Editor’s Note: This week we profiled three of the six Democratic candidates for the 19th District. Next week we will take a look at the campaigns of Steve Behar, Jerry Iannece, and Debra Markell.

COOKE-ING THE BOOKS

Candidate want to bring transparency back to city gov't

Tom Cooke says his motives are true and he doesn't have anything to hide, and he doesn't think people in elected office should have anything to hide either. The candidate for the 19th District in northeast Queens talks passionately about reforming government and eliminating the recent scandals that have plagued city politics.

“It can creep in even with council members who have the best intentions, God forbid you have somebody who actually wants to line their pockets,” Cooke said in a face-to-face interview with this paper.

He wants to start by making sure that allocated funds can be readily reviewed and accounted for by constituents, including putting that information on the Internet. He also believes that funding for member items should be equal across the board, which would eliminate more money for certain council members based on political favors on behalf of the mayor or the speaker.

“You need to have the same transparency with special member items,” argued Cooke.

Like the other candidates in the race, Cooke said that overdevelopment is a top issue in the district, and that it's become “a case of homeowners versus developers.” He said the problem isn't just a zoning issue, however, but rather one of enforcement.

“We are lacking enforcement, so zoning changes aren't really helping,” he said.

On specific zoning issues, Cooke cited the proposal for the Auburndale rezoning, which he says fails to address the issue of a current manufacturing district – which is home to several car dealerships – that abuts a residential neighborhood near Station Road.

Cooke supports a plan that would change the manufacturing zone to residential, which is supported by several local civics. While the plan wouldn't address current issues with the dealerships, it could potentially have an impact in the future.

“The current businesses would be grandfathered in, and as they moved out the area would convert to residential,” he said.

Some of the more innovative ideas that Cooke outlined during his interview included a plan to increase the sales tax on video games by 1 ½ percent. That money would in turn be used to fund sports and after-school programs that would address childhood obesity.

He also wants teachers to put daily homework assignments online, so that busy parents can easily check and make sure that their kid are keeping up with their schoolwork.

“We have this technology, why not put it to use?” Cooke asked.

Cooke is a veteran of the U.S. Army. During a tour of duty overseas, he was injured and paralyzed. He said during his recovery he gave a lot of thought about how his life – and with it his future – had changed. He made a choice that he was going to return to civilian life and serve his community.

“I've given myself fully to public service, those are the things that get me up in the morning,” he said. “I don't know if my opponents think about things that deeply.”

REP'S AIDE READY TO SERVE

Kim says diverse background a positive

Kevin Kim spent much of his professional life in the world of corporate law.

“I was helping the corporate world make millions of more dollars, but there is no satisfaction in that,” said Kim during an interview last week. “I wanted to deal with things that have an immediate impact on people's lives and their quality of life issues.”

So he approached Congressman Gary Ackerman, and for the last three years Kim has been addressing the concerns of constituents through the congressman's office and now he has political aspirations of his own, and is one of six Democratic candidates looking to replace Tony Avella in the 19th District in northeast Queens.

Kim said that while he may not have spent years and years in the public realm, he didn't think that would necessarily be a negative should he be elected to the City Council.

“Government needs people with a diverse background, and not somebody who has been in government all of their life,” said Kim, who grew up in Bay Terrace but studied and lived in California, as well as China, before moving back to Queens to raise a family of his own.

Kim said there are two reasons people move to the 19th District and continue to want to live there, and that is the residential charm of the district and the outstanding schools. He said maintaining and improving in those two areas would be primary concerns if elected.

As for education, Kim recently told a columnist for this paper, Anthony Stasi, that he would be in favor of expanding the number of charter schools in the district. In a later interview with this paper's editorial board, Kim said that expanding after-school programs was also important.

“As is early childhood education,” he added.

When asked how he would accomplish those goals, Kim said he had the skills to work with the 50 other members of the City Council to get them to see the issues that are important to his district.

“That's what you do as a council member, you work with other individuals,” he said.

As for the residential charm of the district, Kim admitted that the destruction of one-family homes in favor of multi-family construction was destroying the fabric of the neighborhood. He blamed unscrupulous developers and the Department of Building's inability to keep up with illegal construction.

He proposed putting cameras inside construction sties that would stream live video over the Internet, giving neighbors the ability to monitor new construction for infractions ranging from violating zoning requirements to working at nights and on weekends.

“I don't see why we don't use more technology,” said Kim.

VALLONE PLANS TO HIT THE GROUND RUNNING

Safer streets, more parks top candidate's agenda

Paul Vallone knows that some view his instantly recognizable last name – and its strong ties to Astoria politics – as a detriment in his bid to replace Councilman Tony Avella in the 19th Council District in Northeast Queens.

However, Vallone says he can't change who he is, and in fact is proud to be from such a well-known family.

“People always ask me, 'why are you always bringing up your family?'” said Vallone during an interview at his campaign office. “It's because I'm damned proud of my family. I'm blessed to have Peter Vallone as a father.”

Vallone, a Democrat, has also been criticized for accepting the endorsement of Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a Republican, but Vallone said that just proves that he has the connections and respect to get things done as soon as he takes office.

“I'm going to go in there strong,” said Vallone. “This community really, really needs strong leadership.”

When asked what his focus would be on day one if elected, Vallone was quick to answer.

“For me, it's always public safety,” said Vallone.

He said that the precincts that cover the district, primarily the 109th Precinct in Flushing, is geographically too big, and that officers have their hands full with Downtown Flushing, devoting much of the precinct's resources to that busy area at the expense of the precinct as a whole.

Vallone sees an opportunity with the construction of the new police academy at the College Point Corporate Park, but that a quicker and more feasible solution is to create satellite offices throughout the district that can respond quickly to emergencies.

Vallone said the 19th District is also facing a challenge with overdevelopment, and said that the rezoning of Auburndale and the surrounding neighborhoods would be a top priority. He also said that rising property taxes are destroying the dream of a more relaxed suburban-like life that attracts so many families to northeast Queens.

“People are getting taxed out of their neighborhood,” said Vallone, pointing to the front door of his campaign office on Francis Lewis Boulevard. “Every day people walk in off the street and say 'I can't take it anymore.'”

Vallone said he also wants to take the lead on developing parks in the district, primarily Fort Totten Park and the old Flushing Airport site, where the city is promoting a proposal to convert the old airport for light recreation uses.

Vallone say rather than wait for the city to come up with a plan and then try to adapt it to the community's needs and desires, he wants the community to be involved at the drawing board. He proposes creating non-profit conservancies, much like the Central Park Conservancy, to steer development.

“Parks are in critical need of guidance and leadership,” he said. “We need to get our own local people involved, and we need to start right from the outset.”