Hey, it's almost the Fourth of July

[Pic from 2015]

Once again, the Macy's 4th of July fireworks will launch from the East River... tomorrow night.

Here are some basics via the official Macy's News Release:

The 42nd Annual Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks® will feature more than two miles of prime viewing along the shores of the East River. Macy’s annual Independence Day celebration will offer front row views for more than three million spectators in New York City and another 12 million viewers nationwide. The show, beginning at approximately 9:25 p.m. will ignite the sky over the East River centered in midtown with a series of more than 75,000 shells and effects.

Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks can be viewed from any area with an unobstructed view of the sky above the East River. The seven barges stationed between East 23rd and East 40th Streets are best seen from:

MANHATTAN

Public viewing will be set up along elevated portions of the F.D.R. Drive. The lanes will be opened to the public at approximately 7 PM with access at Houston, 23rd, 34th, and 42nd.

As Curbed noted in its July 4 preview, those 75,000 shells are up from a paltry 60,000 from last year. (Like comparing "Geostorm" to "Independence Day.")

Here's a map to give you a better idea of the barge location for optimal viewing...


[Map via Macy's and EV Arrow]

And if you're just going to be randomly driving around, there are some street closures to be aware of:

• East Houston Street between Baruch Place and FDR Drive
• Avenue C between 13th Street and Avenue C Entrance Ramp to FDR
• Avenue C Entrance Ramps
• 6th Street between Avenue D and FDR Drive
• 10th Street between Avenue D and FDR Drive
• 14th Street between Avenue C and Avenue B
• Avenue C between East 16th Street and East 23rd Street

And the always friendly reminder from the 9th Precinct...

As we enter into the last weekend before the #FourthofJuly we want to remind you that #fireworks are not only dangerous but illegal.
Leave them to @Macys and the professionals.
Be safe and have fun! #EastVillage #NYC pic.twitter.com/4CtucFabIP

— NYPD 9th Precinct (@NYPD9Pct) June 29, 2018

Among other things, this could happen...



Headline H/T

Report: Gregg Singer thinks the city should buy the Boys' Club of New York building on 10th and A

As I first reported on June 21, the Boys' Club of New York is selling its Harriman Clubhouse building on the northwest corner of 10th Street and Avenue A.

And developer Gregg Singer, who has been trying to turn the former P.S 64 and CHARAS/El Bohio community center on Ninth Street into a dorm these past 20 years, has the perfect buyer for the Boys' Club — the city.

Community activists, preservationists and some local elected officials have long been opposed to Singer's plans, and want to see a return to use as a cultural and community center.

So people want a community center? In Singer's estimation, the Boys' Club is the building for that, as he told Patch in an interview published yesterday.

"It's next to Tompkins Square Park, it's a couple of blocks from this property, it's in good condition, its got a pool, basketball court, music rooms, art rooms — it's crazy. So it's ready to go," said Singer, on a recent tour of the gutted former P.S. 64. "We've put about $65 million hard and soft costs to renovate this property. There, it's already in existence so if they really do need a community center, there you go, it's right in your lap."

Reaction!

"It's sort of a ludicrous idea," said Andrew Berman, the executive director of the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation. "The connection that this community feels to the community center is very strong and it has remained strong for decades and the community's resolve to get this building back [will not be] diverted."

Last October, Mayor de Blasio said that his administration would take steps to reacquire the property ... without actually offering any further details on how the city would do this.

Meanwhile, the Boys' Club building, which opened in 1901, will remain in operation through June 2019.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Boys' Club of New York selling East Village building; will remain open through June 2019

The Times explores the past, present and future of the former P.S. 64

Free things to do at the Tompkins Square Library branch this month

There are all sorts of free classes and discussion groups — from jewelry-making workshops to knitting circles — at the Tompkins Square Library branch on 10th Street between Avenue A and Avenue B...

Here's just a few of the events happening this month. (Find the full list of activities for kids and adults here.) Via the EVG inbox...

• Fridays, July 6, 13, 20, 27 at 3 pm: Knitting Circle. Not a class, but a knitting group. Participants must bring their own supplies.

• Monday, July 9 at 1 pm: Monday Matinee Movie: "My Left Foot" (1989; 103 mins.) Dir: Jim Sheridan. Christy Brown, born with cerebral palsy, learns to paint and write with his only controllable limb — his left foot. Daniel Day-Lewis, Brenda Fricker, Alison Whelan.

• Tuesdays, July 10, 24, 31: Vinyasa Warrior Yoga. This class is open to all level practitioners from beginner to expert yogi. Please bring your own mat and towel.

