PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Tariqua Morrison, Deputy General Counsel and Director of Intergovernmental Affairs from Queens Borough President's Office on Safe Hotels Act
1:19:02
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131 sec
Tariqua Morrison, representing Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, testifies in support of the Safe Hotels Act. She emphasizes the importance of the tourism industry to New York City and the need for better regulation of problematic hotels to ensure public safety and improve hotel quality.
- Cites the example of the Umbrella Hotel near Queens Borough Hall, where criminal activity led to a fatal shooting
- Argues that the Safe Hotels Act would give the city power to shut down unsafe hotels
- Compares New York to other major cities that have implemented similar hotel standards
- Urges the full council to pass the Safe Hotels Act to protect workers, guests, and communities
Tariqua Morrison
1:19:02
Good morning, Chairman and members of the Consumer And Worker Protection Committee.
1:19:07
My name is Theresa Morrison, and I service Deputy General Counsel And Director of Intergovernmental Affairs Queensboro president Donovan Richards, who is not able to be here today, but I'm here to deliver testimony on his behalf.
1:19:19
Our city's tourism industry is arguably our most important industry.
1:19:23
It puts tens of 1000 of our neighbors to work and generates 1,000,000,000 of dollars in wages and tax revenue, but what it doesn't do sometimes is have common sense.
1:19:33
The fact that a matter is that we have problematic hotels in every borough.
1:19:37
Instead of welcoming visitors from all over the world, they are size of criminal behavior and public safety concerns that make our communities less safe.
1:19:45
Just across the street from Queensboro Hall, for example, there was the umbrella hotel.
1:19:49
For months, we heard dozens of complaints from neighbors about drugs, prostitution, and violence happening there.
1:19:55
And on New Year's day in 2021, a shooting at the hotel took the life of a guest named Robert Williams.
1:20:02
He was there to celebrate the New Year and his 21st birthday the next day, but he didn't live long enough to see it.
1:20:09
Robert should still be alive, and he would have been alive if we had the power to shut down the Olin Brothers Hotel once it became clear that it was a threat to public safety.
1:20:19
The Safe Hotels Act would allow us to do just that.
1:20:22
That's why the borough president proudly endorses the Safe Hotels Act.
1:20:26
Not only will it make our communities safer, it will improve the quality of our hotels for those who use them.
1:20:32
Giving the city the tools to better regulate hotels and set basic health and safety standards is essential to protect thing, workers, guests, and the community.
1:20:41
And any reputable hotel should be able to follow them.
1:20:44
Cities like Chicago, Boston, Las Vegas have these standards in place, so it's only right that New York is the next city to do so.
1:20:53
Borrow president Richards is deeply grateful to council member men in for her advocacy and intensity on this bill, and he encourages the full counsel to pass it.
1:21:02
Licensing is one of the most effective tools the city has seen FORCE THE CRITICAL SAFETY AND SANITARY STANDARDS AT PUBLIC FACING BUSINESSES.
1:21:09
THAT'S WHY THE COUNSELLS SHOULD PASS THE SAFE HOTELS ACT NOW.
1:21:12
THANK YOU, Chairman.
