The Briefly for March 28, 2019 – The "Everyone Flushes Their Dog's Poop Down the Toilet, Right?" Edition
Here is an argument that Times Square is not the Gowanus Canal dining options and it is actually a good neighborhood for food. (Grub Street)
The latest bagel abomination is bagels sliced like loaves of bread instead of a sandwich. Arrest this man. (Gothamist)
The state and city's Democrats have no love for the real estate industry. Can they successfully lobby the left to do their bidding? (The Real Deal)
The answer appears to be "yes." The proposed pied-à-terre tax would affect 280 people, and in the face of opposition by the real estate industry, the state's legislators have appeared to back down in favor of a transfer tax. The estimated difference in revenue is $250 million ($400 million for the transfer tax and vs $650 million for the pied-à-terre tax). A $250 million reduction for the benefit of 280 people. (Curbed)
You bring your dog's poop home in bags and flush it down the toilet, right? Well, that's what a deputy director at the Department of Sanitation thinks you should do. Legally, it is 100% legal to toss those poop bags in a public garbage can. (Gothamist)
The Brooklyn Botanical Gardens is seeking support (and signatures) in opposition of a rezoning that would cast a literal shadow over portions of the garden, causing irreparable harm to the plants. (bbg.org)
A truck driver hit and killed a cyclist in Midtown, the third driver from Approved Oil to kill a pedestrian or cyclist in two years. The driver allegedly fled the scene but was not charged with leaving the scene of a crash, which is a felony. (Gothamist)
Just when you thought a commute couldn't get worse, a water main break caused 7th Avenue to close between 27th and 34th St. (NY Post)
NYC restaurants lost jobs (3.4%) for the first time in ten years in 2018. At the same time, the total number of restaurants increased by 2,000. (Eater)
The city's 2019 James Beard Award finalists are in. Make your reservations while you still can. (Eater)
Time Out has some feelings about the list. (Time Out)
The city wants your feedback on these ideas for the Shirley Chisholm monument in Prospect Park. (amNY)
Yankees and vintage train fans have something to look forward to. Today's home opener this year will be accompanied by a 102-year-old subway train bringing fans to the stadium on the 4 train. (6sqft)
Where to eat at Yankee Stadium. (Eater)
A new Grand Street Bridge will be complete by 2027. Now we just have to hope that the current span between Queens and Brooklyn will last that until then. (QNS)
Turns out no one wants cops on city buses enforcing everyone pay their fares. 75% of bus riders are people of color with a median income under $30k and advocates and politicians are see the idea of policing that specific demographic as racial profiling. (Streetsblog)
The death of one-year-old Darwin Gonzalez-Santana in December was ruled a homicide after fentanyl and heroin were found in his system. His father is not in police custody and his mother is already in custody for another offense. (NY Post)
Eight remnants of colonial NYC that you can still touch. (Untapped Cities)
For $25,000, you can dine (and attempt to influence) Governor Cuomo. Who needs campaign finance reform when it costs 19 ounces of gold to share a meal? (NY Times)
The review process for Mayor de Blasio's Rikers Island alternative jail system is underway. (Bklyner)
Horrifically, someone fell face first onto the track of the L train in Brooklyn. Witnesses couldn't get him off the tracks in time, but they were able to signal to the conductor to stop the train before he was run over. (Gothamist)
Mark your calendars, Fleet Week is May 22 - 28. (Gothamist)
Congestion pricing, explained. (Curbed)
If you don't know what Williamsburg looked like in the 90s, you owe it to yourself to take a look at the neighborhood pre-hipster. (Bedford + Bowery)
The latest volley in the legal battle between the city and Ballyhoo Media, the operator of the floating LED billboards in the city's waterways, is a lawsuit form the city with $25,000 fines for each day the city says Ballyhoo broke zoning rules. (Patch)
Mayor de Blasio said delivery workers who are caught using electric bikes won't be directly targeted by legal action. The NYPD doesn't care what he says. (Gothamist)
The socialite grifter’s lawyer has an interesting defense planned: She’s just like Sinatra. (NY Post)
The City Council has unlikely opposition in their quest to fight parking placard abuse: the NYPD. The city’s likely biggest abusers say that the job they’re doing is already top notch. (amNY)
TGI Friday’s, have you no shame? (NY Post)
An interview with Brittany Bond, the purveyor of Common Books, the pushcart bookstore that can be found in the Lower East Side year round. (Bowery Boogie)
A list of good places to break up with someone in public. (The Infatuation)
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