Local politicians, including Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez, State Senator Daniel Squadron, Assembly Member Joan Millman, and City Council Member Stephen Levin, have signed a letter to Governor Andrew Cuomo urging that funds for senior centers in New York City, including the St. Charles Jubilee Center at 55 Pierrepont Street, which is threatened with closing, be restored to the budget. The text of the letter follows the jump.
Dear Governor Cuomo:
In this difficult year for funding, we write regarding the proposed change to Title XX funding, which would, according to a proposal released by the New York City Department for the Aging on March 3rd, result in the closing of 105 senior centers throughout New York City. Such closings would cause enormous pain for a vulnerable senior population that depends heavily on the centers in neighborhoods throughout the city; it would be an unacceptable outcome of the current budget negotiation.
There is an opportunity to prevent these closings without requiring further cuts in other areas of the budget. We understand that, in the joint revenue projection reached on Wednesday, March 2nd, there is an additional 155 million dollars that were not projected to be available in the original Executive budget proposal.
We urge you to apply a portion of these dollars now to offset the change to Title XX funding for New York City so that the Department for the Aging does not close these centers, depriving seniors who depend on senior centers for nutrition, social services and companionship of these vital lifelines.
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
