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Under cover of darkness a year ago Friday, someone breached a waist-high fence and slipped into the Central Park Zoo. The break-in happened steps from the shared headquarters of the New York City Parks Department and the Central Park Zoo, in the vicinity of at least one surveillance camera. Since the zoo suspended efforts to re-capture Flaco in February 2023, there has been no public information about the crime. In 2021, another beloved Central Park owl, Barry, was fatally struck by a truck after ingesting a lethal dose of rat poison that may have impaired her flying. He’s also lucky.”Flaco spent his initial months of freedom mostly in Central Park, which is loaded with wildlife, but has lately preferred more urban sections of Manhattan.

Persons: Flaco, hadn't, ”, Jacqueline Emery, “, Max Pulsinelli, Nicole Barrantes, Jerry Vlasak, we’re, Barry, Suzanne Shoemaker, “ He’s, He’s, ” Flaco, David Barrett, Barrett, “ It’s, “ We’re Organizations: Central, Zoo, Fifth, New York City Parks Department, Central Park Zoo, Parks Department, North American Animal Liberation Press Office, Wildlife Conservation Society, Manhattan Locations: York, Maryland, Central Park, Manhattan, North America

☆ 'Father of Modern Gynecology' J. Marion Sims performed dangerous 'experiments' on enslaved Black women without the use of anesthesia
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-14 | by ( Brianna Holt | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Many of his medical achievements came at the cost of the health and well-being of enslaved Black women. He performed surgical experiments on enslaved Black women, often without the use of anesthesia. Black women were experimented on to improve health care for white womenSocietal, institutional, and systemic racism has endangered the lives of Black women for centuries. In a 2023 CDC study , Black women reported experiences of mistreatment during maternity care at the highest rate of women surveyed. As enslaved Black women were considered to be the property pf their owners, and therefore did not have their own rights of refusal, Sims' experimented on Black women in order to improve gynecological outcomes for white women.

Persons: Marion Sims, —, J, Sims, Spencer Platt, fistulas, Lucy, Black, Julia Axelrod, Henrietta, Fannie Lou Hamer, sterilizing, vesicovaginal fistulas Organizations: Gynecology, Service, Design, Parks Department, Park, 103rd, Getty, Equity Locations: New York, Central, Mississippi, CDC, Montgomery

☆ My small business almost closed due to staffing shortages. Here's what helped me hire 27 seasonal workers — and save lives.
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-15 | by ( Paulana Lamonier | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

This summer, her swim program almost shut down due to a staff shortage. Lamonier posted a video that was viewed over 47,000 times and was able to staff her program. This article is part of "Talent Insider," a series containing expert advice to help business owners tackle a variety of hiring challenges. We offered swim lessons in private residential homes and taught up to 100 students how to swim one summer. It also reminded our community that not having a Black-owned swim program would directly impact more drownings in the community.

Persons: Paulana Lamonier, Lamonier, —, Gen Zers, Zers, I've Organizations: Black, Service, York College, NYC Department of Parks & Recreation, CDC, Fuse, of Health, Cross, YMCA, BPWS, New York, Employment Locations: Astoria, Queens, New

NEW YORK (AP) — Gaming giant Bally's paid $60 million to buy the right to operate a public golf course in New York City from Donald Trump's company, the former president's namesake son testified Thursday. Trump Jr. said the sales price was $60 million, but the Trump Organization had incurred “a lot of costs” over the years, so he wasn't sure of the net profit. The Trump Organization managed the 18-hole course, which is visible from the Whitestone Bridge and boasts views of the Manhattan skyline, from 2015 until this year. The ruling would have allowed the Trump Organization to operate the course through the expiration of its lease in 2035. “The Trump Organization is Financially Strong, Powerful, Very Liquid, AND HAS DONE NOTHING WRONG,” Trump wrote.

Persons: Donald Trump's, Trump, Donald Trump Jr, Trump Jr, It's, wasn’t, Bill de Blasio, Letitia James, Donald Jr, Eric, ”, James, Arthur Engoron, ” Trump Organizations: —, Trump Organization, U.S . Capitol, Trump, New York, Republican, Social, “ Locations: New York City, Whitestone, Manhattan

☆ Why Has This 258-Year-Old Mansion Been Left to Fall Apart?
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-27 | by ( Ginia Bellafante | More About Ginia Bellafante | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Since then, millions more have been needed from elected officials to complete the work. The notion that “the board has been lax in passion is the farthest thing from the truth,” Lisa Koenigsberg, an architectural historian and the board’s chair told me. I understand the frustration and the sadness over the building,” she said. The building is the city’s responsibility.” This is a curious response in a place where public-private partnerships make most of our cultural life possible. When the preservation movement took hold in New York in the early 1960s, the goal was to prevent beautiful buildings from being destroyed.

