Dedicating Moises Locón Way and Nicholas Figueroa Way on 2nd Avenue at 7th Street

City officials this morning unveiled the new street blades that co-name the northwest corner of Second Avenue and Seventh Street after Moises Locón, 27, and Nicholas Figueroa, 23, who died in the gas explosion here on March 26, 2015.

Ana and Nixon, parents of Nicholas Figueroa, and Alfredo Locón, brother of Moises Locón, were at the dedication as well as several local elected officials and first responders at the time of the explosion.

This was a healing moment for all. #eastvillage Photo: Cora Cofield pic.twitter.com/rmpHCitVr5

— Rosie Mendez (@RosieMendez) October 14, 2017

Officials say that illegal gas tampering caused the explosion.

Photos by Steven

Previously on EV Grieve:
RIP Nicholas Figueroa

RIP Moises Ismael Locón Yac

A proposal to co-name part of 2nd Avenue and 7th Street after the victims of the 2015 gas explosion

Street co-naming ceremony Saturday for the 2 victims of the 2nd Avenue gas explosion

Street co-naming ceremony Saturday for the 2 victims of the 2nd Avenue gas explosion

Last spring, City Council approved co-naming the northwest corner of Seventh Street and Second Avenue Moises Locón and Nicholas Figueroa Way.

Locón, 27, and Figueroa, 23, were killed in the gas explosion here on March 26, 2015, that also destroyed three buildings, 119-123 Second Ave.

This Saturday morning at 11, city officials will be on-hand on this corner for the official co-name ceremony ...



Organizers who were behind the co-naming hope that the street sign bearing the names of the two men will both help commemorate their loss and serve as a warning against unscrupulous landlords.

In a story at DNAinfo on the co-naming proposal this past May, Ana Lanza, Figueroa's mother, said, "It's not going to bring him back — nothing is going to bring him back. But at least this brings a little bit of comfort, that he's going to be remembered somewhere, somehow. That his life wasn't taken in vain. That he meant something."

Authorities have said that illegally siphoned gas at 121 Second Ave. was to blame for the explosion. In February 2016, Manhattan DA Cyrus Vance's office charged landlord Maria Hrynenko and her son Michael Hrynenko Jr. along with contractor Dilber Kukic and plumber Jerry Ioannidis with manslaughter in the second degree, criminally negligent homicide and assault in the second degree, among other charges.

According to an obituary, Michael Jr. died on Aug. 25 at age 31.

The criminal case has yet to go to trial while the multiple civil actions are still making their way through the courts.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Updated: 2nd Ave. explosion — landlord, 3 others charged with 2nd degree manslaughter; showed 'a blatant and callous disregard for human life'

Memorial for Mary Spink tomorrow

RIP Nicholas Figueroa

RIP Moises Ismael Locón Yac

A proposal to co-name part of 2nd Avenue and 7th Street after the victims of the 2015 gas explosion

Michael Hrynenko, Jr., awaiting trial for his role in the 2nd Avenue gas explosion, dies at 31

About the scaffolding at 125 2nd Ave.

On the topic of the Second Avenue explosion... several readers have asked about the scaffolding that arrived at the end of September on the south-facing wall at 125 Second Ave.

A reliable source told me workers are will be repointing the building, and it has nothing to do with any possible new construction in the now-empty adjacent lots.

As for those parcels... late last spring, Shaky Cohen's Nexus Building Development Group paid $9.15 million for 119 and 121 Second Ave. at Seventh Street. To date, there haven't been any new permits filed at the DOB.

In September 2016, the lot that housed 123 Second Ave. sold for $6 million. The buyer was reported as Ezra Wibowo under the LLC 123 Second Ave. Corp. His plans? "[I]t’s a long-term investment. He’s not in a rush to build or develop," a source told the Post last March.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Exclusive: 2nd Avenue explosion sites have a new owner

Michael Hrynenko, Jr., awaiting trial for his role in the 2nd Avenue gas explosion, dies at 31

Michael A. Hrynenko, Jr., a key figure in the Second Avenue gas explosion investigation, died on Aug. 25. He was 31, according to an obituary posted Aug. 27 at the Pizzi Funeral Home website.

A cause of death has not been disclosed for Hrynenko, who was also called Mischou.

