BELLEROSE, NEW YORK (TIP): State Senator Anthony Avella (D-Queens), August 16, endorsed Satnam Singh Parhar for City Council District 23, in Northeastern Queens. Parhar is on the ballot for the September 10 Democratic Primary to replace City Councilman Mark Weprin, who gave up his seat to work for Governor Andrew Cuomo.

Parhar, a well-known community activist, successful businessman and philanthropist with a reputation for getting results, is running on a platform of economic development, support for small business, quality education, increased transportation alternatives, more senior centers, clean and safe streets, and a freeze on property taxes and water and sewer bills.

“I am proud to announce my endorsement of Satnam Singh Parhar for City Council in District 23,” Senator Avella said today. “Over the years that I have known him, Parhar has a strong record of getting results. His commitment to serving all the constituents of District 23 makes him a fantastic advocate for this community.”

“It is time this District elects a candidate who reflects its great diversity, who understands the issues it faces, and who will tirelessly fight to secure its fair share of city funding and services,” said Avella. “Satnam Singh Parhar has demonstrated his value as a community advocate, and as a successful businessman. As a Council Member he will be a strong voice, and more than that he will get things done.”

Parhar said, “Senator Tony Avella always has our backs in Albany, and I’m proud to have his support. Where some other elected officials just show their faces when they want votes, Senator Avella is always there for all of us. Just as he is here tonight.”

“I’m looking forward to working with him once I am elected to the City Council, and I know that together we will make a difference in both the Capitol and in City Hall,” said Parhar. City Council District 23, with some of the most diverse electorates in the city, has seen significant demographic change in recent years. Forty percent of the District is Asian, with the overwhelming majority South-Asian.