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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12,2016 2020- August - August 2020 INNER-CITY NEWS July 27, 02,18, 2016

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Creates Scholarship For Her Classmates

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

Lamont Calls For Change To Utility Oversight

by Christine Stuart Ct. News Junkie

HARTFORD, CT — With nearly 50,000 Eversource customers still in the dark almost a week after Tropical Storm Isaias hit the state, Gov. Ned Lamont called for the Public Utility Regulatory Authority to employ a new method of compensating utilities to hold them accountable for their performance.

“If you’re without power now, you’re mad as hell and not going to take it anymore,” Lamont said.

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Lamont acknowledged that there’s a lot of talk about firing the management of the utility and fines, rebates and refunds, but what’s going to make a big difference is how regulators regulate utilities.

‘I believe we heard all the same things after the last big outage,” Lamont said.

In 2011, following Tropical Storm Irene and an October snowstorm, residents and elected officials called for the resignation of executives and improved performance during storm events.

Lamont pointed out that Eversource is on its fourth CEO in a decade.

Regulators reduced the rate of return Eversource was allowed to receive—

nearly four years after those two storms.

Lamont said that type of regulation is not helpful to changing behavior.

“That makes no sense to me,” Lamont said of the current regulatory structure.

“That means we’re giving you a rate of return for the good things you do, the bad things we do. There’s no incentives there for performance.”

Lamont said he would be pushing for performance-based regulation.

“It seems to me that if you do really well, you deserve a better rate of return,” Lamont said Monday. “And if you don’t perform, if you leave tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of people without service for days on end, now we’re coming up on a week, there should be penalties to pay.”

He said it’s time Connecticut used a regulatory system where you get rewarded when you do well and penalized when you don’t.

In 2012, regulators issued a decision finding that Connecticut Light & Power, which is now Eversource, should be penalized for its poor performance : “... the Authority concludes that CL&P’s performance in the areas regarding communication to customers, other service providers and municipalities was so defi-

CTNEWSJUNKIE FILE PHOTO

Gov. Ned Lamont

cient as to be less than adequate and suitable and to warrant regulatory sanction.

This deficiency also involves its lack of preparation of personnel, failure to support municipal liaisons and to reasonably develop and communicate restoration times to customers.”

Regulators called for the financial penalties to be imposed in the company’s next rate proceeding. The company contested the finding, stretching out the process for another two years until the decision became final near the end of 2014.

CL&P was penalized $4.4 million, but

still allowed to increase rates.

Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Commissioner Katie Dykes, who used to chair PURA, said the agency has the authority to change how the utilities are regulated now, and doesn’t need legislative approval.

“Recently, PURA has opened grid modernization dockets to look at how to strengthen metrics,” Dykes said. Those metrics include the utility’s communications.

Eversource’s outage reporting system went down at the beginning of the storm Tuesday and the company did not provide town-by-town restoration estimates to ratepayers until the weekend.

“Communication. It’s not like a piece of hardware out on your system. It’s not like a tree that you trimmed. You know it’s something you have to prioritize and practice effectively and be dedicated to from the leadership on down,” Dykes said.

Dykes said there was work that’s been done on how frequently the communication should happen and what it should include.

The idea is to make “a shift for a much more accountable structure to compensate our utilities,” Dykes said.

Ribbon Cut On Apartments For Homeless Young Adults

by EMILY HAYS

New Haven I ndependent

The first renters have moved into a renovated blue-and-cream house in the Hill as part of a new approach to young-adult homelessness.

The nonprofit New Reach and local and state partners officially launched the project, Portsea Place, with a ribbon-cutting at the building on Tuesday afternoon.

The building at 223 Portsea St. hosts eight efficiency-style apartments for people between the ages of 18 and 24 who have experienced housing instability.

“We all can probably remember all the things we were trying to get right at that age,” said Karen DuBois-Walton, who heads New Haven’s housing authority.

“Then think about trying to do that while moving from place to place.”

It was a theme multiple speakers touched on during the ceremony — how important having a home is to moving on with other parts of life.

The model at Portsea Place is permanent supportive housing, this time for young adults. Each renter gets a subsidized apartment to live in indefinitely, with the support of a case manager, while they transition out of homelessness.

The housing authority and the state have both chipped in to make that stability happen at Portsea Place. Previously the New Reach women’s shelter CareWays, Portsea Place got a makeover starting in March

EMILY HAYS PHOTO State Department of Housing Commissioner Seila Mosquera-Bruno cuts the ribbon to the new Portsea Place.

of last year.

The cost of the renovation was around $1.7 million and was covered by a grant from the Connecticut Department of Housing, according to New Reach facilities manager Erica Grigley. This covered new siding and new windows, as well as demolition within the building.

The housing authority is channeling federal vouchers into the project so that rent can start at $0, depending on what each renter can afford. The city also awarded

$10,000 in federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) dollars to the project to cover the support from a case manager and peer mentor at the site.

Each apartment has a kitchenette, a closet and a bathroom as well as sleeping and living space. Seven of the eight renters moved in last week and received cleaning supplies, cookware and other gifts to help them get settled.

New Reach encouraged attendees of the ceremony to bring shampoo, soap and

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other gifts for the tenants. These supplies are not covered by food stamps, New Reach development specialist Andrea Cobin explained.

“If you don’t have money, you can’t get tampons or cleaning supplies,” Cobin said.

Cathy Hammie is the New Reach case manager stationed at Portsea Place. She said that she has already met seven of the eight renters and has spoken with the eighth on the phone.

She described the tenants, who are all out of high school. Some are working on classes at Gateway Community College, some have part-time jobs and some are not working.

They all have different stories of what brought them to New Reach. The stories often involve problems with their families, Hammie said. She said that one young woman was kicked out of her home at 14 and has been bouncing around in the seven years since then.

“They are good kids, quiet-ish, but they ask questions when they need something,” Hammie said.

Hammie refers tenants to resources like food pantries or mediates between them and previous landlords. Sometimes she is just a listening ear to the social problems of a young adult.

“I help them with navigating life — like a parent would be doing,” Hammie said.

Hammie sits down with each tenant to

write out goals they want to achieve, from holding down a job to finding an apartment. The idea is to stabilize their lives with Portsea Place and then help them move on.

“Although we use the term permanent supportive housing, we don’t want it to be permanent,” said New Reach staffer Jocelyn Antunes, who runs the nonprofit’s supportive housing program.

The idea that young people would moving in and out of Portsea Place had worried Hill neighbors, who have pushed back against the concentration of social services in their neighborhood.

Hammie said that a recent question and answer session with neighbors seemed to ease that worry. Unlike a shelter, there will not be frequent turnover at the apartments, she said.

One neighbor at the event, Martha Wright, is already ready to help out and get to know the new renters on the block.

Wright has lived in the area for at least 35 years. She knows most of her neighbors.

“Some were against and some were for it—you know how it is. I don’t have any objection as long as they are supervised,” Wright said.

Wright said that she used to work at West Haven High School.

“I don’t know if they need volunteers, but I would like to learn more,” Wright said.

“I’m used to working with kids.”

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

Head of Energy Committee Calls For Eversource CEO To Resign

by Christine Stuart Ct. News Junkie

ROCKY HILL, CT — Sen. Norm Needleman, who co-chairs the Energy and Technology Committee, said Saturday that Eversource Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer James J. Judge should step down.

After several days, dozens of roads remain blocked and thousands of customers wait without power in his district and with hundreds of blocked roads and hundreds of thousands of customers without power statewide.

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“When Eversource requested hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years to make improvements to the state’s electric grid, it’s easy to ask where that money went, seeing the response to Tropical Storm Isaias,” Needleman said. “This is an epic failure on the part of Eversource, but it has been decades in the making, with a dwindling on-the-ground workforce and a desire to create an almost virtual company.

Mitch Gross, a spokesman for Eversource, didn’t respond directly to Needleman’s suggestion.

“As with all storms, we will participate in an after-action review with regulators and community stakeholders to evaluate our approach to emergency response efforts and storm restoration,” Gross said.

“But today we’re focused on one thing – doing everything we can do to restore

power to our customers.”

Eversource says it still plans to have a substantial number of customers with their lights back on by Tuesday, but as of Saturday morning more than 290,000 were still without electricity with the forecast calling for three days of heat and humidity in Connecticut. Town-by-town restoration information won’t be available until Saturday night.

Eversource executives, who underestimated the number of outages before Tropical Storm Isaias hit, say they have 1,600 crews working on restoring power to the grid. The utility only had about 450 line crews 24 hours after the storm and had to increase its mutual aid requests to other states.

Eversource estimates it will have power restored to the “vast majority” of customers by late Tuesday night — a full week after Tropical Storm Isaias hit the state.

Based on documents it submitted to regulators earlier this year, the utility should have had 750 to 1,200 crews pre-positioned to respond once the storm ended.

The duration of the storm was not long, but the number of trees it brought down on power lines was significant.

Local elected officials have expressed disappointment in the response that left some towns with a single crew to de-energize lines and allow tree and town crews to clear roads.

On Friday, Westport First Selectman Jim Marpe called Eversource’s response “woefully inadequate.”

CTNEWSJUNKIE FILE PHOTO

Sen. Norm Needleman

Several roads remain blocked and he said emergency crews cannot get to homes and residents with safety equipment.

“We have lives at risk,” Marpe said.

As of Saturday afternoon, trees were still blocking roads and traffic lights were still out in many parts of the state.

Eversource crews were working on clearing Gilbert and Butternut Streets in Rocky Hill.

Eversource opened up six satellite command centers in the hardest-hit regions of Connecticut: Berlin, Cheshire, Madison, Norwalk, Tolland, and Torrington. These local centers supplement Eversource’s

regular work centers, reducing materials bottlenecks and providing more efficient deployment of crews through a more localized approach.

Linemen from other states who were unable to speak on the record said they’ve been struggling to get instructions from Eversource about the next assignment.

Frank Poirot, a spokesman for Eversource, said there’s a lot happening at this point in the restoration and a location they may have been assigned to may have already been taken by another crew.

“We are trying to get them up to assignments that are in their area,” Poirot said.

“There’s going to be a little bit of that when you get so many people into a restoration like this. We’re resolving it as we speak.”

The damage is extensive and linemen don’t have to travel far to their next assignment.

“It’s just time-consuming because you have to manage a lot of crews that are working in the same area and maintain their safety,” Ryan Kulbacki, an Eversource lineman from New Hampshire, said Saturday.

He said they have had enough access to equipment to get their job done, however, “we might have to do something differently if we’re using a large amount of stock.”

He said they’ve had to improvise to get the power back on in some locations. He said the damage they are finding has been “pretty devastated,” and they’re taking a long time in a lot of spots trying to clean up the “heavy damage.”

Craig Hallstrom, Eversource’s president of regional electric operations, said Friday that he expects that by the time it is over, this will be the second-worst outage event for his company.

“A lot of damage real fast,” Hallstrom said.

He said more than 800,000 customers were impacted by this storm.

That’s about the same amount who were knocked off the grid by both Tropical Storm Irene and the October 2011 snowstorm.

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By appointment, patients can speak one-on-one with a financial counselor during regular business hours. For your convenience, extended hours are available once a month.

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Spanish-speaking counselors available.

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

Dixwell Donates Back-To-School Supplies, For Either Reopening Scenario

by COURTNEY LUCIANA New Haven I ndependent

Jayleani Rivera aovid-19. In the meantime, they joined their families on Saturday to donate school supplies at the Dixwell police substation on Charles Street.

“It’s fun to go back to school,” said Stevens, who will be nd Zonasia Stevens are keeping optimistic about adapting to the upcoming school year and overcoming the obstacles of Cattending Edgewood Magnet School. “I like to go on the playground.”

The playground won’t be an option possibly until after the first marking period in October. The decision to start the school year with remote-only learning was officially declared by the Board of Education on Wednesday night, pending a sign-off from the state.

Regardless, community members agreed that school supplies remain a costly necessity. Dixwell Management Team, Varick Memorial Church, ConnCAT, the New Haven and Yale police departments organized the donation drop-off to assist impoverished families in preparing their children to go back to school.

All of the school materials donated from the drive will be given away at the substation from 1-3 p.m. on Aug. 15. There will also be free food and ice cream, free masks, and Covid-19 testing provided by Cornell Scott Hill-Health Center.

ConnCAT donated $400 to Dixwell Management Chairperson Nina Silva, who bought a plethora of Cra-z-art markers, folders, pencil boxes, glue sticks, pens and pencils from Walmart in Hamden for Saturday’s drop-off. Silva, who works as a paraprofessional at John C. Daniels School, said she saved a remainder of approximately $100 to purchase more supplies that come up short after the donation drive.

“Teachers give a lot in the classroom, so now with the Covid, each student has to use their own item. There’s no way they can share. They can’t share even a

COURTNEY LUCIANO PHOTO River and Stevens with school supplies they donated for fellow students.

Brown, Lt. Manmeet Colon, Silva, and Officer Bryan Phillips, who helped with Saturday’s drive.

box of crayons,” Silva said. “So whether they’re at home or they’re at school, each student needs their own supplies.”

Lt. Manmeet Colon sent out a mass email requesting donations to neighbors in East Rock, Newhallville, and Dixwell, where she serves as top cop. Residents are encouraged to bring supplies to the Dixwell substation throughout the week.

“Especially nowadays, a lot of people don’t have jobs and they can’t afford to

go buy even a little bit of school supplies. Especially if they have multiple kids,” Colon said. “So anything that can help our community members to thrive and continue to get their kids through school, even online.”

Ann Dallas from East Rock donated two tie-dyed JanSport backpacks, pens, and pencils.

“Donations are important because you should do things for kids,” said Dallas.

“They’ve got to think that school is a great thing and nifty!”

Dallas heard about the donation drive from Alder Steve Winter’s newsletter.

Winter said he has been working with local agencies and churches to arrange next Saturday’s handout. “Anything that we can do to make kids feel some sense of normalcy, rhythm, and routine is crucial,” said Winter. “They’ve been out of school for so long. All of the students, teachers, and staff need to feel safe and be safe.”

Silva intends to give each child who attends the Aug. 15 giveaway a book bag filled with each of the supplies given.

Silva said as a parent she wants her kids to go back to school but agreed that health comes first. From her perspective as an assistant teacher, she said she’s afraid to contract the virus and bring it home to her special-needs son.

“My son has been inside since March, and it’s affecting him,” Silva said. “I would love for him to go back to school, but no, I wouldn’t send him back.”

Diondrea Brown, neighborhood specialist for Dixwell for the Liveable City Initiative, assisted in collecting the supplies with the Dixwell Community Management Team. Brown has three children including a baby, a 10-year old, and a 12year old. Brown has been concerned in particular about her son, who has gained weight during quarantine.

“For health reasons, as a mom, how do I say to my son that he can’t go outside and be active because of the virus? I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place,” Brown said. “Regardless, they still need supplies either way. It’s nice that the community could come together and help out a little bit.”

For anyone interested in donating school supplies, drop off at Dixwell substation or contact either Nina Silva at Neenahdawn@gmail.com or Steve Winter at (203) 903-4342.

