Monday, February 24 2025
Cloudy. High 46 degrees.
Slight warmer weather will return this week, with temperatures expected to sit between 31 and 57 degrees.
Notices
Our calendar has lots of local events. Click on the link or the lady in the upper righthand corner to check.
Ramadan begins Friday evening.
A reminder that Upper West Side Councilmember Gale Brewer’s town hall will take place Monday from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Society for Ethical Culture at 2 West 64th Street. There is no RSVP required.
Upper West Side News
By Gus Saltonstall
An Upper West Side apartment where the horrifying killing of two children took place in 2012 has found a new tenant for the first time, as first reported by the New York Post.
A three-bedroom unit on Columbus Avenue between West 75th and 76th streets has been leased once again for $8,750 a month, which is down 30 percent from the $12,000 a month asking price back in 2008, StreetEasy records show.
It is the first time the Upper West Side apartment will have a new tenant since two young siblings were fatally stabbed by their nanny in 2012. The apartment has been on the rental market since the spring of 2015, but has failed to find a tenant until now despite multiple price decreases.
The owner of the building renovated the apartment following the tragedy. The unit has 10-foot ceilings, hardwood floors, and is a very short walk from Central Park and the American Museum of Natural History.
In 2018, the nanny, Yoselyn Ortega, was convicted on charges of first- and second-degree murder. She is now serving life in prison.
You can read more about the story on the New York Post’s website.
Festivals celebrating Japanese culture and cuisine will take place multiple times on the Upper West Side this spring and fall, event organizers just announced.
Japan Fes, which has held events in the neighborhood for the past few years, posted last week that it would be hosting food festivals on the Upper West Side on April 6, April 19, May 4, June 22, September 20, and October 26.
Japan Fes hosts hundreds of events around the world each year that look to highlight Japanese food.
The first Upper West Side rendition of the event will take place on April 6 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Broadway between West 103rd and 104th streets. Vendors will be dishing out the following: matcha, onigiri, ramen, sushi, milk tea, cream puffs, rice balls, and more.
You can check out more information about the festivals headed to the Upper West Side — HERE.
As the campaign season rolls along toward the June primary elections, more endorsements continue to come in from, and for, Upper West Side representatives.
Starting with the Manhattan District Attorney race, all Upper West Side elected officials last week announced endorsements for incumbent DA Alvin Bragg. They included Rep. Jerry Nadler, Councilmembers Gale Brewer and Shaun Abreu, Assemblymembers Linda Rosenthal, Micah Lasher, and Tony Simone, and State Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal.
“The West Side is blessed to have extraordinary representatives and leaders who exemplify the best in our city and work every day on behalf of New Yorkers,” Bragg said in a news release.
The Broadway Democrats Club on the Upper West Side also announced several endorsements last week. The group said it supports Brad Lander for Mayor, Mark Levine for New York City Comptroller, Bragg for Manhattan District Attorney, Hoylman-Sigal for Manhattan Borough President, and Abreu in his bid for reelection in City Council District 7.
Along with Broadway Democrats, Lander also secured the mayoral endorsement from Three Parks Democratic Club, while West Side Democrats endorsed mayoral candidate Scott Stringer.
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In the immortal words of another UWSer Mr John McEnroe – “You cannot be serious!” Bragg for DA? What have we done to deserve this level of representation?
Don’t like it – run for something; get a friend to run. complaining without action is pointless
Easier said than done. When the same politicians keep recycling through office over and over again or moving from one office to another and then coming back to where they started (which they can do to get around term limits) it becomes very difficult for anyone new to enter the political fray.
Most likely Pablo Zevallos is who ends up succeeding Gale Brewer in 2029. He is being groomed to run for office by the local Dems here.
I just did a quick google search and from what I can tell, there isn’t really anyone running against him. So we are likely stuck with him. Which isn’t good. Last time there were actually some decent candidates opposing Bragg. Now there is nothing.
If a moderate, realistic Dem chose to run as a RINO I would consider it. As much as I don’t like Bragg, I could not vote for a Trump worshipper.
When shopping for RINOs for DA, please don’t contemplate, oh, the very-much-FORMER Democrat Maud “Not Marc” Maron, a devoutly unwoke antimasker, confirmed transphobic bigot, and self-proclaimed “conservative” activist; her true-red creds seem quite well established. She’s the real deil.
Why the negativity about our D.A. Even Pete Hegseth, the Secretary of Defense, got behind him by restoring the name of Fort Bragg.
Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.
An example is this comment.
Not always.
I did the same thing over and over and expected different results. And finally one time, it worked. Haven’t had a cigarette in 30 years.
Speaking (apocryphally) of Einstein, if you roll the dice repeatedly and expect different results each time, that means you’re insane?
If it involves supporting Alvin, then yes.
All Upper West Side politicians endorse Bragg. That’s just awesome.
Remember their names and don’t vote for them. The only way to change things is to vote out this crazy, progressive mafia.: Rep. Jerry Nadler, Councilmembers Gale Brewer and Shaun Abreu, Assemblymembers Linda Rosenthal, Micah Lasher, and Tony Simone, and State Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal.
On a lighter note, the cast of Only Murders in the Building won for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series Award, at the SAG Awards last night. : )
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zgFtN6hFEs
Please get rid of Bragg and anyone who voted for him.
