PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Lacey Tauber, Representative from Brooklyn Borough President's Office
0:59:10
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145 sec
Lacey Tauber, representing Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, emphasizes the importance of manufacturing retention and the industrial sector for New York City's economy and workforce. She highlights the benefits of manufacturing jobs and the challenges faced by the sector, including land use pressures and competition for space.
- Tauber supports a 50% increase in funding for Industrial Business Service Providers (IBSPs), indexing spending to inflation, and shifting to 3-year contracts.
- She notes that manufacturing has decreased by 5% since 2010, with vacancy rates as low as 4.6% compared to higher rates in retail and office spaces.
- Tauber emphasizes the economic impact of manufacturing, stating that every $1 spent on manufacturing has a total impact of $2.68 on the overall economy.
Lacey Tauber
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Okay.
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She called you first.
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Okay.
0:59:13
Hi.
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My name is Lacey Tauber.
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I'm here representing Brooklyn borough president Antonio Reynoso, who represents 6 of the city's industrial business zones.
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Manufacturing retention in the borough and citywide is one of the borough president's biggest priorities, and he thanks the council for initiating the NYC industrial plan, which, as he mentioned, is now underway.
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While we look forward to that report providing comprehensive and updated data, there's a lot we already know about why a thriving industrial sector is crucial for our city.
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Manufacturing generally provides living wages with low barriers to entry, creating quality job opportunities for those who may not be able to find them otherwise.
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These jobs have allowed generations of New Yorkers without advanced degrees, immigrants and the formerly incarcerated, and others to stay and support their families in New York City.
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But manufacturing isn't just the city's past.
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It can also be the city's future.
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Our office's comprehensive plan for Brooklyn calls on us to leverage the borough's waterfront industrial areas and freight rail infrastructure to simultaneously shift the borough toward a future with more green industrial jobs, fewer trucks on the road, and a forward looking role in building the green economy.
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However, outside pressures continue to threaten our manufacturing zones.
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Reasoning changes have led to a 5% decrease in land zone for manufacturing since 2010, equivalent to a loss of 1,522 acres or 1,122 football fields.
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This has contributed to the manufacturing vacancy rate reaching levels as low as 4.6% this year compared to 12 for 12% for retail and 23% for office space.
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Manufacturing businesses have unique needs.
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For example, unlike retail and office, many industrial businesses cannot locate outside of m zones.
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Yet in many of the IBZs, they are forced to compete for space with businesses that can, such as nightlife establishments, restaurants, galleries, and other you're gonna hear from a bunch of the IBSPs, so I'm gonna let them tell you about all the great services that they provide and just say that borough president Reynoso supports, the Industrial Jobs Coalition budget ask for the next fiscal year, which includes a 50% increase in funding for the IBSPs, indexing the spending to inflation, and shifting the funding from a 1 year to a 3 year contract.
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This funding is a smart investment because they can leverage private funding sources.
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And a recent study found that for every $1 spent on manufacturing, there's a total impact of $2.68 to the overall economy, the highest of any economic sector.
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Thank you so much.