He was the son of Maria Hrynenko, the landlord of 119 and 121 Second Ave., two of the three buildings destroyed by the deadly blast on March 26, 2015. He lived on Seventh Street before moving to Rockland County in 2014, according to published reports. (His father, Michael, owned the Kiev Restaurant on Second Avenue and Seventh Street. He died in 2004.)

In February 2016, Manhattan DA Cyrus Vance's office charged Maria and Michael Jr. along with contractor Dilber Kukic and plumber Jerry Ioannidis with manslaughter in the second degree, criminally negligent homicide and assault in the second degree, among other charges. (The final defendant, licensed plumber Andrew Trombettas, was charged with offering a false instrument​,​ for allegedly lending his name and license number to paperwork.)

The five were accused of installing an illegal gas system, which they hid from inspectors, at No. 119 and 121. All five pleaded not guilty.

In announcing the charges in February 2016, Vance singled out Michael Hrynenko, who served as a building manager, and Kukic for their actions on March 26 at 121 Second Ave., the site of the restaurant Sushi Park.

As the Post reported at the time:

The two were caught on ​building surveillance ​video ​the day of the deadly blast and fire ​responding to a fumes complaint from the ground-floor sushi restaurant, then quickly running to fiddle with their hidden basement gas set-up — literally sprinting through the restaurant without warning a single patron, officials allege.

Moments later, restaurant-goer Nicholas Figueroa, 23, and restaurant worker Moises Lucon, 26, were fatally engulfed in the blast, which also injured two dozen others, among them Kukic and Michael Jr.

The criminal case has yet to go to trial while the multiple civil actions are still making their way through the courts.

To date, Maria Hrynenko and her companies have reportedly been hit with 28 lawsuits.

In June, Hrynenko filed a lawsuit, claiming that her management company was "careless and reckless" in its work. In the spring of 2015, as investigators focused on her actions, a lawyer for Hrynenko said that Con Edison bore responsibility for not shutting off the gas during the visit to the property earlier that day.

"Maria would not have sent her son in there if she knew the building was going to explode," the lawyer, Thomas M. Curtis, said in 2015, according to The New York Times.

The Hrynenkos were expected to appear on Sept. 12 in New York Supreme Court in front of Justice A. Kirke Bartley Jr., per court records.

Updated 12:24 p.m.

Giovanni shared this link from the Orangetown Daily Voice from February:

A Sparkill man accused of drunkenly crashing his car and failing several field sobriety tests immediately after is facing a felony count of driving while intoxicated, according to police.

Michael Hrynenko, 31, was taken into custody about 4:50 p.m. Monday after officers responded to a reported one-car crash in a parking lot off Route 303, according to Orangetown police.

According to authorities, Hrynenko was found behind the wheel of the crashed car and appeared to be drunk. He submitted to several field sobriety tests at the scene, which he's accused of failing, according to police.

---

Read the previous coverage here.

Report: Explosion victims seek to freeze Maria Hrynenko's assets

Victims of the deadly Second Avenue gas explosion are now looking to freeze the assets of former landlord Maria Hrynenko, who last month sold two of the three properties destroyed in the blast on March 26, 2015.

The Post today reports that Hrynenko and her companies have been hit with 28 lawsuits.

Per the Post:

The legal motion asks that a judge forbid Hrynenko from “removing, destroying, selling, assigning, gifting, encumbering and otherwise disposing” of cash from the sale.

As I first reported in June, Shaky Cohen's Nexus Building Development Group, Inc., paid $9.15 million for both lots — 119 and 121 Second Ave. To date, there haven't been any new permits filed at the DOB.

The DA charged Hrynenko and several others, including her son, with involuntary manslaughter and other alleged crimes. The criminal case against her has yet to go to trial while the multiple civil actions are still making their way through the courts.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Exclusive: 2nd Avenue explosion sites have a new owner

Soil testing continues at 2nd Avenue explosion site

Several EVG readers noted the arrival of a Davey Drill on the former site of 119 Second Ave. yesterday... workers were apparently doing some soil testing (or a "'due diligence' subsurface investigation," per olympiasepiriot).

Upon leaving for the day, someone from the crew apparently put up generic-looking "no parking Thursday" signs up here on Seventh Street at Second Avenue... and blocked off part of the street with cones...



An EVG reader who shared these photos believes these are fake NYPD signs ... the one below is from the Dance Parade, which has the NYPD logo and department number on the bottom...



So far there aren't any work new permits on file for work on this property.

