WORLD WORLDWIDE USA New York NY New York City NYC the city THE CITY News Journal Update - THE CITY SCOOP: NYC Awards $191 Million Tax Break to Landlord With 3,000 Housing Code Violations

 

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If you know anyone who might like this newsletter, send it to them. If this was sent to you by someone else, subscribe here — it's free!  Dear New Yorkers, The owner of a sprawling Brooklyn apartment complex — repeatedly cited for deteriorating conditions and lack of repairs — has received one of the most generous tax breaks awarded by City Hall since Mayor Eric Adams took office. Officials at the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development quietly signed off on a deal last month to provide a 40-year tax exemption worth an estimated $191 million to the owners of Flatbush Gardens. The cluster of aging red-brick buildings with almost 2,500 rent-stabilized apartments is located in East Flatbush.  The deal calls for the landlord to resolve the nearly 3,000 outstanding housing code violations, keep the apartments rent-regulated, and reserve a total of 250 apartments for the homeless as vacant units become available. The exemption was approved without objection by the City Council in June.  There have been hundreds of violations involving basic maintenance failures that have led to rodents, roaches, mold, rotting windows, lead paint and missing doors, conditions deemed by the city as the most hazardous.  Read more here. In other news: CBC Predicts $9B Budget Shortfall Next Year In a new analysis the Citizens Budget Commission projects Mayor Eric Adams’ next budget will have a whopping $9 billion deficit — far higher than the figure City Hall cites. The CBC says the official budget gap for next year of $5.1 billion understates the problem because the city has funded key programs with temporary federal COVID aid and has understated costly items, including police overtime. Adams “may need to drastically reduce services in order to balance the budget,” said CBC research director Ana Champeny. — Greg David   Witnesses and NYPD Give Conflicting Accounts of Car Chases The NYPD engaged in at least two car chases in Manhattan on Tuesday that resulted in serious injuries to pedestrians, adding to the explosive increase in the number of dangerous pursuits first reported by THE CITY. NYPD officials suggested both pursuits through crowded streets were necessary and performed correctly, but witness accounts suggested otherwise. A person who saw part of one chase told the Daily News that “The cops were chasing him" on the Lower East Side and "The girl was walking by, and he hit her. She flew about 10 feet...” The NYPD, however, told the paper that it had no information about an injury in that case, and said the chase began after officers attempted to conduct a traffic stop in Chinatown and continued when they “reengaged” the same vehicle on 23rd Street. Hours later, eight pedestrians were hospitalized after a driver fleeing the police in Midtown took off, according to a briefing afterward by an assistant chief. As THE CITY has reported, there were more pursuits in the first six months of 2023 than in all of the previous five years. — Harry Siegel Some other items of note: The city has begun to mandate plant-based meals at least once a week for New Yorkers older than 60 who eat at senior centers or have food delivered to their homes via city services, according to an internal June 23 memo obtained by THE CITY. The change — which requires plant-based entrees to replace the weekly vegetarian meal that senior centers already must provide — is part of a City Hall-led health kick that affects millions of meals. The health push comes as older adult center operators are struggling to bring attendance back to pre-pandemic levels.  Two politicians who were attacked by NYPD officers during the protests following the murder of George Floyd have settled their federal lawsuit against New York City. State Senator Zellnor Myrie (D-Brooklyn) and former Assemblymember Diana Richardson, also a Democrat from Brooklyn, will each receive a payout of $15,001, according to the terms of the settlement. Their attorneys will receive $385,000. The NYPD did not admit to any wrongdoing. Do you have questions about preparing for climate change and extreme weather in New York City? Join THE CITY at our next Open Newsroom event on tonight, Aug. 3, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Queens Public Library’s central branch. A panel of experts will be there to answer your questions. Can’t make it? We got you. Email your questions to ask@thecity.nyc with “CLIMATE” in the subject line and we’ll send answers. You can also share your stories and photos with the team here. Hey, Scoop subscribers: We’re a small nonprofit newsroom and could use your help in figuring out how best to serve you. Your insights aid our mission in helping New Yorkers across the five boroughs engage in civic life. Consider taking our 10-minute survey — and helping shape the future of our newsroom. As an added incentive, we’re giving a $100 gift card for Bluestockings Cooperative Bookstore to one respondent. For the latest local numbers on COVID-19 hospitalizations, positivity rates and more, check our coronavirus tracker.  Weather scoop by New York Metro Weather Thursday's Weather Rating: 7/10. Most of the day will be quite nice, but humidity will slowly start creeping back up with a few isolated storms later. We've also got wildfire smoke several thousand feet above our heads once again, leading to haze. The vibes are...all right. Things To Do Here’s what’s going on around the city this week. Friday, Aug. 4: Singer-songwriter Indigo De Souza performs in the BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! concert series with opener Vundabar. Lena Horne Bandshell, Prospect Park. Doors open 6:30 p.m. and the show starts at 7:30 p.m. Free. Sunday, Aug. 6: Last day to catch the Public Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park production of “Hamlet” at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park. Ticket information here. Free. Sunday, Aug. 6: An outdoor screening of “Wakanda Forever.” Dr. Charles R. Drew Park, Queens, 8:45 p.m. Free. THE KICKER: This week would have marked James Baldwin’s 99th birthday. The writer and civil rights activist was born in Harlem on August 2, 1924. Thanks, as always, for reading. Make it a great Thursday. Love, THE CITY P.S. Love THE CITY? Our nonprofit newsroom runs on support from readers like you. Donate here.

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