MAYOR DE BLASIO CELEBRATES ROLE OF ‘DESIGN-BUILD’ INNOVATION IN SPEEDING AND STREAMLINING CAPITAL PROJECTS

 

 Mayor de Blasio today celebrated New York City’s progress in speeding the design and construction of capital projects by using the design-build process. “Design-Build Program 2021: Progress Report to the New York State Legislature,” a new report released today, describes the City’s successful pivot to design-build after decades of stalled progress under the antiquated, costly design-bid-build approach. The City expects design-build to save anywhere from one to three years for large City capital projects currently in the pipeline.

 

Following several years of City advocacy, the State legislature passed the New York City Public Works Investment Act (PWIA) in December 2019. Since then, agencies have moved quickly to establish their design-build programs, with agencies designating 44 new projects for design-build valued at nearly $8 billion.

 

“Not every New Yorker is a contracting expert – but when their city pledges to build something, every New Yorker wants it done quickly and efficiently. That’s what design-build has allowed this administration to do, and I’m enormously proud of that progress,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio.

 

“The report shows that design-build offers a better approach to delivering the City’s multi-billion-dollar annual capital program. For the first time, designers and contractors are able to work together as a team with common business interests right from the beginning of a project,” said Department of Design and Construction (DDC) Acting Commissioner Tom Foley. “It reduces conflict and avoidable delays, and removes us from a one-size-fits-all low-bid system. The early results are in and the time savings are real.”

 

“Design Build helps the DOT tap into the innovation of the private sector with better control over budgets and schedules. With new federal infrastructure funding available, Design Build will allow us to get projects done faster and at lower costs,” said Department of Transportation Commissioner Hank Gutman. “I’d like to thank Mayor de Blasio for championing this method and for our partners in Albany – Senator Leroy Comrie and Assemblyman Ed Braunstein – for passing Design Build legislation.”

 

Procurement for design-build projects authorized by the PWIA takes place through a two-step process in which interested design-build teams respond to a Request for Qualifications. Responses are reviewed to create a shortlist of firms for each design-build project, who are then asked to respond to a future Request for Proposal for the work. Unlike design-bid-build, design build teams are evaluated not only their price proposal, but also on their actual qualifications to deliver a project.

 

Today, DDC is well on its way to completing its first design-build project – a parking garage and community space in Queens – by mid-2022, only three years after it started. A similar project would have taken more than seven years under the City’s standard process. The City will begin construction on four additional design build projects in January, shaving at least a year from the project-start-to-construction-start phase of the project. Each project will be completed a full three years before a typical design-bid-build project.

 

Last month, Mayor de Blasio announced that the new $141 million Shirley Chisholm Recreation Center will be completed two full years faster using design-build than it would have been under prior contracting methods.

 

Today’s report updates progress on design-build projects in Fiscal Year 2021, which began on July 1, 2020, as well as in the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), which received special State permission to use design-build in 2018. The report also includes the City’s recommendations for improvements to the PWIA, which expires at the end of 2022.

 

The report encourages language that will increase flexibility, including the authorization of “Progressive Design-Build,” an approach that that can further reduce risk to City taxpayers by allowing the City and a selected design-build team to carefully plan and scope a project before agreeing to a “guaranteed maximum price” to be completed by the design-build team.

 

Statement from Governor Kathy Hochul on CDC Isolation Guidance

 "As we battle this winter surge, we will keep following the data and science-based public health policies to protect New Yorkers.

"That's why on Friday I announced guidance to shorten the isolation window for our critical workforce from 10 to 5 days, and I want to thank the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for now updating its guidance to shorten the recommended time for isolation from 10 to 5 days for everyone who is asymptomatic, as long as they wear a well-fitting mask.

"This is a critical step to support our small businesses, critical industries, and essential services as we get through this new variant." 

Attorney General James Fights Arizona’s Unconstitutional Abortion Ban

 

 New York Attorney General Letitia James today continued her staunch opposition to the coordinated and unconstitutional attempt to roll back reproductive rights in the United States. As part of a coalition of 23 attorneys general, Attorney General James filed an amicus brief supporting a challenge to Arizona’s “reason ban” that prohibits abortion when it is sought because of the presence of a fetal abnormality. In the brief, the coalition argues that dispelling discriminatory views about people living with disabilities and providing accurate information about fetal abnormalities can and should happen while preserving women's reproductive autonomy. The attorneys general urge the appeals court to uphold a district court order that enjoined Arizona’s “reason ban” before it took effect.

