NYC NOW - June 12, 2024: Midday News

Episode Date: June 12, 2024

The federal government has given the final go-ahead to release the remaining $7 billion for the Gateway Project to build a tunnel under the Hudson River. In other news, Major League Eating says Joey "Jaws" Chestnut, the 16-time winner of Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest, won’t be competing this year after signing an exclusive deal with a rival brand. Meanwhile, Governor Kathy Hochul’s decision to delay the MTA’s congestion pricing plan, which tolls drivers entering Manhattan south of 60th Street, has left many people stunned. But so did her explanation for her sudden change of heart. WNYC’s Elizabeth Kim has more. Plus, New York City is surrounded by 520 miles of coastline, but less than 1 percent is designated for public recreation. Some New Yorkers want to make our local waterways safe for swimming, but that's a tall order. WNYC's Rosemary Misdary reports.

Welcome to NYC Now. Your source for local news in and around New York City from WMYC. It's Wednesday, June 12th. Here's the midday news from Veronica Del Valle. The federal government is giving the long-stalled project to build a tunnel under the Hudson River, the final go-ahead. Senator Chuck Schumer says the federal government is releasing a final $7 billion for the Gateway Project. It would fund a new train tunnel for Amtrak and New Jersey Transit, plus repairs to a tube Hurricane Sandy damaged.

Schumer says the Gateway Project is the nation's largest public works project, with the federal government paying 70% of it. The new tunnel could open in 2035 and affect the daily commutes of roughly 200,000 people. Major League eating says Joey Jaws Chestnut, the 16-time winner of Nathan's. hot dog eating contest won't be competing this year. That's after signing an exclusive deal with a rival brand. But fellow competitive eater Crazy Legs Conti from New York City says there are plenty of good times ahead. I know the fans will be sad not to see Joey. He is an American icon.

But what an amazing opportunity for the maelstrom of meat, the top male competitors who can't quite get to Joey's level of 76 hot dogs and buns. A major league eating spokesperson says his organization was devastated to lose the prolific competitive eater in chestnut. Stay close. There's more after the break. On WNYC, I'm Michael Hill. New York Governor Kathy Hokel stunned the area last week with her 11th hour decision to delay the MTA's congestion pricing plan. to toll most drivers entering a Manhattan south of 60th Street, but the explanation she gave for her sudden change of heart also surprised many people. WN.C's Elizabeth Kim reports.

On Friday night, Governor Kathy Hochle finally faced the music. She hadn't been seen in more than 48 hours since announcing her indefinite pause of congestion pricing. Polls show the tax wasn't popular among city residents, but reporters still wanted to know, Why'd she change her mind after years of publicly supporting the policy? And where was this sudden reversal coming from? All I know is I encourage you to go to the next diner with me, and I'll probably be there Monday morning.

Sit with me and watch the people come over and thank me. That's all I need to know. She went on to say she was hearing complaints from business owners who say their customers drive in from other boroughs. She also said this. And my New Jersey customers are already saying they're not going to come. Anyone who's been to New Jersey knows it's the land of diners. Driving to Manhattan just to get your eggs over easy with a side of home fries doesn't make a lot of sense. So I decide to

visit three diners, Hockel told reporters she likes to go to. The first one I hit is called Townhouse Diner on 2nd Avenue near 38th Street. I speak to a man sitting outside. Are you the owner of the diner? I can't believe it. What? Everybody saw the article and everybody's coming in. He's only willing to give me his name as John V. But it checks out he's been written about before. But even though he invites me to take a seat, John's tight-lipped.

He confirms that the governor has come to his diner, but he says he doesn't talk about congestion pricing with her or anyone else for that matter. I don't talk politics here. This is strictly business. I move on. The comfort diner is a classic retro diner. on 45th Street between 2nd and 3rd Avenue. The owner here has a lot to say on the matter.

My name is Tariq Abuzid. He says it was his partner who complained to Hockel about congestion pricing. And he isn't a fan either. He says $15 is too much and that officials should have carved out a grace period, like on Sundays. To him, it feels like a money grab. This is not the right way. It does not prove that the government is success.

