Jamaica’s Three Downtown Business Improvement Districts are joining forces!
To streamline services, reduce unnecessary administrative overhead, maximize efficiency and better serve our business community, Jamaica’s three downtown BIDs are joining.
How? In June of 2022, City Legislation was passed to create one singular business improvement district for downtown Jamaica. One nonprofit organization will administer services within the newly-united district. This organization will have a Board of Directors comprised of local property owners, businesses, residents, and City-appointed officials as dictated by local NYC Business Improvement District (BID) Law.
When? Right now! The legislation will go into effect on 1/1/23 and the prior BID boundaries will dissolve. NYC’s Department of Small Business Services (also known as SBS - the City agency that creates and oversees the City’s BID network) will be assembling a Board of Directors. SBS will assist this new Board through the process of developing bylaws, a new budget, and program priorities to benefit the business district.
For more information on this process and SBS’s timeline, please contact the agency directly here.
Who is Providing Supplemental Sanitation? Sutphin Boulevard BID now holds the current City contract with SBS to provide supplemental Sanitation Services on Jamaica Avenue from 169th Street to Sutphin Boulevard and on Union Hall from Jamaica Avenue to Archer. Contact Sutphin Boulevard BID for more information: www.sutphinblvdbid.org.
How Can I Stay Connected/Learn More? More information will be shared as it becomes available.
Jamaica Avenue Falls in the Yellow Cluster: What this Means for Business
If you haven't heard, precautionary measures have been put into place to stop the spread of COVID in hot spots throughout NYC per Gov. Cuomo and Mayor de Blasio. Jamaica has been designated as a Yellow Zone — Precautionary Zone which means the following:
Businesses: All businesses may remain open but must follow COVID-19 requirements for their sector.
Food Service Establishments: Indoor and outdoor dining is allowed. There is a four-person maximum per table.
Schools: All New York City public schools and nonpublic schools may remain open.
Houses of Worship: Houses of worship may remain open at 50% maximum capacity.
Gatherings: Non-essential gatherings must be limited to 25 people maximum for both indoor and outdoor settings. Any individual who encourages, promotes or organizes mass gatherings may be fined up to $15,000/day
We encourage all businesses to read up on the zones and the different guidelines you will have to follow if we are elevated to orange or red here. NOW is the time to prepare. Sign up for our BID’s emergency cell phone alert system JBID-Alerts! so that we can reach out to you if our zone or regulations change (see next article for more info).
Next, enter NYC’s Department of Small Business Service’s business hotline into your phone—you can call them for assistance regarding closing, reopening and compliance guidelines: 888-SBS-4NYC (888-727-4692). You should also visit NYC’s Department of Small Business Service’s webpage for a variety of resources and news regarding coronavirus business support (PPE Marketplace, info on reopening rules and regulations, etc., list of financing resources, and so on.)
Queens Youth Justice Center (QYJC) Partnership We are excited to announce a new partnership with one of our neighborhood nonprofits, the Queens Youth Justice Center to remove litter from our downtown. Every Saturday, starting this month, youth enrolled in workforce development programming at the Justice Center will help sweep litter from north-south cross streets bisecting Jamaica Avenue between Sutphin Boulevard and 169th Street. The youth will also remove litter from a portion of Archer Avenue. Litter collected by the youth will then be transported out of the district by our own Jamaica Center BID Clean Team (which cleans Jamaica Avenue from Sutphin Boulevard to 169th Street seven days a week.) The partnership is expected to provide an additional 2,430 hours of community benefit services to Jamaica’s downtown over the next three years. You can read our jointpress release with QYJC here.
FREE!! Instagram Workshop for Small Business Owners
Come learn how to set up your business Instagram page, take appealing pictures, attract customers, use hashtags effectively, and more!
Bonus: Learn how to list your business on Google Maps!!
