Minty fresh vibes in Tompkins Square Park

A scene from Tompkins Square Park yesterday... where a rat was enjoying the remains of an ice cream/gelato cup ... it was not immediately clear if the flavor was, say, mint chocolate chip or perhaps pistachio ... (if it was mint, then this may be more proof that the flavor isn't a rat deterrent ...)

Thanks to EVG regular Cheyenne for the photos...





Alternate headlines:
I scurry, you scurry, we all scurry for ice cream

'Ocean's 8' means Veselka will open late

Film crews are at Veselka today for an "Ocean's 8" shoot... The restaurant on Second Avenue at Ninth Street will be open for service today at 4.

This spin-off of the Ocean's Trilogy has an ensemble cast that includes Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Hathaway, Rihanna, Mindy Kalig, Awkwafina, Dakota Fanning, among others.

Past "Ocean's 8" shooting locales include Blue & Gold on Seventh Street and Papaya Dog on 14th Street at First Avenue.

The film has a June 8, 2018, release date.

Updated 9 p.m.

The Daily Mail has more on the shoot and a lot of photos of Bullock and Blanchett.

Some free jazz tonight in the Green Oasis Community Garden on 8th Street

Via the EVG inbox...

The Eric Paulin Ensemble (commonly heard playing beautiful jazz in Tompkins Square Park) will be performing tonight from 6-8 at the Green Oasis Community Garden on Eighth Street between Avenue C and Avenue D.

Find more info here. The show is free. (And read more about Eric Paulin here.)

You would even say it Glows

Death Valley Girls are one of many bands on the bill at next month's Seaport Music Festival at the South Street Seaport ... the video here is for "Glow in The Dark."

Afternoon stuffed pizza rats break

Photo in Tompkins Square Park today by Goggla...

Previously

EV Grieve Etc.: Appreciating Sen. Squadron's service; visiting Flower Power Herbs & Roots

[A Fine morning the other day on Avenue C]

Remembering State Sen. Daniel Squadron's service to the neighborhood as he leaves office (The Lo-Down) Who will fill his seat? (Town & Village)

Singer-songwriter Dave Deporis, who performed at the Sidewalk on Avenue A, was killed during a robbery in Oakland (SPIN)

A visit to Flower Power Herbs & Roots on Ninth Street (Off the Grid ... previously)

The juvenile red-tailed hawks haven't left home (Tompkins Square Park) just yet (Laura Goggin Photography)

Club Cumming will open on Sixth Street on Sept. 15 (Tasting Table)

Local ice cream shop owner discuss the rigors of the business (Grub Street)


[Another Croman-Rikers tag appears on 6th Street]

Sun Bakery on Essex Street appears to have closed (BoweryBoogie)

Two screenings of 1963's "Greenwich Village Story" this weekend (Anthology Film Archives)

Blue Apron had the most disappointing IPO of the decade (Grub Street)

"Rogue" bikeshare company to unleash cycles in the city on Monday (New York Post)

The story of Keith Haring's Berlin Wall mural (Dangerous Minds)

What's next at the French Roast space on Sixth Avenue? (Jeremiah's Vanishing New York)

... and on Sunday afternoon at 3, take in the latest installment of "Music Under the Willow" at the Creative Little Garden on Sixth Street between Avenue A and Avenue B. Details here.


[Creative Little Garden pic via Facebook]

New City Council legislation aims to protect tenants from construction as harassment

[Photo Wednesday via @RosieMendez]

On Wednesday, City Council passed comprehensive legislation as part of the “Stand for Tenant Safety” package that aims to provide greater tenant protection.

Per DNAinfo: "The bills range from increased fines for landlords, requiring a 'Safe Construction Bill of Rights,' stricter preventative measures to address construction as harassment, and the creation of an Office of the Tenant Advocate inside the Department of Buildings."

City Council member Rosie Mendez introduced the "Safe Construction Bill of Rights" legislation, which requires landlords to notify tenants before undertaking significant renovation projects.

Mendez shared this statement:

For far too long some of the city’s worst property owners have used devious, despicable tactics, as well as construction renovations to harass and intimidate tenants. Tenants living in buildings that are undergoing substantial construction usually do not know where to turn.

Therefore, the passage of the “Safe Construction Bill of Rights” legislation would require landlords to provide tenants prior notice of significant construction projects and periodic updates about the status of such construction projects. I believe this is common sense legislation and its passage will demonstrate that New York City will ensure that construction is safe with tenants in place and that tenants will be informed. The overall impact of this legislative package is that New York City will be the best and safest place to live.

Read more about the legislation in the City Council press room here.

A little more about Limited to One, a new collectible record store on 10th Street

Limited to One opened its doors on 10th Street back on July 29.

I asked the store's founders, Kristian Sorge and Nichole Porges (a couple outside the store as well) a few basic questions about Limited to One.

Why open a record shop?

