February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
The police and fire departments are to be commended for their hard work — nearly a dozen firefighters and one police officer were injured while extinguishing the blaze.
But the loss is still a terrible one for business owners and workers who have lost property and livelihoods, and for the community, which has lost several important and well-known businesses that reflect the multicultural spirit and character of the neighborhood.
In these harsh economic times, it is comforting to know that the community is pulling together to help those in need. But workers will face an uphill struggle.
Already business owners have committed to rebuilding, and it is hoped that all necessary help is afforded to them from city resources.
Some locals have criticized Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who did not attend the scene of the blaze, and remembered that when J.J. Gilligan’s burned to the ground across Queens Boulevard in June 2001, then Mayor Rudolph Giuliani went to the scene and promised city assistance to help rebuild the lost businesses.
But in recent weeks Bloomberg appears more eager to show that he is aware of the economic pains New Yorkers are experiencing since the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks: a sluggish economy and the subsequent imposition of tax hikes to cope with the city’s budget deficit. The blackout on Aug. 14 only added to this hardship. Now is the time for the mayor to show that he does indeed care for his fellow New Yorkers and make a pledge similar to that issued by Giuliani.
The 41st Street block was a snapshot of New York City: at least six immigrant ethnicities are represented three, including the Irish, all of whom have worked hard here to get ahead. The greatest repair to the ugly scar on Queens Boulevard will be to see this block thrive once more.