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DOWNTOWN
POST NYC
News and Events
in Lower Manhattan
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Volume 6,
No.
25, June 23, 2020
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QUOTE OF THE DAY:
"We do not want a lot of people out watching."
- New York Mayor Bill de Blasio explaining why this year's July 4 fireworks will not be the usual extravaganza on the East River
WEATHER INFORMATION: For current weather information,
click here.
COVID-19 CASES IN NEW YORK CITY: As of June 22 at 4:14 p.m.
1,560,646 tested * 209,562 confirmed cases * 22,321 deaths
Go to
www.DowntownPostNYC.com for breaking news and for updated information on facility closures related to COVID-19
MASTHEAD PHOTO: Election Day. (Photo: © Terese Loeb Kreuzer 2016)
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Today, June 23, the polls are open until 9 p.m. for the primary election.
You must be a registered member of a political party to vote in the primary. In other words, if you're registered as an Independent, you can't vote in today's election.
Because of Covid-19, some polling places have changed. To check your polling place, click here.
If you are not yet registered to vote, you can still get registered so that you can vote in the general election, which will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Any registered voter can participate in that election.
Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, absentee ballots were made available for people to vote in today's primary election. If you have not yet mailed your absentee ballot, you can still do so and have it counted so long as it is postmarked by midnight tonight (June 23). You can also, if you wish, hand deliver it today to any poll site. For more information, click here.
It is not yet known whether absentee ballots will be widely available for the Nov. 3 election. If they are available, it will be necessary to reapply, even if you did receive an absentee ballot to vote in the primary.
For answers to frequently asked questions about voting, click here.
Terese Loeb Kreuzer
Editor
Downtown Post NYC's website (www.DowntownPostNYC.com) is updated daily. That's the place to check for urgent messages, breaking news and reminders of interesting events in and around Lower Manhattan. So be sure to look at the website every day, especially if you want to know about breaking news.
Downtown Post NYC on Facebook: On its Facebook page, Downtown Post NYC has been providing information about the time of Governor Andrew Cuomo's daily press briefings and how to access them. DPNYC has also been highlighting some of Gov. Cuomo's announcements concerning COVID-19 statistics, reopening of various parts of the state for business and executive orders. Go to Downtown Post NYC's Facebook page by
clicking here.
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editor@downtownpostnyc.com.
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 ON THE DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY BALLOT IN THE 10TH NEW YORK CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT, TWO CANDIDATES VIE TO REPLACE NADLER
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Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) standing outside the Battery Park City public library on Aug. 9, 2018 to meet and talk with constituents. (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)
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New York's 10th Congressional District stretches from the Upper West Side of Manhattan through Greenwich Village, Tribeca, the Financial District and Battery Park City before crossing the harbor to take in parts of Brooklyn. The district is the second smallest congressional district in the country, but what it lacks in size it makes up for by including places of national importance such as Wall Street, the World Trade Center site and several historic areas, some of which date to the 17th century founding of the city.
Since 2013, the district has been represented in Congress by Jerrold Nadler whose tenure in the House of Representatives in fact goes back much further. He has been in Congress since 1992 when he represented the 8th Congressional District, parts of which were folded into what is now the 10th CD.
With Democrats now the majority in the House of Representatives, Nadler currently holds the important position of Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. In 2018, he ran unopposed in the primary election and beat his Republican opponent in the general election by garnering 82.1 percent of the vote.
However, this year, Nadler has two opponents in the Democratic primary, Lindsey Boylan and Jonathan Herzog, neither of whom has ever held elected office.
Like Nadler, who holds a bachelor's degree from Columbia University and a law degree from Fordham, Boylan and Herzog are Ivy-League educated. Boylan has a B.A. from Wellesley College and attended Columbia for graduate school. Herzog has a B.A. from Harvard, an M.B.A. from New York University's Stern School of Business and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. Boylan is 36 years old. Herzog is 25. Nadler is 72.
