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Dear New Yorkers,

Starting in mid-January, service for the A train will end at Howard Beach for 17 weeks until May.

That will disconnect over 9,000 daily commuters on Broad Channel and the entire Rockaway peninsula from the only subway service that carries them to the mainland.

At a town hall meeting last week, MTA officials sought to reassure locals and explain the repairs. The shutdown is part of a $393 million phase of overhauling and upgrading parts of the line that are more than 65 years old, with the goal of making them more resilient to climate change and rising sea levels.

The MTA will be offering shuttle buses to Howard Beach and rerouting the shuttle train to run across all stops on the peninsula for free.

But commuters on the A train did not sound reassured, telling THE CITY how deeply they rely on the A train to get to work and school.

“I’ve been searching for other ways I can get to places,” said one 13-year-old student, adding that she was concerned about safety while navigating a new route to school during the winter. “Since it’s gonna be daylight savings, it’s gonna be really dark.”

Read more here about the impending A train shutdown.

Weather 🌤

Mostly sunny with a few clouds early on, and highs in the mid-60s.

MTA 🚇

There’s no 2 train between Chambers Street and Atlantic Avenue-Barclays Center overnight this week, and more. Find all the MTA’s planned changes and the latest delays here.

Alternate side parking 🚙

It’s in effect today, Nov. 18.

By the way

The Clean Slate Act, which automatically seals many old conviction records, went into effect on Saturday. Read more about it here.

Our Other Top Stories

It’s been a winding road for New York City’s imperiled vehicle tolling program after Gov. Kathy Hochul abruptly paused the plan in early summer. Then, last week, Hochul announced it would move forward in the new year, with one major change: the base tolling price will be 40% lower. New Yorkers had lots of questions, and THE CITY’s reporters followed up. Here are all your questions about congestion pricing, answered. Throughout the election, Donald Trump promised to enact mass deportations, saying he wants to remove “as many as 20 million” people from the United States during his second administration. New York is a sanctuary city, where non-citizens are supposed to be granted some protection from federal immigration enforcement. But what does it really mean to be a sanctuary city? And how would those policies actually work during an unprecedented federal deportation effort? Check out THE CITY’s guide here.

Reporter’s Notebook

Retail Revival

A surge in new retail openings has sharply reduced vacancy rates across the city, according to a report issued Friday by the Department of City Planning.

The city’s overall vacancy rate has declined to 11%, with the rates in the Bronx, Queens and Staten Island all dropping under 9%. Brooklyn is at 12%, and Manhattan stands at 14%.

The city paused data collection during the pandemic, so there is no data on what the vacancy peaks were. All boroughs except Manhattan have returned to pre-pandemic vacancy levels. Manhattan, still hurt by the lack of office workers, is two percentage points higher.

New restaurant openings account for much of the recent strength. There have been 1,300 more restaurant openings than closing between the start of the pandemic and the summer of this year, the report notes. New to New York retailers represent another major trend.

More than 40,000 new storefront businesses have opened since the start of the pandemic, according to the report, meaning 1-in-3 storefront businesses are new in this decade.

— Greg David

Things To Do

Here’s what’s going on around the city this week.

Monday, Nov. 18: ‘Tis the season for the annual Gingerbread NYC exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York, where bakers create incredibly detailed, edible versions of city buildings, blocks and monuments. The exhibit runs through Jan. 12, 2025, and is free with museum admission. Wednesday, Nov. 20: A virtual meetup for community gardeners about how to face climate change and think about preparedness in your neighborhoods. Free from 6 to 7:30 p.m. online. Thursday, Nov. 21: A talk with four contemporary artists whose works were recently added to the Brooklyn Museum’s collection. Tickets: $20 (members $12), from 7 to 9 p.m. at the museum’s Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Auditorium.

THE KICKER: The city has opened up an additional 15,000 square feet in The Arches, a public space under the Brooklyn Bridge in Chinatown. For Lower Manhattan, that’s “an enormous amount of precious space,” as Transportation Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez noted in an interview with Gothamist.

Thanks, as always, for reading. Make it a great Monday.

Love,

THE CITY

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