Each of the winter villeta is constructed especially for the outdoor space at A Pasta Bar, allowing diners to keep their own private (and warm!) air space in these chillier months.

The luminous structures are greenhouse-like in their ability to allow light to stream in beautifully, and the effect of entering is entirely transformative. Upon stepping inside a viletta, you will immediately be immersed in a space of chic elegance, surrounded by floral-scapes created uniquely for each of the eight cottages.

Vibrant reds anchor the space, complemented by verdant greens, meant to “spark conversation and inspire joy,” which is Floratorium’s aim.  You’ll find yourself in a total escape from your day, nestled in a garden of delightful visuals while you enjoy your exquisite meal. Creative stylist Carlos Franqui founded Floratorium in an effort to free florals from the confinement of a vase. The installation at A Pasta Bar does that in the loveliest way, as you will find yourself in an inviting botanical embrace.

But, just as you sit down, you notice a visual delight that not only plays with the color scheme of your villeta, but also elevates your experience even more. It is a custom artwork by DAIN, a local artist acclaimed as “one of the most influential street artists to emerge from New York.”

Prior to SoHo’s rise as a shopping hub, dozens of artists made their homes and studios in the area. Now, A Pasta Bar pays tribute to the heritage of the neighborhood and invites art back inside to be honored. Though the restaurant typically offers an Italian aesthetic, they branched out in these difficult pandemic times, intentionally seeking a collab with a vibrant local artist, to highlight and uplift the spirit of the local community.  The works that DAIN has created will catch your eye immediately and will give layers of depth to ponder over while you dine. A Pasta Bar could not have chosen a better artist to co-create a desirable space for their villeta.

DAIN’s work combines street art/graffiti with collaged portraits from old Hollywood. He considers his work “a confrontation between the destructive gestures of graffiti and the femininity of his Hollywood subjects.” In addition to the painted marks and the figures, he adds layers of further interest with collaged advertisements and printed materials. Once you find yourself in a villeta, you may find yourself wanting to linger longer, not just for the fabulous food and setting, but also to visually lose yourself in studying the collective details of DAIN’s work. 

DAIN has a memorable trademark of a “circle and drip” around the eye of his subjects, usually wheat-pasted images of former Hollywood glamour stars. In the custom works for A Pasta Bar, his trademark stroke is painted in brilliant red to align with the accompanying florals. They play in a visually-satisfying concert with one another.  

One more reason to check out this latest collab — it makes for a rad photo op that will have your friends asking — where is that??

The post The Latest and Best Art and Dining Collab: A Pasta Bar x DAIN NYC appeared first on CitySignal.

Overview of Components

In addition to 1,650 units of housing, the project components include a neighborhood park, a community center, a nature preserve, a greenway, a dune preserve, an event park, a retail corridor, a plaza, and an urban farm.

Within the retail corridor will be mid-box retail, neighborhood retail, seasonal retail for summer months on the beach, a coworking/office space, an elevated outdoor space, a cafe/restaurant, a 60,000-square-foot boutique beachfront hotel, and a new home for the Rockaway Brewing Company (currently in Long Island City). Additionally, each housing unit will have one designated parking space.

Green Infrastructure

The project boasts quite a few components that are “greener” and account for environmental health. Most of the land in the new development, especially under the new buildings, will be raised at least three to eight feet above grade (with the community center on piles elevated 16+ feet) to prepare for possible flooding and rising sea levels. The irrigation systems will be powered by rainwater collections. Intentional rain gardens and stormwater swales will help absorb stormwater runoff. Other native plantings will serve as storm buffers, as well as provide beauty to the area. The soon-to-be-built community center will be fossil fuel-free, utilizing a geothermal system for heating and cooling, and a solar microgrid will provide enough power for not only the building but the surrounding neighborhood as well.

Affordability

Of the 1,650 units of housing which will comprise the residential part of the development, 1,320 units will be set aside for affordable housing for residents who have been experiencing homelessness, or meet the income standards for low-, moderate-, and middle-income households. The remaining 330 units will be offered at standard market rates. There will be affordable homeownership opportunities for residents who qualify under the formerly homeless, or low-, moderate-, and middle-income requirements, as well as market-rate buyers. 

Recent History of the Place

In the early 1970s, the land was bought by the city and all existing buildings were cleared from the site, as part of the Arverne Urban Renewal Plan which was approved in 1968. In 2003, the rebuilding project was approved by the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure. The city opened up the project to developer proposals in 2005. Plans were delayed due to the 2008 recession and Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Throughout all of the bureaucratic proceedings over the last few decades, the land has sat empty until now.

Community Response

An article from Rockaway’s local newspaper, The Wave, from August of 2020 notes resistance from the surrounding community toward the project. The article recounts insights from a town-hall style virtual meeting in which community stakeholders spoke up regarding their concerns about the project. The primary consensus was to ask the developers to rethink their plans in the wake of Hudson Yards deterioration, COVID-19, and waning school resources. Community members spoke strongly of the need for schools and a hospital, rather than retail space and housing. Especially after experiencing such intensive throes from COVID-19 (Far Rockaway’s 11691 zip code had the nation’s second highest death rate during the height of the pandemic), and the area facing reduced healthcare options (Peninsula aka Rockaway Beach Hospital closed in 2012, and state officials threatening to reduce St. John’s Episcopal Hospital this year), local residents know the need they have for increased medical services and facilities. More recently, in September 2021, St. John’s Hospital caught fire, damaging the 10th and 11th floors. In addition, schools in the Rockaways are lacking enough space and resources, and parents who are able have been accommodating the situation by taking their children elsewhere to private schools. Other students, still, are left unable to make a move to better education. These are the needs to which the community members spoke at the meeting with developers in August 2020.

What’s Next

The year of 2021 has brought about the early phases of stage one of the project. Early this year, work began on the 35-acre nature preserve, employing arborists, ecologists, and horticulturalists, alongside the NYC Parks Department’s Natural Resources Group. The preserve is prioritizing existing native trees and building around them as centering points. Next in the works is new infrastructure: storm and sanitary sewers, water mains, electric, gas, sidewalk construction, street tree plantings, street lamps, and using fill to raise the ground level anywhere from three to eight feet from its current level. 

