D-East Elmhurst), who was elected to Monserrate’s old seat and set up her district office next door to his. Ferreras has endorsed Peralta.

“The Hiram Monserrate that I knew for so many years no longer exists,” she wrote in a guest editorial for the Spanish-language paper El Diario. “The new Hiram Monserrate — he who was found guilty in a violent attack on a woman, he who collaborated with the Republicans in Albany to paralyze the function of government during the worst economic crisis we have suffered in New York in almost a century ... that Hiram Monserrate does not represent the civic and human values that we in Queens so appreciate.”

In the meantime, an interesting race is shaping up to replace Peralta in the Assembly if he defeats Monserrate. So far, Corona activist Francisco Moya and Jackson Heights lawyer Bryan Pu-Folkes have thrown their hats into the ring, but rumors have circulated Monserrate may also run for the seat if he loses.

Monserrate declined to discuss any contingency plans if he loses.

“The fact of the matter is that on the 16th of March, I expect to be re-elected by this community,” he said.

Comment on this story.

By Stephen Witt

The Brooklyn Paper

Councilwoman Letitia James has filed a personal injury suit against an itinerant laborer after she allegedly injured herself walking into his legally parked truck.

The Democratic lawmaker, who makes $122,500 a year as the people’s representative in Fort Greene and Clinton Hill, is seeking an unspecified amount of damages for wounds she claims to have sustained on July 11 when she walked into a four-inch trailer hitch protruding from David Day’s parked car.

James sustained “serious, severe and permanent [injuries] to her limbs and body” and “she will be caused to suffer … continuous pain and inconvenience,” according to court papers filed last month in Brooklyn Supreme Court by James’s attorney Robert Mijuca of the powerful law firm of Rubenstein and Rynecki.

The court documents also allege that the injuries caused James to be unable to attend to her usual occupation — though the alleged pain and suffering occurred on the eve of the councilwoman’s re-election campaign, one that she waged with her typical vigor against two primary rivals.

She bounced to an easy victory. Additionally, several of James’s Council colleagues told this newspaper that they did not recall James limping or using crutches during the summer.

But court papers paint a very different scenario of the events of July 11 on Fulton Street between S. Portland Avenue and S. Oxford Street.

The lawsuit claims that James “came into contact with the exposed, unprotected hitch,” contact that led to “great physical and mental pain” — though the actual body part that was damaged is not cited.

James claims that Day’s hitch is illegal and that her injuries resulted “solely [from] the careless and negligent manner in which [he] owned and maintained his motor vehicle.”

But Day says that the hitch is legal. He said he was loading recyclables into his car from the curbside when James parked closely behind him. She bumped into the hitch when walking between the cars to the sidewalk, he said.

She had a scratch on her shin, Day recalled, and he didn’t think much of it until receiving notification that he was being sued. Since then, he’s waged a one-man crusade to ward off the councilwoman’s suit.

“Please don’t go forward with it,” he wrote to James in February. “You are famous and powerful while I’m a nobody without means who’s done you no harm. Purusing this course to court can bring only ruin all around.”

He also pointed out that he makes roughly one-tenth of James’s salary, meaning that the lawmaker would likely not get much in a settlement.

As such, James shouldn’t bank on a cash bonanza similar to the one that Borough President Markowitz received in 2003, two years after the notorious slip and fall in an ice-slicked Albany parking lot that resulted in an ankle broken in three places. Markowitz was on crutches for weeks.

On Wednesday, James responded to news coverage of her lawsuit, maintaining that she is fighting the case against the Everyman laborer on behalf of … everyman.

“It’s a public safety issue,” said James. “My car was parked and his car was parked. His hitch was exposed. … This lawsuit could be ended today if he removed it.”

The councilwoman claims that she discussed this with Day, but he refused to remove the hitch. Day claims that he got the hitch from a U-Haul dealership, and that it is legal.

Legal or not, James retorted that the hitch was “rusty” and caused a seven-inch scar on her leg.

“The doctor said it was a deep laceration and he wanted to give me stitches, but I said no,” said the courageous councilwoman.

The larger irony of James’s suit, of course, is that the councilwoman, not Day, may be the person who broke traffic regulations.

Walking between two parked cars could be jaywalking.

Comment on this story.

By Stephen Witt

Courier-Life

Councilwoman Letitia James is ramping the legal pressure up in her personal injury lawsuit against an itinerant laborer after she allegedly injured herself walking into his legally parked truck.

James, who is also an attorney, has retained high-powered and politically connected attorney Sanford Rubenstein, whom she has known for 25 years.

And Rubenstein can’t wait to take this controversial — and much-mocked — case to the jury.

“My client looks forward to a jury hearing the case and making a determination of what damages she’s entitled to,” said the Court Street lawyer. “There is a permanent scar on her leg and she’s also concerned that others can be injured by the dangerous conditions on this vehicle.”

Rubenstein was referring to the now notorious events of July 11, when James, according to her court filings, sustained “serious, severe and permanent [injuries] to her limbs and body” after she walked into a four-inch trailer hitch protruding from David Day’s parked car.

She’s seeking unspecified damages.

Rubenstein, who has hosted political fundraisers for the likes of Reps. Charles Rangel and Ed Towns in his luxurious Manhattan penthouse, said he took the case on merit and will charge his usual fee — a percent of the winnings.

“As in any case, I will work on contingency and a jury will decide the damages,” said Rubenstein.

When reminded that Day makes about a tenth of James’s $122,500 Council salary, Rubenstein responded that the issue isn’t how much Day makes, but the danger that his protruding trailer hitch is still causing to the general public.

James (D–Fort Greene) has said she will drop the case if Day just takes the hitch off his van — but Day is showing some of his native Texas toughness.

“How you can you go around telling people to remove their livelihood,” said Day in a long southern drawl. “I put the trailer hitch on there with my money in order to make money. It’s what I use to make money — to move my things and to hook a trailer to my van. I would love to take it off and make her happy, but that reasoning is stupid.”

Day maintains that it is James who is liable and negligent for walking into his parked car.

“If they get a law for everyone to remove [hitches], then I’ll gladly remove my trailer hitch,” he added. “If it’s good for one, it’s good for everybody, but it’s totally wrong to tell me to remove mine while millions of people have one on their vehicles.”

In the hours after The Brooklyn Paper’s Web site broke the story of James’s lawsuit, the Councilwoman has been the subject of considerable mockery on the Internet.

