A ride to raise awareness for a protected two‑way bike lane on Avenue B

Tomorrow morning, a group of neighborhood parents and their children will gather for a bike ride to school... in show of support for a protected two‑way bike lane on Avenue B.

As we first reported on April 15, a movement is underway to secure bike lanes on Avenue B, an increasingly congested 14-block corridor currently without any marked paths for cyclists such as on Avenue A and Avenue C.

The idea came about via parents who bike their children to area schools — including the East Village Community School, the Children's Workshop School, Tompkins Square Middle School, the Earth School and East Side Community High School.

You can read more via a petition at this link.

As for tomorrow (Monday) morning, there are now two start locations — Grand and Clinton and the Stuy Town-14th Street loop just north of Avenue B.

Here's part of the invite:

Will you ride your bike with us on the morning of Monday, May 20 as New Yorkers come together to demand a safe, protected two‑way bike lane on Avenue B?

We invite East Village neighbors on a family-paced group ride of solidarity with parents who are already biking their children to school, just in time for morning drop-off. We’ll end our ride at local bike-friendly business The Roost, at 222 Avenue B, for an optional cup of coffee afterwards.

If you haven’t already, please sign our #BikeAveB online petition for a two‑way protected bike lane and join hundreds of families who are already asking for safer way to bike to school.

[Photo by Sam Bleiberg]

Previously on EV Grieve:
Making the case for 2-way bike lanes on Avenue B

The 12th Street bike lane will return

An EVG reader reports that workers tore up 12th Street last night ... the reader, who sent the above photo, noted this between Avenue B and First Avenue. Gone for now is the bike lane that arrived back in the fall.

And we heard from other readers who were confused about what's happening here. After all, the city announced last Thursday that the 12th Street and 13th Street bike lanes would remain despite the full L-train shutdown called off by Gov. Cuomo in early January. Did the city change its mind?

Via Twitter, the DOT said the painted bike lanes will return...

This roadway was milled this week. There is typically a two week gap between milling and paving to allow utilities and others to repair the infrastructure below the street.

— NYC DOT (@NYC_DOT) May 3, 2019

As was announced last week, DOT will be adding more delineators and loading zones along 12th/13th Streets. More info: https://t.co/oU7IHQw2Yb

You are welcome to share transportation suggestions at any time here: https://t.co/C4A23H2Cu2

— NYC DOT (@NYC_DOT) May 3, 2019

More about the return of the 14th Street busway; 12th and 13th street bike lanes now permanent

As you probably heard, Mayor de Blasio announced yesterday that the city will try an "experimental new transit improvement" on 14th Street starting in June as a way to keep people moving during the starts-tomorrow-evening L-train slowdown.

Beginning in June, there will be four lanes of traffic (two in each direction) along with a new M14 Select Bus Service. Buses, trucks and emergency vehicles will be given priority in the center lanes on 14th Street from Third Avenue to Ninth Avenue. There won't be any through traffic for cars, private vehicles will still be able to use 14th Street, but only for pick-ups and drop-offs — or for accessing garages along the six-block stretch.

This restriction is expected to last for 18 months during the repairs on the Sandy-damaged L tubes.


[Click on image to go big]

City agencies had already taken the first steps to make 14th Street a car-free busway. However, with the full L-train shutdown called off by Gov. Cuomo in early January, those plans were put on hold.

In addition, the city announced yesterday that the bike lanes on 12th Street and 13th Street, which arrived last fall in anticipation of a full L-train shutdown, will be made permanent.

Here's some of the more relevant information for East Village residents via the city's news release:

• 14th Street Transit/Truck Priority (TTP) – The MTA and DOT announced earlier this year that M14 SBS would be coming to the 14th Street corridor in 2019; the corridor carries one of the most intensely used bus routes in the city, with the M14A/D carrying 27,000 daily riders and providing a critical connection from the Lower East Side to Union Square and the Meatpacking District.

To make sure these buses move quickly and reliably, DOT studied international best practice for busy transit corridors, including along King Street in downtown Toronto, where in 2017, new regulations that prioritized transit and pedestrian uses were piloted along a major streetcar route. The Toronto changes, popular with transit riders, dramatically reduced travel times and increased safety along the corridor — and have been since made permanent.

