Our Town (New York City, NY)

The Archdiocese of New York and the lawyers representing about 1,300 victims of sexual abuse busted through the July 10 deadline without a final agreement in the proposed $800 million out-of-court settlement deal, but both sides are still talking. All survivors in the class action suit have to agree to accept the offer before it goes into effect. “The overwhelming majority of survivors agreed to the proposed settlement.

A 27-year-old man entered an Alphabet City apartment where he was found sexually gratifying himself in the early hours of Aug. 29. The undomiciled man, later identified by police as Ulysses Lucero, was reportedly on parole at the time and was reportedly previously arrested 21 times. Prior arrests were said to stem from burglaries, grand larcenies, forcible touching and assaults among other charges. Lucero was arrested again Aug.

Another Kips Bay Plaza business has confirmed it will be vacating the space this year as backlash against potential NYU Langone development mounts. The Bank of America, located at 560 2nd Ave., will be closing on October 15. The bank is the only remaining business in the Kips Bay Plaza besides the AMC and Fairway Market. In a message posted on its door, the bank announced it would be relocating to 300 E.

The Red Caboose, the last of the old-time hobby shops in the city, is closing. With the shop’s demise slated for mid-October, Christmas will be a little different for its legion of loyal customers this year. The sandwich sign in front of the basement shop at 23 West 45th St. announced on August 31 that “Everything Must Go.” The beloved basement shop was closing, after a run of 56 years.

Ahead of the 25th anniversary of 9-11, New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin joined other Council Members to announce a new $1 million initiative to fund free field trips to the 9-11 Memorial & Museum for middle school children. Mayor Zohran Mamdani also signed an executive order calling for a day of remembrance and public service and public service across the city.

The reasons why the beloved Catholic parish may not just perish — its lass mass was held on Aug. 31, 2025, and save a parishioner’s funeral on Jan. 17, 2026, the building has been closed ever since — but also be demolished are manifold but one reason looms over all: Money. The archdiocese needs to sell of big ticket real estate to pay off an estimated $800 million sexual abuse settlement.

Hart Island has served many uses since the 19th Century, including a military training ground for Black Civil War soldiers, a quarantine station, a psychiatric hospital, a reform school, a rehabilitation facility, a missile base, a jail, and now a burial ground. The most northeastern of New York City’s more than 40 islands, though classified as uninhabited, one might say that Hart Island is filled with people — estimates range from 800,000 to 1,000,000 — but none of them pay taxes or vote.

Like many Italian-Americans in the city, San Gennaro, has always held a special place in John DeLutro’s heart. In fact, he credits much of his success to the relatively obscure patron saint of Naples, Italy, who is at the center of one of the biggest celebrations of Italian culture in the city, the annual San Gennaro Festival in Little Italy.

Author Kimberley Tait had just started her first real job, freshly graduated from Dartmouth University and living in Chicago, when the tragedy of 9/11 unfolded and changed the trajectory of her adult life. Tait, now 47, was late to work that morning and was unaware that the Twin Towers had been hit until she entered her office, where her coworkers were watching the calamity from the conference room.

When the going gets rough, the “ruff’ get going. After being rescued from an animal shelter, a speckled brown-and-white cocker spaniel named Cassie returned the favor to her owner, lifelong New Yorker and essay writer Ann Gorewitz, whose husband, Steve, was becoming increasingly and chronically ill. Hence, Gorewitz includes Cassie not only in her debut memoir, but in the title.