NYC GREEN RELIEF & RECOVERY FUND ANNOUNCES $845,000 IN GRANTS TO ADDRESS SYSTEMIC WEAKNESSES IN THE STEWARDSHIP OF THE CITY’S PARKS AND OPEN SPACE SYSTEM

 

Funding will support public awareness, green infrastructure program models, funding challenges, and more

The NYC Green Relief & Recovery Fund -- a growing alliance of foundations and corporations -- announced the selection of 8 new grant recipients through a competitive funding opportunity. The NYC-focused organizations will receive $845,000 in grants ranging from $50,000 to $200,000 to raise awareness of the critical importance of NYC’s parks and green spaces, while supporting needed systemic changes in the open space stewardship sector. The Fund is being administered by City Parks Foundation.

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted how essential open space is for the health and well-being of our communities, as well as stubborn inequities in their funding, accessibility, and maintenance. And with climate change intensifying, the City’s green spaces will become increasingly critical infrastructure, especially for the lower-income communities at greatest risk from heat waves, floods, and other extreme weather events. The nonprofits awarded grants will be addressing a range of systemic challenges and stubborn threats facing the open space system.  

At the request of the NYC Green Fund, the Central Park Conservancy’s Institute for Urban Parks looked closely at the major challenges facing parks and open space in New York City [see literature review here]. This research and subsequent discussions with practitioners informed the review and selection process for this funding opportunity.  

Projects supported: 

• Gowanus Canal Conservancy: Awarded $100,000 to develop a collaborative approach to green infrastructure maintenance
• Municipal Art Society of New York: Awarded $70,000 to advocate for a unified approach by the government to managing and planning for open space in New York City
• Natural Areas Conservancy: Awarded $125,000 to identify alternative funding sources for natural area restoration and management
• New Yorkers for Parks: Awarded $100,000 to build a broad multi-sector coalition and educate the public and policy makers on existing acute park issues, showing how parks and park development go hand in hand with social and environmental justice, public health, climate resilience, affordable housing, and economic development and the public realm.
• North Brooklyn Parks Alliance: Awarded $50,000 to support North Brooklyn Open Space Coalition's district wide open space planning and platform creation in Brooklyn’s Community Board 1
• South Bronx Unite: Awarded $75,000 to spearhead the Mott Haven-Port Morris Waterfront Plan and promote environmental justice policies valuing green space 
• The Trust for Public Land: Awarded $200,000 to conduct an economic benefits study of parks in NYC and initial analysis of funding options other than city tax dollars
• Waterfront Alliance: Awarded $125,000 to provide a pathway for NYC to open its waterfront lands to the communities that need them the most

Because the need is so great, we encourage those interested in supporting this work to donate now to The NYC Green Fund or contact NYCGreenFund@cityparksfoundation.org for more information.

OMH Issues $30 million RFP for Support Teams to Assist Vulnerable and Long-Term Homeless in NYC

 

The New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH) today issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) to develop eight treatment teams that will work with vulnerable New Yorkers living with mental illness, including people transitioning from inpatient care and long-term homeless people living on the streets and in the subway system.

The RFP will provide $30 million over five years to create eight teams utilizing an approach known as Critical Time Intervention (CTI). Six of the teams will work with individuals who are transitioning to the community after receiving inpatient care at a psychiatric facility. This is a critical time for a service recipient and many often don’t continue receiving the services they need.

The six Care Transition and Support Teams (CTSTs), made up of behavioral health professionals and peers, will promote continuity of care and ensure individuals remain connected to services. Two other teams, using the Critical Time Intervention model, will engage people with mental illness living on the street and in the subway system.

“This RFP will fund treatment techniques that are proven to be effective,” said OMH Commissioner Dr. Ann Sullivan. “The Care Transition and Support Teams concept helps people who are leaving inpatient care by connecting them to services in their own communities. This model has been shown to reduce ER visits and readmissions and improve health outcomes. Another vulnerable group, long-term homeless people with mental illness who are living on the streets and in the subway system, present additional challenges.  But the teams created through this RFP will reach out to these individuals directly and bring the services they need to them.”

The CTI approach has been successfully used in the past to help veterans, people with mental illness, people who are homeless or involved with the criminal justice system and other groups. 

Care Transition and Support Teams must partner with and be very knowledgeable about the continuum of behavioral health treatment services, housing options, benefits, and support services available.  CTSTs must use data to help support recipients such as the use of PSYCKES when determining the best treatment services and supports necessary to promote the recipient’s community tenure and recovery.

