The local paper for the Upper er East Side
JULY 30-5,2015
A LACK OF ACCESS, UNDERGROUND OR ABOVE P. 9
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WEEK OF JULY-AUGUST
30-5 2015
CROSSTOWN BLUES M86 bus service should return to Second Avenue and 86th Street in 3 months BY DANIEL FITZSIMMONS
GRADING RESTAURANTS (ON A CURVE)
Yorkville residents who use the crosstown M86 bus to get to the West Side were miffed last week when a popular stop, at Second Avenue and 86th Street, was nowhere to be found. It turns out the MTA closed the westbound bus stop at Second Avenue due to a temporary boiler trailer that’s been installed outside of 241 East 86th St. The closest stops going westbound are now at First Avenue and Third Avenue. The eastbound stop at Second Avenue has been closed for the past two years because of subway construction. Adding to the confusion is that the stops at Third Avenue and Lexington Avenue in both directions were moved from the west side of the avenues to the east side to make way for bus bulbs that are being installed at both locations. “These temporary stops will remain until the construction of the bus bulbs are complete, at which point the stops, along with the fare machines, will return where they were previously,” an MTA spokeswoman, Marisa Baldeo, said. But the shakeup could hardly come at a more inconvenient time as the MTA is rolling out its Select Bus Service, a new transportation program with faster fare collection and travel times and increased comfort for passengers. As Select Bus Service takes shape, the New York City Transit Authority and the city’s Department of Transportation teamed up on an “Ambassador program” to assist passengers curbside with the new fare machines and any questions they might have.
Are 95% of New York City’s restaurants really squeaky clean? The Department of Health recently touted that fact that 95% of the 24,000 restaurants in the city now receive an A inspection grade, up from 38% four years ago. While health department officials credit more frequent inspections and better communication for the higher marks, restaurateurs, inspection consultants -- and even some diners -- aren’t so convinced. “I think the numbers are pretty skewed,” said Adolfo Velasquez, whose NYC Grade Fixers is part of a cottage industry that helps restaurants navigate the health department’s inspection process through mock run-throughs adminis-
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NEWS The health department says the vast majority of city restaurants are now getting A grades. Industry experts aren’t so sure. BY LOGAN HENDRIX
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Newscheck Crime Watch Voices Out & About
Our Take A WAGE TO LIVE BY The state’s roughly 200,000 fast-food workers — about 50,000 of them in the city — are on their way to earning a fair wage. A state panel appointed by the governor last week recommended that workers at the state’s McDonalds, Taco Bells and other fast-food outlets that number more than 30 deserve better pay. It’s a correct decision -- and a courageous one. And, following decisions to boost the minimum wage in Los Angeles, Seattle and Washington, D.C., it amounts to an endorsement that service industry employees have for too long borne an often onerous burden, particularly in this city, which has seen incredible wealth pour in during the last few decades. According to a report released last year, 87 percent of fast-food workers to do not receive health benefits through their employer and more than half of those working full time in the industry are enrolled in at least one public benefit program. A nearly anonymous threemember board in the state capital has made a significant decision. The deserved hope — and expectation — now is that the marquee names in a nascent presidential campaign will back them up.
Jewish women and girls light up the world by lighting the Shabbat candles every Friday evening 18 minutes before sunset. Friday July 31 – 7:54 pm. For more information visit www.chabaduppereastside.com.
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City Arts Top 5 Food & Drink 15 Minutes
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