NYC NOW - Evening Roundup: Halt in Enrollment for NYC Child Care Vouchers, Man Pleads Guilty in Prisoner’s Death, Protected Bike Lanes in Long Island City and Potential Rent Hike for Stabilized Tenants

Episode Date: May 5, 2025

New York City will stop enrolling new families who are eligible for child care vouchers. Plus, one of the six guards charged in the deadly beating of upstate prisoner Robert Brooks has pleaded guilty to manslaughter. Also, a plan to add protected bike lanes in Long Island City is getting the green light from a Queens judge. And finally, New York City’s Rent Guidelines Board voted on a range of potential increases ahead of its final vote in June.

A halt in enrollment for New York City child care vouchers. Man pleads guilty in prisoners' death. Protected bike lanes in Long Island City. And a potential rent hike for stabilized tenants. From WMYC, this is NYC Now. I'm Jene Pierre. New York City will stop enrolling new families who are eligible for child care vouchers.

The announcement comes as city and state officials fight over who should pay for the popular program that gives thousands of families nearly $300 a week for daycare or after school. New York City's first deputy mayor, Randy Mastrow, says the state is trying to shift the bill to the city, even though the state has historically paid for most of the vouchers. You don't change the rules in the middle of the game when families and children are at stake. In the state's budget deal announced last week, Governor Kathy Hokel said the state will provide more funding, only if the city also agrees to provide the same amount.

The city says it's not doing that. For now, families who are eligible for the program based on income will be put on a wait list. One of the six guards charged with murder in the deadly, caught-on-body camera beating of upstate prisoner Robert Brooks has pleaded guilty to manslaughter. Christopher Walrath entered the plea on Monday. Five other prison guards are also accused of murder

and multiple other prison employees are facing charges as well. Brooks's beating drew widespread condemnation, including from Governor Hockel, who replaced the head of the Marcy Correctional Facility in response. A plan to add protected bike lanes in Long Island City is getting the green light from a judge in Queens. WMYC's Catalina Gonella reports on what this means for the city and the businesses that tried to stop it.

The ruling clears the way for the Transportation Department to move forward with bike lanes along Review Avenue. Area businesses sued to block the project, arguing it would hurt truck access and local operations. But the judge rejected those claims, citing with the city, which argues the plan is legal and necessary to prevent traffic deaths. The decision lifts a temporary restraining order that's been in place since the fall. Construction can now begin as soon as weather allows. An attorney for the businesses says they're considering their options. The city's transportation department is hailing the ruling.

and says it's determining next steps. New York City's Rink Guidelines Board approved a range of potential increases last week that could allow landlords to raise rents by nearly 8% on two-year leases. More on that after the break. This is NYC now. There are roughly 1 million rent-stabilized apartment units across New York City. New Yorkers living in them could be facing a rent increase later this year. Last week, the City's Rink Guidelines Board voted on a range of,

of potential increases ahead of its final vote in June. They are considering an increase of 1.75% to 4.75% on one-year leases and 4.75 to 7.75 on 2-year leases. That's WMYC's housing reporter David Brand. He says the board considers a lot of information when they're deciding a potential rent increase. They start with economic reports, which analyze tenant income, poverty indicators, and other economic factors. They also look at overall trends for landlords. They look at net operating income. That's how much owners are earning on average from a rent-stabilized apartment, mortgage rates, rent collection, and other factors. But the main takeaways from those reports are that most rent-stabilized

tenants earn well below the area median income, and about half are considered rent-burdened, which means they're paying at least 30 percent of their income on rent. For landlords, income is up. For overall and the number of distressed properties facing foreclosure is actually down for the first time in about nine years. But landlord groups will say that those overall numbers are masking major problems with buildings deteriorating and especially in places like the Bronx, Staten Island, parts of southeast Queens. As rank continues to be a major issue for many New Yorkers, it's also emerging as an important one in the mayor race. David says at least six Democrats who are running in the June primary are calling for a rent freeze.

The first to do that was Zoran Mamdani. He's a state assembly member from Queens and a Democratic Socialist. He's actually made freezing the rent a central plank of his campaign. On the other hand, there are a few high-profile candidates who are saying that calls for rent-freeze are actually political pandering to try to win votes from tenants. Governor Andrew Cuomo, one of the leaning candidates in the Democratic primary in his housing plan, he said it's a, quote, politically convenient posture for. for candidates to make that call.

Then there's Mayor Eric Adams, the incumbent, who's running for re-election as an independent. He also says calls for rent freezes are empty idealism. And he says he worries about small landlords and the impact freezing the rent or a limited increase might have on them. But David says small landlords make up a tiny percentage of owners of rent-stabilized housing.

Most of New York City's rent-stabilized apartments belong to property owners with pretty massive portfolios. And by the way, it's important to remember the mayor actually appoints the rent guidelines board. So this is one affordability issue that Adams can actually influence. David says New Yorkers are invited to attend a series of meetings hosted by the rent guidelines board to voice their opinion. There's going to be five of them for New Yorkers to sound off and say what they think of the potential rent increases and why they think either the increase should be low. There should be no increase. or in the case of, I think, a lot of property owners,

why they think the rent should go even higher. The first hearing is May 22nd in Lower Manhattan. That's WNYC's housing reporter, David Brin. A quick reminder for Stargazers, tonight, May 5th is the night you've been waiting for. The Ed Aquarits will peak. Here's WMYC's Rosemary Mystery. The Ed Aquarids are debris left behind the tale of Haley's comet.

The Earth is traveling through that debris. So we're seeing all these shooting stars from that. And you'll see about 10 meteors per hour in the city. But if you go outside of the city into a dark spot, you can see up to 30 meteors per hour. And they're traveling at 40 miles per second, which is way above the New York City speed limit. You're right about that, Rosie.

So keep your eyes on the night sky if you want to see these streaks of lights going by because you could miss it in a blink of an eye. Thanks for listening to NYC now from WMYC. I'm Jene Pierre. We'll be back tomorrow.