Airbnb strike: Authorities impound vans used for overnight stays in the East Village

You may have noticed fewer vans parked on East Village streets. 

Late last week, the city Sheriff's office and the NYPD Document Fraud Unit discovered an "operation of alleged fraudulent and illegally registered vehicles being used as Airbnb rentals," Sheriff Joseph Fucito told the New York Post. 

Five of the seven vans, which reportedly had New Jersey plates and expired tags, were parked in the East Village.

Sheriff's Road Patrol Deputies were busy this week impounding seven alleged fraudulent and illegally registered vans being used as Airbnb rentals on various streets in Manhattan. 🛑🚦🚔 pic.twitter.com/rBZ1TBZ2xt

— NYC SHERIFF (@NYCSHERIFF) September 25, 2021

California-based journalist/video creator Uptin Saiidi recently slept in a 1999 Ford Econoline parked on Second Street — for $97 a night. 

Spoiler: He was glad he did this for a night but would never do it again...

   

As for the recently confiscated vans, it wasn't clear if the same person owned all of them. 

Back to the Post:

Sleeping overnight in a van is legal, according to the city's Department of Transportation — provided it’s not parked in the same spot for 24 hours in restricted areas. 

When parking is not otherwise restricted, no person shall park any vehicle in any area, including a residential area, in excess of seven consecutive days, the agency's rules note. 

Fines typically start at $115, the NYPD has said. The Sheriff’s office did not comment further except to say the "investigation in this matter is ongoing."

The van listings have since been removed from Airbnb, per CBS 2. 

A few weeks back, EVG contributor Stacie Joy spoke with this traveler from Toronto who rented a van on Third Street between Avenue A and Avenue B for $85 a night. (Not sure if the authorities confiscated this van.)

According to Stacie, the guest was excited about this Airbnb adventure. He was not worried about the lack of a bathroom or shower. (The Airbnb host leaves suggestions for nearby businesses to use the restroom and options for showers.)

Stacie climbed in for a moment and noted that it was clean but hot and stuffy. The front seats were empty — and drapes were partitioning them from the bed in the back. The keys also did not work in the ignition.

As ABC-7 noted, authorities dubbed this impounding as — no kidding — "Operation Room Service." 

Thanks to all the readers who shared these links. Top photo via @NYCSHERIFF.

Help Limited to One stay on their feet with these limited-edition Vans

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Limited to One (@limitedtoonenyc) on May 1, 2020 at 2:19pm PDT

Limited to One, the record shop specializing in rare and limited vinyl releases on 10th Street, has teamed up with Vans for a special edition Classic Slip-On.

It's part of the Vans Foot the Bill effort that launched last month to help small businesses nationwide during the COVID-19 crisis.

Owner Kristian Sorge explains how it works via an Instagram post:

"We designed a shoe for Vans and all of the net proceeds go to our small business. Being a mom-and-pop record shop, we order a lot of items for our shop locally or directly from other small businesses such as record labels, t-shirt screen printers ... So when you support us, you support our vinyl community!"

You can customize your own pair via this link.

The temporarily closed shop, located at 221 E. 10th St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue, is also selling vinyl via Instagram these days.

And earlier this year, I interview Kristian for a podcast on JasonCharles.net. You can listen to this show on Spotify here.

Astor Place gets the neighborhood's first electric charging docks for e-bikes

Last week, an electric charging dock for Citi Bike's e-bike fleet arrived outside Wegman's on Astor Place, the location of a previous docking station. (Thanks to Jacob Ford for the photo and tip!) 

This marks the first docking station in the neighborhood specifically for charging e-bikes. (These docks also accept the first-gen bicycles.) The DOT and Lyft unveiled the first two in May, with Hell's Kitchen and Greenpoint locations. 

Notably, the Astor Place station is electrified on the street, a unique feature compared to the first two stations, which were on the sidewalk. (Streetsblog has a comprehensive background on this here.)

According to DOT and Lyft officials, electrified charging stations will allow Citi Bike e-bike batteries to be charged while parked in stations instead of manually swapped out, making e-bikes more available to riders and reducing vehicle miles traveled by operations vans. 

Most e-bike batteries are charged in a warehouse and shuttled back and forth for manual swapping at the station in an often cumbersome manner...

