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
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
Two people were arrested for trespassing at Council Member Erik Bottcher’s apartment building on Monday, Dec. 19, according to an NYPD spokesperson. Photo via Erik Bottcher’s Twitter Hate At Erik Bottcher’s Doorstep Inside a Chelsea public library on Saturday, Dec. 17, children read “regular kids’ books,” sitting on the floor together,... News 22 Dec 2022 | 02:13
Council Member Erik Bottcher (left) with Eric Marcus, of the 300 West 20th Street Block Association, Pamela Wolff, of the Chelsea West 200 Block Association and NYC Parks Manhattan Borough Commissioner Anthony Perez (right). Photo courtesy of Erik Bottcher’s office 1,000 New Street Trees for District 3 On Wednesday, December 14, Council Member Erik Bottcher and the New York City Parks Department announced that 1,000 new street... News 14 Dec 2022 | 03:02
Workers from Wildcat Service Corporation, the nonprofit tapped to remove graffiti in Council Member Erik Bottcher’s district. Photo: Abigail Gruskin Graffiti Be Gone To camouflage oneself on the streets of New York City would mean to get dirty; a certain amount of graffiti would be required.... Home 02 Dec 2022 | 12:31
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
From left to right: City Council Members Shaun Abreu, Erik Bottcher, Sandy Nurse, Chi Ossé and Carlina Rivera posed outside City Hall with two rats that were protesting new legislation passed on Thursday. Photo: Abigail Gruskin City Council’s ‘Rat Pack’ Says Rodents Are Ready to ‘Surrender’ In a city of millions, there’s an alarming number of unwelcome guests — ones that scurry, lurk and leap. Everyone’s seen... News 27 Oct 2022 | 05:54
Traffic on the West Side Highway near Hudson Yards. Photo: Abigail Gruskin The Crackdown On Loud Cars Is On A Roll Noise in New York City, like the vibrating drilling of construction or the booming sound of music coming from the apartment... News 30 Sep 2022 | 12:18
A proposed map of newly drawn City Council districts was released on July 15. Map screenshot from the NYC Districting Commission ‘Preliminary’ City Council Redistricting Is Just That, Council Members Say City Council districts are the latest to get a major overhaul as part of a redistricting process on the heels of the latest... News 22 Jul 2022 | 02:20
Dr. Ashwin Vasan, the city’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene commissioner, presented on monkeypox at a City Council town hall on Monday, July 18. Photo: Abigail Gruskin Monkeypox Is Here Hundreds in New York City have now likely come down with a fever and body aches not caused by COVID-19. They may have suffered... News 21 Jul 2022 | 04:14
Madison Square Garden. Photo: Eden, Janine and Jim, via Flickr Relocating Madison Square Garden? The Manhattan Borough President and key Manhattan legislators have coalesced around a call to relocate Madison Square Garden... Home 17 Jul 2022 | 01:59
Council Member Erik Bottcher. Photo courtesy of the Office of Erik Bottcher Bottcher on LGBTQ Mental Health As Pride month came to a close, Council Member Erik Bottcher met with Fountain House, the national mental health nonprofit,... Home 08 Jul 2022 | 12:45
Sign at a May protest in Foley Square after the leak of a draft Supreme Court opinion on Roe v. Wade. Photo: Abigail Gruskin New York Politicians on the End of Roe v. Wade Americans across the country now face a very different world, following a Supreme Court decision on Friday morning that ends... News 24 Jun 2022 | 05:15
