LinkNYC has you covered now with kiosks on parts of 2nd Avenue

[July 5]

On July 5, workers arrived to removed/chop down some payphones on the east side of Second Avenue between St. Mark's Place and Seventh Street...


[July 5]

...making way for... more LinkNYC kiosks, which are in place though not activated just yet ... there are two in very close proximity to each other, bundled together as if they were Duane Reades...





... and a few blocks to the north, there are now five LinkNYC kiosks between 13th Street and 10th Street (here are photos of three of them via Steven) ...







The city is reportedly expected to have 7,500 kiosks in place, each replacing a pre-existing phone booth, over the next eight years.

And what are they good for? As a reminder, via the LinkNYC website:

• Use your personal device to connect to LinkNYC’s super fast, free Wi-Fi
• Browse the web and access city services, maps and directions from the tablet
• Make free phone calls to anywhere in the U.S. using the Vonage app on the tablet or the tactile keypad and microphone.
• Use the dedicated red 911 button in the event of an emergency
• Charge your device in a power-only USB port
• Enjoy more room on the sidewalk with Link’s sleek, ADA-compliant design by Antenna
• View public service announcements and more relevant advertising on two 55” HD displays

'Pan' PSA

You may have seen the flyers around Tompkins Square Park for a Movies Under the Stars night tomorrow... featuring 2015's panned "Pan."

In case you were planning your evening around this... the screening has been cancelled ...



Perhaps this happened because there was already a screening taking place... "Cleo From 5 To 7" is playing as part of the Films on the Green series tomorrow night at 8:30.

At Village Kids Footwear

Text and photos by Stacie Joy

I recently stopped by Village Kids Footwear to talk with proprietor Linda Scifo-Young. The shop, 117 First Ave. between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place, sells footwear for children beginning at around 6 months of age.

The shop, sister store to Foot Gear Plus, which has been in business in the East Village for more than 37 years, is run by siblings Linda and Tony Scifo. Both stores have the motto: "Everyday footwear for real New Yorkers."



What made you decide to open a children’s shoe store in the East Village, especially coming from a corporate real-estate background?

We decided to open the kids store to accommodate our customers who were begging us to open a children’s store. There were none in the area; the last one closed a few years earlier. With regard to my real-estate background: "sales is sales."

Your shop is a family-owned and family-run store, and your brother Tony operates the sister shop Foot Gear Plus a few doors down at 131 First Ave. at St. Mark's Place. How is it working with your brother and his kids? How do you split the responsibilities for the two shops?

Tony runs the adult store Foot Gear Plus and his children work alongside him. I run the kids store with a staff that’s local to the neighborhood. I also handle the business end — lawyers, payroll, taxes, etc. — for both stores.

What is the typical East Village kid looking for in shoes? What shoes sell best and who makes the decisions in shoe-buying — the kids or the parents?

Sneakers are the typical purchase for kids. However, we tell the parents that each kid needs sneakers and sandals in the summer and sneakers as well as boots in the winter. Pediped and New Balance are our best sellers.

The buying decision is about 50/50 between parent and child.

You mentioned you hire locally, and that everyone who works at the shop lives nearby. Why is it important to you to hire from within the community?

The reason we hire locally in both stores is because the community has been good to us with their loyalty and it’s our way of giving back to the neighborhood.


[Scifo-Young with employee Donna, who lives nearby]

How does your shop, one without an ecommerce site, compete with giant Internet retailers? How do you keep repeat customers?

Ecommerce I feel is very hard for shoe stores because you really need to try on shoes. We offer some items on Amazon but we couldn’t have a traditional site because people tend to order a number of pairs hoping one will fit. Most times they end up returning all ordered items. Who can stay in business that way?

Our repeat customers are a product of customer service, something that we excel at.

Do you have any plans to expand? What’s next for Village Kids Footwear?

Expansion is not in the cards — the two stores are enough for now. The ability to renew our lease is enough excitement at the moment!


[Scifo-Young with customer Jesse Gunn]

[Updated] Dun-Well Doughnuts open on St. Mark's Place

@dunwelldoughnuts is open!

A photo posted by Dun-Well Doughnuts (@dunwelldoughnuts) on Jul 20, 2016 at 6:43am PDT

The vegan doughnut shop-cafe opened yesterday at 102 St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue.

This is the second outpost for the popular East Williamsburg-based shop started in 2011 by friends Christopher Hollowell and Dan Dunbar.

Dunbar told Gothamist last month that the operation here will be very similar to their Brooklyn original, "with their full lineup of vegan doughnuts and pastries like pull-aparts, which they'll shuttle in daily from Montrose Avenue."

Dun-Well also serves coffee drinks (and are hiring a barista).

