Congressman Adriano Espaillat speaks at the unveiling of the upgrades. Photos by Jason Cohen
BY JASON COHEN
Despite the MTA needing
a $12 billion bailout from the
federal government, local offi
cials have lobbied enough
funding for the the agency to
make necessary upgrades to
its facilities in the Bronx.
On Oct. 15, it unveiled
the opening of new elevators
at the Bedford Park
Boulevard subway station.
In addition to the new elevators,
crews refurbished
the station and platform areas
to make the station fully
ADA compliant.
In December 2019, the
MTA announced that 11 subway
stations in the Bronx
would be part of a $5.2 billion
investment, the largest
in city history, which
aimed to install or renovate
elevators in 70 subway
stations throughout the
fi ve boroughs.
Congressman Adriano
Espaillat said he had been
in Washington, D.C. fi ghting
for funding for the MTA.
“This is an extraordinary
project that allows
folks access to the subway
system, which continues to
be the engine of our local
economy,” he said. “For far
too long this subway line has
been neglected.
Espaillat noted that due to
COVID-19, ridership on the
subway has drastically been
reduced and the MTA is losing
$200 million a week. He
said there was $400 million
allocated for the MTA in the
CARES Act and $8 billion in
the Heroes Act, but the Senate
has yet to approve that.
Janno Lieber, president
of MTA Construction & Development,
praised Espaillat
for advocating for funding.
According to Lieber, the
pandemic has slowed construction,
but the MTA is doing
the best it can to install
elevators at stations.
BRONX TIMES REPORTER,26 OCTOBER 23-29, 2020 BTR
“Every new elevator that
we put in this system represents
an opportunity for
more people to access MTA’s
amazing transit system,”
he stated.
With only about 25 percent
of the stations upgraded,
Liber noted that there is still
a lot of work to do.
“The federal government
has to act now to support the
MTA to survive the COVID
crisis,” Lieber stressed. “We
are on the brink of a fi scal
cliff. Accessibility has to be
a priority.”
BY JASON COHEN
On Tuesday, Oct. 13, the
NYC Council Committee on
Consumer Affairs and Business
Licensing passed a bill
to extend the current outdoor
dining program to allow restaurants
to use portable electric
and propane heaters.
In an effort to help these
restaurants survive the
winter, DoorDash in partnership
with the NYC Hospitality
Alliance, recently
announced a new grant program
that will allow them to
apply to receive part of the
$500,000 being dedicated to
New York City to help fund
things like heating equipment
and additional safety
materials to improve indoor
dining. This is part of Door-
Dash’s Main Street Strong
initiative to help restaurants
survive COVID-19.
“Our city’s restaurants
are fi nally starting to move
forward, and we have to help
them maintain the momentum,”
said David London,
head of U.S. east and federal
government relations
at DoorDash. “DoorDash is
deeply committed to supporting
our restaurant partners
and the communities
we serve. This initiative will
provide critical fi nancial support
to keep restaurants going
through the cold weather,
and we’re appreciative of
the Hospitality Alliance’s
shared support.”
Reggie Johnson, chief of
staff for Councilman Mark
Gjonaj, chair of the Small
Business Committee, said
on paper this looks good, but
the issue is seeing how many
businesses in the Bronx will
receive funding.
In the past, the city has
failed to provide Bronx businesses
with suffi cient fi nancial
support, as the borough
received only 1 percent of
COVID-19 loans. Johnson
DoorDash, in partnership with the
NYC Hospitality Alliance, are offering
grants for struggling businesses.
Courtesy of Facebook
stressed that the money must
be dispersed evenly, not just
to businesses in Manhattan.
“On the surface, obviously
Chair Gjonaj supports
anything that gives relief to
struggling small businesses
in NYC,” Johnson said. “We
applaud this effort, but because
we don’t know the ins
and outs, we’re not going to
endorse it.”
Applications will be available
starting Oct. 16 at the
Hello Alice website and selected
restaurants will receive
a $5,000 grant, with recipients
notifi ed by the end
of December. Eligible restaurants
will be located in
New York City with three
or fewer locations operating
currently, 50 employees
or fewer in 2019, and $3 million
or less in 2019 annual
revenue per store.
The program will be administered
by Hello Alice,
an independent third party
that will manage the application
and selection processes
as well as the distribution
of funds. Grant recipients
will be selected via a process
intended to help ensure
equal access to funds and
eliminate selection bias.
Read more: bxtimes.com.
New elevators installed
at Bedford Park Blvd.
Grant to
winterize dining
Janno Lieber, president of MTA Construction and Development
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