Close to 100 activists, civic and business leaders attended Tuesday the monthly public meeting of the recently created ‘Orthodox Jewish Political Club.’

Council member Mark Treyger (D-Brooklyn) addressed the crowd for over 30 minutes, briefing the club members on his active duties in the City Council and the priority projects he has undertaken to the benefit of all residents in Brooklyn. He also addressed certain budget issues that pertains to the orthodox Jewish community.

Treyger, who also represents the gated community of Seagate, focused mainly on the efforts being made to draw the administration’s attention to allocate sufficient funds to the resilience programs already proposed, assist small business owners and invest in infrastructure in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

“These people have been waiting 16 months for a check. There were over 22,000 applicants that applied for ‘Build It Back’ and as of March 31st, 2014, only 3 people have received checks, in a total of $80,000,” Treyger, Chair of the Committee on Recovery and Resiliency, told the crowd. “Compare that to the $9M that consultants are being paid. That is unacceptable. And it’s really shameful and outrageous.”

The council member stressed that it’s incumbent upon the new administration to treat the issue as a top priority. “The mayor says he didn’t ask for Sandy. He might not have asked for Sandy, but he did ask to be the mayor. And the mayor is now the leader of the City of New york and he bears responsibility in making sure this recovery is done right.”

Treyger proposed to create a local structure to manage the recovery program, since they know better the residents, homeowners and their needs in the neighborhoods of South Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island.

The council member also addressed infrastructure “that often goes ignored.” He called on the new administration to invest in rebuilding the affected infrastructure before announcing grandiose plans of affordable housing.

The club’s treasurer Joe “Yossi” Gross briefed members of the club’s most recent achievements and provided an update on the issues that were raised at the previous meeting – those that require special attention by the community’s elected officials.

Gross announced that a new business center will be opening in the next few weeks where community members will be able to get assistance in job training and business management for free. Regarding employment opportunities, Gross said club board members recently had a meeting with the relationship manager of Alma bank on 13th avenue and he promised that 2 of the 5 job openings will be given to community residents.

Community Board 12 District Manager Barry Spitzer also addressed the crowd. He announced that in an effort to bring more business and jobs to the district, Dominick Stanzione, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Maimonides Medical Center, will be giving a special presentation at the the next Community Board 12 meeting on June 24, 2014 – the last meeting before the summer.

Maimonides Medical Center is planning to build a new seven story medical center on 9th Avenue between 48th and 49th Streets. This new Medical Center will bring services to the Jewish community residing in Borough park, and will ultimately present a lot of opportunities for individuals, companies and suppliers who have their skills, services, goods and expertise to offer.

Moshe Friedman, a consultant, spoke on behalf of Reb. Nachman Caller and briefed the attended members about the ongoing fight to stop the building of gambling casinos on the Catskills.

(Jacob Kornbluh – YWN)