These are difficult times, and we're doing our best to keep Manhattan informed - which...
Read More
Joint Statement with Council Member Keith Powers on Holiday Pedestrian Congestion Mitigation Plan
“For months we have been advocating for making 49th and 50th Streets between 5th and 6th Avenues car-free as a means to address pedestrian congestion in one of the City’s busiest public spaces. Yesterday, we were encouraged to hear that the City was moving forward with a proposal to enlarge pedestrian space along 5th Avenue to address this congestion during the holiday season. While this is not a long-term solution,… Read more Find senior-friendly supermarkets in your neighborhood!
My office surveyed more than 200 supermarkets across the borough to identify each store’s senior-friendly policies and infrastructure.
With our mobile-friendly database, you can find out which stores in your neighborhood offer amenities like wheelchair accessibility, delivery, public restrooms, escalators or elevators (for stores not at ground-level), senior discounts, and acceptance of SNAP/EBT.
You can also download a PDF of the guide, organized by Manhattan’s 12 Community Board districts: Click … Read more Sunday, Oct. 27: Make Manhattan Mine, a special event for seniors
With Manhattan’s senior population growing steadily, we have to make sure that older adults are supported as they continue to age. Coined by the World Health Organization (WHO), the term “age-friendly” refers to strategies that enable seniors to be active, participate in our community, and stay connected with people who are important to them.
Make Manhattan Mine is my new age-friendly initiative to make the borough a better place to… Read more East Side Coastal Resiliency independent review report finalized
Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer and Council Member Carlina Rivera announced today the publication of the final report by independent consultant Deltares, hired for the review of the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project (ESCR) last month.
In her Uniform Land Use Review Process (ULURP) recommendation, Brewer requested an independent environmental expert to review the ESCR Project and prepare comments regarding the City’s Preferred Alternative 4 proposal and the… Read more Joint Statement by Brewer and Council Member Rivera on the Lower Manhattan Coastal Resiliency program announced by the EDC
Dr. Rob Snyder appointed Borough Historian
I’ve appointed Dr. Rob Snyder to be our brand new Borough Historian! Dr. Snyder is a professor of journalism and American Studies in the Department of Arts, Culture and Media at Rutgers University-Newark. He’s written widely on New York City history and media issues. He is the author of Crossing Broadway: Washington Heights and the Promise of New York City (Cornell University Press), The Voice of the City: Vaudeville and… Read more IBO study: How homeless facilities impact property values
A New York City Independent Budget Office study I requested shows how housing property values are affected by certain types of homeless facilities within 1,000 feet. Transitional shelters appear to drop property values only modestly, while permanent supportive housing doesn’t affect values at all.
Facts unearthed by solid research like this are what public policy should be based on, and permanent shelters are clearly what the de Blasio administration should… Read more “Make Manhattan Count” 2020 Census funding awards announced
I can’t say it enough: there’s a lot at stake for New York City in the 2020 Census, from federal funding to our representation in Congress, so we have to make sure all Manhattan residents are counted. That’s why I created the “Make Manhattan Count” project, which awarded a total of $52,000 to 12 community-based organizations that came up with creative solutions to reach historically under-counted communities such… Read more Charter Revision proposals on November ballot
It may feel a bit like “Groundhog Day,” but the November 5, 2019 ballot will contain a set of proposals to revise New York City’s Charter.
(You may recall there were three charter revision proposals on last year’s General Election ballot—the result of a hurried process instituted by the Mayor—which created a Civic Engagement Commission, instituted term limits on Community Board members, and increased the funding match for candidates who… Read more 837 pages, and a whole lot of fear…
That’s what the new federal “Public Charge” rule means for immigrants.
The rule, to be implemented by the Trump administration on October 15, adds new criteria to the factors deciding whether to grant legal permanent status to those undocumented immigrants who apply for it. That criteria says if an applicant is enrolled in public benefits programs during 12 months of any 36 month period prior to the application they are… Read more 
