U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Opens New Office in Queens
NEW YORK—U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today celebrated the official opening of its newest immigration field office in Queens, N.Y. USCIS Director Alejandro Mayorkas and USCIS’s New York District Director Andrea Quarantillo were joined by U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (14th District, N.Y.), U.S. Rep. Joseph Crowley (7thDistrict, N.Y.) and Queens Borough President Helen Marshall for the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
“Opening the Queens office furthers our effort to become a part of the community and provide services where our customers live,” Director Mayorkas said. “We are confident that this new office will improve customer service and accessibility, and create new opportunities for the Queens community to engage with our agency.”
The new office, located at 27-35 Jackson Ave., consists of waiting rooms, an Application Support Center (which offers fingerprinting and photographic services as part of the application process), a naturalization ceremony room, and interview and file rooms. The building was formerly a warehouse and has been renovated to create a modern and efficient office space. The Queens office is expected to serve about 500 people each business day. The office’s hours are 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
A portion of the new office in Queens was dedicated by USCIS employees to one of their own: former Field Office Director Gwynne K. MacPherson-Williams, who passed away in March 2011 after 38 years of distinguished public service in New York City. A plaque will be placed in the new naturalization ceremony room in her memory.
The Aviation High School Honor Guard participated in today’s ceremony by presenting the national colors and leading guests in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Approximately 100 employees transferred to the Queens office from the now-closed Garden City, Long Island, office. USCIS recently opened an additional office in Holtsville, Long Island.
For more information on USCIS and its programs, please visit www.uscis.gov or follow us on Twitter (@uscis), YouTube (/uscis) and the USCIS blog The Beacon.