Monday, March 20, 2017

Make a bid on 64 2nd Ave.



The 5-story building at 64 Second Ave. between Third Street and Fourth Street recently arrived on the market.

Cushman & Wakefield has the listing:

The building has been owned and operated by current ownership for over 20 years. It consists of a retail space on the ground floor and lower level and three large residential units above. The 1,533 SF retail unit is vacant and features 11' ceilings and a 970 SF lower level with 9' ceilings and windows providing excellent light and air. If desired, the second floor can be used as commercial space as it is already connected to the ground floor through an existing marble staircase (now enclosed) creating a three-level retail space.

All three residential units are FM and currently leased at below market rents with summer expirations. Two units are expansive five-bedrooms, one of which is a triplex with exclusive interior access to a 700 SF rooftop entertainment area with World Trade Center and Empire State Building views.

The 3rd floor unit is a 900 SF floor-through space with a rear patio. The building hasn't been renovated in over 10-years and there is generous upside in the in-place residential rents (average in-place rents are $64/SF in a market commanding $85/SF).

Interested buyers may submit offers for the property. No. 64's retail tenant was Velo NY. The bike shop moved next door last year. (There was also the mysterious #notourpresident storefront signage for a brief time here after the election.)

In 2012, the building arrived on the market with a $7.3 million ask.

Here are the photos of the rooftop garden from the 2012 listing...



Spring Spa signage blooms on 5th Street



As you can see Spring Spa is coming soon to 325 E. Fifth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue.

Not sure at the moment what type of spa services they will offer — Mani/pedi? Massage? Cryolipolysis?

This space adjacent to the 9th Precinct was previously home to Goloka Juice Bar, the sometimes-open shop that closed late last year after some three-plus years in business.

Sunday, March 19, 2017

Sunday's parting shot



The ping-pong action today in Tompkins Square Park via Derek Berg...

Week in Grieview


[Photo on Avenue A from Tuesday by Grant Shaffer]

Stories posted on EVG this past week included...

Developers reduce zoning variance request by two-thirds at 432-438 E. 14th St. (Thursday)

Recycle-A-Bicycle leaving the East Village (Friday)

See a production of Tennessee Williams' "In the Bar of a Tokyo Hotel" on 3rd Street (Wednesday)

Happy St. Patrick's Day from McSorley's (Friday)

153 Avenue B returns to the market (Friday)

Black Market has closed (Thursday)

Former firehouse on 11th Street returns to the market for office use (Thursday)

The snow car of Fourth Avenue (Wednesday)

Citi Bike research: "Bikes are being used for errands and commuting" (Wednesday)

Mono + Mono's Fourth Street return (Monday)

Little Tong Noodle Shop looks ready to open (Wednesday)

East Village Barber Shop coming to 7th Street (Wednesday)


[Christo in Tompkins Square Park yesterday by Derek Berg]

It snowed (Tuesday)

A rental for "the most discerning guest" on Second Street (Monday)

L train shutdown now three fewer months than expected; plus an Avenue B substation (Saturday)

Vivi Bubble Tea debuts Third Avenue (Monday)

Mexican restaurant eyeing the former Babel space on Avenue C (Monday)

... and new on the gate at Julie's Vintage on Second Street at First Avenue... art by the Barcelona-based Axe Colours...



He also contributed a mural of Frida Kahlo this past week (next to the Andy Warhol by Bàlu...) in First Park...



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RIP Chuck Berry



Chuck Berry died yesterday at age 90.

An EVG reader shared the above poster from when Berry played at the Village Theater (later the Fillmore East) on Second Avenue at Sixth Street in April 1967.

The poster comes from the blog It's All the Streets You Crossed Not So Long Ago, which has a lot more on the bands who played the Village Theater.

A post shared by GVSHP (@gvshp_nyc) on

New York Sports Club branding arrives at the former David Barton Gym on Astor Place



The New York Sports Club signage arrived this past week at the former David Barton gym on Astor Place.

Earlier this month, Town Sports International, the owners of the New York Sports Clubs brand, announced that they had bought the 10,000-square-foot space ... which will become one of New York Sports Clubs' collection of Elite clubs...



No sign of any member records lying in the snow.

David Barton abruptly closed in December.

Saturday, March 18, 2017

Report: L train shutdown now 3 fewer months than expected; plus an Avenue B substation


In a tweet yesterday, Second Avenue Sagas noted that the L train shutdown between Bedford Avenue and Eighth Avenue will now last 15 months instead of 18 months (if you're an optimist) ... with a start date of April 2019 instead of January 2019. (H/T Gothamist!)

This news was confirmed by the MTA's lead spokesperson...


The MTA issued a news release yesterday on this development...

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) will seek board approval next week to award an expedited contract to accelerate the rehabilitation of the L Subway train’s Canarsie Tunnel under the East River by three months, improve two stations, and build a substation that will allow more trains to run on the L Subway Line, increasing capacity. The contract award calls for the tunnel work to be completed in 15 months, three months shorter than the previously discussed 18 months.

The $477 million contract, to be awarded to a joint venture consisting of Judlau Contracting Inc. and TC Electric, also adds $15 million in incentives to complete the tunnel project in 15 months. Contractual provisions were included to expedite demolition, encourage acceleration of the tunnel work, deter delays, enable traffic mitigation work, and the testing and commissioning of systems.

