Congressman Joseph Crowley (back) puts his arms on Councilman Peter Koo's shoulders during an event to announce that Koo was switching his affiliation from the Republican to the Democratic Party. Councilmen Jimmy Van Bramer (second r.) and Ruben Wills look on. Photo by Christina Santucci

Councilman Peter Koo (c.) shakes hands with state Sen. Toby Stavisky (l.). Photo by Christina Santucci

Councilman Peter Koo (front r.) shakes hands with Barbara Conacchio, the chief clerk for the Board of Elections' Queens office, after his registration card was stamped. Photo by Christina Santucci

City Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing) officially registered with the Democratic Party Monday at the Queens Board of Elections offices in Kew Gardens after running on the GOP line three years ago to win a seat on the Council.

Koo is the wealthy owner of the Starside Drugs pharmacy chain and self-financed his campaign.

“We cherish the diversity of our party,” said U.S. Rep. Joseph Crowley (D-East Elmhurst), chairman of the Queens Democratic Party, during a news conference Monday at the BOE. “Peter’s joining this effort is a boon to our party and I think it’s great for Flushing in particular.”

Koo said infighting within the Queens GOP was part of his decision to switch parties. He said Democrats had “more leadership” and “more members” on the Council.

“From the beginning, I was always a Democrat at heart,” Koo said.

Queens GOP spokesman Robert Hornak said the party expects to work with Koo in the future.

“We’re disappointed to see him go, but we’ve always had a good relationship with him and we think highly of him,” Hornak said.

City Comptroller John Liu, Koo’s predecessor on the Council, said Koo’s stances on social issues were more in line with Democratic views.

“The issues that he’s talked about … [are] ?really much in line with our Queens delegation,” Liu said, shortly before Koo handed in his registration form to Barbara Conacchio, chief clerk at the BOE. “So it’s only rational that Peter Koo is about to be a Democrat.”

Koo’s switch to the Democratic side means Queens has only three GOP elected officials: U.S. Rep. Bob Turner (R-Middle Village) and Councilmen Dan Halloran (R-Bayside) and Eric Ulrich (R-Ozone Park).

“We’re used to electing Democrats, not always converting them,” Crowley said.

After Koo’s switch, Halloran said, “political parties aren’t everything.

“Peter is still my friend and colleague, and I’ll still work with him to cut taxes and create jobs in northeast Queens,” he said.

During Turner’s race, Koo went against his party and endorsed state Assemblyman David Weprin (D-Little Neck).

When Koo ran in 2009, the Democratic field had five candidates running in the primary.

Koo also said the Republican presidential primary process “was a small part of my decision … especially on immigrant issues.

“I understand how hard it is to be a newcomer,” he said.

State Assemblyman Rory Lancman (D-Fresh Meadows) joked that he was mystified why Koo first joined the Republicans in the first place.

“I never quite understood why he was a Republican,” Lancman said. “Such a nice guy. He likes people, he likes the immigrant community.”

Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans), dean of the Queens Council delegation, said the party always had a good working relationship with Koo.

“We always treated you like one of our own,” he told Koo. “We always treated him as an equal part of the delegation because it’s about serving people.”

A Facebook group is promoting Leroy Comrie's potential run for Borough President. The councilman, however, has remained coy about his future.

City Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) has been gearing up to make a big run during the 2013 election season, according to records, and the southeast Queens elected official is getting some major support online.

Comrie, who will be term limited out of office in 2013, has not officially declared his run for borough president, but a Facebook group called “Leroy Comrie for Queens Borough President in 2013” launched last week and already has eight members.

There is no person associated with the creation of the page, which only features the official Council portrait, and the description states that it is made up of a “coalition of concerned citizens.”

Comrie said he saw the site shortly after it launched last week and was humbled by the show of support.

“I had no idea that was being put out there. I’m being honored that someone is doing something for me,” he said.

The page has shown support for other political Facebook groups, including “Ruben Diaz Jr. for Mayor in 2013” and “Albany County Young Democrats,” along with other groups such as “Lord and Taylor and the Ellen DeGeneres Show.”

Borough President Helen Marshall was not available for comment about the election by press time Tuesday. In 2013, she, the mayor and the majority of the Queens Council members will be term limited out of office.

Sources have said Comrie was mulling a run for borough president back in 2009, but he changed his mind once the Council voted to extend term limits. Although the election for the seat is more than a year away, campaign finance records indicate that Comrie has already started the wheels turning on a run for a city office.

He has collected $6,831 for an undeclared 2013 campaign, according to campaign finance records. The largest donation came from the I.U.O.E. Local 94, 94A, 94B Union, an engineers union; the Uniformed Firefighters Association; New Yorker’s for Affordable Housing; and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters’ Joint Council 16, each of which donated $500 to Comrie’s campaign, the campaign finance board said.

He has spent $6,450 on his pending campaign so far with his largest expenditure of $682.50 paid to Leigh Carter for consulting, according to the records.

A Facebook group called “Leroy Comrie for Queens Borough President in 2013” was launched this week and there were eight members as of Thursday morning. The group was created by a “coalition of concerned citizens” and the page shows support for other political-themed groups on the social network such as Ruben Diaz Jr. for Mayor in 2013 and Albany County Young Democrats.

Comrie, who has not officially announced his run for the office, said he was flattered by the support.

“I had no idea that was being put out there. I’m being honored that someone is doing something for me,” he said.

Several sources said the councilman had thought about running for the borough president seat back in 2009 but changed his mind after the Council voted to extend term limits for all city elected offices. He, along with the majority of Queens City Council members and Borough President Helen Marshall, will be term limited out of office in 2013.

City Councilman Leroy Comrie (l.) talks with commuter van operators about changes to their routes in downtown Jamaica. Photo by Ivan Pereira

Dollar vans will have a new drop off spot in downtown Jamaica. Photo by Ivan Pereira

Dollar vans in downtown Jamaica will be traveling a new route that will not only make it safer for motorists who ride through the streets daily, but also pedestrians who use the vans to get home.

City Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) met with several commuter van operators Dec. 14 at the corner of Archer Avenue and 153rd Street, where they can now stop and unload passengers. The councilman helped to push the city to create a new official commuter van stop at the corner in anticipation of a series of changes that are planned for the downtown area.

“We’re making progress,” he said.

Most of the vans pick up their customers from the Jamaica Center subway station at Parsons Boulevard and take them to other parts of southeast Queens. The van service has drawn more riders over the last couple of years as the Metropolitan Transportation Authority has eliminated several bus routes that went to areas like Rosedale, Springfield Gardens and Laurelton.

The city Department of Transportation has announced that it will be changing the lanes in downtown Jamaica to alleviate the massive traffic jams that occur daily. In addition to adding more bus lanes on Archer Avenue between Parsons and Merrick boulevards, the city will be making 91st Avenue between 146th Street and 144th Place a one-way, westbound street.

Several of the van operators agreed to alter their routes to accommodate the changes.

The vans will be using Liberty Avenue and 153rd Street to enter Archer Avenue and will have drop-off locations at that corner.

Hector Ricketts, president of Community Transportation Systems, which operates several vans in southeast Queens, said he and his fellow drivers did not hesitate to make changes to their longtime routes.

The driver said his riders’ safety is important to him and downtown Jamaica can be hazardous sometimes.

“When you open a door, there is potential for disaster. When you pull up to a curb, it’s dangerous,” he said.

Although Ricketts said the new DOT street rules would enhance their operations, he said more needed to be done to help drivers,

He urged Comrie to get the city to crack down on illegal van drivers who steal their customers.

“They need to enforce the laws,” he said.

City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer (pictured) was near the top of his class, according to the Urban Justice Center's Human Rights Report Card, whereas Councilman Peter Vallone's score indicated he could use some tutoring.

City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer (D-Sunnyside) is going to have to make some room on his fridge.

The chairman of the Council Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Intergroup Relations had the best record of the Queens delegation on human rights issues last year, according to the Urban Justice Center’s 2011 Human Rights Report Card.

The report card identified 72 bills introduced over the past year that focused on housing, voting, disability and workers’ rights as well as issues concerning criminal and juvenile justice, health and government accountability.

Each Council member was graded on his or her votes and sponsorship of these bills as well as their response to a questionnaire.

Van Bramer voted in favor of eight bills, sponsored 52 — including two he was the primary sponsor of — and returned his questionnaire, all of which earned him an “A-.”

He fared particularly well when it came to housing rights and government accountability.

On the other end of the spectrum, Councilman Peter Vallone’s (D-Astoria) score of 12 earned him a grade of “D+,” the lowest in the borough.

Vallone was the primary sponsor of two human rights bills and sponsored three others. He voted in favor of four bills and did not respond to the questionnaire.

The councilman criticized the methodology of the report, calling into question the voting records of other Council members who scored higher than he did.

“Apparently, supporting brutal and repressive dictators gets you an ‘A’ from this supposed human rights group. I’m proud to be at the bottom of any list Charles Barron is at the top of,” he said.

Councilman Barron (D-Brooklyn), who praised the late Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, earned an “A” on the report card.

Council members James Sanders (D-Laurelton) and Julissa Ferreras (D-East Elmhurst) both received a “B-” and Councilman Daniel Dromm (D-Jackson Heights) got a grade of “B.”

Receiving a grade of “C” were Council members Karen Koslowitz (D-Forest Hills), Elizabeth Crowley (D-Middle Village), Dan Halloran (R-Whitestone) and Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans).

Councilmen Peter Koo (R-Flushing), Eric Ulrich (R-Ozone Park) and Mark Weprin (D-Oakland Gardens) each scored slightly lower: a “C-.”

Councilman James Gennaro (D-Fresh Meadows) got a “D+” and Councilman Ruben Wills (D-Jamaica), who took office last November, did not receive a grade.

While the report assigned each Council member a grade, its primary criticism was of the political power of the speaker and the Council’s failure to challenge that power.

Of the 72 bills introduced, only eight were brought to a vote, and the report implied this was because Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan) did not support them.

Quinn’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

The report cited two rules that allow the Council to advance the process of legislation that does not have the speaker’s support.

“There are no clear reasons for the Council’s reticence in taking advantage of these two rules. However, based [on] reports that the speaker readily wields political power internally, and on conversations with advocates, we speculate that failure to do so is linked with the desire of most Council members to maintain a relatively friendly relationship with the speaker,” the report read.

“However, given its impact on human rights in New York City, business as usual is not sufficient to protect our human rights. Council members should act — individually and as a collective — to challenge the status quo even in the face of political reprisals,” it continued.

U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks says contrary to a news report, there was no secret meeting held to choose someone to succeed him.

U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-St. Albans) dismissed a published report that southeast Queens elected officials and U.S. Rep. Joseph Crowley (D-East Elmhurst), chairman of the Queens Democratic Party, met in secret to discuss replacing the Jamaica congressman.

The New York Post, citing two unnamed elected officials who were “familiar” with the meeting, said the alleged sitdown at the Guy R. Brewer Democratic Club led to a decision that state Sen. Malcolm Smith (D-St. Albans) should succeed Meeks, who is reportedly under federal investigation for receiving a $40,000 payment from a Richmond Hill businessman who is charged with mortgage fraud.

“The Post has its own way to create its own facts,” Meeks said in a phone interview Monday, a day after the story was published. “Everybody that was allegedly at this meeting said categorically there was no such meeting.

The newspaper said Smith, Crowley and City Councilmen Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) and Ruben Wills (D-Jamaica) met on an unspecified date last month to discuss Meeks.

A spokeswoman for Smith said the senator was not aware of any secret meeting.

“If there was a meeting, the senator had no knowledge of it and the senator never attended the meeting,” she said

Crowley, Comrie and Wills could not be reached for comment.

The story, citing an unnamed source, reported that Meeks’ “premature exit is assumed.”

“Resigning? Are you kidding me? That’s nowhere near what I’m doing,” Meeks said.

