Daily News from New York, New York • 499

7 1 News Bureau (718) 793-3328 Fax (718) 793-2910 Home Delivery 1-800 692-NEWS NEWS v. I Ha feow rota By CLAIRE SERANT 1 2 Q-01 Z3 By DICK SHERIDAN Daily News Staff Writer The message that elementary school teacher Adam Funtleyder wanted to deliver to his Rockaway Parkstu-dents and the medium he chose were upbeat: A call to believe. in themselves transmitted via a musical mix of rap and reggae. Funtleyder's song, "Hear My Voice," which urges youngsters to ''don't give up" and "stay in school," had its inception in February in a fifth-grade, classroom at Pubiic School 225 on Beach 110th where he has taught for six years. "The sound is not what you might think of as rap.

It's more like 'Hot, Hot, Hot' you know, Buster 29-year-old native of the Rockaways explained. "It started out as a discussion we were having on pursuing your dreams," he said. "One of the kids asked me did I want to be a teacher for the rest of my life." Funtleyder, who helped pay his way through college by working as a deejay and still works at clubs and parties, answered no, because he loved music and wanted to be a rap singer. "They all laughed and crlled me corny," he recalled. Later, while on a vacation in Jamaica and surrounded by the sounds of reggae, he felt inspired to write lyrics.

NEIL SCHNEIDER GROOVIN': Adam Funtleyder, who teaches at Public School 225 in Rockaway Park, recorded a single aimed at inspiring youngsters. losses while they Queens' West and LIRR officials) get their developments going." Officials at the Empire State Development the agency overseeing Queens West, said they hoped ferry operations would resume in the future. "We're confident that when the first Queens West tenants move in two years from now, the operations will resume," said Caroline Quartararo, an Empire State spokeswoman. New York Waterway has seven routes carrying 25.000 riders to midtown and lower Manhattan from New Jersey, Staten Island and Queens. City Councilman Walter McCaffrey (D-Woodside) said he was not surprised to hear the news.

"There wasn't sufficient basis for the service. It was never part of the existing community's plan," he said. Many Queens commuters, McCaffrey noted, prefer to take the subway to Manhattan. Alan Ederer, a lawyer from Long Island who has been taking the ferry for the past eight months, said he will miss the two-minute ferry ride to his midtown office. "They didn't do the proper advertising.

Now I'll have to drive into Manhattan and pay $11 to $12 a day for parking," Ederer said. Daily News Staff Writer New York Waterway is sinking its two-year-old ferry service from Hunters Point in Long Island ity to midtown Manhattan at the end of the month. Citing low ridership and "substantial operating losses," the New Jersey-based boat operation will stop taking commuters from Queens to the E. 34th St ferry landing on Aug. 30, said Anthony Impera-tore Jr-v company president In a letter to local elected officials, Imperatore said "a self-supporting ferry operation must await further progress in the development of Queens West and further improvements to connecting Long Island Rail Road train service at Long Island City." The developers of Queens West, a 74-acre East River waterfront site in Hunters Point broke ground on a 522-unit apartment building in May.

But when completed, the development will have a total of 6,000 residential units. New York Waterway officials said they couldn't wait for the housing development to be completed. "Queens has been our only money loser," said Pat Smith, a company spokesman. "Fewer than 500 people a day used Queens. We can't sustain ation along.

"They watched it materialize from nothing to a finished product," he said. "They helped with artwork, with my voice and around the studio. "That's what I really wanted," he added. "For them to see that you can really make your dreams come true if you just stick to it" Ultimately, the teacher said he would like his song to be made into a public service announcement something that could be used on radio and TV to urge youngsters coast-to-coast to stay in school and "fulfill their dreams." Back in New York, Funtleyder arranged to cut a demo at a studio in Free-port, L.I. On the record, he sings a duet with friend An-gelique Philpotts, a -substitute teacher at PS 225.

"I took 25 kids out to the studio with me," he said. "They sing the chorus." The final mix was completed about three weeks ago, and "Hear My Voice" is radio ready, recorded under the label of Mugsy Productions. "That's a nickname I've had for years," said Funtleyder. He credits his students all from the Rockaways for helping his work of cre MS By CLAIRE SERANT state's Wicks Law, which requires the city to hire four prime contractors for electrical; heating, ventilation and air conditioning; plumbing and general construction. The law, Strasser explained, calls for each contractor to be equally responsible for safety and other preventive measures.

Fred Mazzarello, president of the College Point Board of Trade, said his group is eager to see the bus depot built. "It's important to get the facility completed. A lot of money is being squandered delaying the project The cost of labor and material goes up," he said. self to finishing the job, said Michael Strasser, DOT's assistant commissioner of borough transit operations. "We're initiating the pre-default process.

His bonding company would have to complete the job," Strasser said of the standstill. In February, the three-year-old project suffered a major setback when the general contractor, a Bronx company, quit That delay will keep Queens Surface's 717 employes and 340 buses in cramped quarters several months longer than anticipated, said Robert Burke, Ihe firm's president The project, scheduled to be completed in October 1997, falls under the firm's present headquarters is behind the construction site. Certified Electric refuses to come back until the department hires a new general contractor. The previous one walked off the job earlier this year, and Apriceno said there is no one at the site to monitor safety issues. "I don't want to proceed with the project until we have a new general contractor.

I have a responsibility to my manpower if safety issues are not met," Apriceno said. The Transportation Department responded by refusing to allow Apri-ceno's workers on the premises to retrieve their equipment The city agency said Certified Electric will regain access if it commits it- Daily News Staff Writer More construction delays might be scheduled for the trouble-plagued Queens Surface $43 million bus depot in College Point A New Jersey electrical contractor has stopped work at the 28th Ave. and Ulmer St construction site in a contract dispute with the city's Department of Transportation. "Our feeling is they city officials don't want to get the project finished," said Dan Apriceno, vice president of operations with Certified Electrical Contracting Corp. of Hackensack.

Quen urfabey a private company, will move onto the city-owned proper-; ty once the project is completed. The;.