New York City Councilmember Jennifer Gutiérrez and some of her colleagues are pushing a proposal to require the establishment of at least five municipal grocery stores per borough.

The proposal comes as New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s administration aims to establish one municipal grocery store in each of the Big Apple’s five boroughs by the end of his first term.

“Let’s make sure it’s not something that just our current mayor invests in, but something we can codify into in perpetuity,” Gutiérrez said, according to The City Reporter.

Fox News Digital reached out to Gutiérrez’s office on Friday to request a comment from the councilmember.

MAYOR ZOHRAN MAMDANI SAYS FIRST OF NYC’S FIVE GOVERNMENT-RUN GROCERY STORES WILL OPEN IN THE BRONX NEXT YEAR

Zohran Mamdani, mayor of New York, and Kathy Hochul, governor of New York, during a news conference on 2026 FIFA World Cup transportation at the MTA Rail Control Center in New York, on Thursday, June 4, 2026. (Adam Gray/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

The proposal calls for the commissioner of small business services or the leader of a different agency designated by the mayor to create at least five grocery stores per borough “in consultation or partnership to the extent feasible with a contracted entity,” according to the measure.

A press release pertaining to the mayor’s effort earlier this year noted, “The city-owned grocery initiative is designed to lower costs on everyday staples by using public ownership to eliminate costs that are currently passed on to consumers.”

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New York City Councilmember Jennifer Gutiérrez. (Theodore Parisienne/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images / Getty Images)

“The initiative aims to deliver affordable, high-quality groceries that provide meaningful savings to New Yorkers and strengthen neighborhood food access citywide. Mayor Mamdani has allocated $70 million in capital funds for the development of the five sites,” the release noted.

“Under the model, the City will own the land and cover overhead costs like rent and construction. A private operator, selected through a request for proposals, will manage daily operations and be contractually required to pass savings directly to customers on a core basket of everyday staples,” the release explained.

HEDGE FUND BILLIONAIRE EXPANDS MIAMI DEVELOPMENT PLANS AFTER MAMDANI FEUD

The sun sets across midtown Manhattan, the Empire State Building, and the Statue of Liberty in New York City on April 26, 2026, as seen from Bayonne, N.J.  (Gary Hershorn/Getty Images / Getty Images)

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Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist, took office this year after winning the New York City mayoral election last year while running as a Democrat.

The traditional American pastime of gathering at a local sports bar to watch Sunday football is being strangled by a technical and financial bottleneck, one restaurateur is warning.

“It’s why we’re speaking up, because the simple matter is that it is hard to watch all of the streaming things… Is it on YouTube TV? Is it the [NFL] Sunday Ticket? Is it Amazon?” Texas restaurateur and Tailgators Pub & Grill founder Jim Hallers said on “Varney & Co.” Friday.

“For the last 30 years, it’s come to us through DirecTV, and it’s just worked,” he continued. “And so we like a centralized approach, but we just need technology that works, and streaming is still very immature.”

Testifying before Congress on Wednesday, Hallers explained to lawmakers that the sports media landscape’s sudden fragmentation into separate streaming apps is creating an expensive tech maze for hospitality venues, threatening the business model of – often-rural – neighborhood pubs that rely on NFL fans to keep their doors open in the fall.

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“Everybody has to move to streaming. And so, literally, now, we have to buy streaming boxes. And in a typical smaller bar where I have maybe 30 or 40 TVs with a DIRECTV box mounted behind every television, I now have to get an EverPass streaming box. But you can’t put an EverPass streaming box behind every TV. It doesn’t work like that,” Hallers said on Capitol Hill. “Just imagine at home, if you tried to stream, you know, 30 Netflix’s at once, your internet’s just going to die. Well, it’s the same way for most bars and restaurants today.”

Fans watch Super Bowl LX at Saloon in Boston on February 8, 2026.  (Getty Images)

“One commercial video switch with enough inputs and outputs can cost in excess of $15,000. A full upgrade including equipment, wiring and the labor, will cost $30,000 to $40,000 per restaurant,” he also testified. “So instead of simplifying the business, the transition is adding another layer of cost and complexity.”

