Welcome to last summer amNewYork! The McCarren Park Pool parties and concerts aren't happening anymore. There was this whole long, drawn out thing about it when the series ended to make way for a $50 million makeover, at the end of which it will be a pool again. There were meetings and debates about it and stuff. more ›

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Later today, the city will discuss whether the I.M. Pei-designed Silver Towers should be landmarked. The Observer reported that NYU announced its support today, a reversal from an earlier position over three years ago. more ›

After the Giants' wild underdog Super Bowl win last night, it's no surprise that New York area papers are reveling in this victory. The Daily News give its readers a special commemorative Super Bowl victory cover (inside, there's a traditional front and sports back cover - sans Giants mention). Both the News and the NY Post feature Eli Manning holding the Vince Lombardi trophy. Maybe this is their way of apologizing for ragging on him mercilessly (though with reason) for his first seasons. more ›

We were encouraged to hear a statue would be unveiled in Central Park memorializing the racehorse Barbaro, the Kentucky Derby winner who remained undefeated in all of his races before tragically breaking a leg in the Preakness Stakes (video). more ›

Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League – a group that exists to promote Bill Donohue, er, prevent “virulent anti-Catholicism” – is leading a protest against Jerry Springer: The Opera, which will be performed at Carnegie Hall on January 29th and 30th and stars Harvey Keitel as Springer. The show chronicles Jerry Springer’s adventures in hell, where he's forced to host an outrageous talk show whose guests include Adam and Eve, Mary, Jesus, and, as his crowd “warm up” man, Satan. more ›

The shocking news of Heath Ledger's death in an SoHo apartment is front page news. more ›

On Sunday Gowanus Lounge received frantic emails from tenants in a blocklong loft building at 475 Kent Avenue in South Williamsburg who were being suddenly tossed out into the frigid night by the FDNY; we went to the building on Monday morning and talked to some of the shell-shocked residents as they moved out, one of whom told us, “Sheila [Properties] owns the whole lot and I don’t want to speculate but there’s a reason they want to empty the whole lot.” more ›

Not only will Governors Island be getting a makeover, it will also get the city's first bike sharing program. amNew York reported that Dutch firm West 8, hired to handle the Governors Island makeover, "will also build 3,000 wooden bicycles for free use by visitors to the island." more ›

Riders were stranded on the platform and in subway cars when a Brooklyn-bound L train stalled under the East River just after 8PM. Reader tokyohanna, who took this photograph of people waiting, wrote at the time, "There is a train stalled between first and Bedford. They stopped trains in both directions. A sea of people is on the platform and we can barely walk." amNew York reports that the train had a mechanical failure close... more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a shooting on Prospect Pl. in Brooklyn, a collapse at Flushing Ave. at Portland Ave. in Brooklyn, and an armed robbery on 157th St. and 109th Ave. in Queens.
• The Queens courtroom where three cops will be tried on charges of shooting Sean Bell to death is undergoing $175K in renovations in preparation for the trial, even though attorneys for the defense are arguing for a change of venue.
• Rehab center Silver Hill Hospital is being sued after a woman committed suicide while under the facility's care. The person bringing the suit is the executor of her estate, himself a former patient at Silver Hill and someone her doctor advised her to avoid.
• AM New York looks at some NYC bars beloved by Hollywood filmmakers.
• Alex Kelly, the high school rapist from Darien, CT who fled to Europe where he lived on the lam for years before being captured, was released from prison after serving 10 years of his 16 year sentence.
• Cops responding to a call that a woman was being assaulted inside Club Duvet on East 21st St. early this morning were instead met with a patron staggering out of the club with blood flowing from a chest wound. The victim died after being taken to St. Vincent's Hospital.
• A 14-month-old toddler fell out of an open window at his Brooklyn home yesterday, but landed without injury. The child fell 20 feet to the roof of an adjacent record store.
• The Gowanus Lounge reports that the IKEA in Red Hook believes in recycling. It will be using the paving stones that are being ripped up out of Beard St. for some secondary use on the store's property.

