The future of the Etna Tool & Die Corporation building on Bond Street

[EVG file photo]

The Post reports today that James Galuppo, the owner of the now-closed Etna Tool & Die Corporation at 42 Bond St., recently passed away. He was 100.

So will the 7-floor No. 42 hit the sales market for a luxury condo conversion?

According to the Post, Mr. Galuppo left the building here between the Bowery and Lafayette to his daughter Flavia Galuppo as part of a $12.5 million estate. And she has no plans to unload the property, valued at $6.3 million.

"My parents’ real concern was that their tenants who have invested their livelihoods in our building would have to vacate, and that really bothered them. My father asked me if it was feasible to try and stick it out . . . I intend to honor his wishes."

After 70 years, Etna Tool & Die Corporation closed last year. (See this August 2017 feature at Gothamist for more on what was one of the last tool and die shops in the city.)

And who's in the building now?

A modeling agency, public relations firm and tech company rent space in the building now, along with three residential tenants.

Flavia, an art director in the film industry, said she will likely seek a new tenant for the ground level to replace the factory.

Mr. Galuppo, who was born on the LES in 1918, opened the shop in 1946. He bought the building in the 1970s.

"He would say, ‘I never thought I would see the neighborhood go in this direction,’ ” Flavia said of her dad. “People were warning him, ‘What, are you crazy to buy here?’ But he really believed in the beauty of the neighborhood."

A farewell to Etna Tool & Die on Bond Street

After 70 years at 42 Bond St., Etna Tool & Die Corporation has closed... Gothamist has a feature on what was one of the last tool and die shops in the city.

Tool and die employees are a class of machinists in the manufacturing industry and make a variety of things one doesn’t usually think twice about—jigs, fixtures, dies, molds, machine tools, cutting tools and more. Galuppo invented the anti-coin theft device that was installed in most of the city's pay phones. ConEd was also one of Etna's biggest clients, making the tools they use every day in the streets.

Owner James Galuppo, who was born on the LES in 1918, opened here between the Bowery and Lafayette in 1946.

Per Gothamist:

The family owns the building on Bond Street, and Galuppo's daughter Flavia says she intends on "honoring my father’s wishes by maintaining the building" and not selling it, retaining the few commercial tenants it still has.

The position-based David Bowie art by Scott VanderVoort remains on the fence ...

An Obama tribute on Bond

You may have noticed the tribute to former President Obama this past week on a gate outside 42 Bond St. between the Bowery and Lafayette.

This installation is the creation of Scott VanderVoort, who previously created a tribute to Steve Jobs and David Bowie on the same fence.



As with Jobs and Bowie, you get a young and older version depending on the direction you're headed...





You'll get a much better idea of all this via VanderVoor's Instagram account...

#fenceinstallation #barackobama #barackobamatribute #tribute #nyc #bondst #art #streetart #mypresident #speakout #next100days btw Lafayette & Bowery

A video posted by Scott VanderVoort (@scottvandervoort) on Jan 20, 2017 at 5:34am PST

Rebranding Bowery and Bond

[EVG file photo]

The storefront on the southwest corner of Bond and the Bowery has sat empty since the Washington Mutual closed up in March 2009 ... the space has gone though an assortment of brokers...

Previously, the space was "the new intersection of cool."


It was also a photogenic intersection for Bringing it On...


And most recently — a pitstop for Claire Forlani's disembodied scotch ad hands...

Now, there's a new listing at RKF for the corner space... say hello to "the new 328 Bowery ... where Bowery meets Bond" ...



...and your upscale neighbors...



No word on asking rents. The listing does note that an "all new storefront [will] be delivered Summer 2013."

Meanwhile, last call for our Bowery-Bond nickname to take off — BowBo.

Space on the Bowery and Bond for 'the fashion crowd'

Over on Bond and the Bowery, the corner retail space (officially 57 Bond) has sat empty since WaMu moved out in March of 2009 ... But it's still ready for something fabulous, according to the new listing at Massey Knakal:

A retail condominium located on the southwest corner of Bowery and Bond Street - one of the most desirable locations in the neighborhood. The unit has exposure on Bowery and Bond Street with an entrance on Bond. ... This corner space sits on the rapidly emerging fashion district surrounding the intersection of Bond Street and the Bowery. No cooking is allowed. With tenants nearby including Billy Reid, Rogan, Blue and Cream, John Varvatos, and United Nude, this space is likely to draw significant attention from the fashion crowd.

The space is for sale for a fashionable $4.2 million; asking rent "upon request."

Previously, the space was "the new intersection of cool."


It was also a photogenic intersection for Bringing it On...


Anyway, this is just one more opportunity for my Bowery-Bond nickname to take off — BowBo.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Post discovers that the area around Bowery and Bond is pretty nice these days — and getting nicer!

41 Bond backup plan: How about this $15k a month apartment down the street?

So all but one of those expensive homes (from $5 million to $8 million for the penthouse) have sold out at 41 Bond, as Curbed noted last week.