Persons: ” Lisa Koenigsberg, Camilla Huey, Aaron Burr, Theodosia, “, ” Organizations: Parks Department Locations: New York

☆ For 30 Years, This Grown-Up’s Office Was the Playground
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-17 | by ( Dodai Stewart | More About Dodai Stewart | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Emmanuel Thingue laughed as he nimbly scampered up the jungle gym to have his photograph taken. At 61, he was the oldest person on the playground equipment at Lincoln Terrace Park in the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn. But Mr. Thingue, a landscape architect who recently retired from the New York City Parks Department after 30 years, had a special connection to the space: He designed it. Over his career, Mr. Thingue designed more than 30 New York City parks and won awards and accolades for his work. Spend an afternoon with Mr. Thingue, and he will tell you how parks improved his life when he was a boy.

Persons: Emmanuel Thingue, scampered, whooped, Thingue Organizations: New York City Parks Department, New Locations: Lincoln Terrace, Crown, Brooklyn, New York City

NEW YORK (AP) — The Trump Organization has sold its right to operate a public golf course in the Bronx, city officials confirmed, offloading control of the publicly-owned property to a company that is seeking to build a casino in New York City. Bally’s Corporation, a gaming and entertainment company, will take over the job of running the 18-hole course, known as Trump Golf Links Ferry Point, according to a spokesperson for the city’s comptroller. That argument was rejected by a state judge last year, a ruling that would have allowed the Trump Organization to operate the course through the expiration of its lease in 2035. In a statement, city Comptroller Brad Lander said he was “delighted that Trump’s name will no longer deface city parkland.”Emailed inquiries to Bally’s and the Trump Organization were not returned. Under the new deal, Bally’s will take over full operations, management and maintenance of the golf course, removing the Trump Organization from any involvement with the property, according to the comptroller’s spokesperson.

Persons: Bill de Blasio, Brad Lander, “, Bally’s, ” Dan Kastanis Organizations: Trump Organization, Bally’s Corporation, Trump, U.S . Capitol, New, New York Democrats, New York Times Locations: Bronx, New York City, Whitestone, New York, New

☆ A growing urban-farming movement has transformed dozens of vacant lots in Philadelphia. Now with city backing, some crucial green spaces can flourish without the threat of development.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( Catherine Boudreau | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Philadelphia recently announced it would buy 91 properties containing green spaces and gardens. Studies show urban gardens can help keep neighborhoods cooler and perhaps reduce gun violence and depression. The urban garden he helped start nearly a decade ago on abandoned lots in West Philadelphia was finally protected. Thousands of properties tied up in the deal sat neglected for decades, and locals transformed some into urban gardens. Many Black and brown neighborhoods don't have enough green spaces, which makes residents more susceptible to extreme heat.

Persons: Victor Young, We'd, Young, Ash Richards, Richards, Jenny Greenberg, Greenberg, Beverly Giles Carter, it's Organizations: Service, Young, Neighborhood Gardens Trust, US Bank, Neighborhood Gardens, Philadelphia Parks & Recreation, City Council, Philadelphia's Land Bank Locations: Philadelphia, West Philadelphia, aren't, Philadelphia's

☆ At a Manhattan Park With a Troubled History, a Promising Research Site
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Hurubie Meko | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

On a sticky July afternoon, as the sun beat down and the temperature climbed into the high 80s, several dozen people gathered on the banks of a murky pond in Morningside Park in Manhattan to talk about a slimy green problem. The pond, built in 1989, is a highlight of the leafy park, which runs for 13 blocks through Harlem and Morningside Heights. But in recent years, it has turned a sickly shade of green as algae has overtaken its surface. And on this Saturday, scientists from Columbia University and the city’s Parks Department began a new research effort at the site into the spread of harmful algae blooms worldwide. For the university, the project represents a new chapter in its complicated and sometimes tense relationship with the surrounding community over this section of the park.

