Good morning. It’s Wednesday. Today we’ll look at proposed changes in rules governing a seemingly permanent part of the streetscape in New York City: sidewalk sheds around construction sites and buildings undergoing repairs. We’ll also get details on a letter that raised questions about a Justice Department official's testimony on the corruption case against Mayor Eric Adams.jblpg
hellokittyvipImageIt is unattractive, uninspiring and everywhere in New York City: sidewalk-shed scaffolding in front of buildings that are supposed to be undergoing repairs. There are more than 8,400 such sheds around the city.
It’s hardly surprising that they seem to be permanent features of the landscape. The average age of a sidewalk shed is 16 months. More than 300 have been up for more than five years. One stood in front of the headquarters of the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for 15 years. It was finally taken down last August after city contractors repaired the facade of the building.
Today the City Council is set to pass several bills that would change the rules for sidewalk sheds. The changes include these:
Shortening the length of permits for sheds to three months, from a year, with possible penalties as high as $200 per linear foot per month (but not more than $6,000 a month).
Lengthening the time between inspections, to once every eight years, from once every five for new buildings. Some existing buildings could go as long as 12 years between inspections. “Longer inspection cycles mean fewer sheds,” a City Hall spokeswoman said.
Allowing colors besides hunter green. Sheds could also be “metallic gray” or white, or a color matching the building they surround. “We want to make hunter green a thing of the past,” said Keith Powers, a City Council member who sponsored three of the bills on the agenda.
Raising the height of sheds to 12 feet, from eight feet, and requiring brighter lighting.
Powers,66br a Democrat from Manhattan, called current scaffolding rules “archaic.” He said the changes were intended to “strike a balance” that would maintain safety for pedestrians “while recognizing that New York City is covered in scaffolding and that we can reasonably reduce the amount of it.”
The administration of Mayor Eric Adams — which is often at odds with the Council and its speaker, Adrienne Adams — supports the bills. Ya-Ting Liu, whom the mayor appointed chief public realm officer in 2023, called sidewalk sheds “one of the singular unifying issues that has transcended politics, has transcended administrations, has transcended whatever kinds of divides and boundaries we all want to set up.” (The speaker, who is not related to the mayor, is running to unseat him.)
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White House Counsel’s Office
“She was a vibrant 28-year-old,” Ms. Harris said. “Her name, Amber Nicole Thurmanjblpg, and I promised her mother I would say her name every time.”