Citi Bike riders might not realize most docks don’t charge e-bikes. It’s a surprisingly labor-intensive operation: A crew of 170, on four shifts and 69 specially equipped cargo vans, ferries the batteries to a Long Island City warehouse and back. https://t.co/FJ3Xndf1pY

— Curbed (@Curbed) June 29, 2024

According to May figures, Citi Bike has about 15,000 e-bikes in its fleet. In the first five months of the year, Citi Bike riders have taken more than 7 million trips on e-bikes.

Lyft recently announced that starting on Wednesday, Citi Bike e-bike rides will become more expensive for the $219.99-per-year annual members, rising to 24 cents per minute from 20 cents per minute. Back in January, the price went from 17 cents to 20 cents per minute.

Saturday's parting shot

Might be time to revive the Vans of the East Village series... as seen on Avenue B near 12th Street today...(thanks to Sonya for the shot!)

At Night 1 of TV on the Radio's residency at Webster Hall

Photos by Daniel Efram 

TV On The Radio is back ... celebrating the 20th anniversary of their debut release, Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes, with a deluxe version of the album with previously unreleased tracks. 

The Brooklyn-based band just wrapped up four nights at Webster Hall on 11th Street (Nov. 25-26, Nov. 29-30), the first live shows in five years (not counting the surprise TV Eye gig last Sunday or the Vans-Max Fish celebration in September).

Dan Efram, who shared these photos, called Monday's kick-off show a "mesmerizing, rejuvenating and affirming performance."

Here's a look at the band, including core members Tunde Adebimpe, Kyp Malone and Jaleel Bunton (Dave Sitek was not part of this residency)...

[Updated] A look at 14th Street this morning after the triple stabbing and homicide yesterday

Updated 4 p.m.

The suspect, 30-year-old Alejandro Piedra of Brooklyn, has been charged with one count of second-degree murder — depraved indifference and two counts of second-degree attempted murder — depraved indifference, according to the NYPD and media reports.

-----

This morning, the NYPD Crime Scene Unit and various media vans remain on the scene along 14th Street between Avenue A and First Avenue. (Previously.) 

Just before 6 p.m. yesterday, a fight broke out between several people on the block. In the end, police say, a 38-year-old man was stabbed in the neck and later died. A 51-year-old woman was knifed in the leg and taken to a hospital in critical condition, while a 32-year-old man was stabbed in the back and hospitalized. The two hospitalized victims are expected to survive, according to published reports. 

A 30-year-old man is in police custody. His relationship with the stabbing victims isn't clear. 

An employee at the cheap-slice pizzeria at 418 E. 14th St. told the Daily News that she saw a man in a cape and another waving a piece of wood start fighting outside the shop. 

"I was just doing my job and I saw a man with a 2-by-4 and a man with a cape and a knife. I was like, 'This is like Looney Tunes.'" 

Longtime EVG reader Notorious shared these photos from this long-troubled stretch of the East Village. 

A few residents told us they were shocked to see pools of dried blood and rubber gloves from the first responders on the sidewalk this morning ...

City Councilmember Keith Powers, whose district starts on the north side of 14th Street in Stuy Town, issued this statement yesterday, calling 14th Street "out of control."

Statement on today’s attacks on 14th Street. pic.twitter.com/EFgucCe2WK

— Keith Powers (@KeithPowersNYC) June 24, 2024

Updated 11 a.m.:

District 2 City Councilmember Carlina Rivera has released a statement...

Our community faces serious challenges related to homelessness + mental health. I remain committed to working with agencies and community-based orgs to ensure we're connecting people to services and investing in programs that improve wellbeing, quality of life, and public safety. pic.twitter.com/XfSaVqLRXd

— NYC Council Member Carlina Rivera (@CMCarlinaRivera) June 24, 2024

And from Assemblymember Harvey Epstein...

My statement regarding the violence on 14th Street: pic.twitter.com/GhS7WqXdZz

— Harvey Epstein (@HarveyforNY) June 24, 2024

Thursday's parting shot

Photo by Steven 

A future East Village trivia question: What was the last ad on the south-facing wall at 37 First Ave. before it was demolished? 

Answer: Little Simz for Vans.

