New York City’s largest public transit union, Transport Workers Union Local 100, unveiled a memorial Thursday dedicated to the more than 100 transportation workers who died from COVID-19. The tribute at their Brooklyn headquarters consists of a painting of transit workers and a map listing the 110 union members who succumbed to the virus honors the service of those who kept the Big Apple moving, according to the labor group’s leader. “Transit workers truly gave new meaning to the words ‘essential worker’ during this pandemic,” said Local 100 President Tony Utano. “Our city, our union, can survive with empty office buildings, we can survive with shuttered restaurants and bars, we can live with government by Zoom. But we can’t survive without our public transit systems and our nation’s…
US office investment market remains well below 2019 levels
The U.S. office investment market has yet to recover from the pandemic, as sales volume remains well below 2019 levels. The dollar volume of investment sales transactions across the top 30 markets totaled $28 billion in July. That was 45 percent below the July 2019 amount of $39.5 billion, according to Reonomy figures first reported by Commercial Observer. Comparing volume in Q2 2021 and Q2 2019, some metro markets appear to be recovering — total
Live Nation to require proof of vaccination / negative Covid test for concerts & festivals
The new policy goes into effect October 4. Continue reading…
UK hospitality employers could cut half a million jobs
Britain’s largest hotel lobby warned that employers may cut half a million jobs when the government ends its wage support program. A representative for UK Hospitality told Parliament on Monday that its members owe around $132 million in back taxes and owe landlords roughly $5.1 billion, according to Bloomberg News. The government’s furlough program has helped draw investment to the United Kingdom’s pub and bar sector. “All it takes is one landlord to be recalcitrant
Mayor’s office brings live performances to vaccination sites with launch of ‘Music Heals’ program
A handful of the city’s vaccination sites will play host to special performances for those looking to get the jab — and those distributing it! The Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME) and AFM Local 802 have launched “Music Heals,” a new program where musicians are paid to play for vaccine recipients and healthcare workers. The program follows in the footsteps of the Music for the Soul of NYC’s Health + Hospitals Heroes, a series launched by MOME and Local 802 AFM in spring 2020, in which local musicians performed virtually to support staff and patients at the city’s public hospitals. “Understanding the value that art and music can have on healing, …
Indoor dining capacity to increase to 75 percent on May 7
New York City restaurants can allow more patrons to dine inside starting next week. Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on Friday that starting May 7, indoor dining in the city will be expanded to 75 percent capacity. This increase brings the city to the same level of capacity as the rest of New York State. “After a long and incredibly difficult fight, New York State is winning the war against COVID-19, and that means it’s time to loosen some restrictions put in place…
Plan would convert London offices into 1,500 apartments
The City of London plans to convert empty office spaces into apartments over the next decade. The City of London Corporation, the governing body for the roughly square-mile district at the center of the wider city of London, wants to create 1,500 apartments by 2030 under a plan released Tuesday, according to the New York Times. The City of London sits on the north side of London Bridge and is the British capital’s central financial
De Blasio unveils plan to vaccinate homebound seniors
Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Friday a three-part plan to protect homebound seniors from COVID-19 — including setting up vaccine clinics around the Five Boroughs specifically designated for the elderly, inoculating home health aides, and taking steps toward bringing the vaccine into the homes of older New Yorkers next month. “We are moving heaven and earth to get our senior neighbors vaccinated,” Hizzoner said at a press conference in Sheepshead Bay. “We have …
Lawmakers blast Cuomo over hidden COVID-19 nursing home data
A bipartisan coalition of city and state lawmakers have turned the heat up on Gov. Andrew Cuomo following a Thursday bombshell in the New York Post revealing that the number of nursing home residents in the state who died of COVID is higher than reported. In a video call with Democratic state officials, Melissa DeRosa, Cuomo’s top aide, admitted the governor refused a legislative request in August to conduct an accurate count, lest the Trump White House politicize the numbers. The revelation comes a month after state Attorney General Letitia James’ January report suggesting deaths were about 50 percent higher than what was announced. This led to the count increasing from 8,711 deaths to 12,743 between January 18 and 19. As of Wednesday, the tally of nursing home residents…
Long Line for Covid-19 Vaccine Leads to Hope for More Time with Grandkids
There was a long line-up this afternoon at George Westinghouse High School, down Tillary St. and around the corner onto Flatbush Ave., for the first day of Covid-19 vaccine distributions at the location. The crowd was diverse, with people of all ages patiently waiting their turn. A man in a neon vest spoke through a bullhorn, “Welcome to your first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine!” He then explained that because it was the first day, there were technical difficulties causing the long line, although everyone there had a time-specific appointment. The man informed the crowd that they would …
More coronavirus relief on the way for small businesses
For Nancy Sinoway, a second coronavirus relief loan would increase the chances that her dressmaking business will survive. “I could use it for marketing, for new samples. I could use it as a lifeline,” says Sinoway, who designs and makes dresses for occasions like weddings and proms. She was flooded with order cancellations starting in … The post More coronavirus relief on the way for small businesses appeared first on Brooklyn Eagle.
