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Mayoral Agenda 2007


Mayor Michael Bloomberg said he would do lots of things in his State of the City address last week.

There were the little things, promises to:

• retool 911 so it can accept photos of crime scenes from cell phones;
• increase funding for a program that sends nurses to consult first time mothers;
• expand the Civilian Complaint Review Board;
• fill out forms for low-income New Yorkers so they can claim federal tax credits;
• lead a pack of gun weary American mayors as they descend on Washington to demand changes in federal law.

And then there were the big things:

• a $1 billion tax relief plan focused primarily on property tax cuts;
• further changes to the structure of the education system.

Public officials march out such promises every January in their State of the (nation, state, city, or borough) speeches. Governor Eliot Spitzer gave his State of the State address earlier this month; President George Bush will give his State of the Union on Tuesday; and Council Speaker Christine Quinn will give her own State of the City soon.

Mayor Bloomberg started his speech this year by apologizing for one promise he didn't follow through on – there was no Subway Series in 2006. But many of the other things he mentioned last year were either breezed over or not mentioned at all. The city did not pick an architect to design a plan for Governors Island or a developer to revamp Willets Point, and didn't break ground on Atlantic Yards. Despite Bloomberg's promise, the Reptile Wing of the Staten Island Zoo has still not reopened.

Other areas that Bloomberg has made a big deal about got scant mention. Arguably the biggest initiative to come out of last year's speech was the city's anti-poverty efforts, yet the mayor barely touched on the year-long campaign that followed. Nor did he spend more than a few words on his plan to create long-term sustainability policies.

This week we take a look at the two areas the mayor did focus on:

TAX CUTS: The mayor says his property tax relief plan will benefit individual New Yorkers and spark the economy, but economists say it will hardly be noticed.

EDUCATION: After four years, Bloomberg is reorganizing the schools again, but do the changes address the problems that still persist in the city’s public schools?  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Bills -- Bike Safety, Public Housing, Subsidized Transportation


At each of the City Council's stated meetings, council members introduce bills, most of which will never become laws (for the process by which bills become laws, click here). As a regular feature, Gotham Gazette discusses some of the legislation proposed at each meeting.

Members of the City Council proposed the creation of a bicycle task force, and asked for increased funding public housing units and transportation benefits for employees at their stated meetings on January 3 and 9.

Bicycle Task Force

Council Member Alan J. Gerson proposed Introduction 498 to create a bicycle safety task force for New York City at its January 3 meeting. Arguing that bicycle use improves personal health and reduces traffic congestion, Gerson hopes the task force will help reduce bicycle related accidents.

Two hundred twenty-five bicyclists died in crashes between 1996 and 2005, according to a report issued by several city agenceis. The report also found 97 percent of bicyclists who died were not wearing a helmet.

By establishing a group to review bicycle routes, patterns and safety the Council will better understand how to improve New York City’s bicycle program. This would be done by changing several bicycle regulations, funding educational campaigns to promote bicycle safety, and improving infrastructure for bicycle lanes and parking. Once established, the task force would develop recommendations on how the city could accommodate bikers safely and practically.

"The idea is to build off the mayor’s initiative on the five borough bicycle paths and get the right people together with the right background and expertise to make important decisions on bicycle safety in the city,” Gerson said. “We’re a busy, crowded city and if we want to make room for bikes we need to do it methodically and scientifically to fully analyze our options.”

Funding Public Housing

 

New York State built 12,500 apartments in 15 public housing developments throughout the city between 1958 and 1974. While these developments were originally financed with state funds, Albany has not contributed money for operating expenses since 1998. New York City Housing Authority, a city agency, manages the units.

According to Dilan, it costs about $62 million a year to operate the 15 developments. In fiscal 2007, city officials put $120 million in the budget for the long-term viability of the city's public housing. But If the management does not receive any financial assistance, argues Dilan, moderate-income families may see rent hikes, and all tenants may have to deal with reduction in services.

In Resolution 682 Dilan and Mendez are asking state officials to help avoid this, by asking the state to New York State to renew its financial support for the developments.

Transportation Benefits

 

Encouraging the use of mass transportation is essential in reducing traffic congestion and pollution in the city, according to Council Member John C. Liu. With this in mind, Lui is calling upon the United States Congress to increase public transportation benefits for commuting employees.

The current law allows commuting employees to use up to $105 per month for public transportation, tax-free. Lui wants to increase the monthly cap to $205 with Resolution 683.

This resolution would encourage the use of mass transportation while reducing commuting expenses, especially for the people who ride the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad because their monthly commutes may cost more than the $105 they are currently allowed.

 

Council's First Meetings of 2007: Environmental Issues and City-Owned Buildings


Every two weeks the New York City Council holds its "Stated Meeting" to introduce and pass legislation. As a regular feature, Gotham Gazette covers these meetings.

