Neil A. Carousso produces NewsNation original “Kurt’s Country” – a celebration of country music and a slice of Americana with host Kurt Bardella.
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Hurricane Ida Causes Deadly Flooding and Widespread Devastation from Louisiana to New York; Afghanistan War Ends but Americans are Left Behind
Produced by Neil A. Carousso
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — Hurricane Ida caused deadly flooding in the Northeast Wednesday night into Thursday with widespread damage and road closures lasting past Friday.
Lynda Lopez anchors team coverage from across the Tri-State on The 880 Weekly Rewind and checks in on the devastation in Louisiana where residents could remain without power into a second week after Ida made landfall Sunday as a category 4 hurricane.
Plus, producer Neil A. Carousso talked to Dion Nissenbaum who covers U.S. Middle East policy for The Wall Street Journal about the hundreds of Americans and thousands of Afghan allies left behind after United States troops completed their withdrawal from Afghanistan on Monday, including an Afghan interpreter who helped rescue then-Sen. Joe Biden in 2008.
Subscribe and download The 880 Weekly Rewind podcast for in-depth reporting and deeper analysis of the top stories of the week, produced by Neil A. Carousso, for WCBS-AM New York.
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NY Business Leader on Why Pandemic Recovery is More Complex than 9/11
By Joe Connolly and Neil A. Carousso
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — Kathryn S. Wylde has been president of the Partnership for New York City since 2001, thrust into the devastation of 9/11 and the business recovery effort when fear of another terrorist attack clouded whether Manhattan would ever come back.
Wylde hosted strategy sessions with then-Governor George Pataki and Sens. Charles Schumer and Hillary Clinton at the Partnership’s Downtown offices in the aftermath. But, she told Joe Connolly and Neil A. Carousso on the WCBS Small Business Spotlight, sponsored by Dime Community Bank, that the economic issues were more clear 20 years ago compared to the complexity of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We were able to be ready for recovery by January,” she said. “We hosted the Davos World Economic Forum at the Waldorf and had thousands of notable leaders of countries and businesses from around the world flying into New York.”
International travel is still not fully open. The city’s offices were not open at 100 percent until June 15, 2021 – 15 months after the coronavirus forced large-scale shutdowns to control the spread of the disease.
Wylde says New York has suffered immeasurable financial losses as a result of the pandemic.
“On 9/11, we had the temporary displacement of 3,000 small businesses and we lost about 130,000 jobs – most of which were recovered completely within a year and a half/two years. Today, we’re down 462,000 jobs and we don’t know how many of those are going to come back,” the business leader said.
She told WCBS 880 that small businesses in retail and hospitality may never be the same. But, there has been record venture capital investments in new professional services companies that are catering to pandemic needs. Their biggest challenge, Wylde said, is competing for workers.
The Partnership for New York City lists 387,000 open job postings. With a tight labor market and a work from home environment, hiring skilled workers remains a major hurdle this fall.
“Today, we’re economically, at a macro level, in better shape, but the implications of this whole remote work situation and what’s happened to our brick-and-mortar economy – the small businesses – which are 9 percent of the economy but they’re 20 percent of the jobs – we don’t know how much of those are coming back – both the businesses or the jobs. We don’t really know the damage caused a year and a half into this,” Wylde said, noting large businesses are better positioned for the post-pandemic economy because they amass greater resources.
She is concerned emerging variants of COVD-19 that are more transmissible and more contagious, and potentially could weaken vaccine efficacy, might require new shutdowns that could wipe out some sectors.
Despite the widescale problems, Wylde remains optimistic about New York’s recovery. When asked how she keeps going, she told Connolly and Carousso she is encouraged that communities have come together, which she said is reminiscent of the 1970s and early 1980s when the city was faced with a fiscal crisis that ignited a seismic shift from mostly industrial work to a service economy.
“The same thing I’ve seen happening while government was focused full bore on the health crisis, communities came together to support each other, and to provide services, and to make sure neighbors had groceries, and that the elderly had visitors, and that the health care workers were applauded with pots and pans as they were going off to save lives,” Wylde explained. “I’ve seen communities come together in a way that demonstrates the strength and resilience of New York.”
Watch Joe Connolly and Neil A. Carousso’s full conversation with Kathryn Wylde on the Small Business Spotlight video above.
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WCBS 880 Weekly Rewind: Afghanistan Evacuation Turns Deadly, China Blames the U.S. for COVID, Kathy Hochul Takes the Reigns of New York
Produced by Neil A. Carousso
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — U.S. forces pressed ahead with evacuation efforts of American citizens and Afghan allies Friday, a day after an ISIS suicide bomber killed 13 United States service members and hundreds of Afghans and under threats of more attacks. President Joe Biden is sticking to the Tuesday deadline to withdraw all troops from Afghanistan.
WCBS anchor Steve Scott filled in for Lynda Lopez on The 880 Weekly Rewind and examined the urgent evacuations in Kabul with CBS News Military Consultant and Retired Army Col. Jeff McCausland.
WCBS’ Paul Murnane looked into the “inconclusive” report on the origins of the coronavirus with CBS News Asia Correspondent Ramy Inocencio who has been reporting in Wuhan and Hong Kong on how China has flipped the script on the United States, blaming the U.S. for the virus without evidence.
