Broad Channel, Queens

Early settlement

A map of the Jamaica Bay Unit of Gateway National Recreation Area. The Broad Channel community is depicted in yellow on the largest island located within the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge section.

Prior to European settlement, the Jameco and Canarsie bands of Lenape Native Americans frequented this area. During the 17th century, Dutch settlers established a community on the island and began harvesting oysters, clams, shrimp, and fish.^[2] The name "Broad Channel" itself originally referred to a channel in Jamaica Bay, within which the island is located.^[3]: 56

Until the American Civil War, most of Jamaica Bay's islands east of Bergen Island and Barren Island were not inhabited, including Broad Channel. The boundary line between the towns of Flatlands, Brooklyn, and Jamaica, Queens, ran through Jamaica Bay, cutting through Broad Channel, though the island was mostly part of Jamaica. After 1865, fisheries were developed in the bay, and by the late 1870s, the town of Jamaica indicated that structures had been built in the bay without the town's permission.^[3]: 56

The Long Island Rail Road built its Rockaway Beach Branch across the bay in 1880, cutting through Broad Channel.^[4][5][6][7] The presence of the railroad led to the development of fishing villages with shacks, summer homes, boathouses, and stores. As part of the project, some other islands in Jamaica Bay were removed or connected to others.^[3]: 56

Broad Channel remained a parcel within the town of Jamaica until the City of Greater New York was created in 1898.^[3]: 60 The northern (and larger) portion of the island is part of Gateway National Recreation Area and is managed as part of the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, the only wildlife refuge in the National Park System. The waters and marsh islands of the refuge entirely surround the community.

20th century

Seen in 1915

In 1915, the city leased Broad Channel Island, Goose Creek Island, and Raunt Island to Pierre Noel, who subleased it to the Broad Channel Corporation.^[3]: 57 The 30-year lease specified payments of $16.57 per acre for the first three years and a maximum of $33.73 per acre for the last five years of the thirty-year term.^[8] The Broad Channel Corporation in turn made 10-year subleases to private individuals for the development of summer bungalows and houses.^[9]

There was public criticism of the lease after the public learned about the deal, which Pierre Noel, president of the Broad Channel Corporation, countered by pointing to $180,000 of improvements it had made, including digging a well to supply drinking water, building a power plant, adding landfill to reduce the need for houses on piles, and laying out streets on the island.^[10] Residents disputed the quality of these improvements, however, saying that the tap water was brown and not potable, that their houses had no electricity, and that there were no sewers on the island.^[11]

The Broad Channel Corporation responded by saying the water was of the same quality as was available in the Rockaways and that it planned to install a filtration device to remove the iron from the tap water. It said that the streets had electric lights, and it said installing sewers was not possible on the island.^[12]

For years, the only way to reach the island was by ferry or railroad,^[9][13] but in 1925, the North Channel Bridge opened, connecting the island to Howard Beach.^[14] The Cross Bay Parkway Bridge also opened in 1925 (replaced in 1939, and again in 1970), connecting to the Rockaways.^[15] The railroad trestle across Jamaica Bay experienced around 30 fires between 1942 and 1950.^[16][17][18] One such fire, between The Raunt and Broad Channel stations on May 7, 1950, cut service on the middle section of the railroad line.^[19] The LIRR, then bankrupt, could not afford to repair the trestle, and the city of New York purchased the line in 1952,^[19][20] and it reopened as the New York City Subway's IND Rockaway Line in 1956.^{[21][22][23][24]}

Parks Commissioner Robert Moses announced his intention to build a park on the island in 1938; he planned recreation on the shore with a wildlife sanctuary on the north end of the island.^[25] The next year, the Broad Channel Corporation declared bankruptcy, and the city acquired the island's property titles.^{[3]: 58 [26]} In May 1944, Broad Channel's 4,000 residents, collectively living in 1,260 homes, secured an injunction that would prevent the city from evicting them by April 30, 1948.^[27]

Later in 1944, the New York City Board of Estimate indicated that it would give residents the right to purchase the land under their houses.^[28] However, this right was denied for many years. The city made many attempts to alter the island's purpose, but the local community resisted them all. Proposed changes included the construction of a commercial port and the extension of John F. Kennedy International Airport.^[25]

