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Van Bramer Alleges He Was Threatened by Amazon Supporter, Reports it to Police

Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer at an Amazon oversight hearing in January. (City Council)

March 1, 2019 By Nathaly Pesantez

Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer, among the central voices against the now-scrapped Amazon project, alleges he was threatened by a local restaurant owner who has been on a personal crusade to bring the e-commerce giant back to Queens.

The council member tweeted an image earlier today of a text sent to him by Josh Bowen, the owner of John Brown Smokehouse on 44th Drive, in which he tells Van Bramer to call John Schoettler, vice president of real estate for Amazon, and “apologize” for the fallen deal.

“Call now and I can stop the growing forces that will end councilman VanJobkillers career,” reads part of the text sent to Van Bramer just before 1 p.m. today.

Bowen, who had recently traveled to Seattle to meet with Amazon executives in hopes of convincing them to reconsider their Feb. 14 decision to drop Long Island City campus plans, confirmed through his restaurant’s Twitter account that he sent the message.

The long text frames Van Bramer’s political career as on the ropes in light of the failed Amazon project.

“You can be at the back of the parade or in front of the firing squad,” Bowen wrote. “If they come back, y’all may get elected dog catcher. If they don’t, you’re in the history books.”

Bowen added that he would be appearing on Fox News tonight, and that he can either “leave you out of it and focus on Amazon coming back or I can add another sound bite on to the funeral pyre of Jimmys [sic] career.”

He told the council member to “make the f—ing call. And let me know by four.”

“You were used by activists. I’m trying to keep you, and western queens, from the history books,” reads the end of the text.

Van Bramer said the text is “several threats rolled into one.”

“Demanding an elected official make a call to Amazon by a certain time – or else. This is disgusting,” he said, adding, “I don’t respond to threats.”

He later tweeted, in response to calls for the text to be sent to the NYPD, that the text had been reported. His office said the message was reported to the 108th Precinct and City Council security.

Bowen, by way of the John Brown Smokehouse twitter account, defended his text.

“Yep, I told my councilman to call on behalf of the majority of his constituents and you get the Jimmy Van Bramer scumbag treatment,” he said. “No surprise here.”

He also disputed Van Bramer’s assertions of being threatened.

“It’s obviously not a threat of violence but why stop twisting s–t around now. Tried to reach out and get them to listen to their community and get this,” he said.

Bowen’s text was admonished by many, who took to calling it “unhinged,” “terrifying,” and “violent.” Several of the responses were retweeted by the council member.

“This is grotesque,” said Make the Road New York, a prominent grassroots groups that organized against the Amazon deal. “We stand in solidarity with you, Jimmy Van Bramer, and all other elected officials and community partners who are standing strong against the Amazon #HQ2Scam.”

Bowen’s text comes as efforts are mounting by New York leaders and even Governor Cuomo to get Amazon to reconsider its canceled campus plans.

Cuomo, in an interview on WNYC’s The Brian Lehrer Show today, said he would guarantee that the project receive its needed approvals if Amazon were to return. Politicians that railed against the project, like State Sen. Mike Gianaris and Van Bramer, would be “irrelevant” if Amazon decided to come back, he said.

“At this point they are irrelevant,” he said. “There are other ways that the state can get it done, and I told Amazon that. The state approval process I will personally guarantee.”

Van Bramer responded to Cuomo’s comments in a tweet earlier today.

“As long as I am alive I am relevant. As long as I have a voice I will raise it,” he said.

email the author: news@queenspost.com

103 Comments

Click for Comments 
MJ Quarry

FYI. Jimmy had his family, friends, handful of supporters, and his staff members read and respond to comments that don’t support him.

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false

Is there any reason or evidence to believe that? Any at all?

Or we can just dismiss it outright as blind speculation?

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Jimmy's followers

I believe that. The ratio of thumbs up to thumbs down is not in proportion. There is more to this than meets the eye. Little Jimmy probably has his little group of followers (paid employees, hangers-on, people wanting things from him, etc.) responding to every negative comment. They’ve probably been told to overwhelm negative comments of him with thumbs down. This guy is some kind of con artist. Sounds like he would do well working for Trump.