As noted in previous posts, there have been reports that landlord Maria Hrynenko, who the DA charged with involuntary manslaughter and other alleged crimes, was poised to sell her now-empty lots at No. 119 and 121. Lawyers have said that a sale could potentially jeopardize the settlements of the victims.

Hrynenko is now claiming in a new lawsuit that her management company was "careless and reckless" in its work that led to the deadly explosion. Investigators have said that an illegal cost-cutting gas delivery system at 121 Second Ave. may have caused the blast that killed two men and injured a few dozen other people as well as destroyed three buildings — 119, 121 and 123 Second Ave.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Maria Hrynenko looking to sell 2nd Avenue properties destroyed in deadly gas explosion

Reader report: A buyer for 119 and 121 2nd Ave., site of the deadly gas explosion?

Soil testing underway at the 2nd Avenue explosion site

Several EVG readers have noted the arrival of a Davey Drill this morning at 119 Second Ave., at the site of the deadly gas explosion in March 2015.

It appears that workers are taking soil samples here at Seventh Street ahead of some possible new development. A survey crew was on the scene last week. One of the workers said that they were surveying the site ... and said they were there representing the buyer of 119 Second Ave. and 121 Second Ave.

There have been reports that landlord Maria Hrynenko, who the DA charged with involuntary manslaughter and other alleged crimes, was poised to sell her now-empty lots at No. 119 and 121. Lawyers have said that a sale could potentially jeopardize the settlements of the victims.

So far, nothing has appeared in public records noting a deal. In addition, there aren't any new permits filed with the Department of Buildings for these two properties.

Updated:

Here are two more photos via EVG contributor Steven...





One of the workers told Steven they are doing pre-construction borings. The worker did not have any idea about when construction might begin.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Maria Hrynenko looking to sell 2nd Avenue properties destroyed in deadly gas explosion

Reader report: A buyer for 119 and 121 2nd Ave., site of the deadly gas explosion?

Report: Landlord claims management company was responsible for the 2nd Avenue gas explosion

Sixteen months after the DA charged Maria Hrynenko and several others for their role in the deadly Second Avenue gas explosion, the landlord is now claiming that her management company was "careless and reckless" in its work, according to court papers.

The New York Post first reported on this yesterday. Per the Post:

The landlord accused of wrongdoing in the deadly 2015 East Village gas explosion is blaming someone else.

A Manhattan management company hired to install gas meters in the basement of one of the three buildings owned by Maria Hrynenko was negligent in its work and failed to warn people about hazardous conditions, Hrynenko claims in a new lawsuit.

Andrick Management LLC was reportedly hired to install gas meters in the basement of one of the three buildings. (The Post did not have comment from Andrick.)

Hrynenko, 57, is facing charges of manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, assault and reckless endangerment.

Investigators have said that an illegal cost-cutting gas delivery system at 121 Second Ave. may have caused the blast that killed two men and injured a few dozen other people as well as destroyed three buildings — 119, 121 and 123 Second Ave.

As we reported on Friday, a reader spotted a survey crew on the northwest corner of Seventh Street and Second Avenue. One of the workers said that they were surveying the site ... and said they were there representing the buyer of 119 Second Ave. and 121 Second Ave. In March, lawyers for some of the victims said that a sale of the empty lots could potentially jeopardize the settlements of the victims.

Reader report: A buyer for 119 and 121 2nd Ave., site of the deadly gas explosion?

Yesterday afternoon, an EVG reader spotted a survey crew on the site of the deadly gas explosion from March 2015 on Second Avenue at Seventh Street.

One of the workers said that they were surveying the site ... and said they were there representing the buyer of 119 Second Ave. and 121 Second Ave.

Back on March 26, the Post reported that landlord Maria Hrynenko was poised to sell her now-empty lots at No. 119 and 121, which could potentially jeopardize the settlements of the victims.

Maria Hrynenko, 57, appears ready to cash out on her valuable Second Avenue properties before the criminal case against her goes to trial and as the civil actions wend their way through the courts...

Hrynenko could rake in at least $12 million, based on the sale price of a neighboring lot, if she sells both her parcels.

So far, nothing has appeared in public records noting a sale. However, the sight of a survey crew shows that something is afoot with the properties.

