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Queens councilman opposes renaming Queensboro for Koch
Photo credit: Getty Images
The anti-Koch movement is gaining steam.
Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer is the latest to join the growing chorus of those opposed to the renaming of the Queensboro Bridge after former Mayor Ed Koch.
While Koch’s service to the city is honorable, said Van Bramer (D-Sunnyside), “my love for the borough that I was born in and have lived my entire life is far greater.” The Queensboro, already known as the 59th Street Bridge, is located in Van Bramer’s Queens district.
Spokesmen for Queens Councilmen Dan Hollaran (R-Whitestone) and Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) also confirmed Monday the officials’ opposition to the proposal. The trio join Peter Vallone, Jr. (D-Astoria), who is leading the charge against the renaming. Vallone promised vocal opposition to the proposal when the full city council takes up the measure as early as Wednesday, after its expected passage Tuesday in a council committee vote.
Vallone said he hopes to sway others to his side.
Koch is “a personal friend of mine and of my father’s, which is why I proposed naming a municipal building after him,” Vallone said. “But the (Queensboro) bridge is an icon that shouldn't have a name on it.”
Koch, who could not be reached for comment Monday, has said that he’ll accept what the council decides.
The proposal for an Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge was first suggested last December by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and also has the support of Council Speaker Christine Quinn.
“The mayor proposed the renaming and thinks it’s a fitting tribute,” Bloomberg spokesman Jason Post said Monday.
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