49 Days and Counting

 

Dr. Chokshi I have 49 days left in office so you better give me the next four years worth of shots. I want to be super protected when I go back into public life as an ordinary Bill. People hate me as it is so I don't need any sick people breathing on me after I lose my police detail.

I hope that I face Rob Astorino in the governors race next year. I hear he was leading a demonstration outside Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz's office against giving children the COVID-19 vaccination today. He said he would stop the mandate that Assemblyman Dinowitz wants passed in Albany. Our schoolchildren need to be vaccinated, and Astorino even mentioned that he and his wife have been vaccinated.

Team AOC - Asking For Your Support

 

12,000

That’s how many contributions we need to reach before midnight tomorrow to stay on track to hit our November fundraising targets before the end of the month.

How did we get that number? Based on our average donation, we need 12,000 total contributions by the 15th to stay on track to reach our goals for November.

12,000 is an important number to us because each donation – no matter the amount – shows that our values from Medicare for All to the Green New Deal have strong support in New York and across the country.

Here’s where we’re at,

Alexandria is one of the most heavily targeted members of Congress. Even as super PACs are spending tens of thousands of dollars right now on an attack campaign against Alexandria, and Republicans are busy playing political games and sharing violent content about Alexandria online – we're staying focused on the issues that matter, like securing investments in clean energy, our care economy, and more.

A strong November at this moment would help demonstrate how much grassroots support Alexandria has beside her.

Thank you for making all of this possible.

Team AOC

Supportive Housing Development Completes Construction At 3500 Park Avenue In Claremont, The Bronx

 

Construction is now complete at Park Avenue Apartments, a mixed-income affordable housing property in Claremont, The Bronx. Located at 3500 Park Avenue, the seven-story building comprises 115 units of affordable housing, including 69 units with supportive services funded through the Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative.

A large portion of available homes are reserved for elderly and disabled residents, veterans with disabilities, and adults with mental illness. A total of 45 apartments are reserved for low-income families and seniors. Amenities include a multi-purpose room with a warming kitchen, a laundry room, a computer lab, and a children’s playroom. Outdoor recreational space offers access to a community garden and a walking path.

“Too many New Yorkers experiencing homelessness in the city are often facing multiple problems that are contributing to their housing instability,” said Governor Kathy Hochul. “Projects like the Park Avenue Apartments are essential to eliminating homelessness by providing housing and assisting New Yorkers with the supportive services they need, allowing them to live in independent settings.”

Park Avenue Apartments is the latest project from The Bridge, an award-winning non-profit housing developer with a focus on low-income properties. Total construction costs hover around $48 million.

Financing for the development includes $6.5 million provided by the Homeless Housing and Assistance Program, which was administered by the state Office of Temporary Assistance. The state Office of Mental Health is providing $1.7 million in annual funding for services and rent subsidies for the supportive housing units through the Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative, as well as $195,500 in program development grant funding for the 23 apartments serving residents living with mental illness.

Further funding is sourced from the New York Homes and Community Renewal and includes $6.5 million in tax-exempt bonds, $7 million through its New York City 100-percent affordable program, and an allocation of federal low-income housing tax credits that will generate $17.7 million for the development. The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development also provided $7.4 million in financing.

NYPD Announces Independent RAND Corporation Community Survey

 

The NYPD shared results of an independent community survey conducted by the RAND Corporation, in partnership with the New York City Police Department and the Mayor’s Office for Economic Opportunity.

In late 2018, RAND researchers began conducting an independent evaluation to measure the public's trust in police. One part of this evaluation involved two surveys that the RAND Corporation administered in November 2020 and May 2021. The surveys asked people in diverse communities to respond to more than 80 questions measuring three important elements of police-community relations: engagement, trustworthiness, and guardianship. This research is part of an ongoing evaluation on the NYPD’s Neighborhood Policing philosophy. There will be more information released on this evaluation in the coming months.

“These survey results show that most New Yorkers were satisfied with the NYPD and that we also have areas where we need to do some work,” said Police Commissioner Dermot Shea. “Our goal in collecting this information is to better understand perspectives on the police in New York City’s neighborhoods, and to help guide our efforts to strengthen relationships with the communities we serve. We are grateful to the RAND Corporation for their critical work that will help the Department improve.”