According to the Post, a broker working with Hrynenko recently contacted the new owner of the lot at 123 Second Ave., who paid $6 million for the property. (The previous owner of No. 123, George Pasternak, was not implicated for any wrongdoing connected to the explosion.) The broker reportedly said they had a buyer interested in purchasing all three lots. However, the new owner, Ezra Wibowo, declined the offer.

More than two dozen lawsuits have been filed against Hrynenko, her companies — MAH Realty and Kiev Realty — the city, Con Edison and other defendants.

Per the Post:

Lawyers for the victims say it would be virtually impossible to stop a sale — as long as it’s for market value and not to a straw buyer — and that the potential $12 million-plus windfall could be difficult to locate.

“Let’s say she sells the property and takes the cash and stashes it away in the Canary Islands, there’s no way for us to recoup that,” said Marius Wesser, a lawyer for Machendra Chongbang. The Nepalese immigrant was a chef at Sushi Park and was badly injured when he was blown into the basement.

In February 2016, the DA charged Hrynenko and her son, Michael Hrynenko Jr., with involuntary manslaughter. The Hrynenkos as well as contractor Dilber Kukic and an unlicensed plumber, Athanasios Ioannidis, have pleaded not guilty. There have not been any updates on when this case might go to trial.

Investigators have said that an illegally tapped gas line at 121 Second Ave. may have caused the blast that killed two men and injured a few dozen other people... as well as destroyed three buildings — 119, 121 and 123 Second Ave.

News came out this week that the northwest corner of Second Avenue and Seventh Street will be co-named Moises Locón and Nicholas Figueroa Way for the two victims of the gas explosion.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Maria Hrynenko looking to sell 2nd Avenue properties destroyed in deadly gas explosion

City approves co-naming the northwest corner of 7th Street and 2nd Avenue Moises Locón and Nicholas Figueroa Way

The northwest corner of Seventh Street and Second Avenue will be co-named Moises Locón and Nicholas Figueroa Way for the two victims of the gas explosion here on March 26, 2015.

A volunteer who helped with the co-naming efforts told us that City Council approved the bill on May 24. As we understand it, there will not be a mayoral signing ceremony for the legislation, and it will go into law on June 23. It then usually takes the Department of Transportation six weeks to prepare the new street blades.

Members of CB3's Transportation & Public Safety/Environment Committee and the full CB3 board signed off on the proposal last month.

Organizers behind the co-naming hope that the street sign bearing the names of the two men will both help commemorate their loss and serve as a warning against unscrupulous landlords.

In February 2016, the DA charged landlord Maria Hrynenko and her son, Michael Hrynenko Jr., with involuntary manslaughter ... as well as contractor Dilber Kukic and an unlicensed plumber, Athanasios Ioannidis. (A fifth person, Andrew Trombettas, faces charges for supplying his license to Ioannidis.) All pleaded not guilty.

Authorities have said that siphoned gas at the Hrynenko-owned 121 Second Ave. was to blame for the explosion, which killed Locón and Figueroa, and injured two dozen other people. The blast also destroyed three buildings.

Figueroa, 23, a recent graduate of SUNY Buffalo State, was at Sushi Park with a co-worker. Locón, an employee at Sushi Park, was 27.

In a story at DNAinfo last month on the co-naming proposal, Ana Lanza, Figueroa's mother, said, "It's not going to bring him back — nothing is going to bring him back. But at least this brings a little bit of comfort, that he's going to be remembered somewhere, somehow. That his life wasn't taken in vain. That he meant something."

Previously on EV Grieve:
Updated: 2nd Ave. explosion — landlord, 3 others charged with 2nd degree manslaughter; showed 'a blatant and callous disregard for human life'

Memorial for Mary Spink tomorrow

RIP Nicholas Figueroa

RIP Moises Ismael Locón Yac

A proposal to co-name part of 2nd Avenue and 7th Street after the victims of the 2015 gas explosion

Members of CB3's Transportation & Public Safety/Environment Committee will hear a proposal this month to co-name Second Avenue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place after the two men who died in the gas explosion here on March 26, 2015.

Authorities have said that siphoned gas at 121 Second Ave. was to blame for the explosion, which killed Moises Ismael Locón Yac and Nicholas Figueroa, and injured two dozen other people.

Figueroa, 23, a recent graduate of SUNY Buffalo State, was at Sushi Park with a co-worker. Locón, an employee at Sushi Park, was 27. Locón sent most of his paycheck back to his family in Guatemala, where he worked as a school teacher before moving to the United States in 2008.

