Mayor Adams announces unvaccinated performers
and venue workers exempt from vaccine mandates
TIMESLEDGER | QNS.COM | APRIL 1 - APRIL 7, 2022 20
BY ETHAN STARK-MILLER
New York City will receive $188
million in disaster and resilience
relief funds from the federal government
to repair lingering damage
from last year’s Hurricane Ida
and prepare for the next storm,
U.S. Department of Housing and
Urban Development (HUD) Secretary
Marcia Fudge announced
last week.
In a virtual HUD press conference
to announce the allocation,
Mayor Eric Adams welcomed the
additional federal dollars.
“You understand that America’s
cities are America’s engines,”
Adams said. “It’s so important
that we get the help that’s needed
on the ground in a real way. And
you’re doing that. And we need to
be prepared for future disasters.
It’s an unprecedented time and
Mother Nature must be matched
with the nurturing of our federal
government.”
The funds come to the city as
part of a broader HUD allocation
of $2.2 billion to 10 localities and
13 states earmarked for relief and
resiliency from 16 disasters that
occurred last year.
Adams attributed the devastation
caused by severe storms like
Hurricane Ida last year, and Hurricane
Sandy nearly a decade ago,
to climate change.
“The climate catastrophe
isn’t so far off as we think it is,”
the mayor said. “It is here right
now. It’s happening. We saw what
Sandy did to our city, and we saw
what Ida did as well. Ida had a
devastating impact on our city, really
uprooting communities and
our infrastructure. And we know
that the people of color and low- to
moderate-income communities
experience a disproportionate impact
from climate disasters.”
Ida caused severe flooding that
heavily damaged several apartments
in East Elmhurst Queens
and put a section of the Bronx’s
Major Deegan Expressway under
several feet of water.
HUD emergency funds, Adams
said, were vital to the city’s immediate
recovery from Ida last year.
They helped with providing emergency
shelters, evacuations and
repairs for homes and infrastructure
damaged in the storm.
Adams said he’s already identified
several areas where this
new influx of federal cash can
best be used.
“Number one, it’s going to assist
us in paying some of the bills
we approved from Hurricane
Ida,” Adams said. “We’re looking
at the infrastructure, workforce
development. We’re going to look
at the full list of items that HUD
is going to allow us to do, because
we know the hurricane set
us back. Trust me, we could use
every dollar.”
BY ETHAN MARSHALL
Mayor Eric Adams announced
that all unvaccinated entertainers,
including athletes, comedians,
singers and dancers, will be
allowed to perform in New York
City during a press conference at
Citi Field last week.
He also said the exemption
extends to all workers at the venues
where these take place.
During the press conference,
Mayor Adams emphasized the exemption
didn’t just apply to professional
athletes like Kyrie Irving of
the Brooklyn Nets or any unvaccinated
players on the Mets and Yankees.
All the stadium workers who
previously were unable to work
due to their unvaccinated status
would be able to do their jobs.
Mayor Adams cited the economic
opportunities for the city
as a big reason why this group was
prioritized for exemption. Unvaccinated
people will be able to attend
events, spending money that will
help both the workers there and
the city itself grow financially.
According to Adams, this exemption
will help a lot with eliminating
unemployment.
“Unemployment leads to economic
unhealthiness of this city,”
Adams said. “This is the first step
toward economic recovery.”
This “nightlife industry,” was
a big source of revenue for the city
prior to the pandemic, according
to Adams, who estimated the value
as being around $35.1 billion.
The announcement of this executive
order comes just two weeks
before Opening Day of the MLB
season. Prior to the order, there
was concern among the Mets and
Yankees that their unvaccinated
players wouldn’t be able to play in
any of their home games, just like
what Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie
Irving has experienced up to this
point during the NBA season.
Mets and Yankees presidents
Sandy Alderson and Jerry Levine
mentioned that a majority of the
workers in their front offices are
vaccinated. Alderson said all but
one or two employees were willing
to get vaccinated prior to the exemptions.
However, the one or two
who refused were terminated, as
they weren’t allowed to work at the
time. Both Alderson and Levine
said a majority of their team’s players
were vaccinated, but were not
at liberty to provide a precise number
due to the CBA agreement.
Adams acknowledged that
there would be many people critical
of his decision to exempt these
parties over the likes of municipal
employees.
“Some people will boo us, but
others will cheer,” Adams said
from the Jackie Robinson Rotunda
in Citi Field. “That’s not only the
game of baseball but the game of
life.”
When asked about the municipal
employees who were fired for
not being vaccinated possibly getting
their jobs back soon, Adams
said that wasn’t going to happen.
According to Adams, “They
were hired with the understanding
that they be vaccinated.”
If COVID-19 cases remain low
in the coming weeks, Adams hinted
that unvaccinated employees
who are unable to work in other
fields may soon be able to work
again. However he has not yet decided
which industries would be
next.
“We’ll look for other ways
to ease restrictions in the city,”
Adams said.
Eric Adams speaks about the exemption for certain unvaccinated workers
from Citi Field’s Jackie Robinson Rotunda. Photo via Twitter/@nycgov
File photo
Feds give city disaster relief cash infusion
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