Hamden High Grad Creates Scholarship For Her Classmates

by SAM GURWITT

New Haven I ndependent

The Hamden High School class of 2020 didn’t get a prom or a last few months of high school spent celebrating with friends. But thanks to the work of one graduate, ’20 grads will walk away with a scholarship to help them through their next life step.

Mareshah White, who just graduated with the class of 2020, said she was thinking about her classmates on Dother’s day when an idea occurred to her.

She had gotten so much from her peers, and she was watching them graduate without any of the traditional hallmarks of the end of senior year, she said. “I said, ‘Maybe there’s a way I could kind

Mareshah White

of give back to my class.’”

They couldn’t get a prom or a carefree senior spring. But maybe they could get some financial support as they embark on college careers.

So White decided that she wanted to create a scholarship fund for her fellow graduating seniors to put towards their future endeavors.

She went first to Principal Nadine Gannon and then to the guidance department, and started reaching out to organizations in the area that could sponsor the fund.

A few months later, the scholarship was up and running, and got its first donation: $15,000 from AT&T. White partnered with the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven to

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create the scholarship. The foundation holds the funds, and she and Hamden High Coordinator of Counseling and Career Pathways Dan Cocchiola are helping administer them.

White said that at the very least, she would like to give scholarships to 150 graduating seniors. But she said she hopes to get enough donations to be able to provide a scholarship to all 396 graduating seniors.

White said she is still collecting applications. So far, 72 students have applied.

The scholarship will be open to students pursuing four-year college, two-year colleges or trade schools, or the military, and can be used for whatever students need it for.

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

Federal Judge Upholds Eviction Moratorium

by THOMAS BREEN

New Haven I ndependent

A federal judge ruled against a group of landlords seeking to overturn the state’s eviction moratorium, finding that rental property owners do not have a Constitutional right to maximize profits during a pandemic.

U.S. District of Connecticut Judge Victor Bolden issued that ruling Friday afternoon in the case Auracle Homes LLC; FD Management LLC; Buckley Farms LLC; Orange Capitol LLC; 216 East Main Street Meriden LLC; BD Property Holdings LLC; Prime Management LLC; and Haberfeld Enterprises LLC v.

Ned Lamont. Two of the plaintiff holding companies are co-owned by the New Haven-based rental property owners David Candelora and Ben Eastman.

In his 39-page decision, Bolden, who is a former top city government attorney, denied the landlords’ request for a temporary restraining order to be placed on Gov. Ned Lamont’s statewide eviction moratorium, which currently extends through Aug. 22. Click here to read Bolden’s full decision.

The federal judge went point by point through the landlords’ claims that the governor has violated their Constitutional rights to due process, private property, private contract, and equal protection under the law.

At each step, Bolden found that the argument made by the landlords — and their Republican legislator attorneys — fell short of convincing the court to take the extraordinary measure of overturning an executive order designed to protect the public amidst the current Covid-19 crisis.

Bolden’s line of reasoning throughout the decision returned again and again to the notion that rental housing is already a heavily regulated industry, and imposing a new set of regulations designed to mitigate the current public health crisis is not an unreasonable act for the governor to take.

“Plaintiffs continue to enjoy economic

THOMAS MACMILLAN FILE PHOTO Judge Victor Bolden.

benefits of ownership, and ‘can continue to accept rental payments from tenants not facing financial hardship, while also covering the cost of ownership by collecting security deposit funds from consenting tenants who have been affected by the pandemic,’” Bolden wrote, citing a decision issued by a New York federal court judge earlier this year that upheld New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s eviction moratorium in the face of a similar lawsuit from local landlords.

“As residential landlords, Plaintiffs’ contractual right to collect rent is premised on compliance with a framework of state laws. Consequently, their reasonable investment-backed expectations cannot operate apart from ‘public programs adjusting the benefits and burdens of economic life to promote the common good.’”

Lamont’s executive orders do not prevent the landlords from collecting rent or accruing unpaid rent, Bolden noted. They instead represent “a temporary adjustment of the status quo, and only defer the ability of residential landlords like Plaintiffs to collect, or obtain a judgment for,

the full amount of rent the tenants agreed pay.”

Just because the plaintiffs cannot make as much profit as they normally do from these properties, Bolden wrote, does not mean that the government has wholly seized their private property and deprived them of all value.

Bolden applied a similar logic to landlords’ ability to evict tenants as he did to their ability to collect rent under these executive orders. These orders do not eliminate the possibility of evictions. They simply require plaintiffs to wait.

Citing the same 1905 case that a different federal judge cited when denying a New Haven bar’s challenge to Mayor Justin Elicker’s limitation on social gathering sizes earlier this year, Bolden reaffirmed the executive branch’s relatively wide latitude to look out for the public’s health during crises like the current one.

He referenced an amicus brief provided by a variety of legal aid services in the state, including New Haven Legal Assistance Association, that claimed that allowing evictions to resume will inevitably result in families kicked to the street, living in shelters, or in denser congregate settings, and increasing their risk of contracting Covid-19.

“Even in the absence of record evidence that these specific measures directed at preventing evictions are causally related to any reduction in the spread of COVID-19 in the State of Connecticut,” Bolden wrote, “given the ongoing nature and continued uncertainty of when public life will resume to normal, there is nothing in this record to suggest that Governor Lamont’s efforts thus far should be second-guessed, much less stayed.”

‘While this pandemic has adversely affected Plaintiffs’ businesses—as it has much of the nation’s economy,” the judge concluded, “Plaintiffs have failed to satisfy the standards necessary for obtaining a temporary restraining order or a preliminary injunction as a matter of law.”

New Clinton Avenue Principal Picked

by EMILY HAYS

New Haven I ndependent

Jamie Coady is leaving John S. Martinez School after 16 years to become principal of another Fair Haven magnet, Clinton Avenue.

The New Haven Public Schools Board of Education unanimously voted to approve her promotion at a virtual meeting on Monday evening.

“I’ve had an amazing 16 years at Martinez, surrounded by professional, dedicated people. Thank you. It’s really been an amazing experience,” Coady said, adding that she is excited about her next step.

Superintendent Iline Tracey lauded Coady for her energy and her focus on so-

Jamie Coady (left) with Diane Mitchell and Kimberly Orifice at John S. Martinez School.

cial-emotional learning and restorative practices.

Social-emotional learning teaches students life skills and restorative practices work on students taking responsibility for actions. Both are part of the school culture at John S. Martinez, where Coady helped shift the philosophy around discipline and nearly eliminate suspensions.

Coady has earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Southern Connecticut State University as well as her teaching certificate and an additional diploma in educational leadership. She leaves her assistant principal role at Martinez.

Coady will start at Clinton Avenue with a salary of $155,276.

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DONT LET THEM COUNT YOU OUT!

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

This Primary, Some Vote Twice

by Laura Glesby

New Haven I ndependent

Jerry Poole ended up voting twice — to make sure it was counted once.

In Tuesday’s primary election, he won’t be alone.

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Poole was one of more than 9,000 New Haveners who requested an absentee ballot for Tuesday’s presidential primary. He had reason to wonder whether his vote would count: A state screw-up got him (and other voters throughout the state) his absentee ballot late. He popped it in the mail but couldn’t be sure it would arrive in time to be counted Tuesday night. .

So Poole was also one of 450 voters who showed up outside the 200 Orange St. Hall of Records government office building on Saturday to make sure.

The city clerk’s office will return to the 200 Orange sidewalk from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday to resume helping voters who are confused or uncertain about the fate of their absentee ballots, and to help some of them fill out a second ballot.

The outcome of the primary election is not at stake, at least not in New Haven.

Tuesday’s Democratic and Republican primaries have only one race on the ballot in New Haven: For U.S. president.

Both parties have in fact already settled on nominees, Joe Biden and Donald Trump. The ballot will include opponents who have dropped out of the race (on the Democratic side) or have no conceivable way of winning the nomination (Roque De La Fuente, on the Republican side).

Officials still encourage people to vote, to make their preferences heard and exercise their Constitutional rights. (In parts of Hamden and the lower Naugatuck Valley, a truly contested race is on the ballot, for Democratic nomination for the 17th State Senate District seat.)

But much is still at stake in New Haven, and in Connecticut. Because the primary is seen as a trial run for the Nov. 3 general election, which will feature many contested races — and when Connecticut will try to run a viable election during a pandemic.

In Tuesday’s primary, as in the Nov. 3 general election, voters can simply show up at the polls between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m.

But they can also vote by absentee ballot in either election if they are concerned about contracting Covid-19, thanks to a gubernatorial executive order. So the state needs to be able to handle a flood of absentee ballots.

As Saturday’s event outside 200 Orange St. demonstrated, it’s not going well so far. Ballots have arrived late in the mail, or not at all. And people aren’t always clear how to return them properly.

Poole needed to fill out paperwork twice in order to cast his ballot.

That didn’t deter him. He said he felt

LAURA GLESBY / NEW HAVEN INDEPENDENT

Jerry Poole casts his ballot a second time; Democrats and Republicans can still cast absentee ballots Monday outside 200 Orange St.

the weight of two tragedies — the death of his 98-year-old mother, who lost her life to Covid-19, and the police killing of George Floyd — as he slid his second absentee ballot into a curbside box in front of the Hall of Records Saturday.

There was “no way in the world” he wasn’t going to vote, he said.

In fact, when he arrived at the absentee ballot assistance station outside 200 Orange St., he had already mailed in a ballot.

He simply wanted to make sure his vote would go through, after hearing stories of a lagging postal service and mishandled absentee voting in other states during the pandemic.

Poole wasn’t alone in being worried about the fate of his vote. This election season, due to the pandemic, an unprecedented number of people across the state — more than 250,000 — have requested absentee ballots. In the weeks leading up to this coming Tuesday’s primary election, the state’s system of distributing absentee ballots was overloaded with requests, causing delays in the ballotmailing process.

In response, the City Clerk’s office in New Haven set up the outdoor station on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. where voters could walk up and receive absentee applications and ballots to fill out at nearby tables, on the spot.

“There are approximately 9,000 people in the City that have requested absentee ballots for the Primary and because of an issue reported with the Secretary of

State’s mailing house, many ballots have not yet arrived,” Mayor Justin Elicker wrote in an email to constituents on Friday. “We want to make sure everyone can vote.”

At the station, City Clerk Michael Smart assured Poole that if he mailed in an additional absentee ballot, his vote wouldn’t be double-counted. So Poole accepted a clipboard of materials and sat down at a table nearby to fill out his second ballot.

“I have a lot on my mind that brings me down here to vote,” Poole said. “This is the most important election of my lifetime.”

Poole was one of approximately 450 people who submitted a ballot at the station on Saturday. Anyone eligible to vote in New Haven could approach the City Clerk employees standing outside, show an ID, and receive both an application for an absentee ballot and a ballot itself.

After filling out the materials, the voters could submit their ballots directly into a curbside bin. A similar absentee ballot station will take place on Monday outside the Hall of Records between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Smart said that his office is still receiving applications for absentee ballots; he estimated that around 100 new applications came in on Friday. His office is required to mail absentee ballots to those who have sent in applications, he said, regardless of whether it will be possible for the recipients to submit the ballots in time. At this stage, though, Smart recommends that

6

voters who have not yet mailed absentee ballots drop their envelopes in the boxes outside of 200 Orange St. The City Clerk’s office released a statement saying that Monday is the last day to obtain an absentee ballot. The staff will be out front all day to help.

Registered Democrats have the option of voting for Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, or Tulsi Gabbard. (Gabbard and Sanders have dropped out of the race, but they remain on the ballot.) Registered Republicans have the option of voting for Donald Trump or Roque De La Fuente.

Kim Dirschka showed up to Saturday’s station because she applied for an absentee ballot, yet never received one. She wanted to vote because “I don’t know that we can last another four years” of Trump, she said.

Kathy Jones also never received an absentee ballot; she wondered if she might have applied too late. She heard about Saturday’s absentee ballot station after calling about her absent ballot. While she doesn’t feel completely comfortable going outside, she said, “I didn’t want to miss my opportunity.”

Anstress Farwell had mailed in her absentee ballot — only to receive it back in her mailbox. She discovered that she had accidentally folded the ballot the wrong way, so that the window of the envelope displayed her return address rather than the City Clerk’s address.

Farwell wasn’t the only one to make that error. Jeff Fuller emailed the Independent

to report that he had needed to unseal, flip over, and re-seal the envelope containing his absentee ballot after discovering that the envelope’s window did not line up with the proper address. He called the potential for this error a “SERIOUS flaw in the mail-in process,” adding, “I also recommend that the Secretary of State, or local Clerks, take steps for the presidential election to remove the possibility of this flaw. I’d hate for my vote not to count.”

Ethan Rodriguez-Torrent came to cast a vote for Bernie Sanders, even though the presidential candidate had dropped out of the race. “In a two-party system, candidates don’t get support if they aren’t viewed as electable,” Rodriguez-Torrent said. He hoped that if enough people voted for Sanders in the primary, they would be able to communicate a message that candidates like Sanders can be electable in Connecticut.

Gerry Garcia, a small business counselor in the city’s Economic Development administration, came to submit his absentee ballot with his son, Daniel, who usually accompanies his parents when they go to vote.

Garcia, who staged a primary campaign for secretary of the state in 2010, praised the voting station. He said he hopes to see mail-in voting in future Connecticut elections.

“This should be the norm,” he said. “It shouldn’t take risking our lives to have this.”

Smart also said he hopes a similar early voting system will take place in elections to come. For now, he and his staff are working late nights to ensure that this election functions well, he said.

Plenty of other young voters stopped by to fill out ballots. Caleb and Sam Crumlish, twins who just turned 18 in July, came to vote in their first election, despite feeling as though their votes were merely symbolic after the Democratic candidates challenging Biden dropped out.

“It’s nice to get involved in the democratic process,” Caleb said — and to familiarize himself with the process of voting before November’s general election.

“I didn’t feel like I had much of an impact,” said Sam. But he was glad he voted anyway. “This whole time, I’ve been watching” politics happen, he said. “Now I have a say.”

Mikayla Davis, another first-time teen voter, filled out her absentee ballot on Saturday alongside her mom.

Her mom expressed a measure of skepticism about the in-person absentee voting system, having heard stories of voter suppression in other states. “I just hope that it all goes through,” she said.

What brought Davis out to vote amid a pandemic? “Change,” she answered immediately.

“Even if things don’t change,” she added, “at least I tried.”

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

Voting By Absentee? Registrars Offer Some Advice

by Christine Stuar Ct. News Junkie

HARTFORD, CT — Connecticut’s Registrars of Voters are asking constituents who have yet to receive their absentee ballot in the mail to call their town clerk and get a new one.

That’s because at this point the ballot is unlikely to show up before next Tuesday.

Support authentic, locally owned and operated public service journalism!

Post Offices like the one in Hartford were closed Wednesday due to the power outage and changes in the postal service are slowing down delivery of mail in general.

