Schools

NEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TO BE INCUBATED IN LIC, NOT WOODSIDE

February 21, 2018 by editor 2 Comments

The new hangout after dropping the kids off

When a problem comes along
You must whip it
Before the cream sits out too long
You must whip it
When something’s going wrong
You must whip it

DON’T let anyone tell you that incubation is bad/dirty/will make your child go blind. It’s not and is perfectly natural and normal. Now that we have that out of the way, we are happy to report that next year every child in LIC will be able to incubate in LIC. That’s because after much brainstorming and jawboning by an ardent group of local advocates, the DOE has decided to convert the large Pre-K center at 27-35 Jackson Avenue in Court Square into a new K-2 location called 30Q384 to incubate the brand new elementary school coming to 54th Avenue in Hunters Point. Therefore the lucky parents of the class of 2032 will have two local options as to where to send their kids for elementary school as opposed to all previous classes who were relegated to a sole choice.. That’s a 100% increase, and as every teacher knows 100 is perfect. In addition, it now gives parents in Court Square (of which there will soon be many more – see below) a much closer option than PS78Q. Finally, we hear that the trailer pre-school on 49th Avenue, which was slated for closure, will now remain open.

//RENT War Breaks Out in LIC – that should have been the title of a story below in the WSJ, as it relates to how [Read more…] about NEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TO BE INCUBATED IN LIC, NOT WOODSIDE

#LICUnited

February 16, 2018 by editor 1 Comment

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The battle for increased school capacity has been waged by parents for several years now, many of whom won’t be the beneficiaries of the new schools. Though most ultimately were unscathed by the controversy, inasmuch as their child eventually received a seat in PS78, the uncertainty was unsettling, and may have motivated others to move out or not move to LIC in the first place. Also, in the question-mark that is truncation, it was a factor in prompting some recent middle school parents to opt for the new middle school instead of sticking it out at 78.

In viewing the current situation, I can’t help but think that for every action there is at first a delayed response, and then inevitably an overreaction. Since it’s been primarily parents along the waterfront who have been demanding schools now, that is where the schools have been going. Yet any chess player can see that the next big need is closer to Court Square. The powers that be completely screwed up in not insisting a school be placed in the base of 5Pointz. In addition to being extremely well-situated to accommodate children from all parts of LIC, it would have been available in time for the school year beginning in 2018. Instead the community received baubles in return for granting the developers a zoning variance allowing them to build an additional 28 stories.

The words above were written here in LICtalk almost two years ago. They are especially prescient given the specifics surrounding the current battle for seating capacity/location in local elementary schools. [Read more…] about #LICUnited

HI SCHOOL? BRIDGE TOLLS? XI’AN FAMOUS FOODS COMING TO LIC!

February 1, 2018 by editor 1 Comment

The Bridge to Nowhere — No toll, but where are we heading?

It’s deja vu all over again when it comes to schools in Hunters Point. Over half-a-decade ago, which in LIC-years is two generations, LICtalk wrote about similar capacity crises, and then again in 2015 (aka one-generation past). The calculations back then turned out to be not as drastic, partly because the powers-that-be instituted some fairly obvious solutions – but not before riling up the parent base. It all (sorta) worked out in the end, and will probably do likewise this time – but not before riling up the next generation of parents. Nevertheless when the furor dies down, maybe we should take some advice from the latter article and funnel the energy into what’s next and not-too-far-away: high school. A very wise local mother has wondered why NYC hasn’t expanded capacity of it’s elite-8 (Stuyvesant/Bronx Sci etc.) despite tremendous growth in the student population over the years? Furthermore, having noticed LIC’s growth and desire-to-be-on-the-cutting-edge, or the cusp of it anyway, she asks might there be a chance to locate one here? Technion High anyone?

//DON’T be fooled, were congestion pricing to be enacted you very well could pay to cross the Queensboro Bridge were you to use it both there and back no matter which direction you head upon arriving in Manhattan. That is because [Read more…] about HI SCHOOL? BRIDGE TOLLS? XI’AN FAMOUS FOODS COMING TO LIC!

PETITION, LETTER, & NEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL INCUBATION

January 25, 2018 by editor 2 Comments

While I wrote recently that I might expound on the rationale for adding a rec center in Hunters Point, I’ve decided I would provide an excerpt that I wrote to Robert Dobruskin, the director in the NYC Planning Dept. who is collecting community comments on the Anable Basin rezoning. The excerpt is below. More importantly, if you haven’t already please sign the petition being circulated to bring a community center to Hunters Point.

<<<This weeks news links at the very bottom>>>

//YESTERDAY the little information fairies were asked to distribute a memorandum to their parents announcing a meeting about a new District Elementary School to be incubated in Long Island City in the [Read more…] about PETITION, LETTER, & NEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL INCUBATION

GYMNASTICS IS LIFE, IN LONG ISLAND CITY AND BEYOND

January 12, 2018 by editor 7 Comments

Coach Ken on the right, doing what he loves

Sometimes I write stories that I know are more derivative of LIC than the usual drivel I scratch out. That’s my prerogative and this is one of those stories. In researching it I learned a lot more than the original subject matter.

Distance-wise, Long Island City High School is about as far as one can be from the location of the average LICtalk reader and still technically be in Long Island City. From a socio-economic perspective, that span is equally large.

Nevertheless the actual distance is only 1.8 miles as the crow flies. Likewise, the dreams of the kids who attend that high school are not too dissimilar from those of our own kids. [Read more…] about GYMNASTICS IS LIFE, IN LONG ISLAND CITY AND BEYOND