Photos by Steven
Taking in the annual Charlie Parker Jazz Festival today this afternoon in Tompkins Square Park.
And nearby on Avenue B, a plaque that hasn't been stolen...
Sunday, August 25, 2024
Week in Grieview
• Remembering Harold Meltzer (Wednesday)
• Prepping Theatre 80 for its next chapter on St. Mark's Place (Monday)
• A new East Village home for Gizmo (Thursday)
• That's all for the East Village Neighbors Community Fridge on 12th Street and 1st Avenue (Tuesday)
• The new 24-story residential building on 14th and C begins its ascent (Tuesday)
• Dedicating Raphael Sadonte Ward Jr. Way on the Lower East Side (Tuesday)
• Why you'll be shopping at Key Food on Avenue A without hearing a random song from the 1980s (Sunday)
• A second Rogue vintage clothing shop opens on the Lower East Side (Friday)
• Trash fire engulfs car on 4th Street (Saturday)
• On the CB3 docket this month: a new era for Lucy's, another operator for Lamia's Fish Market (Monday)
• Veselka reopens front counter for dining-in customers (Monday)
• About the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival (Saturday)
• With help from some friends, The Hard Quartet pays homage to the Stones on St. Mark's Place (Tuesday)
• 9th Precinct issues headphone-theft warning (Monday)
• At the annual Festival Calle 6 (Monday)
• Get well soon, Currant! (Tuesday)
• Tree down on Avenue A (Wednesday)
• This week in lines (Friday)
• A look inside the shuttered Starbucks on Astor Place (Wednesday)
• FYI: It's NYU's Welcome Weekend (Saturday)
... and from our ongoing Classic Cars of Avenue C collection...
Astor Place Hairstylists is very much open
Yesterday, management put up a "We Are Open" banner on the construction plywood above the basement stairs (thanks, Michael Quinn!)...
They also posted a video on Instagram (see below) to ensure that people know it's business as usual here seven days a week (7 a.m. to 7 p.m.)
Astor Place Hairstylists, founded in 1947, faced an uncertain future during the pandemic. However, with help from some investors, they were able to sign a new lease in 2022.
Now take it away, Frankie...
Saturday, August 24, 2024
About the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival
The 2024 Charlie Parker Jazz Festival artwork by Lily Qian
ICYMI... The 32nd edition of the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival is this weekend ... the annual tribute to the saxophonist includes several free live jazz performances.
The Saturday portion of the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival is in Marcus Garvey Park from 3 to 7 p.m. If you're planning a Manhattan road trip, find more info at this link.
And we've mentioned the Tompkins Square Park portion of the fest tomorrow (Sunday).
Here's part of Sunday's lineup:
... the newly minted (2023) Jazz Master Louis Hayes is joined by some of the more impressive talents in modern jazz. Hayes, a one-time member of McCoy Tyner’s trio, has been leading bands since he was a teenager in 1950s Detroit, recorded with John Coltrane and Yusef Lateer, and did stints in quartets with Horace Silver and Cannonball Adderley, as well as time with the Oscar Peterson Trio. He’s supported by the 24-year-old Cameroonian-American jazz vocalist Ekep Nkwelle, a Juilliard grad and rising star of Jazz at Lincoln Center, and Alexis Lombre, the Chicago-born pianist, vocalist, and composer whose 2017 debut Southside Sounds pays homage to her home’s artistic and cultural heritage.
Find the full rundown here.
Also tomorrow: From 8 p.m. to midnight, there's a Charlie Parker Jazz Festival After Party at Nublu on Avenue C. Details here.
Parker, who died in 1955 at age 34, lived at 151 Avenue B from 1950 to 1954. That residential building, between Ninth Street and 10th Street, is landmarked.
FYI: It's NYU's Welcome Weekend
Founders Hall on 12th Street this morning
In the East Village, parking restrictions are in place around the various residence halls along Third Avenue between Ninth Street and 14th Street and on 14th Street and 12th Street.
Also, the very large (added for the commenter so as not to be "glibly complicit"!) Citi Bike docking station on 11th Street at Third Avenue in front of NYU's Third Avenue North dorm is offline for the weekend. (Thanks, Seth Treiman, for the pic!) ... as is the one on 12th Street just west of Third Avenue.
As always, expect extra vehicular traffic, double/triple parking, and stressed-out parents and guardians.
Trash fire engulfs car on 4th Street
Reporting by Stacie Joy
The FDNY responded to an early morning report of a sidewalk trash-bag fire on Fourth Street just west of Avenue A, which spread to a parked car.
Local Assembly Member Harvey Epstein shared these photos from around 6 a.m.
It's unclear what caused the trash fire or if someone intentionally set several stacked garbage bags ablaze.
Another EVG reader shared this photo ... after the FDNY combed through and spread out the contents of the trash bags and doused them with water... 
The car appears to be destroyed. There weren't any reports of injuries.
