A state judge has shot down Mayor Bloomberg’s plan to rent sports fields on Randalls Island to private schools because the administration failed to follow the legally required land-use review process when it made the deal. The plan was for private schools to pay $2.6 million a year for the next two decades in exchange for use of the renovated fields during peak hours from 3pm to 6pm. The Parks Department had agreed to contribute......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: fatal person under a train incident at 34th St. and 6th Ave. in Manhattan, a collapse at 64th St. between 8th and 9th Aves. in Brooklyn, and a confined space rescue on 43rd St. and 5th Ave. in Manhattan. The one-legged spokesman in an anti-smoking campaign admits that smoking has cost him a limb due to health complications, including multiple heart attacks, surgeries, and strokes. That doesn't mean he's......

Norman Siegel, former NYCLU director, is taking the city to court today on behalf of Harlem residents opposed to the city’s plan for sports fields on Randall's Island. The city is building 63 new fields on the island in addition to the 36 fields already there; the construction is being partially financed by a consortium of private schools who will be given exclusive access to most of the fields between 3pm and 6pm on weekdays.......

Over the weekend The Arcade Fire played a big show on Randall's Island, far far away from the Knitting Factory and Mercury Lounge (some of the first venues they ever played here). For those who made the trip to see them, the post-show transportation made for quite the afterparty. One concert goer wrote in: "10,000 people trying to get on express buses does not work - we ended up walking the Triborough back to Queens."......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a triple shooting on East 21st St. and Caton Ave. in Brooklyn, a missing child on the Grand Concourse in the Bronx, and a mass casualty incident at Castle Hill Ave. and the Cross Bronx Expressway. Many New Yorkers donned black this Thursday in solidarity with the Jena 6. Cops are looking for a man who applied for a job at the Duane Reade on 34th St. and 5th......

Plans for a water park on Randall's Island are on the verge of collapse as the developer granted a state concession to build the amusement complex missed its second deadline in seven months to secure financing. According to the Daily News, many East Harlem residents and park advocates were ecstatic at the project's possible failure. Tickets for the water park would have been priced at $37 a person and would result in a de facto......

Given the conspicuous absence of farmers in New York City, the decision to stage a Farm Aid benefit here may seem surprising. But when one considers the booming popularity of Greenmarkets throughout the city, the metropolitan locale makes a certain sense. This year’s Farm Aid will feature an abundance of organic food on sale from local farms, so health-conscious New Yorkers are sure to feel right at home. And for one week starting today, top......

The Reggae Carifest set to happen at Randall's Island this Saturday may get the plug pulled. amNewYork reports that Power 105 withdrew its sponsorship in response to two artists on the bill having anti-gay language in their songs. The artists, Buju Banton and Bounty Killer, have a history of inflammatory lyrics. Banton's song "Boom Bye Bye" speaks of burning and shooting gay men, while Bounty Killer's song "Another Level" suggests drowning them. The Dancehall reggae......

There are lots of great stories about how couples meet. Kindergarten, the Peace Corps, a subway platform, by chance at a bar, you name it. But we love this Daily News story about how one couple met, because it appeals not only to the romantic in us, but to our respect for jury duty: Traci Nagy and Jonathan Cinkay met while serving on the same jury during a Queens murder trial. A fellow juror told......

We're getting reports of a blackout on the Upper East Side, from the East 60s up to Harlem, on Third Avenue (mostly about transit blackouts) and York Avenue in the 80s. Subway service is affected - the 4/5/6 line is down. A reader whose friend was at Randalls Island says a Con Ed station exploded. UPDATE: 4PM WNBC reports that the outages are all along the East Side. OEM says "transformer explosions caused at......

Country and city will converge as American farmers get support from a Farm Aid benefit concert held in New York - taking place on Randall's Island this September 9th. The announcement came yesterday from Farm Aid co-founders Willie Nelson and John Mellencamp, along with Mayor Bloomberg. The press conference came after the trio chuckled over marijuana jokes (seriously) and chowed down on some fresh produce in the market. Farm Aid has been supporting family farms......

A 17-foot motorboat called "Bite Me" was capsized by the wake of a passing tugboat yesterday afternoon and a group of six people were thrown into the water. The boat's owner was taking a friend and his family, including his wife, two daughters and a nephew, for a cruise around the Statue of Liberty. On the return trip, their boat was swamped by the passing tug and all six people were in the water for......

Black Lips Trash Bowery One of the nice things about being a music fan in New York City is that you rarely have to wait very long to see a band you're recently missed. The Black Lips famously played about 6,000 shows at SXSW this year, yet despite our interest in checking them out, we managed to catch them exactly zero times (with our final chance being cut short by that whole collapsing balcony thing.)......

The city's Franchise and Concession Review Committee is scheduled to vote this coming week on whether or not to approve a proposal to have twenty Manhattan private schools pay for part of the renovation of Randall's Island athletic fields in return for exclusive use of a majority of the fields. The plan, which is separate from the controversial water park, calls for schools such as Dalton and Spence to pay the city $52 million dollars......

John Fekner was a street artist in the 1980s-- check out this gallery of his pieces, including a few from Greenpoint, near the old gas towers. [Via Wooster] Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a barge worker had a heart attack and had to be rescued at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, someone fell down an elevator shaft on East 11th Street, and a water main broke on Canal Street. Former Page Six gossipeur Jared Paul......

