The rooftop of the William Vale Hotel isn’t finished yet—right now the floor is covered in some kind of black canvas—but I hardly noticed that…
New Law Aims to Help Mom-n-Pops, But Embattled Tenants Say It's Not Enough
A group of a dozen small business owners and community advocates from Bushwick gathered at Esmeralda Valencia’s restaurant on Myrtle Avenue this morning with an…
Anarchists Aiming to Stop ‘Bushwick II’ Development in Its Tracks
It was difficult to ignore the fluttering signs at last week’s Bushwick Community Plan meeting. Sure, they were black-and-white, only about as big as two…
What Will Happen to Clinton Street, the 'Toss-Up' of the Lower East Side?
Lillian Melendez still remembers when Clinton Street was a destination for anyone planning a sweet sixteen, baby shower or wedding. “If you were having a…
As Vote Looms, Tenants Ask Rent Guidelines Board to Give Them a Break
How many landlords does it take to change a lightbulb? Metropolitan Council on Housing volunteer Mary Crosby posed the rhetorical question to members of the…
Breakthrough in Effort to Limit Height of Chinatown Buildings, But Some Are Torn
An opening for the Chinatown Working Group’s rezoning proposal may finally be on the horizon. Last night, Community Board 3’s chair, Gigi Li, presented a new development…
Attention, Dr. Jay’s Shoppers: Bowery Tenants Take the Fight to Landlord’s Store
This morning shoppers looking for American flag swimsuits or bright-patterned leggings at Dr. Jay’s streetwear store in downtown Brooklyn were greeted by a flurry of slogans…
Thousand Dollar Listing Guy Gets Hired By Million Dollar Listing Guy
Take Million Dollar Listing New York, add some Lonely Island-esque musical comedy, subtract a few zeros, and you’ve got Thousand Dollar Listing. Created by and starring 30-year-old struggling apartment…
Short Film Captures the Lower East Side Before Essex Crossing Changes the Fabric
With the streets of the Lower East Side reshaping themselves faster than any of us can keep track, it’s easy to become a wistful piner for…
The Gentrification Art Show That Inspires ‘Intentional Awkwardness’
In New York dingy, overpriced studio apartments manage to command bidding wars, while longtime city-dwellers with sweet rent-regulated deals have come to expect landlord harassment. Meanwhile, archaic affordable-housing…