The report, authored by the organizations Transportation Alternatives and Families for Safe Streets, lists the city's 50 thoroughfares where they found the highest number of traffic deaths and serious injuries occurred between the beginning of 2022 and the end of last year. The group branded the roads "boulevards of death," which they define as arterial streets with high volumes of pedestrians, bike riders, or drivers who have either been killed or seriously injured on them.
Raul Ampuero, a Families for Safe Streets member whose 9-year-old son was hit and killed by a driver on Queens' Northern Boulevard in 2018, one of the 50 boulevards of death, said that streets need to be redesigned to prevent more young children like his son from being mowed down.
“These streets are deadly; they’re killing our children, and yet they remain unchanged for years or decades," Ampuero said in a statement. "The best time to fix Northern Boulevard was before my son was killed, but the next best time is now, before we lose another neighbor to a traffic crash."
[caption id="attachment_137868816" align="alignnone" width="960"]The groups released their report as the city's over 900,000 public school students returned to class from summer break on Thursday.
"As New York City’s students return to school, my thoughts are with my son, who deserved to go to middle school and high school like the rest of his classmates," Ampuero said.
Hundreds of deaths on NYC's most dangerous streets near schools
[caption id="attachment_137868847" align="alignnone" width="1200"]The streets identified in the report saw 212 deaths and 2,482 serious injuries from traffic crashes over the four-year period it covers, according to the analysis. More than one in five deaths and serious injuries occurred on the deadly arterials, even though they make up just 4% of the city's road miles.
The boulevards of death span all five boroughs. They include: the Bronx's Jerome Avenue, Brooklyn's Eastern Parkway, Manhattan's West 125th Street, Queens' Broadway, and Staten Island's Bay Street. Those roads saw 19, 22, 25, 14, and 9 deaths or serious injuries per mile over the four years analyzed by the groups respectively.
Transportation Alternatives Executive Director Ben Furnas said making the wide roads safer will require the city Department of Transportation to narrow them by shortening crossing distances, cutting down the width of traffic lanes, installing protected bike lanes, and allowing fewer cars and trucks to traverse them.
“It’s time to bring attention and resources to the next generation of ‘Boulevards of Death’ to ensure our deadliest streets get the upgrades they need before another New Yorker is lost," Furnas said. "Just last week, a pedestrian was hit and killed by a driver on one of these new Boulevards of Death: Boston Road in the Bronx. This New Yorker died in the hospital — killed by a driver just for trying to cross the street.”
[caption id="attachment_137868815" align="alignnone" width="960"]The groups are recommending that the DOT fast-track street safety improvements as well as aggressively begin implementing Sammy's Law, which allows it to lower speed limits to 20 miles per hour on most streets and 15 mph in school zones.
The city has already made overtures toward implementing Sammy's Law near public schools. Earlier this year, Mayor Zohran Mamdani pledged to use the law to lower speed limits to 15 mph on 800 streets adjacent to schools earlier this year.
]]>The notes he carried from block to block along his route could bring pedestrians “to a standstill.” Some applauded, while others went looking for the name behind the voice.
Sal Annerino still remembers the phone calls. Before the attacks, when Annerino was an 8-to-4 garage foreman and Macchio worked under him, people would call “all the time,” he said, asking about the sanitation worker on their street with the beautiful voice.
At Manhattan 8, Stephen Schmalzried heard it day after day. He sometimes filled in as Macchio’s driver when his regular partner was off.
“No matter what day, no matter what the weather, he was singing all day long,” Schmalzried said. “He would sing in the locker room. He would sing in the shower. He would sing on the route.”
The reputation eventually traveled beyond the blocks where he worked. In 2004, NPR introduced Macchio to a national audience as “New York City’s singing sanitation worker.”
By then, Macchio said he was approaching 23 years on the job. He told NPR he had been singing since childhood and had always sung behind the truck as he worked.
“I have to,” he said. “It’s what gets me through my job. My job isn’t glamorous.”
Singing kept his mind off his own problems, he said, and he hoped it might do something for the strangers who heard him, too.
“I hope I put a smile on somebody’s face as they walk into the subway,” Macchio said, or get them “to sing or even to hum or whistle.”
For all the attention his singing drew, Macchio himself was remarkably reserved, his friends recalled.
Annerino described Macchio as “a very quiet into himself type person” who liked picking up garbage, had little interest in becoming a boss and “just loved to sing.” Schmalzried called him “very, very low key.”
Macchio himself said he loved being outside and loved the physical work of sanitation. A professional singing career, however, was out of the question.
“Believe it or not,” he said, “I have stage fright.”
[caption id="attachment_137868706" align="alignnone" width="700"]What made Macchio a neighborhood character took on a very different meaning after Sept. 11, 2001.
He was one of thousands of city workers and first responders who went into Lower Manhattan after the towers collapsed.
According to his former colleagues, Macchio spent part of the recovery driving a Sanitation Department water truck, known as a flusher, through the dust, working alongside the men and women who swept, shoveled and hauled away the remains of the towers — and singing for himself and workers trying to endure what they encountered there.
Macchio died in 2010 at 64. His name appears on the Sanitation Foundation’s memorial to DSNY colleagues who died of 9/11-related illnesses. This Friday, as New York marks a quarter-century since the attacks, DSNY is preparing to recognize more than 150 employees it says have died of such illnesses.
Macchio’s is also a name the city is trying to keep alive another way.
