The Madison Avenue building where a freak elevator accident occurred earlier this month—killing one person—is set to re-open in early January. On Dec. 14, Y&R ad executive Suzanne Hart was killed when the elevator at 285 Madison Avenue malfunctioned as she was stepping in, crushing her. The 26-story office tower, which is owned by Y&R's parent company WPP PLC, has been closed since then. But Y&R aren't coming back. more ›

The body of a woman killed in a freak elevator accident yesterday was not removed until nearly 7 p.m.—seven hours after she was crushed to death. And the other passengers in the elevator who helplessly looked on as she died were not freed for over an hour. When they finally got out, they were "in severe distress," Fire Lt. Glenn Berube tells the Post. But it took rescuers much longer to remove Suzanne Hart's mangled body from the elevator shaft. more ›

The cash-strapped MTA announced is will sell its Madison Avenue headquarters—which are in 341, 345 and 347 Madison Avenue—in hopes of getting $150 million to help its coffers. The NY Times reports, "A buyer could demolish the structures and erect a modern skyscraper, and could also buy unused development rights over Grand Central Terminal and build an even taller tower than might otherwise be allowed." more ›

Cops have arrested the “person of interest” suspected in a heist that left the 71-year-old owner of an upper Manhattan jewelry store dead. On Wednesday police found 37 pieces of jewelry in Edmond Alma’s apartment including 14 rings, seven necklaces and some bracelets, earrings and charms. They also found a bullet-resistant vest and 9 mm bullets—the very same type used to shoot the shop's proprietor. Against all that evidence Alma’s lawyer said "My client is not the shooter, he was not in that jewelry store." more ›

Investigators questioning a man thought to be involved in a deadly Upper East Side jewelry store robbery recovered a bulletproof vest and a safe containing stolen jewelry in the Washington Heights resident's apartment. Police have not charged the "person of interest," but according to the Post they've "spent nearly 24 hours quizzing him at the 19th Precinct station house about the $1.2 million heist" that resulted in the death of 71-year-old employee Henry Menahem. more ›

Investigators are questioning a "person of interest" in a Madison Avenue jewelry store robbery that left an elderly employee dead. Though they aren't calling the man a suspect in the fatal Jan. 28 hold-up, the Washington Heights resident was brought to the 19th Precinct after pieces of jewelry stolen from the R.S. Durant shop were discovered in his possession. more ›

More details have emerged about the Upper East Side jewelry store robbery that left a 71-year-old man dead. The gunman entered the R. S. Durant shop on Madison Avenue at around 12:20 pm yesterday, tossed canvas bags at victim Henry Menahem and another 49-year-old worker, and told the employees to stuff the bags with jewelry. When both workers refused, the perp popped the magazine out of his 9-milimeter semiautomatic pistol and showed them that the weapon was loaded, the Times reports. "You think I'm kidding? This is real," he said, according to NYPD spokesman Paul Browne. more ›

A gunman shot the owner of a Madison Avenue jewelry store in the chest during a brazen robbery this afternoon. The perp fired at the victim at around 12:25 pm before fleeing the R.S. Durant shop, which is on Madison Avenue between East 75th and 76th streets. The Times reports that it's unclear what, if anything was taken, though the police scanner indicates the "PERP FLED WITH 80% OF THE MERCHANDISE" and MyFoxNY notes the crook escaped with "a significant amount of jewelry." The victim was taken to Lenox Hill Hospital, where he is reportedly in serious condition. Police called for a high-level mobilization to track down the suspect, who "is described as a black male, 5'10" tall and wearing a black wool hat." more ›

