Advertisement

SKIP ADVERTISEMENT

New York Today

New York Today: Barbecue Dos and Don’ts

Safety first, in all things grill-related.Credit...John Taggart for The New York Times

Good morning on this damp Tuesday.

Despite the endless May showers, Memorial Day weekend — the unofficial start to summer — is within reach.

And with it comes the sound of barbecues being fired up.

This got us wondering: What are the rules for grills and bonfires around the city? We asked the Fire Department to set the record straight.

Open fires are prohibited in New York City.

The open burning of wood — as in a campfire or fire pit you might see on a beach — is a hard no in all five boroughs.

There are certain exceptions, though, said Frank Dwyer, a Fire Department spokesman, including portable barbecues and some areas in city parks that have been given the green light by the Parks Department.

Not all grills are created equal.

Certain types of barbecues are permitted on apartment terraces, balconies and rooftops, but they are not allowed on fire escapes, and the rules vary between residential and commercial spaces.

Standard backyard barbecues — with one or two 20-pound propane tanks, and a grate area of not more than 10 square feet, Mr. Dwyer said — are allowed only at one- and two-family dwellings. Smaller, hibachi-style propane barbecues are allowed on apartment terraces, balconies and, where occupancy is allowed, rooftops. Propane barbecues are not allowed in commercial spaces.

Charcoal, electric, and piped natural gas barbecues (when installed properly and legally) are also allowed on all three types of premises, Mr. Dwyer added, as long as standard fire safety measures are observed.

Who needs permits, and when?

No permit is needed if you’re using a portable barbecue allowed by the fire code. You’ll just need to follow standard fire safety requirements, like keeping water or a portable fire extinguisher close by.

But piped natural gas installations, like grills or fire pits, require an application to the Fire Department and approval from the Department of Buildings.

“Summer or winter,” Mr. Dwyer added, “make sure you have a working smoke alarm and carbon monoxide alarm inside your home.”

Here’s what else is happening:

Showers are likely throughout the day, with a high of 67.

The rest of the week is looking wonderful and warmer. Memorial Day weekend is a tossup.

(For now.)

Mayor Bill de Blasio is looking to Canada, a pioneer in the fight for safe injection sites, for guidance on shaping the city’s approach to the opioid crisis. [New York Times]

Image
The Moss Park supervised injection site, like others in Toronto, does not allow drugs to be smoked inside, but some users still go there to smoke crack or meth outside.Credit...Ian Willms for The New York Times

The New York Police Department is investigating a second sexual assault complaint against the celebrity chef Mario Batali. [New York Times]

A survivor of Halloween’s deadly truck terror attack reflects on the tragedy and on escaping death. [New York Times]

Leecia R. Eve, a former top aide to Hillary Clinton and Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, is entering the race for New York attorney general. [New York Times]

Writers — and readers — from the Bronx communed at the borough’s inaugural book festival. [New York Times]

Charles and Murray Kushner, famously estranged brothers, are each betting they can transform a gritty section of Jersey City. [New York Times]

Image
A view of Murray Kushner’s Journal Square tower in Jersey City. His estranged brother, Charles, has plans to build right nearby, but has yet to break ground.Credit...Andres Kudacki for The New York Times

Interview magazine, the culture and arts publication founded by Andy Warhol in 1969, has shut down. [New York Times]

Manhattanhenge returns next week. Here’s where to see it. [Curbed]

A “Little Haiti” district is coming to the Flatbush section of Brooklyn. [Observer]

Freelance workers have recovered $254,866 owed to them over the past year, thanks to a new city law. [Next City]

It’s festival season! Here are some local theater festivals to catch this summer. [New York Times]

Today’s Metropolitan Diary: “Confusion on the Q

For a global look at what’s happening, see Your Morning Briefing.

The New York Times and the Parks Department present “Scenes Unseen,” an exhibit of long-forgotten photographs from 1978, at the Arsenal in Central Park. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays through June 14, closed Memorial Day. [Free]

Learn about planting potatoes and sweet potatoes with GreenThumb at the Urban Harvest Community Garden in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. 5:30 p.m. [Free]

Laurie Anderson, Anne Waldman and others celebrate the early poetry of Lou Reed with a reading and discussion at the New York Public Library in Midtown. 7 p.m. [Free, R.S.V.P.]

The restaurateur Danny Meyer and the chef Ruth Rogers talk hospitality, the convergence of art and dining, and future plans at the 92nd Street Y on the Upper East Side. 7 p.m. [$29]

Looking ahead: On Thursday, TimesTalks hosts a talk and screening of “The Fourth Estate,” a film about the New York Times journalists covering the Trump presidency. 7 p.m. [$50, tickets]

Mets host Marlins, 7:10 p.m. (SNY). Yankees at Rangers, 8:05 p.m. (YES).

Alternate-side parking is in effect until Monday.

For more events, see The New York Times’s Arts & Entertainment guide.

Image
GlassBarge in Brooklyn Bridge Park.Credit...The Corning Museum of Glass

One hundred and fifty years ago, the Brooklyn Flint Glass Company was tugged through New York’s waterways to Corning, N.Y., transforming an upstate town 215 miles northwest of Manhattan into an artistic hub for glassmaking.

(The company became Corning Glass Works.)

To celebrate the anniversary, the Corning Museum of Glass has set up a floating glassmaking studio, GlassBarge, off Pier 5 at Brooklyn Bridge Park. It’s holding free glassblowing demonstrations daily from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., through Memorial Day. You can make reservations here.

Educators from the South Street Seaport Museum and Lake Champlain Maritime Museum will also be on deck to talk about life along New York’s 19th-century canals and how the waterways played a role in — and continue to support — state commerce and culture.

[Read our full write-up of the GlassBarge tour.]

After its run in Brooklyn, the barge will travel up the Hudson River and along the Erie Canal, homeward bound, making nearly 30 stops before September. You can see the full schedule here.

New York Today is a morning roundup that is published weekdays at 6 a.m. If you don’t get it in your inbox already, you can sign up to receive it by email here. Also, we are experimenting with a limited-run newsletter this summer to offer you the best events, food and drink in New York. Sign up for Summer in the City here. As a weekly newsletter, it’s not a commitment. And like summer, it’s fleeting — it will only publish through Labor Day.

For New York Today updates throughout the day, like us on Facebook.

What would you like to see here to start your day? Post a comment, email us at nytoday@nytimes.com, or reach us via Twitter using #NYToday.

Follow the New York Today columnists, Alexandra Levine and Jonathan Wolfe, on Twitter.

You can find the latest New York Today at nytoday.com.

Advertisement

SKIP ADVERTISEMENT