Manhattan News

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Cooper Union, Tishman Speyer Finalize Chrysler Building Deal

Tishman Speyer has finalized a 150-year ground lease for the Chrysler Building and plans a $235 million investment to restore and modernize the iconic Manhattan office tower. The agreement with The Cooper Union covers the 77-story, 1.3 million-square-foot landmark at 405 Lexington Avenue and includes institutional investors led by PSP Investments. Planned improvements include restoration of the building's façade and distinctive crown, modernization of mechanical and elevator systems, new fitness and wellness facilities, and an indoor-outdoor amenity space on the 61st floor. Tishman Speyer also plans to prebuild much of the tower's available office space. Ground lease payments will provide financial support to Cooper Union as the college works toward restoring full-tuition scholarships for undergraduate students.

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Baruch Gets $776K Federal Grant to Expand AI Education

Baruch College has received $776,033 in first-year federal funding to expand artificial intelligence education and applied learning across its three schools. The Title III Strengthening Institutions Program award will support Baruch's AI Leadership Initiative, including curriculum development, faculty and staff training, student services and preparation for an increasingly AI-enabled workforce. Funding will also expand the college's AI Learning Commons and advance its Applied Intelligence Lab, where students will be able to participate in supervised projects and experiential learning. Baruch plans to incorporate responsible AI use into its curriculum, including evaluating AI-generated content, identifying misinformation and bias, protecting privacy and understanding when human judgment should take precedence. The initiative was launched in spring 2026.

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ComicConnect Heads to NY Comic Con Oct. 8-11

ComicConnect and Metropolis Collectibles will bring rare comics, original comic book art and high-end collectibles to New York Comic Con, Oct. 8-11 at the Javits Center in Manhattan.

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Studio Museum in Harlem Opens New Exhibitions

The Studio Museum in Harlem has opened the final exhibitions of the inaugural year in its new West 125th Street building. A sustained becoming: Studio Museum Artists in Residence 2026 presents new work by Derriann Pharr, Simonette Quamina and Taylor Simmons, the first Artist-in-Residence cohort to work from studios in the Museum's purpose-built home. A second exhibition, Tone, brings together paintings, drawings, photographs and sculptures exploring tonal variation as an artistic language. The exhibitions join several recently opened presentations from the Museum's collection and other artists. Looking ahead to 2027, the Studio Museum will present solo exhibitions featuring Woody De Othello and Jamaican-born artist Mavis Pusey.

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NYC Opens New Job Center for City Careers and Hiring

New Yorkers looking for City government jobs will soon have a permanent location where they can get help navigating applications, civil service exams and the hiring process. The new Jobs NYC Center at 2 Lafayette Street in Manhattan will offer walk-in career assistance, hiring events, workshops and direct connections with City agencies seeking employees. Developed by the Department of Small Business Services and Department of Citywide Administrative Services, the center will also provide career-development resources for existing municipal employees. The location has already hosted hiring activity during a soft launch, including an August hiring hall that resulted in 17 new hires for the NYC Business Express Service Team. Regular walk-in hours at the center begin October 5.

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Columbia Reports 32% Drop in Discrimination Filings

Columbia University reported a 32 percent decline in incident reports involving potential violations of its institutional equity policies during the 2025-26 academic year, according to newly released annual data. The University's Office of Institutional Equity documented 2,118 reports and 1,328 cases, with the number of cases declining 27 percent from the previous year. Columbia also identified 99 cases involving allegations of antisemitism, anti-Arab, anti-Muslim or anti-Palestinian discrimination and Islamophobia, representing a 67 percent year-over-year decrease. However, reports of sexual harassment increased from the prior year, while dating and domestic violence reports rose for a second consecutive year. A separate university report found relatively few potential conduct violations among thousands of campus events.

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NYU Langone Named No. 1 U.S. Health System Again

NYU Langone Health has earned the top position in Vizient's national health system rankings for the fifth consecutive year, becoming the first system to hold the organization's No. 1 ranking for five straight years. Its Manhattan campus also ranked first among 122 comprehensive academic medical centers, while NYU Langone's network of more than 400 outpatient practices placed first among 70 participating physician networks. Other facilities across the New York region also appeared in the rankings, with NYU Langone Hospital—Long Island placing No. 3 and NYU Langone Hospital—Brooklyn reaching No. 6 in their cohort. Vizient evaluates healthcare organizations using measures including safety, mortality, effectiveness, efficiency and patient experience.

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Baruch Ranks No. 1 Public College in New York for 4th Year

Baruch College has been named the top public college in New York State for the fourth consecutive year in U.S. News & World Report’s 2027 Best Colleges rankings. The Manhattan-based CUNY college earned four No. 1 distinctions, including top placements for public colleges in New York, value for in-state students, social mobility and innovation among public institutions. Baruch also ranked No. 2 among public schools in the North and No. 9 when public and private institutions in the region were combined. The college made one of its largest gains in the Best Value Schools category, moving up 28 positions to No. 37 overall and No. 3 among public institutions in the region.

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NYC Mount Sinai Studies Link Wildfire Smoke to Health Risks

New research led by the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai suggests that long-term exposure to wildfire smoke may carry greater health risks than comparable amounts of air pollution from other sources. Two large studies examined the effects of wildfire-related fine particulate matter, known as PM2.5, on patients with lung cancer and people hospitalized for cardiovascular and respiratory conditions. Researchers found associations between wildfire pollution and poorer survival following lung cancer diagnoses, as well as increased hospitalization risks for conditions affecting the heart and lungs. The findings are particularly relevant as smoke from major fires increasingly travels across large portions of the United States, potentially exposing communities far from active wildfires and raising new questions about how health systems address air-quality risks.