Several Community Board 11 members were honored for their long-term service to the community, while others discussed airplane noise over northeast Queens during the board’s monthly meeting on Monday.
CB 11 Chairman Jerry Iannece, who recently lost a bid for state Assembly to Nily Rozic during the Democratic primary was given a standing ovation by board members at the meeting’s beginning.
“That was unexpected,” said Iannece before telling the crowd, “I’m still the chairman of Community Board 11.”
Queens Deputy Borough President Barry Grodenchik attended the meeting to honor board members who had served for more than 10 years, but he also tipped his hat to Iannece.
“I think that standing ovation was heartfelt,” he said. “From myself and the borough president, we deeply appreciate what you do.”
Grodenchik honored JoAnn Ferrari, Laura James and Dennis Novick for sitting on CB 11 for a decade. He also presented awards to Mohan Jethwani, who has served for 30 years, and Jack Fried, who has been on the board for 35 years.
“I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart,” Grodenchik told Fried. “Thirty five years is an incredible legacy.”
Also at the meeting, board members discussed recent airplane noise over northeast Queens due to a new flight pattern out of LaGuardia Airport.
Board member Janet McEneaney said she has been organizing Bayside residents in an effort to reach out to New York’s U.S. senators on the matter.
“The more I hear about it, the angrier I get because we are on the cusp of having our quality of life irrevocably changed without any input,” she said. “Nobody seems to care except the people who live here.”
Board member Andy Rothman said local residents have been frustrated not only by the noise, but also that the Federal Aviation Administration did not notify the community about the new pattern.
“The FAA wants to bring in more and more airplanes, but there’s been little discussion on the effect on people,” he said.
