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College Pt. lot raises concerns

By Chris Fuchs

In an effort to pre-empt a return of the West Nile virus, politicians and civic leaders turned their attention last week to a derelict lot in College Point strewn with tires, abandoned vehicles, even a burned-out trailer – all potential nesting spots for mosquitoes carrying the deadly disease.

The lot at 122nd Street and Lax Avenue – which has been vacant since the 1980s – was first cited as a potential hazard by community leaders three years ago at a time when the lot was overrun with debris, said Tony Avella, president of the Preservation Alliance of Northeast Queens.

Though not entirely clear on the chronology of events, Avella said the patch of land was to have been developed by the Schoor Brothers, the owners. But the project was never brought to fruition.

The lot is now being developed by AVR Homebuilders of Yonkers, said Michael Simanowitz, chief of staff for state Assemblywoman Nettie Mayersohn (D-Fresh Meadows). Kit Bonham, the project manager, did not return several calls seeking comment.

The West Nile virus, which made its first appearance in North America in College Point last summer, was not even a blip on the infectious disease radar screen of Queens County in 1997 when Avella first pressed the city to clear away the debris. Responding with an armada of dump trucks and pay loaders, manned by three crews, the city stormed the lot and cleaned it up in two week's time, he said.

But Avella said the space has again fallen into a state of disrepair. The tires, cars and debris that once dotted the lot have again returned, trapping rain water that can serve as an incubator for the mosquito-borne virus. With that fear freshly scorched in their minds, Avella and Simanowitz surveyed the site last week and notified the Departments of Health and Sanitation of their concern.

Kathy Dawkins, a spokeswoman for the Department of Sanitation, confirmed that the agency was notified about the lot on July 19. Inspectors had subsequently visited the lot last Thursday and dispatched a crew on Monday to initiate the clean up, she said. On Tuesday morning, a bulldozer and several Department of Sanitation dumptrucks were still tearing up the copse of weeds sprouting out of the lot.

Although there is no specific law that permits the department to descend on and clean up privately owned lots, there is a de facto one, prompted by the West Nile virus, that empowers the city to fast track cases in which abandoned tires are reported to be lying around, possibly collecting stagnant water, she said.

But the fear of mosquitoes carrying West Nile virus nesting in the lot is not the only concern among residents. Besides sticking out like a sore, unkempt thumb, the abounding weeds almost transformed the lot into a fire trap, nearly engulfing houses along Lax Avenue, Avella said.

John Sorrento, a six-year College Point resident living on Lax Avenue, said it was “the first time in years” that the lot had been purged of weeds and debris. But what might replace the existing weeds and debris has also provoked considerable concern in Sorrento.

AVR Homebuilders, he said, has grand plans to develop the lot into a complex of almost 200 homes. Sorrento, however, would rather have a park built than a monstrous housing complex for one snarling reason – traffic. “I don't know what they're going to do with all the traffic,” he said. “At least there is nice scenery for the park.”