NYC NOW - February 28, 2024: Midday News

Episode Date: February 28, 2024

Brooklyn Councilmember Chi Ossé reintroduces a bill to curb broker fees for tenants by requiring the party that hires the broker to pay their fee. Additionally, WNYC’s Ramsey Khalifeh examines outdoor dining designs set to appear on streets across the five boroughs. Lastly, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy unveiled his spending priorities for the next fiscal year during his annual budget address on Tuesday. The most significant change includes establishing a stable funding source for NJ Transit, financed by the state’s wealthiest corporations. WNYC’s Sean Carlson speaks with reporter Nancy Solomon to delve into the governor’s plans.

Welcome to NYC Now, your source for local news in and around New York City from WMYC. It's Wednesday, February 28th. Here's the midday news from Michael Hill. Broker fees are rising in New York City, meaning tenants looking for a new place might have to pay thousands on top of their monthly rent. When they move in, Brooklyn Councilmember Chio Se says he's reintroducing a bill today to curb the upfront cost by requirements. whoever hires a broker to pay the broker fee. In most cases, that's usually the landlord.

It's not fair that tenants have to pay a broker fee to a broker who their landlord hired, and this bill would change the dynamic and make it more fair. O'Says Bill failed to pass last year, but now more council members are signing on as co-sponsors. Critics of the bill, such as the Real Estate Board of New York, say landlords will just pass the cost of that broker fee right on to tenants through higher monthly rents. New York City officials are touting the future of outdoor dining. WNMIC's Ramsey Caliphate gets a look at new designs that soon will appear on streets around the five boroughs. Outdoor dining was a rare shared experience with fellow New Yorkers during the pandemic.

The sheds were also a lifeline for restaurants struggling to stay afloat. But after four years, many of the dining sheds in city streets became dilapidated and infested with rats. Now, the city says it has a solution. On Tuesday, Department of Transportation officials showed off colorful, modular sheds with removable panels. The structures follow new, permanent rules that will go into effect in November. That's when they must be dismantled for the winter. Andrew Riggi is the executive director of the New York City Hospitality Alliance. He says the new guidelines will make it easier for businesses to participate.

There'll be less red tape in bureaucracy than there was for a sidewalk cafe before the pandemic. Thousands and thousands of restaurants and neighborhoods across the five boroughs who were never even allowed to have outdoor dining will now be able to happen. The Transportation Department estimates the new sheds will cost tens of thousands of dollars to build. Officials say the new designs use better materials that would last longer and be easier to fix. Jimmy Lozamo is the owner of a Peruvian restaurant, Wariq, in Jackson Heights, Queens, with one of the new sheds. The way that they design is going to help a lot to bring.

more customers and is more safe and it's easy to clean. Restaurants can begin applying for outdoor dining permits on March 5th. Business owners must pay a fee starting at $1,050 and figure out where to store the sheds during the winter. Remzi Khalifa, WNYC News. Stay close. There's more after the break. I'm Sean Carlson for WNYC. New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy unveiled his spending priorities for the next fiscal year

and his annual budget address. The biggest change includes a stable source of funding for NJ Transit that will be paid for by the wealthiest corporations in the state. WMIC's Nancy Solomon joins us now to talk about what the governor is proposing. So Nancy, NJ Transit facing a billion dollar deficit in 2026, they say that they're going to raise fares by 15% this year just to start to chip away at the problem. Is a new tax the governor's solution to the transit funding crisis? Yeah, I mean, that's what he's hoping. He had hinted on our last Ask Governor Murphy show that he would be announcing something big. He's been criticized by a large coalition of progressive organizations for about the past year about his intention to cut the corporate business tax surcharge, which he did do. So that was like an additional tax on businesses that make more than a million dollars in profits each year. And it brought in about a billion. dollars a year into the state revenue. Advocates called on him to keep that tax and put it into a dedicated fund for New Jersey transit, and he had steadfastly refused, until today, that is.

The new tax he's proposing would charge companies that make more than $10 million in annual profits. You know, the original one was a million, so this is raising that threshold. And it's expected to raise about $800 million a year. Here's the million dollar, maybe we should say $800 million question. Does this mean that NGA Transit is not going to raise fares? No. It does not mean that. They are expected to still raise the fares.

That's according to the Murphy administration. But transit and budget policy advocates are happy about the new revenue, and especially that it'll be dedicated. And the reason why that's important is because the political wins can change, but this secures funding for mass transit. Nancy, would it be fair to call this a flip-flop on the governor's part? Yeah, I think it's fair. You know, and he's probably going to be criticized by Republicans who oppose more taxes.

You know, but there's been a pretty broad coalition of people who wanted this. So you could argue that this is the governor being responsive to activism and lobbying of people who support progressive tax policy. and support mass transit. There are about 2,500 businesses in the state who were taxed under the original surcharge, and so they're not going to be taxed. And, you know, that's between the $1 million and the $10 million in profits.

So they won't be paying that new tax, so they're going to be happy about it. Now, Governor Murphy talked a lot about affordability in his state of the state speech. The budget is where the rubber meets the road on this kind of thing. So is there anything new that's going to make life maybe a little bit easier for New Jerseyans? He said he's going to increase the amount he spends on tax relief.

So he's bumping up the total to about $3.5 billion. That's for the anchor rebate program. The senior property tax freeze, the Stay New Jersey property tax break, which won't go into effect, the Stay New Jersey one. But he's putting money for another couple of years, but he's putting money aside to prepare for that one. Murphy also talked about increasing investments in pre-K education, which he reminded the audience, saves money for families with young children who now wouldn't have to pay for child care. He's revamping the Affordable Housing Program in New Jersey. And he seems pretty excited about this new proposal unveiled today, an incentive program to get towns to allow more auxiliary dwelling units. So, you know, these are the small buildings or attached apartments that homeowners can build on their property. and then either rent them out or let relatives or aging parents live in the ADUs.

And it's a way to get more affordable housing built, which is probably not a fix for all the affordable housing needs, but interesting program. And Murphy also wants to spend an additional $30 million on housing for homeless veterans. Nancy, are there any surprises for Murphy this year? Well, I was surprised about the transit corporate tax for sure. you know, just because I've been asking him about ending that original corporate tax, and he's been so steadfast in his commitment. And so, you know, and that's a real victory for the, it's called the

for the many coalition that have been hammering away at this. I was surprised that First Lady Tammy Murphy wasn't at the speech. The governor said she was on the road, presumably campaigning for the Senate seat she's running for, but I thought that was a little curious. He took a few swipes at Chris Christie, which he almost always does. It's kind of surprising that it still gets a laugh. I mean, it's been years now. And, okay, I admit it. I did chuckle. Otherwise, you know, no real surprises. You know, I think it's interesting to hear how all the policy stuff becomes a reality with actual dollars spent. So, you know, it's a fun day for policy nerds like me. Double NYC's Nancy Selman. Thanks, as always. Thanks, Sean.

Thanks for listening. This is NYC now. WNYC. Be sure to catch us every weekday, three times a day, for your top news headlines and occasional deep dives. Also subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. We'll be back this evening.