Governor Spitzer is facing opposition in his attempt to snuff out any Javits Center expansion by selling land surrounding the center to fill budget gaps. The administration still plans to renovate the convention center, but it will result in far less space than what was originally envisioned for the expansion, which would have cost between $1.8 billion and $3 billion. Senator Charles Schumer, Mayor Bloomberg and City Council speaker Christine C. Quinn oppose the land......

Even while targeted in the Troopergate scandal, State Senate leader Joseph Bruno was living in high style. The New York Sun is reporting that Bruno enjoyed a 3,500 square foot, two-story penthouse suite at the Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers, just weeks before the legislature selected the hotel chain to construct a luxury hotel in Albany.On November 30, the nine-member board of the Albany Convention Center Authority, which includes a member appointed by Mr.......

The proposed expansion of the Jacob J. Javitz convention center is essentially dead in the water as government officials admitted that the amount of money it would cost to undertake the project would not be worth the marginal return on investment that additional tax revenues would provide. Empire State Development Corporation chairman Pat Foye testified that about half of the expansion plan's $1.6 billion budget would be consumed just making repairs to the existing Javits......

EVENT: Into anime? It's your lucky weekend, the New York Anime Festival is in town! There will be previews, screenings and panels galore. Check out their website for more details. All Weekend // Jacob Javits Convention Center [655 W 34th St] // $30 day pass, $55 weekend pass SHOP: FIT and the Design Mavens come together for a 3 day shopstravaganza. Tons of designers we're not cool enough to have ever heard of will be......

Grand plans for the 7 line extension have run into the harsh reality of budgetary constraints. Originally, the 7 line was going to be extended westward from its terminus at 42nd St. and 7th Ave. to a stop at the Javits Convention Center at 41st St. and 11th Ave., before heading south to 34th St. and the proposed Hudson Yards development site. Construction for the $2.1 billion project is going to be paid for by......

The Dalai Lama has arrived in New York, speaking in his native Tibetan language for two hours yesterday to followers, fans and the faithful at the Javits Convention Center. Newsday reports:He delivered his entire speech without notes, pausing to take a sip of tea only at the end as tears of joy flowed through the crowd. [He stated:] "The Tibetan cause is a cause of justice, and that's something that cannot fade away. That is......

A memorial to thousands of people buried in downtown Manhattan will open to the public Friday at 1 p.m., and there will be a candlelight procession at 8 p.m. from Battery Park to the monument at Duane and Elk Sts. The African Burial Ground National Monument is set to open 16 years after construction workers discovered human remains while doing foundation work on a downtown federal building. What they discovered were the remains of early......

The area across from Shea Stadium known as the Iron Triangle has never seemed suitable for housing, mostly because it was home to hundreds of auto shops. That could all change, if Mayor Bloomberg gets his way. Yesterday, the mayor announced a master plan to revitalize Willets Point, the official name of the 61-acre area in Northern Queens. The plan would replace the 250 businesses, which employ about 1,300 people, with housing, office space,......

Car makers are flocking to the city with the New York International Auto Show opening this weekend (media previews start tomorrow) at the Javits Convention Center, and there's one particularly NYC-focused exhibit: Taxi '07. In honor of the taxi's 100th birthday, the Design Trust for Public Space has corralled many taxis "transformed" for the future to be displayed outdoors in an inner roadway at the Javits Center. There's “The World’s Fastest Taxi" (a hydrogen-powered......

EVENT: Housing works is opening their new store in Brooklyn today. With great events and thrifty finds and a way to support the HIV-positive homeless community, it's nice to see the store is expanding. 11am to 7pm // Housing Works Thrift Store [122 Montague St, Brooklyn Heights] ART: Photographer Haik Kocharian’s solo show at Robin Rice Gallery is “Isild Le Besco: the Early Years”. Fans of French cinema know Le Besco for her mercurial screen......

If you’re hiking, consider charging up your iPod, as Seattlest finds out that a man lost during a hike was found by the glow of his iPod. That cleverness seems to be devoid in cops who were using police cruiser instant messaging clients - although we imagine IMs “so are you nakie” to be included in cop shows, just for realism. If only the cops were busting the Hummer-driving jerk who made a poor......

You may have noticed that we've added another data source to our Gothamist Newsmap: now twice as much mayhem! Today's catastrophes: a water rescue in the Hudson off Houston Street, a "scaffold incident" at Leonard and Broadway, and double and triple shootings in Queens and Brooklyn. Yikes! On tonight's Nova science Now, Neil deGrasse Tyson (from the Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History) "mass extinction, the 1918 pandemic flu, robot engineer Cynthia......

Close your eyes for a moment (Crap, I guess this doesn’t work as well in print – maybe have a friend/co-worker with a soothing yet textured voice read the first paragraph to you). Ok, now imagine a magical land where each place you went, greeted you with a frosty beverage. Turn right and there’s a fine crafted, small production stout, straight ahead a zesty, refreshing Hefeweizen and perhaps a nutty, spicy ale and behind......