When Boylan and Herzog talk about why they want to run for Congress, they mention wanting to attack unemployment, hate crimes and income inequality (Herzog) and "the threat to our democracy," income inequality and the need to pass the Green New Deal (Boylan). She also says that she wants to pass legislation that would guarantee paid family leave, "housing as a human right," and free community college.
Nadler doesn't talk about legislation that he would like to pass. He's too busy working on matters of concern to the House Judiciary Committee. Since the beginning of June, for instance, among many other matters he has weighed in on police brutality and racial profiling ("We must look at legislation to address laws that shield police officers from ever being accountable," he said.) He introduced legislation to cut $50 million from the Department of Justice General Administration Account, which funds the U.S. Attorney General's personal office. The legislation is part of a series of actions that Nadler announced in early June to counter Attorney General William Barr's continued defiance of Congress and what Nadler called the "improper politicization of the Department of Justice."
On June 10, he filed an amicus brief on behalf of all Democratic members of the House Judiciary Committee in the case of United States v. Michael Flynn, which is being heard in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Nadler said that "Following the Department of Justice's motion to dismiss the government's criminal charges against Michael Flynn, which set off numerous protests within the Department and across the legal community, the Committee's filing argues that the Department's motion represents the most overt demonstration of the rule of law being corroded for political purposes - in this case, to serve the demands of President Trump."
This is only a small part of what Nadler has been doing.
Herzog has only a modest amount of money in his campaign kitty, but Boylan is extremely well funded. Her husband, LeRoy Kim, is a managing director of Allen & Co., a New York investment bank. Boylan has been spending lavishly to advance her candidacy.
Nadler has been endorsed by Senator Elizabeth Warren, by Congressmember Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, by New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer, by Congressmember Katie Porter, by New York State Assemblymember Yu-Line Niou, by New York City Council Speaker Corey Johnson, and by numerous other elected officials. He has also been endorsed by every major Democratic club in his district and by The New York Times.
The polls close today (June 23) at 9 p.m. Anyone who is in line to vote at 9 p.m. can vote. People who are voting by absentee ballot can have their votes counted if they mail them today and they are postmarked by midnight
- Terese Loeb Kreuzer
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THERE WILL BE JULY 4TH FIREWORKS THIS YEAR - SORT OF
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| Fourth of July fireworks on the East River. (Photo: © Terese Loeb Kreuzer) |
This is what you wanted to know, isn't it? Will Macy's be sponsoring a July 4 fireworks display this year and if so, where will it be? The answers to those pressing questions were announced today (June 23) by Mayor Bill de Blasio. He said there will be five separate fireworks shows, one in each borough, starting on June 29. Each show will last five minutes and the exact locations will only be announced shortly before each show begins.
"We do not want a lot of people out watching," said Mayor de Blasio at a press conference this morning. He said that the idea was to position the shows so that people could see them from their own homes, rooftops and nearby parks. This will be happening through Wednesday, July 1 said the mayor.
Then, on Saturday, July 4, tapes of the individual shows will be aired on NBC along with music "from leading cultural figures." (The mayor didn't say who these would be.) "There will be tributes to our heroes who got us this far, the healthcare workers, the first responders, everyone who fought through March, fought through April all the way to today to make this city come back." The mayor also said that there would be "something very special that night at the Empire State Building as well."
Meanwhile the city has been treated to a rash of illegal fireworks. The mayor said they were being set off in all five boroughs and could be dangerous. The city is looking into who's supplying them and "is going to start a huge sting operation" everywhere they're being sold in New York City and in surrounding states. The Sheriff's Office, the FDNY and the NYPD are on the case said the mayor. Plus, he said, there will be a "big public safety campaign led by the FDNY."
This venture should attract a large and appreciative audience. As for the fireworks vendors, now that the mayor let the cat out of the bag about the sting operation, they may lay low for awhile until this blows over.
