Category: Press Releases

YONKERS, NY (June 18, 2020) – For the first time in more than a decade, the Municipal Housing Authority for the City of Yonkers (MHACY) is seeking to partner with market rate building owners to expand the city’s base of affordable housing.

At a press conference at Yonkers City Hall, MHACY announced that is has released a request for proposals seeking building owners to participate in the Section 8 Housing program. Section 8 provides vouchers through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development that subsidize rental units in market rate buildings for income-qualifying tenants.

The program would also be a major plus for building owners and developers who need to meet the requirements of the city’s affordable housing law.

“This is a win-win situation for tenants, building owners and the City of Yonkers,’’ said MHACY Board Chairman James Landy.

“This is the first time in over a decade that we are seeking RFPs for these vouchers. It will not only expand our base of affordable housing but will give developers incentive to create more market rate housing in our city.’’

“During this challenging economic time, while many families across our city are facing housing challenges during the COVID-19 crisis, this is yet another way we can leverage more quality, affordable housing for Yonkers’ working families, young people starting out and seniors who want to age in place,’’ said Mayor Spano.

“Thanks to leadership of MHACY for working in tandem with our efforts.”

Wilson Kimball, MHACY’s President and CEO, said the initiative was part of a larger push to expand affordable housing opportunities including redevelopment of Cottage Place Gardens, new construction of senior housing at the former Longfellow School and partnering with private developers in new and creative ways.

MHACY is also poised to complete a $300 million, three-year plan to renovate more than 1,700 units of public housing in Yonkers under HUD’s Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program with 1,450 units already completed and 450 under construction.

The program allowed the City and MHACY to leverage its properties and use tax credits to attract private investors. It is the most extensive public housing renovation in the nation using public/private financing.

“Housing is key to the vitality of any city. In addition to all the new market rate housing that is going up, we have renovated our public housing stock and are now making more affordable housing available through the use of Section 8 vouchers in partnership with building owners,’’ said Kimball.

“This three-prong approach ensures that we provide a full-spectrum of housing, and renew our commitment to provide safe, affordable housing for working families.’’

For more information on submitting RFPs for Section 8 vouchers visit MHACY’s website at www.mhacy.org.

ABOUT MHACY

The Municipal Housing Authority for the City of Yonkers (MHACY) is the largest provider of affordable housing in the City of Yonkers and the second largest public housing authority in New York State.

MHACY has an unparalleled commitment to redeveloping, managing and administering its housing stock to provide low-income families, the elderly and disabled individuals with access to good, sustainable housing that improves the quality of the residents’ lives, fosters their economic success, and allows them to serve as integral members of communities in which they live.

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YONKERS, NY – May 29, 2020 — Following weeks of budget hearings, the City of Yonkers 2020-2021 Budget was adopted today with a 6-1 vote by the Yonkers City Council.

The Adopted Budget stays within the state-mandated property tax cap and maintains all city services.

The Adopted Budget stays within the state-mandated property tax cap and includes an increase in the property tax levy of 1.58%.

A typical one-to-three family home at the median assessed value of $11,000 will see their annual property tax bill increase by approximately $225 annually. City water and sewer rates will remain flat.

“This year’s budget has proven to be one of the most difficult as our city, state and country deal with the economic impacts of a global pandemic,” said Mayor Spano.

“The city has lost millions in economically sensitive revenues. Despite this, we stayed within the tax cap so as to not overburden our taxpayers as they, too, are trying to navigate this storm.”

The 2021 Adopted Budget also increases the School District’s budget, totaling the city’s contribution to $269.6 million — making it the largest local share of any big city to a district outside of New York City.

Despite the record increase in the City’s school funding, the School District still will need to eliminate up to 168 positions because Yonkers continues to receive far less school funding from the state government than the state’s other large cities.

Mayor Spano commented, “While the city has provided record aid to our schools, it is still not enough as the state did not provide the additional funding to our schools as we had hoped. Our schools will have to make some tough decisions and need to work within the allocated budget so that our students, teachers, administrators and staff can still work efficiently and effectively.”

“Clearly this year’s budget is a tough one, but by working together with our local leaders, we are maintaining quality services for our residents, relieving our taxpayers as best as we can and making the vital investments in education so we can keep moving Yonkers forward,” Mayor Spano added.

