Arnold Toynbee’s “Cities on the Move” (1970) documents the history of big cities around the world becoming impoverished and insolvent—some never to recover. Many of the patterns he describes apply to New York now.
Real estate contributed roughly $35 billion of the $80 billion in city tax receipts in fiscal 2025, and personal taxes another $18 billion. The financial sector, real estate, construction, tourism and retail trade sectors are the major contributors to these revenues.
NEW YORK (AP) — Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York City on Tuesday, capping a stunning ascent for the 34-year-old state lawmaker, who was set to become the city’s most liberal mayor in generations.
In a victory for the Democratic party’s progressive wing, Mamdani defeated former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa. Mamdani must now navigate the unending demands of America’s biggest city and deliver on ambitious — skeptics say unrealistic — campaign promises.
With the victory, the democratic socialist will etch his place in history as the city’s first Muslim mayor, the first of South Asian heritage and the first born in Africa. He will also become the city’s youngest mayor in more than a century when he takes office on Jan. 1.
Mamdani’s unlikely rise gives credence to Democrats who have urged the party to embrace more progressive, left-wing candidates instead of rallying behind centrists in hopes of winning back swing voters who have abandoned the party.
He has already faced scrutiny from national Republicans, including President Donald Trump, who have eagerly cast him as a threat and the face of what they say is a more radical Democratic Party.
The contest drove the biggest turnout in a mayoral race in more than 50 years, with more than 2 million New Yorkers casting ballots, according to the city’s Board of Elections.
Mamdani’s grassroots campaign centered on affordability, and his charisma spoiled Cuomo’s attempted political comeback. The former governor, who resigned four years ago following allegations of sexual harassment that he continues to deny, was dogged by his past throughout the race and was criticized for running a negative campaign.
There’s also the question of how he will deal with Trump, who threatened to take over the city and to arrest and deport Mamdani if he won. Mamdani was born in Uganda, where he spent his early childhood, but was raised in New York City and became a U.S. citizen in 2018.
Mamdani must now start building for his ambitious agenda Mamdani, who was criticized throughout the campaign for his thin resume, will now have to begin staffing his incoming administration before taking office next year and game out how he plans to accomplish the ambitious but polarizing agenda that drove him to victory.
Among the campaign’s promises are free child care, free city bus service, city-run grocery stores and a new Department of Community Safety that would send mental health care workers to handle certain emergency calls rather than police officers. It is unclear how Mamdani will pay for such initiatives, given Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul’s steadfast opposition to his calls to raise taxes on wealthy people.
His decisions around the leadership of the New York Police Department will also be closely watched. Mamdani was a fierce critic of the department in 2020, calling for “this rogue agency” to be defunded and slamming it as “racist, anti-queer & a major threat to public safety.” He has since apologized for those comments and has said he will ask the current NYPD commissioner to stay on the job.
Mamdani’s campaign was driven by his optimistic view of the city and his promises to improve the quality of life for its middle and lower classes.
But Cuomo, Sliwa and other critics assailed him over his vehement criticism of Israel ’s military actions in Gaza. Mamdani, a longtime advocate of Palestinian rights, has accused Israel of committing genocide and said he would honor an arrest warrant the International Criminal Court issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
How Mamdani won over the city while Cuomo faltered Mamdani began his campaign as a relatively obscure state lawmaker, little known even within New York City.
Going into the Democratic primary, Cuomo was the presumed favorite, with near-universal name recognition and deep political connections. Cuomo’s chances were buoyed further when incumbent Mayor Eric Adams bowed out of the primary while dealing with the fallout of his now-dismissed federal corruption case.
But as the race progressed, Mamdani’s natural charm, catchy social media videos and populist economic platform energized voters in the notoriously expensive city. He also began drawing outside attention as his name ID grew.
Mamdani ultimately trounced Cuomo in the primary by about 13 points.
The former governor relaunched his campaign as an independent candidate for the general election, vowing to hit the streets with a more energetic approach. However, much of his campaign continued to focus on attacking opponents. In the race’s final stretch, he claimed Mamdani’s election would make Jews feel unsafe.
Meanwhile, supporters packed Mamdani’s rallies, and he held whimsical events, including a scavenger hunt and a community soccer tournament.
Cuomo also juxtaposed his deep experience in government with Mamdani’s less than five years in the state Legislature. But the former governor also faced his own political baggage, as his opponents dredged up the sexual harassment allegations that led to his resignation, as well as his decisions during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sliwa, the creator of the Guardian Angels crime patrol group, also had his moments — mostly in the form of funny quips on the debate stage — but had difficulty gaining traction as a Republican in an overwhelmingly Democratic city.
