Dear New Yorkers,
Gov. Kathy Hochul’s road show in of congestion pricing made a stop in Midtown Wednesday at an MTA board meeting — after her in-person pitch last week to President Donald Trump.
Vowing that New York “will not be steamrolled” by the White House’s attempt to shut down the vehicle-tolling plan by a newly revealed March 21 deadline, Hochul cited the early gains of the effort to curb traffic and raise money for mass-transit upgrades.
“I know there’s a lot of power in that Oval Office, but I’ll take that power up against the power of 6 million pissed-off commuters there in New York City,” Hochul said.
Her pitch highlighted how congestion pricing is working — using a booklet that she gave Trump during their meeting, which uses “big words” and “nice colors” that she joked make it easier to read.
She pointed to a letter from the Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy last week that called for the “orderly cessation of toll operations.”
“I will propose something in the alternative: orderly resistance, orderly resistance,” Hochul said.
Read more here about Hochul’s tough talk at the MTA board meeting.
Weather 🌧️
Warmer weather continues, and we’ll likely see some rain.
MTA 🚇
There’s no D train between 34 St-Herald Square in Manhattan and 9 Ave in Brooklyn from 11:30 p.m. through tomorrow morning. Find all the MTA’s planned changes and the latest delays here.
Alternate side parking 🚙
It’s in effect today, Feb. 27.
By the way…
Two popular composting spots are slated to reopen this weekend: McCarren Park in Brooklyn and Forest Hills farmer’s market in Queens.
Our Other Top Stories
- An experiment to swap steam radiators for eco-friendly, electric heat pumps at a Queens public housing complex has yielded promising results after almost two years. Woodside Houses residents say the electric alternatives to steam radiators have served them well through the winter — plus, they’ve yielded more than 87% in energy savings and just about halved energy costs.
- If you think your boss is shortchanging you, you’re not alone: an estimated 2.1 million workers in New York State are victims of wage theft annually, totalling $3.2 billion in unpaid wages and benefits, according to labor advocates. We spoke to Rachana Pathak, who leads the Manhattan District Attorney’s Worker Protection Unit, to get advice on what to do if you think you may be missing wages.
- This week in the Your Local Epidemiologist column (originally published by Healthbeat), Marisa Donnelly covers DOGE’s abrupt decision to cut funding to a 9/11 first responder program, only to reverse it days later. Plus, a measles outbreak in New Jersey.
Reporter’s Notebook
Councilmember Declares War on Turf
Councilmember Christopher Marte (D-Manhattan) announced that today he is introducing a bill banning the Department of Parks and Recreation from installing artificial turf on playgrounds and sports fields.
“The turf we use is bad for the environment and bad for our health,” Marte told THE CITY last week. “We believe parks can manage non-turf fields and should have the funding to do it.”
Neighbors in Washington Heights last year protested the installation of turf at Bennett Park, citing the risks that the chemicals and microplastics in turf pose to human and environmental health. Since then, New Yorkers in other neighborhoods have voiced their opposition to plans to install fake grass in Inwood Hill Park and East River Park.
— Samantha Maldonado
Things To Do
Here’s what’s going on around the city this week.
- Thursday, Feb. 27: Kay Sohini discusses her graphic memoir, This Beautiful, Ridiculous City. Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library, 6:30 p.m.
- Friday, Feb. 28: It’s the last day to see the Winter Glow art installations in Flatiron — give them a visit!
- Friday, Feb. 28 – Sunday, March 16: It’s the New York International Children’s Film Festival! Catch one of the flicks at a number of venues in Manhattan.
THE KICKER: A Long Island duck farm that had to kill 10,000 of its flock due to bird flu just hatched a new generation of ducklings from the eggs that were saved from the outbreak.
Thanks, as always, for reading. Make it a great Thursday.
Love,
THE CITY
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