• Tuesday, July 10 1-3 pm, and Monday, July 16 11 am-2 pm: Workforce 1 Job Fair. Workforce 1 will be recruiting for many open positions. Bring your resume and apply for jobs.

• Wednesday, July 11 at 5 pm: Film Screening: "Thoroughbreds" (2017; 92mins.) Dir: Cory Finley. Two upper-class teenage girls in suburban Connecticut rekindle their unlikely friendship after years of growing apart. Together, they hatch a plan to solve both of their problems-no matter what the cost.

• Thursdays, July 12 and 26 at 1 pm: Shakespeare Reading and Discussion Group. The Shakespeare Reading and Discussion Group meets the second and fourth Thursdays of each month at 1 pm in the second floor community room. The group will be discussing Richard II. Check at the first floor desk for copies.

• Saturday, July 14 at 3 pm: Saturday Matinee Movie: "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg" (1964; 91 mins.) Dir: Jacques Demy. A young woman separated from her lover by war faces a life-altering decision. Starring Catherine Deneuve. In French with English subtitles.

• Wednesday, July 18 at 6 pm: Ukulele Lessons for Beginners. Four 70-minute sessions: 07/18, 08/01, 08/15, 08/29. Please bring your own ukulele. Registration is required.

• Thursday, July 19 at 5:30 pm: Writing / Performance Lab. The intention is to provide artists in the community the opportunity to develop works-in-progress of writing pieces, theater texts, performance pieces and related projects. In addition to writers and performers, musicians, singers, dancers, etc., are welcome to participate.

• Monday, July 23 at 1 pm: Monday Matinee Movie: "Westworld" (1973; 88 min.) Dir: Michael Crichton. In a futuristic theme park, robots fulfill tourists' every fantasy, until they start to run amok. Starring Richard Benjamin, James Brolin, Yul Brynner.

• Wednesday, July 25 at 5 pm: Film Screening: "A Quiet Place" (2018; 90 min.) Dir: John Krasinski. In a post-apocalyptic world, a family is forced to live in silence while hiding from monsters with ultra-sensitive hearing. Starring Emily Blunt, John Krasinski.

The Ottendorfer Library branch at 135 Second Ave. between St. Mark's Place and Ninth Street has many free activities too. Find that list here.

Monday's parting shot

A little shade and a breeze today along the East River Park under the Williamsburg Bridge...

Disco inferno on 7th Street

An extra from the filming of "The Deuce" today at Blue & Gold on Seventh Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue.

Photo by Derek Berg...

Today in free treadmills on 3rd Avenue

Spotted on Third Avenue between 12th Street and 13th Street by EVG reader Ann ... the note with the treadmill says that it "works perfectly" ... and it appears to have a workout surface with a 40-percent incline capability, which helps reduce internal rotation of the knees, lessening the chances of cartilage degeneration.

The Continental gets a 3-month reprieve

[Photo from June 3]

The Continental was set to close this past weekend after a 27-year run at 23 Third Ave.

However, on Saturday morning, Trigger, The Continental's owner, announced the following on Facebook:

"[M]y lease at Continental got extended 3 months!

We have till approximately early October so please come by ..."

So a few more months of the six-shots-of-anything-for-$12 deal.

Permits were filed on March 15 to demolish the low-rise buildings here at 3 St. Mark’s Place, 23 and 25-27 Third Avenue.

A seven-story, 66,000-square-foot office building with ground-floor retail is reportedly slated for this corner. However, plans for this new building haven't been made public to date.

As previously reported, the McDonald's, Papaya King and Korilla BBQ have already closed.

The smaller shops on the St. Mark's side have mostly moved on ... Unique Collection is headed to Bleecker Street ...



These two places remain...



The E Smoke Shop on the corner is also gone (they merged with the other Smoke Shop down the block) ...



I came upon the tail-end of this scene early Saturday morning... apparently workers from the E Smoke Shop cleaned out the store by piling everything atop (and next to) the trash can on the corner... much to the dismay of the sanitation crew who had to clean up the extra mess...





Afterwards, one of the sanitation workers walked across St. Mark's Place and yelled toward the E Smoke Shop: "Have a nice day. ANIMALS."

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Shake Shack effect? McDonald's on 3rd Avenue at St. Mark's Place has closed after 20 years

Report: Northeast corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Ave. fetching $50 million for development site

Report: NE corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Avenue will yield to a 7-story office building

Demolition permits filed for northeast corner of 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place

Suki opens on 7th Street

Suki is now open at 86 E. Seventh St. just west of First Avenue... there are just a handful of seats available to try Suki's menu of traditional Japanese curry...