NEW YORK CITY (WABC) — Thousands of runners geared up to kick off the TCS New York City Marathon in the Abbott Dash to the Finish Line 5K.
On Saturday morning, nearly 10,000 runners of all ages participated in the race to Central Park.
Participants started on Manhattan’s east side near the United Nations and raced through Midtown Manhattan to the TCS NYC Marathon finish line in Central Park.
The Abbott Dash is one of 60 adult and youth races produced bylocalnonprofit New York Road Runners.
The race was headlined by the USATF 5K Championships, with 2023 runner-up Ahmed Muhumed and 2023 champion Annie Rodenfels capturing this year’s titles.
ABC 7 New York is your home for the TCS NYC Marathon, and our Countdown to the Starting Line Special with Liz Cho and David Novarro airs on Saturday after Eyewitness News at 11:00 p.m.
Joining Liz and David will be Eyewitness News Meteorologist Brittany Bell with a look at the iconic 5-borough course. Eyewitness News Sports Anchor Ryan Field has reports on which top runners to look for, and Sports Anchor Sam Ryan will have an update on the exciting Wheelchair Division this year.
ABC7/WABC-TV and ESPN2 have been home to the award-winning TCS New York City Marathon broadcast since 2013.
NEW YORK (WABC) — Sean “Diddy” Combs’ prison release date was revealed on Monday.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons says he is scheduled to be released on May 8, 2028.
That equates to a little more than three years behind bars, counting the time he was incarcerated before his trial.
Earlier this month, a judge sentenced the disgraced music mogul to 50 months in prison after a jury convicted him on two prostitution-related counts after an eight-week trial in July. The jury acquitted Combs of the sex trafficking and racketeering charges he faced.
Combs pleaded not guilty and maintains his innocence.
Combs’ lawyers intend to appeal his conviction and over four-year prison sentence, according to a notice filed in the Federal District Court of New York.
Combs remains incarcerated at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.
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CORONA, Queens (WABC) — A 10-month-old baby is alive thanks to the help of two NYPD officers, who rescued the infant when he stopped breathing
Asia Rodriguez and Brandon Laboy are first-time parents.
Ten-month-old Makai is their greatest joy, and earlier this month, they almost lost him if not for two NYPD officers who saved his life.
“Oh, I would thank them. I would hug them. I would not let them go,” Rodriguez said.
Body-worn camera shows what happened when two of New York’s Finest answered the call of a baby in distress. Makai wasn’t breathing.
He had been down for a nap. Rodriguez was glued to the baby monitor just in time to see him throw up and start to choke. She immediately ran to him and called 911.
“He’s my life and I’m going to make sure every second counts and make sure I save him,” she said.
When two officers from the 115 Precinct showed up, Makai wasn’t breathing.
One of the officers took the baby, dressed in police pajamas, and patted his back, dislodging an obstruction.
It wasn’t until they saw the video Tuesday night that Rodriguez and Laboy realized how close they came to tragedy.
“It’s just incredible with the right training and what they’re doing, they saved his life,” Laboy said. “In those moments you can’t understate how good the training that they had is. So, it’s an awesome thing to see.”
“If I could see them, if they could come to my house directly and I could shake their hand and hug them, I would hug them,” Rodriguez said. “Just God bless them. Whatever blessing they can be offered in life that they are offered them, because they absolutely did what they were supposed to do and my son’s here because of them.”
All New York cops are required to be certified in first aid and CPR, and it sure paid off for the two officers. Both of them are rookies with less than two years on the job. Now they’re responsible for a save they will remember their whole careers.
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MIDTOWN, Manhattan (WABC) — Multiple people were injured after a U-Haul van collided with a LinkNYC kiosk in Midtown Manhattan on Tuesday, according to officials.
The FDNY said the crash happened shortly after 3 p.m. at East 57th Street and Madison Avenue.
Officials say three people suffered minor injuries after the van collided with the LinkNYC kiosk on the north side of the street.
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Zohran Mamdani and NYC’s legal marijuana guide the public past rollout chaos toward real, legal access.
He is the young, unapologetic state assemblymember who’s risen into the national spotlight. But what about Zohram Mamdani and NYC’s legal marijuana? He has made his pro-legalization stance plain: he supports adult-use access along with social justice, expungement and community reinvestment rather having mom and pop business be part of the development of the rules. He’s even said publicly he’s purchased marijuana at licensed shops, a small detail signaling both personal comfort with regulated access and a political posture aligned with the legalization mainstream.
