Senator Nathalia Fernandez and the Throggs Neck BID will hold a Health Fair on Saturday, July 22, starting at noon at the DeRosa O’Boyle Triangle. Free health screenings, free food, games, and more! All are invited.
Categories
Electric Bike Fires
According to the NYC Small Business Services F&B Industry Partnership Team, Fires Caused by E-Bike Lithium-Ion Batteries Have Increased.
Here is what you can do to stay safe:
- Food service establishments with charging stations on premises should post a visible flyer near charging areas.
- Valuable information on safe e-bike practices in a variety of languages is available, including:
- Lithium-Ion Battery Safety Flyer for posting and distribution (English and Spanish)
- Lithium-Ion Battery Safety Resources
- #FDNYSmart Safety Tips for Devices with Lithium-Ion Batteries
- Booklet on fire safety practices for personal mobility devices
- New Yorkers who see unsafe charging practices should report it to 311. Response times for e-bike complaints are being prioritized.
- In the event of an emergency, the SBS Emergency Response Unit is available to help businesses recover and reopen their doors.
More information: file:///C:/Users/aanm1/Downloads/Battery%20Fire-ZFold-03-16-23.pdf
Categories
DA, BID Director Meet
Bronx District Attorney Darcell Clark and Throggs Neck BID Executive Director Bob Jaen conducted a walking tour through the BID area on July 13 to focus attention on law enforcement issues facing the community. Council Member Marjorie Velasquez, a representative of Mayor Adams, and Throggs Neck BID Board members accompanied them.
Pictured: Bronx DA Darcell Clark with TN Bid Director Bob Jaen
Council Member Marjorie Velasquez and the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings will answer questions about summonses, how to schedule a fair hearing, and more at a “summer pop up event” at Orchard Beach on July 11 from 10am—4pm at the Orchard Beach boardwalk.
Empower Rehab, at 2895 Roosevelt Avenue in the Bronx, is celebrating its First Anniversary. Join them on JULY 11 from 12–4 pm for food, fun, music, raffles and more.
Categories
No Penalty Inspections
The Department of Buildings has announced the return of the annual No-Penalty Inspection Program, with expanded free inspection offerings for homeowners, business owners, and landlords in New York City. This citywide initiative allows New Yorkers to proactively call 311 to request a free, no-penalty visual inspection of various areas of their property, to get an expert opinion on potential repair projects and guidance on applicable legal requirements. This program helps owners ensure that these structures and equipment on their properties are in good condition, with no visibly apparent hazardous conditions. For the first year ever, DOB has added building facades, boilers, and private elevators to our No-Penalty Inspection Program, in an effort to offer more New Yorkers access to this long running program.
The extraordinary work of the Throggs Neck BID has become widely recognized! Recently, the Bronx Overall Economic Development Corporation and the YES Network (which televises Yankee Games) travelled to Throggs Neck to admire our cleanest in the borough streets, and the remarkable comeback of our BID-area commercial corridor. Unlike other areas throughout NYC, there are very few empty storefronts here.
Pictured: BOEDC president (and former NYC Small Business Services Commissioner) Rob Walsh with BID Executive Director Bob Jaen while touring the BID with the YES Network
Categories
Free Mediation Services
MEND NYC is a new citywide initiative that provides free mediation and conflict resolution services to address a number of neighborhood disputes that impact New Yorkers every day. This program is an opportunity to create direct communication and compromise, establishing respectful and ongoing relationships that help New Yorkers co-exist peacefully in their communities while ensuring that small businesses thrive.
MEND NYC helps New Yorkers address issues in their neighborhood that may include:
- Quality-of-life issues between residents and businesses
- Negotiation between commercial tenants and landlords
- Neighboring business to business misunderstandings
Read about MEND NYC and some positive outcomes that have been reached in cases similar to yours in this Op-Ed. Sit down and work through that disagreement, New York, New York Daily News, April 8, 2021
Watch a video about MEND NYC. In the video you will hear from a local business owner and a neighbor who lives upstairs from his restaurant. After the neighbor contacted MEND NYC about noise from the business, they were able to solve the issue together using mediation.
Quality of Life Concerns between Residents and Neighboring Businesses
Your conflict may be MENDable:
- If you are a New York City resident experiencing a chronic or urgent quality-of-life issue such as excessive noise, trash, crowds and you believe the issue is related to a neighboring business; or
- If you are a small business that is experiencing a heavy volume of complaints from a neighboring resident
In all cases, both parties in the conflict must be willing to enter a discussion with one another and a mediator in order for the conflict to be MENDable.
Communication Between Small Businesses and Landlords
If you are a small business or a commercial landlord and you are experiencing a conflict or a failure to communicate, you may want to use free mediation services provided by MEND NYC to start a dialogue with the other party in order to come to a creative solution that is mutually beneficial for both of you.
Types of cases that are MENDable include those where a landlord and a small business commercial tenant is looking for a free option to help them start a dialogue with the other party before lawyers are engaged. Types of conflicts that can benefit from mediation include, but are not limited to:
- How to resolve past due rent (rent arrears);
- How to proceed with rent payments going forward; and
- How to get out of lease terms (e.g. length of lease).
Business owners should also be aware that the NYC Department of Small Business Services administers the Commercial Lease Assistance Program, which provides free legal services to eligible businesses. There are certain types of issues that a business may face that can be solved through mediation, and without lawyers. In these instances, SBS may refer your case to MEND NYC.
Categories
Grant Extended
Empire State Development Announces $250 Million COVID-19 Capital Costs Tax Credit Program Applications Extended to Sept 30th
Small Businesses with 100 or Fewer Employees May Receive Tax Credits for COVID-19-Related Costs
Empire State Development today announced that the application deadline for Empire State Development’s (ESD) $250M COVID-19 Capital Costs Tax Credit Program has been extended to September 30, 2023. New York State small businesses that made investments to comply with emergency orders and regulations in response to COVID-19 can apply for a refundable tax credit of up to $25,000. Governor Hochul announced the launch of the program on October 25, 2022 and secured an extension of the program’s application deadline through September as part of the FY 2024 Budget.
Small businesses with qualifying COVID-19-related expenses are eligible for a refundable tax credit of up to $25,000 based on qualifying expenses of $50,000. Qualifying expenses are related to building upgrades, structural changes, or supplies to comply with public health or other emergency-related orders and regulations to increase public safety through infectious disease mitigation during 2021 and 2022. Expenses can also include hand sanitizer stations, supplies to disinfect against COVID-19 transmission, equipment for social distancing, air purifiers, contactless point of sale equipment and more.
Businesses independently owned and operated in the State of New York with less than 100 full-time employees and gross receipts of less than $2.5 million are eligible.
Applicants and qualifying businesses can expect the following:
- To fill out a pre-screening questionnaire to confirm their eligibility
- An online application portal available in 68 languages
- Access to multilingual application assistance via phone, text, and email
- To present proof of expenses and other supporting documents
- A tax credit certificate to submit to the Department of Taxation and Finance when filing a tax return
Applications will be open until September 30, 2023. Small businesses are encouraged to apply through the pre-screening tool. If businesses receive a tax credit certificate in 2023, they can claim the credit on their 2023 tax return.
To learn more about eligibility and qualifying expenses, visit www.esd.ny.gov/covid-19-capital-costs-tax-credit.
Contact:
Kristin Devoe: Kristin.Devoe@esd.ny.gov | (518) 414-1087
THE THROGGS BID/SENATOR FERNANDEZ HEALTH FAIR is being POSTPONED due to predicted inclement weather. The tentative reschedule date is July 22.