Donovan Richards, chief of staff to Councilman James Sanders (D-Laurelton), also said the councilman was not aware of a meeting in southeast Queens.

“If there was one, we weren’t invited,” Richards said.

Vallone said increased funding and hours for receiving centers across the city does not make up for Queens not having an animal shelter. Animals found in Queens are often sent to other boroughs, like Wilbur the pig, who was found in College Point but sent to Manhattan.

City Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. (D-Astoria) criticized a bill passed by his fellow Council members and championed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg that increases funding and the hours of operation for animal receiving centers but gets rid of a requirement for full-service shelters in Queens and the Bronx.

“We will probably see it rain cats and dogs in Queens before we ever see a shelter,” Vallone said.

The law provides more than $10 million in funding to Animal Care and Control, the nonprofit group which runs the city’s animal shelters. The operating hours of receiving centers, which take in animals so they can be put through the shelter system, have also been increased from eight hours a day once or twice a week to 12 hours a day seven days a week.

“This bill paves the way for a significant increase in public funding for the city’s animal shelters, which will greatly expand and improve care for homeless animals,” Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan) said in a statement.

In exchange, the city will no longer be required to build two full-service shelters, one for Queens and one for the Bronx, in accordance with a law passed in 2000. Vallone Jr.’s father, former Council Speaker Peter Vallone Sr., oversaw the passage of the previous law.

The new law was passed Sept. 21, with 46 votes in favor. Four Queens councilmen — Vallone Jr., Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans), Dan Halloran (R-Whitestone) and Eric Ulrich (R-Ozone Park) — were the only ones to vote against it. Bloomberg signed the bill Tuesday.

Vallone Jr. said that while he was in favor of the increased funding and hours, a receiving center was no substitute for a shelter. He said he had heard a story about one family who lost their dog and after they eventually tracked it to a Manhattan shelter six hours later, they found the dog had been killed, with the shelter claiming it was sick. Vallone Jr. said he believed the situation could have been avoided if Queens had had a shelter.

The councilman said that since 2009, the nonprofit Stray from the Heart has sued the city Department of Health for not complying with the 2000 law and claimed Bloomberg pushed the new law to avoid an unfavorable court ruling. Stray from the Heart won its suit in New York Supreme Court, but lost a Health Department appeal that said the nonprofit did not have the standing to bring the claim to court. Vallone Jr. said the nonprofit was working to appeal the decision.

“The mayor wanted it done so there would not be a court ruling that the city was in contempt of the law and the City Council did it for him,” Vallone Jr. said.

The mayor’s office did not respond to requests for comment on Vallone Jr.’s claim.

FDNY members set up a recruiting station at Councilman Leroy Comrie's office and helped dozens of people to apply for the firefighter's exam. Photo courtesy of Comrie's office

The FDNY has seen an increase in the number of minorities who have applied to be part of New York’s Bravest and an elected official in southeast Queens as well as the fire commissioner are crediting the rise to a more active recruiting presence in inner-city communities.

City Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans), who has been pushing the Fire Department to bring in more minorities, said he was impressed with the new statistics released about the applicants for January’s entrance exam into the FDNY academy. Of the 61,439 applicants who applied for the test, 30,429 — or roughly 49.5 percent — were either black, Latino, Asian or native American. More than 4,000 applicants were women, according to the FDNY.

Comrie and Fire Department Commissioner Salvatore Cassano credited a new marketing campaign using radio, television and newspaper ads and visits to communities during events as the reason behind the large number of minority applicants. Comrie said FDNY representatives who visited his office during the summer twice a week had helped 75 of his constituents apply for the test.

“Oftentimes, the recruiters were able to engage our youth about the benefits of public service in the FDNY just by being visible at a recruitment table stationed on the sidewalk in front of my Farmers Boulevard office,” he said in a statement. “In fact, many young men are still coming to my office well after the recruiters to sign up for the test.”

Currently 87 percent of the FDNY’s members are white, 3.8 percent are black, 7.8 percent are Latino and 0.9 percent are Asian, according to Comrie’s office. The city’s minority population is 27 percent black, 27 percent Latino and 10 percent Asian, the councilman’s office said,

Cassano said the number of black and Latino 2011 applicants were double the number of black and Latino applicants in 2006, and they would continue their initiative for future applications.

“Our sustained, years-long recruitment effort has attracted the largest and most diverse group of candidates ever,” he said in a statement.

In the meantime, the state government may be taking extra steps to keep the Bravest diverse.

In June, the Council unanimously passed a bill that was introduced by Comrie that asked the state Legislature to consider a measure that would give more credit to FDNY applicants who are New York City residents with high school diplomas or equivalent degrees.

The state Assembly and state Senate have not yet responded to the Council’s request, but Comrie said he would continue to push for the bill to become a reality.

“Without a doubt, we now know that true diversity can be achieved in the FDNY with the right marketing and community outreach along with a fair exam,” he said.

City Councilman Leroy Comrie joins kids at a McDondald's to introduce the new, healthier Happy Meal. Photo courtesy of Leroy Comrie's office

City Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) said he is happier now that one of America’s largest fast food chains has taken his considerations into account and changed its kids’ menu to be healthier.

Comrie was joined by McDonald’s representatives at a branch in Cambria Heights Sept. 14 to introduce the new and improved Happy Meal that will be offered to children. The councilman introduced a bill in City Hall that would penalize restaurants that give toys with meals that have high calorie and sodium counts as a way to fight childhood obesity.

“Obesity is a national epidemic, particularly among youth, and today McDonald’s has demonstrated good corporate citizenship by acknowledging the need for healthier options in their menu,” he said in a statement.

The Happy Meal now includes a produce or low-fat dairy option, and by the end of next year the chain will provide apples in all of its kids’ menu options. A small portion of French fries will be included in the Happy Meals as well.

The company pledged to reduce sodium throughout its entire menu by 20 percent over the next four years and reduce added ?sugars, saturated fat and calories by 2020.

