Readout Following Second Avenue Subway Expansion Roundtable Discussion. Rep. Espaillat Hosted Hybrid Roundtable with Transportation Shareholders on Phase II of the Second Avenue Subway. NEW YORK, NY -- Last week, Representative Adriano Espaillat (NY-13) hosted a round table to discuss the Second Avenue Subway Phase II project as the expansion enters the “engineering phase” of the project.
Earlier this Congress, Rep. Espaillat in collaboration with Senator Chuck Schumer fought to secure $8 billion for the Capital Investment Grants Program in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and an additional $15 billion over the next five years, subject to Congressional appropriations.
This funding is a tremendous investment in projects such as the Second Avenue Subway Phase II extension in New York's 13th congressional district which is expected to receive $3.4 billion of Capital Investment Grant “New Start” Funding over the years, as requested by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), and accounting for 49% of the project’s total costs, with the remaining coming from local sources.
The Second Avenue Subway is intended to provide much needed transit access in Manhattan to East Side residents, workers, and visitors; reduce crowding on the nearly 100-year-old Lexington Avenue Subway Line; and improve mobility for all New Yorkers.
"I am proud to have secured the inclusion of funding to help propel the Second Avenue Subway Phase II extension which supports the livelihood of over 100,000 East Harlem residents who currently experience barriers to job opportunities, educational advancement, and access to hospitals and medical care due to lack of public transportation," said Rep. Espaillat. "As this project moves forward, it is critical for stakeholders to come together in an effort to avoid unintended consequences of large-scale development projects, such as gentrification."
During Friday’s meeting, participants discussed community input regarding this large scale infrastructure project, their vision for a communal “uptown grand central”, maintaining and supporting local residents and small businesses, workforce training and development—especially in coordination with the Charles B. Rangel Center for Infrastructure Workforce Training Center at City College, and more. Congressman Espaillat reiterated that the completion of Phase I created 16,000 jobs, generated $842 million in wages, and produced $2.87 billion in economic activity during its construction and he looks forward to “beating” those numbers during the construction of Phase II. Finally, the FTA and MTA disclosed that they are in constant engagement in an effort to guarantee that the Second Avenue Subway Phase II extension enters the third and final construction stage of the project.
Rep. Espaillat was joined by Majority Leader Chuck Schumer; Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney (NY-12); former Congressman Charles B. Rangel; New York City Councilmember and Deputy Speaker Diana Ayala; Jamie Torres-Springer, President of MTA Construction & Development; Stephen Goodman, Regional Administrator, Region II, Federal Transit Administration; Nivardo Lopez, Deputy Secretary for Transportation to New York State Governor Kathy Hochul; as well as representatives from Uptown Grand Central, the Association of Commuter Rail Employees Union, Community Board 11, AK Houses and 1774 Houses Tenant Associations, The General Contractors Association of New York, Building Congress, WE ACT, and developers joined either in person or virtually.
Representative Espaillat is the first Dominican American to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives and his congressional district includes Harlem, East Harlem, West Harlem, Hamilton Heights, Washington Heights, Inwood, Marble Hill and the north-west Bronx. First elected to Congress in 2016, Representative Espaillat is serving his third term in Congress. Representative Espaillat currently serves as a member of the influential U.S. House Committee on Appropriations responsible for funding the federal government’s vital activities. He is also a member of the House Committee on Education and Labor and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC), where he serves in a leadership role as the Second Vice Chair and is a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, where he serves as Deputy Whip. Representative Espaillat also currently serves as a Senior Whip of the Democratic Caucus. To find out more about Rep. Espaillat, visit online at https://espaillat.house.gov/. |
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