“New York City is at its strongest when we are responsive to the voice of New Yorkers. This survey represents a powerful new tool for the NYPD to hear directly from residents, assess relationships with the communities it serves, and identify opportunities to enhance practices,” said Mayor's Office for Economic Opportunity Executive Director Matthew Klein. “Our office works to build the City’s capacity to listen to, learn from, and meet the needs of New Yorkers. We are proud to support the NYPD in this effort to evaluate its operations and elevate community voice.”

“Since 2018, RAND has been evaluating the impacts of Neighborhood Policing on crime, public safety, and the public’s trust in the police. We are excited to release the results from the two community surveys and look forward to finalizing the results from the other data collection efforts in the next few months,” said RAND Principal Investigator Meagan Cahill.

“We appreciate the information gathered from individuals throughout the city and the collaboration with NYPD. We believe these results will inform the field of policing research, and will help the NYPD continue to improve Neighborhood Policing,” said RAND Co-Principal Investigator Melissa Labriola.

Key findings include:

• About two-thirds of respondents report positive attitudes toward police in their neighborhoods.
• In general, respondents who live in areas with lower violent crime agreed more often with positive statements about police than those who live in areas with higher violent crime.

Using data from both surveys, RAND identified 11 questions as the best measures of engagement, trustworthiness, and guardianship (the three key concepts describing police-community relationships). The maximum margin of error for citywide percentages, given the study design, is ±5.2%. Results on these 11 questions from the second survey (May 2021) are presented below.

Here is a link to the survey results on the NYPD website: RAND Corporation Community Survey

1: Engagement

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2: Trustworthiness

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3: Guardianship

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Below is more information on the survey process:

RAND researchers surveyed New York City residents drawn from an existing online survey panel. Eligible respondents received either a text or an email notifying them that they were a candidate for a research study. Thousands of people were contacted, and more than 1,000 respondents participated in each round of the survey.

Results were analyzed by dividing New York City’s zip codes into groups representing four levels of violent crime, which allowed researchers to understand whether respondents experiencing different neighborhood conditions also vary in their perceptions of, engagement with, and trust in police:

1. Low violent crime (rates in the lowest to the 50th percentile of zip codes, 45% of the City’s population age 18 and up);
2. Moderate violent crime (rates between the 50th and 75th percentile of zip codes, 25% of the City’s population age 18 and up);
3. High violent crime (rates between the 75th and 90th percentile of zip codes, 18% of the City’s population age 18 and up);
4. Highest violent crime (rates above the 90th percentile of zip codes, 12% of the City’s population age 18 and up).

Governor Hochul Updates New Yorkers on State's Progress Combating COVID-19 - NOVEMBER 13, 2021

 

104,117 Vaccine Doses Administered Over Last 24 Hours

20 COVID-19 Deaths Statewide Yesterday

New State Website Providing Helpful Info About Child Vaccination

 Governor Kathy Hochul today updated New Yorkers on the state's progress combating COVID-19.  

"The vaccine is our way out of this pandemic once and for all — if you haven't gotten yours already, it's crucial that you do," Governor Hochul said. "The vaccine is proven effective and safe, and it's free. Everyone aged five and up can get it and doing so is the best way to keep your family safe."

Today's data is summarized briefly below:

• Test Results Reported - 202,482
• Total Positive - 6,477
• Percent Positive - 3.20%
• 7-Day Average Percent Positive - 3.12%
• Patient Hospitalization - 1,869 (+15)
• Patients Newly Admitted - 253
• Patients in ICU - 374 (-2)
• Patients in ICU with Intubation - 210 (0)
• Total Discharges - 211,157 (+231)
• New deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS - 20
• Total deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS - 45,980

The Health Electronic Response Data System is a NYS DOH data source that collects confirmed daily death data as reported by hospitals, nursing homes and adult care facilities only.

• Total deaths reported to and compiled by the CDC - 58,479

This daily COVID-19 provisional death certificate data reported by NYS DOH and NYC to the CDC includes those who died in any location, including hospitals, nursing homes, adult care facilities, at home, in hospice and other settings.

