Councilmember Thomas-Henry presents Intros 845 and 918
Councilmember Shanel Thomas-Henry presents Intro 845 requiring DOT to assess and install lighting under elevated train lines, citing safety concerns along Roosevelt Avenue under the 7 train, and Intro 918 allowing roadway cafe operators to pay revocable consent fees in quarterly installments to ease financial burdens on small businesses.
Thank you, Chair.
Just need one second.
So good morning, Chair Brehu, and thank you for convening today's hearing.
Thank you to my colleagues on the committee.
Transportation is about more than getting people from one place to another.
It is about how people feel our neighborhoods, people experience our neighborhoods once they arrive.
It's about whether a resident feels safe walking home beneath an elevated train.
It's about whether a family chooses to stop by at a neighborhood cafe.
It's about whether our streets invite people in or push them away.
Today, as a member of this committee,
As a member of this committee and the chair of Small Business Committee, I am proud to present two pieces of legislation that recognize a simple truth.
Our transportation system should work for the people who use it every day.
Introduction 845 would require the Department of Transportation to assess streets and sidewalks beneath elevated train infrastructure to determine where additional lighting is needed and install it within a defined time frame.
In my district, the 7 train runs
through the heart of our community.
For years, residents have shared concerns about darkness, dark under the underpasses that feel unsafe and overlooked.
No New Yorker should have to question their safety simply because they are walking home beneath our transit infrastructure.
This legislation creates accountability by ensuring those concerns are evaluated, addressed, and reported on.
Introduction 918 focuses on another important part of our streetscape, the small businesses that activate our sidewalks and make our commercial corridors vibrant.
By allowing roadway cafe operators to pay revocable consent fees in quarterly installments rather than all at once,
we can ease unnecessary financial burdens while continuing to support the outdoor dining program that has become such an important part of our city's fabric.
These bills may address different issues, but they advance the same goal, creating streets that are safe and more economically vibrant.
That is the kind of transportation system we should continue building, one that moves people while also strengthening the communities they call home.
Thank you, and I look forward to today's discussion.
Thank you, Councilmember.
I'd like to add that we've been joined by Councilmember Hanif on Zoom and Councilmember Denowitz.
Thank you, and I'll turn it over to testimony from the administration.