A McDonald’s representative said the meal changes would meet the Council of Better Business Bureaus’ Food Pledge. In addition to the food changes, the company will be promoting healthier lifestyles with new TV and Internet ads that are geared toward youngsters.

Comrie said the changes will go a long way and benefit both McDonald’s and the community, which does not have that many mom-and-pop restaurants to choose from.

“I believe that healthier meals for our children will be better for our youth and also better for McDonald’s’ sales margin,” he said.

Introduction 530, which was introduced by Comrie in April, is still being reviewed in the Council and Comrie has stressed that he would like to see it become a reality. A similar measure was passed in San Francisco.

“I firmly believed such action would compel the fast food industry to review their marketing practices towards children and realize that there is a strong, vibrant market for parents and caretakers who want to provide children with a healthy and nutritious meal,” he said.

Former Mayor David Dinkins speaks at Dora Young's funeral. Photo by Ivan Pereira

Dora Young was more than just a political activist in southeast Queens, she was an inspiration and guiding force to the community leaders and elected officials in the city.

Nearly 200 mourners, including a Who’s Who of political heavyweights, gathered at St. Benedict the Moor Church in St. Albans Friday to honor the 89-year-old Democratic district leader for her decades of service.

Not only was Young one of the first black and female deputy clerks to work at Queens Borough Hall, she helped several elected officials get into higher office, including City Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans), state Assemblyman William Scarborough (D-St. Albans) and state Sen. Malcolm Smith (D-St. Albans) as the co-chair of the Guy R. Brewer Democratic Club.

Comrie, who was joined by his fellow St. Albans leaders as well as Councilman James Sanders (D-Laurelton), Assembly members Michelle Titus (D-Far Rockaway) and Jeffrion Aubry (D-Corona) and former Mayor David Dinkins, said politics was always her passion.

“A Democratic district leader is a non-paid position … yet so many [prominent] people came out here,” he said.

Young was born Oct. 20, 1921, in North Carolina, and after marrying Evie Young Jr. in 1949, the couple moved to Addisleigh Park, where she remained for the rest of her life.

She worked at Queens Borough Hall for more than two decades and officiated at hundreds of marriages. More than 40 years ago, she and former Councilman Archie Spigner helped to create the Guy R. Brewer Democratic Club to put southeast Queens on the political map.

Spigner said she really had a good vision for the club and always spoke candidly to everyone.

“She’d always used to tell me, ‘Archie, you’re not the only leader around here in the club,’” he joked.

Young took many up-and-coming political proteges under her wing and helped them accomplish their goals. Scarborough recalled that when he first joined the club, he wanted to run for several open elections, but she forbade him to do so due to his inexperience.

The assemblyman said her advice paid off and he was able to work his way up to the Assembly seat.

“Dora helped people and taught people,” he said.

Smith agreed and said her energy brought energy to any event or meeting among the elected officials.

“She was the type of person that once she got in a room, she lit it up. She got everyone talking,” she said.

Aside from her duties as the club’s co-leader, Young never lost touch with the community. She was active with her church and kept volunteering her time — especially at Christmas, when she answered children’s letters to Santa Claus as St. Nick’s secretary.

Even when an undisclosed illness kept her from being out and about, she would still lend a hand in the neighborhood and make sure that the community’s quality of life remained stable.

Dinkins, whom she campaigned for during the late 1980s, said her life would be an example to generations to come.

“Service to others is the right we pay for being on earth. Dora Young left paid in full,” he said.

City Councilmen Robert Jackson (l.) and Leroy Comrie show off Happy Meals and a study Comrie conducted on their nutritional value for children. McDonald's has said it would make its kids' menu more healthy. Photo courtesy of Leroy Comrie's office

City Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) said he’s happier now that America’s largest fast food chain is rethinking its menu for kids.

Comrie, who introduced legislation in April that would penalize restaurants that sold toys with fatty meals, applauded McDonald’s for altering its Happy Meals to include more healthy options, such as fruit and other produce.

“Obesity is a national epidemic, particularly among youth, and today McDonald’s has demonstrated good corporate citizenship by acknowledging the need for healthier options in their menu,” he said in a statement.

Starting in September, McDonald’s will automatically include produce or low fat dairy options in the Happy Meals, according to the chain. The menu for the kid’s meal will also have a quarter cup of apple slices and a smaller portion of French fries, McDonald’s said.

The restaurant has long-term plans to promoting healthier options as well.

New Happy Meal ads will run that teach kids the value of eating healthy and McDonald’s has pledged to reduce added sugars, saturated fat, sodium and calories over the next couple of years.

“For more than 55 years we have been evolving our menu and nutrition choices to fit our customers’ growing needs,” McDonald’s said in a statement.

Comrie, who has been active in the fight against childhood obesity and has been candid about his own weight issues in the past, said the change would benefit families in southeast Queens who do not have that many options for good restaurants.

The councilman added that obesity is worse in his district because of the lack of healthy food stores.

“I believe that ‘Happier & Healthy’ Meals for our children will be better for our youth and also better for McDonald’s’ sales margin,” he said.

Comrie’s bill called for a $200 to $2,500 fine on eateries that offer toys in meal packages that have more than 500 calories, 600 milligrams of sodium and high percentages of saturated fat.

A similar bill was signed into law in San Francisco.

In May, the Council approved a new zoning plan for southeast Queens that includes discounts to food stores that sell healthy products as part of the city’s Food Retail Expansion to Support Health program. The city Health Department found that the neighborhood’s residents had insufficient access to fruits and vegetables.

Comrie said he would continue to push for fast food companies to think about how their foods affect communities.

“Ultimately, the final responsibility rests with parents who are purchasing these meals for their children. However, I believe that fast food businesses, which invest millions of dollars in marketing their products to children, have a moral responsibility to provide their customers with safer, healthier options,” he said.

City Speaker Christine Quinn and Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer check out the Central Library's new Discovery science center. Photo by Ivan Pereira

Just weeks after City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan) and the rest of her Council colleagues saved the Queens Library from massive cuts in the city budget, she took a tour and saw exactly where the money went.

