NYC’s ‘Open Streets’ revising rules to use public space for profit: ‘Fresh kind of hell’

 The Department of Transportation recently unveiled a shocking rule change that would privatize its already-controversial “Open Streets” program by allowing restaurants and other businesses to operate on roadways and public spaces at roughly 200 locations.

The rule would also apply to 74 city-designated “public plazas” — including a 12-block-long stretch of Broadway in Times Square and Willoughby Plaza in Downtown Brooklyn.

The rule would allow concession agreements with the businesses, and the city would use politically-connected nonprofits, civic groups and quasi-government agencies as “partners” overseeing these sites.

These partners — which include the North Brooklyn Open Streets Community Coalition and Hudson Yards Hell’s Kitchen Alliance — would choose the concessionaires, who’d be handed control of as much as half the space of each car-free area.

The DOT has yet to iron out how much outdoor seating restaurants and other concessionaires will be able to offer.

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The NYC Department of Transportation is adding a rule change that would privatize its Open Streets program by allowing concession agreements with select restaurants and other businesses to operate outdoors at roughly 200 locations. The changes would apply to the DOT’s 74 public plazas, too.Upper West Side Coalition/ X

“Let me get this straight: the Bicycle Bolsheviks at DOT reclaimed the streets for The People, in order to turn them over to…Capitalists?!” said NYC Council Minority Leader Joann Ariola (R-Queens), upon learning of the rule change.

“I don’t recall reading that in the Communist Manifesto. I guess [the] Open Streets [program is] just open for business. What a bunch of car-hating hypocrites.”

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Council Minority Leader Joann Ariola said the DOT’s rule change reads like it’s out of “the Communist Manifesto.”Paul Martinka

Most Open Street sites are usually a single block barricaded from traffic except emergency vehicles, but some are much larger, including a 26-block strip of 34th Avenue in Jackson Heights, Queens, the city renamed “Paseo Park.”

Many are near or smack in the middle of residential neighborhoods like Jackson Heights that lack parkland, supporters say.

But many drivers hate the programs, saying it creates more traffic.

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There are about 200 Open Streets operating through the DOT.NYC DOT

Street closures also make it difficult for first responders to deal with emergency calls and are a huge problem for elderly pedestrians and the disabled to navigate, critics have said.

Shannon Phipps, a Brooklyn activist and founder of the Berry Street Alliance, blasted the rule change as a brazen attempt at “monetizing and profiting for the network of private entities tied to the lobbyists and politicians” pushing an anti-car agenda on New Yorkers.

“It is disingenuous; it’s classic bait-and-switch,” said Phipps, a staunch critic of a massive “Open Streets” site stretching 1.3 miles along Berry Street in Williamsburg.

“Our biggest concern is the conversion of Open Streets into entertainment and commercial spaces, and the negative impacts of living within close proximity of these sites.  This rule clearly shifts the primary purpose of Open Streets to profit over people, [and] entertainment and drawing crowds.  A fresh kind of hell, especially on weekends.”

The city is currently fending off a pending federal lawsuit alleging the program discriminates against people with disabilities who rely on vehicles to travel.

Jackson Heights activist Kathy Farren, 71, said she’s considering moving because the street closures along 34th Avenue have made it difficult for her husband, who suffers from Parkinson’s Disease, to get around. Farren predicted “the rule change is only going to make” the neighborhood’s overall quality of life worse.

“The language in the new rules is vague, so there’s probably going to be no control over what goes on based off what I’ve seen in the past, so I should probably put my [co-op] up for sale now,” she said.  

The Open Streets program was created in April 2020 by then-Mayor Bill de Blasio as a temporary measure to help New Yorkers gather safely outdoors during the pandemic.

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DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez has pushed an anti-car agenda that includes shutting down roads to vehicles, so they can be used by bikers and pedestrians exclusively.Robert Miller

The City Council made it permanent in 2021, and Mayor Eric Adams has since expanded it to roughly 200 sites as part of an agenda aimed at limiting car use.

