Subway announcements, and the voices behind them, are part and parcel of New York City living. So when news regarding a shift in those audio clips reaches us, our attention is peaked. 

Case in point: a new report by The City outlining the MTA’s decision to test new audio tracks underground “with on-train announcements from boldface name New Yorkers and in-station promotions for big-ticket events.”

According to the outlet “a pair of one-year pilot programs […] will gauge rider reaction to announcement aboard trains and to some that will, at select stations, play paid advertisements for sporting and entertainment events.” 

This isn’t an entirely new concept. 

Just last year, subway riders were treated to a number of audio promos about the then-to-be-released movie Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.

Even before then, in 2020, Awkwafina partnered with the MTA to promote her Comedy Central TV show, Awkwafina is Nora from Queens. For a week, the actress was the voice heard on the 7 train during announcements.

A year later, in 2021, famous New Yorkers like Edie Falco and Jerry Seinfeld recorded pandemic-era messages inviting commuters to wear masks on the subway. 

The new trial run, in effect through the beginning of April 2025, will include a set of guidelines: there will be volume and frequency limits in place and, although “designed to raise money for the agency through fees charged to program partners,” according to The City, the ads will have to abide by an advertising policy that prohibits politically-inclined content, the promotion of alcohol or tobacco, and sexually explicit material.

Who knew there was so much to know about those subway announcements that pepper our daily commutes?

* This article was originally published here

The buds have bloomed, the temperatures have risen, and the city’s best parks are filling up with folks in serious need of a vitamin D boost. Yes, summer is on the horizon and with it comes the return of some of our favorite outdoor bars, including Watermark Bar, which will be back as the tropically-themed Watermark Beach this May. 

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The 10,000-square-foot outdoor bar and restaurant at Pier 15 in the Seaport District will officially reopen for the season with an all-day Cinco de Mayo Beach Bash on Sunday, May 5, starting at noon, complete with $5 tacos and Coronas until 3pm as well as live DJs and free Cinco beads for the first 500 people. (You can RSVP for free entry here.) 

That sunny soiree kicks off a full season of fun at Watermark Beach, which will be gussied up for the warm weather with Instagram-ready tiki decor, seasonal drinks and twinkling lights for when the party stretches into the nighttime hours. And this summer, the al fresco experience will introduce new cabanas and a curated new cocktail program, in addition to large-format Cooler Packages, which will allow guests to have their canned and bottled drinks ready on ice as they visit. 

The new Cooler Packages range from the $150 “Be Cool” option—which gets you eight canned cocktails or beers (Truly Tequila Soda, Coney Island IPA) as well as two mini bottles of “Rosé My Way” Hampton Water Rosé Wine—to the $300 Picnic Royalty package, equipped with one bottle of Casamigos or Titos, one bottle of Prosecco or Rosé and four canned cocktails or beers. 

Balance out all the booze with a food menu full snacky, shareable items like jumbo chicken sliders, crispy coconut shrimp, carne asada tacos, classic lobster rolls and more. Check out pictures of the food-and-drink items, as well as the waterfront space below:

* This article was originally published here

Think bugs are creepy? Think again. That’s the message of IMAGINARI, an immersive art and science experience that opened today in Manhattan. 

The year-long exhibition called The Insect World shows just how cool—and important—bugs actually are. You’ll get to walk through fields of 6-foot flowers, come face-to-face with Picasso bug artwork, and see a mantis partying under a disco ball. Larger-than-life ladybug sculptures dot the floor, and 200 faux monarch butterflies perch on a 12-foot cherry blossom tree. It all adds up to an important message of environmental stewardship. Tickets are on sale now for $36; the all-ages exhibition will be on view for one year.

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IMAGINARI is the brainchild of Linda Uribe, who sees it as more than an exhibit. It’s a “community of people who want to do good,” she says. Amid a deluge of terrifying climate news, she hopes the exhibit will inspire people to take on conservation activities with excitement instead of dread.

While the exhibition is visually stunning and certainly Instagram-worthy, it also packs plenty of environmental messaging and cool science facts into its 12,000-square-foot space. For example, insects represent 80% of the world’s species with more than 1 million known species and potentially millions more to be discovered. These powerful pollinators also serve as sanitation experts. Bugs of all shapes and sizes get their moment in the spotlight at IMAGINARI. 

An oversized mantis sculpture offers a chance to admire the creature’s beauty. Fun fact: Mantises are the only insects in the world capable of turning their heads 180 degrees. Another sculpture spotlights the humble dung beetle (which kids will certainly love), while an artistic installation showcases the beauty of the Picasso bug (a patterned bug native to Africa). Graceful ladybug sculptures fly overhead.

