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Co-op City Times / December 30, 2023
Co-op City Times COMBING
NYC Announces Additional $20 Million Investment to Expand Fair Fares BY BRANDON ORTIZ
Find out what’s going on in Co-op City here...
HCR Carrying Charge Increase Comment Deadline Shareholders who wish to submit written comments to the New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) on Riverbay’s application for a carrying charge increase effective April 1, 2024, may do so on or before January 29, 2024. Written comments can be emailed to George.simon@hcr. ny.gov or mailed to George Simon, Office of Integrated Housing Management, Division of Housing and Community Renewal, 641 Lexington Avenue, 4th Fl. East, New York, NY 10022.
Next CB #10 Meeting The next General Board meeting and public hearing of CB #10 will take place on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024 at 7 p.m. at Jeanne Jugan Residence, 2999 Schurz Avenue, Bronx, NY 10465. For additional information, you may contact CB#10 at (718) 892-1161 or by email: bx10@cb.nyc.gov.
Contacting the Riverbay Call Center Riverbay Management has heard your concerns regarding “How do I reach the Call Center?” and will update the phone prompts to make the process easier and more direct. Currently, callers to Riverbay’s main line, (718) 320-3300, select option #2 to be directed to Maintenance, Restorations and Inspections. Once the phone prompt recording is updated, Option #2 will be dedicated to the Call Center, which will include Maintenance, Restorations and Inspections.
Happy New Year to all cooperators from the Management and staff of Riverbay Corp.
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New York City announced a $20 million investment to expand its Fair Fares program earlier this month. On December 15, 2023, Mayor Adams joined NYC City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams and NYC Department of Social Services Commissioner Molly Wascow Park to announce expansion of the program as well as a significant update to the program’s eligibility requirements. The $20 million investment builds off of the $75 million that was already allotted in the Fiscal Year 2023 city budget. Additional funding will allow the program to expand its eligibility to include more people. Previously, participants were only eligible for Fair Fares if their max income fell within a range of up to 100% of the federal poverty level. With the additional funding, the program opened up its eligibility for the first time by 20%, meaning participant income must fall within 120% of the federal poverty level. Here are the highest income totals a household can have based on the numbers of members living there and still qualify for the Fair Fares program, according to the Mayor’s Office: • One-person household: $17,496 • Two-person household: $23,664 • Three-person household: $29,832 • Four-person household: $36,000 • Five-person household: $42,168 • Six-person household: $48,336 Fair Fares is a program that offers a 50% discount on
MTA buses, subways and Access-A-Ride paratransit trips for New Yorkers between 18 and 64 years old. The MTA reported that roughly 300,000 people are enrolled and utilize the Fair Fares program, a number the agency expects to climb with the latest investment for expansion. Mayor Adams spoke about the importance of the program as a necessary resource for New Yorkers and its contribution to helping the city recover from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. “New York City has recovered all of the nearly one million jobs lost during the pandemic, and public transit is a key component of building on that momentum and ensuring that our recovery continues to be inclusive for working families. The $20 million we are investing — in partnership with the City Council — coupled with the program expansion will ensure even more New Yorkers can keep more money in their pockets while making the Fair Fares program — and our city’s public transportation system — more accessible, so additional New Yorkers can utilize this critical discount to commute to work, visit friends and family, access medical care, get to class, and enjoy all our great city has to offer,” Mayor Adams said during the announcement of the program expansion. Individuals interested in signing up for the Fair Fares program can do so online at nyc.gov/site/fairfares/index. page, by calling 311, or by visiting a Fair Fares office. The Bronx Fair Fares office is located at 888 Garrison Avenue, 3rd floor, Bronx, NY 10474. Fair Fares offices are open weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Public Comment Period Now Open for Congestion Pricing Plan BY BRANDON ORTIZ
New Yorkers can provide their input on the MTA’s Central Business District Tolling Program after the agency announced the opening of the public comment period. Officially, the public comment window opened on Wednesday, December 27, and closes on Monday, March 11, 2024. Interested individuals can submit a comment on the Central Business District Tolling Program online, through the mail or by leaving a voicemail message. For online comments, visit contact.mta.info/s/forms/ CBDTP. Email comments can be sent to cbdtp.feedback@ mtabt.org. The mailing address for written comments is: CBD Tolling Program, 2 Broadway, 23rd Floor, New York, NY 10004. For voicemail message comments, individuals should call 646-252-7440. The MTA will also host four hybrid public hearings in February and March for individuals to express their opinions on the Central Business District Tolling Program. The next four scheduled hybrid hearings are: ● Thursday, February 29, at 6 p.m. ● Friday, March 1, at 10 a.m. ● Monday, March 4, at 10 a.m. ● Monday March 4, at 6 p.m. Individuals who wish to speak during one of the four hybrid public hearing sessions must register in advance and will have a limit of two minutes to speak. Participants can register online at new.mta.info/agency/bridges-and-tunnels/cbd-tolling-hearing or by calling 646-2526777. Online registration for participants will open one week before the scheduled meeting date. For those who wish to participate or observe any of the hearings in-person, they will each be held in the MTA Headquarters, located at 2 Broadway, 20th floor in the William J. Ronan Board Room. Following the public hearing sessions, the MTA board will hold a final vote on the tolling structure and determine whether to leave the recommendations as they are or adjust them according to feedback from the public review process. The MTA anticipates officially implementing the Central Business District Tolling Program sometime in late spring. A specific list of the suggested fare structure for the Central Business District Tolling Program can be found
online at new.mta.info/document/129191. Below is a general overview on how different vehicles will be affected under the MTA’s congestion pricing program: • Tolls will only be charged when vehicles enter the CBD. Drivers will not be charged again for remaining or leaving the zone. • Automobiles will be charged $15 for entering the CBD. • Motorcycles will be charged $7.50 for entering the CBD. • Trucks will be charged $24 or $36, depending on the size of the truck, for entering the CBD. • Buses not affiliated with MTA public transit will be charged $24 or $36, depending on the type of the bus, for entering the CBD. • Weekday daytime period for regular tolling exists between 5 a.m. and 9 p.m. • Nighttime discount of 75% off the CBD toll rate between the hours of 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. on weekdays and 9 p.m. to 9 a.m. on weekends. • A daytime crossing credit for commuters traveling through one of the four tolled tunnels to enter the CBD. The credit for motorcycles would be $2.50, cars would be $5, small trucks would be $12 and large trucks would have a $20 credit. The credit only applies to daytime CBD tolls. • New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) taxis, and for-hire vehicle services would not be charged for entering the CBD. Instead, customers of those taxis, green cabs and black cars would incur a $1.25 toll per ride into or from the CBD on top of their trip’s fare. App-based for-hire vehicles would charge their customers $2.50 extra per ride into or from the CBD. • Emergency vehicles, vehicles carrying people with disabilities and specialized government vehicles would be exempt from the toll. • Low-income drivers would be eligible for a 50% discount on the daytime CBD toll after their first ten trips in one month. The Traffic Mobility Review Board was in charge of developing a final set of recommendations on the tolling structure for the Central Business District Tolling Program and released their recommendations during an MTA Board meeting on November 30, 2023.