Secretary of the State Denise Merrill said the U.S. Postal Service has seen “cutbacks” and it’s just “another factor” that’s making it difficult for people to obtain their absentee ballot.

“It’s hard to know exactly when people are going to get their ballots,” Merrill said.

She said people still don’t have ballots that were mailed last week by a mail house.

“There was a huge volume, even more than we anticipated,” Merrill said. “There were 267,000 absentee ballots applied for.

It’s a big number.”

There’s a dispute between Merrill and the head of the Connecticut Town Clerks Association about how many ballots should have been sent by a mail house and how many should have been sent by the town clerks.

For the first time the state hired a mail house to send absentee ballots on behalf of the town clerks. Typically that’s something that would be handled at the local level.

Anna Posniak, president of the Connecticut Town Clerks Association, said Merrill’s office did not tell them until Monday afternoon that they would need to process about 20,000 absentee ballots.

“I am extremely irate,” Posniak said in a letter to town clerks.

The plan had always been to make the switch over from the mail house to the clerks on Monday, Aug. 3, Gabe Rosenberg, a spokesman for Merrill, said.

“If the state had not stepped in the towns would have had to mail all 267,000 themselves,” Merrill added.

Posniak worries the towns may not be able to process the 20,000 absentee ballots along with all the new requests that will come in this week.

“I am extremely concerned for the vot-

ers in our large cities as this neglect by SOTS may disenfranchise their vote next Tuesday,” Posniak wrote.

Merrill said she doesn’t believe that will happen.

Town Clerks have the ability to issue a duplicate absentee ballot that voters can use if they don’t want to go to the polls for the presidential preference primary on Aug. 11. Voters can then place their absentee ballot in the ballot box outside town hall and avoid the postal service.

Voters can also choose to vote in person.

Absentee ballots that arrive by mail after 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 11, cannot be counted.

Submitting an absentee ballot ahead of the primary will allow Registrars to maintain accurate lists and will ensure your ballot is successfully cast on time.

It will also help project the winner in a more timely fashion, said Sue Larsen, president of the Registrars of Voters Association of Connecticut.

Larsen also said Registrars have been diligently working to ensure polling locations follow social distancing guidelines and are safe and secure for poll workers and eligible voters who choose to cast a ballot in-person.

CTNEWSJUNKIE FILE PHOTO Ballot box outside Bloomfield Town Hall

Amidst Traumatic Year, Leaders Pray For Peace

by THOMAS BREEN

New Haven I ndependent

City elected officials and local clergy invoked the power of prayer Friday afternoon as they reflected on the devastation wrought so far in 2020.

Around a dozen alders and the mayor held that “Hour of Power” press conference on the second floor of City Hall.

They gathered eight months into a year that has seen a deadly pandemic, mass protests in response to police brutality, a sharp increase in gun violence in the city, a tropical storm that deprived thousands of city residents of electricity, and the apparently accidental shooting death of an 8-year-old in the Hill Thursday night.

Board of Alders Majority Leader and Westville Amity/Alder Richard Furlow said that this was the first prayer press conference the local legislature had organized during his time on the board, and that 2020 is no ordinary year.

“In light of social distancing and in light of the things that are going on in this city, we thought it important that we take this moment to pray and reflect,” he said.

Board of Alders President and West River Alder Tyisha Walker-Myers (pictured) agreed. “2020 has been a really rough year for everyone in our city and nationally,” she said. “People are dealing with so many different things. Sometimes it seems hopeless. Whenever I’m faced with not knowing what to do or feeling

Rev. Ricardo Heredia (at podium) leads a prayer on the second floor of City Hall.

like something needs to be done, I go back to my roots. Which is prayer.”

The alders and mayor had help Friday from a rabbi and two pastors who sought to put a name to the traumas and sorrows of the year so far—and to urge those who do have faith to tap into that well in this time of need.

“In the day and time which we are living, we most definitely need prayer,” said

First Church of God Pastor D’Hati Burgess, who wore a face mask depicting 19-year-old Kiana Brown, who was shot and killed in her sleep in on Valley Street earlier this year.

Burgess described the calamities that have beset the city, the region, the country and the world over the past few months: the spread of the novel coronavirus and widespread sickness and death caused by

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Covid-19, a sharp increase in gun violence earlier this summer, and, most recently, a tropical storm that sent trees falling over the city and deprived 12,000 households of power at its height (according to this United Illuminating outage map, as of 3 p.m. Friday, 3,078 households (or 5.2 percent of the city) still do not have power following Tuesday’s storm).

“Prayer to a believer is like breath to a human being,” he said. “Without prayer life, there is no spiritual life.”

He prayed for peace—internal peace, and peace for the city.

Rabbi Shua Rosenstein from the Chabad at Yale reflected on a specific Hebrew prayer, oseh shalom, that translates to, “He who creates peace above in heaver, may he bring peace to us.” Rosenstein himself was violently attacked earlier this year outside of the Chabad House.

Why does the prayer start with a command for peace in heaven? Rosenstein asked. Why not start with peace on Earth?

“True peace, real peace, comes with the recognition that every single one of us is created in the image of God,” he said. Regardless of faith, race, or sexual identity.

Only when we accept that all are created in that hold image can we attain “true peace, real peace, and lasting peace” in this world.

Ricardo Heredia, pastor of Star of David church on Howard Avenue, offered his prayer and reflection in Spanish. Hill

Alder Evelyn Rodriguez translated his words into English.

“I believe that in this day, that if we exclaim to God with faith, the presence of God will fall upon our communities,” he said.

He prayed for an end to crime and violence, an end to homicides, an end to discrimination and racism, and for relief from “illness and the deaths that it brings to our communities.”

Elicker closed out the prayer presser by recalling a visit he had made roughly 12 hours prior: a visit to the hospital’s emergency room, where he met with the family of an 8-year-old boy who was shot and killed in an apparent accident in the Hill Thursday night.

“Just to see the look on the mother’s eyes, who could never see their 8-yearold child again, to think about her arms never being able to hold her 8-year-old child again ...” he paused as tears welled up in hos own eyes.

“No parent should ever have to bury a child,” he said.

Amidst such sorrow, he said, he does feel hope. “Hope springs from a shared communal sentiment that enough is enough,” he said. “That one funeral is too many.”

He called for equality, peace, and inclusion—and said the elected officials in that room together Friday are all committed to helping make those ideals a reality.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

Officials, Census Workers Slam Deadline Switch

by KO LYN CHEANG

New Haven I ndependent

U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro blasted the Trump Administration Wednesday afternoon for ending Census counting efforts early, a move she described as an issue of civil rights, economic justice, and racial justice.

“The census is too important to rush or to sabotage,” said DeLauro.

DeLauro joined Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz, New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker, State Rep. Robyn Porter of New Haven and members of the city’s Complete Count Committee at City Hall Wednesday to urge the U.S. Census Bureau to reverse their decision to end all census counting efforts early.

“We’re here today to strongly object to the Trump Administration’s efforts to recklessly rush the 2020 Census, because doing so risks an egregious undercount of our state’s population and our country’s population,” Bysiewicz declared. “No doubt about it, the administration is trying to target communities of color, hard-tocount communities, and undocumented communities.

The bureau announced Monday that the deadline for all counting efforts, including door-knocking would be moved forward to Sept 30 — a month earlier than the Oct 31 deadline. The bureau stated it needed to end counting earlier in order to finish all its work on the census by a Dec. 31 deadline. Speakers at Wednesday’s press conference criticized the move as a partisan attempt to exclude historically undercounted Black, Hispanic, and transient populations from the once-ina-decade count. Twenty-five percent of Connecticut’s population is categorized as hard-to-count.

President Trump has previously made attempts to block the counting of undocumented immigrants, instructing officials

not to count individuals who are undocumented and attempting to include a citizenship question on the census, which would deter undocumented immigrants from completing the census. The Supreme Court thwarted his effort to include the citizenship question and the 2020 census does not include one.

“This is nothing new. This is deja vu,” said Robyn Porter, who represents the historically undercounted and challenged 94th state General Assesmbly district.

“This is not just about the census. This reminds me of voter suppression, what he is doing with the census count.”

Census information is used to determine the amount of federal aid to states and cities.

Bysiewicz said that to shorten the census count further hurts investment in the areas that need the most attention: federal school lunch and breakfast programs, Medicare, and Medicaid.

For each child who is not counted, the district loses an estimated $2,900 of school funding. If the city has a shortage of federal funds, it will have to tap into municipal funds that could otherwise address other important needs, speakers noted.

The mayor, the congresswoman and community census workers all agreed that the shortened deadline makes it significantly more challenging to achieve a complete count of all residents of New Haven.

Mayor Elicker, who is a runner, made an analogy to a marathon. “If someone told me I’m running a 5K, I need to conserve my resources so I can get my best time. If during the race someone says it is a 4K, I will not get my best time. And that’s exactly what this is,” Elicker told the Independent. “We were planning on having until the end of October to complete this, and all of a sudden someone moved the finish line.”

KO LYN CHEANG PHOTO Complete Count Committee members Joe Ugly, Valencia Goodridge, Rep. Rosa DeLauro, Bianca Bowles and Addie Kimbrough).

As of Tuesday afternoon, 50.5 percent of New Haven residents had completed the census, compared to a 63 percent nationwide response rate. Complete Count Committee members said at City Hall that the goal is to have at least 60 percent of New Haveners counted in the census.

On July 23, Census Bureau enumerators started to do their count in some of the hardest-to-count areas in the state including Hartford. They will shortly be starting their efforts in New Haven, according to Bysiewicz, who has spearheaded census efforts to the state government.

Long before bureau-trained census workers hit the pavement, volunteers and advocates from the 33 New Haven community organizations that make up the

New Haven Complete Count Committee started knocking on doors, asking people to complete the census.

The committee got an early start to ensuring every resident gets counted, beginning in February 2019 to visit homes, stand on street corners, and speak to passers-by. The committee has organized more than 200 community events since January 2019.

Volunteer Addie Kimbrough has a disability but still has been hitting the streets in 100-degree heat, with her walker, to encourage people to take the census. She has encountered residents who are distrustful of the census workers but would listen to her because she is “representative of people in our community.”

Her committee colleague, Bianca Bowles, who works at the Community Action Agency, said that every person she has seen Kimbrough speak to has filled out the census.

Bowles emphasized that structural barriers like lack of outreach or technology prevent people from completing the census. “We’re not hard to count. We are just undercounted. Hard-to-count is putting the burden for people who, for no fault of their own, are inaccessible.”

“For them to cut the deadline to Sept. 30, I don’t think is fair because there are a lot of people in the community that have not done their census,” said Kimbrough. “We needed the Oct. 31 deadline.”

Goldson: Why I Voted For Remote Learning

by THOMAS BREEN

New Haven I ndependent

A federal judge ruled against a group of landlords seeking to overturn the state’s eviction moratorium, finding that rental property owners do not have a Constitutional right to maximize profits during a pandemic.

U.S. District of Connecticut Judge Victor Bolden issued that ruling Friday afternoon in the case Auracle Homes LLC; FD Management LLC; Buckley Farms LLC; Orange Capitol LLC; 216 East Main Street Meriden LLC; BD Property Holdings LLC; Prime Management LLC; and Haberfeld Enterprises LLC v.

Ned Lamont. Two of the plaintiff holding companies are co-owned by the New Haven-based rental property owners David Candelora and Ben Eastman.

In his 39-page decision, Bolden, who is a former top city government attorney, denied the landlords’ request for a temporary restraining order to be placed on Gov. Ned Lamont’s statewide eviction moratorium, which currently extends through Aug. 22. The federal judge went point by point through the landlords’ claims that the governor has violated their Constitutional rights to due process, private property, private contract, and equal protection under the law.

At each step, Bolden found that the argument made by the landlords — and their Republican legislator attorneys — fell short of convincing the court to take the extraordinary measure of overturning an executive order designed to protect the public amidst the current Covid-19 crisis.

Bolden’s line of reasoning throughout

the decision returned again and again to the notion that rental housing is already a heavily regulated industry, and imposing a new set of regulations designed to mitigate the current public health crisis is not an unreasonable act for the governor to take.

“Plaintiffs continue to enjoy economic benefits of ownership, and ‘can continue to accept rental payments from tenants not facing financial hardship, while also covering the cost of ownership by collecting security deposit funds from consenting tenants who have been affected by the pandemic,’” Bolden wrote, citing a decision issued by a New York federal court judge earlier this year that upheld New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s eviction moratorium in the face of a similar lawsuit from local landlords.

9

“As residential landlords, Plaintiffs’ contractual right to collect rent is premised on compliance with a framework of state laws. Consequently, their reasonable investment-backed expectations cannot operate apart from ‘public programs adjusting the benefits and burdens of economic life to promote the common good.’”

Lamont’s executive orders do not prevent the landlords from collecting rent or accruing unpaid rent, Bolden noted. They instead represent “a temporary adjustment of the status quo, and only defer the ability of residential landlords like Plaintiffs to collect, or obtain a judgment for, the full amount of rent the tenants agreed pay.”

Just because the plaintiffs cannot make as much profit as they normally do from Con’t on page 14

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

First Female Quartermaster Sails Towards Success

by COURTNEY LUCIANA New Haven I ndependent

Marchela Corolla lives next to Lighthouse Point Park and loves the water.

That lifetime love, and a lot of hard work, have earned the 18-year-old the title of Quartermaster. She’s the first female in New Haven County ever to earn the title.

She did it through a series of projects she took on the past three years through the Sea Scouts program, including a building a new T-ball and “coach-pitch” field for the Little League field on Woodward Avenue.

“I grew up on the water. My dad would take my brother, Anthony, and I out on motor boats,” said Corolla, who graduated this spring from Sound School. “I was always fascinated with seeing the oil tankers and tug boats coming in and out of the harbor.”

Corolla joined Sea Scouts three and a half years ago. She described the organization as Boy Scouts with ships: They take on seamanship, practical deck, maritime skills, and other basic leadership skills.

Her father, Dave, who was an Eagle Scout when he was younger, encouraged her to join. She started off as a shipmate and in three years earned top rank as a Quartermaster for Ship 1.

“I was really shy. and I didn’t really want to join,” Corolla said. “Three months after I joined, I went to my first leadership training of that year. My whole world changed. I was like, ‘This is awesome. I want to continue doing this.’”

Corolla started off as an apprentice and learned about the basics of safety on the water: life jackets, small motorboats, sailing. Supporting fellow shipmates is what led her into the second rank as the bosun. She picked up on how to do chart navigation using dividers and triangles.

Able, which is the third rank, is sailing and planning cruises. She cooked on water and learned how to communicate with the Coast Guard through VHF in case of

emergencies. She obtained navigation at night skills and learned what to do if the boat gets stuck or emergencies like man overboard.

“Probably the coolest thing about Sea Scouts is being an Able,” Corolla said.

“You have to earn a long cruise badge, and it’s two weeks of continuous water cruising. I took two weeks on the schooner Amistad. Amistad has such a special place in my heart. I was pretty much training as a deckhands.”

Corolla earned the rank of Able by completing a service project while applying to colleges and playing left winger in ice hockey and a catcher in softball.

