Newsletters

Dear Neighbor,

Election Day is tomorrow, Tuesday, November 3rd. If you didn’t vote early or by mail, tomorrow is your LAST CHANCE to make your vote count. As many encountered hours-long lines to vote, I have continued fighting patronage and corruption at the Board of Elections.

As we face another wave of the pandemic, we held a hearing where I forced the city to release the numbers for the city’s 90-day PPE stockpile and reached a milestone of distributing 15,000 masks. We also passed legislation I co-sponsored to make outdoor dining permanent. With different visions for our "new normal" I am proposing a worker-led recovery that would force the city to pay our non-profit workers on the front-lines better wages as they help our city's neediest.

With 77,000 public school students outside the district who don't have laptops or Internet for remote learning I've proposed legislation to guarantee every student a laptop with Internet. I also continue to be disappointed in the Mayor's implementation of my proposal for remote learning centers with only one "Learning Bridges" location in the district, please join our efforts to secure more.

This month we will be giving away free reusable bags with the State's plastic bag diversion program now in full effect. After nine long months, we will have a shred-a-thon. We will also be giving away turkeys to residents of public housing. 

As we celebrate Thanksgiving, I am thankful to my wife and daughter as well as all of you for this opportunity to work together to make our city better. What are you thankful for?

Regards,

 
Benjamin Kallos

Dear Neighbor,

The most important election in our lifetime is just over a month away. Please make a plan to vote: mail, early, or in-person. Just in time for this election, my law mandating an absentee ballot tracking system is now online at NYCabsentee.com/tracking.

Billions in critical funding are at risk with census response down across the city, including my district. Regardless of where you may be right now, if you plan on coming back, and haven't already, please complete your census online by October 31 at My2020Census.gov.

We've been doing everything we can to help our city recover. In September, we focused on helping small businesses, introducing a package of legislation that I authored or co-sponsored to make outdoor dining permanent and provide grants and low-interest loans to small businesses in order to make stores accessible and retrofit for public health. The bills also aim to make it easier for businesses to get sidewalk cafes. Additionally, indoor dining has returned.

As a parent struggling to work more than full time in a small one-bedroom with my wife and daughter, I've been focused on re-opening our schools safely, getting remote learning centers open, holding the Department of Education accountable, and getting answers.

This month we will have a voting information session, senior health fair, First Friday, a discussion on the urgent need for childcare, and continue our fresh food box pick-ups. Please submit your ideas for how to spend $1 million in the community in Participatory Budgeting.

For those that celebrate, Shana Tova!
 
Regards,
 
Benjamin Kallos

Below is a copy of my City Council Office's September 2021 government newsletter.

Dear Neighbor,

As we celebrate Labor Day I want to thank New Yorkers who are working from home and in-person during this pandemic and in particular our City’s workers who have kept our city running. I will always fight for you, and this month we fought off the Mayor's most recent threat of layoffs and we continue to fight to restore $20 million cut from non-profits offering food, shelter, and service to youth and seniors.

As Chair of the Contracts Committee, I've been reviewing contracts that can be cut or went wrong. I found hundreds of millions in contracts with our nation's largest corporations for things like "whitepapers" that should be dropped before we cut education or services for youth and seniors. I also uncovered why tens of thousands of New Yorkers never got the air conditioners promised from the city this summer.

With schools starting in September we've spent much of the summer supporting parents, principals, teachers, and most importantly students as we all fought to get their concerns addressed. Together, we delayed in-person learning until September 21 and forced a commitment to hire at least one nurse per school. With nearly 400,000 students choosing all remote learning, I joined the former chair of the Black, Latino, and Asian Caucus in proposing a citywide desegregated school district for online education that could be organized around students' individual learning styles and offer gifted and talented to every student who qualified or wished to participate. The New York Post even endorsed our proposal to desegregate.

With mounting concerns around homelessness and public safety, we are here to help. We joined the New York State Nurses Association in advocating for New York-Presbyterian to re-open in-patient psychiatric services to help the mentally ill off our streets. We also continue to lead the Eastside Taskforce for Homeless Outreach and Services (ETHOS), working with partners in the faith and nonprofit communities who are doing direct outreach, such as running soup kitchens to directly assist individuals. The most effective way to end our homelessness crisis will be to make more affordable housing available to homeless New Yorkers. If you know of someone who needs our help, please let us know.

