Winners & Losers
This week’s biggest Winners & Losers
Who’s up and who’s down this week?
Did Carl Heastie leave a substitute teacher … sorry … speaker in charge? Members of the Assembly found themselves pelted by paper planes this week, tossed by “good cause” eviction advocates. At least one lawmaker, freshman Republican Matt Slater, wasn’t amused by the middle-school, lunchroom-inspired protest. Speaking of paper, Stony Brook University is awash in it, $700 million to be exact. The university pulled in a $500 million donation, which triggers another $200 million in state matching funds. Not bad for a university with a $370 million endowment.
Richard Davis -
The current president of the Transit Workers Union 100 scored a big win following a month-long contract negotiation with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. The tentative contract includes raises, a pay bonus, 12 weeks maternity leave, and 4 weeks of paternity leave. The agreement still needs to be voted on by union members, but Davis will definitely be bragging about this win to his union buddies for a long time to come.
Shaun Abreu -
Delivering a blow to body shamers, New Yorkers are now protected from height and weight discrimination while applying for jobs, housing and public accommodations. That’s because New York City Mayor Eric Adams signed into law a bill from City Council Member Shaun Abreu that prohibits this form of discrimination. Abreu said the legislation, signed on May 26, makes the city a national leader in ending size discrimination. New York joins multiple other jurisdictions that have similar laws, including San Francisco.
Maria Torres-Springer -
Torres-Springer has a seriously impressive resume. She’s now New York City’s deputy mayor for housing, AND economic development, AND workforce. Mayor Adams rolling back the right to shelter miiiiight have been the final straw for Chief Housing Officer Jessica Katz, who’s now on her way out of City Hall, but her departure may be Torres-Springer’s gain with a big priority added to her portfolio. At least ONE half of this political power couple is having a good week. For more on that, look further down.
Jamie Torres-Springer -
Unlike his apparently better half, Metropolitan Transportation Authority exec Jamie Torres-Springer was not showered with accolades this week. The head of construction and development for the transit authority is now tasked with overseeing the full rollout of the contactless payment system OMNY, which is set to be years late and over-budget. Torres-Springer recently acknowledged that responsibility lies in part with the MTA struggling to dedicate staff to complete the rollout to Metro-North and the Long Island Rail Road. With already having a large portfolio of his own to manage, OMNY might be one of Torres-Springer’s bigger headaches.
Louis Molina -
It seems like things continue to go from bad to worse for New York City Department of Correction Commissioner Louis Molina – but (unfortunately) what’s new? To start the week off, the federal receiver overseeing Rikers Island released a disturbing report on the conditions of the jail complex and the coverups of five serious incidents. To make matters worse, the commissioner then got exposed for allegedly pleading with the monitor to keep tight-lipped on the findings and not release the report.
Danny O’Donnell -
There are a lot of things one shouldn’t say to a professional colleague, but “Grow a pair honey” ranks pretty high up there. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what Assembly Member Danny O’Donnell told fellow Assembly Member Catalina Cruz during a heated committee meeting. It unsurprisingly did not sit well with Cruz. A few days later, O’Donnell offered a public apology for his remarks, but it’s not a good look for the veteran lawmaker. And negative press at the start of Pride Month is never any fun.