“[She is an] idiot who is suing a man because she bumped her shin,” posted “Bob.” “The people who agree with her are part of the problem with New York City.”

Another commenter, Winston Smith, added, “How dare this peasant even park anywhere near the same block as this woman. Doesn’t he know who she is!?!?!?”

Comment on this story.

By Howard Koplowitz

TimesLedger Newspapers

The rift between two warring factions of the Queens Republican Party just got deeper.

The Haggerty brothers, Bart and John, and their allies are claiming Queens GOP Chairman Phil Ragusa was not rightfully elected at an Oct. 3 meeting because of a flawed voting process and contend Bart Haggerty is the rightful borough leader.

But Ragusa said he was decisively re-elected at the Oct. 3 Queens GOP reorganizational meeting and it is clear he is the chairman of the party, not his opponent, Bart Haggerty.

“There’s not a dispute on our end,” Ragusa said in a telephone interview Tuesday. “I’m the chairman of Queens County. You can go to the [Republican] state committee Web site and I’m listed as chairman.”

Ragusa said he got about 62 percent of the vote at the meeting against Bart Haggerty.

“On all fronts, I won the vote,” he said.

As for the Haggertys, Ragusa said, “They have just an utter disregard for the law and [think they] could do anything they want. What they did was file fraudulent papers.”

But Haggerty said the weighted voting system used in the election was improper and the way proxy voters were disqualified was not transparent.

“The reality is the only fraud perpetrated here is on Mr. Ragusa’s part,” he said. “The whole thing is very problematic in the way that it’s run. Clearly, they’re not concerned about transparency.”

Haggerty said the Queens GOP currently has “two functional executive committees” and that either entity can continue with party business.

“I believe that as of right now, either committee can issue an endorsement,” he said. “Mr. Ragusa would be pleased if I folded my tent, so to speak, but that’s not happening.”

Ragusa said his side filed a complaint with the Manhattan district attorney over the Haggertys’ challenge to his chairmanship.

He said the DA’s office went to the city Board of Elections and asked for copies of filings involving the vote.

Ragusa said former City Councilman Tom Ognibene, who is aligned with the Haggertys, recognizes him as Queens GOP chairman and congratulated him on his victory.

But Ognibene said that is not the case and that he supports Bart Haggerty. Ognibene’s wife is a member of Haggerty’s executive committee.

“I think [Ragusa’s camp] used a weighted system that was inappropriate,” Ognibene said. “I don’t think he legally, at that [Oct. 3.] meeting, obtained the status of Queens County chairman.”

Ognibene said the meeting should have been court-supervised, which would have resolved the leadership issue.

Judith Stupp, a member of the Queens GOP executive committee, said Ragusa fairly won the election.

“In my opinion, you have one lawful chairman and one lawful executive committee,” she said.

Stupp said the state GOP is dealing with Ragusa and recognizes him as chairman.

“The state Republican Party, they’re not reaching out to Bart Haggerty,” she said, calling the Haggertys’ position “a delusion of theirs.”

“The Haggertys are pretenders to the throne,” she said.

Comment on this story.

By Jeremy Walsh

TimesLedger Newspapers

Queens legislators said they were impressed by Lt. Gov. Richard Ravitch’s proposal to reform the state’s budget process, although they had their doubts about how many of his recommendations would see the light of day.

As Gov. David Paterson battled allegations that he interfered in a domestic violence case involving a top aide and that he lied about receiving free World Series tickets in 2009, Ravitch last week called for drastic changes to help the state right its finances over five years.

The plan calls for a switch to the “Generally Accepted Accounting Practices” used by New York City, pushing the state’s fiscal year back to July 1, establishing an independent commission to review the state Legislature’s budget proposal and a five-year borrowing plan to help shore up the deficit.

As the April 1 deadline for a balanced budget nears — amid looming doubts that legislators will have an agreement before the Easter and Passover holidays take them away from state business — members of the Queens Delegation in Albany said they are considering Ravitch’s suggestions seriously, but have qualms about the borrowing.

State Sen. Toby Stavisky (D-Whitestone) said she had been pushing the state to adopt the GAAP model for years. But she also warned Ravitch’s plan to limit state borrowing to about $2 billion each year would not solve New York’s problem this year.

“There are going to be significant cuts to health care and to education,” she said. “And the reason is simple: That’s almost 60 percent of budget.”

State Assemblyman Michael Gianaris (D-Astoria) said the plan will be taken seriously, but criticized the lack of specific guidelines for spending reductions.

“The big problem we’re facing is we’re spending too much money, more than we have,” he said.

Assemblyman Rory Lancman (D-Fresh Meadows) said adopting the different accounting practices “would reduce a lot of the gamesmanship and gimmickry which people see in the state’s budget process.”

But he criticized the notion of an independent panel watching over the process.

“I’ve become very disabused of any belief in independent panels of wise men,” he said. “They are always as political as the legislative process itself.”

Comment on this story.

By Aaron Short

The Brooklyn Paper

Freshman Councilman Steve Levin has come out against the $1.2-billion redevelopment of the old Domino Sugar refinery on the Williamsburg waterfront, calling its 2,200 units too big for a neighborhood that has seen massive growth since a 2005 rezoning that encouraged just such development.

“The project is simply too big,” Levin said in a statement read by an aide at a hearing at Borough Hall on Thursday.

That hearing, held by Borough President Markowitz, was the latest stop for the Domino developers, the Community Preservation Corporation, on the city’s eight-month land-use review process — and came just days after Community Board 1 rejected the residential conversion of the defunct sugar refinery in a 23-12 vote.

Like the community board, Levin focused on the impact of so many apartments on a historic 11-acre site along Kent Avenue just north of the Williamsburg Bridge.

“The plan would introduce over 6,000 new residents to the neighborhood, a nearly 25-percent population increase for the half-mile area surrounding the site,” Levin’s statement said.

The councilman, making his first foray into a project that will define his first term and the future of the Williamsburg waterfront, did commend CPC’s commitment to affordable housing, which exceeds the requirement of a controversial 2005 rezoning of the waterfront to allow high-density residential construction — but Levin reiterated that he would not support the plan “unless the issues of height and density, transportation, and open space, among others, are addressed.”

Levin’s position is a significant blow to CPC, which is hoping that Markowitz will use his land-use review vote to approve their project on the grounds that it creates much-needed affordable housing, reuses a derelict site and opens up the waterfront for public access.

“Our vision is to create an economically balanced need,” said company President Michael Lappin. “Affordable housing continues to be the most-pressing need for the community.”