It definitely started out as a passion project for both of us. One day we looked at our life and realized that our day jobs weren't something that we built on our own, and that was really important for us, to make our mark.

We also realized that there was a "hole" in the record market, so to speak, for records we were buying and interested in. After a few months of careful planning and asking all of our friends/other record nerdz what they wanted in their dream shop, we decided Brick-and-mortar was the way to go verses an online store. Kristian has lived in the East Village for over a decade, so the East Village was the perfect spot for us to open our shop.





What can people expect at the shop?

People can definitely expect a friendly, clean, and organized environment. We also love chatting with everyone who comes in!

Our store focuses on rare/limited/out-of-print records in the following genres: Punk, Rock, Indie, Alternative, Emo, Metal, as well as Hip-Hop. A few of our favorite titles in the shop right now are: an original Stooges pressing of their self-titled record from 1969, an original pressing of Saetia, The XX - self titled special edition limited to 500 copies with hand-signed prints, a 1977 original Ramones "Rocket to Russia," an original pressing of Dr Dre "The Chronic"... Just to name a few!

What about pricing?

While most of our records are collectible, that doesn't mean they are always expensive. Some of our favorite bands have records that are in the $10-$30 range. We are record collectors ourselves and know what it feels like to be over charged for records. We really strive to make sure our records are reasonably priced.



The store is located at 221 E. 10th St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue. You can find them on Instagram here. They are also part of the RecordNerdz podcast.

Reminders: Summer Streets return tomorrow (Saturday!)

[Photo of Lafayette and Great Jones from last Saturday at 1 p.m.]

The second Saturday of Summer Streets takes place tomorrow (Saturday!) from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Around here, the vehicle-free zone includes Lafayette, Astor Place and Fourth Avenue.

In addition, there are all sorts of activities at the Citi Rest Stop in Astor Place, including Smellmapping Astor Place:

DOT Art and the Village Alliance have partnered with designer Kate McLean to produce a Smellmap of the Astor Place neighborhood. Three smellwalks were hosted over the past few months with local residents and stakeholders to gather smell data/information. Participants were asked to explore the environment strictly through their sense of smell by smell catching (receiving smell info), smell hunting (searching for smell info) and lastly free smelling (a mini smell research project). Mclean has collected all the smell data and visualized the findings as a colorful smellmap. McLean will be on-site to lead two walks at 9 am and 11 am to continue building on this research and invites participants to incorporate their findings into a large-scale smellmap available on-site.

What does Zoltar smell like anyway?

Some #NYC #smells to #sniff if you're joining @NYC_DOT @AstorPlaceNYC #smellwalks this weekend #CitiSummerStreets pic.twitter.com/V0gEE86fo8

— Kate McLean (@katemclean) August 2, 2017

Visit the Summer Streets site for more details.

Let's talk about rats (some more)

Via the EVG inbox...

Neighborhood rat reduction plan

A public info session with Q-&-A

Aug. 15, 6:30 pm
East Village Community School at 610 E. 12th St., between Avenues B and C.

Join senior officials and experts from the Health, Sanitation, Parks Departments and NYCHA to learn about:
-New state of the art trash cans in your community
-New investments in NYCHA developments to prevent rats
-More frequent trash pickup
-Better Waste Management Practices for Landlords or Enforcement of rat-related violations by landlords

Co-sponsored by: Borough President Gale A. Brewer, U.S. Representative Carolyn B. Maloney, State Senator Brad Hoylman, State Senator Daniel Squadron, Assembly Member Brian Kavanagh, Assembly Member Yuh-Line Niou, Council Member Rosie Mendez, Council Member Margaret S. Chin, and Community Board 3.

A Starbucks sneak peek on St Mark's and Avenue A

A look inside the plywood on St. Mark's Place at Avenue A...



Back in July, DNAinfo reported on what to expect from this location:

A Starbucks spokesman said the company was designing the new store to reflect the unique character of the “Lower East Village.”

“We are proud to bring a new Starbucks store to the Lower East Village later this summer,” said the spokesman, who would identify himself only as Jonathan. “In addition to offering employment to more than 20 partners (employees), this store will provide a gathering place for the community and will be designed to reflect the uniqueness of the neighborhood.”

The spokesman added that the company’s partners are “involved in community service” and that the store donates all leftovers through its FoodShare program in partnership with Feeding American and City Harvest.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Starbucks confirmed for Avenue A

At the 'Not Another Starbucks Rally'

Thursday's parting shot

Still waiting, though not sinking. Eighth Street and Avenue B entrance to Tompkins Square Park...

...previously here ... and here.

Today in sidewalk sales

If you are on Second Street between Second Avenue and the Bowery this afternoon... EVG reader Daniel shared these photos from a sidewalk sale...



...to help someone move on with his or her life...

Today in books returned after 38 years

Via @tompkins_square_library:

This book was casually returned today — only 38 years late! 😄 The book, "The Woman in the White House" by Marianne Means, describes the contributions of 12 First Ladies.