Friday, August 23, 2024
Endless Summer (aka Friday's Parting Shot)
Photo by Stacie Joy
Early evening from Tompkins Square Park...
'Vision' quest
The London-based Crows have a new record coming out on Sept. 27.
Ahead of that, here's the Interpol-ish track "Vision of Me."
Potty prep ahead of the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival in Tompkins Square Park on Sunday
Photo by Steven
A) The annual Charlie Parker Jazz Festival is Sunday from 3-7 p.m. in Tompkins Square Park. Find the lineup here.
B) Speaking of lineups, here are the extra porta-potties for the event (as the TSP field house remains under renovation).
C) is for Charlie Parker, who lived at 151 Avenue B from 1950-54.
EVG Etc.: Broken mailboxes at the Riis Houses; Erewhon-like smoothies at East Village Organic
Reader-submitted photo from along 7th Street
• NYCHA mailboxes vandalized and broken for months at the Jacob Riis Houses on Avenue D without fixes (PIX11)
• ICYMI: Cancer-causing chemicals still lurk under the Jacob Riis Houses 19 years after detection (The City)
• A last-ditch effort to stop Beth Israel closure (Gothamist)
• Mayor Adams on his low-profile DNC trip (City & State)
• State greenlights NYC evicting more migrant families from shelters (The City)
• The Sun Shy Spa on Sixth Street near Second Avenue accused of being a brothel (The Post)
• East Village Organic on First Avenue is selling a similar "Coconut Cloud Smoothie" as those from Erewhon Market, the L.A.-based grocery chain (Gothamist)
• How those Olympic muffins made their way to the East Village (Gothamist... previously on EVG)
• About Odre, a new Korean restaurant from Hand Hospitality at 199 Second Ave. near 13th Street (Eater)
• Props for Bungalow, the newish Indian restaurant at 24 First Ave. (The New York Times ... previously on EVG)
• Writers, poets, musicians, et al, wanted for the open mic Saturday from 2-5 p.m. at 6th Street and Avenue B Community Garden (Instagram link)
• "Good One" is one of the best movies of the year — EVG ... Saturday's 7:30 p.m. screening includes a post Q&A with director
India Donaldson (Village East by Angelika, 12th and 2nd)
A second Rogue vintage clothing shop opens today on the Lower East Side
Photos by Stacie Joy
Above from left: Gabriel Celik, Kelsey Jenik and Sophia Romulo
Today marks the grand opening of the second LES outpost of Rogue at 313 E. Houston St., between Clinton and Attorney.
This offshoot of vintage clothing entrepreneur Emma Rogue's Allen Street shop offers more clothing options (this weekend with a bin sale of $5 to $20 items) as well as an events space.
This weekend also marks the official drop of the Rogue Zip-Off Jean Jorts (only 100 made), which promise to be a hot item.
Rogue, who was out of town when we stopped by, started selling clothes from her childhood bedroom on Depop and opened her first shop stocked with Y2K and 1990s vintage and secondhand at 53 Stanton St. in June 2021.
She recently relocated to a larger space nearby at 154 Allen St., where she also showcases other up-and-coming designers. (You can read more about her in this Teen Vogue feature.)
And info about the opening weekend...
This week in lines
Photo by Stacie Joy
We didn't think we'd see a line like the one for the Olympic Village muffins on Second Avenue on Saturday again, but then Kolkata Chai Co. said, "Hold my Chai oat milk soft serve."
From 4-7 p.m. yesterday, Kolkata Chai Co. at 199 E. Third Street handed out free small cups of Chai oat milk (made with Oatly) soft serve.
The line went down Third to B... north to Fourth Street ... and west on Fourth toward Avenue A.
Per one EVGer: "CRAZY. People waiting hours for a tiny free Oatly oat milk soft-serve sample?"
Thursday, August 22, 2024
A new East Village home for Gizmo
Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy
After months of searching, the owners of Gizmo have found a new storefront for their sewing supply and repair business.
Rosa Malmed and Hossein Amid recently signed a new lease for 626 E. 14th St. between Avenue B and Avenue C ... and just picked up the keys...
Rosa and Hossein previously looked at this storefront. They circled back to it after finding nothing else in the neighborhood that was within their budget and accessible for customers with mobility challenges.
The new space is in a salon that closed during the pandemic. When they arrived, it was still full of beauty supplies. The couple is currently boxing up the salon's remains to donate.
As renovations continue in the weeks ahead, the iconic Gizmo neon sign that hung in its longtime First Avenue window will return. The phone number (212-477-2773) and website are the same. Hours will be flexible initially, but the couple said they are considering opening five days a week from noon to 6 p.m.
Rosa and Hossein wanted to express their gratitude for the community's support after news broke in January that they would need to find a new outpost for their longtime business.
They are already planning a grand opening celebration.
Hossein said they want to be open by the end of September, as he wants to be up and running before Halloween.
"Halloween is my best day," he said. "I love Halloween and all the Halloween people."
Rosa also confided that she loves Banksy and wants him to come and install a piece of artwork on the side of the building.