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Jimmy follower

Just proved my point. Which type of little follower of little Jimmy are you?
Paid staffer?
Hanger-on?
Just plain sycophant?
Ready, set, thumbs down

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totally false, got it

You can attack me all you want. Still waiting for any reason this isn’t blind speculation…

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lol

So a city councilman has recruited people to click on buttons on a website comment section?

Are Trumpeters actually gullible enough to believe that?

Here’s another shocking possibility you haven’t considered: members of the public clicked the buttons the way they have on every other article ever. Who knows…

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anon

I don’t buy into the conspiracy theory about Jimmy Van Dbag’s family and friends jamming the comments. Having said that Jimmy is the epitome of a lowlife term limited hack. I say that as somebody that has and does despise Donald Trump and has long before he ran for anything. Calling Jimmy the job killer out on his bull$hit does not make one a Trump supporter.

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Lives on my block

JVB lives near me on the same block in Sunnyside. Aloof. Not very social. Always on the phone.

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anonymous

In fairness Jimmy is not on the phone, he has live polling results coming in at all times. If outside and unaided he needs help determining which foot to step forward with next. If he loses cell service he will actually fall over. Kind of sad really, I voted for the hump when he was still a grown man.

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charles castro

This is what happens when you elect a weak man, a man who is hurt by mere words. A man who is terrified and scared by poster stating to report illegal aliens. You elected a pussy what did you expect?

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cogent point

name-calling is the most nuanced criticism Trumpeters like charles “fidel” castro can muster

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charles castro

Cogent Point, don’t hide behind BS names, use your real one. The epitome of a Hypocrite; you expect tolerance yet, you employ prejudicial sentiments. So in your small mind everyone named Castro must be Cuban. Nonetheless, he is still a weak azz.

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sad

Maybe a threat if it came from a stranger, but clearly the two had an amicable relationship at some point. Is it inappropriate for two ‘friends’ to say that to each other? Maybe not? Is it reasonable for Jimmy to expect some of his most ardent supporters to be angry? Absolutely, yes.. And this incident proves he’s still tone deaf to that.. That said, not a good look for all involved.

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Sara Ross

Threatening anybody with violence is a crime – no matter what the reason! People are under the impression that they are going to have salaries in the 5 figures by working for Amazon. Nope! Also, people in Queensbridge think that all of the jobs will be given to them. Nope! They would have been given to people who were either qualified or people who could be trained to do those jobs. Nothing is handed to you. I’m more angry that the city gives more of a dam about giving tax breaks to billionaires than they do to small business owners. Small businesses built this city, not box stores or big corporations! Where are the politicians fighting for the small business owners who lose their business thanks to greedy landlords (most who aren’t even from this country) and to the bike lanes where people can’t park to patronize those businesses?

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John Brown Smokehouse Loves Fox News

I didn’t realize that the owner of John Brown Smokehouse loves Fox News so much.

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Bowen is as disgusting as the food

Agreed, I’ll never eat there again. I mean, the food is so horrible I never was going to anyway but still.

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Time for Change

Jimmy “finds” thumbtacks on bike lanes.
Jimmy “finds” hate posters while jogging.
Jimmy “receives” homophobic hate mail.
Jimmy first supports Amazon with signed letter and then flip flops against Amazon.
Jimmy “receives” threatening texts.
LITTLE JIMMY IS A LIAR!

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Jimmy the victim

The point is that Jimmy is a professional victim. Can’t you see that?

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wat

Did he pay Fox-News-loving Bowen to send him the threatening messages? I missed that part of the story…

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Juan

Cry me a river with Jimmy’s bullsh#t. How many times is this politician going to cry wolf.

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A rising tide lifts all boats!

