The 5BORO Institute

The People’s Pulse New Yorkers Speak Out on Affordability, Mental Health, Public Safety and More As New York City heads into a pivotal election year, The People’s Pulse, a new issues-based survey, finds that New Yorkers are deeply concerned about and directly affected by the city’s affordability and public safety, while also believing the city faces a mental health crisis.

Issues-focused survey from the 5BORO Institute and four leading NYC foundations finds affordability, mental health and public safety are top concerns; nearly two-thirds of New Yorkers say meeting basic needs is increasingly difficult and nearly half of respondents say they have considered leaving New York City, citing affordability as the number one reason.

Summary At the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, increased attention turned to government staffing challenges, both in NYC and nationally, as critical vacancies led to declining service delivery and ballooning overtime costs. Nationwide trends like the “Great Resignation,” local policy changes like the return to office for City employees, and delays in delivery of key services, such as processing food stamp applications, led to questions about whether the City had the staff it needs.

Good morning. My name is Grace Rauh and I am the executive director of the 5BORO Institute, a public policy think tank co-founded by Dick Ravitch. As we grapple with the consequences of Governor Hochul’s decision to indefinitely pause congestion pricing, I keep thinking about Mr. Ravitch, the former MTA chairman, and what he would have done to meet this moment.

IMMEDIATE RELEASE Press contact: info@fiveboro.nyc The 5BORO Institute, an independent think tank dedicated to advancing equitable and creative solutions to New York City’s most challenging problems, announced today that entrepreneur, tech reformer and former Kansas State House Representative Raj Goyle will join the 5BORO board as Co-Chair. Raj Goyle’s career has spanned government service, philanthropy, start-up technology and civic engagement. Goyle grew up in Wichita, Kansas.

A policy roadmap to address NYC child care needs now. Download the Summary Download the FULL Report Executive Summary In 2022 alone, the city is estimated to have lost $23 billion dollars in economic activity as a result of parents leaving the workforce or downshifting careers to meet child care needs. This is hardly a New York City specific problem, but the high cost of living and expensive real estate make the challenges especially acute here. Why is child care so troubled as a sector?

Advancing a New Housing Model for Office-to-Residential Conversions in NYC Download the Full Report This report was made possible through the generous support of TD Bank. Executive Summary Nowhere is the high cost of living more apparent than in the city’s housing market, where an affordability crisis has resulted in record high rents, record low vacancies, and a severe lack of supply — pricing many New Yorkers out of the city.

Last week, New York City was engulfed in smoke from the over 400 wildfires raging across Canada. A low-pressure weather system drove the smoke south, causing air pollution levels to spike in New York City and across the east coast. As a result, New York City experienced the worst air quality of any city in the world on Wednesday. Some areas in the city recorded an Air Quality Index (AQI) as high as 484, well above the 100 AQI threshold designating unhealthy conditions.

Executive Summary Municipal employees have resigned by the thousands, resulting in the City workforce losing nearly 20,000 net employees over the last two years. This staffing shortage has already had wide-reaching impacts, impeding the delivery and quality of services to New Yorkers and delaying the fulfillment of legal mandates and key commitments. This harms New Yorkers all over the city, with outsize effects on our most vulnerable residents.

Our distinguished board in formation represents NYC leaders across all industries. We are honored to have the following individuals serving on our board.