To mark the beginning of the 2021 Atlantic hurricane season, the New York
City Emergency Management Department today unveiled the City's revised
hurricane evacuation zones. New York City Emergency Management also
relaunched the Know Your Zone hurricane awareness campaign to encourage
New Yorkers to find out whether they live in one of the City's six
hurricane evacuation zones, and take steps to be prepared for coastal
storms and hurricanes. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1
through November 30.
The City's six hurricane evacuation zones have been updated to incorporate
new and improved data, as well as information from actual events to allow
the City to more accurately define areas most at risk of flooding due to
storm surge from a hurricane. Residents who live in these zones may be
ordered to evacuate depending on a hurricane's forecast strength, track,
and storm surge. If the mayor orders an evacuation of your zone, do so as
directed. With these hurricane evacuation zone changes, roughly 1 million
New Yorkers now live in a different hurricane evacuation zone than last
year....
There are six hurricane evacuation zones, ranked by the risk of storm
surge impact, with zone 1 being the most likely to flood. In the event of
a hurricane or tropical storm, residents in these zones may be ordered to
evacuate.
I noticed that my zone has changed. Why is that?
Zones are updated to incorporate new, higher resolution storm surge model
output from the National Weather Service. These data, combined with
improved topographic data, and information from actual events, allow the
City to more accurately define areas most at risk of flooding due to storm
surge from a hurricane....
Roosevelt Island residents live in both Zones 2 and 3 depending upon the
building in which you live. As shown in the
NYC Hurricane Evacuation Zone Finder
below, the Roosevelt Island buildings colored in brown are in Zone 2 and
those colored in Yellow are in Zone 3.
The Octagon, Manhattan Park, Westview, Island House, Roosevelt Landings,
Cornell Tech, Coler Hospital and Riverwalk 480, 475 and 460 Main Street are
in Zone 2.
Riverwalk 405, 425, 455, 465 and Rivercross buildings are in Zone 3.
Click here to find
the Hurricane Evacuation Zone for your Roosevelt Island address.
... "Graduate Sweet Dreams Society” – an art incubator program in partnership with Grammy winning producer DJ White Shadow (produced songs for artists Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez, Pitbull and more).
The incubator program is located in Graduate Hotels across the country with the goal of cultivating the talent of selected local creatives by providing them with the resources and mentorships needed to bring generational change to their industry and the community they call home.
Graduate Hotels will be accepting applications for the next class of the Sweet Dreams Society on a rolling basis with a deadline of August 15th. Throughout the duration of the 3-month residency, one member per city will have the opportunity to amplify their trade through the use of the on-site Graduate Sweet Dreams Society Artist Lab, an art materials stipend, as well as access to a diverse network of leading creators and connectors who will help the artists grow and expand as artists, entrepreneurs and community members.
Roosevelt Island resident and jazz musician Susheel Kurien has organized live
Sunday afternoon Jazz Jams at Gallery RIVAA over the past several years and last
month celebrated the return of live Jazz to Gallery RIVAA following more than a
year long lapse due to the Covid pandemic.
This Friday evening, July 30, Mr Kurien is bringing live Jazz music outdoors to the cool
breezes of the East River waterfront at the new Roosevelt Island Cafe and Event
space, The Sanctuary.
According to Mr Kuriel:
Please come out and support some familiar faces from the RIVAA Jam sessions,
Bring friends!
Your support helps keep our jam sessions a destination for some very
talented musicians.
Please share this and encourage friends to stop by and grab a drink at this
great venue. Awesome location for jazz!
Friday Night Jazz at the Sanctuary, Roosevelt Island
Friday 30th July 7pm to 10 pm
Music and vocals !
Please do share with your friends and associates Peace and jazz.
Susheel Kurien Jazz Guitarist in Perpetual Learning (Flyer below by
Roosevelt Island artist Tony Vita).
Here's a snippet from the June 27 Jazz Jam at Gallery RIVAA.
The musicians were:
Susheel Kurien Guitar
Steven Golub tenor,
Erik Swimmer Tenor.
Nobu Yamasaki bass,
Nicole keys,
Christine Reisner vocal and violin,
Ron Kushner keys,
Kaz Oguro alto,
Roger Flather drums,
Dan Yalisove clarinet
See you tomorrow for Roosevelt Island Friday Night Jazz at The Sanctuary
2021 marks the 25th anniversary of the New York City Administration for
Children's Services! While much has changed over the past 25 years, one thing
has remained the same: our focus on keeping children safe and families
supported.
