FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM JULY 8, 2021 • THE QUEENS COURIER 17
City budget off ers road to recovery in Queens
neighborhoods most impacted during COVID-19
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
When Mayor Bill de Blasio and the
City Council agreed to a historic $98.7
billion budget — the largest in city history
— it restored funding to agencies
like the Sanitation Department, the Parks
Department, cultural institutions and
public libraries.
Th e budget includes more than $426
million in citywide initiatives that allowed
the council to not only restore programs
to pre-pandemic levels, but also launch
new initiatives and increase support for
key programs in areas such as alternatives
to incarceration, housing, foreclosure
prevention, senior services, community
development and help for small businesses.
“I’m very proud of this budget and
what it will do to help NYC recover from
the devastation caused by the COVID-19
pandemic,” Councilman Daniel Dromm
said. “Th is budget will help fortify our
health care systems and allow our local
nonprofi ts to continue serving those in
need.”
Dromm represents two of the hardest
hit neighborhoods of Jackson Heights
and Elmhurst and he oversaw the budget
negotiations as the chair of the Council’s
Finance Committee.
“I am also proud of the funding I was
able to secure in the budget for LGBTQ
organizations which for years have been
overlooked and underfunded,” Dromm
said. “Most importantly, we put $500 million
in the new Rainy Day Fund to off set
any future crisis.”
Dromm, who is term-limited, took a
moment to acknowledge that this will
be his last budget as fi nance chair and
thanked Speaker Corey Johnson for “all
the faith” he placed on him.
Councilwoman Adrienne Adams
secured key investments for schools,
parks, public safety, social services, youth
and senior programming in her southeast
Queens district.
“With New York City on the road to
recovery, the City Council passed a historic
budget with signifi cant investments that
will help New Yorkers get back to work,
live in safer and cleaner neighborhoods,
and receive the programming and services
they need to thrive,” Adams said. “I am
incredibly proud to have secured over $26
million in capital funding for critical projects
in District 28, a remarkable win for
our community and all of the residents,
youth and seniors who will benefi t from
these investments.”
Councilwoman Selvena Brooks-Powers
was especially proud to pass her fi rst budget
as a member of the City Council representing
Laurelton, Springfi eld Gardens
and the Rockaways.
“COVID-19 unleashed both a public
health crisis and a fi scal crisis, which
required the city to make many serious
and painful cuts. Our vital service
providers operated on shoestring budgets,
and our communities had to fi ght to
survive with minimal support,” Brooks-
Powers said. “Th is budget makes significant
investments towards gun violence
prevention, senior services, education
equity and small business revitalization.”
While celebrating the investments in
the 31st District, Brooks-Powers also set a
cautionary tone.
“Th e pandemic is not over, and its continued
eff ect on our health and economic
stability varies widely across neighborhoods.
Th ere is still much work to be
done,” Brooks-Powers said. “Even aft er
this budget is enacted, we need to ensure
that its program funding is distributed
equitably, to make meaningful and targeted
impacts in the communities that need
it most. Outer-borough communities and
communities of color have faced consistent
disadvantages in terms of job opportunity,
health care access, safe streets, and
those inequities have only been widened
in recent years. Our district has some of
the lowest vaccination rates in New York
state. I look forward to overseeing that
process and fi ghting for fairness.”
As New York’s local economy slowly
rebounds from the pandemic, the budget
will support small businesses in low
and moderate-income neighborhoods
with $100 million in rental assistance and
grants.
“Th e past year has been devastating for
small businesses in Queens. As our city
gets back to normal and New Yorkers
return to their pre-pandemic routines,
it is important to remember that many
small businesses that survived COVID
are still hanging on by a thread,” Queens
Chamber of Commerce President and
CEO Th omas J. Grech said. “Th ese businesses
add character to our neighborhoods
and create jobs and opportunity
in every community in our city. We
look forward to continuing to work with
our government leaders to ensure that we
continue to support our small business
community.”
“With New York City on the road to recovery,
the City Council passed a historic budget with
signifi cant investments that will help New
Yorkers get back to work, live in safer and
cleaner neighborhoods, and receive the programming
and services they need to thrive.”
— Councilwoman Adrienne Adams
Photo credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Offi ce
Councilman Daniel Dromm oversaw his fi nal city budget negotiations as Finance Committee Chair.
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