Your Feedback Needed: MCC Veterans in Business Survey

MCC is getting involved with NYC area returning Veterans and helping them explore business opportunities.

Please take this quick poll and help us gather information.Your input is vital to help us find new ways to help Veterans re-integrate into the NYC business community. It only takes a few minutes to complete the survey.

Please note the most current news regarding the new tax credits for hiring veterans:

The VOW to Hire Heroes Act of 2011 made changes to the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC). The Act added two new categories to the existing qualified veteran targeted group and made the WOTC available to certain tax-exempt employers as a credit against the employer's share of social security tax. The Act allows employers to claim the WOTC for veterans certified as qualified veterans and who begin work before January 1st, 2013. In addition, qualified tax-exempt organizations, organizations described in IRC Section 501(c) and exempt from taxation under IRC Section 501(a), may claim the credit for qualified veterans who begin work on or after Nov. 22nd, 2011, and before January 1st, 2013. For more information, including how to claim the credit, click here.

Thank you again for your participation. We appreciate your time and effort.

To access the survey, click here.

A Billion + Change

The Manhattan Chamber of Commerce along with the BCLC is delighted to be a supporting resource to the pledge companies of A Billion + Change. A Billion + Change is a national campaign to mobilize billions of dollars of pro bono and skills-based volunteer services from corporate America by 2013. Our goal is to have 500 companies from around the country take the Billion + Change pledge, using their unique skills and talents to serve the needs of nonprofits at home and around the world. Already more than 60 companies have taken the pledge, committing over $1 billion in pro bono services.

We wanted to give you an opportunity to join this growing pro bono movement and this campaign. As a pledge company, you would commit to create or expand a skills-based volunteer program by 2013. On February 27, we will celebrate the progress of A Billion + Change at an event at Morgan Stanley’s headquarters in New York City. We want you to be there as a new pledge partner.

In conjunction with International Corporate Philanthropy Day and CECP, this celebration will be a networking and a learning opportunity for pledge companies to meet industry, civic and nonprofit leaders and to learn about innovative, best-practice corporate volunteer programs. We will spotlight international corporate volunteer programs and how they are making a difference in communities around the world to solve pressing social, environmental and economic challenges. The morning celebration will be followed by an afternoon learning workshop, which will take an in-depth look at topics such as best-practice corporate volunteer models in disaster response and how to measure the impact of skills-based volunteer programs.

If you take the pledge by February 21st, we will recognize your company at this event, and in our media and event materials. Visit our website to learn more about how businesses are making a difference through pro bono work, and how you can take the pledge: http://www.abillionpluschange.org/. I’ve also enclosed a one-page fact sheet, which includes the pledge, the invitation to our Feb. 27 celebration and a list of pledge companies, for your reference.

If you are interested in taking the pledge and attending the event, please contact Jennifer Lawson  at  jlawson@pointsoflight.org or at 202-729-8189.  We look forward to working with you on this great opportunity.

Jennifer (Denney) Lawson

Executive Director

A Billion + Change

http://www.abillionpluschange.org/

(o) 202-729-8189

(c) 703-599-9873

East River Greenway Initiative

MCC is a supporter of the East River Greenway. If you don't know about this initiative please look at their website and see their plans as how this will develop. It will help create new public space and help green our city! Here is some text from their website:

A completed world-class East River Greenway will provide East Side residents with waterfront access, open-space, parkland and sustainable transportation options.
The East River Greenway Initiative supports:

• Adaptively re-using the FDR ODR caissons to build a waterfront esplanade and greenway from East 52nd Street to East 62nd Street.

• Building a waterfront esplanade along the length of the United Nations campus as mitigation for the alienation of Robert Moses Park.

• Realizing the Municipal Art Society’s vision for the former Con Ed pier and Solow Development site.

The East River Greenway Initiative supports the adaptation of the Greenway Planning Primer when new segments of the East River Greenway are eventually planned and developed. Originally developed for the Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway Initiative by the Regional Plan Association, the primer is designed to guide the planning of any urban waterfront greenway.

outdated plans from the 2004 MWG Master Plan

Great for You: Walmart's Healthy Eating Initiative

Here is news from MCC Partner Walmart about their new healthy eating initiative:

Dear Friend:
Last year, Walmart stood with First Lady Michelle Obama and showed how a company, working with its suppliers, the public sector and non-governmental organizations, can truly make a difference in people’s lives. Our healthier food initiative was designed to make food healthier and healthier food more affordable and the program was implemented in each of our 96 New York State Walmart stores.
Now, after pledging to develop a front-of-pack label that would give our customers an easier way to identify healthier food, we unveiled the “Great For You” icon at an event yesterday in Washington, D.C. The icon will initially appear on select Walmart Great Value and Market side items, as well as on fresh and packaged fruits and vegetables at our stores nationwide this spring.
According to the First Lady, yesterday’s announcement is “…yet another step toward ensuring that our kids are given the chance to grow up healthy.”
You can read more about the “Great for You” program here.
You’ll recall that our healthy food initiative includes several goals and over the past year, we have been working with private label brand and national brand suppliers to make progress. To date, some of the highlights include:

·         Reformulating thousands of everyday packaged food items by 2015: we have been working to reduce sodium and added sugars in 165 food items; some examples include:

ü  15 percent sodium reduction in Great Value ketchup;

ü  An average of 15 percent sodium reduction in Great Value canned vegetables;

ü  More than 70 percent sodium reduction in fresh steaks, roasts and other muscle cuts of beef;

·         Making healthier food choices more affordable: we surpassed this goal by helping customers save $1.1 billion in their cost of fruits and vegetables. Additionally, we’re reducing or eliminating the price premium on more than 350 better-for-you items, such as low-sodium lunch meat, reduced-fat peanut butter and fat-free salad dressing.