Updated 7-22

Dun-Well will be back open tomorrow morning at 9.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Brooklyn's Dun-Well Doughnuts opening an outpost on St. Mark's Place

[Updated] Reader report: Former BARA space will serve Latin-American fare on East 1st Street

An East First Street tipster notes work in recent days at the former BARA space between First Avenue and Second Avenue...



The in-progress signage on the doors shows offerings such as empanadas, tacos and burritos — to dine in, take out or delivery ...and apparently the BARA team is behind the new venture, per the tipster.

BARA, a French/Japanese bar-restaurant that we happened to really like, closed after service on June 11. A sign on the door read, "BARA is permanently closed. Bummer, right?"

Updated 7/25

Turns out this will be a second outpost for Esperanto ... the mainstay on Avenue C and Ninth Street is expanding with the opening of Esperanto Fonda here, the Post reports.

Free tonight in Tompkins Square Park: 'Do the Right Thing'

Tonight's free film in Tompkins Square Park is Spike Lee's "Do the Right Thing."



There's pre-movie music via Brendan O'Hara. The film starts at sundown. (It has started right at 9 the past two weeks.)

Check the Films in Tompkins Facebook page for any updates on tonight's screening.

And upcoming:

7-28 — "Wild Style"

8-4 — "True Romance"

8-11 — "Romeo + Juliet"

Report: East Village bar owners opening the Gem Saloon in former Rodeo Bar space

Back in early January, Kips Bay Corner reported that the owners of East Village bars Phebe's on the Bowery and Penny Farthing on Third Avenue would be reopening the former Rodeo Bar on Third Avenue at 27th Street.

Now Kips Bay Corner brings word that plans are moving forward on the space. However, it does NOT appear that the new venture, called the Gem Saloon, will host live music like the Rodeo Bar did.

Word on the street is that it’s going to be reopened as an Irish pub; however, if it’s named after the landmarked 1917 Gem Saloon in Montana, it may be keeping within the honky tonk theme of the Rodeo Bar.

This week we witnessed walls being taken down inside the E.27th st. corner building. The owners, which include former NBA star Steve Nash, will not be bringing live music to the once popular spot.

As we first reported in July 2014, the bar — billed as "NYC’s longest running honky-tonk" — closed for good after 27 years in business. In a message on Facebook, the owners said that recent rent increases, "combined with a changing landscape, have made it impossible for us continue."

The storefront at 375 Third Ave. had a $58,333 monthly rent ask.

Cupbearer to the hawks

One of the juvenile red-tailed hawks early this evening atop Temperance Fountain in Tompkins Square Park...

Thanks to Goggla for the photo!

More movies at MoRUS and 'Garbagia Island'

The Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space (MoRUS) is continuing to host Movies @ MoRUS, a monthly film series exploring themes such as social justice and political reform.

Playing tomorrow night (July 21):

"The True Cost," a 2015 documentary "examining fast-fashion’s global supply chain and its tragic effects on human lives and the environment." The film is screening at La Plaza Cultural Community Garden, on the southwest corner of Avenue C and Ninth Street, at 8:30 p.m. Movies @ Morus are free to the public but a suggested donation of $5 is appreciated.



And via the EVG inbox...

"The True Cost" sets a fitting backdrop for MoRUS’s participation in Loisaida Center’s Community Summer Program, “Garbagia Island,” a dystopian representation of the Island of Puerto Rico and its current economical and political situation.

The program will present workshops open to the public and held at the Loisaida Center and La Plaza Cultural Community Garden where participants will learn, among other activities, how to create fashion, masks and costumes with recycled materials. A culmination of these community workshops will manifest in a up-cycled fashion and costume presentation at La Plaza on Saturday, July 30 at 4 p.m.

To learn more about these free, pirate-themed events visit the Loisaida website.

Shaun Martin found guilty of murder in 2013 crash at East Village Farm and Grocery

Queens resident Shaun Martin, who prosecutors say was drunk and high on PCP when he plowed his car into East Village Farm and Grocery on Second Avenue on June 19, 2013, which led to the death of florist Mohammed Akkas Ali, was found guilty of murder today.

He faces up to life in prison. He is expected to be sentenced on Sept. 21.

Here's the statement from the office of Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr.:

MARTIN was convicted following a bench trial in New York State Supreme Court of all of the charges against him, including Murder in the Second Degree, Aggravated Vehicular Homicide, and Assault and Reckless Endangerment in the First Degrees, among other charges.

“Shaun Martin turned a vehicle into a ‎murder weapon the morning he took the wheel while impaired by drugs,” said District Attorney Vance. “In doing so, he chose to endanger the lives of every New Yorker he encountered that day. As proven at trial, he acted with depraved indifference to human life, directly causing the death of Mohammed Akkas Ali and seriously injuring two of his coworkers. He never touched the brakes as he hurtled through the East Village. I would like to thank the Judge for her careful deliberation of this case, and hope this conviction serves to deter those who would be so devoid of care for the lives of their fellow New Yorkers.”