Earlier this week, a National Labor Committee report claimed that crosses sold at St. Patrick's Cathedral, Trinity Church and other churches were made in Chinese sweatshops. The NLC said that the Singer Company employed young women at 26 cents an hour and forced them to work a 100 hours a week; plus, the woman are docked pay for food and boarding, leaving them with pay of just 9 cents an hour. You can read... more ›

The city's last privately owned island was sold to the federal government for $2 million. South Brother Island, a 7-acre island (just west of Rikers Island), will be turned over to the city's Parks and Recreation Department and will remain, as amNew York reports, "significant nesting colony for several types of shore birds, including Egrets, Cormorant, and Night Herons." According to the NY Times, the deal, which was "brokered by the Trust for Public... more ›

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a pediatric arrest on 5th Ave. near 117th St. in Manhattan, a person fatally struck by a train at 39th Ave. and 111th St. in Queens, and a submerged barge at the south end of the train tressel for the A line in Queens. Mayor Bloomberg doesn't just take the subway to work; he likes the Subway sandwich chain. "I love Subway sandwiches. I think they're a great deal,... more ›

Yesterday morning, two men riding bicycles were killed in separate accidents. Both occurred in Brooklyn. Around 4AM, the a 26-year-old at Union Avenue and Ten Eyck Street in East Williamsburg was hit by an oil truck. WABC reported that he was cycling in the wrong direction. The cyclist, identified as Craig Murphy [sic] who is a member of RightRides, died at the scene. The truck driver was not charged. more ›

Thousands of workers from the New York Taxi Workers' Alliance have started their two-day strike this morning. These drivers, who represent about 7,000 of the 44,000 drivers total (there are 13,000 cabs), are striking over unhappiness with the city's plan to install new, some say unproven and useless technology in cabs. more ›

Yesterday, East Harlem residents protested "greedy landlords" to raise concerns about gentrification. One resident, Otoniel Santiago, told amNew York that his $1,100 rent for his family's two-bedroom has zoomed up to $3,000 because of extra charges his landlord has added, "They said I had to pay or they would take legal action. I think they want us to get tired and move out, then they will bring in people who will pay $1,700 a month." more ›

The NY Taxi Workers Alliance says that its drivers will strike in September over GPS tracking systems will be coming to taxis starting in October. The city has said GPS systems will help passengers retrieve lost items (even if they don't have receipts or medallion numbers) because the Taxi and Limousine Commission will be able to find the taxi that dropped them off at a certain location. more ›

The developer who plans to transform Brooklyn waterfront where the Domino Sugar factory stands unveiled the billion-dollar plans yesterday. According to the NY Sun, there will be 2,200 housing units, 120,000 square feet of retail space, and 100,000 square feet of community space. Thirty percent of the housing will be affordable: 530 will be rentals (100 units for families making $21,000; 330 for families making up to $40,000; "100 for seniors who make up to 50% of the median income for the area") while 130 units will be for sale to "families making up to $90,000 annually." more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: A train derailed on Otto Rd. in Queens, a stabbing at Rockaway Blvd. and Broadway in Brooklyn, and a sexual assault at Coney Island Hospital in Brooklyn.
• Visitors to the New York-New York hotel-casino in Las Vegas got an extra dose of big city verisimilitude last night, when shots rang out in the casino's mezzanine. Three people were struck, but none were seriously injured before the gunman was tackled.
• 20 newspapers around the country received letters postmarked from Queens and the Bronx that threatened investment firm Goldman Sachs. "Hundreds will die. We are inside. You cannot stop us."
• State Senator Marty Golden is proposing extending the Shore Parkway bike path over the Verrazano Bridge to Staten Island. Currently, Brooklyn riders who'd like to pedal around Staten Island have to cross the Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan and then take the Staten Island Ferry.
• AM New York lists a variety of businesses around New York that are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, including gyms, restaurants, spas, and the 5th Ave. Apple store.
• The New York Times reports on either one of the first, or the first Mr. Softee truck drivers ticketed under a new anti-noise ordinance for playing his jingle while parked at a curbside in Fort Totten, Queens.
• A six-month-old golden retriever puppy woke its sleeping owner by barking, alerting the man that his home was on fire after it got struck by lightning Thursday night in Garrison, a small town north of the city. The puppy named Ranger died in the fire after becoming lost in the smoke and flames, but he wound up saving the life of Richard Shafran, who escaped the burning home in time.
• A man is suing New York City after he was wrongfully imprisoned for 22 years after being convicted of rape. Alan Newton repeatedly asked for a review of DNA evidence from his alleged victim's rape kit, but was incorrectly told that the evidence had been lost, after the police conducted only a quick and cursory search for the exonerating items.