A new citywide “Memory Markers: 9/11” project has placed Macchio’s story among 27 remembrances on an online map, with 9/11 stories also appearing on LinkNYC kiosks around the five boroughs.
Other markers recall the Broadway stage lights sent downtown when rescue workers needed a way to see through the night, a city environmental team that descended seven stories beneath the World Trade Center site to secure a Freon tank, and the enormous operation at Fresh Kills on Staten Island, where 1.5 million tons of debris were sifted for human remains over 10 months.
A familiar voice at Ground Zero
[caption id="attachment_137486443" align="alignnone" width="700"]Two days after the towers fell, the singing sanitation worker went downtown.
Schmalzried, newly a sanitation supervisor, was helping assemble a crew for the growing recovery operation. Men he had worked beside at Manhattan 8 wanted to go with him. Macchio was one of them.
They began work Sept. 13 in a part of the disaster zone designated Sector One. Macchio’s assignment under Schmalzried was to drive a water truck through the streets, wetting down the World Trade Center dust so it would not keep blowing back into the air.
The surroundings had changed beyond recognition. Macchio had not, his friends recalled. He sang inside the truck. When there was room to get out and work beside the other men, he kept singing there.
On Washington Street, Schmalzried remembers a downtown that had gone almost silent — a “ghost town” of buildings around them — and Macchio’s voice echoing through it.
“It definitely helped us,” Schmalzried said. “It was a great thing.”
Annerino saw the same effect and encouraged Macchio to lend his voice to the Sunday Masses and other gatherings that had become part of life around the recovery. Macchio became a regular at services for responders and sang at St. Paul’s Chapel, steps from the World Trade Center.
St. Paul’s had become a refuge for responders to rest, eat and seek support, and Annerino recalled that Macchio was there “every Sunday.”
Contemporaneous accounts preserved in city records show how much sanitation workers came to depend on the chapel. Sanitation worker Joe Bracety called the chapel “a family down here.” Another, Anthony Palmeri, described it as a “safe haven.”
“It gave us all hope on a gloomy day,” Annerino said of the services and the songs of Macchio.
[caption id="attachment_137868711" align="alignnone" width="700"]St. Paul’s offered a place to step away from the recovery, but only briefly. Beyond its doors, sanitation crews were still trying to clear streets buried in the remains of the World Trade Center. The scale of that effort was immense.
According to a retrospective exhibit assembled by the Sanitation Foundation, DSNY dispatched about 1,500 workers in the first 24 hours, along with 59 dump trucks, 50 front-end loaders, 10 flushers and 28 pieces of heavy machinery brought from Fresh Kills.
Sanitation crews cleared streets so rescue workers could operate, hauled debris and suppressed dust, while the department continued regular garbage collection and street cleaning across the rest of the city.
Schmalzried remembers some downtown streets beneath six to eight inches of dust and office paper. Workers swept it, shoveled it and loaded it into trucks. When a garbage truck compacted a load, he said, another cloud of dust could rise back into the air.
“We just kept sweeping, sweeping, sweeping for weeks,” he said.
The danger in the air
Macchio’s water truck was part of the effort to keep that dust down.
On Sept. 14, environmental officials sampling washdown water near Rector Street noted that “Sanitation workers were hosing the street in the vicinity.” Preliminary testing detected chrysotile asbestos in the runoff, per city records.
The record does not identify Macchio or measure what any worker breathed. But 25 years later, what was in that air — and what workers were told about it — is again under official scrutiny.
The city this week released more than 170,000 pages of 9/11 records. Some documents reviewed by amNewYork show worker-protection systems were still being developed after recovery work had begun, including respirator fit-testing and job-specific protective-equipment requirements.
A later federal review found respirators were often not worn for a mix of reasons that included inadequate training and enforcement, communication difficulties and conflicting messages about air quality.
A separate City Council-mandated DOI investigation is now examining what officials knew about toxic conditions, when they knew it and why records remained out of public view. On Tuesday, Council Member Gale Brewer noted DOI can refer findings to prosecutors “if appropriate.”
For the sanitation workers who were there, however, the basic idea that the environment was dangerous is far from a revelation.
“Absolutely nothing because we already knew about it,” Annerino said when asked what the newly released records changed for him. “We couldn’t breathe. The smell down there is something I’ll never forget.”
Schmalzried remembers workers initially moving around Ground Zero without masks because, he said, they had been told conditions were safe. Still, he went.
“My heart told me to go,” Schmalzried said. “You run in to help. That’s what I did.”
Michael Barasch, an attorney who represents members of the 9/11 community, said many responders shared that impulse and wanted to trust what they were being told.
“We wanted to do our duty and listen and believe,” Barasch said. “We wanted to believe.”
“It was a big sacrifice made by many people,” he added, calling sanitation workers the “unsung heroes of the 9/11 rescue and recovery efforts.”
“9/11 didn’t end on 9/11,” Barasch said. “People continued to get sick and die.”
He said his firm now loses an average of two clients a day to 9/11-related illnesses.
What the cleanup left behind
For sanitation workers at Ground Zero, the work followed the debris out of Manhattan.
At Fresh Kills on Staten Island, more than 1.4 million tons of World Trade Center material were searched and screened down to pieces as small as a quarter-inch, according to the Sanitation Foundation. The operation consumed about 1.7 million work hours, with a core group of roughly 200 DSNY employees bringing specialized knowledge of the landfill and its heavy machinery.
