Historic Harlem Abyssinian Baptist Church Names New Senior Pastor
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The venerable Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem, New York, has announced the appointment of Rev. Kevin R. Johnson as its new senior pastor. Succeeding the esteemed Rev. Calvin O. Butts who faithfully led the congregation for fifty years until his passing in 2022. Rev. Johnson, renowned for founding Philadelphia’s Dare to Imagine Church with humble…
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NWI Online Events – Andrew Scott Denlinger-Solo @ Barraco’s Orland Park (Harlem Ave) – The Times of Northwest Indiana
NWI Online Events – Andrew Scott Denlinger-Solo @ Barraco’s Orland Park (Harlem Ave) The Times of Northwest Indiana
NWI Online Events – Andrew Scott Denlinger-Solo @ Barraco’s Orland Park (Harlem Ave) – The Times of Northwest Indiana
NWI Online Events – Andrew Scott Denlinger-Solo @ Barraco’s Orland Park (Harlem Ave) The Times of Northwest Indiana
There is a public sound booth inside the 81st Street subway station on the Upper West Side
Last fall, the MTA announced its intention to “reinvent subway retail locations with arts or cultural spaces.”
That effort has turned into a reality on the Upper West Side: the agency transformed a vacant commercial space by the B and C train platform inside the West 81st Street station into the Sound Booth, a “busking station” for artists, as first reported by I Love The Upper West Side.
The MTA enlisted the help of Art on the Ave, an area nonprofit that turns empty storefronts into art galleries, to complete the project.
“The opportunity came up to make inventive use of empty units within the subway,” Barbara Anderson, the founder of Art on the Ave, says to Time Out New York. “Everything we do is defined by the unit and its context and surroundings so it seemed appropriate for a subway station. We want to provide these musicians with a welcoming safe place to share their talent. At the Sound Booth they get a beautiful little place to play rather than a brick wall.”
The process is a relatively simple one: starting next Monday, interested musicians will be able to schedule rehearsal time on the Art on the Ave and Columbus BID websites.
“We will book musicians but if someone comes by who wants to play or join, we are all about improv too,” explains Anderson.
A representative from the involved organizations will be present during each session to make sure things run smoothly.
“We just ask musicians to be aware of the fact that we are in a public space and that we play to wide range of people from different places and cultures,” says Anderson.
Special events like open mic night, Broadway tunes, battle of the bands and more will also be on the docket.
When asked about the possibility of replicating the very New York-like project across other local subway stations or, perhaps, outside of the town, Anderson is hopeful.
“This is a trial for us,” she says. “Perhaps, if other areas in the city like it, we can try it elsewhere.”
NYC plans to fix the BQE, but not until 2029: here’s what we know
The good news: the triple cantilever portion of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway in Brooklyn Heights is finally being renovated. The not-as-great news: construction on the dilapidated portion of the road will not start until 2029.
Last week, the Department of Transportation released a new plan to tackle the issues that the 1.5-mile stretch of the BQE between Atlantic Avenue and Sands Street has been dealing with for year. This is the fourth proposal that the city has released and considered.
Gothamist reports that DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez said that “he’s still not sure if the city will move forward with the latest pitch or choose another one the department presented in the past.”
This latest proposal seeks to fix the problematic section of the expressway through a revamped “stacked” design, which is actually not very different from how the area is currently set up.
“The new layout […] would tuck the Staten Island-bound lanes directly below the Queens-bound ones, where the existing Staten Island-bound lanes jut out slightly,” reports the Brooklyn Paper. “In the new proposal, a skeletal wall would fence in the Staten-Island bound lanes, blocking them from view from street level.”
It’s important to note that, even if this particular design gets the green light, it would take the federal government five years to approve it and construction to begin. According to officials, the endeavor will also cost around $5 billion.
There are still many unknowns: will the eventual construction completely disrupt traffic? What layout will officials choose? What are the sorts of factors to keep in mind? Is the expressway still in danger of failing in the next few years?
Overall, local tensions are running high following last-minute changes to the proposed congestion pricing program in NYC. Although years in the making, the initiative was shockingly put on pause before implementation by Governor Kathy Hochul a few weeks ago, to the consternation of many city officials.
Hopefully, folks in power will be able to get it together for this particular project, which has been years in the making and seems to be of utmost importance when it comes to the safety of New York drivers.