Irish Heritage Newsletter
Dear Friend,
New York’s long, proud Irish heritage has left an indelible cultural mark on our city. Each year in March, New Yorkers celebrate this history and the significant contributions of the Irish-American community. This March, we also mark the one year anniversary of COVID-19 hitting New York City and the second year that we are unable to celebrate Irish culture in person. However, Irish American History Month gives us an important opportunity to recognize the many ways the Irish community has stepped up during this challenging time to help their neighbors in need across the five boroughs.
Emerald Isle Immigration Center coordinated mask and hand sanitizer giveaways while raising awareness about resources available to the unemployed and food insecure. The Rambling House in the Bronx gave free meals to emergency workers and the Woodlawn Tax Payers Association provided PPE within their heavily Irish neighborhood. The Globe Tavern in Queens allowed their business to be used as a staging ground and collection point for neighborhood food donations in Woodside and Sunnyside.
These groups and many more showcased the hard work and dedication of the Irish American community in the face of the pandemic. We can take pride in knowing New York City’s Irish community remains strong and will always lend a helping hand in times of need.
I wish you and your loved ones continued health as we work together to defeat this virus. We are one city, and we are all New Yorkers.
Sincerely,
Scott M. Stringer
New York City Comptroller
“Save Main Street” Initiative for Small Businesses Fighting for Survival
The mostly mom-and-pop businesses that populate and enrich our commercial corridors—many of them immigrant-owned—are the backbone of our communities and our city. Comptroller Stringer proposed a “Save Main Street” crash relief program to help small businesses fighting for survival get back on their feet. The report found that more than 2,800 small businesses had permanently closed between March 1 and July 10, 2020, including at least 1,289 restaurants and 844 retail businesses. Restaurants, retail, and personal services businesses made up 33 percent of job losses, and the immigrant New Yorkers and communities of color who hold the majority of these jobs have been hit hardest. As part of his plan for an equitable five-borough economy, Comptroller Stringer issued recommendations that would help small businesses access millions of dollars in federal aid, provide tax incentives, streamline City approvals for reopening, and drive new businesses to high-vacancy corridors.
Nonprofit Sector’s Critical Contributions to the New York City Economy
Comptroller Stringer and Nonprofit New York released a report analyzing the impact of the nonprofit sector on the local economy, creating a first-of-its-kind New York City Gross Domestic Product (GDP) figure for the nonprofit sector. The analysis provided a comprehensive overview of the state of this vital sector and its workforce before the COVID-19 pandemic, showing that the nonprofit sector employs over 660,000 people and generates more than $77 billion for the city’s economy – 9.4 percent of New York City GDP.
As part of this substantial contribution to the City’s economy, nonprofits pay nearly $42 billion in wages each year. As New York City grapples with the enormity of the path back from COVID-19, the needs of the nonprofit sector must be at the forefront of all relief and recovery efforts.
Restarting New York City’s Capital Program
Comptroller Stringer has consistently pushed the City to restart its lagging capital program and outlined how the capital program’s long-term benefits – including job creation, economic opportunity, and continued capital investment – would help jumpstart our economic recovery. Every billion dollars in construction spending creates nearly 5,000 direct construction jobs and hundreds of other indirect jobs. The City’s construction program is also a major source of contracts for M/WBEs. Following Comptroller Stringer’s advocacy, the City announced that it would resume capital projects – which is welcome news for our economic recovery and job creation.
State of New York City’s Economy
Our economic recovery has slowed, with job growth actually turning negative in the last few months. Small businesses are still struggling. There are 30 percent fewer businesses open today than before the pandemic, and their revenues are down 50 percent. For the first time in a quarter century, property tax revenues for the coming year will actually decline. But there is some good news, which is that we will have federal stimulus funds coming in. President Biden’s $1.9 trillion dollar American Rescue Plan includes $350 billion dollars in aid for hard-pressed state and local governments — specifically, $5.6 billion for New York City. We need to strategically use these federal funds to relieve New Yorkers’ suffering, to jump-start our economic recovery, and to lay the groundwork for a new, fairer economy.