In addition to sculpture, bugs are also the subject of close-up photography, textile artwork, and a film compilation. The stunning pieces show off insects’ colors and iridescence. As Uribe says, “insects are like the jewelry of nature.”

The collection features creations of renowned artists, including Marlene Huissoud, Bronx-based John Goodman, Japanese fiber artist Yumi Okita, the Seattle-based paper art duo Moth & Myth, New York-based artist Bella Hatkoff, macro photographer Thilina Hettiarachchi.

During the experience, listen for the specially curated ambient music to calm your nerves. Each guest will take home a pack of flower seeds that they can plant.

Expect to spend more than an hour walking through the exhibition. Before you go, stop in the gift shop to see a loom—how ANYBAG (a New York bag) creates their recycled plastic bag tote. The Manhattan-based company repurposes and upcycles single-use plastic bags from NYC, saving them from reaching landfills and waterways. 

Also at IMAGINARI, keep an eye out for workshops, classes, and other special programming. A floral design class, a beekeeping workshop, and a panel on sustainable landscape architecture are already on the schedule.

Find IMAGINARI at 200 Hudson Street in Tribeca, near Hudson Square, through April 2025. It’s a project of Hudson Square Properties, a joint venture of Trinity Church Wall Street, Norges Bank Investment Management, and Hines.

* This article was originally published here

As any Italian living in NYC knows, some of the most delicious, Italian-tasting food in the city can be found at Piccola Cucina, a trio of restaurants by chef and restaurateur Philip Guardione. 

Until now, Guardione has been operating his three Sicilian eateries—Piccola Cucina Enoteca, Osteria and Estiatorio—within the confines of Manhattan’s culinary scene. That has officially changed with the debut of Piccola Cucina Casa, a new concept that just opened at 141 Nevins Street in Boerum Hill, Brooklyn.

The new location will be slinging out familiar dishes—ricciole pasta with braised tuna, pistacchio foam, ‘nduja and taralli crumble and a cotoletta alla Milanese, for example—but also serve as the owner’s first foray beyond traditional dining. In fact, on top of the restaurant on the ground floor is a duo of recently renovated guesthouse suites that people can actually rent out.

According to an official company spokesperson, Piccola Cucina’s apartments are inspired by the Italian concept of “villeggiatura,” basically resting in a pleasant place.

“Guardione wanted to offer insiders a ‘Piccola Cucina Casa 360’ [experience], like a bed and breakfast,” the spokesperson explained, also noting that “inquiries will be handled very old school.” The exact reservation process is not entirely clear at the moment.

At the moment, the two units—each one boasting a private patio, wood beam ceilings, brick walls, windows galore and skylights—are available for rent on a monthly basis for about $4,500.

But back to the restaurant: the excellent Italian fare will be complemented by cocktails and what the eatery claims to be the most comprehensive Sicilian wine list in the city (we believe it). Among the over 150 different selections on offer are picks from Veneto, Toscana, Guili Venezia, Etna, Messina and more.

As the say in Italy: buon appetito!

* This article was originally published here

As the weather turns warmer, folks heading to the Rockaways should consider spending some time at the new 35-acre preserve that officials just unveiled.

Boasting five different ecosystems, the new preserve features accessible connections to the Rockaway boardwalk and beach as well. 

Expect a number of pedestrian pathways weaving through the preserve, allowing visitors to come face to face with the various natural environments on site: maritime grassland, maritime dunes, maritime shrubland, maritime forest and maritime swale.

Officials have also built a new welcome center, home to a community meeting space, office space for park rangers, crew headquarters for maintenance staff and public restrooms, according to an official press release.

“The Rockaway renaissance takes another historic step forward today,” said Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, Jr. in an official statement. “What was once a vacant, overgrown illegal dumping ground for decades is now a stunning hub of wildlife and a successful example of what community-centered sustainability work looks like.”

But there’s more: a local non-profit, RISE, has also set up camp in the area. The organization will be operating a native plant nursery, “raising locally-adapted native plant seedlings and saplings to support ongoing revegetation of the nature preserve, dunes, and other natural areas around the coast,” reads the press release, while an urban farm will be producing food as well.

The new preserve is part of a larger project called Arverne East that includes the revamping of a vacant 116-acre oceanfront site on the Rockaway Peninsula. When completed, the development will include 1,650 units of housing, most of which will be affordable, plus non-residential spaces, outdoor public destinations and more.

The area is about to look very different, starting with the new preserve.

* This article was originally published here