The woman whose false rape claims put an innocent man behind bars for nearly four years was sentenced to one to three years in prison on perjury charges. After pleading guilty to making up a story that she was gang raped in Upper Manhattan in 2005 to elicit sympathy from friends, Biurny Peguero Gonzalez was hit with jail time. "I question myself every day as to how I could have done this," she told the judge at her sentencing hearing. more ›

A two-alarm fire broke out at a 6-floor apartment building on West 148th Street and Riverside Drive around 8:40 p.m., and a man and a 5- or 6-year-old boy died after jumping from the sixth floor. The man, believed to be the boy's godfather, was pronounced dead at the scene while the boy apparently went into cardiac arrest and died at Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital. FDNY Deputy Assistant Chief John Scudnik said they couldn't get to the fire escape, "The conditions were probably so unbearable that he probably chose to get out on the window ledge and fell." more ›

A doctor who practices in NJ with admitting privileges at New York Presbyterian Hospital. His 94-year-old mother. Her $832,453 savings. And a wall collapse in Upper Manhattan. In a case Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau called "a mini-Astor case," Dr. Robin Motz was accused of stealing his mother's savings since 2003. more ›

A follow-up to the Census Bureau's data that most New Yorkers rent: The NY Times crunched the Census data and found that, yes, a "large percentages of residents see more of their income go to their mortgages and rents." more ›

Residential parking permits in Long Island City and Brooklyn Heights? Park and Ride areas near train stations? Eliminating government parking placards? The NY Sun has a look a what the Bloomberg administration is considering to "sweeten" the congestion pricing proposal as it works to gain support for the plan (it's up for consideration in 6 weeks) and it includes all of the above. Reporter Annie Karni writes:

Residential parking permits could be established in Brooklyn Heights, Upper Manhattan, Long Island City, and other neighborhoods surrounding Manhattan's central business district — a concession to those communities that would discourage drivers from approaching the edges of tolled Manhattan and clogging up their streets to avoid paying the $8 congestion fee. more ›

The High Bridge, the city’s oldest standing bridge, will get a $65 million face-lift over about two years beginning in 2008, said the parks commissioner, Adrian Benepe. more ›

Subway riders from Inwood to the Rockaways should steel themselves, because those delays they experienced yesterday were planned and should continue for the next five weekends. The A and C lines are undergoing track work to replace 70-year-old rails. more ›

This Sunday, Time's Up! is organizing a 2006 Cyclist Memorial Ride that will honor all cyclists who were killed on NYC streets last year. There are two routes - one for Queens/Brooklyn/Manhattan and one for Bronx/Upper Manhattan - that will converge at West Houston and LaGuardia Place, where Derek Lake died in June and then visit other spots where cyclists were killed. More information after the jump; additionally, here's a list of Ghost Bike Memorials in the city. more ›

Mayor Bloomberg announced that the city will move the homeless out of street encampments and work with city resources to ultimately move into permament housing. Here are the Mayor's remarks:

"Today, I want to announce that we're launching the next major step to end street homelessness in New York. Over the past six weeks, our newly named DHS Commissioner, Rob Hess, and his team have identified the 73 sites around our city where some 350 homeless men and women-usually in groups no larger than four or five-have set up makeshift shelters under highways, next to train trestles, and on our streets. They're living in degraded and unhealthy environments. more ›

Monitoring the city's job postings can pay off! Luckily, Streetsblog has been doing just that and pieces together how the city is serious about developing "comprehensive transportation and land use strategy for New York City."

The first signal came at the beginning of Mayor Bloomberg's second term when DOT Commissioner Iris Weinhall was knocked one rung down the Administration's org chart. She is now reporting directly to Doctoroff. more ›

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Staten Island: S61, at 11.9 mph - between the Staten Island Mall and Ferry Terminal11.9 MPH in Staten Island? That is SPEEDING for a Manhattan bus. The Straphangers have various suggestions on how to improve bus efficiency, such as wider bus lanes, longer stops, and our favorite, "bus lanes with physical means to discourage other vehicles from violating bus lanes." Newsday points out that since most people walk at 3 MPH, you could conceivably outwalk the M34. Well, definitely during Christmas when it's all out crazy. more ›

However, some people make the best of the situation, saying it's a great way to see the city, provided you're on the right route. Gothamist just cautions anyone recommending their out-of-town friends to take the bus: Tell them not to take it during rush hour. more ›

$81.69 (highest price) at Duane Reades on the Upper East Side, Flushing, and off New York Avenue in Brooklyn more ›

"But at La Guardia High School, the city's top performing arts school, just across the street, students and teachers were all in costume. There was a parade and a contest for best costumes with various categories of awards. Some costumes were conceptual, like the teacher who came as 'self-absorbed,' her body covered in sponges." more ›