Now, as the year comes to a close, the final part of stage one is beginning: the construction of a community gathering center located on the eastern side of Beach 44th Street. The facility will include a 5000+ square-foot welcome center, a rest area, and an urban farm. The community center will be largely managed by RISE, a non-profit already operating in the Rockaways, which provides youth development and civic engagement. Here, designated classroom space will host local community groups and organizations to gather and provide free programming. RISE will also partner with the NYC Parks and Recreation Department to manage the nature preserve. The outdoor space surrounding the building will be used for environmental programming and green jobs training for local youth and residents. The farm will incorporate a compost exchange, native plant nursery, educational garden, and farmers market. There will be a parking lot with permeable asphalt to alleviate flooding, with 30 parking spots and ample bicycle racks. Construction of the community center is expected to last one year, beginning now.

Closing Thoughts

It is no doubt that the incoming development at Arverne East will bring environmentally well-constructed buildings and lush native greenspaces, all accounting for climate change and rising sea levels, as well as a turn away from fossil fuels. It is a positive force for sure. But will this new development also bring the kinds of improvements and resources that the surrounding community so desperately needs, i.e. schools and medical care facilities? Which needs are the most pressing for this particular space? Will the developers flex a bit and incorporate the needs voiced by the community into their future plans?

The post Arverne East and the Rockaways appeared first on CitySignal.

For anyone living in cities like New York, Boston, DC, and Chicago, these sightings are not uncommon. In fact, for those living in downtown areas especially, the above-mentioned experience is a minor, almost comical one. We become all too accustomed to seeing rats on the run in the evenings, scampering along curbs and under tires, especially on trash nights, darting from trash bag to trash bag, sampling an avocado peel from a breakfast shop or a scrap of toast from a diner. It’s like Templeton’s festival feast in Charlotte’s Web, but on a regular basis. While this might be fun for the rats, for humans it’s a serious public health concern worth noting. 

How bad is the rat problem in Boston, New York, Chicago and Washington D.C.?

Rental listing site RentHop compiles yearly data about rat sightings in the four U.S. cities where rats are most prevalent. The results are even broken down by neighborhood within these four cities, so you can be more informed as you choose your next home. 

But first, let’s look at the big picture. 

The first graph, seen below, shows the total number of complaints filed for rat sightings in New York, Chicago, Boston, and Washington, DC. over the course of the last six years. In 2021, Chicago reigns as having the most rats (60,054), New York has the second most (25,985), Washington is third (11,029), and Boston is fourth (3,225). 

How have rat numbers changed during the pandemic?  

Let’s break it down by city, starting with New York. In 2020, reports of rats in NYC dropped a bit, possibly due to an overrun 311 system and residents leaving the city in the wake of the pandemic. In 2021, the reports rose by a staggering 28.7%.

In Washington, the rats are on the rise. The reported sightings have been steadily increasing over the last two years, with a 26% increase in 2021 over 2020 numbers.

In Chicago, where the resident rats hold the largest population in the country, the increase from 2019 to 2020 was significant, and the increase from 2020 to 2021 was slightly slowed, though still a rise of 11.1%.

In Boston, the rats had a slight increase from 2019 to 2020, but surprisingly decreased by 10% from 2020 to 2021.

Which neighborhoods in the U.S. house the most rodents?

Boston 

Boston Top 5:

Boston’s 2021 top neighborhoods for rodent neighbors were Downtown (727.4 complaints/sq mi), Bay Village (550 complaints /sq mile), the South End (402.7 complaints /sq mile), the North End (290 complaints /sq mile), and Back Bay (150 complaints /sq mi), in that order. 

Boston Greatest Increases and Improvements:

From 2020 to 2021, the neighborhoods which saw the greatest increases in rat sightings were (in descending order): Bay Village (+100%), Mission Hill (+69.7%), South Boston (+38.9%), the South End (+34.8%), and Roxbury (+27.4%).  

The neighborhoods with the greatest decreases in rat numbers were: Allston (-56.6%), Seaport (-55.6%), Beacon Hill (-34.8%), Fenway (-33.3%), and the West End (-33.3%).

D.C.

D.C. Top 5:

In Washington, D.C., the top neighborhoods for rats in 2021 were Columbia Heights, Mt. Pleasant, Pleasant Plains, Park View (1,100.6 complaints/sq mi); Shaw, Logan Circle (711.2 complaints/sq mi); Howard University, Le Droit Park, Cardozo/Shaw (623.7 complaints/sq mi); Union Station, Stanton Park, Kingman Park (613.4 complaints/sq mi); and Brightwood Park, Crestwood, Petworth (599.5 complaints/sq mi).

D.C. Greatest Increases and Improvements:

The D.C. neighborhoods which experienced the largest increases in rat population between 2020 and 2021 were: Mayfair, Hillbrook, Mahaning Heights (+100%); Twining, Fairlawn, Randle Highlands, Penn Branch, Fort Davis Park, Fort Dupont (+93.5%); Douglas, Shipley Terrace (+88.9%); Brookland, Brentwood, Langdon (+86.2%); and Georgetown, Burleith/Hillandale (+83.8%).

These D.C. neighborhoods saw the greatest improvement in rat numbers for 2021: Woodland/Fort Stanton, Garfield Heights, Knox Hill (-91.7%); Fairfax Village, Naylor Gardens, Hillcrest, Summit Park (-50%); Cleveland Park, Woodley Park, Massachusetts Avenue Heights, Woodland-Normanstone Terrace (-29.9%); Friendship Heights, American University Park, Tenleytown (-28.6%); and Hawthorne, Barnaby Woods, Chevy Chase (-23.4%).

NYC

NYC Top 5:

In New York City, rats prevailed the most in 2021 in these neighborhoods: Harlem (South), Manhattan (1,586.8 complaints/sq mi); Upper West Side-Manhattan Valley, Manhattan (929.2 complaints/sq mi); Prospect Heights, Brooklyn (821.7 complaints/sq mi); Upper East Side-Yorkville, Manhattan (740.1 complaints/sq mi); and East Village, Manhattan (611.4 complaints/sq mi). How does your neighborhood rank?