When: Wednesday, June 26, 2019 from 9AM - 11AM Where: Queens Library Central, 89-11 Merrick Blvd Limited spots so RSVP here: Questions? Email: [email protected]
Storefront Improvement Program
Storefronts are important to New York City neighborhoods. They house local businesses, are a visible part of the street, and define the character and feel of a community. Well-designed storefronts enhance and give identity to local businesses and encourage potential customers to walk in the door.
The Jamaica Center BID is helping the NYC Department of Small Business Services (SBS) to notify property and business owners that storefront improvement funding is available in FY2020 in Jamaica.
Administered by SBS, the Downtown Jamaica Storefront Improvement Program provides funding to local property owners and businesses to complete exterior building renovation projects. The program reimburses up to 75% of the cost of eligible improvements with a maximum grant of $20,000 per property. Learn more here.
Jamaica Center BID Names Jennifer Furioli as New Executive Director
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 29, 2019
Jamaica, Queens, New York City
Jamaica Center Business Improvement District Names Jennifer Furioli as New Executive Director
The Jamaica Center Business Improvement District, the BID covering the commercial area along Jamaica Avenue from Sutphin Boulevard to 169th Street and Union Hall Street, has appointed Jennifer Furioli as its new Executive Director.
Ms. Furioli most recently served with the New Rochelle Downtown Business Improvement District (NRBID), where she was responsible for overseeing the New Rochelle Grand Market, NRBID events and external NRBID communications. Partnering closely with NRBID’s Executive Director, Jennifer also worked on placemaking initiatives and providing additional advisory to the IDEA New Rochelle (Arts and Technology district) initiative. In 2018, she was a key member of the City of New Rochelle’s Mayors Challenge team: an interdisciplinary group of New Rochelle City executives, New Rochelle BID employees and technologists from IDEA New Rochelle competing against other cities nationwide to develop innovative solutions to city problems. New Rochelle’s team was one of nine cities to win the Mayors Challenge, resulting in a $1 million dollar implementation grant for the City of New Rochelle to utilize augmented and virtual reality as a tool to increase citizen engagement in the city planning process.
Prior to joining NRBID in 2016, Jennifer worked for one of New York City’s flagship BIDs, the Lincoln Square Business Improvement District in Manhattan. While at Lincoln Square, worked on a city-wide committee to make the UWS and Lincoln Square more age friendly District, raised sponsorship dollars for Winter’s Eve at Lincoln Square, authored external BID communications, including, but not limited to the organization’s website, dining guide, annual reports, required City impact reports, and weekly constituent communications, and helped advocate for a newly-designed Dante Park. Her past experience also includes time at New York City’s Department of Small Business Services, which oversees the City’s network of 76 Business Improvement Districts.
“Our board is grateful to outgoing Executive Director Whitney Barrat for her leadership and service, and equally pleased to welcome Jennifer Furioli to the Jamaica Center BID,” said Board Chair Michael Hirschhorn. “More than ever, our board is committed to fostering strong community ties and partnerships with our retailers, community-based organizations, governmental entities and anchor institutions, and building a culture of organizational excellence. Jennifer is equally committed to our vision and we look forward to working with her and our many local partners to support this thriving retail and cultural hub in Jamaica.”
Ms. Furioli holds a B.A. in English Literature and Spanish Language from the University of Northern Colorado and a master’s degree in Public Administration from New York University’s Wagner School of Public Service.
“There were so many things that attracted me to this position,” stated Jennifer: I’m excited by the new development and retail that’s bringing a fresh sense of excitement to Jamaica, and also enthusiastic about the committed long-term retailers that have called Jamaica Center BID home for many years. What ultimately reeled me in was the community: the network of committed businesses, property owners, economic development, cultural, educational, governmental, and religious institutions that have invested in Jamaica for decades. My staff and I are committed to maintaining and growing those partnerships for the benefit of the Jamaica Center BID and overall Downtown Jamaica neighborhood and I can’t thank the BID’s Board of Directors enough for providing me the opportunity to serve this organization and community in the coming years.”
