MIXING POLITICS AND ART

To the editor: On April 20, Manhattan Borough President Gail Brewer provided another art show (opening) venue of a diverse group of talented artists in her offices at One Centre Street. This display and sharing with New Yorkers of creative talent is a rare visual statement by a political leader of her high regard for...

The Larceny of the Commons

A new report from City Comptroller Scott Stringer finds that of 51 “privately owned public spaces” (POPS) located in Lower Manhattan, only eight are meeting legally required standards for public access, hours, or the availability of amenities such as artwork, lighting, furniture, plantings, drinking fountains, and bike racks. This represents a significant loss of value...
A security guard at 101 Barclay Street attempts to prevent auditors from the office of City Comptroller Scott Stringer from entering the lobby -- which is legally set aside as public space -- or taking photographs there.

April 21

753 BC – Romulus founds Rome (traditional date). 1898 – Spanish-American War: The United States Navy begins a blockade of Cuban ports. When the U.S. Congress issued a declaration of war on April 25, it declared that a state of war had existed from this date. 1918 – World War I: German fighter ace Manfred...
Tiananmen Square protests begin. Weeks later this man stops the column of tanks in this legendary video.

Where Every Swing Is a Home Run

Among many signs of Lower Manhattan’s triumphant emergence as a thriving residential community, one is perhaps more compelling than any other: the Downtown Little League (DLL), which will celebrate its 25th Opening Day tomorrow (Saturday, April 22), is now the nation’s largest. With more than 1,000 kids organized into 80 teams, led by 250 coaches...

April 19

AD 65 – The freedman Milichus betrays Piso’s plot to kill the Emperor Nero and all the conspirators are arrested. 1713 – With no living male heirs, Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor, issues the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713 to ensure that Habsburg lands and the Austrian throne would be inherited by his daughter, Maria Theresa...
Charles Duryea and his brother J. Frank in their 1894 gasoline-powered automobile

Linda Belfer Remembered

To the editor, What a beautiful and devastating portrait on the passing of Linda Belfer. (BroadsheetDAILY April 17, Matthew Fenton) When I first moved to New York City, Battery Park City was my home for four years. I, too, was pushed out by Gateway’s rising rents, but while I lived there, I spent time with...
Linda Belfer