NYC Greatest Increases and Improvements:

New York’s biggest increases in rat sightings in 2021 were noted in these neighborhoods: Sheepshead Bay-Manhattan Beach-Gerritsen Beach, Brooklyn (+362%); Prospect Park, Brooklyn (+360%); Kingsbridge-Marble Hill, Bronx (+284.2%); Flatbush (West)-Ditmas Park-Parkville, Brooklyn (+193.2%); Park Slope, Brooklyn (+169.5%); East Elmhurst, Queens (+150%); Upper East Side-Lenox Hill-Roosevelt Island, Manhattan (+147.6%); Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn (+143.8%); and Crown Heights, Brooklyn (+134.4%).

The New York neighborhoods which successfully decreased their rat populations the most were: Breezy Point-Belle Harbor-Rockaway Park-Broad Channel, Queens (-64%); Kew Gardens Hills, Queens (-52.8%); Borough Park, Brooklyn (-50%); Westchester Square, Bronx (-40.9%); and Gravesend (West), Brooklyn (-37%).

Chicago

Chicago Top 5:

In Chicago, the rat capital of the U.S., the top neighborhoods for total rat numbers were: Clearing (808.8 complaints/sq mi), West Town (723.8 complaints/sq mi), Bridgeport (722.2 complaints/sq mi), Lake View (697.5 complaints/sq mi), and Logan Square (612.7 complaints/sq mi).

Chicago Greatest Increases and Improvements:

Chicago neighborhoods with the largest increases in rat sightings in 2021 were: O’Hare (+271%), Edison Park (+132.6%), West Elsdon (+119.7%), Kenwood (+115.0%), and Oakland (+110%).

The Chicago neighborhoods which successfully decreased their rat populations the most in 2021 were: Douglas (-56.3%), Riverdale (-41.7%), Hegewisch (-27.9%), Morgan Park (-26.5%), and Armour Square (-19.4%).

What are the signs of rats in your home?

Well, there are definitely rats out there, but what are some warning clues that you might be susceptible to rodent visitors? 

The top clues are: droppings, rub marks, scratching noises, rat holes, rat nests, and footprints. Droppings tend to be found in concentrated locations, like in drawers or storage boxes. Rub marks come from rats making repeated journeys over the same routes; their body oils and dirt tend to accumulate and make trails. An audible clue: you may hear black rats scratching in attic areas, as they are great climbers; whereas you may hear brown rats grinding their teeth. Brown rats are also known for creating extensive burrow structures, often found with entrances near structures (like the side of a building). Nests, however, may be spotted inside homes, made out of found materials like cardboard or insulation. Finally, want to investigate as a rat detective? Like any animal, rats make footprints. If you suspect a rat, sprinkle some flour on the floor or ground and check the next day for prints. 

What can we do about the rat infestation problem?

Now that we know what signs to look for, what are some of the preventative measures we can take to keep the rats out of our homes? The City of Cambridge, MA has compiled a comprehensive guide, found here. 

They suggest five main steps that residents can take themselves:

1. Look for evidence
   • This is self-evident, and includes looking for clues mentioned in the previous paragraph. 
2. Clean up
   • The second step involves washing away track marks and droppings, removing clutter, and trimming greenery close to the home’s exterior. 
3. Starve them
   • The third step necessitates removing garbage (and keeping bins closed tightly), and keeping fresh food securely stored.
4. Shut them out
   • The fourth step involves sealing off entry points like cracks, holes, and gaps, and closing up burrows.
5. Wipe them out. 
   •  The last step is the one that most of us usually jump to, baiting and setting traps.

If all else fails, one could always consider adopting a cat! Seriously, cats do help. But so do professionals. If you’re past step five, it may be time to call in an exterminator or help from the city.

Clearly, rat populations are on the rise. It’s time that we start taking the necessary precautions to keep our homes safe from rodents. However, it will only be successful if we work as a unified community within our own respective neighborhoods. It will have to be a team effort.

The post Rats! The 2021 Stats: Where They Are and What You Can Do appeared first on CitySignal.

The area of the Bronx which is home to Tibbetts Brook was previously marshland, much like the wetlands filled with cattails that one now sees when traveling the Jersey Turnpike. As storms like Hurricane Ida recently reminded us, water levels are rising and buried waterways are attempting to reclaim their ground. In September, when Ida’s deluging remnants passed through, Tibbetts Brook made an above-ground appearance flooding the Major Deegan Expressway as well as surrounding areas, trapping vehicles and their occupants. During the same storm, other New Yorkers were trapped in basement homes and lost their lives.  

The city has mapped areas of stormwater flooding, and as Dr. Eric Sanderson, a senior conservation ecologist with the Wildlife Conservation Society in New York has pointed out here, the areas where the flooding is the worst are the same as the locations of the buried waterways. Dr. Sanderson writes that we will need to rethink how the city is inhabited and allow the water to run as it wants, relocating current inhabitants to safer, higher ground and making space for the waterways to flow through, which is, after all, what they will do anyway as water levels rise. It is a matter of accepting the inevitable and planning for it, respecting the freshwater wetlands and stream courses, and taking care of them and residents alike. One example of how this reclamation can manifest is called “daylighting.” That is exactly what is already in process in the Bronx.

Restoring Tibbetts Brook to a more permanent placement above ground, a process called “daylighting,” would cost over $130 million. Senator Chuck Schumer has verbally committed to allocating funds to the project from the federal infrastructure deal. The brook supplies 2.2 billion gallons of fresh water each year, and for now, all of that water is feeding straight into sewer pipes, joining sewage and rainwater in the journey to a wastewater treatment facility. This extra water, which is not at all itself sewage, is overloading the system. The removal of the brook water from the sewer would reduce sewer overflow into the Harlem River by 25 percent, a cost-effective move for the city as it would also reduce the amount of fresh water that is unnecessarily treated at a facility on Wards Island.  

