St. Michael's Cemetery Trying to Take Over Adjacent Parkland

St. Michael’s Cemetery in East Elmhurst has a probably–it is running out of space. And since there’s no reason to think people are going to stop dying, they need to get their hands on more land. One small plot of land that cemetery leaders have targeted is an irregularly-shaped parcel of unloved city park land known as St. Michael’s Park. The 4-acre plot is located at the Northeast corner of the cemetery, up against the BQE just south of Astoria Boulevard. Earlier this week, the blog Queens Crap posted a copy of a bill that would authorize the transfer of the park in return for a similar-sized property elsewhere in the borough. According to a Daily News story yesterday, local politicians support the swap. “I hope we can take a local eyesore, put it to productive use and find replacement land that can be used as a park,” said state Sen. Michael Gianaris. “It’s an abandoned (and) overgrown area. People throw their garbage over the fence.” Are you okay with the plan?
Queens Cemetery’s Attempts to Expand on Park Land in Limbo [NY Daily News]