The hazards followed, too. Contemporary safety records identified asbestos and other chemical agents as potential dangers and warned that silica dust from pulverized construction material posed a potential inhalation hazard to workers handling the debris.
The Manhattan cleanup lasted nearly nine months. The Fresh Kills operation lasted almost 10 months. The losses continue to this day.
Annerino said over a dozen names are being added this year to DSNY’s memorial wall for workers who died of 9/11-related illnesses. “And I already have five more names that I gave them for next year,” he said.
For the 72-year-old, those numbers have names and faces attached. He said 153 people are on the list he keeps. At least 15 were very good friends, and he knew roughly another 50 well.
Barasch urged anyone who may qualify for the World Trade Center Health Program or the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund to enroll, even if they are healthy today.
“I urge everybody to enroll in those programs, even if they’re currently healthy,” he said.
The city is also trying to help people document that they were there. As part of the agreement accompanying this week’s records release, city staff will assist former workers and students in locating employment and school records that could establish their presence in the exposure zone.
Annerino has spent years preserving DSNY’s 9/11 history through his Facebook group, Remembering the 9/11 Heroes of DSNY, collecting photographs, videos and names while helping former sanitation workers and their families navigate benefits.
[caption id="attachment_137868710" align="alignnone" width="700"]Schmalzried too has kept his own record: two large photo albums filled with people and scenes from Ground Zero. This week, he said, he called five members of the crew he supervised after the attacks simply to thank them and tell them they had done a good job.
“We all have stories,” Schmalzried said.
His memories of Macchio include the music — Frank Sinatra and church hymns. Some of it survives on video. At an Easter Sunday Mass at Ground Zero in 2002, Macchio can be seen singing “On Eagle’s Wings” before a somber crowd, some wiping away tears. Later, he leads those gathered in “God Bless America.”
For Annerino, seeing his friend recognized through the city’s Memory Markers project is another way of keeping those stories alive.
“To me, it means a lot,” he said. “That’s why I run this Facebook group to remember all our people.”
]]>The transit boss floated the rough timeline for building the IBX to reporters while dropping by a Wednesday evening pop-up event at the Queens Public Library's Ridgewood Branch with Gov. Kathy Hochul. The event was just one of dozens the MTA has held over the summer to educate riders about the IBX, while collecting their feedback on the undertaking.
Lieber emphasized that while riders will not be able to actually travel on the IBX for a number of years, the project's design phase, which began last summer, is moving faster than expected.
"The main thing is that we have incredible speed on the design, which is half of the challenge is figuring out how to make everything fit, and to do the technology, and to make sure it impacts on people's lives and real estate as little as possible," Lieber said. "And we're really ahead of schedule on that."
The $5.5 billion project includes the construction of 18 new stations, 17 of which will connect to existing subway stations, along 14 miles of barely-used freight tracks. It will also link riders to 50 bus routes and the Long Island Rail Road.
Once it is completed, the IBX promises to move a projected 160,000 daily riders end-to-end, between Bay Ridge in Brooklyn and Jackson Heights in Queens, in just 32 minutes.
[caption id="attachment_137868549" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]The light rail line would be the MTA's first and is intended to bring service to areas that have long been underserved by public transit, such as East Flatbush, Flatlands, and Maspeth.
Danny Pearlstein, director of communications and policy for the rider advocacy group Riders Alliance, said it is understandable that such a potentially transformative project could take many years to complete.
"What's important is to understand what is happening at each step of the process," he said. "Five years, in the abstract, is a long time to wait, but what we want to know is that each day within those five years, the project is moving forward in a reasonable way."
Questions remain for IBX project
Lieber's comments came as the state-run MTA and the governor's office released a fresh batch of renderings visualizing how IBX stations at New Utrecht and Remsen Avenues in Brooklyn could look. The images show sleek modern stations outfitted with multiple elevators, digital displays, and easy connections to the subway system.
The state also said it would be releasing the draft environmental impact statement for the project, which aims to show how it will affect surrounding communities, before the end of this year — sooner than it originally planned to unveil the document.
However, while the project is already halfway funded through the MTA's current $68 billion 2025-2029 Capital Plan — to the tune of $2.75 billion — it is not yet clear where the remaining dollars will come from.
Hochul said she originally proposed the IBX during the tenure of Democratic former President Joe Biden, who was more likely to fund it with federal dollars. But now under Republican President Donald Trump and a GOP-controlled Congress, federal funding appears far less likely to be forthcoming.
Nonetheless, Hochul said she is holding out hope that will change if the Democrats retake control of Congress in November.
"If we take the majority in the House, we take the Senate, we take back the White House in two years, then I feel confident the money will come from the federal government," Hochul said.
Even if that federal funding does not end up coming through, Hochul pledged to get the project fully financed.
"I hope to be around for a number of years, and I'm committed to getting it done," she said. "If the state has to step up in a bigger way, the state will step up in a bigger way. This is a critically important project to me, the people of these two boroughs, and a statement of our priorities. I'll make those investments."
Lieber's timeline for the project is likely related to the open funding question, Pearlstein said. He noted, however, that not having to go through the feds could help the project move along faster.
"The state's flexibility and willingness to proceed without federal funding should shave time off the construction," he said. "But at the same time, it shouldn't be that way. We should be able to have federal funding and have a project that is completed expeditiously at the same time. We deserve that much."