Budget Snapshot:

• $1.24 billion total budget

• Includes record increase in aid to Yonkers Board of Education

• Maintains city services; Yonkers Public Schools to eliminate 168 positions

• Contains 1.58% increase in property tax levy; stays within state-mandated tax cap

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Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano announced the city recently installed new LED lights to the Yonkers City Pier sign along the Hudson River.

The installation of the four two-headed LED lights illuminates the Yonkers sign for the first time in over 15 years.

“The Yonkers sign along our waterfront is iconic and has welcomed visitors to the Hudson Valley for over a century,” said Mayor Spano. “We finally are able to breathe new life into to the pier and brighten the waterfront, which matches the vibrancy of our ongoing downtown revitalization.”

The Yonkers Pier, including its steel sign, was installed on the Yonkers waterfront in 1901.

At that time, Mayor Leslie Sutherland, who was in office from 1898 until 1901, realized the need for the public to have places to go to experience fresh air. The historic pier is the last remaining Victorian-era steel pier on the entire Hudson River.

The Yonkers Pier sign illuminates each night at dusk until dawn the next morning.

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YONKERS, NY – May 1, 2020 – Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano today announced the City of Yonkers is amending its parking meter regulations through the duration of New York State’s PAUSE.

Effective Saturday, May 2 through May 15, street parking meter hours will be from 10AM-6PM and alternate side of the street parking regulations will remain suspended.

“We continue to adjust to the effects of COVID-19, which includes addressing the possible hardships parking meters may impose,” said Mayor Spano.

“Shortening the hours of the street meters is a way to provide some relief to our residents without compromising local businesses. As always, I encourage residents who need to park for extended hours to please use the garages or lots.”

The amended parking meter regulations pertain to all city on-street parking meters. On-street parking meter enforcement hours are typically from 9AM to 8PM unless otherwise noted on posted signs.

For more information on Yonkers Parking Authority locations and regulations, visit www.yonkersparkingauthority.com.

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Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano today joined St. Joseph’s Medical Center’s President/CEO Michael Spicer and Richmond Children’s Center’s President/CEO Paca Lipovac to accept a donation of personal protective equipment (PPE) provided by the American Chinese United Care (ACUC) Alliance and its membership donors. The donations will be distributed to city organizations, hospitals and healthcare facilities in need of PPE to combat the COVID-19 outbreak.

“Yonkers is blessed to receive these essential PPE donations from our friends at the American Chinese United Care Alliance,” said Mayor Spano. “Times like these remind us that kindness and generosity exists amongst us as we try to navigate through uncertainty. Our local healthcare facilities need these items now more than ever and we are fortunate for ACUC’s ability to lift up those who are working tirelessly on the frontlines for us.”

ACUC today delivered 30,000 masks, bottles of hand sanitizers, gloves, face shields, goggles and protective gowns to the Yonkers Office of Emergency Management. St. Joseph’s Medical Center, located in southwest Yonkers where many COVID-19 cases reside, received 350 protective gowns, 1200 masks, 30 face shields and 30 goggles.

“On behalf of the many dedicated and hard-working health care professionals at Saint Joseph’s Medical Center, I would like to sincerely thank the City of Yonkers and the American Chinese United Care Alliance for their very generous donation of PPE. Our staff is working around the clock on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. These thousands of masks, surgical gowns and hand sanitizers will help protect our staff as they continue to fight this pandemic from the frontline,” said Michael Spicer, President and CEO of Saint Joseph’s Medical Center.

Yonkers’ Richmond Children’s Center, which provides services for developmentally disabled children, also received donated PPE.

President/CEO of Richmond Children’s Center Paca Lipovac commented, “We are grateful to the City of Yonkers and Mayor Spano for their continued support of Richmond Community Services. In these difficult times, it is comforting to know that we have supporters who will assist us in getting necessary supplies. People with developmental disabilities are often overlooked and forgotten, but not in Yonkers. Having appropriate PPEs is essential to protect our staff and residents. People who Richmond supports have significant disabilities and medical fragility. They are a high risk group and protecting them is our highest priority. With this generous donation of PPEs we will be able to continue to provide services to people with disabilities and to keep them safe. Thank you Mayor Spano and ACUC, we greatly appreciate it.”

