State Sen. Toby Stavisky (D-Whitestone) is proud of her accomplishments and hopes voters will return her to Albany to continue those efforts.

Stavisky, 74, faces Democratic Primary challenger, John Messer, 41, of Oakland Gardens, on Sept. 13. Two years ago, she beat him in a three-way race, with Messer, an attorney, coming in third.

As a key Republican Party nomination battle for state Senate shapes up between Councilman Eric Ulrich (R-Ozone Park) and Forest Hills attorney Juan Reyes, the Queens Conservative Party today gave Ulrich an ideological boost by throwing him its support.

With ducks quacking in the background and a forceful wind whipping the American flag and red, white and blue balloons, Republican City Councilman Dan Halloran of Whitestone announced his candidacy Monday for the 6th Congressional District seat, saying it’s time for a real change.

Speaking to supporters, party officials and the press at Bowne Park in Flushing, Halloran, 41, said he is in it to win it and “the campaign won’t be distorted by non-issues.”

   Borough elected officials, civic leaders and residents of Maspeth, Middle Village and Elmhurst this Monday joined Mayor Bloomberg in cutting the ceremonial ribbon on gleaming new Elmhurst Park.

   The $20 million, six-acre green space, which sits on the site of the Elmhurst gas tanks, recently opened to the public, and has quickly become a popular park in what the mayor called one of “most densely populated areas” of the Big Apple.

   Elmhurst Park has arrived.

   The new green space on 57th Avenue near the Long Island Expressway westbound service road opened to the public last week. It had been in the works for at least nine years, with the city agreeing to purchase the property in 2003 from then-KeySpan for $1. The park, which cost more than $20 million, was installed on the six-acre site of the old Elmhurst gas tanks.

The central swaths of the borough saw it all this year — even a tornado.

He’s in. No, he’s out. On third thought, he’s in.

It’s been two years since former City Councilman Dennis Gallagher was forced to resign his seat representing the 30th Council District as part of a plea agreement with the Queens District Attorney’s Office after he was accused in the summer of 2007 of sexually assaulting a Middle Village woman.

It’s been a tough year.

Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley (D-Middle Village) scored a decisive victory on Tuesday as she earned her first full term representing District 30 at City Hall.

Voters in the 30th Council District are set to test the longevity of recent Democratic victories on Tuesday.

Good things come in threes.

On Monday, the 40th anniversary of the day Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins took an unparalled leap for mankind, 30 children sat cross-legged in a Richmond Hill classroom, ready to take their own small steps to follow in their heroes’ spaceboot prints.

Giant clouds of steam wafted off the Hibachi grills at Shiro of Japan as chefs sliced, diced, grilled and skewered a variety of succulent meats and fish for the crowd at a fundraiser on Tuesday to benefit the Greater Ridgewood Youth Council.

Tom Ognibene has gone from challenging Michael Bloomberg for the top seat in the city, to receiving his endorsement as he guns for his old seat on the City Council.

So what does it all mean for District 30?

No one would say 2008 was the best of times in Queens, but overall it wasn’t the worst of times either. There’s no escaping the economic crisis, and our borough has suffered more than its fair share of home foreclosures, especially in southeastern Queens. The rate of new foreclosure actions actually fell over the last two months, but that’s just because state law is delaying them. There’s no real improvement in sight.

Arson, murder and building development all took their turns on the pages of the Queens Chronicle in 2008, but nothing dominated headlines in mid and central Queens like political scandal.

News of disgraced politicians, public protests and fiscal crises in Queens made headlines throughout the borough, city and state in 2008. Various publications and media splashed sensational and, in some cases, serious stories on their front pages and evening newscasts.

Sometimes the big guy wins.

The revolving door that is the District 30 council seat may finally stop spinning, at least for a year.

All signs pointed to a victory.

2005

Democrat Elizabeth Crowley pulled off a stunning victory on Tuesday, defeating incumbent Councilman Anthony Como (R-Middle Village) by almost 4,000 votes in the election for the District 30 seat.

The city Department of Parks and Recreation is redesigning a section of a playground in Juniper Valley Park, in Middle Village, to accommodate what it calls an array of imaginative and active play.