FHG Stand Up- Our Positions

We believe concerts are, on the whole, a positive and defining part of life in Forest Hills Gardens. The music, culture, and energy they bring are part of what makes our neighborhood special. That said, the benefits should be matched by fair compensation and appropriate management.

Yes. We believe the Forest Hills Gardens Corporation (FHGC) should receive appropriate compensation for every show held at FH Stadium. 

We support a reasonable cap on the number of shows each year. This ensures that residents can continue to enjoy events without compromising quality of life, parking access, noise levels, or public safety.

We advocate for clear safeguards and communication protocols that address noise, crowd control, cleanup, and traffic coordination. The goal is to make concerts enjoyable while minimizing disruption to residents.

We believe it’s time to end the costly and unnecessary legal battles. Specifically:

• FHGC should settle the lawsuit with the West Side Tennis Club and Tiebreaker Productions, reaching a sustainable long-term agreement.
  
  

• FHGC should withdraw its lawsuit against the City of New York, which we see as counterproductive and divisive.

We fully support NYPD’s continued presence and patrols during concert nights and at all times. Public safety is paramount, and the NYPD must be free to safeguard our streets without interference or restriction.

The Board has taken a series of actions that we believe are deeply harmful to our community.  These steps include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Refused initial mediation offers from both the Queens Borough President and the courts (2023–2024)

• Ignored good-faith settlement proposals from the West Side Tennis Club (Fall 2024)

• Denied knowledge of critical information in meetings with city leaders, despite receiving it months earlier (April 2025)

• Engaged in costly legal action, spending more than $1,000,000 of resident funds without proper disclosure or consent while draining our Capital Reserves 

• Alienated local small businesses and threatened the character of our neighborhood by escalating conflict rather than working toward resolution

• Secretly preparing and filed a complaint against NYCand purposefully withheld this information from the community during the most recent annual budget meeting

These actions are not just missteps—they are symptoms of a governance structure that lacks accountability and transparency.  We believe these concerns touch on issues that transcend the litigation concerning the concert and likely impact all aspects of the Gardens.

We believe that the need for new FHGC leadership extends beyond the Board’s poor decision-making around concerts and litigation. We see room for improvement in many areas, including:

• General responsiveness to resident concerns: Many residents have sent emails or letters about a variety of quality-of-life issues to the FHGC Board, only to be completely ignored. We find this practice to be unacceptable and are committed to restoring a spirit of service and professionalism toward our constituents.

• Traffic management: There are a number of “traffic hot spots” in the neighborhood that would benefit from a traffic management plan. This includes but is not necessarily limited to the area around P.S. 101 on weekdays, including Slocum Crescent, Greenway South, and Greenway Terrace.

• Pedestrian safety: There are many areas that could be made safer for pedestrians, including Station Square and several crosswalks throughout the neighborhood. There are also locations that would benefit from speed bumps. Finally, the directional signs of the Flagpole Circle Roundabout should be made counterclockwise to align with western right-sided driving. 

• Park access: Our community’s green spaces (Hawthorne Park, Flagpole Green, and Olivia Park) are often closed throughout the year for “maintenance.” While we understand the need for lawn upkeep activities, we believe that these parks are meant to be enjoyed by our residents and we will explore ways to ensure that parks are kept open throughout the year.

• Security and surveillance: Forest Hills Gardens should have a camera system installed throughout the neighborhood to support the safety of residents and the security of their homes. Additionally, FHGC’s agreement with the private security contractor Excel should be reassessed and potentially replaced with a more effective partnership.