Teachers blast ‘weak’ safety measures after MS 88 staffer contracts COVID
Teachers at MS 88 in Greenwood Heights say the city has failed them after a staffer at the school tested positive for the coronavirus. In an open letter, teachers blasted the New York City Department of Education for what they say are weak testing requirements, which lead to an infected staffer entering the building — and the first known case since public school teachers returned to their classrooms this week. “The city has failed us, and in turn the public,” the letter reads. “What happened to us is a dress rehearsal for disaster for our school communities.” The MS 88 teachers say “recommended” testing of teachers does not go far enough, and more stringent testing is needed to keep infected teachers and…
Southern Brooklyn legislators introduce plans to prepare for potential “second wave”
As the city cautiously reopens following the deadly coronavirus outbreak, two southern Brooklyn legislators are working to ensure the coronavirus pandemic won’t again devastate the city. “COVID-19 descended swiftly and demonstrated that City and State government were not prepared for a pandemic,” said State Senator Andrew Gounardes. “Our public servants were not provided with the proper safety measures, which in some cases cost them their lives.” The Bay Ridge senator introduced legislation on June 22 requiring all local and state employers in New York to publish pandemic plans outlining which employees can work from home, as well as safety measures for those that must continue showing up in person. “Requiring public employers to draft and publish a contingency plan for the next global health pandemic will…
Real estate groups challenge San Fran’s permanent ban on coronavirus-related evictions
San Francisco’s landlords are not happy about the city’s recent ban on coronavirus-related evictions. Four real estate trade groups sued the city this week over the ordinance, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Mayor London Breed signed it on Friday. The ordinance permanently bars landlords from evicting tenants for nonpayment of rent related to the pandemic. The lawsuit was filed by the San Francisco Apartment Association, the San Francisco Association of Realtors, the Coalition for
The exodus: A rise in remote working could crater expensive housing markets
Why pay an arm and a leg to live near your Silicon Valley office if you don’t need to anymore? That’s what some highly-paid tech workers are asking themselves. The coronavirus pandemic has forced remote working on scores of companies and some have decided to embrace it. Some of their employees are taking it as an opportunity to escape the super high rents and home prices in the Bay Area, according to Bloomberg. Dylan Hecklau,
Who made de Blasio’s real estate reopening council — and who didn’t
It’s rarely a good sign when a press release is issued late on a Friday afternoon, as was the case this week when Mayor Bill de Blasio unveiled his construction and real estate advisory council. That’s when the fewest people (and journalists) are paying attention to the news, which makes it a good time to air dirty laundry or just put out information not viewed as having PR value. But perhaps the panel names were
‘He was larger than life’: Brooklyn mourns death of Grand Prospect Hall owner Michael Halkias
The owner of the iconic Park Slope events venue Grand Prospect Hall, Michael Halkias, died from COVID-19 on Wednesday. He was 82. Halkias’ death sent shockwaves throughout Brooklyn, where community leaders and friends remember him as a passionate, generous figure. “He was a Brooklyn character for sure in the best sort of way,” said Randy Peers, president and CEO of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce. “He was larger than life.” Halkias and his wife Alice bought Grand Prospect Hall in 1984 and turned the extravagant Prospect Avenue building into an opulent catering hall. The space became a New York icon because of its long-running, popular commercials, where Alice Halkias declares in a Greek accent, “We make your dreams come true!” …
