Liena Zagare
Verified
Editor of The Bigger Apple at Manhattan Institute. NYC politics, policy, and urban life. Opinions my own.
Is this you? As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.
Claim your profile
Articles by Liena Zagare
Nikole Hannah-Jones’ Essay, School Choice, and Accountability in NYC Schools
Education, Cities New York City, Bigger Apple Substack, Children & Family, Pre K-12 1 Minute Read Donate Are you interested in supporting the Manhattan Institute’s public-interest research and journalism? As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, donations in support of MI and its scholars’ work are fully tax-deductible as provided by law (EIN #13-2912529).
Mamdani charges ahead with another careless promise: Unfunded NYC 2-K
As Mayor Mamdani touts progress in expanding “free” childcare, the bills for his socialist ambitions keep growing. He hasn't come up with a plan to pay for it all — other than, of course, betting that Albany will let him hike taxes. Look at childcare: The city's pre-K and 3-K programs run partly through private providers who say the city pays them less than the work costs.
Mamdani charges ahead with another careless promise: Unfunded NYC 2-K
A big swirling bucket of the latest rumors, celebrity news and Hollywood gossip. The premier celebrity gossip app. The only apps that gives you a comprehensive real time celeb news stream. Gossip Bucket aggregates and streams the latest gossip news and headlines from the top sources in one place.
Mamdani charges ahead with another careless promise: Unfunded NYC 2-K Original
As Mayor Mamdani touts progress in expanding “free” childcare, the bills for his socialist ambitions keep growing. He hasn’t come up with a plan to pay for it all — other than, of course, betting that Albany will let him hike taxes. Look at childcare: The city’s pre-K and 3-K programs run partly through private providers who say the city pays them less than the work costs.
Mamdani Charges Ahead With Another Careless Promise: Unfunded NYC 2-K
As Mayor Mamdani touts progress in expanding “free” childcare, the bills for his socialist ambitions keep growing. He hasn’t come up with a plan to pay for it all — other than, of course, betting that Albany will let him hike taxes. Look at childcare: The city’s pre-K and 3-K programs run partly through private providers who say the city pays them less than the work costs.
The Mayor's To-Do List Skips the Classroom
This week, the United Nations General Assembly is taking place in New York, and Mayor Zohran Mamdani has been holding court, welcoming President Donald Trump and various foreign heads of state. Over the weekend, he hosted mayors from far-flung cities during the 2026 Urban 20 (U20) Mayors Summit.
Fewer Than Half of NYC Third Graders Can Read at Grade Level. Their Parents Need Options.
This summer, New York City told the parents of more than 150,000 children that they aren't proficient in English. Most have few options for doing anything about it. Gov. Kathy Hochul can change that. Gov. Hochul has yet to formally decide whether New York will opt into the new Federal Tax Credit for Scholarships.
Fewer Than Half of NYC Third Graders Can Read at Grade Level. Their Parents Need Options.
Governance, Cities, Education New York City, Bigger Apple Substack 1 Minute Read Donate Are you interested in supporting the Manhattan Institute’s public-interest research and journalism? As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, donations in support of MI and its scholars’ work are fully tax-deductible as provided by law (EIN #13-2912529).
New York’s Shadow Workforce
This Labor Day, local politicians will once again extol their support for working New Yorkers, standing shoulder to shoulder with the city’s unions. Staunchly pro-labor Mayor Zohran Mamdani will be there and may point to his support for the Delivery Protection Act, which would prohibit operators of last-mile facilities from contracting out their core warehouse and delivery work.
Why Small Classes Won’t Save NYC Schools
Cities, Education New York, New York City, Bigger Apple Substack 1 Minute Read Donate Are you interested in supporting the Manhattan Institute’s public-interest research and journalism? As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, donations in support of MI and its scholars’ work are fully tax-deductible as provided by law (EIN #13-2912529).
Four Bad Arguments Against Self-Driving Taxis Original
Autonomous vehicles are a revolutionary new technology that is already available in American cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Austin, and even skeptics concede it’s a matter of “when, not if” these cars arrive in full force in New York City.