There are no billions…that’s the point. NYC would get $28B and give back $3B. Now with no Amazon, LIC is left with $0.00 and an onslaught of luxury high rise condos and rentals, with no long-term jobs, tax benefits and an even more oversaturated subway system. The retail near these newly constructed tax abated buildings will have horrible retail (dry cleaners, pizza shops, or yet another sushi restaurant), but nothing unique and worth the loss of those jobs and tax dollars.

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MJ Quarry

Thank you “A rising tide lifts all boats!” for stating FACTS. These Little Jimmy supporters don’t want to get it. Or can’t. This is truly a loss for Western Queens. The greedy in fact was and is Little Jimmy.

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Time for JVB to retire

Jimmy Van Bramer more like Jimmy Van Drama.
The guy is always pulling stunts like this to get his name into the papers.
How did this butt head ever get elected in the first place.
His 15 minutes of fame is up. Time for him to move on.
Maybe he should try Broadway.

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jay

Someone please notify the police and report JVB for elder abuse! He’s now trotting out his 79 year old mother at events to introduce her as an activist. He tells us AOC and all other women are standing on her shoulders. This poor woman should not be dragged around and deployed as a prop to distract negative attention away from himself.

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Rd. St. Dr. Ave

I wish JVB wouldn’t have reported it… that’s a bad move IMHO. Obviously does nothing but feed the hungry beasts that hate him already.

Josh’s actions are pretty self damning… crawling back to Amazon begging and then going on Fox??? FOX??? Really? I never associated John Brown with Fox News, but now I do. Ewww.

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Cg

Free speech is free speech. The guy is pissed, rightfully so, and he is sounding off about it. If the mob still ran this town JVB would probbably have come to some harm by now. The guy has a right to
Speak his mind the same as any of us

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Pat Macnamara

People still vote for this imbecile JVB. He has accomplished nothing and defines the term political hack. This “grassroots” organization, Make the Road NY, is nothing more than a protector of the welfare state its constituents live in. Let’s keep people on benefits instead of welcoming a company like Amazon whose presence alone would have spurred on the economy in the region these freeloaders reside. But they keep JVB in office for a reason. He loves to see others spend money they don’t earn.

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Bee Sides

John Brown’s Smokehouse has lost my business. I don’t care what Josh Bowen’s stance on the Amazon issue in LIC is, but I do care about people who exhibit thuggish and bullying behavior. We have enough of that in our lives already, largely thanks to the Wimp-in-the-White House who thinks this is what a man, a grown-up, acts like.

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LIC4

Business and real estate owners are conplaining because ultimately they lost a bunch of money betting on Amazon. Ask the residents or locals who live there and they could care less. Bye Amazon

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SunnysideUP

Most of those real estate owners you are refering to are middle class families who are working their asses off to provide a home for their family so they won’t have to live in a rental forever. If LIC is too expensive for you there are plenty of areas in Queens, Bk and even manhattan that are cheaper. You can move there.

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Jimmy gotta go

Regardless of Amazon, Jimmy Van Bramer has to go. This politician loves to play the victim card.
Jimmy when are you going to finish the damn library? $50 million and 5 years is more than enough money and time!

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Anonymous

I live by Vernon Jackson stop and I care a great deal. I wrote Van Bramer and told him I am voting for who ever runs against him. Let’s not forget he asked them to come and then insulted them with a giant public giddy fit. This guys career is toast.

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Chas

You have to be kidding me. I’m over the Amazon deal,but claiming he’s afraid from the local business owner is a joke and insult to those who are real victims of violence.
I like the restaurant ,great food. Never knew who the owner was untill now.
The place ahs a been and asset to the area. They started when no one wanted to open a bussiness in that part of LIC.
Running a restaurant is not an easy task.
Being a city councilman is.
Oh, how many years since they broke ground on the library?
5?
Could have built affortable housing on the prime real estate.
Enjoy your week.

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Anonymous

He sounds like he’s lost his mind. I’ll wager he’s the one obsessively posting on this blog too.

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MJ Quarry

YES!!!! I was thinking the same. I bet he has his whole staff posting here. LOL!!!!

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Anonymous

This is exactly what I was thinking. I’m not the biggest Jimmy fan either, but this restaurant owner sounds like he’s off his rocker.

