Queens Community Board 14 backs DOT safety upgrades near Waterside School in Rockaway Beach
Queens Community Board 14 voted unanimously to support proposed New York City Department of Transportation safety improvements near Waterside School in Rockaway Beach, recommending changes intended to make crossings safer for students, families and other pedestrians.
The board voted 34-0, with no opposing votes and no abstentions, on May 12, 2026. Its action supports issuing a letter encouraging DOT to move forward with the project. The recommendation is not final DOT approval, and the official minutes do not say that construction has started or been funded.
What the proposal would change
The project focuses on Waterside School at Rockaway Beach Boulevard and Beach 110th Street. The proposal calls for extending curb cuts, shortening crossing distances, eliminating unsafe slip lanes and improving sightlines for people walking near the school.
The board’s minutes also identify missing crosswalks, insufficient signage and worn medians as safety concerns in the area. Those conditions can force students and other pedestrians into the roadway or make it harder for drivers and people on foot to see one another clearly.
The board considered two school-safety projects at the May 12 meeting, including the Waterside School proposal. The minutes separately describe a recent student injury near Beach 109th Street. They do not identify the student involved or establish that a specific driver or agency failure caused the injury.
Recommendation, not a construction commitment
For people who walk to school, commute through the area or use Rockaway Beach Boulevard, the proposed changes could improve crossings and visibility if DOT adopts and completes them. But the record does not establish the project’s final scope, budget or construction schedule.
That means the board’s vote is the latest confirmed step, rather than a notice that work is about to begin. The next known action is the issuance of the board’s letter urging DOT to move forward. No later deadline or construction start date was stated in the official record.
A New York City Department of City Planning page identifies Rockaway Park and Rockaway Beach as a distinct planning area with local flood-resilience and land-use concerns, providing broader geographic context for city planning work in the community. The planning page does not provide additional details about the Waterside School safety project.
Sources
- Queens Community Board 14 Minutes, May 12, 2026, New York City
- Resilient Neighborhoods: Rockaway Park and Rockaway Beach, New York City Department of City Planning
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