Here's more information about the street co-naming proposal via a petition:

In memory of these young men, we ask that our community honor their lives and demonstrate to their families who their loss was also our loss and that we share in their sorrow by co-naming these blocks.

The petition must be signed by a minimum 75 percent of the total number of residential units and 75 percent of the total number of businesses on these blocks. (We appreciate the support, but do not need signatures from elsewhere in the neighborhood. The petitions will be available at neighboring businesses.)

If approved, then City Council will vote on this in May or June. If passed in the City Council, we will set a date with the Department of Transportation for a street blade installation and have a street co-naming event.

Here's a document (PDF) with more information on CB3's guidelines for co-naming a street. (If you have any questions or want to get more involved, then please email nicholasandmoises [at] gmail [dot] com.)

The committee meeting is May 9 at 6:45 p.m. at Downtown Art, 1st Floor Theater, 70 E. Fourth St. between the Bowery and Second Avenue.

The committee is also expected to hear a request to co-name Second Street between Avenue A and Avenue B for Mary Spink.

Spink, a local business owner and member of CB3, was a community activist and later served as executive director of Lower East Side People’s Mutual Housing Association. She died in January 2012 at age 64.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Updated: 2nd Ave. explosion — landlord, 3 others charged with 2nd degree manslaughter; showed 'a blatant and callous disregard for human life'

Memorial for Mary Spink tomorrow

RIP Nicholas Figueroa

RIP Moises Ismael Locón Yac

Actress Drea de Matteo on her life at 123 2nd Ave.

The Post today has an interview with actress Drea de Matteo, who talks about losing her home of 22 years during the fatal gas explosion on March 26, 2015.

de Matteo, born and raised in Queens, was 21 in 1993 when she moved into the second-floor apartment at 123 Second Ave., one of three buildings destroyed following the explosion and fire.

“I was holding parties there. It was wild,” she said. She put her funky stamp on the space with Gothic tables and chairs from her dad, Albert, who owned a furniture company. She added black lights “so at night it was [like] a discotheque — the whole apartment glowed. It was a little gypsy caravan,” she said.

The apartment, above Sam’s Deli and the restaurant Pommes Frites, saw her through life changes: opening a vintage clothing store, Filth Mart; landing her first big role, on “The Sopranos,” in 1999; winning an Emmy in 2004. As her star grew, de Matteo stayed put — even once she became engaged to musician Shooter Jennings, son of country music legend Waylon Jennings, and gave birth to their two children. (Jennings and de Matteo later split.)

“I brought both of my children home from the hospital to that apartment,” she recalled.

The pad also became a sanctuary at the end of 2014, a year after her father died. De Matteo’s mom downsized from the Whitestone home where the actress had grown up and moved the family’s most treasured possessions into the loft. The pad housed “everything meaningful and valuable” in her life, de Matteo said. She lost it all in the blaze. “Every single photograph is gone, every videotape of my dad . . . my children’s footprints.”

Nonetheless, the actress said, “I can live without all that stuff. I am just happy to be alive.”

In June 2016, de Matteo and several dozen other residents filed a $17 million suit in Manhattan Supreme Court, alleging the city and Con Edison, along with the owners of the restaurant Sushi Park and contractor Neighborhood Construction Corp., failed "to observe significant and dangerous 'red flags' … failing to take any steps to protect the public and their property."

Last fall, the owner of No. 123, who is not implicated in any of the various lawsuits, sold the empty lot to Ezra Wibowo under the LLC 123 Second Ave. Corp. for $6 million.

Meanwhile, multiple readers have noted the arrival (last Sunday night/Monday morning) of this graffiti on the east-facing wall of 43 E. Seventh St. ...


[Photo by Steven]

Previously on EV Grieve:
Updated: 2nd Ave. explosion — landlord, 3 others charged with 2nd degree manslaughter; showed 'a blatant and callous disregard for human life'

Former residents talk about landlord Maria Hrynenko: 'it was clear she wanted to get rid of anyone with a rent-regulated apartment'

Report: 123 2nd Ave. is for sale

Selling 123 Second Ave.

A few more details about the sale of 123 2nd Ave.