NYC activates Heat Emergency Plan as dangerous heat grips the city

Photos by Stacie Joy

With temperatures expected to reach 100 degrees today and heat index values climbing as high as 112 degrees, NYC officials have activated its Heat Emergency Plan ahead of what could be the hottest day recorded in Central Park since July 18, 2012. 

An Extreme Heat Watch remains in effect citywide through 9 p.m. Saturday. The dangerous heat is expected to continue through the July 4 holiday weekend, with temperatures easing only slightly. 

The city says it is expanding efforts to help New Yorkers stay safe, including: 

• Opening hundreds of cooling centers across the five boroughs. 

• Deploying more than a dozen Cooling Outreach On-Location (COOL) vans to provide water, wellness checks, medical care and transportation to cooling centers or health-care facilities for vulnerable New Yorkers. 

• Expanding pop-up cooling stations with cold water, misting fans and cooling towels for outdoor workers, including street vendors, delivery workers and day laborers. 

• Displaying walking directions to the nearest cooling center on more than 2,200 LinkNYC kiosks citywide. 

Mayor Mamdani urged residents to take the prolonged stretch of extreme heat seriously (so no EVG one-liners here), stay hydrated, limit time outdoors when possible, and check in on neighbors, particularly older adults and others who may be more vulnerable to the heat.

"We're staring down what could be the hottest day New York City has seen in over a decade — and City government is taking historic measures to keep all New Yorkers cool and safe," Mamdani said in a media advisory. "Stay inside, look out for your neighbors, drink plenty of water, and watch out for signs of heat exhaustion such as confusion, nausea, and trouble breathing." 

You can find the nearest cooling center or playground spray showers by calling 311 or using the city's Cooling Center Finder via this link. 

Closer to home, cooling center options are limited, aside from the Tompkins Square and Ottendorfer library branches. Most of the options are for senior residents:

• Polish and Slavic Center, Inc. Older Adult Center 

103 E. Seventh St. 

9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday-Friday

• Meltzer Social Club, Older Adult Center

94 E. First St. 

8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday-Friday

 

• Educational Alliance Sirovich, Older Adult Center

331 E. 12th St. 

8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday-Friday

• UJCES Lillian Wald OAC Center, Older Adult Center

12 Avenue D

8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday-Friday

• Petco Union Square

Indoor - Cooling Center

44 Union Square Eaast 

9 a.m. to 9 p.m., daily

ConEd officials have also ramped up messaging...

We are mobilizing and activating our Emergency Response Center in advance of extreme heat and potential storms starting Wednesday. Our crews are working 24/7 to respond to any power issues and keep service reliable. Please use energy efficiently to stay safe and comfortable… pic.twitter.com/ZmSO2s3Yxi

— Con Edison (@ConEdison) June 30, 2026

[Updated] Thousands march through East Village streets to protest the death of George Floyd

Protestors fanned out across the city today, including two groups who marched through the East Village late this afternoon.

The protests, like others around the country and NYC in recent days, were sparked by the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis this past Monday.

One group, numbering in the hundreds, entered Tompkins Square Park at Ninth Street... and exited on Seventh Street and Avenue B... Steven shared these photos...















Another group, numbering at least 1,000, with a large NYPD presence following along, entered the East Village via Second Avenue.... EVG reader Ben Lebovitz shared these photos on Second Avenue between Fifth Street and Sixth Street...







The blocks-long assemblage turned on Seventh Street, then went south on First Avenue... these reader photos show the size of the crowd on First Avenue ...





... who stopped on Fifth Street, shouting "Black lives matter" and, "No justice, no peace." The NYPD had blocked off Fifth Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue, the location of the 9th Precinct.

Peaceful protestors on 1st Avenue at 5th Street near the 9th Precinct pic.twitter.com/yN9O1bqjyR

— evgrieve (@evgrieve) May 30, 2020

The group then moved on to the north.

There were also reports of protestors outside PS4 on Avenue C and Eighth Street.

While the groups in the East Village early this evening were described as peaceful by passersby, ABC 7 reported that there were at least three dozen arrests in the city today related to the various protests.

The Times has more on today's protests here.

Updated 10 p.m.

There are now reports of broken windows along Second Avenue (the TD Bank location at First Street and Le Fournil Bakery at Seventh Street). There are also reports of several burning vehicles around Union Square.