Levin’s opposition to the project will carry significant weight in the City Council, where members tend to defer to the local councilmember on land-use issues. As a result, Domino supporters were incensed by their new lawmaker’s statement.

“The south side is solid and fervent in its support” for Domino,” said Churches United Executive Director Paul Cogley, referring mostly to the promise of many new affordable units.

And Esteban Duran, a member of the community board, added that he hoped that Markowitz would not be swayed by Levin.

“Marty would be remiss to vote this down,” said Duran. “This project will transform the waterfront that has been ignored for generations.”

During his public hearing, Markowitz gave little indication of his position, asking questions about the amount of commercial space that the project would provide and the number of local jobs that could arise from its construction.

He needs to issue a recommendation within a month, sending the project to its next step in the review, the City Planning Commission, which is expected to approve it. After that, the project goes for review by the City Council, which no longer appears to be the shoo-in that it once was, thanks to Levin’s opposition.

Comment on this story.

Courier Life staffers

Courier-Life

The Independent Neighborhood Democrats club is hosting a forum for attorney general candidates tonight, so we took the chance to examine who the borough might fancy.

In a crowded race, Manhattan State Senator Eric Schneiderman might have some juice, at least according to one longtime political veteran who noted his “closeness” to state senators from Brooklyn, like John Sampson (D-Canarsie). “He’s enjoyed good relations with his colleagues,” the person said. The recently influential Working Families Party will also likely side with Schneiderman, another political observer noted, given the pol’s relationship with consultants Berlin Rosen, along with other mutual connections.

“He’s been one of the most progressive voices and very responsive to labor,” the political veteran added. “It doesn’t hurt that he has political consultants close to WFP.”

And it was the WFP that was very helpful, in “certain ways,” to county boss Vito Lopez last election, dispatching 32BJ, the property service workers union, to help Lopez-backed Maritza Davila, in the race for the 34th Council District in Williamsburg and Bushwick.

“This will help Schneiderman,” the political veteran said.

Meanwhile, Assemblymember Richard Brodsky might have some momentum of his own, thanks to support from his colleagues Joan Millman and Jim Brennan, a person familiar with the race said. Other candidates include

But an IND member insisted that the race, for now, is “wide open.”

The IND forum will be held tonight at 7 PM at the Kane Street Synagogue. 236 Kane Street. As of this writing, three of the four candidates expected to run said they will be in attendance.

Comment on this story.

By Howard Koplowitz

TimesLedger Newspapers

As embattled Gov. David Paterson faced new allegations of impropriety this week, two southeast Queens elected officials said the black community should stand by Paterson.

“We need to make sure that we as a community should support each other,” said City Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) during a forum in Hollis Saturday, pointing out that Paterson “and his family are under a lot of pressure.”

The governor has been defiant amid escalating calls for his resignation and said he would not step down.

Paterson is being investigated by state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo’s office, which is weighing whether the governor interfered with a domestic violence investigation involving an aide, David Johnson.

Last week the state Commission on Public Integrity charged Paterson with violating ethics laws over free Yankees tickets he received for the first game of the 2009 World Series, which he attended with his teenage son, his son’s friend and Johnson.

“The commission determined that there is reasonable cause to believe that Gov. Paterson solicited, received and accepted an unlawful gift and falsely testified under oath that he had always intended to pay for the tickets for his son and his son’s friend when, in fact, the governor’s intention was to receive and accept the tickets without paying for them until a press inquiry caused him to submit a backdated check as payment for the tickets,” the commission said in a news release March 3.

The commission asked Cuomo and the Albany district attorney to investigate whether Paterson or anyone else “may have committed a crime or crimes by swearing falsely during the commission’s interview of him and by causing a check to be back-dated.”

Comrie suggested there was a double standard, contending that former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani had a World Series ring made up for him and “went to every Yankee game” while in office, but there were no allegations about Giuliani.

“None of this nonsense has been brought up,” Comrie said. “David Paterson went to one game and they’re trying to put him in jail because of it.”

State Assemblywoman Barbara Clark (D-Queens Village) also said she was sticking by Paterson.

“Until there’s some result from this [Cuomo] investigation, I don’t think we should jump the gun,” Clark said.

While Clark expressed her support for Paterson, she said he should step down if the probe finds that the governor committed wrongdoing.

The Rev. Charles Norris of Bethesda Missionary Baptist Church in Jamaica, who also attended the meeting, compared Paterson’s troubles with that of former President Bill Clinton.

He said Clinton was able to run the country while going through impeachment proceedings yet some say Paterson should not be able to lead the state while there are “innuendos about him that have not been proven.”

Comment on this story.

By Nathan Duke

TimesLedger Newspapers

A group of Queens and Long Island residents associated with the national Tea Party movement protested outside U.S. Rep. Gary Ackerman’s (D-Bayside) Northern Boulevard-based office last week, blasting his stance on health care.

More than 10 people who live within the congressman’s northeast Queens district held signs reading “Freedom: A Stimulus We Can Afford” and “Stop Spending Our Future” as they criticized Ackerman’s support of national health care reform outside his office at 218-14 Northern Blvd. in Bayside.

“Obamacare threatens us all,” said Stuart Kaufman, of Great Neck, L.I., who led the protest last Thursday. “Mr. Ackerman appears to take his dictates from [House Speaker] Nancy Pelosi [D-Calif.]. We are trying to show him there is another side. If he wants to vote with Pelosi and the president, he’ll drive off the cliff.”

Kaufman said the group, which was associated with the national Tea Party protest movement, had not directly spoken to the congressman about their concerns.

“Ackerman is one of those people who speaks through a spokesman when he speaks to his constituents at all,” Kaufman said. “He never consents to meet with us. He’s Mr. Friendly, Mr. Superfluous, Mr. Supercilious.”

In a statement, Ackerman said he supported the group’s right to protest.

“These folks have the constitutional right to peacefully express their political opinions to their elected representatives, and that is what they did today,” the congressman said. “I fully support that right.”

The protesters had gathered outside Ackerman’s office last month to critique the congressman’s votes on the economy, national defense and the bailouts of national financial institutions.

Some drivers heading eastbound along Northern Boulevard honked their support for the protesters as they waved their signs.

Brendan Ogle, of Middle Village, said he believed President Barack Obama’s proposal to overhaul health care was “ominous.”

