o 74470 94460 7

EDITORIAL
NOWHERE TO LOOK BUT UP
NEW YORK CITY is under siege right now from
both levels of government above it. It all makes
"Ford to City: Drop Dead" look like an invita-
tion to dance. We have a president who is calcu-
latedly starving cities and states into political
and economic submission. As long as the public
accepts this unconscionable starus quo-and by
and large, remains deeply ignorant of it-it is
murmuring its assent. In a staggeringly wealthy
nation, even so-called liberals have come to
accept hopelessness as the starting point for their
own political decisionmaking. I've got news for
you: You'll never get anywhere that way.
As I sit down to write this editorial, Mayor
Bloomberg is hours away from announcing
hideous new budget cuts. Tomorrow, Governor
Pataki will release his spending proposal, which
will spell out exactly how he intends to close
the state's $12 billion budget gap.
It almost doesn't matter what exactly they
propose--most of these cuts will go into the
marrow. These are grim times. As always the
poor, who count on so many public services, will
suffer in greatest proportion. This round will
also take a toll on the middle class, through
union wage freezes, subway fare hikes and more.
And yet, as you'll see in this issue of City
Limits, I firmly believe this is the very time to
bring a heavy dose of utopian thinking-and
following that, action-to an increasingly ugly
political realm. It's the only way we'll get out of
We have a president who is
starving cities and states
into political and
economic submission.
this mess without hitting rock bottom first.
As Nora McCarthy tells us starting on page
22, New York's neighborhoods are scarred with
the legacy of psychological uaurna. Kids who
have survived rampant violence in their com-
munities, in their homes, or both, have few
options if they want professional help exorciz-
ing those demons. We all live the results, and
Cover photo by Sune Woods; Princess Carr, 22, is recovering from a childhood of abuse and instability.
spend billions on related social services and law
enforcement. Yet most of New York's survivors
of uauma do not have access to the effective
treaunents that have brought many survivors
of 9/11 back into functional life.
Then, on page 16, Mary-Powel Thomas
documents the baby steps of renewable energy
in New York. Governor Pataki's commiunent to
renewable energy and conservation is one of the
few bright lights, so to speak, in his otherwise
cynical reign. But diverse public constituencies
must now come together and commit to build-
ing political influence in support of renewable
energy. Otherwise, the governor's own promise
of a green-powered future may get mired in the
politics of his own Public Service Commission.
Demand the impossible? If that's too much,
at least start thinking about it. At the very least,
I want this issue to dare you all to hope.
-Alyssa Katz
Editor
The Center for an Urban Future
CenteI for an
F
UtrOan
u ure
the sister organization of City Limits
www.nycfuture.org
Combining City Limits' zest for investigative reporting with thorough policy
analysis, the Center for an Urban Future is regularly influencing New York's
decision makers with fact-driven studies about policy issues that are important to
all five boroughs and to New Yorkers of all socio-economic levels.
Go to our website or contact us to obtain any of our recent studies:
v The Creative Engine: How Arts and Culture are Fueling Growth in NYC's Neighborhoods (November 2002)
v Bumpy Skies: JFK, laGuardia Fared Worse than most U.S. Airports after 9/11 and still Face Structural
Threats to Future Competitiveness (October 2002)
v Uninvited Guests: Teens in New York City Foster Care (October 2002)
v Rebuilding Job Training From the Ground Up: Workforce System Reform After 9/11 (August 2002)
v A Prescription for Failure: Albany's $200 Million Biotech Plan Bypasses NYC (August 2002)
To obtain a report, get on our mailing list or sign up for our free e-mail policy updates,
contact Research Director Jonathan Bowles at jbowles@nycfuture.org or (212) 479-3347.
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Welfare Fund, The Unitarian Universalist Veatch Program at Shelter Rock, Open Society Institute, The Joyce Mertz-Gilmore Foundation, The Scherman Foundaton, JPMorganChase, The Annie E. Casey
Foundation, The Booth Ferris Foundation, The New York Community Trust, The Taconic Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation, The Ford Foundation, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, The Ira W. DeCamp
Foundation, lISC, Deutsche Bank, M& T Bank, The Citigroup Foundation, New York Foundation.
16 FUTURE SHOCK
With Governor Pataki on the case,
renewable energy sources like solar panels
and wind turbines could generate a big chunk of
New York's electricity. But first, bureaucrats
and utilities have to stop getting in the
way of our green future.
By Mary-Powel Thomas
22 WHY MINDS MATTER
Fear, depression, anxiety and rage:
September 11 taught us these are a natural-and
treatable-response to trauma. So why do
the teens who were living in pain before
then still have no one to talk to?
By Nora McCarthy
CONTENTS
5 FRONTlINES: MIGRANT FARMOWNERS WILL HOMELESS SHARE KIDS'
FORTUNE? .. BUREAUCRAT, POET, BAKER ... THE COMPTROLLER'S CHALLENGE ...
DOC DEMANDS DOCS .. HOME TO HARLEM
11 BEYOND THE BOARDS
Activist parents are fighting to make sure that Mayor Bloomberg's
ambitious school makeover doesn't just turn them into cheerleaders.
By Alec Appelbaum
' E t ~ : C E
28 THE BIG IDEA
Maybe it's time we stopped whining about taxes being fair-and started
worrying about having enough revenue, period.
By J.W. Mason
30 CITY LIT
Bronx Ecology: Blueprint for a New Environmentalism, by Allen
Hershkowitz, and Tilting at Mills: Green Dreams, Dirty Dealings, and the
Corporate Squeeze, by Lis Harris. Reviewed by Keith Kloor
MARCH 2003
33 MAKING CHANGE
Child welfare workers are finding surprising success bringing
a new high-tech tool into troubled homes: children's books.
By Steven Gnagni
35 NYC INC.
Unlike with lower Manhattan redevelopment, there is little public
debate and skepticism about the Bloomberg administration's plan to
remake Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen-but there should be.
By Jonathan Bowles
2 EDITORIAL
44 JOB ADS
49 PROFESSIONAL DIRECTORY
50 OFFICE OF THE CITY VISIONARY
3
LETTERS
IT'S ALLIN YOUR HEAD
The notion that addictions are a brain-
based phenomenon, as expressed in "Sick
Treatment" [February 2003]' is a load of rub-
bish. Addictions are actions. They are chosen
moral behaviors, not a biological process rhat
happens to somebody. "Addictions" is a stigma-
tizing term that really tells us about rhe people
rhat believe in it. It's not a supernatural force of
allurement rhat can be attributed to chemicals
found on rhe periodic table.
Drug use is a vice, not a crime or a medical
disorder. When churches held power for rhou-
sands of years, addictions were defined as a lust
for pleasurable experiences and gluttony. In our
time, medicine has arisen to occupy the
pedestal of esteem formerly reserved for rhe
church. Thus, we have learned to do our mor-
alizing in medical terms. The very terms "drug
addict" and "alcoholic" are medicalized morals.
"Treatment," rhen, boils down to soul doc-
toring. None of this "counseling" has anything
to do with medicine. The best help for so-
called drug addicts and alcoholics is self-help-
and rhat is free.
Chris Buors
Winnipeg, Manitoba
The only way to comprehend rhe counter-
productive nature of drug prohibition and its
"treatment" rheories is to understand that
America's drug laws are based on lies, dissem-
bling and propaganda. There is no medical or
scientific basis for drug prohibition.
Defining drug use as a crime serves no pur-
pose other than giving criminals a lucrative
income trafficking drugs. Treating drug addicts
based on rhe delirious notions put forth by
America's drug warriors would subject doctors
to serious malpractice charges if the same logic
and methods were applied to other "diseases."
Drug prohibition laws are based on racist
notions that "cocaine niggers" were raping white
women in broad daylight and running wild com-
mirting mass murders because sniffmg cocaine
gave them unerring marksmanship. See "Negro
Cocaine 'Fiends' New Southern Menace" in the
New York Times, February 8, 1914.
No valid scientific evidence has ever been sub-
mined to support the need for America's lunatic
drug crusade in the first place, so it should come
as no surprise that drug treatment based on fables,
fictions and fabrications does not work.
Redford Givens
San Francisco
OUR BANANA REPUBLIC
I suggest that Jill Grossman's short update on
Banana Kelly, "New Bunch of Bananas" Uanuary
2003], be developed into a full-fledged study of
4
how such a wonderful organization fell into
decline. As a consultant and instructor on board
development at NYU, I would guess that the
story behind the story is the failure of the mem-
bers of the Banana Kelly Board of Directors, ever
since the departure of Harry DeRienw and Getz
Obstfeld, to fulfill their legal and moral duties as
guardians of the mission.
Anorher article in rhe same issue, "Bad
Housekeeping" by Jamie Katz, about rhe
Amboy Neighborhood Center and West
Harlem Group Assistance, tells a similar story:
poor service, tenants losing out, Jots of money
wasted, plus the lack of a concerned, intelligent
board of directors to manage the managers.
The scandals in the nonprofit world (whether
at Covenant House, United Way, Adelphi Uni-
versity, Hale House or Banana Kelly) and in the
for profit world ofEnron and World Com come
down to the same rhing: the failure of the board
of directors to anend or even hold meetings, to
ask hard questions, and to rein in an arrogant,
out of control executive director, whether Father
Ritter, William Aramony, Lorraine Hale,
Yolanda Rivera or Kenneth Lay.
Toby Sanchez
Brooklyn
PRESIDENT MATHERS?
First off, I wanted to thank you for your
thoughtful and careful exploration of the nas-
cent Hip Hop political movement, "Two
Turntables and a Megaphone" [December
2002]. Second, I wanted to thank you for
including me in your piece.
I wanted to update you on Hip Hop's first
electoral victory in New York State. This past
September, I was elected overwhelmingly as the
District Leader/State Committeeman for the
51st Assembly District in Brooklyn, making
me the first Hip Hop elected official.
Now, while this might be a seemingly small
victory, it represents a major first step in the
movement. As with most social movements,
rhings tend to take time, but I believe that we are
on the threshold of major breakthroughs. I am
optimistic that Hip Hop is the fuel and vehicle for
the next civil rights and human rights movement.
George Martinez, Jr.
Ph.D. Program in Political Science
CUNY Graduate School and University Center
CORRECTION
In "Low-Fiber Diet" [December 2002], we
erroneously stated that a new initiative to bring
wireless internet services to the public libraries
originated with Mayor Bloomberg. It was in
fact introduced by Counci lmember Gale
Brewer and Speaker Gifford Miller.
CITY LIMITS
Volume XXVlll Number 3
City Limits is published ten times per year, monthly except bi-
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Managing Editor: Tracie McMillan
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Interns: Noemi Altman, Nicholas Johnson
BOARD OF DIRECTORS'
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CITY LIMITS
FRONT LINES
Hopeful farmers from Latin America spend
nights studying in a midtown office, preparing
to reap their own harvests in upstate New York.
City Farmer, Country Farmer
NESTER TELLO DREAMS OF MAKING CHEESE. Mario Vega wants ro leave
dishwashing and grow vegetables. Porfuio Rios hopes ro farm so his three
young girls can leave the crowded ciry behind. Both Maria Mendoza and
Maria Franco plan on raising crops organically.
Each of these prospective farmers, plus rwo dozen other Hispanic
immigrants who live in New York Ciry, began an inrensive four-month
workshop in January ro help them fulfill their dreams-ro become the
newest farmers of upstate New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
The New Farmer Developmenr Project is a collaboration berween Green-
market, a program of the Council on the Environment of NYc, which man-
ages the city's farmers' markets, and Cornell Cooperative Extension, which
runs the state's agriculrural education program.
For Greenmarket, which has seen its markets grow tremendously-
at its 27 locations, 175 farmers and producers sell products to up to
250,000 shoppers a day-the New Farmer project fills a practical need:
There just aren't enough farmers within reach of New York City ro fill
the demand for fresh produce and meat, particularly as the currenr gen-
eration of farmers ages.
"Many communities put in requests for new greenmarkets," says
Rachel Dannefer, New Farmer's direcror. "But we don't have sufficienr
farmers ro be there." At the same time, Dannefer says, the cooperative
extension was hearing of immigrants with agricultural backgrounds
working as "taxi drivers or dishwashers, but who would love ro return ro
MARCH 2003
farming if they could do it. "
So three years ago, the New Farmer project was born, and now it's attract-
ing immigrants like Vega. The 35-year-old Mexican native has been working
in restaurants in the city for just over a year, after a three-year stint as a farm
worker in Canada. He and his wife aren't crazy about life in the city. 'Tm
accusromed ro being outside," he says. He found our about the program at
a farmer's market, and now he talks excitedly of chickens and pumpkins.
"My dream is to one day work for myself," he says.
Once a student completes the workshop, the program offers a variety
of farming options, from trial plots of land on Staten Island ro appren-
tice jobs ro loan programs. The ultimate goal is for workshop graduates
ro farm their own land. Some of last year's graduates are already there:
Hector Tejada has been growing romaroes near the Finger Lakes and sell-
ing them at a Greenmarket in the Bronx. Another, Sonnia Lopez, will be
renting three acres in New Jersey this summer.
The class of2003-which met for the first time this January, in a con-
ference room in midrown-might be the most diverse yet, hailing from
Colombia, Mexico, Ecuador, Argentina, Venezuela, Peru, Paraguay and
the Dominican Republic.
Whatever their background, their challenges-and ambitions-are
great. "We'd like ro build a Hispanic agricultural community in the
Northeast," workshop leader Norma Brenes rold the class. "Why not?"
-Matt Pacenza
5
FRONT llNES
Room for Homeless Families
Can experts do
what 20 years of
court couldn't?
By Jill Grossman
JUDGE HElEN FREEDMAN'S calendar suddenly
gOt emptier on January 17. With Mayor
Michael Bloomberg looking on, she gladly
relinquished her decades-old role as the unoffi-
cial author of the city's policies for homeless
families, and signed an agreement that furthers
a growing trend in class action lawsuits: a set-
tlement that replaces the judge with an over-
sight panel of experts.
After 20 years in litigation, the city and the
Legal Aid Society will be spending a lot less
time in court on the McCain case. Named for
Yvonne McCain, a homeless mother, the case
was first filed by Legal Aid against the Koch
administration as an attempt to force the city
to provide homeless families with adequate
shelter and services.
6
Until now, the city Department of Homeless
Services typically had to go to Judge Freedman
for approval of policy changes that would affect
the treatment of families at the Emergency Assis-
tance Unit (EAU). Legal Aid's chief advocacy
tool when the city failed to follow the court's
orders was a series of contempt motions-most
infamously, for allowing families to sleep
overnight at the EAU.
But while they applaud the city's willingness
to break a 20-year deadlock, some advocates for
homeless families caution that the obstacles to
housing poor families have become so vast that
even the most productive partnership between
city officials and family advocates will be hard-
pressed to find workable solutions. "It all
depends on the economy," says Patrick Markee
of the Coalition for the Homeless, "and on how
successfully they use Section 8 vouchers."
Many landlords do not accept federal rental
subsidies from tenants, he says, because of the
extensive paperwork involved. "If the economy
doesn't pick up a bit and they don't dramati-
cally increase exits, [homeless agency officials]
are going to increase pressures that led to the
problems of last summer," when shelter
demand reached record levels.
The settlement keeps all court orders in place,
including families' right to shelter and the prohi-
bition against leaving families to sleep on the
floor of the EAU. Under "extreme circumstances
involving a major problem," Legal Aid attorneys
reserve the right to fUe a grievance, but not with
the court. Instead, it will turn to a panel of citi-
zens---one lawyer and two family advocates. The
settlement granted the panel the authority to
hear legal claims and to make recommendations
to city officials, a right usually reserved for judges.
Those recommendations are enforceable by
the court, but Judge Freedman will get
involved only if the city or Legal Aid prove that
the panel's suggestions are "arbitrary and capri-
cious." In addition, the panel will be perform-
ing its own evaluation of the shelter system.
"If you litigate a case for 20 years, you have
to fmd a way to do it differently," says Gail
Nayowith, a member of the panel. (The others
are Daniel Kronenfeld, who ran Henry Street
Settlement and its family homeless shelter, and
government reform expert John Feerick.)
Nayowith speaks with some experience. The
executive director of the Citizens' Committee
for Children, she also chairs an advisory board
that is following up on the work of a similar
panel that spent two years investigating the city's
child welfare system. Five years ago, the settle-
ment of Marisol v. Giuliani, a class-action law-
suit against the Administration for Children's
Services, created a panel of experts, supplied by
the Annie E. Casey Foundation. That panel was
advisory, meant to help the city achieve the
reform goals it had already set for itsel
During the panel's tenure, the number of
children in foster care dropped by 18 percent,
and new admissions to foster care decreased
nearly 24 percent; ACS' budget grew, and child
safety conferences became a mainstay of agency
practice, the panel reported.
"It's hard to say the panel provided the
reform, but it's part of a process of reform that
asked ACS to step up," says Nayowith. Andrew
White of the Center for New York City Affairs
believes the Marisol panel helped child welfare
officials see the limitations of their policies,
which emphasized removing kids from danger-
ous homes but paid too little attention to what
happened before or after that. The advisors, he
says, "convinced ACS to go down a different
road, which focused on preventive services,
permanency planning, trying to improve things
for the kids in foster care."
CITY LIMITS
As its critics point out, though, the Marisol panel
lacked teeth. "Mansol didn't require the city to do much,"
says Doug Lasdon of the Urban Justice Center. The plain-
tiff could take the case back to court only if the city out-
right ignored the panel's recommendacions without pro-
viding a good legal explanacion. The legal agreement not
only gave ACS the ability to dismiss the panel's sugges-
tions, but also forbade any new class action lawsuits from
being filed against ACS during the two years the panel
existed. Nayowith recognizes some of those limitations,
and she and her advisory group have a long list of unfin-
ished business they are now trying to get the city to take
action on, including the fate of teens who leave foster
care, the dismal state of family court and ongoing failures
to bring parents into a constructive role.
The historic strength of the McCain panel lies in its
judicial power. While he hopes he does not have to return
to court on the case for a long cime, Legal Aid attorney
Steve Banks says he never considered giving up the right
to take the administration back to see Judge Freedman.
Banks has already headed off one major sticking point:
The city agreed to throw out a proposal to sanction
homeless families who linger in the shelter system with-
out taking permanent housing. Instead, the administra-
tion hopes ro resolve the "family responsibility" issue by
offering them a specific apartment. If they reject that
offer, they will be removed from the shelter system, and
not allowed in again, says Department of Homeless Ser-
vices commissioner Linda Gibbs. Banks declares himself
satisfied with the arrangement. "It's important to keep
families together," he says. "If they are being referred to
an apartment that meets standards, then that's housing
that's being lawfully provided by the city."
Yet several advocates for the homeless predict that there
will be other issues that land the city back in court. As the
summer nears, they say, the number of families looking for
shelter will likely rise, as they have for years. Once school lets
out, kids with no place to spend their days make already
overcrowded living siruacions more heccic-and force fami-
lies to move out of doubled-up situacions and seek other
housing opcions at the Emergency Assistance Unit. "I fear
there will be a repeat of what was going on months ago in
the EAU, where you had a significant numbers of families
sleeping on the floor," says Fred Shack, president of the Tier
II Coalicion, a group of shelter providers. "This is something
the panel will not be in a posicion to solve."
Gibbs begs skepcics to give the settlement a chance. The
agreement gives the agency a green light to move ahead with
its strategic plan, which stresses using performance measures
to help it evaluate key data such as how effeccively shelter
operators are helping families move toward permanent hous-
ing. "As issues arise," added Gibbs, "we'll discuss them and
turn to the panel for advice." It's no surprise that
Bloomberg--eager to reduce the hours and cash the city
spends in court-hired Gibbs for this job: As a deputy com-
missioner at ACS, she was in charge of making sure that
agency took accion on MarisoL
MARCH 2003
FRONT llNES
URBAN lEGEND
Baking Inspiration
ALBERTO CAPPAS HAS DEVOTED his life to encouraging young Latinos to follow their dreams.
This spring, he plans to package that message in the form of a cookie, and market it behind the
mask of his own superhero.
A city bureaucrat by day, published poet and community activist by night, Cappas is getting
ready to launch Don Pedro Cookies. Named for a superhero he dreamed up, the cookie company
aims to hire Latino teens from the South Bronx in its packaging and distribution departments.
"Institutions have a way of conditioning us to become consumers," Cappas says. "We are
never educated or given insights that we can be the entrepreneurs. I hope Don Pedro will help
change that. "
Once the enterprise starts turning a profit, he says, the company will send its proceeds to
local schools and scholarship funds. He plans to start stocking supermarket shelves in the Bronx
in March or April.
While he expects his cookies to mark his toughest endeavor, it is only one in a long list of proj-
ects that Cappas has taken on over the last few decades. Born in Puerto Rico in 1946, Cappas
grew up on Manhattan's Upper West Side. He began his activism career as a sociology and
African American and Puerto Rican stUdies student at SUNY Buffalo, where he pushed the uni-
versity to recruit more Latino students. After graduation, he worked as the university's assistant
director of minority affairs.
"I was very fortunate, " Cappas says. "Being Puerto Rican at that time, being from a place
people would call a ghetto, I kept my spiritual foresight. "
And he has tried to inspire young Latinos to do the same. He helped found a minority speak-
ers' bureau that now represents 150 community leaders, including Jesse Jackson. And Cappas'
third published book of poetry, Dona Julia, speaks to Puerto Rican immigrants' struggle for the
American Dream.
To pay his bills, he works as director of Community Affairs for the city's Human Resources
Administration.
Now Cappas hopes his efforts live up to the Don Pedro name. The superhero's story: While
vacationing on Earth from his home planet, Nuevo Mundo, Don Pedro saw Latino children with
little self-esteem or interest in their education. Upon his return home, he visited earthling Alberto
Cappas in a dream. When Cappas awoke, he knew what he had to do.
His message to young people: "Prepare yourselves to be the very best. Always grow and
develop. Turn your hobbies and talents into a job." -Priya Khatkhate
7
fRONT LINES
~ = = = I ~ N ~ ~ ~ e = = = = ~
Investment In Justice
THE CITY COMPTROLLER is putting pressure on
some of the Fortune 500 companies that the
city's pension funds invest in.
In january, Comptroller William Thomp-
son called on shareholders in eight of the
nation's biggest companies to vote on a resolu-
tion to create corporate policies that forbid dis-
crimination based on sexual orientation. ''This
is a human rights issue," says Thompson. "We
invest our funds in these companies, but these
companies should be inclusive to all people. "
Both the New York City Employees Retire-
ment System and the Teachers Retirement Sys-
tem asked the comptroller to sponsor the reso-
lution. These funds have $450.4 million and
$276.4 million, respectively, invested in the
eight companies Thompson is targeting.
Following Thompson's action, each of the
companies is required under the Securities and
Exchange Commission Act to distribute the
resolution to all their stockholders worldwide,
to put the resolution on a proxy ballot for their
annual meetings, and to give proponents of the
resolution time at the annual meeting to sub-
mit proposals and speak on their behalf.
At least two companies have already moved in
response to the comptroller's resolution, amend-
ing their equal employment opporrunity and
harassment policies to explicidy prohibit dis-
crimination based on sexual orientation.
As a result, the comptroller has agreed to with-
draw the resolution from Dynegy, Inc., a power
company. American Electric Power told City
Limits it will follow Dynegy's lead.
The other companies being targeted are El
Paso Corporation, Reliant Energy, jCPenney
Company, TXU Corporation, Georgia-Pacific
and Ingram Micro.
If the companies do not alter their policies, the
funds' trustees must decide whether to continue
investing in them. "Our responsibility as fiduciar-
ies of the pension fund is first and foremost to
ensure that there is a high enough return to pay
the beneficiaries," says city Finance Commis-
sioner Martha Stark, NYCERS' chair. "However,
as stockowners in these companies, we will use all
of the powers that we have to enhance these com-
panies' performances, and we believe that compa-
nies that don't discriminate will earn more."
- Jill Grossman
Passport Examination
THE ONLY THING the patient forgot was his pass-
port; then again, who brings a passport to the
doctor's office anyway? Last spring, Chaudhry
Yousaf, a Pakistani-born citizen of the U.S., took
his 21-year-old son, Murtaza, who is mentally
disabled, into the Astoria offices of Dr. Natwar-
lal Chowlera for severe coughing and breathing
problems. In the waiting room, the receptionist
made an unusual request of the father-his
passport. Without it, Yousaf claims, his son was
denied ueatment.
In january, father and son, with the help of
New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, filed
a civil discrimination lawsuit in federal court
against Chowlera, seeking $200,000 in punitive
damages, plus $50,000 more in compensation.
"The main point here is to send a message," says
Rose Cusion-Villawr, staff attorney for NYLPI,
claiming the family was rebuffed for both their
national origin and Murtaza's disability; the doc-
tor's action, the suit claims, violates the federal
Civil Rights Act, the Rehabilitation Act, and
New York City Human Rights Law.
"It was very insulting," says Yousef, who
owns a Queens-based construction company. "I
had my driver's license, my Medicaid card, other
forms ofID. I still can't figure it out. I mean, it's
the doctor-not the FBI!"
In defense, Chowlera's attorney, Eliott Pol-
land, called the suit baseless. "There's absolutely
no substance here," he says. "The doctor has a
policy of making sure people are who they
claim they are. It didn't have to be a passport-
it could have been any type of identification.
Besides, our client is a minority [Chowlera is
Indian]: Why would he be interested in inap-
propriately probing one's background?"
When asked about the suit, Chowlera was
brief. "I'm with a patient now, good-bye,"
he said.
Asked if a patient needed a passport to receive
care from Chowlera, a receptionist from the doc-
tor's Astoria office seemed puzzled. "We don't
have any passport policy," she said. "Why would
you need a passport? Don't be silly. All you need
is your Medicaid card and photo ID."
However, not even a photo ID is required
to receive treatment, according to the Center
for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the fed-
eral agency that administers both programs.
Says regional spokesperson Danielle Gross,
"All you need is your Medicaid card. You
should be fine." -Geoffrey Gray
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8
CITY LIMITS

To Market, To Market
OVER THE LAST couple of years, megasrores and
movie theaters have transformed 125th Street:
While it bustles with shoppers, some longtime
local merchants have been pushed out. Now,
the Bloomberg administration is opening up a
big development site on the drag, and some of
the displaced merchants are determined ro
reclaim it ro revive a decades-old experiment in
promoting small Harlem businesses.
