Holiday Hodgpodge
Happy December! I’ve been on the road and busy preparing for the holidays (read: brewing beer) so I fell a bit behind in sharing my recent work. Here are some of my latest articles in The Wall Street Journal:
++ A panel of philanthropic officials, former government aides and other civic and business leaders proposed a series of parks and promenades throughout some of the busiest parts of Manhattan, suggesting major changes to reposition office-centric neighborhoods for the postpandemic world.
The 158-page plan, released Wednesday by a group convened by New York Mayor Eric Adams and Gov. Kathy Hochul, includes a pedestrian promenade around Grand Central Terminal that connects with expanded green space along Park Avenue, running north from the commuter rail hub.
“We must reimagine our business districts—especially Midtown Manhattan—as vibrant, 24/7 destinations anchored by spectacular new public spaces, transforming them into places where more people want to be,” wrote Richard Buery and Daniel Doctoroff, former deputies to Mayors Bill de Blasio and Michael Bloomberg, who co-chaired the panel of five dozen business and civic leaders. (Read the whole article here)
++ New York will ban the sale of dogs, cats and rabbits in pet stores, joining other states that restrict animal sales as part of a push by animal-welfare organizations to shut down large breeders in the Midwest.
The new law will still allow people to adopt animals from shelters and to buy purebred animals directly from breeders. Scores of pet stores in New York lobbied against the new law, arguing it would force around 1,500 people out of work. Pet stores provide a convenient way for consumers in urban areas to acquire purebred animals that might not be available at shelters. (Read the whole article here)
++ Delivery companies including Grubhub and DoorDash are pushing for enactment of a bill in New York City that would amend the city’s cap on the fees they can charge restaurants—a measure the companies say is urgent as a new minimum wage for delivery workers takes effect next year.
New York, one of the country’s largest and most lucrative delivery markets, is the only big city where a hard-fee cap is permanently in place. The bill would require companies to offer basic delivery services at the capped 15% commission, but allow them to charge restaurants a premium for additional functions like marketing. Restaurant groups oppose the measure, saying it would take the cap and make it a floor. (Read the whole article here)
++ Democratic-led states where gun restrictions were upended by a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling are pushing ahead with new measures to ban concealed weapons from “sensitive places” such as hospitals, parks and houses of worship — even after federal judges blocked enforcement of a similar law in New York that I wrote about in September.
The legal uncertainty hasn’t deterred lawmakers in Maryland, Hawaii and New Jersey. The state Senate there is advancing a bill that would prohibit firearms in more than two-dozen places that lawmakers deemed sensitive, including bars and casinos.
Bill Sack, director of legal operations for the Firearms Policy Coalition, a gun-rights advocacy group, said his organization would continue to challenge sensitive-place restrictions that go beyond the schools and government buildings mentioned by the Supreme Court. Gun-control advocates said states and localities should move forward despite the uncertainty.
“If courts eventually strike down certain provisions, so be it,” said Adam Skaggs, chief counsel and policy director for the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. “But if legislators don’t push the envelope and explore the extent of their powers, I think they’re doing themselves and their constituents a disservice.” (Read the whole story here)
THE QUESTION: There’s been some recent controversy over the true authorship of the famous Christmas poem “A Visit from Saint Nicholas,” which starts with the line, “’Twas the night before Christmas.” Whether you think Clement Clark Moore or Henry Livingston Jr. wrote it, where was it first published? (And check out the new Hallmark movie on the debate.)
Know the answer? Drop me a line at jimmy.vielkind@gmail.com. Or just write with thoughts, feedback or to say hi.
THE LAST ANSWER: New Jersey Gov. Jim McGreevey authorized the state’s first bear hunt in 2003.