NYC NOW - December 26, 2023 : Midday News

Episode Date: December 26, 2023

More than 65-thousand migrants spent Christmas in New York City's shelter system. WNYC's Brittany Kriegstein spoke with some of the new arrivals in Midtown. Meanwhile, New Jersey is considering expanding paid family leave to more companies. Plus, this week, WNYC is revisiting favorite stories from 2023, including one about a viral empty Greenwich Village apartment and a popular Queens techno club.

NYC, Welcome to NYC now, your source for local news in and around New York City from WNYC. I'm Jared Marcel. I hope you're taking it easy this week. We are at least, but the news never stops. We'll start with the midday news from Michael Hill. More than 65,000 migrants spent Christmas in New York City's shelters. WNIC's Brittany Craigstein spoke with some of the new arrivals in Midtown.

Outside the Roosevelt Hotel, holiday tourists share sidewalks with migrants trying to figure out their next move. The hotel is a first stop for many of the new arrivals hoping to secure a bed somewhere in the city. 28-year-old Maria Ortiz is from Venezuela. She says she and a friend just arrived Christmas morning on a bus from the U.S. Mexico border. She says they miss their families back home. home, but are grateful to have arrived safely. Her next step is figuring out a way to earn money she'll send to her daughter back home. New Jersey may require even more companies to provide paid family leave. Lawmakers are considering a bill in the Garden State. That bill would require

any company with at least 10 employees to provide paid leave by 2026. Right now, employers of 30 workers of more must provide that leave. The State Assembly already has passed the bill. It's not clear yet. That will make it through the State Senate before the current legislative session ends on January 9th. Some lawmakers say they worry about the cost to small businesses. 48 and cloudy in the city right now, mostly cloudy today in a high of 51. Tonight a chance of 50-50 chance of rain, mainly after midnight fog. We don't cool off all that much just to 48. And then tomorrow rain, mainly in the afternoon a high near of 52. Stay close. There's more after the break.

This week, we're looking back at some of the top stories out of the WNYC newsroom in 2023, the ones that really made an impression with us and with you. Back in the summer, WNYC's David Brand explained the fascination behind an empty apartment in Greenwich's Village that kept going viral. In the market for a new place? An apartment on a swanky stretch of West 11th Street could be. be yours for 2350 a month. You just got to get used to the size. It's seven feet by 11 feet. So this is a part of your small. You can definitely touch both sides. Not quite with my fingertips, but with one hand on one wall, my foot on the other wall. Let me see how many steps?

One, two steps wide. Okay. And then there's the bathroom situation. There isn't one. The kitchen? Just a mini fridge and a taincy sink. It's a simple. single-room occupancy unit where tenants shared toilets and showers that are located in the hallway. But the micro-units eye-popping price tag is driving comments, views, and upvotes across social media. Real estate agent Nikki Thomas says the pint-sized pad captures a certain fascination with how some New Yorkers live, either by choice or necessity. We just can't fow them. It's like, high on earth, would someone pay that to live in, like, you have such a small space? On the bright side, there's no broker's fee. This year we launched a series called I Tried It,

where one of our reporters checks out novel and trendy experiences in the city and reports back on how it went. Today, we're revisiting a techno club in Queens called Basement. For fans of techno music, it's been the hottest ticket in town. For more in the club, my colleague David First talked with WNYC's Ramsey Caliphate. Hey, Ramsey. Hey, David. So what's so special about bassist?

What makes this a novel experience? So basement is considered by many ravers to be the best techno experience you can get today in the U.S. What that means is the club stays open all night up until 8 in the morning. And it's actually located in the basement of an abandoned glass factory. So that's kind of the setting you're getting. Okay, well, people wait in line for hours to get in. Why? It's only open two days a week, Friday and Saturday.

There are similarities with a famous club in Berlin, which is the epicenter of techno music right now. It's called Bergheim. Over there, they essentially vibe check you at the door, making sure your demeanor fits into the club's highly engaged dance floor, as they describe it. They also ask you a couple of questions, so if you pass, you're allowed entry. Phone cameras are required to be covered.

That means you can't take any pictures while you're there. Baseman replicates that to some degree, but it's a lot less difficult to get in. As far as the music, let me put you in the right state of mind for what that kind of sounds like. Basement is home to classic, hard, and industrial techno, from talent coming from all around the world, many of whom perform at the best clubs in Berlin and Europe.

Wait, so you have to answer a couple of questions at the door to get in, and there's a vibe check? Did they vibe check you? And can you explain the procedure? If they did vibe check me, I wouldn't have known. It's more of, let's say, a silent analysis of my being. I dressed in a black tank top and a loose pair of jeans, so I guess that fit the bill.

Okay, so you got in. I actually got there at 11 p.m., so the line wasn't very long yet. Okay, so the line wasn't long at that time. So do I have it right that getting there at 11 p.m. is early for this club? Yeah, I'd say so. It typically picks up between two and three in the morning. This is going to be really problematic for my weekend edition schedule here, Ramsey. Okay, so what about those questions? How'd you do?

So I read on strategy on social media. There are actually threads where hundreds of people discuss ways to get into this club. Wow. They asked me two questions. One, why are you here? And two, what DJs have you come to listen to? And you had some answers ready? I prepared ahead of time.

I actually saw this one DJ named Umphang on the roster and browsed her Instagram for a few hours before I left for the club. I liked her music, so I remembered to bring her up if I was asked. Luckily, I wasn't asked any tough follow-ups. The other bouncer looked at me and said, well, she's playing right now, so you better get in. Okay, well, congratulations. And did they just let you waltz on in there with your phone?

I was actually instructed when I got in to cover my phone's front and back cameras with stickers that I was given. Okay, so you covered your phone. with stickers, but what's to stop you from peeling those off as soon as you walk in? Let's just say I'd rather not find out. I'd probably get kicked out. Okay, well, once you got in, what did it look like? Okay, so think of the Paris catacombs. It was very dark and smoky. There were spotlights hanging from the ceiling. Sometimes it was red and other times white.

The club actually has two rooms. One is a smaller indoor area where they play house music. House music uses more vocal samples, keys, and symbols. So that room feels more like a party. You can actually sing along to some of that music. But the basement area is larger, and that's where the techno is played. Very electronic all around. I probably left the club at 4 in the morning. It officially closes at around 8 a.m. Any last words of advice if we want to try it?

If you want to go, consider going alone if you're into that type of music. There's actually a culture of people going alone. It can be a personal and meditative experience. And don't worry too much about the questions at the door. If you know who's playing, they should let you in. That's WNYC's Ramsey Caliphate talking with my colleague David First. Thanks for listening to NYC now from WNYC. All this week, we'll have one story a day with the latest headlines.

We'll be back tomorrow.