Adams' plea to businesses

From: POLITICO New York Playbook PM - Thursday May 11,2023 08:45 pm

May 11, 2023

New York City Mayor Eric Adams spoke at a news conference Thursday, May 11, 2023, as the city deals with a growing migrant crisis

New York City Mayor Eric Adams spoke at a news conference Thursday, May 11, 2023, as the city deals with a growing migrant crisis | Caroline Rubinstein-Willis/Mayoral Photography Office

New York City Mayor Eric Adams said at a closed-door meeting Thursday morning that 10,000 migrants could arrive in New York City this week after the expiration of a border policy known as Title 42.

And after failing to win adequate resources from federal officials and the White House thus far — he asked the business community for help.

The mayor was speaking at the Partnership for New York City, a membership organization composed of major landlords and corporations.

“He shook up our board by describing the extent of the challenge that the city is facing,” said Kathy Wylde, president of the partnership.

The mayor told the organization’s trustees — which include executives from Pfizer, Citi Bank and Tishman Speyer — that the influx expected after the expiration of Title 42 presented an unprecedented crisis for the city.

And despite working with the White House and federal officials including Sen. Chuck Schumer and House minority leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, he has not received the resources he needs to deal with the more than 60,000 asylum seekers that have passed through the city since last year and the thousands expected in the weeks to come.

The mayor has been seeking a more coordinated settlement strategy at the border, funds from the federal government and expedited work permits. On Friday, he announced New York City only received $30.5 million from a Federal Emergency Management Agency payout.

With that in mind, Adams asked business leaders in attendance to help him make the case to federal officials.

“There was an absolute commitment on the part of our members to try to be helpful,” Wylde said.

A spokesperson for Jeffries said the state’s congressional delegation worked to get the $30.5 million included in the first tranche of cash from FEMA, and that more would be coming in a second installment later this fiscal year. According to an announcement from the agency last week, the upcoming pot of money would be focused on interior cities.

Mayoral spokesperson Fabien Levy disputed POLITICO’s framing of Adams’ remarks.

“The mayor has been saying for months that this humanitarian crisis requires a whole-of-city, not just a whole-of-government approach,” Levy said in a statement. “We’ve been speaking with the business community, faith leaders, nonprofits, legal groups, individuals and more for a long time about what we need to handle the influx we’ve seen. This is nothing new.”

Other migrant news from New York:

On the beats

Adrienne Adams speaks into a microphone at a podium during a press conference.

Adrienne Adams, the City Council president, is pushing from strong housing measures to ensure new production. | Sarah Stier/Getty Images for QBFC

FAIR HOUSING: A new bill from City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams would require the city’s housing and planning agencies to establish housing production targets for each of the city’s 59 community districts — in an effort to ensure the burden of housing growth is spread more equitably across the city.

“Many neighborhoods with abundant access to infrastructure and amenities like open space, thriving schools and public transit have produced far too few housing units,” Adams said at a rally at City Hall Park, joined by roughly two dozen other Council members. “The framework will help the city ensure well-resourced neighborhoods that have not equitably contributed to affordable housing production do their fair share.”

Under the bill, the city would have to release a fair housing plan every five years with targets for citywide housing production, and how that housing should be distributed across community districts. It would not include any mandates. Andrew Fine of the advocacy group Open New York, which has called for more housing growth in affluent neighborhoods, praised the measure as a “great first step,” but said there “must be real consequences for non-compliance if growth targets are to make a significant difference.”

A City Hall spokesperson did not take a position on the measure, but said the mayor “has led the fight to tackle the city’s severe housing shortage and affordable housing crisis by building new housing in every corner of the city, and we appreciate Speaker Adams’ partnership.” — Janaki Chadha

NEW YORK, NY - JANUARY 27: Honoree Jay-Z speaks onstage during the Clive Davis and Recording Academy Pre-GRAMMY Gala and GRAMMY Salute to Industry Icons Honoring Jay-Z on January 27, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images)

Jay-Z company continues to put its support behind a casino in Manhattan. | Mike Coppola/Getty Images

CASINOS: Jay-Z’s Roc Nation penned an open letter laying out the case for a casino bid in Times Square, which the entertainment agency is pursuing alongside Caesars and SL Green. “Some conflicted parties have attempted to spread misinformation, so we wanted to speak to you, New York City, directly,” the letter starts, going on to detail various public benefits from their proposal would yield, for surrounding businesses, public safety and sanitation issues in the area and transportation. The letter also promised $115 million to support theater programs.

“Times Square, the epicenter of entertainment with a palpable energy, is unmatched,” the letter states. “Roc Nation and our partners are here to ensure Times Square remains connected to all facets of culture. There’s no better location for a Caesars Palace entertainment destination than the Crossroads of the World.” — Janaki Chadha

HIGHER EDUCATION: Elected officials on Thursday joined members of the Professional Staff Congress, the City University of New York’s faculty and staff union to urge Adams to blast budget cuts to the university.

“We can and we will find the money in the city budget to restore those cuts to CUNY,” Lander said during a rally hosted at Tweed Courthouse, the Department of Education headquarters.

The executive budget includes funding for CUNY Reconnect, which helps re-enroll New Yorkers who got some college credits but left school before completing their degree. But advocates want funding for CUNY Reconnect to be baselined. And the executive budget does not include funding for several programs, including Accelerate, Complete, and Engage (ACE), a program that helps students finish their bachelor’s degree on time.

CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez told the City Council this week cuts stemming from the Program to Eliminate the Gap, the city's savings program — along with decreases in tuition revenues — have hurt community colleges' operations, student services and programs. And he said that due to the PEGs, the university reduced the budget for Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP), an academic support program, by $13 million.

CUNY started the fiscal year with a $20.6 million baselined PEG but that PEG has now grown to $39 million for fiscal year 2023 and a little over $61 million for fiscal year 2024 through financial plans issued since that time.

"We're gonna keep negotiating with the mayor's office," Council higher education chair Eric Dinowitz told POLITICO during the rally. "This is a back and forth between the Council and the mayor's office about where we're investing our money and where we'd find savings in the city budget."

Matos Rodríguez also announced the formation of an Advisory Council on Jewish Life, a university-wide body of New York Jewish leaders that will first meet in June, amid Jewish American Heritage Month. “We will not waver in our dedication to fighting antisemitism, and we want our Jewish students, faculty and staff to know they are valued and protected at our university,” he said in a statement. Members of the council will include Rabbi Joseph Potasnick, executive vice president of the New York Board of Rabbis, and Gideon Taylor, executive vice president and CEO of the JCRC-NY. — Madina Touré

Around New York

— A jury has awarded $95 million to a man who accused a Rochester-area priest of child sex abuse. (Democrat & Chronicle)

— Via Crain’s New York: “Big Apple is the third-most-expensive city in the U.S. for office construction, study finds.”

— “Curious bear caught on camera investigating backyard chicken coop in Upstate NY,” Upstate New York reports.

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