As the School Goes, So Goes the Neighborhood
You may not notice it right away, but an unsettling quiet settles over a neighborhood when children disappear. Playgrounds feel empty, fewer strollers pass by, and fewer parents shout “stop” at little ones scooting along the sidewalk. The local school begins to shrink, changing who encounters whom daily, who comes to recognize neighborhood, and how often residents are reminded that they are part of a community. The number of children in New York has been declining.
100 Days of Mayor Mamdani
Have you added The Bigger Apple Podcast to your favorite podcast player yet? Nicole and I just wrapped our episode on Mamdani’s first 100 days, and I think you’ll enjoy it. Mayor Zohran Mamdani is holding a rally this weekend to celebrate his first 100 days in office. Every outlet in the city is scrutinizing his performance, but few questions are asked about the longer-term implications of his short-term decisions.
Inside California’s $12 Billion Fraud Crisis
Good morning: This week in City Journal, senior fellow Christopher F. Rufo and investigative reporter Kenneth Schrupp expose a California program that may be responsible for up to $12 billion in fraudulent claims. Billed as a compassionate system for at-home elder care, the state’s In-Home Supportive Services program pays family members and other individuals to provide home-based care for the elderly and disabled—at a cost of nearly $30 billion per year.
Building Family-Friendly Cities Principles for Reversing the Urban Family Exodus
American cities are struggling to attract and retain young families. A growing number of parents are choosing to decamp for suburban and exurban communities, no longer confident that the country’s major cities offer the right combination of affordability, safety, and quality amenities. For those who remain in U.S. urban cores, an increasing number of potential parents are choosing to have fewer children or to forgo having kids altogether.
Friday Newsletter: How Rich Do You Need To Be To Afford Children In New York City?
Photo by Jermaine Ee on Unsplash This week came with the news that at the city’s most prestigious independent schools tuition will exceeded $70,000 a year this fall. Meanwhile, Manhattan rents hit their third-highest level on record, up nearly 8% from 2025 and more than double the annual inflation rate, with no signs of slowing. The median rent in Manhattan was $4,695 last month.
The Radical Politics of Being "Stuck" in The City
Photo by L.A Co. on Unsplash “If you don’t like it, leave” is a familiar New York response to complaints about cost or quality of life. It assumes that exit is easy and always available. But that’s no longer true, as the data below suggests. Now, too many New Yorkers feel stuck in the city with few good options to improve their lot and the outsiders are finding it harder and harder to move to the city without having amassed a fortune already.
NY’s quest for universal child care sounds enticing - but reality is simply unrealistic
A big swirling bucket of the latest rumors, celebrity news and Hollywood gossip. The premier celebrity gossip app. The only apps that gives you a comprehensive real time celeb news stream. Gossip Bucket aggregates and streams the latest gossip news and headlines from the top sources in one place.
NY's quest for universal child care sounds enticing - but reality is simply unrealistic
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani said the city and state will deliver free child care for 2-year-olds at a press conference on Jan. 8, 2026. Andrew Schwartz / SplashNews.com New York’s push for universal child care starts from a place most people understand, but making it a reality is a daunting challenge. Yes, child care is expensive. Families are stretched. Many parents want to work more but can’t find care that fits their schedules or budgets.
NY’s quest for universal child care sounds enticing - but reality is simply unrealistic
An image collage containing 1 images, Image 1 shows Kathy Hochul and Zohran Mamdani stand at a podium in front of American and New York flags New York’s push for universal child care starts from a place most people understand, but making it a reality is a daunting challenge. Yes, child care is expensive. Families are stretched. Many parents want to work more but can’t find care that fits their schedules or budgets. The idea that the city or state should step in is an easy sell.