The DOT’s pedestrian plaza program was launched in 2008 under then-Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

DOT spokesman Vincent Barone called the agency’s plan “a small rule adjustment” that “will help bring in resources to keep DOT’s Open Street and Plazas clean, well-managed, and welcoming to all.”

“These public spaces can better support local small businesses while also providing clear paths for pedestrians, ample space for public use, and programming,” he said. He claimed there’s “no evidence to suggest the program has slowed any response times.”

https://nypost.com/2025/04/05/us-news/nycs-open-streets-program-to-hawk-public-streets-for-outdoor-dining/

Mamdani’s plan for city-run grocery stores is ‘Soviet’ style disaster-in-waiting: business owners

 Socialist mayoral wannabe Zohran Mamdani’s scheme to bring government-owned-and-operated grocery stores to the Big Apple is a “Soviet” style disaster-in-waiting, supermarket owners across NYC told The Post.

Mamdani, a Queens state assemblyman who is polling second among Democratic primary candidates, claims his “network” of municipal markets would slash skyrocketing grocery prices by eliminating overhead.

But the city already has “a poor track record” running public housing, hospitals, schools and other services – and would “likely fail miserably in the grocery business,” said Jason Ferraira, a board member of the National Supermarket Association, which represent over 700 NYC and East Coast stores.

“New Yorkers enjoy having options,” he said. “Each grocer is catering to the needs of a neighborhood, carrying different products for different ethnicities, backgrounds and incomes.”

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Socialist mayoral wannabe Zohran Mamdani’s campaign pledge to bring Soviet style, government-owned-and-operated supermarkets to the Big Apple is getting plenty of pushback from New York City grocers, who say it’s un-American — and consumers would be the biggest losers.James Messerschmidt

But Mamdani’s plan would create “Soviet” markets where customers could be stuck with just “one brand or generic brands” of items like bread and milk, insisted Ferraira, who runs three Foodtown supermarkets in Queens.

Others noted that fixed prices at city-run markets would force competing private businesses to shutter, leaving New Yorkers with less selection.

“It’s a socialist move that goes against the American Dream,” said Nallely De Jesus, the vice president of a company that runs a Super Fresh and four other markets in the South Bronx.

“It’s also not just about cheaper prices; it’s about making sure customers are getting the products they want.”

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Mamdani’s critics allege the kind of city-owned grocery stores he wants to bring to the Big Apple would resemble no-frills “Soviet-style” markets like this one in Moscow.Bettmann Archive

Both Ferraira and De Jesus insisted a vast majority of supermarket operators don’t price gouge, adding it pays to keep prices as low as possible to be able to compete.

Mamdani’s plan calls for five municipal grocery stores — one in each borough — and potentially expanding to a larger network of stores. He estimated the first five would cost $60 million combined to build.

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Mamdani’s city-run grocery store proposal is modeled after one pitched by Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson in 2023 — a plan the Windy City mayor has since dropped.Michael Brochstein/ZUMA Press Wire / SplashNews.com

Plan specifics have been sparse, but a source briefed on it said Mamdami is “committed” to a “fully public program owned and operated” by NYC, adding it would create hundreds of jobs.

The scheme is modeled off Marxist Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s 2023 proposal to open a municipal grocery store on that city’s poorer south or west side – a plan he’s since backed off.

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Nallely De Jesus, the vice president of a company that runs a Super Fresh and four other markets in the South Bronx, said Mamdani’s plan “is a socialist move that goes against the American Dream.”BXEDC
There were only two municipalities in the U.S. operating a grocery store in 2023 when Chicago commissioned a feasibility study for Johnson’s plan — St. Paul, Kan., and Baldwin, Fla. The Baldwin site has been a perennial money loser and shuttered last year. The St. Paul site, which employs 15 people and is 600-person city’s main source of food, operates with a 3% profit, the study noted.

Atlanta is planning to open two municipally subsidized grocery stores later this year, but they will be run by a local supermarket chain.