Rumors of high hepatitis rates spread in 1967 because of the island's bad sewage system. At the time, several homes still dumped sewage into the bay, causing activities like clamming, wading, and swimming to be banned.^[29] The health hazards prompted the city to again attempt eviction proceedings against Broad Channel's residents,^[30] which prompted them to protest,^[31] and the Board of Estimate ordered the residents' leases to be renewed the following year, despite the real estate commissioner's protests.^[32] The government of New York City finally granted Broad Channel residents the right to purchase their property in 1982.^[25] The Joseph P. Addabbo Memorial Bridge replaced the dilapidated North Channel Bridge in 1993.^[33]

21st century

In 1998, Broad Channel's Labor Day parade received negative media attention after video of a float that parodied the racially motivated dragging death of an African American man was made public. Three white participants on the float, all city emergency workers, were later fired from their jobs as a result of the parade incident.^[34] They sued the city for wrongful termination, and their claims were upheld in federal district court in 2003,^[35] but the firings were upheld upon appeal in 2006.^[36]

In August 2011, Broad Channel faced its first mandatory evacuation due to Hurricane Irene.^[37][38] In the aftermath, two homes on Church Road between East 12th and 14th Road collapsed into Jamaica Bay due to the high storm tide.^[39] In October 2012, Broad Channel faced another mandatory evacuation due to Hurricane Sandy.^[40][41] It sustained heavy damage with widespread flooding affecting most homes in the area,^[42] and in subsequent days, widespread prolonged power cuts and shortages of food and water were reported.^[43]

Press reports indicated that at least parts of the neighborhood were flooded from time to time by high tides.^[44] The city proposed steps such as raising the streets and sidewalks by three feet. The street raising and new sea walls, installation of which were ongoing as of 2017^[update], serve to stop street flooding.^[45] Broad Channel remains as one of the New York City neighborhoods most vulnerable to flooding, and had the highest proportion of repeated flood-related insurance claims as of 2018^[update].^[46]

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Gateway National Recreation Area

Gateway National Recreation Area

Gateway National Recreation Area is a 26,607-acre (10,767 ha) U.S. National Recreation Area in New York City and Monmouth County, New Jersey. It provides recreational opportunities that are not commonly found in a dense urban environment, including ocean swimming, bird watching, boating, hiking and camping. Ten million people visit Gateway annually.

Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge

Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge

Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge is a wildlife refuge in New York City managed by the National Park Service as part of Gateway National Recreation Area. It is composed of the open water and intertidal salt marshes of Jamaica Bay. It lies entirely within the boundaries of New York City, divided between the boroughs of Brooklyn to the west and Queens to the east.

Lenape

Lenape

The Lenape also called the Lenni Lenape, and Delaware people, are an Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada.

Jamaica Bay

Jamaica Bay

Jamaica Bay is an estuary on the southern portion of the western tip of Long Island, in the U.S. state of New York. The estuary is partially man-made, and partially natural. The bay connects with Lower New York Bay to the west, through Rockaway Inlet, and is the westernmost of the coastal lagoons on the south shore of Long Island. Politically, it is primarily divided between the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens in New York City, with a small part touching Nassau County.

American Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union and the Confederacy, the latter formed by states that had seceded. The central cause of the war was the dispute over whether slavery would be permitted to expand into the western territories, leading to more slave states, or be prevented from doing so, which was widely believed would place slavery on a course of ultimate extinction.

Barren Island, Brooklyn

Barren Island, Brooklyn

Barren Island is a peninsula and former island on the southeast shore of Brooklyn in New York City. Located on Jamaica Bay, it was geographically part of the Outer Barrier island group on the South Shore of Long Island. The island was occupied by the Lenape Native Americans prior to the arrival of Dutch settlers in the 17th century. Its name is a corruption of Beeren Eylandt, the Dutch-language term for "Bears' Island".

Flatlands, Brooklyn

Flatlands, Brooklyn

Flatlands is a neighborhood in the southeast part of the borough of Brooklyn in New York City. The current neighborhood borders are roughly defined by the Bay Ridge Branch to the north, Avenue U to the south, Ralph Avenue to the east, and Flatbush Avenue to the southwest.

