See the NYC school cafeterias with the most health code violations

Plus: Upper West Siders vs. giant billboard [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.]( [See the NYC school cafeterias with the most health code violations]( [first image]( [Today's newsletter is curated by James Ramsay]( Weather: ☁️ Cloudy, with highs in the lower 40s. It's Wednesday in New York City, where health inspectors have found flies, roaches, signs of mice and other "critical" food safety code violations at about a fifth of the city's public school cafeterias. Meanwhile, private-school inspections going back to 2021 have turned up critical violations at double the rate of public schools. [Here's a map showing the schools with the most violations](. And here's what else is happening: - Early mail-in voting is underway in the [special election to replace George Santos](. - The City Council on Tuesday [overrode Mayor Eric Adams' vetoes]( of two criminal justice bills: One banning most uses of solitary confinement in city jails and the other requiring NYPD officers to document low-level stops. - The FDNY said [an elderly woman was killed]( and another man was injured in a fire that tore through a Queens home last night. - Researchers at Rutgers say they've seen early signs of progress towards a new treatment for COVID-19 that could work on future drug-resistant strains of the virus and represent [a potential alternative to antivirals like Paxlovid](. - [Three men have been indicted]( in a fatal stabbing at a Randall’s Island migrant shelter earlier this month. - After years of delays, the city finally has a plan to implement a 2019 law designed to [reduce chaos and dangerous driving]( within the private garbage truck industry. - New Jersey-based energy company Holtec International, which counts Democratic political boss George Norcross among its board members, has agreed to pay a $5 million fine while [avoiding criminal prosecution over an alleged tax break scheme](. - The Greene Space's new artist in residence, Kia LaBeija, is hosting the documentary theater work, "I, of Course, Was Livid," based on a historic 1992 hearing at the CDC, when ongoing activism by women living with HIV finally resulted in expanding the clinical definition of AIDS. [Tickets for the Monday, Feb. 5 show are available here](. - A former editor of a Brooklyn-based Orthodox Jewish newspaper has pleaded guilty to [obstructing police officers at the Capitol riot](. - Atlantic City casino workers are divided over [a bill to ban indoor smoking]( with supporters saying it'll improve their health and detractors fearing it could deter chain-smoking gamblers and ultimately lead to layoffs. - The city cancelled walk-in appointments to get IDNYC cards after [migrants lined up overnight]( to obtain the cards — which aren't work permits, contrary to what some migrants have been told. - At the same time, New York state is relaxing the minimum requirements for certain entry-level jobs with the goal of [opening thousands of positions to new migrants](. - A semi-famous '80s Club Kid living in a crumbling Lower East Side apartment informed his yuppie neighbors that [they were all paying market rate for what were actually rent stabilized units]( so they sued, got their rents dropped ... and most of them didn't even thank him. - Upper West Siders are appalled by the massive ([and technically illegal]( billboard at 720 West End Avenue advertising condos at 720 West End Avenue. - Look at the Knicks winning [eight games in a row](. - "We inhale a credit card's worth of microplastics each week." [Now you know](. - Have some time for a game? [Play]( our mini local news crossword. - Sign up for reminders when we publish new games [here](. [“Mushy green beans, weird corn, and vegan chicken nuggets, which everyone hates.”]( - Frances Sullender, a Queens sixth-grader, on [THE CAFETERIA FOOD SHE DOESN'T LIKE]( More from Gothamist [second image]( [NYC wants to offer more cash for reporting idle vehicles — except to 1 guy]( A new bill would increase fines for first-time idling offenses to $1,000 — and provide $250 rewards to citizens who report the drivers. But one vigilante, who has filed more than 2,000 idling complaints and allegedly menaced a city clerk, is not welcome to participate. [Making life in NYC less noisy: How to quiet your home]( Just because the city never sleeps doesn’t mean you shouldn’t. [We Rely On Your Support]( [Emergency gates will soon take 15 seconds to open at 3 NYC subway stations]( The MTA, which is trying to crack down on fare evasion, said it's doing this in stations that have enough turnstiles for riders to quickly escape actual emergencies even if the emergency gates won’t open immediately. [For $50, a New Jersey animal shelter will 'neuter your ex']( A Blackwood-based shelter and clinic is running a Valentine's Day promotion where it’ll name a feral cat after your former partner before eliminating their ability to breed. [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.