Lisa Chow

A man accused of posing as his dead mother to collect her social security is one of dozens of cases being investigated by a new fraud unit, run by the Brooklyn District Attorney's office. Charles Hynes says his new mortgage and real estate fraud unit has opened more than 80 ...

New York, NY —

Governor Paterson says New York will join with private companies to repair and improve highways, bridges and other infrastructure to reduce public costs and create jobs.

The governor released a report today on public private partnerships.

The governor says the instability in financial markets has made public ...

New York, NY —

Mayor Bloomberg says police are checking security cameras to investigate who's responsible for an explosion at an Upper East Side coffee shop this morning.

BLOOMBERG: No real damage, certainly no injuries. Could have killed somebody. So there's somebody with a sick mind out there. Maybe more ...

New York, NY —

Twenty of the city's public schools are set to reopen tomorrow, while 17 will stay closed because of high levels of flu-like illnesses.

Mayor Bloomberg says there are no plans to extend the school year because of the closures.

BLOOMBERG: the problem is a lot of parents ...

New York, NY —

Neighbors and officials at the two Riverdale synagogues say they were shocked by the news of the alleged bomb plot. WNYC's Lisa Chow reports.

REPORTER: By subway it takes more than an hour to get to Riverdale from downtown Manhattan. But once you're there, it feels ...

New York, NY —

This week's resignation of the chairman of the New York Fed is focusing new attention on the body's governance.

On Monday, a report in The Wall Street Journal raised questions about Stephen Friedman's role as chairman of the New York Fed, while also a shareholder and ...

New York, NY —

New York City is seeing a small uptick in construction employment as the weather gets warmer and some projects move forward. Elly Spicer has been a member of the carpenters' union for 24 years. She says her industry has stabilized somewhat - and the mood ...

New York, NY —

Many New York retailers struggled through a difficult first quarter…stores like Macy’s and Saks Fifth Avenue, all the way down to your favorite boutique. In January, shopkeepers on the trendy Smith Street in Brooklyn told WNYC that the situation was grim.

Visit the Main ...

The last time I reported on Smith Street, home to many boutiques and restaurants and squeezed between Boerum Hill, Cobble Hill and Carroll Gardens, it was January. It was cold. And store managers complained that there was very little foot traffic. This time, I spent some time with one of ...

New York, NY —

The largest of the city's five public pension funds - the New York City Employees Retirement System - voted today to ban the use of middlemen, or so-called placements agents, from soliciting investment business from the fund. The move comes a week after City Comptroller ...

New York, NY —

The investigations into New York State pension fund corruption have pulled back the curtain on networks of money, power and influence in New York, Albany and Washington and have already led to two indictments, one felony complaint and one guilty plea. Even President Obama's car ...

New York, NY —

Commercial brokers chase leases. Story by WNYC’s Lisa Chow.

New York, NY —

We’ve had a slew of reports this month, showing that commercial rents in Manhattan are falling fast - faster than they have since record keeping began in the 1980s. As financial firms, some of the city's largest employers, cut jobs, they're giving up the offices ...

New York, NY —

Commercial rents in Manhattan took a big nose dive in the first three months of this year. Cushman and Wakefield reports the six percent drop is the largest the company has seen since it started tracking commercial rents in the mid-80s. Joseph Harbert is chief ...

New York, NY —

A new report shows that office sales activity in Manhattan dropped off a cliff in 2008, and most of the sales that did take place, were forced sales. That is, owners sold their office buildings because they couldn't pay back their lenders. WNYC's Lisa Chow ...

New York, NY —

The number of people collecting jobless benefits in New York City has jumped 70 percent in the last five months, as the city's unemployment rate rises. WNYC's Lisa Chow reports. REPORTER: About a year ago, some 62,000 people in the city were collecting benefits. Five ...

New York, NY —

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner will once again take questions from members of Congress today.

But he took a break from the beltway yesterday, while speaking before an audience at the Council on Foreign Relations on Manhattan's Upper East Side. WNYC's Lisa Chow reports.

REPORTER: It probably had ...

New York, NY —

Mayor Bloomberg says government needs to do a better job looking after freelancers who are out of work.

He said unemployment benefits should be created for independent workers and he criticized the Unincorporated Business Tax, which he says double-taxes contractors and sole proprietors and discourages businesses ...

New York, NY —

Office rents in Manhattan have fallen about 15 percent this past year, according to the brokerage firm CB Richard Ellis.

REPORTER: That's in part because financially-strapped companies, locked into long term leases, are increasingly subleasing their office space. Richard Brown is partner at the law firm ...

New York, NY —

Office space vacancy rates are rising in Manhattan, and landlords are offering free months of rent to entice companies to sign leases. In many cases, companies that already have office space are desperate to sublet their space. WNYC's Lisa Chow reports.

REPORTER: Say a company is ...