As proven at trial, at approximately 6:50 a.m. on June 19, 2013, MARTIN sped through the East Village in a white Nissan Altima, driving more than 50 miles per hour, while impaired by both phencyclidine, commonly referred to as PCP, and methamphetamine. Cutting across three lanes of traffic, MARTIN drove onto the sidewalk and struck a fire hydrant, a pay phone, a muni-meter, and a tree, before crashing the car into a flower stand attached to the East Village Farm and Grocery Store on the corner of East 4th Street and Second Avenue. MARTIN struck three of the store’s employees, including Mohammed Akkas Ali, who died as a result of injuries he suffered from the crash. A man riding a bicycle was also injured by debris from the crash.

Defendant Information:

SHAUN MARTIN, D.O.B. 4/7/1981
Queens, NY

Convicted:
• Murder in the Second Degree, a class A felony, 1 count
• Aggravated Vehicular Homicide, a class B felony, 2 counts
• Assault in the First Degree, a class B felony, 2 counts
• Aggravated Vehicular Assault, a class C felony, 4 counts
• Reckless Endangerment in the First Degree, a class D felony, 1 count
• Driving While Ability Impaired By Drugs, a class E felony, 2 counts
• Driving While Ability Impaired By Combination of Drugs and Alcohol, a class E felony, 1 count
• Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Seventh Degree, a class A misdemeanor, 1 count
• Assault in the Third Degree, a class A misdemeanor, 1 count

Martin's attorney argued Ali's death "was not caused by Martin's terrifying collision ... but because his breathing tube had been knocked out and he could not be revived" at the health-care facility he was in, according to the Daily News.

Previously on EV Grieve:
[Updated] Car smashes into East Village Farm & Grocery on Second Avenue; 6 reported injured

Crowdsourcing campaign for injured East Village Farm and Grocery worker raises nearly $19,000

Report: Injured East Village Farm and Grocery florist has lost his memory, use of his voice

[Updated] RIP Akkas Ali

Out and About in the East Village

In this ongoing feature, East Village-based photographer James Maher provides us with a quick snapshot of someone who lives and/or works in the East Village.



By James Maher

Name: Anna Pastoressa
Occupation: Jack of all trades
Location: 2nd Street and Avenue A
Time: 4:15 pm on Friday, July 15

I was born in Rome. As a young person, I thought that I was in a small world, and I wanted to see the world. So I used to travel a lot, and then I decided I wanted to come and visit the U.S. It was just a visit.

When I came, I liked it, and I traveled all over the U.S. I decided that I wanted to try to stay, but New York was not my first destination. I lived in New Orleans, I met somebody there, and I got married. That’s what made me stay here in this country. Eventually, I divorced that person and I decided to come to New York. I’m from Rome and I needed to be in a big city. New Orleans had a small-town feeling.

I moved here in 1983. I came right to the East Village. I used to live on Avenue C. It was the cheapest place to be, but it was also a dangerous area. It was like the wild west, but I have to say, the drug dealers who were in charge of the neighborhood, they kept the neighborhood safe. I used to walk around Alphabet City in the 80s by myself, at night. I knew the drug dealers would be in the doorways minding their business, and making sure that the neighborhood stayed safe.

You know, I felt safe, as crazy as this sounds. It was very hard to take a cab home, because cab drivers used to drop me on 1st Avenue. They’d said, ‘You have to walk. I’m not taking you to that jungle.’ I would be mad, because I wanted to go home, but they would systematically drop me on 1st Avenue, and I would have to walk all the way to Avenue C. But then I thought, ‘Okay, from 1st Avenue to Avenue C, there are going to be the drug dealers helping out.

In fact, there were some people who were pickpocketed, and the drug dealers were the ones who saved them, or they would chase the thief. They used to tell them, ‘Do not rob in this neighborhood. Do not come here to steal, because we will beat you up. We don’t want the cops here, so you don’t do this in this neighborhood.’

I knew the drug dealers, to the point where I had an old funky car, and I used to park it around the neighborhood. One time, the car got broken into. They broke the glass, and one of the drug dealers saw the car and said, ‘What happened to it?’ I said, ‘Well, look, they broke into the car, and I don’t even have a radio. There is nothing to steal.’ And he said, ‘Where did you park it?’ I said, ‘I parked it two blocks away,’ and he said, ‘You don’t park it there. You park your car on this block and nothing will ever happen to your car.’

