Neighborhood News Check

Fines set for illegal Chinatown Buses

By August 15, the New York City Police Department and the Department of Transportation will begin issuing fines for illegal long-distance Chinatown buses, reported DNAinfo.com. Some rules that could result in fines include: operating without permits, stopping outside of approved zone or deviating from schedule. The NYPD will be in charge issuing fines that range from $500 - $2500. The rules went into effect last summer and the city had held off on enforcement to give bus companies time to learn about the upcoming changes. Resident and bus officials alike seem to be welcoming the change. In terms of improving customer relations, Darryl Days, operations manager for YO! Bus told the news website, "I would like to think as you get more companies that are properly registered?customers will feel safer and people in the community will feel more comfortable." DNAinfo.com

'War Zone' at Norfolk Street

Residents at 102 Norfolk are not giving up their homes without a fight. The Bowery Boogie reported that ever since Samy Mahfar of SMA Equities bought the building back in April, controversial tactics have been used to remove tenants. Several tenants are holding out and are now saying that live in a "war zone". Tenants say they have been subjected to constant construction, weekly water shut downs and an infestation of rodents. Additionally, the Department of Housing Preservation & Development paid a visit to conduct a lead test on the paint in the apartment. The test came back positive, leaving residents to fear they are inhaling toxic air. Bowery Boogie

John McEnroe's Son Arrested on Drug Charges

CNN reports that Kevin McEnroe, the 27-year-old son of tennis champion John McEnroe and Academy Award-winning actress Tatum O'Neal, was arrested on drug charges. Kevin McEnroe was caught in the East Village after what police believe to be a drug transaction, according to police Sgt. Jessica McRorie. McEnroe was carrying six clear bags of what appeared to be cocaine, a Clorazepate anxiety pill, 10 Oxcodone pain-killing pills, 10 morphine pills, and 10 orange pills that were unidentified. A second man was also arrested, according to law officials. McEnroe is to appear in court on October 16. CNN

Elaine Stritch, brash stage legend, dies at 89

Elaine Stritch, the brash theater performer whose gravelly, gin-laced voice and impeccable comic timing made her a Broadway legend, has died. She was 89.

The actress died Thursday of natural causes at her home in Birmingham, Michigan. Stritch moved to Michigan last year, bidding farewell to New York after 70 years as a tart-tongued monument to old-school show business endurance.

Although Stritch appeared in movies and on television, garnering three Emmys, she was best known for her stage work, particularly in her candid one-woman memoir, "Elaine Stritch: At Liberty," and in the Stephen Sondheim musical "Company."

She worked well into her late 80s, most recently as Madame Armfeldt in a revival of Sondheim's musical "A Little Night Music." She replaced Angela Lansbury in 2010 to critical acclaim.

In 2013, Stritch -- whose signature "no pants" style was wearing a loose-fitting white shirt over sheer black tights -- retired to Michigan after 71 years in New York City and made her final performance at the Carlyle Hotel "Elaine Stritch at the Carlyle: Movin' Over and Out." She said she suffered from diabetes, a broken hip and memory loss -- all of which she nakedly documented in the film "Elaine Stritch: Shoot Me," a documentary released in February. AP