Eric Adams

June 5, 2025

Adams proposes 15 mph speed limit for e-bikes

Mayor Eric Adams wants electric bike riders to slow down. The mayor is proposing a 15 miles per hour speed limit for e-bikes, which currently can travel between 20 and 25 miles per hour. Adams announced the new rule on Thursday to renew pressure on the City Council to act on legislation he introduced last year that would create a Department of Sustainable Delivery to regulate delivery apps. The Council has yet to introduce the bill.
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West Harlem becomes first neighborhood in North America to fully containerize trash

Northwest corner of West 152nd Street and Amsterdam Avenue. Photo Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office on Flickr

June 2, 2025

West Harlem becomes first neighborhood in North America to fully containerize trash

By Aaron Ginsburg

Residents of West Harlem can expect cleaner sidewalks and fewer rats as it officially becomes the first neighborhood in New York City (and North America) to containerize 100 percent of its trash. On Monday, Mayor Eric Adams and Department of Sanitation (DSNY) Commissioner Javier Lojan announced the first day of full service of the European-style on-street trash containers, dubbed Empire Bins, in Manhattan Community Board 9, which includes Morningside Heights, Manhattanville, and Hamilton Heights. As part of the pilot program, all residential buildings in the district are required to put trash in containers; buildings with 31 or more units will be required to use the Empire Bins.
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Policy

NYC wants to turn vacant lots into public parks and playgrounds

Greenacre Park in Midtown is one of the city’s most famous pocket parks. Opened in 1971, the park was pieced together from three lots and includes a 25-foot-high waterfall. Photo by Jim.henderson on Wikimedia

May 28, 2025

NYC wants to turn vacant lots into public parks and playgrounds

By Aaron Ginsburg

Vacant lots across New York City could soon become lush green spaces. Mayor Eric Adams on Tuesday announced plans to transform underutilized and abandoned lots into parks, playgrounds, and green space in neighborhoods lacking open public space. The $30 million proposal includes going through the city's uniform land use review procedure (ULURP) to allow for multiple locations in a neighborhood to be reviewed in one application. Earlier this month, the Parks Department submitted applications for 44 sites in the first two community districts identified, Brooklyn Community District 5 and Queens Community District 3.
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Policy

NYC to host first ticker-tape parade honoring post-9/11 veterans next July

Photo courtesy of Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office on Flickr

May 23, 2025

NYC to host first ticker-tape parade honoring post-9/11 veterans next July

By Aaron Ginsburg

New York City will host the nation’s first-ever ticker-tape parade honoring post-9/11 veterans next summer. On Thursday, Mayor Eric Adams and Department of Veterans’ Services (DVS) Commissioner James Hendon announced that the parade, “Homecoming of Heroes,” will take place on July 6, 2025, as a tribute to the service and sacrifices of American servicemembers who served in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. The event will mark the first time NYC—or any major U.S. city—has formally recognized these veterans with a celebration of this kind. The parade will take place along the "Canyon of Heroes" in Lower Manhattan between Bowling Green and City Hall.
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Events & Things To Do

Times Square office tower to become 1,250 apartments

5 Times Square. Photo via WikiCommons

May 22, 2025

Times Square office tower to become 1,250 apartments

By Devin Gannon

A largely vacant office tower in Times Square is set to become a mixed-use development with 1,250 new homes. The Empire State Development (ESD) on Thursday voted to approve the conversion of 5 Times Square, a 38-story building on 7th Avenue between 41st and 42nd Streets. About 313 apartments will be permanently affordable to New Yorkers earning up to 80 percent of the area median income in exchange for a tax exemption under a new office-to-housing incentive, 467-m.
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New Developments

Adams announces $250M more for Fifth Avenue redesign plan

Images by Field Operations, courtesy of City Hall

May 21, 2025

Adams announces $250M more for Fifth Avenue redesign plan

By Aaron Ginsburg

New York City is investing another $250 million to transform Fifth Avenue into a pedestrian-centric corridor. Mayor Eric Adams announced the new funding on Wednesday, bringing the total investment in the project to $400 million, including $152 million the city had previously committed. Focused on the stretch between Central Park and Bryant Park, the Fifth Avenue redesign will reduce traffic lanes from five to three, nearly double the width of sidewalks, shorten crosswalks, and add more than 230 trees, as well as new seating and improved lighting.
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Queensboro Bridge to open separate paths for cyclists and pedestrians