The brook begins in Yonkers, north of the city, then travels about four miles into what is known as Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx, where it was dammed to provide power for the former Van Cortlandt plantation grist and sawmills. From there, the path of the (daylighted) brook, traveling through the Kingsbridge neighborhood toward the northern tip of Manhattan, is shown in the below graphic from the New York Times. The daylighting proposal, one of the most ambitious projects for green infrastructure to date in the city, plans to bring the brook above ground for the length of a mile, converting the former railway into a waterway, then diverting the brook through a dedicated half-mile pipe to the Harlem River.

The main holdup on the project is a set of negotiations with CSX Transportation, a railroad company, which owns the grassy land to the side of the Deegan Expressway where the brook would run once brought above land. The primary point of contention seems to be the price of the land.

The newly daylighted brook and proposed corresponding greenway could provide an opportunity to highlight the history of enslaved Africans who worked on the plantation-turned-park, a goal of the Van Cortlandt Park Alliance. Other advantages to daylighting the brook include building community and cohesion between neighborhoods in the borough and connecting access to the Bronx waterfront. These improvements have been points of advocacy for local groups like the Bronx environmental council for years. The project is supported by most Bronx residents as a win-win opportunity to reduce flooding and provide accessible greenspace connecting neighborhoods, an aim which has been in the works for decades, since the 1990s.  

The change in environment could also drive up property prices in the long run, as real estate facing the proposed path would suddenly become waterfront and have direct access to the corresponding greenway. As these areas are already becoming prone to flooding even with the brook underground, logic states that alleviating the flooding issues would not place these properties at any greater risk. If successful, the new greenway would provide cohesive walking paths along the water, leading to an increase in pedestrian and bike traffic. Of course, there will also be the intermediate stage of construction to contend with. The most affected neighborhoods would include Kingsbridge, Kingsbridge Heights, Van Cortlandt Village, and Marble Hill, especially the areas closest to the Major Deegan Expressway (Putnam Ave W and Bailey Ave). 

If you want to get a jump on the Tibbetts Brook project, here are three properties nearby to the new greenway and restored waterway: for rent, a one-bedroom apartment with two private balconies and floor to ceiling windows, for $1975/month, seen here; a large, pet-friendly, convertible three bedroom with private outdoor space, for $2250/month here; and a three-bedroom, historic single-family home with private outdoor space, for sale, listed at $849,000 here. There are several more listings to browse at RealtyHop and RentHop, the homes mentioned above are just a sampling.  

If the daylighting project becomes a reality, which it looks like it will, then it could become the first of similar restorations to follow, ushering in a new era of New Yorkers living alongside long-hidden waterways. These efforts could serve as a model for other cities, like Auckland, New Zealand; Seoul, South Korea; and closer to home, Detroit, Michigan, and Yonkers, New York — all of which have considered daylighting their own waterways in the face of climate change.

The post Daylighting Tibbetts Brook appeared first on CitySignal.

In November 2015, Myrtle McKinney was found dead in her apartment by her care aide, which police reported as natural causes. In May 2019, the grandson of Jacolia “Jackie” James found his grandmother beaten to death in her apartment. Then in January 2021, Juanita Caballero was found by her son with a telephone cord wrapped around her neck.

NYCHA repeatedly received security reports and requests from residents and their families. Yet, there is no recorded action on their part both before tenants were murdered by a man staying in the building illegally.

Local police failed to take action sooner, ignoring the insights of the first victim’s daughter and evidence found in the second murder investigation. Because of these oversights, Kevin Gavin was allowed to remain in the building, though he was not an approved resident. After Gavin’s prints were found at the second crime scene, the detectives still seemed hesitant to pursue Gavin over concerns of him hiring an attorney, and he walked away with nothing more than a metaphorical slap on the wrist.

Adam Deutsch, the attorney representing the family of Juanita “Jenny” Caballero, had a conversation with us and shared his insights. He sums up the situation:

“Enough is enough. How many seniors have to die before NYCHA takes even the minimal steps to protect them?”

“The tragedy of Ms. Caballero’s death is that it was preventable. NYCHA knew about the dangers in the building. They knew that the alleged killer was a danger, and they even told him he had to leave the building because he was living there illegally. Unfortunately, they never followed up, never put in the security cameras that were promised, never took steps to ensure that he was removed from the building. They failed the residents of the Woodson Houses, and they failed Ms. Caballero and her family.”

 

Mr. Deutsch pointed out, if NYCHA had put pressure on Gavin, maybe he would not have felt so brazen.

Deutsch also calls attention to the responsibility and legal obligation NYCHA held. They knew Kevin Gavin had an arrest record, they knew he was known to be dangerous, yet they did not follow through with protocols and standards. Deutsch clarifies,

“if you know there are dangers; you are legally obligated to do something.”

Deutsch explains that NYCHA allowed a killer, an illegal resident of the complex, to remain living in the building and do further harm to vulnerable residents they were responsible for protecting. 

Shouldn’t our elders be the ones we should protect?  They, above all, have given their due and deserve respect and care. NYCHA did not do the bare minimum.

The Caballero and James families have filed suit against NYCHA, citing the organization’s negligence in providing adequate security to keep residents safe.

Though the murders began in 2015 with Myrtle McKinney, and James was slain in April of 2019, Gavin was not arrested until late January of 2021. Upon his arrest for the killing of Caballero early this year, Gavin confessed to the crime and the murders of McKinney and James. His arrest was prompted by his usage of Caballero’s EBT and debit cards at a grocery store shortly after her death.

All three of the deaths have been linked to Gavin seeking money. As the unofficial handyman around the building, there were apparently disputes around small amounts he felt were owed for odd jobs. In the case of Ms. James, his prints were found in the pocket of her coat, from where he was taking bills from her, and she caught him in the act. He admitted to an investigator that she would have turned him in for stealing if he left at that point—a motive for a murder that never should have been.

There were three other moments where red flags should have been raised. First, when Ms. McKinney was murdered, it was ruled as death due to natural causes. For weeks afterward, her daughter and family advocated for investigations into foul play. They found that their mother’s keys and money were missing and filed a petty-larceny complaint. They sought an autopsy from the medical examiner, only to be told they would have to pay for it themselves (at the tune of $15-20K). A proper autopsy and investigation were prompted when a funeral home director noticed a stab wound in Ms. McKinney’s neck.

