Six young people from Queens will participate in a production of “Princess Phooey,” an original musical production featured at the Tada! Youth Theater in Manhattan.

There will be presentations of the modern fairytale from Feb. 10 to Feb. 26 at the theater, which is located at 15 West 28 St. on the second floor, according to a spokesperson for the organization. Read more

It was a joyous, packed house last Thursday at Queens Palace in Woodside as congregants of the Binapani Sangho religious organization and some special guests marked the festival of Saraswati Puja.

Also known as Vasant Panchami, the Hindu festival marks the preparation for the arrival of spring, and is held about 40 days before the season’s start. Read more

Parents who suffer a stillbirth are not currently entitled to the 12 weeks of Paid Family Leave that other families receive.

A bill in the state Senate and Assembly would amend what advocates call a “dangerous and inequitable gap” in the law. 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

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

Proposals for Success Academy to be co-located in two Queens schools were pulled by the city this week.

The plans drummed up opposition in recent months from the MS 72 and Springfield Gardens Educational Campus communities, elected officials and the teachers union as Success fought to open elementary schools in the buildings. Read more

Infrastructure, housing and Black narratives in the arts are just a few subjects that civic associations throughout Southeast and Eastern Queens are focusing on in the new year.

Maintaining the character of Rosedale is the top priority for Marcia O’Brien, the third vice president of the Rosedale Civic Association. 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

The push to make Diwali a school holiday in New York City public schools continued in Albany on Tuesday as lawmakers and residents rallied in support of the proposed legislation.

“We have never seen such enthusiasm for this cause,” said Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar (D-Woodhaven), the sponsor of the bill, on the Million Dollar Staircase of the New York State Capitol Building. Read more

A new bill introduced in the City Council last week would require the NYPD to host regular gun buyback programs throughout the five boroughs and provide the rewards.

The legislation was introduced by Councilmembers Carlina Rivera (D-Manhattan) and Rafael Salamanca Jr. (D-Bronx) last Thursday in the Committee on Public Safety. Read more

State Assemblyman Khaleel Anderson (D-South Ozone Park) didn’t let a downpour prevent him from advocating for #6MinuteService for subways and buses last Thursday.

With a group of straphangers and members of the Riders Alliance, a public transit organization, Anderson caught the Q111 bus in Jamaica on Jan. 19 and spoke with riders about their difficulties traveling throughout the borough and the city. 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

A daylong effort to address the conditions under the Richmond Hill train tracks near Babbage Street commenced over the weekend, much to the surprise of Kevin O’Leary, a Kew Gardens resident and member of Community Board 9, who has long called for attention to the site and happened upon on the scene on his way to a diner.

On Saturday, MTA police and its Right of Way Task Force responded to a complaint of illegal dumping under the trestle of the former LIRR station, according to an MTA spokesperson. LIRR personnel were on-site with equipment including two dump trucks to remove the debris, soil, sand and concrete that had been illegally dumped under the trestle. Read more