Greenmarket and the Urbanscape

Alfred, Lord Tennyson wrote “In the spring, a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love.” May that always be so, but it is equally true today that for many New Yorkers spring also turns thoughts to Greenmarket, a collection of producer-only farmers markets that now blanket the City.

The first Greenmarket opened in July 1976 in a lot on Second Avenue at the Manhattan end of the Queensboro Bridge. Seven farmers sold produce … <Read More>


The East Midtown Rezoning and the Future of New York City

(Economic) Heart Trouble

More than 30 years after its last major zoning change, the economic heart of New York City merits a checkup. According to City planners, the prognosis for East Midtown is not good: an aging office stock, a congested pedestrian network, global competition, and the lack of new office development threaten to undermine the economic competitiveness of the City. The cure, proposed by the Bloomberg Administration, is a rezoning of 78 blocks of … <Read More>


Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce: Finding Suitable and Affordable Space for Food Manufacturing in Brooklyn

Brooklyn’s growing sector of small food makers has meant more jobs for the local economy over the past few years. As part of this growth, Brooklyn itself has become a brand for artisanal food makers who have set up in small kitchens and incubator spaces across the borough to make their tasty creations.

The Brooklyn “Food Chain” – starting with food manufacturing and wholesale distribution, and including grocery stores, specialty stores, restaurants, and coffee shops … <Read More>


Liu: City’s Marriott Marquis Lease is a $345 Million Land Giveaway

The City’s Economic Development Corporation is famous for doling out corporate welfare without making sure that the companies that get those tax breaks and subsidies produce jobs.

Our latest discovery, however, shows just how wasteful and disgraceful that agency’s actions can be.

My Audit Bureau uncovered a secret deal that the EDC made in 1998 with the Marriott Marquis Hotel that could cost our taxpayers at least $345 million. In fact, it may be the … <Read More>


Thank You Landmarks Preservation Commission

Here is a bouquet of flowers for the Landmarks Preservation Commission for preserving the greatest interior spaces in New York City. This thought came to mind when I entered the former Bowery Savings Bank building at 130 Bowery in Manhattan to attend New York Law School’s annual Gala on Monday, February 25, 2013. Guests at the New York Law School Gala entered the Bank through what Landmarks described as a “triumphal arch motif” with an … <Read More>