“Almost 50 years after Roe was decided, reproductive freedoms remain under constant assault,” said Attorney General James. “Arizona is just the latest in the long line of conservative-led states that are seeking to impose their will on millions of women with laws that aim to control our bodies, our choices, and our freedoms, but we will never stop fighting them. We’re asking the appeals court to uphold the lower court’s decision and strike down this unconstitutional law.”

In April, Arizona passed Senate Bill 1457 (SB 1457). The law bans abortions sought for a specific reason — because of a genetic abnormality — and makes it a felony for a provider to perform such an abortion. The law also contains a provision that purported to classify fetuses, embryos, and fertilized eggs as people starting at the point of conception.

SB 1457 was scheduled to take effect on September 29, 2021, but a district court temporarily blocked the reason ban — a decision that was then appealed by the state of Arizona.

In his order blocking the ban, Judge Douglas L. Rayes wrote that, under the law, a person who chooses to terminate a pre-viability pregnancy because of a fetal genetic abnormality would either have to “conceal this information from or lie to her doctor, neither of which fosters trust or encourages open dialogue.”

Similarly, in today’s brief — filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit — the coalition argues that the reason ban runs counter to standards of care established by medical professionals and ignores the myriad of ways that states may promote interest in fetal life and protect children born with genetic abnormalities. 

The attorneys general explain that states have the tools to dispel outdated and harmful views about disabilities while protecting reproductive rights. Additionally, the coalition states that providing medically accurate, unbiased information about fetal abnormalities can help pregnant individuals make informed reproductive choices. Further, providing people living with disabilities with civil rights protections, as well as social and medical services, can combat discrimination, reduce bias, and protect individuals living with disabilities. The coalition makes clear that both can be done without infringing on reproductive autonomy. 

Today’s brief comes as the country awaits the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization — a case involving the constitutionality of Mississippi’s pre-viability abortion ban. Attorney General James and a coalition of attorneys general opposed the law and Mississippi’s attempt to roll back half a century of precedents — beginning with Roe v. Wade — that protect the right to decide, before viability, whether to carry a pregnancy to term.

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW By Councilman Rev. Ruben Diaz

 

Those that voted against the Hispanic Immigrant, Francisco Moya

 You should know that when I was young, I listened to a popular song, made famous by Ismael Quintana and The Eddie Palmieri Orchestra. Some of its lyrics said as follows: “Once upon a time Love and Interest challenged each other to a duel, but Interest won over Love.”  This scenario was apparent when four (4) Hispanic members from the Bronx, voted against their colleague a fellow Hispanic Immigrant Councilmember Francisco Moya and the City’s Hispanic leadership has remained silent.

It is important for you to know that Councilmembers Rafael Salamanca, Pierina Sanchez, Marjorie Velazquez, and Amanda Farias, all (4) voted against Francisco Moya, a well-qualified Ecuadorian, immigrant for the position of Speaker of the NYC Council.

Moya was defeated by Adrianne Adams, an African American from Queens.  Councilmember Adams won acquiring 33 votes out of 51 Councilmembers, including the 4 Hispanic members from the Bronx Salamanca, Sanchez, Velasquez, and Farias. 

You should also know that these same four councilmembers, ran for the City Council on the premise that they were worthy of the Hispanic vote because they are “Hispanic” and would better serve the needs of the Hispanic Community.  I imagine that when it comes to their re-election, they will return to us once again and say, “Vote for me because I, like you, am Hispanic and an immigrant.” Well, we shall see what the future holds!

It is also important that you know that Councilmember Pierina Sanchez, had zero name recognition when she ran against Yudelka Tapia, who is a well-known community leader and had served as a defender of our community for many years with much experience.  However, Pierina Sanchez managed to pull off a win with the blessing, support, and resources of Congressman Adriano Espaillat.  

Andriano Espaillat put his entire reputation, prestige, and resources behind Pierina Sanchez’s candidacy. However, the rumor or the “towns voices” say that Adriano had asked Pierina to do as his other disciples, like Oswald Feliz, Shawn Abreu, Chris Marte and Carmen Dela Rosa, did and to throw her support behind Moya. But the wagging tongues out there say that Pierina apparently has no memory of Espaillat’s support. Pierina apparently forgot that today she is a councilmember, thanks to the Congressman’s support. But apparently as the song says that her Interest was stronger than the Love she had. 

