Hi New York!
Did you know? On January 9, 1849, the Astor Library officially opened in Manhattan. Backed by a large donation from John Jacob Astor, it became one of New York City’s earliest major reference libraries and a key precursor to the New York Public Library system.
In today’s NYC Newsletter:
Winter Jazzfest Manhattan, Universal Childcare, hidden gems, and other events in the city.
Let’s get to it.
– Sofia Kurd.
P.S. Don’t keep us a secret! Share the New York City Newsletter with a friend. First time here? Subscribe at newyorkcitynewsletter.com
P.P.S. 🚨Do you have something to sell, promote, or announce in NYC?🚨 Our classifieds are open. Share your announcement with thousands of New Yorkers.
New York Question Of The Day
Want to participate? Reply directly to this newsletter. No cheating!
The answer to last week’s trivia: [C] the Cross Bronx Expressway displaced the most people in NYC history — built under infamous planner Robert Moses, it bulldozed through Bronx neighborhoods and displaced more than 60,000 residents, causing lasting social damage, but also created a fast highway that made moving goods across New York quicker and helped power the city’s postwar economic growth.
NYC TRIVIA:
Which of these jobs once required a city-issued license in New York?
A) Fortune telling
B) Piano playing in bars
C) Street photography
D) Shoe shining
The answer will be revealed in the next newsletter.
Best Events
Secret Message Party at The Lavaux — Tuesday-night social roulette in the West Village: write anonymous notes and a “messenger” delivers them to other tables while you drink Swiss wine.
Winter Jazzfest: Manhattan Marathon — A choose-your-own-adventure jazz night where you venue-hop across Lower Manhattan with one pass (Jan 9; expect lines/capacity drama in the best way).
So & So’s Piano Bar — A hidden Hell’s Kitchen supper-club piano bar you enter through a low-key door off 52nd & 8th, with nightly live entertainment + cocktails.
INTER’s interstellar exhibition — A SoHo immersive “space trip” with 10+ interactive rooms (mirrors, projections, motion-tracking installations) designed for maximal dopamine + photos.
Keith Haring’s “FDR Drive Mural, 1984” (panels) — A rare chance to see 14 original panels from Haring’s massive roadside mural reinstalled at street-height, like they were meant to be encountered (Martos Gallery, Lower Manhattan).
Urban Stomp: Dreams & Defiance on the Dance Floor — Museum of the City of New York’s love letter to how NYC dances (lindy, salsa, hustle, vogue, etc.), with 200 years of dance-floor culture packed into one show (through Feb 22).
Horizon of Khufu (VR pyramids experience) — Walk through ancient Egypt in VR—pyramids, tombs, Nile scenes—without leaving Manhattan (Eclipso NYC, 555 W 57th St; timed tickets).
MoMA Mart — MoMA’s Design Store turns “grocery shopping” into a design prank: shelves of fake food that are actually lamps, candles, stools, and sculptural home objects (Jan 6–Mar 29; SoHo + Midtown; free to browse).
TECHNE: Homecoming — Onassis ONX christens its new Tribeca space with “phygital” installations (real objects + interactive tech) exploring identity/kinship (Jan 9–18, 1–7pm; open exhibition + ticketed performances).
Hidden Gems
Local News
NYC moves toward free child care for 2-year-olds
Governor Hochul and Mayor Mamdani announced a plan to expand NYC’s early-childhood programs, aiming to make child care free for 2-year-olds citywide.Dueling rallies in Lower Manhattan over Maduro’s arraignment — Small, opposing demonstrations took place outside the federal courthouse in Lower Manhattan where Maduro was arraigned, with supporters and opponents of his capture both expressing their views.
Debate swirls over NYC tenant-advocate Cea Weaver — NYC’s new director of the Office to Protect Tenants is under fire for past social media remarks on housing and homeownership, sparking a political debate between progressive supporters and critics who say the comments are divisive.
NYC welcomes new restaurants in January — A wave of bakeries, cafés, and eateries—including Justin’s Salt Bread and Brasa Peruvian Kitchen—opens across boroughs.
Mayor Mamdani targets hidden “junk fees” in early executive action
One of the new mayor’s first moves focuses on eliminating surprise consumer fees across services and retail.New Yorker interviewed 100 NYC doormen
A social media series spotlighting the lives of NYC doormen is gaining national attention for its unexpectedly human stories.One-year congestion pricing data shows major wins for NYC traffic and transit — Early results from NYC’s congestion pricing program reveal 27 million fewer cars entering the pricing zone in the first year, faster transit times, and reduced traffic delays, signaling measurable progress in mobility and air quality.
Climate advocates celebrate Hochul’s gas-hookup veto
Environmental groups praised the governor’s decision to block expanded gas hookups in new buildings.All-cash home purchases hit record high in NYC
Luxury buyers drove a surge in all-cash real estate deals across the city in 2025.
New York City Fact
Beneath parts of Manhattan, there’s a forgotten underground railway built not for people, but for mail: in the early 1900s, New York constructed a pneumatic-and-electric freight system that shuttled letters and packages between post offices using small rail cars and pressurized tubes, allowing mail to move faster underground than traffic above—until trucks, budget cuts, and World War I ended the experiment, leaving sealed tunnels and abandoned stations quietly entombed below streets most New Yorkers walk every day without knowing they’re crossing over a city that once tried to automate itself a century too early.
Rate This Newsletter
We’re always trying to improve our content for you. Please provide feedback for the New York City Newsletter: