November Update

Currently we are working assiduously with bill sponsor Senator Daniel Squadron and the co-sponsors to bring the “same as” Senate bill to the floor and to enact this legislation as soon as possible.The Assembly Bill, sponsored by Vito Lopez, was passed in June.

We hope that you voted November 3rd. Yet another way to make your voice heard and to make your vote count is to become a member of the New York Live Work Coalition.  Please write us a note at membership@newyorklivework.org or, even easier (for us)  join us as a member on FACEBOOK.

NY State Senate Still Struggling

Despite the extraordinary amount of declared support for bill S5881 (amending, extending and expanding the Multiple Dwelling Law) and the efforts of Senator Daniel Squadron and cosponsors, the bill was not part of last week’s extraordinary Senate session.

Reasons as to why not are still foggy. Senator Brian Foley’s absence due to his father’s death complicated things without a question.

The Senate is still not functional and party politics forced even non-partisan bills either off the agenda or caused them to fail.

Our energies and efforts are now focused on the next session, which we have some hope will be at the end of September. Stay tuned.

New York as a Global Creative Hub: A Competitive Analysis of Four Theories on World Cities

Elizabeth Currid, University of Southern California. writes this compelling analysis in the 2006 edition of the Economic Development Quarterly:

New York as a Global Creative Hub: A Competitive Analysis of Four Theories on World Cities
How New York City has maintained its position atop the global urban hierarchy as a leading player in the world and national economy is part of the broader discussion on why cities grow and why some remain at the top of the heap decade on decade. There are several dominant theories explaining New York City’s success, most notably those that argue the city is a center of command and control or managerial elite and is a global hub of finance and its related services. Yet an emerging framework explaining New York City’s dominant position argues for the importance of global creative centers. From an occupational analysis of these competing hypotheses emerges a picture of New York City as a great bastion of creativity and cultural and artistic production. These results provide a unique perspective on New York City’s position in the world hierarchy of cities and new opportunities for economic development strategies.

A link to the full text can be found in the RESEARCH section above.

Over 4000 Signatures: Demanding Live/Work Protection

There have been numerous petitions out there in support of the Multiple Dwelling Amendment.

Just look at this one PetitionOnline.com

4200 signed this petition – and this was only in support of 200 live work spaces there were threatened (and subsequently  lost).

We hope Senators Daniel  Squadron, Malcolm Smith and  John Sampson understand how important this bill is and how intense the outcry will be if this bill will not come to a vote and evictions are following.