Missouri Governor says concerts & other live events may resume starting Monday
Missouri Governor Mike Parsons has declared that concerts and other public events like movies and amusement parks can start happening in the state starting Monday, May 4 as part of the “Show Me Strong Recovery Plan”… Continue reading…
Health authorities shut Flatlands funeral homes for improperly storing bodies in U-Haul trucks
State health authorities have shut down a Flatlands funeral home on Friday morning after they “appallingly” stored dozens of bodies in several U-Haul trucks earlier in the week. “Following an investigation by the State Department of Health, I issued an immediate suspension order to the Andrew T. Cleckley Funeral Home in Brooklyn – whose actions were appalling, disrespectful to the families of the deceased, and completely unacceptable,” said state Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker. Officers from the 63rd Police Precinct responded to a 911 call on April 29 at Andrew T. Cleckley Funeral Home at 2057A Utica Ave, …
Stanley Chera, titan of NYC retail, dies of coronavirus
Stanley I. Chera, who parlayed his father’s Brooklyn department store business into one of New York real estate’s biggest retail empires, reaped huge rewards from the city’s emergence as a global shopping destination and used his wealth and connections to play kingmaker for Donald Trump, has died from complications of the coronavirus, making him the most high-profile industry casualty of the global pandemic. Chera’s death on April 11 was confirmed to The Real Deal by
Opinion: Releasing inmates during a time of crisis is a terrible idea
When all five of the city’s district attorneys, who are all fellow Democrats, say that the mayor’s initiative of releasing inmates from Rikers Island is dangerous, we should listen to them. This week, the top prosecutors in Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, Staten Island, and the Bronx united to strongly condemn Mayor de Blasio on this matter. They said, “We want to make clear that the categories of those proposed for release have, in some instances, included individuals who pose a high risk to public safety.” They concluded with this zinger: “We should not have to make release decisions that we know will put communities at risk.” As the quintessential example of …
Brooklyn landlord voluntarily waives April rents at all 18 properties
Mario Salerno isn’t the only good landlord in the city of New York, but he’s quickly becoming one of the most well-known. Salerno waived rents for all 80 tenants in all 18 of his apartment buildings — no questions asked — to ease the financial pressure felt by many in the age of coronavirus, according to the New York Times. Residents found signs from Salerno posted near their buildings’ front doors informing them that he
Travel the world from home with these foreign films and shows
Transport yourself to a more beautiful place than your living room with one of these foreign films or shows. Image: ‘The Durells in Corfu,’ PBS There’s nothing like a global pandemic to realize how interconnected we are, and how similar our trajectories are even across continents and oceans. There’s also nothing like a quarantine to make you long for the ability to travel to any place but your home. Obviously the first foreign film you should watch while we shelter at home is Parasite, if you haven’t already seen it. The fact that this South Korean thriller won the Oscar for Best…
Brooklyn Bridge Park During PAUSE
Brooklyn Bridge Park President Eric Landau has issued the following guidance for use of the park while New York is on PAUSE:The health and safety of our staff, visitors, and community is our top priority. While the Park is open, please note that it is open for passive use and solitary recreation only. We encourage people to walk their dog, go for a run, or just spend a few minutes outside. While in the Park, please be sure to practice good social distancing, keeping at least 6 feet apart from others.In the interest of everyone’s wellbeing, areas of the Park where social distancing is not practical (e.g., Pier…