Amtrak, the owner of Penn Station which only recently opened the newly redesigned Seventh Ave. entrance to the underground rail hub, says it will convene a new study group with the MTA’s Long Island Railroad and NJ Transit to come up with a joint solution on the future development of the nation’s busiest rail hub. ( Photo: Ralph Spielman) Big 3 Railroads Plan to Work Together on New Plan for Penn Station; Activists Still Wary The railroads that use Penn Station are convening a working group of outside advocates to review, and support, their complicated... News 14 Sep 2024 | 04:15
NYS has already spent $500 million installing the congestion pricing cameras such as these installed in 2023 on Ninth Ave. to record vehicles entering lower Manhattan below 60th St. But toll readers have not gone live following Gov. Hochul’s pause of congestion pricing in June. Now it appears she may be moving forward with the plan afterall. ( Photo: Jim Henderson/Wikimedia Commons) Hochul Drops Broad Hints that Congestion Pricing Could Make Comeback Later this Year Congestion pricing lives. Governor Hochul announced an “indefinite pause” last June, blindsiding the MTA as it was about to... Home 04 Sep 2024 | 12:17
Bayrock Capital bought the former Calhoun School Building on W. 74th St. for $14 million and said originally it planned to build luxury condos. Now the Adams Administration wants to house a 148-bed homeless shelter for women at the address under a nine-year lease and neighbors feel double crossed. ( Photo: Michael Oreskes) Neighbors Call on Adams to Reverse Plan to Convert Calhoun School into Homeless Shelter With no formal process to raise their objections, residents of West 74th street have gone straight to Mayor Adams to ask... News 23 Aug 2024 | 05:41
The big three railroads, MTA, Amtrak and NJ Transit, say they will need to expand Penn Station in coming years to accommodate booming demand, expecially from NJ commuters. ( Photo: Amtrak) Railway Giants Finally Unveil Why They Need to Expand Penn Station Demand for rail service into Penn Station is growing quickly again, post-covid, and the three big railroads told a community... News 05 Aug 2024 | 06:11
Filmmaker Claire Read found remnants of the old Penn Station at a storage yard in Newark, NJ. ( Photo by Lina McGinn) New Film, Penn F***ing Station Captures Rail Hub at Its Most Decrepit Glory Claire Read lived in Penn Station for four years. Well, not literally. She is neither homeless nor a character in an updated... News 20 Jul 2024 | 12:17
Borough president Mark Levine tried to quell a rebellion at Community Board 5 when a majority of its 50-member board urged him to rescind the ouster of two long time board members, Craig Slutznik and Mary Brosnahan. Levine defended his move and labeled as “reprehensible” a resolution that Slutznik supported last month at Educational Community Advisory Council District 2 urging the DOE to study its stance that allows transgender individuals to compete on girls sports teams. Photo: Community Board 5 Chaos at CB5: Boro Pres Levine Refuses to Reverse Decision Ousting 2 Longtime Board Members So why did Borough President Mark Levine dump two long-serving members from Community Board five, one just as he was running... News 21 May 2024 | 07:50
An overwhelming majority of Community Board 5 members have dispatched an urgent letter to Borough President Mark Levine, urging him to rescind his decision to bounce first vice chairman Craig Slutzkin from the board. Prior to the ouster, Slutzkin was seen as the favorite in the race in the race against interim chairman Samir Lavingia for the board’s top office in the June election. Photo: Linkedin CB5 In Revolt Against Boro Pres Mark Levine, Fires Off Letter Urging: Rescind Craig Slutzkin’s Ouster A majority of Community Board five’s members demanded that Mark Levine, the Borough President, reverse his decision to oust... News 08 May 2024 | 07:27
Manhattan borough president Mark Levine has bounced two members of community board 5: Craig Slutzkin who was an announced candidate for the chairman spot, and Mary Brosnahan, who was an advocate for the homeless. Photo: Office of Manhattan Borough President Levine Shakes Up CB5: Ousts Slutzkin Who Was In Running for Chairman vs Lavingia The Manhattan Borough President, Mark Levine, has refused to reappoint a leading member of Community Board Five, even as... News 07 May 2024 | 04:17
Samir Lavingia ended up as the unlikely interim chairman of CB 5 in March, but is facing a contested election when board members vote on a new chair in June. Photo: courtesy Samir Lavingia. CB5 Chairman Vote Heads Toward Contested Election in June Contested elections are rare at the city’s community boards. But Samir Lavingia, interim chair of Community Board Five, appears... News 29 Apr 2024 | 04:21
Longtime activist tells of the 50 year battle to create Hudson River Park in a just released new book. Photo: Amazon A 50 Yr Battle to Create Hudson River Park Captured in New Book by Activist Tom Fox It’s been a mere half century since a repair truck, laden with asphalt, plunged through the elevated West Side Highway on... News 29 Apr 2024 | 03:28
Samir Lavignia, the new chair of Community Board 5, is fending off charges that his Open NY group “infiltrated” the community board. His reign may be short since community boards across the city are scheduled to hold elections for new board positions in June. Photo: LinkedIn New Chair of CB5 Fends Off Charges His Open NY Group “Infiltrated” Community Board The new chair of Community Board 5, fending off charges that his housing advocacy group had illicitly infiltrated the board... Home 04 Apr 2024 | 09:06
Construction on the East Side’s Soloviev Group casino or any of the other four or five outlets seeking to land a license to erect and build multi-use casino’s in Manhattan–are probbly two years away after the state Gaming Commission said it won’t even begin accepting applications until next year. Photo: Soloviev Group/Artists Rendition. Casino Gambling Licenses Now Look to be Two Years Away Casino gambling is still coming to the New York City area. Just not so fast. That was the message from the state’s Gaming... News 28 Mar 2024 | 08:04
CB5 has played a big role in advising on the efforts to renovate Penn Station and the granting of a special permit to allow Madison Square Garden to sit atop the nation’s busiest rail hub. Photo: Ilovechocolate/Wikimedia Commons Behind the Crazy Upheaval at CB5 as an Open NY Rep Becomes New Chairman The disembodied voice emanated from a black zoom screen, the video off. You are, the voice warned, being “secretly infiltrated.”... News 23 Mar 2024 | 12:40
The artists rendition of a $12 billion casino that developers hope to build in Hudson Yards overlooking the Hudson River. Photo: Related and Wynn Resorts Hudson Yards $12 Billion Gambling Mecca Plan Unveiled by Developer and Casino Partner It will be, its developers say, the biggest thing ever on the West Side. Maybe because they never built Westway? The project,... News 15 Mar 2024 | 01:43
The front door of the former Early Childhood School of the Calhoun School. When it was sold, last summer to Bayrock Capital, the developer said the W. 74th St. building was going to be turned into luxury condos. Instead the city signed a nine year lease with the developer to turn it into a homeless shelter. Questions Swirl over New Plans for the Old Calhoun School that Will Now House Homeless Women The city and its non-profit partner sought to reassure residents of W. 74th street that the women’s shelter they are planning... News 01 Mar 2024 | 02:02