EV Grieve has a funny write-up and pictures of how 40 people lingered around not-yet-opened Madison Avenue restaurant Serge because an opossum was hanging around outside. (They are called opossums in the Western Hemisphere and possums in the Eastern.) Police officers create a makeshift barrier using folding chairs and mail crates. EV Grieve described the atmosphere, "So we all stood around like a bunch of dopes while the police officers figured out the best method of humanely trapping the possum. That left people time to theorize. 'How do you think he got here?' Well, said one man, 'I've seen possum in the Bronx.' Another man chimed in, 'I bet he took the subway!'" The opossum was rescued and, we assume, taken to Animal Care & Control. Back in 2004, ACC's director called opossums, "urban wildlife - wildlife that have adapted to an urban environment." The creatures are nocturnal and live in trees, so that's probably why we don't see them more often. more ›

Between 2008 and the end of 2010, six New York City bridges will turn 100 years old, and the newly formed New York City Bridge Centennial Commission will be making sure they're adequately feted. The six centennial spans are the Madison Avenue, Manhattan, Borden Avenue, Pelham Bay, University Heights and Queensboro bridges. more ›

Okay people, time for your morning update on The Ledge – come on, you know you want it. Even Daniel Day Lewis says there’s nothing else to talk about. (Scroll down.) more ›

A Brookings Institution study reveals that New York is a great place for walking, with 21 out of 21 walkable urban places. But Washington D.C. is the most walkable on a per capita basis while New York is ranked 10th, because New York is measured as the NYC metro area, including NJ, Pennsylvania and Connecticut. The study's author, Christopher B. Leinberger, admits there are issues with the methodology, namely that walkable places are weighted the... more ›

"Broadway Joe" Namath (who's now hitting AARP-age) will be larger than life when his life story hits sacks the big screen. Starring as the Hall of Fame quarterback (and ladies man) will be none other than Jake Gyllenhaal, who will likely only have to do a touch of bulking up for the role.While other quarterbacks racked up bigger lifetime stats, Namath became the first football player to achieve rock-star status. The pic will tell the... more ›

The driver who ran over cab driver Mohamed Elwaleed after an early Tuesday morning argument was arrested in Pennsylvania yesterday. Luis Flores, 24, told authorities he didn't mean to kill the cab driver, and authorities believe him. Flores, while driving his cousin's Nissan Altima, had apparently gotten into an accident with Elwaleed, a 44-year-old Sudanese immigrant. Elwaleed followed Flores for a few blocks, in hopes of trading insurance information. At Madison Avenue and East 65th... more ›

The police are still looking for the driver who drove a Nissan Altima into 44-year-old taxi driver Mohamed Elwaleed yesterday. Elwaleed was pinned under the car and died, and the driver and his female passenger fled the intersection at Madison Avenue and East 65th Street on the Upper East Side. A witness who was walking his dog at the time told the Post that the cab and Nissan got into an accident near Central Park,... more ›

Police have arrested a former employee in the death of an Upper East Side jewelry store's bookkeeper. Police discovered Sandra Rodriguez's slashed body at the Michael Dawkins store on East 65th Street off Madison Avenue early yesterday morning. Rodriguez's family became worried when she didn't return home from work on Thursday night, so they filed a missing person's report with the police at the 19th Precinct. The police went to the store around 11PM on... more ›

The police found a 52-year-old stabbed to death inside a jewelry store on East 65th Street off Madison Avenue this morning. The woman's family had reported her missing. They found the woman stabbed in the torso at the Michael Dawkins store around 4AM. She was pronounced dead at the scene. The police have no suspects at this time. According to WABC 7, the store sells jewelry and also has antique home furnishings and mirrors inside.... more ›

The Landmarks Preservation Commission approved a modern design for a townhouse to be built at 34 East 62nd Street. The lot, just east of Madison Avenue, has been empty ever since Dr. Nicholas Bartha blew up his home, which seemed like an effort to keep his ex-wife from taking the home as part of their acrimonious divorce settlement. more ›

If you've ever struggled to figure out which direction you're facing when you step out of a subway station (and there are no landmarks or sun to guide you), you won't have those problems at four subway stations in Midtown anymore. That's because the Department of Transportation and the Grand Central Partnership are placing temporary directional compass decals outside them. more ›

We got mixed reviews in our poll about the Sex and the City movie that's coming out more than three years after the show ended its HBO series. Whether we wanted it or not, the movie is going to happen -- and film crews and cast have already arrived. more ›