Quinn met with staff members at the Central Branch, at 89-11 Merrick Blvd., last week to thank them for their raising their voices because it helped give the Council the backing it needed to? reduce the cuts to the system from $25 million to $2 million during this fiscal year’s budget. The original cuts would have resulted in dozens of staff layoffs and a reduction in hours and services across the borough.

The speaker, who was joined by Queens Library Chief Executive Officer Thomas Galante and Councilmen Jimmy Van Bramer (D-Sunnyside), Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans), Ruben Wills (D-Jamaica) and Vincent J. Gentile (D-Brooklyn), said the library was an important resource for New Yorkers during the tough economic times.

“We want? to keep libraries as big and robust as possible,” she said.

Several rallies were held at branches all over Queens during the weeks of budget negotiations, and dozens of staff members and library users of all ages came out to show their support. The proposed reduction in the budget would have caused libraries to be open less than five days a week.

Van Bramer, who chairs the Council Libraries & International Intergroup Relations Committee and who also used to work as the Queens Library’s government liaison, said he and his fellow elected officials refused to accept balancing the city’s books on the backs of hardworking members of the branches.

“We saved a lot of jobs in the budget and we saved a lot of hope,” he said.

Comrie added that the branches in southeast Queens have offered his constituents needed services, such as Internet access and a place for seniors and youth to meet during their free time.

“I know the impact of the libraries,” he said.

The delegation got a tour of the central branch’s newest addition, the Discovery Center, which has already attracted library users of all ages. The center includes an upgraded children’s section and several interactive science exhibits.

The $38 million space was made possible from a funding from the Council over the years.

“We are so grateful to have a group that is there for the library,” Galante said.

Ruben Wills speaks at a rally at the Friendship Center in December. He and Councilman Leroy Comrie gave thousands of dollars to the center's parent group, JSPOA, in their member items this year. Photo by Christina Santucci

City Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) has given out more than a million dollars in taxpayer money to more than ?a hundred of groups in southeast Queens during this fiscal year.

His fellow southeast Queens members on the Council, Ruben Wills (D-Jamaica) and James Sanders (D-Laurelton), have also parceled out large donations to community groups with a combined total of more than a million dollars, according to the city’s list of discretionary funding.

Comrie, the deputy majority leader at City Hall, has listed 144 member items in this year’s budget, including small donations to neighborhood groups such as the Cambria Heights Civic Association, which received $3,500, and large contributions to long-running community organizations, such as the $28,000 he gave to the Afrikan Poetry Theatre for workshops.

In total, the councilman, who represents the neighborhoods of St. Albans, Hollis, Cambria Heights, Jamaica, Baisley Park and Addisleigh Park in the 27th Council District, distributed $1,124,121.

The largest single contribution went to a performing arts center at York College, at 94-20 Guy R. Brewer Blvd. in Jamaica, where the councilman’s wife, Marcia Moxam Comrie, works in the Department of Marketing and Communications. Comrie gave $45,000 to support the center’s 12-part series that brings the arts to southeast Queens.

The councilman gave a combined $57,550 to the Jamaica Service Program for Older Adults, JSPOA, in four separate items. The nonprofit has been caring for senior citizens in the neighborhood for years and was on the verge of losing one of its centers, the Friendship Center, due to a cut in funding from the city Department for the Aging.

The city reversed its plans and restored the funding after a massive rally in December which Comrie attended.

“The Council member does not want to put them in a situation where they can not fund their centers,” Reggie Thomas, the director of legislative budget affairs for Comrie’s office.

Comrie was not available for comment.?

Although he has been in the Council for less than a year, Wills had 69 member items listed and has given a total of $577,071.

Wills, who replaced the late Thomas White as the Council representative for the 28th District in a special election in November, gave $28,500 to the nonprofit group Young Leaders Inc. to help fund after-school activities for elementary and middle school.

“These groups do an incredible amount of work in the community, but they have not secured enough grants to do a lot of services. I decided to fund them based on that,” said Wills, who represents the neighborhoods of Jamaica, South Ozone Park, Richmond Hill and Rochdale Village.?

Comrie, Sanders and Councilman Mark Weprin (D-Oakland Gardens) have all contributed to Young Leaders during this financial year, according to the member item list.

Wills’s other member items include two grants to the southeast Queens housing advocacy group Neighborhood Housing Services of Jamaica that totaled $20,000 and $12,500 to JSPOA.

Sanders, who represents the neighborhoods of Rosedale, Laurelton, Springfield Gardens, Far Rockaway, Arverne, Bayswater and Edgemere in the 31st Council District, donated $588,321 with 48 member items. The councilman gave a combined $183,750 to the Margert Community Corp. with three different member items for senior, youth and community engagement services, according to the expense list.

The Rockaway-based nonprofit focuses primarily on housing counseling, but it also provides free services such as trips for seniors and a summer concert series in southeast Queens, according to Sanders.

“Margert is kind enough to sponsor a music festival that has become regionally renowned,” he said. “We have had groups as [big] as Roberta Flack, Ernie Eisley and Maxi Priest.”

Sanders said the money has gone a long way to help out his constituents over the years.

“Overwhelmingly, the city and the taxpayers of New York feel proud for what their Council members are using their money for,” he said.

City Comptroller John Liu (r.) was joined by City Councilman Leroy Comrie (l.) when he visited St. Albans to discuss the challenges small businesses face. Photo by Rebecca Henely

City Comptroller John Liu told about 30 business owners in St. Albans Friday he was fighting to ensure they were not unfairly burdened by city government rules and could work to recover the city’s economy.

“The only way we’re going to bring ourselves out of this is by going to small business,” Liu said.

Joined by City Councilmen Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) and Ruben Wills (D-Jamaica) and state Assemblywoman Vivian Cook (D-Jamaica), Liu spoke at the Occasions Banquet and Catering Hall, at 127-08 Merrick Blvd. in St. Albans, to members of the Greater Jamaica Development Corp. and the Jamaica Center Business Improvement District.

