Saving Coogan's
Yesterday, local politicians too community members gathered to rally for Coogan's Bar too Restaurant inwards Washington Heights. After hiking Coogan's rent past times $40,000, the landlord, New York-Presbyterian Hospital, surrendered nether world line per unit of measurement area this calendar week too made a bargain to maintain Coogan's inwards house for the foreseeable future. (The details are beingness kept confidential.)
On the mutual frigidness too sunny Lord's Day afternoon, inwards front end of a large crowd, Congressman Adriano Espaillat, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, Public Advocate Letitia James, too City Comptroller Scott Stringer made celebratory speeches, calling Coogan's "the United Nations of Washington Heights" too a "civic center" for the neighborhood. They equally good promised to salvage small-scale businesses across the 5 boroughs.
"We spoke amongst i voice," said Brewer. "We desire to create the same affair for other mom too pops. This is simply the beginning."
"Our operate must continue," said James. "Small businesses are suffering too nosotros necessitate to come upwards to a resolution to protect small-scale businesses inwards the city."
"Coogan's," said Stringer, "is the line inwards the sand."
But what create they invention to do? After questions from the press, the give-and-take got some to solutions, specifically the Small Business Jobs Survival Act (SBJSA), a mouth that many activists pick out been pushing for years (see flyer below).
"We necessitate a hearing on the SBJSA," said James. "We're going to live on urging the City Council too Corey Johnson to position it forward."
Currently, close City Council members back upwards the SBJSA. To pass, the novel Speaker must pick out it to a vote. This is essential. Only a broad-reaching policy similar the SBJSA--or the homecoming of commercial rent control--will salvage our small-scale businesses. Like Espaillat said to the crowd, treatment the occupation of evicted mom too pops i past times i is non a solution. "We're going to lose a lot of them," he said, "and nosotros necessitate legislation. We're going to halt hyper-gentrification."
After the rally, within Coogan's, I talked amongst Lena Melendez, a local social worker too organizer amongst RENA (Riverside Edgecombe Neighborhood Association) too Dominicanos Pro Defensa Negocios Y Viviendas (DDNV).
Lena too I discussed hyper-gentrification inwards Washington Heights. "The landlords are beingness incentivized to force people out," she explained, pointing to the 20% vacancy bonus loophole inwards the rent rule laws. "It's an erosion of the consumer base. And small-scale businesses pick out no protections whatsoever."
Real-estate speculation has been pushed into overdrive past times the city's rezoning of Inwood. Lena noted the spread of high-rent blight infecting upper Broadway, a rash of storefronts forcibly emptied too kept empty. "The landlords necessitate to live on punished," she said, amongst disincentives similar a vacancy tax. But that won't create every situation. "If a line concern is inwards a two-story building, they're a dead duck." With a demolition clause inwards the lease too no rent-regulated tenants to bargain with, the developers tin dismiss simply kicking out the line concern too demolish.
Why is this occupation too thence difficult to fight? "Because REBNY is too thence strong," Lena said, "and the politicians are similar prostitutes beingness bought." She wants to run across the neighborhood larn organized. "The Latino community has to stand upwards up. But they necessitate to live on informed. If this community knew what that rezoning volition create to the neighborhood, they'd live on marching inwards the streets."
"The politicians desire us all to intend the rezoning is a expert thing." To that she says, "You're jerking me around. You're pissing on my caput too calling it rain."
When nosotros finished talking, Lena went dorsum to gathering signatures on a petition to salvage Galicia, a eatery simply a few blocks upwards Broadway, getting forced out afterward xxx years inwards business.
flyer past times Jenny Dubnau
On the mutual frigidness too sunny Lord's Day afternoon, inwards front end of a large crowd, Congressman Adriano Espaillat, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, Public Advocate Letitia James, too City Comptroller Scott Stringer made celebratory speeches, calling Coogan's "the United Nations of Washington Heights" too a "civic center" for the neighborhood. They equally good promised to salvage small-scale businesses across the 5 boroughs.
"We spoke amongst i voice," said Brewer. "We desire to create the same affair for other mom too pops. This is simply the beginning."
"Our operate must continue," said James. "Small businesses are suffering too nosotros necessitate to come upwards to a resolution to protect small-scale businesses inwards the city."
"Coogan's," said Stringer, "is the line inwards the sand."
But what create they invention to do? After questions from the press, the give-and-take got some to solutions, specifically the Small Business Jobs Survival Act (SBJSA), a mouth that many activists pick out been pushing for years (see flyer below).
"We necessitate a hearing on the SBJSA," said James. "We're going to live on urging the City Council too Corey Johnson to position it forward."
Currently, close City Council members back upwards the SBJSA. To pass, the novel Speaker must pick out it to a vote. This is essential. Only a broad-reaching policy similar the SBJSA--or the homecoming of commercial rent control--will salvage our small-scale businesses. Like Espaillat said to the crowd, treatment the occupation of evicted mom too pops i past times i is non a solution. "We're going to lose a lot of them," he said, "and nosotros necessitate legislation. We're going to halt hyper-gentrification."
After the rally, within Coogan's, I talked amongst Lena Melendez, a local social worker too organizer amongst RENA (Riverside Edgecombe Neighborhood Association) too Dominicanos Pro Defensa Negocios Y Viviendas (DDNV).
Lena too I discussed hyper-gentrification inwards Washington Heights. "The landlords are beingness incentivized to force people out," she explained, pointing to the 20% vacancy bonus loophole inwards the rent rule laws. "It's an erosion of the consumer base. And small-scale businesses pick out no protections whatsoever."
Real-estate speculation has been pushed into overdrive past times the city's rezoning of Inwood. Lena noted the spread of high-rent blight infecting upper Broadway, a rash of storefronts forcibly emptied too kept empty. "The landlords necessitate to live on punished," she said, amongst disincentives similar a vacancy tax. But that won't create every situation. "If a line concern is inwards a two-story building, they're a dead duck." With a demolition clause inwards the lease too no rent-regulated tenants to bargain with, the developers tin dismiss simply kicking out the line concern too demolish.
Why is this occupation too thence difficult to fight? "Because REBNY is too thence strong," Lena said, "and the politicians are similar prostitutes beingness bought." She wants to run across the neighborhood larn organized. "The Latino community has to stand upwards up. But they necessitate to live on informed. If this community knew what that rezoning volition create to the neighborhood, they'd live on marching inwards the streets."
"The politicians desire us all to intend the rezoning is a expert thing." To that she says, "You're jerking me around. You're pissing on my caput too calling it rain."
When nosotros finished talking, Lena went dorsum to gathering signatures on a petition to salvage Galicia, a eatery simply a few blocks upwards Broadway, getting forced out afterward xxx years inwards business.
flyer past times Jenny Dubnau
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