Government employees are "incentive-neutral", as they aren't rewarded or held accountable for what they do. In an ideal world this could change (better rewards, pride in public service), but that's a whole other story.

But consultants have negative incentives, as they are specifically rewarded for not getting things done, not spending efficiently, asking for more funding - that wasted money ends up back in their own hands.

Yea, you could argue that because of corruption, connections, bribes, the government employees have those same negative incentives. But that's why honing in on outsourcing could be an approach to fixing these problems. Make it harder to sign these contracts, and easier to hire full time staff.

I agree that seems to be low, and they need more evidence that this is the problem. But the idea is the consultants lack the expertise, continuity, and most importantly, the incentives to carry out projects efficiently.

"Elijah Muhammad told the annual Savior's Day convention on February 26 that "Malcolm X got just what he preached," but denied any involvement with the murder.[58] "We didn't want to kill Malcolm and didn't try to kill him," Muhammad said, adding "We know such ignorant, foolish teachings would bring him to his own end." from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_Malcolm_X#:~:text=Elijah%20Muhammad%20told%20the%20annual,him%20to%20his%20own%20end.%22

Regardless of who is was actually responsible for the killing, this seems hugely insulting to put this on Malcolm X blvd.

I won't claim to be an expert on this. Is there context I'm missing? What does Malcolm X's family think of Elijah Muhammad?

The most parklet heavy areas are dining-heavy areas where sidewalk dining isn't an option. The sidewalks on mulberry for instance are already too small.

They really should remove the parking (or close the street entirely) and extend the sidewalk. Piecemeal parking space removal is a compromise.

I think regulation is what business owners actually want. Regulation is clarity. With clear requirements they can invest in making the sheds good without taking a risk.

I think there are actually some strengths to that design. Clear separation of streets with activities vs car arterials. I think the ratio is too unbalanced around there though, it's boxed in by 3 mini-highways

Hotels have 24 hour staff, are more consistent, clean your room each day, are conveniently located to touristy places. Both have pros and cons and I disagree that Airbnb's are objectively "worth more".

Exactly. With mixed use it's easy to imagine a couple (or even small family) that would normally have two cars in LI, could walk to LIRR for commute, walk to nearby restaurants, walk for groceries, and maybe keep one car + parking spot for other uses. That's a win for traffic/environment/affordability. And even car free is totally possible with that type of development. Not a new concept: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transit-oriented_development