Report: Maria Hrynenko looking to sell 2nd Avenue properties destroyed in deadly gas explosion

[Photo from yesterday]

On the 2-year anniversary of the deadly Second Avenue gas explosion, the Post is reporting that landlord Maria Hrynenko "is poised" to sell her now-empty lots at 119 and 121 Second Ave., which could jeopardize the settlements of the victims.

Maria Hrynenko, 57, appears ready to cash out on her valuable Second Avenue properties before the criminal case against her goes to trial and as the civil actions wend their way through the courts...

Hrynenko could rake in at least $12 million, based on the sale price of a neighboring lot, if she sells both her parcels.

Authorities have said that siphoned gas at 121 Second Ave. is to blame for the explosion, which killed Moises Ismael Locón Yac and Nicholas Figueroa, and injured two dozen other people. A 21-year-old student visiting from Berkeley during spring break lost an eye and fractured his larynx. Two firefighters also suffered serious injuries.

In February 2016, the DA charged Hrynenko and her son, Michael Hrynenko Jr., with involuntary manslaughter ... as well as contractor Dilber Kukic and an unlicensed plumber, Athanasios Ioannidis. (A fifth person, Andrew Trombettas, faces charges for supplying his license to Ioannidis.) All pleaded not guilty.

More than two dozen lawsuits have been filed against Hrynenko, her companies — MAH Realty and Kiev Realty — the city, Con Edison and other defendants.

Lawyers for the victims say it would be virtually impossible to stop a sale — as long as it’s for market value and not to a straw buyer — and that the potential $12 million-plus windfall could be difficult to locate.

“Let’s say she sells the property and takes the cash and stashes it away in the Canary Islands, there’s no way for us to recoup that,” said Marius Wesser, a lawyer for Machendra Chongbang. The Nepalese immigrant was a chef at Sushi Park and was badly injured when he was blown into the basement.

According to the Post, a broker working with Hrynenko recently contacted the new owner of the lot at 123 Second Ave., who paid $6 million for the property. The broker reportedly said they had a buyer interested in purchasing all three lots.

However, the owner, Ezra Wibowo, declined the offer.

“For him, it’s a long-term investment. He’s not in a rush to build or develop,” the source said.

Previously on EV Grieve:
[Updating] Explosion on 2nd Avenue and East 7th Street

How displaced residents are faring after the 2nd Avenue gas explosion

Living out of a suitcase 6 months after the 2nd Avenue explosion

Moving on — and feeling lucky — after the 2nd Avenue explosion

A family continues to feel the loss on 2nd Avenue

Updated: 2nd Ave. explosion — landlord, 3 others charged with 2nd degree manslaughter; showed 'a blatant and callous disregard for human life'

Former residents talk about landlord Maria Hrynenko: 'it was clear she wanted to get rid of anyone with a rent-regulated apartment'

Report: 123 2nd Ave. is for sale

Selling 123 Second Ave.

And read our interviews with longtime residents of 45 E. Seventh St. Mildred Guy and Diane McLean.

A few more details about the sale of 123 2nd Ave.

Back in late September, news arrived that the lot that housed 123 Second Ave., one of three buildings destroyed following the deadly gas explosion in March 2015, sold for $6 million.

The buyer was reported as Ezra Wibowo under the LLC 123 Second Ave. Corp. While there haven't been any details divulged about what might be coming to the property, Crain's this week provided a few more details about the deal.

The $6 million sale price for what’s now a vacant lot at 123 Second Ave. is likely higher than what the building that stood there would have commanded. The sellers, who originally asked $9.7 million, had taken a $499,000 mortgage on the building in 1999, and it generated gross revenue of $283,580 in 2014, per real estate research website Reonomy.

Moreover, the September sale price for the lot is comparable to what larger nearby apartment buildings have traded for in recent years. The new owner of 123 Second Ave., an investor from the West Village, could not be reached regarding any development plans — and none have been filed with the city — but it’s unlikely such a choice spot will remain undeveloped for long.

No. 123 housed Pommes Frites and Sam's Deli and several residential spaces. Maria Hrynenko, the owner of 119 and 121 Second Ave. faces various charges (along with four others), including involuntary manslaughter.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: City claims immunity in tenant lawsuit over deadly 2nd Avenue gas explosion

Report: City claims immunity in tenant lawsuit over deadly 2nd Avenue gas explosion

Catching up to this piece in the Post from yesterday ... as previously reported, several dozen former Second Avenue residents filed a $17 million lawsuit in the wake of the deadly March 2015 gas explosion.