The mayoral race is mess with Mamdani up against current Mayor, Eric Adams, who was pre-pardoned by Trump who now has dropped out and former Mayor Andrew Cuomo who left office under of a cloudy of corruption and creepiness. Most voters skim the news and lean toward the “doesn’t have a criminal stink on them.
New York’s path to “legal” has been anything but tidy. The Marijuana Regulation & Taxation Act (MRTA) finally legalized adult-use cannabis in March 2021, creating a new Office of Cannabis Management and promising regulatory frameworks, licensing, community equity provisions and expungements. The law was a landmark — and also a beginning, not an endpoint — because implementation has been slow, complaints about licensing delays and enforcement inconsistencies have piled up, and neighbor-state competition (like New Jersey’s earlier retail rollout) complicated expectations.
Photo by Chelsea London Phillips via Unsplash
Mamdani’s position fits within a broader coalition pushing for access that repairs harms: civil-rights groups, harm-reduction advocates and national organizations such as the Drug Policy Alliance, ACLU and NORML have long argued legalization must be reparative — not just profitable. Those groups stress that simple legalization without aggressive expungement, community reinvestment and small-business access will reproduce the inequities of the old, punitive system. That’s the language Mamdani and like-minded progressives use when they talk about who legalization should benefit.
But not everyone loves how legalization looks on the ground. Local polls and advocacy pushback — from neighborhood quality-of-life advocates to groups alarmed about public use and smell — have put political pressure on city leaders to tighten rules on public consumption, storefront density and odor mitigation. That tension matters for mayors and councilmembers who must balance reformist ideals with everyday governance.
For younger voters, Mamdani’s pitch is familiar: legalization to provide access, criminal-justice reform plus sensible regulation. For older, more skeptical New Yorkers, it’s a test of whether lawmakers can turn a symbolic win into tidy, livable reality. The MRTA set the table; Mamdani and other progressive leaders now face the harder work of making sure legalization actually undoes past harms — not just creates new market winners.
SOHO — Located on Grand Street, Papatzul has been bringing the authentic taste and vibrant spirit of Mexico City to SoHo for the last 20 years.
“The reason for opening Papatzul was because at the time, there was hardly any good Mexican restaurants,” said founder Thierry Amezcua. “We really were the pioneers of the beginning of the Mexican restaurant scene, which now is amazing. There’s so many places, you have one opening every month.”
Many of the dishes on Papatzul’s menu are of Amezcua’s own creations with authentic Mexican flavors.
One signature dish you can order is the chiles en nogada which, according to Amezcua, has an interesting story.
“The chiles en nogada was created by nuns in 1821 in Puebla, and it was to celebrate Mexican independence. It’s basically a stuffed poblano pepper with ground beef,” Amezcua said. “It has the colors of the flag. So, the green from the chile poblano, and then white is done because there’s a walnut sauce that covers the chile, and then it’s garnished with pomegranate so that’s the red color.”
Customers can also order the salmon tikin xic, which is served with sweet plantains, avocado and grilled onions. Another seafood option is the aguachile, which Amezcua describes as a ceviche that’s “swimming in sauce.”
If you’re looking for meat-based dishes, Amezcua recommends the enchiladas san marquenas, which is braised beef flavored with poblano tomatillo sauce and roasted onions.
In the end, Amezcua wants customers to walk away with an unforgettable impression of Papatzul.
“When you go into the kitchen or you go into a restaurant, it’s a labor of love,” he said.
“Knowing that people are going to enjoy the food and creating a fun experience and fun atmosphere is great. When you feel that, it feels good. We’re making people happy, and that’s great, that’s a fantastic thing.”
RED HOOK, Brooklyn (WABC) — The Tunnel to Towers Foundation kicked off its 24th annual “5K Run and Walk” on Sunday honoring the fallen first responders of 9/11.
Nearly 40,000 people are expected to participate in the event, which takes place each year on the last Sunday of September.
What began with 1,500 people in 2002, one year after the terror attacks, is now considered by many to be one of the top 5K runs in America.
The event retraces the final footsteps of FDNY Firefighter Stephen Siller on Sept. 11, 2001, from the foot of the Battery Tunnel in Brooklyn to the Twin Towers in Lower Manhattan.
Assigned to FDNY’s First Squad, Siller had just finished his shift and was on his way to play golf with his brothers when he heard over the radio that a plane hit the north tower of the World Trade Center.
Photograph of 9/11 first responder and FDNY Firefighter Stephen Siller.