The Jamaica BID’s Public Art Opportunity
The Jamaica Center Improvement Association was awarded an Active Arts Public Art Grant, and is inviting artists to submit their qualifications for consideration. The selected artist will engage with the community to produce a one-year long temporary, large-scale ground mural installation for the newly-activated Parsons Blvd. Public Space, (btw. Jamaica Avenue & Archer Avenue) in Downtown Jamaica.
Submissions of qualifications are due to the Jamaica Center BID by July 11th, 2018. Please send submissions to [email protected].
On Friday, June 15th the Jamaica BID held the 7th Annual Jamaica Just My Style Fashion Event, at Jamaica Performing Arts Center. The event bringing together influence's for an evening of fashion, wine tasting and entertainment.
The BID thanks all of our Sponsors, Jamaica Avenue Retailers, Vendors, and the Community for making the 7th Annual JJMS Fashion Event, another success....See you next year!
The Jamaica BID's Public Art Opportunity
The Jamaica Center Improvement Association was awarded an Active Arts Public Art Grant, and is inviting artists to submit their qualifications for consideration. The selected artist will engage with the community to produce a one-year long temporary, large-scale ground mural installation for the newly-activated Parsons Blvd. Public Space, (btw. Jamaica Avenue & Archer Avenue) in Downtown Jamaica.
Submissions of qualifications are due to the Jamaica Center BID by July 11th, 2018. Please send submissions to [email protected].
As a part of the project, we are inviting you to be a part of a survey about living, working, and going to school in Jamaica Queens. Survey insights, along with stakeholder meetings, statistical reports, and workshops are key to developing a compelling brand and positioning strategy for Jamaica Queens.
Attached you will find the flyer for the survey which should take no more than 10-15 minutes to complete. The survey can found online at: JamaicaQueens. All information will be confidential and all identifying information is removed before we analyze the results.
The council would appreciate your participation and assistance to promote the survey. The survey will close, July 11th.
We look forward to using this information to make Jamaica, Queens an even better place to live, work and play in the future.
Artsite: Public Art Commissioning In Jamaica & Jackson Heights
The Jamaica BID is bringing Public Art to Downtown Jamaica, through the Artsite Commissioning Program.
The Jamaica BID ArtSite is looking to activate spaces throughout both Jamaica and Jackson Heights, Queens through a series of temporary public art installations. ArtSite will award 8 artists with a commission of $4,500 each to create temporary public art in these communities. Artwork and mediums can range anywhere from murals to performances that illuminate Jamaica and Jackson Heights as vibrant cultural hubs and illustrate how art can transform a community.
A key goal of ArtSite is to empower local artists to engage on a local level, understanding that they can be a catalyst for change. QCA, along with its partners, the Jamaica Center BID in Jamaica and the 82nd Street BID in Jackson Heights, seek to create a self-sustaining supportive art culture in these communities.
ArtSite aims to establish an ecosystem of local artists and art producers to create new work that reflects the diverse cultural stories particular to the communities of Jamaica and Jackson Heights. By allowing the artists to partner and create a dialogue with the local business community, we can reinvent the external perceptions of these two communities as sources of inspiration and epicenters of the new America canon of dance, theatre, music, art, etc.
Shop in the #JamaicaBID district this weekend for Fab Stealz and Dealz during Sidewalk Sale Days – Friday, June 1st thru Sunday, June 3rd.
The Jamaica BID Sidewalk Sale Days Program is a weekend of deals and fabulous finds on Jamaica Avenue! These are the only dates and times businesses are permitted to display merchandise outside, including hanging items from awnings and/or canopies.
Merchandise, racks, tables and /or hangers cannot extend more than three [3] feet from the building. Sidewalk Sale Days are only permitted along Jamaica Avenue from Sutphin Blvd. to 169th St. including Union Hall Street.
Businesses displaying merchandise outside of Non-Sidewalk Sale Days will be ticketed, or possible confiscation of merchandise.