In recognizing the 25th anniversary, Commissioner David A. Hansell said, "I
have a deep appreciation for and pride in the mission of our agency. I want to
extend my sincere gratitude and thanks to the extraordinary staff members who
have contributed significantly to the agency's mission over the last 25 years
of protecting and promoting the well-being of New York City's children and
families. I feel truly blessed to be in this role and could not be prouder of
the steps we have taken together."
Today, ACS is seen as a model for child welfare systems across the country and
the agency continues to charter and pursue a course that is strengthening all
aspects of child welfare and juvenile justice work.
Every City government employee will need to show proof of vaccination or a
weekly negative
#COVID
test by September 13.
We’ve been through too much to let our
guard down now. New York City is leading the nation in fighting back against
the Delta variant.
pic.twitter.com/Vr5pB2gD6h
Yesterday, I asked the Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC):
Mayor deBlasio announced today that NYC employees will either have to be
inoculated with the Covid Vaccine or have weekly testing.
Will RIOC follow the NYC policy regarding Covid Vaccination/testing for RIOC
employees? If not, why not?
What percentage of RIOC employees are vaccinated? I understand that 50% of
PSD officers are vaccinated?
Please let me know if RIOC will comment.
No answer yet from RIOC.
During the July 20 Roosvelt Island Residents Association (RIRA) Pubilc Safety
Committee (PSC) meeting, RIOC Public Safety Department (PSD) Chief Kevin Brown reported that one officer recently tested
positive for Covid 19 and that only 50% of PSD Officers have received the
Covid 19 vaccine. Chief Brown added that he received the Covid 19 vaccine and
Deputy Chief Anthony Amoroso has previously said he was vaccinated as
well.
2 officers of the Roosevelt Island Public Safety Department died from Covid 19
-
Officer Corey Fischer and
Detective Wayne Jones.
A Roosevelt Island Memorial gathering for both officers will be held in August
said Chief Brown during the July 20 PSC meeting.
Mayor Bill de Blasio says 70% of all adults in NYC have gotten the vaccine and 58% of all New Yorkers have gotten at least one shot.
The NYPD lags by 27% compared to the rest of NYC with a 43% vaccination rate among its roughly 54k workforce. pic.twitter.com/SmnK0cvsHC
NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea told NY 1' Pat Kiernan that he supports Mayor
deBlasoi's mandatory Covid vaccination or weekly testing policy.
This morning,
@NYPDShea
spoke with
@patkiernan
on @NY1 about new
vaccination and testing mandates for city workers. They also spoke about
illegal dirt bikes and ATV's.
According to the
NYC Health Department
Covid Statistics for Roosevelt Island Zip Code 10044, of an estimated population of 11,571:
8055 residents have at least one dose of vaccination (69.01%)
7636 residents fully vaccinated (65.42%)
The most recent 7 Day Covid Testing Data from July 18-24 for Roosevelt Island Zip Code 10044 shows 279 people tested and 2 Positive Case for a rate of 0.72%.
Will RIOC follow the lead of NYC and require Covid vaccinations or weekly negative testing for all employees?
UPDATE 7/28:
Looking forward to partnering closely with our brothers & sisters in labor on this.
Vaccination or weekly testing will help protect employees' health as the Delta variant spreads.
UPDATE July 29 - RIOC Public Information Officer Amy Smith reports:
Yesterday, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced that all New York State employees—about 130,000 people—will be required to get vaccinated for COVID-19 by Labor Day. State employees who do not get vaccinated will be required to be tested for COVID-19 on a weekly basis. New York State is working with state unions to implement the requirement quickly and fairly. As a state agency, Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation (RIOC) will adhere to these requirements as the safety of our employees, partners, and patrons is of the utmost importance to us.
Roosevelt Island celebrated the Americans With Disabilities Act on Friday, July 16 with the ribbon cuttng and unveiling of the FDR Hope Memorial which depicts President Franklin D Roosevelt sitting in his wheelchair greeting a young girl standing on her crutches at Jim Bates and Nancy Brown Plaza in Southpoint Park.
As previously reported, here are the remarks from Roosevelt Island Disabled Association (RIDA) President Wendy Hersh
and FDR Hope Memorial Chair Marc Diamond describing the 12 year effort to
build the FDR Hope Memorial and bring it to Roosevelt Island.
More on the history of the 12 year effort to build the FDR Hope Memorial and bring it to Roosevelt Island at this post from yesterday.
"When will the Graduate Hotel rooftop bar open" is a question regularly asked
by Roosevelt Island residents who have been looking forward to the planned
July opening of the
Panorama Room.
I’m told the Panorama rooftop bar opening has been delayed past July. Is that
true? What is the new planned opening date? I heard late August? What is
reason for the delay?
