About Us
Donovan Richards,
Queens Borough President:
Donovan Richards Jr., a lifelong resident of Southeast Queens, was elected Borough President of Queens in November 2020.
As a child, he attended Jamaica High School and Redemption Christian Academy before studying at Nyack College. He later received a degree in Aviation Management from Vaughn College in East Elmhurst.
Following the killing of a close friend during his teenage years, he got involved in his community and began his career in public service — holding numerous staff positions in the office of then-City Councilmember James Sanders Jr. In 2013, he was elected to serve as the City Council Member for the 31st District, representing Southeast Queens and the eastern Rockaway Peninsula.
During his tenure as a City Council Member, he chaired multiple influential committees on public safety, environmental protection and zoning, resulting in historic citywide investments in affordable housing, police oversight, clean energy and more.
Additionally, he secured over $2 billion in capital funding to modernize Southeast Queens’ underground infrastructure, as well as the new 116 Precinct in Rosedale.
As Queens Borough President, he has been a tireless advocate for The World’s Borough, allocating more than $500 million in capital funding across Queens’ schools, cultural institutions, hospitals, libraries, parks and more.
In the wake of the devastating COVID-19 pandemic, Borough President Richards has invested more than $50 million into Queens’ healthcare facilities and worked diligently to address healthcare disparities across the borough. Specifically, he secured $180 million in state investment to build Queens’ first standalone cancer care facility at Jamaica Hospital, as well as $39 million in city investment to build a Gotham Health clinic in Far Rockaway — New York City Health + Hospitals’ first facility on the Rockaway Peninsula.
To better support the more than 1 million immigrants who call The World’s Borough home, he established the Immigrant Welcome Center at Queens Borough Hall in 2021, which has served thousands of individuals in need of immigration-related services.
To help rebuild Queens’ economy, Borough President Richards created the $20 million Queens Small Business Grant program, secured a commitment from JetBlue to keep its headquarters in Queens and continues to oversee the $20 billion redevelopment of Kennedy Airport, among countless other initiatives. During his tenure, Queens’ unemployment rate has fallen from 24 percent to below 5 percent.
Through his leadership, Borough President Richards has helped turn Queens into an international hub of sports, culture and entertainment. The 25,000-seat, all-electric Etihad Park — New York City’s first soccer-specific stadium — will open in Willets Point in 2027 and serve as the home for both Major League Soccer’s New York City Football Club and the National Women’s Soccer League’s Gotham FC.
Meanwhile, Queens has secured state licenses for two casino gaming facilities — Resorts World in South Ozone Park and the future Metropolitan Park adjacent to Citi Field — which, when combined, will create tens of thousands of good-paying union jobs.
In the midst of New York City’s unprecedented housing crisis, Borough President Richards has created or placed into the construction pipeline tens of thousands of units of affordable units through historic housing projects in Far Rockaway, Willets Point, Arverne, Edgemere, Jamaica, Queens Village and beyond.
When it comes to education, Borough President Richards has allocated more than $155 million for upgrades to schools across Queens — funding dozens of new hydroponics labs, aviation education hubs, playgrounds, tech labs, athletic facilities, cafeterias and so much more.
To support Queens’ children outside of school, Borough President Richards has secured a $140 million investment to build a new Roy Wilkins Park Community Center and $64 million to construct a new Arverne East Aquatics Center, among other such centers across the borough.
Borough President Richards lives in Rosedale with his wife, Tameeka, and their son, Donovan III.