Secondly, four months after Ms. James’ death in 2019, another resident, Hector Higgins, was found dead, supposedly from a fall from a ladder. However, his body showed bruising as if he had been repeatedly punched and the scene appeared staged. There are suspicions that Gavin could have been responsible.

Lastly, after the death of Gavin’s brother Leon, Kevin Gavin was never truly evicted despite his brother being the actual legal tenant of the Woodson apartment where Gavin was living. The tenant association president, Diane Johnson, was vocal in speaking up about removing Gavin from the premises. Soon after, he met her at the elevator doors with an ice pick in his hand. Only after seeing a caregiver with her did he slowly back away.

In the meantime, Gavin was allowed to roam the building freely and live illegally. Unprotected by NYCHA, residents took action to keep themselves safe as best they could, such as forming a Tenant Patrol in 2016, although this eventually dissolved due to hostile conditions. Diane Johnson, the aforementioned Woodson tenant association president, trained in elder care, regularly and persistently lobbied NYCHA for CCTV security cameras to be installed at the housing complex.

At one point, in March of 2019, just the month before Ms. James was killed, NYCHA did an obligatory safety and security assessment. There was no mention in the report of Johnson’s repeated request for CCTV security cameras. Additionally, the private security guards hired for the complex consistently proved to be of no help, often abandoning their posts, leaving doors propped, and neglecting patrol of upstairs and exterior areas. When a woman was attacked and bleeding from the face, they refused to call the police for fear of being identified by the attacker. Johnson pushed for a new contract with more effective guards and was told there was no funding. In an earlier meeting with NYCHA, Curtis Cabell, the head of the safety and security division, even blamed Johnson for his and the organization’s shortcomings.

As Mr. Deutsch maintains, it never should have been the residents’ job to protect themselves. NYCHA failed them.

NYCHA did not immediately respond to our request for comment

(featured image courtesy of ApartmentGuide.com)

The post Attorney Adam Deutsch Works to Get Justice for Woodson Houses Victims appeared first on CitySignal.

Evergrande’s Debt Situation

Evergrande currently holds the record for being the world’s most indebted developer, after its real estate/property segment noted a loss of $618 million for the first half of 2021 — a six month loss like this has not been experienced by the developer since 2009.  Though the wider company still managed a profit for the first half of 2021, the outlook is not promising.  Currently, Evergrande stock has dropped 70% since the first of the year, and the development giant stands to hold $300 billion in liabilities and $7.4 billion in bonds which will mature in 2022.  These troubles have resulted in savings for buyers beginning this past spring. Some apartments in their developments are being discounted as much as 25%, in hopes that they can make the money back up in sales.  The Chinese government is stepping in with regulations to reform the property sector, barring private equity funds from real estate investments and slowing builders by reducing a major source of their funding.  There have been regulations for debt, fundraising, and mortgage lending as well.

Fantasia’s Debt Situation

Since Evergrande’s losses became known, there has been a closer watch on other property developers from China.  Recently, Fantasia Holdings Group’s financial problems have become more apparent as well.  Fantasia missed a $205.7 million bond payment; and two weeks ago, they missed a payment on a different loan worth $108 million.  Whereas Evergrande looked to quickly move discounted property sales in efforts to recoup, Fantasia is selling assets. The company has reached a sale agreement with Country Garden Services, a firm who will soon be purchasing Fantasia’s assets.  The company is smart to act quickly, as their repercussions are mounting.  In September, Fantasia ranked as one of the worst performers in the high-yield dollar bond index from Bloomberg China.  Also last month, Citigroup and Credit Suisse Group ceased to accept Fantasia notes as collateral.

Scale Matters

Size has an impact.  Evergrande is a much larger company than Fantasia, and so matches the scale of their debts.  Evergrande has $304.5 billion in liabilities, while Fantasia only has $12.9 billion.  Given this difference in scale, Evergrande’s missed payments will have a much wider impact on the market than Fantasia’s missed payments.  However, another component has a different scale for the two troubled companies: offshore debt.  Fantasia has over a third ($4.7 billion) of their debt as offshore bonds, whereas Evergrande has less than ten percent ($27.6 billion) of their debt as offshore bonds.

Last Thoughts for Now

Snowballing from the increased restrictions from the Chinese government — another ramification of the Evergrande and Fantasia financial woes — has created additional problems. In September, Blackstone Group backed out of a $3 billion acquisition of Soho China, because they could not secure government approval for the purchase.  Who knows what pieces may fall next; this situation is one to closely watch.

The post Developers Fantasia and Evergrande Fall Deeper into Debt appeared first on CitySignal.

What is NYC Housing Connect?

NYC Housing Connect (found here) is the government-sponsored online portal where you can search real estate listings and apply for housing opportunities (both to rent and to own).  

How Does It Work?

Search: 

The first step is going to the website and searching by entering the number of people in your household and your household total income. The site will then provide you with all of the housing opportunities that you qualify to apply for. These results will include a summary, details, and map location, as well as the general status of “units still available” or “waitlist” for each listing. The summary includes information like the lottery dates, the address, the borough, and how many units are still available. By clicking on a listing, you can see further details such as: a list of amenities, who is responsible for utilities, parking and laundry details, interior and exterior photos and unit floor plans, a chart/list of available units and their respective income/household size requirements, and a map with nearby facilities like transit stops, schools, and hospitals.

Apply: 

Now that you have browsed the housing opportunities you are eligible for; hopefully, you have found at least one or two properties to pursue further. The next step is to create an online account with NYC Housing Connect. Here, you can provide qualifying information about yourself and your household members. Be sure to update your details on the site whenever you have changes to your income or other entered data. Once your account is complete, select and apply to the properties you are most interested in. This is done by clicking “apply” on the listing. Be aware of lottery dates, and be sure to apply before your desired property lottery closes!

If you prefer to apply via paper application, you can send a request for an application to the address noted on the listing for each respective property.  

Housing Ambassadors:

Need help with the application process? There are many housing ambassadors who are well-versed in the system and can help you navigate each step. A list of housing ambassadors and ways to contact them is found here. You can search this site by borough, language, and accessibility needs, or simply browse the general list of ambassadors.