Tunnel to Towers Foundation
In response, he drove his truck to the entrance of the Hugh L. Carey Tunnel, formerly known as the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel, but found out it had closed. Siller then strapped 60 pounds of gear to his back and raced on foot to the Twin Towers, where he sacrificed his life to save others in the terror attacks.
Ahead of the race, Eyewitness News caught up with his son, Stephen Siller Jr., who described his father’s legacy.
“I feel like I hit the lottery in terms of a dad. You know, I didn’t get much time with him, but he gave me an example of how to live the rest of my life and what my priorities should be,” Siller Jr. said. “To see this and the legacy he left behind with his sacrifice and what he did for other people, it’s motivation to just make sure I’m living for other people too.”
Chantee Lans speaks with Stephen Siller Jr. about the event and his father’s legacy.
Sunday’s run and walk pays homages to more than 340 FDNY firefighters, law enforcement officers and thousands of civilians who lost their lives on September 11. Proceeds from the event support the foundation’s programs, including those benefitting first responders and service members injured in the line of duty.
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An off-duty police officer shot and wounded a man inside Pennsylvania Station, the main intercity railroad station in New York City and the busiest station in the U.S., authorities said.Police responded to a 911 call at 7 p.m. Wednesday reporting a 32-year-old man had been shot inside the portion of the midtown Manhattan station, a complex that includes Penn Station, a police spokesperson said.The unidentified man was transported to a hospital and was in stable condition, police said.No additional information about the shooting was immediately released, including what led up to it.Video showed a large police presence at a section of the station that serves the Long Island Rail Road.People should avoid the area because of the investigation, police said, warning of delays and traffic.The railroad station underneath Madison Square Garden can serve roughly 600,000 passengers daily via Amtrak, the New York subway system, and two regional rail lines — the Long Island Rail Road and New Jersey Transit.In April, President Donald Trump’s administration announced it would take control of the planned $7 billion reconstruction of the aging station, sidelining the city’s mass transit agency.
NEW YORK —
An off-duty police officer shot and wounded a man inside Pennsylvania Station, the main intercity railroad station in New York City and the busiest station in the U.S., authorities said.
Police responded to a 911 call at 7 p.m. Wednesday reporting a 32-year-old man had been shot inside the portion of the midtown Manhattan station, a complex that includes Penn Station, a police spokesperson said.
The unidentified man was transported to a hospital and was in stable condition, police said.
No additional information about the shooting was immediately released, including what led up to it.
Video showed a large police presence at a section of the station that serves the Long Island Rail Road.
People should avoid the area because of the investigation, police said, warning of delays and traffic.
The railroad station underneath Madison Square Garden can serve roughly 600,000 passengers daily via Amtrak, the New York subway system, and two regional rail lines — the Long Island Rail Road and New Jersey Transit.
In April, President Donald Trump’s administration announced it would take control of the planned $7 billion reconstruction of the aging station, sidelining the city’s mass transit agency.
Former Vice President Kamala Harris has endorsed New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani during a Monday night interview with MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, potentially further boosting the democratic socialist assemblyman’s campaign.
The endorsement comes as Mamdani’s chances have surged to 85 percent on prediction markets as of last week, as recent polling shows commanding leads over his opponents ahead of the November 4 general election.
Newsweek reached out to Mamdani’s office via email on Monday for comment.
Why It Matters
Harris’ endorsement represents a potential lift for Mamdani’s campaign amid ongoing divisions within the Democratic Party over his candidacy.
The former vice president’s support contrasts with the reluctance of key Democratic leaders, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, both of New York, who have remained neutral.
What To Know
On Maddow’s eponymous The Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC,the host directly asked Harris if she endorsed Mamdani’s candidacy. Harris responded: “Look, as far as I’m concerned, he’s the Democratic nominee, and he should be supported.”
The former vice president went on to pivot the discussion to lesser-known Democratic leaders running in other mayoral campaigns, including state Representative Barbara Drummond of Alabama and Helena Moreno of New Orleans.
Mamdani’s campaign has gained significant momentum following Mayor Eric Adams’ decision to remain in the race, which paradoxically boosted the assemblyman’s chances from 79.7 percent to 85 percent on Polymarket prediction markets. Polling data reveals Mamdani’s dominance across multiple surveys conducted in early September, consistently showing double-digit leads over his closest rival, former Governor Andrew Cuomo.
Five major polls demonstrate Mamdani’s commanding position. A CBS News/YouGov poll showed him leading 43 percent to Cuomo’s 28 percent, while a Marist survey recorded a 45 percent to 24 percent advantage. Quinnipiac University’s poll gave Mamdani a 22-point lead at 45 percent to 23 percent and an Emerson College poll showed 43 percent to 28 percent. The New York Times/Siena poll recorded Mamdani at 46 percent versus Cuomo’s 24 percent.