NY’s Quest for Universal Child Care Sounds Enticing - but Reality Is Simply Unrealistic
New York’s push for universal child care starts from a place most people understand, but making it a reality is a daunting challenge. Yes, child care is expensive. Families are stretched. Many parents want to work more but can’t find care that fits their schedules or budgets. The idea that the city or state should step in is an easy sell. Even under optimistic assumptions, however, a fully universal child-care system would cost more than $14 billion a year, permanently added to the state budget.
The La Guardia Test
New Yorkers agree on very little, but even Andrew Cuomo and Zohran Mamdani — who clashed so bitterly in Wednesday night’s debate at the LaGuardia Community College — can agree on one thing: Fiorello La Guardia was the greatest. Mamdani said at the first mayoral debate that the New Deal mayor, who governed from 1934 to 1945, was the best mayor in the history of the city. Cuomo also held up La Guardia as the model—proof that strong, central leadership can make a government work.
Mamdani’s Out-of-Town Playbook
Zohran Mamdani has been looking far beyond New York for models of how to run the city. He has praised Boston Mayor Michelle Wu’s fare-free buses, Philadelphia’s Hub of Hope for homeless outreach in transit stations, Denver’s STAR program that dispatches clinicians to certain 911 calls, Oregon’s CAHOOTS crisis-response teams, and even Columbus, Ohio’s protest-policing style that emphasizes dialogue over specialized units.
Zohran Mamdani’s Big Progressive Plans Could End Like Bill de Blasio’s
Zohran Mamdani’s mayoral platform is full of sweeping proposals: public grocery stores, rent freezes, and major new spending. Former mayor and fellow arch-progressive Bill de Blasio’s time in City Hall shows how quickly big plans like these can collide with structural limits, flawed policy design, and unplanned events. In January 2014, de Blasio inherited Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s New York.
It's Election Day
The polls are open until 9 p.m., and despite the hot day, the turnout at my usually sleepy local polling place this morning was impressive. I hope that if you can vote in the Democratic primary and haven't done so yet, that you will exercise your right to have your voice heard. Find your polling place here. A few days ago, I urged you to rank your choices responsibly.
Liena Zagare - Bklyner
Transportation endorsements
a Look at How They’d Govern
Over the past six months, I have sat across from nearly every serious Democratic candidate for New York City mayor. As part of the New York Editorial Board, a group of veteran journalists (which also includes City Journal contributing editor Nicole Gelinas), I helped conduct long-form, off-camera interviews. No handlers. No applause lines. Just questions: about budgets, housing, protests, immigration, public safety, and the day-to-day challenges of managing America’s largest city.
5 Questions For Mayoral Candidate Andrew Cuomo
Everyone knows your name, but your candidacy seems to provoke strong feelings. What would your mayoralty mean for Brooklyn’s families—especially those who feel let down by both progressives and City Hall, and weary of scandals? If you’ve been in public service as long as I have, you’re bound to ruffle some feathers. But at the end of the day, what matters is results—not headlines or political noise. I’ve dedicated my life to public service as a progressive Democrat.
5 Questions For Mayoral Candidate Brad Lander
You’ve represented parts of Brooklyn for years. But Brooklyn isn’t just Park Slope. What would you say to voters in Canarsie, Midwood, or Bay Ridge who don’t see themselves in your coalition? What would your mayoralty mean for Brooklyn’s working-class families—especially those who feel let down by both progressives and City Hall? It has been a privilege to be a Brooklyn dad, and to have raised my children in the same neighborhood that I served as a City Councilmember.
Rank Thoughtfully
The Democratic primary is this Tuesday, June 24, and everyone from the Mayor to City Council members is on the ballot. Early voting continues through Sunday afternoon (check your polling location here). As you probably know by now, it will be increasingly extremely hot this weekend, with temperatures potentially hitting 101°F by Tuesday. If you can, vote early, drink plenty of water, and be safe out there.
5 Questions For Mayoral Candidate Zellnor Myrie
You’ve represented parts of Brooklyn for years. But Brooklyn isn’t just Park Slope or PLG. What would you say to voters in Canarsie, Midwood, or Bay Ridge who don’t see themselves in your coalition? What would your mayoralty mean for Brooklyn’s working-class families—especially those who feel let down by both progressives and City Hall? I am the proud son of two Costa-Rican immigrants, who came to New York City to work in factories.
