Newsletters

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Retirement Security for All
2. Homeless Taskforce Launched
3. “United” U.S Senators Booker and Gillibrand
4. Limiting Corruption with a Full Time Legislature
5. Better Budget
6. Participatory Budgeting: You Decide How to Spend $1 Million

HOUSING

7. Stopping Superscrapers
8. Affordable Housing Registration, Enforcement, and Application
9. Fighting for More and Broader Affordability in Mayor's Housing Plan
10. Construction Safety
11. Smoke Alarm Giveaway

EDUCATION

12. Universal Pre-K
13. Sotheby’s Art Show
14. Chess in the Schools

TRANSPORTATION AND ENVIRONMENT

15. Crosstown Bike Lanes
16. Rallying for Offshore Wind Energy
17. Energy Town Hall
18. Marine Transfer Station

JOBS AND EQUALITY

19. Fight for $15
20. Freelance isn’t Free

GOOD GOVERNANCE AND TECHNOLOGY

22. Elections Empowering Everyone
23. “Automatic Benefits” Featured on Effective Radio
24. Free and Open Source Software

OFFICE UPDATES

25. Legislative Corner
26. In the Neighborhood
27. Legal Clinic
28. Mobile District Hours
29. Ben In Your Building

EVENTS AND COMMUNITY RESOURCES

30. City Council Events
31. Events Funded by My Office
32. Community Events
33. Community Resources

Dear Friend,

It has been two years, one month and twenty four days since I began serving as your City Council Member. I am deeply proud of the work we have accomplished together and excited for the road ahead.

I want to thank all whom I have already had a chance to meet and look forward to meeting you or seeing you again at my District Office at 244 East 93rd Street for First Friday, Policy Night, or another event listed at BenKallos.com/Events. Or I can come to you for Ben In Your Building.

If you would like to compare my goals with actions over the past two years, please have a look at my 2013 Policy Book as well as my Inauguration and two States of the District, where we looked to the past and prepared for a bright future. I am proud of these achievements, but I know we have much more to do together. Thank you for your support over the past two years. I am looking forward to the next two.

Sincerely,

Thank you to everyone who was a part of my State of the District. Our numerous accomplishments are the result of collaboration with you and it was a nice opportunity to celebrate the great work we have done together fighting for our community and city. 

The big news this month was our rezoning proposal to stop superscrapers in residential neighborhoods. We also passed a law to improve health education, held two hearings on my legislation to fight children’s hunger and obesity, and introduced legislation to end the corrupting influence of stipends and outside income.

In February, we will hold an energy forum, where you can hear from experts on how to save on your bills and save the environment. The City Council will also hold two hearings on the Mayor’s housing and zoning plans. What do you want the East Side to look like fifty years from now?

Sincerely,

Ben Kallos
Council Member

P.S. Join me in celebrating my 35th Birthday at First Friday on February 5, 8am - 10am. RSVP to reserve your slice of birthday cake.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. State of the District
2. Limiting Corruption with a Full Time Legislature 
3. We Filed to Stop the Superscrapers
4. Bridging the Digital Divide
5. Community Boards

YOUTH AND EDUCATION

6. Health Education Co-Prime on Cumbo’s Law
7. Fighting Hunger and Obesity
8. Art Show

TRANSPORTATION

7. Second Avenue Resurfacing
8. Vision Zero Report Card
9. Crosstown Bike Lanes Meeting Notice

HOUSING

10. NYCHA Infill Plan
11. Affordable Housing Legislation
12. ZQA/MIH coming to the Council
13. Hope Count, February 8
14. Homelessness Forum
15. MS 177 Homeless/Refugee Play

PARKS AND ENVIRONMENT

16. Sutton Area Conservancy $6K Grant
17. Beyond Coal Victory
18. Top Scores from Environmental Group NYLCV
19. Queensboro Oval