“Obama is a slick salesman, but this is really insane,” he said. “It can only be a disaster. People will be living here like they live in Appalachia. All wealth will be destroyed. There’s not the slightest bit of concern for the unemployed. It’s like we’re living in a Third World country.”

The president’s plan would expand health care to more than 30 million people who lack insurance and prohibit some insurance company practices, including denial of coverage to patients with pre-existing medical conditions.

Comment on this story.

By Gary Buiso

Courier-Life

A Carroll Gardens private school announced late on Friday that it had abandoned its controversial plan to build an annex on its courtyard — ending a bitter debate over whether building on such yards would destroy the very character of the neighborhood.

The Hannah Senesh Community Day School said it would not erect a two-story building on land at the corner of Smith Street and First Place, and has decided instead to “pursue other space opportunities” in the neighborhood.

Neighbors were overjoyed.

“This would have absolutely taken away the uniqueness of our street and the value of our property — and we’ve put everything in these properties,” said Barbara Brookhart.

At issue was the school’s attempt to amend a city code so that it could build on its courtyard, which it currently uses as a parking lot. Once the plan was made public, neighbors recoiled, arguing that the portion of the city code in question, which dates back to the mid-1800s, essentially considers the front gardens on First through Fourth places as public streets that can not be built upon. Changing it would allow a precedent that, opponents said, could lead to an erosion in the very essence of the neighborhood — the front gardens that give Carroll Gardens its name.

“We were most afraid that once law changed for [Hannah Senesh] other people would get the same idea and it would be changed again, and the signature courtyards would vanish, corner by corner,” said Triada Samaras, a member of the group Carroll Gardens Coalition for Respectful Development.

The controversy, which began in December, put a bitter punctuation mark on the term of Councilman Bill DeBlasio (D-Park Slope), who was preparing to introduce a bill that would amend the administrative code to allow the expansion. The resulting local outcry derailed that maneuver. Opponents argued that such a significant change in a land use should go through the city’s public review process.

Pam Kaplan, the president of the Hannah Senesh board of directors, said that the school abandoned the plan because it is “sensitive to the concerns of our neighbors.”

“We know that we will need additional space in the future … and will seek out such opportunities when available,” she added. “We are, as a school, looking forward to being part of the Carroll Gardens community for many years to come.”

She declined to say whether the school had found an off-site location for its expansion.

The 152-student Jewish day school, which has been at its current location for just three years, said it sought the expansion not to add enrollment, but to expand programs.

Now “the school is going to have to adapt to what is best for the kids,” said Ken Fisher, the former Councilman hired by the school as its lobbyist. “How it plays out, we don’t know.”

Comment on this story.

By Aaron Short

Courier-Life

He may have lost his bid for City Comptroller last fall, but former City Councilman David Yassky has a shiny yellow and black consolation prize: a Commissioner’s post with the Taxi Limousine Commission.

“David is the right guy for the job,” said Mayor Michael Bloomberg, highlighting Yassky’s experience introducing fuel-efficient taxis to the city, familiarity with small business owners, and the regulated taxi industry. “David has the experience, leadership skills and vision necessary to build on the innovations of the last eight years and make more improvements for passengers and drivers.”

Yassky, who still needs to be confirmed by the City Council before beginning the position, would serve a seven-year term expiring January 31, 2017 and earn $192,000 per year.

He’d be responsible for overseeing licenses and regulations for more than 50,000 vehicles, including 13,237 yellow cabs, 100,000 drivers, and 900 businesses, which include yellow taxicabs, black cars, liveries, limousines, and para-transit and commuter vans, transporting about one million passengers each day.

“For-hire vehicles are a vital part of the city’s fabric, emblematic of the city’s 24-7 energy and its entrepreneurial spirit,” said Yassky. “Under Mayor Bloomberg, the TLC has been a national leader in promoting sustainable, efficient urban transportation. If confirmed by the City Council, I look forward to building on the administration’s accomplishments and to advancing the Mayor’s commitment to creative government solutions and first-rate customer service for the New Yorkers and visitors.”

Comment on this story.

By Anna Gustafson

TimesLedger Newspapers

State Assemblyman Andrew Hevesi (D-Forest Hills) and the Democrat running against him in the primary, Lilianna Zulunova, have thrown themselves head first into their campaigns, with each holding fund-raisers last week and pounding the pavement to win support from district residents.

The 28th Assembly District covers Forest Hills, Rego Park, Middle Village and Glendale.

Hevesi, the assemblyman since 2005, held a fund-raiser at the Woodhaven House, a pub in Rego Park, March 1 and Zulunova, the former campaign manager for City Council candidate Albert Cohen, scored $20,000 at her March 2 fund-raiser held at Da Mikelle II in Forest Hills.

A spokesman for Hevesi did not specify how much the assemblyman received from the fund-raiser.

“It was well-attended and we still have checks coming in,” said Hevesi spokesman Doug Forand.

About 100 people went to both fund-raisers and Zulunova said she was pleased to see Queens Independent Party Chairman Michael Niebauer and Bukharian Rabbi Itzhak Yehushua at her event.

“The people who attended it were from all different backgrounds,” said Zulunova, who has also worked as deputy chief of staff for former state Sen. John Sabini. “There were people from Forest Hills, Jackson Heights, Glendale, Middle Village, all over.”

Niebauer said there is a good possibility the Queens Independence Party could throw its support behind Zulunova.

“I was very moved by everybody who came out to support her,” Niebauer said of the fund-raiser. “It’s difficult to beat an incumbent, but she has overwhelming support in the community, so it could happen .… This is going to be a competitive primary.”

Forand said Hevesi “welcomes” Zulunova to the race.

“He’s very comfortable with his record,” Forand said. “The response he’s been getting has been phenomenal. People are very supportive of him.”

Both candidates have been spending many hours going door to door, an effort Niebauer said plays a major part in securing a victory.

“When he’s not in Albany, he’s going door to door,” Forand said of Hevesi.

Zulunova said people have been “excited” about her campaign when she speaks with residents at their homes.

“I’m receiving such positive feedback,” she said.

Hevesi and Zulunova have been busy in Albany lately. The state Assembly last month passed Hevesi’s bill that aims to create a more comprehensive alternative energy policy for the state and Zulunova traveled to Albany the day of her fund-raiser to rally for immigrant rights.

Comment on this story.

By Ivan Pereira

TimesLedger Newspapers

After months of searching and attempts to catch at least two elusive coyotes reportedly roaming around Rochdale Village, animal experts and City Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) are warning residents not to worry about the wily predators.

