Kings County Politics

Instead of the traditional petitioning process, we should explore other methods for candidates to qualify for the ballot. A bill sponsored by Council Member Ben Kallos, and co-sponsored by Council Members Fernando Cabrera, Antonio Reynoso, Jimmy Van Bramer, and Inez Barron, proposes an interesting ballot qualification method. The bill posits a secondary method to ballot qualification – if a candidate has qualified for the threshold requirements of the Campaign Finance Board’s matching program, they would also qualify for the ballot. It is a particularly enticing option, as it would not only save taxpayers money but also reduce potential exposure to the COVID-19 virus from petitioning and trips to the Board of Elections and the courts. 

After grilling De Blasio’s decision on CBS News, City Councilmember Ben Kallos (D-Manhattan) expressed that it is possible to clean the graffiti without resorting to broken windows policing. “Graffiti doesn’t lead to violence. The theory of broken windows was disproven a long time ago,” said Kallos.

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“Our local government has a very basic responsibility to keep our City clean,” said Kallos. “Removing graffiti from public places and property should be covered in our City’s $86 billion budget, but if the Mayor is not going to do it, the least I can do is clean the neighborhood I represent.”   

Adams Wants to Strengthen Nutritional Grab Meals

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams joined City Council Member Ben Kallos (D-Manhattan) and doctors of color to unveil new legislation that would strengthen nutritional guidelines on meals funded by the City, including grab-and-go meals.  

“Our City cannot be literally feeding our public health crisis by serving foods that have no nutritional value. Numerous residents throughout Brooklyn have raised concerns to me about the quality of the food they are getting through grab-and-go sites, food pantries, and other operations subsidized by the City. The leading co-morbidities associated with COVID-19 are diet-related, like obesity and hypertension. We must change the paradigm in the way we feed residents to prioritize health and wellness, rather than just caloric intake,” said Adams.

The announcement came as New Yorkers throughout the five boroughs have expressed concern about the quality and nutritional standards of the food distributed through the GetFoodNYC initiative, launched in response to the growing number of New Yorkers who have lost jobs or income due to the COVID-19 pandemic. B

Adams and Kallos have been vocal in recent weeks about the need to provide healthier meal options to New Yorkers.

“I’m so proud that the City Council voted to pass my legislation and the entire STOP package, the most comprehensive oversight and reform we’ve ever seen of our student transit system,” said Treyger. “This legislation is about dragging a $1.2 billion school bus and transport industry into the 21^st century and building the accountability and transparency necessary to ensure that our city’s children and families are receiving the safe, efficient, and humane school transportation services they deserve.”

But Treyger was also quick to call himself the prime co-sponsor on Council Member Ben Kallos’ (D-Manhattan) legislation to put GPS devices on all school buses.

“Parents have enough to worry about. School bus rides to and from school should not be another cause for concern. I’m proud to join Council Members Kallos and Deutsch in sponsoring this legislation that will give parents peace of mind when it comes to their child’s daily commute,” he said.

As The KCP Investigation continues into the city’s taking of fully paid off properties through the Department of Housing Preservation & Development (HPD), Third Party Transfer (TPT) program, KCP has been busy chasing down a number of of leads in trying to unravel the complex role of the government’s involvement. What follows is a few of these odds, ends and false leads with a brief explanation:

FALSE LEAD: 2017 CITY LEGISLATION PROMPTED THE FORECLOSURES

In 2017, the coalition Stand For Tenant Safety (STS) along with the City Council’s Progressive Caucus put together a legislative package of 11 bills, which passed the Council in August of that year.

Among these bills was City Council Member Ben Kallos‘ (D-Manhattan) bill, Intro. 0930, which expands HPD’s (TPT) program, allowing the city to foreclose and sell distressed residential buildings to pre-qualified third parties, and to include buildings whose owners have incurred large amounts of unsatisfied building violations.

The bill, although expanding the definition of “distressed” property, had nothing to do the seizure of more than 60 properties across Central Brooklyn in a single foreclosure judgement last September. The  legislation does not go into effect until 2019, and even if it was in effect, would unlikely  include the properties featured in KCP’s investigative series as these properties do not have the type of building violations detailed in the bill.