Hi New York!

Did you know? On January 2, 1898, New York City began its first full working day as a unified five-borough metropolis after consolidation reshaped the city forever.

In today’s NYC Newsletter:

Mamdani inauguration, hidden gems, local headlines this week.

Let’s get to it.

– Sofia Kurd.

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The answer to last weeks trivia: SoHo became legally residential after artists lived for years in industrial lofts that were zoned against residential use. These lofts becoming so frequently used as residential properties pushed the city into court and ultimately forced a zoning change to allow live-work spaces.

NYC TRIVIA:

What was the original purpose of Central Park?
A) A public health experiment
B) A military defense zone
C) A private park for elites
D) A real estate value booster

The answer will be revealed in the next newsletter.

Say fir-well to your Christmas tree at Mulchfest
NYC Parks’ annual Mulchfest returns, letting New Yorkers recycle their Christmas trees into wood chips that nourish parks across the city. Drop off your ornament-free tree at any Mulchfest location during park hours from December 26 through January 11, or attend Chipping Weekend on January 10–11.

Free MoMA PS1 admission for all
Your LIC art crawl just got cheaper. MoMA PS1 (LIC) is now free for all visitors. The change comes courtesy of a new gift to the museum and is slated to last for the next three years.

One4One — a new sports bar with a VIP lounge and secret entrance
Sports bars get a serious glow-up at One4One, a former Chrystie Street townhouse turned part sports bar, part social club, complete with a VIP lounge and discreet entryway. Designed as a gathering spot for people who care about sports, atmosphere, and community.

The Little Bookshop Opening
Cozy season meets community at The Little Bookshop in Bushwick, where well-stocked shelves, warm interiors, and bowls of soup make it an ideal refuge on a cold afternoon.

Through Feb 1, 2026: See the largest Monet exhibition in New York in 25 years
The Brooklyn Museum’s Monet and Venice brings together over 100 paintings, books, and ephemera, marking the largest New York exhibition of Claude Monet’s work in more than two decades and the first major spotlight on his Venice paintings since 1912.

Fri + Sat (10pm–4am): House of Yes 10-Year Anniversary
Bushwick nightclub House of Yes celebrates 10 years of debauchery with two special nights of over-the-top performance, costumes, and dancing. Various prices.

Sing your heart out at a new West Village karaoke bar
Beatbox opens in the West Village with private karaoke suites, multiple game modes, and comfort-food bites, offering a polished, late-night spot for group sing-alongs and unapologetic power ballads.

Sat 7–11pm: Dry January Kickoff Party
Bright Nights Social hosts a sober-friendly mixer with non-alcoholic drinks (<0.5% ABV), a bedazzle station, and icebreakers to get the conversation started. Hekate Café + Elixir Lounge (Alphabet City / East Village), free admission.

Zohran Mamdani was formally sworn in as New York City’s mayor on January 1, becoming one of the youngest mayors in modern NYC history and marking a shift in City Hall. In his inaugural remarks, Mamdani emphasized housing affordability, public services, and cost-of-living relief as immediate priorities for his administration, signaling a policy focus squarely on everyday New Yorkers. Mamdani’s swearing-in capped a political transition moment in NYC, with a new mayor, new executive team, and multiple city agencies resetting leadership simultaneously at the start of the year. Crowds gathered for the inauguration reflected a broad coalition of supporters spanning labor groups, housing advocates, and young voters, underscoring the grassroots energy behind his election.

New York City is investing millions in “bluebelts” to manage increased rainfall and protect infrastructure from cloudbursts and flooding. Inside Climate News
• A slate of new NYC and New York State laws take effect in 2026, covering employment, health care, and consumer protections. CBS News
• The official inaugural address by newly sworn-in NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani marks the start of his term and policy agenda. New York City Government
• NYC’s first baby of 2026 was born at Harlem Hospital right as the New Year began, breaking a recent pattern of hospital births. New York Post
• NYC plans security updates for this year’s Times Square New Year’s Eve celebrations. Gothamist
• Mayor Mamdani signs executive orders focused on housing development and city operations on his first day in office. NY1
• NYC life expectancy reached a record high of 83.2 years, ahead of projections. New York Post

That dramatic steam curling up from New York City manholes in winter isn’t sewer gas—it’s excess steam released from one of the world’s largest and oldest district steam heating systems, built in the late 19th century and still powering thousands of buildings today. The network runs beneath much of Manhattan, heating offices, apartments, hospitals, and landmarks like Grand Central, and when pressure or condensation builds, the system vents safely into the street. In cold months, this can make parts of the underground infrastructure warmer than the air above, giving NYC its signature foggy, almost cinematic winter streetscape—Victorian engineering still doing its job in plain sight.

Take this month’s prediction survey and share your take on major NYC and national storylines. At the end of each month, we randomly select one respondent to receive a $75 gift card.

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