Dear Friend,
I hope you are staying safe and well. I wanted to reach out with some updates from my office from the last couple weeks:
1. MTA's Open Stroller Pilot Program
2. Unlicensed Cannabis Sales
3. Pigeon Proliferation in Carl Schurz Park
4. Roe V Wade 50th Anniversary
5. Small Business Event with SBA Administrator
6. Annual Chess in the Schools Tournament
7. Shred-a-Thon Event with Chapin
8. Small Business Opportunity Fund
9. HPD Outreach Event
10. Dance Performance at P.S. 290
11. Community Events and Updates
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1. MTA Open Stroller Pilot
As a mother, I have seen first-hand how difficult it is to ride the bus with my young daughter and a stroller. It's difficult and often unsafe to try and maneuver a collapsible stroller onto a bus while also holding a child. That is why I was thrilled to join the MTA last week to celebrate the expansion of the MTA's Open Stroller Pilot Program, a program that allows bus riders the ability to bring strollers on. As NBC4 reported, I joined MTA Officials to announce the expansion of this pilot to 1000 buses citywide from just 140. These 1000 buses will now have dedicated accessibility spaces for stroller and wheelchairs. This is a game changer and a great win for parents and caregivers across the City. I look forward to seeing this roll out even further.
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2. Unlicensed Cannabis Sales
A couple weeks ago, the City Council convened a hearing on the proliferation of unlicensed smoke shops. I know this is a significant issue for constituents as I have heard from many constituents about a variety of locations popping up in our community and selling products that are marketed to minors with cartoon characters and that have been found to have harmful chemicals in the products. As New York 1 reported, during the hearing, I questioned the administration about any sort of public awareness campaigns planned for parents similar to the one I spearheaded regarding illicit K2 sales when I was the Commissioner of Consumer Affairs that warned minors and parents of the dangers of these products marketed to minors. I will continue to advocate to the Administration that we use an approach similar to the one we successfully used to combat K2. If you'd like to report an unlicensed smoke shop, please reach out to my office.
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3. Pigeon Droppings in Carl Schurz
Recently, my office was flooded with complaints from constituents regarding a proliferation of pigeons in Carl Schurz Park by the John Finley Walk. This has led to a large amount of pigeon droppings on many of the benches rendering many of them unusable. As Patch reported, we reached out to the Parks Department to request that they address this matter. The Department has requested signage for the Park to remind individuals of rules about feeding pigeons and Parks Department staff at Carl Schurz will also be closely monitoring the situation and reminding individuals not to feed them. We're hoping to see this condition mitigated quickly. Please continue reaching out to my office to report back on the issue.
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4. Roe v Wade 50th Anniversary
January 22nd, 2023 marked the 50th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade. I joined my colleagues in commemorating this important anniversary and we reflected on what the City Council has done to advance the issue of women’s reproductive rights. With our historic female majority, we passed a comprehensive legislative package to strengthen protections and create a safe, accessible city for those who need reproductive healthcare. Even as abortion rights across the country are under grave threat, we are working tirelessly on the Council to create robust protections here and assist in the fight nationwide. In capturing that spirit, the City Council adopted my resolution declaring January 22nd, 2023, Roe V. Wade Day and it was important to acknowledge it last week.
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5. SBA Event with Small Business Administrator
One of my priorities as Chair of the Small Business Committee is increasing digitalization. My bill to create an Office of Digitalization is working its way through the Council and I believe it will be a major win for many small businesses who lack a digital presence and struggle to compete because of this. Last week, I had the pleasure of joining the U.S. Small Business Administrator Isabel Guzman at an event for the Small Business Digital Alliance in partnership with Verizon. I delivered the opening remarks at the event discussing the Council's commitment to digitalization. I look forward to further collaboration with federal officials to support our small businesses.
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6. Annual Chess in the Schools Tournament
Chess in the Schools does important work in bringing chess programming to schools across our city, especially in underserved areas. A couple weekends ago, my office funded and sponsored a Chess in the Schools tournament at Eleanor Roosevelt High School for students all around the city. It was great to be able to present awards to the winners at the end of the tournament. I also had the opportunity to dust off my skills and test them against some very worthy opponents! I am proud to sponsor this tournament for the second year in a row and continue this great annual tradition.