]]>
Cops are looking for the suspect who allegedly robbed a Rockaway Beach drug store at gunpoint and remains at large. Photo courtesy of the NYPD[/caption]
The NYPD released surveillance images of the suspect and described him as having a medium complexion with a thin build, approximately 16 to 24 years of age, 5’10” in height, 150 pounds, with black hair and a thin mustache and beard. He was last seen wearing a white T-shirt, white shorts, white sneakers and a black backpack stuffed with stolen Ozempic and other weight-loss drugs.
A reward of up to $3,500 is being offered for information that leads to his arrest and indictment.
Anyone with information regarding this investigation is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-577-TIPS (8477) or, for Spanish, 888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging on to the Crime Stoppers website at crimestoppers.nypdonline.org or on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) @NYPDTips. All calls and messages are kept confidential.
Through Sept. 6, the 100th Precinct has reported two dozen robberies so far in 2026, a half dozen fewer than the 30 reported at the same point last year, a decline of 20%, according to the most recent CompStat report.]]>
The rally was held one day before the start of the new school year for the neighborhood. Photo by Ramy Mahmoud[/caption]
Rallygoers called on the NYC DOT to add a dedicated micro-mobility lane and supportive infrastructure for delivery workers on Northern Boulevard. Such supportive infrastructure would include charging stations, rest areas and dedicated parking and loading zones.
[caption id="attachment_622273" align="alignnone" width="6192"]
Photo by Ramy Mahmoud[/caption]
Among those on hand for this rally were New York City Council Member Shekar Krishnan, New York State Assemblymember Jessica González-Rojas, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, New York State Assembly District 34 Democratic Nominee Brian Romero and representatives from multiple advocacy organizations, including the Worker's Justice Project, Open Plans and the Alliance for Paseo Park.
[caption id="attachment_622272" align="alignnone" width="5392"]
Northern Boulevard has posed a danger for pedestrians, cyclists, scooter riders and more. Photo by Ramy Mahmoud[/caption]
"The city is rethinking bus infrastructure and regulations for e-bikes and mopeds. It's time for us to prioritize the safety of everyone," Krishnan said. "New Yorkers are used to cramped subway cars at rush hour and small apartments, but we can't compromise when it comes to having enough space on our streets to travel safely."
[caption id="attachment_622267" align="alignnone" width="6192"]
Krishnan addresses attendees of the rally. Photo by Ramy Mahmoud[/caption]
"In 2020, right here on Northern Boulevard, I launched my Green New Northern Plan - a vision for transforming this corridor into a safer, greener and more people-centered boulevard. Some of that vision is slowly becoming a reality. We fought for and won dedicated bus lanes. This helps buses move riders with greater speed and reliability while reducing pollution and making better use of our street space. But our work cannot stop there. Northern Boulevard is still one of the busiest and most complicated corridors in Queens, and people navigate it every day, especially our deliveristas, cyclists and other micromobility riders. These are infrastructure designed with their safety in mind," González-Rojas said. "A safer Northern Boulevard means faster deliveries, safer workers, more reliable transit, fewer conflicts and a better environment for our local businesses and restaurants."
"Northern Boulevard is one of the busiest corridors in our borough. From Long Island City to Jackson Heights to Flushing and beyond, countless cars, buses, cyclists, pedestrians and delivery workers use it every single day, and every single person who navigates this street deserves to not just feel safe, but be safe as they go about their day," Richards said. "And that's especially true for deliveristas who use this corridor every day to bring us the food or goods we want."
[caption id="attachment_622269" align="alignnone" width="5392"]
Richards speaks at the rally. Photo by Ramy Mahmoud[/caption]
"We are calling on the city today to solve something that has been a challenge in recent years. We stand on Northern Boulevard, which has been called the Boulevard of Death, which we believe is the right place for the administration to expand its micromobility infrastructure to create a safe passage for delivery workers away from pedestrians, away from children walking to school," Alliance for Paseo Park Executive Director Dawn Siff said. "We are here today to call for better safety. This is an opportunity to think more holistically about how we move people safely. Delivery workers are essential to the daily life and economy of Jackson Heights and neighborhoods all across the city. They are our neighbors, and they power this city. We believe they deserve safe infrastructure and amenities like charging stations, rest areas and dedicated parking and loading zones."
[caption id="attachment_622265" align="alignnone" width="6192"]
Alliance for Paseo Park Executive Director Dawn Siff (front row, second from left) and Worker's Justice Project Executive Director Ligia Guallpa (front row, third from left). Photo by Ramy Mahmoud[/caption]]]>
The beatdown occurred behind Amazura, a music venue at 91-12 144th Pl. in Jamaica, and it left the victim hospitalized with serious physical injuries, police said. QNS file photo[/caption]
The scooter rider flew into a rage as he approached the motorist and proceeded to punch him in the face with a closed fist, causing him to fall to the pavement, where he struck his head, police said. The assailant proceeded to kick and punch the victim in the head multiple times before storming off on the scooter towards the Jamaica LIRR station on Sutphin Boulevard two blocks to the east. EMS rushed the victim to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where he was listed in serious condition.
The NYPD released surveillance images of the suspect and described him as having a dark complexion, a heavy build and a beard and mustache. He was last seen wearing a red T-shirt with a multi-colored graphic across the front, black jean shorts with white lettering on the front, a black crossbody bag, black sneakers and a black head covering.
A reward of up to $3,500 is being offered for information that leads to his arrest and indictment.
