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Dear New Yorkers,

Three major departures have hit Mayor Eric Adams’ administration this week: the Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Phil Banks, the mayor’s Asian Affairs liaison, Winnie Greco, and Rana Abbasova, an aide in the international affairs office.

Banks resigned on Sunday night, just weeks after his home was raided and phone seized by federal authorities.

Greco resigned “on her own volition,” according to her attorney. Her Bronx homes were raided by the FBI in February, along with an Adams campaign office where she’d worked. The office was located in a Queens mall, where THE CITY and Documented reported on suspicious donations.

Abbasova was fired. She has become a key cooperating witness in the federal case against Adams. She is alleged to have taken illegal foreign campaign donations, participated in a scheme to bilk the city’s campaign finance matching funds program and taken flight upgrades in exchange for favors to the Turkish government.

Read more about Banks here, and about Greco and Abbasova here.

Weather ☀️

It’s pretty out there today. Sunny with a few clouds, light wind, highs in the upper 60s.

MTA 🚇

There’s no L between Union Square and 8th Avenue overnight, but there is overnight 42nd Street Shuttle service. Find the latest delays and planned changes here.

Alternate side parking 🚙

It’s in effect today, Oct. 8.

Our Other Top Stories

Timothy Pearson — a beleaguered former aide to the mayor who is facing multiple sexual assault charges, aside from being swept up in the federal inquiry of Adams’ inner circle — is facing yet more charges. This time, security guards at a shelter have sued Pearson and the city over an incident in which Pearson allegedly threw an employee to the ground and shouted, “Bitch, do you know who I am?” No, really. The latest episode of FAQ NYC changed direction midway through, since so many Adams staffers were exiting that the hosts had to scramble to keep up. Listen here.

Things To Do

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

Thursday, Oct. 10: The New York Public Library hosts Ensemble Pi, a socially conscious music group, as it performs newly commissioned music based on banned book texts. Free from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center in Manhattan. Thursday, Oct. 10: An educational talk about the Underground Railroad in New York City. Free from 6 to 7 p.m. at the Van Cortlandt House Museum in Van Cortlandt Park in The Bronx. Saturday, Oct. 12: Visit a pumpkin patch at the Queens Botanical Garden. Kids age 4 and up can take home a pumpkin. Free with admission from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

THE KICKER: The waterfall in Morningside Park was recently restarted after four years, reports West Side Rag.

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

Love,

THE CITY

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