
The expansion of the “Big Apple Connect” program brings free internet and cable TV to thousands of NYCHA residents. Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.
On March 23, 2023, Mayor Eric Adams announced the expansion of the “Big Apple Connect,” the nation’s largest municipal broadband program that provides free internet and basic cable TV service to NYCHA developments. The program, launched last fall, is designed to help bridge the “digital divide”; according to cable service providers, between 30 to 40 percent of NYCHA residents are not subscribed to a broadband service. (more…)

Image credit: NYC Department of Parks & Recreation.
On March 20, 2023, the Parks Department announced that 240 new “second shift” employees had been recently hired to address park cleanliness issues on evenings and weekends. The new deployment of workers will operate on Thursdays through Sundays during evening hours to address trash, litter and graffiti at certain hotspots around the city. The staff’s efforts to clean up trash and litter will also serve as part of the city’s efforts to push back against pests like rodents. (more…)

The Fire Alarm and Telegraph Bureau, Bronx Central Office. Image Credit: LPC.
On March 14, 2023, the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted to calendar the Fire Alarm and Telegraph Bureau, Bronx Central Office building located at 1129 East 180th Street in the West Farms section of the Bronx. The building has remained in use for over a century. (more…)

An image of the Idling Complaint portal. The proposed bill would require the portal to be translated into ten additional languages. Image Credit: NYC DEP.
On February 2, 2023, City Council Member Alexa Avilés introduced Int. 898 at the full Council meeting. The bill would require the New York City Department of Environmental Protection to translate its Citizen’s Air Complaint Portal into ten, non-English “designated citywide languages.” (more…)

Part of the proposed Linden Street Historic District. Image Credit: LPC.
On February 28, 2023, the Landmarks Preservation Commission held a public hearing for the proposed Linden Street Historic District, located in Bushwick, Brooklyn. The proposed district consists of 32 brick and brownstone row houses located from 3 through 13 Linden Street on the south side of the street and 15 through 55 Linden Street on the north side of the street between Bushwick Avenue and Broadway. The proposed historic district would be the first in Bushwick. (more…)