City - Tuesday, October 21, 2008 17:59 - 0 Comments
Brooklyn Tries To Be a “College Town”
Downtown Brooklyn has decided to market itself as a “College Town,” according to their latest press release dug up by Gothamist. We think that translates into more businesses that will be open all night and aimed at kids with access to their dad’s credit card. It’s probably not welcome news to the people already living there, who knew it was coming but not that Marty Markowitz would have the balls to say it out loud.
City - Tuesday, October 21, 2008 12:37 - 0 Comments
Second Shake Shack Now Open
Madison Square Park’s popular Shake Shack opened its second location on the Upper West Side, the Daily News reported. The Shack, which draws such long lines that it’s set up a webcam on its website, serves burgers, hot dogs, fries, and, of course, shakes. The new location is at 77th st and Columbus Ave, right across from the Natural History Museum.
City - Tuesday, October 14, 2008 15:33 - 0 Comments
Texting Cabbies Roam Williamsburg
Need a cab, but feeling to drunk to make a phone call? Now you can text for a cab if you’re in Williamsburg, Greenpoint, Bushwick, Boerum Hill, or Fort Greene with a new service, SMSCab. New York Magazine tried it out and reported that after a few automatic replies, they finally got an offer that was about the same as what they would have gotten from their regular car service. But at least they didn’t have to talk to anyone.
City - Tuesday, October 14, 2008 10:46 - 1 Comment
Big Brother on Your Cell Phone
Gawker has a scary story today about new cell phone software that can record what you’re hearing and report back to the companies that want to know. If you hear an ad on the radio, for example, the software will store that data so that companies will know how effective their advertising is. The company, IMMI, has this ominous message on its website: “The ad experience has changed. Measuring ad effectiveness hasn’t. Until now…” (Cue Darth Vader theme.)
Photo: Flickr courtesy of wanderingone
City - Tuesday, October 7, 2008 15:04 - 0 Comments
Bloomberg Introduces Term Limit Bill to Hold on to Power Longer
It’s happening: Mayor Bloomberg introduced the bill to extend term limits from two to three terms today. Right now, council members believe the vote could go either way. There are some powerful opponents of the bill, like billionaire Ronald Lauder and City Councilman Charles Barron, who has announced that he will not seek a third term even if the term limits are extended. Still, 35 Council members and four of the five borough presidents are nearing the end of their second terms, and could provide strong backing for the bill.
City - Tuesday, October 7, 2008 13:07 - 0 Comments
Sweet Wheels
As you may have noticed, the NYU neighborhood has been flooded with sweet dessert trucks lately. The Vendy Awards committee noticed, and has added “Best Dessert Vendor” as a category to this year’s awards, which will be held on October 18th at the Tobacco Warehouse. If you’ve got $80 lying around, you can go to the fundraiser yourself and vote on your favorite dessert truck. Or, just leave a comment here and let us know which one you think should win. Continue…
City - Tuesday, September 30, 2008 17:39 - 2 Comments
Bloomberg 4-Evah!
Why didn’t we think of this before? If we just changed the term-limit laws, we wouldn’t have to have these silly elections at all and our current leaders could keep their jobs forever and ever and ever! Bush is probably kicking himself for not having thought of it, but Mayor Michael Bloomberg is out there doing it. The New York Times reported that Bloomberg will announce on Thursday his proposal to change the law and run for a third term as mayor. And since he only needs to pass the proposal through the city council – most of whom would have to leave office in 2009 under the current law – it looks like he may even be successful.
Photo: Flickr courtesy of David Berkowitz
City - Tuesday, September 30, 2008 13:34 - 2 Comments
New York Sun Newest Casualty of Print vs. Online Journalism War
Since a lot of you who read this blog are journalists/journalism students, and since journalists love to talk about how their profession is dying, you should know that the New York Sun announced yesterday that it will close after today’s issue. Gawker has an unsurprisingly snarky piece about it, and the NY Times has a more factual article. Either way, you can go tell your Stern friends that your job prospects after college are looking just as bad as theirs.
City - Tuesday, September 30, 2008 11:55 - 0 Comments
Babbo Targeted by Evil Computer Geniuses
Try typing “Babbo” into a Google search. Instead of being treated to luxurious page full of pasta and expensive wine, you’ll find that Google won’t let you go to the site. It seems like someone screwed with the code on the restaurant’s website. Gothamist reported the problem yesterday, but it’s still there today. Is someone out to get Mario Batali? Or just all of us who love his food? What’s going on here? If you have any ideas, please feel free to comment.
City - Wednesday, September 24, 2008 10:18 - 3 Comments
NYC Tries to Help You Quit Smoking By Lighting Your Cigarette
Having trouble quitting smoking? NYC wants to help – by giving you free matchbooks. As part of the city’s anti-smoking campaign, the Health Department has come up with a line of disgusting-looking matchbooks that they’re giving out for free at cigarette retailers in the South Bronx, Harlem, and northern and central Brooklyn. The matchbooks are all printed with the words “Cigarettes are Eating You Alive,” and show pictures of gum disease, tumors, and infected lungs, so that you might think twice before you light that match. Or you might just feel more guilty as you go ahead and do it anyway. We don’t know if this idea will actually work, but the matchbooks will be a great gift for your smoking friends whom you want to stress out even more.
Photo: Flickr courtesy of Porcelaingirl° {enthusiastic foolish}