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JAMES EDSTROM

Jimmy Van Bramer has been the worst councilman I have ever seen. He only cares about the media attention. He blocks residents on Twitter whose comments he does not like. I got blocked because I asked why he was blocking residents. Van Bramer no matter how anyone feels about this Amazon deal ruined it. He supported it at the beginning, even sent a letter to Amazon, then went against it and said he had no idea what was in the deal. Then why would you support something you had no idea about? To think Van Bramer went to the police about a view of one of his residents is a outrage. The letter was not a threat, but pussy Van Bramer went after one of his residents demanding he be arrested. We do not want Van Bramer to hold another office in this town. Everyone I talk to is so disappointed that we voted for this guy, so disappointing that he has done nothing to make our neighborhood better and more upset that he blocks complaints on Twitter that are valid. We will not vote for him for Queens President. We have a
library that has been under construction for over 5 years now. Isn’t Van Bramer in charge of Libraries? One excuse after another from Van Bramer, but what he refuses to admit, the buck stops with him. He made all these messes, he would rather hang out with Cynthia Nixon for photo ops than to do his job. Van Bramer is only about media
attention. This is all he cares about. I watch council hearings, rarely do I see him there. He is being paid to do nothing. We can not get red lights where needed, we can not get garbage cans. When I spoke to him personally downtown by city hall while he was having lunch, he just bullshitted me to death. To think Van Bramer would call the police on Johns Smokehouse, a valuable business here in LIC is just pathetic. Most of us want Amazon here, we just do not want to give them these tax cuts and we need help with our infrastructure. Those were most of our concerns, the project looked good, the design was good, the deal just needed to be re imagined a little. Between Van Bramer blocking residents complaints on Social Media and calling police on our businesses as well as not addressing residents complaints, most of us feel now that Van Bramer has to go. He does!

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Anonymous

My God, in light of this story, I would never consider spending money in this vulgar loudmouth’s restaurant. Fox News? I don’t think so.

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Anonymous

People move to LIC because of restaurants like John Brown Smokehouse. People will leave LIC because of people like Jimmy, who are rebranding themselves as the champion of the little guy years after they sold the neighborhood out to developers. LIC is going to have to lead the nation in home schooling quite soon since Jimmy cares so much about families that he couldn’t care less there are no schools in the community, with 10,000 units set to flood the market shortly.

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Shocked

Wow, I always thought the most offensive thing Bowen would do would be serving the horrible overcooked food on sticky checkered plastic tablecloths at JB Smokehouse

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Runner

Dont forget the tacks in the bike lanes incident. Did the they ever catch the scoundrel?

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Merman

Jimmy Van Bramer is like a yippy chihuahua in a puffer jacket that’s two sizes too big.

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marge sanger

Another socialist fraud . More concerned with responding to your grinder app on your phone rather to bring economic growth that is desperately needed. How many police reports are on u for beating out the prostitutes in Vaseline alley

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Anonymous

Hey JVB – now that you’re
finished brining down big bad Amazon, maybe you can pay some closer attention to the library that’s 2 years behind schedule in your backyard.
Not important enough?
Doesn’t get your name in the paper?
The people you represent care.

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Richard

The texts are very inappropriate and a bad move by the business owner. However, it is NOT a threat.
Jimmy Van Bramer has a reputation of exaggerating and taking advantage of situations like this. He “conveniently” finds anti-immigration flyers and receives hate mail when he’s facing political pressure and community backlash.

Feb 22, 2018
Bramer “receives” homophobic hate mail. During this time, there is community backlash for the unfinished LIC library that has so far costed $50 mill and 5 years.
http://m.qchron.com/mobile/editions/queenswide/hate-mail-sent-to-gay-council-members/article_2c449a26-8eb8-5bc0-b759-6c2744efed76.html

Oct 12, 2018
Bramer “finds” an anti-immigration flyer while jogging down Skillman Ave. This was just after he embarrassingly failed to gain enough support for protected bike lanes on 43rd ave and Skillman Ave.
https://qns.com/story/2018/10/12/anti-immigration-flyer-in-sunnyside-work-of-white-supremacists-van-bramer/

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Time for JVB to go

I agree. He is a fraud. He loves to play the victim card. Time for him to go.

