A new sentencing alternative provided by Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes and the Women's Prison Association will allow 45 city moms facing felony charges to serve out their sentences at homes while retaining custody of their kids and undergoing intensive supervision and treatment.

The mothers, who must be assessed as not presenting a risk to their communities, will be selected for... » more

After four years of negotiations and stalls, the City Council passed its paid sick leave bill Wednesday.

The 45-3 vote on the Earned Sick Time Act guarantees that the Council can override the expected veto from Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

Under the bill's rules, businesses with 20 or more employees must provide at least five paid sick days starting April 1, 2014. Eighteen months later,... » more

Water Street urgently needs a post-Sandy face-lift.

It was once part of a lower Manhattan neighborhood that had a "certain elegant dinginess," as philanthropist and businessman David Rockefeller has noted -- a place, he recalled, where bankers and longshoremen regularly rubbed elbows "because all of us were in the same business: trade." That world vanished in the 1960s.

Century-old... » more

A Columbia University football player was charged Wednesday for allegedly assaulting a fellow student while using racial slurs.

Chad Washington, 19, allegedly assaulted an Asian student outside a Columbia building on West 113th Street.

Washington, who is black, allegedly grabbed the victim by his collar and pushing up against the wall.

The victim didn't suffer any injuries, police... » more

Lady Gaga is back on the New York party scene.

After being confined to a wheelchair (albeit a Louis Vuitton chair) following her February hip surgery, Gaga was out, about and looking good in the Big Apple on Tuesday night.

The songstress and boyfriend Taylor Kinney hit up the Cinema Society's presentation of "The Great Gatsby" at the HBO Screening Room, followed by the after-party at... » more

The cliche of total strangers in an urban crowd who wind up madly in love is the staple of romcom movies, countless "Sex and the City" episodes and schmaltzy songs.

While most people meet their mates in school, at work, on line, through a shared activity or via mutual friends, the density of our pedestrian-friendly city ups the odds that you could fall in love with a stranger here,... » more

The teen pregnancy rate in the city saw a significant decrease in the last decade and the city's health department is hoping its new app will help keep those numbers keep going down.

Between 2001 and 2011, the rate of births for those between ages 15 and 19 in the city decreased from 98.7 pregnancies per 1,000 females to 69.2 pregnancies per 1,000 females, the health department said Wednesday.

Health... » more

The biggest cruise ship ever to call New York City home was christened Wednesday, as Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Cardinal Timothy Dolan and the Rockettes were on hand to celebrate the Norwegian Breakaway.

The 18-deck ship will dock at Pier 88 and make seven-day trips to Bermuda in the summer and the Bahamas and Florida in the winter. Bloomberg said Wednesday it will play a major part in... » more

Shake Shack is finally set to open in Grand Central Terminal, as the former tenant of its space has cleared out and the burger joint should be open by the end of October, the MTA said Wednesday.

After more than two years and a handful of lawsuits, Mexican café Zocalo left the area on the lower level of GCT that Shake Shack is going to move into, clearing the way for the restaurant to open.

"We... » more

Emma Watson having brunch at Cascabel Taqueria on the Upper East Side

Lucy Liu shopping for beauty products at Bluemercury in Union Square

Adrian Grenier enjoying pupu platters, sushi, and mai tais with five others at The Hurricane

Josh Lucas and wife Jessica Henriquez having tacos al fresco at La Fondita in Amagansett... » more