Working with MTA, DOT will pilot a similar arrangement on 14th Street. Starting later this spring, the new TTP changes will include:

-Only buses, trucks and emergency vehicles will be able to use 14th Street between 3rd and 9th Avenues as a through route.

-Local traffic will still be permitted to make pickups and drop-offs along the corridor and access garages, but cars will always need to turn right at the next possible location. Left turns will not be allowed.

-New curbside regulations will prioritize short-term loading and passenger pickup activity.

-Intersections along 14th Street will be designed with new turn lanes where appropriate to ensure that bus lanes will remain clear. Intersections will also receive Vision Zero treatments, including painted curb extensions that enhance pedestrian safety.

The new design builds on proposals made during the original L train planning process, but also incorporates key feedback from local residents to ensure that curb access remained available, and that through truck traffic not be diverted to local streets.

Construction will begin this spring for completion in time for the launch of the M14 SBS in June. During that time, DOT will conduct significant outreach to stakeholders, including the five different community boards served by 14th Street. This will be accompanied by educational campaigns for the people who use 14th Street.

DOT expects to enforce the new TTP lanes through automated cameras along 14th Street. The agency will publicly announce the commencement of camera enforcement, which will not begin until at least 60 days after the new SBS route is established.

[Early-morning look at the 12th Street bike lane before it's a loading zone]

In other news...

• 12th Street/13th Street Protected Bike Lanes – DOT will also pursue permanently retaining bike lanes it had installed in 2018 along 12th and 13th Streets. Since being painted last fall, cyclist usage of the nearly three miles of new protected lanes over the winter has outpaced bike counts from last summer. The new lanes have become a part of the agency’s crosstown protected bicycle lane strategy ... In response to community concerns, more delineators and loading zones will be added.

We'll have more about these bike lanes in another (future) post.

For some analysis and reaction to yesterday's announcement, you can read this piece by Vin Barone, who first broke this story, over at amNY. There's more reaction at Streetsblog.

Meanwhile, there's no word yet about which M14A/D stops along Avenue A and Avenue D might be eliminated to speed up the notoriously slow bus routes. There is opposition to the MTA's plan to cut back on local bus stops.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Prepping for the new protected bike lanes on 12th and 13th streets

Bike lane line work continues on 12th Street

DOT puts down the green paint on the new 13th Street bike lane (except for one mysterious spot)

Making the case for 2-way bike lanes on Avenue B

A movement is underway to secure two-way bike lanes on Avenue B, an increasingly congested 14-block corridor currently without any marked paths for cyclists such as on Avenue A and Avenue C.

The awareness campaign commenced along the Avenue this past Friday...

Big day today! We’re kicking off our campaign for a protected #bikeNYC lane on Avenue B! Can’t wait to make this street safer for all the schools and commuters in the East Village! @TransAlt pic.twitter.com/5RiyA4XQLD

— Sam Bleiberg (@SamBleiberg) April 12, 2019

The idea came about via parents who bike their children to area schools — including the East Village Community School, the Children's Workshop School, Tompkins Square Middle School, the Earth School and East Side Community High School.

After presenting the idea to, and receiving support from, the East Village Community School Parent Association, East Village resident and parent Choresh Wald approached Transportation Alternatives, who has endorsed the proposal and is helping spread the word via #BikeAveB on social media.

East Village knows that #bikeNYC is here, and lanes are coming! 🌸 #BikeAveB kickoff this morning was a huge success. Thanks @TransAlt volunteers @TA_Ambassadors for promoting our May 20th #bikemonth ride-to-school ✏️ 👨🏾‍🏫🚲 on Ave B! Sign the petition: https://t.co/QDwhiv6G2X pic.twitter.com/7Uvdi3Wwub

— Chelsea Skye (@pekochel) April 12, 2019

There's now a petition in circulation, which you can find here.

Per the petition, which is signed by Wald:

A historical source of Alphabet City's fight for tenants rights and neighborhood empowerment, Avenue B today is a vibrant 14-block stretch in the East Village that is lined with schools, cultural institutions and community gardens. Tompkins Square Park, the adjacent libraries and burgeoning night life combine to make Avenue B an increasingly busy corridor for people on foot and on two wheels.

Despite being a narrow avenue, Avenue B allows two-way travel for cars, but has no dedicated lanes for anybody who wants to ride a bicycle. Yet parents and neighbors alike are already choosing to ride down this unsafe corridor.