Credit: David Wilson on Flickr

May 13, 2025

Queensboro Bridge to open separate paths for cyclists and pedestrians

By Aaron Ginsburg

The Queensboro Bridge will finally have separate paths for cyclists and pedestrians, starting this weekend. Mayor Eric Adams on Tuesday announced that the bridge’s north outer roadway is now a dedicated bike lane and the south outer roadway, a pedestrian-only path. Originally announced in 2021, the project was expected to open in March, but was abruptly delayed by the mayor, who required a "full briefing" before the path could open, as Streetsblog reported.
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NYC’s largest mass timber housing development to bring 500 homes to Staten Island’s North Shore

Renderings courtesy of GF55 Architects

May 12, 2025

NYC’s largest mass timber housing development to bring 500 homes to Staten Island’s North Shore

By Aaron Ginsburg

A mixed-income housing development with more than 500 apartments planned for Staten Island’s North Shore is set to become New York City’s largest mass timber residential development. On Monday, Mayor Eric Adams announced the selection of Artimus and Phoenix Realty Group to build the new homes, 25 percent of which will be designated as affordable, on two vacant sites along the New Stapleton waterfront. The development will be built with mass timber to lower the project’s carbon footprint and accelerate construction.
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Adams allocates $52M to replace West Village rec center in proposed budget

Tony Dapolito Recreation Center. Tdorante10 via Wikimedia Commons

May 12, 2025

Adams allocates $52M to replace West Village rec center in proposed budget

By Aaron Ginsburg

Mayor Eric Adams is allocating $51.8 million to rebuild a beloved, but run-down, recreation center in the West Village. The 100-year-old Tony Dapolito Recreation Center has been closed since 2019 due to significant structural issues, including foundation damage. Under his proposed fiscal year 2026 budget, Adams includes funding for the Parks Department to demolish the existing building on Clarkson Street and construct a modern facility across the street as part of a new mixed-use development.
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NYC to install panic buttons at 500 bodegas

Credit: Robinson Greig on Unsplash

May 5, 2025

NYC to install panic buttons at 500 bodegas

By Aaron Ginsburg

Hundreds of bodegas across New York City will soon be outfitted with emergency "panic buttons" designed to alert police during emergencies in real time. On Sunday, Mayor Eric Adams announced $1.6 million in funding for "SilentShields," discreet devices to be installed in bodegas located in "high-crime areas," connecting directly to the NYPD’s central command to cut down response times. The initiative comes just days after a man was fatally stabbed inside a Harlem bodega and follows years of advocacy by the United Bodegas of America (UBA), which has long called for the devices, according to Gothamist.
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Policy

Trump cancels $325M in disaster prevention funds for New York

By Devin Gannon

Projects that would protect vulnerable New York City neighborhoods from flooding and intense storms are at risk after President Donald Trump's administration announced plans to cut federal funding. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) canceled more than $325 million in grants to New York State that would go toward critical infrastructure and community resilience projects, according to Gov. Kathy Hochul. A majority of the projects impacted are designed to help New York City prepare for weather disasters like flooding and extreme rainfall.
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Policy

NYC’s population bounces back after pandemic exodus

Photo by Abhi Verma on Unsplash

March 14, 2025

NYC’s population bounces back after pandemic exodus

By Aaron Ginsburg

Five years after the pandemic triggered an exodus from New York City, new census data shows the city's population is growing again. According to census data released this week, the city's population grew by 87,184 to 8.48 million people between July 2023 and July 2024, up from 8.39 million the previous year. All five boroughs gained residents, with Manhattan leading the way with a 1.7 percent increase in population.
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NYC launches task force to improve public safety around Washington Square Park

Photo by Simi Iluyomade on Unsplash

March 10, 2025

NYC launches task force to improve public safety around Washington Square Park

By Aaron Ginsburg

New York City is deploying a multi-agency initiative to tackle quality of life and public safety concerns in Greenwich Village, the West Village, and near Washington Square Park. Mayor Eric Adams and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr. on Thursday launched the "Village Interagency Task Force" to address issues like open drug use and sales, retail theft, and other quality of life concerns from West 3rd to West 9th Street, between Washington Square Park and 6th Avenue, including the area around the West 4th Street Washington Square subway station.
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Policy

NYC launches project to make historical records of enslaved people more accessible

The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Picture Collection, The New York Public Library. (1902). “New York slave market about 1730.” Via New York Public Library Digital Collections.