A Panorama Room representative answered:
You are correct - unfortunately the opening will not be in July. The delays
are pretty run of the mill - finalizing the space, menus, etc. We are
looking at August, though we don’t have a firm date at this point.
We’ll be sure to keep you posted on updates as they happen.
... Anything At All opened the last week of June and it's open for
breakfast lunch and dinner. They serve new American cuisine. We do hope to
add outdoor dining.
With everything going on with Covid, things just don't arrive in the time
you would like them too. We're still waiting on some of the furniture but
hopefully we'll have that up and running sometime soon.
We will also have our fantastic Panorama Room. Both the Panorama Room and
Anything At All are managed by Call Mom who are Med Abrous and Marc Rose.
They're New York City natives. Both were living in L.A. Med actually
moved back to help with the opening and so they're running our food and
beverage outlets as well as our event space
The Panorama Room is the only part of the hotel that is not yet open. Like
with the restaurant furniture downstairs there's still some parts that we're
waiting on that have been delayed due to just production delays and also
we've had a little issue with staffing as everyone's probably seen in the
news.
It's not easy to hire people as you would like so we do aim to open this
summer. We still honestly are just waiting for a few more pieces to the
puzzle till we can have a firm opening date but once we open it's going to
be a great resource to the Island.
We will be open most days likely starting at 3 p.m in the afternoon. Hopefully
at one point also adding brunch on the weekend so really more to come on the
Panorama Room....
Here's the full Graduate Hotel Presentation by Ms Dalal to the Community Board
8 Roosevelt Island Committee.
As previously reported,
The Graduate Hotel Panorama Room has been open for some private parties
including on July 4.
I agree. The staff is super friendly but inexperienced. We waited 20 minutes for our first drink and no one was in the restaurant. The food is very good especially breakfast.
I had the honor to receive a Marjorie Matthews Award today for service with
the Coler Community Advisory Board and the Coler Auxiliary. The ceremony was
held at the Queens Hospital Center.
There are over 500 volunteers who work on these committees to make our
municipal hospitals better serve all the residents of New York City,
Watch Coler CEO Robert Huges introduce Ms Berdy at the awards ceremony
followed by a few remarks by Ms Berdy.
Roosevelt Island's Gallery RIVAA (527 Main Street) is hosting a July 24 opening reception for
it's new Summer Splash Painting exhibition Saturday, July 24 from 6-9 PM.
You're invited.
Summer Splash Painting features large scale works by artists Laura Hussey,
Valeriu Boborelu and Ioan Popoiu.
Also on July 25 from 2:30-5:30 at Gallery RIVAA there will be a jazz jam session with Susheel Kurien and local musicians. It is free and all are welcome
Masks are required for all who are not vaccinated.
Today I was proud to hold a community meeting with our Senate Majority
Leader Chuck Schumer, leaders, and activists from our community.
pic.twitter.com/jYr3Q65dsH
Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright today held a special district meeting with
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer for community leaders of the Upper
East Side, Yorkville and Roosevelt Island.
The meeting with the New York senior senator at the Lenox Hill Neighborhood
House was arranged by Seawright to hear from the Senator on federal aid for
tenants, small businesses, transportation, health and other vital issues of
community concern. Attendees included advocates, activists, non-profit
representatives, local school leaders, and local hospital healthcare
officials.
"We owe a debt of gratitude to Majority Leader Schumer who has been tireless
in securing direct economic support to enable our communities to rise, unite
and fight back from COVID-19," said Seawright.
Seawright thanked Senator Schumer for fighting for economic impact payments,
federal pandemic unemployment compensation, enhanced child tax, and earned
income tax credits, two of the most potent and effective anti-poverty tools
the U.S. government provides.
"As we continue the recovery from the pandemic, we want to ensure that our
district is on the pathway to a thriving Upper East Side, Yorkville, and
Roosevelt Island, " she said.
Activists spent more than an hour sharing opinions and posing questions on
local concerns.
Before addressing local community issues, Senator Schumer described his
experience of January 6, beginning with the election of 2 Democratic Party
Senators from Georgia, becoming Senate Majority Leader and ending in the
attack and insurrection by supporters of President Trump at the Capital.
According to Senator Schumer:
... As a nation January 6 could be described, at least from my point
of view, by the opening line in Charles Dickens novel A Tale Of Two
Cities, the best of times the worst of times.
You may remember that January 5th was our election day in Georgia where we
had two Democratic senators if they won, we knew we'd get back to a
Democratic majority. Well, I was very nervous, I stayed up all night watched
the results Tuesday night bled into Wednesday morning.
I'm on the computer at 2 a.m. What's the results in Chatham county, how many
African-American turnout was there in Dekalb county. Finally at 4 00 a.m in
the morning, it's clear that we've won and we would gain the Democratic
majority.