- Terese Loeb Kreuzer
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ASSISTANCE WITH
Disaster Loans & Grants
Unemployment Assistance - available for W2 and Schedule C clients
Mandated additional sick pay and associated tax credit
Paycheck Protection Program; Extended tax loss carry-backs
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Downtown bulletin board
OPTOMETRIST AND HAIR SALON REOPEN IN BATTERY PARK CITY; SANITIZING STATIONS INSTALLED IN FIDI; GNOCCHI COOKING CLASS
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| This photograph is in recognition of what didn't happen this year because of the Covid-19 crisis. There was no Swedish Midsummer Festival in Battery Park City, an event that has been going on for decades and usually attracts thousands of people. Last year on June 21, dancers from Barnklubben Elsa Rix led off the festival by dancing around the Maypole. Decorating the maypole with greenery and flowers seems to have originally been a medieval Germanic tradition. (Photo: ©Terese Loeb Kreuzer) |
Battery Park City blood drive No. 2: A blood drive earlier in June was so successful that another one has been scheduled.
Date: June 25. Place: 6 River Terrace (between North End Avenue and River Terrace). Time: Noon to 6 p.m.
Please make an appointment by
clicking here!
For questions about eligibility, call (800) 688-0900 or
click here.
At the blood drive, donor temperatures will be taken. Don't donate if you have a fever or other symptoms of Covid-19 such as a cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing. Donors must wear a face covering and practice social distancing. Bring a photo ID, your donor ID card or know your donor ID number. Eat well and drink plenty of fluids before donating.
Reopened or reopening in Battery Park City: In no order of importance, there were three announcements today (June 23) of reopenings in Battery Park City.
Battery Park Vision Associates at 101 Battery Place will be seeing patients again beginning on July 6. Phone calls for appointments can be made on weekdays between noon and 5 p.m. through July 2. Anyone entering the office must have an appointment, including anyone coming there for eyeglass adjustments and pickups. For more information, call (212) 945-6789. Also in Battery Park City, the
Vince Smith Hair Experience at 300 Rector Place reopened on June 23. The salon has been renovated to enable better distancing. Call (212) 945-1590 for more information. Finally, Jeff and Paula Galloway who head BPC Dogs report that all
Battery Park City dog runs are now open 24/7 as they were before the Covid-19 closure.
Sanitizing stations: The Alliance for Downtown New York, the nonprofit business improvement district for Lower Manhattan, is piloting sanitizing stations throughout the district near public transportation sites. The Downtown Alliance has also posted clear signage in public spaces and along 40 sidewalk passages to help pedestrians navigate the neighborhood's narrow passages while maintaining safe distances from others and has distributed 50,000 masks to as many as 300 local businesses through donations from Fosun and the City of New York.
Sanitizing stations and signage began rolling out over the weekend of June 13 and June 14 at more than 40 locations in the one square mile of Lower Manhattan. The Alliance will monitor and adjust placements as needed, and all high-contact physical surfaces will be disinfected and deep-cleaned on a regular basis.
Distribution of face masks is on a first-come, first-served basis to businesses within the Downtown-Lower Manhattan business improvement district. If a business within the BID would like to request a delivery of masks, contact the Alliance's Director of Storefront Engagement, Heather Ducharme, at
hducharme@downtownny.com.
The 10 Sanitizing Station Locations in Lower Manhattan are as follows:
* R/W World Trade Center Station (NWC Park Pl/Church St)
* A/C/4/5 Fulton Street Station (SWC Dey St/B'way)
* A/C/4/5 Fulton Transit Center (SEC John St/B'way)
* A/C/2/3 Fulton Street Station (SWC Fulton/William Sts)
* 2/3 Wall Street Station (SEC Wall/William Sts)
* J Broad Street Station (NWC Wall/Broad Sts)
* 4/5 Wall Street Station (SWC Rector St/B'way)
* 4/5 Bowling Green Station (Bowling Green South Entrance)
* Staten Island Ferry Terminal (South Ferry Bus Loop)
* Coenties Slip Plaza and Park (Coenties Slip/Water St)
Connection bus route change: Three stops on the Downtown Connection bus's route were reinstated as of June 8. As formerly (before Warren Street construction began), the bus is stopping at Warren and Greenwich Streets and at Warren and Church Streets on its east-bound route. West-bound on its way into Battery Park City, the bus stops at North End Avenue and Chambers Street. The Connection bus is run by the Downtown Alliance. It makes 36 stops between the South Street Seaport and Broadway near City Hall. Daily service begins at 10 a.m. and ends with a final run at 7:30 p.m. On average (depending on traffic) buses run at 10-minute intervals during the week and at 15-minute intervals on weekends. All buses are ADA accessible. Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, vehicle capacities have been reduced by 50 percent and all passengers are required to wear face masks in order to board. For real-time bus tracking and arrival times, download the NextBus app (iPhone | Android).
