Results tagged “fdrdrive”

UN General Assembly=Traffic Nightmare All Week

If this was the week you were thinking about finally signing up for that Driver's Ed class in midtown, think again. The UN General Assembly will be causing a clogged-up rut all around the center of the city, starting tomorrow and lasting all the way through Thursday. The worst of it will be on 42nd Street and 57th Streets, closed from 5th Avenue all the way over to 1st and 2nd Aves, respectively. Second Avenue between 42nd and 57th will be shut down for traffic that aren't emergency vehicles as well. And if you think taking the FDR will help you avoid the mess, think again. It'll be closed in both directions intermittently from 63rd Street to the South Ferry.

Insane East Side Chase Leads Cop to Pass Off His Gun

It was only after all this that the officer ended up passing his gun over to the janitor who had unknowingly lent his uniform to the suspect, 51-year-old Placido Contreras. As the cop wrestled with a bloody McNair, he passed his gun to Contreras and told him, "Keep your eyes on him and shoot him if you have to." The janitor told the Post that it was the first time he held a real gun.

A $114 million plan to put a waterfront park on the East River, just south of the United Nations, came into focus yesterday; the four-acre site is where a parking lot for a Con Edison power plant used to reside. City Councilman Daniel Gardonick said, "The opportunity to create this riverfront park is an opportunity we cannot afford to let slip away." The Municipal Arts Society renderings for the park envision a floating pylon in the river, featuring a restaurant, viewing platform, exhibition space and ferry landing.

  • Clothing retailer Yellow Rat Bastard has been ordered to pay $1.4 million as part of a settlement related to underpaid wages and overtime.

  • Weighing in on the modified congestion pricing plan the Traffic Congestion Mitigation Commission recommended, Mayor Bloomberg said:

    "The Commission has done a thorough and thoughtful job. They've taken testimony from hundreds of residents, community leaders and civic organizations. They've held dozens of public meetings and have analyzed mountains of data. Although the final recommendation varies from our original proposal, I accept it.

    An off-duty police officer turned himself in for Sunday's fatal road rage-related shooting in Harlem. Sean Sawyer, who joined the NYPD and worked as an undercover officer, approached a police cruiser yesterday morning, "I think you guys are looking for me for the shooting last night on the FDR [Drive]...This is the gun I used...I thought the guy was armed - make a sign like a gun. I think I'm having a heart attack; please get an ambulance."

    The 2007 FISA Rowing Tour USA makes a stop in New York City today by rowing around the isle of Manhattan. The last leg of the week-long rowing tour is a "Row Around New York" where participants will row 30 miles around the island. The boats began at 6 am today at Pier 40 (Houston St. and the Hudson River) and should finish there at around 5 pm. Participating rowers, there are 70 of them, hail from 17 different countries with ano additional 50 rowers from the New York area.

    The 31st Annual Macy's 4th of July Fireworks extravaganza is just around the corner. This is the largest display in America and takes a year to plan. This year's show will stretch wider than usual in a "high definition" format, choreographed to the New York Pops (simulcast on 1010 WINS, TV broadcast on NBC). The Daily News has an interview with Gary Souza, fireworks designer for the event; he says, "We have a new orange that’s really awesome. It’s a golden-red color. We also have this silvery pixie dust that bursts into pink and chartreuse. And look for the aqua jellyfish during the 'Pirates of the Caribbean' song."

    One casualty of MAS's proposal would be the Robert Moses Playground, home of the East End Hockey Association. The mostly featureless lot hosts the local roller hockey league, which is claiming that Robert Moses Playground is the only area of its type on the East Side that it can use. MAS is proposing that the playground be traded to the U.N., which would build a 35-story tower on the land, in exchange for waterfront access to complete the greenway.

    A few years back we saw them do a set at Sin-e as "Wolfbait", they played some great covers including R Kelly's Bump n' Grind. So you sort of don't want to miss this show, as they're slated to play as Wolfbait this time as well.

    Residential groups on the Upper East Side had filed a lawsuit to stop the building of a garbage transfer station at East 91st Street and the FDR Drive, but a judge dismissed the suit, noting that the plan would "further the city's announced, rational goals of promoting equity among the boroughs for responsibility over waste disposal, and reducing truck traffic." Indeed, Mayor Bloomberg proposed the controversial plan almost two years ago and tried to get it passed last year but the City Council foiled it. He managed to get enough votes this year from the City Council, but the lawsuit was still pending.

    THEATER: The end of the Fringe Festival draws near, and the dilemma sharpens: what should you not miss? Of the shows that are still on, a good bet is Chris Harcum's http://www.chrisharcum.com/ Some Kind of Pink Breakfast, a solo comedy (but multi-character) with music by Debby Schwartz that melds '80's songs and movies with events from his own experiences, making for a hilarious yet poignant retro performance that should be a perfect way to end this year's festival. - Mallory Jensen

    If you haven't made friends with someone who has East River and/or Statue of Liberty waterfront views yet, we have some answers. The Macy's Fireworks Spectacular has 3 different fireworks launching sites this year (here's the map) - on the East River between 23rd and 42nd streets, between Liberty and Ellis Islands, and south of South Street Seaport. The fireworks are set to light up the sky over the East River around 9pm.

    Guess the rain we kept hearing about this weekend didn't show showed up the minute we typed that. Keep your fingers crossed for a whole weekend Sunday of sun? And don't forget to wish your mother happy mother's day tomorrow!

    When I'm in a taxi going over the Brooklyn Bridge from the FDR Drive, I always notice a sign proclaiming the onramp to be the "Ari Halberstam Memorial Ramp". Who is this guy, and why did he get an onramp to a bridge named after him, of all things?

    We think the best bargains in the city for physical activities are to be found at the fitness centers run by the Parks Department. The Asser Levy Recreation Center, which is located at 23rd street and FDR Drive, has weekly classes in Karate, Tai Chi, and Tai Ji/Qi. For $75 per year -that’s the MONTHLY cost for some fancy gyms- you can join the center, which also happens to have an indoor pool and a fitness room.

    -Karen, Williamsburg

    It's good to know that even though Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez has a Metrocard, he's not letting New York real estate brokers down by getting a downmarket walk-up: A-Rod and wife Cynthia have rented a Midtown East apartment in "a full service building with a doorman and concierge. The apartment has views of both the East River and the park, and will have easy access to Yankee Stadium via the FDR Drive." The rent? A cool $20,000 a month. Next up: News of the multimillionaire apartment he will be buying.

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