The councilman began handing out fliers in southeast Queens Monday to help ease residents’ fears of the coyotes. Since November residents have been claiming they have seen at least two of the wild animals prowling around their premises, but no one has been able to capture and remove them.

Comrie said his office had received numerous phone calls from constituents as recently as last week, but he thinks the reports are real and not analogous to the alligators in the sewers urban legend.

“People have seen dog-like animals that they think are coyotes, so something is up,” the councilman said.

Comrie took advice from Joseph Pane, the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s principal fish and wildlife biologist, on possible explanations for the appearance of the coyotes.

Pane, who has been working as a wildlife biologist for 20 years, said it is common for coyotes to spread out from their natural habitat to find food sources.

He noted the animals have a tendency to travel along train tracks and stations, such as the Long Island Rail Road’s Locust Manor stop.

“Many of the tracks have places they can hide under,” Comrie said.

Pane said residents should not worry about their safety because coyotes only eat shrubs, rodents and other small animals. If a person were to encounter a coyote, he suggested shooing it off by making noise and, more importantly, not feeding it.

“Don’t do anything to attract it,” he said. “What you have to do is to let the animal move on.”

After residents first reported seeing the coyotes in November, the city’s Animal Care & Control set up traps around Rochdale Village, but the agency removed the traps when the animals were not caught.

Pane said the animals are very sly dogs.

“It’s too incredibly hard to catch one of them,” he said.

Mel Holmes, a nearby homeowner on 129th Avenue, said that although the suspected coyotes have not directly hurt him, he is annoyed they are wandering the streets.

“It’s a wildlife animal that has teeth and can bite, so it’s natural to be up in arms,” he said.

Comment on this story.

By Howard Koplowitz

TimesLedger Newspapers

The economy may be weak, but there are still employment and business opportunities, according to a town hall forum on jobs and the economy hosted Saturday by U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-Astoria).

Maloney, who chairs the House’s Joint Economic Committee, said the U.S. Senate is currently debating a $170 billion measure that will renew expired tax breaks for businesses.

“The president understands that our No. 1 promise has to be jobs,” Maloney told the crowd at the Cretan’s Association in Astoria.

Maloney said a targeted tax credit, which gives a $1,000 credit for every new job a business creates and cuts the payroll tax on new hires, will be a boon.

“I believe it will help move us forward,” she said.

Man-Li Kuo Lin, a business development specialist for the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Queens office, said the agency has a host of programs to help entrepreneurs and existing businesses.

Lin said the SBA guarantees business loans and that the economic stimulus package has helped reduce risks for banks.

She said banks are looking for qualified businesses to give loans to.

“The small local banks, they are willing to give money,” she said.

Lin said loans through the SBA can be had for as low as a 10 percent down payment at a 25-year fixed rate. The SBA also works with lenders in giving microloans and offers business training and education.

“If you can’t find a good job, why not start your own business? Make your dream come true,” Lin said. In the current economy, Lin said that option has become popular with college students who have had a tough time finding employment.

Angie Kamath, deputy commissioner of the city Small Business Services Worldforce Development Division, urged attendees at the forum to take advantage of the city’s four Workforce 1 career centers in Queens.

The centers had a 50 percent increase over last year in terms of how many people it put to work, Kamath said.

Two of the centers are in Jamaica — one for those looking for airport and transportation jobs and the other as a general career center. Two others are in Long Island City: one dedicated to health care jobs and the other a general center.

Kamath said the centers trained 10,000 people in occupation training last year and noted that such training leads to higher wages after completion of the program.

She said the centers also have daily job fairs.

Denise Richardson of the General Contractors Association said there are also opportunities for general contractors looking for work on city projects.

Richardson said the MTA’s Web site has information on a small business mentoring program that teaches contractors how to perform work for the MTA.

She said contractors looking for work are encouraged to fill out a contractor qualification questionnaire through the city School Construction Authority. If a contractor meets the criteria, they will be added to a list of qualified contractors and are eligible to perform work for the agency.

Comment on this story.

By Nathan Duke

TimesLedger Newspapers

The city has paid a $98,000 settlement to a former staff member at Astoria’s Community Board 1 who had filed a lawsuit that accused former district manager George Delis of sexually harassing her during her three-year stint at the board’s office, a spokeswoman for the city Law Department said.

The suit, which was filed by one-time CB 1 staffer Marcela Gutierrez in June at Brooklyn’s federal court, also named Borough President Helen Marshall, whose office has a supervisory relationship with community boards, and Vinicio Donato, the board’s chairman, as defendants.

But Delis, who retired in 2008 after 30 years as CB 1’s district manager, said he was infuriated that the case never went to trial.

“I was outraged how easily they give away taxpayer money,” he said. “If she’d sued me personally, it would have gone to trial. She had no case. So that’s why she sued the city. It leaves the impression I’m guilty. It’s outrageous.”

In the suit, Gutierrez claimed she quit her $24,000-per-year job as a receptionist in December 2007 because Delis had allegedly referred to her as a “hooker” and a “lesbian” as well as bragging about his sexual conquests and prowess. The former district manager was also accused of inviting Gutierrez to watch pornographic films with him, according to the suit.

The city settled last week with Gutierrez, paying her $98,000, a spokeswoman with the city Law Department said.

“This settlement was in the best interest of all the parties,” she said.

The spokeswoman said the payout was not a decision by a judge but a settlement and that, as part of an agreement, the plaintiff must withdraw her claims against the individual defendants.

“On many occasions, [Gutierrez] had come to me and complained about [Delis’] abusive language to her and reference to her sexual preference,” Donato said last year during a hearing on Gutierrez’s unemployment before an insurance appeal board, according to the complaint.

Donato told the appeal board that he did not believe he could get CB 1 to discipline Delis.

State Assemblyman Michael Gianaris (D-Astoria) said he believed Delis should repay the city.

“His behavior has cost the taxpayers almost $100,000,” Gianaris said. “The right thing for him to do would be to make the city whole rather than let the public pay for it.”

Delis blasted Gianaris, accusing him of “sticking his face in a legal matter.”

“He should mind his own business,” Delis said. “He always takes cheap shots at me. He’ll never be the man I am. Is he so jealous of me because I’m prettier than he is?”

Delis also alleged the city settled with Gutierrez because it was cheaper than going to trial.

Comment on this story.

By Connor Adams Sheets

TimesLedger Newspapers

The Kissena Park Civic Association hosted a community forum last Thursday evening on the negative effects Gov. David Paterson’s proposed budget would have on the eroding Queens health care system.

