The "Outdoor Coat Check" Edition
The Bronx fire, AOC tests positive for Covid-19, RIP Disco Ball Rite-Aid, the neighborhoods with the best pizza, Mayor Adams gets defensive about appointing his brother, sandwich delivery, and more
Today - Low: 20˚ High: 22˚
Clear throughout the day.
The latest seven-day positivity rate: 31.0%
73.15% of city residents have received two shots, 82.64% of city residents have received more than one shot. Source: NYC Department of Health.

• The Bronx fire is an event that will live with the city for a long time. The fire was one of the deadliest fires in decades. (Ashley Southall, Grace Ashford, and Chelsia Rose Marcius for NY Times)
• The City Council passed a law in 2018 mandating all residential buildings must have self-closing doors by mid-2021. The most significant factor for the fire spreading between floors in Twin Parks was a door that "never closed by itself" in a building with heat and fire safety issues for years. Representative Ritchie Torres, the co-sponsor of the bill when he was in City Council, announced a federal, state, and local task force to examine residential building fire safety standards, including enforcement of the self-closing door law. (Alyssa Katz for The City)
• Here's how to help survivors of the Bronx fire. (Chau Lam for Gothamist)
• Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tested positive for Covid-19•. She is symptomatic and quarantining at home. State Assembly Members Catalina Cruz and Zohran Mamdani also tested positive. Get well. (Allie Griffin for Queens Post)
• Staffing shortages have forced 25 libraries across the city to close temporarily. Holds on books will be extended after each branch re-opens and wifi is still on near the buildings, despite the cold. (Farah Javed and Reuven Blau with additional reporting by Katie Honan for The City)
• Some restaurants are sought after for their ambiance, some for their city views, some for the wine list, others for dishes that can't be found anywhere else. Add on-site Covid-19 tests to the list of restaurant and venue amenities. (Ben Yakas for Gothamist)
• City students are organizing a walk today (Tuesday) demanding a remote option for classes. The students scheduled the walkout for 12:15 pm. (Christina Veiga for Chalkbeat)
• The sidewalk dining shed for Pianos is over one story tall, fully enclosed, in non-compliance with the city's regulations, and now includes a dedicated outdoor coat check shed. (Bowery Boogie)
• Legal permanent residents, people with working papers, and Dreamers can now register and vote in NYC elections after the bill was signed into law by Mayor Adams. Republicans have already filed a lawsuit to block the law. (Brigid Bergin for Gothamist)
• How would you spend $1 million to make your neighborhood better? Get involved in participatory budgeting and make your voice heard. City Councilmember Jennifer Gutiérrez wants your input on spending a million dollars in Bushwick. (Anna Conkling for Bushwick Daily)
• Mayor Adams is on the defensive about giving his brother a Deputy NYPD Commissioner job. Adams claims his brother has a community affairs background; his brother's most recent job was as the assistant director of operations for parking and transportation at Virginia Commonwealth University. One thing has become clear in all of this: the mayor does not give a shit what anyone thinks. (Elizabeth Kim for Gothamist)
• Farewell Disco Ball Rite-Aid. Here comes another apartment building. (Emma Davey for Greenpointers)
• In another "you hate to see it" story, the former Fat Baby is now a consignment sneaker store. If you lived in Hell Square, you're probably happy to see Fat Baby go, seeing as they appeared to be a terrible neighbor. (Bowery Boogie)
• Minus Moonshine is a dry liquor store. This is like a riddle. What's a liquor store without the liquor? See for yourself on Sterling Place in Prospect Heights. (Sai Mokhtari for Gothamist)
• The April - October street fair schedule for the Upper West Side. (Bobby Panza for I Love the Upper West Side)
• Red Eye Tickets exclusively features LGBTQ+ performers and gives 25 cents per ticket to LGBTQ+ organizations. If you don't find it elsewhere, build it yourself. Love it. (Shaye Weaver for Time Out)
• Edith’s Eatery & Grocery in Williamsburg wants to be "Zabar's for the next generation." Maybe in a few decades, all the jokes on TV that want to be hyperlocal to NYC will be about Edith's. (Luke Fortney for Eater)
• The neighborhoods with the best pizza. Top of the list: East Harlem for Patsy’s Pizzeria and Nolita for Lombardi’s. (Kathryn O'Shea-Evans for StreetEasy)
• Real Estate Lust: A $1.8 million co-op in Lenox Hill with East and West exposures, two beds, two baths, five-star hotel service like room service from Cipriani, a kitchen with NO oven, and more. No, seriously, $1.8 million and no stove. Devin Gannon for 6sqft)
• The 27 best spots for sandwich delivery. (The Infatuation)
Featured Pet: Tic Tac!
Tic Tac holds the honor of being The Briefly’s first featured ferret. I think it’s also the first illegal pet to be featured? Thank you to reader Robin for sending in this photo!
Thank you to the three readers who contributed to The Briefly using this Ko-Fi link. Your contributions are extremely generous.