
Image Credit: DOT
On October 31, 2022, almost 100 of the City’s Open Streets and pedestrian spaces will be open for safe Halloween activities to provide children with an opportunity to have fun on car-free streets. Through the Department of Transportation and community partners, open streets will be available from 4 to 8 pm on Halloween night through the “Trick or Streets” program. (more…)

Gail Benjamin and Anthony Crowell answer questions from Council Members on September 7, 2022. The Council voted to approve their nominations to the City Planning Commission a week later. Image Credit: City Council
On September 14, 2022, the City Council voted to approve Gail Benjamin and Anthony Crowell to the New York City Planning Commission. Earlier that same day, the City Council Committee on Rules, Privileges, and Elections also voted in favor following a hearing a week earlier. (more…)

Rendering of the new Public Health Lab. Image Credit: NYC EDC.
The new facility is expected to open in 2026. On July 6, 2022, the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC) announced that city officials broke ground on the new NYC Public Health Laboratory, located adjacent to the Harlem Hospital complex on West 137th Street in Manhattan. While the (EDC) is managing the building’s construction, the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) will operate the laboratory upon its completion. (more…)

OMB Director Jacques Jiha speaks with NYLS Dean and President Anthony W. Crowell and Professor Ross Sandler at the 180th CityLaw Breakfast. Image Credit: New York Law School
Today, June 29, 2022, Office of Management and Budget Director Jacques Jiha spoke at the 180th CityLaw Breakfast. His talk focused on the City’s economic recovery and the shaping of the City’s budget in response to the pandemic. Professor Ross Sandler, Director of the Center for New York City Law provided opening remarks. Dean and President of New York Law School Anthony W. Crowell held a closing discussion with Director Jiha and Professor Sandler. This Breakfast was sponsored by ConEdison, Greenberg Traurig, and Verizon. This was the fourteenth virtual CityLaw Breakfast as in-person events are not feasible at this time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (more…)

Hybrid hearings will allow members of the public to either attend public meetings in person or virtually. However, the state of emergency will keep meetings virtual for now. Image Credit: CityLand
Community boards often do not have the same resources as City agencies to have hybrid hearings. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic resulted in many changes on how state and city governments conducted business, including public hearings. New York’s Open Meetings Law was originally designed to promote transparency, requiring hearings to be held in person and open to the public, with notice about how to participate. After meetings went virtual due to the pandemic, discussions began about how the open meetings law should better reflect modern circumstances. (more…)