NYC NOW - Evening Roundup: Judge Blocks NYPD from Firing Rookie Officers, Adams Administration Forced to Expand Program for Rental Subsidies, New Jersey Represented at Wimbledon, Whole Foods’ Feud with a Bowery Rooftop Bar, and Love Island Watch Parties

Episode Date: July 11, 2025

A judge has granted a temporary restraining order, preventing the firings of dozens of NYPD officers who the department says were improperly hired. Plus, a state appeals court says the Adams administration must implement reforms to expand housing vouchers for low-income New Yorkers. Also, New Jersey native Amanda Anismova is off to the women's Wimbledon final Saturday. Meanwhile, Whole Foods has filed a lawsuit against the Public Hotel, in the Bowery, saying late night crowds for the hotel’s popular rooftop bar are blocking its deliveries. And finally, a popular dating competition has taken over nightlife in New York City.

A judge blocks the NYPD from firing some rookie officers. The Adams administration is being forced to expand its program for rental subsidies. New Jersey will be represented at Wimbledon this weekend. Whole Foods its feud with the Bowery rooftop bar and Love Island watch parties across New York City. From WMYC, this is NYC now. I'm Jene Pierre. With help from the courts, a police union has temporarily blocked the NYPD from firing 31 officers who the department says were improperly hired. A spokesperson for the NYPD says

over the last two years, the force hired applicants who had infractions, like prior criminal convictions and arrests that disqualified them. The official did not explain how it happened, but said the officers would have to resign this week or be fired. The police benevolent association now says a state Supreme Court judge has granted a temporary restraining order preventing the firings. They say they will challenge the city in court next week. Now to another courtroom. A state appeals court says the Adams administration must implement reforms to expand housing vouchers for low-income New Yorkers. The vouchers, known as city FEPs, allow tenants to pay 30% of their income toward rent, with the city covering the rest.

The Adams administration had refused to implement the reforms passed by the city council. That prompted the council to sue. Councilmember Perina Sanchez says the ruling is good news. The major victories, the decisive victories for all New Yorkers who are facing housing instability, who can't make guns meet, and who want to live in our city, want to contribute to our city, but need some assistance in doing that. City Hall says giving more people vouchers is the wrong approach, when thousands of New Yorkers already have vouchers but can't use them due to low apartment

and vacancy rates. All right, game, set, match. New Jersey native Amanda Anasimova is off to the women's Wimbledon final this weekend. In a major upset, she beat the world's number one player, Arena Sabalanka, in the semifinal Thursday. The 23-year-old is the youngest American woman to make it to the final since Serena Williams in 2004. The Garden State may be claiming her, but we should note that Anna Simova moved to Florida as a child.

Her childhood tennis coach is also from New Jersey. Jersey. She's set to play Polish player Igash Revontik on center court Saturday morning. Up next, there's some bad blood on the Bowery, and Whole Foods is in the middle of it. That's after the break. There's a turf war brewing on the Bowery between two neighbors, Whole Foods and the public hotel on Christie Street. In a lawsuit filed last week, Whole Foods says that late-night crowds for the hotel's popular rooftop bar are blocking its deliveries, and Whole Foods is asking a judge to shut the bar down until it's all figured out. WMYC's Ryan Kylath has been looking into this. Ryan, give me some context here. Whole Foods we know is owned by Amazon.

Who owns the public hotel? Yeah, there's a fun cast of characters on this story. So the public hotel was developed 10, 15 years ago by Ian Schrager. He's a New York Nightlife legend. He was involved in founding Studio 54. And his partner on the deal was Steve Whitkoff. until recently best known as a real estate magnate in New York, now currently serving as President Trump's special envoy to the Middle East. So when he's not solving peace in the Middle East, he's fighting with the Whole Foods next door. It's a scene outside, right?

The public is known for this high-low mix, minimalist rooms upstairs and velvet ropes downstairs. The energy is really ill. I'm 25 years old and I just moved to New York and I want to go out. Now, Whole Foods, which is right next door, they're part of this city program to ease traffic congestion by doing deliveries late at night. So this is where the problem comes up. That's exactly when the crowds are out in these long lines waiting to get inside the club at the hotel. Whole Foods in the lawsuit says this is slowing down business.

Delivery drivers have to wait two hours to get in and make their deliveries. There's crowds. It's dangerous having these trucks navigate all these drunk people and their word something bad is going to happen. Okay. So how does the public hotel respond to all of this? The public says stay in your lane. This is fine. Do your deliveries at a different time.