5 Questions For Mayoral Candidate Scott Stringer
You’ve represented Manhattan for years, but most Brooklyn voters barely know you. What would your mayoralty mean for Brooklyn’s working-class families—especially those who feel let down by both progressives and City Hall? They might not know me as well as some of the other candidates, but I know them. Brooklyn now is in many ways like the Manhattan I grew up in. And the concerns are very much the same.
A New Way To Follow The Mayor's Race
— 3 min read Dear Reader, I’m reaching out with an update and an invitation. As many of you know, Bklyner has been quiet. Like many of you, I’ve spent the past year thinking about what kinds of conversations we need to have to make New York City a better place to live—and how we can move past political drama and sound bites to focus on real solutions.
NYC Department of Transportation Seeks Public Input on Truck Route Network Revamp
Trucks. The ones that cut through residential blocks, are too big to be on local truck routes, get stuck under overpasses, speed on local streets, block traffic, kill residents … I could go on. We've all seen them. But it took the city council passing a local law to get the city's transportation department to finally take a comprehensive look at its truck network and to solicit resident feedback on where and what the issues are.
How New York’s Next Mayor Can Keep Families From Fleeing
New York has always tested parents’ endurance, but today they face a new burden: chronic unpredictability. Some families can budget for “expensive,” but not for a sudden tuition spike, a daycare closure announced by email at 10 p.m., or a school-lottery assignment that upends a carefully planned commute. Shocks like these can push even the most diehard city loyalists to start browsing Zillow for homes in New Jersey or Long Island. The numbers reflect the rising pressures on New York families.
Politics, Transit, Housing, and Spring Events
Hello Bklyner readers! As you know, I’m more regularly to be found these days over at The Bigger Apple, writing about politics, policy, and the mayor's race (please sign up here if you’re interested) But there’s so much happening in Brooklyn right now that it demands an update, and honestly — I’ve missed this platform, and your emails. So here’s the latest! Happy Easter! Luna Park and Deno’s Wonder Wheel in Coney Island are open for the season and expect you to show up at least once.
Mayoral Candidate Zohran Mamdani Is Making Promises New York Can’t Afford
For more news on New York’s high-stakes mayoral race, follow the Manhattan Institute’s The Bigger Apple newsletter. State assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, a self-described “Muslim lefty from the other side of Queens,” has surged in the campaign for New York mayor. That’s thanks to a simple message: life here is too expensive, and those in power aren’t doing enough about it. His candidacy is gathering strength and now represents the most serious socialist run at New York’s City Hall since 1917.
Your tax dollars at work
Sign up for The Media Today, CJR’s daily newsletter. Over the last decade, waves of hyperlocal blogs and other digitally native local publications have come and gone. Who doesn’t remember the demise of a beloved site, from Chicago’s Windy Citizen to the snarky Fucked in Park Slope to the Catskills’s sweet Watershed Post? Local publishers’ heroic trade group, LION Publishers: Local Independent Online News, boasts just over 150 members. Most of them are one- or two-person shops.
Endorsement: Brannan for Council District 47
I haven’t historically written endorsements in Bklyner, but many of you have asked me in the last couple of days who I think is the better choice for this district that now includes Bay Ridge and Coney Island – Ari Kagan (R) or Justin Brannan (D). And one of the things I’ve learned from years of covering local elections here is just how little guidance voters get. The big citywide editorial boards often don’t endorse.
Should Kagan or Brannan Represent Bay Ridge and Coney Island in City Council?
Ahead of the November 7 local elections, when we get to pick our city council members again, NY1 held a debate Tuesday night (you can watch it here) between the two incumbents in what will be the new District 47 – Ari Kagan, a recent Republican representing current Council District 47, and Justin Brannan, a Democrat representing current Council District 43.