 

BUILDING HIGH SCHOOLS IN THE BRONX

 

A controversial $230 million plan to build four schools on a toxic site in the Bronx will go ahead with added attention and public input regarding safety concerns, after a unanimous vote by the City Council at its Stated Meeting on January 9. The council delayed a vote on the project a month ago due to opposition from several members led by Maria del Carmen Arroyo, who represents the area.

The city's School Construction Authority plans to build two high schools, a middle school, and a charter school for 6th to 8th graders on the 6.6 acre site on Concourse Village West, between East 153rd and 156th streets. In all, the schools with accommodate about 2,400 students. The site, a former rail yard, was contaminated by a nearby dry cleaner and manufactured gas plant.

The authority original planned for a $30 million clean up, but an independent environmental consultant hired by community groups said that this might not be sufficient. Several council members from the Bronx said they opposed the plan, and in December the administration withdrew its application pending negotiations over the cleanup.

In an agreement reached late Monday evening, the administration agreed to consider the consultant's recommendations, which will be completed later this month. Administration officials will have the option of declining to implement these measures, but can only do so after explaining them during a public review process. The Bloomberg administration has also agreed to monitor for contamination at two nearby schools, PS 156 and PS 151, and the state Department of Environmental Conservation will clean a nearby site that is contributing to the contamination in the area.

Council members who initially opposed the plan praised the administration for compromising on the issues, and said they were satisfied. The council approved it 45 to 0.

David Palmer of the New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, who worked with the community critics to bring in an outside consultant, said that it would have been better to get the report before approving the project, but was pleased that the public's safety concerns were taken into consideration.

"The public process sets a strong precedent for future school siting proposals on toxic properties," he said. "Given the problem of overcrowding schools, and the lack of available clean land in New York City, the issue is likely to keep coming up."

Indeed, the council said that it would begin work with the administration immediately to change the school siting process to make it more transparent. The current process allows for less community input the city's standard review for land use projects, so that much-needed schools can be fast-tracked. Council Speaker Christine Quinn said that she agrees with this general outline, but that community concerns must be better integrated into process.

"The point is including the neighborhoods where these schools may go as early as possible in the process," she said. " Then if there is a site that there is a lot of opposition to that will be out there early … so we don't end up in a situation like this when we need an extension."

The council also passed a bill (http://webdocs.nyccouncil.info/textfiles/Int%200495-2006.htm?CFID=7007&CFTOKEN=92452565 Intro 495-a) that would set various deadlines for various actions to be taken by city officials, including the mayor's submission of his preliminary budget (February 12), Mayor's Management Report (February 23), and 10-year capital plan (March 28). That bill was passed 45 – 0.

Also, several council members opposed a council vote to http://www.nysun.com/article/46433 sell two townhouses in Boerum Hill for below market value and to give tax breaks to the buyers. The sale was part of an existing agreement between the city and the federal government intended to revamp properties in struggling neighborhoods. David Yassky argued that real estate developers in the trendy Brooklyn neighborhood didn't need the incentives.

The proposal passed, with 39 yes votes, three no votes (Yassky, Alan, Gerson, and James Vacca), and three council members abstaining (Gail Brewer, Bill de Blasio, and Letitia James).

CHARTER MEETING -- ON-SITE POWER GENERATION FOR CITY-OWNED BUILDINGS

 

The City Council attempted to address concerns that the city's power supply may soon be overwhelmed at its meeting on January 3rd, by passing a bill that would require city officials to consider installing on-site energy generators in city-owned properties to reduce the strain on the power supply in the five boroughs.

New York City has been experiencing record energy demand over the last five years, prompting concerns that insufficient power supply could lead to higher prices, blackouts, and brownouts. A task force on energy estimates that the overall energy supply for New York City will be adequate only until 2012.

New power plants may be necessary, but building them could be technically and politically difficult; new power plants could also be damaging environmentally. Supporters of the bill believe having certain buildings create their own energy could ease stress on the system.

Intro 18-a would require the Department of Citywide Administrative Services to assess whether it could install on-site power generation systems on properties owned by city government that use a certain minimum amount of energy (a peak of 500 kilowatts). These properties include schools, public housing, facilities of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and office buildings. The council does not have the power to make such a requirement of private property owners.

Such on-site power systems would be required to be cleaner than natural gas power plants, and could use wind or solar power as well as fuel cell technology. The assessment would determine whether such projects are technically possible and economically feasible. It would have to be completed by January 1, 2008, and would be repeated once every five years.

The bill passed by a vote of 47 - 0 - 2. Councilmembers Diane Reyna and Larry Seabrook were absent.

The meeting was the council's annual "charter meeting", which the city charter requires the council hold on the first Wednesday of every calendar year. It functions like a regular stated meeting. The power bill was the only piece of legislation considered.

 



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