NYC NOW

Gov. Kathy Hochul still hasn’t made an endorsement in November's mayoral election, keeping with several other high ranking New York City Democrats. Plus, New York City is giving out 350,000 free Chromebooks with built-in internet access to public school students. Meanwhile, Fort Greene Park Conservancy is raising concerns about how a proposed 72-story tower on nearby Flatbush Avenue could affect the park. And finally, New York City Mayor Eric Adams has hired a Bronx elections lawyer to look over petition signatures supporting his run for reelection as an independent.

City Council leaders have asked the Board of Elections to block three proposed ballot questions that could speed up housing development while limiting Council power. Meanwhile, Governor Kathy Hochul must decide whether to sign a bill requiring two-person crews on subway trains, a move the Transport Workers Union says is critical for safety but the MTA warns could raise costs. Plus, New York City is struggling to keep enough ambulance workers on the streets, with union leaders warning that record turnover and stalled contract talks are driving longer waits for 911 emergency response. Vice president of the FDNY EMS officers union Anthony Almojera joins us to explain.

A Hudson County judge has barred the owners of three Hoboken luxury buildings from renting more high-priced units until they add affordable housing. Meanwhile, Governor Kathy Hochul is defending New York’s vaccine access and criticizing President Trump’s federal health policies, saying they are dividing families. Plus, residents of Rochdale Village in Queens are opposing a proposed fee hike of up to 57 percent, arguing years of mismanagement are putting their affordable housing at risk.

In this edition of Five Things, WNYC’s Janae Pierre and Brian Lehrer break down the mayor’s race after Jim Walden’s exit, including speculation that Mayor Eric Adams and Curtis Sliwa could be pushed aside to clear the field for Zohran Mamdani and Andrew Cuomo. They discuss the divisions within the Democratic Party, the fight for New Jersey’s governorship, the growing battles over vaccines, the rollout of New York’s school cellphone ban, and how the Mets and Yankees are shaping up for the playoffs.

Jersey City school officials are considering following the lead of their neighbors across Hudson and banning phones in schools. Plus, Gov. Kathy Hochul is declaring a health emergency to help New Yorkers get COVID vaccines. Also, we share what elected officials and other leaders in Brooklyn are saying in the days since six people were shot after the West Indian Day festivities. And finally, as summer comes to an end and farmstands switch produce, there's still plenty of cucumbers at farmstands across the city.

New York City is now offering $50,000 to landlords who opt to renovate vacant rent-stabilized apartments and return them to the market. Plus, 11 more public library branches will offer seven-day service starting this weekend. And finally, state court officials will decide whether more than a dozen judges who are 70 or older can keep serving.

Small residential facilities where people can stay during mental health crises are expanding across New York, growing from eight in 2021 to 43 statewide. Meanwhile, prosecutors say 18-year-old Faisil McCants faces federal robbery and gun charges in an East Harlem shooting that killed 69-year-old bystander Robin Wright. The NYPD says he is also charged with murder and weapons offenses. Also, New York’s LGBTQ+ film festival NewFest is offering free screenings to Arizonans after Phoenix’s Desperado Film Festival was canceled under federal orders targeting diversity and inclusion programs. Plus, MTA data show major incidents delaying 50 or more trains peaked in June and July, marking the worst summer for subway service since 2018.

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander is out with a new report that grades city bus lines. Plus, the New York Times reports that President Trump's advisers have discussed offering jobs to Mayor Eric Adams and Republican Curtis Sliwa to get them out of the mayoral race. Also, shifting federal guidance of vaccinations could make getting a COVID shot more of a hassle this year. And finally, Lifelong New Yorker Chloë Bass turns the MTA’s public address system into art.

Governor Kathy Hochul visited a Brooklyn middle school to mark the start of New York’s new statewide smartphone ban in schools. Meanwhile, the Brooklyn Public Library will hold a free fair celebrating older adults at its Central Library with live music, vendors, and a keynote on aging. Plus, the NYPD says two men who died in custody last weekend had been arrested for low-level offenses, bringing the total to at least five deaths in custody so far this year. WNYC’s Charles Lane reports.

Nearly 900,000 New York City public school students return Thursday under a new statewide cellphone ban signed by Governor Hochul last spring. Meanwhile, an analysis commissioned in Sullivan County says new casinos in New York City could undercut existing gaming operations in the Catskills. Plus, former Bronx Republican district leader Nicole Torres has been sentenced to two years in prison for pocketing kickbacks from potential poll workers.