What’s News, Breaking: Wednesday, December 6, 2023

December 6, 2023 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

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BROOKLYN PLUMBING COMPANY OWNERS
CHARGED WITH TAX EVASION, FRAUD

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — CLAIMING A DISNEY WORLD EXCURSION AS A BUSINESS TRIP WAS ONE ACTION THAT GOT A BROOKLYN PLUMBING COMPANY IN TROUBLE with the law. An indictment was unsealed on Wednesday, Dec. 6, in federal court in Brooklyn against the owners of Liberty Water & Sewer (Liberty Water), a Brooklyn-based plumbing company, on charges of tax evasion and conspiracy to defraud the United States. Alexander Figliolia, Jr., and Kenneth Sutherland, who operate Liberty Sewer & Water as a partnership, are accused of falsely claiming that personal expenses, such as the Disney trip, clothes and the purchases of homes and a yacht, were business costs. Arrested Wednesday morning, they were expected to be arraigned that afternoon, with United States Magistrate Judge James R. Cho presiding.

In total, Figliolia, Jr., and Sutherland intentionally diverted approximately
$10,225,213 from Liberty Water between tax years 2017 and 2019, thus evading approximately $3,933,046 in federal taxes.

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KILLER GETS 25-TO-LIFE SENTENCE
FOR CROWN HTS. SHOOTING

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — A CROWN HEIGHTS MAN HAS BEEN SENTENCED TO 25 YEARS TO LIFE for the Dec. 16, 2017, fatal murder of another man in the neighborhood. State Supreme Court/Kings County Justice Eugene Guarino sentenced the defendant, identified as Rennie Patterson, 22, of Crown Heights, following his conviction, three months ago, of second-degree murder and two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon. The defendant had been arrested for the overnight shooting of 32-year-old John Barnes, in front of 1339 Saint John’s Place (near Schenectady Avenue). Video surveillance captured the defendant leaving a building with a friend, and tracked them walking to the scene.

The defendant’s friend and the victim had been involved in a physical fight in which both had to be separated and restrained.

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NYU LANGONE’S FAMILY SUPPORT CENTER IS AWARDED
$50K FOR FOOD DISTRIBUTION PROGRAM

SUNSET PARK — THE SUNSET PARK FAMILY SUPPORT CENTER AT NYU LANGONE HAS RECEIVED a $50,000 grant through the New York Food for New York Families grant program, State Senator Iwen Chu (D/WF-17) announced on Wednesday, Dec. 6. This program gives vital funding to food pantries, medical centers, and other nonprofits to purchase fresh food products grown by New York farmers directly for distribution in communities facing food insecurity. The Family Support Center provides healthcare services, focused on maternal health and pediatric care across Sunset Park and southern Brooklyn. “This grant will help bridge the food insecurity gap within our neighborhood, ultimately making the residents healthier,” said Larry McReynolds, Executive Director of Family Health Centers at NYU Langone.

During Thanksgiving week, Senator Chu donated 30 turkeys to the center and joined their Thanksgiving food distribution to families in need.

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REP. MALLIOTAKIS: CONGESTION PRICING WILL
INSTEAD SEND CITY’S POLLUTION INTO BROOKLYN

BAY RIDGE — CONGRESSWOMAN NICOLE MALLIOTAKIS (R-11), WHO HAS REMAINED A STAUNCH OPPONENT of congestion pricing, called the MTA Board vote to push it forward “nothing more than a cash grab that will take more money from commuters and shift traffic from Manhattan to Brooklyn and the other outer boroughs, increasing pollution in communities like ours.” Malliotakis asserted that “Instead of always looking for the latest ‘get rich quick’ scheme, the MTA’s board should be auditing the agency to find out where the billions they’ve already received, including from federal infrastructure aid, have gone.” She warned, “If the agency continues to be managed as it currently is, this money will go down a black hole just like every other dollar they receive.”