“My schedule was a little hectic,” Corolla said, humbly, with her uniform covered in dozens of badges illustrating her success.

For her service project to earn the position of Quartermaster, Corolla wanted to combine her interests of Sea Scouts with her 13 years in softball. She grew up playing in the Annex YMA Little League on Woodward Avenue. She turned to State Rep. Al Paolillo, a coach and board member in the league, for advice on how to give back to the community that she grew up in.

“And he was like, ‘Well remember that field that you guys used to play in?’ and that’s when I had an aha! moment. That’s the best idea.”

Paolillo recalled Corolla approaching the league and asking, “What can I do to benefit the kids like you helped me?”

“She spearheaded this project. She was fabulous,” Paolillo said “We’ve watched her grow up. She is definitely someone we’re proud of.”

Corolla then asked Annex Little League President Rob Vallombroso for additional support while also asking the acting parks chief William Carone for permission to work on city property. She presented her plan to the scouts, recruited peers, then worked alongside parks and league members on the new field.

Marhcela with her grandparents Ralph and Ann Corolla.

“I worked with the three of them in plan“Every second that I wasn’t doing somening the design and actually getting it thing I was focusing on this project,” out. I’ve played softball for 13 years, and Corolla said. “I was planning everything, I didn’t realize actually how much went writing everything, and researching what into building a brand new field. You’ve the best field design would be because the got to do so much,” Corolla said. “You’ve field is on a marsh. I didn’t want to build got to dig down, measure it out, and I was just a field. I actually built two dugout really grateful that all the three of them benches for each side.” encouraged me to go with the design that “My husband and I are so proud of her,” worked best for me. I got to be creative said her mother Sonia. “To accomplish and actually picked out what it looked all of this at the age she is, it amazes me. like.”

She puts her mind to something and she Corolla and her shipmates fundraised doesn’t stop,” Sonia said. for the project. They shook a can outsidef Corolla’s grandmother Ann reflected on Dunkin Donuts to earn money. Raffle her accomplishment of building the little baskets were held at Sound School’s re- league field. cruitment events. Altogether, she raised “When she was working on the fields, it around $3,000. had to be the coldest days of the year. I She started the project in March 2019. mean cold. Especially since the water The new field was finished in January is there, it was even colder,” Ann said.

2020.

“She had her clipboard and was walking She recalls it was the coldest day in No- around. Oh, she knew just what she was vember that the new and improved field doing!” was created along with her destiny in reCorolla will attend Massachusetts Mariceiving top rank as Quartermaster. time Academy in the fall. Her dream is to

COURTNEY LUCIANA PHOTO

work on a tugboat. She would also like to work on a container ship because they have the ability to travel the whole world.

“Tugs for the long run, because I am that kind of person that likes to stay settled in one place for a little while. They typically stay in the harbor. Sometimes they are moved back and forth but for the most part they are stationed,” Corolla said. “I do like to travel but I do also like to stay.”

While Sea Scouts if affiliated with Boy Scouts, Ship 1 has been female dominated while the maritime industry is predominantly male affiliated. Corolla is the first female in New Haven county to earn the rank as Quartermaster.

“Anything that boys can do, girls can do,” Corolla said. “Being the first female in my ship, coming from New Haven, I was super, overly excited. My skipper told me that there weren’t many females in general and we couldn’t really find any records of there being a female [Quartermaster]. Being the first one in New Haven and on my ship was kind of inspiring.”

An Emerging Coalition Pushes Back On Schools Reopening

by Arturo Pineda,

The ARTS Paper www.newhavenarts.org

Hundreds of families across the state face an excruciating choice this fall: Should they send their children to school and risk exposing their family to coronavirus? Or should they stay home and opt for distance learning?

For some families, the choice isn’t even an option, as school districts have yet to announce their decisions. The New Haven school district is expected to release its reopening decision Wednesday afternoon, in a special meeting of the city’s Board of Education at 4:30 p.m. (read the agenda here).

A newly formed coalition, Racial Equity

4 Youth, is pushing back against school reopening. Tuesday night, the group held a community conversation to discuss community-wide concerns and propose alternative solutions in a petition. Partner organizations include the CHEER Institute, National Sorority of Phi Delta Kappa Inc., Delta Phi Chapter, Citywide Youth Coalition, The Connecticut Center for Arts and Technology (ConnCAT), Students for Educational Justice, Higher Heights YEP, Inc., Concepts for Adaptive Learning, and Integrated Refugee and Immigrant Services (IRIS).

Some of the petition demands include limited, small in-person meetings, the ability for families to opt-out of in-person attendance due to health risks, stu-

dent access to free and reliable Wi-Fi in their homes and public spaces, and making free meals available to both families and students.

The petition also asks for more at-home support for students students with learning disabilities, individualized learning plans, and English language learners.

Dr. Raja Staggers-Hakim, Founder and executive Director of CHEER, stressed the importance of having all voices present in community conversations.

“This is a moment where everyone is needed,” she said. “We are used to being siloed but we have to intersect to address COVID-19.”

Rashanda McCollum, the executive director of Students for Educational Jus-

10

tice, emphasized how COVID-19 is a public health concern among communities of color, especially Black and Latinx communities with vulnerable family members.

“A lot of our members are Brown and Black students who we know have been disproportionately affected by COVID. A good number of our members are raised by grandparents,” she noted. “So if we don’t get this under control, we could literally wipe out entire neighborhoods.”

Dennis Wilson, the director of education for IRIS, said he sees similar trends of transmission within refugee and immigrant populations. Many of the families IRIS serves are intergenerational and

live in smaller housing units, making social distancing difficult.

He added that many of the English Learning students IRIS works with feel conflicted about reopening, as many have fallen behind in their English proficiency because of remote learning. They would prefer to have in person classes, but do not feel that the situation is safe enough. Students, refugee and otherwise, have voiced concerns about the ineffectiveness of distance learning in the past.

Addys Castillo, the executive director of Citywide Youth Coalition, expressed frustrations about the treatment of young Con’t on page 17

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

Joe Biden Selects Kamala Harris as Running Mate

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Senior National Correspondent California Sen. Kamala Harris is Joe Biden’s choice for vice president.

Following months of speculation and debate over whether Biden should pick a Black woman as his running mate, Harris was named Tuesday as Biden’s choice.

Biden reportedly had called Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.), former Ambassador Susan Rice, and three other candidates to inform them on Tuesday morning that they were not his pick.

Harris had routinely been seen as the top pick, but her clashes with Biden during the Democratic debates appeared to give Biden pause.

However, Biden had been photographed in recently weeks with talking points which noted not to hold a grudge against Harris.

Sworn in as Senator in 2017, Harris became the second African American woman and the first South Asian-American senator in history.

She has said that her life as a prosecutor and fighting justice was inspired by her mother, an Indian-American immigrant, activist and breast cancer researcher.

Growing up in Oakland, Harris had “a stroller-eye view of the Civil Rights movement,” according to her official biography.

Through the example of courageous leaders like Thurgood Marshall, Constance Baker Motley, and Charles Hamilton Houston, Harris said she learned the kind of character it requires to stand up to the powerful and resolved to spend her life advocating for those who could not defend themselves.

After earning an undergraduate degree from Howard University and a law degree from the University of California, Hastings, she began her career in the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office.

In 2003, Harris became the District Attorney of the City and County of San Francisco.

Among her achievements as District Attorney, Harris started a program that gives first-time drug offenders the chance to earn a high school diploma and find employment.

Having completed two terms as the District Attorney of San Francisco, Kamala was elected as the first African American and first woman to serve as California’s Attorney General.

In this role, she “worked tirelessly to hold corporations accountable and protect the state’s most vulnerable people,” according to her biography.

Over the course of her nearly two terms in office, Harris won a $25-billion settlement for California homeowners hit by the foreclosure crisis, defended California’s landmark climate change law, protected the Affordable Care Act, helped win marriage equality for all Californians, and prosecuted transnational gangs that trafficked in guns, drugs, and human beings.

Pick

Since taking office, she has introduced and cosponsored legislation to raise wages for working people, reform our broken criminal justice system, make healthcare a right for all Americans, address the epidemic of substance abuse, support veterans and military families, and expand access to childcare for working parents.

Earlier Tuesday, President Donald Trump suggested that “some men are insulted” that Biden had long ago narrowed his search to women. However, Trump’s statements were seen as a last-minute bid to rattle the Democrats.

Women’s groups and the civil rights community in recent days had blasted media members and individuals on social platforms for racist and sexist attacks against Harris and others who were considered in

the vice-presidential sweepstakes.

In an open letter by nearly 700 Black women leaders, the attacks were roundly denounced.

“Black women are many things. We are business executives, political strategists, and elected officials, philanthropists, and activists,” the letter, circulated throughout the media and posted to various social media accounts, read.

“We are health and wellness practitioners. We are entertainers and faith leaders.

We are wives, mothers, daughters, educators, and students. We set and shift culture.

We build power, and we are powerful.”

Counting among the many Black women who signed the open letter are Dr. Johnnetta B. Cole, Maya Cummings, Dr. Hazel

11

Dukes, Suzanne DePasse, Valeisha Butterfield Jones, Cora Masters Barry, Melanie Campbell, and Karen Boykin-Towns.

“We are the highest propensity voters in this nation. We are a coalition of Black women leaders, who, in this inflection point of the Black liberation movement, where people around the world are galvanized to action, know that the time for Black women in the United States is now,” the women penned in the letter.

Earlier, 100 prominent Black men including Sean “Diddy” Combs, Charlamagne Tha God, NBA Star Chris Paul, Bakari Sellers, and rapper Doug E. Fresh, signed a letter of solidarity calling for Biden to select a Black woman.

“As someone who has said throughout

the campaign that VP Joe Biden needs to choose a Black woman VP, the urgency for that pick has gone from something that should happen to something that has to happen. It disgusts us that Black women are not just being vetted in this VP process but unfairly criticized and scrutinized,” the men wrote in the missive.

“Was Joe Biden ever labeled ‘too ambitious’ because he ran for president three times? Should President Obama not have made him the VP because he had to worry about his ‘loyalty’ when he clearly had ambitions to be president himself? Why does Senator Kamala Harris have to show remorse for questioning Biden’s previous stance on integrated busing during a democratic primary debate?”

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

Ridership Recovering From Covid On Metro-North

by LAURA GLESBY

New Haven I ndependent

Metro North trains are transporting nearly twice the number of riders they had in March. Government officials want to see these numbers continue to grow — as long as passengers continue to wear masks.

Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz, Connecticut Department of Transportation Commissioner Joe Giulietti, and Mayor Justin Elickerdelivered this message Wednesday morning at a press conference at Union Station, where they handed out masks to Metro North passengers.

Thirteen trains were set to depart from the station between 8:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., including several to Boston, Grand Central, and Springfield.

When Covid-19 first hit, Metro North ridership decreased by 92 percent, according to Giulietti. As New York has begun to open up again, the numbers have climbed to between 12 and 15 percent of pre-Covid ridership.

“Metro North truly does respond to what happens in New York City,” said Giulietti.

Bus ridership has increased to around three-quarters of the pre-Covid rate — up from 50 percent in the spring. CT Transit has increased the number of New Haven buses running in order to accommodate

LAURA GLESBY PHOTO Lt. Governor Bysiewicz Wednesday morning at Union Station.

Ali with“Metro Man” mascot.

this uptick in passengers.

Bysiewicz said that most Metro North riders have been wearing masks. “The compliance rate on Metro North has been excellent,” she said.

She stressed that continued use of masks is critical for public health. She estimated that 36,000 Covid-related deaths could have been prevented if people had begun wearing masks in the United States one week earlier in the pandemic.

Elicker highlighted the city’s “Mask Up” campaign to encourage people to wear face masks. “It is exciting, compassionate, and cool to wear a mask,” he said. He noted that masks can be an outlet for selfexpression, praising the creativity that he has seen. (His mask was fabric and featured a blue-gray, wave-like pattern.)

Other onbard safety measures include retrofitting trains with stronger air filters and ventilation systems, according to Bureau Chief for Public Transportation Rich Andreski.

When asked about the safety of bus drivers and train operators, Andreski said that issue is the “first priority” for the state. He praised public transport employees as essential workers, providing a lifeline in a public health crisis for those have have no other way of getting from place to place.

Officer Pumps Pre-Workout Vape Biz

by THOMAS BREEN

New Haven I ndependent

A New Haven cop has come up with a new business venture peddling a product aimed at athletes wary of bloating caused by dietary supplements. The pitch: Smoke before you hit the gym.

That cop is Jason Bandy.

When not working as a New Haven police officer, Bandy serves as the founder and owner of V-Rush Vapes, a company that purports to sell “the world’s first vape-delivered pre workout.”

His company bills the product as perfect for gym rats who want the “boost in energy, endurance, focus and muscle pumps” associated with more common pre-workout pills or powders that are typically loaded with caffeine. V-Rush, according to the marketing, provides that same jolt with no associated bloating or indigestion.

The V-Rush Vapes website promises that its products are sugar-free, calorie-free, nicotine-free, THC-free, and “B.S.-free”.

Vaping, the inhaling of vapors created by electronic cigarettes, has been targeted by politicians and public health experts in recent years for reigniting a public health crisis among youth by offering a new, flavorful route to nicotine addiction.

Bandy’s company claims that V-Rush Vapes has nothing to do with nicotine or

THC — but instead is all about facilitating a smooth, comfortable, energetic workout.

According to the Secretary of the State’s business registration database, Bandy founded the limited liability company in 2018, is currently the principal of the company, and runs it out of his house in East Haven.

A review of the company’s website and social media feeds on Facebook and Instagram show that Bandy is an avid and dedicated booster of his side business, frequently promoting a “Back to the Gym Stimulus Sale” and even winning a recent interview on a YouTube channel called RxMuscle—The Truth in Bodybuilding.

That interview video alone, in which the bodybuilder host endorses the product, has racked up nearly 11,000 views so far.

On the V-Rush Vapes website, one can buy a Pre Workout Cartridge with Ego-T Vaporizer Pen w/ battery charger ($24.99, marked down from $54.99), a V-Rush Vape Pre Workout Cartridge ($19.99, market down from $44.99), as well as company-branded swag, like V-Rush Logo Leggings ($40) and V-Rush Vapes Logo Short Sleeve Unisex T-Shirt ($25).

The site also offers some insight on the company’s founding, tips on vaping for people who may be unfamiliar with the practice, and an explanation of what’s in

VRUSHVAPES.COM Officer Bandy, promoting his pre-workout vape.

these things anyway.

“V-Rush was born when Jason, longtime fitness enthusiast could not find a pre-workout in the market that works for

12

himself without upsetting his digestive system,” the company’s backstory begins.

“Through his own research,” Bandy discovered that the culprit might be “harm-

ful additive and fillers” in more common powder pre-workout supplements.

So he set out to start his own company and build his own product that solved that problem of pre-workout bloat.

The site claims that a team of “scientists and athletes” came up with the resulting concoction, which is “manufactured in FDA-approved facilities in USA!” Some of the ingredients listed on the site include Agmatine Sulfate (“Helps to promote healthy insulin sensitivity, promoting leanness and muscle building.), Citrulline Malate (“This in turn has benefits like increasing blood flow, oxygen transportation and nutrient uptake, as well as assisting muscle functions for improved output and growth.”), and L-Tryosine (“A popular dietary supplement used to improve alertness, attention and focus.”)

The site features a handful of positive customer reviews, including one from someone with the Instagram handle @ allmyhty.

“Awesome product man,” the customer wrote, “it’s a weird energy at first cuz the liquids hit you differently, almost like u know what to expect, with the vape it’s like I had super powers I didn’t know about lol”.

Bandy declined to be interviewed by the Independent.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

A Transitional Haven Is Coming Back

by MAYA MCFADDEN

New Haven I ndependent

Christian Community Action, Inc. (CCA) is partnering with the Housing Authority of New Haven to renovate 660 Winchester Ave. and revive its transitional housing and training and support program for homeless New Haven families.

The organizing team and community Tuesday celebrated the beginning of the transformation of the former Stepping Stone Transitional Housing Program, closed after federal funding cuts in 2018, into the “Moving to Work Pilot Program” at 660 Winchester.

For 25 years the Stepping Stone Transitional Housing Program provided a safe environment at 660 Winchester, the former Ivy Street School, for households who were homeless, residing in emergency housing, or at-risk of becoming homeless, to work towards stability.

The revival of the program was a long time coming said CCA Executive Director Rev. Bonita Grubbs.

Tonya Gandy, a former resident of the Stepping Stones program from 2008 until 2010, said she was hurt when she heard the complex closed.

Before joining the program, Gandy lived in a homeless shelter with her two kids.“I fell down, and no one was there to help me get up,” she said.

Eight days before her release date from the shelter, a friend suggested she look into the Stepping Stones Program. Two days before her release date she got a call

MAYA MCFADDEN PHOTO

Shellina Toure, Bonita Grubbs, State Sen. Gary Winfield, State Reps. Toni Walker and Robyn Porter, CCA’s Merryl Eaton, and Karen DuBois-Walton, who heads the housing authority.

back from the program for an interview.

Many residents referred to the building and program as “660.”

Gandy recalled living on the second floor and the program staff treating her like family. “It was a village,” said Gandy.

Gandy would refer to Grubbs as her mom and staff members as her aunties. While in the program, Gandy got her GED and CNA license. “I learned to pull myself up,” she said. “Because of this building, I am happy.”

Gandy’s mother, Valery “Mama Angel” Adams, joined the celebration as a former

resident of 660 from 20 years ago.

Amour Propre Fund President LindyLee Gold was involved with the former Stepping Stone Program. Gold secured the funding for the renovations of all 18 apartments in the building, which will be updated and furnished for families.

Gold shared with the audience of CCA staff, community members, and local and state politicians her perspective of the program’s opportunities. She used the Yiddish word “beshert,” meaning destiny, often used in the context of finding a soulmate. Gold named Grubbs her “beshert”

who continues to inspire her to with her work. Then she mentioned the Hebrew word “chai,” meaning life and symbolizing the number 18. Once renovations are complete, 18 families will be “given life.”

Grubbs said the team will be continuing its former work in a new form.

The former program began in 1993 to help the homeless get the housing and resources to seek out permanent housing.

Former 660 resident Genet Gebreberhan was living in a shelter for six months before joining the program in 2013. Gebreberhan spent three months at 660 with her

two daughters. Throughout 2013, Gebreberhan had seven major surgeries, which left her unable to walk and financially struggling. While at 660, Gebreberhan’s two daughters. ages 17 and 13, had to temporarily stop attending school to help their mother make money. The program helped Gebreberhan get acess to a Section 8 rental subsidy.

“Being here gave me hope,” Gebreberhan said.

Gebreberhan’s daughters are now in college for cosmetology and astrophysics.

The new program will require residents to commit to a plan of training and services to help transition from the program.

Tri-Con Construction Managers, LLC will renovate the building. The team expects the building renovations will be complete by late fall.

CCA is waiting on approval from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD); then construction will begin. The team expects a 116-day turnaround, said Grubbs.

Shellina Toure, CCA director of housing services, use to be a case manager at 660 for Gandy and Gebreberhan.

The group reunited at the celebration.

“You never stopped being my case manager,” Gandy said to Toure. Both Gandy and Gebreberhan offered themselves to the 660 revival team for any future help needed. “I am here for 660 whenever 660 needs me,” Gandy said.

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

Smitty Bop Seizes A BLM Moment

by MAYA MCFADDEN

New Haven I ndependent

Rising New Haven rapper Smitty Bop, known for music videos celebrating New Haven and local street life, has broadened his message in a new single to target police brutality nationwide and support the Black Lives Matter movement.

Here’s the hook: I ain’t with that cappin shit / A cop killin me? I ain’t having it / won’t get down on my knees like I’m Kaepernick / cops killing with they knees, that ain’t average / Smitty Bop is Michael Smith, a 25-yearold Newhallville native and prolific rapper and recording artist.

The single is called “Kaepernick.” The video, shot in New Haven, also features multiple viral clips from this year’s Black Lives Matter protests.

After the death of George Floyd sparked national protest against police brutality, Smitty said, he felt it was his responsibility to speak out.

“It’s rubbed me the wrong way. He [George Floyd] was my skin complexion,” Smitty said. “The internet was cluttered with the video of him dying, It got stuck in my head. I just kept thinking, ‘I’m not going out like that.’”

Smitty said he was reminded of his own uncomfortable interactions with police officers in the past.

Smitty was released from prison in 2018 after serving two years for an illegal-gun charge, and resumed a recording career.

Smitty no longer writes his raps in advance. He freestyles his songs while in the studio. “I just spit until I messed up,”

MAYA MCFADDEN PHOTO Smitty Bop: Newhallville proud, on the move.

he said.

Smitty freestyled “Kaepernick.” weeks before its release days after Floyd’s May 25 murders. Colleagues in the studio were already talking about the death of Floyd and the following protest for justice.

After recording the song, Smitty titled it “Average” from the line that says, “Cops killing with they knees, that ain’t average.”

He later changed the title to “Kaepernick” to reference the football player taking a knee in 2016 during the playing of the national anthem to peacefully protest against police brutality. Smitty’s track reflects a decision by rappers nationwide, such as Lil Baby and Meek Mill, to explore the “the bigger picture” “other side of America” presented by Kaepernick’s

experience and the BLM protests.

Back On The Block Smitty and I met for an interview in front of the Salvation and Deliverance Church right next to the Farmington Canal Trail along Thompson Street, where he grew up. Much of the video was shot there, in keeping with his previous work.

Smitty offered an explanation for the song’s hook: “I’m not getting down to have a knee put on my neck. I’m not risking my life by getting down on my knees like the police ask because obviously even listening to them can get you killed.”

The video was produced by Smitty. He didn’t decide where he was making the video until the day of the shoot. He just knew he wanted shots in the neighborhood where he grew up.

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Some friends advised him not to include the viral protest clips. He chose to include them.

Smitty selected the featured clips to spark a conversation amongst viewers. “I looked for clips that spoke volumes to get people talking,” he said.

After deciding to shoot in front of the church on his block, Smitty called up his videographer Frankie Fire, three to four friends, and his mother to borrow her Audi to park alongside his MercedesBenz.

The group expanded as friends and neighbors recognized Smitty on Thompson Street and joined in video shots to bop to the music and dance while flaunting bottles, cash, and smoke clouds with the rapper.

As I watched the video alongside Smitty, I saw a depiction of two often-colliding worlds for much of the Black community.

Along with his lyrics, Smitty assumes the task of speaking up for justice and demanding change while also trying to enjoy being young and having fun.

In a video shot, the group is driving down Dixwell Avenue. Smitty leans out the passenger side of the car bopping and singing along to the songs lyrics “they trying to say that shit an accident.”

“We were wilin’ out because we’re sick of it,” he said.

After the release of the video, Smitty said, a member of the Salvation and Deliverance Church posted on Facebook complaining about the group gathering outside of the church. Smitty said the post has since been removed.

Next Moves In May, the city tapped Smitty Bop to serve as an “influencer” on public-service billboards urging people to mask up to stop the spread of Covid-19.

Smitty is now working on releasing an EP this August, a mixtape, and an album in the coming months. While working in the studio weekly on those projects, Smitty continues to drop singles. His most recent is called “IDK,” for which he also plans to record a video soon. Smitty recorded “IDK” in the studio the same day he recorded “Kaepernick,” and decided to drop “Kaepernick” first. “It felt like the perfect time,” he said. “But I’m working on not holding my music too long anymore. I got to stop hesitating.”

In addition to using his musical platform to speak up, Smitty attended a BLM protest when he traveled to Atlanta in June.

He will rap about losing close friend Kaymar Tanner in an upcoming album he’s working on called “Niggas in Boston.”

Tanner and Smitty attended the St. Francis & St. Rose of Lima School and Wilbur Cross High School together.

As in his many other songs, released and unreleased, Smitty raps about how he feels at the moment and always focuses on putting his thoughts into lyrics.

Smitty releases his music on Tidal, Spotify, Google Music, SoundCloud, and iTunes.

The new video ends with the message, “In loving memory of George Floyd.”

In July, Smitty was reunited with his father. “It’s great to get to talk and see him for real now,” he said.

His father, Michael Smith was among 105 people arrested in 2012 during “Operation Bloodline,” which targeted alleged drug-gang members. His father was sentenced to 10 years after getting caught up in New Haven’s biggest-ever drug sweep.

Currently, Smitty’s father is released from prison but will remain housed away until November to get resettled. “We’ve always talked about this stuff but he loves my music,” Smitty said. “I’m a family person that’s what keeps me motivated,” he said.

Con’t from page 09

Remote Learning

these properties, Bolden wrote, does not mean that the government has wholly seized their private property and deprived them of all value.

Bolden applied a similar logic to landlords’ ability to evict tenants as he did to their ability to collect rent under these executive orders. These orders do not eliminate the possibility of evictions. They simply require plaintiffs to wait.

Citing the same 1905 case that a different federal judge cited when denying a New Haven bar’s challenge to Mayor Justin Elicker’s limitation on social gathering sizes earlier this year, Bolden reaffirmed the executive branch’s relatively wide latitude to look out for the public’s health during crises like the current one.

He referenced an amicus brief provided by a variety of legal aid services in the state, including New Haven Legal Assistance Association, that claimed that allowing evictions to resume will inevitably result in families kicked to the street, living in shelters, or in denser congregate settings, and increasing their risk of contracting Covid-19.

“Even in the absence of record evidence that these specific measures directed at preventing evictions are causally related to any reduction in the spread of COVID-19 in the State of Connecticut,” Bolden wrote, “given the ongoing nature and continued uncertainty of when public life will resume to normal, there is nothing in this record to suggest that Governor Lamont’s efforts thus far should be second-guessed, much less stayed.”

‘While this pandemic has adversely affected Plaintiffs’ businesses—as it has much of the nation’s economy,” the judge concluded, “Plaintiffs have failed to satisfy the standards necessary for obtaining a temporary restraining order or a preliminary injunction as a matter of law.”

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

Storm Drain Creatures Emerge on Grand Avenue

by SOPHIE SONNENFELD New Haven I ndependent

Vibrant fish, turtles, and other water critters have been popping up out of storm drains across New Haven this summer, reminding New Haveners to keep their trash away from the drains.

The last batch of these “runoff art” creatures came to life on Thursday in front of the Christopher Columbus Family Academy at the corner of Grand Avenue and Fillmore Street.

The runoff art street murals seek to engage youth and other community members in water pollution and environmental education.

The murals were created by a team of workers with the Lots of Fish project, whi h seeks to educate youth and other community members about water pollution and the environment through art.

On Thursday, Lots of Fish Director Joann Moran supervised three high school students who are employed by the Youth@ Work program for three sidewalk murals outside the school.

Yahayra Llacxaguanga, who helped paint the Grand Avenue runoff art on Thursday, is going into her junior year at the Sound School. Llacxaguanga said she has not been able to take visual arts classes in school, but sings and used to play the flute when she was younger. Llacxaguanga’s interest in painting and drawing was sparked by her uncle, who is an artist in Ecuador. She started painting and sketching often in her free time when she was

10.

Trinity Ford, who is entering 10th grade at Co-op high school, is in choir and participates in other after-school art programs there.

Rising Wilbur Cross junior Jordan Wabahati attends ACES Educational Center for the Arts (ECA), where he plays the flute and percussion instruments. “I’m a musician, so that’s the only art I do. I don’t know how to paint, I don’t know how to draw. It’s not my thing, but I like it,” Wabahati said.

Llacxaguanga, Ford, and Wabahati have been working on the runoff art since midJuly. They arrived at 8 Thursday morning to get started on a yellow starfish wrapped around a stop sign outside Columbus Academy.

Later Thursday morning they moved on to paint a green fish whose mouth opens into a storm drain. Inside the fish’s mouth, a message in white paint tells passersby to “Dump no waste. Drains to river.”

At 1 p.m., they finished the storm drain fish, painting on its eyes and retouching the mouth.

The design was based on an old online submission someone sent in to Lots of Fish.

“Oh wow! It’s nice!” marveled Adolfo Alba. Alba (pictured) works down the street from Columbus Academy at La Tapatia takeout. “This is to respect all people so this is nice. This is good luck.

It’s very very important.”

“They’re real nice. I really like the col-

Yahayra Llacxaguanga, Trinity Ford, and Jordan Wabahati.

ors,” said Fair Havener Mirriam Aldaromdo.

Ricardo Colon said he likes the new runoff art as well. “The point of it is helping Mother Nature, I guess. It’s nice.”

According to Moran, this summer they’ve painted 20 neighborhood storm drains, ten rain barrels, a couple of murals and school zone crosswalks and storm drains, as well as a few banners.

Moran and the three students added a clear top coat of paint for a 32-foot-long banner they plan to hang over Grand Avenue.

Moran made the banner from old reclaimed banners that they painted over with schools of fish and swirling waves.

The painters worked on the banner throughout the summer whenever there was enough time and enough space to unfurl it in full. The banner reads “What Goes in the Ground, Goes in the Sound!”

The Lots of Fish team had only one hour to complete the final storm drain mural.

The final design is by local artist Yvonne Gordon-Moser. The “one hour masterpiece,” as Moran described it, is a mandala depicting a tree with its roots leading

to the drain.

“It’s a whole circle of life,” GordonMoser said.

“I felt like it represents how we have such an impact on the earth and water and how what we do to the earth affects the whole planet and us as human beings. It’s diverse, it’s all of us- every color, creed, and religion,” she added.

Gordon-Moser called and later zoomed in to chat and direct the Lots of Fish crew as they painted her runoff mural design.

“I thought it was important to participate in this project because art speaks to young people. It’s healing and during this pandemic I felt it could be something that the kids could really participate in,” GordonMoser said. “The kids need something to do to stay connected, and art has a way of doing that for them.”