I remember having a little trouble sometimes with kids in the neighborhood. They would play basketball and bounce it on my car, or be a little rowdy. There was one particular kid, I was trying to park the car near my house, and he was trying to take over the parking spot and put his ball there. So one time I wanted to park there, and he started bouncing the basketball on my car, and bent it.

I got so upset that I went to the drug dealer, and I said, ‘Listen, you told me to ask you for help. Please help me, this kid is not being nice to me. I know the kid, he lives right there, a few doors down from me.’ The drug dealer took care of it. He brought him to me and said, ‘You say sorry to this lady. Don’t you ever, ever bother her again,’ and the kid was like, ‘Sorry!’ I felt so bad for him.

The funny thing is that I saw him growing up after that, and he turned into a very nice man. To date, when I run into him, we laugh. He keeps telling me, ‘I’m so sorry for what I did as a kid,’ and I say, ‘Stop it. A long time has gone by. You’re a wonderful, nice young man. Leave it alone. You were a kid.’ We still laugh. We can never forget that incident.

I had a lot of friends in my neighborhood. We were all artists, musicians. I know a lot of people here who are into visual arts, music, theater. We used get together and Tompkins Square Park was our playground; that was our meeting point. We would go together to plays. There used to be a lot of alternative theaters in this area. People had theaters in their homes, and they had galleries in squats. It was a very nice period. As much as it was considered bad, or it had a negative connotation, I think it was a fun time of New York City, and of this area. There was a lot of freedom. We knew everybody. It was like being in a village. It was a real village.

Then we grew up, we got married, we had children, and our children play together in Tompkins Square Park. It was the playground for our children. We would have parties and be with our children. We looked out for each other’s children.

James Maher is a fine art and studio photographer based in the East Village. Find his website here.

Report: New owners for the empty lot at 14th Street and Avenue C

[EVG file photo]

The long-empty lot at East 14th Street and Avenue C has new owners.

The Real Deal is reporting that Brooklyn's Rabsky Group scrapped plans for its first Manhattan project here, selling the property to Opal Holdings, a real-estate investment firm led by Shaya and Shulamit Prager, for $23 million. No word just yet what they have planned for the site.

Rabsky reportedly paid $15 million for the property in 2014. The one-level structure that was demolished here in early 2015 previously housed R&S Strauss auto parts store, which closed in April 2009.

There were approved permits for a 14-story building totaling 63,932 square feet, with 8,064 square feet for retail ... and 21,991 square feet for a community facility.

Not much has happened here since the demolition of the former Strauss store. As many commenters have pointed out in the past, this corner was about 5-6 feet under water during Sandy.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Development back in play for East 14th Street and Avenue C

More details on the sale of 644 E. 14th St.

Here comes a 15-story retail-residential complex for East 14th Street and Avenue C

Prepping the former R&S Strauss auto parts store for demolition on East 14th Street and Avenue C

City OKs 15-story mixed-use retail-residential building on 14th and C

14th and C now waiting for the Karl Fischer-designed 15-story retail-residential complex

14th and C still waiting for its Karl Fischer-designed retail-residential complex

Blink Fitness signage arrives at 100 Avenue A

The Blink signage arrived yesterday (photos courtesy of an EVG reader) on the sidewalk bridge at 100 Avenue A, the incoming condoplex from developer Ben Shaoul.

As previously reported, a Blink Fitness gym is opening a 12,000-square-foot facility in the retail space here between Sixth Street and Seventh Street...



The signs point to a fall opening. (The East Village location has a holding place on the Blink website.) The site advertises rates "as low as $15" a month. (Updated: This Blink will cost $25 a month, per a rep.)

In other Ben Shaoul development news, New York Yimby got the first look yesterday of some interior renderings for 196 Orchard St., the 11-stories of condos going up adjacent to Katz's. The residential building, as noted before, includes a three-level Equinox gym, Blink's upscale relative.

As for the homes at No. 196, studios start at $1.075 million.

[Updated] Logan Hicks bringing the story of his life to the Houston/Bowery Mural Wall

Logan Hicks, known for his photorealistic stenciled paintings, will be the next artist to work on the Houston/Bowery Mural Wall.

According to a news release issued yesterday by landlord Goldman Properties, Hicks is scheduled to start work on his mural, titled "Story of My Life," on Monday. It is expected to take several weeks to complete.

Here's more about the piece via the release:

The Bowery Wall mural will be Hicks’ most personal piece yet. His signature architectural landscape is set on Greene Street where a massive photo shoot took place on May 22. For the shoot, Logan invited dozens of friends and family to participate, and be represented in a “crowd scene.” The mural represents his past, present and future here in New York City, telling the story of his life through the people who have touched him.

The current work by FUTURA (aka Lenny McGurr) went up last September.

Updated 12:30

Several readers have noted that the whitewashing of the wall is underway... this morning...



...and around noon...