NYC Honorary Street Names

"J" Honorary Streets: Queens

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J. Clifford Gadsden Place (Queens)
Present name:175th Street
Location:Between 145th Avenue and 146th Avenue
Honoree: J. Clifford Gadsden (b. 1926) was a community leader in Springfield Gardens. He was a founder and first chairperson of the Spring-Gar Community Civic Association, served on Community Board 13 for over 20 years, was the Democratic District Leader in the 31st Assembly District – Part B, and served on the District 29 Community School Board.
LL:2009/92
Jack Fitzgerald Parkway (Queens)
Present name:Shore Front Parkway
Location:Between Beach 108th Street and Beach 109th Street
Honoree: Rockaway native Jack Fitzgerald (1922-2001) served in World War II. Soon after his return, he bought Fitzgerald’s Hotel on Beach 108th Street and Shore Front Parkway in Rockaway. He was a member of the Chamber of Commerce and a President of the Rockaway Rotary Club.
LL:2003/14
Jack King Way (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:Southeast corner of Beach 130th Street and Cronston Avenue
Honoree: Jack King (d. 2009) coached his son’s CYO team at St. Francis de Sales, and helped the parish build a successful baseball program. As president of the 100th Precinct Community Council, he created a network of activism across the precinct and peninsula.
LL:2011/47
Jack M. Friedman Way (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:At the northeast corner of Union Turnpike and 254th Street
Honoree: Jack Friedman (1959-2015) was Executive Director of the Queens Chamber of Commerce for 7seven years. He was also a member of Community School Board 26 for ten years and its president for five of those years. Friedman also served on the New York State Joint Legislative Task Force; on Community Board 13; was president of the Coverdale Gardens Co-op; a director of the Rocky Hill Civic Association; board chairman of the Hebrew School at Bellerose Jewish Center; and president of the Middle School 74Q Parent Teacher Association. (Grodenchik)
LL:2017/237
Jack Maple Place (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:At the intersection of 108th Street and Park Lane South
Honoree:  Jack Maple 1952-2001) was the NYPD's Deputy Commissioner for Crime Control Strategies in the mid-1990s. He is best known for his creation of COMPSTAT, a method of employing statistical data to track, identify and pinpoint priorities for the deployment of law-enforcement resources. It brought innovation, accountability and new crime fighting techniques to the New York Police Department and has been adopted by police departments across America. He was one of the great innovators in law enforcement who helped to make New York City the safest large city in America. COMPSTAT won an award from the Ford Foundation and has been adopted in scores of other cities.(Ulrich)
LL:2015/15
Jack Thompson Drive (Queens)
Present name:116th Road
Location:Between Springfield Boulevard and Nashville Boulevard
Honoree: Jack Thompson was the President of the Cambria Heights Civic Association. He was an inspiration to many in his community and other civic leaders and activists in Cambria Heights.
LL:2008/48
Jack Zwerenz Way (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:At the northeast corner of 82nd Street and Myrtle Avenue
Honoree:  Jack Zwerenz, who died in 2019 at the age of 86, was a founding member of the Glendale Civilian Observation Patrol. For his successful efforts to stop the Montauk option of the MTA, which would have sent high-speed electrified trains at grade level through backyards and dangerous crossings, he received the Glendale Chamber of Commerce Man of the Year Award in 1985. He was also active in trying to get the USPS to establish a new zip code for Glendale. He was honored with a 25-year Service Award by the Glendale Property Owners Association. (Holden)
LL:2019/158
James Conway Sullivan Boulevard (Queens)
Present name:Rockaway Beach Boulevard
Location:Between 102nd Street and Beach 105th Street
Honoree: James Conway Sullivan (1952-2001), a restaurant owner, was a prominent figure in the Republican Party and in his community until his untimely death on December 2, 2001. He was the founder and president Emeritus of the Queens County St. Patrick’s Day Parade which has been renamed in his honor.
LL:2003/62
James Court (Queens)
Present name:163rd Drive
Location:Between 104th Street and Hawtree Basin
Honoree: This section of the bill would co-name what is now called 163rd Drive in Queens, James Court.