Another NYPD vehicle taken down in Union Square pic.twitter.com/fWrHkFEQDE

— Jessica Cunnington (@JessicaNews12) May 31, 2020

My photographer Greg Giglione just took this video of two NYPD Vans being lit on fire, near Union Square. A police officer yells that there are bullets inside and for everyone to stay back. We have heard several mini explosions. @CBSNewYork pic.twitter.com/cl9yLCtLkE

— Natalie Duddridge (@NatDuddridgeTV) May 31, 2020

Union Square #GeorgeFlyod pic.twitter.com/yTyoWUkMOt

— NYC Scanner (@NYScanner) May 31, 2020

And there are reports of trash-can fires on Second Avenue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place...

Trash can fires along 2nd Avenue... #unionsquareprotest #nyc #newyorkprotest @evgrieve pic.twitter.com/VJVKMlEm0e

— Maximillian Piras (@MaximillianNYC) May 31, 2020

Updated 11:10 p.m.

Broken windows at the Adidas store on Broadway at Houston via Dave on 7th...

Waterfront property losing value

Over at the Waterfront Spa on Second Street at First Avenue...



...half of the sign was painted over to make way for a new Vans ad over the weekend...

[EVG Flashback] Why people move away

Originally posted on Feb. 4, 2009...



I've noticed a few more people than usual moving from the neighborhood. (Perhaps there's a reason for so many more men with vans signs.) Given the drop in some rentals, maybe these people are just moving a few blocks away to a building with better deals. Or maybe they lost everything and have to go bunk with a relative. Or maybe they came here during the heady days of, say, 2005 and figured to become the next Carrie Bradshaw. (Or at least have the chance to sit on her stoop!) I wish I could go up to these people and conduct exit interviews. Why are you moving? What will you miss about the neighborhood? What are you glad to be leaving behind? I'm always curious about this.

Luckily, I came across a blog written by a young professional living on the LES. After one year here, she is moving to another undisclosed neighborhood. Almost in answer to my questions, she provided a list of things she will miss and not miss about her apartment and the LES. Among the items:

Things I will miss:
--The gym. I hope I can still force myself to go to the gym when it isn’t in my building!
--My stainless steel stove
--Dry cleaning in the building
--The statue of Vladimir Lenin on top of the Red Square building. I can see him from my bed so I wake up to him with his right arm in the air every single morning.

Things I will not miss:
--The girls who scream, “Where’s my boyfriend!?” at 4 a.m. while leaving the Lower East Side bars on any given day
--The symphony of honking on Houston Street that forces me to sleep with earplugs
--The fresh vomit that I sometimes step over while leaving for [work] on any given day
--The smell of pickles from Katz Deli that I am forced to inhale when walking home every day
--The fact that there is not a close enough Starbucks
--The mural of Kiss on the brick wall on the bar across from my apartment

I guess that says it all.

Work is underway on Avenue B's permanent Open Street redesign

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

The Department of Transportation has officially begun construction on the permanent redesign of the Avenue B Open Street between Fourth Street and 12th Street, a project that will bring expanded pedestrian space, new bike connections, loading zones and intersection safety improvements to the corridor.

As we've been reporting, one of the biggest changes will be converting Avenue B to one-way northbound traffic for motorists between Seventh Street and 10th Street while creating a two-way bike connection along the entire corridor. 

The redesign also includes curb extensions, additional pedestrian space and other traffic-calming measures. 

The DOT will also add neighborhood loading zones at the beginning and end of each block to accommodate deliveries and reduce large-truck traffic along the corridor. Vans will continue to be permitted on Avenue B for deliveries, loading and unloading. 

Meanwhile, pedestrians can continue to use the Open Street daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. 

Per DOT officials in a media release on Monday: 

The agency will redesign every intersection in the project area with new pedestrian curb extensions that are protected with planters, bike corrals, granite blocks, or other elements. 

These sidewalk expansions will provide the triple benefit of creating more public space for pedestrians and shortening crossing distances while also improving visibility between crossing pedestrians and other road users. 

We stopped by yesterday as DOT crews continued installing new signs along Avenue B.

One worker pointed out the newly installed "Do Not Enter" signs on the southbound side of B at 10th Street tied to the one-way traffic pattern.

As we stood there, car after car continued driving through them. 

"It will take some time for drivers to get used to it," the DOT worker said. "That happened at 14th Street too." 