This is to prove that the government is failure. I went every time you need more money, more taxes, more money than some law to get money out of them. I ask him about traffic. He admits it's worsened over the years, but blames the expansion of bus and bike lanes. With all this, you get the big street with six lanes becomes three lanes. If one car has just double bark, you are in big trouble. And he's not convinced that the money generated by congestion pricing would really help the subways because he says the MTA seems so inefficient.

The last stop of my Governor Hokel Diner Tour isn't really a diner. Pershing Square is an upscale bistro that's right across the street from Grand Central Terminal. That makes it perfect for subway and metro-north commuters. But I strike out with the hostess. Is the owner or manager around? No, I'm sorry. I'm with the WNYC and Doc. I'm sorry, don't call that anything.

There's not even the manager here? No, I'm sorry. I then make my way inside Grant Central to talk to one group of stakeholders that Hockel didn't mention, transit riders. Gail Price is a 58-year-old Queens resident. She's lived in the city for over 20 years and works for the federal government.

She tells me she just got back from the south of France where she visited a town that restricted cars. And it was beautiful. It was so calm and peaceful. And I was thinking, you know, if we could just take away, some of these cars we could have this here.

Hokel didn't show up to a diner on Monday morning as she said she might. Instead, she was at an unrelated press conference in the Bronx. Elizabeth Kim, WNYC News. 520 miles of coastline surround New York City, but less than 1% is set aside for public recreation. WNYC's Rosemary reports, there are big, costly obstacles to making more waterways safe for swimming. Under a tree by the Hudson River, Ira Gershonhorn pulls on a wetsuit in flippers. He cautiously steps on slippery rocks near Riverbank State Park, uptown.

He pulls on his goggles and gets in the murky water. It's a chilly 60 degrees. How's the water? Fine. His half-hour-long swim is a weekly routine. Occasionally, onlookers are alarmed and implore him to retreat. turned to shore. Someone even called 911. There's someone to call the police, and the police came, but not just a couple of police.

It was the Coast Guard, a very large ship, helicopters, EMS, fireboats. The whole Navy was out. The spot where Gershonhorn takes his regular dip happens to be right next to a wastewater treatment plant. The sewage process there represents the biggest obstacle to safely. swimming in local waterways. Paula Croxon is on the board of directors for New York Open Water, a group that advocates for public access to New York's natural bodies of water. There's lots of causes of potential pollution in New York water, but this combined sewer overflow is like the biggest issue.

Turns out that more than 27 billion gallons of raw sewage and polluted stormwater are discharged into New York Harbor alone every year. Dan Shappley is senior director of Riverkeeper's advocacy policy and planning program. When it rains, that same pipe is designed to overflow with all of the rainwater from the street and the sewage from all of the millions of flushes of millions of toilets in the city. So that means that the water is unsafe for swimming in many, many places after rain. Advocates estimate modernizing the sewer system that feeds into the Hudson River watershed will cost a billion dollars.

But that's not the only. problem. Again, Dan Shappley. There's boating traffic, there's strong currents, there is a lack of access or access that only provides a walkway along the river, but not actually ability to get to the water itself. Paula Croxon, who is an open water swimmer, says these challenges can be addressed. Even just having some buoys, some roped off areas, some safe entry and exit points, or possibly even having floating pools. Governor Kathy Hokel has promised to the problem. is $60 million for municipalities to make rivers and lakes swimmer-friendly, using floating pools. But that wouldn't address the water quality. Despite the risk, open water swimmers prefer the

untamed nature of the Hudson or East River to just doing laps at the pool. I feel more cleansed when I'm swimming in natural waters. You've got to flip onto your back and look up at the bridge as you pass underneath it. It's limitless. Do you ever run out of space? average New Yorkers will soon have a better appreciation of what they mean. Next summer, New York City is slated to get a floating public pool in the East River. Rosemary, WNYC News. Thanks for listening. This is NYC Now from WNYC.

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