Today's news will be dominated by the beginning of budget hearings in the City Council (what, you got something better to do?).
On the eve of the hearings, budget stories were breaking like fragile self-images at a high school dance:
- We reported exclusively about how the mayor declined to fund Brad Lander's Reckless Vehicle Abatement Program despite calling the $880,000 expenditure "a major step toward our goal of achieving Vision Zero" just two months ago.
- The mayor was under fire for cuts to his own "Better Buses Action Plan." (NYDN)
- And Anna Sanders of the Daily News revealed that the "Billy Never Idles" anti-pollution education campaign had been scrubbed, which was sad for two reasons: a) no one likes exhaust fumes and b) the mayor's press conference with rock legend Billy Idol (pictured above) was the last time our grizzled editor and ace reporter Julianne Cuba saw Mayor de Blasio in the flesh.
And in other news yesterday:
- Well, this sure beats cops: The MTA has put down tape on subway platforms to promote social distancing. (NYDN)
- The mayor hailed his own effort on helping homeless people booted from the subway (NY Post).
- The Post business section had an exclusive about a Council bill that would bail out yellow cab drivers and "reset" the value of their medallions.
- The mayor finally decided to restore normal alternate-side-of-the-street parking rules later this month so the streets could finally be swept, but all the papers took the wrong angle (NY Post, amNY) Streetsblog reminded everyone of the mayor's parking obsessions.
- Patch liked our story about a court ruling in favor of a bike bridge that the outlet followed us — and reporter Brendan Krisel gave us a nice hat-tip. (That kind of thing goes a long way!)
- Now here's some prime open space: Queens Council Member Costa Constantinides wants to turn public golf courses into space for social distancing. (QNS, amNY)