The Lots of Fish team finished the final runoff art design just in time to go home at 2 p.m. Gordon-Moser plans to come back next Sunday to add some finishing touches.

Moran said her passions are democracy, peace, and the environment. She said she hopes that Lots of Fish can serve as a model for many other cities to adopt.

“When someone sees art and kids doing it, they read about pollution and runoff which no one would normally go read about,” Moran said. She said public exposure and education about the environment are essential to cleaning up the waterways in New Haven and across the world.

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

Relief Fund Expands To The Region Lucy Gellman | August 11th, 2020 Arts & Culture | The Arts Council of Greater New Haven

Four hundred and twenty artists and arts organizations have received a total of $175,380 from the Greater New Haven Creative Sector Relief Fund. In total, $183,833 has been raised.

The relief fund, which launched in March, is a direct response to COVID-19, during which unemployment has skyrocketed. In May, Americans for the Arts reported that 62 percent of arts workers were fully unemployed due to the pandemic. Of a surveyed group of 17,800, 95 percent reported income loss.

Eight artists currently remain on a waiting list and several have not yet claimed their funding. The opportunity to tap into this funding will remain open into the fall.

Those updates came from the Division of Arts, Culture & Tourism and the Arts Council of Greater New Haven this week, as the latest round of funding spreads to the region (for full transparency, the Arts Paper is an editorially independent arm of the Arts Council).

The bump in funding comes from the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, the Yale Community for New Haven Fund and individual donations that continue to roll in.

When it launched in late March, the fund held $50,000 from the city division’s not-for-profit arm New Haven Festivals, Inc. and $10,000 from the Arts Council’s Artist Next Door Fund. In April, an additional $10,000 came from the Arts Council and $57,225 came from individual donors. In June, the fund secured another $45,000 in grants and several thousand dollars in individual donations, including $30,000 from the Community Foundation and $15,000 from Yale.

Some artists who have received funding have held fundraisers of their own, as a way to give back to the arts community.

In total, $12,833 has come from individual donors and $6,000 has come from individual fundraisers since late March.

Recipients from the most recent round include independent contractors and freelance artists, part-time creative cobblers caught in the gig economy, and performing arts organizations. All of them, from Aligning Media to SOUND Affect and the Yale Prison Education Initiative, have seen their work change drastically since March.

Briana Bellinger-Dawson, a teaching artist and choreographer in the New Haven Public Schools, is one of those artists who saw work disappear overnight. As a recipient, she will be using her funding to work on a play she is writing called The Counter, which chronicles the experiences of a barista in a coffee shop. She called for increased funding for independent contractors, many of whom have been without reliable income since March.

Rohn Lawrence plays Toad's Place in 2015. New Haven Independent File Photo.

As an arts educator, she was working on five different performances in early March, from Jonathan Larson’s RENT at Cooperative Arts and Humanities High School and The Lion King at FUSE Theatre Company to Aladdin, Jr. at Nathan Hale Elementary School. She was also following early reports of COVID-19 on NPR, stocking up on supplies as her friends and partner told her she was overreacting.

Outside of the classroom, she was working a part-time job at Willoughby’s Coffee & Tea on Church Street and helping her seven-year-old son navigate elementary school. When school went remote, she scrambled to make online learning as fun as possible for him (the two do a lot of SchoolHouse Rock!, including a fierce version of “Conjunction Junction” that he sings around the house), while also lesson planning for her own students. When the state ordered nonessential businesses to close in mid-March, she filed for unemployment.

For the first two weeks of April, she received payments—but they stopped inexplicably. From mid-April to July, she didn’t receive anything from the Connecticut Department of Labor. She reached out “to everyone:” she called the state’s unemployment line and emailed the Department of Labor, the fraud division of the Connecticut Department of Social Services, and even U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro’s office.

In late July, she started receiving payments again. Then they stopped. She still doesn’t know why. While she receives

biweekly checks from the school district, her income is a portion of what it had been. This summer, she has picked up work teaching in Elm Shakespeare Company’s virtual summer session.

“I emailed everybody,” she recalled in a phone call Sunday afternoon. “I was like, listen. I really need to pay my bills.”

The past months have also taxed her as an arts educator and a mom. BellingerDawson’s son is a whiz at math and social studies, but March found him suddenly without the paraprofessional who helps him with reading.

Her son’s teacher stepped in, offering to ferry his Scholastic book orders to Bellinger-Dawson’s home in New Haven. She praised the work of fellow educators, who have gone a literal extra mile (or several) with virtual lesson plans, contactless book dropoff, and check-ins that still adhere to the strict guidelines against live teaching.

But she also thinks the next year will be a struggle: she got choked up talking about 50 tickets that she had managed to score for a June 10 performance of Hamilton on Broadway, after scrambling to reserve them the moment they were announced.

Before students came to clear out their lockers at the end of the year, she placed their tickets inside, for them to hold onto as they listened to the soundtrack and watched the performance online.

As she continues to fight for her unemployment checks, she’ll be putting most of her relief funding into an online performance of The Counter, a play based on her own experience at Willoughby’s. She said that in an ideal world, she envisions a

16

virtual reading setup that can transition to a physical stage when it is safe to gather again.

“The counter is kind of a soapbox where people can say anything they want, and then they get to leave,” she said. “There are times when people have said things toward me, regarding my skin color, regarding my hair. There’s a lot of times when we’ve closed the store, and I’ve had coworkers talk to me about their day.

We’re all in this place, and yet someone’s opinion had to crawl out of their mouth. I was applying to help that along.”

Musician Rohn Lawrence (pictured at top), who received $333 in the most recent round of funding, also recalled how “things literally came to a grinding halt” in mid-March. His gigs, which have always made enough to support him, turned into postponements. Postponements turned into cancellations. After five decades of playing music, his main stream of income was gone. The transformation to financial security to the bottom falling out took less than 48 hours.

For him, COVID-19 has been an ongoing financial nightmare. Lawrence filed for unemployment in March but was rejected; it was then that he started wondering how he was going to pay his bills. He’s a homeowner in Fair Haven, where he shares a house with his 26-year-old son.

During tropical storm Isaias, a maple tree fell on a shed in his backyard, damaging both the shed and his truck.

“It sucks,” he said Monday afternoon, reached by phone. “The whole situation just sucks. It’s like one thing after anoth-

er. That’s basically it. You go to the bank and take out whatever money you have in there, you have to devise all these different things.”

The glimmers of hope are few and far between, he added. His son still has employment, which he considers a blessing.

He has tried streaming performances on Facebook with information on virtual payment. As Gov. Ned Lamont has started the economy’s phased reopening, he booked a few outdoor gigs that never pay over a couple hundred dollars.

He has also recorded and sent out a number of tracks, for which he’s been paid between $100 and $150. Before COVID-19, he said it wasn’t uncommon to net $800 to $1,000 for recording. A year ago, he was on the New Haven Green with the International Festival of Arts & Ideas. Now he’s not certain how he’s going to pay all of his bills.

“I’ll be 60 next month,” he said. “I’m too old to reinvent myself.”

The funding “is very much needed,” he added. “When you take into consideration that a person is just no longer able to make a living at something they’ve done for their whole life? It’s crazy. It’s just crazy.”

Composer Austin Larkin is using the funding for a sound installation project and maintenance to his instrument, a violin. He said he considers himself lucky: he has kept his job at the New Haven Free Public Library, where he works in Ives Squared. For him, quarantine has marked “a time for reflection, contemplation, insight,” during which he has juggled cancelled and postponed gigs and written new material.

He dropped two untitled compositions in July, the proceeds from which he is donating to the Black Trans Advocacy Coalition. When the funding came through in the most recent round, he put some towards an October sound installation at Rhizome Gallery in Washington, D.C. and the rest towards paying Kevin Chapin, a New Haven luthier who works out of Erector Square in Fair Haven.

“I think it also has made me contemplate and reflect on what you depend on, not only as an artist but also as a member of a community or a city,” he said in a phone interview Monday. “I was fortunate in that I was able to retain employment through it, but if I wasn’t working a job, it would be a much different story.”

“One thing which I think the pandemic has shown is that public funding for artists is essential,” he later added in an email, “And that the commercial or commodity based model for artists to support themselves is inherently flawed and excludes a vast majority of individuals and communities, especially in times of crisis.”

Donation and application links for the fund remain open; applicants can apply for up to $500. Most have received $333.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

Schools Con’t from page 10

Reopening

people throughout the reopening process.

“We are concerned that our young people are going to be used as guinea pigs for this experiment to go back to school,” she said. “We have not been successful across the country in reaching Phase 3 [of reopening] but we are willing to take chances with our young people.”

Abdul Elrefaei, a student at Career High School who attended the meeting independently, said he was concerned that student voices were not being included in the discussions—despite the fact that they’re the ones returning to school. He also felt that school districts should have had a higher concern for student health prior to COVID-19.

“The hand sanitizer container and hand soap were never filled,” he said.

“Now they care about our safety. Why wasn’t there a plan before caring for our health?”

Kimberly Phillips, president of Delta Phi Chapter, pointed out that school board meetings and other government meetings are still virtual despite the push to return to in person. She worries about the difficulty of childcare as a parent and teacher at Barnard Elementary. If she returns to work, her son will have to return in person, as she does not have proper childcare for him to stay at home.

Organizations like Higher Heights YEP (Youth Empowerment Programs), Inc and Phi Delta Kappa, Inc. (NSPDK) are looking to fill the gaps in remote learning by providing live instruction, tutoring services, and additional homework scheduled around student needs. Higher Heights presently works with more than 10,000 students in the state.

“Our students deserve the best education even during a pandemic” said Higher Heights Executive Director Dr. Chaka Felder-McEntire. “They don’t deserve to be used as guinea pigs.”

Despite the conversation’s critical lens on school reopening, ConnCAT Youth and Community Programs Manager Steven Driffin cautioned participants that conversation was not meant to lambast the district but encourage further discussion.

“We are actually just presenting concepts, ideas, thoughts,” he said. “We can’t leave any stone unturned. It could cost someone their life.”

Castillo supported the point by reminding participants that the power is in the hands of the people. At the end of the day, the group is not willing to jeopardize the life of any student.

The next meeting will be held on August 27th at 7 p.m. Registration can be found here

17

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

MOREHOUSE ALUM STARTS FOUNDATION & GIVES $10,000 TO EMPOWER BLACK PARENTPRENEURS

In March of 2020, at the beginning of the pandemic, James Oliver, Jr. decided to start a foundation to empower Black parents who are entrepreneurs, or ParentPreneurs, to be the best parent and entrepreneur possible. In four months, James started the ParentPreneur Foundation, received a $50,000 seed grant from renowned venture capitalist Brad Feld, and gave a total of $10,000 to ten beneficiaries.

“Black people don’t have the same resources as many of our white ParentPreneur counterparts. Many of us are first-generation college graduates, and we don’t have a relative we can call to give us money until we can get enough traction with our business. Further, we generally don’t have the social capital to execute our good ideas or even imagine what is possible,” said James Oliver, Jr., Founder of the ParentPreneur Foundation.

In addition to grants, The ParentPreneur Foundation provides resources to help ParenPreneurs grow their businesses and gives them access to products and services to help ease their parenting lifestyle; this is done via an online community that allows members to engage with likeminded Black people around the world

and participate in exclusive events.

“I am glad there is a place now where I can connect with people who are really on a mission to make things happen. From a Chef’s perspective, we don’t really get recognized the way we should if we don’t own a restaurant, so I really feel honored to have received this grant.” - Nina Bryant, Founder of She Makes Delicious, a national food prep and delivery service, and grant recipient.

Oliver is uniquely positioned to start this foundation because two days before he began a tech accelerator to launch his business, WeMontage, his boy-girl twins were prematurely born and weighed only two pounds each. After completing the accelerator, James raised over $400,000 to successfully launch his removable photo wallpaper business, which has been featured on the TODAY Show, Good Morning America, and more.

Since then, Oliver has been inspiring ParentPreneurs to be their best with his book, The More You Hustle, The Luckier You Get: You CAN Be a Successful ParentPreneur, his blog, and now with the ParentPreneur Foundation. James is an award-winning writer and has been featured in Forbes, Huffington Post, Money

Magazine, and on CNBC. “Being a parent is challenging, yet rewarding. And we know 75% of all new businesses fail. When you combine having children with starting or running a business, that is a unique pressure that can

be extremely hard to deal with. In some cases, the financial pressure can cause great damage to relationships and mental health; this is why the foundation will offer free therapy sessions for members of its community. Therapy is taboo with

Black folks writ large, but I understand good mental health is everything. We are looking at the ParentPreneur holistically, not just trying to help her business,” said Oliver.

New York’s Attorney General Alleges Widespread Corruption at the NRA

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent

New York Attorney General Letitia James has launched what many may perceive as a proverbial David v. Goliath battle, filing a suit that seeks to dissolve the powerful National Rifle Association (NRA).

In a news conference held on Thursday, August 6, Attorney General James announced the charges levied against the organization.

The filing alleges illegal conduct and corruption, stating: “…their diversion of millions of dollars away from the charitable mission of the organization for personal use by senior leadership, awarding contracts to the financial gain of close associates and family, and appearing to dole out lucrative no-show contracts to former employees to buy their silence and continued loyalty.”

The State of New York alleges that the organization, its vice-president Wayne LaPierre, former CFO Wilson Phillips, former Chief of Staff and Executive Director of General Operations Joshua Powell, and Corporate Secretary and General Counsel John Frazer failed to manage the NRA’s funds and failed to follow numerous state and federal laws, contributing to the loss of more than $64 million in just three years for the NRA. “The NRA’s influence has been so powerful that the organization went unchecked for decades while top executives funneled millions into their own pockets,” said James. “The NRA is fraught

with fraud and abuse, which is why, today, we seek to dissolve the NRA, because no organization is above the law.”

James cites numerous examples where the four defendants listed in the complaint “failed to fulfill their fiduciary duty to the NRA.” She alleges that the accused used millions of dollars from NRA reserves funds for personal use, including trips for them and their families to the Bahamas, private jets, expensive meals and other private travel.”

In addition to shuttering the NRA’s doors, Attorney General James said she’s seeking to recoup the millions in lost as-

sets and stop the four defendants from serving on the board of any not-for-profit charitable organization in the state of New York again.

According to the Attorney General’s filing, the four individuals “instituted a culture of self-dealing, mismanagement and negligent oversight at the NRA that was illegal, oppressive, and fraudulent.”

“They overrode and evaded internal controls to allow themselves, their families, favored board members, employees, and vendors to benefit through reimbursed expenses, related party transactions, excess compensation, side deals, and waste of charitable assets without regard to the

18

NRA’s best interests,” James noted.

When board members challenged LaPierre and others over their financial governance and leadership of the NRA, it’s alleged that LaPierre retaliated and turned the board against those who attempted to challenge the illegal behavior.

According to the lawsuit, LaPierre, Phillips, Powell, Frazer and other executives and board members at the NRA allegedly abused their power and illegally diverted or facilitated the diversion of tens of millions of dollars from the NRA. “These funds were in addition to millions of dollars that the four individual defendants were already receiving in grossly excessive salaries and bonuses that were not in line with the best practices and prudent standards for evaluating and determining compensation.”