LL:2009/92
James Edward Heath Way (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:At the intersection of 114th Street and 34th Avenue
Honoree: James Edward Heath (1926-2020) was born into a musical family in Philadelphia. His father, an auto mechanic, played the clarinet, performing on the weekends. His mother sang in a church choir. His sister Elizabeth played piano; his older brother Percy, Jr. played violin and bass; and his younger brother Albert “Tootie” Heath played the drums. As a teenager, Heath took music lessons and played the alto saxophone in the high school marching band and also played in a jazz band. Small in stature (standing 5'3"), he was under the weight limit to serve in World War II. In 1946, he formed his own band, a fixture on the Philadelphia jazz scene until 1949. Heath's earliest big band (1947-1948) in Philadelphia included John Coltrane, Benny Golson, Ray Bryant, Specs Wright, Cal Massey, Johnny Coles, and Nelson Boyd. Charlie Parker and Max Roach sat in on occasion. In 1959, Heath briefly joined Miles Davis's group, replacing John Coltrane, and also worked with Kenny Dorham and Gil Evans. Heath recorded extensively as leader and sideman. In the 1960s, he frequently worked with Milt Jackson and Art Farmer. In the early 1960s, encouraged by friends Clark Terry and the Adderley brothers, Heath and his wife Mona tbought an apartment in the Dorie Miller Cooperative in Corona, where the Adderleys and Terry also lived. In 1987, he became a professor at the Aaron Copland School Of Music at Queens College. There, he premiered his first symphonic work, Three Ears, with Maurice Peress. His autobiography, I Walked With Giants, was published in 2010. . He recorded three big band records, Little Man Big Band produced by Bill Cosby, Turn Up The Heath and Togetherness Live at the Blue Note. Heath was nominated for three Grammy Awards and was the first jazz musician to receive an honorary doctorate in music from the Juilliard School. (Moya)
LL:2022/54
James English Way (Queens)
Present name:242nd Street
Location:Between 138th Avenue and North Conduit Avenue
Honoree: Jim English served as President, Vice President, Board Chairman, and Vice Chairman of the Rosedale Civic Association, and its Board of Governors. He was a set coordinator of the Rosedale Civilian Patrol, and was one of the first members to complete the NYC Police Academy Training Program for Civilian Patrols. He was also a founding member of the Eastern Queens Alliance and formed a connection between Rosedale and the organization, S.A.F.E. (Sane Aviation for Everyone). He helped Rosedale receive several grants which led to the purchasing of pollution monitoring equipment through SAFE. In 2009, the Board of Trustees of the Rosedale Civic Association named him Chairman Emeritus. (Richards)
LL:2015/76
James Hughes, Sr. Place (Queens)
Present name:175th Street
Location:Between 110th Avenue and 111th Avenue
Honoree: James M. Hughes, Sr. was a civic leader, a member of Amity Baptist Church, a successful entrepreneur, a Master Mason and the Chairman of the Brinkerhoff Action Association, an organization that promotes civic pride and informs homeowners and residents of their rights in relation to city projects.
LL:2008/48
James J. Frawley Way (Queens)
Present name:52nd Street
Location:Between Roosevelt Avenue and Skillman Avenue
Honoree: James Frawley (1949-1998) was a lifelong Woodside resident. During the Vietnam War, he served with the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division as a Combat Medic. For his outstandng service in combat James Frawley was awarded a Silver Star and two Bronze Stars, as well as two Air Medals and a Combat Medical Badge. (Van Bramer)
LL:2018/139
James J. Saunders Boulevard (Queens)
Present name:Miller Avenue
Location:Between Blade Avenue and Hegeman Avenue
Honoree: James J. Saunders, (1932-2002), who worked for the Transit Authority for 20 years, served as president of many block and community associations, was a member of Brooklyn Community Board 5, member of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Park Beautification Committee, and Deacon of Messiah Missionary Baptist Church.
