A #lovewall for St. Mark's Place

Earlier today, British-born artist James Goldcrown painted a mural of hearts on the side of Foot Gear Plus on St. Mark's Place at First Avenue...(he created a similar #lovewall earlier this year outside L'asso on Mott and Kenmare)...



Per his Instagram account, the hearts are for Paris...



Photos via EVG contributor Steven

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A photo posted by james goldcro👑n (@jgoldcrown) on Nov 17, 2015 at 1:05pm PST

[Updated] St. Mark's Place will officially be dead — or not! — on Monday

Ada Calhoun's "St. Marks Is Dead: The Many Lives of America's Hippest Street" makes its official debut on Monday… and there's a free book release party at the Cooper Union Great Hall from 6-8 that night…



The evening includes a talk from Calhoun, free beer from Brooklyn Brewery and live music from a cover band that includes Adam Horovitz of the Beastie Boys…

The book — a narrative history of the street — has received a good deal of press of late, including a cover story in The Village Voice and a feature in the Guardian UK.

I spoke with Calhoun, who was born and raised on St. Mark's Place, about the in-progress book in March 2013. (EVG is among the many people quoted in the book.)

Here's an excerpt from that interview from March 2013:

Any common themes emerging so far?

"The thing that I kept running into [were] people saying that there was this golden moment on the street when St Mark's was really itself and reached its full promise on this date and for these five years there was no better place in the entire world. It was the heart of culture — the center for music, art and poetry," she said. "People would describe passionately how it was so vibrant and they were so alive, then it died this horrible death."

For instance, Jack Kerouac biographer Joyce Johnson said that St. Mark's was all over in 1974 when someone flipped a cigarette into her son's stroller.

Another person Calhoun interviewed said that the scene died in 1974. Someone else said that all started in 1974. She also heard that the block reached its peak in 1978. Not to mention 1980. And so on.

"I'm really curious what's going on now. Basically my theory right now, based on doing this book, is that everyone was wrong. Everyone who thought it was dead was wrong," she said. "So people who think it's dead now are probably wrong too. My theory is that people coming out of karaoke bars or yogurt shops ... this is going to be some new wave of culture that we don't know about and won't even know about until it's over."

Updated 11/3

You can find a recap of the book event at the Observer here ... and the Guardian UK here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
St. Mark's Place is dead! Long live St. Mark's Place!

Reader report: St. Mark's Place street sculpture hauled away

[Photo by Allen Semanco]

Over the weekend we heard from someone concerned that the latest sculpture (that arrived mid-September) on the northeast corner of First Avenue and St. Mark's Place was starting to lean, and possibly in danger of falling.

Now EV Grieve reader Allen Semanco reports the following: "Well, whoever was afraid of this sculpture hurting someone, worry no more. It was unceremoniously dragged into the back of an AQEL Sheet Metal (Harlem-based) pickup truck this afternoon around 1:30. New window gates, here we come."


[After 1:30 p.m.]

As you can see in the above photo, the recently arrived chair with the legs remains…

So long Sounds

Tonight is the last night for Sounds at 20 St. Mark's Place... after 36 years in business here between Second Avenue and Third Avenue...

Thank you @helenango for the photo...

Previously on EV Grieve:
The last record store on St. Mark's Place is closing

For lease signs arrive on the former Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill spaces

[A few weeks ago]

A few weeks ago, we noticed that workers removed the wall that separated the former Ton-Up Cafe and Belgian Room on St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue.

Some St. Mark's Place empty storefront watchers thought this work might indicate a new tenant was on the way in…

Apparently not. For lease signs arrived on the spaces yesterday… as well as on the adjacent Hop Devil Grill front door…



This is the first time that we've seen any for lease signs on the Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill since the State of New York seized the sister bars back in April. The Ton-Up space at No. 127 has been empty since May 2014. (The for lease sign here arrived, before disappearing, last October.)

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill closed for nonpayment of taxes

Selling off the former Hop Devil Grill

Sitting empty on St. Mark's Place

Thinking about the future (and past) of 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place

As you probably know, some major change is in the works for the corners of Third Avenue and St. Mark's Place.

To recap:

• Back in June, The Real Deal reported that real-estate investor Arthur Shapolsky is in the process of buying three properties at the northeast corner of Third Avenue and St. Marks Place: 23 Third Ave., 27 Third Ave. and 3 St. Mark's Place. Basically everything from McDonald's to the corner.

According to The Real Deal, the corner could accommodate a 41,500-square-foot commercial building or a residential one of roughly half the size.

