Although the administration of Mayor Bill de Blasio has backed away from its controversial proposal to build a new, 40-story jail on top of a historic government office building at 80 Centre Street, it still aims to bring more prison capacity to Lower Manhattan. The revised iteration of this plan is to expand the Manhattan […]
Archives for December 2018
Today in History December 17
546 – Siege of Rome: The Ostrogoths under king Totila plunder the city, by bribing the Byzantine garrison. 1538 – Pope Paul III excommunicates Henry VIII of England. 1777 – France formally recognizes the United States. 1790 – The Aztec calendar stone is discovered at El Zócalo, Mexico City. 1812 – War of 1812: U.S. […]
The Deal of the Sentry
The Battery Park City Authority (BPCA) has extended for one year its contract with Allied Universal, the firm that provides security guards (known as “safety ambassadors”) to the community. The original agreement, signed in November, 2015, provided for three years of such service (at a cost of $2.1 million per year), and was set to […]
Ferry Worried
As many as 10,000 people per weekend day will be pushed onto Battery Park City streets by a plan to use ferries to replace PATH train service to the World Trade Center, which will be on weekend hiatus for the next two years, during repairs to a pair of tunnels beneath the Hudson River that […]
Today in History December 14
557 – Constantinople is severely damaged by an earthquake. 1542 – Princess Mary Stuart becomes Queen of Scots at the age of only one week on the death of her father, James V of Scotland. 1780 – Founding Father Alexander Hamilton marries Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton at the Schuyler Mansion in Albany, New York 1900 – […]
Move Over, Rockefeller Center
Tomorrow (Saturday, December 15), the Rooftop at Pier 17 Winterland, opens for the season, featuring a pop-up winter village and market, along with New York’s first outdoor rooftop ice skating rink. The facility, which is nearly the size of the iconic ice rink in Rockefeller Center, is slated to offer not only traditional ice-skating lessons […]
Today in History December 13
1294 – Saint Celestine V resigns the papacy after only five months wishing to return to his previous life as an ascetic hermit. No subsequent pope has taken the name Celestine. 1577 – Francis Drake sets sail from Plymouth, England, on his round-the-world voyage. Drake was awarded a knighthood in 1581 and was a hero […]
Menorah Lighting at the New York Stock Exchange
On Thursday, December 6, the 200-year-old New York Stock Exchange saw its first-ever public menorah lighting. On the fifth night of the eight-day holiday of Chanukah, Rabbi Nissi Eber lit the Chanukah menorah at a public Menorah lighting outside the Exchange on Broad Street. The gathering of hundreds of celebrants was organized by Chabad of […]
Today in History December 12
884 – King Carloman II dies after a hunting accident. He is succeeded by his cousin, emperor Charles the Fat, who for the last time reunites the Frankish Empire. 1787 – Pennsylvania becomes the second state to ratify the United States Constitution, five days after Delaware became the first. 1862 – USS Cairo sinks on […]
Preservation or Reclamation?
As the historic New Market Building in the South Street Seaport faces demolition, community leaders are beginning to ponder the future of the site. Anthony Notaro At the November 27 meeting of Community Board 1 (CB1), chair Anthony Notaro observed that the City’s Economic Development Corporation (EDC), “says that building is falling apart, it’s condemned, […]