The "Walk-Up Appointments for All" Edition

The most fun bars, rents are low, Manhattan goes halfway on prostitution, chain restaurant alternatives, a good year for breweries, and more

Today - Low: 42˚ High: 60˚
Rain in the morning and afternoon.

Josh Billinson @jbillinson

DMX’s casket arrived at the Barclays Center on a monster truck

• Walk-up vaccination appointments are available at all city-run vaccination sites. (Devin Gannon for 6sqft)

• The J&J vaccine is available again after the FDA lifted its pause. (Sophia Chang for Gothamist)

• 2020 may not have been a great year for our collective mental health, but it was a pretty good year for breweries in New York state. 37 new breweries opened in the state in 2020, including five in the city. (Brew York)

• Those odd-looking rooftop "mini backyards" are back at Pier 17 starting on May 3. (Anna Ben Yehuda for Time Out)

• Prostitution and unlicensed massage will no longer be prosecuted in Manhattan. DA Cy Vance announced the new policy this week and asked for a judge to dismiss 900 cases from the past in addition to 5,000 "Loitering for the Purpose of Prostitution" charges. The DA's office will continue to prosecute customers, making this victory only partial for sex workers. (Nick Garber for Patch)

• Construction on City Tunnel No. 3 started in 1970 intending to bring nearly a billion gallons of water to the city daily. It's is the largest capital project in the city's history. Construction has been going on for so long that portions of Die Hard 3 (1996) were filmed inside of it. Seven mayors have presided over its construction so far and new projections say it won't be complete until 2026. (Nathan Kensinger for Gothamist)

• Apartment Lust: A $2.2 million Union Square loft with a spiral staircase, an industrial roof deck with a water tower above it, two beds, and more. (Dana Schulz for 6sqft)

Tim Donnelly @timdonnelly

So Louis CK just did a surprise drop in set at the Village Underground and did a shocking amount of dick jokes for someone who is famous for showing his dick to women. The audience seemed fine with this.

• A brief history of the series of lies about the Barclays Center's "green" roof. (Norman Oder for Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Report)

• A guide to restaurants that opened during the pandemic. (Emma Orlow for Grub Street)

• The man whose homemade pipe bomb failed to detonate in the Times Square subway station was sentenced to life in prison. (Huff Post)

• The NYPD says crime is not on the rise in the subways and the MTA does not need more officers. The MTA says they need more NYPD officers in the subways to make riders feel safe. In a way, they're both right and they're both wrong. Stephen Nessen for Gothamist)

• Map: Civil Rights and Social Justice Map covering Greenwich Village, the East Village, and NoHo. (Louisa Winchell for GVSHP)

A Twitter thread worth clicking on:

Tomer Hanuka @tropical_toxic

I’ve asked my 3rd year illustration students at @sva to come up with a post-pandemic New Yorker magazine cover. Here is what they sent in:

• "Where do I take my boyfriend's parents who only like American chain restaurants?" Praise to Hannah Albertine for providing some solid options. (Hannah Albertine for The Infatuation)

• A look at what the mayoral candidates would do about the NYPD. (Emma G. Fitzsimmons and Ashley Southall for NY Times)

• Coming to Manhattan this summer: Whale-watching cruises. (Will Gleason for Time Out)

• Details on Monday night's full pink supermoon. (Dan Shalin for Patch)

• There are signs of recovery for the city, but rent prices haven't begun to recover overall, with some predictions estimating they'll be lower than usual for another year. Time to find that deal before the window closes. (Jake Offenhartz for Gothamist)

• One exception to this is the 5.6% increase in one-bedroom apartments around the B, D station at 167th Street, the largest across the city. (Gus Saltonstall for Patch)

• 19 rooftops for eating and drinking. (Eater)

• What does it take for someone to surrender their parking placard? If you're City Councilmember Brad Lander, it was getting eight school-zone speeding tickets in five years and being publicly shamed for it by the Post. He took to Streetsblog to try to explain himself and pledge change. (Brad Lander for Streetsblog)

• It's that time of year to start talking about the toxic algae blooms in Prospect Park. This year a natural filtration system will be installed to fight against the blooms. (Brooklyn Eagle)

• The most fun bars in the city right now. (Hannah Albertine and Nikko Duren for The Infatuation)

Featured Pet: Lady!

Thank you so much to reader Victoria for sending in this photo of Lady, who likes doing anything Victoria does! What a beautiful smile.