City To Hear Queens' Input On NYC Charter At Kew Gardens Meeting

KEW GARDENS, QUEENS -- Queens residents itching for changes to New York City's charter will have the chance to get all their ideas out on the table at Queens Borough Hall on Thursday.

Mayor Bill de Blasio announced in his State of the City address February that he would form a Charter Revision Commission tasked with improving democracy, voter turnout and campaign finance rules in local elections. Now, that commission is making the rounds to the city's boroughs to hear residents' input on what in the city charter needs to change.

Its next stop is Kew Gardens, where the commission will host a public hearing starting at 6 p.m. inside Queens Borough Hall, according to the commission's website.

Under state law, the commission will be able to review the entire city charter for possible change, but de Blasio set his sights specifically on electoral issues in an effort to increase voter participation.

Some Kew Gardens residents hope to use the public hearing as an opportunity to establish term limits on local community boards. A Facebook page for residents titled "We Love Kew Gardens" encouraged its members in a recent post to go to the meeting and show their support for the revision.

"We have Board members with 40 years of sitting on our Boards that no longer have any connection to our committee," the Facebook post reads.

The page claims the current makeup of Community Board 9 - which represents Kew Gardens, Woodhaven, Ozone Park and Richmond Hill - is "heavily influenced" by interests of members that represent only a tiny portion of the neighborhood.

"Our overall Board demographic no longer matches our community and must be changed to reflect who we are and what the Community needs," the post states.

Lawyer and former New York Secretary Of State Cesar Perales chairs the charter commission alongside vice-chair Rachel Godsil, a professor at Rutgers Law School and former chair of the Rent Guidelines Board. The commission will use public input to propose changes to the charter, which will turn into ballot initiatives for New Yorkers to vote on as early as 2019.

Those interested in offering their feedback on the charter can take the floor for up to two minutes at the public hearing or submit a written testimony.

Click here for more information on the NYC Charter Commission and a full schedule of public hearings.

Lead photo: Queens Borough Hall by Danielle Woodward/Patch