Consistent with NYC Transit’s objectives to expedite critical capital projects and improve customer service, NYC Transit will also implement procedures to ensure that the project advances in a fast-tracked fashion similar to the expedited nature of Design Build projects.

“The heavy damage sustained by the Canarsie Tunnel during Superstorm Sandy requires a full reconstruction in order to ensure the integrity of the tunnel and the safety of riders for generations to come,” said MTA Interim Executive Director Ronnie Hakim. “At the same time, we promised to do everything possible to mitigate the impact of this vital work on l line riders, and today, we’ve done just that, by shortening the tunnel closure from 18 months to 15 months.”

The release also notes that, prior to the tunnel closure, the First Avenue stop will receive an upgrade that will include new stairways, and four ADA-compliant elevators "and other work to improve customer flow."

In addition, the release mentions something I don't recall hearing about: the "construction of a new Avenue B substation ... to address power requirements that, combined with the existing CBTC signal system, will allow more trains to run on the line to accommodate growing ridership."

Previously

Weekend record shopping

a bunch of cool stuff dropping for the weekend don't let a little snow slow you down #eat #pray #buy #records

A post shared by Good Records NYC (@goodrecordsnyc) on


Plenty of good stuff ready to hit the bins tonight, tomorrow, all weekend, every day.

A post shared by Academy Records NYC (@academyrecords) on


#ttlscores arrival for wknd listening @thisunfolds

A post shared by @turntablelab on



Good Records NYC — 218 E. Fifth St. between Second Avenue and the Bowery

Academy Records — 415 E. 12th St. between Avenue A and First Avenue

Turntable Lab — 84 E. 10th St. between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue

A-One Record Shop — 439 E. Sixth St. between Avenue A and First Avenue

Celebrating the work of John Hejduk at Cooper Union



You likely noticed those wooden structures that a crew has been erecting outside Cooper Union. (There were the usual guesses as to what these are — namely wooden prisons used by the Lepharist Revolutionaries, temporary student housing or LinkNYC.)

These are representations of John Hejduk's pair of architectural structures, The House of the Suicide and the House of the Mother of the Suicide. (Read more about these here.)

Hejduk, a Cooper Union graduate, was the founding dean of The Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture at Cooper Union.

This is part of a month-long exhibit that starts on March 29.

Here's more:

The exhibition Hélène Binet – John Hejduk Works will present seven of Hejduk’s built works as photographed by Hélène Binet, a renowned London-based photographer who was Hejduk’s photographer of record. Binet’s photographs of both permanent and temporary structures will be presented, including the Berlin Tower, Wall House 2, The Collapse of Time, Security and Object/Subject.

The exhibition will also include a chronology of the numerous realizations of Hejduk’s design for the Jan Palach Memorial, which was permanently installed in Prague in 2016. Comprised of two structures — House of the Suicide and House of the Mother of the Suicide — this work honors the Czech activist and dissident Jan Palach, whose self-immolation in protest of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968 served as a galvanizing force against the communist government then in power.

Updated 3/19

Updated...





H/T Lola Sáenz!

EV Grieve Etc.: Historic theater group relocating to St. Mark's; Christo & Dora prepping for more kids


[St. Patrick's Day flair on East Houston by Derek Berg]

Horrific car crash on the Williamsburg Bridge kills woman celebrating her 21st birthday; NYPD traffic agent to face DWI, vehicular homicide charges (NBC 4)

The historic Negro Ensemble Company relocating to Theatre 80 on St. Mark's Place (The Villager)

Dora lays an egg! (Laura Goggin Photography)

A suggestion for a "local priority" pass for local residents at Katz's (Jeremiah's Vanishing New York)

The latest MTA increase starts tomorrow (Sunday!) and affect weekly and monthly MetroCards while leaving a single ride at $2.75 (New York Post)


[Stuck truck on 6th Street yesterday via Derek Berg]

Continued efforts to save the Rivington House on the LES (The Lo-Down) ... and soil testing begins on the property (BoweryBoogie)

Reviewing the stand-up steakhouse Ikinari on 10th Street (Eater ... previously)

Man charged with beating two Columbia University graduate students at Clockwork says that he was provoked (New York Post)

Blue Bottle Coffee opens at 71 Clinton St. (DNAinfo)

On Sunday, Jimmy No. 43 on Seventh Street hosts the Chefs’ Consortium, a walk-around, buffet-style brunch (Details)

"Grace Church is one of the reasons our neighborhood remains one of the most beautiful places in New York." (Off the Grid)

Alex's NYC video grab bag (Flaming Pablum)

The surprise NYC blizzard in 1888 (Ephemeral New York)

Cinekink 2017 wraps up this weekend (Official site)

Friday, March 17, 2017

A quick Fix



Boss Hog's latest release, Brood X, drops next Friday. And they'll be playing at the Mercury Lounge on March 30.

The video here is from a session last summer at KEXP in Seattle ... featuring "Fix Me" from the band's 1989 debut EP, Drinkin' Lechin' & Lyin'.

Amoun Kitchen and Lounge signage arrives



A quick update from Wednesday's post... as noted, Amoun Kitchen and Lounge has relocated from the Upper East Side to 320 E. Sixth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue ... the restaurant has been open, though without the Amoun signage ... anyway, Vinny & O shared these shots of the new signs ... as well as the grand opening banner...



Amoun serves Moroccan cuisine. They also have a hookah lounge. The previous tenant, Zerza, is expected to relocate to another space in the East Village, according to owner Radouane Eljaouhari.