On The Brief Side...

GALLAGHER, LIU RAKE ACCESS-A-RIDE: City Councilmembers Dennis Gallagher (R-Middle Village) and John Liu (D-Flushing) met last Tuesday with members of the Maspeth Self-Help Senior Center, Donna DelCielo, center executive director, and Miriam Burns, center director of government relations, to discuss recent changes to the eligibility requirements for the Access-A-Ride paratransit program. New eligibility requirements recently instituted by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority have created difficulties for many seniors and disabled New Yorkers who rely on this transportation service. Those seniors who were interviewed agreed that changes are essential.

"While Access-A-Ride has had a degree of success, overall it has failed many of the seniors it was designed to assist," Gallagher, Republican Minority Whip in the council, declared. "It is not cost-effective, and it is not reliable. I suggest the city place additional resources in locally based senior transportation programs through senior centers that already provide services. This would save the city much needed funding and force Access-A-Ride to be more responsible and efficient."

Liu, chair of the council Transportation Committee, has been in the forefront of fighting for changes to make Access-A-Ride more effective and efficient. He is slated to release a detailed plan for change soon.

CLINTON APPLAUDS STEM CELL RESEARCH VOTE: United States Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-New York), an original cosponsor of the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act, last week hailed the Senate's approval of the legislation. "Today's vote is a critical step toward finally realizing the potential of stem cell research and shows clearly the broad, bipartisan support for lifting the President's [George W. Bush] stem cell ban," she said. "It's past time to put an end to the Bush Administration policy which is holding science back and holding our nation back in the race to new medical treatments and discoveries."

NOLAN REFLECTS ON MAYOR AND SCHOOLS: "[Mayor Michael Bloomberg] convinced everyone, including myself, that this system of parent advocates and small academies would initiate a new era in New York City's education [system]," Assemblymember Catherine Nolan (D-) said. "Parents would have a voice in how their children are educated. We voted to give the mayor control, but from where I sit, good intentions are not enough. I listened to parents tell firsthand about the need for smaller class sizes, full day Pre-K and solutions to high dropout rates, lack of space and gang violence.

"The issue of gang violence is one I take seriously. One parent shared a story about a nine-yearold boy who had been bullied so frequently at school he felt his only recourse was to bring a gun to school. Thankfully, the incident did not end in violence. I heard from parents who were scared, too, because gangs are recruiting children at the elementary [school] level. While wonderful organizations like the Council for Unity have made great strides, it appears there is still much to be done.

"As a legislator, I want to empower parents with the tools they need, whether it is funding for full-day Pre-K, new buildings and renovations or solutions to gang violence problems. I think that initially mayoral control was a great idea because it allowed parents to be directly involved with the Department of Education as members of Community Education Councils. The grassroots effort still has great potential. We must make it easier to serve on CECs."

YOUNG, LIU HONOR HOLOCAUST SURVIVORS:Assemblymember Ellen Young, City Councilmember John Liu and Flushing community leaders last week honored Frank Sygal, Rose K. Rose and Hanna Slome, three members of the Flushing community who survived the Holocaust, during a commemoration ceremony for Yom Hashoah. Yom Hashoah (Yom Ha Shoah), also known as Holocaust Remembrance Day, is a memorial for those who died in the "Shoah" (Hebrew for catastrophe), a reference to the atrocities committed against the Jewish community in Europe during the 1940s.

QUINN INTRODUCES SAFE HOUSING ACT: City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Councilmember Letitia James joined tenants and advocates at City Hall to unveil new housing legislation that would crack down on negligent landlords who refuse to repair hazardous conditions on their properties.

Under the proposed bill, each year the city would identify 200 buildings with the most housing code violations and target them for aggressive inspection, follow up and comprehensive repairs. The bill, known as the Safe Housing Act, would dramatically improve living conditions for New Yorkers residing in the city's worst buildings. - Compiled by Linda J. Wilson