How to report police abuse: If you witness police abuse in person or see footage on social media, you can file a complaint with the City's Civilian Complaint Review Board at
nyc.gov/ccrbcomplaint or (800) 341-CCRB.
New York State Attorney General James, who is conducting an investigation of the George Floyd protests, asks that any information, including visuals, be shared with her office as they proceed with that investigation. Email:
complaints@ag.ny.gov.
United States Census 2020 is hiring: The 2020 U.S. Census will require a massive effort to document everyone in the country. The U.S. government is hiring census workers with a promise of "great pay, flexible hours, weekly pay and paid training." The jobs include census taker, recruiting assistant, office clerk, and supervisory staff. Applications can be made online at
2020census.gov/jobs. For more information, call 855-JOB-2020.
Dine Around Downtown, Cooking at Home edition: The Downtown Alliance has created a "Cooking at Home" edition of its popular food festival, Dine Around Downtown. Rocco DiSpirito, celebrity chef and cookbook author, is acting as host to three Lower Manhattan chefs as they demonstrate easy-to-replicate dishes from their restaurants. The series debuted on June 11 with Delmonico's executive chef, Billy Oliva, in the kitchen.
It continues
on June 25 when Michele Iuliano, co-owner and chef of Gnoccheria at 100 Broad St. will show participants how to make fresh hand-rolled gnocchi with three sauces: pesto, sorrentina and quatro formaggi. Finally, on July 9, Einat Admony, chef and co-owner of Taïm at 75 Maiden Lane, will call on her upbringing in Israel as she makes eggplant sabich salad and cauliflower shwarma. All of these events start at 4 p.m.
The series is free to join via Zoom but registration is required and limited. If they wish, participants can donate to a fund of the restaurants' choice, which will support their staff and/or local food supply charities. Pre-register here: downtownny.com/dinearound
Classic Harbor Line Restarts Harbor Cruises: Classic Harbor Line is back in New York harbor with its yacht Manhattan II and its schooner Adirondack. All passengers and crew are required to wear masks and social distancing is strictly observed with bookings at 50 percent of normal capacity. The ships are sanitized between cruises. No food or beverages are served. The cruises offered range in length from one to two hours. All tickets can be rescheduled or converted to credit up until 24 hours in advance for any reason. For more information or to make reservations, click here. For 20% off the ticket price, use the online promo code UPandRUNNING. (Valid until July 31st)
Working Harbor Committee and Classic Harbor Line team up: The Working Harbor Committee, which offers educational tours of New York Harbor, is waiting for the Covid-19 crisis to abate enough to resume its normal operations. In the meantime, the WHC has teamed up with Classic Harbor Line for their summer tours. When you book a tour on Classic Harbor Line's Manhattan II or Adirondack using the promo code TOUR5, Classic Harbor Line will give you a $5 discount and also donate $5 to the Working Harbor Committee. For cruise choices and dates, click here.
Most of the Downtown Post NYC bulletin board listings are now on the Downtown Post NYC website. To see the bulletin board listings,
click here.
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If you would like to forward this email click the button below. Please do not forward this email in any other way, or your name may be automatically dropped from the subscription list. (That's how this email service works.) Thank you!
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Downtown Post NYC is emailed to subscribers twice a week.
Editor: Terese Loeb Kreuzer
All articles and photographs in Downtown Post NYC are copyrighted and
may not be reprinted or republished without written permission.
© 2020
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