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The government-run St. Paul Supermarket in Kansas.Google Maps

Mamdani’s plan appears to be ripped out the same socialist playbook used by Vice President Kamala Harris during her failed presidential campaign. She claimed price gouging was causing inflation and threatened to enforce government price controls on groceries during her first 100 days in office.

Mamdani cited a recent poll he said shows two-thirds of New Yorkers support the creation of publicly-owned grocery stores, adding they’re tired of “basic necessities like bread and eggs eating into their paycheck — and even more tired of politicians playing the blame-game instead of solving the problem.”

“I am proud to be the only candidate in this race with any plan to lower grocery prices, and as mayor I look forward to bringing down the cost of food in our city,” Mamdani said.

https://nypost.com/2025/04/05/us-news/socialist-nyc-mayoral-candidates-city-run-supermarket-plan-under-fire/

State appeals court rules contested North Carolina ballots must be verified

 The 60,000 contested ballots in the North Carolina state Supreme Court race should be recounted and verified, according to a ruling Friday from a panel of the state appeals court. 

The 2-1 ruling is a win for Republican state Court of Appeals Judge Jefferson Griffin, who is trailing incumbent Democratic Justice Allison Riggs by fewer than 1,000 votes. 

Riggs and the Democratic Party declared victory months ago after all the votes counted had her ahead, but Griffin has challenged the validity of certain ballots for various reasons, pursuing a lawsuit that’s prevented the state elections board from certifying Riggs as the winner five months after Election Day. 

Multiple recounts confirmed Riggs’s lead, but Griffin has argued the 60,000 ballots are invalid because these voters didn’t include certain information like driver’s license or Social Security numbers on their registration forms. He’s also challenged an additional 5,500 ballots from military and overseas voters on the grounds that they didn’t present a photo ID upon voting. 

The ruling granted these voters whose ballots have been challenged 15 business days to provide verifying information proving their eligibility to vote. Any voters who verify their identity within that period will have their votes counted, and those who do not will have their ballots thrown out, the ruling states. 

Riggs’s campaign vowed to appeal the ruling, calling it “deeply misinformed” and arguing it would set a dangerous precedent of allowing politicians to “thwart the will of the people.” 

“North Carolinians elected me to keep my seat and I swore an oath to the constitution and the rule of law — so I will continue to stand up for the rights of voters in this state and stand in the way of those who would take power from the people,” Riggs said.

Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin said the “partisan” ruling has no legal basis and threatens the idea that voters, not courts, choose the winner of elections.

“North Carolinians chose Allison Riggs to be their North Carolina Supreme Court justice,” he said. “They won’t stand for Republicans trying to take their votes away or those of active duty North Carolina military.”

The state GOP celebrated the ruling, saying it “vindicated” Griffin’s protests and confirms that every legal vote will be counted. 

“Our position has not wavered and today’s decision confirms the facts were on Judge Griffin’s side,” said state GOP Chairman Jason Simmons. “This a victory for the rule of law and election integrity.” 

Democratic Judge Toby Hampson dissented, arguing that Griffin hasn’t identified any voter who is ineligible to vote under the rules of the election. 

“Changing the rules by which these lawful voters took part in our electoral process after the election to discard their otherwise valid votes in an attempt to alter the outcome of only one race among many on the ballot is directly counter to law, equity, and the Constitution,” Hampson wrote. 

A 2002 state law requires voters to include their driver’s license or Social Security number on the registration application, but the form didn’t specify that this information was needed until last year. The state elections board has also previously ruled that military and overseas voters were exempt from the state’s voter ID law. 

A county superior court judge previously rejected Griffin’s arguments in February before the appeals court ruled in his favor. 

Presuming the case is appealed, it would go to the state Supreme Court, which has a 5-2 Republican majority. But with Riggs recusing herself from the case, it would be a 5-1 court hearing it. 

If the court hears the case and is split 3-3, the next highest court’s ruling would stand, meaning the appeals court ruling would go into effect.