Leadership at the NRA also failed to assure standard fiscal controls, failed to respond adequately to whistleblowers, affirmatively took steps to conceal the nature and scope of whistleblower concerns from external auditors, and failed to review potential conflicts of interest for employees, according to the complaint.

According to James, the NRA violated various laws, including the laws governing the NRA’s charitable status, false reporting on annual filings with the IRS, and the OAG’s Charities Bureau.

She further alleged improper expense documentation, improper wage reporting, improper income tax withholding, failure to make required excise tax reporting and payments, payments above reasonable compensation to disqualified persons, and

waste of NRA assets in direct violation of New York’s Estates, Powers & Trusts Laws; New York’s Not-for-Profit Corporation Law; the New York Prudent Management of Institutional Funds Act; and New York’s Executive Law. “The illegal nature of the four individual defendants’ action also violated multiple rules of the NRA’s bylaws, the NRA’s employee handbook, and the NRA’s policy manual,” James stated.

The NRA’s failure to comply with multiple fiduciary responsibilities and state and federal laws resulted in the NRA’s seeing substantial losses on its balance sheet, the complaint stated.

The organization went from enjoying a surplus of more than $27.8 million in 2015 to a net deficit of more than $36.2 million in 2018 — contributing to a total loss of more than $64 million in just three years.

James said that her office began looking into the NRA in February 2019 and now seeks to dissolve the organization.

She’s asking a federal court judge to order LaPierre, Phillips, Powell, and Frazer to make full restitution of funds they unlawfully profited from along with the salaries earned as employees along with additional penalties. The State of New York is also seeking to recover illegal and unauthorized payments to the four individuals, remove LaPierre and Frazer from the NRA’s leadership (the NRA no longer employs Phillips and Powell), and ensure that none of the four defendants can ever again serve on the board of a charity in New York State.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

FAXON LAW NEW HAVEN ROAD RACE SEPTEMBER 4, 2020 - SEPTEMBER 7, 2020

VIRTUALÂ RACES HALF MARATHON | RELAY | 20K | 5K | KIDS FUN RUN

T-shirt and race bib to all participants!

New Haven kids run free in the fun run courtesy of Town Fair Tire.

WWW.NEWHAVENROADRACE.ORG

19

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020 INNER-CITY NEWS July 27, 2016 - August 02, 2016

Listing: Customer Retail Assistant

WATER Maintainer II

Performs tasks required in the maintenance, installation, repair and construction of roadways, services, hydrants, and structures relating to facilities, lines and equipment of the water system. Requires at least three (3) years employment as a Maintainer in the Water Division or in construction involving the installation maintenance of pipe lines related equipment OR two (2) years training in VALENTINAand MACRI RENTAL HOUSING PRE-andAPPLICATIONS AVAILABLE plumbing plus one (1) year of employment as a Maintainer in the Water System OR an equivalent combination and training. offers a competitive pay rate of $24.43 - $29.66 HOME INC,ofonexperience behalf of Columbus HouseThe andTown the New Haven Housing Authority, perishour plus an excellent fringe benefit package.

Applications or resumes accepting pre-applications for studio and one-bedroom apartments at this devel-will be accepted until August 25,located 2020 at(or108 theFrank dateStreet, of receipt of the 50th application) at the following address: Human opment New Haven.

Maximum income limitations apResources Department,will Town of Wallingford, 45TO South St., Wallingford, ply. Pre-applications be available from 9AM 5PMMain beginning Monday Ju;yCT 06492, (203) 2942080.

294-2084.

25, Fax: 2016 (203) and ending when EOE sufficient pre-applications (approximately 100) have been received at the offices of HOME INC. Applications will be mailied upon request by calling HOME INC at 203-562-4663 during those hours. Completed preTown of Bloomfield applications must be returned to HOME INC’s offices at 171 Orange Street, Third Lead Building Maintainer - Facilities Floor, New Haven, CT 06510.

Petroleum Company has an immediate full time opening. Excellent customer service skills a must.

Requirements include: answering billing questions, assisting in sales calls received, scheduling service calls as well as assisting in collections and account set ups. Previous petroleum experience and/ or experience in a very busy office environment a plus. Applicant to also perform administrative/ clerical tasks as assigned. Please send resume to: H.R. Manager, Confidential, P O Box 388, Guil-

NOTICE

ford CT 06437.

********An Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer**********

CITY OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT - REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS Q-House Launch and Management RFP # 2020-07-1340

Full Time - Benefited $31.26 hourly NOTICIA

RFP due date: Tuesday September 29, 2020 at 11:00 AM EST.

Pre-employment drug testing.

For VIVIENDAS more details, visit ourPRE-SOLICITUDES website – www.bloomfieldct.org VALENTINA MACRI DE ALQUILER DISPONIBLES

DOT Certified Welder

RFP can be downloaded at https://newhavenct.bonfirehub.com/portal/?tab=login Michael V. Fumiatti Purchasing Agent

DELIVERY PERSON

HOME INC, en nombre de la Columbus House y de la New Haven Housing Authority, está aceptando pre-solicitudes para estudios y apartamentos de un dormitorio en este desarrollo Applicants have a Street, minimum of 3 Seyears ubicado en lamust calle 109 Frank New Haven. aplicanorlimitaciones de ingresos máximos. Las pre-solicitudes disponibles 09 a.m.-5 p.m. comenzando Martes 25 equivalent experience as aestarán CT DOT Certified Welder. julio, 2016 hasta cuando seto hanlreopell@cjfucci.com recibido suficientes pre-solicitudes Please email resumes or fax(aproximadamente 100) en las oficinas deattention HOME INC. LasReopell. pre-solicitudes serán enviadas por correo a petición #203-468-6256 Lee llamando a HOME INC al 203-562-4663 durante esas horas.Pre-solicitudes deberán remitirse C.J. Fucci, Inc. is an affirmative action/equal oppora las oficinas de HOME INC en 171 Orange Street, tercer piso, New Haven , CT Delivery 06510 .Needed One/Two Day a Week, Part Time

tunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status.

NEEDED

ELM CITY COMMUNITIES Request for Proposals

Request for Proposals for Outside General Counsel Legal Services for Elm City Communities/Housing Authority of The City of New Haven, Including The Glendower Group, Inc. and Its Various Affiliates and 360 Management Group Company

Must Have your Own Vehicle If Interested call

(203) 387-0354

The Housing Authority of the City of New Haven d/b/a Elm City Communities is currently seeking Proposals for Request for Proposals for Outside General Counsel Legal Services for Elm City Communities/Housing Authority of The City of New Haven, Including The Glendower Group, Inc. Invitation to Bid: nd and Its Various Affiliates and 360 Management Group Company.

2 Notice A complete copy of the requirements may be obtained from Elm City’s Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.cobblestonesystems.com/gateway beginning on Monday, July 27, 2020 at 3:00PM Old Saybrook, CT

NEW HAVEN Electric

242-258 Fairmont Ave

General Line Foreman – The Town of Wallingford Electric Division is seeking a highly skilled supervisor Townhouse, 1.5skills BA,to3BR, level , 1BA with strong2BR administrative and leadership oversee1the utility’s overhead and underground line installation, repair and maintenancenew functions.

The utility a 50+ square mile distribution All new apartments, appliances, new serves carpet,25,000 closecustomers to I-91 & in I-95 area with a peak demand of 130 near MW.bus Thestop position requires center an A.S. degree in electrical, civil, or mechanical highways, & shopping (4 Buildings, 17 Units) engineering plus eight (8) years of progressive experience in the construction, maintenance, and operation of Pet under 40lbdistribution allowed. Interested contact Maria @ 860-985-8258 utility-grade electric facilities,parties or an equivalent combination of education and qualifying experi- Tax Exempt & Not Prevailing Wage Rate Project The Town of Wallingford Public Schools is seeking a skilled individual to provide technical assistance ence substituting on a year-for-year basis. One (1) year experience as a supervisor is preferred. Must possess in the setup, installation, and maintenance of computers, peripherals, and software for the school disand maintain a valid Motor Vehicle Operator License. Salary: $92,405 - $118,227 plus an excellent fringe CT. Unified Deacon’s Association is pleased to offer a Deacon’s New Construction, Wood Framed, Housing, Selective Demolition, Site-work, Casttrict. The position requires an A.S. degree in computer technology or related field, plus 3 years’ experibenefit package. to:month Department of Human Town of Wallingford, Certificate Program.Apply This is a 10 program designed to assistResources, in the intellectual formation of Candidates 45 South Main Street, Asphaltand Shingles, VinylPC/Windows Siding, in response toCT the 06492.

Church’s Phone Ministry needs.

The294-2080; cost is $125. Classes Saturday, AugustThe 20, 2016 1:30- date will be the date the in-place enceConcrete, troubleshooting repairing compatible computers, printers and related peripherals.

Wallingford, #: (203) Fax #: start (203) 294-2084. closing 3:30 Contact: Chairman, Deacon Joe J. Davis, M.S., B.S. 50th application or resume is received or September 2020 whichever occurs first. EOE or similar certification preferred. Experience may Flooring, Painting,CompTIA Division 10Network+ Specialties,certification, Appliances, Microsoft ResidentialMCP, Casework, (203) 996-4517 Host, General Bishop Elijah Davis, D.D. Pastor of2, Pitts Chapel U.F.W.B. Church 64 Brewster substitute for education onand a year-for-year basis. Wages: $22.02 hourly plus an excellent fringe benefit Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing Fire Protection.

St. New Haven, CT package. Apply to: Department of Human Resources, Town of Wallingford, 45 South Main Street, WallCITY OF MILFORD This contract is subject to state set-aside and contract compliance requirements. ingford, CT 06492. Fax #: (203) 294-2084. The closing date will be August, 19, 2020 or the date the Seeking qualified condidates to fill numerous vacancies to include, Engineer Technician, Secretary 50th application is received, whichever occurs first. EOE and more. For information and detailed application instructions, visit www.ci.milford.ct.us Click on

SAYEBROOKE VILLAGE

Computer Technician I

SEYMOUR HOUSING AUTHORITY

SERVICES, JOBS and JOB TITLE.

Bid Extended, Due Date: August 5, 2016 Anticipated Start: August 15, 2016 Project documents available via ftpELM link below: CITY COMMUNITIES http://ftp.cbtghosting.com/loginok.html?username=sayebrookevillage

Sealed bids are invited by the Housing Authority of the Town of Seymour until 3:00 pm on Tuesday, August 2, 2016 at its office at 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 for Concrete Sidewalk Repairs and Replacement at the Invitation for Bids Smithfield Gardens Assisted Living Facility, 26 Smith Street Seymour.

Faxindividual or Email Questions & Bids to: Dawn Lang @ 203-881-8372 dawnlang@haynesconstruction.com PROPERTY MANAGER TAX CREDIT F/T - Bristol Housing Authority is seeking an Agency-Wide Elevator Services

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

encourages the participation of all Veteran, S/W/MBE & Section 3 Certified Businesses with working knowledge of the general management of Low-Income Housing Tax CreditHCC (LIHTC) Haynes Construction Company, 32 Progress Ave, Seymour, CT 06483 A HUD pre-bidPrograms. conferencePreferred will be held at the Housing Authority 28 Smith and at least 3 years’ experience asOffice tax credit property manager and posAA/EEO EMPLOYERof the City of New Haven d/b/a Elm City Communities is currently Authority sess LIHTC certification.

Management administrative experience Street Seymour, CT at 10:00 am, on and Wednesday, July 20, 2016. helpful. Experience in contract The Housing seeking Bids for Agency-Wide Elevator Services. A complete copy of the requirement may negotiation, budget preparation, fiscal oversight, analyzing and managing a property portfolio is beneficial.

Salary will commensurate with experience.

Excellent benefit package.

Bidding documents are available from the Seymour Housing Authority Of-Send resume and refer- be obtained from Elm City Communities’ Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenences by August 14, 2020 to Mitzy Rowe, Chief Executive Officer, Bristol Housing Authority, 164 housing.cobblestonesystems.com/gateway beginning on fice, 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 (203) 888-4579.

Jerome Avenue, Bristol, CT 06010. The Bristol Housing Authority is an equal opportunity employer.

Monday, August 10, 2020 at 3:00PM.

The Housing Authority reserves the right to accept or reject any or all bids, to reduce the scope of the project to reflect available funding, and to waive any

20

THE INNER-CITY - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020 INNER-CITYNEWS NEWS July 27, 2016 - August 02, 2016

Garrity Asphalt Reclaiming, Inc seeks:

TOWN OF EAST HAVEN TAX COLLECTOR

Listing: Commercial Driver

Construction Equipment Mechanic preferably experienced in Full time Class A driver for petroleum deliveries for nights Reclaiming and Road Milling Equipment. We offer factory and weekends. Previous experience required. Competitive training on equipment we operate. Location: Bloomfield CT We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits wage, 401(k) and benefits. Send resume to: HR Manager, VALENTINA MACRI RENTAL HOUSING PRE- APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE Contact: Tom Dunay P. O. Box 388, Guilford, CT 06437.

NOTICE

Phone: 243-2300 HOME INC, on behalf of860Columbus House and the New Haven Housing Authority, ********An Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer********** is accepting pre-applications for studio and one-bedroom apartments at this develEmail: tom.dunay@garrityasphalt.com opment located at 108 Frank Street, New Haven.

Maximum income limitations apWomen & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply ply.Affi Pre-applications willEqual be available from 9AM TO 5PM beginning Monday Ju;y rmative Action/ Opportunity Employer State of Connecticut 25, 2016 and ending when sufficient pre-applications (approximately 100) have been received at the offices of HOME INC. Applications will be mailied upon re- Office of Policy quest by calling HOME INC at 203-562-4663 during those hours. Completed pre- and Management Garrity Asphalt Reclaiming, Incoffices seeks: applications must be returned to HOME INC’s at 171 Orange Street, Third Reclaimer Operators Floor, New Haven,and CTMilling 06510.Operators with current licensing and clean driving record, be willing to travel throughout the NorthThe State of Connecticut, Office of east & NY. We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits

NOTICIA

Policy and Management is recruiting for a Connecticut Careers Trainee (target Contact: Rick Tousignant Phone: 860- 243-2300 class Planning Analyst) position.

VALENTINA MACRI VIVIENDAS DE ALQUILER PRE-SOLICITUDES DISPONIBLES Email: rick.tousignant@garrityasphalt.com Further information regarding the duties, HOME INC, en nombre de la Columbus House y de la New Haven Housing Authority, está requirements and application Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply eligibility aceptando pre-solicitudes estudios y apartamentos de un dormitorio en este desarrollo Affirmative Action/ para Equal Opportunity Employer instructions for this position is available ubicado en la calle 109 Frank Street, New Haven. Se aplican limitaciones de ingresos at:

Union Company seeks:

máximos. Las pre-solicitudes estarán disponibles 09 a.m.-5 p.m. comenzando Martes 25 https://www.jobapscloud.com/ julio, 2016 hasta cuando se han recibido suficientes pre-solicitudes (aproximadamente 100) en lasTrailer oficinasDriver de HOME INC. & Las pre-solicitudes serán enviadas CT/sup/bulpreview.asp?R1= Tractor for Heavy Highway Construction Equip- por correo a petición llamando HOME INCLicense, al 203-562-4663 duranterecord, esas horas.Pre-solicitudes deberán remitirse 200805&R2=2292AR&R3=001 ment.