Selection Process:

Each application is assigned a random number. If your number is selected, you will be notified that you have been chosen in a lottery.  

The next step is to confirm your eligibility by providing necessary documentation such as proof of income for each household member, birth certificates and/or photo IDs of household members, and details about your current apartment. Required documentation is detailed in an “after you apply” checklist, available in 18 languages, the English version is here, additional languages in text and audio are here.  It is best to gather the required documents ahead of time so that you are prepared to move quickly when you are selected. As you submit your documentation, you may also be asked to undergo a credit check. You can provide a positive rental history in lieu of a credit check.  

After you have submitted documentation, you may or may not have your application approved. If your application is rejected, you can appeal within 10 days of your rejection letter postmark. Your appeal letter should include why you think you should be approved and additional supporting documents. If your appeal is not accepted, you can still file a complaint with HPD (Housing Preservation and Development) or HDC (Housing Development Corporation) within five days. 

Remember, each property application is separate, so even if you do not qualify for one, you are still in the running for all of the others you have applied for.

Lease or Purchase:

Once you have been selected and confirmed your eligibility, facilitators will assist you in the remainder of the process, from working with developers to signing your lease or purchase to moving in. Often, you will need to move quickly once you are accepted, so be sure to check your current lease terms as you prepare for your next and more affordable home.

Key Points

• There is no application fee.  
• You can apply online or by mail. To apply by mail, send a request for a paper application to the address specified for the listing you are interested in. There is a different address for each listing, so make sure you submit the correct one for your desired housing location.
• You can apply to more than one property simultaneously. But be sure not to apply for the same lottery twice, as you will be disqualified.
• It may take up to several months for your application(s) to be processed. You can keep up with the status of your applications via your online dashboard on the site.
• Two helpful tips are to start saving records to keep aware of your credit and rental history.
• Section 8 vouchers can be applied to NYC Housing Connect applications. Minimal income requirements do not apply but provided voucher amounts do count towards maximum income requirements.
• Asset limits do apply; this refers to bank accounts, investments, and other savings. See here for details.

• Each property has a few “set-aside” units for residents with hearing, vision, and mobility disabilities.  These units are equipped with physical accommodations for respective access needs.
• Other FAQs can be found here.

More and more affordable housing opportunities are springing up across the five boroughs.  You might be surprised what you can qualify for! 

The post What is NYC Housing Connect?  appeared first on CitySignal.

How Mayor de Blasio’s Promise Started

But where did things go awry?  The NY Times map here shows infographics of traffic incidents, specifically where and why cyclists and pedestrians are injured or killed, as of 2014 — de Blasio’s first year in office.  The graphics reflect data gathered over the course of 2011-2013, painting a picture of the scene of what de Blasio inherited upon beginning his tenure.  The “danger zones” that were identified by the data were “high speed roads, turning cars, wide boulevards, double-parking, and inexperienced drivers.”  Also identified were the most dangerous intersections: for example, the most injuries to bicyclists and pedestrians were incurred at Eastern Parkway and Utica Ave in Brooklyn, the second most injuries at Amsterdam Ave and 125th St in Manhattan, the third most injuries and the place where one is most likely to be hit by a bus or a taxi is at 8th Ave and 34th St, and the most bicycle injuries were incurred at Allen St and Delancey St, where traffic from the Manhattan and Williamsburg bridges converge.  The most injuries in Queens happened at Northern and Parsons Blvds, and the most pedestrian and bicyclist injuries in the Bronx were at Webster Ave and Fordham Road.

At the beginning of de Blasio’s time in office, he set forth an ambitious vow: to eliminate all traffic deaths by 2024, using a model from Sweden called Vision Zero (aka zero deaths from vehicle-pedestrian accidents).  The Swedish model accounts for human error, aiming to accommodate for the inevitable mistakes made by drivers.  As one of the originators of the model, Claes Tingvall, described, “design around the human as we are.”  The model discounts the usefulness of excessive enforcement and education, and rather utilizes multiple physical barriers (including planters of flowers) and roundabouts, as well as lowered speed limits and automated enforcement (think traffic cameras).  Other US states, like Minnesota, Washington, and Utah, which have adopted Vision Zero tactics, have seen dramatic decreases in injuries and fatalities.  But, as all New Yorkers know, this city is different to anywhere else in the world.  Though Swedes are known for being cautious and polite, that’s not exactly the reputation of New Yorkers.  There are other challenges to accommodate too, not the least of which is a larger population. A copy of the city’s original Vision Zero Action Plan from 2014 can be found here.

How It’s Going

Fast-forward to 2021, where does the data stand now?  We can take a closer look, thanks to NYC open data.  This link takes us to data concerning the different metrics and measures put into place for the Vision Zero initiative. 

Speed Limits:

The map below shows speed limit data for the city, noting that the citywide default speed limit (meaning the speed limit unless otherwise posted) was changed in November 2014 from 30 mph to 25 mph.  But is this enough?  Clearly, with traffic deaths rising, it is not.

Bicycles:

The map below illustrates the zones designated by the city as “Priority Bicycle Districts,” or areas in which there have been relatively high numbers of cyclists killed or seriously injured and where there are few if any bicycle facilities (think bike lanes).  There are three of these areas in Queens and seven in Brooklyn, and they have been noted as priority areas for expansion of the bicycle network expansion, as of the “Safer Cycling: Bicycle Ridership and Safety in New York City” 2017 report.  No further progress has been noted on the site.  We can look below, though, for the updated 2021 Bicycle Map.  Comparing the priority zones to the current map, it shows that these areas are pretty lacking: there are very few, if any, dedicated and protected lanes, and only a handful of conventional or shared lanes.

VZV_Bike Priority Areas

Map of Priority Bicycle Districts Powered by Socrata

Traffic Calming Measures:

This map below shows the locations where traffic calming installations have been added to guide drivers to make safer turns and be more aware of pedestrians.

Number of Accidents Involving Pedestrians and Cyclists:

There have been at least 189 people killed from being struck by a car so far this year (Jan 1-Sept 14), the highest number for this nine-month period since 2013.  The details of accident data are found below.

