Center for an Urban Future

It will be hard to top this year’s Center for an Urban Future (CUF) gala, which was held this Wednesday evening. The room was electric, overflowing with innovative leaders who are making a difference for NYC. There was a lot of love in the room for our three outstanding honorees: Julie Samuels, Susan Fine, and Sherry Wang, each of whom has done so much for city. And we couldn’t have had better speakers to present the awards, with Maria Torres-Springer, Janno Lieber, and Margaret Anadu doing the honors. It was also an incredible night for CUF, celebrating a year in which our research helped spark several new policies and investments for creating a stronger and more inclusive economy in New York. Congrats to Julie, Susan, and Sherry. A huge thank you to them, and to our amazing guest speakers, our sponsors, and everyone who supports CUF!

The Center for an Urban Future's 2024 gala is tonight! It's not too late to grab a ticket, purchase an ad, or make a donation: https://lnkd.in/eneWr3uA We're looking forward to celebrating our three amazing honorees, Julie Samuels, Sherry Wang, and Susan Fine, and another high-impact year at CUF. Over the past 12 months, our research has helped raise the visibility of several opportunities to strengthen our city, from the potential to generate new revenue streams for New York's parks to the need to improve the transfer process for students who enroll at CUNY community colleges and struggle to move on to four-year colleges.

We are incredibly excited to celebrate Sherry Wang at the Center for an Urban Future's 2024 gala, which is now less than two weeks away. Sherry is one of New York’s most innovative leaders in the field of housing and community development. As Managing Director of the Urban Investment Group at Goldman Sachs, Sherry has played a vital role in spurring the development of thousands of new units of affordable and environmentally sustainable homes, and strengthening communities across our city. She has also made crucial investments to establish the NYC Small Business Opportunity Fund and the NYC Minority Business Enterprise Guaranty Facility, which have been game-changers for entrepreneurs of color. Please join us on Wednesday, October 23rd from 6:00pm to 9:30pm at Tribeca Rooftop. Check out the options for sponsorships, ticket packages, and other ways you can help us celebrate Sherry and support the work of the Center for an Urban Future: https://lnkd.in/eneWr3uA

We are so thrilled to honor Julie Samuels next week at the Center for an Urban Future's annual gala. Julie is the dynamic leader of Tech:NYC and has done so much to strengthen our city. She has helped New York’s tech sector reach new heights, sparked many of the successful initiatives now underway to diversify the city’s tech workforce, was an architect of the state's widely heralded Empire AI initiative, and has been a driving force behind efforts to increase the tech sector’s involvement in New York’s civic life. We invite you to join us in celebrating Julie at our gala next Wednesday (October 23rd) from 6:00pm to 9:30pm at Tribeca Rooftop. Check out the options for sponsorships, ticket packages, and other ways you can help us honor Julie and support the work of the Center for an Urban Future: https://lnkd.in/eneWr3uA

We are so thrilled to honor Julie Samuels next week at the Center for an Urban Future's annual gala. Julie is the dynamic leader of Tech:NYC and has done so much to strengthen our city. She has helped New York’s tech sector reach new heights, sparked many of the successful initiatives now underway to diversify the city’s tech workforce, was an architect of the state's widely heralded Empire AI initiative, and has been a driving force behind efforts to increase the tech sector’s involvement in New York’s civic life. We invite you to join us in celebrating Julie at our gala next Wednesday (October 23rd) from 6:00pm to 9:30pm at Tribeca Rooftop. Check out the options for sponsorships, ticket packages, and other ways you can help us honor Julie and support the work of the Center for an Urban Future: https://lnkd.in/eneWr3uA

We are incredibly excited to celebrate Sherry Wang at the Center for an Urban Future's 2024 gala, which is now less than two weeks away. Sherry is one of New York’s most innovative leaders in the field of housing and community development. As Managing Director of the Urban Investment Group at Goldman Sachs, Sherry has played a vital role in spurring the development of thousands of new units of affordable and environmentally sustainable homes, and strengthening communities across our city. She has also made crucial investments to establish the NYC Small Business Opportunity Fund and the NYC Minority Business Enterprise Guaranty Facility, which have been game-changers for entrepreneurs of color. Please join us on Wednesday, October 23rd from 6:00pm to 9:30pm at Tribeca Rooftop. Check out the options for sponsorships, ticket packages, and other ways you can help us celebrate Sherry and support the work of the Center for an Urban Future: https://lnkd.in/eneWr3uA

