NYC NOW - February 23, 2024: Morning Headlines

Episode Date: February 23, 2024

Get up and get informed! Here’s all the local news you need to start your day: A new executive order out of Nassau County makes it virtually impossible for trans women to participate in women’s sports teams in the area. Meanwhile, WNYC has learned that the Adams Administration is planning to expand the capacity of new jails being built in Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and the Bronx to replace Rikers Island. Plus, the MTA is closing the Marine Park Bridge from 10 PM tonight until 7 AM on Saturday.

NYC, Welcome to NYC now. Your source for local news in and around New York City from WMYC. It's Friday, February 23rd. Here's the morning headlines from Michael Hill. It is now virtually impossible for trans women to participate in women's sports teams in NASA County, Long Island. As a result of a new executive order, WNIC's Julia Hayward has more.

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman says he wants to make sports fair again for cisgender women. The executive order took effect on the same day Blakeman signed it, and the measure only applies to trans women and girls, not trans men and boys. Because the county licenses its more than 100 facilities to sports leagues in the area, these teams were forced to comply with the measure or lose access to the spaces. New York Attorney General, Letitia James, says her office is reviewing legal options. The NYCLU says it plans to do the same. WNYC has learned that the Adams administration is planning to expand the capacity of new jails

its building in Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and the Bronx to replace Rikers Island. WNYC's Matt Katz reports. Mayor Eric Adams has a math problem. The jails of the city is building to replace Rikers Island were designed to only, only hold 3,300 people. So officials have quietly expanded capacity by planning to crowd in more beds and reduce space for detainees with mental illness and substance abuse issues who make up the majority of the jail's population. Documents obtained by WNYC show each new jail will now have beds for more than 1,000 people each, with a tripling of the capacity for women at the Queen's

facility. In all, that means space citywide for just about 4,000 detainees, which is still well short of the current Riker's population of 6,000. A spokesperson from Mayor Adams says, the number of beds in each of the four facilities reflects an honest accounting of the realities of the criminal justice system and public safety in our city. End of quote. Drivers heading between the Rockaways and Brooklyn

are in for a tough time this weekend. The MTA is closing the Marine Parkway Bridge from 10 to night until 7 in the morning. You'll still be able to drive over the cross-bay bridge farther east in the peninsula. The MTA's Q35 bus, which runs over the Marine Parkway Bridge, will also be redirected over the Cross Bay. 42 and cloudy now, a 50-50 chance of rain by late this afternoon. Cloudy, a high near 50, tomorrow, mostly sunny and 40 as we cool off, Sunday, sunny and 40.

Thanks for listening. This is NYC now from WNYC. Be sure to catch us every weekday, three times a day, for your top news headlines and occasional deep dives. And subscribe wherever you get your. podcasts. See you this afternoon.