There were a number of deaths and injuries from incidents all over the city early Sunday morning. The first was a collision between a Toyota and BMW on Hylan Boulevard in Staten Island. The Toyota's driver, 29-year-old Paul Vinin, died while the BMW's driver Jolyn SIlva, was critically injured. Silva's passenger, 17-year-old Paulina Vivirito, had minor injuries. The Staten Island Advance, which said that Toyota "t-boned the BMW", reports that both Vinin and Silva had suspended licenses, from not paying tickets. more ›

The Daily News has FDNY audio and transcripts from the 7-alarm fire at the Deutsche Bank building. The tapes are harrowing: One firefighter yells, "Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! Engine 24 standing by! I'm lost. I'm trying to make it on the charged hose line. Running out of air!" came a frantic call." Another says, "All the staircases, all the landings are plywooded up. ... It would take us a week to get through and check each one." And then a higher-ranking official says, "I want a roll call! ... I don't give a s--t about the building. I give a s--t about the guys!" more ›

If you've passed the the Daryl Roth Theatre in Union Square lately, you may have wondered, "What is a Meow Mix Acatemy?" Well, it's simple: Meow Mix is giving cat owners an opportunity to understand their cats better by offering classes about cat behavior! more ›

As we know, Con Edison and the New York City Department of Environmental Protection have confirmed that asbestos was found in debris after the steam pipe explosion at 41st Street and Lexington, but that there is no airborne asbestos. If you were in the area of the explosion and have contaminated clothing, Con Ed is actually accepting clothes and will dispose of them:

Anyone who was in that area around 6 p.m. who has dust or debris on clothing or belongings should put them in a plastic bag and bring it to the Con Edison customer service van parked at the corner of Madison Avenue and 42nd Street. The van will be at that location for the next several days from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Con Edison will arrange for the safe disposal of these items. Customer care personnel will be available to help people fill out a reimbursement request.

A look at some noteworthy television this week: more ›

The 29th Annual Museum Mile Festival is tomorrow, with more creativity than you can imagine concentrated in a festival on 5th Avenue (from 82nd Street to 105th Street). From the Met to El Museo del Barrio you'll be able to find waived museum admissions. more ›

The NY Sun reports that members of Community Board 6 have spoken, and they want the late Kurt Vonnegut to have a street named after him. The Manhattan block where he spent most of his writing career (East 48th Street and Second Avenue) may be named "Kurt Vonnegut Way." A decision should be made by October. Why that block (which, incidentally, he shared with another famous writer, E.B. White)?: more ›

It's been 33 years since the last Second Avenue Subway groundbreaking, so it's high time for new generations of straphangers to revel in the hope of a new subway line. We also expect the public -- especially the Upper East Side-residing public -- to become jaded with construction delays, traffic issues, and noise. Here's the press release from the MTA:

Tomorrow morning's historic groundbreaking ceremony for the Second Avenue Subway can be seen by all New Yorkers live on NY1, beginning at 10:30 a.m. The groundbreaking ceremony will take place in one of the subway tunnels built under Second Ave. in the 1970s but never used. Due to the limited capacity of the tunnel, the MTA arranged for the live broadcast with NY1 and will open its board room at 347 Madison Avenue for members of the public to join MTA staff for a public viewing and celebration. more ›

The Manhattan office of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) served Starbucks a steaming hot cup of charges of anti-labor practices Friday. The move by the NLRB followed complaints by International Industrial Workers of the World organizers that the company was suppresing their union-forming efforts. more ›

Pair of 8's owner Ron Didner and new Chef Matthew Hamilton (formerly of Prune, Uovo, and Zuni Cafe, pictured at right) pair up with Best Cellars to host the first of this monthly series starting with Wine 101. Wine will be paired with five courses. $70 for a single class and $65 for two or more classes, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. Call 212-362-8730 to register. 568 Amsterdam Avenue between 87th and 88th Streets. more ›