Thursday, April 26, 2018

Activities at the the Tompkins Square Park library branch


[Via NYPL]

As previously mentioned, the Tompkins Square Park library branch on 10th Street between Avenue A and Avenue B has a lot of free activities daily... poetry readings... jewelry making... film screenings ... find their schedule of events here.

The library is hosting another free walking tour of Tompkins Square Park on Friday, May 4. Details here.

And a highlight to note happening tonight...


And there are buttons and magnets for $1 that help support the library...



New era for Gothamist begins today



Back in action here. Some back story here. Some thoughts on the revival here.

A red-tailed hawk and egg situation


[Photo of Christo, left, and Amelia atop St. Brigid's by Steven]

Christo and his new lady hawk friend Amelia have at least one egg in their nest in Tompkins Square Park, Goggla reports.

Here's what she says to expect:

It takes around 28-35 days for eggs to hatch, so if we count April 20 as Day 1, that puts hatching at May 17-24. Since no one can see into the nest, we will not be able to see the eggs hatch, but we will know something is up when Christo starts delivering food to the nest.

The hawks will continue mating until all the eggs are laid, and then maybe for some time after that.

Amelia conveniently came out of nowhere on April 4, the very day that Christo's longtime partner Dora went off to wing rehab.

Christo and Dora have raised 10 hawklets these past few years. So expect at least one hawklet again this summer. (Like here in 2017.)

[Updated] Preliminary vote on increases for rent-stabilized apartments set for tonight at Cooper Union



The city's Rent Guidelines Board (RGB) is holding its preliminary vote tonight to decide whether to seek increases for 1-million rent-controlled units in the city.

Members of the Rent Justice Coalition — including tenants, advocates and community organizers — as well as some elected officials will rally in front of the Municipal Building before heading to where the vote will take place — the Great Hall at Cooper Union.

The group will demand that the RGB freeze rents on rent-stabilized units to address the affordable housing crisis in the city. The Coalition released this statement yesterday:

While the Rent Justice Coalition counts past rent freezes as successes, data show landlords have been overcompensated for decades with high rent increases, including an 8.5 percent increase at the height of the recession in 2009. In fact, rent-stabilized tenants are rent burdened, with half of them paying about a third of their income for rent. At the same time, many low-income families pay as much as 60-70 percent of their income in rent.

A new report (PDF here) released by the RGB — showing that operating costs for landlords have gone up again this year — makes it seem unlikely that they will approve a rent freeze this year, per Curbed on April 18.

Last June, the RGB voted to allow rent increases on the city’s 1 million rent-stabilized apartments, with one-year leases subject to 1.25 percent raises, and two-year leases subject to 2 percent hikes — this after two consecutive years of rent freezes.

The RGB's final vote is June 26 at Cooper Union. Find the schedule, including all public hearings, right here.

Updated 10 a.m.

Per the Post:

The Rent Stabilization Association, which represents 25,000 landlords, says it will request an increase of 4 percent for new one-year leases and 7 percent for two years.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Rent freeze fight underway for 2018

Y7 Studio bringing the hip-hop yoga to 250 E. Houston St.


[Rendering of the all-new 250 E. Houston St.]

The retail strip at 250 E. Houston St., the former Red Square here between Avenue A and Avenue B, has its first new tenant since the 13-floor building changed ownership in the fall of 2016.

Y7 signed a 10-year, 2,000-square-foot ground-floor lease at the base of the residential building for the growing yoga chainlet's eighth location in Manhattan, the Commercial Observer reported. The asking rent was $200 per square foot.

Here's more about Y7:

At Y7 we do things differently. We give you 60 minutes of intensity combined with heat and strength complemented by deep breathing and a calming of the mind. We ask you to step outside the chaos and embrace the fire inside. You’ll flow along to the latest beats. There are no mirrors in the candle-lit studios. The darkness, the sounds, and the heat will take you to a place you’ve never before been. Join us for the best hour of your day. Leave here feeling strong, clear and ready to take on whatever the city has in store for you. Take a class and never look back.

And a video feature from a few years back...