While there, Liu gave the southeast Queens business community an update on the city’s financial state and answered questions.

Liu said times are tough for the city. Unemployment is dropping, but is still high and three times higher among minority populations. Liu said that while minority- and women-owned businesses received $400 million in city contracts this year, that was not enough compared to the $18 billion the city awarded in contracts overall.

The comptroller also questioned the city’s spending money on consultants who take in high fees or have been stealing from the city. He mentioned William Lanhan, a consultant who allegedly stole $3.6 million from the city Department of Education, and the CityTime scandal that broke last year in which consultants paid to supervise the creation of a software program to keep track of the hours of city employees supposedly bilked the city out of $80 million.

“I think it’s really enlightening about the consultants in New York City,” Cook said about Liu’s comments.

Liu also went after the amount of regulations levied against small businesses, which some business owners who attended the event complained subjected them to multiple fees. The comptroller was especially critical of ticket blitzes, which he said are sometimes used for regulations that have gone enforced for long periods of time or are poorly understood. These can range from fees related to parking, sanitation or buildings.

“It’s unpredictable. It puts people out of business,” Liu said. “It creates nightmares.”

He said the city’s profits on parking tickets alone before the Bloomberg administration had been $200 million a year, but now are $1 billion a year.

Wills said the city leans on small business to get the economy out of the financial crisis, yet agencies burden them with violations ?to generate revenue.

“The challenge small businesses face have become more abundant because of the fiscal crisis they’re in,” Wills said.

Comrie also agreed with ridding small businesses of regulations that are overly burdensome or duplicated.

“Small business is the lifeblood of the city,” Comrie said. “It produces the most jobs.”

City Councilmen Robert Jackson (l.) and Leroy Comrie show off Happy Meals and a study Comrie conducted on their nutritional value for children. Photo courtesy Comrie's office

City Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) acknowledged that his recent crusade against childhood obesity would result in some shots at his own weight problems, but he is determined to make a difference and give his constituents healthier choices.

Comrie’s Happy Meal legislation, which he introduced into the Council last week, would fine restaurants that give children toys with meals that have high fat, salt and unhealthy ingredients.

Kids have started on their path to childhood obesity with Happy Meals at McDonald’s restaurants and similar promotions at other fast food joints, according to the councilman.

“The children start eating these toy meals as early as 2 years old and they associate eating a high-sodium, high-fat meal with getting a toy,” he said.

The bill, which has the support of several Council members, including Ruben Wills (D-Jamaica), Danny Dromm (D-Jackson Heights) and Karen Koslowitz (D-Forest Hills), would fine the restaurants anywhere from $200 to $2,500 for including toys in meal packages that have more than 500 calories, 600 milligrams of sodium and high percentages of saturated fat.

Comrie said that in many parts of the city, especially southeast Queens, there are not that many healthy restaurants or stores stocked with fresh foods. The city is planning to give incentives to business owners to open up healthy supermarkets in parts of South Jamaica as part of a rezoning project, but the councilman said further steps needed to be taken.

“We don’t have a salad bar restaurant in southeast Queens, we don’t have juice bars,” he said.

But not everyone is lining up to support Comrie’s plan. Councilman Dan Halloran (R-Whitestone) blasted Comrie’s initiative.

“This is yet another step too far. We already require restaurants to disclose calorie counts. If people want to buy their kids a Happy Meal, it is their right to make that choice.,” he said in a statement.

McDonald’s sided with the husky Halloran and released a statement contending that removing the toys from the menu would not stop childhood obesity.

“On average, kids eat at McDonald’s about three times a month,” the company said. “ That means about 87 other meals are eaten at home, school or elsewhere. That adds up to a discussion larger than toys.”

Happy Meal menus at McDonald’s include the option for eaters to have apple slices as a side order to the hamburger, cheeseburger or chicken nuggets instead of fries.

McDonald’s Happy Meals currently include toys featuring the popular characters that appear in the animated family movie “Rio.”

Since the bill’s introduction, Comrie has been the butt of many jokes from various media outlets due to his own weight, which he would not disclose but has been reported to be around 300 pounds.? A few years ago, he took part in a national diet movement known as “50 million pound challenge,” but the councilman admitted that he was still struggling to lose weight.

The councilman said he has been open about his own personal battle against obesity and expected there to be plenty of personal jabs at his size. However, at the end of the day, he said he was focused on improving the health of his constituents.

“I expected people tried to twist it, but I think we’ve brought up a necessary topic and we’re proud that we’ve gotten some people to talk,”? he said.

Leroy Comrie aims to bring more minorities to the FDNY with new legislation. Photo by Christina Santucci

City Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) is urging his fellow Council colleagues to push the state to reform the FDNY’s hiring practice to entice minorities to join New York’s Bravest.

The councilman introduced a resolution last week, during the stated meeting that pushes the state Legislature to pass legislation, to combat the low number of minorities in the Fire Department. The FDNY currently awards extra points to applicants if they are New York City residents, but Comrie wants to take that one step further.

As part of his legislation, applicants would receive five-point credit for applicants with a New York City high school diploma or GED credential after attending a city high school for three years. The city cannot pass this legislation without getting approval from Albany first, according to Comrie.

“It is my hope that Albany will move with all deliberate speed to allow our city to address one of the most embarrassing statistics regarding its workforce,” he said in a statement.

The FDNY is the least racially diverse department in the city, since only 10 percent of its force is minority, according to the councilman. Over the last two decades, the number of black firefighters has decreased 6 percent, Comrie said.

Los Angeles, by comparison, has a 44 percent minority representation in its Fire Department, according to the councilman. Comrie said the new bonus points awarded to the city applicants would boost the department’s efficiency when responding to emergencies.

“Living in New York City and attending high school within the five boroughs help individuals familiarize themselves with, among other things, the city’s neighborhoods, topography, infrastructure and layout,” he said.

Comrie’s resolution has received the backing of the minority activist group Vulcan Society,? which has been pushing for more Latino firefighters for years.