However, when hypothetical head-to-head matchups remove Adams from the equation, Mamdani’s lead narrows significantly in some scenarios. While maintaining substantial advantages in most polls, the gap tightens to as little as 4 points in the Times/Siena survey, suggesting Cuomo could absorb anti-Mamdani votes in a more consolidated field.
New York State Democratic Chairman Jay Jacobs announced he would not endorse Mamdani, citing fundamental disagreements over policy approaches and specifically opposing his views on Israel. Jacobs said he “strongly disagree[s] with his views on the State of Israel” and rejects “the platform of the so-called ‘Democratic Socialists of America.’”
Despite calls from President Donald Trump for candidates to consolidate against Mamdani, both Adams and Republican Curtis Sliwa have refused to exit the race. Adams spokesperson Todd Shapiro emphatically denied rumors earlier this month of the mayor’s withdrawal, saying Adams “is in this race to win it,” with more than 20 events scheduled and multiple fundraisers planned.
What People Are Saying
Maddow, during the interview: “Arguably the fastest rising star right now in Democratic politics is Zohran Mamdani who is going to be elected mayor of New York City, and, um, probably in a landslide, if the polls are anything to go by. Lots of mainline Democrats have been very shy about his candidacy.”
Jacobs: “Mr. Mamdani and I are in agreement that America’s greatest problem is the continued growth in income disparity in our nation. On how to address it–we fundamentally disagree.”
Trump, on Truth Social: “Governor Kathy Hochul of New York has Endorsed the ‘Liddle’ Communist,’ Zohran Mamdani, running for Mayor of New York. This is a rather shocking development, and a very bad one for New York City.”
Independent U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont: “The oligarchs are panicking. They will spend as much as it takes to try to defeat Zohran Mamdani. They’ve got the money. We’ve got the people.”
What Happens Next?
With less than six weeks until the general election, the focus shifts to whether Harris’ endorsement will encourage Democratic leaders to follow suit and publicly support Mamdani.
NEW YORK (WABC) — The African American Day Parade (AADP) took to the streets in Harlem once again on Sunday in a celebration of Black culture, heritage and excellence.
This year marked the 56th anniversary of the parade, which took place along Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard between 111th and 137th streets.
WABC-TV Channel 7 was a proud sponsor of the parade, and streamed the event live. You can re-watch this year’s parade below:
The theme of this year’s parade was “Education is Our #1 Priority,” and will honor those who help uplift and empower the community through learning.
Among those being recognized included our very own Eyewitness News anchor Sandra Bookman, who will serve as one of the parade’s grand marshals.
Ahead of the event, Bookman spoke with Parade Chairman Yusuf Hasan and fellow Grand Marshal Dr. Bob Lee on an episode of Here and Now:
Chairman Yusuf Hasan and Grand Marshal Dr. Bob Lee join Here and Now to discuss the upcoming 56th annual African American Day Parade.
On the day before the parade, the AADP team hosted its third annual “Get Involved” Community Literacy, Health & Celebration of Culture event. Festivities will take place in the plaza of the Adam Clayton Powell Jr. State Office Building on West 125th Street.
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NewsCopter 7’s Tom Kaminski is over the scene of the crash in East Flatbush with the latest details.
EAST FLATBUSH, Brooklyn (WABC) — A driver was injured after a car crashed into a storefront in Brooklyn on Friday.
FDNY officials said the crash happened just before 11 a.m. at a two-story tattoo parlor located at 4817 Church Ave. off East 48th Street in East Flatbush.
A driver suffered a non-life-threatening injury.
They were taken to Kings County Medical Center.
Department of Buildings officials said personnel did not find any structural damage to the building itself despite damage to the parlor’s front roll down gate.
They said they ordered repairs be made, but did not order the building to be vacated.
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TIMES SQUARE, Manhattan (WABC) — Proposals for two separate casino plans in Manhattan were both rejected by the Community Advisory Committee considering their future on Wednesday morning.
Both the Caesars Palace Times Square and Avenir at Hudson Yards were rejected in separate votes.
Only two members on the six-person committee voted to approve moving either project forward to the state. Four rejected the plan.
“I’m shocked by the result. We’re putting forth a project in a location that could really use this type of complex: jobs, housing, a hotel, restaurants – these are all things we heard from the community,” said Dino Fusco, COO of Silverstein Properties.
That leaves six competitors bidding for three slots.