The Request for Proposals can be found on the OMH Website A total of $30 million over five years will be available. Proposals are due by March 12, 2021 and the tentative award date is April 7, 2021. For more information, contact OMH Contract Management Specialist Carol Swiderski at carol.swiderski@omh.ny.gov.

302 Days left and Counting

 

Who goes first? King Cuomo or Robinhood de Blasio?

A RECOVERY FOR ALL OF US: CITY ANNOUNCES PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP HAS DELIVERED WI-FI AND BROADBAND UPGRADES AT CORNERSTONE AND LEARNING LABS PROGRAMS IN 50 NYCHA COMMUNITY CENTERS

In partnership with The Information Technology Disaster Resource Center (ITDRC), The Rockefeller Foundation, Zoom, Cielo Scholarship Foundation, and EducationSuperHighway, the City enhanced access to remote learning for thousands of young people in NYCHA communities with hi-speed Wi-Fi and broadband at existing Cornerstones

 Mayor Bill de Blasio, the New York City Mayor’s Office of the Chief Technology Officer (MOCTO), the New York City Department of Education (DOE), the New York City Department of Youth & Community Development (DYCD), and the COVID-19 Public-Private Partnership Czar today announced a public-private partnership with The Information Technology Disaster Resource Center (ITDRC), The Rockefeller Foundation, Zoom, Cielo Scholarship Foundation, and EducationSuperHighway has delivered Wi-Fi and broadband upgrades to ensure that students learning remotely in the Learning Labs K-8 component of Learning Bridges at DYCD-funded Cornerstone Community Centers have access to free high-speed connectivity.

 

More than 12,000 young people and adults will benefit from the enhancements during active programming at the centers, in addition to thousands of community members who can access the free Wi-Fi hotspots provided by ITDRC as a result of this partnership.

 

 “Supporting our students as they navigate distance learning is critical, and connectivity is key,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “These community centers will be hubs for Internet access, and I am grateful for our partners for working with us to get this done.”

 

The sites with the greatest need were prioritized to receive the in-kind upgrades valued at more than a half million dollars following a survey of 143 programs that included Cornerstones, Learning Labs based in Cornerstones, and COMPASS Learning Labs in non-DOE buildings across the five boroughs. Of the 50 unique Cornerstones identified, twenty had both Wi-Fi and broadband installed, twenty received broadband, and ten were outfitted with Wi-Fi. In addition to supporting students in Learning Labs programs at Cornerstones, the enhancements will benefit young people and adults for years to come at Cornerstone afterschool, evening and weekend programs, and through community-accessible hot spots provided by ITDRC at 30 of the sites.

 

The City will continue efforts to address the digital divide in underserved communities through the Universal Solicitation for Broadband RFP, announced this week.

 

“This impressive cross-sector partnership will bring crucial support to young New Yorkers whose schooling has been moved online due to the pandemic,” said Deputy Mayor for Operations Laura Anglin. “The City of New York thanks The Information Technology Disaster Resource Center, The Rockefeller Foundation, Zoom, Cielo Scholarship Foundation, and EducationSuperHighway for their donations, and continued commitment to New York City students’ equitable access to education and technology.”

 

The public-private initiative was made possible due to the partnership between the City and the following organizations:

 

The Information Technology Disaster Resource Center (ITDRC) is a volunteer-driven non-profit that provides communities with the technical resources necessary to continue operations and recover after catastrophic events. As part of its projectConnect initiative, ITDRC provided and managed the installation of Wi-Fi and network equipment upgrades at the designated Learning Labs sites and is overseeing the transition to the new broadband system.

 

The Rockefeller Foundation, which works to bring together and support innovative initiatives to create meaningful change and drive development, is providing funds to support high-speed internet connectivity for students at the Learning Labs sites.

 

Zoom, the communications technology company that provides video, telephone and online chat services through a cloud-based peer-to-peer software platform, is providing funds to ensure quality, high-speed internet connectivity at each of the Learning Labs sites.

 

EducationSuperHighway, which works to create equitable digital learning opportunities for public school students by facilitating access to high-speed internet, played an integral role in creating this partnership. The national non-profit identified and brought together partners for this project, providing recommendations and expertise on broadband network architecture for the City.

 

Cielo Scholarship Foundation provided funding for broadband upgrades.