Malliotakis has pointed out before that her constituents in southwestern Brooklyn neighborhoods Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights and in Staten Island, which the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge connects, already get hit with steep tolls.

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PUBLIC ADVOCATE URGES MTA BOARD TO CONSIDER
INCREASED BURDEN ON STRUGGLING NEW YORKERS

CITYWIDE — NYC PUBLIC ADVOCATE JUMAANE WILLIAMS, WHO HAS SUPPORTED CONGESTION PRICING, POINTED OUT Wednesday, Dec. 6, in a public statement that considerations must be made for struggling New Yorkers. “As designed, the provisions around taxis will create undue financial burden for drivers already struggling to make a living,” wrote Williams, who said certain considerations have been insufficiently addressed. “I further believe that the discounted rate for low-income New Yorkers — which are only triggered after ten full-rate trips — is insufficient to meet the level of need in an existing affordability crisis,” said Williams. “Greater effort must also be made to protect these same communities from an increase in hazardous emissions.”

Public Advocate Williams is urging the MTA board to consider amending the exemptions and financial adjustments to congestion pricing to avoid undermining the purpose but also to “make it stronger, more sustainable, and more equitable.”

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REP. VELÁZQUEZ: SCHOOL DISTRICTS URGENTLY NEED
FEDERAL DATA ON ALTERNATE SCHOOL MEAL OPTIONS

NATIONWIDE — THE EXPANSION OF PLANT-BASED MEAL OPTIONS IN SCHOOLS AND THE STATUS OF RELATED DATA COLLECTION is the topic of a letter that Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez (D-07) sent to the Food and Nutrition Service on Wednesday, Dec. 6. That agency had been directed, under the Fiscal Year 2023 House Agriculture Appropriations Bill, to collect, analyze and publish research on the availability of alternate protein meal options for the National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program. Rep. Velázquez, whose letter had seven other signatories, including New York Congressmembers Jerrold Nadler (D-12/Manhattan) and Adriano Espaillat (D-Harlem/Bronx), pointed out that state and local school administrators, having waited eight months for the FNS’ information, urgently need it to expand schools’ plant-based meal options.

Velázquez pointed out that most Black, Indigenous and other People of Color are lactose intolerant, and thus are three times as likely to follow a plant-based diet than white people. Moreover, schools’ increased racial and cultural diversity has led to students finding it necessary to follow plant-based diets.

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HOCHUL SETS DATE FOR SPECIAL ELECTION TO REPLACE SANTOS

QUEENS/LONG ISLAND — GOV. KATHY HOCHUL ISSUED A PROCLAMATION ON TUESDAY declaring a special election to fill the vacancy in the 3rd Congressional District created by the expulsion of notorious fabulist George Santos from the U.S. House of Representatives. The special election will occur on Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2024.

A Hochul campaign spokesperson told NY1 that the governor will support the bid of Tom Suozzi, who held the seat before Santos was elected — despite Suozzi’s unsuccessful challenge against Hochul in the Democratic primary for governor.

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HOCHUL: NY FLU CASES JUMP 25% IN JUST ONE WEEK

CITYWIDE — AT AN EVENT IN THE BRONX ON WEDNESDAY, GOV. KATHY HOCHUL WARNED New Yorkers that the number of influenza cases has jumped 25% in just one week across the state and city. Flu cases across the state are now defined as “prevalent,” which is a new category. Hospitalizations are up 30%, Hochul said, adding she was “Very, very sad to report that there have been two pediatric deaths related to flu.”

“I want to make sure that everyone is reminded to get their flu shots. I had mine a couple days ago,” Hochul said.

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CITY-OWNED EMERGENCY VEHICLES AMONG
THOSE EXEMPT FROM CONGESTION PRICING PLAN

CITYWIDE — AMONG THE FEW EXEMPTIONS TO THE CONGESTION PRICING TOLL PACKAGE THAT THE MTA APPROVED ON WEDNESDAY, DEC. 6, are vehicles that transport people with disabilities, ambulances, garbage trucks, NYPD vehicles and fire trucks. Tax credits equivalent to the cost of the tolls paid would be given to New Yorkers living within the toll zone who earn less than $60,000 a year. The slate also expands on the federal government’s request to grant discounts to low-income drivers who commute into the zone; these drivers would get a 50% discount after the first 10 trips within one month.

