By Jeff Wice and Alexis Marking
REDISTRICTING
Orange County Legislature Advances New Map
On a 5 to 2 vote last week, the Orange County Legislature’s Rules Committee approved a draft map for new county legislative districts that will be sent to the public for comment. The meeting follows a June meeting when several members walked out, preventing the committee from taking earlier action. The public comment period runs from August 2 – August 16 … <Read More>
TOMORROW IS PRIMARY DAY. DON’T FORGET TO VOTE IF YOU HAVE COMPETITIVE CONGRESSIONAL OR STATE LEGISLATIVE CONTESTS WHERE YOU LIVE.
State Commission Meets to Approve New Budget
The Independent Redistricting Commission met in Albany on June 20 to adopt a new budget and to let the public know that they would be busy at work preparing a report to send to the state legislature by end the of the year. The meeting, which lasted less … <Read More>
By Jeffrey M. Wice and Piper Benedict
New York State’s redistricting process following the 2020 Census failed to live up to the reforms envisioned by voters who endorsed the 2014 constitutional changes. Instead, the redistricting process proved unworkable, missed constitutional deadlines, and resulted in judicially-imposed districts. The time to fix the state’s redistricting process starts now, before the 2030 redistricting cycle gets underway.
General contractor with riggers license violated multiple Building Code provisions on construction job where worker fell from unpermitted scaffolding. Wayne Bellet contracted to perform brick façade work on a six-story building located at 880 St. Nicholas Avenue in Manhattan. Bellet commenced the brick façade work after his subcontractor constructed a 50-foot-tall supported scaffold and Bellet. On June 22, 2019, a worker fell off the supported scaffold at the location and died.
On October 26, 2023, Mayor Eric Adams announced that the city has now won around $4.2 million in three lawsuits against Daniel Ohebshalom, a/k/a Daniel Shalom, and his affiliates. This week, the Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement (OSE) won $1.1 million in payments of penalties and fines from a settlement agreement. The city had sued Ohebshalom alleging that he was engaging in tenant harassment and illegal short-term rentals in three buildings in Midtown and Hell’s … <Read More>
On September 7, 2023, the New York City Mayor’s Office and New York City Department of City Planning released plans for new affordable senior homes and a revamp of St. Andrew’s Playground in Central Brooklyn. The departments’ objective was to further their ‘Atlantic Avenue Mixed-Use Plan’ by building in a zone of Brooklyn that has been stifled by restrictive zoning regulations.