“New York City residents deserve to have a leg up to attaining this great career,” Vulcan Society past President Paul Washington said in a statement. “We hope that the state Legislature will promptly pass a bill allowing New York City to enact this local law.”

Donovan Richards (from l.), Councilman James Sanders and U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks push for an end of senseless violence in southeast Queens. Photo by Ivan Pereira

On the day the city celebrated the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., leaders in southeast Queens urged residents and law enforcement agencies to continue the civil rights leader’s work for peace by getting guns off the streets.

City Councilman James Sanders (D-Laurelton) joined U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-Jamaica) and civic groups at the Birch Family Center, at 145-02 Farmers Blvd. in Laurelton, to call for the Queens district attorney’s office to start another gun buy-back program for the neighborhood.

Over the last year, murder has increased 13 percent in the city and the surge was even greater in communities in southeast Queens, where there are a number of unsolved shooting homicides.

Sanders, who has held gun buy-backs in the past, said the first step to curbing the problem was to get the weapons out of the hands of criminals.

“It is madness to let the violence continue when we know that there is a simple solution to the problem,” he said.

Aside from illegally obtained guns that finger in the incidents, Sanders said firearms used in shootings are stolen from the homes of licensed owners. The councilman said those owners should think carefully about their weapons during these dangerous times.

“If you bought a gun and don’t know how to use it, you better turn it in,” he said.

DA Richard Brown said he would support a gun buy back.

“I applaud Councilman Sanders and his fellow civic leaders for their efforts in wanting to help to curb gun violence and would welcome their assistance in helping to secure the necessary funding to finance another gun buyback program,” he said in a statement. “I would also remind individuals that they can currently turn in guns at their local police precinct and receive a voucher for $100,” he said in a statement.

Meeks agreed with Sanders’ call and said the initiative is more important than ever because of the shooting incident in Tucson, Ariz. The congressman noted that the alleged shooter was able to legally obtain a gun despite having a minor criminal record and possible mental problems.

James Earl Ray, the man who shot King in 1969, also bought the gun used in the assassination legally, according to the congressman.

Although Meeks said he and his colleagues in Washington, D.C., were looking for ways to change gun laws to prevent similar killings, reducing the amount of illegal weapons was the easiest way to stop the senseless shootings.

“Where does the community go? Community or chaos? That is the question,” he said.

Many community groups supported Sanders’ initiative because they said they were tired of all the violence that has been plaguing their streets.

Earl Roberts, vice president of the 113th Precinct Community Council?, said residents needed to push for programs that would also spread a message of peace to the youth.

“We need that gun buy-back program, but most importantly we need that value for life,” he said.

Sanders was not the only elected official who was out in the community during the national holiday. City Councilmen Ruben Wills (D-Jamaica) and Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) distributed coats to needy residents.

Underneath mounds of snow are bags of trash as well as a car. Garbage collection has begun again after being suspended for several days due to the snow. Photo by Christina Santucci

As piles of black garbage bags joined the dwindling snow piles left from the Christmas weekend blizzard, the mayor and other officials promised to find out what caused the serious delays in street plowing in Queens as well as the possibility of deliberate sabotage by city workers.

The Council was slated to hold a special hearing Jan. 10 to investigate the city’s handling of the Dec. 26 storm that left 16 inches of snow at John F. Kennedy International Airport, according to the National Weather Service. City leaders said they will take a strong look at the allegation that sanitation workers intentionally avoided plowing side streets in Queens.

City Councilman Dan Halloran (R-Whitestone) said streets in parts of Bayside, Whitestone and College Point had still not been plowed as late as four days after the storm, leaving many residents unable to get to work or receive medical attention.

“They lost heat. We have numerous residents who couldn’t go to work, and many of these people are not salaried employees,“ Halloran said during a conference call last Thursday.

In addition to the snow covered roads, residents had to deal with their trash piling up on their curbs since garbage pickup was suspended all of last week.

Halloran said five city workers, including two Department of Transportation and three Sanitation Department employees assigned to Queens, told him the day before that they were asked by supervisors “to take their time” plowing roads because the “mayor’s office doesn’t care about them.”

“When they reported for duty, they were told to wait for instructions to park in particular areas, and they’d be given instructions for which secondary streets to plow,” Halloran said. “Some sat for six to eight hours and were not given instructions which secondary streets to plow.”

The workers told Halloran they were ordered to do this because of cuts the mayor made to the city Sanitation Department. In the last two years, 400 workers were cut from the agency and 100 department supervisors’ salaries were reduced in late 2010.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg who toured Queens streets last Thursday along with Sanitation Commissioner John Doherty, said he did not believe the meeting between Halloran and the workers happened.

“It would be an outrage if it took place,” Bloomberg said at a news conference at St. Albans.

Former Gov. David Paterson also called for an investigation into the allegations, and Doherty said his department would also look into the matter.

Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said his office is also working with Halloran and the city’s Department of Investigation.

“At this point, however, we have not reached any conclusions as to whether a formal investigation is warranted,” he said in a statement.

The mayor, who initially said the Sanitation Department did a good job a day after the storm, backtracked during the news conference and called the response unacceptable.

“Nobody is satisfied. We’re accountable, I’m accountable,” he said.

Queens elected officials sounded off against Bloomberg and the Sanitation Department for their response, saying they put thousands of lives in danger.

Streets throughout the outer boroughs were unplowed or under-plowed for days, and state Sen. Jose Peralta (D-East Elmhurst) said a Corona woman, Yvonne Freeman, died and a three-month-old baby was left brain dead because emergency responders could not reach them in time due to impassable streets.

Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) said the street outside his southeast Queens home was not plowed for more than 48 hours after the snow first came down. He added that his office received several calls from constituents who had problems, including a dozen who could not leave their homes.

Borough President Helen Marshall gave the sharpest criticism to the mayor immediately after he introduced her at the end of the conference. She said it was imperative that the city brought the plows to clear streets that were used by the borough’s bus lines because no one could get their cars out of their homes.