Discounts of $5 will also be granted under this program to drivers who enter the zone via the Holland, Lincoln, Brooklyn-Battery or Queens-Midtown tunnels, as these drivers already pay up to $14.75 to use the tunnels. However, the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge is not among the crossings mentioned for discounts.

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MTA VOTES TO APPROVE CONGESTION PRICING TOLLS;
60-DAY PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD BEGINS NOW

CITYWIDE — THE METROPOLITAN TRANSIT AUTHORITY VOTED ON WEDNESDAY MORNING, DEC. 6, TO APPROVE THE CONGESTION PRICING TOLLS, reported Gothamist just after noon. The MTA approved a roster of congestion pricing tolls for drivers entering Manhattan south of 60th Street. The tolls impose a $15 fee on passenger vehicles that enter the zone from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays and from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends, with very few exemptions. Civil service workers — EMT, FDNY and police staff among them — who need to drive to work would have their city-owned emergency vehicles exempted but not personal ones. Wednesday’s vote also initiated a 60-day public comment period that puts the agency on track to begin collecting the fees late next spring. There was only one opposing vote — from board member David Mack, representing Nassau County.

The MTA’s press release, timestamped at 10:45 a.m. on Wednesday, indicated that its board was set to vote that day on congestion pricing and that it was a Gridlock Alert Day.

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IN MEMORIAM
TV PIONEER NORMAN LEAR DIES AT 101

EAST FLATBUSH AND LOS ANGELES — NORMAN LEAR, THE PIONEER PRODUCER WHO CREATED THE EMMY-AWARD WINNING SITCOM “ALL IN THE FAMILY,” and other programs, died Tuesday night at age 101. Lear, who resided in Brooklyn for about four years, according to a Los Angeles Times obit by Dennis McLellan, “revolutionized prime-time television in the 1970s with groundbreaking, socially relevant situation comedies such as ‘All in the Family,’” which debuted on Jan. 12, 1971, and centered on Archie Bunker, a working-class bigot, and his wife, good-natured Edith Bunker. Lear won several Emmy Awards, two Peabody Awards and other honors for his shows.

Lear is listed among the famous alumni of Samuel J. Tilden High School in East Flatbush (which opened in 1930 and closed in 2007), as was “Maude” co-star Bill Macy.

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BROOKLYN’S NEWLAB IS PARTNERING WITH NYC ON SAFE E-BIKE CHARGING PILOT

BROOKLYN NAVY YARD — NYC DOT IS PARTNERING WITH STARTUP INCUBATOR NEWLAB AT THE BROOKLYN NAVY YARD on a pilot program for safe public e-bike charging for delivery workers, Mayor Eric Adams said at a press conference on Tuesday. This is just one of several projects DOT and Newlab are working on, including tests of curbside EV charging. Their collaboration, called DOT Studio, is focused on applying emerging technologies to planning, operations and real-time management of sustainable transportation across New York City.

Launching early next year, the e-bike charging pilot will test new technologies like battery swapping networks and secure bike parking docks that will allow a select group of delivery workers to charge bikes safely outside of their homes.

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ADAMS WILL TRY D.C. TRIP AGAIN, AFTER LAST ATTEMPT DERAILED BY FBI RAID

WASHINGTON, D.C. — MAYOR ERIC ADAMS WILL TRY AGAIN THIS WEEK TO GET TO WASHINGTON, D.C. for a series of meetings on the migrant crisis, 1010 WINS reports. He abruptly cut short his previous trip there last month and returned to New York after the FBI raided his top fundraiser’s home in Brooklyn.

