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Friends,

It’s Thursday, July 7, 2022.

The FDA’s vaccine advisory committee last week voted to add Omicron traits to the booster vaccines to be manufactured for the fall. Katelyn Jetelina, in her “Your Local Epidemiologist” newsletter this week, describes the problem as follows: “We’ve been using the same vaccine formula throughout the pandemic—one created in early 2020 to fight against the original Wuhan variant. This may be okay for the future,” she says, “or it may not. Coronaviruses thrive in winter, vaccine protections wane, and the virus is changing very quickly… all signs are pointing to a fall resurgence.” 

Dr. Eric Topol further notes that the original vaccines took ten months to test in clinical trials, and—likewise—it took the Omicron BA.1 booster seven months to be similarly tested (during which the BA.1 strain all but disappeared). Synthesizing the BA.5 booster will likely take months, leaving time for a new strain of COVID to develop.

As Matthew Yglesias describes the tortoise-like pace of this decision making in his newsletter: “Slowly updating vaccines to chase variants that are already in the rearview mirror is not an acceptable global COVID strategy. We need to speed up the pace of clinical trials and invest serious financial resources in developing next-generation vaccines.” The good news is that the FDA has agreed to not require human trials for BA.4 and BA.5-optimized vaccines, whenever manufacturers produce those.

The City’s Dept. of Health abandoned the color-coded COVID alert levels tied to case rates and hospitalizations last Thursday (6/30), without putting another method of advising the public in its place. While NYC’s case and hospitalization numbers aren’t large, they are rising, and the DOHMH COVID website continues to state “there are currently high transmission levels of COVID-19 throughout the city.” What’s more, the CDC has not abandoned its guidance which recommends use of masks indoors in areas of high transmission. 

Because Omicron evades infection-based or vaccine-based antibodies, the BA.4 and BA.5 variants are taking over as the dominant form of COVID and driving positivity rates in the city up (13.9% is the 7-day average). Hospitalizations in the city have also risen, from 725 people hospitalized with the virus in early June to 877 people now, according to state data—representing a 20% spike.

Additional COVID news: 

• The City will immediately prescribe the antiviral Paxlovid to people who test positive for the coronavirus at its mobile testing sites.

• Long COVID symptoms are often overlooked in seniors (Washington Post).

• The FDA has authorized pharmacists to prescribe Paxlovid. Because not everyone has access to a doctor or nurse practitioner, especially in underserved communities, this will help get medicine to all who need it. According to the CDC, dispensing rates for Paxlovid were lowest in the country’s poorest ZIP codes over the first five months of the treatment’s availability.

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Yesterday, 7/6, the City Dept. of Health announced the arrival of 6,000 doses of monkeypox vaccine, which were immediately snapped up. According to the NY Post City Hall reporter, Nolan Hicks, the next shipment is due in mid-to-late July. 

According to the DOHMH, as of today, 7/7, 141 people have tested positive for orthopoxvirus in NYC (which is presumed to be monkeypox).

More information about how you can prevent monkeypox.

And the newsletter Your Local Epidemiologist offers Monkeypox 101 here. 

The City's DOHMH posts Monkeypox updates here.

News & information.

“Fresh Food for Seniors” has begun! Our first pickup was today, 7/7—see picture below—and we packed and handed off hundreds of $10 bags of fresh produce to Upper West Side seniors at Goddard Riverside. 

It’s pay-as-you-go (not a subscription), so it’s a great value with no need for commitment like a CSA—just a little advance planning. The program offers a bag of locally-grown fresh produce for $10 (a $15+ value) throughout the growing season.

The next pickup day is 7/21, and we took orders for THAT pickup today, 7/7. But stop by on 7/21 at Goddard, 593 Columbus Avenue, between 1 – 3 pm to order for 8/4. (Click here for details on our other locations.) Call my district office at 212-873-0282 or email district6@council.nyc.gov with any questions.

Goddard 2022 Pickup Thursdays:

• July 21
• August 4 (You must sign up July 21)
• August 18 (Sign up Aug. 4)
• September 1 (Sign up Aug. 18) 
• September 15 (Sign up Sept. 1)
• September 29 (Sign up Sept. 15)
• October 13 (Sign up Sept. 29)
• October 27 (Sign up Oct. 13)
• November 10 (Sign up Oct. 27)

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This week the Council's Committee on Women and Gender Equity progressed a package of bills and resolutions about women's health, heard publicly last Friday (7/1). You can find the link to watch the hearing here. 