I would replace Mitch McConnell as the majority leader...
... you probably asked yourself the same question I asked myself. How could
74 million people vote for such a despicable human being as Donald Trump and
I don't care if you're a liberal or a conservative Democrat or Republican,
he is a vile man, he is dishonest, he is divisive. That's what he loves to
do, just divide and have people fighting with each other. He's a racist and
he always appeals to the dark side of human nature which he's very good at
unfortunately.
How did they vote for him and I realized that for too many Americans they no
longer had faith in the American dream. We are a bright sunny optimistic
country or have been but in the last 20 years or so a sourness has overtaken
our land and people don't have faith in that American dream. If you ask the
average American what is the American dream to you they say it means
if I work hard I'll be doing better 10 years from now that I'm doing today
and my kids will be doing still better than me.
When people don't believe that, they can turn to a demagogue and that's what
they did to some extent in 2020. We didn't give them a bold strong vision.
Middle class and the people struggling to get to the middle class don't
expect us to snap our fingers and make all their troubles go away but they
expect to see progress. Our mission and moral was to restore that progress
and hope, so they would never turn to a demigod like they did in 2016 and
almost did in 2020. So those were my feelings, joy but awe.
I can't sleep. I get in the car at 7 30 in the morning, drive down to
Washington and get on the floor of the Senate for the first time as the
putative majority leader. At 1 pm we're counting the votes as you may
remember and within an hour before even giving my first speech a police
officer in a bulletproof vest with a submachine gun strapped across his
waist grabs me firmly by the collar. I'll never forget that feeling and says
Senator you're in danger. You got to get out of here.
He had to explain to me what the danger was. You may have seen this because
the video security cameras overhead caught it and they showed it at the
impeachment trial. First time I saw. But they show me walking out the Senate
chamber door turning to the right. I'm walking briskly with police officer
on either side go through the door, you don't see me for 20 seconds and then
20, 25 seconds later we're running out the door at full speed.
I was within 20 feet of these insurrectionists horrible people, these racist
insurrections, insurrectionist bigots. Had one of them had a gun, had two of
them blocked off the door, lord knows what would have happened. One of them
was reputed to point at me and say there's the big Jew let's get him. Worst
of times. Now we're getting back to the better of times, they've arrested
about half of those who invaded the capital...
Stay tuned for more on the meeting with Senator Schumer and discussion of
local community issues.
UPDATE 7/24 - Here's video from the Roosevelt Island & Upper East
Side community meeting with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.
Part 1 - Introduction and description of best and worst of times from January
6.
Part 2 and 3 are questions from community members and response from Senator
Schumer.
UPDATE 7/26 - In response to a question from an Upper East Side restuarant owner (17 minute 14 second mark of Part 3 video), Senator Schumer says he is a strong supporter of small business and describes his experience as a young man trying to collect an overdue bill from a landlord refusing to pay for services provided by his father's small exterimantor's business.
UPDATE 7/26 - Roosevelt Island residents Matt Katz and Joyce Short were among those asking questions of Senator Schumer. The Senator interrupted Mr Katz's question by saying he has ridden his bicycle from Brooklyn thru Queens to Roosevelt Island and will do so again.
Mr Katz asked Senator Schumer about Roosevelt Island governance:
... On Roosevelt Island where we live we have been activists. We have had an issue with the voting rights and American democracy. We are denied it.
We are part of New York City. We vote for our City Councilman, Borough President but they do not make the decisions...
...We are run by a New York State Public Benefit Corporation ... appointed by the Governor.... That's not American democracy as i understand it...
... My question is we would love to sit with your staff to give them a fuller picture of what's going on on Roosevelt Island because American democracy starts in the local community.
Senator Schumer replied:
Many of these questions will be state and local issues and while I'm not directly involved I have indirect involvement because i helped ... I got the state 23 billion dollars, I got the City 6 billion and the MTA so they sometimes, not always, but sometimes, listen to me so I'll be happy to listen to you and weigh in.
Joyce Short asked about domestic violence and a federal law defining consent in the context of sexual assault.
Roosevelt Island is a mixed income, racially diverse waterfront community situated in the East River of New York City between Manhattan and Queens and is jurisdictionally part of Manhattan. The Roosevelt Island Tramway, which connects Roosevelt Island to the rest of Manhattan, has become the iconic symbol of Roosevelt Island to its residents.
The Purpose of this Blog is to provide accurate and timely information about Roosevelt Island as well as a forum for residents to express opinions and engage in a dialogue to improve our community.
Roosevelt Island Lighthouse Park Under Water From Hurricane Sandy Via Kate Williams Tweet