Anyone with information regarding this road rage incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or, for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging on to the Crime Stoppers website at crimestoppers.nypdonline.org or on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) @NYPDTips. All calls and messages are strictly confidential.
Through Sept. 6, the 103rd Precinct has reported 556 felony assaults so far in 2026, 43 more than the 513 reported at the same point last year, an increase of 8.4%, according to the most recent CompStat report.]]>
Volunteers wheel around engineered wood fiber as a foundation for the playground. Photo courtesy of the New York Islanders[/caption]
According to the YMCA, children today are growing up in more challenging environments with fewer opportunities for unstructured play and limited access to nature, combating increased screen time and other societal pressures that may negatively affect their physical and mental health.
In response, the YMCA said it's crucial that it partner with nonprofits like the Islanders Children’s Foundation and Kaboom! to protect and create spaces where every kid can grow, play and thrive.
The Cross Island YMCA serves more than 15,000 children and families every year and aims for the playspace to support youth development, healthy living and stronger communities.
"Creating safe, welcoming spaces where children can play, build confidence and thrive is at the heart of what we do at the YMCA of Greater New York," said John Jopek, executive director of the Cross Island YMCA. "Our families helped design this playground, so when children run onto it for the first time, they'll see their own ideas brought to life. We are grateful to our partners at Kaboom! and the Islanders Children's Foundation for giving the children and families we serve the opportunity to help shape a space they'll enjoy for years to come."
[caption id="attachment_622240" align="alignnone" width="1200"]
More volunteers drill in pieces of the playground. Photo courtesy of the New York Islanders[/caption]
The YMCA emphasized that playing is the essence of childhood and is a critical developmental need that provides countless physical, social and mental health benefits.
However, the organization said far too many children, especially in communities of color, do not have a place to play near where they live or learn.
The new playground at the Cross Island YMCA, designed with the neighborhood’s unique needs and aspirations in mind, brings the community one step closer toward ending that playspace inequity.
“Playgrounds are an iconic part of childhood where kids collect some of their best memories and experience the countless physical and mental health benefits of play,” said Lysa Ratliff, CEO of Kaboom!. “Kaboom! is thrilled to work with our partners to bring to life the new playspace at the Cross Island YMCA and ensure that generations of kids in Queens and beyond can grow up happy and healthy through access to playspaces where they feel they are valued and belong. Especially in the increasingly challenging environment our kids are growing up in today, it is critical for us to protect and create safe playspaces for kids to realize their fullest potential.”
As Kaboom! celebrates its 30th anniversary, the nonprofit is expanding its capacity to build and transform playspaces where need is greatest. It is prioritizing public-private partnerships, data-driven research, policy and advocacy to advance systems-level change across municipalities and school districts, ensuring children’s physical and mental health is centered in how communities plan for the future.
[caption id="attachment_622241" align="alignnone" width="1200"]
Volunteers place a piece of the playground securely into the ground. Photo courtesy of the New York Islanders[/caption]
“With the Cross Island YMCA located right in the backyard of UBS Arena, these kids and families are the very heart of our community, and investing in our neighbors will always be a top priority,” added Kelly Cheeseman, president of business operations for the Islanders and UBS Arena. “Play is a fundamental part of childhood, and we are proud to team up with Kaboom! and the YMCA of Greater New York to deliver a safe, vibrant space where local youth can learn, thrive, and create lasting memories.”
[caption id="attachment_622242" align="alignnone" width="1200"]
Piece by piece, volunteers put the playground together. Photo courtesy of the New York Islanders[/caption]]]>
AMS IV students at UCHS.[/caption]
Prior to joining the UCHS network, Garcia served as High School Director at the American Dream Charter School in the Bronx, where he oversaw academics, school culture and operations for nearly three years.
“Dr. Garcia is an experienced educator and school leader who brings a strong background in instructional leadership, student achievement, school culture and family engagement,” said Curtis Palmore, CEO of UCHS. “He is committed to UCHS students and understands the importance of creating a community where young people feel known, valued and prepared to succeed. We are excited to welcome him to AMS IV and confident he will build on the school’s strengths.”
Garcia is completing a doctorate in Educational Leadership at Russell Sage College, with a concentration in system-level leadership and organizational development, and has successfully defended his dissertation research.
He holds Master of Science degrees in Educational Leadership and Special Education, and a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature and Secondary English Education from the City College of New York. He also earned a certificate under the Data Wise Leadership Institute from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.]]>
Accelerator participants chat with business advisors. Photo courtesy of GJDC[/caption]
Participants in the accelerator will receive access to professionals including legal, accounting and financial services, human resources and marketing at no cost.
During the 12 weeks, the businesses will receive personalized assessment and readiness evaluation; a customized growth strategy tailored to the business’s goals; technical assistance with one-on-one dedicated business advisors; capital readiness support; learning modules focused on long-term success; and procurement training and exposure to corporate and government partners.
Upon completion, officials said companies will be equipped with the knowledge, strategy and support to compete more effectively for contract opportunities, increase revenue and strengthen operations, build lasting systems and best practices, and scale with confidence and sustainability.
The citywide MWBE accelerator launched its first 12-week initiative in the spring, assisting 17 businesses with resources and support. After program operators received positive feedback from the businesses, they decided to expand the program to include all five boroughs.
Deputy Speaker Nantasha Williams explained that MWBEs tend to experience more roadblocks when trying to scale up their businesses.