The city's Economic Development Corpora-
tion, along with Manhattan Borough President
C. Virginia Fields, recently released a request for
proposals ro redevelop Mart 125, a one-srory
building opened in 1986 as a home for small,
minority-owned businesses. Meant ro serve as
an incubaror for street vendors aspiring ro run
their own shops along Harlem's commercial
strip, the market instead suffered a slow death
under the neglectful management of the
Harlem Urban Development Corporation.
Bedford-
Stuyvesant,
Brooklyn.
March 2001
MARCH 2003
In 1995, merchants saw some hope when
Albany officials dissolved HUDC and trans-
ferred the indoor market ro the city. But three
years later, the Giuliani administration began
evicting the merchants. Attempts in court to
keep their stalls failed, and by 2001, all the busi-
ness owners had moved out. While a record
store owner and a furrier relocated nearby, the
rest either closed up shop or left town.
Leaving was "like extracting a tooth, like
losing an aunt, " says Carlos Ortiz, who sold
leather apparel until his eviction. He then
moved to Los Angeles ro study film.
Now, the Bloomberg administration is
looking to revive the space, directly opposite
the Apollo Theater, by leasing it to a developer
or anchor tenant. It could prove an attractive
investment: Because the property is part of
the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone,
the developer would qualify for tax
breaks. Proposals that include local entrepre-
neurs are preferred, says the ciry, but
not required.
Local Community Board 10 hopes to make
that last criterion a mandate. In mid-January,
OPEN CITY
Michael Berman
FRONT llNES
the board unanimously passed a resolution
calling on the city to guarantee space in the
new development for displaced Mart 125 mer-
chants, as well as for licensed street vendors
affected by the ciry's restrictive street
vending policies.
Not all local business people believe this is
the best thing for the neighborhood, though.
Melinda Chirinos, assistant to the owner of
Amy Ruth's Home-Style Southern Cuisine, a
large local restaurant, says more brand-name
stores are needed in the area to "take [Harlem]
to its highest level."
Whether big-name businesses will bite
remains to be seen. Amy Ruth's, for one,
turned down a request to be a part of it
because, says Chirinos, they are looking into
"bigger and better" things.
David Wetstone hopes he has the chance to
return to Mart 125. While he has successfully
run his music and video shop on West 133rd
Street for two years, he'd love to be back on the
main drag. 'Til just wait to get that call to ask
me if I'm interested in moving in. "
- William Wicherl
9
FRONTLINES
10
" ... a groundbreaking
examination ... with a
visionary's insighLlf
you're serious about
environmental reform,
you must read this
book."
-James Gustave Speth,
Dean, Yale School of Forestry
and Environmental Studies
"Anyone interested in
sustainable develop-
ment as more than an
academ ic exercise
should read this book
before taking step one."
-Michael Finnegan,
Managing Director, Morgan
Stanley Securities
The
Right
Moves
A young dancer showed off his skills
during a Martin Luther King, Jr., birth-
day celebration hosted by the Chil-
dren's Defense Fund-New York on Jan-
uary 15. In the name of protecting pro-
grams for kids amid state and federal
budget cuts, the youth with the Fund's
Movement to Leave No Child Behind
made some noise with local DJs, poets,
thespians and MTV execs. The next
stop in their push for more day care,
affordable housing, food programs
and reading help: the White House.
"A luminous vision of
contemporary city life,
industry, development,
and environment, that
shows how everybody
can win."
-Marshall Berman,
Distinguished Professor,
City University of New York
"Bronx Ecology sets the
stage for a new kind of
social, economic and
environmental revolu-
tion. Allen Hershkowitz
is one of the true vision-
aries of our time."
-Danna Smith,
Campaign Director,
Dogwood Alliance
"'If we want to have a
sustainable economy we
are going to have to build
it ourselves.' With these
words Allen Hershkowitz
challenges environmen-
talists to engage directly
with industry to create
the world we want to live
in. In this passionate
book [he] confronts con-
ventional wisdom, and
provokes us to rethink
how to be effective en-
vironmentalists"
- Jonathan F.P. Rose,
President, Jonathan Rose
and Companies
IslandPress
CITY LIMITS
INSIDE TRACK
Beyond the Boards
Will Bloomberg's plan to overhaul the schools destroy parents'
role in education in order to save it? By Alec Appelbaum
NEW YORK CITY'S NEW SCHOOL system should
look gleaming to parents in Harlem's Commu-
nity School District 5. For the first time in
years, the district's chronically failing schools
have an accomplished superintendent who isn't
hiding behind a desk. On September 4, basi-
cally as soon as the Justice Department author-
ized him to appoint superintendents without
local school board approval, new Chancellor
Joel Klein named Dennis Pradier to run
schools across Harlem.
So far, Pradier, a former junior high school
principal, has impressed. "He really made a
great effort to get written notice of the last
school board meeting to residents," says Sandra
Rivers, first vice-chairperson of the board and a
longtime activist. "We had 150 parents, and
the norm is about five." Other community
leaders report that Pradier has toured class-
rooms and devoted longer blocks of time to
MARCH 2003
reading, a welcome move in a district where 77
percent of students fell below state and city
standards in English (and 84 percent missed
standards in math) in 2001.
Though they didn't hire him, Pradier can
essentially thank the school board for his job.
Years of appalling corruption and ineptitude at
many of the city's district-level school boards
led Mayor Giuliani and Schools Chancellor
Rudy Crew in 1997 to relieve the boards of
their power to appoint superintendents. Dis-
trict 5 was a classic case. Local activist Bruce
Ellis recalls how former Superintendent
Bertrand Brown squandered a million-dollar
federal grant in 1996 by recruiting only five
families for a diStrict-wide family literacy pro-
gram. Tales also abound of superintendents hir-
ing friends to fill redundant jobs while students
went without supplies.
In District 5, Rivers and other parents were
so fed up they formed a group called Commu-
nity Advocates for Excellence in Education,
headed by Ellis, to pressure and eventually
inftltrate the school board. Now, they and other
groups like them around the city are trying to
play the same galvanizing role at a time when
City Hall is seeking to abolish community-
based school governance.
They would seem to have an ally in Mayor
Michael Bloomberg, who announced in a high-
profile January speech that "parents must be equal
partners in education. " As part of that, he said, his
administration is asking the state legislature to
allow new "parent engagement boards," consist-
ing solely of parents whose kids go to a particular
school. He also pledged that "the entire school
system, from principals up to the chancellor, will
be held accountable for effectiveness in engaging
parents, and responding to their needs. "
Bloomberg needs the legislature's approval
because only the state can allow City Hall to
dissolve the city's 32 school boards and assume
direct power over the entire school system. The
legislature created a 20-member task force,
which is scheduled to submit governance rec-
ommendations on February 15, following
hearings in each borough. Once the report is
in, lawmakers will make a binding decision,
pending Justice Department approval , on
whether parent engagement boards, or any-
thing else, will replace school boards.
But Community Advocates for Excellence
in Education and other community groups
around the city want a more politically power-
ful role for parents than the mayor or chancel-
lor has described. They say city and state lead-
ers are kidding themselves if they think that
they can repair chronically failing schools by
confining parents to an advisory position.
At the task force's December 10 Manhattan
hearing, Rivers and fellow board member Rose
Marie Seabrook argued vehemencly for formal
parental participation in essential decisionmak-
ing, particularly regarding school principals and
their performance. "We deserve training," Rivers
testified. "Most people don't know how to be
good policymakers, but they can learn. " The
panelists-including former Board of Ed mem-
11
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ber Terri Thompson, Assemblymember Roger
Green, and retired AOL TlIlle Warner CEO Ger-
ald Levin-responded to this testimony by cor-
recting Rivers' data. They did not address her
main point: that parents can help make policy.
Manhattan Assemblymember Steve Sanders,
who chairs the Education Committee and co-
chairs the task force with Thompson, is no more
specific than the mayor about what, substantively,
parental involvement in schools ought to consist
of Says Sanders: "If the public feels that the abili-
ty to be heard, if not always listened to, has been
diminished, then I will be disappointed."
But the parents are not alone in believing that
keeping them on the sidelines would be a big loss
all around. In a recent report for the Drum
Major Institute, Kavitaha Mediratta and Nor-
man Fruchter of New York University's Institute
for Education and Social Policy write that "in
order to build relationships that overcome layers
of suspicion, cynicism and despair accumulated
over decades of a disconnect between schools and
communities, concrete steps will need to be
taken to give all parents more access, representa-
tion and power."
Any parent in a weak district knows about the
lethargy and contempt that principals can show.
This fall, six parents in the Bronx asked a principal
for help in parsing their students' report card, and
never got a response, in part because the principal
never kept office hours. Oswald White, who lives
in the Bronx's New Settlement Apartments, testi-
fied to the state task force that principals dismissed
his questions about teacher absenteeism by declar-
ing such things beyond their control. "They shut
the door on parents," says Silky Martinez, a mem-
ber of the Bronx organizing group Mothers on the
Move, which is participating in a citywide consor-
tium seeking to promote parent involvement.
In some schools, it's not uncommon for par-
ents who join authorized groups like parent asso-
ciations to do so with the goal of finding jobs in
the education system. In such an environment,
parents who agitate for difficult changes can find
themselves in limbo. "If a principal doesn't wel-
come parents," Carmen Maldonado-Santos of
Mothers on the Move told a hearing of the leg-
islative task force, "parents will not want to
become involved, and that will hurt all schools."
THE PARENTS' CONCERNS might sound alarmist.
Chancellor Klein has promised to train princi-
pals, lure superb administrators to troubled dis-
tricts, and override union procedures to fire egre-
giously poor performers. In theory, Klein's strict
oversight of principals' performance-including
measures, unspecified so far, to gauge their suc-
cess in "engaging parents"-will squeeze out
those who foolishly ignore parents' efforts to
help or troubleshoot. For their part, Harlem par-
ents can complain directly to the mayor, who
CITY LIMITS
staked his political reputation on resuscitating
public education.
And nobody can claim that the old system
worked. Schools have deteriorated despite
increases in funding; the city's four-year high
school graduation rate remains stuck at 50 per-
cent, lower than it was in 1991. Against this
background, rallying for parent governance
might seem like a dangerously backward notion.
But the form and weight of parent gover-
nance will likely be a decisive factor in how
effective Bloomberg's reforms can be. If parents
aren't quickly satisfied that their own school's
parent engagement board has the power to
influence their children's principal for the better,
the administration's plan may fail before it even
has a chance to prove itself.
Education scholars across the spectrum agree
that kids tend to learn more when parents know
their teachers, review their homework and gen-
erally insert themselves into the learning process.
"A lot of good research says an important part of
school improvement is strengthening the bond
between the parent and the school," says Jay P.
Greene, a senior fellow with the Manhattan
Institute. According to an educational program
administrator who has had direct dealings with
Klein, the chancellor essentially agrees: he has
concluded that the healthiest mode of parent
involvement stresses parents' assisting kids with
homework, understanding what goes on in the
classroom and organizing to raise money for
textbooks or teacher training.
That calls for sensitive communication
between bureaucrats and citizens that's inessential
for most other municipal services. If your garbage
goes uncollected, you'll call a hotline and some-
one will solve the problem. But if your child gets
out of third grade with inadequate reading skills,
your child may be harder to teach in the future
than your garbage will be to collect.
UNCERTAINTY ABOUT the task force's commitment
to parent governance has spurred a group of
nine community organizations, under the
umbrella of the Parent Organizing Consortium,
to develop its own proposal. It would convert
School Leadership Teams (SLTs), which were
introduced in the city elementary and middle
schools in 1999, into full-fledged school-based
governing bodies. (Disclosure: My wife serves as
community organizer for one consortium mem-
ber, Cypress Hills Advocates for Education.)
Currently, each School Leadership Team
includes a principal, teachers union representa-
tive, and Parent Association president; the
remaining seven to 15 members are split between
parents and school employees. Teams review and
approve school plans and budgets, but activists
say they have often served as rubber stamps. "Par-
ent associations and School Leadership Teams are
MARCH 2003
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Following up on the Planning into Practice conference, Hunter College Department of Urban
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Registration and Information:
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POLICY INNOVATION
HOW TO
~ T ~ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Feb. 6 Opening session: Eddie Bautista, NY Lawyers for the Public Interest; Tony Avella,
NYC Council member, Christopher Kui, Executive Director, Asian Americans for Equality
Feb. 13 Engaging the budget process: TBA
Feb. 20 Developing and Implementing 197-a plans: Jocelyn Chait, Planning Consultant
Feb. 27 Developing affordable housing in changing neighborhoods: Brad Lander, Fifth
Avenue Committee
Mar. 13 Safe streets and traffic calming: Lisa Schreibman, Hunter College
Mar. 20 Historic districts as community preservation: Vicki Weiner, Municipal Arts SOCiety
Mar. 27 Planning and zoning for mixed use: Eva Hanhardt, Municipal Art Society Planning
Center
Apr. 3 Green buildings and sustainable communities: TBA
Apr. 10 From waste transfer stations to comprehensive waste management Timothy Logan,
NYC Environmental Justice Alliance
Apr. 24 Brownfields development: Mathy Stanislaus, Environmental Consultant
May 1 Inclusionary Zoning Laura Wolf-Powers, Pratt Institute
13
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relied upon as rhe primary vehicles for involve-
ment, " Mediratta and Fruchter point out in rheir
report, "but are ultimately ineffective because
rhey depend on rhe will of administrators."
The consortium proposal would make parents
at least 51 percent of each team, improve public-
ity about team business and, perhaps most con-
tentiously, give teams rhe power to hire and fire
principals. Each parent team member would
undergo mandatory training in governance.
Such ideas face stiff resistance from con-
stituencies rhat would have to cede power to
parents. Sources at rhe United Federation of
Teachers worry about parents and principals
ganging up on innovative or outspoken teach-
ers. The Council of School Supervisors and
Administrators, rhe union representing princi-
pals, flatly rejects rhe notion of answering to
parents. ''I'm sure rhere are countless parents
who rhink [Giuliani's 1997] changes have not
been made and feel like rheir rights to influence
hirings and firings are being ignored," says
union spokesperson Richard Relkin. "The trurh
is rhey don't have rhose rights."
Some researchers also worry rhat parent
power to hire and fire would have ill effects. The
Manhattan Institute's Greene, who is based in
Florida, worries rhat many schools lack rhe "tal-
ent base" necessary for effective governance.
Joseph Viterini, a research professor at NYU's
Wagner School of Public Policy, calls for out-
right restrictions on parents' aurhority. Parents
"should have access to information, and parent
evaluations should be one of rhe criteria used for
evaluating principals," he says. "But in order for
rhis to be meaningful and fair, principals should
have real discretion over the running of their
schools, especially wirh regard to personnel and
budget issues."
Lawmakers in Albany now face a political
gamble. Give parents too much formal power
and it will look like not much has changed. Give
them too little, and parents may become
vocally, even disruptively, impatient wirh rhe
idea of central control.
Some activists are willing to cede rhe power
to hire and fire. Maldonado-Santos wants most
of all for the leadership team recommendation
to carry weight in reviews of a principal's job
performance. Rivers, for her part, would be con-
tent to see superintendents use "comprehensive
and objective evaluation processes" rhat rhey
share wirh parents in more overt ways than
Bloomberg or Klein have demanded. But she
doubts rhat such tools will emerge promptly
wirhout rhe hammer of local aurhority. When it
comes to parent governance, she says, "We do
intend to fight until rhe end."
Alec Appelbaum writes about business, environ-
mental and social issues.
CITY LIMITS
DEADLINE: APRIL 30, 2003
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16
CITY LIMITS
governor pataki tha t

promIses
new york
leader
will be a national soon
renewable

In energy.

but so far,
finding
famously
green power pIoneers are
it isn't easy to get a

grItty cIty to plug

In.
by mary .. powel thomas
The first snow of the year is falling, and under the overcast sky,
Anthony Pereira is making his pitch about why photovoltaic power
belongs in New York City. "Solar panels make power whenever there's
light, even this type of diffused light," says Pereira, whose company, alt-
Power, is a leading solar installer in New York. ''And today there's a lot of
reflected light off the snow."
Pereira is standing in Battery Park City, in front of a new apartment
building that will feature 3,400 square feet of "building integrated" solar
panels-panels that help form the exterior walls. Several floors' wonh of
blue squares and rectangles already rise up the middle of the
"The solar wafer is recycled from a post-industrial computer chip,"
explains Pereira. "It's a hard drive. It looks like a CD, right? They strip it
of all the plastic and circuits, and they cut it and dye it blue and make it
into a solar wafer. They're taking a product that would have been thrown
in the ground somewhere, and they're using it for something really
cool-a solar electric system. "
According to Pereira, a growing number of New Yorkers are agreeing
that solar is cool. "If you called me for a residential system today," he
says, "you'd have to wait 10 or 12 weeks to get it on your house." Solar
installations increased 80 percent nationwide in 2001 alone. But as
Pereira notes, the industry is still in its infancy. "It will be about five years
before we see any significant amount of solar every day, in everybody's
life," he predicts. "In 10 years, it'll be allover the place."
In New York State, government has stepped up to help entrepreneurs
like Pereira along. In his State of the State address this January, Gover-
nor George Pataki announced a "renewable portfolio standard" of 25
percent within the next 10 years. That means that by 2013, New York
utilities must get a quarter of their electricity from such sources as the
sun, the wind, rivers, tides and the heat of the eanh. (The current figure
is 17 percent, most from large dams, such as the one near Niagara Falls.)
Pataki's latest initiative comes on the heels of his Executive Order 111,
which in June 2001 directed that all state agencies strive to get 10 per-
cent of their energy from renewable sources by 2005, with the figure ris-
ing to 20 percent by 2010.
State subsidies also pay for many renewable-energy projects, and they
remain essential. The New York State Energy Research and Develop-
ment Authority (NYSERDA) gave a $150,000 grant to the Battery Park
City system, which will cost $500,000 in all. In return, the building will
get 33 kilowatts of e1ectricity-5 percent of the powet used by its eleva-
tors, hallway lights and common rooms.
"It seems admits Pereira, "but it's really that coal, gas and
oil are too a price on pollution. You have to
pay to dump bUt;Jbu don't have to pay to put a smoke-
stack in the air
New York State isn't charging for air pollution yet, but Pataki's latest
action gives it one of the most aggressive of the nation's 14 state renewable
portfolio standards. Over the next 6 to 12 months, the Public Service
Commission (Psq, which regulates utilities statewide, will meet with util-
ities, consumer groups, generators of renewable electricity, and other inter-
ested parties to work out the rules that will govern the standard.
Advocates for renewable energy see great hope in Pataki's order, not
only for their cause, but for New York State as a whole. David Wooley,
northeast representative of the American Wind Energy Association,
envisions a potent economic force coming to life: "New York is a fossil
fuel-poor state. When we develop our indigenous renewable resources,
we avoid sending our dollars on a one-way trip down a gas well or a coal
mine somewhere else."
S
olar power is one of a number of increasingly popular types
of renewable energy-so-called because the source of electricity
doesn't get used up as coal and oil and natural gas do. Though the
sun will burn out eventually, we can count on a steady stream of its light
for the next few billion years or so. Wind power is also renewable, as are
hydropower, tidal power, and geothermal power (created by drilling deep
into the earth for scalding water to make steam to turn turbines). Fuel
cells and biomass round out the renewable portfolio. Bwmass refers to the
-
I l III I' h " t ", :---1 I L h ,I l' 1 I) ,I \ I " \ \ I dL 11 'l \ l [( I I III l ,
()Ihll I'hlltll[!r,ll'h\ b\ 1\1Ilh,I,,1 Blrm,11l
MARCH 2003
17
burning of fast-growing wood, crop waste, landfill gas, and other abun-
dant biological matter. Fuel cells run on hydrogen-which is often gen-
erated by burning natural gas, and therefore not technically renewable,
bur they use the fuel two to three times more efficiently than a power
plant does. Research continues on ways to separate the H from H
2
0, so
a fuel cell can run on water-making it completely renewable.
The main appeal of renewable energy, aside from the fact that it never
runs out, is that it is so much cleaner than energy from fossil fuels.
According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, conventional power
plants emit one-third of all nitrogen oxide nationwide, two-thirds of all
sulfur dioxide and one-third of all carbon dioxide. All three are so-called
greenhouse gases, and all are increasingly blamed for global warming and
other changes in the climate. The emissions from power plants rose 25
percent between 1990 and 2000, more than those of any other sector of
what's a megawatt?
A watt is a unit of electrical power; a kilowatt is 1,000 of
them; and a megawatt is 1,000 kilowatts. The hard part
comes when you start talking about kilowatt-hours and
megawatt-hours. Ashok Gupta, an energy expert at the
Natural Resources Defense Council, explains, "It's the
issue of capacity versus energy. A megawatt measures the
size of the pipe. A megawatt-hour is the amount of energy
flowing through the pipe in one hour. When people talk
about a SOO-megawatt plant or a 1,OOO-megawatt plant,
that's what it's capable of producing, not how much it does
produce. Most power plants don't operate full-time. But
they are there. Whenever you need electricity, some
power plant goes on."
-MPT
the economy. Fossil fuel plants also emit pollutants such as carbon
monoxide, hydrocarbons and soot. Most renewables, by contrast, gener-
ate energy emissions-free, or virtually so.
As with any industrial product, the construction and operation of
renewable facilities does cause some environmental damage. Manufac-
turing solar panels often involves toxic materials such as cadmium and
arsenic. Unless it's tightly controlled, the burning of biomass causes air
pollurion and greenhouse gas emissions. Hydroelectriciry is technically
renewable but not always considered green, because the dams impede
fish passage and destroy riverine ecosystems. And wind turbines can kill
large numbers of birds, though the industry has gotten better at address-
ing the problem through design and siting.
But the harm pales next to that of wresting coal, oil and natural gas
from the earth and transporting it around the country--or around the
18
world. Advocates of renewable energy point out other benefits in the
post-9/11 world, too, including decreasing the number of terrorist tar-
gets, closing nuclear reactors such as the ones at Indian Point, and less-
ening the strain on an overloaded and vulnerable electriciry grid.
That last problem is particularly severe in New York Ciry because it's
a "load pocket"-a geographically isolated area to which a great deal of
electriciry must flow through very few transmission lines. Electriciry use
in the ciry is rising rapidly: Five days last summer were among the top
10 ever for electriciry use in the ciry, with a peak of 10,587 megawatts,
according to Chris Olert, a spokesperson for Con Edison. [See "What's
a Megawatt?" left.] Con Ed projects that peak demand will grow 1.3 per-
cent a year for the next five years; that, coupled with other factors such
as the need to retire aging plants, will result in a shortfall of 2,000 to
3,000 megawatts by 2006, according to the New York Building Con-
gress, a trade group. And though New York requires that 80 percent of
the ciry's power be generated within the five boroughs, no major power
plants have been built in the ciry since 1977, and only half a dozen
expansions are in the pipeline.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg's Economic Development Corporation
would not discuss renewable energy with City Limits, calling it "prema-
ture" until the administration releases its overall energy plan. But in a
ciry starved for power, renewable energy is gaining a foothold, bit by bit.
In 1996, New York CiryTransit installed one of the largest rooftop solar
arrays in the world at the Gun Hill Bus Depot, in the Bronx. The 300-
kilowatt system provides 15 percent of the depot's electriciry, saving
$60,000 a year. The agency already had 30 kilowatts worth of panels on
a warehouse in Queens, and it's now installing solar panels in the
canopies of two outdoor subway stations-Roosevelt Avenue/74th
Street, in Queens, and Stillwell Avenue/Coney Island, in Brooklyn. Two
maintenance facilities in Queens will be getting 100 kilowatts of solar
panels and a 200-kilowatt fuel cell each. "On a good sunny day," says
A.]. Singh, chief of special projects at New York Ciry Transit, "they will
be off the grid"-producing all the electriciry they use.
Solar panels also perch atop the Bronx Veterans Administration Hos-
pital and a recycling center on Rikers Island. They line two sides of the
48-srory Conde Nast building, at 4 Times Square. In October, the
Greenpoint Manufacturing and Design Center, a Brooklyn nonprofit
that houses small manufacturers, installed 115 solar kilowatts on two
buildings-the largest commercial installation in the ciry. "Industry is
generally associated with environmental damage, " says Paul Parkhill,
who coordinated the $900,000 project. "We wanted to combine indus-
trial uses with environmentally friendly work. And it was a means of
insulating our tenants from huge fluctuations in electriciry rates. " The
project received two $300,000 grants, one from NYSERDA and one
from a nonprofit consortium called Clean Air Communities.
The Whitehall Ferry Terminal, at the tip of Manhattan, will soon
have solar electriciry, as will New School Universiry, the New York
Aquarium, the Brooklyn Children's Museum, the Queens Botanical
Garden and the Museum ofJewish Heritage. And four new ferry termi-
nals will feature a New York Ciry rariry: windmills, eight in all.
Fuel cells, though still quite expensive, are also growing in populariry.
In New York Ciry, they power the Central Park police precinct and its
patrol cars. Parts of 4 Times Square, the North Central Bronx Hospital,
the New York Aquarium, and St. Vincent Catholic Medical Center use
fuel cells, too. Two cells owned by the Sun Chemical Corporation, on
Staten Island, hold the national record for continuous operation: more
than 40,000 hours.
CITY LIMITS
New York is also the scene of the nation's firsr foray into tidal power:
A Virginia company is testing a water turbine in the East River. Modeled
after a wind turbine, it's designed ro turn with the tide and ro avoid the
environmental damage of a dam. In five years, the
company hopes ro have 500 "free-flow" turbines 12
feet under the water off Roosevelt Island, producing 10
megawatts of electricity in all.
Even biomass may make an appearance on the city
scene within the next decade. A nonprofit called Earth
Pledge is working on a plan ro use some of New York's
food waste-almost 1 million rons a year-ro pro-
duce energy. One of its projects aims ro use waste-
water from the Brooklyn Brewery ro fuel the brewery
itself and/or its delivery trucks. In the long term, the
group wants ro build an "anaerobic digestion facility"
in the city that would capture the methane produced
by decaying food and use it ro power fuel cells. The
methane, a potent greenhouse gas, would otherwise be
released inro the atmosphere.
voltaic system up and running. Solar panels have a 20- to 30-year life-
span, but, as Baxt learned, components don't always work properly; he
just had some replaced. He and his wife are both architects. "One of the
J
R:
newables have been much slower ro develop
on the residential side of the street. Fuel cells
e currently impractical for single-family
homes, but a local nonprofit called the Community
Environmental Center is hoping ro site one in an
apartment building on Roosevelt Island soon. The
200-kiIowatt unit will provide 25 percent of the build-
ing's electricity and heat 20 ro 30 percent of its water
ro boot-for a cost of $1.2 million. "We're doing this
not because it's economically feasible at this time,"
says Rick Cherry, the center's direcror, "but to demon-
strate it, to moniror it and prove that it can produce
the kind of energy we think it can."
