Thursday's parting shot

Photo from Union Square via jdx ...

Saturday's parting shot

A scene on Union Square today via Derek Berg ...

Wednesday's parting shot

Happy early Valentine's Day from Union Square ... photo by Derek Berg.

Chase unveils its Coffee Shop-replacing sign on Union Square

Chase, the newish tenant on the southwest corner of West 16th Street and Union Square West, has erected its new vertical sign on the building — a bland attempt at replicating the familiar neon that was here for 60-plus years.

Food writer Nick Solares shared these photos...



A little history. The Coffee Shop, the Brazilian-American diner run by former Wilhelmina models, closed here in October 2018 after 28 years in business. The Chase branch opened on Dec. 17 ... along with Chase-partnered Joe Coffee. (There's also another vegan quick-serve outpost of by CHLOE on the 16th Street side.)

During the renovations, workers removed the 1950s-era Coffee Shop neon sign — which belonged to the cafe (called Chase, oddly enough) that predated the Coffee Shop by several businesses.

There was some hope that the old sign would return after a cleaning/refurbishment. Obviously that isn't happening.


[Photo via Jeremiah Moss]

Local to express: The Trash Bags rock Union Square station

Last night, the LES-based Trash Bags held their record release party in a rather unusual venue — the band brought their thrash 'n' roll to the 14th Street/Union Square station (the L-train mezzanine) ... sadly we missed it ... here are two clips...

View this post on Instagram

@THETRASHBAGS record release subway party 12/19/19

A post shared by 🐜🐜🐜 (@muddgutsrecords) on Dec 19, 2019 at 9:29pm PST

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Raishma (@raishmaram) on Dec 20, 2019 at 2:19am PST

The band's debut record, produced by Billie Joe Armstrong, is available now via Muddguts ... you can likely find the vinyl down at the Cast, the boutique at 72 Orchard St. run by band members Moan Elisa and Chuck Bones.

The Trash Bags are on a bill tomorrow (Saturday!) night out at the Knitting Factory in Brooklyn with local singer-songwriter Fiona Silver.

Tuesday's parting shot

Put on a happy face. Photo in Union Square today via jdx.

Find more of his photos on Instagram.

Marriott buys the W Union Square

Of possible local interest from the EVG inbox yesterday — Marriott International announced that it has purchased the 270-room W New York Union Square on Park Avenue South and 17th Street.

To the news release!

The company paid $206 million for W New York Union Square, with plans for a significant renovation. Marriott International will transform the existing hotel into a cutting-edge W Hotels showcase, advancing the company’s strategy to redefine and reinvigorate the brand in North America.

[T]he 20-story hotel features historic Beaux Arts architecture, panoramic views of Union Square’s namesake pedestrian plaza and lively park, and a “W Union Square” rooftop sign that stands out on the Downtown skyline. The property first opened its doors in 1911 as the headquarters of the Guardian Life Insurance Company of America, and in 2000 opened as W New York – Union Square.

The renovation seeks to unlock the property’s untapped potential with plans for a signature, socially-charged spa and an expanded restaurant on one of New York City’s most bustling street corners.

No word on what a "socially-charged spa" is at the moment.

The Marriott recently opened an outpost of its Moxy brand over on 11th Street between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue.

The MTA wonders if you'll shop at this CVS machine in Union Square

EVG regular Pinch shares this photo from the Union Square subway entrance at the Food Emporium.

This CVS vending machine arrived yesterday in this location. It's part of an MTA experiment to offer commuters stuff that you may find at — a CVS!

NY1 has more in this report:

The MTA says it will seek more vending machines from other companies, during this pilot. The transit agency gets a percentage of every purchase, but declined to say how much.

The boxy machines offer a variety of products for New Yorkers on the go. Some of them, like ibuprofen and ear plugs, are especially suited for subway travel.

The MTA is testing the machines as a response to a reduction in subway newsstands, the result in part of declining magazine and newspaper sales. A third of the 248 retail spaces in the subway system are shuttered — most of those closed outposts are newsstands.

The MTA will test the vending machines for two years. In some cases, the locations competing with subway storefronts like one at Union Square, are just beyond the turnstile.

Meanwhile, the MTA is reportedly looking for real-live vendors to take over vacant spots at busy transits hubs such as the 42nd Street-Port Authority Bus Terminal and 47-50th Streets–Rockefeller Center.