Must ahave a CDL clean driving capable of a las oficinas de equipment; HOME INCbe enwilling 171 Orange Street, tercer piso, operating heavy to travel throughout theNew Haven , CT 06510 .

The State of Connecticut is an equal Northeast & NY. We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits opportunity/affirmative action employer and strongly encourages the applications of women, minorities, and persons Email: dana.briere@garrityasphalt.com with disabilities.

Contact Dana at 860-243-2300

Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply

NEW HAVEN

The Town of East Haven seeks a qualified candidate to serve in the position of Tax Collector. This is a highly responsible administrative position involving the direction of a municipal tax collection operation. The Tax Collector directs and supervises the department operations; administers and evaluates the preparation of tax bills, receipt of current taxes, the pursuit of delinquent taxes and the collection of revenue. The Tax Collector works under the direction of the Finance Director and supervises the staff of the Tax Department. Qualified candidates should possess a Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited college or university in Accounting, Finance or Public Administration and four (4) years of progressively responsible administrative experience, or an equivalent combination of training and qualifying experience substituting on a year-for-year basis and must possess or be able to obtain CCMC Certification by State of Connecticut within a reasonable period of time. The salary range for this position is $78,388-87,099/year, 35 hours per week and the Town offers an excellent benefit package. Please send resume with references to: Michelle Benivegna, Assistant Director of Administration & Management, 250 Main Street, East Haven, CT 06512. Deadline September 1, 2020. The Town of East Haven is committed to building a work force of diverse individuals. Minorities, females, handicapped and veterans are encouraged to apply. The Town of East Haven is an equal opportunity employer.

Electric Utility System Operator/Dispatcher

Operates electric distribution substation and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system for an electric utility serving 25,000 customers. Coordinates electric system switching and places equipment in and out of service during routine and emergency operations. Requires HS diploma/GED with 2 years experience in the operation of Distribution SCADA equipment and/or switchboards used in the distribution of electricity.

Experience and training may be substituted on a year for year basis. Must maintain valid system operation certification from Connecticut Valley Exchange (CONVEX) or other approved agency or be able to obtain the same within 90 days of hire. Must posses and maintain a valid State of CT driver’s license. $ 34.63 - $ 41.15 per hour plus an excellent fringe benefit package. Apply to: Department of Human Resources, Town of Wallingford, 45 South Main Street, Wallingford, CT 06492. Fax #: (203) 294-2084. Closing date will Invitationbeto September Bid: 8, 2020. EOE.

242-258 Fairmont Ave Town of Bloomfield HELP WANTED: 2BR Townhouse, 1.5 BA, 3BR, 1 level , 1BA SAYEBROOKE VILLAGE 2nd Notice

Finance Director Full Time - Benefited

ELM CITY COMMUNITIES

apartments, new appliances, close to I-91 & I-95 Large All CTnew guardrail company lookingnew for carpet, Laborer/ Old Saybrook, CT Request for Proposals near bus stop & shopping Driver with validhighways, CT CDL Class A license and ablecenter to (4 Buildings, 17 Units) get a medical Must Interested be able to passcontact a drug test@ 860-985-8258 Pet undercard.

40lb allowed. parties Maria $96,755 - $149,345 Tax Exempt & Not Prevailing Development of Single-Family Homeownership Housing Wage Rate Project and physical. Compensation based on experience.

Pre-employment drug testing. For more details, visit our Email resume to dmastracchio@atlasoutdoor.com website – www.bloomfieldct.org CT. Unified Deacon’s Association is pleased to offer a Deacon’s The Housing AuthoritySite-work, of the City of New Haven d/b/a Elm City Communities is New Construction, Wood Framed, Housing, Selective Demolition, CastAA/EOE Certificate M-F Program. This is a 10 month program designed to assist in the intellectual formation of Candidates Proposals for Development of Single-Family Homeownership in-place Concrete, Asphaltcurrently Shingles,seeking Vinyl Siding, in response to the Church’s Ministry needs. The cost is $125. Classes start Saturday, August 20, 2016 1:303:30 Contact: Chairman, Deacon Joe J. Davis, M.S., B.S. Housing.

A complete copy of the requirement may be obtained from Elm City Flooring, Painting, Division 10 Specialties, Appliances, Residential Casework, (203) 996-4517 Host, General Bishop Elijah Davis, D.D. Pastor of Pitts Chapel U.F.W.B. Church 64 Brewster Centrally Located Communities’ Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.cobbleMechanical, Electrical, Plumbing and Fire Protection.

St. New Haven, CT Town of Portland has amended its Citizen Participation Construction Company stonesystems.com/gateway beginning on

LEGAL NOTICE of TOWN OF PORTLAND, CT

Plan for the purpose of informing the public about its intent to apply for CDBG, Covid-19 funding.

For a copy of SEYMOUR HOUSING AUTHORITY the amended Plan go to www.portlandct.org.

Sealed bids are invited by the Housing Authority of the Town of Seymour until 3:00 pm on Tuesday, August 2, 2016 at its office at 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 for CITY ConcreteCOMMUNITIES Sidewalk Repairs and Replacement at the ELM Smithfield Gardens Assisted Living Facility, 26 Smith Street Seymour.

Request for Proposals

Housing Choice Voucher (Section Based Assistance Program to A pre-bid conference will be held8)atProjectthe Housing Authority Office 28 Smith Support the Development of Affordable Housing

Street Seymour, CT at 10:00 am, on Wednesday, July 20, 2016.

Housing Authority City of New Haven d/b/a Elm city Communities is currently seekdocuments areChoice available from(Section the Seymour Housing ingBidding Proposals for Housing Voucher 8) ProjectBased Authority Assistance OfProgram Support Development Affordable Housing.

A complete copy of the fice,to28 Smiththe Street, Seymour,ofCT 06483 (203) 888-4579. requirement may be obtained from Elm City’s Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.

The Housing Authority reserves the right to accept or reject any or all bids, to cobblestonesystems.com/gateway

reduce the scope of the on project to reflect and to waive any beginning Monday, Julyavailable 13, 2020funding, at 3:00PM. informalities in the bidding, if such actions are in the best interest of the Housing Authority.

This contract is subject to state set-aside and contract compliance requirements.

in Connecticut has positions available Monday, August 10, 2020 at 3:00PM. for experienced project managers, Bid Extended, Due Date: August 5, 2016 laborers and truck drivers.

Construction Anticipated Start: August 15, 2016 Administrative Office Position. FT-Exp This company is an Affirmative Action /

Email- Hherbert@ gwfabrication.com available via ftp link below: Minorities are encouraged to apply. http://ftp.cbtghosting.com/loginok.html?username=sayebrookevillage

required.

Project documents Equal Opportunity Employer M/F. Females and Please fax resume to ATTN: Mike to

860-669-7004.

ELM CITY COMMUNITIES

Request for Proposals Electronic File Management Services

Fax or Email Questions & Bids to: Dawn Lang @ 203-881-8372 dawnlang@haynesconstruction.com HCC encourages the participation of all Veteran, S/W/MBE & Section 3 Certified Businesses Construction Company, 32 Progress Ave, Seymour, CT 06483 QSR STEELHaynes CORPORATION AA/EEO EMPLOYER

APPLY NOW!

Steel Fabricators, Erectors & Welders Top pay for top performers. Health Benefits, 401K, Vacation Pay. Email Resume: Rose@qsrsteel.com Hartford, CT AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

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The Housing Authority of the City of New Haven d/b/a Elm City Communities is currently seeking Proposals for Electronic File Management Services. A complete copy of the requirement may be obtained from Elm City Communities’ Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.cobblestonesystems.com/ gateway beginning on

Monday, August 17, 2020 at 3:00PM.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

COMMENTARY:

Trump’s Housing Announcement Seen as So Racist, “It’s ‘Not Even A Dog Whistle Anymore’

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior Correspondent

President Donald Trump has rolled back a Barack Obama-era housing rule intended to halt racial segregation and eliminate racial disparities in American suburbs.

Trump announced on Wednesday, July 29, that he officially eliminated the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) rule that Obama put in place in 2015.

The rule required local governments to identify and address racial segregation patterns outlawed under the Fair Housing Act of 1968.

The law tied federal funding to efforts to bridge inequalities.

The AFFH helped low-income and minority households, many of whom now face housing uncertainty because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Some interpret the move as an attempt to stoke fears in Trump’s base, which could drive supporters to the polls in November.

To others, the president is no longer using dog whistles. Instead, it’s apparent he has issued a clarion call for white supremacists and other racists that African Americans and other non-whites represent a danger to suburbia.

That the formal announcement of the rule change came on the day before Obama eulogized Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) in At-

lanta, wasn’t lost on many who expressed exasperation with the president.

“Oh my. I mean, it’s not even a dog whistle anymore,” Sen. Chris Murphy (DConn.) wrote on Twitter. “Our president is now a proud, vocal segregationist.”

“Vile, despicable, racist,” Diane Yentel, president of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, tweeted about the decision.

“Secretary [Ben] Carson has worked to undermine fair housing since the day he stepped into the HUD building, so this action is not surprising. But it is abhorrent for Trump to use a critical fair housing

tool for election year race-baiting, particularly during a time of reckoning for racial injustices,” Yentel said.

Trump called the rule a threat to “the suburban way of life.”

“I am happy to inform all of the people living their Suburban Lifestyle Dream that you will no longer be bothered or financially hurt by having low-income housing built in your neighborhood,” the president tweeted.

Trump continued to brag about the move during a campaign stop in Midland, Texas.

“I ended it two days ago. I signed out the bill. I signed out the article, the rule,” Trump declared. “And it was a bad rule, and it was causing tremendous housing prices going down and crime going up.

I ended it. It had been hell for suburbia, now enjoy your life. Now we don’t win the election, that’s going to be reinstituted.”

He continued: “You know the suburbs; people fight all of their lives to get into the suburbs and have a beautiful home. There will be no more low-income housing forced into the

suburbs.”

Carson added that the AFFH rule was unworkable and “ultimately a waste of time for localities to comply with.”

ABC News reported that Trump is again “counting on the suburban voters he won in 201r – apparent by his repeated false and fear-invoking claims that Democrats want to ‘abolish’ suburbs – but his divisive rhetoric may not be working this time around.”

The network cited a recent ABC News/ Washington Post poll showing the president trailing Biden in those neighborhoods by 9 percent – the most significant margin in the suburbs that polls had recorded since the 1980s when Republicans were winning there by double digits.

ABC News further reported that a New York Times/Siena College poll from June found 38 percent of voters in the suburbs approve of Trump’s job performance compared with 59 percent who disapprove.

The key demographic disapproved of Trump’s handling of recent protests and race relations by an even wider margin, according to the Times.

Meanwhile, The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law said the elimination of the Obama-era housing rule would “eviscerate all oversight of state and local government compliance with fair housing laws.”

“It’s a full-frontal assault on the rule of law,” the group wrote. “The civil rights

NAACP Sues U.S. Education Secretary Over COVID-19 School Money

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior Correspondent

The coronavirus pandemic has focused the nation’s attention on the essential role public schools play in families and communities’ lives.

The NAACP said it’s also exposed severe racial inequalities that continue to plague the country’s education system and disadvantaged students of color.

Rather than addressing those problems, NAACP President Derrick Johnson declared that U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos “exploited the pandemic to promote her personal agenda of funneling taxpayer dollars to private schools and taking resources away from the schools and the students who need it most.”

“We simply can’t let this happen. So, we’re taking her to court,” Johnson announced.

The NAACP formally filed a lawsuit in federal court in Washington, D.C., accusing DeVos of illegally changing the rules for allocating $13.2 billion in Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) money to benefit wealthy private k-12 schools.

“Recently, Secretary DeVos issued regulations that would force public school districts to divert federal emergency relief funds from public schools and send them

to private schools. By one estimate, over $1 billion would be lost to private schools under the rule,” Johnson declared.

“So, the NAACP filed a lawsuit along with public school families and school districts across the country, challenging this unfair, unequal, and unjust rule.

We’ll fight this as hard as it takes – for as long as it takes – to protect our students, schools, and communities.”

The NAACP’s lawsuit suggests that the CARES Act, which was signed by President Donald Trump earlier this year, says explicitly that local school departments are to distribute the fund based on the number of Title I, or low-wealth students, in a particular school.

Congress allowed CARES funds to go to institutions that depend on tuition and donations because lawmakers said they recognized that some students from lowincome families attend private schools.

The lawsuit claims the share going to private schools should have its basis on the number of Title I students attending those schools.

DeVos did not follow that rule, the NAACP contends, spelling out that hundreds of millions of dollars in CARES Act funds would immediately divert from public schools to affluent private schools.

The controversial education secretary reportedly holds a different interpretation

of how local school districts should distribute the money.

Her interim final rule allows sharing the money equally with private schools based on the number of students in those schools, regardless of how many are Title I students.

“The Rule is as immoral as it is illegal,” NAACP lawyers argue.

The NAACP filed the lawsuit on behalf of a group of parents and their children, who are enrolled in economically disadvantaged public schools. The Pasadena, California, Unified School District, and Stamford, Connecticut, School District, joined the NAACP in the lawsuit asking for an injunction to prevent DeVos from immediately instituting her change to the rule.

“In this moment of crushing need for America’s public schools, the Rule directs public school districts to divert desperately needed CARES Act 1 funds to affluent students in private schools or face unlawful limitations on the way that those funds can be spent – both in direct contravention of the Act,” the lawsuit reads.

“The Rule harms American children and subverts the will of Congress; it cannot stand.”

If allowed to proceed, the DeVos’ rule

22

Education Secretary Betsy DeVoss

would change public schools, including some in which “80, 90 and 99 percent” of the students are from low-income families.

“She’s trying to increase allocation disproportionately for private schools over public schools in the midst of the de-

bate over whether or not schools should reopen. It’s horrific what she’s doing,” Johnson told ABC News. “What will happen is you further take money away from children who are financially in need to benefit high-wealth children.”

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

Stay at least

SIX FEET from others.

Social Distancing is simple and can help you and others stay safe.

23

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 12, 2020 - August 18, 2020

Inaction is not an option.

Complete the 2020 Census to shape the next ten years for your community.

The power to change your community is in your hands. We can help inform funding every year for the next ten years for public services like healthcare, childcare programs, public transportation, schools, and job assistance. And our responses determine how many seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives. But time is running out, so complete the census today online, by phone, or by mail.

Complete the census today at:

2020CENSUS.GOV Paid for by U.S. Census Bureau.

2019_Census_Community_DM_Size O.indd 1

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7/6/20 4:50 PM