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/5232799-north-carolina-appeals-court-ruling/

'Trump administration appoints junior officer to oversee US Foreign Service - sources'

 The Trump administration has appointed a national security lawyer who entered the foreign service just four years ago as the top official overseeing the State Department's global workforce, according to three sources familiar with the matter and an internal email seen by Reuters.

The hiring of Lew Olowski to run the department's Global Talent Management Bureau comes as President Donald Trump shrinks the federal workforce and looks to revamp the U.S. diplomatic corps to ensure a dedicated implementation of his "America First" policies. 

Olowski served as a senior counselor at the Department of Homeland Security under the first Trump administration. He was named the Senior Bureau Official at the Department's Global Talent Management Bureau, officials said. 

Olowski, who entered the foreign service in 2021, will temporarily fill a position traditionally occupied by veteran foreign service officers, including ambassadors, typically with decades of experience.

The move comes as Trump is looking to revamp the U.S. diplomatic corps to ensure a dedicated implementation of his "America First" policies. 

His appointment sent shockwaves across the State Department workforce and drew an objection from the American Foreign Service Association, which represents foreign service officers, saying it was "deeply concerning" to appoint Olowski and compared the move to putting a junior military officer in charge of the Pentagon’s personnel system.

"Placing an untenured, entry-level officer who has only served one complete overseas tour into this critical role, even in an acting capacity, not only disregards that tradition but also sends a clear message about the value this administration places on experience and professional progression," the Association said in a statement. 

It was not immediately clear when the administration was planning to nominate a Director General for the Foreign Service, which is a Senate-confirmed position.

"MOMENT OF TRANSITION"

In an internal email to some State Department staff, Olowski's predecessor Catherine Rodriguez, a former ambassador who had led the Global Talent Management Bureau since the start of the Trump administration, described the past few months as a "profound moment of transition" and urged staff to welcome Olowski, who will take up his new role starting next week.

At least one diplomat has threatened to resign over the appointment.

Kent Longsdon, a career diplomat and a former ambassador to Moldova who served as the principal deputy assistant secretary in the bureau that Olowski would be leading, said he would quit in protest in a meeting on Thursday at the State Department, two U.S. officials familiar with the conversation said.

Longsdon referred any queries to the State Department.

"We are not going to comment on internal personnel matters," a State Department spokesperson said when asked about Olowski's appointment.

The State Department's nearly 70,000 global workforce is bracing for potential job cuts and closures of U.S. overseas missions as Trump, with the help of billionaire Elon Musk, presses ahead with an effort to cut the federal workforce.

Olowski is a Ben Franklin fellow, a network that includes many individuals who have served under Trump including the current Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau. 

In February, Trump issued an executive order directing U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio to revamp the foreign service to ensure "faithful and effective implementation" of Trump's foreign policy agenda.

The order said failure to implement the president's agenda is grounds for professional discipline, which may result in the termination of personnel.

During his campaign, he had repeatedly pledged to "clean out the deep state" by firing bureaucrats that he deems disloyal.

Trump, along with Musk, has already fired thousands of federal workers and dismantled Washington's top aid agency U.S. Agency for International Development, jeopardizing the delivery of life-saving food and medical aid and disrupting global humanitarian relief efforts.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/trump-administration-appoints-junior-officer-to-oversee-us-foreign-service-sources/ar-AA1ClQfN

[From Benfranklinfellowship.org: Lew Olowski is a national security lawyer who served as Senior Counselor at the Department of Homeland Security during President Trump's first term, where his practice areas included border security, China policy, trade enforcement, and humanitarian law. Lew's articles have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, FOX News, and other media. Lew earned his J.D. degree and LL.M. in International Trade Law at Georgetown Law and he studied European Union Law at University College London before Brexit. Lew has worked in Beijing, in Abu Dhabi, and at The Hague, Netherlands as a clerk at the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. Lew speaks Chinese, Arabic, and Polish. Lew is married to Heather Olowski and father to Victoria and Gabriel.]