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MJ Quarry

Wow!!! Over 110 thumbs down! He’s really got his friends family and staff working hard to “thumbs down” his constituents!! FACTS!!! Can’t handle the truth Little Jimmy?

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Runner

JVB is a baby. Waaaa waaa somebody said bad things to me. I will never vote, or endorse you ever.

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JVB ? ??

“Legal Expert” aka Jimmy Van Bramer, stop trying to justify your flip-flopping and failed library with these stunts. No one is buying it.

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Joseph Young

The “firing squad” comment is a threat. It is remarkably simple. Don’t threaten to shoot someone. It’s not nice, not to mention it can get you arrested. Local politics aside, I’d like to make the infinitely more important comment that I’m actually quite thankful not to have to worry about amazon opening this draconian “campus” (i.e. overcompensated computer programmer sweat shop) in the city. I wonder if anyone has noticed this company deals in poverty wherever it goes, seeking to gratify the laziness of consumers, ensuring the death of retail, and elimination of competing market players in favor of horrendous working conditions, all under the grey, starving radioactive cloud of the biggest Taxation Boycott in the history of humanity. You want to fix the subway, collect on stolen revenue that short-sighted companies like this already owe to the American people! And please for gods sake keep them out of our city!

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John O'Reilly

“Firing squad” is obviously a reference to not being elected for public office. You need to read the words in context. Even Mr. Van Bramer, according to news reports, did not believe Mr. Bowen presented an actual physical threat to Mr. Van Bramer’s person. This whole caper belongs in the same file as “thumb tacks found on 43rd Avenue”.

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Joseph Young

The “firing squad” comment is a threat. It is remarkably simple. Don’t threaten to shoot someone. It’s not nice, not to mention it can get you arrested. But more importantly, I’d like to say I’m thankful not to have to worry about amazon opening this draconian “campus” (i.e. overcompensated computer programmer sweat shop) in the city. I wonder if anyone has noticed this company deals in poverty wherever it goes, seeking to gratify the laziness of consumers, ensuring the death of retail, and elimination of competing market players in favor of horrendous working conditions, all under the grey, starving radioactive cloud of the biggest Taxation Boycott in the history of humanity. You want to fix the subway, collect on the revenue that short-sighted companies like this already owe to the American people! And please for gods sake keep them out of our city!

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4Amazon4thePeople

Jimmy cares so much about mass transit in Western Queens that no one heard a peep from him while all those luxury coops and condominiums were going up. (RE Developers lining up to grease him pockets)

Jimmy is such a Progressive that he didn’t endorse AOC. (He was at every event she was in after her win making sure he got his photo op and posting on his social media).

Jimmy wants to take credit for anything good that happens in Western Queens but he threw Western Queens under the bus when he decided to work out a TRADE-OFF!!??? And of course blame the same people he makes deals with behind the scene.

All those social media posts of his where he’s being threatened etc…I’m pretty sure he did ALL THAT HIMSELF…looking for sympathy.

The majority want AMAZON for the right reasons. Sit at the table and hold their feet to the fire!

The majority want JIMMY OUT of politics for the right reasons. HE is the GREEDY one. Self serving sick punk.

Can’t wait for his term to end. Hope he never sits in office again. It would be the BEST thing for QUEENS. LIARS and NARCISSISTS are not PUBLIC servants they are SELF SERVING sickos.

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4Amazon4thePeople

Jimmy serves Jimmy!!! He’s as greedy and conniving as Beelzebub…maybe even more so. I for one can tell you he has NO support from my community not just the landlord, business owners, and such…but also the people that pay rent.

