Photo by BigBobNYC in Central Park.
September 18, 2017 Weather: Cloudy with a high of 75 degrees.
Notices:
Several readings and more local events are on our calendar.
The UN is in town, so be ready for midtown gridlock!
Seniors can take free tennis lessons on Fridays at the courts in Central Park and 93rd Street. Learn more here.
Hurricane Jose isn’t expected to make landfall, but could cause heavy rains and destructive waves in the area in the middle of this week.
A few design notes: We’re trying out a new headline style, instead of the previous all-caps version. And yes, West Side Rag is working on becoming more mobile-friendly, though it won’t happen immediately.
News:
Nine-year-old Upper West Sider Tommaso Cerase died after a goal post fell on him while playing soccer with a youth group in Hell’s Kitchen on Sunday.”
An architecture firm has a strange idea for a massive wooden structure in the Central Park reservoir: “The DFA Studio has proposed what it’s calling Central Park Tower (no relation to the Extell supertall), a 712-foot structure made from prefabricated timber that would sit—here’s the kicker—in the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir in Central Park.” It would be a tourist attraction and apparently filter the water so it could once again be used as drinking water (we don’t get drinking water from the reservoir anymore). The design frankly looks a lot like a joint. And it will never happen.
The mom injured by a tree in Central Park said she plans to sue the city for $200 million.
Mayor de Blasio is open to signing a bill that would change New York’s cabaret laws that forbid dancing in bars, but there’s a dispute about security cameras.
Two ex-Googlers started a company called Bodega that “installs unmanned pantry boxes in apartments, offices, dorms, and gyms. It promises convenience, but also represents competition for many mom-and-pop stores.” Yes, they’re apparently expecting to put bodegas out of business. The Internet freaked out and cursed their names, dozens of publications ridiculed them, and then everyone continued buying stuff from Amazon and FreshDirect. Here’s a smart column by Harry Siegel on the hypocrisy of the backlash and a request to engage with more important issues.
$200M for a tree falling on her?
Really?
Did you not read or listen to this? https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/manhattan/mom-injured-falling-central-park-tree-plans-200m-lawsuit-article-1.3491005
Exactly. This incident left this woman in a terrible state. The number will probably come down but this is a solid case, imho. I wish her the best.
I’m sorry but this case wouldn’t be worth $200M even if it was a wrongful death cause of action. Even if it was the whole family!
Give me a break! These greedy personal injury lawyers are out of control. They see a nice deep pocket (NYC taxpayers) and can’t wait to dig in as deep as they can. So typical.
Now, having said that, she definitely deserves something (a couple million?) but how can you expect to be taken seriously claiming those kinds of damages. But NO! The lawyers want at least a couple million for themselves. When did greed become the number one priority of our whole freaking society?
I remember there was a family that was hit by a street light that was knocked over by a Macy’s balloon in high winds one Thanksgiving day. They were injured, suffered and recovered. Their reaction was basically shite happens and just dropped it. They didn’t sue over something that no reasonable person could foresee. A civic organization eventually gave them an award for it. Kind of like taking the high road. It’s so rare today.
I remember this case well and know for a fact that you are living in a revisionist fantasy land. She sought 300 million from Macy’s and 95 million from the city. The final settlement was undisclosed, as this one will be.
Please to enjoy: https://mobile.nytimes.com/2001/03/07/nyregion/woman-hurt-in-97-macy-s-parade-settles-suit.html
Re: “Two ex-Googlers….apparently expecting to put bodegas out of business.”
Yes, they are another of the 20-/30-something cohort who call themselves “disrupters” and delight in destroying the status-quo.
JUST LIKE the much-reviled Uber ex-CEO Kalanick and his ilk who gloat over the fact that not only have they destroyed NYC’s yellow-cab industry but also have made Manhattan traffic even more of a nightmare.
Hopefully this set of arrogant shmo’s will not affect real bodegas b/c they wouldn’t dare venture into parts of Harlem, the Bronx, Brooklyn, etc.
Looks like their intended clientele are the ‘young-gentrifying’ types for whom an over-priced Duane-Reade is the go-to store.
How awful about the little boy! My heart aches for him and his family.
I hope a thorough investigation is conducted to see if there were any conditions or circumstances at fault that might possibly be corrected in order to prevent future tragedies and mishaps.
Same here. My heart goes out to them. No words for a tragedy like that.
Not so sure about voting for a state constitutional convention, as Harry Siegel mentioned in his column. Each voter needs to do his/her own research on that issue!
Rosh HaShana begins at sundown tonight, Wednesday. (Local candle lighting time is 6:37 PM)
Wishing all a year of health, happiness and peace,
Independent, a.k.a. UWS Dissident
Sometimes you drive me crazy with your comments around here but I wouldn’t have it any other way.:)
L’Shana Tova to all!
Thanks. Glad to see you are apparently not one of those who wishes to silence dissent.
Best wishes