July 12, 2004
Underwater Wonder
The Times ran a short article this weekend about the development of an underwater “wind” farm being built in the East River, between Roosevelt Island and Queens.
The East Channel has one of the quickest currents of any waterway in the Northeast, and that moving water contains a vast amount of untapped kinetic energy. Verdant Power, the developer of the project, is deploying six turbines this fall, with more to potentially follow next year.
The environmental group Riverkeeper has expressed support for the sustainability of the project but at the same time has some concerns about the project’s impact on the marine environment and fish populations.
These concerns should be vigorously studied and addressed over the course of this year’s limited turbine deployment.
New power plants can be problematic, from the expiration of Article X to neighborhoods’ desire to not have them built in their backyards. Projects like this which utilize unique local potential, are examples of both productive public/private partnerships and creative thinking in meeting our energy needs.
A recently founded NY non-profit called Green Ground Zero sponsored a contest earlier this year, envisioning a host of sustainable architecture projects for the City. As windmill farms sprout up in the Atlantic and across the farms of upstate, and as new office buildings are built adhering to sustainable principles, green architecture is becoming more and more of a public dialogue.
Do you have any ideas of how to harness new energy sources here in New York?
John Arceci
Posted by John at July 12, 2004 3:07 PM
July 7, 2004
Two Johns for New York
was thrilled to learn yesterday that John Kerry had selected John Edwards
as his running mate.
One of Edwards' most constant themes, one with which nearly everyone will be
familiar, is that of the "two Americas."
It's instructive to revisit that phrase today, remembering Edwards' passion
for social and economic justice, and recognizing, once again, that we too
have "two Manhattans."
On an island where the price tag of an average apartment is approaching one
million dollars, nearly half of other New Yorkers pay more than 30% of their
income in rent and over half a million people pay more than 50% of their
income to housing.
On an island with the largest concentration of top hospitals in the country,
we're seeing a rise in new HIV infections, an epidemic of asthma, and rates of other diseases, noticeably heart disease, that disproportionately afflict some neighborhoods over others.
On an island flush with colleges and universities, and some top flight
public schools, some young people struggle to learn, pass proficiency tests
and finally graduate in overcrowded, under-funded and sometimes violent
schools.
Manhattan is the center of the greatest city in the world. But sadly it is
also a place where these two Americans coexist in sometimes startling
contrast.
As the good southern Senator himself used to say: It doesn't have to be that
way."
I welcome John Edwards to the national ticket. Kerry-Edwards 2004!
Brian Ellner
Posted by John at July 7, 2004 3:07 PM
July 2, 2004
In the News: 2nd Ave. Subway
New York is celebrating the centennial of our subway system this year, and seems like the 2nd Ave. Subway, abandoned in the midst of 1970’s financial crisis, is emerging as a special anniversary present of sorts…
Having completed its final environmental impact study for the project this spring, the MTA reportedly began purchasing property on the Upper East Side this week, in anticipation of the scheduled start of construction later this year.
The potential new line, talked about for years, would be the first major expansion of the system since the mid 20th century.
The project will be built in phases, with the first phase will be built between 96th St. and 63rd St.
This is all very promising, but many issues remain – first and foremost among them securing requisite funding for the project in its entirety (construction could last until nearly 2020).
David Gunn, the former MTA president widely credited with reviving the system in the 1980’s (and now President of Amtrak), expressed concerns with the project in a recent interview, emphasizing that the need for the maintenance of stations and cars and the need to improve schedules – the nuts and bolts of running a quality mass transit system - should not be supplanted by capital projects in funding allocations or projections.
We'll be talking about this and other major infrastructure projects a lot in this space over the course of the year, so please give us your feedback, and let's have a conversation.
Happy 4th of July!
John Arceci
Posted by John at July 2, 2004 3:08 PM
July 1, 2004
Towards a More Fair Share
I was made happy by news late last week that Mayor Bloomberg cancelled a fundraising lunch with Rep Bob Ney (R-OH); partially because I was glad the Mayor wasn't raising money for the Republicans that day, but mostly because of what Mr. Ney had just done.
Mr. Ney voted against a bill that would have moved about $446 million from the general antiterrorism fund to one designated for New York and about 50 other high risk cities and sites. If the bill had passed, New York would have been eligible for increased funding to combat terrorism.
