Toy story: The March Hare debuts today on 9th Street

The March Hare opens today at 321 E. Ninth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue. 

This is the toy shop that we told you about last month... they will be carrying on the legacy for Dinosaur Hill down the block.

Dinosaur Hill owner Pamela Pier is retiring after 37 years, with the store closing at the end of November as we first reported here. Veselka plans to expand into the adjacent Dinosaur Hill space in the future.

Current Dinosuar Hill employee Karen McDermott and her husband, Jason McGroarty, are running the the March Hare — with Pier on board as consultant.

Per the shop's Instagram account, they will carry "Puppets, Marionettes, Board Games, Puzzles, Stuffed Toys and More!"

The March Hare is open daily from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. And the phone: (646) 422-7747

Updated 4 p.m.

Steven shared some photos from inside the shop today...

Here then, the full reveal at the explosion site condoplex

Workers removed the remaining section of the sidewalk bridge around the all-new 45 E. Seventh St. on Thursday... offering a full look at the 21-unit condoplex with retail space here on Second Avenue.

As reported previously, the building sits on two of the three lots destroyed during the deadly gas explosion here on March 26, 2015. 

Sales commenced back in the summer for the units in the Morris Adjmi-designed building. Prices range from $1.35 million for a one-bedroomer and $1.995 million to $4 million for two and three bedrooms ... with the penthouse asking more than $8 million.

... and here's an evening shot via Steven...

The property will include a commemorative plaque that honors the two men who died here during the explosion: Nicholas Figueroa and Moises Locón. In October 2017, city officials unveiled new street blades that co-name this northwest corner of Second Avenue and Seventh Street after the two men.

Previously on EV Grieve:
• Trio responsible for the deadly 2nd Avenue gas explosion sentenced to 4 to 12 years in prison (Jan. 17)

• Convicted gas explosion landlord Maria Hrynenko out on bail; contractor, plumber remain behind bars (Jan. 18)

The Blind Pig's conversion into Coyote Ugly continues

Renovations (painting, etc.) continues inside the retail space at 233 E. 14th Street between Second Avenue and Third Avenue ... where the address will one day be the new NYC home of Coyote Ugly.

While there isn't any Coyote Ugly signage up just yet, CEO and founder Lil Lovell tweeted a video clip from inside the former Blind Pig last month, noting it was time "to get working."

As we first reported on Sept. 15, Coyote Ugly permanently closed its home of 27 years at 153 First Ave. between Ninth Street and 10th Street. 

In announcing the closure, Lovell had this to say in a video clip: "After sitting closed for six months due to COVID restrictions, we simply can't afford to pay the rent." This was the very first of the Coyote Ugly saloons — featuring bartop dancing and body shots. There are now more than two-dozen global outposts.

The Blind Pig, the sports bar/pub (home to Arsenal supporters in the English Premier League), closed after service in June 2019. At the time, the owners of the 13-year-old Blind Pig said they were hit with an untenable 50-percent rent increase.

That fake McDonald's sign is no longer on the Zum Schneider space

A quick follow-up to the post from Friday ... in which a coming soon (January 2021!) sign for McDonald's appeared on the door of the former Zum Schneider space on Avenue C at Seventh Street. The sign is now gone — apparently someone was not — yuk! yuk! —lovin' this hoax...

By all accounts, the sign, which looked Photoshopped in the daylight and suspiciously appeared outside the door, was a fake.

Anyway, so we'll see what might be next for real here. Zum Schneider, the popular biergarten and restaurant, closed here after 20 years in late February. The co-op board reportedly would not renew the lease.

Sunday's parting shot

Hello, I'm Johnny Cash ... as seen on Seventh Street via Derek Berg...

A car fire on 4th Street

This afternoon, Kanielle Hernandez had just parked her car when it erupted in flames in the Mariana Bracetti Plaza lot on Fourth Street between Avenue B and Avenue C... the FDNY (the nearby FDNY Engine 28 Ladder 11) quickly responded to the blaze... EVG contributor Stacie Joy was on the scene...

