Year: 2017

Pop-Up (and Down)

A Danish urban-planning firm is proposing a radically innovative solution to a pair of problems that plague Lower Manhattan: vulnerability to extreme weather events, and a chronic shortage of parking. Copenhagen-based architects Tredje Natur (which translates as “Third Nature”) wants to create in St. John’s Park — the four-acre, circular green space enclosed by the...
A cutaway view of the parking garage and park proposed for the Holland Tunnel Rotary, in Tribeca.

September 29

1227 – Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, is excommunicated by Pope Gregory IX for his failure to participate in the Crusades. 1717 – An earthquake strikes Antigua Guatemala, destroying much of the city’s architecture and making authorities consider moving the capital to a different city. 1789 – The United States Department of War first establishes...
Nikita Khrushchev: "Politicians are the same all over. They promise to build a bridge even where there is no river."

Tunnel to Towers Report

“We had a great time as always as the official FINISH LINE crowd control team. And while soccer moms sometimes give us a hard time staying put until the runners pass, it’s people on bikes who were difficult, especially when we asked them to walk their bikes while crossing Warren Street. In order to make...

Is Lower Manhattan Coral Island or Vulgaria?

A slew of sources have recently deemed Battery Park City the child-friendliest neighborhood in Manhattan (or anywhere in New York City), while at least one source says the Financial District is among the City’s least hospitable communities for children. The 2017 ratings by Niche.com, an online database that helps users determine which neighborhoods (and which...

September 28

48 BC – Pompey the Great is assassinated on the orders of King Ptolemy of Egypt after landing in Egypt. 235 – Pope Pontian resigns. He and Hippolytus, church leader of Rome, are exiled to the mines of Sardinia. 1066 – William the Conqueror invades England beginning the Norman conquest of England. 1538 – Ottoman-Venetian...
1928: Sir Alexander Fleming notices a bacteria-killing mold growing in his laboratory, discovering what later became known as penicillin.

It’s Official: Chin Wins a Third Term

On Tuesday, the City’s Board of Elections (BOE) certified the results of the September 12 Democratic Party primary race for the City Council seat representing the First District, which covers Lower Manhattan. The final result is the same as the provisional tally, in that incumbent Margaret Chin has been deemed the winner by a few...
Margaret Chin: "I thank all of my supporters for being with me every step of the way. I look forward to continuing our work in the community I was raised in, worked in, and which I love with all my heart. Together, we will fight for a better, brighter future for our community."