 

The following sites received upgrades (* denotes centers with community-accessible hot spots provided by ITDRC):

BRONX LOCATIONS

 

Cornerstone	Provider Name	Address
Melrose*	BronxWorks	286 East 156 Street
Butler*	Directions For Our Youth (DFOY)	1368 Webster Avenue
Edenwald	Mosholu Montefiore Community Center (MCCC)	1150 East 229 Street
Marble Hill	Mosholu Montefiore Community Center (MMCC)	5365 Broadway
Boston Secor*	Mosholu Montefiore Community Center (MMCC)	3540 Bivona Street
Davidson*	SoBro	1221 Prospect Avenue
Fort Independence*	Mosholu Montefiore Community Center (MMCC)	3350 Bailey Avenue

“Accelerating broadband access for NYCHA families and young people is essential to ensuring that our residents are able to keep pace in a learning environment drastically altered by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said NYCHA EVP for Community Engagement and Partnerships Sideya Sherman. “We are excited to be a part of an initiative that will create additional hubs for expanding access to the technological resources public housing communities need and deserve during this unprecedented time.”

 

“We’re proud to participate in such an important initiative to expand connectivity at community centers throughout the city,” said Joe Hillis, Operations Director of ITDRC. “These enhancements will enable more students to connect for distance learning and improve the overall learning experience.”   

 

“New York City has been home to The Rockefeller Foundation for over 100 years, and we’re proud to work with the city to support equitable access to technology that students need to continue their educations now and in the future,” said Zia Khan, Senior Vice President for Innovation, The Rockefeller Foundation.

  

“Zoom is honored to partner with New York City to make sure every young person has access to learning and to connecting to their teachers and classmates. This pandemic has called us together across public, private, and social sectors to ensure excellence, care and equity for this generation of students,” said Janine Pelosi, Chief Marketing Officer, Zoom.

 

“In order to alleviate future debt, The Cielo Scholarship Foundation is committed to funding underprivileged individuals’ education in trade and technology to ensure stable future employment. We understand that when students do not have access to technology, this can limit their ability to further their education. Cielo is committed to helping close this gap at all ages,” said the Cielo Scholarship Foundation.

  

“Since the earliest days of the pandemic, collaborations between the public and private sectors have created new opportunities to ensure every student has equal access to educational opportunity,” said Evan Marwell, Founder and CEO at EducationSuperHighway. “We are proud to be part of this partnership, ensuring New York City students have the connectivity they need to continue learning and fulfill their potential.”

 

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for Congress - Checking in

 

Here’s what we’re working on:

1. Preparing for a redistricting fight: New York could lose one or two of its representatives in Congress. AOC’s district could be redrawn or chopped apart as a result. We need to prepare for what comes after that, whether it’s another primary or a dramatically different district than the current NY-14.

2. Passing progressive policies: The Squad has grown. But we can’t do it alone. We need to show our fellow legislators and President Biden that their constituents demand progressive change too. That’s why we train volunteers and host weekly Green New Deal phone banks to spread the word about this bill. With more resources we can organize even more before the bill is reintroduced and build the movement for other policies like the Roadmap to Freedom, Medicare for All, and more.

3. Building resources to weigh in on critical races: We were able to help Jamaal Bowman win in NY-16. We sent over $880K to grassroots groups in Georgia organizing deep canvases and turning out the Latinx community. Think what we could do if we start preparing now for the elections in 2022.

4. COVID and disaster relief: Alexandria fought for and won up to $7,000 for families to cover the cost of laying a loved one to rest. She launched a Homework Helpers tutoring program and trained 13,000 volunteers to virtually tutor. After Texas’ storms, Team AOC raised over $5 million for disaster relief. Resources from grassroots donors like you made all this possible.

We can only do this work because of the movement behind us.

Thank you for being such a key part of Team AOC.

Lauren Hitt
Communications Director
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for Congress

Orange County Man Sentenced To 5 Years In Prison For Threatening To Attack School

 

 Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, William F. Sweeney Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), Dermot Shea, Commissioner of the New York City Police Department (“NYPD”), and Keith M. Corlett, Superintendent of the New York State Police (“NYSP”), announced that BRENDAN VAUGHAN was sentenced today to 60 months in prison, in connection with threats VAUGHAN made to classmates and law enforcement to carry out a school shooting in Washingtonville, New York.  VAUGHAN pled guilty to a three-count Information on December 3, 2019, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Judith C. McCarthy, and was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Kenneth M. Karas. 

U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said:  “In the wake of the many recent tragic school shootings committed in our country, parents, school administrators, and students are increasingly alert to the frightening possibility that their community could be next.  The defendant callously preyed on those fears in one community with a series of terrifying threats spread out over months, and took steps to act on those threats.  Today’s sentencing sends a clear message that making violent threats will merit a serious prison sentence.”

