NYC NOW - April 3, 2024: Morning Headlines

Episode Date: April 3, 2024

Get up and get informed! Here's all the local news you need to start your day: New York City Schools Chancellor David Banks says the mayor should retain control of the city school system with no additional strings attached. Meanwhile, the New York state budget was due April 1st, but legislative leaders insist negotiations are heading in the right direction. WNYC’s Jon Campbell reports from Albany. Also, the Global Citizen Festival is coming back to Central Park’s Great Lawn this September. Plus, to commemorate National Poetry Month, WNYC continues its annual tradition of sharing poetry from across the 5 boroughs. Meet 19-year-old Fatima Ahmad, from Brooklyn, 2024 New York City Poet Laureate.

Welcome to NYC Now. Your source for local news in and around New York City from WMYC. It's Wednesday, April 3rd. Here's the morning headlines from Michael Hill. New York City Schools Chancellor, David Banks says the mayor should retain control of the city school system with no additional strings attached. He took that message yesterday to Albany making his case for mayoral control. There's a reason why we put mayoral control in place. and that is because we had a system in the past that was rife with corruption.

The state law authorized the mayoral control expires in June. The chancellor and the mayor are pushing for a multi-year extension as part of the state budget. Assembly Speaker Carl Hasty says the request is fair, but he also says it hasn't come up during budget talks yet. The New York state budget was due April 1st on Monday, but legislative leaders insist negotiations are heading in the right direction. WNYC's John Campbell reports from Albany. Housing policy is looming large over budget negotiations, with Governor Hokel pushing to revive a tax break for New York City developers who build affordable units.

But labor unions and developers are struggling to reach a deal on wages for projects that qualify for the exemption. Assembly Speaker Carl Hasty of the Bronx says that's impeding progress. It's more complicated than to say that's the one thing that's holding it up, but that is a big piece because when you see, settle the wages, it kind of helps to settle the other things. Hastie says overall budget negotiations are moving forward. He says the trains heading in the right direction, just maybe not on the express track.

The Global Citizen Festival is coming back to Central Park's Great Lawn this September, and one local city council member says minimizing harm to the park should be a top priority for organizers. Heavy rains combined with foot traffic from last year's event forced the lawn to close for repairs earlier than usual. Councilmember Gail Brewer. The Great Lawn wasn't able to be used for three months. So it's not just paying for it.

It's also why take away a public amenity? That doesn't seem fair. Goodness knows we need every green spot we can get in this city. Brewitt says her office got a flood of phone calls and complaints this week when it was announced that the Great Lawn was, or the festival will return to the Great Lawn for the 12th year on Saturday, September 28th. 43 with rain now a coastal flood warning for the Jersey shore, a high today in the 40s. Stay close. There's more after the break.

Another year, and it's time for another round of what has quickly become one of morning edition's favorite annual traditions. National Poetry Month. It's April, and we're ready to hear verses from across the five boroughs and the region over the next few weeks. Joining us to kick off our celebration is 19-year-old Fatma, Akkwatra, from Brooklyn. 2024's New York City Youth Poet Laureate. She joins us now. Fatma, welcome to Morning Edition. Happy Poetry Month, and congrats on your achievement. Thank you so much.

It's so nice to be here. Tell us what brought you to poetry. So I've always been a very sheltered writer, and that includes me writing in my math notebooks, like growing up, instead of like doing the actual work. But I've always been very quiet about it. I feel like writing has been like a friend that has always been in witness of everything that I'm going through in life. Where do you find most of your inspiration as a young artist? From people and from what I see happening around me.

So I would say that, you know, how we have our five senses? All of those senses alert me on my motivation on what I want to write. You've only been New York's youth poet laureate for a few months now, but what have you learned about poetry in the months since you've come into this role? The power that poetry holds when you go up on stage, I feel like in this short amount of time, I have been able to connect with so many people, and it's such a powerful feeling because you're connecting on the basis of just words,

and that is a very pure energy exchange that you're happening. I understand you're in Pakistan right now, why you're there? Yes, I'm in Pakistan. So for the first time, there is going to be a national youth lawyer here in Pakistan, and I'm here to lead some workshops and be part of the journey. You have a poem you'd like to share with us? So this poem is called Workaholic. This passion was my first love before it paid the bills of the world.

When I was tangled, stringing along to a lifetime dance, I was a corpse. It asked me of the role that I play in this show called Life. Is the work I do working for me, or am I working for it? Was I untangling for bliss or gleam of myself? Was work the shore, and I, the ocean, gave kept into routines a blindfold of survival and livelihood? What happened to my love that taught feet to reach clouds?

stitched cloth of faith with open lands of free will. Where in the graphic designing of life did I forget to leave my own trademark? I sat down with work after another day, looked in its eyes, a heart to heart, and work said, I am you and you are me, we are perpendicular, not parallel, and it said that I am the universe's benevolence upon you. I am an invitation for you to look inward,

inwards. You are matchless. You are what you wish. I am channeling your energy. This legacy you in poetry needs breathwork of life. This is sacred artwork. Be more than just alive. Wow, that's beautiful. What do you want to do with poetry? Become a published poet, teach? What do you want to do? Most importantly, I want to combine social work and poetry together and be able to create change in that aspect. Well, Fatma Ahmed is New York City Poet Laureate and a youth ambassador for the Poetry Organization Urban Word NYC. Thank you so much for being with us. Of course. Thank you.

Thanks for listening. This is NYC Now from WNYC. Be sure to catch us every weekday, three times a day. news headlines and occasional deep dives, and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. See you this afternoon.