Nearby, crews were installing new No Parking/No Standing signs, while fresh spray-painted markings on the pavement offered a preview of the new street layout.

Construction is expected to continue in phases over the coming months. The DOT says the project is intended to build on the success of the Open Street, which launched in 2020, while creating a safer and more permanent streetscape for pedestrians, cyclists and local businesses.

Kolkata Chai Cafe aims to bring authentic South Asian vibes to 3rd Street

[EVG reader photo]

It's opening day for Kolkata Chai Cafe at 199 E. Third St. between Avenue A and Avenue B.

The small shop, run by two Bengali-American brothers, will be serving today from 4 to 10 p.m. ... with a menu featuring a variety of masala chai and several snacks ...

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Kolkata Chai Co. (@kolkatachaico) on Sep 10, 2019 at 9:05am PDT

The owners, siblings Ayan and Ani Sanyal, share their story on the shop's website:

Our parents left Kolkata in 1987 and landed in Massachusetts to fulfill the American dream. Growing up as first-generation Indian Americans — our concept of home was ever-shifting. In 90s America, we listened to hip hop, ate pizza and begged our parents for a pair of Vans sneakers. Every other summer or winter, we’d spend a couple of months in Kolkata. An earth-shattering contrast, there, we would jump in monsoon puddles, eat mangsho-jhol, play cricket in the streets and drink chai everyday.

Food was always better on the streets than it was inside the house. The street wallahs possessed almost magical skills — we claimed they had special sauces and spices that they told no one about. There was a lore to street food. It was democratizing, generational and spoke to all socio-economic levels. We went to the same spots where our mother used to get bhel puri during her college times — where the chef’s father used to serve our grandfather.

Kolkata Chai started with a simple idea: How do we extend the authenticity, respect and tradition behind a cup of masala chai to NYC?

Chai has been repeatedly bastardized and appropriated in the U.S. We’re putting it all on the line to make sure our culture and traditions are represented accurately and honestly. We hope to see you along this journey.

This is the first permanent retail space for the two, who have been catering and offering their Kolkata masala chai via pop-up venues. (In opening this spot, the brother have said they've avoided common "South Asian food tropes.")

Moving forward, Kolkata Chai Cafe will be open Tuesday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

As for this address, it was home to the taco stand Snack Dragon until 2014 ... and later, the Vector Gallery — aka the Official Gallery of Satan (2016-2017).

Police searching for suspect in 1st Avenue assault on Wednesday afternoon

Police are searching for a suspect they say critically injured a 59-year-old man after punching him Wednesday afternoon on First Avenue near 12th Street. (Update: Readers say it was actually 11th Street near the Islamic Council of America.)

CBS 2 has a few more details:

Police say the suspect got into a dispute with the 59-year-old victim. Things escalated, and the suspect punched the victim in his left eye. 

The victim fell to the street and knocked his head on the concrete. That left the victim semi-conscious, police said. He suffered a fractured skull and swelling of the brain, according to authorities. 

The victim was rushed to Bellevue Hospital in critical condition.

Accounts of the assault did not include a description of the suspect (he appears to be wearing checkerboard slip-ons by Vans) ... the NYPD did release this footage last evening...

🚨WANTED for an ASSAULT: On 2/10/21 at approx. 2:51 PM, at 1st Avenue and East 12 Street. The suspect punched a 59 year old male victim in his left eye, knocking him down causing him to be semi-conscious. Any info call or DM NYPDTips at 800-577-TIPS. Reward up to $2,500. pic.twitter.com/4GTu3d9w5r

— NYPD Crime Stoppers (@NYPDTips) February 12, 2021

[Updated] The march for Trayvon Martin is happening now

The march tonight for Trayvon Martin began at Union Square... it's now in the East Village... we're following along with @patrickdehahn on Twitter... Witnesses say there are at least 15 empty NYPD vans following the march...

...down St. Mark's Place...

... and Tompkins Square Park...

As of 7:50 p.m. or so, the march is at Ninth Street and Avenue B...

Here's a quick snippet of video from Avenue C and East Ninth Street from a reader...



[Above photos by @patrickdehahn]

A few residents from Jacob Riis are handing out Skittles and ice tea... via @RDevro of the Guardian...

Earlier tonight via @RDevro ...