Not sure exactly which retail space Y7 is taking. There are four vacancies total in this strip of shops, which feature an H&R Block, Dunkin' Donuts/Baskin-Robbins combo, Subway (sandwich shop), Sleepy's/Mattress Firm, China Town Chinese restaurant and a FedEx Office Print & Ship Center. (There's also a dry cleaners, a doctor's office and East Houston Wine & Liquor.)



And we're really behind on updating the gym options post.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Rumors: Red Square has been sold

New ownership makes it official at the former Red Square on East Houston

Apartment listings at 250 E. Houston look to offer glimpse of former Red Square's future

Long-vacant retail space hits the rental market at 250 E. Houston St.

Former Red Square lobby gets the plywood treatment on East Houston

Former Rainbow Music shop will be a Chinese restaurant



There was a partial reveal yesterday at the under-renovation 130 First Ave., the former Rainbow Music just south of St. Mark's Place...

A worker confirmed to EVG correspondent Steven that a Chinese restaurant is opening here soon, though didn't provide further details...



Rainbow Music owner Bill "Birdman" Kasper retired and closed up his cluttered used-CD shop in September 2015.


[Rainbow Music photos from March 2014 by EVG reader Chris F.]

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Birdman of the East Village

On Avenue A, Coney Island Baby debuts tonight; live music returning to the Pyramid


[169 Avenue A last night]

Coney Island Baby opens its doors tonight at 169 Avenue A between 10th Street and 11th Street with a set by Murphy's Law and other special guests TBA.

This was the first look at the live-music lineup for the bar-venue...


The Coney Island Baby website has the updated list of bands here.

The venue's partners reportedly include Laura McCarthy, former owner of indie-rock club Brownies (in this space from 1989-2002), and Tom Baker and Don DiLego of Velvet Elk Records. Jesse Malin of Niagara, Berlin and Bowery Electric is also involved.

HiFi closed last October after 15 solid years at the address.

Meanwhile, over at the Pyramid, the club at 101 Avenue A between Sixth Street and Seventh Street, announced the return of bands next month ... via Instagram...

**SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT** We’re excited to announce that starting May 20th we’ll be featuring Live Bands on our Main Floor, every Sunday! We’re kicking it off in a HUGE way (those details will come soon). If you’re in a band, or know someone in a band, reach out to us! We’d love to have you perform on the same stage where Nirvana and the Red Hot Chili Peppers performed their first time in NYC! You may send your social media links, videos, and/or contact information to: thepyramidclub@gmail.com Rock On!! See you on May 20th!! #pyramidclub #pyramidclubnyc #thepyramidclub #thepyramidclubnyc #nyc #nycnightlife #nycdj #nycnightclub #nycdjs #newyork #newyorkcity #darkwave #synthpop #goth #punk #punkrock #postpunk #livemusic #liveband #rock #rockband #rockers #drummers #nyclivemusic #nyclivebands

A post shared by The Pyramid Club NYC (@thepyramidclub) on


Previously on EV Grieve:
Coney Island Baby opens on April 26 with Murphy's Law

Bar taking over former HiFi space on Avenue A is called Coney Island Baby

High praise for Mani in Pasta’s Roman-style pizzas on 14th Street

Mani in Pasta opened back in December at 245 E. 14th St. between Second Avenue and Third Avenue.

Haven't heard anything about the place. Until now! Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld at New York magazine are impressed by the restaurant's Roman-style pizza via Giuseppe Manco, the pizzaiolo-chef and co-owner.

The pan pizza "is terrific — the crust dark and crackly around the edges, the tender crumb boasting the kind of webby, widely inscribed holes that hint of long fermentation. Manco attributes its texture to high-hydration dough that lazes about developing flavor for a whopping 96 to 110 hours, and the blend of flours he uses: wheat, soy, rice, and semolina."

And!

