By Mary Alice Miller
The Boys & Girls High School auditorium was nearly full to witness Borough President Antonio Reynoso’s State of the Borough Address. Brooklyn’s diversity was present: young and not-so-young, professionals and community activists, union members and business owners, homeowners and renters, and state and city elected officials. Reynoso gave a special shout-out to community board members.

Suleila Clarke sang the National Anthem. The Nelson Mandela Drum Line and Borough Hall’s own DJ Specialist entertained the enthusiastic crowd. Reynoso greeted the crowd with his wife, Iliana Gomez, and adorable young sons, Alejandro and Adres.

Reynoso spoke of his parents, who immigrated from the Dominican Republic. “I was just a Brown boy from the Southside of Williamsburg. I grew up in Section 8 housing, eating family dinners paid for by food stamps and playing basketball with my friends over at Rodney Park. My family was poor, but we were happy,” said Reynoso. He said he “succeeded because this city bet on him, his parents, and his future.”

Reynoso attributed his success to hard work, luck, and the government: Section 8 housing, food stamps, school scholarships, welfare, and WIC. “It’s all the resources New York and this country used to take a bet on me,” said Reynoso. “Because what it really comes down to is opportunity. The thing about a borough, a neighborhood, a block – it’s not just a geographic location. It’s a gateway to a suite of resources – to schools, to jobs, to trains, buses, healthcare facilities, parks, libraries – all of the things that shape our daily lives and our future possibilities.”

In his first year, Reynoso invested the entirety of his capital funding – a total of 45 million dollars – into Brooklyn’s three public hospitals for maternal healthcare improvements. Reynoso’s office established a new partnership with Brooklyn College to establish New York State’s first credit-bearing Advanced Certificate program in Perinatal Mental Health. Brooklyn College is piloting two of the program’s courses this spring and will host their first full cohort this fall.

“Last year, we invested over 15 million dollars into our K-12 public schools and more than 5 million dollars into CUNY,” Reynoso said. “We even teamed up with Council Member Chi Osse to bring computer lab upgrades to every single K-12 public school in Superintendent Mims’ district in Bed-Stuy. All 19 schools received the money they needed to get new computers, tablets, laptops, and more. And while we can’t say much right now – District 16 won’t be the only school district in Brooklyn seeing this type of targeted tech investment.”
Reynoso spoke of the history and potential of New York Harbor as the world’s largest, best-known port. He applauded the state/city investment of tens of millions of dollars to strengthen Brooklyn Marine Terminal and “make it the 21st-century working waterfront of our dreams.”

“They’re starting to talk housing when they should be talking about one thing and one thing only: Red Hook is Brooklyn’s last working waterfront,” said Reynoso. “And this infrastructure, it’s a public good – generations of New Yorkers relied on our manufacturing districts for well-paying, high-quality jobs that provide a path to the middle class. We can’t afford to lose it – not to housing. Because there is no scarcity of opportunities to build housing across the borough, but there is a scarcity of manufacturing.”

Reynoso thanked nonprofits that helped when the City reopened NYCHA’s Section 8 waitlist to help neighbors with their applications; who teamed up for a SCRIE and DRIE enrollment and renewal support clinic, helping older adults and people with disabilities freeze their rents; and helped hundreds of Brooklynites learn about deed theft, access free one-on-one consultations, and receive support with living wills, power of attorney, and healthcare proxies.

This year, the Brooklyn Borough President’s office received the most community board applications since he took office. A year ago, Reynoso testified before the City Charter Revision Commission and asked for the city to create a Community Board Central Office, an independent agency tasked with supporting our 59 community boards. The Community Board Central Office would be charged with providing boards with land use and planning expertise, communications and technology support, space needs, HR assistance, and even help with FOILs.

“Community boards have an important job to do – and we need to make sure they have what they need to do it and do it right,” Reynoso said.
Reynoso announced his Nonprofit Acquisition Fund two years ago, committing to prioritizing capital funding to nonprofits looking to buy permanent homes. This year, two nonprofits successfully received funding to do just that: Mixteca – an immigrant women-led nonprofit in Sunset Park – and the Arab American Association of New York – a nonprofit in Bay Ridge that provides all kinds of support to our Arab and immigrant neighbors.

“We are Brooklyn. We got us – even if no one else does,” said Reynoso as he closed the event. “Don’t forget to spread love, it’s the Brooklyn way.”