MTA representatives Vinod Patel, standing, and Joseph Raskin gave an update about renovation work being done at subway stations in Community Board 10. Anna Gustafson/The Forum Newsgroup
Renovation work at the Lefferts Boulevard subway station in Ozone Park now includes plans for two elevators, instead of the original one, city officials announced at the Community Board 10 meeting on Monday night.
The upgrades to Lefferts Boulevard is part of a larger project, first announced in 2012, that includes work at the six elevated stations along the A line between Lefferts Boulevard and the Brooklyn border, including those at 80th, 88th, 104th, and 111th streets, as well as at Rockaway and Lefferts boulevards.
“This is going to be work that’ll do a lot for this station,” MTA representative Joseph Raskin told CB 10 attendees.
Vinod Patel, the project’s design manager, gave an update about the project at the board’s first meeting following the summer break, at which time he said the plans for two elevators would prove to be a big boost for those who are disabled. The existing Lefferts Boulevard station, he noted, is not ADA accessible.
In addition to the elevators, Patel said work will include platform reconstruction and new stairs.
Also at the meeting was FDNY Lt. Chris Hogan, project manager for the Fire Department, who spoke about a grant that the city is using to provide smoke and carbon monoxide detectors in the homes of senior citizens and others in community boards particularly affected by Hurricane Sandy. Hogan said fires increased by about 37 percent in the seven community boards in Queens, Brookly and Staten Island where the FDNY aims to partner with community groups and other organizations, including churches and synagogues, to conduct safety presentations and hand out the detectors.
“We want to go into the older folks’ homes and do home safety reviews,” Hogan said. “We’ll point out things that you can improve.”
Hogan urged residents to reach out to him and let him know about groups that may benefit from such tutorials.
“We want to reach the kids, reach everyone in the community,” said the lieutenant. “We want to bring the levels of fires to what they were before Sandy.”
Community Board 10 Chairwoman Betty Braton said Hogan’s proposal is “very important to this community,” particularly because of the high concentrations of senior citizens in the area.
“We have many people over the age of 75 here,” said Braton, who added that Lindenwood ranks particularly high in the city when it comes to the number of elderly individuals.
By Anna Gustafson
