Yes to affordability, AND to economic power.

A Western Queens Workforce Hub & Spoke System

A stronger local economy begins with a simple promise: every person deserves access to opportunity. Western Queens is full of people who are ready to learn, work, and lead. Yet too often, families are blocked by systems that are confusing, scattered, or physically out of reach. It should not require multiple subway transfers or a day off work to find a class, meet with a counselor, or apply for a job. That is why I am committed to creating the Western Queens Workforce Hub & Spoke System, a community-powered model that brings opportunity to every corner of our district.

The central Workforce Hub will be a place where residents feel welcomed, respected, and supported in building their futures. It will offer career coaching, job placement, ESL classes, digital literacy training, financial counseling, apprenticeship opportunities, small business advising, youth internships, worker legal services, and multilingual navigation under one roof. Families will not have to choose between childcare or education, or between lost wages and personal advancement. Childcare and transit assistance will be built into the experience so that residents can participate fully and confidently.

The “Spokes” extend this vision into the heart of our neighborhoods. Programs will be offered in NYCHA community centers, schools, libraries, childcare centers, and community health hubs. By placing resources in the spaces people already trust, participation becomes easier. Workers can access resume workshops on their lunch break. Seniors can receive benefits navigation resources close to home. Young people can find internships directly through their schools. Parents can attend evening classes in their own building or just blocks away.

This model builds pride and possibility within our communities. It recognizes that people learn best when they feel supported, when services are consistent, and when they do not have to overcome unnecessary barriers just to take a single step forward. It strengthens social ties, fuels neighborhood stability, and creates a foundation for generational advancement.

The Workforce Hub & Spoke System will be the first of its kind in the city. It positions Western Queens as a leader in how a community can design economic pathways that are rooted in dignity and shared success. When opportunity is clear, local, and within reach, people thrive. And when people thrive, the entire district grows stronger together.

“Teach, Heal, and Care in Queens” Essential Careers Pathways

Our public institutions are the backbone of community life. Yet across Western Queens, schools struggle to hire and retain teachers, hospitals face nursing shortages, childcare centers cannot meet demand, and youth programs operate without enough trained staff. At the same time, many residents yearn for stable, meaningful careers that allow them to contribute to their communities while supporting their families. “Teach, Heal, and Care in Queens” brings these two realities together and builds a powerful solution.

This initiative creates clear, affordable pathways for residents to enter essential careers in education, healthcare, childcare, mental health, home care, and youth development. Training will be offered locally through the Workforce Hub & Spoke network, making it possible for parents, immigrants, and working adults to learn without leaving the neighborhood. Instead of navigating confusing systems or long commutes, residents can build new futures right where they live.

A central feature of this plan is recognizing the talent already here. Western Queens is home to countless immigrants who were teachers, nurses, social workers, and health professionals in their home countries. Many are forced to start from scratch because their credentials are not recognized. By creating faster licensure pathways and culturally responsive bridge programs, we can honor their expertise and put their skills to work in our schools and hospitals.

Paid apprenticeships with CUNY, DOE, local hospitals, childcare centers, and nonprofits will open doors into careers while ensuring residents earn income as they train. Stackable credentials will allow workers to steadily move from entry-level positions into higher-paying, stable roles. Pathways to debt-free CUNY and SUNY degrees tied to local service commitments will make higher education accessible for residents who want to go further.

This plan also focuses on long-term sustainability. Mentorship, mental health support, and burnout prevention will help retain professionals in these emotionally demanding fields. By investing in the people who teach our children, care for our elders, support our youth, and heal our neighbors, we strengthen the entire district.

“Teach, Heal, and Care in Queens” is more than a workforce initiative. It is a commitment to rebuilding our public institutions from within our own community. It invites residents to step into careers of purpose and service, and it ensures families across Western Queens have the educators, caregivers, and healthcare workers they deserve.

Protecting Workers and Ending Wage Theft

Every worker deserves to be paid fairly and treated with respect. Yet across Western Queens, wage theft is a daily reality for far too many people. It shows up as unpaid overtime, stolen tips, illegal deductions, misclassification, or employers simply refusing to pay. It is one of the biggest drivers of economic harm in our community, especially for immigrants, delivery workers, care workers, freelancers, and residents of public housing. It is time to put power back into the hands of workers.

My plan creates a strong, accessible system of worker protection that serves the people most impacted by exploitation. Monthly wage theft clinics, held at the central Workforce Hub and rotating neighborhood Spokes, will provide residents with legal guidance in multiple languages, support in filing claims, help gathering documents, and a safe space to seek justice. For many workers, this will be the first time they are able to confront wage theft without fear.

A public accountability dashboard will shine light on repeat offenders and deter employers from violating the law. This transparency also protects honest small businesses that want to compete fairly. Stronger penalties for large corporate violators will make exploitation more expensive than compliance.

The plan also makes sure undocumented and mixed-status families can safely pursue cases without fear of retaliation. Worker rights do not end at immigration status, and our systems must reflect that truth. By embedding legal services into trusted community settings, we make it possible for workers to speak out confidently.

Partnerships with unions, worker centers, legal advocates, and immigrant organizations will help ensure residents receive high-quality support. Workshops on worker rights, contract literacy, and gig worker protections will equip people with the knowledge to defend themselves long before problems arise.

When workers recover the wages they are owed, they reinvest those dollars into their children, their homes, and their neighborhoods. When exploitation is challenged, job quality improves for everyone. And when people feel protected and valued, they participate more fully in our local economy.

Ending wage theft is about more than pay. It is about dignity, fairness, and the belief that every person deserves to work in conditions that honor their humanity. This plan makes that vision real for Western Queens.