Jessica Valenti has begun an audio feature (ok, podcast) of her newsletter called "Abortion, Every Day." Here’s the third installment, and she says it includes some pretty horrifying stories: “BeccaLizz on being denied her Lupus meds, FemiYahtzee on being unable to get a prescription for her long COVID, and Nate on a cashier refusing to sell his wife condoms. Here’s the Reddit post from a Missouri woman who was refused medication to help her complete her miscarriage, and here’s Chloe’s story on Instagram.”

Google announced it will automatically delete visits to abortion clinics, domestic violence shelters, weight loss clinics, and other potentially sensitive locations from users' location histories in the coming weeks.

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There’s a proposed West Harlem State National Register Historic District, between Amsterdam and Riverside from W. 135th to W. 155th, supported by Community Board 9 and the West Harlem Community Preservation Organization, which sponsored an online information session last week (posted on Youtube here). This Sunday, 7/10, from 11 am – 1 pm, they are hosting a walk-through of the northern part of the proposed district. Meet at the Carmansville Playground, Amsterdam Ave. between W. 151st and W. 152nd.

The New York State Historic Preservation Office will host an official public meeting on the proposal 8/3 at 6 pm. RSVP at tinyurl.com/WHDISTRICT.

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I testified before the NYC Redistricting Commission yesterday (7/5) and you can read my testimony here. 

​Tuesday, 7/19 at 6pm via zoom: Citizens Union sponsors a Redistricting Workshop on the new districts coming to the NY City Council. Register here.

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In case you missed it, here's a recording of our July Housing Clinic, which covered how to form a tenant association.

Useful items.

A reader, Sue, writes: “Today, yet another older tenant in our building was found lying on the bathroom floor after falling; emergency services were called to open her door. It was fortunate that one of the maintenance staff with excellent hearing could hear her faint "help me" from where she lay in the bathroom… I've been urging and urging the older tenants who live alone in our building—and elsewhere—to give a copy of their keys to the super and to use some kind of medical alert [device].  It's falling on deaf ears.  This is the third such neighbor in my building in the past year. Can you remind people?”

Consider yourselves reminded! 

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Construction of the 79th St. Boat Basin’s Rotunda Complex has begun, which means the majority of the Traffic Circle will be closed as well as the southbound Henry Hudson Entrance Ramp from the rotary. There’s no westbound traffic on W. 79th Street past the Henry Hudson Parkway northbound entrance ramp. Finally, the parks/marina garage is closed. Here's a bus detour map and here's a detour map for pedestrians, cyclists, and drivers.

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Full-scale Alternate Side Parking (ASP) regulations for street cleaning have been restored to pre-pandemic frequency—take care to comply with any sign instructions you see. 

Speaking of Alternate Side Parking, ASP rules are suspended this Sat – Mon, 7/9 – 7/10 for Idul-Adha (Eid Al-Adha).

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New York City’s speed cameras will begin operating 24/7 on Monday, 8/1. The city’s 2,000 automated speed cameras were previously authorized by the state to operate only on weekdays, between 6 am – 10 pm, and thus missed 59% of traffic fatalities that occurred in the downtime. 

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Caveat emptor, patrons of food carts: beware of vendors ignoring the prices posted on their carts and charging much more. This from the West Side Rag: Food Cart Sticker Shock: Buyer Be Aware.

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CitiBike just launched an ad panel contest for 17 stations co-located near or on NYCHA properties. The top winner in each borough will a win prize of $500 and get their art posted on CitiBike screens near NYCHA developments. (People who live in NYCHA or receive SNAP benefits are eligible for CitiBike’s Reduced Fare Bike Share $5/month program.)

Here’s how to enter: Create art that shows how taking a CitiBike ride moves you and connects to your community in Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, or the Bronx. How it feels to breeze through town, to ride around while laughing with friends. Capture ride-a-bike joy!

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The West Side Rag is sponsoring a call for essays from NYCHA residents of any age using the prompt: "The Upper West Side through my eyes." Carol Tannenhauser, one of the WSR editors, knows there are great writers within NYCHA walls!

Submit 500 words (or less), and the top three winners are awarded $50 each and published in the West Side Rag—along with the opportunity to write further articles. Email ctannenhauser@gmail.com with your submission by 8/1.

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Lower Manhattan Cultural Council announced the launch of its three 2023 grants programs: Creative Engagement, Creative Learning, and UMEZ Arts Engagement. All three have one deadline: Tuesday, 8/3. (Which doesn’t explain the information sessions occurring after that deadline, ahem!)