Moreover, when Assemblyman Marcos Crespo was President of the Bronx Democrat Party, and Councilwoman Maria Del Carmen Arroyo resigned leaving her City Council seat vacant, Marcos Crespo threw his influence and all his support behind the candidacy of Rafael Salamanca to fill the City Council seat left vacant by Arroyo. Why? Because Salamanca is “Hispanic”. Marcos Crespo as the President of the Bronx Democrat Party was also instrumental in helping Salamanca acquire a position on one of the most influential committees in the City Council. But when Salamanca was needed to support a fellow Hispanic, he too apparently felt that his Interest was stronger than the Love he had.

When Marjorie Velasquez ran for the first time against the Albanian American Councilmember Mark Gjonaj, and then ran a second time against the African American candidate Monique Johnson, on both occasions Velasquez ran on the fact that she should be elected simply because she is “Hispanic” and that given the Hispanic demographics of the district this seat should be held by a Hispanic person. But when her support was needed for a fellow Hispanic, she too apparently felt that her Interest was stronger than the Love she had.

Lastly the Dominican American Councilmember Amanda Farias ran to fill the seat I left vacant when I decided not to seek a second term.  Farias pounded her chest proclaiming that she is a Hispanic Immigrant, and that it would serve our community right to support an Immigrant, and a Hispanic to the City Council.  Wow! Life gives us surprises! Here Ms. Farias was given the perfect opportunity to support a fellow Hispanic immigrant, but unfortunately, Ms. Farias like the song says felt that her “Interest was stronger than the Love she had.” 

The votes cast by these (4) Councilmembers against a fellow Hispanic and the silent kept by the city’s Hispanic leadership, all of this my dear reader, serves to confirm that old Latino cliché that says that “Once upon a time Interest and Love challenged each other to a duel and Interest won over Love.

This is soon to be Ex-Councilman Rev. Ruben Diaz, and This Is What You Should Know.

NEW DINOWITZ LAW WILL REQUIRE BOARDS OF ELECTIONS TO OFFER VOTERS ABSENTEE BALLOT TRACKING

 

The new law will go into effect April 1, 2022 and will apply to every county in New York State.

 As more New Yorkers get comfortable with absentee voting, a newly signed law from Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz will make it easier for voters to keep track of where their ballot is from start to finish. The new law (A4186-B) was signed on December 22, 2021 and will create a statewide online absentee ballot tracking system, something which is already in effect in New York City and was used in recent municipal elections. The new law was also carried by State Senator Leroy Comrie.

 

As part of the new law, each county will be required to maintain an absentee ballot tracking system that is integrated into the statewide system and which may optionally be integrated with the United States Postal Service tracking system. Voters will not have to create an account but will be required to verify their identity to ensure that access is only provided for their own ballot record.

 

The statewide ballot tracking system will require the following information be made available to voters by their local Board of Elections:

• receipt of voter’s application for an absentee ballot;

• approval or rejection (with reason for rejection) for voter’s application;

• date of mailing or delivery of absentee ballot and expected date of receipt, including specific indication if the ballot was returned as undeliverable;

• receipt of voter’s completed absentee ballot;

• determination of whether the ballot envelope requires the voter to cure an error; and

• confirmation that the ballot was counted or rejected (including a brief statement of the reason for rejection).

 

The bill was supposed to go into effect on January 1, 2022 but will instead go into effect on April 1, 2022 pursuant to changes proposed by the Governor and agreed to by the Legislature. According to the approval memo (Approval Memorandum – No. 95 Chapter 727), the change was requested by the State Board of Elections and local boards out of concern that they needed additional time to accommodate the required new processes, technological requirements, and operational issues.

 

Assemblyman Dinowitz previously passed legislation to allow New Yorkers to request an absentee ballot if they are concerned about catching or spreading a communicable disease (such as COVID-19). This law expires on December 31, 2021, but Assemblyman Dinowitz has introduced new legislation which would extend this option to voters through February 1, 2024.

