On November 15, 2024, Department of City Planning (DCP) Director Dan Garodnick released new data showing the city’s storefront vacancy rate is down to 11.1 percent. This marks the fourth straight quarter of declining vacancy.
In comparison, a survey of 24 corridors across the city during summer 2020 showed inactivity rates of over 30 percent. Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island all have borough-wide vacancy rates below nine percent, although some higher vacancy rates persist, … <Read More>
On December 2, 2024, the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) announced that it has begun upgrading over 600,000 Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) devices across the city. The AMR device is a small gray box attached to the exterior of a property that wirelessly transmits readings from the water meter to the agency. The device upgrades will begin in the Greenpoint neighborhood of Brooklyn and will continue over the next three years, providing … <Read More>
By Ben Max
Now that the presidential election is over, New Yorkers can turn to the 2025 municipal election. Party primaries will be in June, but a key milestone will be marked on December 16, 2024 when the New York City Campaign Finance Board (CFB) issues the first public funds payments for the 2025 election. These matching funds — $8 for every dollar of eligible donations — can go a long way toward helping candidates … <Read More>
On October 10, 2024, the New York City Council introduced Bill Int. No. 1075-2024[1] (the “bill”) proposing to improve legislative and procedural knowledge of community boards and other local civic entities. This bill, sponsored by Nantasha Williams of District 27 and Majority Leader, Amanda Faíras of District 18, seeks to assign new responsibility to borough presidents, along with the Civic Engagement Commission (“NYC CEC”). Established in 2018 by the Charter Revision Commission, the NYC … <Read More>
On November 20, 2024, Mayor Eric Adams announced the appointment of Jessica Tisch as commissioner of the New York City Police Department (NYPD), effective November 25th. Tisch is the second woman to serve as NYPD Commissioner in the department’s 179-year history. The first, Commissioner Keechant Sewell, was also appointed under Mayor Adams; Tisch will be the fourth person to lead the NYPD since Adams took office in January 2022. Javier Lojan will serve as Acting … <Read More>
On October 23, 2024, New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced the final rules regulating the City’s $2 million trade-in program for electric-powered mobility devices, such as electric bikes, and their batteries. This program is part of the City’s “Charge Safe, Ride Safe: New York City’s Electric Micromobility Action Plan” which aims to mitigate the risk of deadly e-bike fires, caused by uncertified lithium-ion batteries by promoting public safety and reducing the illegal … <Read More>