Pandemic Considerations

There are other factors to consider, mainly the pandemic.  Mayor De blasio says the pandemic “disrupted a huge amount of progress.”   Initially, rates of speeding and reckless driving increased during the pandemic, especially when there were fewer cars on the road.  Not surprisingly, through this period, traffic deaths increased nationally as well as in New York, rising 10.5 percent over the previous year. But, as NYC residents opted for private transportation (perhaps looking for safer, less shared airspace), the number of newly registered vehicles significantly increased between September 2020 to the end of August 2021, with 120,000 more cars registered in that 12-month span than in the previous year.  And, more vehicles means more traffic. Which also means more traffic deaths.  So either way it is spun, whether less traffic or more, the fatalities continue to climb.

Last Thoughts

Clearly, though Mayor de Blasio has started to effectuate plans to make streets safer for pedestrians and cyclists through Vision Zero, there is still much work that needs to be done.  Some of the concerns recently raised by residents include: lax enforcement, not enough street redesigns, delayed  implementation on approved street redesigns (like the redesign of Queens Blvd, and the Grand Concourse in the Bronx), and a slow rollout of a program targeting reckless drivers.  The next mayor will have a steep task, one that will necessitate more fervent measures to protect vulnerable pedestrians and cyclists

The post A Closer Look at Traffic Safety: Mayor de Blasio’s Failed Promise appeared first on CitySignal.

Home Office Upgrades

With remote work becoming more and more common in the pandemic-era world, you knew a home office had to be on this list. Even if you’re able to return to the office, you may find yourself still working from home a few days a week. Let’s face it, the kitchen table can only handle so much — food prep, dining, work, homework, craft station, dare we say laundry-folding platform? In the effort to give your kitchen table or bar — and yourself — a break, upgrade to an apartment with a home office. You might be surprised how affordable adding this valuable amenity actually is; your monthly rent cost may hardly change at all. And — for those who can claim a home office tax break — you may even save money. Once you give yourself this gift of dedicated space with a door to shut out the noise, distractions, and intruders of the roommate/child/partner/pet kind, you’ll never go back.

Check out this pet-friendly, 1bd + HO, 1.5bth apartment  in DUMBO for a home office tucked away from the rest of the living spaces, a guarantee for quiet time. It’s conveniently located at 1 Main Street in Dumbo, with a monthly rent of $8750 and includes an in-unit washer/dryer and an in-building fitness center.

Pet-Friendly

We can all agree that the pandemic era has no lack of stress and mental health challenges. And, as I’m sure you may know, pets can ease stress The quarantine era has taught us that it’s nice to have a pal, and what better than one who will listen for hours without talking back and give unlimited snuggles? And in the case of a dog, you get the added bonus of a walking buddy and motivation to head out on adventures together. More and more apartments are becoming pet-friendly, especially in new developments, so you will find more opportunities than the last time you looked. Fido or Felix might be in the cards, after all.

This Upper East Side studio welcomes pets as well as humans, with other amenities including a full-service doorman and concierge  and laundry in the building. This apartment has been fully renovated and is located at 442 East 75th Street. The monthly rent is $2395.

Fresh Air and Green Spaces

If nothing else, the pandemic has given us a new appreciation for fresh air and the outdoors. Here, there are fewer limitations and the ability to breathe freely. So why not live somewhere with convenient access to good air and rural settings without leaving the city? Many new apartments not only include balconies, but roof decks and green spaces, too. Increasingly so, developers are incorporating natural areas into building complex designs.

This Long Island City 2 bd, 2 bth unit with sweeping views over the East River waterfront is a perfect example. The unit has a gorgeous balcony, and the building amenities include a fitness center, outdoor playground, and even a Volleyball court. Located at 45-45 Center Boulevard in Hunters Point, the net effective rent is $3860.

Cozy Dining

As rules for dining are ever-changing through the different phases of the pandemic, we find ourselves eating in more than we used to — even if eating in means takeout. Having a designated space to eat saves our other furniture from perennial usage and can make small apartments seem more significant through better delineation/organization of space.

Check out this Bronx studio unit for affordability and an upgraded kitchen bar (plus shared patio space with grills). Located at 3rd Avenue in Mott Haven, the rent is only $2450/month.

More Space

After all the time spent at home in this pandemic era, you may decide you simply want more space to move around inside. Who knows if there will be further lockdowns, and even if not, you may be feeling a little cramped in your current setup. You can expand your domestic world, keep within budget, yet still stay within the five boroughs.

This sunny home boasts 3 bedrooms, over 1900 square feet, and no fee, for only $2750/month. Freshly renovated, it is located in Westerleigh, on the more convenient North Shore of Staten Island.

Package Room

As the USPS, UPS, FedEx, and other shipping carriers can attest, people are shopping online more than ever, at a rate expedited by the pandemic, but with shipping times rife with delays. With more packages coming your way but with less predictable arrival times, it’s more helpful than ever to live in a building with a package room. Here, no matter when that new necklace or box of TP shows up, you can go on with your life, knowing your goods are safely held, and you can pick them up at your convenience.

This no-fee, 3 bed/flex 4 unit in the Financial District offers a package room as one of its many amenities. This apartment and its building encompass all of the upgrades from our list and more: concierge and doorman, in-building ATM, indoor basketball court, bicycle storage, club room, fitness center, game room, outdoor spaces in the heart of the city, including landscaped roof deck and terrace, package room, parking garage, pet-friendly, storage, valet, yoga room, housekeeping, and dry-cleaning. Even if you find yourself in another lockdown, you might never want to leave!

The post Top Apartment Upgrades Every COVID-19 Era Renter Needs appeared first on CitySignal.

The neighborhood was named after the Chelsea district of London, and began with the Georgian estate of Thomas Clarke, who bought the land from a farmer in 1750. The estate originally sat within the future 21st and 24th Streets and the Hudson River and 6th Avenue.  By the 1820s, it expanded south to 19th Street, and the family began diversifying the land into individual lots along 9th Avenue and a theological seminary (formerly their apple orchard), under the guidance of Clarke’s grandson, Clement Clarke Moore (author of “A Visit from St. Nicholas” and the first American lexicons of Greek and Hebrew).  Moore and James Wells oversaw the initial development of Chelsea in the 1820s-40s, outlining conditions in the deeds to forbid stables, manufacturing, and commercial ventures, and specifying architectural elements such as brick. Many of the resulting Federal style row houses remain today.  