To make the problem worse, trucks and commercial vehicles have no curbside loading zones. Every day we see them double-parking in order to make deliveries to the dozens of small businesses along Avenue B.


[EVG photo]

We need a safe, two-way protected bike lane on Avenue B, complete with pedestrian safety improvements!

The closure of the East River bike path as part of the upcoming East River Coastal Resiliency plan adds real urgency to the situation. The loss of the East River Greenway park facilities for several years will increase demand to transform Avenue B into a street that can be safer for all users.

By local law, our youngest New Yorkers are allowed to ride on the sidewalk until they are 14 years old. But some of us can't afford to allow them to bike independently given the current conditions of our streets. Community Board 3, we need your help! When our daughters and sons turn 14 years old they will need a safe place to bike on Avenue B.

We've heard from several residents in recent months about an increase in traffic from commercial vehicles in part due to the arrival of Target last summer on 14th Street between Avenue A and Avenue B (at least one other big-box store is expected in the retail space below the newish residential building EVGB) ...


[EVG photo from February]

... and the ongoing presence of the private trash-truck operators making the early-morning rounds...





Wald and other parents plan to meet with City Councilmember Carlina Rivera's office in the next few weeks to share their proposal. Wald also hopes to present the plan to Community Board 3 early this summer.

A rally this morning to keep the busway and bike lanes added for the L-train shutdown

[Photo from January by Steven]

This morning at 10, Transportation Alternatives is hosting a "Stay, Bus & Bikeway!" rally on 14th Street at First Avenue.

Here are details, via the Facebook invite:

The L Train bus and bike lanes are halfway done. Join Transportation Alternatives and commuters everywhere to demand that the NYC Mayor commit to the best versions of Manhattan's 14th Street and North Brooklyn's Grand Street

Rally for L Train Bus and Bike Lanes
Feb 6th @ 10 a.m.

The transit advocacy group has said it would be a mistake for the city to reverse course on the 14th Street bus lane additions and the 12th Street and 13th Street bike lanes now that L service between Manhattan and Brooklyn will only be shut down on nights and weekends. You can read more at this Streetsblog post from Jan. 28.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: The L-train's weekend repair plans would mean exit-only stations on 1st and 3rd avenues

L-train non-shutdown fallout: Bike lane battle shaping up along 12th and 13th streets

L-train non-shutdown fallout: Bike lane battle shaping up along 12th and 13th streets

[Photo on 13th Street near 4th Avenue from early January]

The newish unprotected bike lanes on 12th Street and 13th Street have become a battleground following Gov. Cuomo's sudden cancellation of the L-train shutdown.

The lanes arrived back in late October and early November, part of the city's plans to help move people when the L-train was to shut down in April 2019 for 15 months for Sandy-related repairs between Eighth Avenue and Bedford Avenue.

Now, though, the 14th Street Coalition is asking the city to remove the bike lanes and the newly painted dedicated bus lanes on 14th Street. (The Coalition also sued to stop the bike lanes and busways in October.)

Streetsblog was first to report this past Thursday that someone spread broken glass along parts of the bike lanes on 12th Street and 13th Street on the west side. Per Streetsblog: "[C]yclist Jonathan Warner noticed that the lanes on 12th and 13th streets were covered in patches of broken glass, which he believed was an intentional attack on cyclists."

Gothamist has a good recap at this link. Read Streetsblog's follow-up report here.

At the same time, Transportation Alternatives launched a petition drive to retain the bike lanes (as well as the 14th Street bus lanes). Per the petition:

With M14 buses traveling at barely above walking speed, 14th street sidewalks fill to the brim with pedestrians, 12th and 13th street bike lanes adding a safe way for people to bike crosstown and upcoming infill expansion of Citi Bike, these improvements were needed before the announcement of the shutdown, are going to be needed during the partial shutdown, and will be needed after the repairs are finalized.

These improvements will help provide faster, safer and more efficient modes of transportation for New Yorkers to travel crosstown and alleviate congestion in our streets.

There were also signs up along the bike lanes... an EVG reader shared this photo from Thursday night on 12th Street between Fifth Avenue and University Place...



