Image Credit: Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City

Last year the Mayor’s Fund helped immigrant families access relief funds and provided healthcare workers with food and essential care products. On January 19, 2021, Mayor Bill de Blasio appointed Daniele Baierlein and JL Paniagua Valle as Co-Executive Directors of the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City. The Mayor’s Fund is a non-profit organization that works with City agencies and hundreds of institutional funders to advance initiatives that improve equity across New York City. (read more…)

A protected bike lane. Image Credit: NYC DOT

The addition of protected bike lanes comes as more people opt for cycling as a transportation option during the COVID-19 pandemic. On December 29, 2020, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that 28.6 miles of new protected bike lanes have been constructed across the five boroughs throughout 2020. The announcement brings New York City’s total bike lane network to 1,378 miles. Of that, 545 miles are protected bike lanes.  (read more…)

Diagram of what could be allowed through the Open Storefront Program. Image Credit: Mayor’s Office

The program provides expanded space for businesses to safely operate during the pandemic. On December 29, 2020, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that the Open Storefronts Program would be extended through September 30, 2021. The Open Storefronts Program allows storefront businesses to use a portion of the sidewalk to display merchandise, complete transactions, sell goods and provide queuing areas to provide businesses with more space to expand and safely operate throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The program will also be expanded to allow businesses to sell prepackaged food on sidewalks and allow restaurants to use sidewalks for take-out orders. 

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Vials of the COVID-19 vaccine are beginning to be distributed to hospitals across the city. Image Credit: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office

The Vaccine Equity Plan focuses on 27 of the neighborhoods hit hardest by COVID-19. On December 11, 2020, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced the launch of the COVID-19 vaccine command center and outlined the City’s Vaccine Equity Plan. The City expects to receive 465,000 doses of the vaccine by the start of January, and has currently delivered 42,900 doses. Initial vaccine doses are first being distributed to health care professionals and nursing homes, and then to other healthcare personnel. 

Vaccine Command Center

The Vaccine Command Center will be located at 253 Broadway and is a joint initiative between the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, NYC Health + Hospitals, the Taskforce on Racial Inclusion and Equity, the Mayor’s Office, and other agencies. The Command Center will be led by Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Melanie Hartzog and Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Dave Chokshi. 

The Command Center will provide rapid response and real-time troubleshooting to hospitals, urgent care centers, private pharmacies, and other vaccine distribution sites. The Command Center will also track metrics on vaccine coverage. Test & Trace Corps and Department of Health outreach teams will be deployed from the Center and coordinate with elected officials and community leaders for vaccine drives.

A Vaccine Command Center website was launched on December 21st to track the City’s progress in administering vaccine doses. As of December 21st, 18,105 doses of the vaccine have been administered of the 42,900 doses currently distributed for healthcare workers and nursing homes. By already distributing 42 percent of the currently delivered vaccine doses, New York City has outpaced the national vaccine administration rate of 19 percent. 

Vaccine Equity Plan

Created with the Taskforce on Racial Inclusion & Equity, the Vaccine Equity Plan will ensure equitable vaccine distribution across 27 neighborhoods that were hardest hit by COVID-19. The City will use NYCHA space to vaccinate priority groups, and will work with NYCHA residents, community partners and faith leaders to share trustworthy information about the vaccine. 

The Department of Health and Mental Hygiene will host virtual conversations with residents of the 27 hardest hit neighborhoods to share information about the vaccine and to address questions or concerns. Community partners can access a training model to allow them to lead webinars and community conversations about the vaccine plan. 

The Taskforce on Racial Inclusion & Equity will create a subcommittee on vaccine distribution and work with over 200 community organizations to increase outreach. Deputy Mayor Hartzog will also serve as a Co-Chair on the Taskforce on Racial Inclusion & Equity as she is responsible for the City’s COVID-19 response and necessary social services. 

Mayor de Blasio stated, “A vaccine must be distributed equally to be effective. COVID-19 has exposed our city’s most painful disparities, and we are addressing those inequities head-on and making a vaccine available for all New Yorkers.” 

By: Veronica Rose (Veronica is the CityLaw fellow and a New York Law School graduate, Class of 2018.)

Image Credit: NYC Public Design Commission.

Butler has been serving the Public Design Commission in various roles for 15 years. On December 16, 2020, Mayor Bill de Blasio appointed Keri Butler as the Acting Executive Director of the Public Design Commission (PDC). The Public Design Commission serves as the City’s design review agency. The Commission oversees the design of permanent structures, landscape architecture and art proposed on City-owned property, and considers the appropriateness of the design, the materials used, how the space can be maintained and how a design best serves the public. Butler will be taking over for Justin Garrett Moore, who had been the Executive Director of the Commission for the past five years. (read more…)