That is very uncool.
New York Metropolis’s elected officers and group boards couldn’t be bothered with serving to residents address the stifling weekend warmth wave — regardless of a direct attraction from Mayor Eric Adams’ administration.
Town Workplace of Emergency Administration despatched a request to 225 elected officers and staffers — together with members of the Metropolis Council, state Senate and Meeting, Comptroller Brad Lander, Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and the Home of Representatives — to volunteer their workplaces as cooling facilities over the quick however sweltering stretch.
Not one of many pols or staff supplied to open their workplace’s doorways over the scorching weekend, when temperatures hit effectively within the 90s, metropolis officers stated.
Solely six elected officers bothered to reply in any respect to the request — and even then, it was solely to say they might enable their workplace for use as a mini-cooling heart on weekdays.
The half-dozen pols who responded have been state Sen. Leroy Comrie and council members Nantasha Williams and Selvena Brooks-Powers of Queens, Councilwoman Ana Sanchez of The Bronx and state Assemblyman Michael Novakhov and Councilwoman Alexa Aviles of Brooklyn.
Metropolis Corridor stated it was clearly upset by the dearth of assist.
“We’re doing every thing in our energy to assist New Yorkers beat the warmth, together with opening cooling facilities throughout the 5 boroughs. However we can not do that alone,” a mayoral rep instructed The Submit on Monday.
The OEM had insisted in its letter, “All that’s wanted to take part is a working air-conditioner and 1-3 chairs.
“As the warmth wave continues into the weekend, we ask elected officers to affix the Metropolis’s Cooling Middle Program, an essential useful resource designed to maintain New Yorkers secure throughout excessive warmth days,” it stated.
“We’re at all times on the lookout for extra to affix, notably on weekends (when fewer of our current companions are capable of function) and in neighborhoods the place there’s excessive warmth vulnerability because of elevated floor temperatures and lack of air-conditioned dwelling areas.
“With this in thoughts, we’re in search of alternatives to interact new companions – such because the workplaces of elected officers and group boards like yours – that have already got trusted and revered roles within the metropolis’s various communities,” OEM stated. “We’d prefer to accomplice with you to develop the Cooling Facilities community and provides New Yorkers entry to extra cool areas the place they will settle down when this system is activated throughout excessive warmth days.”
Comptroller Lander, who issued a vital report in 2022 on the supply of town’s cooling facilities, complained final week that lots of the Massive Apple’s 500 such websites have been closed throughout the Juneteenth vacation Wednesday.
“For those who’re telling folks to get to a cooling heart, then the cooling facilities should be open,” Lander admonished final week.
A rep for Landers was requested by The Submit why the comptroller’s workplace was not a makeshift cooling heart and responded {that a} “mayoral company” — town Division of Citywide Administrative Providers — “controls entry, hours of operation, and entry to the general public areas of the Municipal Constructing.” Landers’ workplace is within the David Dinkins Municipal Constructing at 1 Centre Avenue.
Sen. Comrie, whose workplace is positioned on Farmers Boulevard in St. Albans, Queens, stated he has not hesitated in utilizing it as a cooling heart, though solely throughout workplace hours on weekdays. He stated that over the weekend, he was giving out rain barrels to assist constituents with flooding issues.
“We bought a request to take part, and we signed up — we’ve been a cooling heart for awhile,” Comrie stated.
He stated it was essential to have a resting spot for aged residents in his district throughout excessive warmth.
A staffer for Assemblyman Novakhov stated the workplace participated throughout the weekdays however not on Saturday or Sunday.
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