With November approaching, we joined activists throughout the nation to save the Postal Service and continue to battle a broken Board of Elections.

Lastly, we would like to thank a resident for calling in a tip and the 23rd precinct for apprehending the suspect in a recent attempted daytime rape on a subway platform.

Please join us in September for a town hall on schools re-opening, emergency preparedness and Go-Bag giveaway, the opening of our annual fresh food box, mask and hand sanitizer distribution and, of course, First Friday.
 
Regards,
 
Benjamin Kallos

This page is a re-post of our City Council government newsletter. You can view the original post on our City Council website.

Dear Neighbor,

Now more than ever, government must be accountable. Throughout this year’s global pandemic, we have continued to make our office available by phone and online in order to best serve the district during these toughest of times. We have also sought to honor routines like First Friday, the publishing of our monthly newsletter and of course this annual report.

This year, we're only highlighting concrete achievements, so important issues might be missing, but that only means we've got more work to do. None of these accomplishments would have been possible without you and with just under 18 months left in my final term in the Council, I hope we can use the precious time we have left to continue our collaboration.

As a proud graduate of our public education system and the Bronx High School of Science, I believe in giving every child a world-class education. We've opened 900 new pre-kindergarten seats and secured 824 new school seats for the Upper East Side and Roosevelt Island. We've invested $6.5 million in STEM education, rebuilt our schools, and are building new gyms and green roofs for schools. We've held an annual Student Art Show at Sotheby's, passed legislation authored by middle-school students to support LGBT peers, passed a law to put GPS on school buses, and ended hunger in school by making school food free.

New York City has emerged as a biotechnology hub as we cut the ribbon on a new half-billion-dollar campus expansion of Rockefeller University and the brand new Cornell Tech on Roosevelt Island. We've opened new schools, renovated libraries, and supported the Excelsior Scholarship to make city and state public college tuition-free. As we seek to bridge the digital divide with universal broadband, we fought alongside now-New York State Attorney General Tish James and won low-cost high-speed Internet for low-income families and seniors.

Working alongside Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney as Co-Chair of the East River Esplanade, we've invested heavily in our parks, securing $275 Million for a resilient East River Esplanade, reconstructing Carl Schurz Playground, John Jay pool and courts, and even expanding Sutton Place Park. Additionally, we launched and funded conservancies to keep our parks beautiful and funded security cameras to keep parks safe.

The fight for more affordable housing and against overdevelopment has been tough, but we have made significant strides. Hundreds of thousands of affordable homes will now be available for re-rental thanks to a law I wrote, with 6,000 affordable homes built or preserved on city land under my oversight and 1,000 affordable apartments built or preserved in my district alone. We’ve also made significant progress stopping the march of supertall towers from billionaires row by winning the first-of-its-kind, community-led rezoning of the Sutton Area, though we continue to fight one building in court. We’ve gone on to rezone residential neighborhoods throughout the city to stop the construction of buildings with empty voids that only serve to give billionaires better views. We’ve taken on construction to count every life and even turned down the volume on after-hours construction.

The corrupting influence of money in politics has been ever-present as we fight big money interests on behalf of residents like you. That’s why I authored the new public campaign finance system to get big money out, weakened the influence of lobbyists, and authored the law to outlaw most outside income making the City Council a full time job. I even refused tens of thousands in cash payments, which the Daily News called “legal grease,” then authored the law that ended the corrupt practice. Taken together I hope to make scandals like Rivington a thing of the past with elected officials who work for you.

We’ve taken every chance to bring structural change to our government as I proposed amendments to our city’s Charter that voters overwhelmingly passed, including campaign finance reform along with term limits and urban planners for Community Boards in 2018 as well as ethics reform and budget independence for the Borough President in 2019. We also put the budget online so you can see how we spend every penny.

We've focused on public health with laws to take on Legionnaires' disease and fast food contributing to childhood obesity, and we've worked to connect New Yorkers with the benefits they need automatically. When the Covid-19 pandemic started, we opened 550 new hospital beds in district, launched a supply clearing house, supported testing, and we continue distributing masks, sanitizer, and food.

I believe in climate change and evidence-based governance. That's why I authored and passed a resolution making New York City the largest city on the planet to declare a climate emergency. The following year the Mayor adopted our ban on the sale of single-use plastic bottles in parks. Through our Grow NYC Fresh Food Box, we have provided access to healthy, locally sourced sustainable farm-fresh produce.