• Total vaccine doses administered - 28,283,006
• Total vaccine doses administered over past 24 hours - 104,117
• Total vaccine doses administered over past 7 days - 651,544
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with at least one vaccine dose - 85.2%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed vaccine series - 77.5%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with at least one vaccine dose (CDC) - 88.8%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed vaccine series (CDC) - 79.6%
• Percent of all New Yorkers with at least one vaccine dose - 72.4%
• Percent of all New Yorkers with completed vaccine series - 65.6%
• Percent of all New Yorkers with at least one vaccine dose (CDC) - 75.5%
• Percent of all New Yorkers with completed vaccine series (CDC) - 67.5%

Councilman Mark Gjonaj's NYC Moving Forward Week in Review - 11/12/2021

 

Dear Friends,

I hope you and your families are doing well as Fall is finally here with the multitude of colors, rain and chillier nights.

Honoring the sacrifices our veterans have made for our country in the name of freedom and democracy is the very foundation of Veterans Day. I was proud to partake in different ceremonies in the District from the Bronx Victory Memorial in Pelham Bay to the Rudy Macina Peace Plaza in Pelham Parkway. I saluted and thanked all the veterans who have served to protect our country and their families who supported them in their service. I look forward to the Veteran’s Parade on Sunday as well as the breakfast kicking off the parade that I am sponsoring.

Last weekend I was humbled to host a street co-naming ceremony in honor of Police Officer Patrick McGovern, a hero who did so much for our community. He courageously served over 19 years with the NYPD including the 49th Precinct. On September 11th, 2001, he responded to the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, worked on rescue and recovery efforts and passed away after a two-year battle with cancer tied to his service.

This week at the NYC Council Stated meeting, I introduced two new bills, the feature bill would require food delivery apps to provide their couriers with commercial coverage. These couriers, a significant portion of whom are low-to-middle income, are faced with the tricky dilemma of either paying out-of-pocket for commercial insurance or forgoing it entirely when both their personal insurance and app do not cover delivery accidents. I look forward to urging this bill through the process to protect our delivery workers from financial catastrophes that can arise from costly accidents.

I was happy to continue co-sponsoring Spay and Neuter event for our furry friends on Pelham Parkway and other areas in the District in collaboration with the Animal Care Center of NY and Toby Project.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, as every year our office will be giving out turkeys to constituents in need in District 13. Please call our office to RSVP at 718-931-1721. First come, first serve while supplies last.

Please remember we are here for you, contact my office with issues or concerns at 718-931-1721 or email at MGjonaj@council.nyc.gov.

Sincerely,

NYC Councilman Mark Gjonaj

District 13, Bronx

50 Days and Counting

 

With only fifty days left in office, should I try out for the Brooklyn Nets? They gave me this jersey with the lucky number 13 on it, and that was after I gave them millions an millions of dollars in tax breaks and other incentives to play in Brooklyn. 

I can always audition for a role on Sesame Street. The one that people have been calling me for years. Then again I don't have to work anymore right Charlene? we can just go to that offshore island an live off the land. Fifty more days.

Van Nest Veteran's Day Celebration

The Thursday afternoon sunshine complimented the Van Nest Veteran's Day event hosted by the East Bronx Historical Society and the Van Nest Neighborhood Alliance. Rich Vitacco of the East Bronx Historical Society opened this event giving the story of veterans day which began as a result of the treaty signed on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month ending World War One. The holiday was originally called Armistice Day until 1954 when it was changed to Veteran's Day to honor all veterans of wars who returned home. 

Plaques for their service in the countrys conflicts were given to six veterans. Assemblywoman Nathalia Fernandez, City Councilwoman Elect Marjorie Velazquez, VNNA President Bernadette Ferrera, and others spoke including Lieutenant Gerard Degate who honored former United State Secretary of State Colin Powell. 

Rich Vitacco of the East Bronx Historical Society opens the Van Nest Veteran' Day event.

VNNA President Bernadette Ferrera spoke about growing up during the Vietnam War, and how wars continue as the years go by. 

Councilwoman Elect Marjorie Velazquez thanks the former servicemen, saying her uncle and several cousins served in various armed forces.

Assemblywoman Nathalia Fernandez said more must be done for our veterans.

The ceremony ended with the bugler playing TAPS for those veterans who have passed away since World War One.