Jamaica, Queens

Jamaica, Queens

Jamaica is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It is mainly composed of a large commercial and retail area, though part of the neighborhood is also residential. Jamaica is bordered by Hollis to the east; St. Albans, Springfield Gardens, Rochdale Village to the southeast; South Jamaica to the south; Richmond Hill and South Ozone Park to the west; Briarwood to the northwest; and Kew Gardens Hills, Jamaica Hills, and Jamaica Estates to the north.

Long Island Rail Road

Long Island Rail Road

The Long Island Rail Road, often abbreviated as the LIRR, is a commuter rail system in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of New York, stretching from Manhattan to the eastern tip of Suffolk County on Long Island. With an average weekday ridership of 354,800 passengers in 2016, it is the busiest commuter railroad in North America. It is also one of the world's few commuter systems that runs 24/7 year-round. It is publicly owned by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which refers to it as MTA Long Island Rail Road. In 2021, the system had a ridership of 49,167,600, or about 226,100 per weekday as of the third quarter of 2022.

City of Greater New York

City of Greater New York

The City of Greater New York was the term used by many politicians and scholars for the expanded City of New York created on January 1, 1898, by consolidating the existing City of New York with Brooklyn, western Queens County, and Staten Island. The section of the Bronx west of the Bronx River had been annexed to the City and County of New York in 1874 and was known as the Annexed District. The section of the Bronx east of the Bronx River had been annexed to New York City, and New York County, in 1895.

Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge

Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge

The Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge is a toll bridge that carries Cross Bay Boulevard across Jamaica Bay in Queens, New York City, between Broad Channel and the Rockaway Peninsula.

IND Rockaway Line

IND Rockaway Line

The IND Rockaway Line is a rapid transit line of the IND Division of the New York City Subway, operating in Queens. It branches from the IND Fulton Street Line at Rockaway Boulevard, extending over the Jamaica Bay, into the Rockaways. The A train serves the line on the Far Rockaway–Mott Avenue branch and north of Hammels Wye. The Rockaway Park Shuttle runs between Broad Channel and Rockaway Park–Beach 116th Street. Five rush hour A trains provide service between Rockaway Park and Manhattan in the peak direction.

Churches in Broad Channel

Based on data from the 2010 United States Census, the population of the combined area of Breezy Point/Belle Harbor/Rockaway Park/Broad Channel was 28,018, an increase of 1,307 (4.9%) from the 26,711 counted in 2000. Covering an area of 2,033.88 acres (823.08 ha), the four neighborhoods had a population density of 13.8 inhabitants per acre (8,800/sq mi).^[47]

The racial makeup of the neighborhoods was 78.3% (21,946) White, 7.5% (2,095) African American, 2.1% (595) Asian, 0% (29) Native American, 0.0% (8) Pacific Islander, 0.2% (66) from other races, and 0.9% (259) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.8% (3,020) of the population.^[48]

The number of residents in Broad Channel itself is much lower: according to a New York Times article from 2010, there were roughly 3,000 residents on the island.^[49] A 2014 New York Times article said that many of Broad Channel's several thousand residents were civil servants or emergency workers.^[50] In 2015, according to the Census Bureau's Opportunity Atlas, about 47% of 34-to-40-year-old adults who grew up in Broad Channel still resided in the neighborhood, compared to 20% of adults in that age range citywide who grew up near their childhood homes. This was among the highest resident retention rates of any neighborhood in the city.^[51]

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Breezy Point, Queens

Breezy Point, Queens

Breezy Point is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens, located on the western end of the Rockaway peninsula, between Rockaway Inlet and Jamaica Bay to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south. The community is run by the Breezy Point Cooperative, in which all residents pay the maintenance, security, and community-oriented costs involved with keeping the community private. The cooperative owns the entire 500-acre (2 km2) community; residents own their homes and hold shares in the cooperative.

Belle Harbor, Queens

Belle Harbor, Queens

Belle Harbor is a small residential neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens, located on the western half of the Rockaway Peninsula, the southernmost area of the borough. Belle Harbor commonly refers to the area from Beach 126th to Beach 141st Streets.

Rockaway Park, Queens

Rockaway Park, Queens

Rockaway Park is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. The area is on the Rockaway Peninsula, nestled between Jamaica Bay to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the south. The neighborhood of Rockaway Beach lies on its eastern border while the community of Belle Harbor is situated on its western side. The neighborhood is part of Queens Community Board 14.

