Car on fire at E 4th and Ave A in East Village. Looks like battery caught fire. @FDNY in the scene. @evgrieve pic.twitter.com/lJdZOm2uxF
— Cecil Scheib (@cecilscheib) January 8, 2016
And there's a video clip here.
Car on fire at E 4th and Ave A in East Village. Looks like battery caught fire. @FDNY in the scene. @evgrieve pic.twitter.com/lJdZOm2uxF
— Cecil Scheib (@cecilscheib) January 8, 2016
The MTA 2015-2019 Capital Plan, which was approved by the MTA Board on October 28, includes $71.9 million for a new entrance to the overcrowded First Avenue stop on the L train. The funding is part of the MTA’s $300 million Core Capacity program, and will improve both safety and accessibility for straphangers who use this station every day.
Council Members Dan Garodnick and Rosie Mendez, who represent the area, had pushed for the MTA to allocate sufficient funds for this improvement.
The current entrance creates significant bottlenecks, which lead to safety issues and can make entering and exiting the station extremely difficult. The station has also been identified by the MTA as one of 100 “Key Stations,” which experience heavy traffic or have critical connections between train lines and neighborhoods. Because of this designation, the planned new entrance will also comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act and be accessible to individuals with disabilities.
“This station has gotten crowded beyond its capacity, and straphangers need relief,” said Council Member Garodnick. “A new entrance is going to make a huge difference, and will make the station infinitely more safe.”
"I applaud the MTA and I am grateful that it will be moving forward with our request for an alternate entrance/exit at Avenue A for the First Avenue L train stop. This train stop is so overcrowded that it is unsafe. Everyday individuals arriving and departing from the 1st Avenue confront a huge crowd of people rushing from or to the bus. This new entrance is needed now more than ever since there are several nearby residential development projects that will increase the neighborhood population." – Councilwoman Rosie Mendez, District 2
With the approval of its 2015-2019 Capital Program, the MTA is finally set to begin construction on a new entrance for the L Train First Avenue stop. Construction of the new entrance at 14th Street and Avenue A is an effort by the MTA to alleviate congestion and overcrowding that has long affected riders at the First Avenue stop. Senator Hoylman's statement on construction of the new entryway is below:
“I am pleased that the MTA has included a new L Train entrance at the 14th and Avenue A stop in its 2015-2019 capital budget, setting aside $40 million for improvements on the L line and an additional $59.1 million to make the First Avenue station ADA compliant.
“The western end of the platform has become a serious safety concern as straphangers mass near the station’s only entrance, creating dangerous overcrowding at the platform’s edge and potential obstruction of egress during emergencies.
“In light of Extell Development’s planned construction on the block of 14th Street between Avenues A and B, I wrote to Extell in February 2014 urging them to contribute to the construction of a desperately needed second entrance at the First Avenue stop. The MTA’s full backing of a new point of entry and exit for this station is particularly welcome news, and I encourage the MTA and Extell to work collaboratively to ensure that the construction is completed in a timely manner."
It appears the manager of the New York Sports Club called the city rather than ask Manny to move his things to another spot along the block, which most other business owners on this block do. Manny is happy to oblige.
Considering the eyesore and highly illegal-looking construction that's been taking up the sidewalk for MONTHS now outside the sports club, it seems like a real douchey move.
Manny is a sweetheart and favorite of many locals in the neighborhood.
I just wanted to say — as the General Manager of the NYSC on Ave A that I am shocked to see how badly my company is getting dragged thru the mud with this. Manny and I have personally chatted multiple times and I was disappointed to see the city throw away his things again.
Just so most of you are aware this is the third time that I know of that this has happened and as all of you know..(weve only been here for 3 months). I can assure you that NYSC myself and my staff included had NOTHING to do with the fact that he had his things thrown away. The first time this happened before we were even open I immediately ran down to Manny and apologized for his belongings being thrown away.
Manny sells his things in front of the methadone clinic and he's not near our storefront, which is why we have no problem with him doing his business, he knows that because we have spoken and I say hello to him almost everyday.
On behalf of NYSC I apologize for this happening but it did not come from us, I even spoke to the construction team and they had nothing to do with it.
Now for the real issue the SIDEWALK! This is killing everyone's business and is a huge problem with the community and me. Just so everyone is aware the sidewalk has been the city not giving us to remove an oil tank that was abandoned beneath the old sidewalk. And so everyone is updated it will be completed by the end of this month if not sooner.
If anyone has any questions please feel free to stop by, tour the gym and see that we are not some "big business" or call me...
Ever since my settling on Avenue A in 1971, I have been collecting the neighborhood's history. That gathering is of diverse interest with ephemera and artifacts of all kinds. It includes vintage press photos, flyers, maps, architectural salvage, street signs, etcetera.
One of my favorite finds is this sheet music of 1922 titled "Down On Avenue A." The great cover image in style, fashion and attitude still looks contemporary, timeless.
As now with impending summer the down on Avenue A sidewalk parade has started anew.
[There was] a pit bull attack on Avenue A, on a small black-and-white dog. Despite people throwing garbage and a garbage can at it, the bull would not release its grip. Multiple cops came, dog's owners appeared to not give a fuck, and the little dog's owner went into shock and an ambulance was called for her.
We were walking on Avenue A when a pit bull on a leash on the other side of the sidewalk made a beeline for Dante. He grabbed Dante's neck, and with a locked jaw kept thrashing him about and would not let go. My husband and I just tried to pull the dog off — a crowd was forming and the dog's walker said he was sorry but he couldn't do anything — it wasn't his dog.
People kept yelling for him to kick his dog, to do something — I don't know what he should have done ... but standing around saying he couldn't do anything probably wasn't it. Then at one point he said something like, "oh gosh, the dog is dead" or "it just killed a dog." That's when I had to turn away ... it didn't seem like we were going to be able to get the dog to let go and it looked as if Dante's neck was about to be ripped apart.
Then, somehow Dante gets free and everyone thinks he's dead. My husband felt a very faint heartbeat but he was lifeless in my arms — not moving for a few minutes. I start to run to the Lower East Side Animal Hospital but some amazing people from the Ruff Club [at 34 Avenue A] ushered me inside. That's when Dante started to move a bit, pick his head up. Poor thing was shaking and in shock. He ended up having a bite and needs to be in a cone, receive some medicine, etc., but the vet said Dante is very lucky. The people at the Ruff Club were beyond awesome — they stayed with us, checked on Dante, gave us advice and clearly cared a lot.
My husband got a small cut and I got bit, though it isn't too deep. We found out that the pit bull did not have his rabies shots and now my husband and I need to go through a series of rabies shots over the next month.