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4Amazon4thePeople

He represents not just LIC Waterfront (that has been gentrifying over the last 10 years way before the Amazon news) that’s just a handful of Western Queens (or at least it used to be a handful but Jimmy VanKillJob allowed ALL those skyscrapers to go up without a PEEP, got his RE Developer $$$) he didn’t worry about the mass transit then. Many of us can’t wait for his political career to be over! I lived in Hunter’s Point in the mid 90s. When no one wanted to live there…now the people who genetrified that area and keep gentrifying it are crying boo hoo…we don’t want Amazon. Jimmy speaks for Jimmy remember that!!! And those billions!! He couldn’t even finish that library!!

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Had my full of Queens politicans

O for god sake Van Bramer- you backed the wrong horse and lost and are now paying the price. But instead of having interrogatory you are now playing the victim. disgusting.

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Aunt Cathy

This guy flew to Seattle! What the what? He just walked into Amazon’s Seattle office and was like I’m a barbecue shop down the street? Acckk!

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Keeping It Real

I find it disheartening that there are adults who approve of this behavior. You are a horrible example for the youth. Should the youth behave like Bowen or worse in order to get what they want? Let’s be honest this is all about money. Bowen does not care about the neighborhood. Bowen cares about his bank account.

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both sides....

because behaving like Jimmy is a stand up way to be? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHA you should do comedy!!! HAHAHA

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Justin

I love how Bramer puts this out while Cuomo is trying to get Amazon back. Jimmy always plays the victim card when needed.

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4Amazon4thePeople

Guess my entire community will be eating @John Brown Smokehouse again and again and again!!! JVB is the GREEDY one here. One man (punk) corporate show. He LOVES THE DRAMA.

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John O'Reilly

Please help me understand: which part(s) of Mr. Bowen’s message is (are) considered so inappropriate as to warrant referral to the Police Department? While the words used may be a tad over the top, are statements to work to end the political career of an elected official based on disagreement with said official’s decision(s) inappropriate and subject to police review?! What happens if I decide to heartedly boo Mr. Van Bramer (and Mr. Gianaris) and encourage them to resign at Sunday’s parade? Will I be subject to arrest? I find it ironic that Mr. Van Bramer (and Gianaris) criticized Amazon for purportedly not being able to tolerate the rough and tumble of NYC politics and community activism as a basis for its decision to abandon HQ2 in LIC, when it appears that Mr. Van Bramer is unable to tolerate the rough and tumble of Mr. Bowen’s efforts to get the Amazon project back on track. Perhaps Amazon should have called the cops on Mr. Van Bramer!

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brooklynmc

“make the f—ing call. And let me know by four.”

That is a threat to me.

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hmmm

it’s a strongly worded request. In order to be a threat it would also have to include the consequence, you know… “or else”

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Larry

Every time Bramer is exposed as a liar or a hypocrite, he plays this card. He is becoming the boy who cried wolf only there will never be a word of truth at the end of the story.

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Jose

JVB is a professional BS artist. There was nothing criminal about that text. He is simply trying to deflect from the recent backlash by the community over the Amazon departure.

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lic resident

Jimmy Van Bramer— you did right thing ..
report every single one of them — and continue to speak on behalf of queens residence …not a biz owners/landlords/real estate that they see only $$$$coming their way with SCAMazon coming to queens!!!

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RobLIC

The weasel represents those of us who live on the LIC Waterfront who will be most impacted by Amazon- not those a few miles away in Sunnyside. I would have profited from soaring real estate prices- but I am happy to see them abandon my neighborhood. Josh Bowen is a thug who is upset he won’t get those Amazon dining dollars.
No fan of Van Bremer here but glad he decided to speak up for those of us who would rather see the billions go to mass transit and not an anti-union billionaire.
At least Google keeps expanding here without demanding high payments and tax breaks.

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Frank

Want billions to go for mass transit? Then you should have supported the Amazon deal. The monies in question were tax breaks, ie, taxes had to be due to get the break. That means that more (a lot more) money would have been paid by Amazon than the big, fat zero taxes we are gong to get because of myopic idiots like Gianaris and JVB or that halfwit AOC.