Public transportation

The Broad Channel station

The New York City Subway's IND Rockaway Line (A and ​S trains) has a subway station in Broad Channel.^[52] The Q52 and Q53 Select Bus Service routes and QM16 and QM17 express buses along Cross Bay Boulevard also serve Broad Channel.^[53]

Street grid

From the 1950s to the 1970s, some mapmakers have shown the streets of Broad Channel as being part of the street naming system found in the rest of Queens besides the Rockaways, with the numbers of "Streets" increasing from west to east, the numbers of "Avenues" increasing from north to south, etc.^[54] However, Broad Channel streets have always had their own numbering format, including "East" and "West" (in relation to Cross Bay Boulevard), as well as named "Roads" numbered north to south; this street naming system is independent of those used elsewhere in the borough. The directional prefixes ensured no duplication with any other "Road" in Queens. There are no numerical north-south or even any named "Streets" in Broad Channel.

Bridges

The Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge

Broad Channel is connected to the rest of Queens via four bridges: the tolled, vehicular Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge to the south; the free, vehicular Joseph P. Addabbo Memorial Bridge to the north; and the two IND Rockaway Line swing bridges. Cross Bay Boulevard, the island's only through road, traverses the two vehicular bridges, both of which also carry bicycle and pedestrian traffic.^[55] Lying between Howard Beach and the Rockaway Peninsula, it is connected to those communities by these bridges, at either end of the island.

Following the construction of the Cross Bay Parkway bridge in 1939, a drawbridge connecting Broad Channel with the Rockaway Peninsula (which replaced the original, narrow, 1925 drawbridge), the island became easily accessible by car. However, the drawbridge opened up many times per day, and whenever it opened, traffic would back up to Howard Beach, as well as on the Rockaway Peninsula.

In the mid-to-late 1960s, a new bridge was constructed. It opened on May 28, 1970. It was renamed the Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge in 1977. It is maintained by MTA Bridges and Tunnels, and a $3.75 toll ($2 with E-ZPass) must be paid to use the bridge.

The Joseph P. Addabbo Memorial Bridge connects Broad Channel to Howard Beach and the mainland. Opening in 1993, it was formerly known as the North Channel Bridge. It replaced an older North Channel Bridge built in 1925, which was deteriorated to the point where it was beyond repair. It is maintained by the New York City Department of Transportation, and is free.

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New York City Subway

New York City Subway

The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system in the New York City boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. It is owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Transit Authority, an affiliate agency of the state-run Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). Opened on October 27, 1904, the New York City Subway is one of the world's oldest public transit systems, one of the most-used, and the one with the most stations, with 472 stations in operation.

IND Rockaway Line

IND Rockaway Line

The IND Rockaway Line is a rapid transit line of the IND Division of the New York City Subway, operating in Queens. It branches from the IND Fulton Street Line at Rockaway Boulevard, extending over the Jamaica Bay, into the Rockaways. The A train serves the line on the Far Rockaway–Mott Avenue branch and north of Hammels Wye. The Rockaway Park Shuttle runs between Broad Channel and Rockaway Park–Beach 116th Street. Five rush hour A trains provide service between Rockaway Park and Manhattan in the peak direction.

A (New York City Subway service)

A (New York City Subway service)

The A Eighth Avenue Express is a rapid transit service in the B Division of the New York City Subway. Its route emblem, or "bullet", is colored blue since it uses the IND Eighth Avenue Line in Manhattan.

Rockaway Park Shuttle

Rockaway Park Shuttle

The Rockaway Park Shuttle is a New York City Subway shuttle train that operates in Queens. It connects with the A train at Broad Channel station and is the latest iteration of the Rockaway Shuttle services that have been running on the Rockaway peninsula since 1956. This shuttle train provides service to the western part of the peninsula, with a terminus at Rockaway Park–Beach 116th Street. The fully above-ground route operates on trackage that was originally part of the Long Island Rail Road's Far Rockaway Branch until the mid-1950s. During summer weekends, to eliminate an additional transfer and thus ease beach access, the Rockaway Park Shuttle is typically extended four stations north to Rockaway Boulevard, the southernmost station shared by Rockaway-bound and Lefferts Boulevard-bound A trains.

