Lanternflies are ravaging NY. Should their nemesis be imported from China?

Plus: Could young activists be difference-makers in reparations debate? [View this email in a browser.]( Gothamist relies on your support to make local news available to all. Not yet a member? [Consider donating and join today.]( [Lanternflies are ravaging NY. Should their nemesis be imported from China?]( [first image]( [Today's newsletter is curated by James Ramsay]( Weather: 🌧️ Windy, [with nasty rain]( and highs in the lower 80s. It's Friday in New York City, where the call for everyone to [step on]( spotted lanternflies did not successfully thwart their invasion. A possible plan B: Import Chinese wasps that are extremely effective at killing baby lanternflies. [Here's why that's a risky idea](. And here's what else is happening: - Looking to buy some legal weed? Here's what to know about [the state of the city's licensed dispensaries](. - Mayor Eric Adams said he's directing multiple city agencies to address [public safety and quality-of-life issues]( along East 14th Street in Manhattan after recent stabbings in the area. - A Brooklyn man was arrested yesterday for allegedly throwing a powerful firework into a Verizon utility van [during a road rage incident]( back in January. - Police said yesterday that two hands and a part of a leg found in a Bronx apartment [may be from the same dismembered and burned body]( found under a bridge in Yonkers earlier this week. - A Queens judge has cleared the records of dozens of people who'd been convicted of drug possession, trespassing and other misdemeanors because their cases involved the investigative work of [a former NYPD detective who later admitted to lying in court](. - City records show the sanitation department is finalizing an order of up to 1,500 large trash containers from Spain to be [installed in parking spaces across West Harlem](. - A man is suing the Museum of Ice Cream in SoHo, claiming that he [broke his ankle jumping into the sprinkle pool](. - Three deans at Columbia University have formally resigned after it came to light earlier this year that they'd exchanged text messages [mocking students who complained about antisemitism on campus](. - A federal judge on Long Island said that if a 75-year-old man convicted of tax fraud is to be sent to the ["inhumane"]( Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, he'd vacate the nine-month sentence and instead put him on house arrest. - Is the Bed-Stuy [sidewalk goldfish pond]( a community beautification project or a soon-to-be fish graveyard? - There's a new outdoor music venue underneath the Kosciuszko Bridge and some nearby residents [think it's too loud](. - G train update: Service will resume Monday on [the stretch between Court Square and Bedford-Nostrand Avenues]( as construction gets underway on the section between Bedford-Nostrand and Church Avenue. - The launch of Meghan Markle's [jam company]( is being delayed until whenever Netflix decides to air its Meghan Markle TV show. - Meet a Canadian woman who's been on [25 game shows](. [“If it’s under 1,000 [Google reviews] or something, like 500 even, it's usually one of the pop-up ones that are probably illegal.”]( - Jay Patel, a New York City office worker, on [HOW TO TELL IF A WEED dispensary IS LICENSED]( More from Gothamist [second image]( [Could young activists in NY be difference-makers in reparations debate?]( A series of public actions by Millennial and Gen Z advocates preceded Gov. Kathy Hochul's signing of a bill authorizing a public commission to study reparations for New Yorkers of African descent. [Breaking, a dance born in NYC, makes it to the Olympics]( The women’s breaking final (don't call it "breakdancing") will be broadcast on NBC at 2 p.m Eastern time on Friday. The men’s competition will be televised on Saturday at 2 p.m. [We Rely On Your Support]( [Rikers guard charged with rape while off duty has a string of accusations from detainees]( At least two women allege that Anthony Martin Jr., a correction officer at Rikers Island, sexually assaulted them while they were detained at the women’s jail. [NYC's talking drones can’t speak Spanish (yet)]( The talking drones that city officials deployed to flood-prone neighborhoods on Tuesday were supposed to warn residents about that night's storm in two languages. But video of a drone on Staten Island shows the yappy tech speaking an indecipherable language. [Instagram]( [Instagram]( [Facebook]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Twitter]( [New York Public Radio] [WNYC]( | [WQXR]( | [NJPR]( | [GOTHAMIST]( [WNYC STUDIOS]( | [THE GREENE SPACE]( Copyright © New York Public Radio. All rights reserved. 160 Varick Street, New York, NY 10013 [TERMS OF USE]( You can update your [PREFERENCES]( or [UNSUBSCRIBE]( from this list.