LL:2003/34
James Marcel - Cartier Street (Queens)
Present name:87th Street
Location:Between 25th Avenue and 30th Avenue
Honoree: James Marcel Cartier (b. 1975), an electrician working at the World Trade Center was killed in the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001.
LL:2003/34
James Pappageorge Street (Queens)
Present name:98th Street
Location:Between 38th Avenue and Roosevelt Avenue
Honoree: Firefighter James Pappageorge (b. 1972) died on September 11, 2001 during fire and rescue operations following the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center
LL:2003/34
Janet Cole Plaza (Queens)
Present name:41st Avenue
Location:10th Street and 12th Street
Honoree: Janet Cole (1954-1995) was President and Co-Founder of the Queensbridge Tenants Association and a member of Astoria Concerned Neighbors. She also led the effort to have the Drug Elimination Outreach Program brought to Queensbridge Houses.(RGPR)
LL:1998/51
Janta-Połczyńska Polish Heroes Way (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:At the south side of 43rd Avenue and Judge Street
Honoree: Walentyna Janta-PoĹ‚czyĹ„ska (1913 -2020) and Aleksander Janta-PoĹ‚czyĹ„ski (1908 – 1974) were heroes in the fight against Nazism. Walentyna was one of the last surviving members of the Polish government in exile formed after Nazi Germany invaded Poland in 1939. She became a personal secretary to General Wladyslaw Sikorski, the prime minister of the Polish government in exile and commander of the Free Polish Armed Forces. She translated and prepared reports by Jan Karski, the underground courier who delivered eyewitness accounts of atrocities against Jews in the Warsaw ghetto, and helped organize Dawn, a clandestine radio station that broadcast to Poland from an intelligence complex in England. Aleksander Janta-PoĹ‚czyĹ„ski was second lieutenant of cavalry of the Polish Army. They later moved to New York and opened an antiquarian bookstore. They also opened their home to Polish artists and writers who escaped the postwar Communist dictatorship. Walentyna was known as the first lady of American Polonia, active in Polish-Ameican cultural institutions such as the Jozef Pilsudksi Institute of America and the Kosciuszko Foundation. Jan was president of the American Council of Polish Cultural Clubs and a board member of the Polish Institute of Arts and Sciences of America. (Dromm)
LL:2021/14
Jason M. Sekzer Memorial Place (Queens)
Present name:44th Street
Location:Between Queens Boulevard and 43rd Avenue
Honoree: Jason M. Sekzer (b. 1970) worked at Cantor Fitzgerald in the World Trade Center. He was killed in the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001
LL:2003/34
Jeanne, Jules, Morty Manford PFLAG Way (Queens)
Present name:171st Street
Location:Between 33rd Avenue and 35th Avenue
Honoree: PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) promotes the health and well-being of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons. Founded in 1973, it has become the world’s leading organization for allies of the LGBT community. Founder Jeanne Manford (1920-2013) was posthumously awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal in 2013. (Dromm)
LL:2013/131
Jefferson Diggs Way (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:Intersection of 88th Avenue and 178th Street
Honoree: Jefferson Diggs participated in the first wave of sit-ins at Woolworth and Kress lunch counters. He was one of the first African-American reporters hired by The New York Daily News.
LL:2013/50
Jennifer Mazzota Way (Queens)
Present name:72nd Place
Location:Between 53rd Road and Grand Avenue
Honoree: Jennifer Mazzota worked at Cantor Fitzgerald in the World Trade Center. She was killed in the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001.
LL:2003/62
Jennifer Y. Wong Way (Queens)
Present name:25th Avenue
Location:Between Utopia Parkway and 169th Street
Honoree: Jennifer Y. Wong was active in Christian youth groups and later became a Sunday school teacher. She was a risk management technologist with Marsh & McLennan on the 96th floor of Tower One in the World Trade Center. She was killed in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
LL:2011/03
Jerry Ingenito Way (Queens)
Present name:38th Street
Location:Between Greenpoint Avenue and 48th Avenue
Honoree: Jerry Ingenito, a Sunnyside native, was an outstanding basketball coach. Over his 30 year career, he coached at Saint Raphael’s CYO, Christ the King, and Queens College and influenced hundreds of players
LL:2013/50
Jill Maurer-Campbell Street (Queens)
Present name:Gray Street
Location:Between Juniper Valley Road and 66th Drive
Honoree: Jill Maurer-Campbell (b. 1970) worked for Baseline Financial Services at the World Trade Center. She was killed in the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001.