Persons: Joaquim Goes, Columbia’s Lamont Organizations: Columbia University, city’s Parks Department, Columbia Locations: Morningside Park, Manhattan, Harlem, Morningside Heights, Columbia, Texas, Oman, Arabian

As New York City’s 14 miles of public beaches open for Memorial Day weekend, the city is confronting its worst lifeguard shortage on record — something officials say is partly the result of a bitter fight between the city and the little-known but extraordinarily powerful unions that represent lifeguards. Millions of New Yorkers are facing the prospect of partial beach closures and limited access to pools when they open next month. Parks Department officials say they currently have fewer than 500 lifeguards ready to work, roughly a third of the number they say is needed to fully staff beaches and pools. The lifeguard shortage, which also stems from perennial issues like low salaries, a difficult qualifying test and a pandemic-induced slowdown of the lifeguard pipeline, follows months of off-season maneuvering between city officials and an obscure pair of lifeguard locals. It is an intractable and bizarre union beef that stands out even in a city rife with them and one that has left the city — locked in collective bargaining negotiations with union officials to reach a new contract — blaming the unions for leaving key swimming spots understaffed.

Mr. Boerman said he had tried hard to leave obvious hints that he was an impersonator. He made up an organization with a ludicrous name: the New York City Porcine Benevolent Association. “Pretty much everybody got that it was a joke immediately, which was my hope — I wasn’t trying to mislead anyone,” Mr. Boerman said. “The problem comes when you have accounts that maybe have hundreds of thousands of followers and are positioning themselves as the real thing,” Mr. Boerman said. “Twitter’s approach of ‘Well, if people pay for verification, certainly they must be legit’ is so inane I don’t even know how to put words to it.”

☆ California superbloom: Hillsides are exploding with wildflowers. Here's what it looks like from space
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Stephanie Elam | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg/Getty ImagesVisitors walk through a field of wildflowers at the Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve in Lancaster, California on April 14. Hillsides are covered in colorful wildflowers, seen here in a satellite image in Palmdale, California, on April 10. Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg/Getty ImagesWildflowers bloom at the Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve in Lancaster, California, on April 14. Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg/Getty ImagesWhile California hasn’t closed state parks because of the superbloom, at least one town is demanding that tourists stay away. The Antelope Valley Poppy Preserve in Lancaster, California, on March 30.

☆ The NYC park where Marjorie Taylor Greene is hosting the rally for Trump used to be an open sewer the city tried to fill in with land but it sunk (and stunk)
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Rebecca Cohen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The NYC park where Marjorie Taylor Greene is hosting a Trump rally used to be an open sewer. Collect Pond Park was then a blossoming new neighborhood, and later the center of a gang-filled slum. It took six years for the city to fill the hole that was once Collect Pond, according to the parks department. The area finally became a park in 1960Luciano Garbati's statue 'Medusa With The Head of Perseus' at Collect Pond Park on October 13, 2020. REUTERS/Brendan McDermidIt wasn't until 1960 that NYC's Board of Estimate gave the area Parks jurisdiction.

MAYA BAY, Thailand, March 27 (Reuters) - On any given day in Thailand's Maya Bay, up to 40 blacktip reef sharks cruise in the cyan shallows while about 4,000 tourists visit its white-sand beach flanked by towering cliffs. Marine researcher Metavee Chuangcharoendee said that thanks to the pause in tourism the island was once again functioning as a nursery for young sharks. A number of factors affect the sharks around Phi Phi Leh Island, including seasonal movement patterns and human activity like fishing, Metavee said. For Phi Phi Island National Park, annual revenue was almost halved from 638.3 million baht ($18.7 million) in 2018 to 373.6 million baht in 2019 after authorities closed the beach. "If you can create a new image of Maya Bay as a nature reserve ...

☆ A Million Bodies Are Buried Here. Now It’s Becoming a Park.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Corey Kilgannon | More About Corey Kilgannon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The morgue trucks, loaded with plain, unmarked pine boxes, still arrive regularly by ferry to Hart Island, a potter’s field where the city has long buried its unclaimed dead. The island was once a penal colony, and it has been run since the 19th century by New York’s jail system, which used inmate gravediggers and kept it off limits until 2021, when the city transferred the island over to its parks department. Now, in a remarkable break with the decades-old policy of keeping Hart Island burials secretive and its graves unseen, the department is opening New York’s most forbidden place for public access.

Persons: gravediggers Locations: Hart, York’s

☆ Pickleball is America’s fastest-growing sport. These people hate it
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The sound and disruption from pickleball, America’s fastest-growing sport, is driving some neighbors, tennis players, parents of young children, and others crazy. Pickleball is America's fastest-growing sport. Some tennis players are also frustrated because pickleball is taking over tennis courts. There were 11,000 places to play Pickleball at the end of 2022, an increase of around 130 new locations a month, according to USA Pickleball, the sport’s national governing body. People play pickleball on what were once tennis courts at Allendale Park in Pasadena, CA, in 2022.

