Monthly Forum Guest Speaker: Deeba Zivari

Given our neighborhood’s impending development in the Sunnyside Yards and Anable Basin, the HPCA is excited to welcome guest speaker Deeba Zivari to the next monthly meeting (May 14th @ 7 p.m. @ the New York Irish Center), real estate project manager with the nonprofit developer Riseboro Community Partnership. Deeba will share insights about Riseboro’s unique approach to making housing not only affordable, but impactful with integrated services, and answer questions about the financing, development and management of Riseboro’s affordable housing projects across New York City.

About Deeba

In 2015, Deeba was named a "changemaker" among esteemed New York alumni of Wellesley College. Inspired by the Iranian myth of Scheherazade and propelled by the idea that our built environment is manifested by story and that anyone who can tell a story can transform one, she pursued the study of trans-national communications. True to the belief, this pursuit would come to transform her own trajectory from a storyteller with a pen into a storyteller by brick and mortar. In 2013 Deeba advanced her Comparative Literature degree with a Master's degree in Narrative Medicine from Columbia University. Her handle of language and propensity for integrative systems led Deeba into transformation management endeavors especially within healthcare and fashion. She has accomplished versatile expertise in managing and scaling start-up and growth stage companies and public institutions. In 2015 she was invited to join healthcare influencers in establishing Brooklyn's first Population Health analytics observatory. Deeba was instrumental in translating data into targeted narratives and community-based action that would change the physical landscape of the borough. She is now developing her deep passion for community-based real estate planning, development and ownership. Deeba is presently a real estate project manager with non-profit, RiseBoro Community Partnership, and is integral to the financing, development, marketing and management of hundreds of affordable housing projects across New York City. 

The second portion of the meeting will be a general member meeting, in which officers and members share the accomplishments and statuses of projects the HPCA has undertaken this year, and plan for next year. We highly encourage members to attend so that we can work together on establishing next year’s priorities.

As a reminder, the HPCA relies on membership dues and community donations to bring programming to our neighborhood and continue to provide a forum for our community to gather to advocate for responsible development and advance the quality of life in Hunters Point. You can donate directly online or pay your annual dues here.

Responsible Development, Together: Creating a Community-Centered RFP

The Hunters Point Civic Association is hosting a 2-part meeting to bring together community groups and residents to participate in a community-centered vision for the 22 acres of land which is proposed for development or publicly owned around the Anable Basin.

Our collective output will be presented to the Economic Development Corporation (NYC) and form the "Community's RFP" (Request for Proposal) to be distributed to stakeholders and developers who intend to develop the land and/or bid on the project.

This approach centers the community’s values in the bidding process and allows us to proactively influence the developer’s bids. Our first session will serve as a kickoff to establish the area’s history,overview the development process, and bring together a community vision of development based on the community’s shared values.

In the first session, Thomas Devaney, Senior Director of Land Use & Planning at The Municipal Art Society of New York, will present on urban land development, including the City’s Environmental Quality Review process
(CEQR), and its past and present implications for Long Island City. Since 1893, the Municipal Art Society has been one of the city’s premier not-for-profit organizations advocating for smart urban design, city planning, and historic preservation.

The second session will be an active workshop, in which small groups will work to produce ideas that will reflect the community’s values and needs in areas such as environment, education, affordable housing, economy and recreation in context of the area of development.

The first meeting will take place on April 9 at 7 p.m. at the Irish Center (1040 Jackson Ave). The second meeting will take place on April 16, 7 p.m. at the Irish Center (1040 Jackson Ave).

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RSVP to February's Community Forum: Meet the Public Advocate Candidates!

Our February community forum promises to be at max capacity, as we’re co-hosting the Public Advocate candidates to speak at our scheduled community meeting. As such, we’re requiring RSVPs to this event, and you can submit a question prior to the event as well.

RSVP & SUBMIT YOUR QUESTION HERE: https://tinyurl.com/WesternQueensPA

We will strive to post a Facebook Live on the Hunters Point Civic Association Facebook Group for those who cannot make it in person.

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How Would Sunnyside Yards Affect Hunters Point?

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There is a proposal to develop Sunnyside Yards, one of the largest undeveloped pieces of land in NYC (roughly 170 acres). With its close proximity to Hunters Point, its development would have a huge impact on our neighborhood, infrastructure and resources.

Eleni Bourinaris, Queens Borough Director, Government and Community Relations New York City Economic Development Corporation will be joining us for a special briefing to discuss their findings on the feasibility study for developing the Sunnyside Yards.

We're hoping our members and neighbors can join us to discuss the impact and proposed development, so that we can advocate for responsible growth. 

Event details here.

 

Hello! Meet HPCA's new look!

Each year, our membership attendance, event attendance, and charity work has been growing -- and we're proud to announce other areas we've grown: a new site & logo!

Julie Epstein, a local designer, generously donated her talent to developing our new logo which will be used on our site, business cards, and other marketing materials you'll start seeing around town. 

In addition, our new site boasts features such as an events calendar, find volunteer opportunities, easily become a member, learn more about our mission, and see photos of past and present events. 

A special thanks to our partners, whose generous contributions ensure the HPCA can continue being a forum for change and bring new programs to our community.