The grants offer Manhattan-based artists and arts organizations access to up to four sources of funding, opportunities to combine multiple grants for a single project, and one of LMCC’s largest overall regrant budgets in recent years. Information sessions about the programs are on the following dates; RSVP at the links. 

Creative Engagement & Creative Learning: 

• Wednesday, 7/20, 6 – 8 pm: Hosted in partnership with FABnyc.

• Monday, 8/1, 3 – 5 pm: Hosted in partnership with Chinese American Arts Council. Chatham Square Library, 33 East Broadway: Presented in Mandarin Chinese.

• Wednesday, 9/7, 6 – 8 pm: Hosted in partnership with The Alliance of Resident Theatres/New York. 

• Tuesday, 8/30, 4 – 6 pm: Hosted in partnership with Community Word Project & NYC Arts in Education Roundtable. ASL interpretation available.

Creative Engagement & Umez Arts Engagement: 

• Thursday, 7/28, 6 – 8 pm: Hosted in partnership with the Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance Esta sesión será en ingles y español. This session presented in English and Spanish

• Tuesday, August 16, 4 – 6 pm: Hosted in partnership with Harlem Arts Alliance. ASL interpretation available.

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Applications are now open for William Greaves Funds for mid-career filmmakers of color; click the links below to learn more:

• The newly established PBS/Firelight William Greaves Production Fund will “resource” documentary productions intended for distribution on PBS by mid-career filmmakers from diverse communities.

• The William Greaves Research & Development Fund, now in its third year, targets filmmakers based in the U.S., Mexico, Brazil, Puerto Rico, and Colombia, with a particular interest in those who identify as being of Indigenous and/or of African descent. The Research & Development Fund will make grants up to $40,000 to support research and development on a feature-length nonfiction film.

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The City's free summer meals program—which continues school meals during the summer recess—for those 18 and under started Tuesday 6/28, and is available at these sites. Here are the West Side locations, operating Monday-Friday: Breakfast 8 - 9:15 am and Lunch 11 am - 1:15 pm:

• PS 149 (41 W 117 St.)
• Wadleigh (215 W 114 St.)
• Locke School (20 W 112 St.)
• PS 75 (735 WEA)
• UA Green Careers HS (145 W 84 St.)
• PS 191 (300 W 61 St.)

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Have a construction project to start or complete? A violation to resolve? Want to learn more about a property’s zoning? “Buildings After Hours” from 4 – 7 pm every Tuesday provides the chance for anyone to ask the Dept. of Buildings staff any question at each borough office of the DOB (Manhattan’s office is at 280 Broadway). No appointment needed. Learn more by clicking on the link.

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Central Park’s dog rules are simple: all dogs must be leashed between 9 am and 9 pm. During the worst of COVID – and especially because of all the new dog owners – those lines blurred, so the Central Park Conservancy is rolling out more notifications and releasing this new dog owner’s guide.

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The lottery for 53 affordable apartments at 117 W. 79th St. is open. Apply online here or request an application via mail by sending a self-addressed envelope to: Fairstead Management c/o: Park 79, 560 Lenox Avenue, New York, NY 10037. Applications must be postmarked or submitted online no later than Friday, 8/5.

The Times published a guide to various other affordable housing lotteries in “Looking for Affordable Housing in New York? Here’s Where to Find It.”

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City Parks Foundation’s free summer sports programs are kicking off soon, including Youth Tennis in Central Park. Partnerships for Parks’ It’s My Park program is open year-round for community members and organizations to host or participate in a service project to help care for parks and playgrounds.

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There are seven Community Districts in NYC currently being served with curbside organics pickups—and the Upper West Side is one of them! But after a 2020 pandemic-era budget pause, our pickup tonnage has yet to reach pre-COVID levels; other Community Districts in Brooklyn and Queens are beating us. So, please, sign up here to be added to a current route and get a free brown bin. Organics comprise over 30% of city solid waste, and it decomposes into methane, a potent gas that contributes to the climate crisis. Composting is something you can do RIGHT NOW to help address climate change!

JOBS

We’re hiring! My office is interviewing for a Director of Scheduling. Email your cover letter and resume (as an all-in-one PDF, please) to district6@council.nyc.gov with “scheduler” in the subject line.

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Mayor Adams and the Civic Engagement Commission is awarding funding to organizations, groups, or individuals for the Idea Generation Phase of The People’s Money, the first citywide participatory budgeting process in New York City. Grants will be made to applicants facilitating virtual, in-person, or hybrid engagement of NYC residents. Fill out this form to apply by tomorrow, Friday, 7/8.

