This week’s biggest Winners & Losers

A Staten Island teacher showed that you can fight City Hall and win. Erin Jansky spearheaded opposition to ugly fencing placed on top of a scenic stone bridge over Martling Pond in Clove Lakes Park. The fence was installed by city transportation officials for safety. Opponents said the fence ruins the view, relaxation and fishing, and said city transportation officials should be “ashamed” and that the fence is an insult to Staten Islanders. Staten Island elected officials of both parties gathered to celebrate the fence’s impending removal.

Gov. Kathy Hochul’s decision to sign legislation requiring state agencies to monitor their use of generative artificial intelligence was a feather in the caps of its sponsors, state Sen. Kristen Gonzalez and Assembly Member Steven Otis. Given Hochul’s previous reluctance to sign it, the move is a big win for the lawmakers, who chair their respective chambers’ technology committees. How effective the oversight law, dubbed the LOADinG Act, will be, however, is (forgive us) still LOADinG.

In a Boxing Day surprise, state Sen. Liz Krueger and Assembly Member Jeffrey Dinowitz got Gov. Kathy Hochul’s signature on one of the most high-profile climate bills in years. After years of advocacy and some uncertainty on whether Hochul would approve the measure amid opposition from powerful fossil fuel interests, the Climate Change Superfund Act is officially law. It will require the state’s top polluters to pay $3 billion a year into a fund for climate resiliency efforts – one of the first of its kind – for 25 years.

New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch is cracking down and cleaning house after assuming control of the department. And yes, that includes some of the NYPD’s highest ranking officers. Jeffrey Maddrey resigned as the NYPD’s chief of department after a subordinate filed a complaint alleging he’d pressured her into sexual acts in exchange for overtime pay. Even Mayor Eric Adams, who has long praised Maddrey, is distancing himself. Miguel Iglesias, the NYPD’s chief of internal affairs, was also forced out.

Hochul has been making final decisions on scores of bills as the year winds down. A lot of lawmakers have been celebrating the signings or criticizing her vetoes, vowing to push their bills next session. Assembly Members Helene Weinstein and Jeff Aubry don’t have that luxury as they enter retirement following decades in office. Weinstein’s Grieving Families Act bill was vetoed by Hochul once again and Aubry’s Jury of Our Peers Act got the same treatment. While each lawmaker’s legacy is secure, it might be a bit of a downer to see their bills discarded as they enter into life post politics.

Erden Arkan may be a big shot in the construction biz, but his political game is full of shoddy work. The co-owner of KSK Construction, the Turkey-linked firm wrapped up in the corruption investigation into Mayor Eric Adams’ 2021 campaign, Arkan pleaded guilty this week to a conspiracy charge for making false contributions to Adams’ campaign. It’s doubtless a tough pill for Arkan to swallow, but it’s a blow to Adams too, who has pleaded not guilty to the corruption charges against him and whose lawyer is already trying to distance his client from Arkan.