Suki's hours are Monday-Friday from 5-10 p.m.; noon to 10 p.m. on Saturday. Suki is closed on Sunday. Find their Instagram account here.

The space previously housed Cafe Che/Benny's Burritos & Empanadas ... Abraço was here for 10 years before moving across the street.

Top two photos by Derek Berg

Kambi Ramen House has closed on 14th Street

After 10 years at 351 E. 14th St. near First Avenue, Kambi Ramen House shut down after service this past Thursday.

EVG regular Pinch shared these photos... a sign on the door notes that their lease is up...



Kambi's sister restaurants, Minca Ramen Factory on Fifth Street near Avenue B, and Andante in Brooklyn remain in business.

The former Cheers Cut space is for rent on St. Mark's Place

[Photo Wednesday by Steven]

As noted last week, Cheers Cut, the Taiwanese mini-chain of fried foods at 36 St. Mark's Place, had not been open in recent days during its announced business hours.

By Wednesday, the nine-month-old Grand Opening banner had been removed...

... and on Saturday morning, the for rent sign arrived on the now-empty storefronts between Second Avenue and Third Avenue...



The retail listing isn't online just yet ... a variety of quick-serve concepts have tried the address without much success, including Friterie Belgian Fries ... Fasta ("Pasta Your Way") ... and the $1.50 branch of 2 Bros. Pizza.

EVG Etc.: Emmy Squared signage; Prune vacation; Artichoke flags

Emmy Squared looks nearly ready to open on the corner of Fifth Street and First Avenue in the former Three of Cups space... no official opening date just yet for the pizzeria-burger joint ...





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On First Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue... Prune closed after service Friday for a mid-summer break... back Pruning on July 9...





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And an EVG reader wondered if the flags outside Artichoke on 14th Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue were really necessary...

Week in Grieview

[Photo from 4th Street by Derek Berg]

Stories posted on EVG this past week included...

RIP George Cameron (Wednesday)

Cars to give way to a bus-only corridor most hours on 14th Street during the L-train shutdown (Tuesday) Citi Bike will expand ahead of L-mageddon time (Thursday)

City Planning Commission OKs tech hub for Union Square (Thursday)

Judy talks about her apartment of 40 years (Thursday)

City pools open (Wednesday)

B&H Dairy has new-look menus (Tuesday)

Rose and Basil has gone out of business (Friday)

9th Street's Zucker Bakery closing after 7 years in business (Tuesday)

This week's NY See strip (Thursday)

Moxy East Village opening date now set for late 2019 on 11th Street (Monday)

Giant alligator false alarm (Friday)

Christo and Amelia's kids are growing and growing... (Monday)

Final vote from the Rent Guidelines Board (Tuesday)

Korilla BBQ has closed on 3rd Avenue (Thursday)

Openings and closings on this block of 2nd Avenue (Wednesday)

The 411 on 886 (Monday)

The new Westside Market on 3rd Avenue opens (Thursday)

Ippudo closed for renovations through July 17 (Monday)

In Tompkins Square Park, we lost a piano but gained, for now, a wicker vanity table (Tuesday)

The Neighbors move out early at First Street Green Art Park (Tuesday)

Cheers Cut has not been open lately on St. Mark's Place (Monday)

... workers removed the sidewalk bridge from outside 86 E. 10th St. between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue this past week ... which had been there since an apartment fire on Feb. 7. In case you forgot what the Black & White looked like...



... and the heatwave is drying up the perpetual puddle/pool at the M14 stop on Avenue A near Ninth Street...



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'The Deuce' is back in town

Crews for the HBO series "The Deuce" are setting up shop today for filming tomorrow... look for trucks, equipment and cast members along Avenue A between Houston and Fourth Street (and various side streets) and Seventh Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue...



The series, now in its second season, chronicles "the birth of the modern pornography business in New York City in the early 1970s," as Variety put it.

"The Deuce" has filmed around the neighbor in the past ... here and here, for instance.

Saturday's parting shot

From the #FamiliesBelongTogether march today... spotted on First Avenue and 12th Street by Lola Sáenz...

Bus stop

The Abracadabra Field Trip Mobile music jam bus was back on Avenue A and St. Mark's Place late this afternoon... EVG reader Aaron Wilson shared these first two photos...



... and via Derek Berg...

Escape to Houston Street

[Click on image to go big]

After nearly a week of work, Tristan Eaton is wrapping up at the Bowery Mural Wall... even spraying in the rain...

A post shared by Martha Cooper (@marthacoopergram) on Jun 29, 2018 at 11:50am PDT

And for a closer look at the mural... at least part of it is apparently inspired by the 1968 classic "The Green Slime" ...





Updated 7/3

An addition...

From the Bake News Media

Photo outside Gem Spa this morning... and the temps may hit 120 inside Zoltar's cabinet...

Pet lizard on a lease prompts 911 call

Over on Broadway and 13th Street this afternoon, the sight of a lizard on a leash prompted a 911 call.

As the Daily News reported, the caller "reported a vicious 'alligator or lizard' to authorities."

A user of the Citizen app captured some video.

"You can pet him," says the voice, presumably of the lizard’s owner.

One brave young man saunters up to the lizard to give it a little pat on the head — then promptly rubs sanitizer on his hands from a bottle conveniently placed beside the beast.

Anyway, as history shows again and again...

Forever your 'Girl'

Chromatics recently released a new single ... a Bang Bang Bar-friendly track titled "Blue Girl." The Portland, Ore.-based quartet's new record, Dear Tommy, is due out this fall.

An extra hour to swim this weekend at city pools

[Hamilton Fish Pool pic from Sunday]

The NYC Department of Parks & Rec announced today that, due to the excessive heat expected, general swim hours for outdoor pools are extended by an hour through 8 p.m. today, tomorrow and Sunday.

So around here, that means extra time at Hamilton Fish Pool on Pitt and Houston ... and the Dry Dock Pool on Avenue D and 10th Street.

City pools opened for the season back on Wednesday.

EVG Etc.: Examining the L-train shutdown plan for 14th Street; watching '2001' at Village East

[St. Mark's is bed]

City cooling centers are open (Official site)

A look at how the East Village became the city's "hippest Chinese dining destination" (Eater)

Examinging "the Soft Underbelly" of the DOT’s L Train shutdown plan for 14th Street (Streetsblog ... previously)

A review of the first exhibition at the Swiss Institute on Second Avenue and St. Mark's Place (The New York Times... ARTnews ... previously)

U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney, whose district includes part of the East Village, was victorious in Tuesday's primary election (The Lo-Down) Meanwhile, her challenger, Suraj Patel, reportedly handed out branded condoms before the primary (The Post)

The best seats to watch "2001: A Space Odyssey" in 70 mm at the City Cinemas Village East (Filmmaker Magazine)

A Gus Van Sant retrospective through the weekend (Metrograph)

More photos from the Drag March leaving Tompkins Square Park (Slum Goddess ... previously)

And EVG reader Brucie shared this photo earlier in the week from Avenue B near 10th Street ... sources say that it is not the first LinkNYC kiosk for Avenue B or a modified Big Belly trash can...

Rose and Basil has gone out of business

Rose and Basil, the nearly two-year-old cafe, has closed at 104 E. Seventh St. between Avenue A and First Avenue.

There's a sign out front, noting everything must go — plates, glasses, chairs, etc.



We don't know the reason behind the closure at the moment. The Rose and Basil website and Facebook page are no longer active, and their phone has been disconnected.

The cafe, which specialized in homemade desserts, recently added dinner service offering healthy menu items. Rose and Basil was owned by Ioana Holt, who launched the business with her college friend William Wang in July 2016.

Thanks to Steven for the photos

Previously on EV Grieve:
At the grand opening of Rose and Basil

[Updated] The Continental closes this weekend

Updated June 30: Trigger, the owner, posted on Facebook that his lease was extended for three more months... and they will remain open until October.

It's the last hurrah this weekend for The Continental on Third Avenue at St. Mark's Place.

As first noted way back in January, the bar with the six-shots-of-anything-for-$12 deal was closing after service on June 30. (Their sign says July 1. Their website says Saturday, July 1.)

The Continental was a live music venue from its inception in 1991 through the fall of 2006, when they became home of the five-shots-of-anything-for-$10 promotion before that changed to five-shots-of-anything-for-$12 in the spring of 2017. (Then later six shots...)



Last November, Real Estate Equities Corporation made public its plans to demolish the existing low-rise buildings at 3 St. Mark’s Place, 23 and 25-27 Third Ave. to make way for a 7-story office building.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Continental's 5-shot deal bumped from $10 to $12

The Continental says it will close late next summer

Keeping up with the Kardashianisms

Report: NE corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Avenue will yield to a 7-story office building

Demolition permits filed for northeast corner of 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place