Per the EVG reader: "Funny thing is, the NYPD does a shit job of policing the lane so there were, as usual, many cars parked right in the green stripe on several other blocks, rendering the bike lane unusable. But that’s normal, whereas broken glass and nasty NIMBY notes are a little more novel."

The arrival of the broken glass and signs drew a strong response from city officials...

This is unacceptable. In my district. Shame on whoever did this. All New Yorkers are entitled to safe streets and shared spaces, on two wheels or on foot. https://t.co/xTAl9c6Sry

— NYC Council Speaker Corey Johnson (@NYCSpeakerCoJo) January 11, 2019

A statement from DOT Commissioner Trottenberg and @NYPDTransport Chief Chan. pic.twitter.com/XobA6Xr8jV

— NYC DOT (@NYC_DOT) January 11, 2019

In a statement to Streetsblog, the 14th Street Coalition said they "had no involvement in, nor condoned, the defacing of bike lanes."

Meanwhile, also on Thursday, someone painted "Bring back our parking" on 13th Street just east of Avenue A...

Today would be a good day to appoint a Bike Mayor. https://t.co/6pMW9KxgNw pic.twitter.com/wIPdttHY7U

— Transportation Alternatives (@TransAlt) January 11, 2019

The DOT painted over the message on Friday morning, as these photos via Steven show...





Last Tuesday, Andy Byford, CEO of the New York City Transit Authority, told attendees of CB3's Transportation, Public Safety, & Environment Committee meeting that the fate of the bike lanes is up to the Department of Transportation while the future of the 14th Street Select Bus Service will be a joint decision.

In other post-L-train-shutdown developments... residents are asking what impact Cuomo's new plan might have on the construction on 14th Street between Avenue B and First Avenue.

One longtime 14th Street resident, who has spoken out on the numerous quality-of-life issues the construction has created in the past year, told me this:

"We're not sure if this will affect us at all much. We do hope, however, that the pols will call for an immediate stop to the night time and weekend work. There is no need to subject our neighborhood to these hours now.

Also, the MTA needs to be pressured to finish [the new entrances on] Avenue A. There is no reason it can't be finished now. They were just stalling the use it as the entry/exit for their infrastructure. An exit doesn't take three years to build."

Town & Village has more on this story here.

T&V also noted that workers removed some of the L-train renderings from 14th Street after Cuomo's announcement. A few remain for good measure, though...



The MTA is now holding an emergency public meeting tomorrow to discuss the L-train's reconstruction future.

Green paint arrives on the new 12th Street bike lane

On Wednesday, crews painted the new eastbound bike lane on 12th Street... I spotted them between Second Avenue and Avenue A ...







The bike lane for 13th Street arrived at the beginning of the month.

Meanwhile...

Time elapsed between painting the new 12th street bike lanes and people parking in them 1.0234seconds. #bikenyc @bikeblognyc @evgrieve #eastvillageParking #workingclass @bikesnobnyc pic.twitter.com/38ezAPTQFX

— Christopher J Ryan (@ChrisRyanAction) November 21, 2018

As previously reported, the city put in a bike lane on the north curb of 12th Street from Seventh Avenue to Avenue C, and the south curb of 13th Street from Greenwich Avenue to Avenue B separated from traffic with a painted buffer ahead of the April L-train closure.

The bike lanes are just one of the ways the city hopes to keep people/commuters moving during the 15 (or so) months that the Canarsie Tunnel under the East River gets repaired.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Prepping for the new protected bike lanes on 12th and 13th streets

Bike lane line work continues on 12th Street

DOT puts down the green paint on the new 13th Street bike lane (except for one mysterious spot)

DOT puts down the green paint on the new 13th Street bike lane (except for one mysterious spot)

DOT crews yesterday painted the new westbound bike lane on 13th Street... starting at Avenue B (the crew was just west of Second Avenue when I saw them)...



There is a curious gap just east of First Avenue... at first glance, it appears the the paint crew simply stopped and continued past the parked car...



However, a reader of the block chimed in saying that there's a curb cut here (and the car parked here later, seeing as the back wheels are on the freshly marked lane)...



The DOT team also skipped the construction zone in front of the incoming Thirteen East + West condos west of Avenue A.

As previously reported, the city put in a bike lane on the north curb of 12th Street from Seventh Avenue to Avenue C, and the south curb of 13th Street from Greenwich Avenue to Avenue B separated from traffic with a painted buffer ahead of the April L-train closure.

