NYC NOW - Evening Roundup: Cuomo Wants Credit for Universal Pre-K, Legionnaires’ Disease Outbreak in Harlem, Dog Poop Complaints Rise, NY Liberty Continues Title Defense

Episode Date: July 28, 2025

A spokesman for former Gov. Andrew Cuomo pointed to a pilot program he announced in 2013 that invested $25 million to add 5,000 Universal pre-K seats. Plus, the New York City Health Department is investigating a cluster of Legionnaires’ disease in central Harlem. Also, 311 complaints about dog waste on sidewalks have gone up every year since the pandemic. And finally, a mid-season check in on the defending WNBA champion New York Liberty.

Former Governor Andrew Cuomo wants credit for Universal Pre-K, a Legionnaire's disease outbreak in Harlem. Dog poop complaints on the rise across the city. And the New York Liberty continues its WNBA title defense. From WMYC, this is NYC Now. I'm Jenae Pierre. Universal Pre-K was one of former Mayor Bill de Blasio's signature policy proposals. Now, former Governor Andrew Cuomo said, says he deserves credit for starting it.

He spoke to my colleague Brian Lair Monday morning. That few people believed he could get universal pre-K enacted, two pie in the sky, but he did. No, he didn't. The state did it. I did it. A spokesman for Cuomo pointed to a pilot program he announced in 2013 that invested $25 million to add roughly 5,000 universal pre-K seats.

But the 2014 state budget, that was also enacted under Cuomo, funded de Blasio's program. It wound up enrolling over 50,000 four-year-olds. De Blasio has not responded to a request for comment. The New York City Health Department is investigating a cluster of Legionnaire's disease in Central Harlem. Since last week, five people have been diagnosed with the disease and more test results are pending. The health department says it's sampling and testing water from all cooling tower systems in the area of the cluster. officials advise anyone with pneumonia-like symptoms to contact their health provider as soon as possible. As of now, no deaths have been associated with the outbreak.

3-1-1 complaints about dog waste on sidewalks have gone up every year since the pandemic. Over 1,600 have been filed so far this year, and the top neighborhood for uncollected fecese Washington Heights. So WMYC's data reporter Joe Hong hit the streets to get the scoop on all the poop. Over the past five years, Jacqueline Zelaya says she's seen a lot more dog poop on the streets in front of her apartment. She's called 311 dozens of times. Her Washington Heights Zip Code has 160 complaints so far this year, the highest in the city. How much dog poop are we talking about? It's so much.

There's sometimes somebody dog has a really big accident. I joke with my kids and call it elephant poop. It's a lot. The city has installed over a thousand public baggy dispensers since 2017. A WNYC analysis finds that the neighborhoods that have them tend to have fewer dog poop complaints. And Julie Menon, a city council member from the Upper East Side, has introduced legislation to add them to every public trash can in the city. When pedestrians who are just walking down the street see a dog owner not pick up after their dog,

I think there's like going to be a shaming factor. We're saying, well, wait a minute, just down the block, you can see that there's a bag and a container for you to throw it out. But Menon says the bill is stalled. And there isn't a single day. dispenser in Zelaya's zip code. The Parks Department says the agency has installed new dispensers when residents or elected officials speak up. The New York Liberty are ranked second in the WMBA. After the break, a mid-season check-in on the defending champs. Stay close. It's been a busy stretch

for the New York Liberty. The defending WMBA champions opened the season on a tear, cooled off a bit in June, and entered the all-star break near the top of the league. I talked with Jackie Powell for a mid-season check-in. She covers the Liberty and the WNBA. Last week, the Libs welcomed John Quo Jones back from injury. The 2024 finals MVP missed nine games, and the team went five and four without her. The Liberty were really having to learn how to play without her. And to be quite honest, they had to play harder without her.

Jackie says, coach Sandy Brandello and the rest of the team learned just how important JJ is to everything that this team does on the offensive end and on the defensive end. And it's not just what happens or what you see in the box score, but rather it's her communication. Now with JJ back and healthy, the lives are finding their stride. And with the playoffs looming, the team has also made a few key additions. The first being Stephanie Talbot, the 6-2 shooter known for her grittiness. Jackie says, Talbot will help the libs get more re-relibs get more. rebounds off the glass. So Stephanie Talbot is an experienced veteran who can just be

plugged in to play. She's a wing who can play multiple positions, and when the Liberty want to switch on ball screens, she's someone who can do that. The Libs have also received a huge commitment from 2019 WMBA finals MVP Emma Misman, who most recently played in Turkey. She brings a very, very high basketball IQ. She is very instinctual on the floor. She's also quite a selfless superstar, which is, it's an M.O. of this New York Liberty team. It is about the we before the me.

And that's who Emma Misman has been for her entire career. Jackie says one reason Misman chose the Liberty is because she saw that Brianna Stewart could play a point forward, which would then allow her to play power forward. which is her preferred position. So the Liberty's positional versatility was something that sold her on this. The Liberty traveled to Minnesota Tuesday for a matchup against the Lynx, their first since the two teams faced off in last year's finals. It's going to be really interesting because while the Links,

their record indicates that they've been rolling, they've dealt with some injuries themselves. They have a very good team that obviously relies, upon Nefisa Collier, but the question with them is who is going to step up around Nefisa Collier? And, you know, I'm going to be really interested to see how much both of these teams value this first matchup. The Minnesota links are on a 14-game winning streak at home. The New York Liberty hoped to break that, especially since they're shaking up the roster. One could say players throughout the entire league are shaking things up. A couple weekends ago, during the

the All-Star game, players wore shirts that read, pay us what you owe us. The moment felt like a turning point for the WNBA, especially with names like Brianna Stewart and Caitlin Clark at the center of it all. For those who don't know, the players and the WMBA are involved in collective bargaining agreement negotiations. At the end of last season, the players opted out of their current CBA that was created in 2020, so they've been trying to negotiate a new one. And so the reason the players opted out was because this league has taken off. This league is at record viewership, record attendance. It has become the mainstream entertainment property that so many people around women's basketball believed that it could be. And don't forget about the recent

expansion teams that have been announced. Plus, a new media rights deal, which starts in 2026. That'll bring much more money into the league. But Jackie says the players haven't been receiving what they believe is their fair share. They're calling for higher salaries and a larger piece of the pie. Because the pie has expanded to such dramatic degrees in the past few years. And so that's behind the t-shirts that we saw. It was a unified message trying to tell fans or educate fans on the fight that they're going through when it comes to negotiating this new collective bargaining agreement. That's Jackie Powell. She covers the New York Liberty and the WMBA. It's brutally hot in the metro area, and New Yorkers will have to deal with the blistering heat for a few days. The National Weather

Service is warning of a heat advisory until Wednesday night. Meteorologist Matthew Wanch says the steamy conditions will last a little longer than last week's hot spell. Take it easy. Make sure you stay hydrated. and things of that nature. New York City officials are urging residents to take precautions, like staying inside and air conditioning as much as possible, and avoiding strenuous outdoor activities. The city's cooling centers will be open through Wednesday night as a cold front moves in and brings chances of showers and thunderstorms later in the week.

Thursday's highs will be in the lower to mid-80s. Thanks for listening to NYC now from WMYC. I'm Jene Pierre. We'll be back tomorrow.