LL:2003/ 06
Jimmy Lanza Way (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:At the intersection of 31st Avenue and 54th Street
Honoree: James Lanza (1945-2017) served in the United States Navy during the Vietnam War and later became a member of FDNY’s Engine 53, Ladder 43, known as ‘El Barrio’s Bravest.’ On September 11th, he and other firefighters pulled 16 people out of the rubble alive. During his 30 years with FDNY, he assisted in the search-and-recovery mission in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina; served on the board of the FDNY Fire Family Transport Foundation; and volunteered at the Red Cross. He died as a result of 9/11-related cancer. (Constantinides)
LL:2017/110
Jimmy Young Pl (Queens)
Present name:87th St
Location:Bounded by Jamaica Ave and 88th St
Honoree: James Francis Young was a lifelong resident of Woodhaven. Born in 1983, he came from a family of firefighters and joined the NYFD himself 1990. He was an active imember of the Knights of Columbus and the Lions Club, and a participant a number of sports leagues. On March 28, 1994, he died in the line of duty while searching for occupants during a fire in a Manhattan building.
LL:1995/36
JMC Way (Queens)
Present name:168th Street
Location:Between Highland Avenue and Gothic Drive
Honoree: The Jamaica Muslim Center (JMC) is a community institution founded in the 1980s. It is the largest mosque in the area, serving a largely South Asian population of worshipers. Not only does JMC host required Muslim prayers five times a day, but also organizes community events around Muslim holy days like Eid. It is dedicated to being a good neighbor by promoting Islamic awareness and assisting the larger Jamaica neighborhood. It houses the Desi Senior Center while also running programs of all sorts for youth and other segments of the community. The Al-Mamoor Islamic School was established by JMC at their site and operated there for more than 10 years before expanding to a new building a few years ago. JMC also runs the Iqra Library in its extension building. (Lancman)
LL:2019/24
Joe Austin Way (Queens)
Present name:84th Avenue
Location:164th Avenue and 168th Street
Honoree: Joseph Austin (1904-1998), an automotive and, later, a brewery worker, had been a semi-pro baseball player. He coached and mentored many hundreds of boys in a lifetime devoted to the youth of his community.
LL:2000/53
Joe Femenia Way (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:At the intersection of 130th Street and 23rd Avenue
Honoree:  Joe Femenia (d. 2019) revived the College Point Civic and Taxpayers Association and served as its president from 2008. He was also a member of Community Board 7 and the Board’s Transportation Committee Chairperson from 2006 until 2016. He successfully campaigned for building a public middle school in College Point. Before the opening of that school, students had to be bused to Whitestone and Flushing. He also successfully advocated for funding to reconstruct the College Point Fields, and for the NYPD to remove illegally parked trucks in the neighborhood. (Vallone)
LL:2019/158
Joe Imp’s Place (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:Northeast corner of 47th Avenue and Vernon Boulevard
Honoree: Joseph Imperato (1944-2005) owned and operated Joe Imp’s Restaurant in Long Island City for many years and was a fixture in the neighborhood. . He was a community leader dedicated to assisting the elderly, keeping his neighborhood clean and serving St. Mary’s Church.
LL:2007/28
Joe Sabba Park (Queens)
Present name:Veterans Memorial Park
Location:Queens Boulevard between 48th and 50th Streets
Honoree: Joseph (“Joe”) Sabba (1916-1999) was a tail gunner in World War II. In 1946, he became a partner in the Woodside Herald, beginning a long career of community involvement. He was the originator of the Sunnyside Flag Day Parade and served as President of the Sunnyside Chamber of Commerce.