I’m not surprised that apartment has not been rented, not only because the price tag is insane, but that horrific murder is our version of the Amityville Horror.
And one wonders why the City is in the mess it’s in with lawlessness. Smash and grab, unprovoked assaults, unhoused living in the subways, e bikes and scooters run amok unlicensed vendors everywhere. We need real leadership as opposed to performative leadership.
Alas, the upper west side cabal… Ugh
Same people, year after year… Some even run unopposed… Come on… It’s time for a change.
Anyone who complains about fare evasion, shoplifting and other “quality of life” crimes not being prosecuted should remember DA Bragg’s Day One memo instructing his staff not to prosecute them.
And anyone dissatisfied with what has become the anarchy of life on the Upper West Side (and in Manhattan generally) should remember that Mr. Bragg’s deference is largely responsible for encouraging that situation.
Remember Bragg prosecuting the bodega clerk who defended himself from a robber threatening the clerk’s life?
We really need to replace Mr. Bragg if we have any hope of buying a tube of toothpaste without needing intervention from a CVS clerk. We really need to replace Mr. Bragg if we want turnstile jumping to be restored to the aberration so that turnstile *paying* can be restored to the norm.
We really need to replace Mr. Bragg. And now that means we need to replace those endorsers who would subject us to him for another four years.
Did these electeds really think we hadn’t noticed what Bragg has done to us?
Anarchy? You must live in a different part of the neighborhood than I do.
I like to think that I am more informed on local politics than most, but with all of the noise around Trump and the mayoral election, I had forgotten that the DA was also in play. I need to do some research. It would be very helpful if WSR did a feature on the candidates (particularly those other than Bragg).
I generally do not like Bragg at all. I give him a bit of a pass because he is dealing with some ridiculous laws put in place by the legislature. But still, he is way too soft on crime. I would hope that there is a good Democrat who displays core Democrat values but also has more common sense than Bragg.
No one is arguing to give someone a life sentence for their first offense of stealing a pack of gum. But we do need to have harsher sentences, particularly for recidivists – the more crimes committed, the worse the punishment. It isn’t that hard – have some real deterrents. Bragg doesn’t seem to get this.
Someone not long after Bragg began his term said Bragg seems to want to be a social worker more than a prosecutor. Maybe that’s an unfair exaggeration, but it seemed to make a good point. Bragg talked a lot right out of the gate about how he wanted to help people charged with crimes to better their lives. Fine, but a prosecutor’s job is not focused on that.
Do we even live in the same neighborhood? I don’t like everything I see, but the UWS is pretty safe and livable. I must be totally out of step with my right-leaning UWS neighbors. Bragg prosecuted the drumf – that’s admirable.
We are not “right leaning”. I guarantee most of the posters here are Democrats who are to the left of the vast majority of America. I think the issue is the “extreme left leaning” posters who suffer from willful ignorance and choose to ignore what is going on around them. And perhaps you should leave Manhattan occasionally and meet people in the rest of the country so you can baseline your expectations. Yes, the MAGA crew is scary, but it is still worth having a conversation with someone slightly to the right of you.
I personally am not necessarily right leaning. But Democrats Achilles heel, especially that of Manhattan Dems is that they think that swing voters and voters where I live are beneath them. Manhattan Dems will say stuff like anyone who is against congestion pricing and banning cars except uber is MAGA and wonder why congressional districts like mine flip red.
I notice that some of the Duane Reades and CVS on the UWS now have police cars parked in front 24/7. The one at 111 and Broadway does. I guess that’s a deterrent, although as noted by others you still have to get assistance to get a bottle of shampoo.
Ha ha! Except it really isnt funny.
They park there because it’s the edge of their district and they grab lunch down the street. Pretty innocuous.
I won’t vote for any person for any office whose platform includes “these are the laws I won’t enforce.”
Precisely. I’d certainly never vote for DJ Trump, either.
Wow. I guess these geniuses were asleep during the presidential election. Hey, let’s pretend that everything is ok and no change is needed.
However, the robots who show up to vote will vote for anyone with a D after their name. I’m a D who won’t vote for anyone who supports Bragg.
I can’t stand Cuomo, but if he opposes Bragg, then bring him on.
Vote Maud Maron for DA. Bragg is the second most destructive elected official in the country.
I’m curious what you would say to the person above who suggests that she is closely aligned with MAGA policies?
Oh? Surely “soft on crime” Bragg isn’t within many orders of magnitude of destructiveness as the rampaging active shooters of American politics such as Trump — or DeSantis, Abbott, Cruz, Paxton, Mike Johnson….
In any case, our most massive wrecking ball at present was appointed, not elected.
I am also very disappointed in our elected officials. Alvin Bragg is terrible and promotes crime. New York City deserves better. Maude Maron (former Democrat who is running on the R ticket) is the only option.
It’s convenient to have a list put together of all the folks not to vote for. If they’re unopposed I’ll write in a name. These politicians are the bottom of the barrel and it’s time we demand better
I believe that in 4 years the Democratic Party will be a footnote in history.
Bragg has been a disaster. He’s done nothing for public safety. How many people have been pushed in front of trains since he’s been in office?