What should NYC do with all its poop?

Plus: The quest to drive youth voter turnout [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.]( [NYC asks researchers: What should we do with all this poop?]( [first image]( [Today's newsletter is curated by James Ramsay]( Weather: ⛅ Partly cloudy, highs in the upper 50s. It's Friday in New York City, where about a half-million tons of human excrement and solid waste pours into our sewers every year. After that waste is processed, much of it gets trucked out of the city and dumped in landfills. [Here's why the city is now searching for a climate-friendly alternative](. Here's what else is happening: - Families of people hit by subways in unusual circumstances — not official suicides, and not victims of attacks — say [the MTA and NYPD make it difficult to get clarity on what happened]( often compounding their grief. - The emerging budget deal in Albany includes a law that'll allow New York City to [lower the speed limit to 20 miles per hour]( on most streets. - Also in the $247 billion budget [that's now nearly three weeks late]( measures to boost affordable housing production, restore Medicaid funding and crack down on retail theft. - Over 100 street vendors gathered outside City Hall yesterday to [protest recent crackdowns on unlicensed vendors]( in Queens and the Bronx. - Republican Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said he's deputizing a group of civilian gun owners to protect "human life and property" during unspecified emergencies. [Public safety experts have concerns about the plan](. - The owner of a construction company accused in a [conspiracy to make illegal donations]( to Mayor Eric Adams’ 2021 campaign pleaded guilty yesterday. - The NYPD said officers [arrested at least 108 people]( at a pro-Palestinian demonstration at Columbia University yesterday. - Meet the 12 Manhattanites [selected to serve on the jury]( in Donald Trump's hush-money trial. - Despite Gene Simmons' claim that "KISS is the largest band that has ever existed that came out of New York City," a Chelsea community board appears likely to vote against [an effort to rename the corner of 8th Avenue and 23rd Street "KISS Corner."]( - Former NYPD detective Bo Dietl, who was fired from Mayor Adams' legal defense team for repeatedly cursing at reporters, [keeps cursing](. - Happy [125th anniversary]( to the Bronx Zoo! - Graydon Carter [opened a shoppy shop]( in the West Village. - A 64-year-old East Hampton man got a talking-to from the cops for [shooting his BB gun at squirrels]( on his property. - Justin Bieber [wore two pairs of sweatpants]( at the same time. National Poetry Month Spotlight The Bronx My hood is cool. Out my bedroom window two bridges thousands of cars Columbia U crew practice on the Hudson and Harlem Rivers which merge at Spuyten Duyvil. A Dutch name with such legends as “spouting Devil” referring to strong wild tidal currents. Far out a miles-long line of New Jersey’s Palisades rises from the river west of the Henry Hudson Parkway Bridge connecting Manhattan and the Bronx. Like shiny metallic insects continuous traffic scurries to Westchester at one end and Manhattan’s Inwood Park at the other. Under the bridge lies the remnant of an earlier age that still functions — railroad tracks seem to float on water revolve 180 degrees every forty minutes to allow tour boats, jet skiers to reach Hudson River. Periodically Amtrak five-car passenger trains hurry on these tracks traveling to or from Penn Station. Near HHPB’s arch I see headlights of Metro North commuter trains riding tracks beside the river. Tugboat night lights and bridge street lights weave an urban galaxy that competes with cockpit headlights of planes circling Newark Airport. In fiery flashes at dusk the “evening star” of Venus third brightest object after moon and sun sends me and my hood a dreamy message. The earth is round all is well She bids goodbye and departs until the next day. - Mary Lindberg, The Bronx For National Poetry Month, we're collecting your poems on the theme of "local": the nearby places you find important, and what’s making news there. [Submit your poem here]( for a chance to have it featured in Early Addition or on WNYC. More from Gothamist [second image]( [NYC youth voter turnout is always low. Can this digital tool change that?]( The Youth Civic Hub offers high-school-aged New Yorkers and other young people a one-stop resource for information about elections, community events, and opportunities — both volunteer and paid — with local community and civic organizations across the city. [Celebrate the drop of Taylor Swift's new album at these NYC events]( Taylor-themed karaoke and a big ol' listening party are happening this weekend in honor of her new album, “The Tortured Poets Department." [We Rely On Your Support]( [Ballerinas flood NYC's Plaza Hotel to stomp a Guinness World Record on their tiptoes]( More than 300 ballerinas gathered at the Plaza Hotel this week to set a new Guinness World Record for the most ballet dancers en pointe, or standing on their tiptoes, simultaneously. [Dominique Ansel and Popup Bagels are bringing you an $18 escargot bagel]( The bagel will be sold only at Dominique Ansel’s Spring Street location from Friday, April 19 through Sunday, April 21st, from opening at 8 a.m. until supplies run out. [Instagram]( [Instagram]( [Facebook]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Twitter]( [New York Public Radio] [WNYC]( | [WQXR]( | [NJPR]( | [GOTHAMIST]( [WNYC STUDIOS]( | [THE GREENE SPACE]( Copyright © New York Public Radio. 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