When NBC broadcasts the 74th annual Emmy Awards tonight, many Yonkers residents will root for the five productions that shot scenes across our city.
Whether the awards go to HBO’s The Gilded Age, which recorded scenes at the Hudson River Museum’s Victorian mansion, or Apple TV+’s Severance, viewers in Yonkers should understand that our city is a winner because we are successfully becoming Hollywood on the Hudson.
Since taking office in 2012, I streamlined the film-permit process to attract more film and television productions. It was these efforts that helped us attract productions that are nominated for more than 20 Emmys.
Furthermore, our media-production outreach hit the jackpot with the opening of the new Great Point Studios—the largest television recording complex on the East Coast. We expect more announcements about studio construction now that Great Point Studios focused a spotlight on Yonkers’ proximity to New York City.
Beyond the possible thrills of seeing famous actors in our downtown, our efforts to become Hollywood on the Hudson have significant repercussions for residents—especially children.
In partnership with Great Point Studios, the city and the Yonkers Public Schools signed a 20-year lease to open a media arts middle/high school at the former Rising Ground property on Hawthorne Street. This new school will expose students to media careers and prepare them to potentially attend the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, another partner in this venture.
This new school and Yonkers’ emergence as Hollywood on the Hudson come at a significant time for the entertainment industry, which faces criticism for a lack of diversity.
Our new school will help the entertainment industry address its inclusion issues because our students are diverse. For example, 17% of our students are Black, 60% are Hispanic and 5% are Asian. Almost 80% of our students are economically disadvantaged.
My hope for this new school is that our children will bring needed diversity to the entertainment industry. With all respect to the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, these career opportunities are the real prizes.
I look forward to giving our city’s future entertainment professionals standing ovations when their names are called by Emmy Awards presenters.
Mayor Mike Spano, City of Yonkers
