Chair Thomas-Henry opens hearing and outlines the small business crisis
Council Member Shanel Thomas-Henry calls the hearing to order, introduces herself as chair of the Committee on Small Business, and describes how rising rents and complex leases are displacing small businesses across the city. She frames the hearing around four bills aimed at helping businesses stay and grow.
Thank you.
This hearing is called to order.
Good afternoon, everyone.
I am Councilmember Shanel Thomas-Henry, Chair of the Committee on Small Business, and thank you for joining today's hearing.
While traveling across the city to speak with small business owners, the one thing that kept coming up in these conversations is how hard it is for them to stay in this city and grow.
With the goal of supporting our small businesses and keeping them in our community, this hearing will focus on discussing four bills.
These are Introduction 90 from Councilmember Brewer, Introduction 408 from Councilmember Riley,
Introduction 578 from Councilmember Gutierrez, and Introduction 874 from Councilmember Maloney.
I'd like to thank the council colleagues, representatives from the administration, and members of the public for being here, as well as members of the public participating remotely.
We are losing our small businesses fast.
Last year, more businesses closed in New York State than opened.
Those businesses closed because we have made it too difficult for them to remain open.
The rising cost of rent in the city displaces not only our residents, but our businesses.
This is a travesty because small businesses are the foundation of our city.
They make a
get distinct, and they give it character.
They help define the neighborhoods they serve and can even become important social centers where people gather and interact in public, like barbershops and coffee shops.
Staying in business is no easy feat when small businesses are forced to navigate complex and expensive commercial lease agreements while also trying to find enough funds to continue to keep their business in operation.
In New York City, the Department of Small Business Services exists to help support these business owners.
They help business owners navigate and adhere to regulations and provide them with funding streams when needed.
The bills that we are hearing today would further allow SBS to fulfill its mission by centralizing tools to address the real and unique challenges our entrepreneurs face.