The bike lanes are just one of the ways the city hopes to keep people/commuters moving during the 15 (or so) months that the Canarsie Tunnel under the East River gets repaired.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Prepping for the new protected bike lanes on 12th and 13th streets

Bike lane line work continues on 12th Street

Bike lane line work continues on 12th Street

As we reported on Wednesday, crews are laying the pedalers’ paths and new parking lanes for the protected bike lanes on the north curb of 12th Street from Seventh Avenue to Avenue C, and the south curb of 13th Street from Greenwich Avenue to Avenue B.

EVG regular Lola Sáenz noted this morning that workers are creating the bike-lane outlines on 12th Street ... with crews spotted at First Avenue...





... and heading east toward Avenue C...



One worker told Lola that the green machine is on Greenwich today painting the bike lanes... and making its way toward the east...

Previously on EV Grieve:
Prepping for the new protected bike lanes on 12th and 13th streets

Prepping for the new protected bike lanes on 12th and 13th streets

[Click to go big]

Back on Sept. 20, we noted that — presumably — DOT officials distributed the above flyers to residents who live on 12th Street and 13th Street... providing information about protected bike lanes that are in development on 12th Street and 13th Street (as well as Horatio Street and Greenwich Avenue) ahead of the April 2019 L-train shutdown.

As reported in June, the DOT decided against its original idea for a single, two-way bike lane on 13th Street in favor of two separate, one-way lanes for 12th and 13th streets.

The city is putting in a bike lane on the north curb of 12th Street from Seventh Avenue to Avenue C, and the south curb of 13th Street from Greenwich Avenue to Avenue B separated from traffic with a painted buffer and flexible delineators.

Multiple EVG readers have pointed out that this work has started in recent days/weeks (painted buffer and flexible delineators still to come).

Here's a look at 13th Street, starting at Avenue B... where the "No Stopping Anytime" signs are now posted on the south side of the street ...



... at Avenue A...



...a view to the east from First Avenue...



...at First Avenue...



...a view to the east from Third Avenue...



... looking to the west between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue...



The work is just underway on 12th Street, where the "No Stopping Anytime" signs arrived ... here are two photos (thanks Brian K!) ... at 12th between Avenue A and Avenue B...



... and between Avenue A and First Avenue...



This link takes you to the DOT's overview for these bike lanes.





During the L-train outage, DOT officials expect these bike lanes to handle a surge in people bicycling. Cycling advocates have applauded this development, citing the lack of protected bike lanes going crosstown.

While the bike-lane work is moving forward, another lawsuit is aiming to put an end to this plan, as well as other L-train related planning. As Gothamist reported on Oct. 2:

On [Oct. 1], West Village resident and attorney Arthur Schwartz filed his second lawsuit against the MTA and the DOT, calling for yet another environmental assessment, as well as last minute changes to the agencies' sweeping mitigation plan. Specifically, Schwartz and his allies are opposed to the creation of a dedicated busway on 14th Street and an adjacent sidewalk expansion for pedestrians, along with the addition of protected bike lanes on 12th and 13th Street.

"The goal is to eliminate those bike lanes as designed, to make them not protected bike lanes or not do them at all," Schwartz told Gothamist, adding that his preference would be for the lanes to be restored to parking spaces. "I just don't think there's any genuinely demonstrated demand for people who used to take the L train who are all of a sudden going to hop on a Citi Bike."

Councilmember Rivera introducing new bill to protect bike lanes in construction zones

[EVG photo from June at 75 1st Ave.]

In other bike-related news... District 2 City Councilmember Carlina Rivera, along with advocates and neighborhood residents, is announcing the introduction of a new bill this morning that will require holders of DOT permits that authorize construction or equipment on the street to preserve any impacted bike lanes with a safe and sufficient detour.

Per Rivera's office:

This includes any specifically marked bicycle lane, whether it has painted, separated and protected, or a bike path. Any detour bike lane would have to feature protective barriers and be three-quarters the size of the original lane, unless that would make the detour lane less than 4 feet wide. The bill would also require DOT to notify community boards as well as post on their website when any permitted construction impacts a bike lane.