The ACUC Alliance is a recently-launched grassroots coalition of more than 150 Chinese American and overseas Chinese organizations throughout the Tri-State Area. Members include charitable entities, businesses, alumni associations, other Chinese cultural, religious, and professional groups and individuals, all committed to helping local communities in the fight against this once-in-a-lifetime pandemic. The ACUC has raised more than $5 million in cash or in-hand PPE donations since March.

ACUC Board Member Victoria Alberto said, “We all understand that only by working together, pooling our resources and knowledge can we hope stop and cure this terrible disease. ACUC is committed to you today and in the future as you work to respond and recover from this pandemic.”

Organizations and businesses that contributed to ACUC’s donation include: New York Chinese Coffee Club; Empires Scholars Consulting; Topseat International Inc.; Crag Du Jor Corp; Xiamen University Alumni Association of New York; The Chinese Community of Eastchester, Tuckahoe & Bronxville; Scarsdale residents Hongwei Zhou and Joanna Wang; Phoenix Textile USA Inc.; and Dress Up for the Day.

Other recipients of ACUC’s donation include St. John’s Riverside Hospital and Open Door Medical Center.

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YONKERS, NY – April 22, 2020 – Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano today announced the cancellation of all city sponsored events now through June 30 due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Cancellations also include community events requiring Yonkers Police or Parks Department special events permits.

“The steps we have taken over the last six weeks need to be extended through June in order to further protect our residents,” said Mayor Spano.

“The decision to cancel events does not come lightly as I know many of these events celebrate our diversity and love for our city and each other. We must remember that our health and well-being must come first in these very uncertain times. I look forward to the time, hopefully in the near future, when we can all resume a normal way of life which includes many of these celebrations.”

Scheduled events canceled through June include all Yonkers Office of Veterans Affairs events, cultural parades and flag raisings and boys and girls clubs sports events.

Organizations that may have already submitted special events permits to the city will be refunded their permit fees.

Residents should contact the Yonkers Parks Department at 914-377-6450 or email Dinorah.Marshall@yonkersny.gov to redeem a special event permit refund.

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YONKERS, NY – At a city council meeting, a resolution was introduced by Councilwoman Shanae Williams (D1), cosponsored by City Council President Mike Khader, Majority Leader Corazon Pineda-Isaac (D2), and Councilwoman Tasha Diaz (D3), calling on the New York State Legislature and Governor Andrew Cuomo to open a mobile testing site for COVID-19 in Yonkers. The resolution was unanimously adopted by the Council.

In response to the growing number of cases in Westchester, especially in Yonkers, the municipality with the highest number of confirmed cases at over 3,200 cases, the New York State Department of Health today opened an additional testing site in Yonkers at the St. Johns Riverside Hospital Parkcare Pavilion, located at 2 Park Avenue.

Council President Khader weighed in, saying, “I thank Governor Cuomo for acting quickly to answer the Council’s call for action. I speak for all our residents when I say that this will help, and we are grateful. However, the latest data indicates that in the coming days, this site alone will not be enough. As the fourth largest city in the state, we have many vulnerable residents, like our homeless population and seniors. More testing will not only help to protect them, it will work towards slowing the spread of COVID-19. I look forward to the day when we can say that all our residents have been tested.”

Majority Leader Pineda-Isaac praised the move stating, “The testing site is mobile, so pedestrians and those that usually travel by bus can easily access the site to be tested. This is great news for Yonkers! Yonkers quickly surpassed New Rochelle as the county’s hotspot for COVID-19 cases. It is only fitting that we get a mobile testing site here as well, to contain the spread of the virus among our city’s most vulnerable populations. The 10701 zip code currently has almost 1/3 of the entire city’s COVID-19 cases, so although we’re starting here, the new mobile testing site will eventually be for all of Yonkers.”

Minority Leader Mike Breen (D5) voiced his gratitude, but like other Councilmembers wanted to see more testing in the days to come said “I am appreciative that Governor Cuomo granted the City Council’s request of a testing site, however, I am hopeful he will consider extending the testing to all Yonkers residents.”

The new site will help expedite the testing of residents living in the 10701 zip code, the area with the highest population density in Yonkers. Social distancing may often be harder for residents to practice, making this one the areas hardest hit by the COVID-19 outbreak.