When I promised to clean up, I was focused on corruption in government, but that didn't stop us from putting a new large covered trash can on every corner or power washing our sidewalks. We've opened supportive housing to help the homeless. We fought the Marine Transfer Station, and though it opened to fewer trucks than expected, I still believe that it does not belong in a residential community.

Commutes have improved. Thanks to the vigilance of Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney we finally opened the Second Avenue Subway. We also added new transit options including ferries, bike share, and faster buses through Select Bus Service. As part of Vision Zero, we invested in infrastructure to make our streets safer and launched a bike safety program that made it safer to be a pedestrian.

None of this would have been possible without you, your support, my team, and fellow residents who stepped up to join us in our countless fights.  We've got at least another 17 months to go, so let's make them count!

Yours in service,


Ben Kallos
Council Member
District 5

P.S. as we seek to prioritize in our remaining time, please share what's important to you at BenKallos.com/priorities-2020
 

BY THE NUMBERS
 
Constituent Service Cases: 15,792
Introductions Authored: 137
Introductions Enacted into Law: 42 (31%)
Resolutions Authored: 23
Resolutions Adopted: 9 (39%)
City Council Attendance (excluding Paternity Leave): 98.25%
Land Use Matters Adopted: 11 
Rezonings to Stop Overdevelopment: 2
Lawsuits Against Overdevelopment: 2
Legislation Sponsored: 1,804
Legislation Sponsored Adopted or Enacted: 1,180 (65%)
Ben in Your Building: 65+
First Fridays & Brainstorm with Ben: 70+
Mobile Hours: Hundreds
Free Legal Clinics: Hundreds
Community Meetings: Hundreds
Event Registrations: 6,000+
Petitions Signed: 10,000+
Reusable Bags Distributed: 4,900
Participatory Budgeting Investments in Community: $10.3 million
 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 
A WORLD CLASS PUBLIC EDUCATION

1. Securing 900 New Pre-Kindergarten Seats for the Upper East Side and Roosevelt Island Along with Better Pay for Teachers
2. 824 New K–8 School Seats Secured for the East Side
3. $6.5 Million Invested in STEM Education from Hydroponics Labs to New Laptops
4. Rebuilding Award-Winning Public Schools
5. New Gyms and Playgrounds for Upper East Side Schools
6. Launched Dual Language French Pre-Kindergarten
7. $5.9 Million for Green Roofs
8. Five Years of Public School Student Art Shows at Sotheby’s
9. Gender Sexuality Education Law Authored by Middle School Students
10. GPS for School Buses
11. Ending School Hunger with Free Breakfast, Breakfast after the Bell and Lunch

BUILDING THE FUTURE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY THROUGH PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP

12. Opening Rockefeller University’s New Half-Billion Dollar Campus 
13. Opening and Collaborating with Cornell Tech
14. New School for Children’s Academy
15. $2.5 Million Renovation for East 67th Street Library
16. Supporting Excelsior City and State University Scholarship 

IMPROVING AND CREATING NEW PARKS

17. $275 Million for a Resilient East River Esplanade
18. $3.5 Million Reconstruction of Carl Schurz Playground
19. $1 Million for John Jay Pool and New Basketball Courts
20. $2.9 Million Expansion of Sutton Place Park
21. Free Summer Tennis and Discounts at Sutton
22. $1.4 Million for New Security Cameras in Hard to Patrol Parks
23. James Cagney Place Recognized as Official Pedestrian Plaza
24. Launching and Supporting Conservancies with a Quarter Million Dollars
25. Revitalizing the Waterfront Management Advisory Board

FIGHTING FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND AGAINST OVERDEVELOPMENT

26. Getting More Affordable Housing on the Market
27. Won Citywide Rezoning to Close Voids Loophole
28. Rezoned Sutton to Stop Super-Talls: Court Fight Continues
29. Lowering the Volume on After Hours Construction Noise
30. Safer Construction with Law to Count Every Life
31. Ending Downsizing of Seniors into Studio Apartments
32. Protected Quiet Side Streets from Overdevelopment and Won Mandatory Affordable Housing for New Neighborhoods
33. Reformed the Board of Standards and Appeals
34. Protected Landmarks Citywide & Recognized for Leading Preservation 
35. Opening New Free and Affordable Art Spaces with ChaShaMa
36. Opening Up Privately Owned Public Spaces (POPS)
37. Tenant Safety Protection Laws
38. 6,000 Affordable Homes Built or Preserved on City Land
39. 1,000 Affordable Apartments Built or Preserved in the District