LL:2000/35
John DaSilva Memorial Park (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:Hockey rink in Dutch Kills Playground, bounded by 36th and 37t Avenues, 28th Street and Crescent Street.
Honoree: John DaSilva (1959-1981) joined the the YMCA roller hockey program at age 10. He spent much of his time in the YMCA home fild in what is now Dutch Kills Playground. In his teen years he was the top scorer in the Metropolitan Junior Hockey League. In his four years at St. John's University, he was the most prolific hockey scorer in the history of the school. He died in an auto accident on March 6, 1981.
LL:1997/75
John Downing Park (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:Existing park at 50th Street and 43rd Avenue
Honoree: John Downing, 40, was an 11-year veteran of the NYFD, assigned to Ladder Company 163. He was one of three firefighters who died in a Father’s Day fire in Astoria, Queens on June 17, 2001. Fifty others were injured.
LL:2001/ 71
John Watusi Branch Way (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:At the northwest corner of 176th Street and Jamaica Avenue
Honoree:  John Watusi Branch, who died December 28, 2013 at the age of 70, was the co-founder of the Afrikan Poetry Theatre in Jamaica, Queens,, a collective of poets, singers and musicians focused on jazz, funk, African rhythms and poetry. It was incorporated as a nonprofit in 1977 and expanded to offer cultural and educational tours to West Africa and a summer youth employment program. Mr. Branch was a well-known figure in the pan-African movement as well as a published poet and author of several titles, including ?A Story of Kwanza: Black/Afrikan Holy Days.? (Miller)
LL:L.L. 2016/23
Joseph Albergo Way (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:Intersection of Brookville Boulevard and Hook Creek Boulevard
Honoree: Joseph Albergo was one of the most active residents of Rosedale for half a century. He serve as Treasurer of Community Board 13 and President of Community School Board 29; and was a member of the Rosedale Ambulance Corps, the Rosedale Civic Association, the Rosedale Lions Club and the Rosedale Nutrition Club.
LL:2009/25
Joseph M. Rota Place (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:Intersection of 3rd Avenue and 147th Place
Honoree: Joseph M. Rota was a civic leader who spent many years of his life committed to the betterment of his community as President and Chairman of the Board of the Greater Whitestone Taxpayers and Civic Association and as a member of Queens Community Board 7.
LL:2007/28
Joseph Magnus Way (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:At the intersection of 75th Street and 58th Avenue
Honoree: Czech-born Joseph Magnus was the co-founder of the Middle Village Volunteer Ambulance Corps. As a 13-year-old in 1944, he and his mother were captured by Germans, escaped, fled into the woods, dodged bullets while scrounging for potatoes at abandoned farms. Magnus was wounded by an exploding shell. A few months later, he was shot through his arm, the bullet barely missing the bone. Unfortunately, calling a doctor was out of the question as all the doctors had been called to serve the Allied troops on the front lines. Emergencies had to be taken care of by people with little to no training in medicine. In 1952, he immigrated to America. In 1973, he was working on computer mainframes for a government agency full time, but spent his free time learning first aid and soliciting donations so the original group of twelve Middle Village Volunteer Ambulance Corps (MVVAC) members could buy an ambulance. Within a short time, they had a $500 vehicle and were ready to assist those in need. Today, MVVAC has dozens of volunteers and its service area is home to more than 70,000 people. The corps’ services are free of charge and they do not take insurance. Shortly after the first strike on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, he and members of MVVAC dropped what they were doing and rushed downtown to help save people. For the heroism displayed by MVVAC on that day, they received $5,000 from Emigrant Savings Bank. (Holden)
LL:2022/54
Joseph Ricevuto Way (Queens)
Present name:86th Street
Location:Between 35th Avenue and 37th Avenue
Honoree: Joseph Ricevuto (1933-2021) was a civic and charitable leader in Jackson Heights. He was born and raised in the Bronx and served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. In 1960 he moved to Jackson Heights and later established a barber shop, William Hair Stylist, on the corner of 37th Avenue and 86th Street. He worked there until retiring in 2002, and cut hair on a part time basis thereafter. He was the long-time president and organizer of the Men and Women's Club of Jackson Heights, a group that helped address the isolation of older adults by bringing them together regularly for a warm meals and conversation. Ricevuto was also the president of the Jackson Heights Beautification Groups Garden Club. As president, he planted flowers along Jackson Heights' 37th Avenue year after year, thereby beautifying the neighborhood's commercial corridor. Ricevuto regularly participated in the March of Dimes, raising funds to support women and infant health. He loved to entertain children, which led him to march the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade dressed as a clown for many years. A devout Roman Catholic, he was a lay leader in his Church and a proud member of the Knights of Columbus, the Catholic War Veterans and the Holy Name Society. He also served as an usher at St. Joan of Arc Church, his local parish in Jackson Heights. (Dromm)
LL:2022/54
Josephine Caminiti Playground (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:An existing playground bounded by 102nd Street, Corona Avenue and Alstyne Avenue
Honoree: Josephine Caminiti (1931-1994) was a member of the Northside Democratic Club for 40 years, a Democratic District Leader, a member of Community Board. 4 for 17 years, and served on numerous boards and committees. She worked as a School Aide for the Board of Education for 26 years.
