7 train update and more in the QNYC Evening Edition for Friday January 18, 2013

7 train update – not even Flushing’s Lunar New Year celebration can halt track work

We’ve been following this story since we first heard about it, how those organizing the Lunar New Year celebrations in Flushing were dismayed at the fact that the 7 train wouldn’t be running from Manhattan on the days of their events. Elected officials and some community members from Flushing went to talk and negotiate with the MTA, but in the end, the MTA determined that it was too late to halt/change the schedule, so weekend 7 line suspensions will continue through March. The MTA has said they will keep the Lunar New Year celebration in mind for next year (they’re planning service suspensions for next year?!?!?) and will try to work around it in 2014.

Street sweeping may come to LIC, which means alternate side parking would, too

DNAinfo reports that there has been a proposal to bring street sweeping to LIC, which means alternate side parking (ASP) would follow. Some residents are pretty happy about this, because some of the streets are pretty filthy, in their eyes, and they want it cleaned up. Others are panicking about the arrival of ASP, since the neighborhood is so difficult to park in. Proponents of the street sweeping see ASP as a good thing because they don’t like the fact that some folks drive to the neighborhood and use it as a park and ride scenario for themselves. Details on the street sweeping:

Representatives from the Department of Sanitation detailed a proposal that would bring street cleaning to a swath of Hunters Point west of Jackson Avenue, between 45th and Borden avenues.

The sweepers would come twice a week, cleaning the south and east sides of the streets on Wednesdays and the north and west sides on Thursdays. Streets in the area south of 47th Road would be cleaned from 9 to 10:30 a.m. while streets to the north would be cleaned between 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m.

Metered blocks would be cleaned in half-hour segments between 7:30 and 9 a.m.

CB2 Chairman Joseph Conley and City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer welcome feedback from neighbors on the proposal.

Staples of a Korean grocery store – H & Y Marketplace in Flushing

We loved this audio slideshow of some of the products – many of them staples – available at H & Y Marketplace, a Korean grocery store in Flushing. If you are not familiar with a particular cuisine, seeing all the products at that ethnic market can be a bit overwhelming. Christine Colligan and City Spoonful to the rescue! They help guide you through the store, giving you ideas as to how to use certain ingredients. It’s very educational, so check it out.

More images of the abandoned buildings at Creedmoor Psychiatric Center in Queens Village

Earlier this week we wrote about the images taken by Will Ellis of abandoned Building 25 at the Creedmoor Psychiatric Center, and we also came across a video of some of the abandoned buildings, too. Gotham Ruins made the video and posted about their visit to Creedmoor:

In August, I went back to Creedmoor—this time prepared for Building 25—but to my disbelief, the entry point was boarded up. It had me wondering whether the squatter was inside or out when the boards were bolted to the wall. After walking the perimeter I accepted that I was not making it inside and to make matters worse, dark clouds rolled in and it began to pour. I knew I didn’t bike 10 miles to Creedmoor just to ride back in the downpour, so luckily I managed to find myself inside of a different disused building, only minutes later. Building 1 connects to Building 3, which in turn connects to Building 2, forming one massive super-structure that looks freakishly like a spaceship in plan (picture above). It wasn’t until after, that I saw it on a map and understood why I had no sense of direction inside.

The video has a lot of great images – we found the scenes at :20 and :50 to be particularly creepy.

[vimeo http://vimeo.com/51780975]

Feeling lost in LIC? New wayfinding signs are coming to the neighborhood to help you find your way.

We learned about these new “wayfinding” signs – big laser-etched glass maps – that will be installed in four neighborhoods around the city, and LIC is one of them (along with Midtown, Chinatown, and Prospect Heights/Western Crown Heights). Apparently New Yorkers do get lost – DOT estimates 1 in 10 of us get lost each week, 1 in 3 New Yorkers can’t tell in which direction they’re facing – as do tourists – 1 in 4 visitors did not know what borough they were in when queried. So these signs should help out in that department. They look pretty cool, too. 150 signs will be installed in the four neighborhoods starting in March 2013