A wealthy NJ town is resisting affordable housing plans. Its defiance could be costly.

Plus: Manhattan school committee approves motion to hinder trans athletes [View this email in a browser.]( Gothamist relies on your support to make local news available to all. Not yet a member? [Consider donating and join today.]( [A wealthy NJ town is resisting affordable housing plans. Its defiance could be costly.]( [first image]( [Today's newsletter is curated by James Ramsay]( Weather: ☀️ Sunny, with highs in the lower 40s and wind gusts up to 30 mph. It's Thursday in New York City, where across the Hudson, affluent Milburn Township, NJ, has defied multiple court orders to build a 75-unit affordable housing complex in the heart of its upscale downtown. Here's why individual township committee members [could face personal fines for blocking the project](. And here's what else is happening: - Top NYPD officials said during a testy City Council hearing Wednesday that [the subway system remains generally safe]( despite a string of recent high-profile crimes. - It’s now easier than ever for New Yorkers to get abortion pills — but [an upcoming Supreme Court case]( could cut off options for obtaining one of the two drugs used in medication abortions. - New Jersey officials said [they’ve found lead components]( in more Newark residential water lines — the second batch of such discoveries after officials thought they’d completely eliminated lead lines from service to the city’s homes. - An eligibility scandal in the New York City high school basketball league that prompted the cancellation of a championship game [was more widespread than the education department initially disclosed]( records show. - Manhattan’s largest school board district passed a resolution yesterday pressing the city to [bar transgender girls from playing girls sports](. - The NewYork-Presbyterian health system has reached a deal with insurer Aetna just days before their contract was set to expire, [staving off an expected loss of coverage]( for tens of thousands of patients. - Mayor Eric Adams yesterday threatened to [shut off water]( for the 2,400 city households that owe a combined $102 million in unpaid water bills. - A Buffalo man who said he lived peacefully with a 750-pound alligator named Albert for more than three decades before conservation officers recently seized the reptile is [demanding that they give him back](. - Martin Greenfield, a legendary tailor who survived Auschwitz, moved to Brooklyn and went on to [make suits for Frank Sinatra and Barack Obama]( has died at the age of 95. - There's a cool beach house for sale on a little island off the South Shore of Long Island that has [no running water or public electricity](. - The crookie [has arrived](. - Margot Robbie [is producing]( a "Sims" movie. - If you're not chugging [sexy water]( out of a [Barrel of Fun]( are you even hydrating? - Have some time for a game? [Play]( our mini local news crossword. - Sign up for reminders when we publish new games [here](. [“It’s a major stain [on the league]. I don’t know if stain remover is going to be able to remove the stain. Or if stain remover can remove it, they’re going to have to use a lot of stain remover.”]( - Ronald Naclerio, who coaches the Benjamin N. Cardozo High School basketball team, on [THE PSAL​​​​​​​'S CHEATING SCANDAL]( More from Gothamist [second image]( [A new portrait exhibition celebrates the residents of South Brooklyn]( Brooklyn artist Rusty Zimmerman painted 200 South Brooklyn residents last year — for free. Now, those portraits are on display at Industry City through March 24. [Cynthia Nixon on her new play and mother-son dynamics]( In the new play “The Seven Year Disappear,” Cynthia Nixon plays a famous performance artist who vanishes — and leaves behind her son — just as she's about to announce her next big piece. [We Rely On Your Support]( [How hard is it to get a 3-K seat in your NYC ZIP code? Check this map.]( Demand for free preschool seats for 3-year-olds exceeds supply in nearly half of New York City ZIP codes, according to education department data obtained by Gothamist. [New campaign aims to stop deadly e-bike crashes in NYC]( Transportation Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez said the multilingual campaign's messaging — "get smart before you start" — is intended to convince delivery workers and others to follow traffic laws and moderate their speeds to avoid crashes. [Instagram]( [Instagram]( [Facebook]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Twitter]( [New York Public Radio] [WNYC]( | [WQXR]( | [NJPR]( | [GOTHAMIST]( [WNYC STUDIOS]( | [THE GREENE SPACE]( Copyright © New York Public Radio. All rights reserved. 160 Varick Street, New York, NY 10013 [TERMS OF USE]( You can update your [PREFERENCES]( or [UNSUBSCRIBE]( from this list.