The discussion, led by state Assemblyman Rory Lancman (D-Fresh Meadows) and the Continuing Care Leadership Coalition, centered on the effects proposed new cuts would have on continuing care facilities, nursing homes and hospitals and how they would affect the community at large.

“This budget would once again be balanced on the backs of our health care facilities,” Lancman said. “Where are the budget cuts coming from? They’re going to come from the people who work in those health care facilities. The numbers are staggering.”

The coalition estimates that New York City would lose $94 million in annual health funding under the proposed budget and that $16 million of that loss would come from Queens, leading to 400 lost health-sector jobs.

These new cuts would come on the tail of years of major state cuts to health programs, including slashes of $1 billion from nursing homes and $200 million to home care between April 2007 and November 2009, according to Diane Barrett, director of government relations for the coalition.

The anticipated fallout is clear: more closed facilities even in the wake of dozens of nursing home and continuing care facility closing in the past decade despite increased demand, Barrett said. About 36,000 patients are treated annually in Queens nursing homes and 16,000 people are employed by them.

Florence Johnson, a lead organizer for the Health Care Education Project about how the spending cuts will hurt the borough’s hospitals, an issue which has become more acute since the fall 2008 closing of Parkway Hospital and the winter 2009 closings of Mary Immaculate and St. John’s Queens hospitals.

She said the quality and efficiency emergency rooms, patient care and other aspects of hospital operations and service would be greatly diminished under the proposal.

Johnson ended the meeting with a call to action for community members to write their elected officials and do anything else within their power to try to block the funding decreases.

“It’s up to us to stop these cuts from happening. If we don’t do something, it’s going to happen,” she said.

Homi Cooper, a Kissena Park resident who attended the meeting, agreed that the community and politicians need to further examine the downsides of such cuts before deciding whether to make them.

“We want to see the statistics. What is the basis, what is the root cause of the cuts? We want to see how many patients per hour, how many patients per doctor, how long are they waiting?” he said. “Currently, there is no fat to trim. Where’s the beef?”

Comment on this story.

By Anna Gustafson

TimesLedger Newspapers

For Michael Jaye, a manager at Forest Hills’ New York Diamond Boutique, a $15 billion jobs bill passed by Congress has prompted him to hire two new people for his shop on Austin Street — a feat in an economy that has struck some locally owned Queens shops hard.

“It really stimulates our ability to hire,” Jaye said of the legislation passed by the U.S. House of Representatives last week.

Both the U.S. Senate and House have approved the bill that will give a $1,000 tax credit to businesses who hire workers. The House’s bill is slightly different from the legislation the Senate passed last month, and the Senate will hold another vote on the bill before President Barack Obama is expected to sign it into law.

“It’s great to have the tax credit,” Jaye said. “It’s one of the reasons we’re looking to hire.”

Weiner toured several businesses on Austin Street in Forest Hills Monday to gauge how they are faring in the economy and discuss the HIRE Act, short for Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment, which would eliminate 2010 payroll taxes for every unemployed worker hired and give further tax credits if the employees are kept on for more than a year.

The Forest Hills congressman said it is especially important to focus on job creation in places like Queens because “nearly 70 percent of jobs created in New York are not created in the gleaming glass stores of Manhattan but in the mom-and-pop stores in the five boroughs.”

Shop owners and employees gave varied answers when asked how they are doing financially, with the owner of a handmade jewelry store saying this year has been one of the worst and a secondhand shop owner saying the sour economy has actually brought him more customers.

“Business is awful, really awful,” said Marie Sinanian, who has co-owned Stoa Jewelry for 43 years. “It’s worse than last year.”

Sinanian said the escalating cost of rent combined with aggressive parking officers are especially problematic.

“There is a horrendous parking problem here,” Sinanian said. “People have told me they’ve made a vow not to come to Austin Street.”

But Marc Pine, the owner of Instant Replay, said his 33-year-old secondhand store has actually fared better in recent months because financially strapped customers have come to his shop to find bargains on items like clothes and jewelry.

“The recession has been good for us … but I know times have been tough on most businesses around here,” Pine said.

Pine reiterated Jaye’s sentiment that the jobs bill could give a boost to local stores.

The owner of Dmitry Italian Silk Ties said they have seen sales decline more than 50 percent this season and have especially been affected by empty stores in the area.

“Compared to a year ago, there’s been a slowdown,” said Dmitry, who declined to give his last name. “What’s helping us is Internet sales, since we sell our ties online.”

Comment on this story.

By Gary Buiso

Courier-Life

An effort to preserve the history of Carroll Gardens is being criticized for actually hastening the neighborhood’s gentrification, said opponents of a controversial city initiative to widen the area’s historic district.

“They just want to re-gentrify and force out whatever elements from the past are left,” said lifelong area resident and businessman John Esposito, who helped form Citizens Against Landmarks to thwart the Landmarks Preservation Commission’s nascent effort to extend historic protections to a larger segment of the brownstone neighborhood.

Esposito and others don’t feel protected — they feel threatened.

The land marking agency is only in the earliest phase of studying an extension to the existing district, according to spokeswoman Lisi de Bourbon.

“Later this month, staff will visit the neighborhood to assess what areas may be eligible and will then make a recommendation to the chair,” she said.

But that’s the problem, said resident Mike Cassidy, who said an expanded district will bring an undue burden on homeowners, who would be required to win the approval from Landmarks for every exterior improvement done on their property.

“This viability study worries us,” Cassidy said. “They’ll do the viability study, and then they’ll ram it down our throats.”

Opponents have set up a Web site, carrollgardensresidents.wordpress.com, and hope “to get [Landmarks] to recognize that not everyone is thrilled,” he said.

Currently, the 37-year-old historic district includes 149 buildings in a surprisingly small area bounded by President, Carroll, Smith and Hoyt streets. While the neighborhood was last year rezoned to discourage oversized growth, supporters of the land marking initiative say it adds a layer of additional protection an area particularly besieged by over development during the decade’s last building boom.

The agency will examine roughly 50-60 blocks, and insiders expect that about half of that might be deemed viable. The entire process can take years from the viability study to actual creation of the district.

Glenn Kelly, co-chairman of the Carroll Gardens Neighborhood Association, favors the expansion.

“There are some who don’t, or can’t see past the negatives — and yes, there are some negatives. It’s a bit more of a hassle when you have to make repairs to the front of your house.”

