The Briefly for January 8, 2020 – The "Crime is Down but Murder is Up" Edition
Today - Low: 22˚ High: 42˚
Partly cloudy throughout the day.
Te state denied a Chinatown landlord's request to install a fingerprint scanner at the entrance in a rent-regulated building, citing privacy concerns. (Elizabeth Kim for Gothamist) There are 700 Seke language speakers on Earth, the language indigenous to Equatorial Guinea and Gabon, 100 live in NYC, and half of them live in one building.(Kimiko de Freytas-Tamura for NY Times) Despite rises in hate crimes and murders, NYC's crime is at an all-time low. (Emily Davenport for QNS) A 15-year-old was charged with the murder of Juan Fresnada, 60, who was killed during a Christmas Eve mugging in Morrisania for a single dollar in the Bronx. (Kathleen Culliton for Patch) Even with the rise in murders as a percentage, the actual number of murders is when lower compared with past eras. (Edgar Sandoval for NY Times) Mayor Bill de Blasio says that his directed NYPD crackdown on delivery workers' electric bikes isn't based on data and numbers. It's based on "common sense." There are a lot of people whose common sense the city may trust, but Bill de Blasio ain't on that list. 0.07% of vehicular crashes in the city, 31 in 2018, were caused by electric bike riders. (Christopher Robbins for Gothamist) The city's attempts to rezone Bushwick look to be at a stalemate. Bushwick's City Councilperson Antonio Reynoso has pushed back against the city, limiting the number of new apartments he'll consider at 2,000 and all affordable. This isn't a new story, as Inwood successfully fought off a rezoning effort and the Sunset Park/Industry City rezoning also appears to be headed for defeat. (Kevin Sun for The Real Deal) Everything you need to know about affordable housing: applying, getting in, and staying put. (Dana Schulz for 6sqft) It's a seven-course VR meal, but it's served while you wear a VR headset. This isn't some experience in a Bushwick art studio, it's presented by the James Beard Foundation. (Daniel Modlin for Grub Street) Ken Friedman is leaving The Spotted Pig following an attorney general's investigation into sexual harassment and workplace discrimination. He also agreed to pay $240,000 and 10% of his profits for the next decade to the 11 staffers who accused him of misconduct. (Serena Dai for Eater) The Meadowlands Arena closed in 2015, but it's still standing and found a second life as a production facility. NBC is renting out the arena through March while it films Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector where the Nets and Devils once played. (Seth Berkman for NY Times) The last night at Tad's Steakhouse in Times Square, one of the last vestiges of old Times Square. (Untapped New York) Photos: The anti-war rally in Times Square. (The Villager) After experiencing what Fifth and Sixth Avenues could be without cars or trucks, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer and Councilperson Keith Powers have requested a meeting to discuss keeping the traffic restrictions permanently. (Michelle Cohen for 6sqft) An ode to Taste of Persia, which is closing at the end of the month. (Max Falkowitz for Grub Street) Woodland, a Park Slope bar and restaurant closed after its liquor license was revoked by the state. Woodland's famous black brunch wasn't enough to save it from hundreds of complaints including noice and customers urinating on the streets, a stabbing on December 22. (Tanay Warerkar for Eater) Governors Ball's headliners for 2020 are Stevie Nicks, Solange, & Miley Cyrus. A full lineup is expected this week. (Ben Yakas for Gothamist) Paw It Forward is a non-profit that walks dogs for free for the elderly, ill, and disabled in Long Island City and is expanding to Rego Park, Forest Hills, and the West Village. (Kristen Torres for LIC Post) Video: A narrated walk on 9th Ave from 14th to 34th. (ActionKid, YouTube) Governor Cuomo wants to ban repeat and high-risk sexual offenders from the MTA. (Robert Pozarycki for amNewYork) A minor mistake paying for a busied can cost you $100. (Elizabeth Brico for Talk Poverty) The MTA released a map of OMNY enabled stations for January of 2020. (MTA) The NYPD will start including hate crimes in its Compstat crime-tracking system. (Paula Katinas for The Brooklyn Home Reporter) Photos: The giant dogs of the Upper West Side. (Sara Lewin Lebwohl for I Love the Upper West Side) The NYPD have thoroughly ended the which seat is best meme. (Kathleen Culliton for Patch) If you actually get mail in Greenpoint and Williamsburg, congrats on the mail you actually receive. According to a recent audit, these neighborhoods are plagued with delivery issues, including failure to secure valuable items, inadequate safety measures in residential buildings, delayed mail, and mail that never arrives. (Scott Enman for Brooklyn Eagle) Photos: Three Kings Day parade in Williamsburg. (Rose Adams with photos by Caroline Ourso for Brooklyn Paper) White supremacy posters have popped up in Bay Ridge, linked to a neo-Nazi group which was formed after the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville. Members of these groups usually attempt to stay anonymous for fear of being outed as the worst people on earth, but these geniuses uploaded a video of themselves doing a banner drop over the Belt Parkway in Bay Ridge and the NYPD is investigating. (Jake Offenhartz for Gothamist) The Infatuation updated its best restaurants in NYC list with the addition of Noods n’ Chill, Bar Bête, Banty Rooster. (The Infatuation) Noods n' Chill is a new Thai food restaurant in Williamsburg, not just a rude suggestion on Tinder. (Scott Lynch for Gothamist)