Democratic Socialist Councilwoman Tiffany Cabán’s district office in Queens is closed far more than it’s opened — sometimes weeks at a time, frustrated constituents told The Post.
Anyone calling the anti-cop pol’s Astoria headquarters at 30-83 31st Street — where the rent is paid by taxpayers — now gets greeted by a voicemail claiming the office is temporarily “closed for construction,” even though there’s no obvious work being on done at the site.
“Her office is always closed!” raged Astoria native Jimmy Panagiotiou, 40. “She doesn’t do nothing for the fellow citizens of Astoria.
“We, the constituents of Astoria, reach out to her all the time, and she doesn’t do nothing. We send out emails. We go on her Facebook page, and it’s never updated, Twitter and stuff like that. The gates to her store are always down,” he added.
A man living above the councilwoman’s headquarters said the office has been “mostly closed” since he moved there two years ago.
“They’re open for a day or two days, and then they close for a whole week,” he said.
Others who work or live nearby confirmed the office is sometimes shuttered for two- and three-week stretches since Cabán’s two-year term on the Council began in 2022.
Several complained that the few times they tracked down someone at the office they quickly realized they were wasting time.
“We have a rat problem,” said Fatiha Burger, a 68-year-old retired teacher. “I came and complained and she didn’t do anything about it. We had to take care of it ourselves.”
Office rent for council members is paid for through taxpayer funds overseen by City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams. Both Cabán and Adams’ offices declined to say how much Cabán pays in office rent, even though the information should be public.
Several Queens Council members in districts where real estate is not as hot as Astoria pay $5,200 to $7,700 monthly.
“Constituent services are the lifeblood of elected officials, and closing district offices is simply unacceptable,” said Councilman Robert Holden (D-Queens). “Taxpayers deserve better, and it sets a poor example for our path to normalcy. The City Council should step up and ensure that every office remains open to serve their communities, especially since taxpayers pay the rent.”
Caban makes $148,500 a year.
Some political operatives suggested the former public defender is following the same socialist playbook of her pal U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who came under fire for providing limited in-person assistance at her New York City district offices.
Like Ocasio-Cortez, Cabán has embraced remote ‘working’ throughout the pandemic.
However, others wonder if part of the problem is the heat — and alleged threats — Cabán claims she fielded over her extreme left, fringe political views.
The Defund the Police-promoting pol told the NYPD in October that her office was receiving a slew of threatening phone calls — just days after she released a “public safety” guide that encouraged local merchants to call 311, instead of 911, in most cases.
When The Post visited the office Wednesday, it was closed. A staffer was apparently working remotely from another location because they answered a call by a reporter made to the headquarters.
Hours later, after another reporter began questioning people in the same building about Cabán’s whereabouts, two workers showed up and opened the office.
On Friday, another Post reporter claiming to seek office assistance left a voice message at the shuttered storefront but never heard back.
Cabán’s spokesman Jesse Myerson later claimed in a text message that the office is opened and staffed Monday through Thursday, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and by appointment only on Fridays.
He refused to address the complaints of Cabán running an “AWOL Office” or why its voicemail claims the site is closed for construction.