·         Providing solutions to address food deserts by building stores: last July, we said we’d open between 275 and 300 stores in areas serving food deserts by 2016. Since then, we’ve already opened 23 stores in these areas and anticipate opening between 50 to 60 more in 2012.

·         Increasing support for nutrition education programs: in the past year alone, we have provided more than $13 million in grants to nutrition education programs. Local organizations that have received funding include God’s Love We Deliver, New York City Department of Education Office of SchoolFood and NYC Department of Parks and Recreation “CookShop” program which teaches children how to prepare healthy meals. National examples include Share Our Strength, the National 4-H Council and Action for Healthy Kids, to name a few.

We believe we have a responsibility to respond to what our customers tell us they want and need. In the coming months and years, we will continue to work with our national and New York State partners and apply what we learn in our stores, in ways that make a real difference for our customers and their families.
If you have any questions about our healthy food initiative or yesterday’s announcement, please don’t hesitate to reply to this message.

WalmartNYC

I'm An MCC Member Because Contest: Win 2 tickets on Southwest Airlines!

MCC Members! Please finish this sentence: "I'm an MCC member because..." We want to hear your stories!

Why are you an MCC member? It may be for networking and connections, MCC advocacy, MCC community support or our educational programs. We know MCC members have started businesses, formed partnerships, found new clients and found support and success as individuals and for their businesses. We want to hear about how we have helped you! The link below has responses from our last "I'm an MCC Member because contest" and the winning entry!

The best story will win a prize of two roundtrip tickets to anywhere in the US on Southwest Airlines!!! Deadline for submissions: February 3, 2012

http://www.manhattancc.org/common/News/articles/detail.cfm?QID=8400&classification=news&topicID=0&clientID=11001&subnav=news

Post responses here or go to the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce Linkedin Group to post.

City Council Launches Restaurant Inspection Survey

Contact: 212-788-7116

Release# 008-2012

Council seeks feedback from restaurant owners on City’s food safety inspection process

and new letter grading system.

New York, NY – As part of the City Council’s oversight of the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) and in response to mounting concerns raised by city restaurateurs regarding the restaurant inspection process, Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn and Health Committee Chair Maria del Carmen Arroyo today announced the launch of a comprehensive restaurant inspection survey. City restaurant owners and operators are urged to participate in this Council effort to gather information on food safety inspections, with particular emphasis on the recently implemented letter grading system and its impact on city restaurants. Starting today, the survey is available online at www.surveymonkey.com/restaurantinspection and accessible through the Council’s website at http://www.council.nyc.gov/. The questionnaire will also be available in six different languages. The survey results will provide a foundation for an oversight hearing in late February, where the Council intends to further explore the inspection process and possible areas for reform.

 “I am troubled by the wave of complaints the Council has received from restaurants – even the ones that get A’s – about the fairness and inconsistency of the food safety inspection process,” said Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn. “Any initiative – especially 18 months after establishment – calls for scrutiny. With this survey, we hope to learn more about what is and isn’t working, including whether the grading system has been implemented fairly. The participation of restaurateurs in this analysis is critical, and we look forward to hearing their input.”  

Divided into two sections, the first part of the survey seeks background information about the food establishment and solicits views on DOHMH’s inspection process and the letter grading system. The second section requests recent historical data about experiences with inspections and adjudication in administrative tribunals. Specifically, this section seeks details about violations issued during each inspection from 2008 to the present, along with costs accrued in connection with the payment of fines, consultants and improvements. Survey participants are encouraged to answer as many questions as possible.

“As part of our oversight responsibility, we at the Council must ensure that while our Department of Health works to protect the safety and wellbeing of New Yorkers when consuming food prepared in a restaurant, that it does so fairly,” said Health Committee Chair Maria del Carmen Arroyo. “We have received many complaints from restaurateurs to the contrary, and we hope this survey can provide us with data that can help us correct inefficiencies or inconsistencies in the Department’s inspection process.”  

“While the response from the public toward the restaurant grading system has been overwhelmingly positive, we need to be sure that restaurant owners are being treated fairly,” said Governmental Operations Committee Chair Gale A. Brewer. “Government needs to work with all concerned parties to create a clear, consistent grading system that serves the public good without harming the financial viability of the city’s restaurants or unfairly stigmatizing them.”

