NYC NOW - August 12, 2024: Midday News

Episode Date: August 12, 2024

New York City Mayor Eric Adams has named a new fire commissioner. Meanwhile, the city has paid out roughly $82 million in police misconduct lawsuits so far in 2024, a notable increase from the same period last year. Finally, WNYC’s Tiffany Hanssen speaks with Caroline Weaver, creator of The Locavore Guide, an online resource spotlighting New York City’s niche shops.

Welcome to NYC Now. Your source for local news in and around New York City from WMYC. It's Monday, August 12th. Here's the midday news from Lance Lucky. A private security firm CEO will be New York City's new fire commissioner. Robert Tucker was introduced by Mayor Adams at a ceremony on Randall's Island. He says Tucker is taking the helm of the FDNY at a tense time for the department. He was inheriting more than just a department that had to put out flames of burning buildings.

We had to put out the flames that are actually burning inside the agency. Adams did not specify exactly what the internal challenges are. Robert Tucker has never been a firefighter, but is a self-described fire buff, according to his bio. He's also a long-standing member of the FDNY Foundation's Board of Directors, the nonprofit that raises funds for the department. Tucker takes over for Laura Kavanaugh. who was the first woman in that role. Adams thanked Kavanaugh for her time as commissioner at today's ceremony.

New York City has paid out at least $82 million in police misconduct lawsuits so far this year. According to new data from the Legal Aid Society, they're costing taxpayers about 60% more compared to the same period last year. Some of the misconduct cases date back to the 1990s. Patrick Hendry, president of the city's largest police union, says settlements are complicated and don't always read. reflect in officers actual conduct. The NYPD has not responded to an inquiry about the data.

Right now it is 76 degrees, some clouds, and a very slight chance of an afternoon isolated shower near 82. Otherwise, lots of sunshine all week. Sunny in 82 again tomorrow into the mid-80s for Wednesday through Friday and no mention of rain until the weekend. This is WNYC. Stay close. There's more after the break.

Here on WNYC, I'm Tiffany Hanson. Caroline Weaver has visited more than 14,000 stores in New York City. She estimates that she covered more than 40,000 blocks and over 2,000 miles in order to document the city's retail landscape. She's compiling her research in an online resource called the Locavore Guide to help New Yorkers shop local. Caroline joins us to talk about it. Hi, Caroline. Hi, thank you for having me. Absolutely.

So you owned a shop in New York City. I'm sure you have thoughts about how New Yorkers approach shopping local. So talk to us a little bit about that. Yes, I used to own a pencil specialty shop and currently own a shop that is a general store selling products made within 100 miles of New York City. And I think a thing that people often forget is that there once was a time when we had less channels available to us for shopping. And it was just a part of our regular practice of existing in a place to actually go out. shop in person at our local shops. And I just think it's important to remind people that the money that you spend in local shops

goes towards your community. It means that those shops have a greater chance of surviving and thriving. It also means that tax dollars go back into your community. It means meaningful employment for people in your own town. And so the best thing we can all be doing is going to local shops and actually spending money there. And also relying on these wonderful people who are experts in their field to help us find more interesting things for our lives. Tell us why you don't like the term mom and pop.

I think the term mom and pop is just a little bit outdated. It implies an old school mentality around independent business and enforces a stereotype that a lot of these businesses are quaint, family places, which they often are. That is often true. But if the goal is to get more people, especially younger people, to shop local, this narrative isn't very helpful because a lot of the most captivating shops that exist currently are run by younger, really interesting people who don't identify with this terminology at all. And so I'm interested in encouraging younger people to enter the retail landscape and to not relegate this whole category of shopping to something that is this cute little family thing. Well, if not as mom and pop stores, how would you encourage people to think about these more niche local stores?

My main goal is to help people look at shopping local as not something that you just do during the holiday season or when you need a last minute gift or when you. when you hear about a shop that's in dire need of help, it should be something that we're doing every day. And of course, this means that if you have the means to shop local, you should be doing it. Of course, it's not possible for everybody. But there are so many misconceptions about shopping local being more expensive, about it taking more time, about it being more complicated, and it's just not the truth. And so what I want people to do is just go out, get to know their neighbors, shop in the shops, and spend money there, not just use them as this thing that's in the background of their lives. Well, let's talk about this list that you've compiled.

Folks can view that now over at our new site, Gothamist. What would you consider from that list some of the best niche stores in the city? So this, as a person who used to be a pencil shop owner, I love a hyper-specialized niche shop. And the ones on this list are ones that, for the most part, I happened upon just because I was walking by doing my work. I did not already know about them. This reggae record store called Music City in Cypress Hills, Brooklyn, is so fascinating. The owner's grandfather ran a record company called Studio One. He's Jamaican and is a humongously important person in the history of reggae music.

And this shop exists on a really unassuming stretch of a street in Cypress Hills and anybody can go there and learn about it. I was also really startled to find in a very residential area of Staten Island, a shop called Frag Farm that specializes in growing their own rare corals. They have various types of corals, including rare torch and hammer corals. And yeah, they're all grown there. So they're super sustainable. And people come from all over the country to buy corals. Talk to us about how you think listeners should use the list by neighborhood or? I think a really great way for people to use specialty shops and incorporate them into their everyday lives. is to use them as a jumping off point to plan a really fun day.

Pick a shop you want to go to in a neighborhood you're not familiar with and just go there, maybe find a great restaurant to eat at, go for a walk, ask locals for recommendations. It's a great starting point for a really fun adventure in our own city. You can take a look at Caroline Weaver's guide to niche shopping right now over at our news site, Gothamus.com and plan your own special day. Caroline, thanks so much. Thank you.

Thanks for listening. This is NYC Now from WMYC. Catch us every weekday three times a day for your top news headlines and occasional deep dives and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. More soon.