The resolution’s sponsor who represents the lion’s share of this zip code urged her constituents to take advantage of this opportunity. “This mobile testing site is crucial for my constituency. I am both happy and grateful that Governor Cuomo and our State Delegation heard our call and placed a testing site in the 1st Council District in Yonkers” said Councilwoman Williams.

“I plead with my neighbors and constituents to get tested. Knowledge is power. You can protect yourselves and your families by getting tested. Before today, many residents were unable to get tested because they don’t have health insurance. With this mobile testing site testing is free for everyone. I strongly urge all my constituents to take full advantage of this testing site. Call the state health number for COVID19 and schedule an appointment now. The number is 888-364-3065. Remember, getting tested can save your life!”

Councilwoman Diaz also expressed her appreciation at the state’s efforts in helping Yonkers to flatten the curve in Yonkers. “I am glad that Yonkers is getting a new testing site, especially in South Yonkers, because this area has the highest number of cases in the city,” she stated. “As a lifelong Yonkers resident, I always want to ensure that the health, safety, and wellbeing of Yonkers residents is my number one priority.”

Councilman John Rubbo (D4) shared similar sentiments of appreciation alongside the other Councilmembers, while offering a proposal to increase testing throughout the city. “I would like to thank Governor Cuomo for his impeccable leadership during this extremely difficult time in our State’s history. His leadership has been second to none at a time when it is desperately needed both here in New York and more importantly, across our great Nation. The testing site in Yonkers is much needed and is appreciated, but I propose that this site move around our city every 5 to 7 days to serve the entire City of Yonkers. The 10704 and 10705 zip codes have nearly 1,200 positive cases as of 4/16. My District covers a densely populated Bronx River Road apartment building row that should have testing available. It is my hope that this testing will ultimately cover the entire city.”

Councilman Anthony Merante (D6) echoed the sentiments of his fellow Councilmembers stating, “I thank Governor Cuomo for granting the Yonkers City Council its request of a Yonkers testing site. The site is initially open to residents of the 10701 Zip Code as that is the area in the City with the largest number of infected residents. I look forward to testing being opened to the rest of our City as I believe that wide-spread testing is key to stop the spread.”

The site will allow for residents without cars to walk up and be tested. Residents wishing to be tested must call the NYS COVID-19 hotline to make an appointment as the site is open by appointment only. Walk-ins will not be accepted.

The site’s hours of operation are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

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Following New York’s declaration that it is in a State of Emergency, New York-based Kimber Manufacturing Inc. was forced to close its NY manufacturing effective immediately.

This is because NY is only allowing businesses that the government designates as essential to continue operation, and firearm manufacutrers and sellers are not among that list.

In response, Kimber Mfg. Inc. released the following statement.

Due to the New York state decision to shutter non-essential businesses as part of the COVID-19 response plan, Kimber Mfg. Inc. has stopped production at its New York facilities.

Production continues at Kimber’s new, state-of-the-art Troy, Alabama manufacturing facility, with the entire line of handguns and long guns being assembled. Due to the large number of parts manufactured in Yonkers and the state-mandated closure in New York, the Troy facility will suspend production on March 31st.

“This situation is unfortunate as we were off to an incredible start in gun shipments in 2020 and were running our factories seven days a week. We would like to thank our dealers and consumers for their overwhelmingly positive response to our 2020 new products,” said Greg Grogan, Kimber president. With that said, if you are in the market for a Kimber firearm, now is the time to make that purchase.”

Kimber’s Alabama based customer service and repair services remain open to help customers with any questions they may have. In addition, the Alabama-based Kimber online store is open and products are shipping as long as inventory lasts. Montana based dealer sales and customer service departments also remain open.

“We greatly appreciate the patience and understanding of our dealers and our fans,” Grogan said. “Rest assured that any disruptions in product manufacturing are temporary, but the duration is out of our hands. As soon as we are allowed, we have plans in place to restart production as quickly as possible.”

In addition to the temporary closure of the Kimber, New York facilities, Kimber has adopted CDC-issued guidelines to protect employee health and prevent the spread of COVID-19 at all Kimber locations.

“Much like all Americans, Kimber will be challenged by these closures,” Grogan said. “But no one here has any doubt that we will all soon be back in production and stronger than ever.”

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