The remaining proposed casinos include Coney Island (Brooklyn), Aqueduct Racetrack (Queens), Citi Field (Queens), United Nations/East Side (Manhattan,) Ferry Point (Bronx) and Yonkers Raceway.
One of the proposals involves MGM Resorts – the owner of Empire City in Yonkers.
The casino wants to expand gaming to add live tables by obtaining one of the available licenses, and on Tuesday, Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano says the city council approved a community benefits package followed by overwhelming community support.
The Times Square proposal had been a hot-button issue, especially among the Broadway community.
The building that’s currently home to the Minskoff Theater and “The Lion King” would keep the show, but everything above it would have been overhauled to make way for the Caesars Palace if the plan had become a reality.
“This was a vote to protect the magic of Broadway for the one hundred thousand New Yorkers who depend on it for their livelihoods, and for the tens of millions who come from around the world to experience it,” said Jason Laks, President of The Broadway League. “A casino can go anywhere, but Broadway only lives here. We are so filled with gratitude for the committee members and the local elected officials-State Senator Liz Krueger, Assembly Member Tony Simone, Borough President Mark Levine and Council Member Erik Bottcher – who looked at the facts, listened to the residents, and stood up for this neighborhood and the theater community.”
That includes residents like Dolores Rubin who’s lived near Times Square her whole life.
“For me personally, this was really about recognizing that the casino cannibalizes a lot of what’s already here, and it takes away from Broadway which is the star of this area,” Rubin said.
Jay-Z and his entertainment company Roc Nation was involved in the plan that included a nightclub, almost 1,000 hotel rooms and 150,000 square feet of gaming space.
Developer SL Green had promised the Times Square casino would bring in $7 billion in taxes for the city and state, and hundreds of millions in investments into the neighborhood.
SL Green CEO Marc Holliday blasted the board after the vote.
“What you did here today was a despicable display of cowardice, lack of leadership, lack of consideration for all the people who would benefit from this proposal,” Holliday said. “You know it, we met the standard and then some, the only one with courage to stand up is the mayor and governor appointees and everyone else runs and hides. Go run and hide because what you did, the benefits you denied this community, and this city and state, you have delivered that history forever.”
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UNION SQUARE, Manhattan (WABC) — There’s a not-so-secret society that’s made quite a name for itself over the years… Ryan Meetup.
Saturday marked “Rytoberfest” in Union Square.
The idea is a simple one. People from across the country will come together at a bar, where everybody knows their name… “Ryan.”
It all started with a flier put up in Brooklyn, and 2 1/2 years later, an online community has grown to thousands of Ryans connecting and meeting up for fun events.
Some of the newest members can’t believe how much it’s changed their lives.
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Have a breaking news tip or an idea for a story we should cover? Send it to Eyewitness News using the form below. If attaching a video or photo, terms of use apply.
UPDATED, Sept. 9, 2025, 3:17 p.m.: The city’s Board of Elections on Tuesday approved three contentious ballot measures that would speed up housing construction and weaken the City Council’s informal veto power over rezonings, likely setting the stage for a legal battle before the general election.
The board, after listening to six speakers urge the questions’ approval, didn’t ask any questions and signed off on the proposals being placed on the November ballot. The decision likely means the fight over the ballot measures is heading to the courts, as the City Council has already hinted that it would file a lawsuit once all other avenues to challenge the questions were exhausted.
In a statement, a City Council spokesperson said the questions attempt to “trick voters with buzzwords and slogans,” but stopped short of confirming the Council will file a lawsuit.
“We as New Yorkers shouldn’t be surprised that this effort to give the public’s power to developers comes from Mayor Adams, someone who has been selling our city out to Trump and aiding in his authoritarianism at nearly every turn,” the spokesperson said. “We will take action to protect democracy from Mayor Adams’ dishonest ballot proposals, which would strip Black, Latino and Asian neighborhoods of their power to secure more affordable housing and community investments.”
A lawsuit could delay printing the ballots for the general election. The deadline for finalizing the ballots is Thursday.
The board vote was somewhat anticlimactic after a week of speculation that the commissioners might side with the Council. The meeting room was packed with reporters and pro-housing group leaders and members. An attorney for the City Council was in the audience, but told commissioners that he was only there to field questions, not testify.
The vote was initially unanimous, but later in the meeting, Michele Sileo, a commissioner from Staten Island, asked that her vote be recorded as a “no.” Still, the board overwhelmingly voted to move the ballot questions forward, in a blow to the City Council.
