Early Addition: NYC's air quality is on the mend

Also, a skyscraper drop tower, Robert De Niro's 80th birthday, plus more stories from around the city and internet. [View this email in a browser.]( [Get a T-Shirt When You Donate!]( Gothamist relies on your support to make news available to all. This month only: You'll get a t-shirt when you become a member. [Donate Now]( [When will NYC’s bad air quality end? Things are starting to look up]( [first image]( [by Emily Nadal]( Happy Friday from New York City where the [air quality situation has gotten better.]( But don’t be alarmed if the smog returns — smoke and wind currents are hard to predict! Here’s what else is happening: - Save those banana peels: NYC residents will soon be [required to compost food scraps]( waste and food-soiled paper. - Your kids might have a lot of questions about the orange skies and smoky air as they end their school week at home. [Here's a guide to explaining the situation.]( - The Environmental Protection Agency says you [shouldn’t worry about the air quality affecting your water.]( - Retail jobs have been [on the decline since the pandemic,]( despite the rest of the job market almost fully recovering. - Mayor Eric Adams' administration responded effectively to the air quality crisis, according to Mayor Eric Adams who [defended his administration against recent criticism.]( - Plans for a Midtown skyscraper with a [260-foot drop tower amusement ride inside]( may have been approved by Manhattan’s building department commissioner but challengers aren’t happy with the idea of a Disney World-esque structure in the city. - Local hospitals saw [almost twice as many asthma-related emergency room visits]( Wednesday likely due to the unhealthy air. - East Flatbush topped [StreetEasy’s list of top 10 most affordable neighborhoods in NYC for recent college grads](. Four other Brooklyn neighborhoods made the list too. - The Adams administration’s [Rikers Island reform plan is failing]( a new report shows, and information about violent incidents, including deaths, at the jail are not handled properly. - A bill that would’ve [offered protections for tenants and a tax break for developers]( seems to be dead in Albany after failed talks with Gov. Kathy Hochul. - On Tuesday, lawmakers [met to discuss the proposal]( which is a version of the “Good Cause” eviction bill, as part of a last-ditch effort in this legislative session. - What do you gift a man who has everything? Well, [a key to NYC and a three-day convention all about him]( of course. That’s how Mayor Eric Adams is celebrating Robert De Niro’s 80th birthday. - [Here’s what you need to know about this Sunday’s Puerto Rican Day parade]( where about 25,000 people are expected to march. - While humans were hunkered down in 2020 because of the pandemic, [animals were roaming farther and seemingly more at ease,]( according to a large-scale GPS tracking data study. - In a perfect example of why animals were more at ease without us, authorities are [searching for visitors who were seen harassing a bison calf]( at Grand Teton National Park. [“No matter where you come from or what your family history is, everybody's a little bit Puerto Rican on this day.”]( - Louis Maldonaldo, an organizer of the [PUERTO RICAN DAY PARADE HAPPENING THIS WEEKEND.]( More from Gothamist [second image]( [Where to get great Puerto Rican food in the Bronx, from mofongo to famous lechón]( The Bronx: home of Yankee Stadium and the Bronx Zoo, as well as the birthplace of Cardi B, but also home to the largest population of Puerto Ricans in all the five boroughs and some of the best cuchifritos, lechón, and mofongo in the city. [A new documentary opening at the Tribeca Festival explores how dancehall took root in Brooklyn]( In [“Bad Like Brooklyn Dancehall,”]( a new documentary opening tonight at the [Tribeca Festival]( directors Ben DiGiacomo and Dutty Vannier explore how the music made its way from the Caribbean to take root in New York City during the 1980s and ‘90s – and how Brooklyn became established as a hub for the culture. [We Rely On Your Support]( [How to keep your pets safe as NYC grapples with unhealthy air]( Recent scary and smoky air [conditions]( have had New Yorkers worried for a whole host of reasons, but few concerns have been more pressing than keeping their furry family members safe and healthy throughout this phenomenon. [Rivington House, once destined to be luxury condos, opens as LES behavioral health center]( Mount Sinai Health System is opening a new mental health and substance-use treatment facility on the Lower East Side on Thursday at the former site of Rivington House, a one-time nursing home for AIDS patients that was at the center of a de Blasio-era scandal. [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.