The Javits Center isn't the only NYC convention center getting ready for a growth spurt. Though the Javits expansion has been hitting yet more snags of late (like, uh, who is going to pay for it?) the Times today reports on the Bloomberg administrations newest pet convention project, the smaller convention area currently on Pier 94. Because the city has been busy building other places for boats to dock it says it should be......

Or at least that's what World Trade Center leaseholder Larry Silverstein promised yesterday, now that he and the Port Authority have agreed on terms that divvy up control of Ground Zero's various components. "I have instructed our construction team to mobilize into the site tomorrow so that we can begin construction of the Freedom Tower immediately," he told the media. The Port Authority says that the eastern section of the WTC site will be......

Nothing the Yankees do is without controversy. The proposed new stadium for the Bronx Bombers is coming under fire from some Bronx residents as the plan calls for the stadium to be built on two parks - the Macombs Dam Park and John Mullaly Park. The public hearing on the $800 million project had 85 speakers which the Daily News reports were chanting back and forth - "Build it now!" and "Not on the park!".......

The powerhouse duo of the NY Jets and Mayor Bloomberg's administration, supported by Lord knows how many lawyers, chalked up a win when the MTA board unanimously approved the Jets' bid to develop the West Side Railyards. And by unanimously approved, that means 14 voting board members thought the Jets' ultimate $210 million bid was better (or more feasible) than Cablevision's $400 million bid. Why was only $210 million accepted? The $440 million part......

The International Auto Show opens tomorrow at the Jacob Javits Center (aka the convention center everyone in NYC is unhappy with, but there aren't really any alternatives), and the local press has the scoop. Newsday has an interactive feature with all the show's new cars, and ABC 7 has an inside look. And most intriguingly, the NY Times notes how Jeep brought in tons of dirt to create an off-road course where cras drive up......

Mayor Bloomberg really wants construction on the Jets Stadium (aka the NY Sports and Convention Center) to start by the spring on the West Side, to better help NYC's chances of landing the Olympics, not to mention resolve the whole West Side development thing. Even though the Mayor said he might might might consider developing in Queens, Mayor Bling emphasized that having the stadium and a new convention center together (in Manhattan) would be the......

Oh, Hudson Yards/NY Sports and Convention Center - what a soap opera you have become. So MTA thinks that getting the most money possible for the West Side railyards is more important than a West Side Stadium. And the city is thinking about using revenue from city real estate development to fund the stadium. Whatever the case, as an editorial in the NY Times notes that MTA Chairman Peter Kalikow holds all the cards......

While this rumble involves men in suits with lawyers, there's nothing better than battling billionaires with big egos! On Friday night, Madison Square Garden owner Cablevision dangled a $600 million offer to develop the West Side railyards where the city and NY Jets want to build the NY Sports and Convention Center. The NYSCC has been a hot topic of debate amongst the community and politicians, especially since there's question as to whether or......

After their first loss of the season, the Jets face their first rebound challenge of the year on Monday night, as they host the Miami Dolphins. It's much more intriguing than most matchups between a 5-1 team and a 1-6 squad, particularly after Miami's offense came alive for the first time this season to outgun St. Louis 31-14 last week. Maybe that's why Jets coach Herm Edwards felt he needed to unleash a rare verbal......

Much of the off-season talk among Jets fans, politicians and residents of the West Side of Manhattan has centered on one thing � the proposed $1.4 billion New York Sports and Convention Center. While Cablevision (the parent company of Madison Square Garden) has led a high-budget campaign for public opinion, while the team has recently started its counterstrike with legend Joe Namath extolling the potential of the project, of which the city would cover......

Congressman Anthony Weiner is suggesting that the NY Jets move to Queens instead of the West Side of Manhattan. Why? Because it would be cheaper. Weiner says it would cost about $445 million to build in Willets Point, rather than the $1.4 billion it would cost in Manhattan. The Jets organization and city, however, argue that the tax revenue for a Manhattan-based stadium would be much more attractive than one in Queens, especially since the......

NYC and NY State finally formally announced the $2.8 billion plan to build Jets stadium, expand the Javits Center, and revitalize the West Side yesterday. And of course, there's a lot of disagreement and protest about the plan: How can the city funnel hundreds of millions of dollars when the school system needs money badly? Some assemblymen support expanding the convention center but not building the stadium. The immediate neighborhood doesn't want the project. The......

Another step closer to trying to create a new vibrant neighborhood in Manhattan, Deputy Mayor Dan Doctoroff unveiled plans for the Far West Side, which runs from 24th Street to 42nd Street, 8th Avenue to the Hudson River. The goal is to build two platforms over the railyards, which apparently was done with Grand Central Terminal. The Post reports that other parts of the proposal include: - A park the size of Bryant Park, shops,......

This week, Gizmodo blogs live from Euro Disneyland. ("Live, from Marne-la-Vallee!") Gothamist hears that the Phantom Manor is excellent there and in fact, there's a fan page dedicated to it, Ravenswood Manor. At age 3, Gothamist's favorite ride at Disney World was "it's a small world", testing parental patience by insisting to go on it 7 times in one day. Gizmodo, take a ride on "it's a small world" for Gothamist to vicariously walk down......