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7. Shred-a-Thon Event with the Chapin School
After our successful shredding event with the Chapin School back in June, we heard from many constituents requesting another shredding opportunity. Despite the cold weather, I was proud to bring our shredding event back this past Friday as I once again partnered with Chapin to bring a shredding truck to the District. Shred-a-thons are critical in our efforts to boost recycling and protect against identity theft. I will be looking to support more of these in our community in the spring and summer. I'm grateful for Chapin's partnership on these shredding events and it was wonderful to greet shredders with Chapin Head of School Suzanne Fogarty.
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8. Small Business Opportunity Fund
As the Small Business Committee Chair, it has been great to partner with the Department of Small Business Services as the Administration rolls out more initiatives to support small businesses. Last week, I joined Mayor Adams, the SBS Commissioner, and my colleague Council Member Pierina Sanchez to celebrate the launch of a $75 million small business opportunity fund. The fund will be serving approximately 1,500 small businesses with loans of up to $250,000 at a 4 percent interest rate. This provides critical access to capital at the community level to support these small businesses and is a great example of a successful public-private partnership. Please find more information on how to apply for these funds here.
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9. HPD Outreach Event
Our city faces an affordable housing crisis right now and the Council is working hard to make this a top priority for 2023. Within our District, I am working hard on it as well and also wanted to make sure the resources that the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) are available to constituents. That's why we are partnering with the Urban Outreach Center and the Avenue Church to host an HPD outreach event tomorrow at 1745 1st Avenue at 6:30pm. We hope to see you there and reach out if you have any questions.
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10. Dance Performance at P.S. 290
I am a strong supporter of arts education for students in our District. That's why I fund National Dance Institute (NDI) to do after school dance programming at some of our District's schools including P.S. 290. A couple weeks ago, I visited P.S. 290 to watch the mid-year performance for the 4th graders. I was blown away by the impressive performance and passion and enthusiasm the students had for embracing arts education. I look forward to continuing to support programming like this at schools across the District. The visit was capped off when I got to speak to the 5th Grade Student Council about the importance of civic activism and engagement!
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11. Community Events and Updates
There are many events and community announcements that I wanted to highlight. If you want us to include an event in an upcoming newsletter, email Cameron Koffman from my team at ckoffman@council.nyc.gov
East Side Unity Event Against Anti-Semitism: Monday, February 13th, 6:30 at the Moise Safra Center (130 East 82nd St). See flyer for more info below.
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Community Board 8 Winter Crafts Show: February 11th, 11am-4pm, Church of the Holy Trinity (316 East 88th Street)
Bobby Wagner Walk Public Input:
There are two upcoming community workshops for public input on the Esplanade Construction and Pier Renovation in East Harlem. They will be on Thursday, Feb 9th, from 6:30 – 8:30 PM, or in-person on Monday, Feb 13th, from 6:30 – 8:30 PM at Central Park East II (details below). Content at both meetings will be the same. The meetings will provide an interactive opportunity to offer direct feedback on what you want to see in the project.
Please register at the following links:
Workshop #1 - Virtual
Feb 9th, from 6:30 – 8:30 PM
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYvceurpjovG9PrSS4yjTN0j0ykzsBw0O-4
Workshop #1 - In-person
Feb 13th, from 6:30 – 8:30 PM
Central Park East II (433 E 100th St, New York, NY 10029)
Enter through the River Crossing Housing front entrance. This is located within the Vito Marcantonio Building. Signs will be posted for guidance. https://forms.gle/YJUxP32xDDNBwkza7
For more information and any questions, please email Pier107BobbyWagnerWalk@stantec.com and check out upcoming events at: bit.ly/107-BWW. We hope to see you at Community Workshop #1 and the Esplanade Walkthrough.
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Email us at district5@council.nyc.gov, call our office at 212-860-1950, or visit us at 444 East 75th Street #1B (75th and York Avenue)
Best,
Julie
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