And Kelly should know — he lives on landmarked Carroll Street.

“Yes, it’s cost me more money, but I want to leave my house better than I found it — and I’m not going to mess it up just to save a few bucks.”

One reason to expand the Carroll Gardens Historic District is that its boundaries do not actually include some of the blocks with wide front gardens that actually give the neighborhood its name, said Bob Furman, founder of the Brooklyn Preservation Council.

“It’s always been a contradiction,” Furman said.

Councilman Brad Lander (D-Park Slope) also supports the land marking extension.

“I think that landmarks and historic districts can be a good deal for preserving the character of a neighborhood so I’m glad they decided to do a viability study — but one critical element is neighborhood support,” he said.

Lander admitted that historic districts can lead to higher costs, people generally find that it’s not a “significant” burden.

Esposito called Lander’s position “arrogant.”

“His constituents aren’t just the upper class, they’re the people who built this neighborhood,” he said. “They just want to force [us] out.”

Comment on this story.

By Ivan Pereira

TimesLedger Newspapers

The MTA is aiming to take out one of Flushing’s express buses, but commuters said they are being unfairly targeted.

A group of supporters and elected officials for the X51 bus came out in the pouring rain Friday morning to protest the agency’s doomsday budget that would kill service on the line. The bus is the only express line in the city that would be removed if the Metropolitan Transportation Authority cannot find a way to fill its $750 million budget gap.

City Councilman Peter Koo (R-Flushing), who organized the protest, said the agency was placing its financial burden on the backs of hardworking citizens.

“We are here today to send a strong message that we, the citizens, are here to fight for our express buses,” he said.

The bus starts out in Auburndale at 165th Street and Sanford Avenue, has two other stops in Flushing and takes riders to East 57th Street and Third Avenue in midtown Manhattan.

Although Flushing has a subway line that gives riders access to the city, X51 rider Suzy Carroll said the bus provided residents with an alternative to the overcrowded No. 7 train and local buses. She also said she met a fellow straphanger on the bus the other day who was taking other transportation alternatives, but came back to the X51 when she got a new job.

“There are many people that used to ride this bus that lost their jobs within the past year. Now what happens when they return to the workforce? They’ll have no bus to go to,” Carroll said.

State Assemblywoman Grace Meng (D-Flushing) said she does not know why the MTA is targeting the X51 as opposed to other express lines and said the agency should think about how it would affect her district.

“Flushing is a transportation hub. You take away our transportation, you affect our small businesses, our families and our schools. There are many passengers here and people from many other areas come here as well,” she said.

Comment on this story.

By Jeremy Walsh

TimesLedger Newspapers

So long, Hiram.

After an increasingly bitter special election race, the embattled former state senator who was expelled from his office by the Senate was defeated in a landslide victory for Assemblyman Jose Peralta (D-Jackson Heights).

With 95 percent of the ballots counted, Peralta had taken 66 percent of the votes, Monserrate trailed with 27 percent and Republican candidate Robert Beltrani took in 7 percent, the city Board of Elections said. Total votes added up to nearly 15,000, three times the 4,800 votes cast in the special election Julissa Ferreras won to replace Monserrate in the City Council in 2009 and double the turnout last month in the special election for the northeast Queen assembly seat.

“Our nightmare is over. A new day has begun,” Peralta said in his acceptance speech. “We finally have our community back—our honor, our dignity, our verguenza.”

Monserrate conceded with a pledge not to disappear from the political scene.

“This was a battle of Goliath against David, but we have our dignity and our pride and we continue to move forward,” he told supporters at Natives Restaurant in Jackson Heights.

Monserrate also wished Peralta well.

“He is the best thing for our community,” Monserrate said. “I will not, however, at this time rule out any other future political races or ambitions.”

Crowds were enthusiastic in the early morning. Peralta said he was behind 50 people in line at his polling place, the Renaissance School in Jackson Heights. But by midday, the turnout had slowed somewhat.

Richard Yamaguchi, poll coordinator at IS 145 in Jackson Heights, said the volume of people was “pretty good” for a special election. Veronica Harris-Owens, the coordinator at PS 127, called the turnout at her facility “very light.” Edgar Moya, the coordinator at PS 19, across from Monserrate’s campaign headquarters in Corona, said he expected 500 voters by the end of the day.

“So far it’s regular,” he said at 11:20 a.m. Tuesday.

Monserrate’s Senate career was troubled even before he took the oath. On Dec. 19, 2008, a month after he was elected, Monserrate was arrested and charged with assault after he drove his girlfriend to a hospital with severe lacerations to her face. Monserrate was acquitted of intentionally slashing the woman’s face, but he was convicted of misdemeanor assault for recklessly injuring her as he dragged her out of his Jackson Heights apartment building.

Voters willing to share their views seemed to favor Peralta.

“To me, it’s sort of a toss-up between which is worse, [Monserrate’s] conviction for beating up his girlfriend or his vote on gay marriage,” said Benjamin Hett, 44, of Jackson Heights. Monserrate was one of five Queens state senators to vote against same-sex marriage in December as he aligned himself with a bloc of Latino clergymen who opposed the movement.

Irene Arfer, 79, of Jackson Heights said Monserrate’s move to join the Republicans last spring in an Albany coup attempt was what cost him her vote.

“Of course, I read a little bit about Peralta, but it’s really an anti-Monserrate thing,” she said. “I can’t understand anybody that would vote for Monserrate.”

For Vanessa Agard-Jones, 30, a lesbian living in East Elmhurst, the choice was based on Monserrate’s opposition to same-sex marriage, although she also cited the domestic incident.

“The relationship between a person who is violent against his domestic partner and the kind of decisions he makes as a politician, I think, is questionable,” she said.

Monserrate had his supporters, however.

Lauriano Tavera, 74, of Corona, said Monserrate has been a boon to the community.

“He helps people. You need something, he will write a letter for you. He’s a very nice guy,” Taverea said. “Everybody makes mistakes, everybody. That’s why he needs a chance.”

Monserrate has the option of running for Peralta’s soon-to-be-vacant Assembly seat. If he does, he will face Corona civic leader Francisco Moya and Jackson Heights lawyer Bryan Pu-Folkes. No date had been set for a special election for that seat by press time Tuesday.

Comment on this story.

By Thomas Tracy

The Brooklyn Paper

Meet the new LGBT-friendly John Heyer.

Here’s a crazy little tidbit that fell through the cracks during Monday night’s rally decrying the March 2 gay bashing on Luquer Street.