Both businesses and homeowners are
driving New York's solar power boom.
Solar cells are somewhat more established. The first
residential phorovoltaic, or "PY," system, installed on
the terrace of a Manhattan apartment, was recently
dismantled after its owner passed away. (Her family,
however, is planning ro fund a solar installation in her
name at New School University.)
The second residential system is still working. The
two-srory brick home of its owner, Sholom Goorzeit,
faces Cooper Park, in Williamsburg. His 1.3-kilowatt
system, installed in 2002, consists of two arrays of six
panels each, set about six feet apart. Gootzeit, a physi-
cian, says he and his wife get about a third of their
power from the sun. "The problem is, " he says, "if you
want ro do it as an individual, it's just a lot of trouble."
That is a complaint echoed by other solar panelists
in New York City, and it seems ro stem from the pio-
neering nature of their undertaking. Standard systems
are designed for the shingled roofs of the suburbs; the
city Department of Buildings is not used ro issuing
permits for phorovoltaic panels; some solar installers
are not used to working in New York; and Con Ed
Paul Parkhill (above) covered a
Greenpoint industrial building with solar
panels. Pablo Calero of Queens (below)
went solar on his own home's roof.
engineers must inspect each system to make sure it won't endanger line
workers during a blackout. All of this adds up ro delays for homeowners.
reasons we did this was ro be guinea pigs," he says. "There are a lot of
kinks in the system still. We're not ready to push it hard yet, but once
we're satisfied that it makes sense, we wilL" Ben Baxt spent more than twO years getting his 2-kiIowatt phoro-
MARCH 2003
19
20
a new solar system?
Right now, no one installs a renewable-energy system in
New York without taking advantage of generous state sub-
sidies. But one day, subsidies may not be necessary. That's
the premise behind a coalition called Solar Challenge,
which wants New York State to obtain $500 million in rev-
enue bonds or other financing to pay for green-energy ptoj-
ects in public buildings. Twenty-two percent of the money
would go for energy efficiency, 78 percent for renewable
energy. Tria Case, director of Solar Challenge, explains, "A
revenue bond does not cost the taxpayers money. It is actu-
ally paid for through the projects themselves. The debt ser-
vice on the bonds will be paid by the savings from the
energy efficiency." Solar Challenge is modeled on VoteSo-
lar, the $100 million bond sale approved in 2001 by San
Francisco voters.
The New York effort has two main goals, according to Case:
to lower the cost of renewable technology and to lower the
structural barriers, such as the dearth of qualified installers,
the lack of in-state manufacturers, and extra charges and
paperwork for connecting to the electricity grid.
The coalition has more than 50 members, both individuals
and organizations, from the New York City Sierra Club to
the Environmental Business Association; Solar Challenge
has also been in discussions with the International Broth-
erhood of Electrical Workers and other unions. Case hopes
to win sponsorship in the next few months by either the
New York State Energy Research and Development
Authority or the New York Power Authority. The state
budget crunch, however, may slow things down. ''We're
looking at other alternatives besides bonds, such as working
through our existing programs," says Colleen Quinn, a
spokesperson for NYSERDA. "We have to walk before we
can run."
-MPT
He's already satisfied with his purchase, though. "From a straight eco-
nomic point of view, it doesn't make sense," he admits. ''At today's elec-
tricity rates, it probably costs us $20 a month more. But we're active in
some environmental advocacy organizations where we donate far more
than that. Why not do something directly? This could save several thou-
sand pounds of greenhouse gases a year."
Pablo Calero, a school teacher in Queens, also owns a 2-kilowatt sys-
tem, which powers his entire apartment and then some. "I got the sys-
tem installed in August," he says, "and I haven't paid a bill since!" That's
because of New York State's "net metering" law, which requires utilities
to buy at retail price any excess power generated by a residential photo-
voltaic system. Calero, who's a live-in landlord, saves $43 a month. His
tenants' apartments upstairs are powered conventionally.
B
eing a tenant, however, does not prevent anyone from buying
green power. About 100 resourceful pioneers get it from Con Edi-
son Solutions, which is currently the only company selling renew-
able electricity in the city. The power doesn't come from solar panels or
fuel cells, which lend themselves more to "distributed," or on-site, gen-
eration. Instead, 20 to 25 percent comes from the 30-megawatt Fenner
wind farm, near Syracuse, New York, and the rest from two "run of the
river" hydroelectric plants upstate, one in Walden and one in Chateau-
gay, near Quebec.
Run-of-the-river hydroelectricity is considered greener than most
because it doesn't involve storing large amounts of water behind a dam
and releasing it in a torrent ro meet power demands. Typically, a run-of-
the-river dam was built decades earlier, for some other purpose; later, an
owner decided to use the water that sometimes flowed over the dam to
generate electricity. New York State has about 4,400 megawatts of run-of-
the-river capacity, though many projects generate 10 megawatts or fewer.
The other commercial green alternative in New York State is wind
energy. New York has only three wind farms at the moment, for a total
of 48.2 megawatts. Five more in the planning process would add about
315 megawatts. (A study by the American Wind Energy Association
indicated some 5,000 megawatts of wind potential in the state.)
Wind is currently more expensive than hydro, which is why Con Ed
Solutions' product is weighted more heavily toward the latter. That gives
the green power a price markup of only half a cent per kilowatt-hour. For
the average residential customer, the difference is about $21 a year-or
as Christine Nevin, head of public relations, puts it, "the cost of a cup of
Starbucks coffee, per month."
The company attributes its low number of green customers not to
price but to a lack of marketing; it's been waiting for the green product
to be certified by Green-e, an independent nonprofit based in San Fran-
cisco. Green-e's mission is to keep power companies honest: to make sure
they buy as much renewable energy for their customers as they say
they're buying and don't "sell" the same electricity to more than one cus-
tomer. Green-e approval of an electricity offering also indicates that the
organization has audited a company's contracts, invoices, and billing
statements and has determined that its "green" electricity is in fact green.
Since New York operates a statewide electricity grid, the actual elec-
trons coming into your house are probably not the exact ones generated
by, say, the local wind farm. It's all part of the same pool. But Anne Marie
McShea, the mid-Atlantic coordinator for Green-e, says it's important to
get as much green energy as possible into the mix. "Think of the power
pool as a bathtub: How much clean water is going in, versus dirty, pol-
luted water?"
CITY LIMITS
One other power company, 1st Rochdale Cooperative Group, plans [0
sell New Yorkers green energy-primarily wind and run-of-the-river
hydro, plus some landfill gas and solar-starting this spring. Since 1st
Rochdale was originally created by cooperatives, which
still constitute about half of its cus[Omers, the company
wants [0 keep its elecuicity as affordable as possible. It
will offer various green products, with a price differen-
tial ranging from 1 cent [0 2.5 cents per kilowatt-hour.
The more expensive products will have a greater per-
centage of wind energy. "But our second and more
effective strategy," says Tom Thompson, vice-president
for sustainable energy, "is to help buildings reduce their
energy consumption," through measures like new
lighting and appliances. That should save enough to
cover the higher cost of the green power.
Thompson cautions, however, that the current
supply of renewable energy is limited: "If we could get
one-half of 1 percent of the residential customers in
New York City to come to us for green, we'd be able
to sell all of the output of all of the windmills that
have been installed in New York over the last five
years. We'd gobble it up, just like that."
standard, says Wooley, "It was very difficult to finance, build, and sell
renewables in New York. If you put up a wind farm that costs about $1
million per megawatt of installed capacity, and the equipment has a 25-
So the third option for those who want clean
power is to buy a "tradable renewable certificate," also
known as a green tag. It's a complicated concept, but
essentially you end up with two electric bills. You buy
your actual, conventionally generated electricity from
your regular supplier. Then you buy the "attributes"
of green power from another supplier. McShea
explains, "If the going price for electricity in New
York is 10 cents per kilowatt-hour, and green electric-
On a barge near Roosevelt Island
(above, right), energy entrepreneur
Trey Taylor is testing a water
turbine (below). One day he'd
ity costs 12 cents per kilowatt-hour, you're going to
pay your 10 cents to your base electricity provider,
and 2 cents for a certificate from a renewable-energy
provider. What that 2 cents ensures is that the renew-
able-energy provider can sell its power into the pool
at the going rate and collect the difference from you."
Five companies sell green tags in New York State--
Community Energy, Sterling Planet, American Wind,
the Bonneville Environmental Foundation, and 3
Phases Energy Services. (Businesses can also buy from
Aquila.) The Manhattan-based Natural Resources
Defense Council (NRDC) covers half of its elecuicity
use with tags from the Madison Wmdpower Project, in
central New York. Ashok Gupta, director of the
NRDC's air and energy program, calculates that the
wind purchase keeps 60 tons of carbon dioxide our of
the atmosphere every year.
It also brings cash back to the wind producers.
Wooley, of the Wind Energy Association, explains
how the business model works: "Wind projects sell
their electricity into the wholesale grid-that's one set
of revenues--and then sell green tags, or emission
credits, to a Con Ed Solutions or a Community
Energy." The federal government kicks in 1.5 cents a
kilowatt-hour for the first 10 years, through a production tax credit.
So far, these revenue streams alone have not been enough to make
investors leap up to fund wind farms . Before the renewable portfolio
MARCH 2003
like
to power
to have 50o-enough
the United Nations.
to 30-year lifetime, you need to have long-term contracts in order to
finance and build." The governor's plan, Wooley and other renewable
continued on page 39
21
WHEN SHE WAS 8 YEARS OLD,
Princess Carr began to throw herself down the
stairs at school. She wanted someone to notice
her. Some people did. Classmates called her
crazy. Teachers put their arms around her and
soothed her. But for years, no one did much
more than that.
At home, Princess' mother abused her. She'd
beat her until her nose bled, then lock her in a
closet for hours, blood pooling in her hand. If
Princess tried to come out, her mother would
beat her again. Other times, Princess' mother
beat her with a baseball bat, breaking her thumbs
once. On their way to the hospital emergency
room, her mother coached her to say that she'd
been playing with the bat with her brother and
he'd hit her. Princess lied every time.
"I wanted them to take me," says Princess,
now 22, a charry and thoughtfUl young woman,
with a broad, bemused smile and rolling laugh.
(For three years, she has been a writer for the
magazine Foster Care Youth United, where I am
an editor.) "But I was my brothers' protector. If
they took them away, I couldn't protect them,
and I couldn't deal with that. "
Some nights, Princess protected her mother.
Her mother's boyfriend would beat her, and
Princess would find her mother curled on the
floor. Her mom would lean her head against
Princess' shoulder and ask, "Why? Why is this
happening to me?" Even as a child, Princess
could never understand how her mother could
be beat so bad and still do the same thing to her.
Princess loved school. She loved to read and
write, loved her teachers, and signed up for
every after-school activiry because she was
afraid to go home. Princess was a teacher's pet.
She was smart and docile. "I was the little girl,
skinny, with pigtails and the shabby clothes
By Nora McCarthy
Photographs by S u m ~ Woods
and big glasses, the one always with her head
faced to the floor, and who didn't talk until you
spoke to her. "
But she began to crack as she got older,
banging her head on the floor, running up and
down the halls so she could spend all day with
her "friends," the dean and the principal,
instead of boring classes where she gOt beat
down by other kids. By junior high, she'd
started fighting back when people picked on
her. She began cutting school to go to the
library, where she could read to rest her mind.
And she'd started to fear she could not handle
the beatings much longer. "I honestly felt that
eventually she would wind up killing me, or I
would end up killing her," Princess says.
By the time she was 13, Princess had learned
the lesson that no adult was going to listen or
help. So she began running away for weeks and
months at a time, sleeping on the street and in
train cars, prostituting in Coney Island
for money.
Ofren, she dropped by The Door, a youth
center in Soho, for therapy and for every pro-
gram the place offered. Oddly enough, it was
her mother who'd read about The Door and
sent her there, saying Princess needed to stop
cutting school and do something with her life.
By then, Princess already knew she was gay,
and her first impression of The Door was that
her counselor was gorgeous and there was a
bunch of gay people there. "I thought, ' Oh,
yes. Mommy doesn't even know what she has
done,'" she says, laughing.
One night in winter, when Princess was
about 14, she was riding the train alone, asleep.
A man came over, took her hand, peeled off her
glove, and put her hand in his pants without
saying a word. No one else was in the car but a
23
drunk man. When the train pulled into a sta-
tion, the man said to Princess, "Come on, we're
gerting off the train." She was so scared, she
went. He took her to a building somewhere, in
some borough, and raped her in the stairwell.
Then he fell asleep. She tried to pull her coat
from under him, then ran down the stairs as he
chased her.
At the train station, Princess was standing in
you want to go?" "The Door," Princess said.
The woman dropped her off at 9, and Princess
got a medical exam, spoke to her counselor,
then walked around the corner to Laight Street,
the first stop for kids placed in foster care. She
asked the Administration for Children's Ser-
vices (ACS) to find her a home.
In foster care, Princess finally got help. She
spent more than a year in psychiatric hospitals,
Millions of New Yorkers have learned
how it feels to cower in fear, to lose
in a flash their sense of safety, or to
mourn a sudden, unpredictable loss.
front of the turnstiles, crying, when the first of
two angels appeared. A man walked up and
said, "Don't," then handed her a token. On the
train, a young woman came and sat down next
to her. "Do you want to come home with me?"
she asked. She brought Princess to an apart-
ment filled with children, laid her down in a
bunk bed, rubbed her back and let her fall
asleep. In the morning she asked, "Where do
24
mostly because she asked to be hospitalized and
then refused to leave. She got sent to a thera-
pist, her thick file growing with each new visit.
But though she'd been trying her whole life to
get someone to listen, Princess stonewalled
almost every psychiatrist she was sent to.
On her own, though, she kept going to The
Door. There, her counselor was very different.
She asked questions; she listened; she spoke to
Princess like a friend. She gave her coloring
books and cigarettes, even though she did not
approve of cigarenes-anything that helped
Princess to feel like she wasn't crazy. She did not
sit in silence, expecting Princess to talk. She did
not read a case file first, forming her impressions
before she'd heard even a word from Princess
herself, or insist on medicating her, even though
the medication gave Princess a heavy feeling that
scared her. ''I'm very animated, and the medica-
tion stifled that," Princess says. ''I've learned that
it's one thing to be loud and afraid, it's another
thing to not be able to speak and be afraid. I was
like that for a very long time as a child. And I
can't go back to that."
When the World Trade Center came crash-
ing down, New Yorkers learned how it feels to
cower in fear, to lose in a flash their sense of
safety, or to mourn a sudden, unpredictable loss.
New Yorkers, and Americans across the
country, also knew that these fears and losses
demanded an outpouring of support. Cadres of
counselors made their way into schools, hospi-
tals, churches-anywhere that people gathered
in grie Beyond treating the distressed, they
also trained parents and teachers to recognize
and respond to trauma. These are admirable
responses to a disaster.
But September 11 also exposed just how
traumatized many teenagers, in particular, really
are, and the woeful inadequacy of the systems
they're supposed to turn to for support.
Last year, in an effort to assess the impact of
9/11, the New York City Department of Edu-
cation surveyed 4th- through 12th-graders. It
found that 75,000 kids were suffering symp-
toms of post-traumatic stress disorder because
of the attack. More disturbingly, however, the
study concluded that 190,000 students have
mental health problems that require treatment.
A majority of students in the public schools
had experienced traumatic events prior to Sep-
tember 11. Nearly two-thirds of all students
reported being exposed to violence in their
communities or families. Of all students, 39
percent had seen someone killed or seriously
injured, 29 percent had seen the violent or acci-
dental death of a close friend, and 27 percent
had wimessed the violent or accidental death of
a family member.
Experiencing intense or repeated violence
can give young people the feeling that life is
precarious, unpredictable, violent and chaotic.
Growing up with that view- and little control
over what happens to you-is a recipe for anx-
iety and depression. "9111 has given people
CITY LIMITS
who had never been traumatized a glimmering
of an understanding of what it feels like to feel
unsafe all the time," says Marylene Cloitre,
director of the Child Trauma Project at the
New York University Child Study Center.
Teens are particularly at risk of viewing
themselves and the world more darkly after
experiencing trauma, Cloitre says. Depressed
teens are disinclined to talk about their feelings,
and prone to act on them. And so they're viewed
as troublemakers, not kids in trouble.
Parents and teachers see kids every day, and
they're the most likely people to recognize that a
teen acting out of control or deeply withdrawn
needs help. But teachers with more than 30 stu-
dents in each class and counselors juggling hun-
dreds of kids usually have little time to provide
even the most basic referrals to services.
Poor parents, meanwhile, overwhelmed by
their teens' behavior and stressed by the burdens
of poverty, often respond harshly when their
kids begin to act out. That exacerbates the prob-
lem, says Susan Saegert, Director of the Center
for Human Environments at CUNY, who has
studied the relationship between harsh parent-
ing and community violence. Says Saegert,
"Many of the families we visited were severely
overburdened, and they would ask the grad stu-
dents, 'Can you be my child's psychologist?'"
People who elect to pay for private therapy
know just how valuable it can be. Though it
can easily cost thousands of dollars, wealthy
Americans shell out the money because they
believe the treatment is worth it. Adults mak-
ing more than $61,000 a year get mental
health treatment more than three times as
often as those making less than $15,000.
The treatment gulf between rich and poor
hasn't gone unnoticed. Nor have its conse-
quences. In the last decade, federal and state
governments have begun to act on a growing
body of research showing that kids who grow up
with violence are much more likely to become
perpetrators-and that certain therapeutic inter-
ventions do temper the effects of trauma. "If you
can, imagine growing up in an environment
where the people who care about you are also
threatening and abusive, where in order to sur-
vive you need to be aggressive, fight back," says
Robert Franks, director of operations at the
National Center for Children Exposed to Vio-
lence at the Yale Child Study Center. "Children
see that violent people are the ones in power and
in control, so over time they take on those qual-
ities and those ways of functioning. "
Effective programs help adolescents recog-
MARCH 2003
nize that what's adaptive in a violent neighbor-
hood is not healthy in the outside world. Tech-
niques like cognitive-behavioral therapy help
teens understand how trauma has affected
them, and it also teaches them behaviors that
help them cope.
But if there's one reason government offi-
cials across the country have begun to pay seri-
ous attention to trauma and its consequences,
it's because of their own worst nightmare: deep
budget deficits. When kids don't get mental
health services, they're finding, states are pay-
ing the price. A June 2002 report to the
National Conference of State Legislatures doc-
uments the low number of kids getting early
intervention, and links it to the incredibly high
cost of hospitalizations, intensive case manage-
ment services and foster care placements that
states end up paying for.
New York is typical: Most kids only get help
once they're in crisis. Fewer than half of youth
who end up in residential treatment centers-
at a cost to the state of nearly $150 each day-
had ever been seen in a public mental health
clinic. The same is true for kids in state psychi-
atric hospitals.
But one elected official who seems to under-
stand that treating trauma is an essential invest-
ment is New York mayor Michael Bloomberg.
As part of his school reform plan, Mayor
Bloomberg has unveiled a $60 million initia-
tive to forge parmerships between the Depart-
ment of Education and the city's Department
of Health and Mental Hygiene, with the goal
of making sure that students who need help get
treated in their schools and communities.
Chancellor Joel Klein calls the effort "critical to
ensuring student success in the classroom. "
But what Bloomberg can't do is increase the
capacity of publicly funded clinics to adequately
serve poor kids. Since 1995, the Paraki admin-
istration has put strict limits on Medicaid
spending on mental health. [See "The Clinic
Crunch," right.) One result is that most mental
health clinics in New York City that treat chil-
dren and adolescents insured by Medicaid are
seriously underfunded and do not provide the
treatments that have been proven effective. The
clinics, run by private nonprofits licensed by the
State Office of Mental Health, have waiting lists
up to six months long. They are typically staffed
by inexperienced and overwhelmed therapists.
They have staff turnover rates of up to 50 per-
cent a year, according to the Coalition of Vol-
untary Mental Health Agencies.
And with the exception of a few programs
that specialize in treating teens, the clinics usu-
THE CLINIC CRUNCH
New York State's Office of Mental
Health contracts with dozen of nonprofit
organizations to operate community-
based mental health clinics in the city.
Since 1995, however, that care has been
severely rationed.
Each year, clinics now receive a fixed
budget from the state, no matter how
much need for their services may arise.
They have been unable to expand,
even when they can document a clear
demand for services. According to the
Citizens Committee for Children, clinics
don't even have enough slots to treat
kids who are seriously emotionally
disturbed-so impaired they have difficulty
functioning.
Clinics are reimbursed only $60 for
each patient seen-far less than the $100
minimum typically charged by private
therapists. Medicaid pays even more
inadequately for group therapy, so few
clinics offer it, even though adolescents
respond particularly well to support
groups. What's more, the program will not
reimburse clinics for any time that a ther-
apist is working but not treating a
patient-staff meetings, clinical consulta-
tion and community outreach all must be
funded privately.
Lifting the Medicaid cap would make it
possible for clinics to see more clients
and be able to hire or retain experienced
staff. It might also cut down on the case-
load of each therapist, so they'd be less
likely to get burned out and leave. But
politically, it's unlikely to happen. Even
when New York State had a budget sur-
plus, the Pataki administration refused to
lift the cap.
-NM
25
ally provide merapy mat's designed for adults.
Their results are not good. According to a 2001
report for ACS, only 20 percent of case reviews
showed mat youm in foster care improved
under the care of clinics.
Treatment of trauma is a relatively new field.
It sprang out of work wim combat veterans
after the Vietnam War and wim rape victims
who came forward in the 1970s because of fem-
inism. But effective, research-tested forms of
merapy, rypically lasting just 10 to 12 weeks
and far more structured and focused man tradi-
tional psychodynamic merapy, are still cuning-
edge. Few merapists at publicly funded clinics
have had extensive training in techniques like
cognitive-behavioral merapy, even mough clin-
ics are me mainstay of treatment for kids in fos-
ter care, who tend to have experienced severe
traumas like physical or sexual abuse.
In me moments after 9/11, New York's
mental health providers found creative ways of
dealing with trauma. Foundations funded
innovative programs like an oral history ptoject
that helps kids in Chinatown talk about how
9/11 affected their communiry. Massive federal
grants-me Project Liberry mental healm out-
Only 1 in 5 young people in foster care
showed improvement following treatment
in public mental health clinics.
26
PRIVATE THERAPIST EUZABETH
KANDALL HAS BROUGHT
AN INNOVATIVE PRO BONO
SERVICE TO NEW YORK:
"WE'RE TRYING TO GIVE KIDS
IN FOSTER CARE THE REALLY
GOOD STUFF."
reach program alone cost $154.7 million-
paid for social workers to provide crisis coun-
seling in schools and at clinics. Safe Horizon
taught teens how to conduct short workshops
about me effects of trauma for omer teens at
meir high schools.
But the money did not go toward creating
lasting improvements in school or clinic men-
tal healm services. In fact, me program put
together by me September 11 Fund and me
Red Cross relies wholly on services purchased
from private practitioners. Clients are free to
choose any licensed merapist, to go for as long
as needed, and to be reimbursed generously
enough so mey can afford to go. By any mea-
sure, it's an ideal scenario for successful mental
health treatment.
But for poor New Yorkers who did not lose
a family member or a job on 9/11, or who live
far from Ground Zero and work far from
downtown, if they work at all, mental health
care remains in the dark ages. A treatment mat
has proven power to help people achieve control
over meir lives remains out of reach of mose who
arguably have me most to gain from it. Even
when poor people can get care, it is vastly inferior
to me merapy wealthier New Yorkers choose
every day to pay for memselves.
The grace and heft of each piece of furni-
ture in Elizabem Kandall's spare office, me
milky white walls and the gray sunlight reach-
ing mrough me windows project stabiliry and
calm. Kandall believes the ambience of a mera-
pist's office is important. Patients appreciate an
office, and by extension a me rapist, that seems
under control. Kandall is me New York direc-
tor of the Children's Psychotherapy Project. It's
a program mat matches private practice thera-
pists with foster youm, whom they agree to
treat, for free, for as long as it takes. Like
Princess, kids in foster care tend to suffer me
most extreme trauma. Even so, foster youth
usually are treated at publicly funded clinics, by
me most inexperienced of therapists.
After graduate school, Kandall rook a year-
long internship at a well-run but somewhat
chaotic communiry clinic. Almost every child
in her caseload was in foster care. Despite caring
supervision, she felt unprepared to handle what
me children told her. The office space itself did
not help. One day, a patient's favorite chair
would be gone, and no one could fi nd it. Toys
for play merapy inevitably had missing parts. "It
was, 'We have mese pieces, but not me board,'
just a mishmash of parts wimout much atten-
tion paid to mem, which is such an awful
CITY LIMITS
replica of the disjuncture in their lives," says
Kandall, sitting in a wide, floral-patterned chair
with her feet drawn up under her, her small
hands still in her lap, a single gold chain loop-
ing across the neckline of her white sweater.
The unpredictability of the clinic mirrored
Kandall's own insecure status there. Even as she
tried to form trustworthy relationships with her
patients, she felt that the relationship she was
offering was a lie. At the end of the year, her
internship would end, and the pay would be too
low to tempt her to stay. At best, her young
charges would see a string of caring but unsea-
soned clinicians. Older and more skilled thera-
pists tend to make their way into private prac-
tice, where they can double their salaries while
seeing less challenging patients.
Because clinics pay so poorly, and demand
so much of their staffs, it's easy for even the
most determined clinicians to become desensi-
tized to the experiences their clients describe-
experiences too horrific and alien for a thera-
pist to let herself imagine. Private therapists
usually take a range of cases; a tolerable load
might consist of one high-conflict divorce, sev-
eral people who feel stuck in their lives, and
one patient suffering intense depression. Clinic
workers see a lot of that last category. For them,
doing effective work in treating patients is "not
a matter of becoming clinically better, "
explains Kandall. "Even experienced people
need to be reminded of things they can't imag-
ine. It's too much to take in."
