Arun Venugopal

New York, NY —

Alongside Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, Sean Bell's family said prayers at the Jamaica, Queens site of his shooting. There's now a makeshift shrine to Bell outside the nightclub, amidst shattered glass, and as WNYC's Arun Venugopal reports, local residents who say they've been the ...

New York, NY —

Mayor Bloomberg seems to be treading a fine line he's trying to keep the support of the black community and his police force. Yesterday, he met with black community leaders and called this weekend's shooting of three unarmed men "excessive," but he also called for ...

New York, NY —

Leaders of the black community are calling for Police Commissioner Ray Kelly's resignation in the wake of Sean Bell's death. The 23-year-old Bell was shot by police officers in a hail of bullets on Saturday while leaving a strip club in Jamaica, Queens, where his ...

New York, NY —

Two days after the shooting death of Sean Bell, Mayor Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Ray Kelly met with leaders of the black community, with promises of conducting a fair and thorough investigation. WNYC's Arun Venugopal was at City Hall.

REPORTER: The mayor seemed visibly affected, not ...

New York, NY —

A memorial to the victims of the crash of American Airlines 587 was dedicated in the Rockaways yesterday. It was five years ago yesterday that the jetliner went down killing all 260 passengers onboard and five residents of the Belle Harbor neighborhood. WNYC's Arun Venugopal ...

Hoboken, NJ —

After months of an intense and sometimes nasty campaign, New Jersey voters are choosing who they will send to the US Senate - either Democratic Senator Robert Menendez or his Republican challenger, Tom Kean Junior. WNYC's Arun Venugopal was in Hoboken, talking to voters.

REPORTER: Hoboken is ...

New York, NY —

The city unveiled its first Walk/Don't walk signs with countdown timers. That means people will know exactly how much time they have to cross the street legally whether they'll obey is another matter. WNYC's Arun Venugopal reports.

REPORTER: The effort can hardly be called ambitious. New ...

New York, NY —

State Comptroller Alan Hevesi didn't give an inch in last night's debate with his Republican challenger. WNYC’s Arun Venugopal has more on Hevesi's fight to stay ahead of a growing scandal.

Hevesi has become a liability for the leading Democrats on the statewide ballot and was ...

New York, NY —

The Brooklyn Navy Yard was once written off as a casualty of waterfront development and manufacturing job loss. But now the site is poised for its biggest expansion since World War Two.

Over the next three years seven buildings will go up at the Navy Yard, ...

New York, NY —

The two candidates for state comptroller participate in a live debate tonight - their first. WNYC's Arun Venugopal has more.

Democratic state comptroller Alan Hevesi was considered a shoo-in in his re-election bid, and had resisted calls for a debate with his lesser-known opponent, Republican Christopher ...

New York, NY —

The city says it's going to crack down on the pirated movies sold on street corners and in subways. One industry estimate says, they cost Hollywood as much as $6 billion a year.

New York is a hub of the global trade in pirated DVDs, according ...

New York, NY —

Sold for $5.4 billion. That’s how much Met Life is being offered for Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village from Tishman Speyer and Black Rock Realty. The deal is believed to be one of the largest in American real estate history. WNYC’s Arun Venugopal has ...

New York, NY —

City officials pledged to spend 4 million dollars to help open an industrial building in Williamsburg. The deal is part of a campaign to keep manufacturers from leaving the city. WNYC's Arun Venugopal spent time with one small businessman who has benefited from the program.

Milo ...

New York, NY —

The future owner of Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village may emerge from opening bids submitted to Met Life tomorrow.

REPORTER: Over a dozen groups are expected to bid on the 80-acre complex, including the tenants association, which wants to prevent the property from eventually becoming ...

New York, NY —

The city is spending $4 million on an industrial building in Williamsburg. The 72,000 square foot building will house small and mid-sized manufacturers.

The announcement is part of a city campaign to revive the manufacturing sector by offering low rents. Carl Hum of the Mayor's Office ...

New York, NY —

The City Council is holding a Nightlife Summit even as it proposes legislation to regulate nightclubs. WNYC's Arun Venugopal has more.

REPORTER: Today's closed-door Summit brings together politicians, law enforcement officials and members of the nightlife industry, and while everyone says they're in this together, it's ...

New York, NY —

The city is calling for proposals to develop what may be the world's largest armory, in the Bronx.

The Kingsbridge Armory was built in 1917, and contains nearly 600 thousand square feet of space. Right now, it's being used as an annex building by the National ...

New York, NY —

Young women incarcerated in two state facilities are frequently subjected to abuse and sexual misconduct. That’s according to a report being released today by Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union. WNYC’s Arun Venugopal has more.

The report charges the state’s Office of Children ...

New York, NY —

The MTA's chairman, Peter Kalikow, says he is opposed to any fare increases or service reductions in the next year. WNYC's Arun Venugopal has more on how the transit authority pre-empted a possible PR fiasco.

The chairman's statement came within hours of an article in today's ...

New York, NY —

Bronx community groups are protesting the city's plans to build a new, $375 million jail in Hunts Point.

The jail would hold 2000 beds, and is part of a long-term effort by the Department of Corrections to reduce capacity at Rikers Island by building jails in ...