“Minority and women-owned businesses are essential to the strength of New York City’s economy, yet too many still face barriers when trying to access capital, compete for contracts and grow their businesses,” Williams said.
According to research from the University of Houston, business-loan approval rates for MWBEs are up to 20% lower compared to their non-minority male counterparts. Reuters notes that Black women specifically experience a loan rejection rate that is three times higher than that of white business owners.
Stearns Bank also points out that the historical racial wealth gap resulting from discriminatory policies has contributed to the disparities in earning power of Black households, which trail behind that of white households by 39%.
However, Williams said the 12-week program can help close the gap by connecting entrepreneurs with the technical assistance, professional expertise and procurement opportunities.
“This is what intentional investment looks like: giving MWBEs not only a seat at the table but the tools and opportunities to build lasting economic power in their communities,” she said.
Council Speaker Julie Menin noted that as a former small business owner herself, she understands how essential programs like these are for navigating New York’s diverse range of industries.
"MWBE-owned businesses are the backbone of neighborhoods across this city, but too often the biggest barrier to growth for aspiring entrepreneurs is access to things like capital and professional support," Menin said. "This accelerator helps close that gap.”
Vivi Acosta, chief of staff at GJDC, has been assisting the downtown Jamaica community with sustainable growth and economic development for the past nine years. She said that after a successful implementation of the program on the local level, the organization reached out to the City Council to discuss expanding it for greater impact.
Due to the city’s high operational costs, Acosta explained, MWBEs face even greater challenges securing funds and resources to grow their businesses.
“We’re trying to be that liaison connecting corporate partners to our small businesses while eliminating all those constraints that are making it hard for them to be competitive,” she said.
Beyond initial costs, she emphasized, structural challenges continue to affect MWBEs, including troubles with financial reporting, accounting services and legal contracts. By providing customized solutions that meet each individual business’s needs, she continued, it helps them bridge those gaps between their skilled labor and their business operations.
[caption id="attachment_622225" align="alignnone" width="1200"]
A class promoting health at Real Wellness, co-founded by LaToya Stone, in Fresh Meadows. Photo courtesy of LaToya Stone[/caption]
LaToya Stone, co-founder and co-owner of Real Wellness in Fresh Meadows, said that when she received an email about the program early this year and realized the business was eligible, she quickly signed up.
What attracted her most to the program, she said, is how tailored the assistance was to her specific needs as a business owner. She was able to schedule one-on-one meetings with an attorney, an HR professional and an accountant on her own time, making it extremely convenient for her to manage her business during the day.
“It was perfect timing for us,” she said. “We took full advantage of meeting with those experts and getting our one-on-one opportunities to get support, feedback, guidance and recommendations.”
Stone highlighted the support she received from the attorney, who helped her navigate some updates to their vendor contracts after one of their vendors did not provide the services she requested within a certain timeframe, leaving the business in crisis.
“The attorney was spot-on helping us through the process,” she said. “It allowed us to make some judgment calls that we might not have made if we didn’t have his support or expertise.”
Additionally, Stone said the HR professional was instrumental in helping the business expand its workforce with best hiring practices, and the accountant provided through the program helped inform her of things she didn’t know she should be communicating to her new business accountant.
“It was more than we could even imagine,” Stone said. “At the end of the day, it’s important to support these businesses because that’s what’s going to be the backbone of our community. In this day and age, it’s critical we get the additional support because we’re practitioners of your well-being physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. It would be remiss if people couldn’t experience that impact just because the support wasn’t there.”]]>
Photo by Robert Pearl[/caption]
For many in attendance, the evening represented the culmination of a conversation that had begun just weeks earlier.
On Monday, Aug. 24, local Queens leaders gathered at Young Israel of Queens Valley for a question-and-answer forum with a key representative of the Blakeman campaign. The gathering became a constructive call to action as participants shared ideas about how Queens could play a larger role in the campaign heading into the post-Labor Day sprint.
The message from the room was overwhelmingly positive and direct: Queens is ready to help and go to bat for Bruce Blakeman.
Local leaders and activists said they wanted to see Blakeman spend more time in the borough — visiting neighborhoods, meeting directly with residents and community leaders and engaging with the diverse communities that make up Queens - including Jewish, Asian, Hispanic and other ethnic groups. Participants emphasized that the borough has a deep pool of volunteers, political and campaign experience, media connections and social media reach ready to be put to work.
“We are the boots on the ground,” was the sentiment that emerged from the discussion.
Those gathered said they wanted to help elect Blakeman and brainstormed ways to strengthen the campaign's ground game, including neighborhood outreach, volunteer organizing, multilingual communications, local media and social media engagement.
[caption id="attachment_622217" align="alignnone" width="640"]
Photo by Robert Pearl[/caption]
The campaign representative assured those in attendance that the concerns and ideas being raised would be discussed with the campaign and Blakeman himself, with a broader plan for engagement expected to take shape as the full campaign operation moved into its September phase.
Blakeman's appearances across Queens have become increasingly frequent as his gubernatorial campaign moves into its post-Labor Day push.
In the weeks surrounding the Aug. 24 gathering at Young Israel of Queens Valley, Blakeman expanded his presence in some of the borough's most diverse and politically active communities. His recent stops included a voter-outreach walk through Downtown Flushing businesses, a standing-room-only gathering at the Harbor Light Pub in Rockaway Park earlier in July, the annual Broad Channel Labor Day Parade alongside local volunteers and a solemn pre-Rosh Hashanah visit to the Lubavitcher Rebbe's Ohel in Cambria Heights.
