Hudson Guild executive director Ken Jockers is working with City Council Member Erik Bottcher to encourage the tech and healthcare giants in Manhattan’s West Side neighborhoods to hire locally. ( Photo: Courtesy Council Member Erik Bottcher’s office) Jobs Program in Chelsea Hopes to Triple Number of People It Helps over Next 2 Yrs Chelsea and Greenwich Village, with their super-expensive apartments, booming office developments, and glittering High Line,... News 23 Jun 2025 | 02:17
Dem Primary Coverage: City Council District 3 City Council District 3 in Manhattan covers Chelsea, Hell’s Kitchen, and the Garment District, as well as parts of the West... News 04 Jun 2025 | 06:03
A pollutant-absorbing mural called “Botanical Pulse” now graces a building abutting Hell’s Kitchen Park. ( Photo: Jack Ahern ) Massive Pollution-Absorbing Mural Comes to Hell’s Kitchen Park An enormous mural depicting blooming plant life now graces Hell’s Kitchen Park, located between W. 47th & 48th Sts. on 10th... News 03 Jun 2025 | 05:30
Related says it will no longer pursue its bid to obtain a casino license to build a gambling mecca at Hudson Yards with Wynn Resorts. Related plans to focus on housing and a possible a hotel on the large undeveloped parcel. City Council Member Erik Bottcher came out against the casino plan on May 19. ( Photo: Related Companies) Related and Wynn Drop Bid for Hudson Yards Casino After Bottcher Says He Is Not on Board It’s snake eyes for Related Companies and Wynn Resorts. Shortly after City Council Member Erik Bottcher said he could not... News 19 May 2025 | 05:38
An example of “daylighting” is shown in a video by Transportation Alternatives. Without cars parked next to the intersection, both the driver and the pedestrian have a better view of each other. ( Photo: Transportation Alternatives) Upcoming Daylighting Rally Demands ‘Proven Safety Solution’ A rally supporting intersection safety in New York City is coming to City Hall. Planned for Monday, April 21, at 9 a.m.,... News 04 Apr 2025 | 12:11
Eric Bothcher has put up nine projects for participatory budget vote. Voting closes on April 6. ( Photo: Keith J. Kelly) $1 Million On Tap as Chelsea ‘Participatory Budgeting’ Voting Gets Underway As “participatory budgeting” voting gets underway (March 29 to April 6), Chelsea residents living in City Council Member... News 31 Mar 2025 | 06:03
Two riders approach the intersection of Seventh Avenue and 38th Street in Midtown Manhattan. The wider, protected bike lanes are meant to make riding safer for the growing number of e-bikers. But some worry the faster, wider lanes will increase the danger to pedestrians since many bikers ignore all traffic laws. ( Photo: Garrett Owen) New Bike Lanes Debut in Village and Midtown; Riders Pleased but Many Ignore Rules of Road Up and down the avenues of Manhattan, brand-new wider bike lanes have been put in place by the Department of Transportation... News 10 Mar 2025 | 01:35
Assembly member Tony Simone (right) has an alternative Penn Station plan that will spare the block south of Penn Station from demolition. To the rear is the empty lot that once housed the Pennsylvania Hotel. Simone wants that to be a park, whereas the parcel’s owner, real estate developer Vornado, says it still has plans for future office towers on that spot. ( Photo: Michael Oreskes) New Penn Plan: 2 West Side Pols Unveil Proposal to Save Block South of Station from Teardown New York State’s plan to redevelop the neighborhood around Penn Station should be drastically revamped to provide more housing,... News 09 Mar 2025 | 01:36
City Council member Erik Bottcher, seen in a press conference last year, is urging the City Council to alert the public to the existence of test strips that can detect the presence of deadly fenatanyl in drugs. ( Photo: Keith J. Kelly) Bottcher Urges Health Dept. to Publicize Fentanyl Test Strips In a city as dynamic and resilient as New York, the safety of our residents must always remain our top priority. The opioid... Voices 14 Feb 2025 | 01:43
Madison Square Garden has only been given a five year extension by the full City Council on a special permit it needs to continue to sit atop Penn Station. Photo: Keith J. Kelly Finally and Officially: Full City Council Gives MSG Its Shortest Permit Ever at 5 Years Saying it was starting a countdown to force a deal on improving Penn Station, the City Council voted unanimously to give... News 14 Sep 2023 | 10:26
Tall, well-lit construction sheds may become the norm for the city’s 9,000 scaffolding installations if new regulations proposed by City Council majority leader Keith Powers and council member Erik Bottcher, Shaun Abreu, and Chris Marte become law. Manhattan, with 4,000 of the sheds, has more than any other borough. Photo: Ralph Spielman Reach for the Sky: New Scaffold Bills Call for 50% Boost in Height and New LED Lighting New bills to overhaul scaffolds that now cover 280 miles of sidewalks in New York City would force builders to make them... News 19 Mar 2023 | 10:51
Cyclists and pedestrians in Riverside Park. Photo: Flickr (Howard Brier) Chelsea, Upper West Side Most Perilous to Cyclists and Pedestrians in Manhattan Chelsea and the Upper West Side neighborhoods were among the most dangerous in Manhattan in terms of traffic injuries for... News 13 Mar 2023 | 05:14
Councilmember Erik Bottcher, who represents a district that includes Chelsea, Hudson Yards and parts of Greenwich Village, hosted an online conversation about the lack of affordable housing in New York that drew the head of the Planning Commission, Dan Garodnick, and the NYC chief housing officer Jessica Katz. Photo: Office of Erik Bottcher Politicos Warn NYC Could Be “Lost” Unless We Solve Housing Crisis Several top politicians warned in a virtual forum that the city we all know could be “lost” unless leaders start to take... News 17 Feb 2023 | 03:09
An hours-long virtual hearing attracted concerned New Yorkers. Photo via Mayor’s Office Webex Locals Find Fault With New Short-Term Rental Regulations Clandestine Airbnb rentals are doomed, thanks to the rollout of new legislation that more strictly governs stays under 30... News 12 Jan 2023 | 12:48
The playground at P.S. 11. Photo: Abigail Gruskin An Influx Of Asylum-Seeking Students — and a Community’s Response When Mario’s two children started school on Friday, October 14, they hadn’t attended a class since March — and that was in... News 04 Nov 2022 | 04:43
NYPD Extends Quality of Life Pilot Program Across all of Manhattan