New Community Board Members Announced

Queens Borough President Donovan Richards has announced the 2023 class of community board appointees, who will serve on their respective boards for the next two years.

According to a press release, of the Borough President’s 366 appointees across Queens’ 14 community boards, 116 are new members who are not currently serving on a board — the highest-ever number of new appointees tapped to serve under the Richards Administration. The 366 appointees were chosen out of this year’s pool of 938 applicants, just three short of the borough’s record of 941 applications in a single year, set in 2021.

“The historic 2023 class of community board appointees represent the best of Queens. I’m immensely confident in this diverse, dedicated and determined group of public servants and I look forward to the great work they will do on behalf of their neighborhoods over the course of their term,” said Borough President Richards. “Thank you to all 366 of our appointees, and especially to our 116 new members, for heeding the call to help create a stronger Queens for all 2.4 million people who call it home.”

Since taking office in December 2020, Borough President Richards has made significant progress in correcting the chronic, long-standing underrepresentation of numerous communities and demographics on Queens’ 14 boards. Of the 116 new members, 50 percent are under the age of 45, and nearly 25 percent are between the ages of 16 and 35, reflecting the growing interest in board membership among Queens’ younger generations, as well as Borough President Richards’ steadfast efforts to promote the importance of community service amongst the borough’s teenagers and young adults. Prior to the Richards Administration, nearly three-quarters of all board members were over the age of 45.

The Borough President’s push to ensure each board looks, sounds and feels like the diverse communities they represent received yet another boost with this year’s class, as well. Of the 116 new members, 20.7 percent iden- tify as Hispanic/Latinx — an increase of nearly four percent from last year’s group of new members. Meanwhile, African Americans make up 21.6 percent of new appointees in 2023, with 13.8 percent and 7.8 percent identifying as East Asian/Pacific Islander and South Asian, respectively. Over twothirds (67.22 percent) or new appointees do not identify as “White.” Prior to the Richards Administration, just 43 percent of board members identified as female. This year, 44.8% are female.

There are 59 community boards citywide, and each hold monthly full membership meetings. The boards also hold hearings and issue recommendations about the City budget, municipal service delivery and numerous other matters that impact their communities. All Queens community board members are appointed by the Queens Borough President, pursuant to the City Charter, with at least half of the appointments nominated by the City Council Members representing their respective community districts. Each board has up to 50 unsalaried members, with each member serving a two-year term. All community board members who wish to continue serving on a board are required to reapply at the conclusion of their two-year term.

Borough President Richards’ appointments for the 2023-2025 term for Rockaway’s Community Board 14, representing Rockaway Point, Breezy Point, Roxbury, Neponsit, Belle Harbor, Rockaway Park, Seaside, Broad Channel, Hammels, Sommerville, Edgemere, Arverne, Bayswater, Wavecrest, Far Rockaway and Rockaway Beach, are: Danielle Barker, Ebony Beaty, Lailah Boyd, Natasha Carter, Kimberly Comes, John Cori, Gerald David, Rose Marie Duggan Gulston, Iona Folkes, Jeanette Garramone, Chamaine Gibbs, Eugenia Gibson, Yitzchok Goldstone, Shanell Harper, Samuel Jaroslawicz, Alison Kase, Paul King, Richard Knott, Damra Lee, Denise Lopresti, Lintia Lyons, Jonathan Mack, Nancy Martinez, John McCambridge, Nyjeri Norman, Isaac Parsee, David Rood-Ojalvo, Colin Smith and Karen Sloan Payne.