Your Non-Weak Weekly Update: August 10th, 2026
Our NYC Neighbors, South Park concert, My Favorite Bagel, and What's New At the Free Library?
So a few weeks back, The Guardian ran this article: “New York Chinatown Fears Impact of $8 Billion Casino”
It’s about the fight that the people in Flushing are putting up against the casino developers. I don’t think it’s the same bozos that tried to put one up here in Tudor City, though. Different bozos but the same game, I reckon.
Reading the article compelled me to think about ways to support the people of Flushing Chinatown in their battle. I remember the astroturf campaign against us involved people from other neighborhoods coming in and saying things like “you know, the casino will give me work” or “think of the nice buildings that can go up” or “please don’t deprive this neighborhood of Bo Dietl’s terrible ideas.” It always felt like a deeply cynical but possibly-effective way to convince the board and the community that maybe, just maybe, there was broader public support for the proposed casino project.
I mean, the neighborhood seems to be against it, but the rest of the city seems to love the idea! That’s really how I felt watching the public hearing. Luckily, our representatives paid attention (at least the ones not appointed by the Governor and the Mayor).
I get that neighbors sometimes might not be the most reliable audience to new developments, of any kind, where they live. Because the reality is that people get as NIMBY as hell when anything new comes in. We do need shelter for the unhoused in this city, but I guarantee there would be a huge freak-out if that shelter were going in where that Crummy Bills bar used to be, on 42nd and 2nd. Not being for or against this hypothetical, but using the example as proof that people always have very strong feelings about change in the neighborhood.
A casino is different. A casino takes money from people who don’t have much and spills the waste out into the neighborhood it occupies. We fought against it here and we should use our experience to help people across the city fight it in their neighborhoods. We were organized and we fought back and we were lucky that the Soloviev Group was dumb as bricks with their PR campaign.
Let’s take what we learned and help our neighbors. There are ways to support the Flushing community as they fight against this. Please consider helping them in their fight against the casino they don’t want.
First, check out Queens for All and then, sign up to help them HERE. Lending our voice to support our Queens neighbors as they oppose these god-awful casinos can only benefit us as a city in the long-run. And think of the new friends you can make. Maybe that last one is just me.
OK! Now to step down from the soapbox. What’s happening this week?
CIVICALLYS
There’s a concert in the South Park! Sadie Goodman and Katina Pantazopolous are performing on Wednesday, August 12th from 6:30 to 8:00 pm. Rain date is the next day.
The Summer Book Talk series is happening on Tuesday, August 18th. The book is The Women by Kristin Hannah. You still have time to read it. I believe in you.
There is a private event in the park on Saturday, August 15th in the afternoon. Plan your hangs in the North Park.
The heat looks like it’ll continue into mid-week but break towards the end. Stay hydrated and check in on your neighbors!
TO DO
The Bryant Park Summer movie tonight is one of my personal favorite movies, Catch Me If You Can. Heck, if it is even moderately nice out tonight, you’ll def see me and my partner out on the lawn. We got fancy blankets and everything.
A new art exhibit is starting up at the Ford Foundation on August 12th. It’s called “Never the Same River”. You can RSVP to the opening on the link and it runs until December 5th.
Thursday, 8/13 at the Knockdown Center is clipping, ELUCID, Fatboi Sharif, and a bunch of other great hip-hops artists. clipping is the art-noise-rap group of Daveed Diggs, whom you probably know best from the original cast of Hamilton. This is another event-of-the-summer, much like Sex Mex was a few weeks ago.
Saturday, 8/15 there is a House Crawl & Trade on Governors Island. If the evening is nice, this will be fun.
If you missed it, (and I did the first time) here’s an Architectural Digest article from June about a Tudor City apartment renovation. I was impressed.
WHAT’S IN THE NORTH PARK FREE LIBRARY?
BAGEL OF THE WEEK
Honestly, around these parts, I gotta give it up to Bagel Market. They have the best bagels in our neighborhood. In fact, I’m going to go get one right now after I finish this sentence. And then take a picture of it while I eat it in the North Park.
That is all. I hope you have a lovely week!
-TCV