Yesterday's election didn't bring many surprises on a local level (as always, NY1 had the easiest summary) ... except the apparent defeat of Bronx Council Member Majorie Velazquez by her Republican challenger Kristy Marmorato.
Full results were not available when we went to bed, and a lot can change when only 81 percent of the vote is in, but if the result holds up it will be a major upset.
If Velazquez is known to Streetsblog readers, it's only for her flawed bill to make the pandemic-era outdoor dining program a permanent fixture of New York streets. Her failure to make it year-round was hardly the deciding issue in her district, but it still sticks in advocates' craw.
Don't look for Velazquez's name in the Streetsblog archives; she almost never returned calls from reporters. (The Daily News covered her loss.)
In other major election news: Democrat Justin Brannan appears to have triumphed in the "Battle of the Brooklyn Incumbents" over Republican Ari Kagan (NY Times, NYDN, Crain's). The pair faced off once redistricting merged their Bay Ridge-Bensonhurst districts into one. Brannan is a more reliable supporter of street safety measures ... to a point. Ever notice that there are no on-street protected bike in Bay Ridge? We have. And we'll be watching.
In other news:
- Patch followed our story about the delayed Bedford Avenue bike lane.
- The Atlantic (nice!) profiled Friend of Streetsblog Charles Komanoff and revealed what the real cost of the congestion pricing toll should be.
- It's kinda funny (not funny) how much supposedly America-loving people actually hate interacting with America. Behold, the increasing popularity of the drive-thru window. (NY Times)
- Mets owner Steve Cohen will give you some bike lanes ... if we give him a casino license. (NY Post, Streetsblog, QNS, Hell Gate, The City)
- We found this piece in the Times about the subway a bit exaggerated.
- Finally, just when you thought you were safe from tributes to me, author/journalist Zeke Faux cheered my mentoring in a podcast interview. Jump to timecode 1:22:13 in the transcript for all the exciting homage. Or listen to the entire "Big Picture" podcast to learn more about Faux's new book about crypto currency, "Number Go Up."
