Mayor Bill de Blasio. Image credit: CityLand

Leagues will be issues permits with regulations. On August 28, 2020, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that NYC Parks will resume permitting outdoor youth sports on City athletic fields starting September 15, 2020. City athletic fields have been operating throughout the COVID-19 pandemic with social distancing measures in place, but beginning on September 15, 2020, youth sports leagues will be issued permits to use the fields for organized outdoor play. Sports such as baseball, softball, and soccer will resume, but indoor sports such as swimming will still not be permitted. (read more…)

The BE NYC Cabinet meets to help develop solutions to support the City’s Black-owned businesses. Image Credit: BE NYC/Small Business Services

On August 19, 2020, Mayor de Blasio announced BE NYC, a new initiative that will increase the number of Black-owned businesses in high-growth industries Citywide. Additionally, the Department of Small Business Services has released the landmark Black entrepreneurship report and launched four new programs for Black business owners. (read more…)

Mayor Bill de Blasio at his August 5 Press Conference Image Credit: Mayor’s Press Office

Mayor’s affordable housing announcement appears more retrospective than optimistic. On August 5, 2020, The Mayor’s Press Office released a statement touting the amount of affordable housing created in fiscal year 2020. The announcement states that the City preserved 23,520 homes and constructed 6,503 new units, totaling 30,023 affordable City financed homes. More than 50 percent of these homes serve families earning less than $52,000 and 3,600 people received voucher increases to ameliorate income lost from the COVID-19 pandemic.

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The front page of the new Tenant Portal, where tenants can find resources to help them stay in their homes. Image Credit: Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants

Tenants can answer questions on the portal to be directed to relevant resources. On August 10, 2020, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced the launch of the NYC Tenant Resource Portal, the first City-hosted online resource designed to help residential renters access free resources that assist in stabilizing housing situations and preventing evictions. (read more…)

Mayor de Blasio signs Executive Order 59 on July 28, 2020. Image Credit: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office

The City awarded over $3 billion in contracts to minority and women-owned businesses in FY19. The City is On July 28, 2020, Mayor Bill de Blasio signed Executive Order 59 to increase the City’s utilization of Minority and Women-Owned Businesses (M/WBEs), and also announced numerous programs with the Taskforce on Racial Inclusion and Equity that will connect Black and Latinx entrepreneurs to business opportunities. (read more…)