The Democratic, Republican and independent mayoral candidates all came together on one stage for the first time since the race to succeed Mayor Michael Bloomberg began. The Courier hosted its Mayoral Forum on Friday, June 7 at Terrace on the Park. Democrats Sal Albanese, Bill de Blasio, John Liu, Christine Quinn, Bill Thompson and Anthony [...]
Local and citywide leaders say the MTA is throwing the Rockaways under the bus. Public Advocate Bill de Blasio joined with Assemblymember Phillip Goldfeder and Councilmember Donovan Richards in Far Rockaway on Friday, April 19 to decry the decreased shuttle bus service to the Sandy-affected peninsula. A train service to the Rockaways last ran on [...]
Four of five Democrats running for mayor would do away with stop-and-frisk or severely tweak it if they make it to Gracie Mansion. City Comptroller John Liu, Public Advocate Bill de Blasio and ex-Comptroller Bill Thompson said they were opposed to the controversial police tactic at a Queens mayoral debate last week. Former Councilmember Sal [...]
Queens small businesses are suffering because of excessive fines from city agencies, while Manhattan is left practically untouched, according to Public Advocate Bill de Blasio. Fine revenue from the Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) and Department of Health (DOH) on Queens businesses has risen by $54 million between fiscal years 2002 and 2012, de Blasio [...]
Attorney Jacques Leandre, one of nine candidates in a special election for former Councilmember James Sanders’ 31st district seat, has withdrawn a lawsuit questioning the validity of qualifying petitions of some of his rivals after the Board of Elections (BOE) authenticated the signatures. “Leandre should have never filed his lawsuit in the first place,” said [...]
Public Advocate Bill de Blasio has officially placed his name in the running to be the next mayor. “We deserve a city government that actually believes in our neighborhoods and sees things the way we do,” said de Blasio at his announcement on Sunday, January 27 outside his Park Slope home. Photo courtesy of the [...]
The city is facing an emergency, according to elected officials, but they may not want to dial 9-1-1. Public Advocate Bill de Blasio and Councilmember Elizabeth Crowley, chair of the Fire and Criminal Justice Committee, penned a letter to Mayor Michael Bloomberg calling for a review into 9-1-1’s failure during Superstorm Sandy, when many residents [...]
At $9,000 a year, JoAnn Ambrosio thought she had the “Rolls Royce” of insurance. But when four feet of water flooded her Howard Beach home during Sandy, she was left scrambling. Living in Zone B, Ambrosio was not required to purchase a policy that provided protection from floods — a service that for $400 extra, [...]
Council Speaker Christine Quinn remained at the head of the field in the 2013 mayoral race, though her once wide margin has shrunk. NY1-Marist Poll released a poll surveying registered city voters on next year’s race for mayor with Quinn coming out on top with the support of 23 percent of Democrats. She was followed [...]
An extremist Greek political party’s plans to open a branch in Astoria have met opposition from local politicians. Golden Dawn, a right-wing, nationalistic group that garnered 18 seats in the Greek parliament during the last election, announced its desire to set up a New York City office on the group’s website. While Golden Dawn’s website [...]
