Politics & Government

Albany Legislating Graffiti Penalties, Construction Notices

New bills aimed at quality of life issues in neighborhoods.

Some bills under consideration in Albany currently are aimed at making Forest Hills and the rest of Queens a more beautiful — and easier — place to navigate.

One bill that recently passed the Senate is designed to curb graffiti by making those who are convicted of graffiti-related crimes to clean up the unsightly street art in their communities.

State Sen. Tony Avella, D-Bayside, co-sponsored a bill that would require penalties for graffiti convictions to include graffiti removal.

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“Graffiti continues to plague our neighborhoods and communities,” the senator said. “Forcing those who have been found guilty of graffiti vandalism to remove graffiti will serve both as a lesson to vandals of the damage graffiti can generate within a community as well as help eliminate graffiti.”

State Sen. Joe Addabbo, who represents Forest Hills, is also pushing legislation that would force the city to give residents within a half mile of construction zones a heads-up three days in advance.

Find out what's happening in Forest Hillswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“A timely ‘heads up’ could save us all some big headaches and aggravation when it comes to navigating closed streets, preparing for utility service disruptions, getting back and forth to work or school, and otherwise confronting problems associated with big construction projects in our community,” Addabbo said.  “If we have time to prepare for projects like this, we’ll have a better chance of making the adjustments we need to get through them safely and with as little frustration as possible.” 

The bill would also apply to infrastructure projects that would disrupt gas and electric service. Construction that would be complete in under 48 is not subject to the restrictions.


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