The relatively recent boom of opening bank branches in Manhattan is examined in amNew York. With a 36% increase in Manhattan bank branches between 2000 and 2006, it's hard for many people to walk a block or two without passing at least one (though there are more in places like Midtown or the intersection of Second Avenue and 10th Street). Banks will pay higher rents, which makes landlords less willing to continue to rent spaces to mom-and-pop businesses. And basically, a pun explains why there are so many:

Chase spokesman Tom Kelly...pointed out that "economies of scale" make operating 120 bank branches not that much more expensive than running just 90... more ›

On Tuesday, the Landmarks Preservation Commission held a hearing about landmarks designation for the Domino Sugar Factory, a complex of buildings on the Brooklyn waterfront. Overall, preservationists, community members, and the developers agreed that preservation is important. The only question is how much should be preserved: While the main refinery building will almost certainly be landmarked given support, there's debate about the surrounding area. more ›

The Landmarks Preservation Committee unanimously approved designating Sunnyside Gardens a landmark. However, amNew York reports that the preservationists who supported the measure were outnumbered by residents of the Queens enclave. One expressed dismay by saying, "It's going to cause a lot of problems for the low-income people We are disappointed. This process is not a democratic system." more ›

Hold on, hold on. After yesterday's reports that City Councilman Domenic Recchia was working on a deal to keep Coney Island's Astroland amusement park in place for the 2008 season, it turns out that the negotiations may have hit a snag. AM New York reports that Astroland has not received a lease extension. Owner Carol Albert said, "Of course, if Thor Equities wishes to provide a lease, under reasonable terms, Astroland would be very interested in negotiating an agreement." more ›

AM New York's cover feature is on the landmark debate amongst neighbors in Sunnyside, Queens. Some residents want the 77-acre area, made up of houses and park area, to be landmarked, while others are worried about the problems landmark status can cause. Sunnyside Gardens, created by the City Housing Corporation in the 1920s, was meant to be affordable housing (there's a nice write-up at Forgotten-NY). more ›

An AMNew York article delves into the neighborhood and tactical thoughts behind NYPD sky watch towers. The towers have four digital cameras, a spotlight, and a place for a cop to observe what's happening from two stories above the sidewalk. Reaction to the sky watches has been mixed. more ›

A Harlem minister is leading a bizarre boycott of businesses in his neighborhood with the goal of forcing stores out of Harlem to ease rising rent pressure. Rev. James Manning heads Atlah Ministries on West 123rd St. and believes that if money stops flowing to Harlem stores, they will go out of business and rents in the neighborhood will decrease. This actually makes sense to us in that yes, a self-imposed economic blight, with rows of vacant storefronts, would probably lead to lower property values. Still, it doesn't seem like the best or even sensible idea. Nonetheless, Reverend Manning is committed to encouraging Harlemites to travel outside of a zone between 110th and 155th Streets to do their shopping until May 2010 or until Harlem is an affordable economic wasteland. more ›

This map isn't necessarily brand new, but it is a nice look at the MTA's big East Side Access project, which will connect the LIRR to Grand Central Terminal. amNew York (which has a gallery) and the NY Times visited the tunnel near 63rd Street and 2nd Avenue, where parts for the tunnel boring machine are being delivered. The TBM will then drill through rock to extend an existing tunnel to Grand Central. Fun fact via AMNY: After the TBM eats through stone, the pieces "about the size of 'buffalo chips,' according to one contractor on the site, are pulled out by conveyor belt." more ›

Claude Monet, forger of French impressionism - and artist of choice amongst college girls everywhere, will have over 60 of his masterpieces on view at the Wildenstein & Co. gallery starting tomorrow (and running through June 15th). more ›

President Bush visited New York City yesterday to encourage Congress to reauthorize his No Child Left Behind program. Bush gave a speech at the Harlem Village Academy school and praised its founder, faculty and students and emphasized the importance of the NCLB Act. Bush made it a point to visit all eight classrooms and shake every student's hand, prompting one student to tell the Sun, "I think it was the best day of my life," and a teacher to ask Bush for more money to be added to NCLB. more ›