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XIX to MSG for Papal Mass BY DUSICA SUE MALESEVIC The Pope is the hottest ticket in town. For two days — Sept. 24 and 25 — Pope Francis will make a historic visit to New York City. In the two events open to the public and Catholic parishioners, tickets have been in high demand. On Fri., Sept. 25, between around 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., there will be a Papal motorcade through Central Park. According to the mayor’s office, 93,143 New Yorkers entered the lottery to see Pope Francis’ procession. The lottery was open to New York state residents, Continued on page 7
Legislation Targets Income Inequality
Photo by Yannic Rack
James Ford and his daughter Madeleine won’t need a tandem bike anymore, when traveling to the Javits Center, the High Line, or Hudson Yards. They were among the thousands who showed up on Sept. 13 to celebrate the long-awaited opening of 34 St–Hudson Yards, an extension of the No. 7 line. Meet the Fords and other early adopters, on page 14.
A New Ride For The West Side Courtesy office of State Senator Brad Hoylman
At the site of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, State Senator Brad Hoylman, in conjunction with Assemblymember Deborah Glick (both at podium), announced legislation to combat wage discrimination in New York State.
BY ZACH WILLIAMS The week of Labor Day yielded political developments in addressing income inequality that could lead to new laws boosting the minimum wage and narrowing the wage gap between men and women. Local elected officials announced a bill on Sept. 8 requiring that state contractors disclose their respective rates of pay for both genders. Continued on page 4
BY YANNIC RACK In a glimpse of what’s to come for Manhattan’s far West Side, trains started rolling this weekend into the city’s first new subway station in a quarter-century. An extension of the No. 7 line, 34 St–Hudson Yards (the city’s 469th station), was unveiled at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Sunday morning by Mayor Bill de Blasio as well as state, city, and local officials. Speaking in front of the new station entrance at W. 34th St. near 11th Ave., the mayor called the opening a “monumental day” for the city, one that had been a long time coming, but was worth the wait. “This extension connects this extraordinary development happening here — a whole new city being created within our city — connects it with thousands of jobs in neighborhoods like Flushing and in central Queens, bringing people from those neighborhoods to the jobs here,” de Blasio said, before descending the escalators to take the inaugural ride to Times Square–42 St. and back
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again. “The days of the Wild West Side are over, the days of the West Side renaissance are in full swing,” said US Senator Charles Schumer — and indeed the signs of progress were all around. Across the street, cranes dotted the sky where the first towers of the Hudson Yards development are rising up, and the official opening of the Hudson Park and Boulevard provided a second cause for celebration that day. The $2.4 billion extension, which now carries subway riders 1.5 miles closer to the river, makes the No. 7 the only subway line south of W. 66th St. to provide service to the transit-starved far West Side. The city estimates that it will become the busiest station in the whole system, serving up to 56,000 people every day by 2025.
Continued on page 12 VOLUME VOLUME 07, ISSUE 07, 29 ISSUE | SEPTEMBER 22 | JULY 17 16 - 23, 22, 2015