The Mayor did the right thing, holding a legislator accountable for a vote that will hurt the City.
During the battle over the bill, the Mayor and others talked a lot about how Wyoming receives more federal antiterrorism money per person than any other state. The Mayor rightly quipped: "I've never seen a terrorist with a map of a cornfield in his pocket."
These figures are correct, and the struggle for antiterrorism funds is essential, but it is a struggle that is unquestionably reflective of a substantially larger problem:
Not only is New York not receiving enough of the Federal share to combat terrorism, we also send a disproportionate amount of money to Washington in taxes. The deficit of what we send versus what we get back approaches $15 billion statewide, according to studies that the late Senator Moynihan pioneered. Many of those billions are of course concentrated in the City (and in Manhattan specifically).
To borrow a phrase, "What could New York do with $15 billion?"
Speaker Gifford Miller has been vocal for years about the need to fix this problem, and he should be commended. Let's hope the Mayor cancels a few more fundraisers with Republican lawmakers to spend some more time working with the Speaker and our Congressional Delegation to fight for our fair share.
Brian Ellner
Posted by John at July 1, 2004 3:09 PM
June 25, 2004
Marching with Pride
On Sunday I will march in the 35th Annual Gay Pride Parade, as an openly
gay candidate for Manhattan Borough President. I will march with
pride, as I have for the last 10 years, confident that thanks to
pioneers like Congressman Barney Frank and assassinated Board of
Supervisors Member Harvey Milk, my sexual orientation is no longer a
liability to a career in public service, but rather a strength.
Our community has come a long way over the last decade. In just this
last year the United States Supreme Court overturned the Bowers case
and eliminated so called "sodomy" laws around the country. The Court,
in an eloquent opinion by Justice Kennedy (a Reagan appointee),
apologized to gay people for having previously upheld those
mean-spirited and unconstitutional laws. In Massachusetts, the Supreme
Judicial Court ended the exclusion of gay couples from marriage and
furthered the national dialogue on marriage equality.
But on this day of pride and celebration, we must not lose sight of the
work that still needs to be done, and we should not mistake dialogue
and progress with true equality.
The so-called Defense of Marriage Act ('DOMA") persists as Federal law,
and right-wing groups and politiciand are pressing to cement anti-gay
discrimination into the U.S. Constitution. They are mounting a
state-by-state campaign to add layers of anti-gay, anti-family
discrimination into laws and constitutions, including an effort to roll
back legal protections in our State.
Here in our City, Mayor Bloomberg refuses to instruct the City Clerk to
issue licenses to same sex couples despite widespread public support.
The Mayor has frequently said that marriage is a state issue and the we
(those who support marriage equality) should simply head to Albany and
lobby the State Legislature. That is insulting.
The Mayor of a City with largest gay population in the world should be
chartering a bus and joining us in the struggle, not ducking a
leadership role. Courageous Mayors across the country like Gavin Newsom
in San Francisco and Jason West of New Paltz, New York (just up the
Hudson), have taken a stand for full equality. Mayor Bloomberg has
taken strong and sometimes controversial stands on issues of public
health and the City's economy - he should do the same on issues of
fundamental equality. (The Mayor also recently vetoed the Equal
Benefits Bill, which would have provided same-sex couples the same
benefits that straight couples receive from entities that do business
with the City.)
We are also observing several disturbing trends: a sharp rise in new HIV
infections among men who have sex with men; soaring rates of sexually
transmitted infections, especially syphilis; and crystal
methamphetamine use that has reached epidemic proportions in the City.
Studies have indicated that there is a strong association with the
popular party drug, crystal, which has a strong effect on breaking down
inhibitions, and HIV and syphilis. But crystal is not the only cause.
There appears to be a growing sense of complacency among gay and
bisexual men about HIV -- a perception shaped by the distance that
comes with time and remarkable medical advances that have spared a new
generation the sight of watching their friends die. History and science
should be our allies, not our adversaries, and we must reclaim them to
stop this increase immediately. We must devote new energy towards
finally ending this disease and provide the education and treatment and
other resources needed to avoid new infections.