Hernandez doesn't know how or why the fire started but speculated that rats may have chewed through wires in the engine. (She had noticed some rat-chewing damage last night.) Thankfully no one was injured, though the car is in bad shape.

And Hernandez shot this video of the fire...

   

Week in Grieview

Posts from this past week include ... (and photo on Avenue A by Derek Berg)...

• The Bowery Mission's 141st Thanksgiving (Wednesday) 

• Bluestockings hosting limited-capacity opening this holiday season in new LES storefront (Monday)

• A visit to Van Da on 4th Street (Thursday)

• A visit to Raul's Barber Shop (Tuesday)

• The Bean reopens on Second Avenue (Tuesday) 

• Here's a look at the final RBG mural on 1st Avenue and 11th Street (Friday) 

• The East Village Holiday Crawl is underway (Friday) 

• This week's Gallery Watch column (Wednesday) 

• Reader reports: E. 10th St. Finest Deli will close next month (Wednesday) 

• San Loco's liquor license has arrived on Avenue C (Friday) 

• This week's NY See panel (Thursday) 

• Tile Bar returns (Monday)

• Two-plus years after devastating fire, Yakiniku West reopens next week on 9th Street (Thursday) 

• AO Bowl softly opens on St. Mark's Place (Thursday) 

• A glimpse of the 10-story condoplex to come to 14 2nd Ave. (Monday)

• High winds damage outdoor dining spaces on St. Mark's Place (Monday) 

• A full reveal at 639 E. 9th St. (Wedensday) 

• Former psychic medium hits the rental market on 2nd Avenue (Monday) 

• Former Mace space for rent on 12th Street (Thursday)

And as seen on First Avenue...... be open, be free! 

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Follow EVG on Instragram or Twitter for more frequent updates and pics.

My So-Called tag

As seen on Fifth Street near Avenue B... Rayanne Graff — aka best friends with Angela and Rickie in the long-gone (but often lamented!) TV series "My So-Called Life" and forever waiting for a ride with Tino.

Quest to co-name part of St. Mark's Place after Jimmy Webb continues

As we first reported on Oct. 5, there's an ongoing campaign to co-name part of St. Mark's Place after the late Jimmy Webb. 

The online petition is nearing 4,500 signatures, including Jimmy's friend Slash from Guns N' Roses. 

Tomorrow (Sunday!), employees from Webb's former boutique, I Need More, will be on St. Mark's Place to collect more signatures to co-name the block between Second Avenue and Third Avenue Jimmy Webb Place 

Webb, a familiar figure in the East Village during his long tenure as the manager and buyer at Trash & Vaudeville, died on April 14 of cancer. He was 62. 

He started working at his dream destination, Trash & Vaudeville, in 1999, and remained there until the shop relocated from 4 St. Mark's Place to Seventh Street in 2016.  He opened I Need More on Orchard Street in October 2017. That store closed this past summer.

The process of co-naming a street within the confines of Community Board 3 is explained on this PDF.

Live from the Fiore Escape tonight

Tonight, Lower East Side-based singer-songwriter Jill Fiore will host another live-music session from her fire escape.

Like her first show on Oct. 24, tonight's mini-concert will feature fellow musicians Jason Taylor and the Baron as well as a special guest.

She got the idea for the shows back in the spring as she was recovering from COVID-19 and went out on her fire escape for some fresh air, as she told Roger Clark at NY1 this week.

You can catch the Fiore Escape at 6 p.m. on Essex Street between Grand and Hester (above Delancey Car Service!) Per the invite: Attendees must wear a mask or face covering and remain at a social distance on the sidewalk below. 

The show will also be streaming on Instagram Live via @soundandfiore.

Photo by Bob Krasner

A sidewalk sale on Houston and 1st Avenue

Some of the vendors from the Avenue B Flea this fall will be selling their wares on East Houston and First Avenue outside First Park tomorrow (Saturday!) from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

"Pressure' drop

 

In case you already haven't heard this 500,000 times since it was released late last month... here's Karen O and Willie Nelson ("the Duet We Didn’t Know We Needed in 2020") with their soothing acoustic cover of "Under Pressure."