Anything to lose sleep over? That empty Raymour & Flanigan space on 14th Street

[Top 4 photos from April]

The Raymour & Flanigan Sleep Shop sits empty now in the base of the Con Ed HQ on 14th Street at Irving Plaza... this outpost of the furniture retail chain moved around the corner to Union Square East earlier this spring...



We've talked with a few people curious about what might be going into this 15,000-square-foot retail space (across from the incoming tech hub) ...



While we mull that over... some legal documents arrived on the door the other day on behalf of the landlord, Con Ed ...



... there's some legalese about a money judgement in the amount of $435,103 (and 77 cents) ...



That's a lot of Comfort Sleeper Sofas.

At the NYC Cannabis Parade & Rally 2019 in Union Square

The NYC Cannabis Parade and Rally — said to be New York's longest-running annual marijuana legalization event — returned to Union Square yesterday.

A few thousand people were estimated to attend the rally, part of the Global Marijuana March to promote, educate and advocate cannabis culture.

Speakers this year included New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, State Assemblyman Richard Gottfried and New York State Director of Drug Policy Alliance Kassandra Frederique.

EVG contributor Stacie Joy shared these photos from Union Square...




















[Marijuana activist Dana Beal on the left]

At the You Can't Fire the Truth rally in support of protecting the Mueller investigation

Thousands of people converged on Times Square last evening at 5 in a rapid-response rally — one of many nationwide — following President Trump's firing of Jeff Sessions on Wednesday and appointment of loyalist Matt Whitaker as Acting Attorney General.

The demonstrators gathered and marched to show support for special counsel Robert Mueller's ongoing investigation into possible collusion between Trump's 2016 campaign and the Kremlin.

EVG contributor Dan Efram shared these photos...starting in Times Square ... and then from along Broadway as the peaceful protestors headed south to Union Square...

















Dan's work can also be found at New York Indivisible on Facebook and Twitter.

Sunday's parting shot

A view of Union Square today via EVG reader Jeanne Krier ...

A vigil on Union Square for the Tree of Life synagogue

Hundreds of people gathered last evening in Union Square to mourn those killed earlier in the day at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh.

Organizers, including Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society and IfNotNow, said that the vigil was held in part "to commit to loving and defending each other against hatred."

Attendees participated in the Havdalah ceremony, lighting braided candles and reciting additional prayers to commemorate the end of the Sabbath, as Gothamist reported.

EVG contributor Dan Efram shared these photos...

















A gunman stormed the synagogue during Saturday services, killing 11 worshippers and wounding six other people before he was arrested.

Remembering Hurricane Maria 1 year later

Union Square will host a memorial and remembrance this evening to mark the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Maria.

Via Facebook...

Join #OurPowerPRnyc, organizers, grassroots leaders, artists and others actively engaged in a people to people #justrecovery for Puerto Rico, demanding justice and asking "Where Are We Now?"

In late August, Puerto Rico’s official death toll from Hurricane Maria was raised from 64, a number widely discounted as far too low as Reuters reported, to nearly 3,000.

Maria caused property damage estimated at $90 billion and left much of the island without electricity for months. The recovery there remains agonizingly slow for many people.

U.S. Representative Nydia Velazquez, a native of Puerto Rico, has said that "the federal response to the hurricane was disastrously inadequate, and as a result, thousands of our fellow American citizens lost their lives."

She was among the assembled elected officials to speak out about the relief efforts during a press conference at City Hall this morning.

⁦@NydiaVelazquez⁩ ⁦@NYCMayor⁩ say less than a 1/3 of federal disaster aid has made it to #PuertoRico. 60,000 homes covered in blue tarp. ⁦@wcbs880⁩ pic.twitter.com/3u7hNlMA8l

— Marla Diamond (@MDiamond8) September 20, 2018

Report: Victim assaulted with machete in attack near Union Square, police say

Here are a few details about the attack.

From the Post:

The assault occurred steps away from the greenspace around 11:10 a.m. near 4th Avenue and Union Square East, leaving the victim with a laceration to his head, cops said.

Emergency responders rushed the man to Bellevue Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, officials said.

The suspect, whom police described as about 5 feet 10 and who wore a black shirt and multicolored shorts, fled eastbound on East 13th Street.

Other media outlets are reporting the same basics at the moment. There isn't a better description of the suspect for the time being... and the motive for the attack is unclear.