That frozenness can reveal itself in many
ways. Mel Schneiderman, director of psychia-
try at New York Foundling, a private foster care
agency, recalls interviewing candidates for the
position of a social work supervisor. One
woman carne from a major clinic and had been
assigned to the special foster care division there.
Schneiderman asked her to describe a case and
her treatment goals. The woman described a
kid who had been physically and sexually
abused, and said her primary treatment goal
was improving the child's hygiene. "Why
hygiene?" Schneiderman asked. "Because that's
affecting her relationships," the woman told
him. "What are your goals for most kids?" he
asked. She said, "Hygiene."
"Does this reflect the clinicians out there?"
Schneiderman asks rhetorically. Still, he under-
stands the impulse-find one small, attainable
goal and focus on it. "These kids have profound
separation and loss issues," he says. "It's difficult."
When they flee the clinics, therapists usually
leave the neediest cases behind, too. But when
she moved into private practice, Elizabeth Kan-
MARCH 2003
dall wanted to find a way to keep working with
poor young people. So when she heard about
the Children's Psychotherapy Project in San
Francisco, started by Toni Heinemann in 1995,
she believed she'd found an answer. In New
York, Kandall set up a branch of the project
three years ago. Seventeen volunteer private
therapists work with one patient each, and
gather weekly in consultation groups to discuss
their cases, because even for experienced pro-
fessionals, the tremendous pain and need and
posturing of foster youth can be too much to
bear alone.
"We're trying to provide something really
different-we're trying to give kids in foster care
the really good stuff, the really senior therapists,
the kind of therapists my friends or I would like
to go to, and a relationship that's available as
long as they want it, in spaces where things are
cared for, continuous and harmonious, " Kan-
dall says. She thinks often about the chronic
strangeness of life for foster youth. So much of
most children's experience is sameness-same
bed every night, same bed every morning, same
person who says similar things ro you every day.
She's tried to imagine herself as a little person,
wondering: Who is this person? Where's my
mom? It smells really weird here. Where's my
bed? They don't make eggs the same way. "A
child usually incorporates strange things into a
fabric that's known," Kandall says. If nothing
continued on page 42
27
Will free
thought
survive?
Frederick Douglass helped tum
America against slavery with his
newspaper, The North Star.
This publication is fighting
for fairness in postage rates.
What's at stake?
Whether you'll be able to
find independent publications
that serve their subscribers, not
just commercial advertisers.
Right now, mass,circulation
publications pay less to mail
than independents like this
one. And the U.S. Postal
Service is getting ready to hike
our mailing costs even more.
Is independent thought and
religious insight important to
you? Visit our website and use
your freedom of speech to save
freedom of thought.
28
W
~ : : : - Ind .... nd.nt
- -- Pre .. Association
www.i ndypress.org
Don't let the Postal Service
stamp out freedom.
INTELLIGENCE
THE BIG IDEA
Tax Evasion
8y focusing on tax fairness,
are progressives losing sight
of government's real job?
By lW. Mason
IT'S A FAMILIAR REFRAIN: After every losing elec-
tion, the Democrats' friends on the left beg
them to come home. If the prodigal sons and
daughters will for once offer a progressive pro-
gram, goes the plea, surely next time they'll win.
The 2002 rout was no different, and the
prescribed program was not far behind. From
The New Republic to The American Prospect,
liberals agreed that the Democrats should be
the party of tax fairness. If the Republicans
were vulnerable on any issue, it was their reck-
less tax cuts for the rich. Democrats should
ptopose to be the party of raising taxes-
responsibly, in the upper brackets-to restore
progressivity to the tax system.
The liberal preoccupation with progressive
taxes isn't limited to the national level. In the
face of the worst fiscal crisis since the Escape
from New York 1970s, Mayor Bloomberg con-
founded his Republican supporters with a
defense of the value of government, proposing
to balance the budget with a package that
relied on major tax increases, including a
record-busting property tax hike as well as a
restored commuter tax.
The proposal was far from perfect, and it
drew fire more or less equally from business,
homeowner, labor and community advocates.
But for the most part, the mayor's critics
focused not on the still-substantial budget cuts,
but on the ways in which his changes to the tax
system would shift the burden toward working
people. If Bloomberg's tax proposal was
enacted, "the rich would get richer while the
poor would pay more," as a page-one Daily
News story put it.
On the merits, Bloomberg's critics were
right: The mayor's proposal would lead to a
more regressive tax system. Yes, it would yield
more cash for the city, but to many liberals,
increasing the tax burden on lower-income
New Yorkers was too high a price to pay.
"We're not just looking for additional rev-
enues," says Bonnie Brower, executive director
of the budget watchdog group City Project.
'They have to be fair and progressive."
Few liberals would disagree. But maybe
they should.
The issue isn't so much whether taxes have
become more regressive. They have. Progres-
sive taxes are berrer because they leave money
in the pockets of working people. But there's a
real danger that if we focus too much on this
barrie, we'll lose the larger war: defending and
enlarging the public sphere.
CITY LIMITS
The only meaningful way of talking about
tax fairness is by considering taxes and the ser-
vices they finance-i.e., the common good-as
a package. Otherwise, it's like saying $50 is a
fair price without saying what it buys. Espe-
cially at the state and local level, where military
spending doesn't muddy the picture, virtually
all government spending is highly progressive.
For the typical state government-and New
York is typical in this respect-the largest spend-
ing categories are K-12 education, at about 25
percent of the budget, followed by Medicaid (20
percent) and higher education and transportation
(10 percent each). Other means-tested benefits
claim another 5 to 10 percent. Means-tested
spending benefits the low-income by definition,
and public transit and Medicaid are predomi-
nately programs for the
BUT LET'S GO one step further. Maybe the whole
concept of tax fairness is misguided. Maybe a
strong public sphere isn't something that can be
measured in dollars and cents.
The focus on the dollar value of taxes and
services, after all, rests on the assumption that
the main relationship individuals and house-
holds have with the government is a monetary
one. In other words, add up the taxes paid in,
and the services doled out, and you have a
gauge of the overall benefit or loss to the citizen.
Karl Marx isn't often cited on local tax policy,
but his description of this way of thinking is
apt: 'The individual carries his social power
and his bond with society in his pocket."
But as Economic Policy Institute economist
Max Sawicky points out, much of what people-
especially poor people-
poor as well. Public educa-
tion's consumers more
closely mirror the general
public, but still have signifi-
candy lower incomes. Tak-
ing taxing and spending
together, it is clear that gov-
ernment could be financed
by quite regressive taxes and
stilt have a progressive
impact overall.
It's worth noting, in this
context, that the social
democracies of Europe,
with their heavy reliance
on the value-added tax-
Few liberals
question the
importance of
fair, progressive
taxes. But maybe
they should.
receive from the govern-
ment is not available to
them in the market. "When
you have a public sector,
you're buying stuff that peo-
ple may not have access to
at all otherwise," says Saw-
icky. So the cost to the gov-
ernment of providing a ser-
vice may underestimate by a
wide margin its benefit to
the recipient.
An obvious example is
public space. New York
City spends about $300
million annually on its
essentially a sales tax-have
tax systems that are less progressive than those of
the U.S. Yet few would deny that, on balance,
government policy is much more favorable to
workers and the poor than it is here. There may
be European workers who would trade guaran-
teed health care, high-quality day care centers,
paid family and medical leave, and 35-hour work
weeks for a slighdy fatter paycheck, but there
can't be many.
Despite all the attention to who pays the taxes,
there's litcle evidence that America's tax system has
much effect on the distribution of income-the
difference between those at the top and those at
the bottom. According to research by the Eco-
nomic Policy Institute, which gathers extensive
data on income disttibution, "widening inequality
and falling standards of living ... are, for the most
part, independent of any changes in the tax struc-
ture made during the 1980s and 1990s." In fact,
almost none of the large shifts in income distribu-
tion since World War II-fust diminishing, and
then since the rnid-1970s, increasing inequality-
can be attributed to changes in the tax system.
MARCH 2003
parks-$40 for each New
Yorker. But clearly, the value to parks users--
especially those without access to private athletic
facilities or frequent trips to the countryside-is
considerably greater than their own personal
share of the cost.
In the end, this is perhaps the biggest drawback
to the focus on tax fairness: It is an alternative to
making the positive case for a strong, active public
sector. It assumes that dollar values for taxes and
services can be toted up, and a balance sheet for
each income class drawn. But such an accounting
overlooks the existence of important social goods
for which there is no price tag-and that those are
precisely the goods government should provide.
Or as Sawicky puts it, "The question should
be, 'What are the things that government
should do, because no one else can?'"
J W Mason is a Ph.D. candidate in economics at
the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and the
Policy Coordinator for the Working Families
Party. The views expressed in this article are
strictly his own.
INTELLIGENCE
THE BIG IDEA
NEW REPORTS
You wouldn't know it from walking around
Greenpoint, but even the most recent New York
immigrants are Quickly learning English. More
than two-thirds say they speak English well or
even better, while fewer than 10 percent say
they don't speak it at all. This site, from an
immigration think tank, is the best place for
regular, localized releases of facts about the
31 million Americans born abroad.
Migration Information Source
Migration Policy Institute:
www.migrationpoliey.orgor 202-266-1940
Make a list of businesses that treat their
employees like crap, and temp agencies top the
list-but not if you work for FirstSource
staffing, started in 1999 by the Fifth Avenue
Committee and profiled in this study of non-
profit business ventures. After a slow start,
FirstSource is successfully finding Park Slope
residents not just temp work, but permanent
jobs: 228 so far, earning an average of $11 an
hour. One interesting key to their improvement:
After initially down playing its social mission for
fear of seeming unprofessional, the company is
now attracting new clients precisely by selling
their community link.
When Good Work Makes Good Sense:
Social Purpose Business Case Studies
Seedeo: www.seedeo.orgor 212-473-0255
Wanna make $125 million? It's easy-just
start up a telemarketing company to raise
funds for non profits in New York State. Accord-
ing to the state Attorney General, telemarketing
campaigns raised $184.7 million in 2001, but
passed just 31.9 percent, or $58.9 million, on
to charities. One firm raised $4.7 million for the
National Association of Police Athletic Leagues,
but gave them only $154,000; another gave
only $310,000 of the $4.1 million it raised for
Christian Advocates Serving Evangelism. Some
non profits are thankfully sawier: WNYC, NYU
and MADD all kept more than 60 percent of the
money raised on their behalf.
Pennies for Charity - 2002
New York State Attomey General:
www.oag.state.ny.usor 212-416-8000
29
INTELLIGENCE
CITY LIT
Through the Mill
How Bronx turf politics killed an environmentally benign
recycling plant
By Keith Kloor
Bronx Ecology: Blueprint
for a New Environmentalism
By Allen Hershkowitz
Island Press, 281 pages, $25
lilting at Mills: Green Dreams,
Dirty Dealings, and the Corporate Squeeze
By lis Harris
Houghton Mifflin Company, 241 pages, $25
WHO EVER SAID that only the winners write his-
tory? Here we have rwo books about a Bronx
paper mill that never even got built. One is by
an environmentalist who dreamed up the idea
and very nearly made it happen; the other is by
a journalist who chronicles its collapse. Neither
book is likely to make it to the big screen, but
if they did, imagine Gangs of New York meets
The Sopranos-minus the stabbings and
whackings, but with plenty of backs tabbing,
double-dealing, blackmailing, turf wars and
general sabotage.
In Bronx Ecology: Blueprint for a New Envi-
ronmentalism, Allen Hershkowitz, a senior sci-
entist for the Natural Resources Defense Coun-
cil (NRDC) and a leading expert on recycling
and solid waste issues, offers his recipe for sus-
tainable development. Never mind that it's
drawn from a failed venture: To him, a truly
sustainable planet will only be achieved when
environmentalists get wise and learn how to run
businesses and factories that meet both profit
"Superb ... "-Edward 1. Koch
SOUTH BRONX RISING
The rise, jall, and resurrection oj an American city
Jill Jonnes
With new photographs by Camilo Jose Vergara
In 1986 Jill Jonnes first chronicled a great urban disaster - the
death of the South Bronx from crime, poverty, drugs, and greed.
Today the Bronx is on the way back, and Jonnes brings a classic
story up to date with a new chapter and photographs.
"The definitive accooot ... Jill Jonnes tells us how the epidemic was con-
tained and the Bronx was in large measure rebuilt."-Nathan Glazer
"Jonnes is the chronicler par excellence of the South Bronx ... [and] of
the gripping stories of the people who have helped bring it back."
-Alexander von Hoffman, Harvard University
30
At bookstores.
Fordham University Press
www.fordhampress.com 800-247-6553
BRONX ECOLOGY
BLUEPRINT FOR A
NEW ENVIRONMENTALISM
Allen Hershkowitz
Foreword and Original Designs by
Maya Lin
margins and stringent anti-pollution standards.
In the early 1990s, he set out to show that you
could do both by developing an "environmen-
tally benign paper mill" in the South Bronx.
While most of his book is all about what went
wrong, there are sparkling parts where Her-
shkowitz delineates a clear-eyed, even enlight-
476 pages, illustrated
$45 cloth $25 paper
CITY LIMITS
/
ened vision for environmenralism's future.
The Brooklyn-born, self-described "eco-real-
ist" fervently believed that an urban-cenrered
recycled paper mill would yield both environ-
menral and economic benefits. Using advanced
technology, the energy-efficienr and environ-
menrally designed facility would transform the
12,600 tons of daily paper waste generated
mostly by the city's law firms, securities and
publishing industries into newsprint. By build-
ing the mill on a brownfield, the project would
both clean up a polluted site and bring much-
needed jobs to the South Bronx. Ultimately,
Hershkowitz wanred to develop a model
demonstrating how paper mills could become
"helpful stewards of life on Earth."
Of course, back in the real world, everyone
just wanted a piece of the action. Over eight tor-
turous years, financiers, paper companies and
construction firms carne and wenr. In 2000, the
project finally fell through, dying the death of a
thousand cuts, NRDC staffers believed. Others
in the business community suggested that it fell
victim to "deal fatigue" and to Hershkowitz's
lack of business savvy.
In the end, Hershkowitz believes he was
foiled by "social obstacles," imposed by several
unsavory community groups, unions, and "self-
inrerested developmenr hustlers who pass [edl
themselves off as community spirited activists"-
most notably Banana Kelly, the South Bronx
community developmenr corporation that he
empowered as the sole owner of the mill.
In Bronx Ecology, Hershkowitz casts himself
as the naive do-gooder, a business neophyte and
social progressive with "ideologically pure"
inrenrions. To a large degree, his account of
MARCH 2003
events jives with Lis Harris' Tilting at Mills:
Green Dreams, Dirty Dealingr, and the Corporate
Squeeze. But if you want the uncensored version,
read Harris' chronicle, which is based on an arti-
cle she wrote for The New Yorker a few years ago.
Harris gives a much fuller explanation of the
opposition that the project faced from a small
but vocal group of community activists, who
argued that the mill's siring at the old Harlem
River rail yard would have added to the South
Bronx's already terrible pollution problems, vis-
a-vis increased truck traffic. For example, Har-
ris recounts how one NRDC staffer-Vernice
Miller-flabbergasted Hershkowitz by attack-
ing the project in public meetings as a disaster
in the making. Yet Miller is conspicuously
absenr from Hershkowitz's Bronx Ecology.
Miller, who is a cofounder of the West
Harlem Environmenral Action Group (and has
since left NRDC), charged that the mill's truck
traffic would conrribute to the community's
astronomical asthma rates, "even though she
was aware," writes Harris, "that scienrific data
about the project contradicted her represenra-
tion." Harris ultimately concludes that Miller
and other mill opponenrs twisted facts to
advance their own political agendas and stand-
ing in the community.
IN MARTIN SCORSESE'S Gangs Of New York,
there's a scene when a fire breaks out in the Five
Poinrs neighborhood and trucks from differenr
fire stations converge. Instead of fighting the
flames, however, the fire brigades fight with
each other. So it was with the various commu-
nity groups and politicians who, wanting to
prevenr each other from benefiting from the
project, opposed or obstructed it.
In Harris' book, we see Hershkowitz as
blindsided by the Bronx's "byzantine turf poli-
tics," with its dueling egos and parochial inrer-
ests. For example, he couldn't understand why
former Bronx Borough Presidenr Fernando Fer-
rer suddenly gOt cold ro the project after learn-
ing that the mill's sole owner would be Banana
Kelly. "It was clear that Ferrer felt that his tradi-
tional role as arbiter of political spoils was being
violated," explains Harris.
Then there were the attempted shakedowns
by unsavory Bronx community activists and
politicians. Even before a site was chosen for the
mill, one leading member of the South Bronx
Clean Air Coalition asked him outright for
$70,000 to "rake care of your problems" with the
coalition.
Hershkowitz didn't understand what was
happening. "But we haven't even chosen a
site," he said. "Why would we have problems?"
INTELLIGENCE
CITY LIT
NOW READ THIS
Beyond the Edge:
New York's New Watel1ront
By Raymond W. Gastil
Princeton Architectural Press, $30
This book's real wonder is its cover: a slick col-
lage that unfolds to reveal a huge map of the
five boroughs, with color photos of notable
waterfront visions, from the shelved Guggen-
heim to Fresh Kills Park. Inside is an enlighten-
ing illustrated overview of the past century of
New York's waterfront transformation-from one
dominated by docks, piers and warehouses to a
more diverse public space embracing parks and
housing-plus a review of how New York can
learn from the riverside successes of other major
cities, from London to Bilbao.
Detained: Immigration laws and the
Expanding tN.S. Jail Complex
By Michael Welch
Temple University Press, $18.95
This timely and careful study looks at the 1996
immigration laws, which gave the INS sweeping
powers to detain and deport foreign nationals-
regardless of their residency status-for any pre-
vious criminal conviction. Since then, the number
of immigrants in jail has more than tripled, to
20,OOO-and that was before September 11. The
book's best parts are its sad but ludicrous anec-
dotes of the INS' abusive practices, like jailing one
Dominican man for six months for a 24-year-old
consensual sex conviction. When he was 19, he
had sex with his 15-year-old girlfriend.
Harlem: Between Heaven and Hell
By Monique M. Taylor
University of Minnesota Press, $18.95
As well-heeled newcomers moved to Harlem over
the past decade, housing prices went up
sharply--classic gentrification. But it's largely
middle-class African-American families who have
moved in. Sociologist Taylor seeks to understand
what motivates those families, and the value of
her book is their extensive and revealing Quotes.
Utterly lacking, however, is even the vaguest effort
to explore the role that public policy played-
there's plenty of talk here about symbolic identi-
ties, but not even a mention of HPD or 203(k).
31
INTELLIGENCE
CITY LIT
"Well, you're going to have problems with
the coalition on siting the mill," replied the
woman (who is not named in either book).
Months later, she became a vocal opponent of
the mill, claiming that it was going to kill babies
and be a violation of the Universal Declaration
of Human Rights and the United Nations Con-
vention on the Elimination of Genocide.
Despite these early snags, the $260 million
project was off the ground by 1994, a joint ven-
ture of Banana Kelly and a Swedish paper com-
pany. (The price tag ultimately ballooned to
above $400 million.) But Banana Kelly's erratic
and irresponsible behavior was a constant source
of trouble. They were sloppy with paperwork,
frequently failed to return phone calls and often
didn't show up at important meetings.
Curiously, the full extent of Hershkowitz's
growing exasperation and anger over these
assorted incidents is more vividly poruayed in
Harris' chronicle, thanks in large part to his
journal entries, which he obviously shared with
her. More importantly, we learn what others are
saying about the project, too (though the shake-
down artists were seemingly never contacted,
and former Banana Kelly executive director
Yolanda Rivera refused to be interviewed for
Harris' book). In Tilting at Mills, we get the
unvarnished dramatic arcs. Hershkowitz comes
off as admirably intentioned, a lime too politi-
cally innocent and uncompromisingly high-
More greens need
to be sitting in
business schools,
not camping out
in trees.
minded, with little concern for the bottom line.
But we also see a perpetually baffled, frenetic
live wire who curses, cries and exults during his
high-stakes roller-coaster ride.
Despite the upbeat subtitle of his book, Her-
shkowitz concludes it is "more difficult, time-
consuming, risky, and costly to develop environ-
mentally superior industrial projects" in urban
brownfields than in rural "greenfields." Indus-
trial investors are naturally risk-averse, he points
out, and the kind of intense political and social
hurdles his ptoject had to overcome makes such
ventures that much harder.
And yet, the man came awfully close to
pulling it off. One of his business partners told
Harris in Tilting at Mills that the project failed
because there was no "real" developer involved.
Hershkowitz is smart enough to grasp this, and
in the most bracing parts of Bronx Ecology he
draws the kind of lessons that his peers would
be wise to consider: True sustainable develop-
ment, he asserts, will succeed only when "envi-
ronmentalists become more effectively
involved with industrial businesses as develop-
ers, financiers and owners. "
In other words, more greens need to be sit-
ting in business schools getting MBAs rather
than camping out in trees facing down bull-
dozers. Environmentalists, he advises, will have
to stop being reflexively anti-business and will-
fully ignorant of its practices. One can only
wonder if Hershkowitz would have gotten his
paper mill built if someone had given him that
advice ten years ago .
Keith Kloor is a senior editor at Audubon
magazine.
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CITY LIMITS
Life Stories
00 books and stories hold the
power to prevent parents from
neglecting their children?
By Steven Gnagni
IN NEW YORK CITY, when a parent is accused of
neglecting or abusing her kids, a bewildering
array of social service organizations, govern-
ment agencies and authorities immediately
swoop in. After a 60-day, quasi-criminal inves-
tigation, an investigator either takes the child
away or, in less severe cases, refers the family to
a preventive services caseworker, whose job is to
prevent further neglect by identifYing and
addressing its possible causes.
Sometimes, the caseworkers who work with
such families can't even get past the door. "Par-
ents have their guard up, and they're going to
MARCH 2003
have trust issues or feel violated in some way,"
says Hank Orenstein, director of the Child
Welfare Project at the Office of the Public
Advocate for the City of New York.
Small wonder, then, that parents don't often
see a difference between a caseworker and a
child welfare investigator. "They think we're
the evil ones, that we're there to take their kids
away," says Tamara Wright, a preventive ser-
vices caseworker at Graham Windham, a social
services agency with centers in the Bronx,
Brooklyn and Manhattan.
At first, Wright handled these visits the tradi-
tional way. She would go see families at their
homes, determine their needs through a series of
questions, and then come up with a service plan.
"I met with families, and we talked about a ser-
vice plan," she explains. "I don't want to say it
was cold, but it was definitely to the point."
But over the last few months, Wright has
changed her routine. Service plans are out.
INTELLIGENCE
MAKING CHANGE
Reading stories is in.
Take David, a lO-year-old whom Wright
works with. David was defecating on himself in
school, and had been doing so since he was 6
years old. Kids were picking on him because he
always smelled bad. The school called the Admin-
istration for Children's Services (ACS) , wruch
then turned the case over to Graham Wrndham.
At first, David's mother was wary, believing
Wright was merely trying to determine if she
was a bad parent and take her child away. But
about six months after Wright started working
with David, she read rum a book called Litter-
bugs Come in Every Size. David was lying on his
bed-he felt more comfortable that way-and
Wright started to read him the story, which
talks about two different kinds of animals: those
who are well-behaved and those who are not
well-behaved. While Wright was reading,
David's mother came over and lay down on the
bed next to him, listening to the story. Wright
finished the book, and afterwards, David's
mother gave rum a kiss.
The book gave everyone a chance to talk. By
asking David's mother to read, Wright discov-
ered that she had problems reading and hadn't
read to him since he was an infant. Later,
David's mother compared David to the litter-
bugs-the badly behaved animals in the book.
David defended himself, saying that sometimes
he was bad, but sometimes he was good. That
was just the beginning of the discussion.
"It gave the mother an opportunity to talk
about therapy, and accept that her son can go
to therapy, and it's not anything scary," Wright
says. "She felt safer, and she felt comfortable
reading and not thinking about bills. It took
her away for a minute."
"ENGAGING BOOKS" STARTED out as a simple
way for caseworkers to promote reading. The
initial books came from the basement of David
Megley, who manages preventive services at
Graham Windham. Almost immediately, Meg-
ley and his caseworkers realized that besides
promoting literacy, books could revolutionize
the way they did casework.
Usually, caseworkers begin a visit by telling a
family the allegation against them, and then
continue with the "risk assessment" that ACS
began. The line of questioning can range from
an impersonal, census-like approach ("How
many children do you have? How long have
you lived here?" and so on) to the very personal
("I know you must be sad about a caseworker
coming in to look at your home. How does that
make you feel?"), depending on the caseworker
and the situation. "We would continue the
33
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CITY LIMITS
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CITY LIMITS
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CITY LIMITS
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INTELLIGENCE
MAKING CHANGE
path, and see the family as riddled with risk,"
says Megley. "That is obviously not a condition
that invites partnership."
Which is where Engaging Books comes in.
By breaking the ice, the books make it easier to
perform two of a preventive services caseworker's
most important tasks: gathering information and
evaluating the family's risk level. Both are crucial
to helping the family or referring the family to
other sources of help, such as literacy programs
or addiction recovery programs. "The worker is
trying to create a relaxed, comfortable atmos-
phere, and is trying to draw [a parent] out,"
explains Edith Holzer, director of public affairs
for the Council of Family and Child Caring
Agencies. "Very often it takes a long time for par-
ents to reveal what problems there might be. It
takes a while to make the connections between
[the parent's] problem and the neglect."
Books can also help caseworkers communi-
cate with kids. Diogenes Diaz, another Graham
Windham caseworker,
can offer preventive services right away.
Bur while Megley believes Engaging Books
can help caseworkers do their job better, he
looks even further. Books, he believes, have the
power to renew and restore the parents'
humanity, and even make them partners in
preventing furure neglect.
Earl Shorris agrees. In 1995, Shorris
founded the Clemente Course in the Human-
ities, which uses the Great Books to teach logic,
poetry, art and moral philosophy to poor peo-
ple. In teaching immigrants, ex-convicts, single
mothers, recovering addicts, homeless people
and a person dying of AIDS, Shorris found
that books and stOries lead people to do what
he calls "reflective thinking," gaining an under-
standing of themselves while connecting to
feelings and emotions in the tales.
