Trash hauler won coveted jobs after donating to Adams campaign

Plus: Like 'Comic Con for sports' [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.]( [Trash hauler won coveted garbage pickup rights after donating to Mayor Adams' campaign]( [first image]( [Today's newsletter is curated by James Ramsay]( Weather: ☀️ Sunny, highs in the lower 80s. It's Tuesday in New York City, where a draft audit of Mayor Eric Adams’ 2021 election fund flagged a series of donations from owners and employees of a Queens waste hauling company that later won a set of coveted licenses from the sanitation department. Here's why the combined [$10,800 in donations]( from Royal Waste Services employees is under scrutiny. And here's what else is happening: - The number of vehicles with unreadable license plates [evading New York City tolls and traffic fines]( has increased by 30% since April, according to a new report. - NASA and the advocacy group Transportation Alternatives found that some bus stops in the city can be [nearly 15 degrees hotter than their cooler counterparts]( during the summer. - Rep. Josh Gottheimer from New Jersey has introduced a bill that would require Amtrak and NJ Transit to [issue refunds to riders]( when their travels on the public transit systems get disrupted. - A New York state judge ruled yesterday that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. used a "sham" Westchester address on his ballot petitions and thus [can't appear on the state's presidential ballot this fall](. - Police have arrested an NYPD officer who they say was involved in a Brooklyn car crash while on duty and then [fled the scene without reporting it](. - Robert Tucker, who most recently worked as the CEO of a private security company and has never been a firefighter, [has been appointed the new FDNY commissioner](. - In perhaps his final major act as the 46th president of the United States, will Joe Biden successfully [force health insurance companies and cable providers to let you speak to a human]( when you call customer service? - Lost something in a park, on a train, in a cab or in your trash? THE CITY has [a guide to getting it back](. - The city's effort to put spongy pavement [in flood-prone areas]( is working. - The New York-to-Dublin portal is [closing for good]( in September. - The West Village Equinox elevator that broke back in March [is still broken](. - Meanwhile, Equinox-owned Blink Fitness has [filed for bankruptcy protection](. - The New York Times editorial board is [done endorsing candidates in New York elections](. (It'll still endorse presidential candidates.) - Los Angeles plans to [borrow 3,000 buses]( in an attempt to make the 2028 Olympics a "no-car" event. - Boomers are going ahead and buying waterfront homes that are [about to sink into the ocean](. [“It seems like based on the investigations surrounding different people both in the administration and potentially with the mayor, pay-to-play is standard operating procedure for this administration.”]( - City Councilmember sandy nurse on [MAYOR ERIC ADAMS' 2021 CAMPAIGN FUNDRAISING]( More from Gothamist [second image]( [Like 'Comic Con for sports' — Fanatics Fest at Javits Center this weekend]( Mike Tyson, Henrik Lundqvist, David Ortiz, Peyton Manning, Spike Lee, Ben Stiller, several current and former Knicks, Jay-Z and Travis Scott will be among the star attendees of the first-ever Fanatics Fest. [LeFrak City has the most evictions in NYC. The landlord is suing to speed up the process.]( Since the start of 2023, the 4,605-unit development has been the site of more evictions than anywhere else in the five boroughs, according to a Gothamist analysis of city housing data. At the same time, the complex’s owner is suing the state court system, seeking to speed up the removal process for tenants behind on rent. [We Rely On Your Support]( [Queens' Broadway Library to reopen after extensive renovation]( After an almost year-long delay due to budget cuts, the Queens Public Library’s renovated Broadway branch in Astoria reopened yesterday with a new computer center and ADA-compliant bathrooms. [Why the MTA’s bus drivers don’t enforce the fare]( “I will not let my operators get involved in fare disputes because that’s not our job,” said J.P. Patafio, head of buses at Transport Workers Union Local 100. “Our job is to drive the bus safely from point A to point B, and getting into arguments about the fare has historically led to an increase in assaults.” [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.