LL:2001/ 60
Judge Ralph Sherman Way (Queens)
Present name:77th Avenue
Location:Between Springfield Boulevard and Cloverdale Boulevard
Honoree: Ralph Sherman (d.2007) was a Civil Court Judge in Queens County and a NYS Supreme Court Justice. In addition, he was the Democratic District Leader for the 24th Assembly District, and a leader of several civic and veterans organizations.
LL:2009/46
Jules Taylor Way (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:At the intersection of 232nd Street and Edgewood Avenue
Honoree: Jules Taylor, Jr. (1962-2020) was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti and later moved to the United States. He began his career in Human Resources and worked in various positions over his more than 30-year career. His last position was at East Side House Settlement in the Bronx as their Human Resources Manager. After settling in Rosedale, Queens, NY, he became active with the JFK Rotary Club, and served as president from 2008 until 2010. As president, he assisted in helping the biggest fundraiser for the JFK Rotary Club, the “5K Runway Run” go from 150 runners to 1,500 runners and from $10,000 to $40,000 in 5 years. In addition, he served as president of the Brookville Park Tennis Club where he was instrumental in securing a brand new tennis court for the club. He was also served on the Board of the Rosedale Civic Association, Inc. for many years, where he held the positions of second vice-president and co-chair of the fundraising committee. He died of COVID-19. (Richards)
LL:2021/14
Julie Wager Way (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:Northwest corner of Steinway Street and Broadway
Honoree: Julie Wager (1929-2010) was founder and president for over 30 years of the Central Astoria Local Development Coalition, president of the Steinway Astoria partnership and president of the Steinway Street Merchants Association
LL:2011/03
Julio Rivera Corner (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:Southwest corner of 78th Street and 37th Avenue
Honoree: Julio Rivera born in 1961 in the Bronx, moved to Manhattan in 1980 and launched a modeling career. On July 2, 1990, he was the victim of a brutal attack in the schoolyard of P.S. 69 in Jackson Heights. In 1991, three individuals were arrested and convicted of his murder. RGPR)
LL:2000/20
Julius Freeman Way (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:At the intersection of 191st Street and Nashville Boulevard
Honoree: Julius Freeman (1927-2016) served in WWII as a medic with the 332nd Tuskegee Airmen. In 2007, he was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by President George W. Bush. After the war, he was a successful car salesman and became the first African-American spokesperson to appear on TV commercials in Ohio. After he retired in 2008, he visited schools to educate youth about the Tuskegee Airmen. (Richards)
LL:2017/110
Justin Wallace Way (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:At the intersection of Beach 69th Street and Thursby Avenue
Honoree: Justin Wallace(2010-2021) was 10 years old when he was shot and killed as he and his uncle were entering their home on June 5, 2021. Police say it was over a parking dispute. He died just days before his 11th birthday and his scheduled graduation from elementary school. (Brooks-Powers)
LL:2022/54


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