Friday: West Side Rail Yard Development! (Maybe.) Plus: Backhoes and Terraces

The New York Observer, July 7th, 2006

"Politicians and developers have been hungry to get their hands on [this] sad stretch of land," the AP reports about our West Side rail yards, and ain't it the truth. Indeed, after a full year of wound-licking over the Olympics/Jets stadium failure, Bloomberg has teamed with Council Speaker Christine "vocal opponent" Quinn to propose a half-billion dollar plan for rail yard development. Why Quinn has dropped her opposition probably has something to with all that "hunger"--or maybe it's because a West Side stadium is "not among" the cards. (AP via NY Daily News)

Day 13,794 (or is it day 5?) of the city-wide construction strike: the words "backhoe operators" and "indispensable" are strung together for the first time in recent memory, while Governor Pataki constructively offers: "I think the strike is totally wrong." But forget the enormous setback the strike is costing Ground Zero--more tragically, Forest City Ratner has been forced to postpone its "topping out" ceremony at the new New York Times building. (Newsday)

But Michael Brick over at the Times won't let that get him down. He stays jovial enough to compare the alcoholic homeless immigrant accused of starting the city's biggest fire since 9/11 to "Otis, the affable town drunk from 'The Andy Griffith Show.'" Unlike Otis, this defendant does not speak fluent English, and his inability to name a home address forced the State Supreme Court to set his bail at $250,000. Hilarious. (New York Times)

It's never too late to re-rethink your balcony, especially when Curbed helps you break down the "plush outdoor space" that's available for less than $1 million. Finally, the "prestige" and "big wow" of the Manhattan terrace can be yours. (Curbed)

The Sun heaps lavish praise upon Lower Manhattan, declaring it "the third-largest business district in the country - and the city's fastest-growing residential community." Who can guess which district/community houses the Sun HQ? (The Sun) -

Max Abelson