The "Back and Forth Bigfooting" Edition
Michelin stars, boat bars, mayoral debates, the eviction moratorium extended by the state, and more
Today - Low: 50˚ High: 60˚
Partly cloudy throughout the day.
This weekend - Low: 48˚ High: 61˚
• Interactive Map: as Covid-19 restrictions are beginning to lift, most of the city remains undervaccinated. Check out the map broken out by zip code. (Caroline Lewis for Gothamist)
• The city is looking for approval to set up vaccination sites for tourists at city landmarks. The city has identified Times Square, Brooklyn Bridge Park, Central Park, and the High Line as target locations and can start as soon as this weekend if the state approves. (Matt Troutman for Patch)
• Starting May 19, you can get a free ticket to a Yankees or Mets game along with a one-dose J&J vaccine at the stadium. There will be two kinds of seating in both stadiums, one for vaccinated people at full capacity and the other for the unvaccinated at 33% capacity with social distancing. (Dana Schulz for 6sqft)
• The Civilian Complaint Review Board overturned 11% of substantiated allegations of police misconduct by its own investigators between 2014 and 2020. (Yoav Gonen for The City)
• "The Governor’s May 19 reopening announcement undercuts the Mayor’s July 1 goal announced just a few days ago, and seems designed to do so. The Governor’s back-and-forth bigfooting leaves New Yorkers struggling to keep up and businesses struggling to comply and have already cost lives in the past." - Public Advocate Jumaane Williams on Governor Cuomo's game of one-upmanship with Mayor de Blasio over the city's reopening. (Dean Moses for amNewYork Metro)
• Mayor de Blasio has been attempting to make the city's specialized high schools more reflective of the city's diversity. Black and Latino students received 9% of offers for the 2021-22 school year, which is down from the previous year's 11%. Black and Latino students make up almost 70% of the city's school system. (Reema Amin for Chalkbeat)
• 10 secrets of the Empire State Building. (Michelle Young for Untapped Cities)
• The first day of school is September 13, 2021. (Amy Zimmer for Chalkbeat)
• Goodbye snow days. Instead of closing for snow days in the 2021-2022 school year, the city's schools will switch to remote learning. (Matt Troutman for Patch)
• The city's schools will also no longer be closed for Columbus Day. Instead of celebrating Columbus Day, the Department of Education has rebranded the day as Indigenous People's Day and Italian Heritage Day. In response to the change, Mayor de Blasio says he's a proud Italian American. So now Indigenous People's Day has to share the celebration with Italian Heritage Day? gftoh. (Ariama C. Long for amNewYork Metro)
• Sometimes a story sorts itself out before the next edition of The Briefly. Sheldon Silver was released from prison on Tuesday was ordered back to prison on Thursday. (Ed Shanahan and William K/ Rashbaum for NY Times)
• Broadway will be back on September 14 at 100% capacity with tickets already on sale. (Ben Yakas for Gothamist)
• Photos: Two new, 10-foot plus, sculptures unveiled at Randall's Island. (Shaye Weaver for Time Out)
• The Governors Ball Music Festival has a lineup, including headliners Billie Eilish, A$AP Rocky, and Post Malone. (Bill Pearis for BrooklynVegan)
• The first show of the 2021 BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival was announced. Glass Animals will play Prospect Park on August 31. Tickets are already on sale. (Amanda Hatfield for BrooklynVegan)
• Have you seen the building with a piano built into the side of it? Curbed asked the architect the most important question: WHY? Why yes, it is in Bushwick. (Christopher Bonanos for Curbed)
Thanks to reader Lolita for sending in this video from the Brooklyn Botanical Garden
• Congratulations to The City, which will be co-hosting the first official mayoral primary debate on May 13. (The City)
• A recap of the first televised debate for the Manhattan District Attorney. (Gwynne Hogan for Gothamist)
• Video: The Democratic Primary Debate for Manhattan District Attorney. (NY1)
• Let The City educate you why NYC's borough presidents matter. (Rachel Holliday Smith and Allison Dikanovic for The City)
• The ballot lineups have been finalized for the June 22 primaries. Get all your questions about the primaries answered here. (Allison Dikanovic and Rachel Holliday Smith for The City)
• Interactive Map: Find out the candidates running to represent your district. (Ann Choi and Will Welch for The City)
• The Times dives into Andrew Yang’s relationship with Bradley Tusk, a tech investor, which has raised concerns about conflicts of interest if he is elected. (Dana Rubinstein and Emma G. Fitzsimmons for NY Times)
• Mayor de Blasio announced the creation of a "New York City Artist Corps," a $25 million investment in culture and the arts. The program will hire 1,500 artists to create murals, perform at pop-up shows and more across the city, and draws inspiration from the Works Progress Administration program from the New Deal. (Matt Troutman for Patch)
• Do you want to expand and save Penn Station from its current self? Is it worth adding ten 1,000+ foot-tall skyscrapers into Midtown? That's how the state intends to pay for the $16 billion renovation. (Matthew Haag and Luis Ferré-Sadurní for NY Times)
• Michelin is back to awarding stars. Check out the full list of NYC's starred restaurants. (Rachel Sugar for Grub Street)
• Also released was the 2021 Michelin Bib Gourmands, which is their list of affordable restaurants. Here's the Bib Gourmands NYC list. (Ryan Sutton for Eater)
• The state extended its moratorium on residential and commercial evictions through August 31. (Matthew Haag for NY Times)
• Apartment Lust: A $17.75 million Greenwich Village townhouse with 4,600 square feet, terraces, a home gym, a backyard, a primary bedroom suite with TWO en-suite bathrooms, an entire room that appears to be a shower, and I'm sure the place sold for 37 dollars in the 70s. (Dana Schulz for 6sqft)
• The Department of Transportation showed off a new bike and pedestrian improvements planned for Meeker Ave. (Billy Richling for Bklyner)
Featured Pet: Pepper!
Thanks to Marissa for sending in this photo of Pepper, a bird-watching and box fanatic.