Holiday shopping got the best of you? Why not head out to Randall's Island tomorrow to watch some rugby at the 48th Annual NY 7s Tournament. Matches start at 8 AM and run all the way until 5:30 PM. The long list of teams (90 plus teams) participating includes teams from around the United States, Canada and Europe. There even seems to be a team all the way from Hong Kong. The NY 7s Tournament......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: another scaffold collapse, a fatal fire in the Bronx, and an animal rescue uptown. Will Smith's Legend has been driving Washington Square Park area residents insane: "I haven't slept for three weeks." The NTSB is saying that wind was responsible for the Cory Lidle plane crash. The NYPD wants to install video surveillance at all 344 city housing projects to deter crime. The ACLU wants privacy safeguards. Busta Rhymes......

I'm aware of Randall's Island and Coney Island having miniature golf available. Short of these, is there anywhere else in NYC to play? I've had no luck doing the research myself, and frankly, my "regular golf" experience is limited to playing Tiger Woods on the PS2.After doing some research, we were able to find a couple other options for miniature golf around the city in addition to Randall's Island and Coney Island. The first place......

On Saturday, a teenager visiting from Minnesota was killed by a Long Island Railroad train in a strange and scary accident. Natalie Smead and her father had been visiting relatives on Long Island, and she headed to Randall's Island for a Dave Matthew Band concert with other relatives and friends. She was getting off a westbound train at the Woodside, Queens station when she fell between the platform and the train car onto the tracks.......

- Giants 6, Mets 4: The Giants and Mets waited out a rain delay before the first game of their single ticket doubleheader before San Francisco picked up the victory. Former Met Armando "Who Let the Dogs Out" Benitez picked up the save in a way that every Met fan can remember - walking two batters before getting the save. Of course, that's assuming he even got the save when he was with the......

Water rats, your time will come in 2008: It looks like the Randalls Park Water Park will will be approved by the city's Franchise and Concession Review Committee. City Comptroller William Thompson and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer had opposed the the park's expensive tickets and questioned whether or not it will really serve the community closest to the water park, Stringer has come around, as the Aquatic Development Group Inc. has agreed to......

- The Villager reports there were only 4 arrests in last weeks Critical Mass - THe Times examines the Department of Education examining itself. - There was a memorial service for Imette St. Guillen last night. - The Randalls Island water park is one step closer to charging you $40 admission. - As the suburbs get richer, the volunteer firefighters disappear. - Yikes! A 14-year-old was busted in Queens with a loaded Uzi. -......

No longer will children have to go to Hurricane Harbor or Dorney Park because the Daily News reports that the city has a proposal in hand for a $168 million, 26 acre water park on Randall's Island in the East River. The park, originally proposed in as a smaller 12 acre park in 1999, would be paid for by Aquatic Development Group, who would have a 35-year lease with the city. The park plans call......

He's an Orthodox Jewish Reggae singer that got his start performing in the parking lot at Phish shows, but don't call him a gimmick. Matisyahu's recent accomplishments include a co-headlining spot at the recent Reggae Carifest on Randall's Island and a sold-out show at Irving Plaza. Thursday night he'll pack Webster Hall. Phish fans who can't get a ticket should consider Benevento Russo Duo at Bowery Ballroom instead. "Alligator, the second album from The......

The NY Times has a detailed article about the dilemma of some of the city's Democrats who are Bloomberg Democrats (because, if you will remember, the Mayor was originally a Democrat before he switched parties so he could actually run and win - he's a Democrat in Republican's clothing some say): What do they do on September 13, Primary Day? Do they vote for a candidate to sandbag Fernando Ferrer into a run-off? Do......

You can pretty much guarantee a fun night when giant hip-hop superstars headline a stadium. They'll be theatrics, hit-after-hit, lots of hand wavin' and crowd sing-alongs (and lots of police). If you check out the Eminem, 50 Cent, Lil Jon, D12, and G-Unit show at Madison Square Garden Monday or Tuesday night, you'll also be on TV. It's being taped for Showtime. If that's too mainstream for you, the place to be is Knitting......

More so than Super Size Me, this incident will turn anyone off burgers at McDonald's: A police officer was served a burger with glass at a Bronx location. The officer was part of the K-9 unit, and had picked up dinner "while he took his NYPD dog for exercise on Randalls Island." After ordering the Extra Value Meal #1 at the drive-thru in his squad car, he bit into his burger and, suddenly, his mouth......

Pier 78, at the far west end of West 38th Street and where the NY Waterway is located, is up for sale, per the NY Post. It's a 24,450 square-foot piece of land that be expanded to 49,000, just as long as it's for "anything related to entertainment, dining or [business] that is water dependent," says a representative from Cushman & Wakefield, who are brokering any deals. With about ten minutes of actual thought about......

- Check out Little Steven's International Underground Garage Festiva on Randall's Island via Coolfer's music picks - Put some BBQ in your bell at Blues, BBQ & Fireworks on Pier 54 this Sunday - much of the city's BBQ will be out in full force and our friends at Daisy May's BBQ will be there! - Catch a short on a rooftop Williamsburg with blackout inspired shorts. - And the Olympics "open" tonight. The games......

Coolfer hasn't attended a music festival since the 1995 edition of Lollapalooza, but this Saturday's Little Steven's International Underground Garage Festival is promising enough to prompt a ticket buy. Most bands won't play more than a few songs, but the line-up is amazing and mixes the old and new very well: The Stooges, the New York Dolls, the Strokes, Chocolate Watchband, the Pretty Things, Big Star (Alex Chilton is pictured to the right), the Raveonettes,......