Councilwoman Rivera is pursuing this legislation after hearing about construction projects in her district and elsewhere where bicyclists were being forced out of protected bike lanes and directly into car traffic with little notice right for riders or drivers.

Rivera recently spoke with Streetsblog about this proposed legislation:

You said a specific location in your district spurred you to introduce this bill.

It’s on First Avenue between Fourth and Fifth streets, right on the west side where the bike lane is. There was construction there, and there was no detour. As someone who cycles up First Avenue all the time, I can tell you that as soon as you got to that street, it just said, “Bike lane closed.” So you have to go and venture into the traffic, and you know that First avenue is incredibly busy, not just with [cars], but with the SBS, the M15.

There was no sign. There were no protective barriers. This was something people contacted our office about repeatedly, so we know that we really had to legislate this in order to protect cyclists everywhere.

A flyer about protected bike lanes on 12th Street and 13th Street ahead of the L-train shutdown

[Click to go big]

An EVG reader who lives on 12th Street shared the above flyer... found slipped inside the front door of her building yesterday.

The flyer provides information about protected bike lanes that will be implemented starting this month on 12th Street and 13th Street (as well as Horatio Street and Greenwich Avenue) ahead of the April 2019 L-train shutdown.

Back in June, the DOT made public its bike-lane plans... scrapping its original idea for a single, two-way bike lane on 13th Street in favor of two separate, one-way lanes for 12th and 13th streets.

The flyer provides the first details on the timing of the work — starting with this month. The city will install bike lanes on the north curb of 12th Street from Seventh Avenue to Avenue C, and the south curb of 13th Street from Greenwich Avenue to Avenue B separated from traffic with a painted buffer and flexible delineators.

The DOT shared this info in a tweet on Tuesday as well...

In preparation for the April 2019 L tunnel reconstruction DOT will implement safety improvements on 12th St, 13th St, Horatio St, Greenwich Ave from Ave C to Hudson St in Manhattan:
🚲Install protected #bikenyc lanes
🚶Increase safety
🚗Organize & calm traffic
🚶Shorten crossings pic.twitter.com/LFU1oa5v1I

— NYC DOT (@NYC_DOT) September 18, 2018

The DOT also gave equal time to the 14th Street bus plan ...

This month DOT & @MTA will begin bus & road safety improvements on 14th St from 1st Ave to 9th Ave in Manhattan, in preparation for the L tunnel reconstruction:
🚗Maintains local access
🚌 Improve bus reliability
🚚Improve curb access for deliveries
🚶Improve pedestrian safety pic.twitter.com/Jfh7fSd7eo

— NYC DOT (@NYC_DOT) September 18, 2018

Ahead of this work on 14th Street ... EVG regular Pinch noted the other day that the city removed the flexible stanchions that helped divide 14th Street at First Avenue...



... now...



You can find the city's full transporation plan during the L-train closure at this link.

Straight story on this section of the 10th Street bike lane

stay in your lane 🚴‍♂️🌖🌓🌔🐍

A post shared by Peter Sutherland (@petersutherland) on May 14, 2018 at 4:09pm PDT

EVG regular Daniel reports that the formerly wonky 10th Street bike lane between First Avenue and Avenue A is a straight line again...



... and with the minivan conveniently blocking the bike lane...



And for future reference ... as Daniel noted... you can make a 311 request to take care of street-line/bike-lane issues with the city here.

Noted

In case you saw some cyclists riding rather erratically on 10th Street between First Avenue and Avenue A this past week... there was a reason...

stay in your lane 🚴‍♂️🌖🌓🌔🐍

A post shared by Peter Sutherland (@petersutherland) on May 14, 2018 at 4:09pm PDT

Anyway! The DOT said that they were aware of the wonky bike path outline ... and, as NBC 4 reports, the DOT fixed painted over the errant line yesterday.

Updated 1 p.m.

EVG reader Daniel sends some photos of 10th Street now... he notes the wavy line has been removed, but not re-repainted ...







Daniel also shares how to make a 311 request to take care of street-line issues, including disappearing bike lanes. You may submit a form with the city here.

Repainting the 2nd Avenue bike lane

Workers were out this morning continuing to repaint the well-worn Second Avenue bike lane (this work started in late September, as the crew passed south of 14th Street).

Derek Berg shared these photos of the bike-lane-painting in progress from south of Sixth Street ...