Empowering Small Businesses, Freelancers, and Entrepreneurs

Small businesses are the soul of Western Queens. They feed us, employ us, brighten our blocks, and make our neighborhoods feel like home. Freelancers, creatives, and entrepreneurs add even more vibrancy to our local economy, yet many operate without the support they need to thrive. Rising costs, complex regulations, limited access to capital, and lack of affordable services make it difficult for local businesses to succeed. Empowering them strengthens the entire district.

This plan builds a comprehensive system of support within the Workforce Hub & Spoke network to help small businesses and freelancers grow with confidence. Entrepreneurs will have access to free advising, help with licensing and permits, marketing and digital skills training, bookkeeping and tax support, and legal guidance. By offering these services locally and at no cost, we remove the financial and logistical burdens that often prevent businesses from scaling.

Freelancers, who make up a rapidly expanding share of our workforce, will benefit from shared services that help them review contracts, manage finances, navigate benefits, and promote their work. Too often, freelancers operate without a safety net. This initiative gives them the foundation they need.

Cooperative business development will be a major priority. Worker-owned co-ops keep wealth in the community, create stable jobs, and empower workers. We will support new co-ops in childcare, home care, cleaning, food, and retail. These models reflect the values of fairness, collaboration, and local ownership that help neighborhoods thrive.

Local hiring partnerships will connect businesses with talent inside the community, reducing turnover and strengthening neighborhood ties. Collaborations with QEDC, NYC SBS, and NYS ESD will make sure businesses receive the grants, loans, and technical support they are often eligible for but rarely able to access.

Supporting immigrant entrepreneurs is an essential part of this vision. Many residents run home-based or informal businesses but lack the tools to formalize them. Multilingual support, help with compliance, and access to microloans will give these entrepreneurs the chance to grow with confidence.

When small businesses and freelancers succeed, we all succeed. They create jobs, foster pride, preserve culture, and bring life to our streets. This plan invests in the people who have always invested in our community.

“It Takes a Village” Childcare Initiative

Childcare is the engine of opportunity for both parents and children. When families can access affordable, reliable care, parents can work, study, and pursue new pathways. When childcare workers are respected and well compensated, the entire system becomes stronger and more stable. Yet in Western Queens, families face long waitlists, high costs, limited hours, and confusing systems. Childcare workers face low wages and little support. We deserve better.

“It Takes a Village” is a community-centered plan that strengthens childcare from every angle. It starts with expanding supply. Worker-owned childcare cooperatives located near NYCHA campuses, schools, and transit hubs will increase availability while creating high-quality jobs for local residents. These cooperatives will be culturally responsive, community driven, and built to last.

Families will benefit from extended hours and flexible options that match the realities of shift work, late nights, and gig work. A multilingual Childcare Navigator will guide parents through vouchers, 3-K and Pre-K enrollment, after-school options, disability services, and eligibility requirements. No family should feel lost or overwhelmed when searching for care.

Training programs at the Workforce Hub will prepare residents for careers in early childhood education. This includes professional development, trauma-informed practices, bilingual certifications, and on-site opportunities to build experience. Supporting the childcare workforce strengthens quality and ensures families receive the nurturing, safe environments their children deserve.

Immigrant-run childcare businesses will receive guidance to navigate licensing, health and safety requirements, and business planning. Many of these providers are trusted pillars in their communities but lack access to the tools that would allow them to grow and remain sustainable.

A strong childcare ecosystem does more than support families. It increases women’s participation in the workforce, reduces poverty, stabilizes employment, and helps children build strong foundations early in life. It also strengthens neighborhoods by creating local jobs and community connections.

This initiative embraces the belief that raising a child is a shared endeavor. When we support parents, when we support childcare workers, and when we expand access to high-quality early learning, the entire community rises. “It Takes a Village” is a promise to every family in Western Queens that we will build a system worthy of their dreams.

Pathways to Homeownership and Community Wealth

A stable home is the foundation for a stable life. Yet across Western Queens, many families feel the ground shifting beneath them. Rising rents, speculative buying, and shrinking pathways to ownership create uncertainty and strain. Too many residents work hard but have no way to build wealth or plan for the future. A healthier housing landscape is possible, one where families can stay rooted, grow, and invest in their neighborhoods.

Pathways to Homeownership and Community Wealth creates new opportunities for families to achieve long-term stability. It begins by curbing predatory corporate takeover of homes. When private equity firms purchase properties in bulk, prices rise and residents lose control. By limiting speculative buying and supporting community-driven housing models, we protect affordability and ensure homes serve people, not investors.

First-time homebuyer assistance, down payment support, and access to mission-driven lenders will help working-class families buy their first home. Credit repair programs and financial counseling offered through the Workforce Hub will strengthen families’ ability to qualify for mortgages and build savings.

Community land trusts and shared-equity programs create permanently affordable pathways to ownership. Families gain security and equity while the community retains long-term affordability. Income-capped co-ops and condos in new development ensure future generations can also stay in the neighborhood.

NYCHA residents who want to explore ownership will have access to clear pathways, counseling, and down payment support without losing the protections they rely on. Seniors will receive help with home repairs, accessibility improvements, and ADU (accessory dwelling unit) development. ADUs allow for multigenerational living or rental income that supports aging in place with dignity.

This pillar is about giving families real choices. It is about shifting power back to local residents and creating ways for them to build generational strength. When people can invest in their communities, they stay, they participate, and they thrive. And when neighborhoods remain stable, the entire district benefits.

Homeownership should not be a privilege for the few. It should be a pathway open to the people who make Western Queens the vibrant community it is today.