Gounardes, Brannan Demand Continued Suspension of Commercial Evictions
State Senator Andrew Gounardes, Councilman Justin Brannan, Brooklyn Chamber CEO Randy Peers and other local elected officials and business owners will join local business owners including Abdulilah Esa of Galaxy Comics, a local business that has been struggling due to the pandemic, to demand that the Governor continue the suspension of commercial evictions and that the state pass real relief for suffering small businesses. A small number of commercial evictions against businesses who had a covid hardship for proceedings that began before March 17th will be able to move forward beginning on August 20th, while the executive order protecting most local businesses from commercial evictions expires on September 4th. While the Tenant Safe Harbor Act protects residential tenants with a COVID-related hardship from being evicted, no similar ongoing protections exist for small businesses who make up the economic engine of our city. The coalition will also call for the passage of existing legislation including S.8211A and S.8853 to bail out struggling small businesses by mandating that pandemics be covered under business interruption insurance.
WHO: State Senator Andrew Gounardes; City Councilman Justin Brannan; Galaxy Comics Owner Abulilah Esa; Randy Peers, President and CEO of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce; Local business owners; Local elected officials
WHAT: Press Conference calling to Save our Small Businesses
WHEN: August 17, 1 p.m.
WHERE: Outside of Galaxy Comics, 6823 Fifth Ave (Between 68th and Bay Ridge Ave)