GOOD GOVERNMENT REFORM AND TRANSPARENCY

40. Authored the New Public Campaign Finance System to Get Big Money Out
41. Eliminated Outside Income and Legal Bribery
42. Weakening the Influence of Special Interest Money in Politics
43. Charter Revision 2019: All Five Questions Passed
44. Charter Revision 2018: Won Term Limits for Community Boards and Urban Planners
45. Passed Online Voter Registration and Enacted Voter Information Portal in New York City
46. Opened the City Budget to the Public
47. Won Affordable High-Speed Internet for Low-Income New Yorkers
48. Demanded Answers on the Rivington Nursing Home Scandal
49. Police Reform

 HEALTH 

50. Coronavirus: Opening New Beds, Expanding Testing, Securing and Distributing Masks, Serving Meals
51. Healthy Happy Meals Law Takes Effect 
52. Legionnaires’ Disease Prevention Law Implemented
53. Automatic Benefits Law, API and Study

THE ENVIRONMENT

54. Declaring a Climate Emergency 
55. Sale of Single-Use Plastic Bottles Banned in City Parks
56. Composting on the Upper East Side
57. Fresh Food Box

QUALITY OF LIFE

58. A New Trash Can on Every Corner
59. Power Washing the Neighborhood Block by Block with Wildcat
60. Helping the Homeless and Opening Supportive Housing
61. Scaffolding Legislation Adopted
62. Improved Quality of Life Enforcement
63. Fighting the Marine Transfer Station 
64. Retirement Security for All

BETTER COMMUTES

65. Opening the Second Avenue Subway 
66. Ferry Service for the Upper East Side and Roosevelt Island
67. Select Bus Service for M79 and M86 with Automated Bus-Lane Enforcement
68. CitiBike Secured for Upper East Side and Roosevelt Island 
69. Bike Safety Program Gets Results with Safety Improving Over Five Years
70. Roosevelt Island Tram Approved for Another 50 Years
71. Prioritizing Pedestrian Safety

LEGISLATION

72. Passed Legislation
73. Best Council Members
74. City and State’s Power 100 for Non-profits and Manhattan

Dear Friend,
 
The Coronavirus is continuing to spread throughout the United States, with New York State recording the most cases in the country. As of this morning there were 463 confirmed cases of COVID-19 within the 5 boroughs and 950 cases throughout New York State. 
 
As we move forward our lifestyle will change drastically for an extended period of time in order to level off the spread of the virus and to keep our health care system from being overwhelmed.
 
During the past 24 hours we’ve seen a lot of changes and we are doing our best to keep you updated. For up to the minute updates follow us on social media on @Kallos on Facebook and Twitter. Below you will find detailed articles with the following updates:

Education:

• Public Schools Closed, Food Pick Up, Remote Learning
• Free Broadband for All Public Students (Who Don’t Have It)
• Free Zoom Video/Tele-Conference for Public Schools

Seniors:

• Senior Centers Closed, Meal on Wheels and Volunteer Opportunities

Food: 

• Restaurants, Bars, Gyms, Nightclubs, and Movie Theaters Partially Closed - Takeout and Delivery Only
• Food Supply at Groceries Stores – We Are Not Running Out of Food

Jobs:

• Supporting Small Businesses
• No Wait on Unemployment

Housing:

• Evictions and NYCHA Hearing Suspended

Government:

• City Council Closes with Constituent Service Moved Online
• District 5 March Events Cancelled
• Participatory Budgeting Suspended
• Special Election Cancelled
• Complete Your Census Now

Health:

• Reminders on How to Stay Healthy

Moving Forward:

• Health Care, Education, Democracy, and "Fresh Ideas"

We are continuing to monitor the situation and update you on the latest developments. If you have any questions, suggestions, or feedback about the information you are receiving, please let me know.
 
Sincerely,
 
Ben Kallos
Council Member
District 5

P.S. call 212-860-1950 or email BKallos@BenKallos.com Monday through Friday between 9am and 5pm and you should reach our staff who are here to help or get a response the same day.