“This is a totally obvious statement, but being the mayor of the City of New York is a tough job, and people need to make sure they have somebody who’s tough enough to lead, but smart enough to listen and to lead in a collaborative way.”

That’s how City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan) responded to the first question asked of her during an interview last Thursday with the Queens Chronicle editorial board: the old standard, “What makes you the best candidate?”

Resorts World Casino New York City has hit another big milestone.

The casino, which opened in October, 2011, announced last week that it raked in $67 million in April, putting total revenue since opening at over $1 billion.

With all the overstuffed slot machines and tempting blackjack tables in Las Vegas, it can be hard to resist the siren calls of Lady Luck when you are in pursuit of the perfect photo opportunity. Fortunately, much of Sin City’s manmade beauty can be found right on the famous four-mile strip and nearby downtown area. If you need a break from the dimmed gaming rooms abuzz with constant beeps and chimes, check out some of the best vantage points to capture all that glitters in Las Vegas.

With all the overstuffed slot machines and tempting blackjack tables in Las Vegas, it can be hard to resist the siren calls of Lady Luck when you are in pursuit of the perfect photo opportunity. Fortunately, much of Sin City’s manmade beauty can be found right on the famous four-mile strip and nearby downtown area. If you need a break from the dimmed gaming rooms abuzz with constant beeps and chimes, check out some of the best vantage points to capture all that glitters in Las Vegas.

More than 40 percent of the state’s population lives here in New York City, and when you count the other downstate counties, the number soars above 60 percent. Put simply, this is where the people are.

So why does Gov. Cuomo want to see new casinos built upstate only? And why would he continue to deny Resorts World Casino at Aqueduct Race Track the full table gaming he would allow upstate?

Ten blocks west of Resorts World Casino New York City, a billboard over Rockaway Boulevard advertised casino table games less than two hours away in New Jersey.

To anyone with even the slightest knowledge of marketing, the ad seems to make sense — targeting gamers leaving Resorts World perhaps disappointed that New York City’s first casino lacks real roulette wheels and craps tables.

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-Brooklyn,Queens) came to the May meeting of the Lindenwood Alliance, in the Fairfield Arms Co-op, to meet some of his new constituents.

Jeffries told the audience that he was concerned with resolving any issues that residents had with the Federal Emergency Management Agency regarding Hurricane Sandy.

More than 20 nonprofits, including the branch of Goodwill aimed at helping people find temporary work, have come together to sponsor a job fair geared toward victims of Hurricane Sandy.

The job fair will take place on Tuesday, May 14 from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. at Resorts World Casino New York City’s Central Park events floor.

It is impossible to express your love for the woman who raised you and made you who you are today through one day of recognition and a gift. Nonetheless, we should all put a little thought into a thank you — even though mom will probably say that it’s not necessary — and here are just a few ideas.

Even as opponents of both projects keep their voices in the mix, proposals to reactivate the Rockaway Beach Long Island Rail Road line, or convert the right of way into a park similar to Manhattan’s High Line, are both moving forward.

The plan to bring trains, or some form of transit, back to the line, which was abandoned in 1962, got support from two high-ranking officials last week.

(NAPSI)—Planning where to go on your next vacation can be one of the most exciting aspects of traveling. Since you’re in control of where you and your suitcase land, creating long-lasting travel memories can start with selecting the right destination.

If you’re 17 and you enjoy a burger from the food court at Resorts World Casino New York City, make sure you bring your mom, dad or older sibling.

Anyone under 18 have always been banned from the casino floor, but are allowed in common areas outside the casino, such as the food court, and guards stopped anyone who appeared to be underage from entering the gambling area. But some civic leaders and residents near the track said teenagers were congregating in common areas, especially those from nearby John Adams High School.

(NAPSI)—The nightmarish stranding of the Carnival Triumph may have deterred some potential cruisers, but so far the industry hasn’t seen enough dip in bookings to drop prices. However, savvy travelers who invest a little time and research can still save on their next cruise.

Dear Editor:

There’ve been rumblings and rumors about a casino in Willets Point and I ask, why do we need something so destructive in our community?

Casinos are notorious for destroying communities that are already teetering on the brink. Willets Point has the potential to be great if only we are given a fighting chance.

The current proposal to revive Willets Point is something the entire community has gotten behind. We have given up so much to get to this point that adding a casino will set us back. When we should be talking about jobs, economic development, improving the pockmarked streets and other infrastructure, we are discussing further obliteration.

Even elected officials who represent Willets Point and the surrounding communities have spoken out against what would be a doomed casino project. Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras, whose district encompasses Willets Point, stated that “it is unprecedented to convert part of an existing economic development project that provides affordable housing and retail jobs for the purpose of building a casino, which would obviously affect the social fabric of the community.”

