The future is here and it’s not as cool as you thought it would be. In fact, it’s very much like the past, just with more delays. We are talking of course, about the fantastically named ‘RoboTrain’ next-gen subway system.
The only current ‘RoboTrain’ in the city is the hipster-clogged L train, which the MTA has been tweaking for so many years, we’re no longer sure which came first, RoboCop or RoboTrain. Read More
Just when you think you’ve solved one problem, along comes some whizz with a computer to give you another.
Before the holidays, Mayor Bloomberg and Governor Cuomo finally reached agreement on the long drawn saga of the new taxi bill. As part of the bill, 2,000 new yellow cab licenses for Manhattan will be sold, raising a ‘one shot’ billion dollar cash injection for the city’s coffers. In addition, each cab will also be wheelchair accessible.
So, what’s the catch? Well, traffic, that’s what. And it’s taken a month for someone to it point out. Read More
Upper East Side residents can cross safely over the FDR Drive again, after the Department of Transportation opened the newly enhanced East 78th Street pedestrian bridge today.
The old bridge, which was built in the 1940s, was demolished last July due to the Department of Transport listing it’s condition as “poor” in its biennial inspection. Read More
Sometimes it seems that the market in New York operates completely separate from any others. With the conversion of two more buildings into condos, the disconnect between New York and the rest of the country, goes to another level. Read More
The more keenly eyed moviegoers amongst you will have noticed the recent trend of movie’s being titled very literally: ‘Bad Teacher’, ‘We Bought a Zoo’ etcetera etcetera. Keeping that trend up is Man on a Ledge, which advance screened last night at the Tribeca Grand Hotel, hosted by The Cinema Society with Gilt Man & Grey Goose. Read More
Outside a freezing cold Chambers Street municipal building Friday afternoon, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer stressed his commitment to block any sale by the Bloomberg administration of three Lower Manhattan buildings owned by the city.
The mayor made reference to the sale in his State of the City last week, involving 22 Reade Street, 49-51 Chambers Street and 346 Broadway, part of the effort to streamline government, in this case through the consolidation and co-location of government office. The borough president argues, however, that the buildings might be put to better use than being sold off for private development.
“By any measure this Lower Manhattan community is suffering from overcrowded classrooms, school shortages and a lack of affordable housing to meet the needs of its constituents,” said Mr. Stringer, who is expected to run for mayor. He seems to have found a special loophole because the city is selling the property through the city’s Economic Development Corporation, which the borough president argues offers him oversight of the sales.
“If you try to get rid of these buildings through the E.D.C. process,” Mr. Stringer continued, “you must go before the Borough Board and that’s where there will be a final say and that’s why I’m here today to let the Mayor and those at City Government know that we’re all going to have to work together on this.” Read More
After releasing a statement on Wednesday outlining why she was still going to perform for the tenants at the Chelsea Hotel—despite their wishes—Patti Smith changed her mind and pulled out of the performance shortly before she was due onstage last night.
However, even though she bowed to the pressure and cancelled her Thursday performance for the tenants railing against her, The Architect’s Newspaper reports how she still did performed at the hotel this week to a crowd of media and art folks, a private performance for the hotelier on Wednesday. It seems the revered Ms. Smith has suffered from a serious bout of flip-flopping on the issue, which now appears to have been grossly ill judged, leaving her contradicting herself. Read More
Avast, downtown!
Howard Hughes Corp. is set to reveal its plans for the renovation of Pier 17 at South Street Seaport, according to Crain’s. The plans will first have to get the all clear from Landmarks Preservation Commission, which oversees the seaport historic district, and it is hoped the plans will be submitted sometime in the first half of 2012.
The bid faced opposition in the past from the commission when it was presented by General Growth three years ago, prior to the massive mall operator’s bankruptcy. Read More
Patti Smith has come out in defense of her imminent gig at the Chelsea Hotel, releasing a statement that includes bullet points underlining her reasons for organizing this Thursday’s soirée. “My small performance for the tenants was my own idea.” She said, distancing herself from any collusion with the owners, “My hope is that we might have a nice evening and the opportunity to communicate directly.” Read More
“Are you here for the poetry reading?”, asked the constant stream of people that lined up outside Cornelia Café last Friday. “Yeah,” was the steady response. It’s not often you get lines more akin to those at Grimaldi’s for a poetry reading, but then again, not every poet elicits the level of devotion that Charles Read More
