MORNING BULLETIN: THE WISHING TREE, MANHATTAN VALLEY’S MOMENT, HIDDEN ART
Someone put up a “wish tree” on West 88th Street between Amsterdam and Broadway, asking neighbors to write down their wishes for 2017. Thanks to @henny.bear, who says “I’ve no idea who put this here but it’s really the most lovely wonderful thing.”
January 3, 2017 Weather: Rainy, with a high of 44 degrees.
Notices:
Concerts, readings and many more local events are on our calendar.
Learn how to make your own TV show on MNN at orientations this month.
Missing a ring? “I found a men’s wedding ring on Sunday afternoon (around 4pm) in Hippo Playground (underneath the tic tac toe structure).” Contact us at westsiderag at gmail and we’ll pit you in touch with the person who found it.
News:
Manhattan Valley gets the New York Times real estate section treatment, which can mean only one thing: home prices are about to go up again! The Times defines the valley as the area from West 100th to 110th Streets and from Broadway to Central Park. “The 220 rentals on offer ranged from two studios in different walk-up buildings, for $1,695 each, to a furnished seven-bedroom apartment at $14,000.”
An artist vacuum-sealed his artwork and hid it in Central Park. Presumably, people who buy the work can use geographical coordinates to find it in the park. “Through Freecaching you could leave art physically protected and concealed in an uninhabited area outside a major center of arts commerce and provide buyers with the exact latitude and longitude of a purchase. Hidden enough so no one could feasibly stumble upon it, but close enough to find within a train ride from the gallery. Collectors could choose to pick their work up or just as comfortably leave it concealed and protected outdoors, knowing with confidence that no one but they and the artist have knowledge of where the work is located.”
A former Columbia professor was found dead in his car on 123rd and Riverside after writing a suicide note.
Governor Cuomo’s pledge to get landlords to return apartments to rent stabilization hasn’t panned out.
Classifieds:
Amazing Commercial Studio Space Available to Rent to Health Care Professional. Location: West 54/55th. Type of Rental: Hourly, Weekly, Monthly or Annual Lease. For more information and to view the space, contact Jason @ 646-573-9724 or email to Info@silverstarsfit.com.
Click on the image below, from @NYCRobyn, for more shots of people’s wishes:
“Governor Cuomo’s pledge to get landlords to return apartments to rent stabilization hasn’t panned out.”
actually, Cuomo’s plan worked out swell. He got the good publicity without bothering to do the work.
How to bring more housing to NYC:
1. get rid of rent stabilization. This only encourages warehousing and takes apartments out of circulation or gives landlords incentives to make improvements that take the apartment out of RS.
2. get rid of rent control. This is nothing more than a lottery for those whose families have been here since WWII.
3. lower residential real estate taxes on buildings that target lower and middle income residents.
4. give tax incentives and real estate tax abatements to building owners who agree to charge rent equal to no more than the same 28% used in mortgage calculations for determining affordability.
5. Offer tax abatements and lower real estate taxes to builders of new construction for buildings that target low and middle income renters.
Problem solved!
Absolutely NOT! Don not get rid of rent stabilization nor rent control! You’re freakin’ nuts!
Sure, why not? free money for everyone. Wow, i wish someone else would pay some of my rent for me too. Where do i sign up for that deal? obviously you know.
I love when people who get free stuff say “more, more!!” instead of “thank you”.
He was too busy riding the 2nd Ave 3 stop subway line
while he waved goodbye to his legacy.
Wish Full Thinking, if you could find an Apt. for $1,650. From what I’ve seem it’s more like $3,200 & UP(In Manhattan Valley).
“2. get rid of rent control. This is nothing more than a lottery for those whose families have been here since WWII.”
And where do you suppose these people should go if they’re old enough to have been here since WWII?
There are plenty of affordable places in The Bronx, Staten Island, Queens and Brooklyn.
Even Jersey City, which is a quick PATH ride to Manhattan, has plenty of cheap apartments.
Not everyone is entitled to live in a neighborhood they either can’t afford or don’t want to pay their fair share.
If you can afford to live here then I don’t understand how it impacts your life if seniors want/need to stay in their lifelong homes. If they’re in bad shape financially, or even health wise (which is an assumption on my part), then I can’t imagine that they’d have the resources to relocate. In my building there are apartments that haven’t had renovations for 20+ years, but those tenants are happy to be in their own homes. My apartment has been moderately renovated so I pay more, and there are tenants with full luxury renovations who pay triple the amount, but I can still afford to live here and I don’t think it’s an entitlement.
My sister and her family put up this tree every year. Thanks for showing it in your paper. It’s a fun and rewarding project and the wishes are heart-felt and encouraging to see.