"There are mystery, intrigue, life lessons in
story," agrees Megley. "When I take parents on
parent development weekends, I pull out The
Ugly Duckling-the
older version. I see sit- works with two young
girls, one of whom wit-
nessed her father trying
to strangle her mother.
(Their mother man-
aged to escape and call
911 when the younger
sister, who is five, bit
her father's hand.)
After reading them a
book called Merry
Magic Go Round, Diaz
In parenting
classes, David
Megley pulls out
The Ugly Duckling.
ting in front of me par-
ents who've had a
tough time listening to
that stOry-who can
connect to the injury,
the pain, the new life,
finding a new family. I
can see it in their eyes."
To be effective, says
Shorr is, the caseworker
has to lead clients in a
asked the two girls
what part of the book they would like to be in,
and why. (Each girl chose a page with ponies.)
Turning to a page with a picture of a house, Diaz
asked the girls if they liked the house, and how
they felt about their own house. Eventually, this
led to a more general discussion of domestic vio-
lence-and how everyone deserves respect, even
dragons, like the one in another book they read.
At eight years old, the older sister can read on
her own. But she says she likes reading with
Diaz. "He makes me not be lonely reading," she
explains shyly.
ORENSTEIN BELIEVES programs like Engaging
Books could be part of a new approach called
"dual track," in which ACS investigatOrs would
hand lower-risk cases over to preventive ser-
vices workers, somerimes immediately, sparing
the family the trauma of an unnecessary inves-
tigation or getting them the help they need
while the investigation proceeds. In a pilot pro-
ject in Queens, ACS investigators are bringing
preventive services workers with them, so they
discussion of the story
or book "in something close to, if not equal to,
the Socratic method." That, in rum, can lead to
further discussions, and further reflective think-
ing. "The caseworker is looking for understand-
ing from the clients," Shorris explains, "and not
inculcating them with their own ideas about the
siruation. Sophocles believed that knowledge
would come from the people, and he was simply
the midwife."
Ultimately, Megley wants to get the parents
to read to the children, and then to rum
around and engage other people around them.
To encourage that process, he tells his case-
workers to give the books to the families.
"Soon enough, we can say to Mrs. Smith, 'Do
you have any books? We have the Jones family
and she has a three-year-old, and your son is
six,'" he says. Then, he believes, Mrs. Smith
"becomes a giver, a provider, a helper hersel"
Steven Gnagni is managing editor of the High-
bridge Horizon, a community newspaper in the
Southwest Bronx.
CITY LIMITS
Westward,
Whoa!
With viJ1ually no public
discussion, the plan for
Far West Midtown is
going full speed ahead.
By Jonathan Bowles
NEW YORKERS HAVE DEMANDED an open and
democratic debate about the future of lower
Manhattan, questioning assumptions, holding
public officials accountable, and sometimes even
convincing those in charge to change course.
But in a city that is understandably preoc-
cupied with ftlling the void downtown,
another Robert Moses-sized ptoject has flown
under the radar: the redevelopment of the far
West Side of Midtown Manhattan.
In a December speech, Mayor Bloomberg
cited the extension of the No. 7 line and the
expansion of the Jacob Javits Convention Cen-
ter-two major elements of the plan-as "the
single biggest ptojects that we need in the five
botoughs." Yet the plan to develop "Far West
Midtown"-toughly the area west of Eighth
Avenue between 28th and 42nd streets-has
received little attention from the public or the
press. The civic groups that have been playing
such a positive role in lower Manhattan have
remained largely silent on the matter, although
it would cost billions of dollars and reshape an
equally large section of the city. And the project
is going full speed ahead.
First conceived by the Giuliani administra-
tion in the days when the economy was
booming and dot-coms were seen as an engine
of growth, the plan involves rezoning a large
swath of the area to allow for denser office and
residential development. But the project also
would require the city and the MTA-both of
which are strapped for cash and already up to
their necks in debt-to layout billions to
cover such items as a $2 billion extension of
the No. 7 train to 34th Street and 11 th
Avenue, and the construction of a $400 mil-
lion deck over the rail yards. Taxpayers would
also be on the hook for a big chunk of the $1
billion, 86,000-seat Olympic stadium slated
to be built on top of that deck-even if the
MARCH 2003
INTELLIGENCE
NYC INC.
)3 [fI' II: '13' "41 tIC
A project of the Center for an Urban Future
facility's new permanent occupants, the Jets,
agreed to foot $400 million to $500 million
of that bill, as has been suggested.
What little discussion there has been about
the West Side development has focused on the
city's quest to land the 2012 Olympics-and
the stadium and an extended No. 7 line are
indeed central elements of the city's proposal.
But the emotional appeal of holding the
Olympics here has thus far overshadowed the
details of a project that is mainly about creating
another massive office district. According to a
63-page study issued by the City Planning
department in December 2001, the redevelop-
ment of Far West Midtown would result in a
30 to 40 million square feet of new commercial
space over the next 20 years-hotels, retail
space, housing, exhibition and sports facilities,
and, mainly, office buildings.
The first , and most basic, question that
Bloomberg administration officials must
address is this: Does the city really need this much
new office space in west Midtown?
The study that provides the blueprint for
the project cites an anticipated need for 60 mil-
lion square feet of office space in Manhattan
over the next two decades, and concludes that
Far West Midtown "has the ability to accom-
modate a significant share of this ptojected
need." But this study is based on research con-
ducted before 9/11-before the city lost nearly
100,000 jobs, before dozens of companies
dumped several million square feet of sublet
space on the office market, and before security
concerns prompted many large companies to
decentralize their workforce.
Today, it's hard to imagine that the city will
need even a fraction of that amount.
Many are already skeptical of the need for as
much as 11 million square feet of office space
at the World Trade Center site. After all, Man-
hattan's office vacancy rate shot up by 55 per-
cent between the third quarters of 2001 and
2002, to 11.8 percent. Downtown, the vacancy
rate climbed even higher, to 17.2 percent in
October--despite the loss of 13 million square
feet of the area's office stock.
While the office market will certainly
improve when the economy picks up, real estate
experts say it will be years before there's enough
demand to fill all the space now available, much
less any new office towers. The securities indus-
try in the city shrank by 18,000 employees in
the year after 9/11, and some industry analysts
predict even more layoffs this year. Moreover,
the badly damaged dot-com sector is no longer
expected to fuel real estate growth.
Bloomberg's deputy mayor for economic
development, Daniel Doctoroff, says that the
administration's plan for Far West Midtown
already takes all this into account. "We may
now be in a recession, but we're not talking
about a building going up for 10 years," he
says. "We're talking about 1 million square feet
a year on average, over a 30-year period of
time. And you're doing it in a place where you
extend mass transit and put in other invest-
ments, like open space, to make the area more
attractive for investment."
Even so, some still question the assumption
that so much new space will ever be needed on
the far West Side. After all, when companies do
begin searching for expansion space, Far West
Midtown will compete with Jersey City, and
with existing office districts in the five bor-
oughs-including lower Manhattan, down-
town Brooklyn and Long Island City-poten-
tially undermining economic development
goals in those areas.
To make matters worse, large employers like
the Bank of New York and Morgan Stanley
have relocated staff to new backup offices in
Orlando and Baltimore, respectively, while sev-
eral other firms have moved units to New Jer-
sey, Westchester and Connecticut. This trend is
only likely to continue in the years ahead, as
companies attempt to reduce their vulnerabil-
ity to future terrorist threats and federal regula-
tors continue to pressure securities firms to set
up staffed backup offices a safe distance from
Wall Street.
Doctoroff doesn't see this as a problem,
arguing that other sectors, such as business ser-
vices, will help drive demand for new office
3S
INTELLIGENCE
NYC INC.
space. "We've been having a decentralization of
the securities industry for the last 20 years," he
says, "but through the '90s this city added
500,000 jobs."
Can the city afford the proposed infrastructure
investments?
The city's own study anticipates that "costs
for the recommended transportation and infra-
structure improvements would exceed several
billion dollars." That's a hefty price tag for a
city that's in such bad fiscal shape that it has
had to raise taxes, cut services by billions of
dollars, borrow $l.5 billion for operating
expenses, and still faces multibillion-dollar
budget deficits in the years ahead.
The Bloomberg administration believes the
West Side ptojects could be accomplished with-
out any new strain on the city's budget, an asser-
tion they say is backed up by their financial con-
sultants. The city would borrow money from
bondholders to pay for infrastrucrure improve-
ments, and then repay the debt with revenue
&om new development in the area. Special
financing mechanisms, such as a tax increment
fmancing district, would require property own-
ers in the rezoned area to contribute a portion of
the revenues that arise from new development.
The idea isn't so far-fetched, especially in an
area that, according to Doctoroff, "has seen no
increase in [tax] revenues, and actually a
decrease, for a long time."
But there are still some big "ifs." The city
would cover its costs only if enough new devel-
opment occurred, which is by no means guaran-
teed. And even if that did happen, the city
wouldn't be paid back for many years, a troubling
prospect since debt service will soon account for
20 cents on the dollar in the expense budget.
Could the expansion of the Javits Center and other
development on the for west Side take place with-
out a major public infrastructure investment?
It's hard to argue against the expansion of
the Javits Center, which can't currently meet
the demand for its meeting and exhibition
facilities. But that is because it has already suc-
ceeded-despite its location several blocks
away from any subway station. Indeed, the
center's expansion will likely happen anyway,
without any major redevelopment of the area.
The state, which owns the Javits Center,
recently bought the block to the north; the one
remaining obstacle to the center's northward
expansion is an MTA bus depot, which could
presumably be relocated.
Similarly, although there's no question that
new subway service would spur new construc-
36
tion, and that rezoning would allow for higher-
density development, some growth would
occur on the far West Side even without these
changes. The city's December 2001 study pro-
jects that, if just le& as is, 7 million square feet
of new commercial space would be developed
on the far West Side over the next 20 years.
In fact, considerable new activity is already
occurring on the far West Side. Several new
luxury apartment buildings have gone up
between 8th and 12th avenues, and the Asso-
ciated Press recently inked a deal to follow the
Daily News and DoubleClick to a building
west of lOth Avenue.
The city would cover
its costs only if
enough new
development
occurred, which is
by no means
guaranteed. Even if
that did happen, the
city wouldn't be paid
back for years.
Would the project disrupt the thriving arts district
in northwest Chelsea?
Bloomberg administration officials have
called the far West Side a "wasteland," citing
statistics suggesting that relatively few people
live and work in the area. But there are some
worthwhile endeavors that could be displaced
as a result of the city's redevelopment plan-
particularly the flourishing arts diStrict in the
West 20s between lOth and 12th avenues.
Though city planners have suggested creat-
ing a two-block buffer zone-from 28th to
30th streets-between the Far West Midtown
development and the Chelsea arts and light
manufacturing district, there's a good chance
that property values will rise in the surround-
ing blocks and encourage developers to assem-
ble building sites outside of the newly rezoned
area. "It's definitely going to happen," says one
planning expert. "If you create a huge com-
mercial corridor along the rail yards, you're
going to get a secondary displacement effect."
Would extending the No. 7 train jeopardize other
pressing transit infrastructure projects?
Extending the No. 7 train to the far West
Side would undoubtedly spur new development
there, but is that enough to put it at the top of
the transit wish list, ahead of such projects as the
creation of a Second Avenue subway, new com-
muter rail links to lower Manhattan, or a one-
seat ride to JFK and laGuardia Airports?
Officials maintain that extending No. 7 line
would not prevent the MTA from undertaking
other major transit initiatives, especially if the
city successfully used tax increment financing
to recoup construction costs. But given the
cost, time and political li&ing involved in
accomplishing any major transportation infra-
structure project, it's hard to believe that New
York will be able to conduct two large-scale
transit projects simultaneously.

WHILE THE FAR WEST Midtown plan isn't yet a fait
accompli, officials are angling to make it a done
deal before 2005, when the International
Olympic Committee chooses which city will
host the 2012 games. The city recently hired two
fmancial consulting firms to analyze the eco-
nomics of the plan, and in September the MTA
brought on a consultant to do an environmental
impact study of the subway extension and zoning
changes. The administration's goal is for the No.
7 train extension to be under construction by the
spring of 2005, according to Doctoroff. "We're
moving very quickly, " he says. Doctoroff adds
that the plan has significantly advanced since the
December 2001 study. Those changes had not
been made public at press time.
The redevelopment of the far West Side,
which would likely have an even greater impact
on the city's budget and skyline than what's
being planned in lower Manhattan, is far too
big a project to go forward with so little public
debate. It's time for the mayor, the media and
all New Yorkers to take a cue from the remark-
ably open planning process downtown and
start grappling with the details of the Far West
Midtown plan .
Jonathan Bowles is research director of the Center
for an Urban Future.
CITY LIMITS
4th Annual
READY. WORK. GROW.
National Workforce Conference:
Helping People Overcome Barriers and Build Careers
March 19-21, 2003
Baltimore Marriott Waterfront I Baltimore, Maryland
" THE ENTERPRISE FOUNDATION
MARCH 2003
JOIN OVER 750 WORKFORCE
PROFESSIONALS from across
the nation as we work to help
people overcome barriers and
build careers!
WORKSHOP TOPICS
One-day pre-conference allowing
attendees to focus in-depth on
six key workforce topics:
Working with ex-offenders
Workforce public policy
Building business customers
Boosting job retention
Revolutionizing how you train
your participants
Managing for outcomes
Two-day main conference featuring
30 workshops spread across the
following five tracks:
Workforce Keys
Housing and Employment
Innovative Workforce Models
Serving Special Populations
Working with the System
KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
Hear keynote speakers Mark Greenberg
from the Center for Law and Social
Policy and nationally acclaimed author,
trainer and speaker Jim Smith, Jr.
J.P. MORGAN CHASE AWARDS
The winners of the J.P. Morgan Chase
Awards for Excellence in Workforce
Development will be announced during a
special plenary session. Each of the three
winners will receive an unrestricted
grant of $15,000. Find out what made
them winners!
REGISTER BY FEBRUARY 7
AND SAVE $100!
REGISTER ON-LINE
www.enterprisefoundation.org
QUESTIONS?
Call 410.772.2760 or email us at
workforceconf@enterprisefoundation.org
37
38
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continu.d from pag' 21
advocates believe, will finally push utilities to
sign long-term contracts with wind farmers-
who will then be able to attract low-cost
financing to erect more windmills.
Larger generators may decide to get in on
the action, too. "Anything that encourages a
clean environment, we support," says Ed
Yutkowirz, a spokesperson for Keyspan, which
has helped install three fuel cells in the city. "As
a proponent of disuibuted generation, we may
want to get involved with some of the tech-
nologies ourselves. There's been talk in the com-
pany for years about wind power. This may give
some impetus to doing something about it."
M
ost observers agree that the renew-
able portfolio standard will have a
sizeable impact on the wind indus-
try, but the outlook is less clear for distributed
technologies. Solar panels and fuel cells tend to
be bought by the end-user of the electricity, not
by a utility. And end-users still encounter a
number of roadblocks to generating their own
electricity. For one thing, commercial and
industrial users can't recoup any of their costs
by selling excess power back to the utility; net
metering is limited to residential solar arrays of
10 kilowans or less.
Renewable conuactors in New York City
also cite onerous fees and regulations for con-
nection to the utility grid. ''The people in
charge of interconnection at Con Ed are more
used to independent power producers-small
power plants connecting to the grid," says Tom
Leyden, vice-president of California-based
PowerLight, which installed the Greenpoint
Manufacturing and Design Center system. "So
all the technical rules are written around power
plants, and there's this slew of regulations and
hoops we have to jump through in order to get
permission to connect."
Utilities, for instance, can require numerous
studies and modifications to a system before
they'll allow interconnection. "They don't want
a renewable-energy system purring power out
on the grid at the same time that linemen are
working on restoring service," explains Fred
Zalcman, director of the Pace University Ener-
gy Project. "It's a valid concern, but there's a
cost issue, too. What level of protection is ade-
quate? The installers have asserted, with some
validity, that Con Ed has gone overboard in
terms of what it's requiring."
Another complaint regards standby
MARCH 2003
charges, which compensate a utility for stand-
ing ready to provide power if the renewable
source doesn't generate enough. But Leyden
maintains, "That's completely ridiculous in
the case of PV;" which tends to generate power
during peak demand times, when the utility
most needs it, and only draw power from the
system in the off hours-at night.
The Public Service Commission is currently
considering a new rate suucture for independent
generators in New York City and Westchester
County, RA-14, which would raise the standby
rate and subject small systems to the charge for
the first time. Submitted by Con Edison last June,
the proposal has generated fierce opposition from
manufacturers and users of disuibuted generation
(both renewable and not), including hospitals,
apartment houses, and manufacturing facilities.
"The concern is that what will come out of this
process will be a standby charge that really
desuoys the economics of these types of systems,"
says Zalcman. He maintains that the costs to util-
ities don't merit a rate hike: "It's like your local fire
department. They have to be prepared to put out
a fire in any house in the community, but they
don't need a fire engine for evety household."
Ironically, if a price-structure change is
approved by one state agency, it could kill some
of the showcase projects funded by another.
Starwood Hotels and Resorts, for instance,
received a $920,000 grant from NYSERDA to
install a 250-kilowan fuel cell at its Sheraton
Towers, in Manhattan. "Con Ed has been saying
they need more supply in Manhattan, and sev-
eral companies, like Starwood, answered the call.
Many of these projeCts were made possible by
grants from NYSERDA, " wrote Starwood
spokesperson Mark Ricci in an email to City
Limits. But then, he added, "ConEd submitted
a special stand-by rate to the PSC that could
make all generation projects economically
unfeasible. We thought they needed more gen-
eration????" The Sheraton project has effectively
ground to a halt, because by the time the rate
hike is decided, the state grant will have expired.
The NRDC's Gupta attributes the utilities'
interest in such regulations to perverse incen-
tives. "Utilities have a huge incentive to
increase sales. If people generate their own elec-
tricity, that reduces their revenues and profits,"
he contends. "So they go out of their way to
make it harder for people to do this, by having
standby charges and interconnection rules. "
He suggests changing the rate structures for
utilities, so the big companies don't see renew-
able generation as a threat. "Con Ed's costs are
pretty much fixed," Gupta notes. "They have
the infrasuucture, and the wires into every-
body's homes and offices. Their revenue
shouldn't change based on how much they put
through their system."
In the end, however, the biggest barrier to
renewables remains the cost for consumers. Tra-
ditional hydroelecuicity is competitive with fos-
sil fuels, and wind and biomass are gening there,
but solar and fuel cells still have a ways to go. "If
things make economic or financial sense, you see
the private sector investing in them, " explains
Ken Stern, a parmer at KPMG who specializes
in the chemical and energy industries. "Since we
don't see that happening with renewable energy,
you have to conclude that the economic sensi-
bility is not there. Frankly, that's because of low
energy prices." With elecuicity from conven-
tional sources selling for 12 to 14 cents a kilo-
watt-hour in the city, it's hard to justifY spending
$10,000 a kilowatt up front for solar panels, or
$4,000 to $6,000 a kilowan for a fuel cell.
"I don't particularly care where my electric-
ity comes from, " says Jerry Taylor, director of
natural resources for the libertarian Cato Insti-
tute, "as long as it comes from the cheapest
available source. And I think most people feel
the same way. In fact, when consumers are
given the option of specifically signing on for
green power, we've found that if it's more than
a couple of percentage points more costly than
conventional energy, they won't buy it-
despite what the polls say."
A lot of advocates for green power say that
government initiatives like Pataki's are essential
to help level the playing field. "Many techno-
logical changes, particularly those that are
infrastructural in nature, couldn't occur with-
out government support," says Ira Rubenstein,
who heads the Environmental Business Associ-
ation of New York State (and sits on the board
of City Limits' parent organization). "People
forget that the subways in New York City were
built as private-initiative systems. They were
taken over by government because the private
operation could not make them operate. There
was much more of a public purpose than sim-
ple profit and loss could deal with. "
s
o what is the public purpose of renewable
energy? In New York City, it's a question
particularly worth asking. Power-plant
emissions contribute to levels of air toxins in
the city that are 100 to 420 times higher than
the Environmental Protection Agency's "safe"
level, according to an NRDC analysis. Anoth-
er recent study linked air pollution in New
York City to low birth weight and small skull
size in African-American babies. The consult-
ing firm Abt Associates attributes 1,870 city
deaths a year to power-plant emissions.
Then there's the specter of global warming:
New York City, sitting at sea level and surround-
ed by water, is at cenain risk of flooding and ero-
sion. As Chicago has already learned, the heat
alone could be devastating. "Climate change has
a disproportionate impact on low-income com-
munities and on developing countries," points
39
out Peggy Shepard, director of West Harlem
Environmental Action. "More vulnerable people
will be hit-people who have less access to cool-
er apartments, less access to air conditioning."
Of course, the city can conuibute only so
much to the international effort to curb global
warming. But when it comes to a more imme-
diate predicament, New York has the capacity to
help itself. Each summer, hundreds of thousands
of air conditioners run at the same time-not to
mention computers, copiers, refrigerators and
light bulbs. The grid strains under the load. In
the summer of 2001, when e1ecuicity demand
skyrocketed and state officials feared a blackout,
the New York Power Authority set up 10 emer-
gency natural gas-fired plants in New York City,
for a total of 440 new megawatts of power.
That's only a fraction of the 10,587
megawatts the city was using, but it was enough
to avert danger. Renewable advocates argue that
there's no reason that solar panels can't fill the
gap during future summers. Richard Perez, a
research professor at the University at Albany,
has shown that the peak demand in New York
City coincides almost perfectly with peak condi-
tions for solar-energy production. "In all the
cases I've looked at," he says, "where the grid was
either near failure or actually failed, the photo-
voltaic output was within 90 percent of ideal. "
He estimates that in order to avoid future
blackouts, the city would need to get 5 to 1 0
percent of its total energy from photOvoltaic
sources, at least 500 megawatts. Even though
New York's current solar capacity is less than 1
megawatt, Perez sees no technical problems in
achieving that goal. "If you work out the num-
bers, you find that there is plenty of solar
resource on the New York real estate," he says.
"Using all the available space-Iow-suucture
roofs, residential roofs, maybe parking lots in the
future-I'd say we could produce 20 to 30 per-
cent of what we consume right now. "
At the current average price of $10 a watt,
however, 2,000 megawatts of photovoltaic ener-
gy would cost $20 uillion to install. On the
other hand, 500 megawatts could be attainable
within five years, says Gupta, in "an aggressive
program. " In fact, the city's in good shape to tty
it: According to the National Renewable Ener-
gy Laboratory, because of the high cost of con-
ventional electricity, the state incentives avail-
able (NYSERDA made $15 million in grants
for renewables last year), and the amount of
sunshine, New York is one of the five best states
in the countty in which to invest in solar power.
Fuel cells may have a role to playas well. Yan
Kishinevsky, a program manager with the New
York Power Authority, says, "When the fuel is
free, fuel cell electticity is competitive with grid
electticity in New York City. " His agency is fund-
ing a $13 million project to install eight 200-
kilowatt fuel cells at four city wastewater-ueat-
ment plants. The plants typically flare off some
of the gas they produce-a mix of methane and
carbon dioxide, both greenhouse gases. Now the
gas will be used to power the fuel cells instead.
The system is already working successfully at a
wastewater plant in Yonkers, and the New York
City fuel cells should be in place by June.
S
ome observers remain skeptical that New
Yorkers, or any Americans, will make much
of a change. "There is tremendous inertia,"
says Ken Stern. "This is an economy and a
nation that has been built on the notion of cheap
energy, and energy has uaditionally meant fossil
fuel energy." That's certainly true in New York.
Con Edison, which supplies the lion's share of
city customers-some 2.4 million--does not
release figures on its fuel mix. However, the latest
data available from the Public Service Commis-
sion, for 2001, show that 41 percent of Con Ed's
elecuicity comes from natural gas, 31 percent
from nuclear reactions, 16 percent from coal,
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40
and 6 percent from oil. Hydroelecttic projects
(mostly large dams) supply 4 percent, and bio-
mass and wind both register "less than 1 per-
cent." Solar is listed too, at 0 percent.
But progress is being made. In January, the
top brass of Verdant Power gather on Roosevelt
Island for a look at their new water turbine,
which can work in either a river or a tidal area
like the East River. Chairman Ron Smith chats
with his two-man project team while president
Trey Taylor goes to buy a bottle of Wesson oil-
the group's biodegradable substitute for
hydraulic fluid. Their project supervisor and
manager motor out to a small barge moored near
the Ravenswood power plant, where they join a
pair of engineers. Clad in red-orange insulated
jumpsuits and white hard hats, the engineers
monitor the speed of the tide, the pressure on the
turbine, the mechanical power being generated,
and numerous other variables. When the tide
slows on its way out to sea, gathering itself to
flow back north, the men bring the turbine up
for the day. As the winch turns, a silver fin
emerges from the water. Gradually, a brown and
black cylinder appears, with a bright red
"nacelle," or nose cone, on each end. It looks like
an ancient bomber being hauled out of the water.
Ten feet in diameter, the turbine can pro-
duce 25 to 40 kilowatts of electricity. (The
exact point in that range is one of the things to
be determined in these tests.) Building and
testing this turbine, the first of its kind in the
world, is costing $1.5 million. The next step
will be to evaluate a field of six turbines of dif-
ferent design. The plans eventually call for a
field of 500 16-foot turbines, producing
enough electricity to power the nearby United
Nations building. The entire project bears a
price tag of $20 million.
For the time being, though, Verdant Power
is comfortably small-scale. Back on Roosevelt
Island, the team is thawing out their fingers
and toes when a guy walks up in a union wind-
breaker and no socks, inquiring as to what their
business might be. Turns out he works in the
Roosevelt Island steam plant on the other side
of the road, and he is suspicious of strangers
coming to and fro in small motorboats. Taylor
jumps into action, smoothly explaining that
they are working with "NYSERDA and the
governor's office" and "making history here."
As the conventional-power-plant worker real-
izes what Taylor is talking about, he grows
interested. "No kidding!" he exclaims. "The
current of the river turns the blades? And it's
enough to make electricity?"
Taylor affirms it, and the man nods. "Yeah!"
he says proudly. "We got the strongest current
in the world, right here!"
Mary-Powel Thomas is a former features editor of
the environmental magazine Audubon.
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41
continued from page 27
else in a child's life can stay the same, she hopes
therapy, at least, can provide that constant.
