Daily Archives: November 27, 2018

Thirteenth Precinct cop recognized for service

Thirteenth Precinct Commanding Officer Deputy Inspector Steven Hellman, Police Officer John Considine, 13th Precinct Community Council President Frank Scala and 13th Precinct Executive Officer Ernesto Castro (Photo courtesy of the 13th precinct)

By Maria Rocha-Buschel

A veteran cop at the 13th Precinct who helped roll out the recently launched community policing program was recognized for his service on Tuesday.

Police Officer John Considine, who has worked for the NYPD for the last 16 years, received the award at the monthly meeting held by the 13th precinct Community Council from Deputy Inspector Steven Hellman, the precinct’s commanding officer.

“This is for all his hard work and for helping with the NCO (Neighborhood Coordinating Officer) rollout, which was a success,” Hellman said. “He’s selfless, hardworking, committed, any good adjectives you can think of, they all describe John,” Hellman added.

Considine has been at the 13th Precinct for his entire tenure so far with the NYPD since starting on patrol in July 2002. After being on patrol, he joined the grand larceny team and later worked with the crime and crime prevention units before joining community affairs.

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Man steals bag from L’Express

Theft suspect

By Sabina Mollot

Police are looking for a man who swiped a bag from a woman who works at L’Express restaurant at 249 Park Avenue South.

Police said the man strolled into the Flatiron restaurant on Monday, November 19 and when the victim left work at 6:15 p.m. she noticed her bag was gone. She then learned that the thief used her debit cards at various locations. The bag also contained $300 and personal papers. Police had no description of the suspect, but a couple of surveillance videos show a man with short, dark hair and a hat.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call 1-800-577-TIPS.

Squirrel causes blackout in upstate NY

A squirrel-related blackout is unlikely to happen here, Con Ed says. (Photo by Sabina Mollot)

By Sabina Mollot

Just when you thought all squirrels did was chomp on unsuspecting children in Stuyvesant Town and damage trees with their incessant gnawing, they’ve also begun causing massive power outages.

According to a story in the Daily News, officials upstate discovered that a pesky squirrel caused a string of power outages that left more than 10,000 in the dark last weekend.

“The rodent somehow managed to make its way into a substation in Lancaster, a Buffalo suburb, Sunday, knocking out three substations, New York State Electric and Gas said,” the News wrote. Fortunately, for the residents in the area, power was restored three hours later.

But with the threat of more extreme wintry weather ahead this weekend, Town & Village turned to Con Ed to ask about the possibility of such a thing occurring in a certain Manhattan neighborhood that has not only a power plant but an abundance of Eastern Greys scurrying about.

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Glowing sculpture debuts in Flatiron

“Happy,” the seasonal installation at the Flatiron Plaza (Photo by Maria Rocha-Buschel)

By Maria Rocha-Buschel

The Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership officially debuted the public art installation “Happy” to kick off the holiday festivities in the neighborhood this past Monday evening.

Architect Benjamin Cadena designed the installation through the fifth annual Flatiron Plaza Holiday Design Competition with the Department of Transportation arts program and the Van Alen Institute.

Cadena said that he wanted to design something that felt warm during the colder months but also that would cheer up passersby suffering from the winter blues.

“With the cold winter, I wanted to make a space that looks and feels warmer but I also wanted to project a positive object that makes you feel good,” he said. “I also wanted to do something a little different from the past installations and define a specific space, embracing the whole plaza.”

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