As every local elected official in the city cried out for justice, standing front and center with a vigil candle in hand was John Heyer.

No one seemed confused by the presence of this longtime Carroll Gardens resident and would-be elected official — even though Heyer is an opponent of gay marriage, a stance that earned him plenty of heat during last year’s run for the Council, a race that ultimately went to gay marriage supporter Brad Lander.

Even more surprising than Heyer’s presence at the anti-hate rally (after all, who likes hate?) was that Heyer somehow managed to get quoted in Lander’s follow-up press release about the rally.

Even zanier was that he somehow managed to insert his pro-life stance — another controversy from last year — to settle the score during in his remarks about the anti-gay attack.

“A central tenet of my religious beliefs is the sanctity of human life,” he said in the press release. “Since I have been personally singled out due to my heritage and religious beliefs, I would never want anyone stigmatized or victimized because of race religion, gender ethnicity or sexual orientation.”

Wow. Lemon? Meet lemonade.

Comment on this story.

By Anna Gustafson

TimesLedger Newspapers

City Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) told St. John’s University students last week that he still is fighting predatory lenders in the wake of a subprime mortgage crisis that has caused thousands of borough residents, especially in southeast Queens, to lose their homes.

Unscrupulous lenders are continuing to push loans on individuals who cannot afford them, Comrie said at a forum on foreclosure at St. John’s University Friday.

“Predatory lending and payday loans are still prevalent,” he said. “We need to let the public know what’s out there for them. No one should suffer in silence anymore.”

There are a variety of government and nonprofit programs that can help individuals facing foreclosure, including Preserve Assets and Community Equity. Comrie worked with the mayor and area financial institutions on this program, which attempts to combat predatory lending through outreach, education, financial assistance and legal strategies.

“It was the first joint program between the city and the banking industry to deal with the crisis,” Comrie said.

He was joined by state Sen. Brian Foley (D-Hauppauge) at the St. John’s foreclosure forum, part of a day-long symposium sponsored by the law school and titled “The Fall of the Economy: How New York Can Rise to the Challenge.”

Leonard Baynes, a law professor who organizes the event, said they especially wanted the day to include a discussion on subprime mortgages since Queens has been especially hard hit. There were more than 12,000 foreclosure actions initiated in the city in 2008, with over 5,000 of those being in Queens. About 3,000 were in Comrie’s district, which covers St. Albans, Springfield Gardens and Cambria Heights.

The most recent statistics from foreclosure listing firm RealtyTrac show there were 616 foreclosure notices in Queens in January, down by about 2 percent since January 2009.

Southeast Queens neighborhoods such as St. Albans, Springfield Gardens and Jamaica have the highest foreclosure rate in the state, although other areas like Fresh Meadows and Woodside also have seen increases in foreclosures.

“It really devastates communities,” Baynes said. “There are blocks and blocks with foreclosed homes.”

Baynes said students at the school’s elder law clinic will work with individuals who could lose their homes. Comrie’s and Foley’s office frequently work with people facing foreclosure and the St. Albans legislator said all state banks, including Chase and CitiBank, are conducting financial literacy programs.

Foley told the St. John’s students that those in law school can be particularly effective in fighting predatory lending.

“Through law schools and colleges, you can bring a greater amount of literacy and information to the public,” he said.

Comment on this story.

By Ivan Pereira

TimesLedger Newspapers

State Sen. Malcolm Smith (D-St. Albans) conceded the state will take some time to get out of its financial crisis, but he said plans are underway to bring together leaders at other venues to help New York’s unemployed.

The senator unveiled last Thursday plans for a citywide special committee to look into creating jobs for the state. The initiative will find answers for displaced residents and also analyze which job sectors in the state are thriving in the bad economy.

“If someone has a job, they can move their lives forward,” he told his first State of the District address at the Robert Ross Johnson Family Life Center in St. Albans.

Starting in the spring, Smith said the committee, which will be made up of representatives of city, state and federal government agencies, will have meetings in each borough to focus on three areas.

The first would be to see which areas are succeeding in providing jobs today. The second will be to see which job sectors will be emerging in the near future. The third area will be to see what areas are good for younger workers to start a successful career.

“We will make sure you know we work for you,” Smith said.

Smith said one area that looks promising is green businesses, which promote new environmentally friendly technologies. During the meeting he also stressed the importance of creating a high-speed rail system for the state.

Smith, who represented the state at a national conference on high-speed rail systems in Florida over the weekend, said such a system would be advantageous for both commuters and the thousands of New Yorkers who would be employed in the creation of the train.

“High-speed rail offers the opportunity to alleviate traffic congestion, provides land use planning alternatives, provides an alternative to highways and air travel during periods of national crisis, addresses environmental concerns and reduces dependence on foreign oil,” he said a statement.

Comment on this story.

By Anna Gustafson

TimesLedger Newspapers

The City Council last week passed legislation that will allow environmentally conscious city residents to more easily sell and access green technology, the bill’s sponsor, Councilman James Gennaro (D-Fresh Meadows), said.

Passed March 3, the bill creates two different panels Gennaro said will help to streamline approval for green technology and projects.

“This will put New York City in the forefront of using new technology to create green jobs,” said Gennaro, chairman of the Council Environmental Protection Committee.

Currently, it can be difficult for residents who want to market new, more environmentally friendly structures — for example, personal windmills — to receive approval from city officials because green technology is changing so fast that it is difficult for city rules and regulations to keep up, Gennaro said. With this legislation, a new Innovation Review Board consisting of officials from various city agencies would review and approve proposals.

“They’ll look at technology that could be good for the city that we now don’t have a way of making an assessment of and how to permit it,” Gennaro said. “They’ll be dealing with these projects like windmills that come into the city’s inbox.”

The second panel, the Inter-Agency Green Team, will also be made up of representatives from various city agencies and will plan and implement innovative green technologies in the city.

“They’ll look at what the city should use for things like processing municipal waste and treating sewage,” Gennaro said. “The city will be reaching out to the purveyors of these technologies and making sure we’re doing our own review of which technology we should be seeking.”

The bill was first mentioned in Council Speaker Christine Quinn’s (D-Manhattan) State of the City address.

“For a tech startup, selling a new product to a 50-story building could be just the boost you need to stay in business,” Quinn said. “But the business can’t make that sale until the product is approved by various city agencies. The Innovation Review Board will ensure that new technologies get approved quickly so that building owners can install them and create hundreds of green-collar jobs.”

Comment on this story.