“Nearly every single community has called asking ‘Where is the plow?’” she said

Metropolitan Transportation Authority Chairman Jay Walder listened to an hour of public speakers, most of them pleading for a delay in the vote and scolding transit officials Dec. 16 and afterward said: “This is the beginning, not the end.”

“We may be able to look at it,” Walder said. “We may be able to do a little bit better.”

The board approved by a vote of 12-0 the proposal to shut down the W and Z subway lines, shorten the G and M lines, end service on at least 21 bus lines and end free MetroCards for schoolchildren.

“How low can you go?” asked City Councilman Charles Barron (D-Brooklyn), referring to the proposed end of free transit passes for schoolchildren. “What do you wanted to do? Have them jump the turnstiles and turn them into criminals?”

Queens Council members Elizabeth Crowley (D-Middle Village) and Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) assailed the cutback plan, especially the abolition of student passes.

Walder told the board members that “you are not being asked to make a final decision here today,” adding that public hearings in early 2010 and another vote were required before carrying out the cutbacks, which would not take place until July.

Walder also suggested that more could be done to reduce costs within the MTA.

“In the two months that I’ve been here, it’s apparent to me that we don’t operate in a way that ensures that every taxpayer dollar that we receive is being used as effectively as possible,” Walder said.

“In short, we need to take this place apart. We have 70,000 people working in this agency and 5,000 of them in administration is too many.”

The MTA board was obligated to vote Dec. 16 because the panel was required by law to come up with a balanced budget by the end of 2009.

Whatever the outcome, the vote was a blow to multitudes of straphangers, who saw the specter of longer waits between subway trains and buses, severely reduced service overnight and curtailed service for the disabled who depend on the Access-A-Ride program. In some cases, entire bus lines would no longer run on weekends.

Residents of the Rockaways in Queens would lose their rebate on tolls when using the Cross Bay Bridge and three lines of the Long Island Rail Road would lose trains.

The plan also includes a 10 percent pay cut for MTA management, including Walder, and 700 layoffs, most of them maintenance workers.

The bad news that forced the MTA to come up with the plan came in little more than a week earlier when Gov. David Paterson took back the state’s $143 million contribution to the agency and it was discovered that the revenue from a 12-county payroll tax for the MTA turned out to be $200 million less than predicted.

A judge also upheld an arbitration ruling that upheld a 11.5 percent pay raise for thousands of transit workers — a pay raise MTA officials said was more than the agency could afford.

The result was a $383 million deficit.

It was little more than a year ago that the MTA issued a “doomsday” plan of shutdowns and service cuts. But the cuts were never carried out because of a bailout by the state Legislature.

The Queens Civic Council called the plan “unthinkable” and said the coalition of more than 110 organizations “insists the MTA look at other parts of its budget.”

Could the Obama administration come to New York City’s rescue?

Federal Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood mentioned no figures but talked that way last week on NY1.
“This is a priority of President Obama,” LaHood said of mass transit, “and we’re willing to work with the state of New York, with the governor, with the mayor and the Legislature to make sure that New York has a first-rate transportation system.”

The appeal comes after a public hearing chaired by Comrie last week during which Andrew Eiler, the director of legislative affairs for the city Department of Consumer Affairs, said the DCA did not agree with the bill.This effectively meant Gennaro, who sponsored the bill, and Comrie, who chaired the hearing held by the Council Consumer Affairs Committee, would have to rework the bill’s language and receive the green light from the Bloomberg administration before being able to bring the legislation to the Council for a vote.

“Every November, on the day after Thanksgiving, shoppers dash through stores throughout the city to find the best bargains heading into the holiday season,” Gennaro said. “These Black Friday sales generate billions of dollars for the city’s retail businesses, but the anxious, competitive nature of these door buster sales creates unsafe situations for both the patrons and employees when careful safety measures are not implemented.”

Gennaro crafted the legislation, which would require retail stores to apply for a license at the DCA at least 60 days prior to a door buster sale by submitting a detailed crowd control plan, in response to the death of Jdimytai Damour, a Jamaica resident and employee at the Valley Stream, L.I., Wal-Mart.  He was crushed to death after a throng of early-morning shoppers knocked him down and stepped on him as they rushed into the store at 5 a.m. to take advantage of Black Friday sales.

Eiler said while officials at the DCA “appreciate the purpose of this bill,” the legislation does not take into account that small businesses do not plan such sales as far in advance as 60 days.

He further argued the department may not have the needed to staff to “effectively evaluate whether any proposed plan would be adequate to ensure the safety of shoppers” and that estimates of the number of people attending the sale may be wrong, “rendering the plan inoperative.”

Eiler said there could be unintended legal disadvantages for individuals injured in a door buster sale because store owners could possibly argue that “the presence of a license absolved the store owner from legal responsibility for any injuries in civil actions against retailers who followed an approved plan that proved to be inadequate for the actual sale.”

Gennaro and Comrie disagreed with Eiler’s statements, saying it was crucial to try to anticipate massive crowds that could pose dangerous to customers and store employees. Comrie agreed with Eiler that the department does not have the manpower to be the lead agency regarding the permits, but he said they never intended for DCA to be the sole group involved in the process.

“We wanted businesses to go to them to apply for a crowd permit and then have other agencies look at the plan,” Comrie said.

The Council members said such agencies could include the Police Department and the city Department of Transportation.

Edward Gersowitz, who is representing the Damour family in their lawsuit against Wal-Mart, supported the bill at the hearing.

“These steps are important to ensure that the retail leviathans, such as Wal-Mart, are vigilant to protect those persons who are invited onto their premises for the purpose of profit,” he said. “Unfortunately, greed and a lack of concern for the public welfare demonstrated by the corporate giants too often accompanies the holiday shopping season. This legislation will compel retailers to consider the safety of their customers first, instead of only their bottom line.”

Nassau County police have said the store did not have enough security personnel on site to deal with the 2,000 people waiting to enter the store. Wal-Mart officials said they had prepared for the sizable crowds with plenty of security.