Get ready to groan: "I look forward to 'Phase Two' of the 'blinging up' of the Parachute Jump," said inveterate cornball Marty Markowitz during his recent State of the Borough speech. The 262-foot Coney Island landmark was retrofitted with a lighting system two years ago, but borough president Markowitz and others deemed the effect too subdued and “artsy.” Now the city is soliciting proposals from companies to create a flashier effect. $1.5 million has been......

There was a bit in the MTA's August 8 Storm Report which mentioned that the MTA was working on some street furniture designs to "raise vent heights to prevent water inflow." As part of the recommendation to "Implement corrective action plan for top flood-prone locations," the MTA, with the Department of Transportation and Department of Environmental Protection, is developing short- and long-term solutions at the most flooding-vulnerable locations. Perhaps a more promising and intriguing......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a water rescue off the beach at 105th St. and Shore Front Parkway in Queens, a person struck by a train at 77th St. and 4th Ave. in Brooklyn, and a shooting at Martin Luther King Pl. and Tompkins Ave. in Brooklyn. A middle-aged man was arrested Sunday evening after attempting to rob a McDonald's on Staten Island, but settling for ripping the clear acrylic box of donations for......

Yesterday, Mayor Bloomberg unveiled the first new bus shelter from the billion-dollar street furniture contract with Cemusa. The shelter, located at Queens Boulevard and 82nd Avenue, is made out of stainless-steel and tempered glass (both the walls and the roof) and was designed by Grimshaw Architects. Some more details from Cemusa:- Each bus shelter will include bench seating. The bench is vandal-resistant and designed to prevent reclining. - The bus shelters display the name......

The Department of Tranportation revealed prototypes of the public toilets that are part of the $1 billion street furniture deal the city struck with outdoor company Cemusa last fall. While the papers are detailing the minutiae of doing your business in a this toilet (pay 25 cents for 15 minutes in the stainless steel and frosted glass water closet; door will open after 15 minutes), Gothamist wondered how this preview worked if you couldn't......