☆ An alligator rescued in Brooklyn's Prospect Park has a bathtub stopper stuck in her body
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A nearly five-foot alligator was found in a lake in New York City's Prospect Park. A bathtub stopper was found stuck in her body, but she is too weak to have it removed. The nearly five-foot alligator was found "extremely emaciated" in a lake in New York City's Prospect Park on February 19, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) said. An alligator was found in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park Lake in New York City, on February 19, 2021. She is the sixth alligator to have been rescued in the city in the past five years, according to the Animal Care Centers.

☆ Alligator captured in Brooklyn's Prospect Park Lake
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Members of the Parks Enforcement Patrol and Urban Park Rangers capture an alligator from a lake in Prospect Park in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, U.S., February 19, 2023. Courtesy of NYC Parks/Handout via REUTERSFeb 20 (Reuters) - New York City park staff stumbled across a sickly alligator in Brooklyn's Prospect Park this weekend, the Parks Department said, and rangers captured the lost reptile and brought it to the Bronx Zoo for care. Park maintenance staff found the alligator in Prospect Park Lake on Sunday morning, in the heart of the concrete jungle, and noted that it appeared lethargic and in a state of cold shock. The New York City Parks department issued a public warning against releasing non-native animals into the city's environment, which is illegal. New York City Urban Park Rangers respond to about 500 calls regarding animals in poor condition each year.

☆ Trump wants back in the casino biz — as Bally's landlord in the Bronx. Many approvals would still be needed.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Laura Italiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Under a deal struck in December, Trump would sub-lease 17 acres of his Bronx golf course to Bally's. Bally's bid for a new casino on the city-owned grounds of Trump Golf Links at Ferry Point was first reported on Sunday by the New York Post. Proposals must be approved by a local community advisory committee that includes the governor, the mayor, the local state senator and assembly member, the borough president, and the local city council member. "We are incredibly excited at the prospect of bringing Bally's community-centered approach to gaming and entertainment to the Bronx," a casino spokesperson told Insider. One of those leaders is local city council member Marjorie Velazquez, who applauded the prospect of bringing jobs to her neighborhood.

☆ Reno mayor sues after finding tracking device on vehicle
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-18 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

RENO, Nev. — Reno mayor Hillary Schieve is suing a private investigator and his company after finding a device attached to her vehicle that was capable of tracking its real-time location. The lawsuit, first reported by The Nevada Independent on Thursday, alleges that the investigator trespassed onto her property to install the device without her consent. “The tracking and surveillance of Schieve caused her, as it would cause any reasonable person, significant fear and distress,” it reads. There was no immediate response to a request for comment emailed Friday by The Associated Press to David McNeely, the investigator alleged to have placed the tracking device, and 5 Alpha Industries, the company. The mayor said in an interview with The Nevada Independent that the mechanic found the tracking device about two weeks before the vote.

☆ Gov. Gavin Newsom is threatening to cancel a San Francisco toilet that could cost $1.7 million and take more than two years to build
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-22 | by ( Ryan Hogg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Gavin Newsom is threatening to halt plans for a $1.7 million toilet in San Francisco. The city's Rec and Park department said the costs included planning, drawing, permits, and reviews. Gavin Newsom is threatening to halt plans to build a public toilet in San Francisco after it received huge backlash over its $1.7 million cost and 2-year construction time. "A single, small bathroom should not cost $1.7 million," Erin Mellon, the governor's communications director, told the Chronicle in a statement. "The state will hold funding until San Francisco delivers a plan to use this public money more efficiently.

☆ Viral TikTok shows bison charge woman in Texas park
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Julianne Mcshane | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

A Texas hiker is warning other outdoor enthusiasts to beware of bison through a viral TikTok video that shows one charging her on a trail, sending her to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Clark, the Texas Park and Wildlife Department, and United Regional Wichita Falls, the hospital where Clark said she received treatment, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Once nearly extinct, bison now number half a million, with most part of private herds, according to the Texas Park and Wildlife Department. Caprock Canyons State Park is the home of the Texas State Bison Herd, which is monitored by park officials, according to the department. "As a rule, bison require at least 50 yards (half a football field) between them and people," the Texas Park and Wildlife Department said.

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