FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM SEPTEMBER 17, 2020 • THE QUEENS COURIER 3
Small business owners call on lawmakers to
help prevent economic collapse in Queens
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO
aacevedo@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Dozens of Queens small business owners
and some elected offi cials called on
the city and state to enact policies that
may save small businesses throughout
New York City from economic collapse
on Th ursday, Sept. 10.
Th e rally, held next to Katch Astoria
on 31-19 Newtown Ave., was the latest of
several eff orts by Queens’ small business
owners who are fi ghting for real relief by
lawmakers amid the economic crisis that
resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Th e businesses presented a list of
demands that included immediate commercial
rent relief, a concrete plan for
indoor dining and future operations, as
well as legislation to require insurance
companies pay small businesses what
they’re owed in insurance claims.
Roseann McSorley, owner of Katch
Astoria and a business leader in the community,
said fellow small businesses in
Astoria and the rest of the city are “closing
by the day,” which will only lead to “skyhigh”
unemployment rates.
New York City is facing unemployment
rates of up to 20 percent, which mostly
impactslow-income workers of color,
since the pandemic forced the state to go
on lockdown in March, according to a
report by the Center for New York City
Aff airs.
“Astoria will not be what it was before,”
she said. “It’s not about the business owners
and whether we’re making money,
because we’re not — it’s about the
people we employ and making sure
they have places to come to work
and food to eat.”
Frank Arcabascio, president
of the 30th Avenue’s Business
Association, said 10 percent
of businesses on
the commercial
corridor
aren’t working.
Th ey’re projecting
about
60 percent
of small
businesses
will be
gone in
six months to a year.
Many restaurant and bar owners at the
rally said that while they were glad Gov.
Andrew Cuomo heard their pleas to bring
back indoor dining at some capacity on
Sept. 30, they said 25 percent won’t be of
much help.
Tina Oppedisano, manager of Il Bacco,
was there to speak about her Little Neck
restaurant that made headlines last week
for fi ling a $2 billion dollar class action
lawsuit against Cuomo, Mayor Bill de
Blasio and the attorney general’s offi ce for
not allowing indoor food service while
neighboring counties ensued service at 50
percent capacity. Th eir lawsuit had more
than 350 restaurants signed on at the
time, a number which has grown to 900.
“Th is just goes to show you aft er causing
some attention and bringing up a fl are,
eight days aft er bringing attention to this
injustice Gov. Cuomo fi nally responded,”
said Oppedisano. “I don’t want to
sound unappreciative,
but I absolutely
do not
consider this a
victory. It is a
step moving
forward, but
it is not a victory.”
Oppedisano
said Cuomo
and de
Blasio’s
guidelines
for indoor dining —tables six feet
apart, all patrons will have their temperatures
checked at the door and must wear
masks when they are not at their table,
changing air fi ltration system — are “outlandish.”
Il Bacco’s manager/owner Tina
Oppedisano joined the rally & said that
although Gov. Cuomo fi nally announced
indoor dining at 25% capacity, “this is not
a victory.”
At the rally, several western Queens
lawmakers and candidates for offi ce were
there to support local business owners,
including state Senators Michael Gianaris
and Jessica Ramos, Councilmen Donovan
Richards and Jimmy Van Bramer,
Councilman Costa Constantinides’
Chief of Staff Nick Roloson and Astoria
Assembly candidate Zohran Mamdani.
Senator Gianaris spoke about his bill
to forgive commercial and residential
rent, one of the main issues businesses
face. Senator Ramos spoke about holding
the New York State Liquor Authority
accountable for the infl ux of fi nes and
liquor license removals by the agency,
emphasizing that government should give
small businesses resources and guidance
to create work, not tear them down.
Mamdani spoke about one of the
demands of the local businesses: a vacancy
tax.
“We have people here who have not
been able to sustain their businesses, but
because there’s the prospect of kicking
them out, of keeping these lots vacant for
years with no penalty, and simply bringing
in the Targets, bringing in all kinds
of multi-national groups to take over our
neighborhoods — we have to say that is
not going to happen,” said Mamdani.
Van Bramer said arts and culture organizations
have been forgotten throughout
reopening talks. He spoke about his
legislation to allow them to operate outdoors,
much like outdoor dining. Sheila
Lewandowski, executive director of Long
Island City’s Chocolate Factory Th eater,
said the arts contribute 7 percent to the
state’s GDP, but they were “fi rst to shutdown,
last to open.”
Richards spoke about his bill that just
passed in the City Council that would
mandate the Department of Small
Business Services to disclosewhich businesses
received a loan or grant from
the New York City Employee Retention
Program or the New York City Small
Business Continuity Loan Fund, two
COVID-19 relief programs the department
administers.
He said they found 57 percent of those
loans and grants went to Manhattan businesses,
while 19 percent went to Queens
businesses.
“It’s shameful being that we are the
second largest contributor to the economy,
not to mention we have two airports,”
said Richards. “Th at was
20 million dollars that went to
Manhattan. Manhattan is not
the center of New York City;
the outer boroughs is where
we’re seeing rapid growth.”
Jamie-Faye Bean, executive
director of Sunnyside Shines
Business Improvement District
and co-founder of Queens
Together, said small businesses
respond to community “like
nobody else.”
“Th e PPP money has run
out, if it was ever there in the
fi rst place — you don’t understand
how many business owners
I work with that didn’t
even meet eligibility requirements
for a lot of the relief that
has been off ered for the past
few months,” said Bean. “Th e
employees laid off are gone,
moved out of the city. We are now in a
race to the bottom and it needs to stop.”
“It’s not about the
business owners
and whether
we’re making
money, because
we’re not — it’s
about the people
we employ and
making sure they
have places to
come to work
and food to
eat.”
— Roseann
McSorley,
owner of
Katch Astoria
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