We are now just 15 days until the Center for an Urban Future’s 2024 gala. One of the outstanding New Yorkers we are honoring this year is Susan Fine. Susan is a quintessential urban innovator, and one of New York’s most creative and forward-looking real estate leaders. She has worked on some of the most iconic developments in the city, leading the renovation and retail transformation of Grand Central Terminal and contributing to transformative projects including Rockefeller Center, Battery Park City, and a major affordable housing project in Queens. Susan also conceived and implemented a variety of public-private partnerships, including the Turnstyle underground market, a first-of-its-kind collaboration with the MTA inside the Columbus Circle subway. We invite you to join us on Wednesday, October 23rd from 6:00pm to 9:30pm at Tribeca Rooftop. Check out the options for sponsorships, ticket packages, and other ways you can help us honor Susan and support the work of the Center for an Urban Future: https://lnkd.in/eneWr3uA

Last week, the Center for an Urban Future was thrilled to host a special reception gathering nonprofit, government, and private sector leaders about the future of AI in New York City. Our executive director Jonathan Bowles sat down for a fireside chat with Elias Roman, senior director of product management at Google Labs, for his input on where AI is heading in New York. Few things have more potential to transform life in New York in the coming years than the rapid advances occurring in artificial intelligence. AI represents one of the city’s best opportunities for economic growth, and it has the potential to vastly improve services provided by city government and help address some of New York’s biggest challenges—from housing affordability to climate change. But AI also presents significant risks, including the potential for job displacement. The event "The Future of AI in NYC" was an interactive conversation with the audience, starting with the creation of a song using AI, and ending with a spirited Q&A. Elias Roman shared his insights and ideas about where AI-powered innovation is headed and how New York can help maximize the opportunities while mitigating the risks. This event was made possible through generous support from the Fisher Brothers Foundation and Winston Fisher.

"At a time when New Yorkers are using parks and open spaces more than ever—and these places have become even more vital to the city’s future livability—the city can’t keep up with their growing needs, especially as its Parks Department absorbs a $20.1 million budget cut. Adequately maintaining the city’s public parks and open spaces will require sustained public investment." Along with calling for more investment in civic infrastructure, this commentary by John Surico elevates why and how New York City should make it easier for nonprofit and community groups to help care for parks and public spaces. And offers recommendations for cities everywhere to consider in moving from a "culture of no" to a "city of yes" when it comes to public-private partnerships for public space stewardship: ✅ Direct the city’s lawyers to simplify agreements around parks and open space care.  ✅ Develop a public space management handbook that includes parks and open spaces. ✅ Reduce the overhead costs for groups that support the needs of public parks and open spaces—starting with insurance. ✅ Ensure that the city’s proposed Public Space Academy includes parks groups. https://lnkd.in/e2faEn9h Center for an Urban Future #parks #publicspace #stewardship #care #maintenance #civicinfrastructure

Parks are some of the most vibrant open spaces in New York City, and at a time when New Yorkers are using them more than ever, the city can’t keep up with their growing needs, especially as its Parks Department absorbs a $20.1 million budget cut. Our new commentary highlights why and how the city should make it easier for nonprofit organizations and community groups to help care for smaller parks and open spaces. By way of a smart strategy prioritizing enhanced maintenance, site-specific programming, and dedicated new sources of revenue, the city can reinvest in its public spaces. This would be a win-win for the city and its residents, but the city’s legal reviews make securing the agreements necessary between community-organizations and city agencies an arduous slog, costing time and money. By overhauling these bureaucratic processes, the city would not lose a penny, and would unlock significant opportunities to improve conditions in smaller, under-resourced parks. A livable city is home to a vibrant, well-maintained public realm, and while the city has made recent strides in creating public-private partnerships around public space, there is much more to be done in order to unlock the full potential of New York’s parks. Check out our full commentary here: https://lnkd.in/e2faEn9h