Ridgewood Residents for Grover Cleveland Park by John Perricone

Grover Cleveland Park - Photo from Forgotten-NY

My name is John Perricone and I am working with the Citizens for a Better Ridgewood Community Organization in hopes of ultimately cleaning up Grover Cleveland Park. This park has had its unfair share of illegal activity which has, unfortunately, obscured it from serving our Ridgewood community. It is finally time to see change at this location and I am asking for everyone to show their support.

Since September, there have been two meetings in which the public, the community board, and the local 104th precinct participated in. I raised the chronic issue of permit validity. The major problem at the Park deals with the fact that it is consistently occupied by athletic groups. These groups seem to be rather formal and have the look of athletic leagues, which require permits in order for them to patronize the athletic fields. Issues with food vendors are also of importance, as we found out that no food cart can conduct business within seventy-five feet of any public park as well as in a residential area. Finally, illegal double parking, garbage dumping, and noise pollution continue to plague our residents and fuel their complaints.

It is in our interest to finally arrive to a solution. Grover Cleveland Park has been under assault for years and now is the time for our residents to utilize its multi-recreational abilities. Especially now that our park has been renovated, we are all concerned that due to the constant illegal activity, it will be damaged and unfit to use. I am in full support of welcoming everyone to use the park, however it must be patronized in accordance with New York City law as well as NYC Department of Parks and Recreation rules and guidelines. Finally, I would also like to encourage everyone to support this cause. Even if you do not live in Ridgewood, remember that if this park can be abused in this matter, then any park can. We need to curb this problem now and ensure that our quality-of-life is preserved and not trampled upon.

If anyone has a complaint that they would like to address, please email me at john-perricone@hotmail.com. After I collect a significant amount of complaints, I will send them to the Parks Department in hopes of getting a daily patrol car to drive through the park. For all Facebook users, be sure to join my group Ridgewood Residents for Grover Cleveland Park.

Civic Group Woodhaven Residents' Block Association Turns to Social Sites to Find New Members by Lisa L. Colangelo - NY Daily News

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For more than 30 years, the Woodhaven Residents' Block Association has let people know about the good - and the bad - in their neighborhood.

At one time, that meant working the phones, hand-delivering newsletters and chatting on streetcorners.

But these days, the group uses Facebook, YouTube and other high-tech ways to connect with people juggling jobs and a busy social calendar.

"I try to put fresh content out there daily so readers stay in the habit of seeing news from us," said Ed Wendell, a long-time Woodhaven resident and current president of the block association. "Even something simple, like a picture, may motivate someone to get involved. And if it touches a nerve, they'll share it with others and even more people will get involved."

Civic groups around the borough are searching for innovative ways to motivate residents, who may be too busy, tired or disinterested to join.

"New people do not get involved," lamented 82-year-old Woodhaven resident Roger Hennin.

Sociologist Phil Lewis, who teaches at Queens College, pointed out that neighborhoods like Woodhaven have changed over the years. People no longer stay in homes for 30 or 40 years.

"If you needed help, you knocked on your neighbor's door," said Lewis. "There are more multiple dwellings now and people move in and out. So you may live peacefully with your neighbor, but you may never get to know them."

Devon O'Connor, a 19-year-old Whitestone resident, has created a Web page, Facebook and Twitter feed focused on that neighborhood titled "Welcome to Whitestone."

He's mobilized his neighbors on a campaign to replace the "Welcome to Whitestone" sign while planning a local talent show and poetry contest.

"We stood out on the street and tried to hand out flyers," said O'Connor. "We found out people really aren't interested in getting paper or literature. They would rather sit in front of the computer and get the information that way."

In Woodhaven, Wendell - a 45-year-old information technology manager for a courier company - has mounted an aggressive outreach campaign that includes the use of social media, online petition drives and old-fashioned neighborhood canvassing.

The block association saw the power of Facebook when they started a "Save the Forest Park Carousel" in July to boost interest in the historic, shuttered site.
More than 300 people joined within the first week. That number now tops 600.
"There's no approach we won't try," said Wendell.