Select Bus Service

Select Bus Service

Select Bus Service is a brand used by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA)'s Regional Bus Operations for limited-stop bus routes with some bus rapid transit features in New York City. The first SBS route was implemented in 2008 in order to improve speed and reliability on long, busy corridors.

Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge

Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge

The Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge is a toll bridge that carries Cross Bay Boulevard across Jamaica Bay in Queens, New York City, between Broad Channel and the Rockaway Peninsula.

Joseph P. Addabbo Memorial Bridge

Joseph P. Addabbo Memorial Bridge

The Joseph P. Addabbo Memorial Bridge is a bridge that carries Cross Bay Boulevard across Jamaica Bay in Queens, New York City, between Howard Beach and Broad Channel. The fixed bridge, carrying six lanes of Cross Bay Boulevard, is named for the late Joseph P. Addabbo, who represented the area in the United States House of Representatives from 1961 to 1986.

Swing bridge

Swing bridge

A swing bridge is a movable bridge that has as its primary structural support a vertical locating pin and support ring, usually at or near to its center of gravity, about which the swing span can then pivot horizontally as shown in the animated illustration to the right. Small swing bridges as found over canals may be pivoted only at one end, opening as would a gate, but require substantial underground structure to support the pivot.

Howard Beach, Queens

Howard Beach, Queens

Howard Beach is a neighborhood in the southwestern portion of the New York City borough of Queens. It is bordered to the north by the Belt Parkway and Conduit Avenue in Ozone Park, to the south by Jamaica Bay in Broad Channel, to the east by 102nd–104th Streets in South Ozone Park, and to the west by 75th Street in East New York, Brooklyn. The area consists mostly of low-rise single-family houses.

Rockaway, Queens

Rockaway, Queens

The Rockaway Peninsula, commonly referred to as The Rockaways or Rockaway, is a peninsula at the southern edge of the New York City borough of Queens on Long Island, New York. Relatively isolated from Manhattan and other more urban parts of the city, Rockaway became a popular summer retreat in the 1830s. It has since become a mixture of lower, middle, and upper-class neighborhoods. In the 2010s, it became one of the city's most quickly gentrifying areas.

MTA Bridges and Tunnels

MTA Bridges and Tunnels

The Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority (TBTA), doing business as MTA Bridges and Tunnels, is an affiliate agency of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority that operates seven toll bridges and two tunnels in New York City. In terms of traffic volume, it is the largest bridge and tunnel toll agency in the United States, serving more than a million people each day and generating more than $1.9 billion in toll revenue annually as of 2017. As of 2018, its budget was $596 million, funded through taxes and fees.

E-ZPass

E-ZPass

E-ZPass is an electronic toll collection system used on toll roads, toll bridges, and toll tunnels in the Eastern United States, Midwestern United States, and Southern United States. The E-ZPass Interagency Group (IAG) consists of member agencies in several states, which use the same technology and allow travelers to use the same transponder on toll roads throughout the network.

Schools

PS 47

Broad Channel is served by the New York City Department of Education. Elementary school students attend PS 47, which serves pre-K through eighth grades; the school facilities were completely remodeled during the 1990s.

Broad Channel was also home to St. Virgilius School, a Roman Catholic School that was part of the Diocese of Brooklyn. However, after a lengthy battle between parents and the Diocese, St. Virgilius School closed in 2006.^[56] Two years later, upon the retirement of its administrator, Rev. John P. Maloney, St. Virgilius Parish of Broad Channel merged with St. Camillus Parish of Rockaway Park.^[57]

Library

Local branch of Queens Public Library

The Queens Public Library's Broad Channel branch is located at 16-26 Cross Bay Boulevard.^[58]

Broad Channel Athletic Club

The non-profit Broad Channel Athletic Club was established in 1961. The baseball teams are registered with Little League and host an in-house baseball league, and participate in the Catholic Youth Organization. The football league plays in the Nassau and Suffolk Football League. The soccer league is completely run by the organization and participates in the Catholic Youth Organization. The swimming team participates in the Police Athletic League of New York City and the Catholic Youth Organization. The basketball league also participates in the Catholic Youth Organization.^[59]

Broad Channel Historical Society

The Broad Channel Historical Society was established in 1994 by the Civic Association's then-president Danny Mundy after he read the local Channel News newsletter's "Glimpse of the Past" column. Ada L. Smith, the New York State Senator representing the district, distributed funds, which the society used to purchase notebooks to record the community's history. Since June 1995, the society has held Annual Historical Day every year so visitors could look at the collection in the Broad Channel Library.^[60]

The Broad Channel Library has been the home for the historical collection. The collection was microfilmed in 1997. The microfilm is available for viewing at the Central Branch in Jamaica, Queens. Also in 1997 the first annual Historical Calendar was published. The calendars feature old pictures of Broad Channel and tidal information.