To date, nothing about the sale has shown up in public records just yet.

• Last November, the Pappas family, owners of the St. Marks Hotel, filed plans to build a 10-story mixed-use building on the hotel's lot at the southeast corner St. Mark’s Place and Third Avenue. (The hotel would take floors 2-10.)

New York Yimby got a look at a rendering.



This Super St. Marks Hotel structure awaits DOB approval. (The DOB website shows that city last disapproved the plans on March 26.)

Meanwhile, for a little perspective on this corner (at least the northeast side), take a look at this photo that writer Ada Calhoun bought on eBay that dates to 1963...

The coming changes might make for a nice addendum to Calhoun's forthcoming book, "St. Marks Is Dead: The Many Lives of America’s Hippest Street," out Nov. 2 from W.W. Norton & Co.

Sitting empty on St. Mark's Place

While there has been a taker for the former Luca Bar, the spaces that housed its neighbors on St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue remain empty.

Back in April, the State of New York seized sister bars the Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill. The Ton-Up space at No. 127 has been empty since May 2014.

We looked inside the other day and noticed that someone removed the wall that separated the Ton-Up space...



... and the Belgian Room... to perhaps make for a larger bar-restaurant concept some day...



We haven't spotted any for rent signs on either the Belgian Room or Hop Devil Grill. And there aren't any work permits on file with the DOB to suggest any incoming new business.

And some equal time to the ex-Hop Devil Grill ...



Previously on EV Grieve:
The Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill closed for nonpayment of taxes

Selling off the former Hop Devil Grill

St. Mark's Place down a tree

Also today, workers removed a tree on St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Man… right by The Sock Man…



Apparently it was a sickly tree … and hollowed out about 4-5 feet…



Word along here was that rats (a den? herd? pack? flock?) were living inside the deadish tree.

And how Google Street View remembers the tree…



Thanks to EVG correspondent Steven for the photos and investigative reporting...

First U.S. hemp bar is now open on St. Mark's Place

The Brooklyn Dark Hemp Bar — who bill themselves the first Hemp Bar in the United States — is now open at 9 St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue. (They officially opened last Saturday, and have been handing out samples this past week.)

As the sign shows, they sell pastries, coffee, tea, etc. … using hemp seeds as an ingredient.



They also sell their signature chocolate bars, which you may have seen at various stores and food fairs.

The Hemp Bar's hours are 8 a.m. to midnight Monday-Friday; 11 a.m. to midnight Saturday-Sunday. You can read more about Brooklyn Dark at their website.

The address was previously home to I Am Coffee, which seemed to be open one day a week.

Exclusive: After 40 years, punk rock mainstay Trash and Vaudeville is leaving St. Mark's Place

Late last week we started hearing rumors that Trash and Vaudeville was leaving its home of 40 years at 4 St. Mark's Place.

Store owner Ray Goodman confirmed the move yesterday, telling us that if all goes well, Trash and Vaudeville will be selling its rock 'n' roll fashions and accessories from its new space at 96 E. Seventh St. between Avenue A and First Avenue early this fall.


[96 E. 7th St., site of the new Trash & Vaudeville]

"I love St. Mark's Place. There's no doubt it. There's something magical about it. This just isn't any block," Goodman told us on the phone. "The decision wasn't something that I took lightly. From a business perspective, we saw a shift in the clientele. The block is not as conducive for fashion shopping as it once was. Now it seems as if it's all food — fast food — and bongs. Even stores that aren't bong stores sell bongs."

He said that the changing business environment on the block between Second Avenue and Third Avenue was just one of many factors that played into the decision to relocate.

"The retail world is so different today," he said. "So much of it is done online."

And increasing rents are always a culprit.

"The rent is creeping up," said Goodman, who is a minority partner in the ownership of the historic Hamilton-Holly House at 4 St. Mark's Place. "Rent was a factor, but it wasn't the sole reason."

It also didn't help that the block will likely see protracted construction in the years ahead. For starters, the owners of the St. Marks Hotel directly next door filed plans late last fall to add six additional floors to the existing structure at 2 St. Mark’s Place and Third Avenue.

"I'll be in the middle of a construction zone for the next five years," said Goodman, who figures the Trash and Vaudeville storefront would be covered by a sidewalk bridge throughout the duration of the project. "Business is tough enough."

In addition, directly across the street, The Real Deal reported that real-estate investor Arthur Shapolsky is in contract to buy three properties at the corner of Third Avenue and St. Mark's Place: 23 Third Ave., 27 Third Ave. and 3 St. Mark's Place for some unspecified new development.

And there's just the history. "It has been 40 years. Maybe it is time to do a little facelift. Just try it," he said. "I wanted to make it to the 40th year. We made that."

During the heyday of punk, everyone from the Ramones to the Dead Boys did their shopping at Trash and Vaudeville.

"Me and Dee Dee would go there and try out the display clothing," Marky Ramone told The New York Times in 2013. "Joey had a problem finding pants to fit him and would always buy them there. He was 6-foot-5 ½ with a 36-inch waist."


[Photo from 1980 by Michael Sean Edwards]

Goodman believes that the block housing the new Trash and Vaudeville has a better retail variety. He cited the array of restaurants, as well as Big Gay Ice Cream, and shops such as Turntable Lab and Village Style, the vintage and consignment shop.

The new Trash & Vaudeville will incorporate three spaces at No. 96. (The address was previously home to Salon V and Angelo Lambrou's custom bridal gown boutique, both of which relocated to other parts of the city.) Overall the new storefront will have less space than on St. Mark's Place.

As for the business future of St. Mark's, he recalls opening the shop in 1975. "There were a ton of stores for rent," he said. "St. Mark's Place has always been a bit of a roller-coaster. I think it could come back with the right mix of retail."

Despite the relocation, Goodman, who lives on St. Mark's Place, hasn't given up on the neighborhood. He said that he looked into other areas to move the store, but nothing felt right.

"We're still in our natural environment. We're just a little further east," Goodman said of the new location, adding, "I love the East Village."

[Updated] Belgian fries coming to St. Mark's Place

EVG correspondent Steven notes that the sign's up for the new food place at 36 St. Mark's Place ... and as you can see, Belgian fries will be the speciality of the house here between Second Avenue and Third Avenue.

Perhaps this will make up for the loss of Pommes Frites, whose home of 18 years was destroyed in the deadly Second Avenue gas explosion this past March 26. (The Pommes Frites owners will reopen near Washington Square Park after finding a bigger space with lower rents on MacDougal Street.)

The previous tenant here, Fasta ("Pasta Your Way"), lasted less than six weeks in business.

The previous tenant, the $1.50 branch of 2 Bros. Pizza, closed in February. As we understand it, the owners of 2 Bros. still hold the lease on this space.

And h/t EVG reader Russell!

Updated 2 p.m.

Word is they will open in the next day or two... and a reader shared the Friterie website.

Here are the sauces...



Updated 6:03 p.m.

A reader tells us that they are opening tonight. Right now!



Previously on EV Grieve:
With space too expensive in the East Village, Pommes Frites will reopen on MacDougal Street

Pasta in the works for St. Mark's Place

This evening in photo opps on St. Mark's Place

Probably NSFW

A reader sent us some photos from 20 St. Mark's Place this evening around 6-ish … where some kind of photo shoot was taking place on the steps in front of Sounds…

Later, EVG reader Sammy provided some narrative here between Second Avenue and Third Avenue:

I think it must be a photo shoot but the only ones taking pics are the bystanders. Soon she is completely topless and posing. After a few minutes she comes down to street level and shoots the shit with some people who had been watching. Takes some pics with people. Then a dude with a wheeled duffel bag says, "OK we gotta go," and without really covering up, she leaves with this guy. I have no idea what the hell was going on.

Reminders: The 9th annual Dance Parade and DanceFest is today

Several readers asked why there are police barricades along St. Mark's Place from Astor Place to Tompkins Square Park.

For example: "Why are there police barricades along St. Mark's Place from Astor Place to Tompkins Square Park?"



Today is the 9th annual Dance Parade and DanceFest … the parade starts at 21st and Broadway … and will eventually head across St. Mark's into the Park. where at 3 p.m. the DanceFest begins.

Find more info about the parade here.



Find the list for all the dancing activities in Park here.

A No Catcall Zone on St. Mark's Place

[Photo from Monday]

Brokelyn and Gothamist have more on the No Catcall Zone signs that have popped up around parts of the city, such as here on St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue... they are the work of nonprofit clothing company Feminist Apparel and Pussy Division... as part of Anti-Street Harassment Week...

Updated

Per the comments, someone defaced the sign...

Report of a fire at 121 St. Mark's Place

The FDNY responded to a fire at 121 St. Mark's Place between First Avenue and Avenue A just after 7 this evening...