The suit ... alleges the city and Con Edison, along with the owners of the restaurant Sushi Park and contractor Neighborhood Construction Corp., failed “to observe significant and dangerous ‘red flags’ … failing to take any steps to protect the public and their property.”

The city and the others also failed to “properly test the gas lines” and relied “upon an illogical and antiquated system of enforcement, inspections and unreliable self-certification,” according to the suit.

As the Post reported yesterday:

In denying any fault, the city said the damages were caused by Con Edison, the building’s managers, and the five people busted for the illegal gas hookup blamed for the blast.

The lawyers representing the tenants stated: "We believe that the city’s failures were not of the nature of misjudgment in discretionary acts but rather a fundamental failure to carry out ministerial acts and essential functions."

As for Con Ed, a spokesperson said simply: "We will address the matter in court."

In February, the DA charged No. 119 and 121 landlord Maria Hrynenko and her son, Michael Hrynenko Jr., with involuntary manslaughter ... as well as contractor Dilber Kukic and an unlicensed plumber, Athanasios Ioannidis. (A fifth person, Andrew Trombettas, faces charges for supplying his license to Ioannidis.) All pleaded not guilty.

The lot that housed 123 Second Ave., one of three buildings destroyed following the explosion, recently sold for $6 million to Ezra Wibowo under the LLC 123 Second Ave. Corp. There haven't been any details divulged about what might be coming to the property.

Report: 123 2nd Ave. sells for $6 million

["Building sketch for illustration purposes only," via Compass]

Back in March, George Pasternak, the landlord of 123 Second Ave., put the vacant plot of land up for sale, asking $9.7 million.

Now, The Real Deal reports the lot has sold for $6 million. According to records filed with the city today, the new owner is traced to Ezra Wibowo under the LLC 123 Second Ave. Corp. (TRD was unable to track him down to ask about his possible plans for the site.)

123 Second Ave., which housed Pommes Frites and Sam's Deli, was destroyed along with two others on March 26, 2015, after a fatal gas explosion next door.

According to the marketing materials from the Compass brokerage firm that a tipster shared with us in March:

Vacant lot (25’ x 100’) for rental or condo development with commercial overlay offered for sale. 1031 exchange opportunity, in prime East Village location (2nd Ave and 7th Street), and currently zoned C1-5/R7A. FAR ranges from 3.45-4.6 subject to the DOB approval of proposed/planned build out, to be filed by potential purchaser post closing. Building sketch for illustration purposes only.

As Lois Weiss at the Post reported at the time:

[A]ll three properties were reclassified from apartments in Tax Class 2 to vacant land in Tax Class 4, which will bump their expected rates starting July 1.

While only Pasternak’s lot is for sale, each of the three lots, including the corner at 119 Second Ave., can host 10,000 buildable square feet for apartments, residential condominiums plus stores.

Only No. 123 had been on the sales market. (According to reports, the city charged Pasternak $350,000 to demolish his building.)

Maria Hrynenko, the owner of 119 and 121 Second Ave. faces various charges (along with four others), including involuntary manslaughter. There have not been any updates on when this case might go to trial.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Updated: 2nd Ave. explosion — landlord, 3 others charged with 2nd degree manslaughter; showed 'a blatant and callous disregard for human life'

Former residents talk about landlord Maria Hrynenko: 'it was clear she wanted to get rid of anyone with a rent-regulated apartment'

Report: 123 2nd Ave. is for sale

Selling 123 Second Ave.

The Figueroa family clears the weeds from the site of the deadly 2nd Avenue explosion

[EVG photo from Sept. 10]

Today, Nixon Figueroa, whose son Nicholas died in the gas explosion at 119-123 Second Ave. in March 2015, visited the site and cleared out the weeds that had been growing. (Mr. Figueroa was assisted by one of his other sons.)


[Photo by Lola Sáenz]


[Photo by Steven]

The memorials for Nicholas and the second victim of the blast, Moises Ismael Locón Yac, had been obscured by the weeds in recent months.


[Photo by Lola Sáenz]

Previously on EV Grieve:
[Updating] Explosion on 2nd Avenue and East 7th Street

RIP Nicholas Figueroa

A family continues to feel the loss on 2nd Avenue

A small request to clear the weeds from the 2nd Avenue explosion site

Last week, workers removed weeds from the empty lot at 123 Second Ave., one of three buildings destroyed during the deadly gas explosion on March 26, 2015.

