Cindy Rodriguez

For decades, prostitution has plagued the neighborhoods of Jackson Heights and Corona in western Queens – with some authorities dubbing the area the new Times Square.

Policy experts, social service providers and others say the Mayor's efforts to improve the lives of black and Latino young men have been badly needed in low-income communities for a long time. High unemployment rates, low educational levels and the revolving door of the prison system are among the problems the Bloomberg Administration plans to tackle.

Victim advocates have mixed reactions to the decision by the accuser in the ex-International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s sexual assault case to go public.

Family court judge Ronald Richter was tapped by Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Wednesday to take over the Administration for Children's Services — bringing with him an intimate knowledge of the child welfare agency that some think could help it during this difficult time.

Outgoing Administration for Children's Services chief John Mattingly was a highly respected child welfare expert, but his seven-year tenure at the agency was often overshadowed by high-profile child deaths.

Wedding planners, hotels and restaurants have started appealing to the gay community — offering discounts on wedding packages to same-sex couples in anticipation of the uptick in nuptials after the gay marriage bill goes into effect July 24. 

Senior citizens living in public housing are more likely to smoke, suffer from obesity and overall be in worse health than seniors citywide, according to a health study commissioned by the city.

The number of single dads in New York City rose 9 percent over the last decade according to the latest census data — a figure that reflects a national trend but also one experts say captures a variety of living situations such as unmarried fathers living with girlfriends and fathers who share custody of their children.

The Rent Guidelines board approved rent hikes during a raucous meeting at Cooper Union in Manhattan on Monday — a 3.75 percent increase for one-year leases and 7.25 percent for two-year leases.

The new rent laws that govern roughly 1 million New York City apartments go into effect immediately after Albany lawmakers gave it the green light last week.

Incarcerated teens were recently given a chance to write and record their own songs with the help of professional musicians, composers and producers from Carnegie Hall.

Lawmakers in Albany have yet to reach a deal on how to extend rent laws that govern roughly 1 million apartments in New York City that are set to expire Wednesday, though Senate Republicans have proposed extending them through Friday.

State lawmakers pledged Friday to pass laws during the few remaining days of the legislative session to deter abuse at facilities for the developmentally disabled. An investigation by The New York Times into the issue inspired the Assembly to hold a hearing Friday where parents of victims and advocates for the disabled testified.

A panel of appellate division judges has ordered the city to continue to pay the rents of 15,000 households receiving a housing subsidy through a program aimed at helping previously homeless families get on their feet.

City Council members blasted the Bloomberg administration's plan to alleviate childcare cuts by moving more than 10,000 kids into after-school programs they said were of questionable quality during a budget hearing Tuesday.

Construction contractors have been pressuring unions to accept 20 percent pay cuts and make other concessions, arguing they need the savings to be more competitive when bidding for a limited number of jobs.

Hundreds of supporters of the controversial living wage legislation rallied at City Hall prior to the first official hearing where council members challenged the Bloomberg Administration's assertion that the legislation would kill jobs.

A new $65.5 million homeless intake center has opened on 151st Street in the Bronx on the site of the infamous Emergency Assistance Unit, which was known for its inhumane conditions and was torn down in 2006.

A report by a local advocacy group claims that getting public assistance is a confusing, onerous process that often ends up excluding some of the city's most vulnerable residents.

Despite Mayor Michael Bloomberg's opposition, the real estate industry is continuing to push for tax relief for developers who set aside apartments for low-income tenants under a incentive program known as 421-a.