MAN ALL HANDS 121 ST MARKS PL, MULTIPLE DWELLING FIRE ON 4TH FLR,

— FDNY (@FDNY) March 1, 2015

An EVG reader shared these photos... word on the scene was that there weren't any injuries...



No word on the cause at this time.

The FDNY declared the situation under control in about 20 minutes...

MAN ALL HANDS 121 ST MARKS PL, MULTIPLE DWELLING FIRE ON 4TH FLR, UNDER CONTROL

— FDNY (@FDNY) March 1, 2015

Former St. Mark's Place Pinkberry storefront for rent

The former FroYo hotspot abruptly closed at 24 St. Mark's Place a few weeks back.

The for lease sign via Eastern Consolidated arrived yesterday. The listing isn't online just yet, so we're not sure how the brokers are pitching the property here between Second Avenue and Third Avenue.

What do you think might possibly be next? Tattoo/piercing shop? Bong store? FroYo? .49-cent pizza? A combination of all those things?

Previously on EV Grieve:
[Updated] Did the Pinkberry close on St. Mark's Place? (34 comments)

Why doesn't FroYo sell on St. Mark's Place? (23 comments)

Report: Jimmy McMillan facing Feb. 5 eviction from St. Mark's Place apartment

[Photo from February 2013 by James Maher]

To the Daily News:

McMillan, founder of the fringe political party called The Rent Is Too Damn High, has filed suit in Brooklyn Federal Court seeking to stave off the eviction, which is scheduled to be carried out by a city marshal Feb. 5. Acting as his own lawyer, he is also demanding $1.3 million in monetary damages.

The 68-year-old Vietnam War veteran has been embroiled in a legal battle with the landlord, who claimed the one-bedroom flat on St. Marks Place wasn’t McMillan’s primary residence, and that he actually lives in Brooklyn.

McMillan is reportedly paying $872 a month for the apartment on St. Mark's Place. He says the Brooklyn address is for office use.

Find the full Daily News article here.

Jum Mum becoming another Spot for dessert on St. Mark's Place

[Photo by Jordy Trachtenberg from Nov. 10]

Earlier in the month, Jum Mum at 5 St. Mark's Place closed for renovations. According to the quick-serve Thai-Chinese restaurant's Facebook page: "Hold on to your VIP cards WE ARE COMING BACK. Getting ready for a new look this fall!"

Apparently there is more than a new look… there's also a whole new concept… the banner now hanging outside advertises an annex (Spot 2) for the Spot Dessert Bar …



… which is just a few storefronts away…



Jum Mum, which opened in May 2012, was run by the owners of Spot.

6 more floors in store for the soon-to-be unrecognizable St. Marks Hotel

[Via Wikipedia Commons]

The Pappas family, owners of the St. Marks Hotel, have filed plans to build a 10-story mixed-use building on the hotel's lot at 2 St. Mark’s Place and Third Avenue.

As The Real Deal reported:

According to the building plans, the expanded building would also have retail on the ground floor, in addition to a medical office and other commercial space in the cellar. The hotel would occupy floors two through 10.

And New York Yimby got a look at a rendering.

Brace.



Hjhdjhsjhuu!!!! klsdfsJF;KLSFKJ;K!!!! KLKJASJJIQIOWUIQOWI!

Sorry.

Whoa.

Well, it looks appropriately garish Midtown Southish to blend in with the Death Star across the street and the Cooper Union Spacecraft down the block.

New York Yimby notes that John Pappas also owns the Park Savoy Hotel on West 58th Street... and that the new address will also be known as 71 Cooper Square, a long way from its hot-sheet hotel days of the 1970s and 1980s... and likely its current clientele of the hostel set and European tourists.

It was the Valencia until what, the early 1980s?


[From Blast of Silence, circa 1961]


[Photo by Michael Sean Edwards from 1980]

A basement fire and a lot of firefighters last night on St. Mark's Place

Last night just after 7, the FDNY showed up full force on St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue …

MAN ALL HANDS 115 ST MARKS PL, COMMERCIAL FIRE IN BASEMENT, UNDER CONTROL

— FDNY (@FDNY) October 25, 2014

Greg Nardello, who runs Augers Well at 115 St. Mark's Place, believes that the fire was in the basement next door at No. 117.


[Photo by Greg Nardello]

The FDNY quickly contained the basement fire. Smoke from the blaze momentarily filled Box Kite Coffee at No. 115 with smoke.

"My basement was also completely covered in smoke. Not too much to report except for some minor damages from the fire crews to a few businesses on the block," Nardello told us.

Box Kite was open per usual today. No word on the cause of the basement fire.