Well, if you missed out, then consider this "rarely available home" at 49 Bond St., now on the market for $15,000 a month. According to the Prudential Douglas Elliman listing:

According to the Prudential Douglas Elliman listing:

**1800 SF 2 BED / 2 BATH PRE-WAR LOFT ON BOND STREET WITH TERRACE** Total Gut Renovations combined with Old World Charm makes this the needle in the haystack you've been waiting for! As you enter, you are welcomed by a WALL OF CASEMENT WINDOWS letting in PHENOMENAL NATURAL LIGHT with both North and South Exposures and views of Cobblestone Bond Street. ... As if all this is not enough, there is also there is also a 150 SF TERRACE off the Master Bedroom! Located on famous Bond Street where trendy meets urban exclusivity literally steps from Il Boco, Bowery Electric, and the B,D,F,M,4,6, Subways. RARELY AVAILABE HOME - MUST BE SEEN!

And are the B,D,F,M,4,6 lines trendy or exclusive?

Protection against Bowery bums

On Saturday, a worker continued buffing the fanny fenders here on Bond Street at the Bowery — aka the "new intersection of cool."

Word is the building management is trying to thwart people from resting their buns or bums here, hence the posterior posts...

However, despite the rump rippers, there are a few gaps around the columns, which still allows room for seating. Like this fellow yesterday who was enjoying a cigar.

The Post discovers that the area around Bowery and Bond is pretty nice these days — and getting nicer!

The cover story of the Post's real-estate section this week features the area around Bond and Bowery, which, from here on out, we'll refer to as BowBo to see if it foolishly catches on...
Give me a B!.... Gimme an O....



Seriously, though, we first meet Adam Gordon, who says, “As a developer, I really have a passion for reclaiming historic properties."



Anyway, let's just keep on reading!

“This corridor [of Bowery] has the most excitement in all of Manhattan — if you’re talking about the space between the New Museum and Cooper Square,” says Gordon.
“I think the Bowery — more than any neighborhood in Manhattan over the last five years — has become the most evolved,” says Core CEO Shaun Osher. “It’s become one of the trendiest neighborhoods in the city, but what’s really great about the Bowery is it’s multi-dimensional in its evolution.”
The term “multi-dimensional” makes sense not just in terms of the architecture, but also in terms of everything else that’s come to the neighborhood.
“I used to have a restaurant around here 10 years ago,” says celebrity chef Scott Conant, referring to City Eatery, his Italian spot on Bleecker and Bowery. “I was a little spooked by the neighborhood . . . I was never going to do another restaurant around here.”

The features includes the handiest of handy-dandy maps...



How soon before this how map is just a cluster of red circles with numbers?

Hugh gotta be kidding? Thespians battle for Bowery-Bond bachelor pad

According to the Post's Jennifer Gould Keil today:

Hugh Grant and Gerard Butler might be duking it out for the $15.45 million penthouse triplex at 54 Bond St. in NoHo. Both actors have checked out this grand, three-bedroom, 4,862-square-foot bachelor pad on a charming cobblestoned block. Developer Adam Gordon says the entire building is also for sale at $32 million — and can be turned into an 11,000-square-foot, single-family mansion (plus retail space), with the basement used for storage or transformed into a lap pool. Gordon bought the cast-iron, landmarked structure, which dates back to 1874 and is also known as the Bouwerie Lane Theatre building, for $15 million in 2007.

The penthouse has swirling mahogany staircases where a craftsman molded each piece of wood by hand. There are two full gourmet, dine-in kitchens — one with an adjacent wine-tasting room. The penthouse also includes 1,277 square feet of outdoor space, including a roof deck and a terrace.

If one of these fellows should happen to land here... they would join this group of notables who have lived at this address... (per the 54 Bond Web site)



Previously on EV Grieve:
Looking at the "new intersection of cool"

Looking at the "new intersection of cool"

A few weeks back, before Tyson Beckford and his motorcycle gang took over the block, I was walking east on Bond toward Bowery...



..looking at the mix of old and new (mostly new) that we're used to seeing in recent years...




And what did I learn? That this was the "new intersection of cool."

Noted

Speaking of Bond and Bowery. On Saturday morning, I came upon the trash leftover from the Fashion's Night Out Bond Street's Mini-Block Party from Thursday...champagne and pony bottles of Colt 45.






Colt 45? Another example of the faux urban realism that makes the privileged Bowery invaders feel more authentic. Just down the street, the men from the Shelter congregated at the now-vacated Kelly and Ping space were sipping 40-ounce bottles of malt liquor from brown paper bags.

Gee, I don't understand why the Post said that the Bowery has "an L.A. vibe" (And now: A scene featuring backflips and Tyson Beckford!)

The nice celebrity-style transporters were lined up along the Bowery last evening...outside the Bowery Hotel, of course...Like usual.



But let's back up for a moment. Earlier in the day, at Bowery and Bond. A pop-up shop! (Uh, a pop-up RV?)





What was this all about? According to the press release!

On September 10th at 6 p.m., Tyson Beckford will ride in loud and fast on his motorcycle to open Fashion's Night Out Bond Street's Mini-Block Party. Bowery designers and retailers will be out in full force to celebrate a crazy night of shopping and rocking-out to live music.

Crazy! Anyway, there were cheerleaders — volunteers from the nonprofit Cheer New York — on the Bowery at Bond. (BoweryBoogie caught them in action on Bowery and Houston.)




About two hours after Beckford was scheduled to arrive, he arrived. (Note: I didn't stand around for two hours: I happened to be by at the time he showed up...) And the big moment! It was just like the press release promised! Loud and fast! Like a real-life Kid Rock video! (Cheerleaders! Outlaw motorcyclists leaving skid marks on historical cobblestone streets!)



And here's Tyson...




And the aftermath of the entrance... a little rubber left on the Bowery...




And later...