It will be empty soon

Last year, New York City Mayor Eric Adams pledged to use $1 million in federal funds to transform empty kiosks into places where cyclists can rest, repair their bikes and charge e-bikes. But one of the first kiosks designed for the program is still in use. Ullah and Mostack Bhuiyan have owned and operated the Navila Kiosk in the Bronx since 2008. But the city’s Parks Department, which owns the site, said the duo’s lease will expire at the end of March and the lease will not be offered back. “The mayor’s office contacted me and said there’s an empty, underutilized kiosk they want to use,” said Rafael Moure-Punnett, district manager for Bronx Community Board 6. “I said, ‘But it’s not empty!’ It seems like they had this mission from the beginning and they weren’t going to let the facts get in their way.”