Organic Movement Grows in Ozone Park by Lisa Fogarty - Queens Chronicle

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By now, Americans have become so familiar with terms like“genetically modified foods” and “frankenfoods” that, for some, a trip to the grocery store is about as pleasurable as warfare.

The mindful consumer has to moonlight as a health agent, scrutinizing stickers and labels, weighing options like whether to pay more money for a vegetable grown at a local farm versus one that traveled to the city from thousands of miles away. And in many parts of south Queens, the luxury of buying locally grown produce, meats and dairy remains a pipe dream.

But a group of women from Ozone Park is working to offer residents a fresh food alternative by forming a Community Supported Agriculture group in the neighborhood. CSA, a 20-year-old national movement that has become popular in some sections of Queens like Long Island City, seeks to bridge the gap between local farmers and the community. Consumers purchase a share, or “membership,” and in return get a box, bag or basket of seasonal produce each week throughout the farming season.

“There really is nothing like this in south Queens,” said Angel Thompson, who along with organizers Elena Ruano Kanidinc and Michele Elizee is working to promote CSA. “There are few convenient organic offerings in this neighborhood. A lot of people I’ve talked to here don’t know what CSA is, but once the concept is explained it makes sense — it’s fresh fruits and vegetables.”

CSA’s shared risks and rewards system involves consumers paying farmers a lump sum prior to the growing season so they can make an initial investment in necessities like equipment and fertilizer. In CSA Ozone Park’s case, their partner is Norwich Meadow’s Farm near upstate Binghamton, an organic operation that raises plants and animals without synthetic and chemical pesticides, herbicides, antibiotics and growth hormones.

Up to 45 percent of corn, 85 percent of soybeans and between 70 and 75 percent of processed foods in grocery stores is genetically engineered, according to the Center for Food Safety. Studies have linked genetically modified foods to higher risks of cancer, toxicity and allergenicity, as well as environmental threats like plant and animal extinction, the organization says.

“Most of our food travels thousands of miles, so it has to be harvested before it naturally ripens and treated to prevent spoilage,” Ruano Kanidinc said. “Locally grown food is better for the consumer because it’s fresher and for the environment because it travels less.”

Each week, participants get a harvest of in-season produce, but are also at the mercy of agricultural factors like the weather. For instance, when last year’s tomato crop took a hit, farmers compensated by sending more corn and spring greens, Thompson said.

It helps to be flexible and willing to experiment when, say, your basket comes back brimming with a vegetable you’ve never seen or cooked in your life. But the deciding factor in whether to join a CSA group for most people is usually a financial one, Thompson said.

The cost to join CSA’s Ozone Park branch is $15 per week for an individual share, which feeds up to three people and includes between five to eight items such as lettuce, baby and cooking greens, garlic, leeks, onions, melons, herbs, root vegetables, eggplants and tomatoes. A family share, which feeds between three and five people, is double the quantity for $30 a week.

Fruits and eggs are also available as weekly or bi-weekly shares for an additional $12 per week for weekly fruit and $8 per week for eggs. The season spans 20 to 22 weeks from June through November. In the long run, the cost-savings to join CSA groups are impressive, but the upfront payment can be a challenge.

“Where we are in Ozone Park is a very working-class, mixed neighborhood,” Thompson said. “People don’t necessarily have the initial investment to make. We can go on about the positives, but at the end of the day it’s what you have access to and what you have money for.”

In response to the community’s anticipated need, CSA’s organizers are offering members a savings payment plan for next year. From January until July, consumers can pay CSA fees in monthly installments, thereby eliminating the “hit” that would be felt from putting down a lump sum. Members can then count on free produce for the entire growing season.

“Norwich Meadows’ produce is just amazing,” Ruano Kanidinc said. “Michele and I sampled a bunch of spring greens, and they’re the freshest and tastiest veggies we ever had. We can’t wait for the season to start.”

Membership is open to anyone in south Queens, including residents in Howard Beach, Richmond Hill, Woodhaven and Jamaica. For more information, call (718) 323-0793, email ozoneparkcsa@gmail.com or visit the group’s Facebook page under the name “O Park Csa.”