There's now a new memorial sign on the fence of the adjacent properties, 119 and 121 Second Ave., which are owned by Maria Hrynenko, who faces various charges, including involuntary manslaughter.

A message at the bottom of the sign reads: "Somebody cut the weeds please!"

Nearby resident Lola Sáenz placed the sign this morning. "I made a new flyer. Since the weeds got cut on the right side lot, I'm hoping someone sees the note, and cuts them [at 119-121 Second Avenue]. It's starting to look like a forest."

In April 2015, Sáenz created an In Memoriam and left flowers for Moises Ismael Locón Yac, one of the two victims in the explosion. Sáenz said that she did it because his family is in Guatemala, and likely wouldn't have the opportunity to create a memorial at the site themselves.

Report: 2nd Avenue residents file $17 million lawsuit over deadly gas explosion

[Photo from March]

Several dozen former Second Avenue residents have filed a $17 million lawsuit in the wake of the deadly March 2015 gas explosion, the Daily News reports.

The suit, filed Tuesday in Manhattan Supreme Court, alleges the city and Con Edison, along with the owners of the restaurant Sushi Park and contractor Neighborhood Construction Corp., failed “to observe significant and dangerous ‘red flags’ … failing to take any steps to protect the public and their property.”

The city and the others also failed to “properly test the gas lines” and relied “upon an illogical and antiquated system of enforcement, inspections and unreliable self-certification,” according to the suit.

The Daily News article mostly focuses on actress Drea de Matteo, who lived for 22 years at 123 Second Ave., one of the three buildings destroyed in the blast.

In April, the estate of Nicholas Figueroa filed a wrong death lawsuit. (The Daily News notes that there have been dozens of lawsuits filed regarding the explosion.)

Authorities have said that siphoned gas at 121 Second Ave. is to blame for the explosion, which killed Figueroa and Moises Ismael Locón Yac and injured two dozen other people.

On Feb. 11, the DA charged No. 119 and 121 landlord Maria Hrynenko and her son, Michael Hrynenko Jr., with involuntary manslaughter ... as well as contractor Dilber Kukic and an unlicensed plumber, Athanasios Ioannidis. (A fifth person, Andrew Trombettas, faces charges for supplying his license to Ioannidis.) All pleaded not guilty.

In early March, George Pasternak, the landlord of 123 Second Ave., put his vacant plot of land up for sale, asking $9.7 million.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Updated: 2nd Ave. explosion — landlord, 3 others charged with 2nd degree manslaughter; showed 'a blatant and callous disregard for human life'

Former residents talk about landlord Maria Hrynenko: 'it was clear she wanted to get rid of anyone with a rent-regulated apartment'

Report: 123 2nd Ave. is for sale

Selling 123 Second Ave.

Report: The estate of Nicholas Figueroa files wrongful death lawsuit

The estate of Nicholas Figueroa, the 23-year-old recent college graduate who died last March in the Second Avenue explosion, has filed a wrong death lawsuit, The Real Deal reports.

The estate is suing the building’s owner, Maria Hrynenko and her son Michael, as well as the restaurant, contractors and plumbers who worked on the allegedly illegally-installed gas line, Con Edison, the city, Neighborhood Construction Corporation, Beta Plumbing & Heating and others.

The lawyer who is representing the estate said that the amount of damages sought has not yet been set. The suit was filed last week in New York State Supreme Court.

Authorities have said that siphoned gas at 121 Second Ave. is to blame for the explosion, which killed Figueroa and Moises Ismael Locón Yac, injured two dozen other people and destroyed three buildings.

On Feb. 11, the DA charged No. 119 and 121 landlord Maria Hrynenko and her son, Michael Hrynenko Jr., with involuntary manslaughter ... as well as contractor Dilber Kukic and an unlicensed plumber, Athanasios Ioannidis. (A fifth person, Andrew Trombettas, faces charges for supplying his license to Ioannidis.) All pleaded not guilty.

In early March, George Pasternak, the landlord of 123 Second Ave., put his vacant plot of land up for sale, asking $9.7 million.

Previously on EV Grieve:
[Updating] Explosion on 2nd Avenue and East 7th Street

RIP Nicholas Figueroa

A family continues to feel the loss on 2nd Avenue