MORNING BULLETIN: PICHOLINE’S PROBLEMS, POLL SHOWS SUPPORT FOR BIKE LANES AND TERM LIMITS
Photo of sunrise by Christine Elbert.
August 22, 2012 Weather: Partly Cloudy, High of 80 Degrees.
Notices:
If you missed our article, the neighborhood could be gripped by gridlock tonight as the president visits. And Pee Wee’s Big Adventire is playing tonight in Central Park, along with other events.
News:
Picholine, the Michelin-starred restaurant on 64th Street had a notice on its door last week from the landlord demanding 189,000 in rent. (Eater)
Another lawsuit has been filed against The Rushmore at 80 Riverside Boulevard, this time by someone who was in contract to buy an apartment. (Crain’s, subscripttion required)
In a new poll, the vast majority of New Yorkers support the expansion of bike lanes (66%) although the Times didn’t specifically ask about protected lanes, which have been controversial than painted lines. Also in the poll, New Yorkers are more supportive than ever of term limits near the end of Mayor Mike’s third term, and crime has become a growing concern. (NY Times, full poll results)
A rental building at 393 West End Avenue (79th) has flipped for the second time this year, with a nearly $13 million price hike. More than half the units are market-rate. (The Real Deal)
Re the bike lanes: The painting of streets to facilitate bike lanes appears to be ill thought out. I was recently driving through Central Park, following a police car, and I watched as the car zigged and then zagged and then zigged again, trying to follow the absurd painting directions on the pavement. Not that they should cease to exist, but the bike lanes as they are now are thoughtless and overdone. Case in point: Columbus Avenue, 86th Street headed south, left hand side of the avenue – there is a bike lane and then a parking lane…and when a truck has to unload (something like food), that truck is, more often than not, out in the left 1/3rd of the avenue, creating an instant traffic jam. There has to be a better way. Finally, regarding the proliferation of said lanes within a borough where every square inch of pavement is precious…let’s have a look at what happens on a cold, windy and possibly rainy autumnal day. Not much. I drive the streets of this city daily and I understand the importance of bicycles as a vehicle of commutation…but, as of now, many of these bicycle lanes are seriously underutilized. A last note – our mayor claims to be a man of the letter of the law, but if that were the case, he should not be mayor today. Leverage – as in money – allowed him to circumvent the law. Personally, I don’t believe in term limits – I think if an elected polition is doing a good job, she or he should be allowed to continue on…and their fate be in the hands of the voters.