Streets, Migrants, And More
The weather has turned pleasant and just about every neighborhood in Brooklyn wants you to come out and enjoy all it has to offer — from Atlantic Antic Downtown, 3rd Avenue Fair in Bay Ridge, art crawls in Ditmas Park and Prospect Lefferts Gardens, to lots of literary events to go with the Brooklyn Book Festival. Or just plain fun.
New Crosswalks By Parade Grounds
I could never understand why the Parade Ground entrance facing Prospect Park had no crosswalk. Of course, there is no gate to the park there either, but for decades, locals of all ages and backgrounds have made the mad dash across Parkside Avenue and navigated the hole in the fence, making the steep climb up to the road that leads to all the park could offer.
Queens-bound BQE Closures in Mid-October
Brace yourselves, folks, because we've got some road drama coming our way in mid-October. BQE will be closed between the Atlantic Avenue entrance ramp and the Manhattan Bridge exit ramp in the Queens-bound lane. Staten Island-bound traffic will be reduced to one lane during the same period, and there will be detours on local streets as well. Mark your calendars – it's all happening from 2 a.m. on Saturday, October 14th, to 4 a.m. on Monday, October 16th.
14-Story Buildings For Coney Island Avenue?
With the new building on Park Circle rapidly approaching completion, a number of other developments are being quietly revealed on the blocks of Coney Island Avenue north of Beverley Road. One is currently under review by Community Board 12, with a vote scheduled for this evening. Neighbors are upset that no notice was given in the immediate neighborhood about the proposed upzoning that could allow buildings twice as tall as the five to seven-story developments common in the area.
Ample Hills, Artichoke Parm, Ayat, and more
As the sky turned a darker shade of brown yet, it's time to stay indoors and pull out those old KN95 masks (or the best available mask) to help you breathe a bit easier when outside, regardless of how good a shape you are in, NY State's health officials recommended
NYC Council: Brooklyn Primaries 2023
As the sky turned a darker shade of brown yet, it's time to stay indoors and pull out those old KN95 masks (or the best available mask) to help you breathe a bit easier when outside, regardless of how good a shape you are in, NY State's health officials recommended
NYC Council Primaries: District 43
District 47 was significantly redrawn to accommodate the new District 43 and now includes Bay Ridge, Bath Beach, and Coney Island, with a narrow sliver of Dyker Heights connecting the two. On the Democratic side, there is no primary, and whoever wins among the Republicans will challenge current Bay Ridge Councilmember Justin Brannan in November in what is expected to be another close election even though he has raised more money that all other candidates in the race.
Air Worst In Memory
As the sky turned a darker shade of brown yet, it's time to stay indoors and pull out those old KN95 masks (or the best available mask) to help you breathe a bit easier when outside, regardless of how good a shape you are in, NY State's health officials recommended yesterday. The air quality has been the worst it has been in memory and will likely remain so through Friday since the wind is blowing the smoke right down to NYC from Canada, and rain is not expected till next week.
NYC Council Primaries: District 43
District 43 was drawn following the 2020 Census to acknowledge the large Asian population that had settled in Bensonhurst and Sunset Park neighborhoods over the last two decades. The new district is 54% Asian, 27% White, and 15% Hispanic, home to just over 175,000 residents. When it comes to who can vote, however, the voter demographics lag: the share of Asians drops to 48.5%, Hispanic to 10.5%, while White residents account for 39.4% of the estimated 80,000 eligible voters.
Beach Watch: Sharks, Rip Currents, and 100 Years of Splinters
If you've lived here any length of time you know there is no better way to cool off than heading to the beach (sorry Prospect Park). However, if you've been on a beach after a storm, you may have discovered all kinds of stuff floating in the waters, making you wonder if it's a good idea to splash around after all. Oh, and you may have heard about the sharks. Let's clear that one up.
Show More
loading
Actions
Get in touch with Liena
Contact Liena, search articles and posts on X, monitor coverage, and track replies from one place.
Learn more about Muck Rack