The Queens Gazette 25th Anniversary Edition 1982-2007
Some things never change, as the Gazette will show with news items we've discovered as we leafed through past issues and then found that the same subject matter came up in more current issues.
BY JOHN TOSCANO

1981- Steinway Street Clock: Standing 15 feet high and admired by generations of shoppers since it was erected in 1922, the Steinway Street Clock became an official New York City landmark in 1981, just before the Gazette started publishing. Shortly after it received landmark designation, it was reported in the Apr. 5, 1982 issue that the famous fixture was the victim of an errant automobile driver who accidentally rammed it. The clock was left bent at about a 20-degree angle.

An angel of mercy came to its aid in the person of the late Madeleine Gillis, then president of the Greater Astoria Historical Society. Madeleine, who would later join the Gazette staff, quickly remedied the situation with a series of fundraisers and had the famous landmark straightened out in time for the Tri-centennial celebration of Astoria a year later in 1983.

Fast forward to last July 12, and again a knight in shining armor, this time in person of City Councilmember Peter Vallone Jr. of Astoria came to the venerable landmark's aid. A Gazette story reported that the 85-year-old timepiece, one of many castiron post clocks installed in the 19th and 20th centuries, was badly in need of restoring to bring back its shine. The Central Astoria Local Development Coalition (CALDC), headed by Julian Wager- like Madeleine Gillis, another good friend of Astoria/Long Island City- let it be known that the landmark clock standing in front of 30-78 Steinway St. was in need of a helping hand. In short order, a friend- Vallone- came forward with some funding secured from the city council and the clock cleanup was soon underway. As Wager pointed out, "The clock is a piece of history, and on behalf of the Astoria community, I thank Councilman Vallone for his foresight and support in preserving our past."

1982- Bridge: The July 20, 1982 issue of the Gazette, centered on the Triborough Bridge, with its Queens terminus at Astoria Boulevard and 31st Street, occupied the front page. As had happened before, long lines of cars waiting to pay tolls were inconveniencing thousands of local motorists.

As in so many other cases, City Councilmember Peter Vallone Sr. carried the ball in trying to get relief for his constituents. At about that time, the toll to use the bridge had been increased from $1 to $1.25, which created the long lines of cars at toll booths and the bridge itself as toll workers struggled to make change for driver after driver.

Vallone's suggestion to use pre-packaged, color-coded money envelopes or packets to expedite the change process was ignored by bridge officials, so the long lines of cars continued to crawl onto the bridge for a long time.

The bridge toll was up to $4.50 when the Gazette ran a story on the 70th anniversary of the huge span which connects Queens, Manhattan, and The Bronx. Constructed under the aegis of master builder Robert Moses, the bridge takes motorists into (or rather across) Astoria and Queens as it passes over Astoria Park.

Creek: In late August of 1982, the Gazette ran a front-page story on toxic waste sites in Long Island City along Newtown Creek, which separates Brooklyn and Queens. Then Borough President Donald Manes appealed to then Governor Hugh Carey to use funds provided under the newly created Superfund Law to clean up waste left behind by bankrupt Quanta Resources Corporation at 37-80 Review Ave., Long Island City.

In the Gazette issue of January 2007, Congressmember Anthony Weiner (D- Queens/Brooklyn) noted that the Newtown Creek oil spill, first discovered in 1978, was still not cleaned up and was still a major problem. Weiner, noting that the oil spill was the largest in the nation's history, called on Congress to examine the status of current cleanup efforts and perhaps supersede a prevailing consent agreement covering the cleanup.

The 3.5 miles of polluted Newtown Creek separate Greenpoint in Brooklyn, where the spill originated, from Maspeth in Queens. The spill has been estimated at 17 million gallons, one and a half times larger than the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska, Weiner said.

Oil had been found in 55 acres of the creek, he added.