Local Politics · New York, NY
NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Tuesday he has "no plans" to fire NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch, despite pressure from NYC-DSA and allied state lawmakers demanding her removal over the department's handling of protests following an Oct. 8 ICE shooting in Marble Hill that wounded Oscar Bergal. Mamdani cited Tisch's record on corruption and declining crime, while reiterating his pledge to disband the NYPD's Strategic Response Group within coming weeks. Seventeen Democratic nominees and state legislators signed a statement calling for Tisch to end NYPD assistance to ICE operations or face dismissal. Mamdani appeared alongside Tisch at the annual Police Memorial Wall ceremony in Battery Park City honoring 42 fallen officers.
Crime · Queens County
A 17-year-old surrendered to police Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. and was charged with murder and weapons possession for the Sept. 21 fatal shooting of 14-year-old Malakai Adams behind the Ocean Bay Apartments at 51-24 Beach Channel Dr. in Arverne, Queens. Police say Adams was riding his scooter just after 3:30 p.m. when the suspect attempted to rob him; during a struggle, the teen allegedly shot Adams in the lower back and fled on the victim's scooter eastbound along Norton Avenue. Adams was transported to Cohen Children's Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. The defendant's arraignment is pending in Queens Criminal Court.
Crime · New York, NY
Elvin Rivera, 57, of Flushing, was arraigned Monday at Queens Criminal Court on charges including second-degree manslaughter and vehicular manslaughter for fatally striking 1-year-old Justin Hu in a stroller at the intersection of Murray Street and 32nd Avenue in Murray Hill at 8:35 a.m. on Sunday, Oct. 11. Rivera allegedly rolled through a stop sign and accelerated into a marked crosswalk where the child was being pushed by his 69-year-old nanny, who sustained arm injuries. A field sobriety test and drug test detected cocaine and THC in Rivera's system; he also has an open DWI case in the Bronx from April 2026. Queens DA Melinda Katz called the death 'completely avoidable.' Rivera pleaded not guilty, was remanded without bail, and is due back in court Oct. 19.
Crime · Queens County
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced on Oct. 9 that Ashram Lochan, 34, and Jovan Young, 32, both of the Edgemere neighborhood, pleaded guilty to manslaughter charges in the June 5, 2021 shooting death of 10-year-old Justin Wallace on Beach 45th Street. The shooting stemmed from a dispute over a shared driveway between Lochan and neighbor Kyle Forrester; Young fired multiple rounds into the home at approximately 9:30 p.m., striking Wallace in the chest and Forrester multiple times. Wallace, a fifth-grader at Challenge Charter School, died at St. John's Episcopal Hospital in Far Rockaway. Lochan is scheduled for sentencing on Oct. 16 with an indicated term of 19 years plus five years post-release supervision; Young faces sentencing on Oct. 23 with an indicated term of 24 years plus five years post-release supervision.
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Community News · New York, NY
New York City launched its "Debt Demolisher" amnesty program on Oct. 13, giving residents and small businesses 90 days to settle unpaid Environmental Control Board judgments at reduced amounts with accrued interest waived. Eligible violations from the Department of Sanitation, Department of Buildings, and Department of Transportation can be resolved by paying the original base fine or 75% of a hearing-imposed penalty, depending on how liability was determined. The program excludes judgments entered after July 15, 2026, debts under active enforcement or tax liens, and those tied to criminal investigations; participants must pay in full and forfeit the right to challenge liability. City officials project up to $25 million in additional revenue, with assistance available at nyc.gov/debtdemolisher, by calling 311, or at Department of Finance Business Centers.
Housing & Development · Queens County
The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) selected the Hillside North Building at 161-09 Hillside Ave. in Jamaica, Queens, for a $1.2 million Building of Excellence Award, announced by Gov. Kathy Hochul on Sept. 25. The 14-story, 173-unit affordable rental development will include 12,000 square feet of community retail, bicycle storage, and a backup-powered cooling center, with some units reserved as supportive housing for formerly homeless households served by Elmcor Youth and Adult Activities, Inc. Part of the first phase of a 400-unit Hillside redevelopment in partnership with NYC HPD and HDC, the building targets PHI Classic Passive House certification with rooftop solar, heat pumps, and rainwater harvesting. Construction financing is expected to close in December 2026, with substantial completion targeted for around June 2029.
Community News · New York, NY
On Friday, Oct. 9, the Hunters Point Parks Conservancy and NYC Parks planted 30 trees near Hunter's Point South Park along the Long Island City waterfront to combat the urban heat island effect. The $50,000 initiative—funded by a $20,000 HPPC contribution and an Arbor Day Foundation grant—targeted Center Boulevard between 48th and 50th Avenue and a linear park between Center Boulevard and 2nd Street. HPPC Executive Director Jessica Sechrist noted that treeless areas in the neighborhood can be up to 10 degrees warmer than shaded zones, while HPPC President Rob Basch pointed out Hunter's Point ranks 57th of 59 NYC community districts for green space per capita. Tree species planted included birch, pin oak, boxelder, honey locust, and plane trees. HPPC said it will advocate for additional plantings along Vernon Boulevard and in the Blissville industrial area.
Social Events · Queens County
The Queens World First Amendment Film and Arts Festival will take place Nov. 13-14 in Astoria, Queens, with events at Sac's, the Museum of the Moving Image, and the Zukor Screening Room inside Kaufman Astoria Studios. The festival, hosted in partnership with the Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME) and LaGuardia Performing Arts Center, includes a Queens Memory Listening Tour stop on Friday morning, a MOME conversation with Commissioner Raphael Espinal on Friday afternoon, and a mixed-media screening and performance Saturday evening. Proceeds from a closing celebration at Sac's benefit Queens World, a filmmaker-focused community festival founded in 2011 that has presented more than 2,000 films.
Housing & Development · New York, NY
The final phase of Riverside Park South, a 30-year waterfront park project on the former New York Central Railroad yards near West 62nd Street in Manhattan's Upper West Side, is expected to open within weeks. The new section includes two softball/baseball fields, soccer pitches for 7-on-7 and 9-on-9 games, a basketball court, three pickleball courts, and—marking a first for Riverside Park—lighting for night play. Delays in completing this parcel were attributed to environmental remediation of the former industrial site and cost overruns relative to budgets agreed upon by developers in 1991. West Side Little League and West Side Soccer League officials said the added field capacity will ease scheduling pressures, particularly on Friday evenings and Saturday afternoons. The Parks Department has not yet detailed how permits for the new fields will be allocated among youth organizations, schools, and adult sports programs.
Housing & Development · New York, NY
A proposed nine-story, roughly 40-room hotel at 23-27 Allen Street between Canal and Hester streets will be reviewed by Community Board 3's Land Use, Zoning, Public & Private Housing Committee on Oct. 14 at 6:30 p.m. at Middle Collegiate Church, 50 E. Seventh St. The Harlem-based developer Artifact plans a roughly 120-foot-tall building spanning nearly 40,000 square feet with ground-floor retail, replacing three existing two-story commercial properties. The project requires a special permit from the city, as new hotels have required such permits in New York City since 2021. The proposal would add to an already dense hospitality corridor on Allen Street and the wider Lower East Side, which currently includes roughly 12 to 14 notable hotels.