On Tuesday, the Daily News reported that Comptroller Brad Lander has revoked Adams’ emergency authorization to make deals with contractors for migrant services without prior approval — a blow to the mayor as he struggles with the crisis.

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COMPTROLLER LANDER REVOKES ADAMS’ EMERGENCY AUTHORIZATION FOR MIGRANT SERVICES

CITYWIDE — NYC COMPTROLLER BRAD LANDER’S OFFICE has revoked Mayor Eric Adams’ emergency authorization to make deals with contractors for migrant services without prior approval, according to the Daily News, which obtained the comptroller’s letter to the Mayor’s Office dated Nov. 30. “The Comptroller’s Office citywide prior approval is hereby revoked,” the letter said. Lander had issued a public report on Nov. 30 identifying significant problems with the emergency contracts, including delays in submitting the required paperwork and an apparent failure to report the vast majority of subcontractors as required.

On Sept. 5, Lander’s office retroactively rejected the Adams administration’s $432 million, no-bid contract with DocGo for migrant services, over the vendor’s lack of experience and the agency’s process for selecting the company. DocGo was also accused of mistreating migrants.

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COMMUNITY BRIEFING ON WIND POWER TRANSMISSION LINES IN WESTERN BROOKLYN

WESTERN BROOKLYN — ANABARIC DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS HAS SUBMITTED AN APPLICATION TO BUILD transmission cables carrying 1200MW of current from offshore wind turbines in the Atlantic Ocean to either the Con Edison Gowanus substation or the Con Edison Brooklyn Clean Energy Hub in Vinegar Hill, where the power will be injected into New York City’s power grid. The Hera Power Link project will involve building cables undersea and beneath Brooklyn streets. Residents of District 33 in Brooklyn, which includes DUMBO, Brooklyn Heights, Vinegar Hill, Boerum Hill and Gowanus are invited to join Councilmember Lincoln Restler’s office and representatives of Anabaric for a community briefing on their proposed transmission lines on Tuesday, Dec. 19, from 6-7 p.m. via Zoom.

Register on Zoom or email Councilmember Restler’s office for a link at [email protected].

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DUMBO MENORAH AND TREE LIGHTING THURSDAY

DUMBO — THE ANNUAL DUMBO MENORAH AND TREE LIGHTING will take place on Thursday, Dec. 7, at 5:30 p.m. on Water Street between Adams Street and Anchorage Place. There will be music, hot cocoa, sweet treats, a Santa photo booth and animated projections. The Vinegar Hill Pantry Food Drive will accept non-perishable food donations, and there will also be a toy and coat drive.

Go online for more details.

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ATIBA EDWARDS NAMED TO HEAD POST AT BROOKLYN CHILDREN’S MUSEUM

CROWN HEIGHTS — ATIBA T. EDWARDS HAS BEEN NAMED PRESIDENT AND CEO of the Brooklyn Children’s Museum, the first of its kind in the world. Edwards, a native of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, has served the museum since August as acting president and has also been chief operating officer and executive vice president since 2019. During this time, Edwards rebranded the institution and oversaw the debut of new programs and offerings for the Crown Heights museum’s diverse young clientele. The new attractions include a state-of-the-art auditorium, a mini-golf course and the novel ArtRink exhibition — an outdoor skating rink and art exhibit.

After his family immigrated to the U.S, Edwards was raised in Brownsville. Before arriving at the BCM, Edwards co-founded the FOKUS nonprofit community arts organization and he directed operations for the Brooklyn East Collegiate Charter School.

Atiba Edwards.
Photo: Brooklyn Children’s Museum.

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TOWN HALL ON SCHOOL BUDGET CUTS IN NORTHWEST BROOKLYN

NORTHWEST BROOKLYN — TO HELP PARENTS UNDERSTAND HOW MAYOR ADAMS’ SCHOOL BUDGET CUTS and the imminent expiration of federal pandemic relief funds will affect schools in District 33 (from Greenpoint to Brooklyn Heights, and Boerum Hill to Williamsburg), Councilmember Lincoln Restler’s office is hosting a school budget information session with Comptroller Brad Lander and his team on Wednesday, December 13 at 6 p.m.

