The Briefly for December 4, 2018 – The "Bird Hipsters Cared About Ducks Before It Was Cool" Edition
Monday's awful commute was brought to you by the F and G trains, with support from the N. No word yet on how the new signals on the 7 train functioned. (NY Post)
The couple who lost their engagement ring during a botched engagement in Times Square were reunited with their ring. (Gothamist)
The only place to get your Game of Thrones MetroCards are at Grand Central Terminal starting today. (Gothamist)
The planned Manhattan Ikea has an address. At the corner of E 59th Street and Third Ave, Bloomingdale's will have a new Swedish neighbor. (6sqft)
Where's the center of NYC? (Untapped Cities)
The most chronically flooded streets in the city. (Curbed)
NYC's brand new breed, the Bird Hipster, cared about seeing birds before it became everyone's Mandarin Crush Monday. (NY Times)
Two Boots has a tax problem. The Hell's Kitchen location was seized by the state for $175,426 in unpaid taxes. You could really help them out by buying 6,060 large "The Dude" pies. (Eater)
Modern day Santa Claus, who is very real and busy at work making LOL dolls and Nintendo Switches, was created by a group of NYC artists in the early 1800s. (6sqft)
The rats have taken the subways. (Gothamist)
At 1:37pm, Joseph Esposito, the head of the city's Office of Emergency Management, was fired for the city's handling of the November 15 snow storm. At 2:37pm, Mr. Esposito was still in his office, working, despite being "fired" last Friday. At 12:26am, he was staying in his job until a successor is found. Why is the mayor so bad at firing top officials? (NY Post, NY Times, and NY Post, respectively)
Before 9/11, immigrants could get drivers licenses in New York, regardless of their legal status. Immigrant rights advocates are pushing to get that law back on the books. (Gothamist)
The worst commutes of 2018, in book form, dedicated to Governor Cuomo. (Riders Alliance)
The MTA and NYC Transit President Andy Byford are focused on fare evasion, because that is the real problem with our transit. (NY Post)
More bad news for Brooklyn's Winterfest. They cut back days, limited the hours, hired a new event manager, issued refunds, and all previously paid attractions are free. (Gothamist)
The NYPD discouraged NYC's Deputy Human Rights Commissioner from reporting a racist encounter on the 1 train. (Gothamist)
New York is the third worst “Judicial Hellhole” in the country, according to The Americans for Tort Reform Foundation. (NY Post)
The Brooklyn Cat Cafe has a new home on Montague Street. One of the city's few places you can get a fresh cup of coffee and a rescue kitten to go. (Brooklyn Paper)
Bleecker Street, 2018 New York City's version of Stars Hollow. Things really have changed. (NY Times)
If you've run out of date ideas for cuffing season, here's a list for you. (Thrillist)
The 10 best dishes at Chelsea Market. (Eater)
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