The Brooklyn coffee shops going tip-free

Plus: Rats like to pee on each other [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.]( [These Brooklyn coffee shops are asking customers to stop tipping]( [first image]( [Today's newsletter is curated by James Ramsay]( Weather: ⛅ Partly sunny, highs in the lower 80s. It's Thursday in New York City, where a growing number of coffee shops have stopped putting a screen in your face asking you to add a 20% gratuity Instead, they're charging a little more — say, $6 for a cold brew — and paying their employees up to $33 an hour. [Here's why these coffee shop owners think tip-free is the way to go](. And here's what else is happening: - "You clearly see Mr. Mickles with the knife extended, chasing the officer": NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell said yesterday the department [intends to release bodycam footage]( from last Sunday's police shooting inside a Brownsville subway station, where officers shot an alleged fare evader, two bystanders and a cop. - The family of one of those bystanders, a Brooklyn hospital worker who was left in critical condition after [police shot him in the head]( is calling for an investigation of the shooting. - Most people detained on Rikers Island [are eligible to vote]( — but thousands of them may not get the chance under the current system for providing absentee ballots to detainees. - The MTA yesterday released an ambitious $65.4 billion five-year capital plan to keep New York’s mass transit system [from falling into disrepair](. - [Included in the plan]( $2.75 billion to construct half of the 14-mile Interborough Express light rail line connecting Brooklyn and Queens. - The Philadelphia 76ers have agreed to stay in Pennsylvania instead of moving to Camden, reaching a deal that represents [a defeat for indicted South Jersey party boss George Norcross](. - Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez introduced a bill yesterday that could supercharge [the federal government’s role in developing affordable housing](. - Meanwhile, opponents of Mayor Eric Adams' sweeping "City of Yes" blueprint to fuel housing development citywide are [seizing on his political turmoil]( to try to tank the initiative. - One thing we learned from New York City's inaugural Rat Summit: The little critters [pee on each other]( to assert dominance. - Decades ago, European magazines started recommending Williamsburg and Bushwick as tourist destinations. Where are those people going now? Are tourists showing up unexpectedly in your neighborhood? [Tell us]( - Andrew Cuomo — who's reportedly [trying to run for mayor]( — misled a congressional subcommittee about his involvement in [a 2020 report deflecting blame for COVID deaths in nursing homes]( according to emails reviewed by the New York Times. - Newly arrived migrant women are working overnights in pizzerias and other restaurant kitchens to make authentic Ecuadorian lunches [they sell out of coolers at construction sites]( around the city. - The sanitation department is [seeking volunteers]( to join Andy Cohen and other celebrities for the 2nd annual Great Broadway Sweep litter clean-up next week. - Donald Trump bought a round at [a Bitcoin bar]( in the city yesterday. - Giant Joro spider update: [They've migrated north]( to Pennsylvania. - Ikea started its own [resale site](. - Anna Delvey has been sporting [a bedazzled ankle monitor]( on "Dancing With the Stars." - This [11,000-square-foot mansion]( on Staten Island, which has a hair salon and a small indoor basketball court, is asking $8.95 million, which would be a record high sale for the borough. - Correction: An item in Sept. 13th’s Early Addition contained an incorrect statistic about the change in the detainee population at Rikers Island over the years. [The number of people detained at Rikers Island has decreased 45% since 2014](. [“When you tip, you sometimes feel obligated, especially when they’re probably not paying them enough. It’s a weird social thing — and there’s already enough weird social things to navigate.”]( - longtime Principles coffee shop customer Christina LeMoines on [THE BENEFITS OF A TIP-FREE EXPERIENCE]( More from Gothamist [second image]( [Will Black voters stand by Mayor Adams amid crisis? Some Harlem residents say no.]( Although the mayor has yet to suffer any defections from high-profile Black allies, interviews with attendees at last weekend's African American Day Parade in Harlem suggest some voters' patience with him may be wearing thin. [NY state lawmaker looks to expand the definition of 'mass shooting' in wake of West Indian Day violence]( A bill introduced by State Sen. Zellnor Myrie would change the term "mass shooting" to apply to incidents where four or more people are injured by gunfire, not just killed. The change would unlock emergency resources and financial aid for survivors. [We Rely On Your Support]( [Trump's New York play: Bring back the SALT tax credit he gutted in 2017]( In 2017, then-President Donald Trump helped cap state and local tax deductions — or SALT — to help pay for a package of federal tax cuts. The cap puts a $10,000 limit on the amount of state and local tax costs that married couples can deduct from their federal taxes. [‘Neighborhood navigators’ offer snacks and services to Manhattan’s homeless population]( The Manhattan district attorney's office is funding a new program, called Neighborhood Navigators, to connect homeless people with services before they interact with the criminal justice system. 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