Finally, LGBT youth are still targeted for harassment, and, all too
often, violence, in our City's schools. (In fact, I just returned from
graduation at Harvey Milk High School and the stories of harrasment
that some of those graduates endured in other schools must not be
tolerated). We need to be certain that each and every child enjoys the
safety and dignity in their learning environments that they
deserve. Teachers and administrators in every school must receive
training on recognizing and preventing ant-gay harassment and
anti-harassment and non-discrimination policies should always be vigorously
enforced.
With each step I take during the march, I will have one foot rooted in
the past, remembering always how far we've come and those who helped us
get here, and one foot moving clearly into the future, envisioning a
City in which every New Yorker has equal rights. Please join us on
Sunday, and happy pride.
Brian Ellner
Posted by John at June 25, 2004 3:10 PM
June 23, 2004
Corey Johnson on Gay Pride
I remember being in San Francisco a year ago just before Gay Pride weekend, which is always the last Sunday in June in both New York and the City by the Bay. I was staying on a friend’s couch and woke up to the sound of my cell phone ringing off the hook - the decision had finally been handed down and the Supreme Court had finally overturned it's egregious decision in Bowers and corrected itself with it's landmark ruling in Lawrence v. Texas.
Celebrations from city to city took place all over the country and it was a stunning day to learn that Justice Anthony Kennedy (a Reagan Appointee) wrote such a moving and beautiful majority opinion affirming the rights of gay men and lesbians and apologizing for the Bowers decision.
Five months later another historic decision was handed down - this time by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. In an eloquent opinion, the majority of Justices on the court (almost entirely Republican appointees) changed the national discussion to marriage. Just last month, the first official marriage licenses were handed out to gay couples. Scenes from Massachusetts were broadcast all over the world (at the time I was in Berlin and watched it on German television).
This year Pride takes a new and different meaning: Now is the time for us to fight with full force for same-sex marriage across America and in New York. It's amazing that in just one year, we've gone from having private consensual conduct being illegal in many states to talking about same-sex marriage. This shows how fast the conversation is moving and how now, more than ever, we need to take the fight to a new level.
-----
Corey Johnson was captain of his high school football team and he made national news when hecame out to his teammates. Corey lives in New York City and lectures around the world on LGBT issues. He is also working on Brian's campaign for Manhattan Borough President, and will be a regular contributor to this blog.
Posted by John at June 23, 2004 3:11 PM
June 18, 2004
Invisible New York
There is a very disturbing piece in today's New York Times about undocumented workers being locked in supermarkets overnight. These workers are locked in stores to clean them for 10 to 12 hour shifts, have no healthcare, receive below minimum wage salaries and have no means of escaping the store in case of an emergency. They are literally locked in. This is a disgrace.
Although the article did not discuss any Manhattan supermarkets, a survey of working conditions in gourmet grocery stores in the Union Square area by Jobs With Justice has revealed some similarly horrifying news: The average reported wage was just $7.50 per hour, and cashiers started at $6.50 per hour - that's $13,000 a year working full-time. The highest wage was $9.00 per hour. At many of the stores, workers did not receive annual pay increases. Workers received few benefits, if any: Only a few stores offered health benefits. And in the few cases where health insurance was offered, the benefits were too expensive, workers had to be full-time, and had to wait 10-12 months to become eligible.
The survey of 100 workers revealed long hours and no over-time pay: Full-time workers often had to work much more than 40 hours, frequently going up to 60 hours per week - with no overtime pay, a violation of state and federal wages laws. At the same time, many part-time workers wanted more hours but couldn't get them.
Women, undocumented immigrants, and workers with limited English proficiency earned the least and had to work the hardest. The survey also found little upward mobility: Most of the stores hired their managers from the outside, rather than promoting from within. As a result, entry-level workers were largely black or Latino, while most managers were white.
The survey also revealed abusive working conditions: Breaks were short and infrequent. Almost no store allowed sick days. Sexual harassment, verbal abuse and threats were prevalent, especially against immigrants.
Similar conditions exist for workers in gourmet stores and restaurants throughout the City. When elected Borough President I promise to expose this "invisible New York." Over the coming months we will be issuing policy papers to address the plight of undocumented workers and those who work without healthcare and other benefits. I'd love to hear your views.
Brian Ellner
Posted by John at June 18, 2004 3:11 PM
