A crowd gathered on the steps of Queens Borough Hall on Monday night to remember the life of Tyre Nichols, who died on Jan. 10, three days after being beaten by police in Memphis.

The video of the brutal assault was released last Friday and shook the country, including many in Queens, especially parents of Black children. Read more

As he kicked off a two-day hearing Monday on community budget requests, Borough President Donovan Richards was trying to remain encouraging, even as he read off a list of a few city departments that have been targeted for cuts in Mayor Adams’ $102.7 billion preliminary spending plan for the fiscal year beginning July 1.

“The last fiscal year has presented a challenge to New Yorkers from all walks of life,” Richards said at Borough Hall. In addition, the national economy has not recovered from the pandemic. However ... I’m optimistic that we are on our way to an economic recovery here in Queens.” Read more

A fire that injured 18 children at an unlicensed daycare center in Kew Gardens Hills on Jan. 25 raised a great deal of outcry in its immediate aftermath.

Now city and state agencies are sorting out just what happened while elected officials in City Hall and Albany decide what steps to take next. Read more

According to ancient Chinese legend, a vicious beast, Nian, would emerge from the earth at year’s end to hunt people and decimate livestock and crops. To drive the monster away, villagers would make loud noise and display red color through clothing and decoration.

Nian would not have stood a chance against the sounds of music, pounding of drums and roaring crowd that filled the air in Downtown Flushing on Saturday, when the area held its 27th annual Lunar New Year parade, a day before the holiday officially commenced. Read more

Recent pitches by the New York Blood Center asking people to donate blood have taken a humorous approach.

It hurts less than dropping your cell phone, or running into your ex with a piece of spinach in your teeth, they say. Read more

As the political clash over Gov. Hochul’s nominee for chief justice of the Court of Appeals, Justice Hector LaSalle, reached a boiling point, Queens elected officials found themselves right in the middle.

State Sens. Jessica Ramos (D-East Elmhurst), Toby Stavisky (D-Whitestone) and John Liu (D-Flushing) were among the 10 Judiciary Committee members who voted not to advance LaSalle’s nomination to the full Senate last Wednesday, winning by a one-vote margin. Read more

When, just over two weeks ago, Nassau Republicans called on Rep. George Santos (R-Nassau, Queens) to resign in light of his fraudulent resume and dubious financial history, several said they would not work with the congressman and would refer constituents to other offices.

As allegations against Santos have continued this month, Queens elected officials have been left to navigate how they ought to work with the congressman. Read more

Following the culmination of a Fair Student Funding formula working group’s effort, Mayor Adams and Schools Chancellor David Banks have selected two of the panel’s recommendations to propose.

They are recommending a weight be added to the funding formula for students in temporary housing and another for schools that have a higher concentration of students with needs including those with disabilities, English language learners and those living in poverty. Read more

The Northeast Queens community lost a giant this past weekend as Auburndale’s own Christine Haider died on Jan. 21. She was 75.

Haider was perhaps best known for her work on Community Board 11, of which she was a member for more than 30 years. During her time as the board chair, Haider headed the panel’s first all-female group of officers, according to her good friend and fellow CB 11 member Eileen Miller. Though Miller said Haider had been hospitalized for several weeks, her death was still very sudden. “It was really unexpected,” she said. “She was sick, but we thought that she would be OK.” Read more

The first stage of construction to place elevators at the Queensboro Plaza subway station in Long Island City will result in the suspension of No. 7 train subway service between the plaza and 34th Street-Hudson Yards in Manhattan the weekend beginning on Feb. 4.

The station, which also serves the N and W lines, serves an estimated 70,000 riders per day. The suspension will take place between 12:15 a.m. on Feb. 4, a Saturday, through 5 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 6, in time for weekday morning rush hour service. Free shuttle buses will service all missed stations during the closure. Read more

Absent any measurable amount of snow by Sunday, Jan. 29, the New York City area will set the record for the latest-ever date in winter without the white stuff.

The simple answer according to experts consulted by the Chronicle was the same — it has just been too warm for snow to form and stick. But the underlying causes, they said, are myriad. Read more

After welcoming hundreds of Queens residents to his Mets’ Citi Field on Jan. 7, team owner Steve Cohen is set to host another visioning session this Sunday, Jan. 29, so community members may weigh in on the future of the 50 acres of land to the west and south of the ballpark.

Community members can sign up for 30-minute time slots between 12 and 3 p.m. Sunday, during which they can suggest ideas for future development and answer questions from Cohen’s team. Read more