Friday, Dec. 12, 2025
Dear New Yorkers,
Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani swept into City Hall promising a clean break from the Eric Adams era. For nearly 200 political appointees, that initially meant a pink slip.
But the administration’s early attempt at a broad housecleaning is now facing a common city obstacle: union protections.
More than 30 of the 179 mayoral staffers who were notified they wouldn’t have a job in the next administration have formal civil service job titles that entitle them to internal administrative hearings if higher-ups try to fire or demote them.
Read more here about what happens next for those workers.
Weather ☀️
Sunny, with a high near 35.
MTA 🚇
No scheduled C service overnight. Find all the MTA’s planned changes and the latest delays here.
Alternate side parking 🚙
It’s in effect today, Dec. 12.
By the way…
Open Streets will be returning Sunday on Fifth Avenue.
Our Other Top Stories
- The transit systems in San Francisco, Philly and other big cities are hurting. Yet in New York, North America’s largest mass transportation authority finds itself running more trains and buses, and limiting fare hikes. How is the MTA actually … doing OK these days?
- The CEO of a telecommunications construction firm entangled in a federal influence-peddling investigation targeting two of Mayor Eric Adams’ former top officials — David and Philip Banks — and their brother, Terence, was indicted Thursday on corporate fraud charges.
- A federal judge in Lower Manhattan has ordered the deposition of William Joyce, ICE’s New York Deputy Field Office Director, in an ongoing lawsuit regarding conditions inside holding cells on the 10th floor of 26 Federal Plaza.
Reporter’s Notebook
Federal Oversight of Youth Lock-up Ends
Federal oversight for Horizon Juvenile Center has officially ended. A Southern District of New York judge on Tuesday issued an order to conclude court-appointed monitorship for The Bronx detention facility — an effort which began originally on Rikers Island in 2015 then applied to Horizon in 2018 when 16- and 17-year-olds were transferred there after the state passed its “Raise the Age” law a year earlier. The judge’s order this week followed a report by the federal monitor last month finding the Administration of Children Services, which oversees Horizon, “has demonstrated its internal capacity to identify and address its problems and challenges without the need for external oversight.”
ACS commissioner Jess Dannhauser said: “We are proud of the gains and, at the same time, are very clear: this is not the finish line. ACS remains committed to continuing to make improvements to promote a safe, supportive and growth-oriented environment for young people and staff in our secure detention centers.”
Advocates, however, remain concerned about overcrowding, “extremely unsanitary conditions” and “the denial of education and programming” at Horizon. “We continue to receive alarming accounts of serious injuries to our clients and flagrant staff misconduct across Horizon,” said Redmond Haskins, spokesperson for the Legal Aid Society, which represents the plaintiffs in the civil-rights lawsuit that led to the monitorship.
— Haidee Chu
Things To Do
Here’s what’s going on around the city this week.
- Friday, Dec. 12: Listen to the New York Classical Players perform pieces from Kodály, Martinů and Mendelssohn at the Church of St. Luke and St. Matthew. Free, from 7:30 to 9:15 p.m.
- Friday, Dec. 12 to Sunday, Dec. 14: Pick up some local handmade pottery from 30 artists at the BrickHouse Ceramic Art Center in Long Island City.
- Sunday, Dec. 14: Go birding with the NYC Bird Alliance at its 126th annual Christmas Bird Count across Manhattan. RSVP is required.
THE KICKER: Trying to avoid overpriced Christmas trees? Gothamist is mapping out where the best deals are around town.
Thanks, as always, for reading. Make it a great Friday.
Love,
THE CITY
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