Andrew Rocco, president of the College Point Civic Association, said our government should focus on investing in the things we already have instead of creating and investing in the gambling industry. To echo Mr. Rocco’s words, I say we need sound investment in the people and cultural institutions that surround Willets Point.

A casino would not add to revitalization. All it would mean is a loss of jobs and closing of area businesses. Not many can withstand the onslaught of a casino. There will be no infusion of tourism dollars to the neighborhood. Patrons of the casino will undoubtedly spend both their money and time inside it.

The current Willets Point Plan, which will be a great improvement to the community, is something that has been vetted and approved. Adding a casino was never part of the original plan. I speak for many who would’ve never have supported the restructuring if we’d known that a casino could be part of the package. Instituting something of that magnitude without our consent is not only unfair, but disrespectful. Do we not get a say in what happens in or to our community? Are we that irrelevant?

We ask our legislators to not destroy what we are trying to build up. Give us the respect that you demand, for our community.

Dear Editor:

The Jan. 31 Chronicle report concerning a presentation by Sterling Equities, Inc. and Related Companies — firms designated by Mayor Bloomberg as developers of Willets Point and Willets West — to the Queens Housing Coalition (“Plan for Willets Point housing is last step”) gives a false impression that business owner Marco Neira and I were among the attendees who “made passionate speeches about the need for affordable housing instead of a mall.” We made no such speeches.

Rather, Mr. Neira asked: What will happen to the hundreds of skilled mechanical workers who are employed by Willets Point businesses and will be displaced by the Sterling/Related plan, and what will happen to their dependents? What about the group relocation of businesses? Sterling/Related had nothing to say about any of that.

As for me — a healthy, 80-year-old resident of Willets Point who was also born there — I stated that I am proof that even an entire lifetime at Willets Point is not the slightest bit hazardous, contrary to the developers’ totally bogus claims about the area. Furthermore, I emphasiz

ed that the substantial, growing opposition to Sterling/Related’s proposed development, which would sacrifice 30-plus acres of public parkland, now includes the Queens Civic Congress, which represents more than 100 civic associations throughout the borough.

I respect the goals of the Queens Housing Coalition. However, it should be noted that Sterling/Related are the same developers who, when they responded to the city’s 2011 Willets Point Request for Proposals, submitted a plan that called for no housing whatsoever, that deliberately minimized the remediation of property to the greatest extent possible, and instead sought to construct a 450,000-square-foot casino using parkland beyond the bounds of Willets Point. For Sterling/Related now to pass themselves off as champions of affordable housing at Willets Point is simply incredible.

And even if Sterling/Related wanted to build housing sooner than 2025, they can’t, because any housing requires new Van Wyck access ramps as a prerequisite. The membership of Willets Point United Inc. and I are well aware that there is a six-year statute of limitations to file a lawsuit to challenge and prevent those ramps. We are confident that when the communities surrounding Willets Point comprehend the extraordinary traffic and other severe quality-of-life reductions that the proposed project will cause, the opposition — an end-of-term legacy project of the outgoing mayor — will continue to increase.

When word leaked out last week that the Mets were hoping to be part of a syndicate to build a casino in Willets Point in a plan presented to Mayor Bloomberg in 2011, my immediate reaction was “What the hell were these guys thinking?”

Two years ago, the Mets were in the midst of the fallout from the Bernie Madoff scandal. Madoff Securities victims’ trustee Irving Picard had his sights set on collecting hundreds of millions from their owners as restitution. The team’s cash flow, not to mention its image, were, and in many ways still are, in deep trouble. It was the epitome of chutzpah on the Mets’ part to expect any governmental authority to grant them permission to build a casino.

As Gov. Cuomo mulls plans to open new casinos in New York State and eyes full gambling — including table games — two Queens legislators are renewing their call to have the gambling age raised to 21 for all of the state’s casinos.

A gaming company, an Indian tribe and three developers walk into Willets Point …

The collective, including the Mets’ parent company Sterling Equities, bet in 2011 the city would approve a casino as part of the proposed redevelopment of Willets Point. They lost and were sent back to the drawing board by the city’s Economic Development Corporation. But groups opposing the mayor’s plan for the Iron Triangle suspect gaming may re-emerge in subsequent portions of Willets Point’s multi-phase rejuvenation.

Gov. Cuomo reiterated his support for full casino gaming — including table games — in New York State, but under the plan he outlined in this week’s State of the State speech, Queens residents will have to drive a good long while on the Thruway to get to roll real dice at a real craps table or sit with an actual blackjack dealer.