In the early 20th century, troops were trained and ammunition and weapons were stored at the Kingsbridge Armory in New York City. It later was a homeless shelter and a concert venue. But for more than a decade, it has sat empty.
Sadly, officials in New York are keeping it that way.
The City Council there said no to a $310 million proposal to build a shopping mall in the abandoned armory. Council members insisted that workers at the mall be paid at least $10 per hour – nearly $3 more than the federal minimum wage. They said the usual minimum wage was too low to support a family – although many of the jobs undoubtedly would have been held by teenagers, most of whom are not supporting families.
The developer pointed out that it would be extremely difficult to find retail tenants willing to pay such wages for those jobs. But the city refused to budge, ultimately voting to kill the project. As a result, not only will 1,200 mall jobs not be created, but neither will 1,000 higher-paid construction jobs materialize. That’s bad news in a city where unemployment is 10 percent and 400,000 residents cannot find work.
Even liberal Mayor Michael Bloomberg was aghast at the action taken by the council, telling The New York Times, “As a result of today’s vote, we can say one thing for sure: There will be no wages paid at all at the Kingsbridge Armory for the foreseeable future.”
We wonder whether jobless New Yorkers who might have taken those positions think the council is working in their best interests.