Just when you thought it was safe to bike and sit and fish (maybe not fish) off the new East River Esplanade, four wheeled rogues clothed in disgraceful New York puns and stubby shoes ruin the fun. DNAinfo reports that City councilmember Margaret Chin was SHOCKED to find the area rife with skateboarders. "It's really dangerous," Chin said in a hearing last week. "It's supposed to be a really tranquil place for people to sit and look at the water, but it was filled with young adults on skateboards. You need to create a place for them." Despite there being two skateparks nearby, we suppose the "tranquility" of sitting underneath the FDR is too much of a draw. more ›

Neighbors sick and tired of the protestors down at Occupy Wall Street now have a number to call that isn't 311. At the urging of City Councilwoman Margaret Chin, whose district includes Zuccotti Park, the month-old protest has created a dedicated, 24-hour hotline where residents can voice their concerns. There is also an e-mail address and a number for small businesses. How long until these numbers get abused? more ›

When a single gross puddle forms in say, Chelsea, the community bands together to eradicate the pestilence before an errant Christian Louboutin is senselessly killed. In Chinatown however, puddles seem insignificant when entire city blocks reek of decay. State Senator Daniel Squadron thinks this is unacceptable: a recent report on "ponding" (like "planking" but with more loogies) conducted by his office showed that Chinatown has an array of nasty perma-puddles that just won't go away. 93 of them "had not drained within 48 hours of a rainfall." more ›

This morning DNAinfo reported that Council member Margaret Chin was "backing down" on her bill to punish people who buy knockoff goods with up to a year in jail or a $1,000 fine. "We're definitely getting some pushback," her chief of staff Jake Itzkowitz reportedly said. "I think [the bill] may not stay in its current form. The year of jail time may change." But Chin asks us, "Why would I back down from a bill I just introduced yesterday." Her communications director just fired off this statement, "Council member Chin is in no way backing down from this bill..." more ›

The city's seemingly futile crackdown on counterfeit designer merchandise could get some new teeth if City Councilwoman Margaret Chin has her way. Chin, whose district includes Chinatown, will introduce legislation this week that would make it illegal to buy knockoffs like bogus Louis Vuitton bags. Guilty buyers could face a year in jail or a $1000 fine if caught, and Chin says the heavy penalty is necessary if the city's going to staunch the flow of ripoff merchandise. But how are buyers supposed to know the purse they're buying from the street peddler is fake, and not just the deal of a lifetime?! more ›

In Chinatown “If you have something to say you write it up and you just post it up,” according to councilwoman Margaret Chin. Not on Craigslist or Yelp, on ad walls peeling with little white leaflets, or on any sign post or street lamp. Written out in Mandarin and Cantonese characters, the fliers' subjects range from rooms for rent (price negotiable) to complaints about particular lawyers, the Times reports in a profile of the vibrant communication spaces. Lincoln Cushing, co-author of “Chinese Revolutionary Posters,” says the posting practice dates back to after the 1949 revolution, when walls like the ones on Forsyth Street Manhattan and inside A & N Food Market in Flushing were rural towns’ conversation hubs, with posts constantly being read and responded to. more ›

While voter turnout for Tuesday's primary elections was really low—the NY Times suggests it could be the "lowest in modern New York City history"—one group did use their electoral muscle. In another article, the Times reports that aside from John Liu's 38% showing in the Comptroller race, "Asian-American candidates won Democratic primaries in three City Council districts on Tuesday... Of the 51 Council districts, 32 had primaries on Tuesday. Turnout in the three districts where Asian-Americans won was among the highest in the city: 17 to 18 percent, compared with a citywide average of 11 percent, according to the Board of Elections." Margaret Chin (pictured) defeated incumbent Alan Gerson for Council District 1; Yen Chou won the primary for Liu's old Council seat in Flushing; and Korean-American Kevin Kim won Tony Avella's old Council seat in northeast Queens. Hunter College sociologist Margaret Chin (no relation to the pol) said, "It’s significant for the whole population to see all these Asian-Americans taking political roles for the first in public. The West Coast broke this barrier close to two decades ago." more ›