At Oasis Cafe, the candidate thanked supporters and quickly delivered the kind of direct, energetic message the crowd had come to hear.
[caption id="attachment_622215" align="alignnone" width="640"]
Photo by Robert Pearl[/caption]
Blakeman sharply criticized Gov. Kathy Hochul and the policies of her administration.
[caption id="attachment_622216" align="alignnone" width="640"]
Photo by Robert Pearl[/caption]
“I want us to be back where we should be,” Blakeman told the audience, saying he believed his policies and ideas could move New York forward.
He pointed to his record as Nassau County Executive and said he wanted to bring that approach to communities throughout the state.
Blakeman's appearance was the centerpiece of an evening that also showcased a growing network of Queens candidates, organizations and grassroots activists.
[caption id="attachment_622218" align="alignnone" width="640"]
Photo by Robert Pearl[/caption]
Among those recognized or appearing were Queens GOP Chairman Tony Nunziato, State Senate candidate Pamela Michos, Assembly candidates Brandon Castro, Robert Speranza and Wilson Chang and other local candidates and activists.
Robert Becerra of the Blakeman campaign was also present. Becerra, who is involved in the campaign's animal-rights outreach and advisory efforts, joined local leaders and supporters throughout the evening.
[caption id="attachment_622220" align="alignnone" width="640"]
Robert Becerra addresses attendees. Photo by Robert Pearl[/caption]
The event brought together members and representatives of organizations including the Queens Business Coalition, Queens Village Republican Club, Whitestone Republican Club and others. Phil Orenstein, president of the Queens Village Republican Club, was among the local Republican leaders connected to the broader Queens organizing effort.
Michael Kane of Teachers for Choice also addressed the audience, speaking about his advocacy and his organization's support for Blakeman. He urged those gathered to become more actively involved as the campaign moves toward Election Day.
Pamela Michos delivered a similar message, emphasizing that supporters must translate enthusiasm into action through volunteering, organizing, canvassing and getting involved in their communities.
The campaign season, those involved said, is now entering a new phase — and the focus is increasingly turning toward organization, outreach and a strong ground game. As the final stretch of the election season is underway, the message was simple: the call to action has been made, and Queens is ready to get to work.]]>There will be two new "special-edition overnight camping experiences" at the Unisphere in the iconic park, located near the Grand Central Parkway and Van Wyck Expressway, on Sept. 25 and Oct. 9. The experiences will allow 200 New Yorkers to spend a night under the stars at one of the city’s most recognizable landmarks — for free.
“S’mores just got even sweeter in New York City,” Mamdani said. “There’s no better way to cap off an incredible summer than by gathering around the campfire, looking up at the stars and making memories with our neighbors. This fall, we’re bringing that experience to the heart of Queens during this special edition of our beloved family camping program. I hope families across the city take the chance to join us and experience our parks in a whole new way.”
According to NYC Parks officials, each evening will begin with "icebreaker activities" before campers pitch their
NYC Parks said it will provide tents and sleeping bags for all campers. Sleeping bags can be taken home at the end of the program. Dinner and breakfast options will be available for purchase from a food truck, and families are "welcome to bring their own food and snacks," the department said.
“New York City is home to some of the most extraordinary parks and landmarks in the world, and the Unisphere offers an unforgettable backdrop for an outdoor adventure,” NYC Parks Commissioner Tricia Shimamura said. “With our Urban Park Rangers, we’re giving New Yorkers the chance to experience Flushing Meadows Corona Park in a whole new way — under the stars, around a campfire, and alongside their neighbors."
The overnights build on the success of the NYC Parks' Urban Park Rangers' long-running Family Camping series, officials said.
The overnight events on Sept. 25 and Oct. 9 can accommodate 100 campers each. Participants will be chosen through an online lottery, which is open Sept. 10 through Sept. 13. New Yorkers can enter the lottery through the NYC Parks website at, and find out more information, at nycgovparks.org.
]]>The criticism comes days before New York marks the 25th anniversary of Sept. 11. Blakeman, the Republican nominee challenging Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul in November, has made Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s presence at Friday’s Ground Zero ceremony an issue in the governor’s race, calling for attendees to peacefully turn their backs on the mayor.
City & State first reported Wednesday that Blakeman filmed an endorsement for Joel Anabilah-Azumah, the Republican and Conservative candidate challenging Democratic Rep. Yvette Clarke in Brooklyn.
Anabilah-Azumah wrote on X in 2024 that “9/11 was an inside job.”
“You don’t have to believe it, but that is what happened, and history is pretty clear on that,” he wrote.
In the endorsement video reviewed by amNewYork, Blakeman said Anabilah-Azumah would make “a great member of Congress” and added, “We need fighters like that in Congress.”
Velázquez said she had spent more than two decades fighting for 9/11 victims and their families to get the care they need.
“I never thought I’d see someone like Bruce Blakeman running for governor while associating with 9/11 conspiracy theorists,” she said. “These were no casual meet-and-greets: Blakeman filmed campaign endorsements and videos with these extremists. New Yorkers deserve better than this.”
Nadler, who represented Ground Zero in Congress, called it “downright appalling” that Blakeman would “campaign with, and seek endorsements from” people who have promoted 9/11 conspiracy theories.
Blakeman's campaign had not responded to amNewYork’s requests for comment as of Wednesday afternoon.
