The New York City Charter Revision Commission voted this week to place five proposed amendments on the November ballot. The first bill would create a more streamlined process for reviewing publicly financed affordable...more
7/30/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
Ballot Measures ,
City Councils ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Immigration ,
Immigration Reform ,
Local Elections ,
Mayors ,
New York ,
Pilot Programs ,
Political Campaigns ,
Sanctuary Cities ,
State and Local Government ,
Zoning Laws
BOSTON—City’s First Office-to-Residential Conversion Project Begins -Construction has officially begun on Boston’s first office-to-residential apartment conversions. This effort is a part of a City pilot program aimed at...more
7/24/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
Apartments ,
City Councils ,
Crime Statistics ,
Housing Market ,
Local Elections ,
Minimum Wage ,
Mixed-Use Zoning ,
Office Space ,
Opioid ,
Public Schools ,
Public Transportation ,
Real Estate Development ,
State Budgets ,
Urban Planning & Development ,
Zoning Laws
Lander Detained by ICE -
On June 17, New York City Comptroller and mayoral candidate Brad Lander was briefly detained inside the Manhattan federal immigration courthouse by masked ICE agents. Federal authorities claimed that...more
Early voting for the NYC Primary will begin this Saturday, June 14 and conclude on Sunday, June 22. The primary election will be held on Tuesday, June 24.
The primary will include races for the Mayor, Comptroller, Public...more
Several 2025 mayoral candidates attended a candidate forum last Wednesday on the Upper West Side. Topics included child care, police officers in the subway, mask bans, and regulation of Airbnb. Incumbent Eric Adams and...more
2/3/2025
/ City Councils ,
City of New York ,
Local Elections ,
Mayors ,
New York ,
Political Campaigns ,
Political Candidates ,
Public Policy ,
Resignation ,
Special Election ,
State and Local Government
CHICAGO — Teachers Union Narrows Contract Demands-
After eight months of increasingly tense contract negotiations, the Chicago Teachers Union has now narrowed its number of demands to land a deal in the next month, the...more
12/5/2024
/ Affordable Housing ,
Commercial Leases ,
Contract Negotiations ,
Local Elections ,
Mayors ,
Minimum Wage ,
Public Health ,
Public Schools ,
Public Transit ,
Public Transportation ,
Real Estate Development ,
Small Business ,
State Taxes ,
Teachers ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour
LOS ANGELES — L.A. Metro Testing AI Weapons Detection System-
L.A. Metro is considering implementing a weapons detections system being tested in Chicago that uses existing security cameras to scan the transit passengers...more
10/10/2024
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Commercial Property Owners ,
Food Safety ,
Landlords ,
Local Elections ,
Mayors ,
Property Tax ,
Public Health ,
Public Transit ,
Real Estate Development ,
State Elections ,
Tax Increment Financing ,
Urban Planning & Development
BALTIMORE — Visiting Tech Companies Want to Expand Baltimore Presence-
The latest Techstars Equitech Accelerator brought several innovative companies to Baltimore, with founders expressing their commitment to expanding...more
6/6/2024
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
CFOs ,
Charging Stations ,
City Councils ,
Commercial Real Estate Market ,
Delivery Drivers ,
Drug & Alcohol Abuse ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Homeless Issues ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Local Elections ,
Mass Shootings ,
Public Transportation ,
Real Estate Investments ,
SBA ,
School Boards ,
Service Charges ,
State and Local Government ,
State Budgets
CHICAGO — Ordinance Requiring City Data Be Stored in U.S. Held in Committee-
The Chicago City Council Committee on Economic, Capital & Technology Development held an ordinance requiring city data to “be processed, stored,...more
5/23/2024
/ Budget Cuts ,
City Councils ,
Green Buildings ,
Homeless Issues ,
Local Elections ,
Local Ordinance ,
Police ,
Political Candidates ,
Public Safety ,
Public Transit ,
State Budgets ,
Tenants ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wages
Overhaul of the NYS Office of Cannabis Management-
Governor Hochul has directed an operational overhaul of the state’s Office of Cannabis Management (OCM). This follows a 30-day assessment by the Office of General Services,...more
CHICAGO — City Council to Consider Requiring Testing, Guidelines for City Government AI Tools-
Chair of Chicago City Council’s Committee on Economic, Capital & Technology Development Gilbert Villegas (Ward 36) introduced a...more
5/9/2024
/ Affordable Housing ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Federal Funding ,
Homeless Issues ,
Local Elections ,
Lyft ,
Mayors ,
Political Parties ,
Public Health ,
Public Safety ,
