Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Is this wall a remnant of the former cemetery under Mary Help of Christians?



Last week, local preservationists called for a complete archaeological evaluation of the grounds below Mary Help of Christians Church on East 12th Street. The site was once home to a cemetery, and the groups are concerned that some burial plots may remain.

Developer Douglas Steiner has plans to convert the property into a residential complex.

After the rally, Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation Executive Director Andrew Berman made a discovery... he recently wrote about it on GVSHP's Off the Grid blog:

[R]eturning to our East 11th Street offices after yesterday’s rally, we saw something on the block we had seen many times before, but now, armed with the knowledge of the former cemetery’s existence, viewed in an entirely new light.

On the western side of the block, running between what is now called Open Road Park and the rear walls of the properties which line the 1st Avenue end of the block, is a mysteriously out-of-place stone wall. And this wall just may be the western wall of the long-vanished cemetery.



Berman makes his case with some archival maps of the street, like this one from 1867...



As he notes:

By 1867 the First Avenue frontage of the cemetery had been sold off and tenements built. So where this stone wall now stands was, from 1867 on, the boundary between the cemetery and the residential structures to the west.

You can read the whole post here. It's an interesting read, and possibly more proof that the city should conduct a search for remains before Steiner's project moves forward.

Early last year, preservationists submitted a request to the Landmarks Preservation Commission asking them to landmark the church. The LPC denied the request. (Read about that here.)

Metro has an article on all this today as well. Find that piece here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Permits filed to demolish Mary Help of Christians church, school and rectory

Preservationists call for archeological review of former cemetery at Mary Help of Christians site

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Citi Bikes, work day 1



After yesterday's more leisurely Citi Bikes debut for riders with annual memberships... I decided to take a very unscientific look at the first working weekday for the bikes... I checked out the Docking Station at Astor Place (above) ... it was nearly empty the few times that I walked by ... (At the same time, docking stations near City Hall and Wall Street were reported full...)

An afternoon look at the docking station on East Seventh Street at Avenue A found a lot of bikes available ...


[Bobby Williams]

Crain's reported today that there were a few snafus in the system on Day 2, including that riders complained of problems docking their bikes.

Meanwhile today, WNYC's The Brian Lehrer Show explored the question: Is the new bike share a practical – and fast — transportation option for congested NYC?

To find out, three WNYC employees left the same spot on Clinton Street and East Boradway, each taking different modes of transportation to get back to the station: bike share, cab and subway.

(Spoiler: the bike share won.)

You can listen to the segment here.

In other developments, there is already a Craigslist Missed Connection Post, per the Observer.

To date, more than 16,400 people have paid $95 for an annual membership, according to Crain's. BusinessWeek explores Citi's sponsorship angle in all this ("$41 million over five years is a rounding error for the company") ... while Motherboard explores who might be making money in all this.

Sunny weather on hold



Second Avenue at St. Mark's Place.

And you'll likely see this post again at the end of the year during our gala "Worst EVG Headlines of the Year" fête.

Corner soul



Checking in on the façade repair at 112 Avenue A at East Seventh Street... the Joe Strummer mural should come out of all this OK...

Are you missing this cat?



This fellow was found this morning on East Seventh Street between First Avenue and Avenue A ... he has been cared for, though there aren't any tags, collar, etc. Let us know... we can put you in touch with the person who found him...

A classic Urban Etiquette Sign for the 'Birthday Girl on the Second Floor'



A tipster points us to the front door at 500 E. 11th Street at Avenue A.

Per the tipster: "As if the residents of this building weren't suffering enough from Kushner and 7-11 construction..."


[Click image to enlarge]

The sign reads in part:

"We understand that you may be on a different schedule than many of us, but we're not playing our music out of our windows when you're sleeping. No, we have an understanding of what it means to be a neighbor. This is not a dormitory (although, the changing nature of the East Village may, at times, look and sound otherwise)."

Pretty good! But will it actually do a bit of good? According to the tipster: "This is the second time a letter was posted pleading with said tenant to play nice."

What happened to the tree chair on East Sixth Street?


[From February via Bobby Williams]

I'd been meaning to write a post about the great tree chair of East Sixth Street ... located a little east of Avenue A.

However, I noticed during the weekend that the chair part is gone...



Anyone know what happened? Maybe in for repairs?

A neighbor here told me that a longtime resident created this... and that he was a little bashful about attention for this...

Gentle Wash Laundromat has a new owner, sign, on Avenue A (aka, today in laundromat news)



Gentle Wash Laundromat has new ownership now at 97 Avenue A near East Sixth Street ... the new owner retained the former staff ... workers put up the new sign on Saturday... EVG reader Creature noted that the inside was painted and all the Asian nicknacks were removed... (and expect wi-fi service soon.)

Can't personally speak much about the place. There are several one-star Yelp reviews ("Please don't go here unless you want to be treated like an insect and for your laundry to smell like poop") ... and one person referred to the owner as an (ugh) "evil dragon lady."

Regardless, says longtime patron Creature of the former owner: "All I know is she was always nice to me and will be missed. It feels like another institution leaving, but that may just be me."

While I liked the former sign...



... it's nice to see that another laundromat didn't close down for good around the neighborhood. (Like here ... here ... and some day here.)

An apartment that 'has no issues'



A reader who is looking for a new apartment shared this listing for a nice place on East Seventh Street between Avenue B and Avenue C... the reader was both amused, and, later, horrified, by the description...

The previous occupant was a master carpenter/environmentalist and it shows! Every room has AT LEAST ONE WINDOW!

Nice! What else?

Basically the apt has no issues. All the bedrooms are a nice size. It's not on ave D, it's not above a bar, its not near a hospital or on a strange block. It's actually on a well lit, active residential tree lined street.

Per the reader: "'Not on Avenue D'? Just what are they trying to say?"

Also, the apartment has been rented.

Weekend recap: 'Bloom 62' announces itself at the former Cabrini Center



In case you missed our post on Saturday... the luxury apartment building that is replacing the former Cabrini Center on East Fifth Street and Avenue B has a name: Bloom 62 ... "The right place to plant your roots."

A banner ad went up Friday. And there's now a website with this marketing copy:

It sounds impossible: a fully-appointed luxury building has sprouted in the beating heart of the East Village. A 24-hour doorman greets you before work in the morning, after returning from a cafe in the evening and when heading out to Tompkins Square Park on the weekends. You'll have every modern convenience, from a gym to a roof deck to in-unit laundry, on the same streets where names like The Ramones, Warhol and Hendrix and [sic] paved the history of this neighborhood for years to come.

Reader reaction included:

Woo Generation said...
I don't know what Ramones and those other things are. How close is 13th Step?

Anonymous said...
I know someone who died in there. I could never live there. They look like prison cells with windows and rooms brightened with Photoshop.

Read the rest of the post and reader comments here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Here's Bloom 62, the luxury apartments replacing the Cabrini Center for Nursing & Rehabilitation

Report: Local politicians reach out to Ben Shaoul as re-sale of the Cabrini Nursing Center seems likely

More details on Cabrini's closing announcement

Another look at the dba cab accident


[Monday morning, with a dented canopy]

In case you missed this... late Sunday afternoon, a cab backed up into dba on First Avenue... said one witness on the scene, the driver "had a diabetic incident, according to the cops on the scene."

Here a few other photos from the accident, where thankfully no one else was injured... These photos are via Event Photos NYC ... where you can find more shots here.







BoweryBoogie also has a few shots here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Cab backs into dba today

Monday, May 27, 2013

Cars and suspended cans this Memorial Day

On Avenue A...





...and along East River Park...





Photos by Bobby Williams...

Citi Bikes now making tired jokes about Williamsburg



The bike share is under way, of course ... and we're spotting more and more of them on the streets (people seem to be enjoying the experience, though we're terrible mind readers) ... Meanwhile, Ray LeMoine points out this Citi Copy® on East Second Street and Avenue B that we never noticed before ...

Updated: A free taste of tacos this afternoon at El Diablito Taqueria


[Via @shawnshahan]

El Diablito Taqueria opened a few weeks on 60 E. Third St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue.

If you have been curious to try the place... they tell us they will be handing out samples of their tacos as well as free agua fresca out front today from 4-5:30 p.m. 3-4:30 p.m.

Previously on EV Grieve:
El Diablito Taqueria is now open on East 3rd Street

And we're off: 1st Citi Bikes spotted in the wild; world doesn't end


Anyone with a Citi Bike membership want to share an assessment of your experience with the bikes today? (Anonymous or not.) Via the EV Grieve email ... or in the comments...

Meanwhile, the Post reports today that a Citi Bikes docking station was positioned "a mere 150 feet" from Frank's Bike Shop on Grand Street.

And the shop’s 68-year-old owner, affectionately known as “Dr. Frank,” is worried about his future.

"My biggest question is how did they come about to choose the areas where they put these bikes. Did they study the areas? Did they look at the businesses around them?" asked a flabbergasted Frank Arroyo.

He says his bike rentals comprise one-third of his income.

And did you see Marcellus Hall's New Yorker cover this week? (Read about it here.)


[Via Gothamist]

At the Loisaida Festival



Here are photos from yesterday's 26th annual Loisaida Festival on Avenue C...




[Top 3 photos by Bobby Williams]

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And a few Avenue C street scenes via EVG contributor James Maher...




















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And here's a video featuring an after-party on the Avenue...

Sunday, May 26, 2013

Cab backs into dba today


[Via an EVG reader]

As we understand it today around 5 ... a cab driver somehow backed into dba on First Avenue...


[Via an EVG reader]

...as our friends from dba tell it, the cab driver was taken off in an ambulance with unknown injuries, but amazingly nobody else was injured... all the more amazing when you look at the photos from inside via EVG reader Shawn...






Spider-Man on Avenue C (aka, BOUNCY CASTLE)



Bouncy castle! (And not quite sure why Batman and Superman get such low billing here...) Oh! All this during the Loisaida Festival today on Avenue C today... we'll post more photos tomorrow... this shot is via Peter Parker Bobby Williams.

Week in Grieview


[Photo by Stephen Popkin]

Q-and-A with Lydia Lunch (Tuesday)

Arrest in assault of gay man on Avenue D (Tuesday)

Preservationists call for archeological review of former cemetery at Mary Help of Christians site (Thursday)

How Edward Arrocha became “Eak the Geek” (Wednesday)

Looking at Ben Shaoul's Bloom 62, which is taking over the former Cabrini Center (Saturday)

Early 1990s photos from the East Village (Friday)

Long-dormant ast 13th Street lot back in action; 6-floor building on the way (Thursday)

David's Show Repair leaving the East Village for the cheaper rents of ... Midtown (Tuesday)

TREEMAN (Monday)

Hearing about the illegal addition at 515 E. Fifth St. (Tuesday)

CB3 says no to The Living Room to Second Street (Wednesday)

Fall out from the cancelled Great GoogaMooga Festival (Sunday)

More about the CBGB Music and Film Festival (Wednesday)

Max Fish closing in late July (Thursday)

... and workers have replaced this on Avenue A and East Ninth Street...

Week in Grieview — Citi Bikes edition


[Friday via EVG reader John]

Early verdict on Citi Bikes — kids love 'em (Friday, 26 comments)

And now, more complaints about Citi Bikes docking stations (Friday, 20 comments)

Trading places: Citi Bikes docking station making the move on East 11th Street (Thursday, 51 comments)

Report: 9th Precinct traffic safety sergeant worries about an increase in accidents with Citi Bikes (Thursday, 17 comments)

Countdown to Citi Bikes bike share in the East Village (Wednesday, 18 comments)

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... and a few people have said that the docking stations are positioned in a potentially dangerous manner; that people will have to pull the bikes from the docks out into the street ... Here's a shot from yesterday on St. Mark's Place ...


[Stephen Popkin]

...looks like enough room, yes?