"Banksy," she said, "if you are out there, I have the key and can make this wall perfect for you!"
In the interim, much work is needed to prepare the space and move all their stuff from storage. They hope to get some neighborhood volunteers to lend a hand.
Gizmo spent the previous 32 years at 160 First Ave. between Ninth Street and 10th Street. Their landlord did not offer them a lease renewal (this on top of rent increases that made it increasingly difficult to stay here anyway).
Meanwhile, the former Gizmo space remains tenant-free ...
Previously on EV Grieve:
Wednesday, August 21, 2024
Wednesday's parting shot
Photo by Stacie Joy
This evening outside the Star Team, the skate shop starting year No. 2 at 436 E. Ninth St. between Avenue A and First Avenue.
The Moon and Saturn in Aquarius
For starters, the moonflowers that he planted in June survived the oppressive heat of July.
The one that blossomed yesterday evening in the cool air was a beautiful prelude to a magical night in which the day-after Full Moon chased the planet Saturn across the heavens ... and it was not easy to get both of them into a single photo.
Saturn, at about 1 billion miles away, was a tiny jewel whose rings will flatten out by next April, and then it starts a new seven-year cycle of widening.Billed by Space News as an occultation, but not in New York City at ground level. And not everyone who stopped by could see the rings, only those who have taken care of their vision health.
Updated: Tree down on Avenue A
We gleaned the following info from two readers who came across the scene just after the collision around 4:30. A vehicle traveling north on A apparently made a U-turn, hitting the tree and speeding off in the southbound lane. The vehicle (we don't know what type) was likely partially struck by the falling tree as the driver left the scene.
The tree fell across Avenue A and blocked nearly three-quarters of the roadway for about 10 minutes. The FDNY arrived and used a chainsaw to remove the remains from Avenue A and tossed the limbs over the fence along Village View.
Thankfully, no one was injured. Let us know if you have more details about the collision.
Updated 8 p.m.
We have another reader report (and it was not such a smallish tree)...
Per an EVG reader:
A black pick-up, someone said a Honda Ridgeline, struck a parked car on the east side of Avenue A, floored it in reverse, shot across the avenue, and uprooted and snapped the tree in two. The truck bed tailgate flew open, throwing its contents against the fence at Village View.The driver sped off, turning left (east) on Fourth Street, thankfully sparing our beloved Key Food. Some bystanders took photos of the truck and showed the police. Don't know if anyone got the license plate number. The open back tailgate blocked it from my view.
Remembering Harold Meltzer
Photos and text by Stacie Joy
I'm not much for imparting personal information here on EV Grieve, but occasionally, something happens that I'm comfortable with — or feel compelled to try — sharing.
A local family, the Meltzers, have been quietly supporting the community for years through words and deeds, and I am grateful to have them as friends. Hilary, whom I met through yoga, a lawyer working for the City of New York, her husband Harold, a world-renowned composer, and their two children, Julia and Elijah. All are community-oriented, quietly donating to help our newest neighbors, those in need, and those who are hungry or in need of comfort.
For the past six years, Harold has been fighting a progressive disease that has resulted in a series of strokes and the increasing loss of mobility, all the while keeping up his good humor (or bad dad jokes, as Elijah and Julia might say).
Sadly, this week, the disease got the better of him. Hilary messaged me over the weekend that sepsis had set in, and the doctors didn't think he'd survive the night — and they were right.
He died on Monday morning, Aug. 12. He was 58.
I'm grateful to have known him, to have heard his truly awful jokes, to enjoy his complicated music, and to have discussed literature and travel with him. Before my first trip to Rome, he carefully prepared a list of must-see places for me and had plenty of time to discuss gelato and the best basilicas with me.
At the packed funeral (a testament to how loved he was), Hilary spoke movingly about the difference between suffering and misery, between victim and victimhood. I often wonder if I'd have the grace he had as the disease robbed him of his ability to walk and use his extremities, if I would have the good humor to smile and roll out in an electric wheelchair for a midday cappuccino.
I know there are more formal obituaries for him, like at The New York Times. However, I'd like to say that I'm grateful to have met Harold and will miss him now that he's gone.
A look inside the shuttered Starbucks on Astor Place
In some ways, it already seems like longer...
The brown paper covering the front windows has been falling down, offering a view inside... which looks surprisingly intact... the Starbucks signage from outside is also lying across the floor... 
The retail listing for the space has yet to show up online anywhere. (Let us know if you see it!)
--Updated: Thanks to the commenter for this PDF listing. The commenter says the rent ask is $2 million a year.--
This location, the 11th SB in the city, opened in March 1995.
According to store management, "the landlords jacked up the rent so astronomically high that even corporate Starbucks couldn't pay it." According to landlord ASG Equities, they offered Starbucks a lease extension at the same rent, but SB declined. According to some commenters and observers, Starbucks shut it down because this outpost voted to unionize in 2022.
Meanwhile, there might be a big Starbucks dumpster party here one of these days.
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