Broad Channel Volunteer Fire Department

Fire Department

The department originally started in 1905 as bucket brigade to help minimize property loss due to fires. In 1907, this brigade was formally organized into the Broad Channel Volunteer Fire Association under its first Chief, Edward H. Schleuter. The current firehouse at 15 Noel Road was opened in the summer of 1908. In 1913, Chief Chris Hoobs died of a heart attack responding to a fire. The association received their fire charter from the state of New York in 1917 and were known from then on as the Broad Channel Volunteers.

In 1956, then-Deputy Chief Robert H. Russell Sr. added volunteer ambulance services to provide first aid and ambulatory care to the residents of Broad Channel. He would also go on to be elected to the rank of Chief of Department twenty-one times from 1957–1973, 1975–1977, and again in 1984. By the early 1960s, the department was growing rapidly in both stature in the community and as an organization as a whole.

On summer weekends during the 1950s and 1960s, the FDNY would send a spare engine and a crew detailed from other firehouses, known as Engine Company No. 341, to the Broad Channel Volunteers' quarters to assist in answering alarms on the island. The bridges at the northern and southern ends of the island were draw bridges and were frequently opened for large passing ships. The southern bridge was particularly active due to the numerous tankers carrying fuel to nearby Idlewild Airport (now John F. Kennedy International Airport).

On average it took from 30 to 45 minutes from the lowering of the traffic barriers, the opening and closing of the lift bridge, and the raising of the traffic barriers before traffic could again move. Occasionally, the bridge would get stuck in the open position effectively closing Cross Bay Boulevard for extended periods. This would impede responses by FDNY apparatus, EMS & NYPD companies to the island for any type of emergency.

Also, Cross Bay Boulevard, then 4 lanes in each direction, would be jammed by beach goers and those looking to vacation at Rockaway's bungalows and hotels and its famous Rockaway Playland. Often the FDNY firefighters would leave their apparatus parked on the Boulevard and join the volunteers on their apparatus because they were smaller than the FDNY apparatus and could maneuver down the very narrow streets.

Over the years, the Broad Channel Volunteers have been in service, they have created a close working relationship with the local FDNY companies as well as the volunteer companies from Nassau & Suffolk Counties. The Broad Channel Volunteers are also dues paying members of many organizations such as the Southern New York Volunteer Firemans Association, the Firemans Association of the State of New York, and along with the 8 other volunteer fire departments in the 5 boroughs of New York City, they are members of Volunteer Firemans Association of the City of New York.

In the late 1970s, The Broad Channel Junior Fire Department was organized to help train young teens in the aspects of the fire and EMS service as well as dispatching and clerical duties while still cleaning the firehouse and its apparatus. When its members turned 18, they were allowed to begin riding the apparatus as firefighters or start training as EMTs. The benefit was these teens were already knowledgeable in the operations of the department and it became a breeding ground for the departments future firefighters, officers and chiefs. They would later become a Boy Scout Explorer Post, #3069.

In 1994, under Chief Dan McIntyre, the volunteer ambulance corps was granted their New York State Certification. Since then, the department took the initiative to require all its firefighters to be New York State Certified in all aspects of the fire service as well as EMS. In 1994, Chief Dan McIntyre also started the departments Marine Company which is still in service to present day. The department operates a small Coast Guard-like Zodiac as a swift water rescue team with certified EMTs on board and in some instances certified divers as well.

In 2012, as a result of Hurricane Sandy, the fire department lost many resources, including both of its fire trucks and both of its ambulances. Therefore, a replacement fire truck from Chanhassen, Minnesota, was loaned to the Broad Channel Volunteer Fire Department.^[61] In addition, neighboring Minnesota towns sent resources, including extra boots and helmets from Victoria and Carver; four air monitors, one Jaws of Life apparatus, and two power generators from Chaska; and a truck with resources worth about $20,000 from the Sioux community there.^[61]

The Broad Channel Volunteers, Inc., is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization that relies solely on door to door fundraising, grants from politicians and from the state, and since 1905 has been operated by 100% volunteers.