FBI Assistant Director William F. Sweeney Jr. said:  “No child should have to live in a society where the simple act of going to school invokes a sense of fear.  Unfortunately, for many school-aged children, this has become an all-too-familiar reality.  Vaughan’s clear and direct threats to his fellow classmates and others were so egregious that he was ultimately charged and convicted of a federal crime.  May this, along with the sentencing he received today, serve as a message to others like him – there are life-changing penalties for this type of behavior.” 

State Police Superintendent Keith M. Corlett said:  “I applaud the work done by the State Police and our law enforcement partners on this case, which no doubt saved lives.  Threats to our schools and the communities we serve are always taken seriously, and investigated to the fullest. We are committed to working with our law enforcement partners to combat and prevent these types of crimes from occurring.  Our priority is the safety of all New Yorkers.”

According to the Information, court filings, and statements made during court proceedings: 

In May 2018, VAUGHAN, who was then a senior at a high school in Washingtonville, New York, communicated to a number of classmates via a social media chat group that he intended to carry out a school shooting on the final day of school.  Even after being visited by law enforcement toward the end of May 2018, VAUGHAN continued his threatening behavior by sending additional threatening messages to a classmate about committing a school shooting and asking that classmate “not to go to the cops.”  VAUGHAN also took some preliminary steps toward carrying out such an attack, including drafting a kill list, compiling lists of his “favorite” school shooters, researching “pipe bombs” on the Internet, accessing a website to purchase a firearm, and composing diary entries expressing his desire for imminent “revenge.”  VAUGHAN also told a law enforcement officer that he intended to kill a specific classmate. 

In August 2018, VAUGHAN sent a number of additional messages on social media in which he threatened an imminent attack in Washingtonville.  Specifically, on successive days, VAUGHAN posted:  

• a message that said:  “I regret nothing,”
• a graphic that included the text “The 845” (that is, the designated area code for Hudson Valley) and a series of 15 gun and bomb emojis,
• a video depicting a red plastic gas container and pool chemicals with the text:  “[smiley face emoji] Plans [smiley face emoji] bang.bang,” and,
• immediately following the posting of the pool chemical video, a video of himself in a car in which he was turning the ignition on and clutching the steering wheel.

After VAUGHAN was detained in March 2019, he continued his threatening behavior, compiling another kill list that included classmates, family members, medical personnel, and the FBI agent and Assistant U.S. Attorney assigned to his case.

In addition to his prison sentence, VAUGHAN, 20, of Campbell Hall, New York, was sentenced to three years of supervised release.

Ms. Strauss praised the outstanding efforts of the FBI’s New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, which principally consists of agents from the FBI and detectives from the New York City Police Department, the Washingtonville Police Department, the New York State Police, and the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.

This prosecution is being handled by the Office’s Terrorism and International Narcotics Unit.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Sam Adelsberg is in charge of the prosecution.

Mass Vaccination Site at Co-Op City Opens to the Public Today, With First Pilot Program to Administer Vaccines to Homebound Residents

Vaccination Site at The Largest Single Residential Development in the U.S. Will Eventually Administer 1,000 Shots a Day

 A mass vaccination site is opening today at Bronx’s Co-Op City, the largest single residential development in the United States. The vaccination site is open to all eligible COVID-19 vaccination recipients, and has also reserved 200 vaccinations exclusively for residents today. The Co-op City site will be open M-Sat 7am-7pm.

The vaccination site, run by the New York City Department of Health, will administer approximately 500 vaccines each day to start. The site will eventually administer 1,000 shots per day when the program is fully ramped up, with continued vaccinations reserved for Co-Op City residents.  

Additionally, New York City will kick-off its new program to vaccinate homebound elderly people starting in Co-Op City today, Mayor de Blasio announced, followed by Brighton Beach in Brooklyn on Friday. The program will eventually expand to other neighborhoods as the city receives more vaccine supply. 

“Co-Op City’s 50,000 residents can now easily access a vaccine right in their backyard,” says Robert Klehammer, Executive General Manager of Riverbay Corporation, which manages Co-Op City. “This is a big win for Co-Op City and its neighbors because it eliminates roadblocks and makes the vaccine easily accessible, especially for elderly and vulnerable homebound residents.”

The development is a New York State Mitchell-Lama housing cooperative (meaning it is affordable to the middle class) and lower-income New Yorkers have been disproportionately hurt by the pandemic. Despite statewide declines in COVID-19 positivity rates and hospitalizations, numbers remain high in the Bronx, particularly in the south and northeast sections of the borough, where Co-Op City is located. “This vaccination site is a much-welcomed positive step towards helping those who need it most, says Riverbay’s Executive General Manager Robert Klehammer.