As Chelsea grew into the 1860s, the western land coverage of the neighborhood expanded, as did industrialization and housing for workers, usually newly arrived immigrants.  In the last decades of the 1800s, a theatre district emerged, leading the national scene and centered around West 23rd Street and Pike’s Opera House (Grand Opera House).  Apartment buildings and warehouses continued to develop in tandem throughout the 1900s, with storied histories you might not know.

1.Chelsea Market  |  75 9th Avenue  |  built 1890s  

Although this building is technically on the cusp of the neighboring Meatpacking District, it gets an honorary inclusion here.  What is now known as the Chelsea Market was one of the aforementioned warehouses built over the turn of the century and takes up an entire block between 15th and 16th Streets and 9th and 10th Avenues.  

It first housed the National Biscuit Company (known to us as Nabisco) in 1898.  The next time you stop in for lunch or shopping, see if you can smell any lingering cookie aromas.  After all, this is the birthplace of animal crackers (1902) and Oreos (1912).  Each of these beloved cookies were invented here and manufactured in the building until 1958.  

The current market is owned by Alphabet, Inc., Google’s parent company.  When they made the purchase in 2018, it was one of the biggest real estate transactions for a single building in the history of the city.

2.London Terrace  |  435 W 23rd Street  |  built 1845 / 1929

This story is a tale of two buildings.  The original London Terrace, built in 1845 and encompassing 80 London-inspired homes, was designed by Alexander Jackson Davis, native New Yorker and a Gothic Revivalist architect. 

When the building’s 85-year lease expired, Moore’s descendants allowed developer Henry Mandel to knock down Davis’ six-story buildings and replace them with the luxury complex still extant today, designed by Farrar & Watmough.  Like the Chelsea Market, London Terrace spans an entire block, including two main components, the Towers and the Gardens.  Built in 1929 and opened in 1930, it boasted to be the world’s largest apartment block at the time, housing 1700 apartments across 14 connected buildings, an Olympic-sized pool, solarium, and full-sized gymnasium.  The original doormen even wore outfits to resemble London “bobbies.”  The building still attracts high-profile residents to this day, with notable tenants: Chelsea Clinton, Bill Hader, Annie Leibovitz, and Susan Sontag.

It is said that Babe Ruth dressed up as Santa Claus to deliver presents to children at the London Terrace Christmas party in 1932.  Afterwards, he showed his true identity and spent the rest of the evening being celebrated while visiting residents and signing autographs.

3.Baker & Williams Warehouses  |  521-527 W. 20th Street  

Now home to galleries and offices, these warehouses were originally built for the Baker and Williams Company.  They held duty-free contents for many years, thanks to a law passed in 1846.  

However, these buildings had their darkest intrigue in 1942-43. They were secretly used to store tons of uranium for work on the atomic bomb, and alongside the research done at Columbia, helped to give the Manhattan Project its name.  Don’t worry now though, a full remediation was done in the 1990s, and the Department of Energy officially cleared the building for unrestricted use.

4.Chelsea Studios  |  221 West 26th Street  

This iconic television studio wasn’t always full of entertainment.  It originally served as an armory for the Ninth Mounted Cavalry until they moved to 14th Street on the cusp of WWI.  

The building opened its doors to the performing arts soon after, and it was there that  Mary Pickford filmed some of her earliest moving pictures, and John Barrymore’s first two features were produced.  Since its inception, the building has been home to the Famous Players Film Company (founded by Paramount founder Adolph Zukor) and Himan Brown’s Production Center Studios.  Throughout its history, it has played a role in the creation of the Phil Silvers Show, 12 Angry Men (1957), Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego, and the Tyra Banks Show, among a myriad of others.

5.Hotel Chelsea |  222 West 23rd Street  |  built 1883-85

The Hotel Chelsea was built in 1883-85, opened in 1884, and was one of the first private apartment cooperatives and the tallest building in the city at the time.  It was designed by Philip Hubert, and its cast iron balconies and iconic interior grand staircase were constructed by J.B. and J.M. Cornell.  It opened as one of the “Hubert Home Clubs” when Chelsea was still home to the burgeoning theatre scene.  After experiencing bankruptcy, the building pivoted into a hotel role in 1905, afterwards including long-term residents as well as visitors.  Its golden era flourished under the management of Joseph Gross, Julius Krauss, and David Bard, then Stanley Bard, from 1939-2007, when it played host to some of the most creative minds of the 20th century.

The Chelsea has been home to more beloved poets, musicians, artists, actors, and writers than one can count.  Instead of attempting (and failing) to list them all, here are some favorite highlights.

Patti Smith and Robert Mapplethorpe lived in room 1017, the chronicles of which are beautifully detailed in her book, Just Kids.  Madonna lived in room 822, Leonard Cohen lived in room 424, and Janis Joplin in room 411. Cohen and Joplin are said to have had an affair there.  Bob Dylan, Cher, Bette Midler, Jim Morrison, Sid Vicious, Jane Fonda, Mark Twain, Tennessee Williams, Allen Ginsberg, Gregory Corso, Stanley Kubrick, Christo, Willem de Kooning, Jasper Johns, Diego Rivera, Arthur Miller, Jobrieth, and Joni Mitchell were all residents.  Andy Warhol’s orbit strongly included the Chelsea, and Arthur Clarke wrote 2001: A Space Odyssey while at the hotel. Though the Chelsea no longer accepts long-term tenants, you can relive its stories through countless literary, musical, and film references. They are rich.

Today, Chelsea is an amazing neighborhood filled with lots of great restaurants, bars, and activities for both renters and homeowners living in the area. Future projects such as the construction of Manhattan’s first public beach is coming to the neighborhood meaning residents will have lots to look forward to in future years!

The post Do You Know the Story Behind these 5 Buildings in Chelsea? appeared first on CitySignal.