Data - June 2015
NYC Libraries by the NumbersDespite declining funds and limited hours of service, New York City’s public libraries are seeing a surge in users and uses. Below we show where the growth is happening and how funding cuts in recent years have affected performance, and provide the city’s first branch-by-branch accounting of book circulation, program attendance and visits.
Commentary/Op-Ed - May 2015
Make Commercial Spaces Affordable TooIn this City & State op-ed, CUF executive director Jonathan Bowles analyzes the growing demand for commercial spaces in New York. He argues that as Mayor de Blasio develops innovative proposals to address the city's affordable housing crisis, the administration should also move to unleash the potential of commercial spaces that have long gone vacant or underutilized.
Testimony - May 2015
Mayor de Blasio’s 10-Year Capital Plan: Ambitious But InsufficientAt a time when so much of the city’s essential infrastructure is in need of repair and expansion, funding for New York's infrastructure projects is critical. In a May 2015 testimony before the City’s Committee on Finance, CUF executive director Jonathan Bowles presents new ideas for capital funding streams.
Report - May 2015
Seeking a State Workforce StrategyAs New York’s economy continues to grow, the state needs a workforce development strategy that prepares and connects New Yorkers to careers.
Data - May 2015
NYS Workforce Funding StreamsThese three tables from our Seeking a State Workforce Strategy report track public workforce development funds by program and relate these programs to three larger categories for investment: 1) adult education funding 2) workforce development funding and 3) college access and workforce services in higher education. The tables also indicate where programs receive their funding, what agency or department oversees them and how their funding has changed in the past five years.
Data - May 2015
The Next 10 Years: Mayor de Blasio’s Capital PrioritiesIn this data brief, we compare Mayor de Blasio’s 10-year capital projections to actual capital expenditures in the final decade of the Bloomberg Administration (FY2005-FY2014). The numbers offer a clear insight into Mayor de Blasio’s priorities and how they contrast with the previous administration’s.
Commentary/Op-Ed - May 2015
Fulfilling CUNY’s workforce promiseIn this commentary, CUF senior fellow David Jason Fischer takes a close look at the City University of New York’s role as a workforce development provider. While he finds that CUNY’s adult and continuing education programs provide a path to economic advancement for thousands of New Yorkers, he argues that CUNY must address several structural, funding and cultural obstacles if it is to reach its potential as an engine of economic mobility and high-volume source of workforce talent for city employers.
Commentary/Op-Ed - April 2015
Keeping the Water On: New York Must Address Infrastructure, CostsIn this op-ed in the Gotham Gazette, CUF researcher Adam Forman argues that with last year’s spike in water main breaks throughout all five boroughs, Mayor de Blasio should hold firm on increasing water rates and consider additional methods to finance and modernize New York’s water infrastructure.
Commentary/Op-Ed - April 2015
The MTA needs to get on the age trainIn this op-ed for the New York Daily News, CUF researcher Adam Forman argues that New York’s public transit system is not ready for the city’s booming senior population. He urges Governor Cuomo, as well as City Hall to make dramatic investments to improve accessibility for aging New Yorkers.
Data - April 2015
Library Funding is Behind the TimesThough visits, book circulation and program attendance are on the rise, New York City’s public libraries are open fewer hours than the state’s largest counties and trail behind cities throughout the nation.
Data - March 2015
Aging Gas Lines: Signs of Progress, But Improvements Still NeededThe recent tragedy in the East Village brought renewed attention to the city’s infrastructure. And while aging gas mains and service lines remain an issue, both Con Edison and National Grid have significantly improved the safety and efficiency of the distribution system in recent years.
Data - March 2015
NYC’s Share of Private Sector JobsThough jobs have grown in nearly every region of the state over the last decade, New York City’s share of the state’s private sector jobs has skyrocketed – growing from 43.0 percent in 2004 to 46.5 percent in 2014.
Commentary/Op-Ed - March 2015
Tap Reform: Part-Time College Students Need Financial Aid TooIn this op-ed in City & State , CUF researcher Christian González-Rivera argues that while Governor Cuomo has put education at the forefront of his Opportunity Agenda, his plan is missing a door to opportunity for the large and growing number of part-time college students in New York who struggle to finish their degree with almost no access to financial aid.
Testimony - February 2015
Leveraging Libraries in the 10-Year Capital PlanNow that the de Blasio Administration is breathing new life into the 10-year capital plan, public libraries have an important role to play. In testimony before the City Council’s Committees on Finance, Cultural Affairs & Libraries, CUF research director David Giles lays out what could be done.
Data - January 2015
New York State’s Language BarrierNearly every corner of New York State is experiencing a spike in immigrants—with the fastest growth occurring upstate—but funding for ESOL classes has not kept pace.
Report - December 2014
State of the Chains, 2014Our 7th annual ranking of national retailers in New York City shows the largest year-over-year increase in the number of chain stores in four years, with Queens experiencing the fastest growth in new stores.
Commentary/Op-Ed - December 2014
Libraries of the FutureIn this op-ed in City & State, CUF’s Jonathan Bowles and Jeanette Estima highlight some of the visionary ideas presented by design teams at our December 4th conference to re-imagine and rethink New York City’s branch libraries.
Commentary/Op-Ed - December 2014
Tap Into Part-Time StudentsIn this op-ed in Albany's Times Union, the Center’s Christian González-Rivera and Jonathan Bowles argue that at a time when a postsecondary credential is more critical than ever for economic success, public officials should modify the state’s Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) to allow more grants to go to part-time students. Doing so would benefit tens of thousands of poor and working poor students, who are now effectively barred from financial aid because of their part-time enrollment.
Commentary/Op-Ed - December 2014
Green Light for Career Pathways in New York CityFollowing the report released by the Jobs for New Yorkers Task Force last month, the Center’s Tom Hilliard offers four recommendations to help the de Blasio administration make lasting cultural changes toward a career-focused workforce system and succeed in fulfilling the bold vision laid out in the report.
Commentary/Op-Ed - December 2014
Fulfilling the Promise of the Jobs for New Yorkers Task ForceCUF workforce fellow David Jason Fischer calls the final report by the Jobs for New Yorkers Task Force the “most ambitious workforce reform effort ever undertaken by an American city,” and in this commentary, he provides his own observations and recommendations for how the city can fully capitalize on the possibilities of this moment for positive change.