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NYPD is recruiting, too. Registration for the NYPD Police Officer exam is open until next Tuesday, 7/12. Visit the link for more details and to register.

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I helped found the Urban Advantage Elementary & Middle School Science Initiative in 2004, which gathered eight of NYC’s leading cultural institutions — the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), Brooklyn Botanic Garden, New York Botanical Garden, New York Hall of Science, Queens Botanical Garden, Staten Island Zoo, Wildlife Conservation Society’s Bronx Zoo, and New York Aquarium— to collaborate with the Department of Education in supporting cutting edge science instruction in our city’s schools.

Teacher applications for the Urban Advantage (UA) program are now open. Although application deadline is Monday, 8/22, seats are limited and UA practices rolling admissions so it is best to apply as early as possible. Click here for more information, and apply with this link (Use the “contact us” option at that link to request assistance). Don’t ask me why, but they require the use of Chrome or Firefox web browsers.

Events.

The West Side Rag has a consistently great weekly events listing here. 

Lincoln Center’s Summer for the City programming continues; check this link for calendar.

NYC Parks and the Riverside Park Conservancy sponsor hundreds of free events in the park all summer (PDF). Follow them on Twitter, especially for cancellations due to weather: @summeronhudson.

Hudson River Park events can be found here; sign up at the top of their webpage to receive their weekly newsletter with dozens of free events listed. 

Battery Park Conservancy also sponsors lots of events; view their calendar here.

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The Drilling Company will present a two-week run of “The Winter’s Tale” at 7 pm every day from Wednesday, 7/13, to Friday, 7/15, as well as from Thursday, 7/21, to Saturday, 7/23, in the parking lot of The Clemente (114 Norfolk Street). Admission is free; chairs are provided on a first come, first serve basis and you’re welcome to bring your own. Call (212) 877-0099 for rainouts. 

I will be speaking at The Classical Theatre of Harlem’s opening night this Saturday, 7/9, at their “Afrofuturistic” production of Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night” starring Kara Young (a 2022 Tony nominee for her performance in “Clyde's”) who will play Viola. Free performances July 9 – 29 at Marcus Garvey Park in Harlem. Reserve free tickets here.

This year’s first production of Public Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park is Richard III (through until 7/17), followed by As You Like It (playing from 8/10 - 9/11). Not only is it back, but all ticketing options are as well: in-person distribution in Central Park; in-person lottery at The Public Theater; in-person distribution in the boroughs; a digital lottery with TodayTix; and in-person standby line in Central Park

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Lincoln Square BID's free lunchtime summer concert series will return on Wednesdays from noon to 1:30 pm starting last Wednesday, 7/6, and running all summer until 8/31. Performances will be held at Dante Park, on Broadway between W. 63rd & 64th Streets. Click here for more information and the full lineup.

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The Riverside Clay Tennis Association's 2022 Sunset Concert Series continues this Saturday 7/9 at 7 pm with Dusty Wright & The Nomads. Future concert dates (hosted every Saturday) are below:

• 7/16, 7 pm: CCB Reggae All Stars

• 7/23, 7 pm: Gentlemen of Soul

• 7/30, 7 pm: Gilad Bloom Band

• 8/6, 7 pm: Mimi & The Podd Brothers

• 8/13, 7 pm: Jacob Varmus Quintet

• 8/20, 7 pm: Cynthia Sayer

• 8/27, 7 pm: Leon & The Peoples

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Saturday, 7/9, 1 – 3 pm, Morris-Jumel Mansion, 65 Jumel Terrace: Family Day at the Morris Jumel Mansion this year means learning about the history of Early American ice cream, the unusual flavors they used, and how their ice cream was made. Afterwards, choose your flavors and make your own delicious ice cream. Guests are encouraged to bring a picnic blanket to sit on the lawn and enjoy your homemade ice cream after the program. Click the link for free registration; limit of four spots per family. Sponsored by Con Edison.

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Sunday, 7/10 is Bastille Day, and Alliance Francais is celebrating in person from Noon – 5 on Madison Avenue, between 59th – 63rd St. French cuisine, musique, dance, and attractions for the whole family, this fête populaire invites New Yorkers to revel in the flavors, sounds, and joie de vivre of France. Click the link to learn more.

