NYC NOW - Midday News: Protections for Domestic Violence Survivors, 3K & Pre-K Deadlines, and an Investment in Flood Protections

Episode Date: February 27, 2025

Summary: The New York City Council is expected to pass a bill Thursday aimed at protecting domestic violence survivors by making their voter records confidential. Friday is the deadline for New York City parents to enroll their kids in New York City's free 3-K and Pre-K programs. Plus, the city is investing $390 million to upgrade flood protections in Bushwick. And finally, how a Dominican native has made her mark in the city as one of its most prominent food influencers. WNYC's Amanda Rozon reports.

Welcome to NYC now, your source for local news in and around New York City from WNYC. It's Thursday, February 27th. Here's the midday news from Veronica Del Valle. The New York City Council is expected to pass a bill today aimed at protecting domestic violence survivors by making their voter records confidential. WNYC's Brittany Kriegstein has more. The bill is sponsored by Manhattan Councilmember Gail Brewer. It allows survivors to conceal their addresses when they register to vote. It also requires city agencies to develop guidance for survivors to complete the process and vote by special ballot.

Supporters say it's a way to shield survivors from risk of further abuse, as voter registration records are publicly available in online databases. City data shows at least 73 people were killed in domestic violence incidents in 2023, a slight uptick from the year before. bill passed out of committee this morning and goes to a full council vote this afternoon. Tomorrow's the deadline for New York City parents to enroll their kids into its free 3K and pre-K programs. Parents can apply to 3K if their child turns 3 or is 3 this calendar year. If your child was born in 2021, you can now apply for pre-K.

The Department of Education says there's a pre-k seat for every 4-year-old in the city. They say they try to place kids in 3K programs. close to their home. Last year, some parents said they had received notifications that no space was available at their chosen locations. New York City is investing $390 million to upgrade flood protections in Bushwick. The city says it's the largest infrastructure investment the Brooklyn neighborhood has seen in decades. Robert Camacho lives in Bushwick and says flooding has cost residents thousands of dollars. I think our infrastructure needs upgrading and making sure that we don't keep losing money and losing the people that made this community what it is.

The money will replace three miles of aging sewers. City officials say that'll boost drainage capacity by more than 850 percent, starting with Knickerbocker, Central, and Wilson Avenue. Other flood protections include real-time flood monitors near Maria Hernandez Park and slotted manhole covers. Construction is expected to start in 2029. A new report shows one in four New Yorkers were living in poverty in 2023. That's nearly twice the national average. The anti-poverty group Robin Hood

and Columbia University released the report. They put the poverty line at just short of $47,000 a year for a family of four. They say the rate in New York City is the highest in at least eight years. Researchers say a lack of affordable housing is largely to blame. The group's

calculation takes into account government benefits and the local cost of living. Shower's likely right now. Today's a little cloudy with a high near 56. Tonight, a low near 40 and pretty gusty. Tomorrow, sunny, 49, and gusty. Stay close. There's more after the break.

Estas a music now. Today is one of two days the Dominican diaspora celebrates the country's independence. In August, they celebrate independence from Spain, but this month marks independence from Haiti. Dominican New Yorkers remain one of the largest ethnic groups in New York City. WN.RIC's Amanda Roseone has more on a Dominican native who's made her mark in the city as one of its most prominent food influencers. Cynthia Almonte is better known by her online persona, La Comelona,

which loosely translates to The Foodie. She immigrated to New York City in 2016 from Santo Domingo, but after years in the U.S., she was still desperately missing her island home. She needed to do something that make enamelar me to because my mind was in Republic Dominican, in regressarmer.

She needed to keep herself busy with something that was going to make her fall in love with New York. So she started, I'm a Coelona, or I'm a foodie. At first, she focused on the kind of content your average influencer would. I did a video Cheap Eats,

food, I said, come with $10, tantos, in Chinatown. Cheap eats, like, where to go for a $10 lunch in Chinatown. On Dominican Independence Day in 2021, she switched her focus to Dominican restaurants

in and around the city. When I first I said, she was disappointed at how little food influencers were talking about Dominican food. So she reviewed Eki Spica Pollo, a fried chicken spot in Brooklyn, and it got a lot of views. And that was my first video viral,

that's a million of views. And that was the video that made that was her first viral moment. That's what put her on the map as I'm Gomenal. And she says, in a place like New York, she hopes influencers who are not Dominican embrace the cuisine too. That's Amanda Roseone reporting.

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