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Police Athletic League of New York City

Police Athletic League of New York City

The Police Athletic League (PAL) is an independent, nonprofit youth development agency in New York City. PAL is funded by a combination of private donations and public funding sources and is a designated charity of the New York City Police Department (NYPD). Robert M. Morgenthau, the late former New York County District Attorney, served as Chairman of the Board of Directors beginning in 1963. PAL is open to all New York City children.

Ada L. Smith

Ada L. Smith

Ada L. Smith is an American former politician from New York. A Democrat, Smith served in the New York State Senate. She was convicted of misdemeanor harassment in 2006 after throwing hot coffee onto a member of her staff.

New York State Senate

New York State Senate

The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Established in 1777 by the Constitution of New York, its members are elected to two-year terms with no term limits. There are currently 63 seats in the Senate.

Jamaica, Queens

Jamaica, Queens

Jamaica is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It is mainly composed of a large commercial and retail area, though part of the neighborhood is also residential. Jamaica is bordered by Hollis to the east; St. Albans, Springfield Gardens, Rochdale Village to the southeast; South Jamaica to the south; Richmond Hill and South Ozone Park to the west; Briarwood to the northwest; and Kew Gardens Hills, Jamaica Hills, and Jamaica Estates to the north.

John F. Kennedy International Airport

John F. Kennedy International Airport

John F. Kennedy International Airport is the main international airport serving New York City. The airport is the busiest of the seven airports in the New York airport system, the 13th-busiest airport in the United States, and the busiest international air passenger gateway into North America. Over 90 airlines operate from the airport, with nonstop or direct flights to destinations in all six inhabited continents.

Exploring (Learning for Life)

Exploring (Learning for Life)

Exploring is an interactive, worksite-based career education program of Learning for Life, an affiliate of the Boy Scouts of America. Participants in the program are called Explorers. The program serves youth in 6th-8th grades, and young men and women who are 14 through 20 years old. Exploring units, are sponsored by local businesses, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations, and usually focus on a single career field, but can also introduce youth to a variety of career fields within a single unit.

Ambulance

Ambulance

An ambulance is a medically equipped vehicle which transports patients to treatment facilities, such as hospitals. Typically, out-of-hospital medical care is provided to the patient during the transport.

Chanhassen, Minnesota

Chanhassen, Minnesota

Chanhassen is a city about 16 miles southwest of Minneapolis in Carver County and partially in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. The southwest edge of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul suburbs, there is a mix of residential neighborhoods and rural landscapes. The population was 25,947 at the 2020 census.

Carver, Minnesota

Carver, Minnesota

Carver is a small city in Carver County, Minnesota, United States along the banks of the Minnesota River. The city is named after early explorer Jonathan Carver. The downtown area is home to the Carver Historic District, a nationally recognized collection of historically significant local buildings.

Electric generator

Electric generator

In electricity generation, a generator is a device that converts motive power or fuel-based power into electric power for use in an external circuit. Sources of mechanical energy include steam turbines, gas turbines, water turbines, internal combustion engines, wind turbines and even hand cranks. The first electromagnetic generator, the Faraday disk, was invented in 1831 by British scientist Michael Faraday. Generators provide nearly all of the power for electric power grids.

Chaska, Minnesota

Chaska, Minnesota

Chaska is a city and the county seat of Carver County, Minnesota, United States. An outer ring suburb of the Twin Cities, Chaska is home to the Hazeltine National Golf Club and is known for its historic downtown area located on a bend of the Minnesota River. The City of Chaska merged with Chaska Township in 2006. The city still has some remaining agricultural land.

Sioux

Sioux

The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin are groups of Native American tribes and First Nations peoples in North America. The modern Sioux consist of two major divisions based on language divisions: the Dakota and Lakota; collectively they are known as the Očhéthi Šakówiŋ. The term "Sioux" is an exonym created from a French transcription ("Nadouessioux") of the Ojibwe term "Nadowessi", and can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or to any of the nation's many language dialects.