The physical boundaries enclosing Red
Hook-water on three sides, and the Brook-
lyn-Queens Expressway cutting overhead along
the other---can seem impenetrable. Manhattan
pulses in clear view across the river, but the ties
of family and poverty have held teenagers with-
in this neighborhood for generations. Along
the river, factories and empty lots blot out the
shore. In winter, the dim streets stay nearly
empty all day. The quiet can feel by rums calm
and discomfiting.
Millie Henriquez-McArdle, of the South
Brooklyn Community High School on
Conover Street, grew up here and has been
working with young people in Red Hook for
long enough to sense its currents. The peak of
Red Hook's violence has passed, but teens in
the neighborhood have not forgotten years of
dropping to the floor at the sound of gunshots.
Drug dealing, domestic violence and deep
poverty are still rampant in the projects.
The Community High School serves trou-
bled youth-it's a "second chance" school for
kids who've dropped out elsewhere-and
teachers there believe that anxiety and depres-
sion are at the root of many students' difficul-
ties in school. At one point, three students were
suffering from alopecia, a condition in which
high levels of stress cause bald patches on the
body. "That's pretty serious," Henriquez-
McArdle says. "All the things happening in
their lives they have no control over. The finan-
cial situation in the home, being raised by
themselves or grandparents, their parents are
HIV-positive or have substance- or alcohol-
abuse problems-you name it, these kids are
out there dealing with it. They're young and
they do not have the experience, insight or the
real understanding that it's not their fault. "
Unfortunately, there's nowhere good for
seriously distressed teens to get help. The
school shares the same building with the pre-
ventive services program of Good Shepherd, a
foster care agency, but older youth, ages 16 to
20, are not eligible for preventive services.
42
There are no mental health clinics in Red
Hook; places nearby have long waiting lists.
And Henriquez-McArdle does not believe
adult-oriented community clinics are appropri-
ate for teens, anyway. "We have sent kids to
clinics and a lot of times kids come back and
say, 'I'll sit there and they ask me a question,
they don't say anything, but want me to talk.'
It's very hard for them," Henriquez-McArdle
says. "They walk out of there and they've
stirred up a lot of stuff but they're not feeling
empowered in any way. "
The Community High School uses a very
different approach. School counselors talk to
young people about what's causing their anxi-
ety or depression. They also help the teens to
identify their own strengths. Then they talk
about how teens can use their strengths to take
control of their own lives. The strategy helps
them cope with things they can't change, like a
parent's illness or violence in the streets, and to
find ways to change the things they can. This
kind of counseling cuts down on the despair
and defeatism that turn so many kids toward
using drugs, getting involved with gangs, or
just hanging out at home watching television,
avoiding reality.
Over the last five years, poor teenagers in
Red Hook have had many new reasons to be
stressed. Mothers leaving welfare for work
often rely on their older children to take on the
responsibilities of caring for younger kids. One
study from the poverty policy research group
MDRC found that welfare reform has
improved life for working moms and their
young children, but made life tougher on older
youth. School performance among teens suf-
fers, and those with younger siblings have the
most problematic outcomes, because they typ-
ically have more caretaking responsibilities and
less parental supervision than teens whose par-
ents were on welfare but not working. Having
a parent in a work program increased the rates
of suspensions, expulsions and dropping out of
school among teens with younger siblings.
As reform efforts have shown, many women
on the rolls-as many as 50 percent in some
srudies-were suffering from depression, often
stemming from untreated traumas like sexual
abuse and domestic violence. When parents are
depressed, the effect on children and teens can
be disastrous. Children of depressed mothers
are much more likely to have trouble function-
ing socially and academically. These kids tend
to be either socially withdrawn and passive, or
to be aggressive and act out, often switching
between extremes because they can't keep their
emotions under control.
Susan McDonald is a guidance counselor at
P.S. 15 in Red Hook. She oversees more than
400 kids. "We have a lot of students who are
dealing with incredible sadness and shyness, or
they're acting out and running out of class, " she
says. The school cannot afford to hire more
guidance counselors. "So 'guidance' is the oper-
ative word-you have to guide them to ser-
vices, to people who have the time and training
to figure out what's causing so much anxiety. "
Luz Hernandez brought her daughter,
Amanda, to therapy at Good Shepherd because
she was desperate. In 5th grade at the time,
Amanda was "a little terror. " It seemed like
Amanda had been born angry. She fought with
other kids, got suspended from school, refused
to listen. Luz has raised eight kids-including
two of her brothers after her mother died when
Luz was 22, and the children of friends and
cousins and neighbors who could not care for
their own. One afternoon Amanda's mother,
who was addicted to drugs, brought II-month-
old Amanda to Luz' Laundromat in Red Hook.
"Can you watch Amanda?" her mother asked.
Luz, who is 62 but looks to be in her forties, is
a small, strong Puerto Rican woman with short
black hair and tough demeanor. "Three hours,"
Luz told her, pointing her finger sharply.
"Three hours," Amanda's mother replied, but
Amanda is now 18 and has been with Luz ever
smce.
Luz is fiercely protective of all the children
she has cared for. But Luz did not feel she had
the strength to keep fighting the battles Aman-
da waged against her and everyone else each
day. So when a teacher at P.S. 15 suggested that
Luz go to family counseling, she decided to go.
She ran into problems right away. First Luz
tried Neighborhood Counseling in downtown
Brooklyn, but she felt the therapist acted per-
functoty and unenthusiastic. Luz did not trust
talking to someone who saw her only as one case
in a long line. Next she tried Hearrshare. The
therapist she met there seemed young and
unsure ofhersel Luz leaned forward and asked.
''Are you new at this?" "Yes, I just started," the
woman told her. "No offense, but I want some-
body who's been already doing this a long time,"
Luz replied. Then Luz tried Good Shepherd and
spoke to a man named Rob. He seemed caring
and thoughrful from the start. "It's very hard for
me to trust and open up." says Luz. "but I told
Rob. 'I need someone like you.'''
In part it felt easier to trust Rob because he
came recommended. Good Shepherd has built
a reputation in Red Hook for supporting fam-
ilies in ways that go far beyond the reach of
traditional therapy. Counselors act as advocates
for the families they treat. They visit the chil-
dren's schools and talk with their teachers and
guidance counselors. Rob helped Luz find a
new school for her son who has a learning dis-
ability. tracked down a lawyer for her once and
CITY LIMITS
visited her family at home. That's important to
Luz. She works rwo jobs, cooking dinner
berween her shifts. "These people give the kids
the attention we can't," she says.
Funded by ACS preventive services funds
and private grants, Good Shepherd has a
record that makes fragile families feel safe
coming forward with their troubles: about 99
percent of the 423 children treated in 2000
remained with their families. Good Shepherd's
aggressive private fundraising also enables the
agency to pay its social workers relatively high
salaries. Their high-quality work has changed
the shape of preventive services here. Nearly all
of the 90 families receiving therapy at any
given time have chosen to ask for help. That's
unusual. It happens because of the program's
close ties to families through the local elemen-
tary school, P.S. 15, where a Good Shepherd-
run after-school Beacon program provides
activities for kids and teens, too. Good Shep-
herd social workers on-site at the Beacon fun-
nel families to the counseling program just
three blocks away.
At first, Luz and Amanda went together. For
about nine months, Amanda refused to say a
word. "Do you want to say anything?" Rob
would ask her. She'd sit with her arms folded
across her chest and shake her head no. But Luz
talked. She spoke about how much it scared her
to feel so angty with Amanda that she'd hit her
or yell at her or tell her harsh truths. She'd say to
Amanda, "I don't see nothing good for you. You
gotta calm down that terror, or life won't give
you nothing." She told Rob that she did not
want to hurt Amanda, but she did not know
how to get through to her in any other way.
Luz began to recognize that she had her
own troubles, too. Luz had been raised hard by
her mother and older brothers. She believed it
was a sign of weakness to display emotion. But
one day Luz told Rob, "I've got so many things
inside me. I've had a lot of issues myself since I
was a little girl. I've been aftaid to bring them
out, but I don't want to take it out on the chil-
dren. I don't want to hit her." Then Luz began
to cry. "You want to talk about it?" Rob asked.
Luz began to tell secrets she'd kept inside for
years. Says Luz, "In my life, he's the only per-
son I've told the truth about my life."
Eventually, Amanda began to open up, and
she began individual counseling, because there
were things she did not want to say in front of
Luz. In therapy, Amanda learned to calm her
temper. She began to improve in school. Most
importantly, she and Luz learned a new way to
speak to each other. Before, Luz says, "it was,
'What the mother says is what you do.'" Luz
had chafed at her mother's authority growing
up-she quit school on the sly, when it became
too much to work nights at a factory and watch
MARCH 2003
her brothers and go to school by day. And she
rebelled against her brother's advice to get a city
job, though if she'd followed it, she could be
close to retirement now.
Still, she knew no other way to raise a child.
"Before, everything 1 had inside of me, I threw
it at my kids," Luz says. Now, things are differ-
ent. "Now, we talk. And if I get angry, I say, ' For-
get it, I'll talk to them later.' My daughter will
say, 'Ma, I think you did this wrong.' And I
think about it, and I come back and apologize."
At a moment when spiraling Medicaid costs
are helping send New York City and State into
multibillion-dollar debt, it's become likely that
mental health services for the poor will receive
not more funding, but brutal blows. The public
has become more aware that people who suffer
traumas can better cope with life if they get help.
Public officials have acknowledged that better
mental health intervention for children and
teens can improve kids' life prospects. None of
that amounts to the political power necessary to
stop legislators from starVing mental health care.
But for teens who depend on publicly fund-
ed programs, mental health services are threads
that help hold the fragile fabric of their world
together. When she was 10, Mayra Sierra trav-
eled to New York from Colombia with a friend
of her mother's. She expected her mother to
follow three months later. But Mayra has been
here for five years and she hasn't seen her
mother since the day she left home. Mayris
mother tells her that America is the land of
opportunity. Here Mayra can get an education,
go to college, live out dreams impossible living
in poverty in war-torn Colombia. But Mayra
missed home.
For much of her time in New York, Mayra
has been in foster care. Usually, that's a place
where kids get ongoing counseling only if they
have extreme behavior problems. Mayra didn't.
But four years ago, out of the blue, Mayris case-
worker suggested therapy. "What? I'm not
crazy," Mayra told her caseworker. "Just try it
one time," she responded. The caseworker
helped her make an appointment at a place
called Turtle Bay. The ptogram, a parmership
berween the Turtle Bay Music School and Gra-
ham Windham Services, uses a combination of
counseling and music instruction to help teens
express how they are feeling.
On her first day, the therapist she met was
friendly, and she explained that every Friday
she and Mayra would meet to talk or play
music for 45 minutes. Then she and Mayra
would join a group of other teens and together
they'd play tambourines and maracas and sing.
After group came dinner. Then Mayra would
get a $15 stipend to spend as she wished.
Mayra still felt skeptical. 'Tm going to play
instruments in a group?" she thought to her-
self That first day, Mayra didn't open her
mouth or play anyrillng. She ate silently, got
her $15 and left. But it had felt good to chat
with her therapist about school, Colombia, life
in America. Mayra liked the attention; no one
listened to her like that at home. It became
even more important when her 9-year-old
brother unexpectedly showed up at Kennedy
Airport when she was 15; since then, she's had
to be a mom to him, too. The constant pressure
to take care of Anthony, to speak to his teach-
ers on parents' night and to save up for Christ-
mas presents for him, to remain calm even as
they're moved to yet another foster home, and
to keep her own grades high, has been nearly
too much for Mayra to take. She has come
back week after week, for music and therapy,
for more than three years.
In early December, counselors at Turtle Bay
told Mayra and the other teenagers that this
year's city budget cuts to ACS may force the
program to cut back its services. The coun-
selors suggested that the teens write letters
advocating on behalf of Turtle Bay. At first,
Mayra didn't realize that the letters would go to
Mayor Bloomberg and the City Council. She
wrote her letter to Oprah.
"Hello, how are you?" Mayra wrote. "1 am 16
years old and I've been in foster care for almost
four years. One thing that helps me is a program
called Turtle Bay. It took me a while to under-
stand that you could express how you are feeling
through music. I liked to play the drums. I can
express how angry, calm, excited or sad I feel by
making the sound louder, lower, slower and
faster. It makes me feel relaxed to release all that
anger that sometimes we all just carry inside.
"Our problem started when Mayor Michael
Bloomberg decided to do that big budget cut-
down. Turtle bay always has food for us to eat.
It gives us gifts on the holidays. They took us
out to the movies, to eat, and each year they
took us bowling. We also put on a show every
year, where kids could perform a song, read a
poem, or do whatever they want. The staff
show us they care for us. They don't treat us
like foster kids, but normal kids who are just in
a bad situation. They have faith in us that we'll
succeed in life.
"What I'm asking you to do is keep our pro-
gram open. That's our place to go every Friday
and hang out with kids who have gone through
what we've gone through. That's our family
and family should always keep together. If we
don't have the money, where will we go? We
need your help to make it. "
Nora McCarthy is a contributing editor to City
Limits and an editor at Foster Care Youth
United.
43
JOB ADS
ADVERTISE IN
CITY
LIMITS!
To place a classified ad in
City Limits, e-mail your ad to
advertise@citylimits.org or fax
your ad to 212-479-3339. The
ad will run in the City Limits
Weekly and City Limits mag-
azine and on the City Limits
web site. Rates are $1.46 per
word, minimum 40 words.
Special event and profession-
al directory advertising rates
are also available. For more
information, check out
the Jobs section of
www.citylimits.org or call
Associate Publisher Susan
Harris at 212-479-3345.
RENTAL SPACE
JAMAICA, QUEENS - 1200 Sq. ft of Profession-
al Office Space Avail for Lease. Near LlRR,
Subways and Buses. Non-profits and Gov't
Agencies welcomed. Call 718-781-3653.
Commitment is
44
SPACE AVAILABLE - Non-profit agency seeks
partner to sublet excellent office space, Wall
Street area. 3,000 sq. ft. available, 24f7 build-
ing with lobby attendant, close to all major
subways and rent very reasonable. Call: 212-
349-6009, ext. 240,243 or Email:
bruce@sffny.org
JOB ADS
2003-2005 ARYEH NEIER FELLOWSHIP -
Work with both organizations on joint initia-
tives to strengthen respect for human rights in
the United States; work is likely to include field
research in the United States, preparation of
reports, advocacy, and development of litiga-
tion strategies. Applicants should be recent
law school graduates or should graduate by
June 2003. Reply to: HRW-ACLU Fellowship
Committee, Human Rights Watch, 350 5th
Avenue, 34th Floor, NY, NY 10018.
ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT - Non-profit
seeks competent Admin. Asst. reporting to
Director of Program Operations. Responsibili-
ties: Assists with daily requests including let-
ters, memos, forms, reports, minutes, comput-
er searches. Excellent communication, admin
and computer skills: office reception; develop
and maintain filing system; create follow-up
system and calendar of reports and other time
sensitive correspondence; purchase office
supplies; proficiency in MS Office and Excel.
Use and maintain office equipment: mail
machine, photocopier, fax, printer. Maintain
confidentiality in all office information. Qual:
at least high school diploma, college pre-
ferred; 3-year experience in office environ-
ment. Ability to work in diverse, fast paced
setting and take verbal and written direction.
Flexibility. Fax resume and cover letter to: 212-
398-3071. Good salary and benefits. EOE.
AFTER CARE CASE MANAGER - HELP USA, a
nationally recognized leader in the provisions
of transitional housing residential and social
services has the following opportunity in its
family units: After Care Case Manager. Bach-
elor level professional needed to provide
employment and vocational counseling to
groups and individual survivors of domestic
violence, as part of an interdisciplinary team
in a confidential shelter. BA required; willing
to travel to various locations within the NYC
area; prior experience in the employment and
related activities preferred; valid NYS Driver's
license. Salary starts in the mid $20's, com-
mensurate with experience. Position requires
proficiency in computers and Windows based
software; bilingual (English/Spanish) a plus.
Send resume to: HELP USA, PO Box 641, New
York, NY 10037. Attention Kathy Sheldon,
Director of Client Services, fax 212-862-4376
or e-mail to ksheldon@helpusa.org
APPLIED BEHAVIOR SPECIALIST - Social
Services, Brooklyn location. Health and
Human Services organization seeks Coordina-
tor of Psychological Services for Development
Disability population. Requires Bachelor in
Psychology or related field and 1 year experi-
ence in MRIDD. Develop, monitor behavior
programs; collect data and revise individual
service plans. Salary depending on experi-
ence. Send resume to: Box JM22, 180 Varick
Street, 12th floor, NYC 10014. CAB is an equal
opportunity /affirmative action employer.
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR - Well-established
economic development organization in the
Bronx seeks resourceful , professional coun-
selor for the Procurement Technical Assistance
Center. Assistant Director will assist small
businesses in accessing government contract-
ing opportunities, maintain client database,
coordinate workshops, maintain resource
library; and perform administrative tasks to
support all aspects of the program. Qualifica-
tions: BS/BA with relevant business experi-
ence; excellent communication skills; detailed
oriented; proficient in MS Office. Salary: Mid-
30's based on experience. Please send cover
letter, resume and three (3) references to
dterry@sobro.org. Only applicants under con-
sideration will be contacted. No telephone
calls please.
ASSOCIATE CIRCUIT RIDER - Growing
national project empowering grassroots orga-
nizations through technology, seeks individual
with experience in technology and community
organizing. Salary: up to $38K; good benefits.
Persons of color, formerly on welfare or low-
income are encouraged. EOE. For more info:
www.l incproject.org. Send cover letter, resume,
references to Gina Mannix, Welfare Law Center,
275 Seventh Ave. , Ste 1205, 10001. Fax 212-
633-6371, emaillinchire@Welfarelaw.org
ASTHMA AND SMOKING CESSATION COORDI -
NATOR - Health Force seeks a coordinator for
its ground breaking community asthma pre-
vention and smoking cessation project. This
unique position requires 1} implementing a
community asthma intervention plan. 2) Train-
ing smoking cessation peer educators. 3)
Supervising community asthma educators to
carry out home visits. Qualifications: Bache-
lor's degree and at least two years experience
Tomorrovv starts today
leading to results
Deutsche Bank's commitment to
global corporate citizenship recognizes a
responsibility to improve and enrich the com-
munities throughout the world in
which we conduct business.
With a focused strategy of support for com-
munity development, the arts and the envi-
ronment, Deutsche Bank partners with local
organizations to build a brighter future.
Our commitment to a better tomorrow
starts today.
Deutsche Bank IZI
CITY LIMITS
in community health. Superior organizational ,
communication and planning skills. Spanish
language a plus. Salary: low to Mid-$30's,
commensurate with experience. Compensa-
tion includes an outstanding benefits pack-
age. Fax resume and cover letter to: Juanita
lopez, Director Health Force, 552 Southern
Boulevard Bronx, NY 10455 Fax 718-585-5041
ATTORNEY - Attorney with 3 plus years expe-
rience and expertise in residential coopera-
tives and landlord and tenant litigation.
Background in community activism, commu-
nity or tenant organizing is preferred. Fluency
in Spanish is an asset. Great growth potential
in a small firm. Fax resume and writing sam-
ple to 212-233-4085
CASE MANAGER - The Citizens Advice
Bureau (CAB) is a large, multi-service non-
profit serving the Bronx for 30 years. CAB pro-
vides excellent benefits and offers opportuni-
ties for advancement. CAB's Drop in Center for
homeless single adults is seeking a Case
Manager. Experience with substance abuse &
mental illness is helpful. Position requires a
bachelor'S degree. Bilingual in English and
Spanish is a plus. Some holidays & weekends
will be required. Send resume and cover let-
ter to MMason@cabny.org or fax to 718-893-
3680. CAB is an equal opportunity /affirma-
tive action employer.
CASE MANAGER - This position is responsi -
ble for all case management duties associat-
ed with Ralph-lincoln Service Center's grant
from the Medical and Health Research Associ-
ation of New York City, Inc. (MHRA) HIV grant
initiative inclusive of client recruitment, record
keeping, and assessment. Duties: Conducting
initial intake of clients, developing referrals for
uninsured and under-insured persons living
with HIV/AIDS (seropositive youth), engage
members of the target group sufficiently so
that they will be informed of the services to
which they are entitled. Conduct workshops
and one-on-one counseling sessions. Home
and school visits as necessary. The develop-
ment of a treatment plan is a must. Interested
parties should fax cover letter and resume to
718-604-8029. No calls.
CASE MANAGER (3 POSITIONS) - All posi-
tions require: Associates Degree or greater; 1
year minimum experience social work/case
management or housing advocacy; Bilingual
Spanish-English a plus. Housing Stability
Case Manager: Help tenants with history of
housing crises to devise/implement plans to
stabilize their households and improve self-
sufficiency; conduct workshops on
housing/related issues. Family Self-Sufficien-
cy Case Manager: Assess eligibility and enroll
75 client-families in Section 8 Family Self-
Sufficiency program; provide case manage-
ment, education/training, advocacylreferral to
improve clients' self-sufficiency and economic
viability; help clients open escrow accounts to
accrue money saved thru program participa-
tion; assist in educational workshops. Tenant
Organizer/Housing Case Manager: Conduct
landlord-tenant negotiations to resolve hous-
ing disputes; provide advocacylliaison ser-
MARCH 2003
vices for clients with code enforcement agen-
cies, other government departments and com-
munity agencies; assist agency's Housing
Paralegal and attorney with clients' court
cases; develop Tenants' Associations. Fax
resume and cover letter reo desired position to
Jon Shenk at 914-376-1336.
CASE MANAGERS - Candidates should hold
a Bachelors degree in Human Services or
Human Service related field; including Social
Work, Psychology, Nursing, Community Mental
Health or Child and Family Services with two
years of experience in providing direct services
to homeless, mentally ill clients with sub-
stances abuse problems, or linking mentally ill
clients to a broad range of services. This
includes initial interviews and assessments,
service plan development, implementation
monitoring and through follow-up practices.
These candidates must be detail-oriented and
understand the critical need for resources
development and have excellent time man-
agement skills. Must be computer literate and
must be able to work flexible. Bilingual pre-
ferred. Salary: High $20's. All interested per-
sons please fax or mail or email to: Black Vet-
erans for Social Justice, 665 Willoughby
Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11206, Attn:
Administration, Fax: 718-852-4805, email :
admin@bvsj.xohost.com
CERTIFIED ALCOHOL AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE
COUNSELORS - Certified Alcohol and Sub-
stance Abuse Counselor or Counselor with
intense Alcohol & Substance Abuse experience
will provide case management service to
clients with challenging addictions, write and
update individual client-based, goal oriented
service plans, facilitate meetings. Candidates
must have certification and at least one year
of experience in the social services, possess
strong MS Office and excellent writing and oral
skills, and be able to work evenings and/or
weekends. Must have resource development
and service monitoring skills. Requirements:
BA and/or CASAC preferred, Bilingual a plus.
Salary Mid $30's. All interested persons please
fax or mail or email to: Black Veterans for
Social Justice, 665 Willoughby Avenue, Brook-
lyn, NY 11206, ATTN: Administration, Fax: 718-
852-4805, email: admin@bvsj.xohost.com
CHILD CARE COOK - Part-time evening.
HELP USA is a nationally recognized leader in
the provisions of transitional housing, residen-
tial and social services. Position available for
cook to prepare nutritional , multicultural
meals and menus for an Evening Child Care
Program in accordance with NYC Dept. of
Health Regulations as well as Child Care and
Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) guidelines.
Must also maintain exceptional sanitary con-
ditions and daily meal logs. Previous related
experience in food preparation, food service,
dishwashing and housekeeping required.
Must also submit documentation and/or pro-
vide successful completion of the NYC Dept of
Health Food Protection Course within 90 days
of hire. Child abuse training, annual physical
exam, fingerprinting as well as the NYS cen-
tral registry clearance and other items will be
discussed at the time of the interview. Send
resume to: Edwin Cruz, HELP, Bronx Crotona,
785 Crotona Park, Bronx, NY 10460. Fax: 718-
495-0859 or email ecruz@helpusa.org. EOE. A
drug free workplace.
CLINICAL COORDINATOR - The Center for
Urban Community Services (CUCS), a national
leader in the development of effective housing
and service initiative for homeless people,
invites applications for the following position
being offered at its supportive housing sites in
Upper Manhattan: Clinical Coordinator.
Responsible for ensuring the provision of
effective case management services to 120+
formerly homeless and low income tenants in
two supportive housing residences. Resp:
Supervision of 7 professional and paraprofes-
sional staff; program development & evalua-
tion; host agency relations; contract compli-
ance, regulatory and agency standards & poli-
cies; and 24-hour beeper coverage. Reqs:
CSW. Minimum of 3 years post-masters
applicable experience with related popula-
tions. At least 1 year supervisory exp required.
Administrative & management experience
preferred. Strong writing & verbal comm skills
and computer literacy. Bilingual SpanishlEng-
lish pref. Salary: $46,459. Benefits: compo
bnfts incl $65/month in transit checks. Send
resumes and cover letters by 1/27/03 to: Rus-
sell Baptist, CUCS/The Heights, 530 W178th
St., New York, NY 10033. Fax: 212-795-0893,
Email: uptwhire@cucs.org
CLINICAl DIRECTOR - A not-for-profit orga-
nization that works with high-risk youth who
have involvement with the criminal justice
system is seeking a psychiatrist consultant.
Duties include providing counseling, medica-
tion evaluation and monitoring to high-risk
youth, and consultation to staff. Need to be
available to work 10 hours per week. Send
resume and cover letter to Friends of Island
Academy, 500 8th Avenue, Ste. 1209, New
York, NY 10018.
CLINICAL SOCIAL WORKER - Care for the
Homeless seeks a Clinical Social Worker for
innovative mental health program. Clinician
will use art, play and verbal modalities to
assess and treat children and adolescents
and serve as part of team (psychiatrist, psy-
chologist, case managers). Requires MSW
plus 3 years clinical work with children and
adolescents, some evening and Saturdays,
SIFI eligibility, and some supervisory experi-
ence. Bilinguallbicultural (Spanish), SIFI and
ATR preferred. EOE - Minorities and persons of
color encouraged to apply. Send resume to:
Care for the Homeless, 12 West 21st Street,
8th floor, New York, NY 10010-6902. Attn: D.
Torres.
