Ana Altchek



Public Health

Crain's New York Business •

City firms make tweaks to help neurodiverse workers thrive

Large corporations such as Microsoft, JPMorgan and Deloitte have been leaders in implementing neurodiversity initiatives. Deloitte, which started its program in 2019, says it saw a nearly 4% increase in its neurodiverse employee population between 2021 and 2022. And smaller businesses across the city have started to invest in these programs in the past few years as inclusivity has become increasingly prioritized.
Crain's New York Business •

Everything to know about DocGo, the health care company that scored millions in city contracts

The expansion is part of a $30 million behavioral health investment that will consolidate Hackensack’s Riverview medical center into its Raritan medical center for specialized psychiatric services. Approximately $3 million will go towards the new ECT program, according to Donald Parker, president of Hackensack Meridian Carrier Clinic. The funding will go towards 81 new beds, anesthesia equipment, ECT machines, operating rooms and prep and recovery rooms.
Crain's New York Business •

Demand for medical office space is concentrated on the Upper East and Upper West Side: Report

Breaking Ground, a not-for-profit affordable and supportive housing developer located in Midtown, received a $10 million state grant on Monday for a supportive housing project in East Harlem. The funds will be used to convert a former student housing dormitory located at 1760 Third Avenue. The project comes as part of Governor Kathy Hochul’s announcement last week to allocate $38.6 million towards supportive housing projects in New York City, Long Island and the Southern Tier region.
Crain's New York Business •

Q&A: City health department environment official on the risks of extreme heat

The City Council voted to pass three lead-related bills on Thursday, taking aim at reducing lead hazards. The proposed package of legislation, Introductions 5-A, 6-A and 750-A, was sponsored by Deputy Speaker Diana Ayala, who serves District 8 in the Bronx and Manhattan. If they become law the bills will require owners to keep records of all lead-related incidents, remediate buildings prior to turnover and enact annual inspections for lead by the Departments of Health and Housing.
Crain's New York Business •

NY nursing homes need appropriated funds to quash staffing crisis, experts say

The city’s Department of Social Services and Human Resources Administration awarded a $22 million grant to Iris House to support New Yorkers living with HIV/AIDS. Ingrid Floyd, the executive director at Iris House, said that the city renews the contract every five years. Located in central Harlem, Iris House operates as a city housing group under HIV/AIDS Services Administration and serves New Yorkers living with HIV. The funding will go towards the apartments and social support provided, Floyd said.
Crain's New York Business •

Lack of guidelines made city's emergency spending difficult to control for Covid-19 vaccines, testing: report

Sumitovant Biopharma will lay off 62 employees, an additional 39 people from their estimated count in April. According to the notice filed on Monday with the state Department of Labor, the Garment District-based company attributes the layoffs to its integration with parent company Sumitomo Pharma, along with other American affiliates, into one company called Sumitomo Pharma America Inc.
Crain's New York Business •

City requires food-related businesses to store trash in containers

A new rule will go into effect on July 30 requiring food-related businesses to toss waste into secure containers rather than just bags. The date was announced by Mayor Eric Adams and Department of Sanitation Commissioner Jessica Tisch on Wednesday. Adams first proposed the container rule in May as part of his initiative to “Get Stuff Clean” and continue the city’s war against rats.
Crain's New York Business •

Everything you need to know about the city's lifeguard shortage

As a lifeguard shortage persists on the national and local level, the city Department of Parks and Recreation has taken on a number of initiatives to fill its remaining gap for the season, which stood at 600 to 680 lifeguards as of June 28. The city currently has less than half of the necessary lifeguard workforce required to run and operate eight beaches and more than 50 pools across the five boroughs.
Crain's New York Business •

Deadly Chinatown e-bike store fire renews attention to battery storage, regulation

A massive fire broke out at an e-bike service store on the first floor of a six-story Chinatown building just after midnight Tuesday morning, killing four people on the floors above and leaving two others critically injured. The fire is the latest event to call into scrutiny lithium ion battery charging and storage for e-bikes, especially as more food-delivery personnel rely on the devices to make restaurant drop-offs.

Migrant crisis

Crain's New York Business •

Everything to know about DocGo, the health care company that scored millions in city contracts

The expansion is part of a $30 million behavioral health investment that will consolidate Hackensack’s Riverview medical center into its Raritan medical center for specialized psychiatric services. Approximately $3 million will go towards the new ECT program, according to Donald Parker, president of Hackensack Meridian Carrier Clinic. The funding will go towards 81 new beds, anesthesia equipment, ECT machines, operating rooms and prep and recovery rooms.
Crain's New York Business •

Adult asylum seekers get 60-day notice to find alternative housing

The city will be giving a 60-day notice to adult asylum seekers to find alternative housing, according to an announcement by Mayor Eric Adams on Wednesday. Migrants who cannot do so in that time frame will be required to apply for new placement at the intake centers. “This is the only way we can make critical needed space for families and children,” Adams said. “We don't want to reach the point, and we won't reach the point, where families a
Crain's New York Business •

Lack of guidelines made city's emergency spending difficult to control for Covid-19 vaccines, testing: report

Sumitovant Biopharma will lay off 62 employees, an additional 39 people from their estimated count in April. According to the notice filed on Monday with the state Department of Labor, the Garment District-based company attributes the layoffs to its integration with parent company Sumitomo Pharma, along with other American affiliates, into one company called Sumitomo Pharma America Inc.

Housing

Crain's New York Business •

Manhattan’s office vacancy rate continues to surge in Q2

In January 2022 CBRE said the then-recovering real estate market was due in part to new leasing volume, strong momentum in the rebounding U.S. economy and increasing levels of New York City office-using employment. But the record high number of vacancies in the current market can be attributed to discussions of a looming recession, said Mike Slattery, CBRE’s New York tristate research director. “About a year ago, we were seeing much more activity. There was a rebound, [and] Q3 2022 was extremel
Crain's New York Business •

Flooding-risk disclosures coming to leases, but will they help tenants?

A new bill that requires landlords to disclose to tenants residential units’ flooding risks will go into effect June 21. The Right to Know bill, signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul after citywide flooding caused by Hurricane Ida in September 2021 that affected several outer-borough lower-level apartments, requires residential landlords to provide notice whether a rental unit is within a Federal Emergency Management Agency-designated floodplain, special flood hazard area or moderate risk flood area.

Arts

Crain's New York Business •

Broadway strike averted as union reaches tentative agreement with producers

Playbill reported that major sticking points of the renewed negotiations were salary increases and weekly rest periods. IATSE has not responded to requests for comment about the conditions in the new agreement. The Broadway League said they would not provide further details on the agreement until the ratification process is complete, in about two weeks. According to Jonas Loeb, the Director of Communications at IATSE, The Broadway League and Disney Theatrical reached a tentative agreement for t