Sunset Cove Park

Opened on August 21, 2019, Sunset Cove Park is located on 12.57 acres (5.09 ha) of land that was formerly occupied by a marina. In the process, some 1,000 cubic yards (760 m³) of debris and 30,000 cubic yards (23,000 m³) of polluted soil was removed, and a 4.5-acre (1.8 ha) salt marsh and 7-acre (2.8 ha) upland area was restored. Furthermore, a walkway and shoreline berm were constructed and 16,000 short tons (14,000 long tons; 15,000 t) of sand were imported to the site. A future construction phase, which will commence in 2021, will include an oyster garden, a dock, and a boardwalk to reach the salt marsh.^[62]

Broad Channel American Park

Broad Channel American Park opened in May 1995, located at the southernmost end of Broad Channel, sits along Jamaica Bay. The park features two grass baseball fields, one asphalt baseball field, benches, water fountains, a parking area, four basketball standards, and a small play area. The flagpole area is surrounded by a nautically themed sitting area. The park was given its present name in March 1998.^[63]

Broad Channel Park

Broad Channel Park, also known as 17th Road Playground, is located on Cross Bay Boulevard and stretches between 16th and 18th Roads. This park includes a hockey rink, basketball courts, handball courts, playgrounds, and tennis courts.^[2]

Gene Gray Playground

Gene Gray Playground, at Cross Bay Boulevard and East 9th Road, is named for Eugene Gray (1927–1973), a community activist who supported the construction of the island's first adventure playground prior to his death. In 1987, the Broad Channel Civic Association and Queens Community Board 14 successfully petitioned to rename the playground after Gray. The playground, which cost $457,688, opened on November 12, 1987, to designs by Richard Dattner. The wooden play structures in the playground was themed to a nautical fortress, with a bridge designed to look like a sailing ship. There is also a 75-year-old willow tree, nine red maple trees, and ninety burning bushes surrounding the playground.^[64]

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Jamaica Bay

Jamaica Bay

Jamaica Bay is an estuary on the southern portion of the western tip of Long Island, in the U.S. state of New York. The estuary is partially man-made, and partially natural. The bay connects with Lower New York Bay to the west, through Rockaway Inlet, and is the westernmost of the coastal lagoons on the south shore of Long Island. Politically, it is primarily divided between the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens in New York City, with a small part touching Nassau County.

Baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding team, called the pitcher, throws a ball that a player on the batting team, called the batter, tries to hit with a bat. The objective of the offensive team is to hit the ball into the field of play, away from the other team's players, allowing its players to run the bases, having them advance counter-clockwise around four bases to score what are called "runs". The objective of the defensive team is to prevent batters from becoming runners, and to prevent runners' advance around the bases. A run is scored when a runner legally advances around the bases in order and touches home plate.

Basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball through the defender's hoop, while preventing the opposing team from shooting through their own hoop. A field goal is worth two points, unless made from behind the three-point line, when it is worth three. After a foul, timed play stops and the player fouled or designated to shoot a technical foul is given one, two or three one-point free throws. The team with the most points at the end of the game wins, but if regulation play expires with the score tied, an additional period of play (overtime) is mandated.

Adventure playground

Adventure playground

An adventure playground is a specific type of playground for children. Adventure playgrounds can take many forms, ranging from "natural playgrounds" to "junk playgrounds", and are typically defined by an ethos of unrestricted play, the presence of playworkers, and the absence of adult-manufactured or rigid play-structures. Adventure playgrounds are frequently defined in contrast to playing fields, contemporary-design playgrounds made by adult architects, and traditional-equipment play areas containing adult-made rigid play-structures like swings, slides, seesaws, and climbing bars.

Queens Community Board 14

Queens Community Board 14

The Queens Community Board 14 is a local government in the New York City borough of Queens, encompassing the neighborhoods of Breezy Point, Belle Harbor, Neponsit, Arverne, Bayswater, Edgemere, Rockaway Park, Rockaway and Far Rockaway. It is bounded to the north by Brooklyn and Jamaica Bay, on the east by the Nassau County border, and to the south by the Atlantic Ocean.

Euonymus atropurpureus

Euonymus atropurpureus

Euonymus atropurpureus is a species of shrub in the bittersweet family. It has the common names American wahoo, eastern wahoo, burningbush and hearts bursting with love. It is native to eastern North America.