WORLD WORLDWIDE US USA - New York NY - New York City - THE CITY SCOOP - Electeds arrested at ICE’s lockup downtown

 

FRIDAY, SEPT. 19, 2025

Dear New Yorkers,

More than a dozen elected officials and protesters were arrested last night in and around 26 Federal Plaza, the notorious federal facility where ICE operates.

Comptroller Brad Lander was among those taken into custody, along with Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, two City Council members and 10 state legislators.

The officials had demanded access to immigration enforcement’s shadowy holding area on the building’s 10th floor. The lawmakers refused to leave the hallway outside the lockup, banged on the locked doors, and eventually sat down to chant and sing before they were hauled off in zip ties. Some were arrested outside where they blocked an entrance to the garage where ICE vans are kept.

“I’m here for my neighbor Dino,” said State Assemblymember Jessica Gonzalez Rojas in tears, pointing to the recent arrest of a beloved restaurant worker in Jackson Heights, Queens.

“I’m brokenhearted,” she said. “This is just one of the many stories in my community.”

A spokesperson for Homeland Security dismissed their actions as “a stunt” made “to get their 15 minutes of fame.”

Read more here about why the representatives want to see inside 26 Federal Plaza.

Weather ☀️

Sunny, with a high near 81.

MTA 🚇

In The Bronx, Manhattan-bound 6 trains will skip Buhre Avenue, Middletown Road, Westchester Square-East Tremont Avenue, Zerega Avenue and Castle Hill Avenue. Find all the MTA’s planned changes and the latest delays here.

Alternate side parking 🚙

It’s in effect today, Sept. 19.

By the way …

Apartment searching? Here’s how to vet your next place like a pro.

Our Other Top Stories

After five postponements, a community task force vote on Mayor Eric Adams’ plans for new housing at Brooklyn’s historic port is expected to take place Monday, after two key holdouts agreed to support the project: Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso and City Councilmember Shahana Hanif, who secured commitments related to housing and industry. Workers at Perrigo, a pharmaceutical manufacturer in The Bronx, ended a strike with an agreement that preserves their overtime protections as well as retirement plan contributions. Their strike had attracted visits from elected officials, including Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani. NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch has ordered papers served in a disciplinary case on two officers involved in the shooting last year of Win Rozario in his Queens home during a mental health call, after his family and elected officials pleaded for action on Civilian Complaint Review Board charges before a deadline. The police union argues the charges don’t hold up. From our partners at NOTUS: Some Democratic members of Congress outside of New York are growing frustrated as party leaders Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-Brooklyn) continue to deflect questions about whether they’ll support Mamdani for mayor — and starting to say openly that they need more geographic diversity in leadership.

SPONSORED JPMorganChase Hosts Block Party on Park Avenue to Celebrate Construction Workforce Event honored the thousands of construction workers who built the firm’s new headquarters at 270 Park Avenue On Tuesday, September 9th, JPMorganChase honored the thousands of local construction workers who helped build the firm’s new state-of-the-art global headquarters at 270 Park Avenue by hosting a block party to celebrate their hard work. The project created 8,000 construction jobs across 40 local unions over the last six years, triggering additional economic activity of $3.6 billion for New York State, including $2.6 billion for New York City. The celebration featured food trucks, music, balloon artists and more for the 1,500 workers and their families. JPMorganChase Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon and Gary LaBarbera, President of the Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York, spoke about the unwavering commitment of the workers and thanked them for their hard work, dedication and passion. Learn more about our new headquarters. Member FDIC. Equal Opportunity Lender.  © 2025 JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Reporter’s Notebook

Green Light for Pipeline

The Public Service Commission, which is in charge of regulating utilities, on Thursday gave the green light to a recently revived gas pipeline in the city.

The decision came as part of an approval of a plan by National Grid on the future of the gas system. The pipeline from the Oklahoma-based Williams Companies isn’t approved to move forward yet, as it’s waiting on a water permit from the state Department of Environmental Conservation, which rejected it three times in the past.

But the project has new life after it was revived as part of an agreement between Gov. Kathy Hochul and the Trump administration recently. Hochul agreed to consider new gas projects in the state in exchange for Trump rescinding a stop-work order issued for New York’s first large-scale offshore wind project.

The PSC found the gas pipeline will help with energy reliability. But the PSC will have to determine the pipeline’s cost to ratepayers in a separate proceeding. National Grid has estimated gas bills may rise by about $8 per month if it is built.

— Samantha Maldonado

Things To Do

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

Friday, Sept. 19: Learn about Wikipedia editing and Latinx heritage at the Wikipedia NYC 400 Edit-A-Thon: Nueva Yol, taking place at 20 Cooper Square, Manhattan. Free, from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 19: Watch “How to Train Your Dragon” under the stars in Browne Park, Queens. Free, from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 20: Check out three new art exhibitions and an outdoor dance performance at Wave Hill, The Bronx. Free, from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

THE KICKER: New York’s hottest club is … rats? A new field study shows that rats are highly social and have their own nightlife — findings that could potentially help New York City with pest control and urban planning.

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

Love,

THE CITY

PS. Love THE CITY? Our nonprofit newsroom is powered by readers like you. Donate here.

Want to view Scoop in your web browser? Click here.

THE CITY's work is made possible, in part, through the support of our sponsors. Interested in becoming a sponsor of THE CITY? Contact us here.  Copyright © 2024 THE CITY, All rights reserved.