Inside NYC's vendor boom: what's driving it and how is the city responding

Plus: Trash bots are doing more than just helping keep Downtown Brooklyn clean. [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.]( [Inside NYC's vendor boom: what's driving it and how is the city responding]( [first image]( [Today's newsletter curated by Emily Nadal]( Today's weather: ☀️ Happiness is another day of perfect summer weather, like today, where we can expect a high of 80 degrees and clear skies. It’s Thursday morning in New York City where there are a lot more street vendors now than there were a few years ago. The onset of the pandemic, as well as the recent influx of migrants, have contributed to [more people selling food or other goods on the city’s streets]( but it’s also meant more complaints from 311 and other trouble for vendors. Here’s what else is happening: - Downtown Brooklyn has some new workers in the form of robot trash cans that roll up to people and collect their garbage, but their [bigger purpose is actually to study how humans interact with robots]( in public spaces. - Lawmakers in NYC are [using free ice cream]( as a way to garner public support for the NY HEAT Act, a state bill that would phase out natural gas infrastructure and cap rising energy costs. - More than 20 years ago, several NYC subway car shells were sunk off the coast of South Carolina as a way to create new habitats for marine life, [and the experiment seems to be working.]( - A bill that would require the NYC Department of Transportation to [create a searchable, real-time map of all the city's bike lanes]( is expected to go up for a City Council vote today. - The Council will also [likely vote today on a highly-debated bill]( that would lay the groundwork for making outdoor dining a permanent fixture in the city. - While the Port Authority Bus Terminal’s makeover is a much needed improvement to the transit hub, it [comes at the cost of the closure of a beloved 25-year-old community dog run]( nestled beneath a bus overpass on Port Authority land. - Bask in your last few days of the current toll prices on MTA bridges and tunnels because [come Sunday, the cost is going up 10%.]( - Gothamist interviewed orchestra conductor Jonathon Heyward about becoming the first music director of color at the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and his [appointment as music director for Lincoln Center’s Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra.]( - Cazenovia, a small, 200-year-old college in upstate New York, [closed its doors after financial trouble]( a sign of the times for higher education institutions. - Mayor Eric Adams is considering a plan to shelter migrants inside [tents in Central Park and other major public green spaces]( sources told Gothamist. - Queens’ first ever competition to name the best barbecue in the borough will [take place over the next few weeks]( with the winner set to be crowned on September 13. - Airbnb’s grand idea to tackle loneliness is to [get Gwenyth Paltrow on the case]( by giving a lucky guest or two the chance to rent out her guest house next month. - Wanna celebrate Jean-Michel Basquiat’s life with the man himself? Next month, [Green-Wood Cemetery will host a tribute to the legendary artist]( right at his gravesite. “We'll get calls about people saying, like, ‘Oh, there's a ton of garbage here. And it's probably the food vendors,’ whether or not that's true. You don't get people that are like, ‘I love the lady who sells mangoes.’” - Councilmember Jennifer Gutiérrez, [DISCUSSING COMPLAINTS HER OFFICE GETS ABOUT STREET VENDORS.]( More from Gothamist [second image]( [A 'teen council' at the Brooklyn Public Library combats book bans nationwide]( An 18-year-old shared his experience fighting a book ban in New Mexico, giving local students a newfound appreciation of life in New York City. [Long Island man rescued from Atlantic Ocean after treading water for 5 hours: Suffolk PD]( A Long Island man was saved after spending more than five hours treading water in the Atlantic Ocean. [We Rely On Your Support]( [DoorDash, legal group set to deliver free legal clinics on immigration to workers]( Food delivery company DoorDash said it will begin arranging free immigration legal clinics for its New York City delivery workers, in a pilot program administered by the New York Legal Assistance Group that begins this summer. [Stricter trash pickup times lead to surge in NYC tickets, 28,000 over 4 months]( A recent ticketing blitz by the sanitation department is taking aim at New Yorkers who put their garbage out too early. [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.