The hottest race this November (I mean the ballot questions)

Please tell me about your summer #89

We are all very small in the grand scheme of things.

We are almost through with July. That might make you sad, to think that summer’s almost over, but you know my rule: Summer isn’t over ‘til October.

Before we know it, it’ll be November, where there will be a presidential election you might have read about but also a bunch of ballot questions on the back.

Which questions – and how they got there – has been a source of contention between the mayor and the city council. The council introduced a ballot initiative to expand “advice and consent” that would give them more authority to approve certain commissioners. Almost as soon as they announced that, the mayor said he was organizing a charter review commission, and whatever they came up with would supersede what the council wanted. Confusing, right? 

There will be a handful of ballot questions now, which you can read all about here. 

This week I also wrote about an initiative announced last year by the mayor to fund scholarships for New York City students of color who want to pursue journalism. His goal then was $500,000 in the first year, but despite many, many (many many) emails asking how much was raised – after asking in the in-person briefing – it’s still a mystery to me, and the public, how much was raised. You can read about that here. 

⭐Other interesting stories⭐

Congestion pricing lawsuits [THE CITY]
Downed trees are messing up your commute [THE CITY]
Staffers on a losing City Council race charged with voter fraud [QNS CHRON]
Learn about the fungi hunters who love this humidity [THE CITY]
The Thai food scene outside of Queens (its epicenter) is heating up [GRUB STREET]
Read about the man Mayor Adams wants to be his next corporation counsel [DN]

📺WATCH📺

Enjoy this short video on New York City’s failed bid for the 2012 Olympics. Just imagine if Meadow and Willow lakes were rehabilitated as promised!

🌞SUMMER CHECK IN🌞

Has your summer been fun? Sweaty? Has it been exhilarating? Have you done anything that terrified you, but you did it anyway? Did you eat anything good? Read anything good? See anything good? I want to hear how your summer’s been, so feel free to share in the comments your highlights and lowlights and what you’re looking forward to before October.

thanks for reading!