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Sunday, 7/10, 5:30 pm: Lincoln Center is hosting “Celebrate LOVE: A (Re)Wedding” in Damrosch Park, inviting all New Yorkers whose wedding was cancelled due the pandemic, forced onto Zoom, or separated from a loved one(s), and want to symbolically renew their vows or simply want to show off their love. It’s not a civil ceremony or legally binding—it’s an artistic representation of love. Will include live performances and dancing under the mega disco ball. To register as a couple: fill out this form.

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Sunday, 7/10 is also the first of three possible rehearsal days for the community choir that’s part of a performance at Lincoln Center’s Summer for the City: “Songs of the Living,” a gathering led by Toshi Reagon, inspired by Octavia E. Butler’s Parable of the Sower, the classic sci-fi novel by the late MacArthur Fellow and Hugo Award-winner Octavia E. Butler. 

It’s the beginning of NYC's Parable Path, a set of local events, talks and rituals centered on collaborative living that draw inspiration from that book. Led by singer/songwriter Toshi Reagon, whose opera of the same name will premiere in New York in 2023, the community choir will direct the audience through an open and engaging evening of song, dance, and deep conversation. Anyone can sign up to be a part of the Choir. To participate, choose a rehearsal date and venue that is most convenient for you: 

• July 10 at 3:00 pm: The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture (Harlem, Manhattan)

• July 17 at 3:00 pm: Weeksville Heritage Center (Crown Heights, Brooklyn)

• July 19 at 5:30 pm: Joe’s Pub at The Public Theater (Astor Place, Manhattan)

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Dr. Celia Fisher will be hosting a hybrid discussion on Sunday, 7/10 about why parents resist vaccinating their children against COVID-19 and how such a decision affects their children’s health. The event will be held from 11:00 am – 12:15 pm on the 4th floor of Ethical Culture Society's Ceremonial Hall (2 West 64th Street). You can also join the event over Zoom with this link – the passcode is 609424.

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The American-Italian Cancer Foundation is sponsoring a mobile, cost-free breast cancer screening program, offering mammograms and clinical breast exams to uninsured and medically underserved NYC women between 40 to 79 years of age, and not have undergone a mammogram in the past year. Look for their “Mammogram Bus” at:

• Friday, 7/15, 9 am – 4:30 pm, 108 W. 146th Street

• Thursday, 8/25, 9 am – 4:30 pm, 155 W. 145th Street

You can also schedule a free mammogram by calling 212-281-1349 or 1-877-628-9090. Click the link for more information.

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Sunday, 7/17, 11 am - 12:15 pm, Ceremonial Hall (2 West 64th St): The Society for Ethical Culture hosts Jeffery Deskovic, Esq. to discuss how his past hardships inspired him to become an advocate for the wrongfully accused. You can also join via Zoom at this link (passcode is 609424).

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Sunday, 7/17, Noon – 4 pm, in person at Naumberg Bandshell in Central Park, and online at DisabilityUnite.org: “A Future of Inclusion,” part of the third annual Disability Unite festival, celebrating Disability Pride Month and the 32nd anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Performing & visual artists include John Bramblitt, Blessing Offor, Lachi, Gaelynn Lea, Wheelchair Sports Camp.

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​Tuesday, 7/19 via zoom: Citizens Union sponsors a Redistricting Workshop on the new districts coming to the NY City Council. Register here.

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Saturday, 7/30 will be the celebration of the 75th Anniversary of Amsterdam Houses, the NYCHA development, on 64th St. between Amsterdam and West End. Residents and the community will be hosting a once-in-75-years celebration from noon to 6 pm, featuring music with DJ Ritchie, a Latin band, children’s activities (balloon art, clowns, jugglers, magicians, and rock climbing), a free fun photo booth (2 – 5 pm), basketball games with the Positive Influence Old Timers, souvenir T-shirts, and a food court (along with a special luncheon for Amsterdam resident seniors 62+).

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Sunday, 7/31, 11 am - 12:15 pm: Domestic violence advocate Stephanie McGraw will host a hybrid event to introduce her organization, We All Really Matter (W.A.R.M.), and discuss community strategies to end domestic violence. The event will be held on the Ethical Culture Society's Ceremonial Hall (2 West 64th Street). Details about the zoom will be announced soon, and more information about W.A.R.M. can be found by clicking on the link above.

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Saturday, 8/13, 11:30 am – 7 pm, E. 120th Street & Harlem Art Park (Between Lexington & 3rd Ave.): The Afribembé Festival, an all-day Pan-African celebration of the African Diaspora's creativity, musicality, intellectuality, and artistry, sponsored by the Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute. The festival's Bembé Stage will feature live DJ sets and artists representing various regions.
 

Stay Safe,