In New York, history was made as Gov. Kathy Hochul became the first female executive in the state. She hit the ground running with a series of COVID-related policies, including masks and vaccinations in schools and promising to get federal relief funds to landlords, which had been stalled under her predecessor Andrew Cuomo’s administration. Hochul also vowed to be transparent and acknowledged nearly 12,000 more deaths due to COVID-19 than Cuomo said publicly.
Subscribe and download The 880 Weekly Rewind podcast for in-depth reporting and deeper analysis of the top stories of the week, produced by Neil A. Carousso, for WCBS-AM New York.
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World Trade Center Performing Arts Center Aims to Lead NYC’s Cultural Revitalization
By Joe Connolly and Neil A. Carousso
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center is the last piece to the recovery and revitalization of the World Trade Center site after the September 11 terrorist attacks. It will also aid in New York’s pandemic recovery when it opens in 2023 – delayed because of COVID-19.
“The performing arts sector is the last to come back, but it’s coming back roaring,” said Leslie Koch, president of the Perelman Performing Arts Center.
On the WCBS Small Business Spotlight, sponsored by Dime Community Bank, Koch pointed out to Joe Connolly and Neil A. Carousso some parallels between the 9/11 and pandemic recovery efforts.
“The planning back in 2003 that resulted in the master plan said we need to have culture on the 16 acres because New York needs to not only memorialize what was lost here on 9/11 and rebuild the offices that were destroyed, but this site needs to be a living, breathing part of New York,” she said. “We’re that symbol again.”
She believes that people are suffering “creative loss” by working remotely because New York City offers a vibrant experience of arts and entertainment, which attracts many people to the city in the first place.
When the Perelman Performing Arts Center opens, it will be a public place where arts and entertainment intersect with New York’s restaurants and financial industry.
Koch describes it as the “living room of the World Trade Center” where it will host free performances on a small stage on the first floor and a variety of theater, dance, film, opera and more music upstairs.
“The Perelman Arts Center at the World Trade Center is a critical piece not just for the revitalization and return of Lower Manhattan, which is an office district and also a place where thousands of people live and millions of people visit, but also for New York broadly that New York is always investing again,” Koch said.
She sees culture as the vehicle to get New Yorkers to participate in the economic recovery.
Before leading the World Trade Center’s arts project beginning in 2019, Koch oversaw the redevelopment and rejuvenation of Governor’s Island from a military base to a park and thriving business and recreation center. She served as president and chief executive officer of the Trust for Governor’s Island from 2006-2016.
Connolly asked her what advice she has for young artists looking to make it to the big time. Koch responded by saying, “Follow your passion and know your numbers.” She noted that’s applicable to people in any industry.
“One of the great things about when artists follow our passion is that that’s something that the rest of us get to experience and enjoy,” she added.
The pandemic shut down impacted businesses and workers across the hospitality industry. Entertainers were among those who struggled to survive when performances were canceled. Koch told WCBS 880 many artists discovered new creative ways to reach audiences virtually.
“You put a performance on the screen, and all of a sudden, you have audience members in Tanzania, and Singapore, and Utah. New York is the capital of the arts for the world and I think that digital is helping make that even stronger,” she said.
Get an inside look at the development of the Perelman Performing Arts Center at the World Trade Center and see how performances are helping the city emerge from the pandemic on the WCBS Small Business Spotlight video above.
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HENRI MAKES LANDFALL NEAR RI: Weakens to tropical storm; NY, LI, CT slapped with heavy rain, wind gusts
Produced by Neil A. Carousso
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — Tropical Storm Henri made landfall in Rhode Island around 12:15 p.m. Sunday, packing heavy winds and drenching rains as it began lashing the northeastern U.S. coastline.
Landfall came after Henri lost strength as it went above cooler waters around 7:30 a.m. Maximum winds were under 75 miles per hour, just shy of hurricane status.
Hurricane and storm surge warnings have been canceled, and tropical storm warnings are now in effect from Montauk up into southern New England. A Flood Watch is in effect for New York City through Monday, Aug. 23, at 8 a.m.
Despite the downgrade, strong wind gusts of up to 75 miles per hour are possible and the rising tide threatened to produce dangerous storm surge between 3 and 5 feet in much of Long Island Sound all the way to Chatham, Massachusetts, and slightly less on Long Island’s Atlantic coast, the National Hurricane Center said.
Tens of thousands were left without power in the region as of Sunday afternoon. The National Weather Service’s Boston office has reported about 75,000 customers without power in Rhode Island, about 20,000 customers out in Connecticut and nearly 6,900 customers out in Massachusetts.
The storm will slow down and bands of wind and rain will circulate around through Sunday night and into Monday morning.
Flash flooding was possible in inland areas already saturated by recent rain.
Heavy rain overwhelmed storm drains and drivers plowed through foot-deep water in a few spots in New York City, and Newark and Hoboken, New Jersey as the first thunderstorms drenched parts of the Tri-State area late Saturday.
The severe weather also canceled the “We Love NYC: The Homecoming Concert” in Central Park.
The White House said President Joe Biden discussed preparations with northeastern governors, including Govs. Phil Murphy and Ned Lamont. New York Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul, who succeeds Cuomo on Tuesday, also participated.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