“I fully support educating the general public about the sanitary conditions of our city's restaurants, but we must not forget that the impact of an inappropriately earned low grade can result in community stigma and the potential loss of local jobs,” said Oversight and Investigations Chair Jumaane Williams. “We must balance both of these concerns by ensuring that the DOMHH's evaluation process is fair and consistent across the board. Any effort to achieve this result, including this survey, earns my high marks. I look forward to assisting with this effort at the upcoming oversight hearing.”

In July 2010, DOHMH began requiring food service establishments to post letter grades corresponding with scores reflecting sanitary inspections during which restaurants receive points for violations. An inspection score of 0-13 violation points is an A, 14-27 violation points is a B, and 28 or more violation points is a C. Grade cards are meant to be clearly visible to the public.

The Time is Now For Energy Efficiency & High Performance Buildings

This article is submitted by by David Pospisil, Program Manager of Con Edison’s Commercial & Industrial Energy Efficiency Program, New York, N.Y.

There is no time like the present to implement energy efficiency measures in your building. Energy prices are likely to continue to be volatile, and new environmental regulations will increase the pressure on businesses to take action. Fortunately, the incentives today are geared toward taking the guesswork out of reducing energy and creating an action plan.

Implementing energy efficiency measures can save a company millions of dollars in energy usage and drastically reduce emissions as well as create a corporate culture that fosters continuous improvement in the areas of sustainability and energy efficiency. If your company doesn’t already have one, now is the right time to set in place an energy efficiency policy.

If you’ve already gone through the Greater Greener Building Plan benchmarking process – a requirement that was to be completed by August 1, 2011 for all New York building owners with 50K square feet or more –  then you are aware of your building’s energy performance rating. If the rating showed your facility is not performing as well as similar buildings, the next step is to commission an energy audit. An energy audit can identify how energy is used in your facility and recommend ways to improve energy efficiency and reduce your energy costs. 

There are various energy audit options. The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) recognize three levels:

Walk-Through Assessment (Level 1): It provides an energy bill analysis and possibly a brief survey of the facility. Subsequently, the report outlines no-cost and low-cost opportunities.

Energy Survey and Analysis (Level 2): A more detailed analysis taking into consideration the owners’ operations and maintenance, constraints and economic factors. Final report may include potential capital intensive energy efficiency opportunities.

Detailed Analysis (Investment Grade Audit) (Level 3): This analysis provides a higher degree of data collection, monitoring and analysis and focuses on capital intensive opportunities. The report usually includes detailed analysis on project cost and savings.

After an energy audit you should be able to effectively evaluate the many sustainability investment options available and understand where your green dollars will have the greatest impact.

The Con Edison Green Team can be a valuable partner on this front. The Commercial and Industrial (C&I) Energy Efficiency Program (www.ConEd.com/energysavings) funds Level 3 audits, up to 50% of the study cost can be co-funded (up to $67,000),  allowing you the opportunity to explore various energy efficient options.

Even in a weak economy, the sooner improvements are made, the sooner savings will add up. The cost of waiting is enormous. It’s like the cost of waiting to enter the PC age and waiting for the greatest, most sophisticated computer to come on the market. Over that period of time you are waiting – in the case of energy efficiency – there are substantial savings that your business is losing. 

When assessing options for investing in energy efficiency, keep in mind these important factors to help ensure a complete assessment of the cost effectiveness:

·         Consider long term and think about the cost and payback that will accrue over the complete life cycle of systems or equipment.

·         Compare the cost of continuing with “business as usual” with no changes versus energy efficiency investments.

·         Consider your public image – strong leadership in energy efficiency demonstrating your commitment to sustainability, conserving energy and saving the environment.

Many organizations see cash flow as a major obstacle to energy efficiency projects especially in tough economic times. The good news is there are multiple resources. For example, Con Edison, offers a variety of incentive programs – Con Edison’s Green Team  has many programs that can help reduce the cost of energy, like the Commercial and Industrial (C&I) Energy Efficiency Program (www.ConEd.com/energysavings).

The C&I program offers a number of financing incentives through rebates and other means to promote energy efficiency retrofits and installations.  The incentives typically cover standard energy efficiency equipment for lighting and lighting controls, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC), furnace, boilers and other gas equipment, motors, variable frequency drive (VFDs), and DDC/controls.  These programs may also allow for customized measures. 

In most cases, financing can be structured so that the projects can be repaid from energy savings, negating the need for upfront capital. Check with your utility to see what opportunities are available. A good energy service company can guide your organization, offering special financing while the government provides tax credits and low interest loans for energy efficiency projects.

For the New York metro area and Westchester County, contact the Con Edison Green Team and the C&I Energy Efficiency Program to assist with your energy efficiency needs.  For more information, visit conEd.com/energysavings or call 1-877-797-6347.

Caption: Meet the Green Team's Business Development Group. From left to right: Tom Cunneen, Business Development Lead; Steve Morris;  Cindy Nardiello; Arthur Pearson; Judy Stasack; Lauren Morin; Frank Lynch; Tom Lewis; Warren Gary; David Paige; Adam Carnegie; Dan Deleon. Not present: George Sakelaris