Toppings fall on the spectrum somewhere between Neapolitan restraint and modern-Roman-pizza-maker whimsy. We particularly liked the carbonara and the Regina Margherita, in spite of the fact that the latter’s halved cherry tomatoes flew off the slices when we picked them up like drunken lumberjacks at a log roll. You can also get the pan pizza by the slice at a mostly takeout Mani in Pasta satellite in Midtown East, but then you’ll miss out on the comparatively deluxe surroundings and cheerful vibe at the East Village nook (a half-dozen-or-so tables, cloth napkins, the occasional Felliniesque gathering of Italian expats), not to mention the tag-team table service — enthusiastic and hands-on but never-intrusive — provided by Manco and his business partner Pietro Toscano.


The Manu in Pasta website and menu are here.

Wednesday, April 25, 2018

Wednesday's parting shot



The foggy finish to the day captured at dusk by jdx ...

Today in late-morning gloomy weather photos



A view to the south(west) this morning via Bobby Williams...

Cherche Midi space on the market for new retail development on the Bowery at East Houston


[Via Google Streetview]

There's a new retail listing for 280-282 Bowery at East Houston.

The corner space is currently home to Keith McNally's bistro Cherche Midi while No. 282 houses Yasakart Restaurant Supply.

Here are details via RKF:

• At the nexus of SoHo, NoLIta, NoHo, The East Village and Lower East Side
• Steps from four major hotels: Bowery Hotel, Public Hotel, The Ace Hotel and CitizenM
• Across from Whole Foods Market, The New Museum and the International Center for Photography
• Second Floor space can be made available
• Lower Level can be converted to selling
• An additional 1,500 SF of Lower Level space can be made available in Space B

The rent is available upon request.

And here's the rendering showing the possibilities on this southwest corner of the Bowery and Houston...


[Image via RKF]

Rumors surfaced last month that McNally would be closing his four-year-old bistro. (A rep for McNally, who also runs the Odeon, Balthazar, Minetta Tavern and Augustine in the Beekman Hotel, confirmed to Grub Street that Cherche Midi will close in early June.)

This marks the second high-profile restaurant to close on the Bowery and East Houston since last August. Daniel Boulud shut down DBGB Kitchen and Bar after eight years in the Avalon Bowery complex between First Street and Houston.

If success restaurateurs like McNally and Boulud can't make these corners work... then what? An EVG reader left this comment on the previous Cherche Midi post:

My prediction for the gentrified Bowery, chain restaurants (as in Chipotle and Shake Shack, some run of the mall shops which most New Yorkers have never heard of, and all this surrounded by high end luxury condos. This is what the lack of urban planning and unleashed developer money brings.

Jane's Exchange is not closing!


[Image via Facebook]

Back in late March, the owners of Jane's Exchange, the children's and maternity retail and consignment store on Third Street between Avenue A and Avenue B, reported that they would likely have to close when their lease was up this summer.

However, co-owner Gayle Raskin remained cautiously optimistic that they could extend a lease with new owners.

Looks like it worked out. As they posted on Facebook:

Dear Friends,
WE ARE NOT CLOSING!!! WE ARE NOT CLOSING!!

WE WERE ABLE TO SECURE ANOTHER 5 YEARS ON OUR LEASE! YAY!!!

Gayle and Eva will continue their partnership through December 2018 at which time Gayle will leave and Yelena Ferrer will become Eva’s new partner beginning Jan. 1, 2019. Yelena has been a longtime consignor and we are so excited to welcome her to the fold.

We are overwhelmed by the love and support we have received from all of you. A number of you came forward with great ideas, financial and otherwise, to keep Jane’s Exchange going and it has been so appreciated. It takes a community to preserve local businesses and we value your ongoing participation in this effort.

It begins now — we need your word-of-mouth help to bring more customers to the store. Advertising is expensive as you can imagine. We will be making flyers available for online and hard-copy distribution.

We dodged the bullet this time. We are a children's and maternity store but even more than that, we are a service in the community. We are thrilled to be able to continue that service.

Consignment is a great way to recycle so PLEASE MAKE YOUR SPRING/SUMMER APPOINTMENTS AND THINK OF US BEFORE YOU GO ON AMAZON:)

Thanks,
Eva and Gayle

Jane's Exchange is now in its 24th year in business.

Previously