Oh, you can't get in at 11 p.m. Why don't you come back at 4 a.m.? Say what you will about that argument. They also said this is very funny in a letter to the judge that was filed in the docket. You know, actually those lines aren't even waiting for the rooftop. club. They're waiting for a different club that we have called art space. So Whole Foods, you need to get your details right. It's a nice little neighborhood fight. Yeah, I don't mean to underestimate all of this, Ryan. You know, it's just a line in front of a club. Like, we see this

all the time, especially in that area of the Bowery, Lower East Side. I'm wondering, why is this even a lawsuit in the first place? Yeah, you would think these two could just work it out Yeah. Their neighbors, right? Well, Whole Foods in the suit alleges that they tried. And they uploaded all these emails of them back and forth with the public's management. And the emails are funny because Whole Foods is like, you know, you keep ignoring our calls. You keep saying you're going to call us back on Monday, but then on Monday you reschedule.

Okay, you got on the phone the other day, but then you hung up and had to go after five minutes. And they like, they are presenting this whole paper trail that like we've tried to just ask you nicely, but you're not responding, so that's why we're taking you to court. And all they have to do to fix this, the hotel, the line is going one way down the block. All they have to do is point the line the other way down the block. For some reason, they won't do it. Now, if they point the line the other way, they will be pointing it past this Section 8 housing complex, 10 Stanton Street. And the hotel has a very long and bad history with 10 Stanton Street.

The neighbors complaining, noise, crowds, people having sex in the hotel, scaring the kids, you know, with the windows open. So, you know, who knows. Very New York City. Who knows why they're not pointing the line the other way, but they got angry neighbors on the other side, too. Yeah. So it's a fun one. Angry neighbors all over the public hotel, it seems. So what happens next?

Both sides met for a conference with the court on Friday. And it's up to the judge to what's next, have probably a formal. hearing and then a decision after that whether or not he will grant Whole Foods request to shut down the bar until this is resolved or decide something else. That's WMYC's Ryan Kylath. The dating competition show Love Island has taken over nightlife in New York City. WMYC's Catalina Gonella reports on why the show is such a draw for New Yorkers and who they're rooting for.

Tuesdays are usually slow for the malt house. a bar near New York University in the village, especially in July. But since it started hosting Love Island watch parties three weeks ago, it's been packed. The only thing I can compare it to in recent times was the fact that the Nix went deep into the season. That's co-owner Kevin O'Hanlon. He credits two bartenders with the idea to have the watch parties. We go from a restaurant that can probably realistically see to about 60 people if we do it the normal way, to having, you know, a hundred people here virtually every single time we do one of these things.

On this night, every seat at the bar is taken, mostly by women who order on-themed drinks like Love Island Ice Tees or Hurricane Hoodas, named for one of the competitors. The energy feels like a sports bar during a high-stakes playoff. The first night, when we did it, I've never heard noise like it. Like, I really, really haven't. And it was a continuous for an hour and a half of people just screaming every time everything happens. By everything, he means romantic scenes, arguments or eliminations. On the show, contestants move into a luxury villa in Fiji in hopes of finding love. They couple up to avoid being sent home and fans vote on a winning pair. One contestant, Amaya, has won over a lot of fans with her personality and humor.

And she's a Dominican New Yorker. I feel like I could fly like the pigeons back in New York City. Fans like Destiny Bayered don't even care who Amaya is paired with. They just want her to win the $100,000 prize. It's a great feeling to see that, you know, we're represented and that, you know, people love us because everyone loves Amaya. So it's kind of like they, you know, they support us Dominican and Pericans. And it's just exciting. Love Island is the latest series to reach water cooler TV status.

The thing everyone's talking about. Fans like Ayanna Stevens say watch parties are adding to that experience. I think it gives a sense of community in such a big city. Bar owners say they're already looking into what other shows they might be able to replicate the parties with. But Love Island isn't over just yet. And although O'Hanlon had never seen the show before the watch parties, now he's invested. I think we have to root for Amaya. New York people get behind New York people.

That's the one thing I love about this city. The series finale is Sunday and watch parties. are already booked out. That's WNYC's Catalina Gonella. Heads up. We're taking a deep dive with sharks this Saturday. No, not literally, just a deep dive conversation. New York City's beaches have already been closed several times this year

after drone spotted sharks in our area's waters. Listen to this Saturday's episode to get a better understanding of why sharks are coming here and their behaviors. Thanks for listening to NYC now from WMYC. I'm Jenae. Thank you.