JOBS AND EQUALITY

20. Paid Family Leave & $15 Wages with VP Biden and Gov Cuomo
21. Free Construction Training at Stanley Isaacs
22. Grocery Worker Retention Act

TECHNOLOGY

23. Office Hours at Civic Hall
24. Free Law Founders on WashingTECH Podcast

COMMUNITY

25. Asphalt Green Snowman Showdown
26. Roosevelt Island Library Visioning Session

OFFICE UPDATES

27. Legislative Corner
28. In the Neighborhood
29. Volunteer
30. New Legal Clinic Schedule
31. Mobile District Hours
32. Ben in Your Building

27. City Council Events
28. Events Funded by My Office
29. Community Events

COMMUNITY RESOURCES

36. Volunteers of Legal Serice (VOLS) Elderly Project Legal Clinic
37. El Museo del Barrio Group Visits for Schools
38. Metropolitan Coordinating Council on Jewish Poverty (Met Council) Hotline
39. New York Cares Coat Drive
40. DOROT

Yesterday, we filed the most sweeping residential re-zoning plan by a community group in New York City history. I was proud to lead the effort with East River Fifties Alliance, with co-applications to the Department of City Planning by Council Member Daniel Garodnick, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, and State Senator Liz Krueger.

The new zoning plan for the Manhattan area between 52nd Street and 59th Street, east of 1st Avenue, will restrict supertowers and over-development in the neighborhood with a contextual height cap of up to 260 feet, incentives for schools, and a requirement for mandatory inclusionary housing.

Happy New Year! I hope you had a happy holiday season with family and friends. I would like to send a special thank you to all who attended the holiday party at my office and made it so wonderful.

This past year I was most focused on fighting overdevelopment, maintaining quality of life, and improving access to affordable housing and government benefits to help New Yorkers that need it most. Please join me as we usher in the New Year at my annual State of the District on January 10th, as we reflect on our accomplishments and plan for 2016, please RSVP.

Please tell me about your 2015 and about your New Year's resolutions for 2016.

 

Sincerely, 

 

 

 

P.S. We are closed for the federal holiday on January 1, with no First Friday, but hope you will join me in celebrating my birthday as I turn 35 at the First Friday on February 5th, to secure your party favor and slice of birthday cake please RSVP. 

 

TABLE of CONTENTS 

1. Better Management for New York City
2. Improving Quality of Life
3. Superscrapers and Zoning
4. Affordable Housing
5. Automatic Benefits Don’t Miss Out
6. Help the Homeless
7. Discretionary Funding 
8. PARKS AND THE ENVIRONMENT  
9. Citizen Preparedness Corps Training 
10. Rockefeller Ground Breaking
11. Carl Schurz Park Playground
12. Senior Fitness Class a Success
13. Climate Works for All
14. TRANSPORTATION
15. 86th Street Subway Station Wi-Fi
16. Second Avenue Resurfacing
17. EDUCATION
18. Cornell Tech, P.S/I.S Computer Science Program
19. Trevor Day New School Opening
20. DOE Universal Pre-K
21. Bronx Science Launch Labs 
22. Roosevelt Island Library Community Meeting 
23. TECHNOLOGY AND REFORM
24. Reforming Campaign Finance ahead of 2017 Elections
25. City Council 2.0 New Website
26. Hack for Heat
27. Office Hours at Civic Hall
28. JOBS and EQUALITY
29. Construction Safety
30. NYCHA Sandy Recovery Jobs Available
31. Out of This World Job Opportunity: Become an Astronaut 
32. NYCHA Tech Job Training
33. Emergency Snow Laborers Needed
34. COMMUNITY
35. Would You Like to Be My Neighbor? Affordable Housing on 93rd Street
36. Community Board 
37.  OFFICE UPDATES
38. Legislative Corner 
39. In the Neighborhood
40. Volunteer 
41. Here to Help
42. Legal Clinics
43. Mobile District Hours
44. Ben in Your Building 
45. City Council Events
46. Community Resources
47. Community Events

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