Other controversies surrounding Blakeman campaign
The Blakeman campaign had faced questions involving Marcus C. Williams, chair of the Rochester City Republican Committee, before the latest endorsement came to light.
The Judge Street Journal reported in May that Blakeman’s running mate, Todd Hood, had interviewed Williams and detailed several of Williams’ past posts, including one in which he shared a video containing conspiracy claims about 9/11 and wrote that although he did not agree with everything in it, “99% of this here is on point.”
The outlet reported again in August that Blakeman himself had appeared in a campaign video with Williams. In the video, reviewed by amNewYork, Blakeman told him, “We’re gonna win because of people like you, Marcus, and the Rochester City Republicans.”
Politico subsequently reported on the interaction and obtained responses from Williams and the Blakeman campaign. Williams said his “99%” wording had been “imprecise” and that he rejected the video’s conspiracy claims about who planned or carried out the attacks. Blakeman’s campaign called Democratic criticism of the episode a “guilt-by-association” attack.
Blakeman has publicly amplified support from Cafecito Break, a Brooklyn-based media and podcast outlet that has previously promoted Richard Gage, a proponent of the theory that the World Trade Center towers were brought down by controlled demolition.
On Aug. 25, Blakeman quote-posted Cafecito Break’s support for his candidacy, writing that “people of all political parties and walks of life are voting for me in November” and directing followers to his campaign’s coalition page.
Cafecito Break promoted a December 2023 interview with Gage under the title “Make The Truth About 9/11 Mainstream,” describing him as an “Architect for Truth.”
Gage continues to promote the controlled-demolition theory, including in an Aug. 14 post claiming flashes visible in footage of the collapse were evidence of explosions. The National Institute of Standards and Technology found no corroborating evidence that explosives brought down the towers.
Blakeman’s nephew, New York state court officer Thomas Jurgens, was killed while responding at the South Tower on Sept. 11, 2001.
He is among several Republicans and some relatives of 9/11 victims who have said Mamdani, New York City’s first Muslim mayor, should stay away from Friday’s ceremony. The effort to exclude Mamdani has drawn pushback from Democrats and other 9/11 families, while some of the rhetoric surrounding his attendance has been explicitly anti-Muslim.
Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani, for example, has invoked Mamdani’s Muslim faith while arguing he should not attend and compared him to the 9/11 hijackers.
]]>The governor and the agency released new renderings on Wednesday for how the new stations will look along the line, to be created along freight rail lines between Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, and Jackson Heights, Queens.
The visualizations offer the most extensive sense to date of what the $5.5 billion undertaking, often referred to as the IBX, could eventually look like. They show modern glass and steel outdoor stations, outfitted with multiple elevators, digital displays, and connections to the subway system.
Once completed, the MTA says the IBX will be able to move passengers from one end to the other — between the Brooklyn Army Terminal in Brooklyn and Roosevelt Avenue in Queens — in just 32 minutes.
“For too many commuters, traveling between New York’s two largest boroughs can be lengthy, inconvenient and inaccessible — that’s why the IBX promises to change everything for Brooklyn and Queens, and we aren’t wasting any time advancing this transformational project,” Hochul said in a statement.
The project, which the MTA estimates will have 160,000 daily riders, involves building 18 new light rail stations along the CSX and Long Island Rail Road freight lines with the intent of providing a transportation option to areas underserved by public transit.
[caption id="attachment_137800113" align="alignnone" width="1200"]The MTA has pledged to make all 18 IBX stations fully accessible under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) as well as the 17 subway stations they will connect to. According to the agency, it is already in the process of making ADA upgrades at three of the four subway stations that will connect to the IBX but are not currently accessible. Those include Broadway Junction A, C, J, Z, and L, Junius Street on the 3, and Avenue I on the F.
The MTA will upgrade the fourth and final station, Wilson Avenue on the L, via its $68 billion 2025-2029 Capital Plan, with plans to award a construction contract for the work by the middle of next year.
“By building the IBX as a fully accessible rail system, riders will be able to travel between Brooklyn and Queens faster than ever before," said Quemuel Arroyo, the MTA's chief accessibility officer, in a statement.
Hochul's office and the transit authority also announced they will be releasing a draft environmental impact statement for the project before the end of this year, sooner than initially planned.
“By pushing forward on design and accelerating accessibility upgrades at future subway connections, my administration is bringing all 900,000 New Yorkers who live near planned IBX line one stop closer to reduced travel times and an even more reliable public transit experience," she said.
The draft environmental impact statement will give the most detailed look yet into how the IBX will affect the communities that it will run through, a little over a year after it kicked off the project's design phase.
[caption id="attachment_137868562" align="alignnone" width="1200"]The governor and MTA will follow the document's release by holding another batch of public meetings in which residents living along the IBX corridor can share input on the project.
The news comes as the MTA has held 30 pop-up events up and down the planned IBX route throughout the summer, which yielded over 7,000 interactions with community residents, according to Hochul's office.
The renderings have already drawn some praise.
In a statement, President and CEO of the New York Building Congress Carlo Scissura said the renderings are an "inspiring look into the possible future of a more connected New York City."
"But they will remain just drawings on paper until we devote the resources needed to transform them into steel and stone, allowing real New Yorkers to be whisked from Bay Ridge to Jackson Heights," he added. "Now it's time to talk turkey on funding the next steps, gathering crucial public input, and keeping the ball moving on the next great infrastructure project for New York."
]]>