CLINICAl SOCIAL WORKER - HELP USA, a
nationally recognized leader in the provisions
of transitional housing residential and social
services has the following opportunity in its
family units: Cl inical Social Worker (1 FT posi-
tion and 2 PT positions). As part of an inter-
disciplinary team, the Clinician will provide
short and long term counseling, as well as cri-
sis intervention, for individuals, families and
groups, including children, currently residing
in a shelter for survivors of domestic violence
JOBADS
and their families. Facilitate referrals for ser-
vices to support those offered onsite, and to
continue post-placement. MSW or related
degree necessary; excellent verbal and oral
communications skills, as well as clinical a
must; NYS Driver'S license (unrestricted).
Salary starts at low to mid $30's, commensu-
rate with experience. Position requires profi -
ciency in computers and Windows based soft-
ware; bilingual (EnglishlSpanish) a plus. Send
resume to: HELP USA, PO Box 641, New York,
NY 10037. Attention Kathy Sheldon, Director of
Client Services, fax 212-862-4376 or e-mail to
ksheldon@helpusa.org
COORDINATOR - Multi-Service Non-Profit
seeks professional staff to fill the following
position-Coordinator. HIV Care Network locat-
ed in Jamaica, Queens seeks coordinator with
MA in Public Health and related field with 2
years expo in service prevention to persons
infected/affected with HIVIAIDS. Salary $43k.
Fax Resumes to: New York Urban league, 212-
690-4794 or 212-283-4948, Attention: Judith
Butler-McPhie, Senior Vice President, Email:
NYUlFSJR@Earthlink.net
COUNSELOR - Well-established economic
development organization in the Bronx seeks
resourceful , professional counselor for the Pro-
curement Technical Assistance Center. Assis-
tant Director will assist small businesses in
accessing government contracting opportuni-
ties, maintain client database, coordinate
workshops, maintain resource library; and per-
form administrative tasks to support all
aspects of the program. Qualifications: BS/BA
with relevant business experience; excellent
communication skills; detailed oriented; profi-
cient in MS Office. Salary: Mid-30's based on
experience. Please send cover letter, resume
and three (3) references to dterry@sobro.org.
Only applicants under consideration will be
contacted. No telephone calls please.
DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANT - The Enterprise
Social Investment Corporation, a leader in the
low-income housing tax credit industry, is cur-
rently searching for a Development Assistant
for our New York, NY office. Qualified candi-
date will assist with the requisition process-
ing, reporting and tracking of tax credit pro-
jects. Will also provide administrative support
to department. HS diploma and 3-5 + years
related experience and strong business and
computer skills required. College degree,
knowledge of housing industry, and financial
background preferred. We offer a competitive
salary and excellent benefits. Send resume
with salary requirements to: The Enterprise
Social Investment Corporation, Attn: Human
Resources, 10227 Wincopin Circle, Ste. 800,
Columbia, MD 21044; Fax: 410-772-2676;
Email: jobopp@esic.org. Visit us at
www.esic.org. An Equal Opportunity Employer.
DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS - Ms.
Foundation for Women, a non-profit organiza-
tion dedicated to supporting the efforts of
women and girls to govern their own lives and
influence the world around them, is currently
seeking a Director of Communications to
develop and implement media, public rela-
45
JOB ADS
tions and public education strategies designed
to increase and enhance the visibility of the
organization and its programs, including the
Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day pro-
gram. BA and at least 10+ years of progressive
media relations experience preferred. Send let-
ter with salary requirements, resume and writ-
ing sample to: MFW, HR, 120 Wall Street, 33rd
Floor, NYC 10005.
DIRECTOR OF CONSTRUCTION & REAL ESTATE
DEVELOPMENT - Habitat for Humanity New
York City, one of the fastest growing urban
affiliates of Habitat for Humanity Internation-
al , is seeking a full-time director for its Con-
struction and Real Estate Development Dept.
The Director will lead a small but dedicated
field and office-based staff experienced in
construction and project management. The
Director will manage Habitat's housing pro-
gram from property acquisition through design
development, GC contract administration and
a volunteer and homeowner sweat equity
phase of finish work. Candidates should have
strong leadership and management skills and
a proven ability to develop residential con-
struction projects in New York City. Salary com-
mensurate with experience. Please send
resume and cover letter to: Kevin Sullivan,
Director of Programs, Habitat for Humanity-
NYC, 334 Furman St., NY, NY 11201 (t) 718-
246-5656 x312 (I) 718-246-2787 email: ksul-
livan@habitatnyc.org
DIRECTOR OF HOUSING DEVElOPMENT &
MANAGEMENT - Highly respected nonprofit
housing provider for the poor serving Dutchess
County seeks seasoned developer & manager
of affordable rental housing. Salary b.o.e.
Search jobs at http://www.nonprofitjobs.org
Inquire susanm@nonprofitjobs.org EOE.
DIRECTOR OF PROPERTY MANAGEMENT -
Extraordinary Harlem-based affordable hous-
ing developer/owner seeking hard- working,
knowledgeable Property Manager to run best
maintained rentals. We are for-profit with
social conscience and commitment. Enjoy
complete responsibility for operations includ-
ing super and contractor oversight, building
systems, tenant relations, collections, and
administration procedures including rent sta-
bil ization laws, rent registrations, tenant certi-
fications, Section 8, LlHTC. Bilingual in Span-
ish a plus. Car required. Cover, resume and
salary to: MBeida@hotmail.com
DIRECTOR OF STAFF MANAGEMENT - Highly
respected nonprofit housing provider for the
poor serving Dutchess County seeks
senior-level Director uniquely talented in staff
management, team building, human resource
development & creative reward
strategies. Salary b.o.e. Detail at
http://www.nonprofitjobs.org. Inquire
susanm@nonprofitjobs.org EOE.
DISABILITY RIGHTS ADVOCATE - Not-for-
profit law firm seeking part-time Disability
Rights Advocate. 20 hours per week. Familiar-
ity w/OMRDD a plus. Strong organizational and
communications skills with fluency in second
language desired. Apply ASAP. Send cover let-
46
ter, resume and 3 references, with daytime
telephone numbers to: NYPLI , lSI West 30th
Street, 11th floor, New York, NY 10001, Attn: D.
White.
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE COUNSELOR - D.V.
Agency seeks innovative women's Domestic
Violence Counselor to provide counseling ser-
vices to our crisis shelter residents and non-
residential clients. MSW or Masters in counsel-
ing required. Send resume and cover letter to:
Director of Crisis Services/SFF/PO Box
1406IWail St. StaJNY, NY 10268-1406.
EASTERN NEW YORK COORDINATOR - East-
ern New York Coordinator sought by Hudson
Valley based organization. Must be bilingual
Eng/Spanish with experience in social change.
Good Benefits. Reply with cover letter and
resume to Richard Witt, RMM, PO Box 4757,
Poughkeepsie, NY 12602 or fax 845-485-1963
EDUCATION DIRECTOR - Credit Where Credit
Is Due pursues a mission of financial empow-
erment in Upper Manhattan via sponsorship of
Neighborhood Trust Federal Credit Union and
complementary educational programs. We
seek an Education Director to oversee our adult
financial literacy department, including devel-
opment of new initiatives, curriculum develop-
ment and the delivery of classroom training.
Ideal candidate has at least 2 years experience
in financial literacy training and/or small busi-
ness or mortgage counseling. Bilingual Eng-
lish / Spanish skills required. Email resume to
jzinkin@cwcid.org or mail to 4211 Broadway,
New York, NY 10033.
ELECTION REFORM ASSOCIATE - Estab-
lished civic group seeks Election Reform Asso-
ciate to carry out public education and advo-
cacy campaigns around reform of NYS election
administration. Duties: developing advocacy
strategy, research, writing, coalition building.
Skills: understanding of public policy and leg-
islation, familiarity with NYC and NYS politics,
clear and forceful writing and speaking, colle-
giality, initiative. Salary & benefits competi-
tive. CL and resume to: Amy Sandgrund-Fish-
er, Citizens Union, 198 Broadway Suite 700,
New York, NY 10038; Fax: 212-227-0345;
citizens@citizensunion.org
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR - HELP USA, a nation-
ally recognized leader in the provisions of tran-
sitional housing, residential and social ser-
vices has an opportunity in its family units for
an Executive Director. Qualified candidate will
be responsible for the overall development and
management of all program operations at the
facility. This includes direct oversight of exist-
ing programs, ongoing assessment of program
needs and identification of potential funding
streams to enhance program services. In addi-
tion, the Executive Director will serve as a liai-
son to other county service providers and com-
munity leaders to ensure the integration of the
facility as a community based agency. Will
work in coordination with the Director of Safety
and the Director of Facilities Management to
ensure the safe, orderly and appropriate envi-
ronment of the facility. Master's degree
required. Master's degree in Social Work or
related field preferred. Minimum of 5 years
management experience required including
proven supervisory, staff development, pro-
gram management and budgetary skills. Com-
puter literate specifically in Microsoft applica-
tions. Valid US driver's license required. Salary:
$61K - $80K. Resumes shoul d be sent to HELP
USA, 30 East 33rd Street, 9th floor, or fax to
212-779-3353, Attn: F. Shack or J. Chevannes.
FAMILY CASE MANAGER - Provide case man-
agement, benefits/entitlements counseli ng,
advocacy, li nkage to services, life skills coun-
seling to the families in residence. Conduct
bio-psychosocial assessments, develop service
plans and all other documents required by
grantors and the agency. Caseload of 20
clients. Responsible for weekly contact with
clients along with weekly case notes. Become
part of a team of professionals that include a
social work supervisor, a mental health/sub-
stance abuse specialist, a health service coor-
dinator and several administrative positions.
MSW/CSW degree + several years experience of
case management or related experience work-
ing with individuals living with HIV/AIDS.
Excellent interpersonal skills, able to work in a
team setting. Knowledge of benefits and enti-
tlements available to PLWAs. Must be comput-
er literate. Bilingual English/Spanish a must.
Apply to hr@baileyhouse.orgor mail cover plus
resume to Human Resources, Bailey House,
275 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001.
FIELD CoUNSELoRSlSUPERVISoRS - Esper-
anzalHope, an innovative new juvenile justice
program, seeks counselors and supervisors to
provide services to court-involved youth and
their families. Social work, counseling, psy-
chology or law-related degree required.
Advanced degree for supervisors. Experience
working with court-involved youth, community-
based organizations desirable. English-Span-
ish desirable. More details: www.vera.org.
Resumes, cover letters to HR Director, Esperan-
za/Hope, Vera Institute of Justice, 233 Broad-
way, 12th Fir. , NY, NY 10279. Fax: 212-941-
9407. Email: cbegawen@vera.org
FINANCE DIRECTOR - Join a growing multi -
program, CDC, located in the Bedford
Stuyvesant area of Brooklyn. This organization
engages in housing, economic development,
community organizing and education. Qualifi-
cations: A minimum of five years experience in
nonprofit management with a minimum of
three years in a senior management position.
Bachelor'S degree required, CPA a plus. Specif-
ic expertise desired in cash management and
knowledge of Low Income Housing Tax Credits.
Experience in accounting technology, Quick-
Books, preferred. Performance Requirements:
Superior skill in financial analysis, contracting
and funding issues, budget control or final
responsibility for the financial management of
an organization. Strong communication and
presentation skills. Salary and benefits com-
mensurate with experience. Please send
resume and letter of interest, including salary
requirement to: clo BSDC FD Search, The Non-
profit Connection, One Hanson Place, Brooklyn,
NY 11234.
FUNDRAISING & MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT
(FIT) needed for technical assistance to NYC
and Westchester nonprofits. Work with top
consulting team on organizational develop-
ment, grant writing and individual donor
systems. Knowledge of nonprofit community
and a related graduate degree required. This
is your chance to test your skills. Skilled,
high-performing practitioners encouraged to
apply. $50,000+benefits. Email resume,
salary history, applicable writing sample,
and references with email contacts to
lapagnoni@lp-associates.com Go to
www.l p-associates.com before you apply to
learn about us.
HOUSING SPECIALIST - Siena House, a lier II
facility serving Homeless Families is seeking
fit Housing SpecialiSt. Responsibilities include
client records; interviews; interaction with Bro-
kers and various related tasks. Experience
working with Homeless clients and housing
issues. Good interpersonal skills, team work,
Computer literacy. Driver'S license a +. Send
letter and resume to: Siena House, 85 West
168th Street, Bronx, NY 10452 or Fax 718-293-
2390 Attn. Director. EOElAA.
HOUSING SPECIALIST - HELP USA, a nation-
ally recognized leader in the provisions of tran-
sitional housing, residential and social ser-
vices has an opportunity in its family units for
a Housing Specialist. Qualified candidate will
be responsible for conducting housing intakes
and assessments for all new residents. Facili-
tate and coordinate housing workshops as a
means of tracking client progress and sharing
information. Assist residents with the accurate
and timely submission of housing reports.
Meet monthly with residents to advocate and
provide guidance in their housing searches.
Arrange forums with outside providers to dis-
seminate information on topics related to
securing and maintaining permanent housing.
Escort residents to housing appointments and
apartment viewings as needed. Participate in
interdisciplinary meetings, case conferences
and staff training. BNBS in Social Services or
related field required. Minimum of 1 year with
a preference of 3 years experience with DHS,
NYCHA, Section 8, EARP and SIP programs as
well as experience in housing placement ser-
vices for the homeless population. The
ability to interact with private realtors and
landlords is key. Must be computer literate.
Salary commensurate with experience. Send
resumes to HELP- Bronx Morris, 285 East 171st
Street, Bronx, NY 10457, Attn: Jose Humphreys,
Director of Client Services, via fax 718-583-
6264 or 718-583-9085 or email at
jhumphreys@helpusa.org
JOB DEVELOPER - New York Software Indus-
try Association (NYSIA) is the leading trade
association for software and IT companies in
the New York City area, with over 500 member
companies. We offer various benefits to our
members, including insurance, training cours-
es, participation in Special Interest Groups
(SIGs) at no cost, and much more. The full-
time job developer will build IT internships,
entry- level, and senior-level job opportunities
for participants in a new training program
through the New York IT Career Ladder Consor-
tium (NYITCLC). The Job Developer will report to
CITY LIMITS
the Director of Programs and be responsible for
managing and marketing this program.
Responsibilities: Create and maintain solid
relationships with software companies, finan-
cial services, and IT departments in New York
City wi th the goal of placing Career Ladder
participants in jobs in those organizations. Job
development seek employment opportunities
and leads for program graduates. Track and
create data reports. Extensive collaboration
with the training partners in the Consortium
and employers to ensure graduates meet the
needs of employers. Represent NYSIA at Con-
sortium and related meetings. Qualified Can-
didates should have: Bachelor's Degree.l - 3
years in workforce developmentljob training or
a related field, such as human resources.
Strong knowledge and awareness of the IT
community a plus, as is a background in sales
and marketing and account management.
Experience with building relationships with
employers, working with hard to employ popu-
lations, and/or managing coalition relation-
shi ps extremely helpful but not required if
other skills meet these needs. Experience man-
aging projects and account management.
Excellent written and verbal communication
skills, creativity, flexibility, reliability, tactful-
ness, an ability to prioritize and work under
deadlines. Excellent interpersonal skills, sound
judgment, strong work ethic and comfort with
public speaking are necessary to the success
of this position. Approach to work: Commit-
ment to excellent customer service. Organized,
meticulous, and focused on deliverables. Team
player. One of the most important aspects of
working at NYSIA our team approach to work
and our core values. Commitment to continu-
ous learning and professional growth. Knowl-
edge of MS Office and the Internet. Compensa-
tion: Market rate; Commensurate with experi-
ence. Cover letter and resume to: Vicki Daw-
son, Director of Program, vdawson@nysia.org
E-mail only! Resumes without a cover letter
will not be considered. NYSIA is an Equal
Opportunity Employer. NYSIA encourages
women and persons of color to apply.
JOB DEVELOPER / EMPLOYMENT SPECIALIST
HELP USA, a nationally recognized leader in the
provisions of transitional housing, residential
and social services, is seeking a Job Develop-
er/ Employment Specialist for vocational pro-
gram serving the homeless. The ability to
develop employer contacts and a viable job
bank is necessary. Strong communication and
presentation are required. BA or BS degree pre-
ferred. Send resumes to HELP SEC, Attn: R.
Capella-Velaquez, 1 Wards Island, New York,
NY 10035, fax 212-534-9826 or via email at
rcappella@helpusa.org
MAJOR GIFTS ASSOCIATE - Writing, editing,
and proofreading donor and other communica-
tions, draft and produce individualized
acknowledgements for the organization's top
donors; Utilize Team Approach database to
monitor and produce reports on donors and
maintain major gift records. Two years related
experience performing administrative duties
and an Associates degree required. Reply to:
Human Resources, Dept. MG-DA, ACLU, 125
Broad Street- 18th FI, NY, NY 10004.
MARCH 2003
MANAGER, GOVERNMENTAL AND COMMUNITY
RELATIONS - Common Ground (CGC), a not-
for-profit developer and property manager for
supportive housing, seeks a Manager, Govern-
mental and Community Relations. S\he will
assist in project/program design and secure
resources from public entities for new pro-
grams and projects. The Manager will also
coordinate competitive renewal contract pro-
posal applications. S\he will also represent
Common Ground in discussions with elected
officials, government agencies, community
boards, community organizations, and other
not-for- profit service providers, including the
Corporation for Supportive Housing and the
Supportive Housing Network of New York. Can-
didates MUST have a BAIBS AND at least three
(3) years experience in securing governmental
resources. Send cover letter with minimum
salary requirement and resume to CGC HR,
505 Eighth Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, New
York 10018. Facsimile 212-389-9313 or email
to rgerber@commonground.org
MSW - Multi-Service Non-Profit seeks pro-
fessional staff to fill the following position -
MSW. Preventive service program seeks MSW
to direct ACS funded program in Harlem. Suc-
cessful candidate must be effective adminis-
trator with 2-3 exp as supervisor. $50K+. Case
Worker position also requires MSW to manage
children and families in neighborhood based
child abuse neglect prevention program.
Salary $32K. Fax Resumes to: New York Urban
League, 212-690-4794 or 212-283-4948,
Attention: Judith Butler-McPhie, Senior Vice
President, Email: NYULFSJR@Earthlink.net
MSW-CLINI CAL SUPERVISOR - The Coalition
for the Homeless, the nation's oldest organiza-
tion helping homeless men, women and chil-
dren is seeking a MSW, Clinical Supervisor -
First Step & Rental Assistance Programs.
Serve two programs: an established job readi-
ness and training program for women and a
rental assistance housing program for individ-
uals and families. Will provide clinical supv for
interdisciplinary staff of 10, as well as client
and family assessment and counseling, facili-
tation of therapy/support groups, referral to
other health related services, supv of the train-
ing program's client mentoring services, and
development and marketing of the programs.
Salary $45-50K per year. Requires MSW and 3
years of experience. Must be knowledgeable of
women's issues, housing, mental health coun-
seling and clinical supervision. Strongly prefer
exp with homeless persons/poverty issues,
shelters, city agencies, & public entitlements.
Candidates should be computer literate, cre-
ative, team players and able to multi-task.
Prior admin/supv expo and Spanish proficiency
a plus. Excellent benefits. Send resume with
cover letter indicating desired position to HR,
Coalition for the Homeless, via EMAIL to
prai@cfthomeless.org or FAX to 212-964-
1303. No telephone inquiries please. Persons
of color and formerly homeless are encouraged
to apply. EOE.
MSW/ PROGRAM DIRECTOR - The Coalition
for the Homeless seeks MSWlProgram Director
for 66-unit AIDS scattered site housing pro-
gram. Administrative and clinical supervi sor
for 12 persons staff; primary contact with
public funding sources; will draft weekly,
monthly, annual reports; will develop and
maintain quality management and other tools
to enhance program; limited client case man-
agement load. $45-50K per year. MSW/CSW
required. Two years supervisory experience
required. Experience with the homeless, men-
tally ill, substance users, supportive
housing, and persons living with HIV/AIDS
strongly desired. Computer literate, creative, a
team player and able to multi-task. Spanish a
plus. Send resume with cover letter to HR,
Coalition for the Homeless, via email to
prai@cfthomeless.org No telephone inquiries
please. Persons of color, PLWAs, and formerly
homeless are encouraged to apply. EOE.
OPERATIONS MANAGER - CFRC, a non-profit
organization seeks a manager to implement
and oversee all aspects of Food Stamp Access
Projects operations. Responsibilities include
identifying and coordinating tools for food
stamp outreach and work between project
agencies; setting-up and managing multi-lin-
gual hotline; developing inter-site communica-
tion system; hiring, training and supervising
project. Bachelor's degree and/or equivalent
experience required. Must possess strong
managerial, supervisory, communication and
computer skills. Bi lingual (EnglishlSpanish)
preferred. Salary negotiable, depending on
experience and qualifications. Excellent bene-
fits. EOE. Send your resume, with cover letter
to: gsardelli@cfrcnyc.org or fax to: 212-616-
4990.
ORGANIZER - Mobilize tenants in targeted
State Senate districts as part of Showdown
2003 for an Affordable New York, the cam-
paign to renew and strengthen rent protection
laws. Temporary position (January - June). Full-
time, some evenings and weekends required.
Car helpful. Salary DOE. To apply, send cover
letter and resume to: Tenants and Neighbors,
105 Washington Street, NY 10006. Fax: 212-
619-7476. Email: hschaubtn@hotmail.com.
ORGANIZER - Organizer for Picture the
Homeless, a small grass roots organization
founded and led by homeless people. Prefer-
ence for applicants who are currently or for-
merly homeless. Fax cover letter and resume to
212-534-8988, attn: PTH.
OUTREACH WORKERS - The Citizens Advice
Bureau (CAB) is a large, multi-service non-
profit serving the Bronx for 30 years. CAB pro-
vides excellent benefits and offers opportuni-
ties for advancement. The Positive Living Pro-
gram seeks (2) Outreach Workers for a new
HIV/AIDS outreach program. The positions
require a high school diploma/GED and knowl-
edge of New York City. Occasional evening
hours may be required. Some college preferred.
Bilingual Engli shlSpanish is a plus. Fax cre-
dentials to K. Iqbal at 718-293-9767.
PLUMBERIHANDYMAN - Hands on, experi-
enced, presentable, and well -spoken
plumberihandyman (unlicensed). Exp'd with
install of DEP meters. On site visits to read
meters and detect problems on meters that
can lead to erroneous DEP billing. Premise
JOB ADS
meter schematics needed. 1-888-273-7658
PROGRAM COORDINATOR - The Citizens
Advice Bureau (CAB) is a large, multi-service
non-profit serving the Bronx for 30 years. CAB
provides excellent benefits and offers oppor-
tunities for advancement. Our employment
and social service center in the West Bronx
seeks a Program Coordinator. The Coordinator
will lead the center in providing outreach and
counseling, developing and implementing
service plans, resume writing, facilitating
workshops, identifying employment opportu-
nities, and providing advocacy. The
coordinator will supervise two staff,
prepare monthly internal and funder reports,
and perform home visits. MSW required.
Please send resume and cover
letter to 718-365-0697 or e-mail
kcourtney@cabny.org
PROGRAM COORDINATOR - The Citizens
Advice Bureau (CAB) is a large, multi-service
non-profit serving the Bronx for 30 years. CAB
provides excellent benefits and offers opportu-
nities for advancement. The Positive Living
Program seeks a Program Coordinator for a
new HIV/AIDS outreach program. The position
requires an MSW and knowledge of New York
City. Occasional evening hours may be
required. Fax credentials to K. Iqbal at 718-
293-9767. CAB is an equal opportunity /affir-
mative action employer.
PROGRAM DIRECTOR - The Coalition for the
Homeless, the nation's oldest organization
helping homeless men, women and children is
seeking a Program Director, Client Advocacy
Program. Assist disabled and mentally ill
homeless persons obtain and maintain shel-
ter/housing and public benefits. Will conduct
assessments, visit shelters, provide outreach
and follow up services and referrals, supervise
one caseworker, and work with legal counsel to
secure benefits and other services. Salary $38-
44K per year. MAIMS in relevant field required.
Strongly prefer exp with homeless
persons/poverty issues, shelters, city agencies,
& public entitlements. Candidates should be
computer literate, creative, team players and
able to multi-task. Prior admin/supv expo and
Spanish proficiency a plus. Excellent benefits.
Send resume with cover letter indicating
desired position to HR, Coalition for the Home-
less, via Email to prai@cfthomeless.org or Fax
to 212-964-1303. No telephone inquiries
please. Persons of color and formerly homeless
are encouraged to apply. EOE.
PROGRAM DIRECTOR - The Salvation Army
seeks a strong leader for the Carlton House
Family Shelter in Queens. Full responsibility for
all phases of operation and management of a
recently opened 335 family sheller including:
personnel , social services, fiscal including
budget preparation and monitoring, facility
management, community relations and grant
writing. Prior expo with family shelters required.
BAlBS, Masters preferred. Salary $60K. Fax
cover letter and resume to the attention of
Patricia DeLouisa at 212-337-7279 or email
patricia_delouisa@use.salvalionarmy.org
PROJECT ASSOCIATE - The Urban Home-
47
JOBADS
steading Assistance Board (UHAB), a city-wide
co-op housing nonprofit, seeks a full time
employee to provide training and technical
assistance to tenant associations and building
leaders participating in a City program to
undertake the management of their buildings
and become cooperatives. The Project Associ-
ate will also provide assistance and training to
members, officers and resident managers of
already existing cooperatives. Location: The
project Associate will work both in UHAB's
Brooklyn Training Center and at the individual
buildings and will require up to three evenings
a week. Qualifications: Knowledge and experi-
ence in housing, cooperatives, training and
City Housing Programs. The ability to commu-
nicate in Spanish is required. Good communi-
cation and computer skills. Microsoft Word,
Access & Excel preferred. Salary: $30-35,000
depending upon qualifications and experience.
Application: Send a letter and resume to: Rory
Dunn, Project Director, UHAB, 81 Willoughby
Street, 7th Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11201. Phone:
718-246-9760, Fax: 718-246-9780, E-mail:
dunn@uhab.org More Info: www.uhab.org
PROJECT COORDINATOR - Columbia Univer-
sity School of Social Work seeks dedicated,
highly organized, project coordinator with out-
standing oral and written communication
skills, attention to detail , for growing pilot pro-
gram in chi ld abuse prevention research. Prior
program development, grant writing and
research assistance experience required. Inter-
est, flexibility, and capacity to work closely as
a team player and to handle a steep learning
curve as the project expands to long-term pro-
gram of research necessary. MSWIMPH or
related degree plus 2 years minimum relevant
experience preferred. Competitive salary com-
mensurate with experience, plus excellent ben-
efits. Fax resume and cover letter: 212-854-
4072, or email: nbg2@columbia.edu Position
available immediately.
