Congestion pricing could drive commuters uptown. Residents want parking permits.

Plus: Democrats look to take back Long Island’s east end [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.]( [Congestion pricing might drive NYC commuters uptown. Residents want parking permits.]( [first image]( [Today's newsletter is curated by James Ramsay]( Weather: ⛅ Partly cloudy and breezy, with highs in the lower 40s. It's Thursday in New York City, where congestion pricing is almost here — the cameras and E-ZPass readers for charging drivers [are now installed at dozens of spots around town](. With the new tolling system set to take effect as soon as this spring, Upper West Side car owners are fearing a surge of extra commuters parking uptown. Here's what they're doing to try to [secure their beloved on-street parking spots](. And here's what else is happening: - Several high-ranking NYPD officials this week called out a judge by name for allowing a man with multiple prior arrests to go free before trial, [marking a sharp escalation in police leadership’s rhetoric]( that some legal experts say amounts to intimidation. - Police said a subway conductor was [slashed in the neck]( early Thursday morning at a Brooklyn station while looking out the train’s window for a routine safety check. (He was taken to the hospital in stable condition.) - Rep. Tom Suozzi’s larger-than-expected victory in a special congressional election in eastern Queens and Nassau County earlier this month is giving Democrats a new jolt of confidence in [their quest to win a Republican-held seat]( in eastern Long Island. - New York's new Democrat-drawn congressional district map, which made only modest tweaks in several swing districts, [left Republicans pleasantly surprised]( — and is therefore likely to stick. - City inspectors on Wednesday cleared a Bronx juice bar where [migrants were being unlawfully housed]( just two days after vacating a furniture store in Queens — run by the same man — that was partially being used as a residence for dozens of West African migrants. - A new package of City Council bills is [beefing up the enforcement, regulations and punishment]( for businesses that sell e-bikes and other devices equipped with faulty lithium-ion batteries. - Gov. Kathy Hochul's $400 million proposal to "transform" SUNY Downstate’s University Hospital in Brooklyn would mean closing the current Flatbush facility — but there's currently [no plan in place for where its 150 daily patients would go](. - A Brooklyn-based company [has been indicted]( for running a sham construction safety training program with about 20,000 students, including a worker who died after falling from an Upper West Side building in 2022. - A package of bills before the City Council would create more bike parking and storage in [local parks and city-owned buildings](. - Police said an envelope containing a suspicious white powder — which was later deemed non-hazardous — was sent to [the Manhattan judge who oversaw former President Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial](. - Regarding that trial: An appellate court judge yesterday [denied Trump's request]( to delay his $454 million penalty. - A plan backed by Tony Hawk's foundation to create one of the East Coast's largest skateparks at Mount Prospect Park is getting pushback from locals who [don't want to see the green space replaced with poured concrete](. - Several immigrant women who say they've been working 13-hour days for about $8 an hour in a Brooklyn sweatshop processing [tobacco that goes into spliffs]( have filed complaints with state labor authorities. - The Pride March has announced its 2024 theme: "Reflect. Empower. Unite." - Happy birthday to [these Brooklyn siblings]( who were both born on Leap Day, four years apart. - Stand-up comedian and "Curb Your Enthusiasm" star Richard Lewis has [died at the age of 76](. - Colombo crime family captain Vincent "Vinny Unions" Ricciardo has been [sentenced to 51 months in prison]( for extorting — you guessed it — a union. - [Are you Jersey enough]( to eat a one-pound mozzarella stick — and then chase it with a few scoops of Taylor ham ice cream? - Humpbacks [gonna hump](. - Have some time for a game? [Play]( our mini local news crossword. - Sign up for reminders when we publish new games [here](. [“If a high enough price [for parking permits] is not chosen, supporters run the risk of shooting themselves in the foot by incentivizing further vehicle ownership and inducing an even greater parking crunch.”]( - Upper West Side Councilmember Gale Brewer on her reservations about [PARKING PERMITS FOR LOCALS]( More from Gothamist [second image]( [Meet the fruit seller who’s been on this Chinatown corner for 27 years]( Muoi Truong said she’s been parked on the corner of Mulberry and Canal seven days a week, from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m., since 1997. "She’s just built different," said Amy Vo, one of Truong's four children. [Olivia Benson Plaza coming to NYC in honor of 25 years of 'Law & Order: SVU']( "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" will take over Rockefeller Plaza in March to celebrate the NBC show’s 25th anniversary and honor the series' main character, played by Mariska Hargitay. [We Rely On Your Support]( [You talkin' to me? NYC’s 1st ever 'De Niro Con' to kick off in June.]( The festival running from June 14 through June 16 will feature film screenings, panel discussions, photos from Robert De Niro’s personal archive, costume exhibits and "fireside chats" with some of his collaborators. [New modular outdoor dining sheds coming to NYC streets]( Transportation officials said the approved modular structures will be easier to clean, repair and remove from public space between November and April. [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.