Public Transportation ,
Real Estate Development ,
Ridesharing ,
State Budgets ,
Transportation Industry ,
Uber ,
Vacant Properties ,
Wages
DETROIT — Newlab Startups Ignite Detroit's Tech Renaissance-
One year in, the members-only shared workspace, research lab, and venture platform in the former Book Depository building next to Michigan Central Station is...more
4/26/2024
/ Affordable Housing ,
Budgets ,
Casinos ,
City Councils ,
Curfews ,
Funding ,
Homeless Issues ,
Local Elections ,
Mayors ,
Migrants ,
Public Transportation ,
Strike ,
Wage and Hour
CHICAGO — Gov. JB Pritzker Announces Plan to Make Chicago Quantum Technology Capital-
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker announced a plan to make Chicago a quantum technology capital at M-Hub, a business incubator on Chicago’s...more
4/11/2024
/ Affordable Housing ,
Business Disruption ,
City Councils ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Economic Development ,
Endorsements ,
Homeless Issues ,
Local Elections ,
Mayors ,
Mental Health ,
Office Space ,
Ports ,
Property Tax ,
Public Citizen ,
Public Safety ,
Public Transportation ,
Shipping Cargo ,
Tax Increases ,
Wages
CHICAGO — Harris School Introduces New Technology, Society Initiative- The University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy is introducing the Harris Technology and Society Initiative, a two-pronged strategy that...more
11/20/2023
/ Election Results ,
Hospitals ,
Housing Developers ,
Housing Discrimination ,
Local Elections ,
Migrants ,
Nonprofits ,
Paid Leave ,
Political Candidates ,
Public Health ,
Public Transportation ,
Real Estate Development ,
Technology ,
Universities ,
Work Permits
Mayor Adams announced the appointment of Louis Molina as Assistant Deputy Mayor for Public Safety. Molina has served as Commissioner of the NYC Department of Correction since the beginning of the Adams administration. As...more
CHICAGO — Chicago City Council to Consider Regulating Rideshares- Members of Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration have been involved in the discussions, but Alderman Mike Rodriguez is taking the lead on the effort to...more
8/25/2023
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Layoffs ,
Local Elections ,
Mental Health ,
Notice of Default ,
Political Campaigns ,
Property Tax ,
Public Health ,
Public Transit ,
Real Estate Market ,
Strike ,
Unions ,
WARN Act
CHICAGO — Google Plans to Open in Thompson Center by 2026; Will Tech Giant Help Revitalize the Loop?
The tech giant hasn’t revealed its plans for the Helmut Jahn-designed building, where it plans to open an office by 2026,...more
8/11/2023
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Drones ,
Fraud ,
Google ,
Homeless Issues ,
Local Elections ,
Mental Health ,
Public Health ,
Public Transportation ,
Short-Term Lease ,
State Funding ,
Surveillance ,
Unions
Candidates from Philadelphia’s progressive Working Families Party (WFP) are officially seeking to oust Republicans from office in the upcoming November election. WFP City Council candidate Nicolas O’Rourke is working to...more
Chicago Mayor Lightfoot Announces Apprenticeship Program to Create, Grow Technology Talent in City Government, Improve City Services Now former-Mayor Lori Lightfoot and various city departments announced an apprenticeship...more
Gig Economy & Technology-
NEW YORK — NYPD Rolls Out Robotic “Digidog”-
The New York Police Department (NYPD) recently announced a series of high-tech security, including a robotic “digidog” to be used in life-threatening...more
4/20/2023
/ City Councils ,
Commercial Real Estate Market ,
Homeless Issues ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Labor Disputes ,
Labor Shortage ,
Local Elections ,
Mayors ,
Prison Overcrowding ,
Public Health ,
Public Transit ,
Remote Working ,
Robotics ,
Short-Term Lease ,
State Budgets ,
Technology ,
Unions ,
Wage Theft
Gig Economy & Technology-
SEATTLE — Gig Workers to Receive Paid Sick, Safe Leave-
The city will be providing paid sick and safe leave for most gig workers, who will accrue a day of paid sick leave for every 30 days they...more
4/6/2023
/ Affordable Housing ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corruption ,
Health and Safety ,
Local Elections ,
Mayors ,
Paid Sick Leave ,
Public Transit ,
Rent Control ,
Right to Work ,
Strike ,
Sustainability ,
Tax Credits ,
Unions
Chicago will begin testing parking enforcement technology and smart loading zones following an ordinance the City Council passed March 15. The technology will automatically issue tickets for parking or standing violations in...more
3/23/2023
/ Gun Laws ,
Home Equity ,
Homeless Issues ,
Housing Market ,
Local Elections ,
Local Ordinance ,
Parking Tickets ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Public Health ,
Rent Control ,
State and Local Government ,
State Budgets ,
Strike ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour