The Briefly for September 1, 2020 – The "A $3.75 Reduced-Service Subway Ride" Tuesday Edition
Today - Low: 71˚ High: 78˚
Possible light rain in the morning.
Today (Sept 1), the United Federation of Teachers' executive board will meet to vote to authorize a strike at 3:30 pm. From a friend, I've heard the teachers will push for an October opening of school for in-person instruction. (Alejandra O'Connell-Domenech for amNewYork Metro) Looking to make a temporary change in your address? The Times has some service journalism for you to make sure your mail gets delivered. (A.C. Shilton for NY Times) Free bus rides are over. Front boarding started on Monday. (Matt Troutman for Patch) A bus or subway fare could be raised a dollar, as hinted by MTA officials, paired with a 40% reduction in service, in an attempt to close the $9 billion gap in the MTA's budget. (Todd Maisel for Brooklyn Paper) Five cheap ways to improve the subway from a policy analyst from the Manhattan Institute. Not all of these ideas are good. (Connor Harris for Streetsblog) There is no combination of state efforts that can address New York's financial crisis. The full damage that the Covid-19 virus has laid upon New York state is $59 billion, meaning there is no possible way the state can tax its way out of this hole. Watch this argument carefully, because Governor Cuomo will use this to defend his decision to never increase taxes on the state's super-rich. (Mark Hallum for amNewYork Metro) The state kicked the can down the road, but October 1 is the new date for the tidal wave of evictions when the moratorium ends. (Caroline Spivack for Curbed) The mayor created his own deadline of October 1 to either cut one billion from the city's costs from labor or he would fire 22,000 municipal employees. On Monday, the day city employees were ready to hear about who was "at-risk" for being fired, the mayor announced that unions have asked for more time to resolve the issue. The sword of Damocles still hangs. (Brigid Bergin for Gothamist) September 1 gives us two months left of outdoor dining in NYC. As bars and restaurants look ahead, the question becomes "How do we survive this?" A spotlight on Jeremy’s Ale House, who doesn't see past Halloween, unless people are allowed inside. (Todd Maisel for amNewYork Metro) The biggest question looming over the city might not be "when will The Briefly return to five days a week?," but "when is indoor dining coming back?" The mayor's answer seems to change every day. In the last week, he's said that the school openings would dictate it, that it wouldn't return until the new year, and now until we see a vaccine. (Matt Troutman for Patch) How much is a life worth? Layleen Polanco’s family was awarded $5.9 million after her death after nine days in solitary confinement at Rikers Island while being held on $500 bail, a record for an inmate's death. (Rosa Goldensohn for The City) The NYPD has issued a "discipline penalty matrix" that outlines specific punishments for instances of police misconduct. This isn't in response to recent violence from the NYPD against the citizens it is supposed to protect, but form the recommendation of a 2018 independent panel. Despite the matrix, the NYPD Commissioner has the ability to ignore the matrix. The NYCLU says this is no reason to celebrate because it doesn't show a culture of change in the NYPD and Commissioner Shea and Mayor de Blasio's comments appear to be on the side of protecting police officers. (Christopher Robbins for Gothamist) A 2017 NYPD "challenge coin" from East Flatbush is so racist you may have to see it to believe it that celebrates the "hunting of man" and features a caricature of a black man with dreadlocks with the shadow of a deer. (Jon Campbell for Gothamist) Riis Park's popularity in the last few years partially has Riis Park Beach Bazaar to thank. The lease for Riis Park Beach Bazaar is up and won't be renewed. Instead, they have been invited to submit a proposal to compete with other vendors. (The Rockaway Times) This is what life is like when you're quarantined in an apartment with Miss Universe and Miss USA. (Kim Velsey for NY Times) Gyms in the city will be virtually inspected before reopening on Wednesday. (Matt Troutman for Patch) Yeah, you've been to Governors Island, but have you been to the haunted basketball court on Governors Island? (Michelle Young for Untapped New York) The Sutphin Blvd-Archer Ave. and Jamaica Center-Parsons/Archer E train stations will be closed from September 19 through November as the MTA replaces 5,500 feet of track and more than 7,800 feet of third rail. (Allie Griffin for Queens Post) It's pronounced "How-stun." Here's why. (Dana Schulz for 6sqft) One of the three lawsuits blocking the Two Bridges megadevelopment was reversed, but it's still not a green light to move forward. (Rachel Holliday Smith for The City) The city's land use review process comes back mid-month, which will mean Gowanus will become the epicenter of the fight over redevelopment in the city. (Amy Plitt for BKLYNER)
"The fight against Industry City has implications beyond the neighborhood. It has implications for any of us who see the city as a site of civic engagement, as a place where community thrives. It’s community, the very idea of it, that’s destroyed, as the privatization of neighborhoods grows bolder and less restrained."
- Peter Rugh, Sunset Park is Afraid of Industry City’s Expansion, The Rest of Us Should Be Too for The Indypendent
The Mermaid Inn in the East Village is closing. (Erika Adams for Eater) A look at waacking and its history from dance clubs in the city in the 70s and how it ended up as a Tik Tok sensation. (Ted Alcorn, video by Mohamed Sadek for NY Times) Columbia University removed "pretty significant" slave owner Samuel Bard's name from Bard Hall, with a promise to rename the building in the fall. (Amanda Rosa for NY Times) Why was a statue of Christopher Columbus and the green space surrounding it in the Bronx's Little Italy locked up? The Parks Department says it was a staff error. The statue has been protected by the NYPD since June. (Ese Olumhense for The City) Former Queens DA hopeful Tiffany Cabán is expected to run for City Council in Astoria when Costa Constantinides's term limit is up in 2021. (Allie Griffin for Queens Post) Where to eat out on Staten Island. (Hannah Albertine for The Infatuation)