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39th Ave

Billions were never going to Amazon. It’s obvious that you’re financially illiterate, and just like AOC, do not understand how tax incentives work.
WE DO NOT HAVE $3 BILLION LEFT OVER BECAUSE AMAZON LEFT.
There are special tax incentives put in place for the outer boroughs in order to attract companies/jobs. These outer borough tax incentives exist for ALL companies that qualify and were not just for Amazon.
Google received a ton of tax breaks to develop in Manhattan.
Amazon would have generated upwards of $28 billion in tax revenue that could have been used for infrastructure upgrades such as mass transit. Instead, we are going to get “congestion pricing” which basically means more tolls.
Amazon was planning to hire 25,000 permanent jobs, 11,000 union jobs (construction, maintenance), generate $27 billion in tax revenue, build a new public school, provide job training programs to LaGuardia college and job training centers to Queensbridge projects. Instead, we are now going to get shiny residential buildings with 5,000 to 10,000 units that no one can afford.
I wish people like you were better informed.

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nomdeplum

Grow up Jimmy You made the wrong step following people who r more afraid their rents will go up than the possibility they could get incredible jobs and transform our psrt of Queens for ALL

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LIC4Amazon

JVB, you’ve got to be kidding me. No support for you here. You can dish it out but can’t take it… come on now…. are you the only one that can speak harshly or raise your voice to others to drive home your point! Please!!!! You are ridiculous. This isn’t the first time you have played the victim. The song is getting old!!!! It is time for you to move on!!!! I for one am disgusted that you represent our community. Jimmy, you are no longer relevant to me and many of us in the community. Jimmy, you serve at the will of the people. You have forgotten this, or maybe never actually knew this.

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Pop it

We got nimbys over here yimbys over there and a mounting list of businesses to boycott. Add this to the Sunnyside Chamber of Commerce blacklist.

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Anonymous

So you still won’t go to businesses that you never went to before anyway, okay. That’ll scare em.

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Name a few

Aubergine, Claret, Bar 43, Cooldown, Surayside Yoga, Stray Vintage: will never step foot in these places again.

Probably the biggest loss goes to Claret wine bar, which we’ve been going to for years.

We still go out in the area occasionally, but in 2018 curtailed spending in the area by about 75%. This includes stopping going to chamber affiliated businesses (new vet and pet store), businesses that displayed the chamber’s hateful posters, and more recently any establishment that has copies of “Small Town Confidential.”

Some people do more, others less, but a large swath of the neighborhood were sufficiently turned off by the business community’s politicking to make a dent and get friendlier more community oriented businesses into the thriving corridor.

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Chris Novack

Ive bought Amazon supporters. They can be had real cheap if you know where to look if you catch my drift.
Here’s the problem, folks. You would think they could take a lot. Dont be a sap! They will snap when you least expect it. You’ll find yerself hung by the ba-….
Well, you catch my drift.
Shop Modell-daVega. You’ll thank an old man. Ive supported them. Let M-D support you!

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Victor

Jimmy Van Bramer is a media whore. I wish he would put this much energy into finishing the library in LIC. I can’t wait till Bramer gets voted out.

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Anonymous

his term is up he can no longer get re-elected — he is trying to run for queens boro president – lol

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John O'Reilly

Speaking of libraries and media prostitution, any sign of the $6.5 million capital allocation being spent on the Woodside Library? That’s the capital investment Mr. Van Bramer announced with and credited to a smiling Joe Crowley one week before last June’s Democratic primary with Ms. Ocasio-Cortez. Of course, a picture of smiling Jimmy, Uncle Joe, and QPL CEO Dennis Walcott was prominently displayed in local media, but curiously not one penny of this fund has been expended nor is there any indication, nine months later, of what the money will be used for.

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Shawn

Except that cannot happen. The money to Amazon was mostly in the form of *tax breaks* which don’t happen if there are no *jobs* so now there is no money to fix those broken subways.

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Rory Sunnyside

Jimmy Van Job Killer loves playing the victim. How is this weasel still in politics.

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