 

Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz said: “It should be as easy and stress-free as possible for New Yorkers to vote, and absentee voting is an increasingly popular and convenient method for eligible voters to cast their ballots. This new law will help all New Yorkers know exactly where their absentee ballot is in the process, and will help inform decisions about whether they need to take additional action to ensure that their vote is received and counted. Thank you to Governor Hochul for signing this bill into law, to State Senator Comrie for his leadership in the other chamber, and to all of our colleagues for supporting the bill in the Legislature.”

 

Governor Hochul Updates New Yorkers on State's Progress Combating COVID-19 - DECEMBER 27, 2021

 

27,842 Vaccine Doses Administered Over Last 24 Hours       

132* COVID-19 Deaths Statewide Over Saturday and Sunday

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

"As we approach the end of the year, we must continue to stay vigilant," Governor Hochul said. "Vaccines are the way we can get through our holidays safely. If you will be attending any gatherings, exercise caution, wear your mask, and encourage those around you to get the vaccine and get the booster. Doing all of this, we will get through this and regather again at the other side, safe and healthy in 2022." 

Today's data is summarized briefly below. Please note that certain numbers marked below with a single asterisk represent two-day increases, due to delayed reporting over the Christmas holiday: 

• Test Results Reported - 166,681
• Total Positive - 26,737
• Percent Positive - 16.04%
• 7-Day Average Percent Positive - 12.41%
• Patient Hospitalization - 5,526 (+635*)
• Patients Newly Admitted - 1,569*
• Patients in ICU - 913 (+33*)
• Patients in ICU with Intubation - 501 (+0)
• Total Discharges - 227,255 (+781*)
• New deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS covering both Saturday and Sunday - 132*
• Total deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS - 48,066 
  
  
  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 - 60,941 
  
  
  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 - 33,133,391
• Total vaccine doses administered over past 24 hours - 27,842
• Total vaccine doses administered over past 7 days - 685,273
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with at least one vaccine dose - 88.6% 
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed vaccine series - 80.4% 
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with at least one vaccine dose (CDC) - 95.0%**
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed vaccine series (CDC) - 82.6%**
• Percent of all New Yorkers with at least one vaccine dose - 77.4%
• Percent of all New Yorkers with completed vaccine series - 69.4% 
• Percent of all New Yorkers with at least one vaccine dose (CDC) - 82.9%**
• Percent of all New Yorkers with completed vaccine series (CDC) - 71.3%**

*Due to the Holiday, has the data from Dec. 25 and Dec. 26 and represents a two day increase

**Vaccination numbers compiled by the CDC as of Dec. 24

MAYOR DE BLASIO ANNOUNCES $75 MILLION INVESTMENT FOR DEVELOPMENT OF BUSHWICK INLET PARK

 

Mayor Bill de Blasio today joined Parks Brooklyn Borough Commissioner Martin Maher, Friends of Bushwick Inlet Park Co-Chairs Katherine Thompson and Steve Chesler, State Senator Brian Kavanagh, Council Member Stephen T. Levin, and members of the community to announce an investment of $75 million toward the development of the CitiStorage parcel of Bushwick Inlet Park in North Brooklyn.

 

“Bushwick Inlet Park shows how much can change when a community stands together,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “This $75 million investment will ensure 27 acres of world-class green space on the North Brooklyn waterfront are completed for families to enjoy for generations to come.”

 

“Bushwick Inlet Park is a testament to what is possible when there is advocacy, determination, and collaboration. Thanks to Mayor de Blasio’s investment, we are one step closer to completing the vision for this park and honoring the open space commitments that were made to the North Brooklyn community,” said Parks Commissioner Gabrielle Fialkoff. “Open space is a necessity, and all New Yorkers should have access to world-class greenspaces. Through the development of Bushwick Inlet Park we are making transformational, generational changes that will benefit and improve the quality of life for countless New Yorkers.”

 

"For years, Greenpoint and Williamsburg residents have fought to secure open space along the waterfront. I have been proud to lend my voice to that fight, supporting this project with critically-needed capital funds and even leading a sleep-out with other leaders in 2016 to ensure that the City lived up to its commitments. Today, we are taking another major step toward completing Bushwick Inlet Park and ensuring North Brooklyn residents have a world-class place for healthy recreation and relaxation right in their backyard. I want to thank Mayor de Blasio and Parks Commissioner Fialkoff for this historic investment, and look forward to overseeing the completion of this new phase," said Mayor-elect Eric Adams.

