Tensions flared during dueling rallies held outside of a tent shelter at the Creedmoor Psychiatric Center in Queens Village on Tuesday, Aug. 8, as the angry protesters who expressed their opposition to the city’s plan to house migrants at the site outnumbered a small group of pro-migrant supporters.
Standing behind barricades along the sidewalk, protesters held up signs reading “Save Our Neighborhood” and “Americans Over Migrants,” while chanting “No Tent City” as drivers honked in support of the rally held at Det. William T. Gunn Playground at P.S. 18Q at Hillside Avenue and 235th Court.
The protesters made their way across the street to where construction on the tent city has already begun in the SNAP Senior Center’s parking lot. The facility, which is expected to house 1,000 single male migrants, is located within close proximity to P.S. 18Q, the Padavan Preller Athletic Fields and the Cross Island YMCA.
The non-partisan rally was organized by civic leaders in eastern Queens, who say the migrant tent shelter will impact the neighborhood’s quality-of-life.
Bob Friedrich, president of Glen Oaks Village Co-op, called on elected officials to demand the Biden administration secure the border and file a lawsuit against Mayor Eric Adams and Governor Kathy Hochul for the “inhumane and unsafe plan that they’ve thrusted upon us.”
“The mayor is going to warehouse 1,000 unvetted adult males in cots in a parking lot with no shopping, no transportation, nothing, across the street from an elementary school, a ball field, a YMCA … this is a recipe for disaster and it’s a powder keg waiting to go off,” Friedrich said.
Phil Orenstein, president of the Queens Village Republican Club, said they’re all outraged and at their wits end, while noting the lack of transportation and resources in the neighborhood that fails to meet the needs of the migrants.
“Everyone is in agreement that the mayor should stop his plans to put…
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