February 28, 2025

NYC launches project to make historical records of enslaved people more accessible

By Aaron Ginsburg

The historical records of thousands of enslaved New Yorkers will be more easily accessible to the public through a new city project. Mayor Eric Adams on Thursday announced a plan led by the Department of Records and Information Services (DORIS) to transcribe digitized historical records from 1660 to 1827, helping historians and New Yorkers locate records of enslaved people and potentially trace familial roots. The Adams administration is calling on volunteers to help transcribe the records and build the project's searchable database.
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Policy

Fair Fare riders can now tap-and-go on public transit with OMNY

Credit: Marc A. Hermann / MTA New York City Transit on Flickr

February 27, 2025

Fair Fare riders can now tap-and-go on public transit with OMNY

By Aaron Ginsburg

New Yorkers enrolled in the city's half-priced transit fare program can now ditch their MetroCards and tap-and-go with ease. City officials on Wednesday announced that Fair Fares program participants can now order tap-and-go OMNY cards, offering half-off fare rates without the need to swipe. Enrollees will automatically be issued a discounted OMNY card, and those that are already in the program can request one through the city's website.
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NYC to close Roosevelt Hotel migrant shelter

Mayor Eric Adams at a press conference outside the Roosevelt Hotel in Manhattan in May 2024. Photo by Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office on Flickr

February 25, 2025

NYC to close Roosevelt Hotel migrant shelter

By Aaron Ginsburg

A historic Manhattan hotel that became a symbol of New York City's migrant crisis when it opened as a shelter two years ago is closing its doors. Mayor Eric Adams announced Monday the closure of the Roosevelt Hotel, which has served as an intake and support center and temporary housing for more than 173,000 asylum seekers since May 2023. At its peak, the hotel at 45 East 45th Street processed roughly 4,000 migrants weekly; recently, that number has dropped to 350 per week, according to the city. The facility will close by the end of June.
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Policy

Adams sues Trump over $80M seized from NYC

Photo courtesy of Michael Appleton/ Mayoral Photography Office on Flickr

February 24, 2025

Adams sues Trump over $80M seized from NYC

By Aaron Ginsburg

New York City sued the Trump administration last week over the $80 million in federal funding the White House took back without consent. The city's Law Department said it was challenging the president's decision to revoke Federal Emergency Management Agency funding approved to reimburse the city for migrant housing expenses. The lawsuit seeks to recover the funds and prevent the federal government from improperly revoking or withholding future funding that the city is entitled to receive.
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Policy

Coney Island West plan calls for 1,500 new homes, boardwalk upgrades

Renderings courtesy of ONE Architecture & Urbanism

February 20, 2025

Coney Island West plan calls for 1,500 new homes, boardwalk upgrades

By Devin Gannon

The city is moving ahead with a plan to bring thousands of mixed-income homes, new retail, and boardwalk and street improvements to Coney Island. Mayor Eric Adams and the city's Economic Development Corporation on Thursday released their vision for "Coney Island West," a waterfront development area west of the Amusement District. On Thursday the city issued a request for proposals for the first city-owned parcel, kicking off the development of 1,500 new homes.
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Trump takes back $80M in funding intended for NYC migrant shelters

The Roosevelt Hotel shuttered during the pandemic and became a relief center for asylum seekers. Photo by Billy Hathorn via Wikimedia Commons

February 13, 2025

Trump takes back $80M in funding intended for NYC migrant shelters

By Aaron Ginsburg

President Donald Trump took back $80 million in federal funding from New York City that was intended to cover some of the costs related to housing migrants. On Tuesday, City Comptroller Brad Lander's office noticed that $80 million in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funding, awarded by the Biden administration and received last week, had gone missing from city bank accounts. Lander, who called the action "highway robbery," claims the revocation may be illegal, depending on the terms of the city's grant with FEMA.
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Policy

NYC to redevelop Long Island City site once proposed for Amazon’s HQ2

Image via WikiCommons

February 6, 2025

NYC to redevelop Long Island City site once proposed for Amazon’s HQ2

By Aaron Ginsburg

The city is looking to redevelop three sites in Long Island City that nearly became Amazon's second headquarters. As first reported by Crain's New York, the Adams administration will release a request for expressions of interest (RFEI) this spring to redevelop 44-36 Vernon Boulevard, a longtime Department of Education property. The city is prioritizing proposals that include commercial, industrial, and community-serving tenants for the six-story building. The 672,000-square-foot warehouse was once slated to be part of Amazon's "HQ2," a sprawling campus for the retail giant, but the company withdrew its plan in 2019 after strong opposition from residents, elected officials, and community groups.
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More New Yorkers will qualify for $100K down-payment assistance after program expansion

Credit: Michael Moloney on Unsplash

January 31, 2025

More New Yorkers will qualify for $100K down-payment assistance after program expansion

By Aaron Ginsburg

Mayor Eric Adams and the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) Commissioner Adolfo Carrion Jr. on Thursday announced the expansion of the HomeFirst Down Payment Assistance Program, which gives first-time homebuyers up to $100,000 to put towards the down payment or closing costs on homes within the five boroughs. The additional $82 million will fund the program for the next five years, expand income eligibility, and introduce a new nonprofit partnership to streamline the process.
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City seeks proposals for Meatpacking District development with 600 apartments

