What's Happening This Week in
Downtown Jamaica
A(nother) Letter From our Executive Director

Last week I wrote a letter detailing how our organization is committed to doing our part to help Jamaica Avenue get through, and eventually recover and rebuild from the COVID-19 crisis. If you missed that letter, you can access it here . Today, I would like to use this space to speak directly to those in our business community.

Businesses, if you haven’t already, I implore you to reach out to your local economic development organizations, whether that is a business improvement district (such as our very own Jamaica Center BID or our adjacent BIDs, the Sutphin Avenue BID or 165th Street BID .) You can also call your nearest chamber of commerce such as the Queens Chamber of Commerce , merchants association or a local development or local economic development organization like the Queens Economic Development Corporation . The types of organizations I just listed are all nonprofit organizations with the philanthropic/charitable mission to provide businesses with support.

Why is it particularly important to get in contact with your nearest BID, chamber, or merchants association right now? Well, two reasons. First, our profession is in full-gear tracking all of the federal, state, and city directives, along with the grants, loans and other business assistance packages being rolled out to help the business community. We have been studying and synthesizing it for hours on end and many of us have formed helpful resource guides such as our new COVID-19 resource webpage . We are an efficient way for businesses to get this critical information quickly and in one place.

Second, we also need businesses to communicate with us so that we can advocate for your needs now, and during the recovery period on a larger scale. We need to hear your reactions to small business support legislation being proposed by the local, state and federal representatives. We need to hear what types of grants or loans would be most helpful for your business to survive now, and rebuild later. It is our job as economic development professionals to synthesize all that we are hearing from a variety of businesses and report that back to elected officials and government agencies so that their eventual policies and programs reflect the true needs of the businesses we represent. But we can only advocate for businesses if they share their needs with us. That’s why I ask that you email or call our office and share information you think we need to know right now about how the Covid-crisis is affecting you.

I wish I could make promises that this will be over soon, or that the damage will be minimal. Unfortunately, we all understand that this Covid-19 tragedy is going to affect us for quite some time. One promise I can make to our business community, however, is that our team is here for you and we will work hard for you to help you weather this storm.

Jennifer Furioli
Two (Tele) Town Halls for SE Queens

Two upcoming town halls have been scheduled for SE Queens businesses and/or residents.

Businesses : You are invited to a small business “town hall” this Thursday, March 26 with the Commissioner of New York City’s Department of Small Business Services Gregg Bishop , hosted by City Council representatives Donovan Richards , Adrienne Adams and I. Daneek Mille r. Please attend if you can.
  • Thursday, March 26 from 10 - 11 a.m.
  • Call in Number: 712-432-6121
  • Pin Number: 513479
Residents : There's a town hall for you too. State Senator James Sanders' Jr. invites all residents in South Jamaica, Springfield Gardens and Rosedale to a virtual conference call with him to answer your questions and hear your concerns regarding COVID- 19. You may channel in through Facebook Live on Thursday, March 26th at 4PM. Please spread the word to other residents. 
(If attendees do not have Facebook, a conference call number will be provided; please rsvp with Zaleika Johnson at 516-395-2504 or via email at zjohnson@nysenate.gov )
Reminder: We have a COVID-19 Business Resource Page on Jamaica.nyc

Businesses : If you missed the last e-blast, we announced that we had created a new COVID-19 resource page specifically for businesses on our website, Jamaica.nyc. Please bookmark this page and check it daily…we try to update it as frequently as possible. New additions this week include:

  • A new pre-application for the City’s small business loan program

  • The link to the newly-released Small Business Administration zero-interest loan program

  • Special section dedicated restaurant-specific resources

  • And much more…
Our World Hour of Power - Business in the COVID-19 Environment

On Sunday, our Executive Director Jennifer Furioli appeared on Our World Media's Our World Hour of Power Podcast' with Pauline Swift and Glenn Grennidge (Sutphin Boulevard BID) to discuss about the business environment in Downtown Jamaica during the COVID-19 pandemic. Conversation circled around what businesses were open, the effect of COVID-19 on businesses, and how the BIDs were working to support businesses during this time. We always love chatting with Pauline and her co-host Glenn. You can listen to the podcast below.
Restaurant Delivery/Takeout

A large number of our restaurants and bodegas on Jamaica Avenue offer delivery and takeout options. Please take a look at the below document we have compiled. How lucky we are that 28 eateries offer takeout and 21 offer delivery. We will continue to update this document as circumstances change. Please make an effort to keep these businesses open and their staff employed by supporting them. If you know of a business that has closed during this time, please send us an email at covid-19@jamaicacenter.org. We have also heard that delivery service fees from certain companies can take a large chunk out of restaurant profits. It’s worth calling your favorite restaurant to ask if they have an in-house delivery method they would prefer you use instead.
Community Resources for
Individuals and Families
Blink Fitness Stay At Home Workouts

Blink Fitness (located at 163-02 on Jamaica Avenue) has always been a good neighbor—don’t forget that they participated in our Halloween Event hosted by our BID in October at Rufus King Park. They haven’t forgotten about the fitness needs of their gym-goers. If you’re tired of being quarantined at home and miss the gym, check out Blink Fitness' daily workouts that start at 8am! Visit the link below for the previous workout videos.
Download a Free Coloring Book from DSNY

Families that may have children at home because of COVID-19 that are participating in homeschooling can take a break and download a free coloring book from the NYC Department of Sanitation below here .
Make Your Own Historic Portrait from King Manor Museum

Our friends at King Manor Museum provided an indoor activity for parents to do with their kids while at home. Check it out on our Instagram page here .
Emergency Meals and School Meals

If you or someone you know is in need of food, please visit the NYC Emergency Food Assistance Program or call the Emergency Food line at 1-866-888-8777. Learn more here .

For NYC Students: Grab-and-go is now available for three meals a day by the New York City Department of Education from 7:30 AM to 1:30 PM. ANY student can pick up breakfast and lunch at ANY school building. Learn more and find a location here .
Price Gouging Complaint Form

Per New York State Attorney General Letitia James , please use the 'Learn More' link to the right to submit complaints about sudden price increases of essential goods and services (like water, ice, food, generators, batteries, flashlights, lodging, home repair materials and services, and snow and tree removal services). If a merchant took advantage of you or others by charging unconscionably high prices for essential goods or services during a major weather event, natural disaster or other emergency situation, please submit the form to the right.
Helpful COVID-19 Information for the General Public

  • NYC’s Health Department is regularly updating information about the Coronavirus here.

  • Remember that you can call 311 to have many of your novel Coronavirus questions answered as well. 311 can also help you locate a health care provider.

  • If you feel that you, or someone you know, needs counseling to help cope during this time, 1-888-NYC-WELL (1-888-692-9355) is a free, confidential help line for New York City residents. You can call 24 hours per day/7 days a week. The staff of trained mental health professionals help callers find mental health services. NYC Well is multilingual and multicultural. More information about this program can be accessed here.

  • If you would like to receive regular text alerts from City government regarding the novel Coronavirus, you can sign up by texting COVID to 692-692.
About Business and Event Promotions in this Newsletter : Businesses and organizations located in the Jamaica Avenue Commercial District between Sutphin Blvd and 169th Street are invited to submit promotional information for possible inclusion in our newsletter. Events happening near or immediately adjacent to the Jamaica Avenue Commercial District may also be considered for inclusion on a case-by-case basis. We reserve the right to reject or edit materials for length, style, timeliness, and appropriateness. This newsletter serves to inform our community about events, opportunities and commercial activity in Downtown Jamaica, within specifically the Jamaica Center BID boundaries.