Wednesday’s congressional hearing stemmed from the Iowa Restaurant Association and the Wisconsin Restaurant Association, which each represent thousands of independent restaurant and bar owners, sending letters to high-powered GOP lawmakers in their states urging them to act on “a significant shift in the commercial distribution of NFL Sunday Ticket that threatens to impose immediate and substantial burdens on small businesses” across their states.

The concern comes after streaming service EverPass Media announced it would become the exclusive commercial option for NFL Sunday Ticket starting with the 2026 season. The Iowa letter was sent to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, while the Wisconsin edition went to Rep. Scott Fitzgerald, who chairs the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust.

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“We understand that transitioning to a streaming-based solution for NFL Sunday Ticket may require planning, from connectivity and hardware to overall venue readiness. That’s why our team is committed to helping customers make the transition with confidence and be fully prepared before kickoff. Our goal is simple: make sure your venue is ready well before the first Sunday of the season, so you can focus on what matters most: delivering a great experience for every guest who walks through the door,” EverPass’ website reads.

“We really need it to work,” Hallers pleaded on Friday. “It’s not a matter of price. We just want technology that works, and that’s what they’ve been taking away from us.”

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Fox News’ Brian Flood contributed to this report.

‘This move gives Square One the space required to sustain our intended growth’

Growing Newcastle law firm Square One Law is moving into new offices in the heart of Leeds. The company, which has its head office in the Fleming Business Centre in Jesmond, also has an office in Leeds where it offers clients services including banking and finance, dispute resolution, employment and intellectual property.

Now the firm is set to move from its office in One Park Row to 3,000sq ft of recently refurbished Grade A office space in 7 Park Row. The business is moving into the seventh floor of the building on a five-year lease, increasing its floorspace and boosting the firm’s ability to expand further.

James Jackson of Leeds-based property consultancy Carter Towler brokered the deal.

Square One Law commercial property partner, Matthew Thompson, said: “This move into these fantastic, newly upgraded premises puts us precisely where we want to be – at the heart of a city we love. This move gives Square One the space required to sustain our intended growth, whilst also providing employees and visiting clients with the modern workspace and pleasant surroundings they deserve.

“Thank you to Carter Towler and particularly WSB, who acted on our behalf for helping us secure our spectacular new home.”

Mr Jackson of Carter Towler said: “The arrival of Square One Law at 7 Park Row is a resounding endorsement of the comprehensive multimillion-pound refurbishment recently completed at this special building. The transformation of 7 Park Row undertaken by the landlords has been superb – creating Grade A, amenity-driven, fully fitted & CAT A office suites in the heart of Leeds’ professional core.

“It is also encouraging to see Square One Law performing so well and continuing to grow its presence in the market. The quality of its occupiers is an important ingredient in the success of 7 Park Row.”

The work was carried out by Augur Group and Firefly Capital Real Estate, who jointly acquired 7 Park Row in June 2024.

Mr Jackson added: “The magnificent refurbishment of 7 Park Row has paid immediate dividends with both this and other recently completed lettings in the building. Only the 4,656 sq ft sixth floor now remains available to lease, either on a traditional CAT A basis or fully fitted.”

Elizabeth Ridler, partner at the Leeds office of property consultancy Knight Frank, joint marketing agents of 7 Park Row, added: “Park Row famously connects the financial and retail districts of the city centre and is one of the most sought-after business addresses in Leeds.

“We have also launched the marketing of the basement floor, which will provide around 10,000 sq ft of space suitable for a variety of uses including leisure, medical and education. The newly configured space will have a capacity for up to 200 people and will be accessed via a new, highly prominent double height entrance on Park Row.

“Park Row has also been enhanced by the pedestrianisation of City Square, the planting of trees and the widening of pavements, making it an exceptionally attractive street.”

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