The Briefly for July 28, 2020 – The "Someone Knows Your Pandemic Secret" Edition
Today - Low: 78˚ High: 92˚
Rain in the evening.
The New York Liberty and Seattle Storm have set the bar for National Anthem protests. Rather than take a knee, both teams walked off the court completely. After a 26 second silence in honor of Breonna Taylor, the teams left. Will anyone else step up or will the Liberty reign as the most badass team in NY? (Lam Thuy Vo for BuzzFeed News) How to move a couch in or out of a small apartment. (Zachary Soloman for StreetEasy) Our tailors know our dirty little pandemic secret. We all got fat. (Sarah Maslin Nir for NY Times) How to get into Gramercy Park, the most exclusive park in the city, where only 383 keys exist for its locks. (Zachary Solomon for StreetEasy) Busking is tough. Busking during a pandemic is even tougher. Now, imagine busking while carrying around a 900-pound piano. (Alex Vadukul and September Dawn Bottoms for NY Times) An occupational therapist makes the argument that students should be learning outdoors this fall. (Lisa Raymond-Tolan for Chalkbeat) Elizabeth Street Garden’s Executive Director Joseph Reiver offers up the Elizabeth Street Garden for schools to use. (Joseph Reiver For Bowery Boogie) Wish the city was still open despite the pandemic? They tried keeping things open to keep up New Yorkers' spirits. It didn't go great for the city. (Laura Collins-Hughes for NY Times) There's a state law preventing public employees from striking, but NYC public school teachers are devising ways to push back if forced to teach in-person classes in the fall. (Christina Veiga for Chalkbeat) This will be the first year that on 9/11, the names of the victims will not be read by members of their families. (NY1) All abord the sludge boat! With Covid-19 in our poops, the boat that carries those poops away from the city is one of the most important boats in the city. (Roger Clark for NY1) Apartment Porn: It's $9.9 million on the Upper East Side, 5,000 square feet, nearly 21-foot tall ceilings, a 40-foot garden, and a private parking garage. (Dana Schulz for 6sqft) What is food? While this is a dumb question, at this point the State Liquor Authority is making me wonder what is even food. The constantly shifting definition of what food can be served with alcohol from the SLA is maddening. Let us have our booze or don't, but don't make me order a sandwich with my shot. (Robert Sietsema for Eater) Farewell to La Caridad 78, a Chinese-Cuban restaurant that's been open for 52 years on the Upper West Side is closing for good. (Dana Schulz for 6sqft) Farewell to Le Sia, the Chinese-Cajun restaurant in the East Village. (Luke Fortney for Eater) Farewell to the Rusty Knot in the West Village. (Erika Adams for Eater) Farewell to Chumley's in the West Village, two years shy of its centennial. There was an auction for most of what was inside the bar, but the auction was canceled, further confusing the situation. (Chris Crowley for Grub Street) Photos: A look at Saturday's Unite NY 2020 rally with the Street Riders, Warriors in the Garden, and the Black Chef Movement, which marched from Cadman Plaza in Brooklyn to Times Square and beyond. (Emmy Freedman for Bedford + Bowery)
"New York’s recovery won’t be demonstrated by restoring the city to peak car traffic. Peak traffic never reflected New York’s full potential before the pandemic, it limited it. A car-based recovery would suck the oxygen out of the city and suffocate the city. Normal in New York is founded on the principle of independent transportation and the freedom of not needing a car to live and work in the city."
-Janette Sadik-Khan, former NYC transportation commissioner, Why The Pandemic Represents A Historic Opportunity For NYC Streets, for Gothamist
A new memorial at the Williamsburg waterfront pays homage to almost 200 Black people who have been killed by police or have died fighting against racial injustice. (Kevin Duggan for Brooklyn Paper) Riddle me this: When you Google "Waterbury Metro-North," did the official MTA site read "Flirtatious Anal Dildo For Cock Hungry Blonde Slut?" (David Brand for Queens Eagle) Will you please shut the hell up? Noise complaints are up 300% since February. (Shaye Weaver for Time Out) Queens, what's up? Why has half of Queens not responded to the Census? (Allie Griffin for Queens Post) Maybe it's time to address the Native American in a loincloth on New York City's official seal? (Dana Rubenstein for NY Times) This one went right under my nose. A federal judge blocked the NYCLU from releasing the NYPD disciplinary records, but on the same day, ProPublica released a searchable database of the disciplinary records. ProPublica says they were allowed to post the database because they aren't involved in the union lawsuit challenging the release of the records. (Noah Singer for Brooklyn Eagle) Twenty-seven New York City bars and restaurants on Sunday were cited by state inspectors for social distancing and other coronavirus-related violations. The state hasn't released the list of bars and restaurants. (Matt Troutman for Patch) White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo is on top of the NYPL's list of most checked out books during the lockdown. (Shaye Weaver for Time Out) “They send me their keys and say, ‘Pack it up and put it in storage and we’ll figure it out later.’ There are so many people in flux.” Vacancy rates are growing throughout the city and how it could put the city's rent regulation in jeopardy. (Greg David for The City) 19 new restaurant openings you should know about. (Nikko Duren for The Infatuation) Thanks to reader Lizzy for today's featured photo!