Rendering courtesy of NYC Mayor’s Office

January 29, 2025

City seeks proposals for Meatpacking District development with 600 apartments

By Aaron Ginsburg

A plan to replace a Manhattan meat market with hundreds of apartments, retail, and open space is moving ahead. Mayor Eric Adams and the city's Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) on Wednesday released a request for proposals for Gansevoort Square, a proposed mixed-use development with 600 apartments, half of which would be affordable, and retail on Little West 12th Street between Washington Street and 10th Avenue in the Meatpacking District. The project is part of the mayor's recently announced "Manhattan Plan," which aims to add 100,000 new homes in the borough over the next decade.
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Affordable Housing

New York officials challenge Trump’s federal funding freeze

Photo by Nout Gons on Pexels

January 29, 2025

New York officials challenge Trump’s federal funding freeze

By Aaron Ginsburg

New York officials are scrambling to respond to President Donald Trump’s federal funding freeze, a move that threatened essential services for millions of New Yorkers. The freeze, which was announced in a memo on Monday, would strip the city of billions in federal grants and loans, potentially putting funding for housing assistance, school lunch programs, and other vital resources at risk. Attorney General Letitia James joined attorneys general from 22 states and the District of Columbia in suing the Trump administration to stop the directive. A federal judge temporarily blocked the order on Tuesday before it would have taken effect. Update 1/29/25: On Wednesday, the Trump Administration rescinded the memo "to end any confusion on federal policy created by the court ruling and the dishonest media coverage."
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Policy

January 22, 2025

Midtown South rezoning plan to build 10,000 new homes begins public review

By Aaron Ginsburg

The plan to transform Midtown South into dynamic mixed-use neighborhoods with thousands of new homes is moving forward. Mayor Eric Adams and the Department of City Planning (DCP) on Tuesday announced the start of the public review process for the Midtown South Mixed-Use (MSMX) plan, a proposal to rezone 42 blocks of the neighborhood to allow for roughly 9,700 new homes in areas where housing was largely prohibited under old zoning rules. The rezoning is part of the mayor's "Manhattan Plan" introduced in his State of the City address last week to add 100,000 new homes to the borough over the next decade.
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Policy

More NYC migrant shelters to close this year, including controversial Clinton Hill facility

An Asylum Seeker Application Center in Midtown, August 9, 2023. Photo by Michael Appleton/ Mayoral Photography Office on Flickr

January 13, 2025

More NYC migrant shelters to close this year, including controversial Clinton Hill facility

By Devin Gannon

Mayor Eric Adams last week announced the closure of more than a dozen emergency migrant shelters by June, including a facility in Brooklyn that housed roughly 3,500 people and led to protests by residents. The closures come as the number of asylum seekers in the city's care has decreased for 27 straight weeks and is currently at its lowest point in 18 months.
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Policy

Eric Adams

Adams proposes 15 mph speed limit for e-bikes

West Harlem becomes first neighborhood in North America to fully containerize trash

NYC wants to turn vacant lots into public parks and playgrounds

NYC to host first ticker-tape parade honoring post-9/11 veterans next July

Times Square office tower to become 1,250 apartments

Adams announces $250M more for Fifth Avenue redesign plan

Queensboro Bridge to open separate paths for cyclists and pedestrians

NYC’s largest mass timber housing development to bring 500 homes to Staten Island’s North Shore

Adams allocates $52M to replace West Village rec center in proposed budget

NYC to install panic buttons at 500 bodegas

Trump cancels $325M in disaster prevention funds for New York

NYC’s population bounces back after pandemic exodus

NYC launches task force to improve public safety around Washington Square Park

NYC launches project to make historical records of enslaved people more accessible

Fair Fare riders can now tap-and-go on public transit with OMNY

This $899K co-op in a former Clinton Hill mansion reflects the neighborhood's bohemian grandeur

NYC to close Roosevelt Hotel migrant shelter

Adams sues Trump over $80M seized from NYC

Coney Island West plan calls for 1,500 new homes, boardwalk upgrades

Trump takes back $80M in funding intended for NYC migrant shelters

NYC to redevelop Long Island City site once proposed for Amazon’s HQ2

More New Yorkers will qualify for $100K down-payment assistance after program expansion

City seeks proposals for Meatpacking District development with 600 apartments

New York officials challenge Trump’s federal funding freeze

Midtown South rezoning plan to build 10,000 new homes begins public review

More NYC migrant shelters to close this year, including controversial Clinton Hill facility

138 Willoughby Street in Downtown Brooklyn

Eric Adams

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