The town hall will cover the basics of school funding and provide an opportunity to ask questions. Register on Zoom or for more information email [email protected]

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CHARGED IN FEDERAL COURT WITH OBSTRUCTING JUSTICE, ASSISTING ESCAPE

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — A BOSNIAN NATIONAL IS BEING CHARGED IN BROOKLYN FEDERAL COURT for assisting in the escape of a Russian businessman accused of transnational fraud and smuggling. A two-count indictment was unsealed on Monday in federal court in Brooklyn, charging Bosnian national Vladimir Jovancic with obstructing justice and assisting escape for his role in helping Artem Uss flee extradition to the U.S. following an Italian court’s ruling. Uss was previously charged in United States v. Orekhov et al. with heading a global scheme to smuggle millions of dollars in sensitive military and dual-use technologies. Jovancic, who helped Uss flee to Russia, was himself arrested Monday, Dec. 5, in the Republic of Croatia and is being extradited to the U.S. He will be arraigned in the Eastern District of New York at a future date and faces a maximum of 20 years’ imprisonment if convicted.

The State Dept. has also announced a reward offer of up to $7 million under the Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program for information leading to the arrest or conviction of Artem Uss.

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SANTOS THREATENS ETHICS COMPLAINTS AGAINST MALLIOTAKIS AND OTHER HOUSE MEMBERS

WASHINGTON, D.C. — GEORGE SANTOS HAS NOT FORGIVEN HIS COLLEAGUES who voted to remove him from the chamber, NY1 reports. On his way out the door Friday, he pledged to file ethics complaints against House members, including Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, who represents southern Brooklyn and Staten Island. Santos accused Malliotakis of insider trading in a bank stock — a trade that has come under scrutiny in the past. A spokesperson for Malliotakis told NY1 that Santos was “a scorned and known serial liar” and said the stock trade in question was handled by a financial adviser. Santos also attacked Hudson Valley Rep. Mike Lawler and Long Island Rep. Nick LaLota.

Santos faces 23 federal criminal charges in New York, including wire fraud, identity theft, lying to federal election officials, money laundering and stealing thousands in credit charges.

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COMMUNITY BOARD 7 URGES DOT TO EXTEND FULL TRUCK STUDY TO SUNSET PARK

SUNSET PARK — A TRAFFIC STUDY THAT INCLUDES ONLY A SMALL PORTION OF COMMUNITY BOARD 7 ALONG 3RD AVENUE IS THE FOCUS OF A PUBLIC MEETING taking place at 6 p.m. this Thursday, Dec. 7, at the Joseph Miccio Cornerstone Community Center on West 9th Street. While residents of Red Hook have already been advised of the meeting, Community Board 7’s Transportation Chair Katie Walsh is urging Sunset Park residents to attend and learn how the study impacts the section of 3rd Ave. through Sunset Park running northward from 19th St. to Red Hook. According to a map on the Community Board 7 website, the district begins at 15th St., near the Hamilton Ave./Gowanus and Prospect Expressway interchange. The NYC DOT had in October declined CB7’s request to do a full truck study for the portion of the district starting from 65th St., notwithstanding longtime advocacy on this.

“A truck study would mean that NYC DOT would collect traffic data and preliminary analyses to identify and define traffic/transportation issues, in an effort to address community concerns, like they are doing for the Red Hook community,” wrote Walsh.”

