CORONAVIRUS & MONKEYPOX
1. HERE’S THE NY SCOOP
THE STATS:
| 18, 249,725 vaccines administered across NYC 757new hospitalizations 7,056 new cases (wear your masks!!!) 3, 799 Monkeypox cases in NY |
GOOD NEWS
| Bridging the Digital Divide Over 300,000 NYC public housing residents will get free internet and cable starting in 2023. Diversity in the…fireforce – New legislation will require the FDNY to hire more female and minority firefighters to more accurately reflect NYC. Right now, over 75% of firefighters are white men, and less than 1% are women. |
BAD NEWS
| MTA to install 2 cameras in each subway car – Governor Hochul announced a $5.5 million plan to install 2 cameras in every single subway car to deter crime. While that may help, we’re curious as to exactly who will be watching? What type of privacy are we losing out on? All we can say for sure…is that the Showtime kids are about to get some great footage. |
TELL US YOUR THOUGHTS
2. WELP…THERE GOES $200 MILLION
| WTF IS HAPPENING? During the peak of the Pandemic, New York saw the largest drop off in tourism it had ever seen, with hotels at a 39.1% occupancy rate. As mentioned in last week’s newsletter, affordable housing has also been on tight supply due to lengthy permitting for development. Earlier this year, Mayor Eric Adams followed up on an ambitious plan to convert hotels with low occupancy into affordable housing. “Affordable apartments can be created for about two-thirds of the cost and in one-third of the time through conversions than through ground-up construction. Passed in 2021, the Housing Our Neighbors with Dignity Act made $100 million available to help facilitate these conversions” – NYC Press Release, May 1, 2022 ONE YEAR, $200 MILLION LATER… While the plan started spinning its wheels during under Governor Cuomo’s leadership, another $100 million was added to fund the program and not a single apartment has been created. California on the other hand, has created 12,500 homes in a similar plan within the last two years. Why? Well, now that tourism is back, hotels are seeing an 81.2% occupancy rate and no longer “underutilized” or selling their properties for cheap. Plus, most of the hotels within the city are unionized and backed by the Hotel Trades Council Union that curiously enough, also backed Mayor Adams’ campaign. AND NOW? We’re at a standstill. Hotels in the city won’t sell because business is booming. Even if we are able to get a hotel to sell, the entire permitting process is lengthy, and zoning requirements make it extremely difficult for developers to convert hotels or build affordable apartments from scratch. It’s a Catch 22 that would offend even Yossarian! While we’re not sure what’s happened to the money just yet, let’s hope it doesn’t fall into negligent hands like the NYC Ferry debacle. Developers are incentivized to build luxury apartments that will make them significantly more money. If the city is really going to create affordable housing, then they need to remove obstacles and increase initiative to allow this to happen. We’ll need our representatives to speak up for us. November’s coming elections will be imperative, so make sure that you are registered to vote! |
OH HEY, HELLO, ciaooo!
3. HEY! IT’S CLIMATE WEEK! LET’S CHANGE THE WORLD TOGETHER!
| Climate Week NYC 2022, marks its fourteenth year as the biggest global climate event of its kind. Bringing together the most influential leaders in climate action from business, government, and the climate community, in conjunction with the United Nations General Assembly and the City of New York. Climate Week NYC creates an ambitious platform for our mission to drive climate action. Fast. Check out these two great events this week if you are interested in learning more! |
- Nest Summit Campus – Meet 70+ Sustainability Experts and Entrepreneurs in this FREE summit at Jacob Javits Center. Wed, Sep 21, 2022, 7:30 AM – Thu, Sep 22, 2022, 5:30 PM EDT (FREE)
- Marketplace of the Future – Meet and view exhibitionists from the next generation of sustainable brands, spearheaded by Brooklyn based environmental futurist, Amer Jandali! Friday, September 23rd 3PM – 11PM ($35)
Community-first. Women-led. ciaooo! is on a mission to empower brands and organizations that make NYC a better place. Learn more!
Other Things You Might Like to Read
Facebook Conversations
