New Solutions to East Side Problems
Creating jobs, housing and infrastructure repair top agenda
In my campaign, I’ve traveled from the Lower East Side to the Upper East Side, from Astoria to Long Island City—and everywhere I go, I hear the same fundamental concern from voters: for the first time in generations, parents are worried their children will not have the same opportunities that they had. And more than anything, people in New York—from artists to taxi drivers to teachers to bankers—are anxious about the economy. They’re worried about a jobless recovery with no end in sight and politicians in Washington and Albany that are failing to act. Read more
Small-Businesses: The Forgotten Victims of Second Avenue
City should exempt businesses affected by subway construction from taxes
The construction of the Second Avenue Subway is killing a generation of small-businesses. As it moves southward, the construction is acting like a virtual Grim Reaper, felling everything in its path.
The Second Avenue Subway has been hailed as a project capable of relieving congestion, generating thousands of jobs and providing for the expansion of the East Side economy. Read more
Bring on the MTA Machines
2nd Avenue construction drives tenant to brink
By Kelli Gail
As a busy 39-year-old executive who takes two subways and walks half a mile to my office, I constantly battle to get to work on time.
So when the 2nd Avenue Subway construction began drilling outside my building on 83rd street, I was preparing to join the large and growing ranks of irate Upper East-Siders, calling 311 and filing letters of complaint. Read more
Worth The Wait
Harvard and Princeton have a waiting list and now CUNY does as well
As the fall semester nears, The City University of New York is brimming with a record number of students—more than the University can accommodate.
For the past 10 years, CUNY’s baccalaureate programs have seen increasing enrollments even as more rigorous entrance requirements were instituted. Now the University’s community colleges are swamped by applicants who, like community college applicants nationwide, need only a high school diploma or GED for admission. Read more
Ways to a better Washington
Solutions for fixing a broken system
By Kirsten Gillibrand
As I travel the state and listen to New Yorkers, I’ve found that people have absolutely no faith that Congress is working to solve their problems. When they look to Washington, they see a lot of people who are more concerned about scoring political points than solving problems. Read more
Generating Jobs in New York
Three ideas to turn innovations into work and revenue
New York City got some very good news on the economic front this week, when it was announced that NYU plans to create a new $20 million venture fund designed to help seed and speed the commercialization of new technologies developed there and to provide funding for startup companies. Read more
The Physician’s Side
Doctor’s response to columnist’s Medicare allegations
By Seymour Herschberg
Susan Braudy’s photo and prior columns suggest that she is not old enough to be enrolled in Medicare. I assume, therefore, that her first-person column “Fired By My Doctor” (June 10) is literary license and that her statements are based on journalistic research. However, she has not been fair. She gives only one perspective.
First, let me state that although I am a retired primary care physician, my entire career was as a salaried employee of a non-profit organization. Thus, I never had to worry about Medicare or insurer fees—or any fee for service—income. Read more
Creating Jobs, Greening Buildings
New bill would lessen energy dependence on hostile foreign regimes
As I meet people during my travels across the state, New Yorkers of all ages and backgrounds have the same thing on their minds: jobs. With unemployment in New York City still in double digits, and an estimated 15 percent of our state’s construction workers out of work, it is clear that we must continue to help working families weather the economic storm. Read more
Let’s Support a Living Wage
Our economic recovery depends on government incentives for good jobs
By Melissa Mark-Viverito and Mike Fishman
With the shift in our city’s economy from manufacturing to service jobs, the percentage of low-wage workers has reached record, if not epidemic, levels. Nearly one-third of working New Yorkers are struggling to stretch their paychecks to cover high prices for rent and rising costs for groceries and transportation. In order to stem the tide of what threatens to undermine not just our economic recovery, but the future of our city, we need to invest in increasing the number of good jobs. Read more
Happy Mom’s Day
Pay homage to that nice lady who raised you by ditching an outdated label
By Daniel Meltzer
Forget about Baby Jane, what ever happened to Mother?
Who, under the age of 70, refers to his or her female parent as “mother” any more? Why, then, do we still call it “Mother’s Day” when they are now called “moms?” Read more