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STATE AGENCY’S NEW, ENHANCED WEBSITE GEARED FOR MOBILE USERS

STATEWIDE — THE NY STATE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION HAS LAUNCHED ITS NEWLY-DESIGNED PUBLIC WEBSITE, making it more accessible for those using mobile phones and other portable devices. The new site streamlines navigation, including more powerful search capabilities, and offers expanded, task-focused navigation, helping visitors find regulatory, environmental protection, licensing, and environmental education content and resources more quickly. Larger call-to-action sections make it easy to purchase licenses, find permit information, search for job openings, sign up for topic-specific newsletters through DEC Delivers, or subscribe to DEC’s Conservationist Magazine. The new website also features a DECinfo Locator — an interactive map that lets the public access DEC documents and public data about the environmental quality of specific sites in New York State.

DEC’s prior website, which according to DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos got 28 million visitors annually, had been launched in 2005 on a now-antiquated platform that was not optimized for cellphones and other small-screen devices.

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DINAPOLI: PANDEMIC SAW 1 IN 100 RESIDENT TAXPAYERS LEAVE NEW YORK STATE

STATEWIDE — ONE PERCENT OF NY-RESIDENT PERSONAL INCOME FILERS LEFT THE STATE DURING 2020, according to a new report from state Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. The report found that one of every 100 residents moved out of New York, which DiNapoli attributes to the COVID-pandemic that caused a major shift in taxpayer movement. Out-migration quadrupled in 2020 compared to the previous year. And although the number of taxpayers who left New York declined during 2021, it remained a third greater than the pre-pandemic average. The report examines Personal Income Tax filings for the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021 and follows up on DiNapoli’s May 2022 report that examined pre-pandemic taxpayer migration trends.

However, the pandemic was not the only factor in taxpayer departures, the report also found. From 2015 to 2019, a consistently larger number of taxpayers left the state than moved here, with an average annual net out-migration of roughly 28,700 taxpayers during this period.

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NEW PILOT PROGRAM WILL ENABLE SAFE PUBLIC LITHIUM-ION BATTERY CHARGING

CITYWIDE — NEW YORK CITY WILL LAUNCH A NEW, LITHIUM-ION BATTERY-CHARGING PILOT PROGRAM early next year that will allow an initial group of delivery workers to safely charge their bikes in public, Mayor Eric Adams announced on Tuesday, Dec. 5. The pilot program will test a variety of technologies to charge e-bike batteries at multiple locations across the city, and is being developed as part of the administration’s “Charge Safe, Ride Safe” plan to protect New Yorkers from fires caused by lithium-ion batteries and to promote safe electric-micromobility usage. Those technologies will include battery-swapping networks, as well as secure bike parking docks that supply fast charging to delivery workers’ e-bikes. This pilot builds upon several other initiatives to develop more outside-of-home charging options for New Yorkers, including establishing “deliverista hubs” in vacant newsstands in partnership with Los Deliveristas Unidos and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Schumer.

The city also received an emergency $25 million U.S. Department of Transportation grant earlier this year to install 173 outdoor electric-micromobility charging and storage stations at 53 New York City Housing Authority developments.

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BROOKLYN DIOCESE HOSTS ANNUAL CHRISTMAS TREE LIGHTING

PROSPECT HEIGHTS — THE ROMAN CATHOLIC DIOCESE OF BROOKLYN’S OFFICIAL CHRISTMAS TREE LIGHTING CEREMONY AT GRAND ARMY PLAZA takes place Wednesday, Dec. 6, at 5 p.m. The location is just blocks up Vanderbilt Ave. from the diocesan headquarters and Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph. This year because of construction, the tree is located adjacent to the Dr. Alexander Skene monument on the southeast of Grand Army Plaza’s main ellipse. The ceremony will include remarks from Bishop Brennan, a scripture reading, Christmas songs from the Cathedral’s cantors and a blessing of the Nativity and the Christmas tree. Christine Persichette, anchor of Currents News on NET-TV, will serve as the Mistress of Ceremonies.

The 21-foot Balsam Fir tree will be decorated with more than 15,000 multi-colored LED lights to represent the diversity of the Diocese of Brooklyn, as well as lighted large red Christmas balls. A four-foot star will top the tree, from Elwood Farms in Huntington, Long Island.