New York's Underused Cooling Centers Get a Higher Profile

Every summer, whenever heat and humidity are expected to be dangerously high, the city converts hundreds of senior centers, community rooms and public libraries into "cooling centers" where people of all ages can go just to spend an hour or two in air conditioning.

But the cooling centers are often hard to find. Last year, during one heat wave, WNYC reporter Julia Longoria looked up three cooling centers listed on the city's website and had difficulty finding them, in part, because they were not well-marked.

The problem wasn't new. City officials were aware the centers needed better signage, according to Chris Pagnotta, an advanced warning and community outreach specialist at the Office of Emergency Management. But the idea had never risen to the top of the to-do list.

"Your story kind of confirmed for us that this is an issue, that people aren't connecting the fact that their local neighborhood library are also serving as a cooling center in heat emergencies," Pagnotta told WNYC Tuesday. "We want to connect those dots."

About a month ago, OEM sent out hundreds of paper signs saying "Cooling Center" in 13 languages, which the various locations can post along the approaches to their entrances. The office will also send out re-usable vinyl sides as well in the coming days.

The office is also double-checking the addresses and phone numbers of the sites.

WNYC's story last summer was part of the Harlem Heat Project, a collaboration with AdaptNY, ISeeChange, WE ACT for Environmental Justice and two scientists from the City College of New York.