Typically, the board approves ballot questions without incident. But in a letter sent to board President Frederic Umane on August 27, City Council leaders called on the board to reject three of the five questions, claiming they conceal the consequences of the proposed changes from voters, quietly transferring power away from local Council members.
The Charter Revision Commission fired back with its own letter, asserting that the board does not have the authority to reject the questions and that courts have consistently ruled that its role is ministerial. Schierenbeck also emphasized that the language of the ballot questions closely adhered to state election law, which sets word count limits for the questions: 15 words for a title, 30 words for a summary of the proposal and another 30 to describe in “plain language” the outcomes of a yes or no vote.
After the vote, Schierenbeck said he was relieved that uncertainty over how the board would act is over.
“We had a little bit of a heart attack over the last week, and my pulse is down,” Schierenbeck told reporters. “We’re prepared to move forward on a robust public education campaign, which is what we should have been focusing on to make sure that New Yorkers understand what’s going to be on the ballot and can make an informed choice.”
Amit Singh Bagga, who is leading a campaign that plans to spend $3 million on promoting the land use-related ballot questions, said part of that education process will be demystifying for voters why projects do not move forward.
“There is an unknown ‘they’ that stops things from happening,” he told reporters. “We need to educate New Yorkers that this system is in fact that unknown ‘they.’”
He, like the Council, also invoked Trump, calling attempts to prevent the ballot questions from moving forward “Trumpian.”
“BOE, nice try cosplaying 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue,” he said. “But we won.”
Three questions
The Council viewed the three ballot proposals as a threat to member deference, the longstanding tradition of voting according to the wishes of the local member. The City Council effectively has the final say over projects that go through the city’s Uniform Land Use Review Procedure, or Ulurp, a fact that provides members with leverage to negotiate for neighborhood investments, pledges to hire union labor, deeper affordability and other commitments from developers as a condition of approval.
One of the questions the Council wanted eliminated asks whether the city should replace the mayoral veto in Ulurp with a three-member appeals board for certain housing projects. The board, consisting of the mayor, City Council speaker and applicable borough president, could only reverse Council decisions on projects that would result in affordable housing in one borough, not citywide land use actions.
As the system stands, the mayor rarely vetoes land use actions, given the likelihood that a City Council supermajority would then override the decision. Proponents of this change hope that a developer may be more willing to pursue a project if given hope of winning over the appeals board. Few builders will bother filing a project application if the local Council member has a record of opposing development.
Another ballot question asks voters if modest housing and infrastructure projects should go through a quicker review process, dubbed Expedited Land Use Review Procedure, or Elurp, that bypasses City Council or City Planning approval, depending on the project type. The third proposal would fast-track housing (avoiding a Council vote) in the 12 districts that have approved the lowest rates of affordable housing over a five-year period. It would also allow the Board of Standards and Appeals to waive zoning requirements for publicly funded affordable housing projects.
The other two questions, which the Council has not challenged, ask if local elections should be moved to even years, coinciding with presidential elections, and if the official street map of the city should be digitized and consolidated. The board signed off on all five questions being printed on the November ballot.
A contested commission
In July, the Charter Revision Commission voted to put the five questions on the ballot after eight months of public hearings.
The City Council saw the commission as an affront to his authority from the start.
The commission was the second convened by Mayor Eric Adams, which superseded another commission formed by the City Council. The Council’s commission, dubbed the “Commission to Strengthen Local Democracy,” considered proposals to curb the mayor’s power, including by increasing the Council’s authority to approve or reject mayoral appointees.
The mayor’s commission was focused on building on the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity, a text amendment that reduced parking requirements for new development in the city, created new district designations that allow for higher residential density and made other changes aimed at making it easier to build housing.
The measure was opposed by some Council members and was even the subject of a lawsuit brought by Conservative members who argued that the city failed to do a comprehensive environmental review of the potential impacts of the zoning changes.
The Council only approved City of Yes after securing a commitment of $5 billion in public funding and making several changes that ultimately reduced housing projections, including maintaining parking minimums in parts of the city and limiting where accessory dwelling units are permitted.
During a City Council hearing hours before the board’s meeting, City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams touted commitments made as part of a proposal to rezone more than 200 blocks within Jamaica, Queens, which she represents. The plan is expected to pave the way for more than 12,000 housing units, and the administration has already committed to a number of community investments, including $300 million for sewer upgrades. Adams alluded to the ballot measure controversy.
“It’s important to note that none of these investments and community benefits would be possible without the City Council’s direct role within the land use process to negotiate and secure commitments that fulfill community needs,” she said. “New Yorkers, through their democratically elected representatives, deserve the ability to fight for more affordable housing and neighborhood investments.”
