NYC news you might have missed in January

POSTED BY
Evelyn Kanter

This is our monthly recap of recent NYC news you might have missed during the last few weeks. As usual, top of our list again is food and drink, real estate and shopping.

Staten Island Ferris Wheel costs double – The cost of the 630-foot Ferris wheel planned for the northern Staten Island waterfront has ballooned to $590 million from $230 million. In addition, its opening has been postponed from early this year to early 2018, and the likely standard price to ride the New York Wheel has more than doubled, $35 from $15. [Crain’s New York Business]

Shake Shack raising prices – Burger prices are going p about 25 cents to cover the higher cost of the city’s new minimum wage, to pay employees higher wages. Eater reports that employees at Shake Shack’s NYC locations will now be making $12.50 an hour, $1.50 more than the city’s new minimum wage. The company also raised some manager salaries to just above the proposed federal overtime limit. All Shake Shack employees are also eligible for health insurance plans and 401k matching, as well as other benefits, the chain’s founder, Danny Meyer, told Business Insider. Shake Shack’s classic ShackBurger will cost $5.55 in NYC, 26 cents more than its current price. In New Jersey and on Long Island, the burger will cost $5.39, a 10-cent increase. The priciest burger, the 800-calorie ShackStackm which includes a beef patty and a fried portobello mushroom stuffed with cheese, will cost $9.95, a 36 cent increase. Menu items, like fries and frozen custard shakes, will not go up in price.

Central Park gets green wheels – Just in time for spring cleaning, Central Park is getting a fleet of 52 electric carts for trash collection. Replacing the old gas-powered vehicles means no more noise and no more fumes. Also, the new EV trash collecting carts are better looking than their predecessors. BTW – Central Park welcomes more than 40 million visitors annually, according to the Central Park Conservancy. (New York Times)

Tony Awards return to Radio City – The American Theatre Wing’s 71st Annual Tony Awards will be back at the historic Radio City Music Hall, on Sunday, June 11. As usual, the awards ceremony is airing live on CBS, where it has been broadcast since 1978. The Tony Awards are presented by The Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing.

Starring the Bronx – A planned complex in the South Bronx with 305 units of affordable housing will include a concert hall, according to the developers. The 300-seat, $11.4 million venue will showcase the borough’s musical past and feature performances from local artists. The entire complex, off East 162nd Street, is expected to open in 2019. [The Wall Street Journal]

Brooklyn Brewery staying put – The popular micro-brewery has decided to stay in Williamsburg, where it began, rather than move ops to the Brooklyn Navy Yards. Brooklyn Brewery also will start brewing in Japan, in a deal with Kirin, and they’re looking for space in the Hudson Valley, too. (Crain’s)