PROJECT DIRECTOR - Presbyterian Senior
Services (PSS), a social service agency with
over forty years of experience serving New York
City's elderly, is accepting resumes for the
position of Director of PSS Caregivers Program.
MSW degree + three years of supervisory expe-
rience preferred. Must be fluent in English &
Spanish. Leadership skills + demonstrated
written and oral skills required. Competitive
salary & benefits. Responsibilities: To estab-
lish, administer and supervise innovative new
Caregiver Support program in the Bronx.
Supervise staff of three plus numerous volun-
teers. Qualities: High energy, self-starter,
excellent follow-up, organizational and leader-
ship skills plus excellent written/oral commu-
nication skills. This is an exceptional opportu-
nity for someone who is willing to meet the
challenge of developing a strong community
based program. Presbyterian Senior Services
(PSS), founded in 1962, serves approximately
three thousand older adults in the five bor-
oughs of New York City. To apply: mail/fax/mail
cover letter and resume to
staffdesk@pssusa.org 212-873-3986, Pres-
byterian Senior Services, 2095 Broadway, Suite
409, New York, NY 10023. AAlEOE.
48
PROJECT MANAGER - One of the nation's pre-
eminent Harlem based community develop-
ment organizations seeks a Project Manager to
work with a small team in planning projects.
Responsibilities include coordinating all activ-
ities related to housing production projects
throughout their entire development life cycle
(assembling development team through initial
occupancy). Serve as project team leader to
manage inter-departmental work projects.
Coordinates construction related tasks such as
scheduling site inspections and joint work
write-ups with the Construction Project Man-
ager. A Bachelors degree and at least 3 years
experience in housing production project man-
agement! community development or a related
field. Must be familiar with NYS, NYC and Fed-
eral housing production programs and regula-
tions. Strong organizational , time manage-
ment, analytical and underwriting skills
required, especially in the preparation of
development pro-formas. We offer a competi-
tive salary and excellent benefits. Send cover
letter and resume to Human Resources Dept.,
Abyssinian Development Corporation, 131
West 138th Street, N.Y., N.Y. 10030 ore-mail at
realjobs@adcorp.org No phone calls please.
PROJECT MANAGER - The Project Manager is
responsible for the implementation and admin-
istration of new and existing development pro-
jects, and reports to the Housing Director. Ideal
candidate is a motivated self-starter with two
years of housing or related experience and
excellent organizational , problem solving and
writing skills. Financial packaging and knowl-
edge of publicly- funded programs helpful.
Responsibilities: Analyze development oppor-
tunities and determine project feasibility
-Respond to RFPs and draft RFQs Coordinate
and implement all tasks required to secure
financing for acquisition and construction of
new development projects Negotiate and con-
duct transactions with banks and other finan-
cial entities, governmental agencies, tenants,
attorneys, title companies, inspectors, survey-
ors, architects, and contractors as required
Prepare real-estate financing packages
including but not limited to underwriting
spreadsheets, work scopes, project timelines
and budgets, relocation and marketing plans
for proposed projects.Design and negotiate
construction, development, and consultant
contracts. Oversee tenant relations and work
with the relocation specialist Provide project
management during construction, preparing
appropriate requisitions and correspondence,
keeping track of all expenditures and job meet-
ing minutes provided by architect, and coordi-
nating all aspects of the project to move it to
completion.Coordinate the transition of all
buildings from development staff to property
management at the predevelopment and com-
pletion stages Prepare written reports as
required.Assist with other projects as needed
Please send or fax cover letter and resume to:
Job Search, Pratt Area Community Council , 201
Dekalb Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11205, Fax 718
522-2604, pacc@prattarea.org
PSYCHOLOGIST - License Psychologist to
provide clinical consultation to staff and indi-
vidual assessment to children and families in
a preventive service program in Forest Hills,
Queens. Submit cover letter and resume by
mail to Administration, Lower East Side Fami-
ly Union, 84 Stanton Street, 3rd Floor, New York,
NY 10002 or fax to 212-529-3244.
PT PROGRAM COORDINATOR - Implement
intergenerational program linking seniors and
children (5-15) in Naturally Occurring Retire-
ment Community (NORC) on Upper West Side,
part-time (20 hours weekly). Available week-
ends. Requirements include a B.A. and previ-
ous experience with seniors and children in
target audience; advance degree desirable;
Responsibilities include identifying volunteers
and program participants; community out-
reach; fax or mail resume and salary require-
ments to Evelyn Rich, Lincoln House Outreach,
303 West 66th Street, 12FE, New York, NY
10023; 212-874-7047.
REAL ESTATE ASSET MANAGER - Abyssinian
Development Corporation, one of the nation's
pre-eminent Harlem based community devel-
opment organizations seeks a highly motivat-
ed self-starter to work with our Real Estate
team as an Asset Manager. Responsibilities
include oversight and monitoring of third party
property manager, coordination of all reporting
requirements of regulatory agencies, budget
review and approval , and review of monthly
management reports. In-depth knowledge of
property management and leasing procedures
for low-income tax-credit properties required,
along with knowledge of various regulations of
City, State, and Federal Agencies. Candidate
must have a Bachelors degree in Real Estate,
Economics, Finance, or business related field
with at least three (3) years work experience in
the field of residential asset management.
Must have strong quantitative skills, excellent
verbal and written communication skills, and
be highly organized. We offer a competitive
salary and excellent benefits. Please send
cover letter and resume to Abyssinian Develop-
ment Corporation, 131 W 138th Street, NY, NY
10030 attn: Human Resources or send e-mail
to realjobs@adcorp.org
REAL ESTATE PROJECT MANAGER - AAFE, a
28 year old CBO has two positions currently
available under the direction of the Director of
Planning and Development: 1) Real Estate Pro-
ject Manager: staff member responsible for
implementing neighborhood improvement pro-
jects, including housing and commercial devel-
opment for immigrant communities throughout
New York City. 2) Real Estate Development
Associate: staff member responsible for assist-
ing with departmental activities, fundraising
and general administration to implement
neighborhood improvement projects through-
out New York City. Send resumes to Grand
Street, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10002. FAX: 212-
680-1815 Email: human_resources@aafe.org
Web Site: www.aafe.org
REAL ESTATE PROPERTY MANAGER - Started
over 30 years ago in East Harlem, Hope Com-
munity Inc. is a dynamic corporation con-
structing, marketing and managing over 1500
apartments through its participation in feder-
al , state, city and private programs. This posi-
tion is responsible for comprehensive zone
management. The candidate must have a
proven track record of success in staff super-
vision, tenant relations, administrative proce-
dures including rent stabilization laws, rent
registrations and tenant certifications, Section
8, LlHTC and H.U.D. Strong experience, com-
puter literacy and RAM. (or equivalent). Certi-
fication is essential. Bi-lingual Spanish is a
plus. We offer a professional work environment
and comprehensive benefit package. Please
submit your resume and cover letter including
salary requirements bye-mail :
smcaprec@aol.com or fax to: PM: HR Dept.
212-828-7733/ No agencies or phone calls.
REHABILITATION SPECIALIST - The Center
for Urban Community Services (CUCS), a
national leader in the development of effective
housing and service initiative for homeless
people, invites applications for the following
position being offered at its supportive hous-
ing sites in Upper Manhattan: Rehabilitation
Specialist. Resp: Case Management, individ-
ual , group and crisis intervention services.
Reqs: BA + 2 yrs. direct service exp. ; BSW + 1
yr direct service expo (excluding fieldwork);
High School Diploma (or GED) + 6 yrs expo For
applicants without college degrees, every 30
credits can be substituted for 1 yr. of expo
Experience with mental health, low-income
individuals, supportive housing, homeless-
ness, or substance abuse pref. Bilingual Span-
ish/English req. Salary: $30,773. Benefits:
compo bnfts incl $65/month in transit checks.
Send resumes and cover letters by 1/27103 to:
Kristin Morris, CUCSlThe Delta, 409 W 145th
St. , New York, NY 10031. Fax: 212-862-0805,
Email:uptwhire@cucs.org
REHABILITATION SPECIALIST (HOUSING TEAM)
For the CUCS Transitional Living Community, a
successful mental health and housing place-
ment program for homeless, mentally ill
women. Resp: Case management, individual
and group services, and crisis intervention.
Reqs: BA & 2 years direct service experience
with indicated populations; BSW & 1 year
experience (excluding fieldwork); High School
Diploma (or equivalent) & 6 years experience.
Note: for applicants without college degrees,
every 30 credits can be substituted for 1 year
of experience. Bil ingual Spanish/English
required. Applicants should possess good ver-
bal and written communication skills. Salary:
$30,773. Benefits: compo bnfts incl $65/month
in transit checks. * Send resumes and cover
letters by 1114/03 to: Troy Boyle, CUCS/350
Lafayette TLC, 350 Lafayette St. , New York, NY
10012. Email: tlchire@cucs.org CUCS is com-
mitted to workforce diversity. EEO.
SCHEDULER/OFFICE MANAGER - Maintain
Senator's schedule, maintain district office,
order supplies, reception. Opportunities for
constituent work, community outreach, leg-
islative/policy work. Entry-level position. Atten-
tion to detail, reliability a must. Computer
experience, particularly with Outlook, writing
skill, previous experience working with public
strong pluses. Salary in mid-high 20s. Fax
resume to 212-490-2151.
CITY LIMITS
SELF-ADVOCACY REGIONAL COORDINATOR-
The Self-Advocacy Association of NY is seeking
a Regional Coordinator in the NYC area.
Responsibilities include coordinating an
AmeriCorps Project and the SA activities in the
NYC area. Requirements: Experience in sup-
porting people with developmental disabilities,
commitment to self-advocacy, organizational
and time mgmt skills, strong written and ver-
bal communication skills; ability to work with a
statewide team; supervisory experience, com-
puter proficiency and lots of energy and enthu-
siasm for the work. Send cover letter, resume
and salary expectations to SANYS, 500 Ball-
town Road, Schenectady, NY 12304 or email
sanys@capital.net
SENIOR CASE MANAGER - New World Com-
munities Inc. , a Brooklyn based social service
agency is seeking a highly motivated individ-
ual to fill a position as a Senior Case Manager.
Experience needed, Masters Degree required,
preferably in Social Work. I-year experience in
community service environment. Salary: Mid
$30s. Please fax resume to 718-399-7603.
SENIOR PROGRAM ASSOCIATE - A leading
nonprofit management consulting firm, Non-
profit Connection, seeks an experienced Senior
Program Associate with a minimum of five
years' experience in nonprofit management.
Responsibilities: Provide consulting services to
nonprofit organizations in the areas of organi-
zational development, including, but not limit-
ed to: board development, program develop-
ment, human resources administration,
strategic planning, fund raising, and organiza-
tional design; develop curriculum for and
deliver group training sessions in various
areas of organizational development. Require-
ments: A minimum of five years' experience in
nonprofit management with senior manage-
ment responsibility, or experience in technical
assistance or management consulting. Excel-
lent training, writing and interpersonal skills;
knowledge of organizational structure and
governance; familiarity with funding resources
and development strategy; computer compe-
tency; ability to work in a team-oriented, mul-
ticultural environment; familiarity with New
York City neighborhoods, and sensitivity to the
diverse ethnic and cultural milieu of New York
City. Send resume and salary history to: KW
Murnion and Associates, Inc. , NC Senior Pro-
gram Associate, 50 Park Avenue, NY, NY
10016. No phone calls.
SOCIAL SERVICES, LIFE SKILLS - Westch-
ester non-profit agency seeks a person to pro-
vide training in daily living skills to families in
homeless shelters and transitional/permanent
housing. Ideal candidates will have 2-3 years
experience as a Vocational Counselor, Life
Skills Worker or Case Mgr. BS+ must have NYS
driver's Lic. and own car. Send resume to
Director Human Resources, Westhab, 85 Exec-
utive Blv., Elmford, NY 10523. Fax 914-345-
3139. EOE.
SOCIAL WORKER - Bilingual EnglSpanish
and Eng/Chinese Social Workers to provide ser-
vices to individuals and families in a commu-
nity base preventive service program in Man-
hattan and Queens. Responsibilities include
case mgt., counsel ing, crisis intervention, and
advocacy. Submit cover letter and resume by
mail to Administration, Lower East Side Fami-
ly Union, 84 Stanton Street, 3rd Floor, New York,
NY 10002 or fax to 212-529-3244.
SOCIAL WORKER - The August Aichhorn Cen-
ter for Adolescent Residential Care is seeking a
full-time Social Worker (CSW) to act as team
coordinator for its Young Adult Supported Liv-
ing (YASL) program on West 112th Street in
Manhattan. Involvement with the Aichhorn
Residential Treatment Facility (RTF) on West
106th Street will also be possible. The YSAL
program is a 12-bed residence for young
adults (18-25) who have spent most of their
teenage years in congregate living facilities
and are making the transition to more inde-
pendent living. The team coordinator is
responsible for direct case management as
well as for supervision of the case managers
who staff the program around the clock. The
RTF provides very intensive long-term care to
teenagers who are unable to function in any
other situation outside a psychiatric hospital
or juvenile justice facility. The YASL program
was designed as a discharge resource for the
RTF and the programs are carefully coordinat-
ed. The YASL team coordinator may also act as
a primary therapist for some residents of the
RTF, or be other wise involved in the RFT thera-
py program. Salary is in the upper $30,000
range with good benefits and leave. Some
weekend work will be involved. Background in
supported housing, knowledge of entitlement
programs and community resources for this
population, and/or experience in working with
adolescents in care would be desirable. Send
resume to: Carmen Torres, Administrative
Director, August Aichhorn Center, 23 West
106th Street, New York, NY 10025, fax 212-
662-2755. www.aichhorn.org
SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO DIRECTOR OF DEVEL-
OPMENT - Writing, editing and proofreading
donor and other communications; utilizing
database to monitor and create various reports
JOBADS
for gift giving; maintaining and tracking bud-
gets and expense reports; maintaining endow-
ment and other major gift records. An Associ-
ates degree and a minimum of three years
related administrative experience or the equiv-
alent required. Reply to: HR, Dev. Assoc., ACLU,
125 Broad Street-18th Floor, NY, NY 10004.
STAFF ATTORNEY - (will consider candidates
awaiting admission) with primary responsibil-
ity for representing parents of students with
disabilities at hearings related to special edu-
cation, discipline, and providing counsel in
other areas of education law. Strong work ethic
and commitment to pursuing equity for low-
income students and students of color. Oppor-
tunity to assist in training of parents and
advocates. Will provide training. Salary mid-
$30s if no yet admitted. High $30s - low $40s
w/ expo post-admission. Good benefits. EOE
Fax resume to 212-496-5608, Attn.: Donald
Lash; or e-mail dlash@sinergiany.org
STAFF ATTORNEY - Represent Single Room
Occupancy tenants in housing matters. Salary
(UAW) Union Scale depending on experience.
Spanish helpful. Women, people of color, and
GLBTs are encouraged to apply. Fax cover letter
& resume to Adam Weinstein at 212-721-1514
STAFF ATTORNEY - The ACLU is dedicated to
protecting online free speech, fair use and pri-
vacy rights in the digital age. The staff attor-
ney is responsible for developing and executing
complex litigation, including legal research,
drafting and pleading briefs, discovery and
motion practice, trials and appeals. At least 4
years major litigation experience. Reply to Per-
sonnel , ACLU, 125 Broad Street, 18th FI, NY, NY
10004 or hrjobs@aclu.org
PROFESSIONAL DIRECTORY
SPECIALIZING IN REAL ESTATE
J-51 Tax Abatement/Exemption 421A and 4216
Applications 501 (c) (3) Federal Tax Exemptions All forms
of government-assisted housing, including LISC/Enterprise,
Section 202, State Turnkey and NYC Partnership Homes
KOURAKOS & KOURAKOS
Attorneys at Law
Eastchester, N.Y.
Phone: (914) 395-0871
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Visit our web site: www.npspace.com
Call for a free, nO-<lbligation consultation.
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MARCH 2003
.JULIA REICH GRAPHIC DESIGN
212.721.9764
oJ REICH 2@EARTHLlNK.NET
WWW.CREATIVEHOTLlST.COM/ oJ REICH
ADS, ANNUAL REPORTS, BOOK DESIGN, BROCHURES, CATALOGS,
Consultant Services
Proposa1s/Grant Writing
Hud Grants/Govt. RFPs
Housing/Program DeveIopmnt
Real Es""e Saleo/Rentals
Technical Assistance
Employment Programs
Capacity Building
MI(UA(L 6. BU((I
CONSULTANT
HOUSING, DEVELOPMENT & FUNDRAISING
Communi ty Relations
PHONE: 21276So7123
FAX: 212-397-6238
EMAIL: mgbuccl@aol.com
451 WEST 48th STREET, SUITE 2E
NEW YORK, NEW YORK 100361298
49
MATSON -----------------------------------------
I LLUSTRATED MEMOS
OFFICE OFTIIE 01Y VISIONARY:
:'
H panhandlers can't
rYYVlAJI... make it in New York, they
can't make it anywhere.
IrYllVl '"
Given the city's fiscal
crisis, why shouldn't they
have to pay for the benefits
that come from working
our bustling streets?
GOT AN IMPRACTICAL SOLUTION
TO AN INTRACTABLE PROBLEM?
SEND IN
50
OFFICE OF THt. CITY V[SlONARY
ClTY LlMITS MAGAZINE
120 WMLST.,20'rllFLOOR,NYN'll0005
ootcv@citylimits.
CITY LIMITS
STAFF ATTORNEYIPROGRAM DIRECTOR -
This position involves supervising staff, grant
administration and facilitating collaborative
relationships of Legal Advocacy Program.
Qualifications: 3-5 years experience in family
law or criminal law; some domestic violence
practice; previous experience supervising
staff/students. Spanish a plus. Salary: 50s
DOE. Excellent benefits. EOE. Resume and
cover letter to sfadel@connectnyc.org or Fax
212-683-0016.
SUBSTANCE ABUSE SPECIALIST - Center for
Urban Community Services (www.cucs.org), a
national leader in the development of effective
housing and service initiatives seeks to fill a
substance abuse specialist position in the his-
toric, landmark building, The Times Square.
The primary focus of this position is to provide
case management services to a mixed case-
load (approximately 32) including individuals
with mental illness, seniors and people living
with HIVIAIDS. All populations may have sub-
stance abuse problems. Substance Abuse Spe-
cialist: This position offers expert assistance
and consultation for other staff on the team
around issues of addiction, harm reduction
and treatment. This individual will also com-
plete substance abuse assessments, provide
substance abuse counseling to tenants both
individually and in groups, and participate on
the Substance Abuse Committee. ReQs: BA + 2
yrs direct service experience with indicated
populations; BSW + 1 yr (excluding fieldwork);
or High School Diploma (or GED) + 6 yrs direct
service experience. Note: For applicants with-
out college degrees, every 30 credits can be
su bstituted for 1 yea r of experience. Demon-
strated ability to serve populations of clients
with substance abuse and mental health
issues preferred. Good verbal and written com-
munication skills. Computer literacy required.
Bilingual Spanish/English preferred. Salary:
$30,773. Benefits: compo bnfts incl $65/month
in transit checks. *Send resumes and cover
letters by 1131103 to: Lisa Hernandez,
CUCS/Times Square, 255 W. 43rd Street New
York, NY 10036., Email:tshire@cucs.org CUCS
is committed to workforce diversity. EEO.
TEAM LEADER - HELP USA, a homeless hous-
ing provider seeks Qualified candidate to lead
an interdisciplinary team. Must have the ability
to coordinate 3 case managers with a caseload
of 63 clients, ensuring support services and
weekly contacts are provided to families. Pro-
vide individual supervision, crisis intervention
and support to the team and Case Managers;
and ensure that protocols and regulations are
adhered to by the counseling staff. MSW (pre-
ferred) or related degree and computer literacy
required. Must have minimum 2 years supervi-
sory experience; and clinical as well as case
management experience. Salary starts mid
$30s. Forward resume to Tabitha Newkirk-
Gaffney, Director of Social Services at fax 718-
485-5916 or email tgaffney@helpusa.org EOE.
A drug free workplace.
TEAM LEADER - HELP USA, a nationally rec-
ognized leader in the provisions of transitional
housing residential and social services has the
following opportunity in its family units: Team
Leader. The ideal candidate will provide
administrative and clinical supervision to BA
and MA level staff who are providing Case
Management and Therapeutic services to indi-
viduals, families and groups. Individual will
also lead a dynamic interdisciplinary team as
well as participate in program planning and
team building at a shelter for domestic vio-
lence survivors and their families in Northern
Manhattan. MSW or related degree necessary;
minimum 3 years supervisory experience;
knowledge and understanding of team con-
cepts, preferably in a domestic violence resi-
dential. Salary starts in mid to upper $30s,
commensurate with experience. Position
requires proficiency in computers and Windows
based software; bilingual (EnglishlSpanish) a
plus. Send resume to: HELP USA, PO Box 641,
New York, NY 10037. Attention Kathy Sheldon,
Director of Client Services, fax 212-862-4376
or e-mail to ksheldon@helpusa.org
TENANT ORGANIZERIPARALEGAL - Case-
handler based in Bronx Neighborhood Office
of Legal Aid Society, organizing tenants in
buildings in both Brooklyn and Bronx receiv-
ing Section 8 funding. Responsibilities
include completing project reports, drafting
material distributed to tenants, and speak-
ing at public meetings. Attend evening meet-
ings in Brooklyn and Bronx. Work as part of
team of attorneys and paralegals addressing
needs of tenants. Salary $31,600 + excellent
benefits. Requires 4-year college degree or
paralegal certificate from accredited school.
Send cover letter, resume and short writing
sample to: Helaine Barnett, Attorney-in-
Charge, Civil Division, Legal Aid Society, 199
Water Street, New York, NY 10038 or e-mail to
nrichardson@legal-aid.org. Women, people
of color, gays and lesbians and people with
disabilities especially encouraged to apply.
UNIT LEADER - Venture House is an innova-
tive psychiatric rehabilitation program based
on the clubhouse model. As a unit leader you
are responsible for organizing unit tasks,
incorporating members into the work of the
unit, report preparation and staff supervision.
In addition, as a generalist staff worker you
would provide assistance to people with men-
tal illness around entitlements, housing, other
needed services, transitional employment and
other tasks. Flexibility and belief in rehabilita-
tion and recovery are essential. Several years
experience in the mental health field required.
Supervisory experience and computer literacy
necessary. Salary in the 30s. Venture House is
open 7 days a week and staff rotate evening
and weekend hours. Send resume to Ray
Schwartz by fax, 718-658-7899, or mail, 150-
10 Hillside Ave., Jamaica, NY 11432.
VOLUNTEER AND PHONE BANK COORDINATOR
Volunteer and Phone Bank Coordinator for
LET US DO A FREE EVALUATION
OF YOUR INSURANCE NEEDS
JOB ADS
Showdown 2003 for an Affordable New York,
the campaign to renew and strengthen the rent
protection laws. Temporary Uanuary - June).
Coordinate nightly phone bank and work with
volunteer tenant activists to carry out cam-
paign. Full time, evenings required. Salary
DOE. To apply, send cover letter and resume to:
Tenants and Neighbors, 105 Washington
Street, NY 10006. Fax: 212- 619-7476.
Email:hschaubtn@hotmail.com
VOLUNTEER INTERVIEWER - Community
Food Resource Center, Inc (CFRC) is dedicated
to helping low-income New Yorkers gain and
maintain access to nutritious food, income
support and decent housing. Program: Tax
Assistance Program, Project: mc. This posi-
tion reports to the Tax Assistance Coordinator
and primary function is to interview and pre-
screen clients for free tax assistance program.
Essential duties and responsibilities include
the following: Provide assistance to clients
seeking tax free assistance, Identify clients
that are eligible to receive our services, Direct
clients to tax preparer and direct clients to
other services provided at site, Must complete
brief training. Education andlor experience
should include: Good writing and communica-
tion skills, Knowledge of tax preparation help-
ful , Must be comfortable working with diverse
population, Knowledge of foreign languages a
plus. If interested in this position please con-
tact Nancy Vazquez at 212-894-3398 or
nvazQuez@cfrcnyc.org
Vp, NEW YORK OPERATIONS - VP needed to
provide strategiC direction, oversee opera-
tions, build public awareness and develop
financial resources. Position requires BA, pre-
vious experience managing staff/budgets;
experience staffing senior-level volunteers;
and process-oriented individual who is able to
"close" transactions. $120-$125k and full
benefits. Send resume and letter to
krivera@nonprofitstaffing.com
We have been providing low-cost insurance programs and
quality service for HDFCs, TENANTS, COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT
and other NONPROFIT organizations for over 15 years.
MARCH 2003
We Offer:
SPECIAL BUILDING PACKAGES
FIRE LIABILITY BONDS
DIRECTOR'S & OFFICERS' LlABILTY
GROUP LIFE & HEALTH
"Tailored Payment Plans"
ASHKAR CORPORATION
51
APPLICATIONS FOR THE 2003
NEW YORK CITY COMMUNITY FELLOWSHIPS
THE OPEN SOCIETY INSTITUTE IS ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR
THE 2003 NEW YORK CITY COMMUNITY FELLOWSHIPS
The fellowships program seeks community activists and dynamic individuals from
diverse backgrounds to establish progressive initiatives or public interest projects that
address social justice issues in New York City. The program supports advocacy, organ-
izing, or direct service projects that promote equity for marginalized communities.
Past projects have focused on the arts, civic participation, economic justice, educa-
tion, health, and workers' rights.
Fellows receive an I8-month stipend and additional resources for each project.
ApPLICATIONS ARE DUE FRIDAY, ApRIL 18, 2003 BY NOON E.S.T.
FOR ELIGIBILITY, SELECTION CRITERIA, AND AN APPLICATION, PLEASE CONTACT
COMMUNITYFELLOWS@SOROSNY.ORG OR VISIT WWW.SOROS.ORG/FELLOW/COMMUNITY.
The Open Society Institute, a private operating and grantmakingfoundation created and fonded by George Soros, works to
strengthen democracy and civil society in the United States and more than 50 countries around the world.