Quinn Waller contributed reporting.
Editor’s note: This story was updated to include a statement from the City Council.
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NEW YORK — It’s been more than 20 years since Lil’ Frankie’s opened in New York City’s East Village. The city around it may have changed but the restaurant’s ethos – authentic Italian fare and commitment to impeccable service – has stayed the same.
“[From] the very beginnings, this was more of a neighborhood spot, like you know, like one of those around-the-corner punk rock pizzerias,” says longtime General Manager Oli.
Today, the clientele has expanded beyond neighborhood regulars to include guests from all across the city. On weekends, the restaurant stays open until 4 a.m., so Lil’ Frankie’s sees more than just the regular dinner crowd. They serve everyone from bar-hoppers and club-goers to restaurant-industry folks looking for a late-night place to eat after finishing their own shifts.
Opened by restauranteur Frank Prisinzano in 1999, Lil’ Frankie’s pays homage to Prisinzano’s childhood summers spent with family in southern Italy. The menu comprises unpretentious, rustic Italian dishes meant to be shared family-style, including fan-favorites like spaghetti limone and whole fire-roasted eggplant.
“Well, I grew up with a lot of people that loved to feed people and I fed off that energy. I saw the joy that they felt when I told them that I loved what they made me,” Prisinzano explains in a video posted on TikTok.
The many regulars the restaurant has accrued over more than two decades are a testament to the success of Prisinzano’s vision.
“We have people that love coming here every day. They sit at the bar, they know what they’re getting and they leave and we’re a part of their day-to-day. I feel like they’re like sort of the family here so they kind of are our staples. And they love it here. And we love them,” says host Ethina.
The emphasis on family also extends to the Lil’ Frankie’s employees, a significant number of whom have worked at the restaurant for more than 15 years.
“We’re more than just a community here, we’re a family,” says Chef de Cuisine Ricardo, who began working at Lil’ Frankie’s in 2006 as a dishwasher after a referral by a family member.
The many years of working together, coupled with the late-night hours, have built immeasurably strong bonds among the staff.
“The night shift is great here,” adds pizza chef Alberto. “We’re definitely all happy. I hope it always stays like this.”
You can visit Lil’ Frankie’s at 19 1st Ave, New York, NY 10003 and check out their website and Instagram for more information.
“Night Shift” is a series from ABC Localish taking you behind the scenes of an overnight shift at the best late-night establishments across New York City, celebrating everyone from the chefs behind them to the staff who work them to the diners who love them.
UPPER EAST SIDE, Manhattan (WABC) — A woman from the Upper East Side plans to swim the English Channel in her final quest to achieve the triple crown of swimming.
At 47 years old, Fleur Sohtz’s secret to long distance, open water swimming is eating… lots of eating, while swimming.
“Every 30 minutes, they are throwing off the boat to me what’s called the feed,” said Sohtz, who is a long-distance swimmer. “It’s a bottle, where I’ll have electrolytes and then I’ll have gels wrapped around it. And for this swim, where the water’s a little colder, I’ll have a container with normally cakes or cookies inside of that.”
She will have her cake and eat it too while swimming across the English Channel. Her team will throw it to her in plastic containers. Every 30 minutes, she will have 30 seconds to wolf it down and then keep on kicking.
“It’s very funny, but you know, you get the sugar rush,” Sohtz said.
Sohtz is a life-long New Yorker and swimmer.
In 2021, she cruised around Manhattan in eight hours and 30 minutes, freestyle, except under the bridges, when she flipped on her back to enjoy the view.
“I raced in pools when I was younger. Now, this is all about getting to see different places and bringing a really positive message to New York and beyond about swimming,” Sohtz said.
Two years later, she swam the Catalina Channel in the Pacific.
Now, she’s about to tackle the English Channel. She’s in England currently waiting for her time slot.
If successful, Eyewitness News is told she will be the first New Yorker to complete the triple crown of open water swimming.
“I love the freedom of it. I think when you dive into water, you escape everything,” she said. “You become very much just you and yourself and the movement of the water. It’s a really freeing place to be.”
Sohtz hopes to raise $50,000 in this trifecta for Asphalt Green where she trains, so more children can discover the magic of mastering the water.
“I love this sport. It’s given me everything,” Sohtz said. “If every kid in New York could have that, or every adult in New York could have that, how many doors would it open?”
If you’d like to support Sohtz, you can donate online.
The fundraiser helps support Asphalt Green’s AGUA scholarships and inclusive swim programming for neurodivergent kids.
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