 

“From the buzzing playground on weekday mornings to the lively club soccer matches on weeknights and the crowded Smorgasburg food festival on the weekends, there is always something happening at Bushwick Inlet  Park,” said Senator Charles Schumer. “I am so grateful that Mayor de Blasio has honored the amazing grassroots work by the Friends of Bushwick Inlet Park, Assemblymember Emily Gallagher, Councilmember Stephen Levin, Councilmember-elect Lincoln Restler, and other members of the community, who have committed so much time and energy to improving and expanding this precious local resource. This $75 million investment will make Bushwick Inlet Park an even greater urban oasis for the people of Williamsburg, Greenpoint, and the rest of the city.”

 

The $75 million in new funds, combined with $17 million previously allocated and $1 million in discretionary funding from the City Council, brings the total invested in park development to more than $90 million. These funds will go toward the demolition of the former CitiStorage warehouse, and design and construction of the next phases of the multi-phase build-out of the park.

 

The CitiStorage site is one of six parcels that make up Bushwick Inlet Park, the centerpiece of the Greenpoint-Williamsburg Waterfront. Already, 3.5-acres of the park are complete and open to the public, featuring a multi-purpose field and a building for community activities with a state-of-the-art green roof which doubles as a seating area. The newest section to be renovated, 50 Kent, will open to the public in early 2022.  All of the parcels of land required for the park have all been purchased by the City and are in varying stages of remediation and development. Upon completion, the park will add over 25 acres of greenspace to the Greenpoint-Williamsburg community. 

 

This administration has made notable progress to bring open space to North Brooklyn, including: 

 

• In 2017, the acquisition of the CitiStorage site was completed ($165 million).
• In November 2019, NYC Economic Development Corporation completed demolition of the Bayside site.
• In April 2021 construction started on the parkland at the 50 Kent site with completion anticipated for early 2022 ($7.8 million).
• Design of the parkland at the Motiva parcel is expected to wrap up in early 2022 with construction start anticipated for late 2022.

Do Our COVID-19 Vaccines Work Against the Omicron Variant or Not. What is going on Governor Kathy Hochul?

There has been much hype as to whether to get vaccinated or not to get vaccinated. Conflicting words have been put about be it by Health officials, elected officials, mandates, word of mouth, or Anti Vaxers. Health officials have said the only way to prevent, or have a safe period of having the COVID-19 virus (or it's variants) is to get vaccinated with one of the three vaccines that were available. Elected officials have mandated vaccinations in order to continue working or continuing a regular lifestyle. 

The public was recently told the vaccinations require a booster shot, and while only suggested as of now, it is only a matter of time as to when Booster shots will also be mandated. New York City has gone as far as giving incentives to get vaccinated, or boosted by the end of this year. Mayor Bill de Blasio has said he expects the Omicron variant to be with us for only a few weeks before it passes, which must mean once a person has the virus they must become immune to it. That is similar to what I was told by Doctor Dave Chokshi Commissioner of the NYCDOH, and Doctor Mitchell Katz head of the NYCHHS, with Doctor Katz going as far as saying I did not need to get vaccinated after I explained that I had the COVID-19 virus in March of 2020 for only five days. I did get vaccinated in September of 2021, and had a bad reaction to the second shot, but that is another story.

Now that the Omicron variant has hit New York, on December 18th the governor's office reported 192 cases statewide, and 41 in New York City. There has been no more reporting of Omicron cases, just that all positive test results are all that of the Omicron variant. This is similar to what Governor Andrew Cuomo did in 2020 by counting any and all deaths as a result of the COVID-19 virus. Governor Hochul has declared a Disaster Emergency in the state of New York with Executive Order 11.1 However in that Executive order Governor Hochul states the following 

WHEREAS, this Omicron variant has been shown to be highly transmissible and may cause exponential spread;

WHEREAS, current vaccinations do not appear to be as effective against Omicron infection, while remaining stronger against severe disease;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Kathy Hochul, Governor of the State of New York, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution of the State of New York and Section 28 of Article 2-B of the Executive Law, do hereby continue the terms, conditions, and suspensions contained in Executive Order 11 until January 25, 2022.

Does this mean that the Omicron variant will be gone on January 26, 2022 Governor Hochul, or will there be another extension? What is going on Governor Kathy Hochul?