Monday, June 21, 2021

Avenues is a real-estate office-espresso bar opening on 10th Street

Yes, I'd like a one-bedroom apartment in a building with laundry facilities and a latte with unsweetened almond milk.

Avenues, a real-estate company, is opening an office — complete with an espresso bar — at 84 E. 10th St. between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue... 
Not sure exactly how this will work at the moment (espresso bar upfront for customers and the office in the back?).

This upper-level storefront was the home of Turntable Lab, which closed its brick-and-mortar business last summer during the pandemic. (They still have a robust online service.)

Al Horno Lean Mexican Kitchen looks to have closed on 1st Avenue

It appears that Al Horno Lean Mexican Kitchen has closed here on First Avenue between Third Street and Fourth Street... their phone number is out of service... and the interior has been emptied out...  (And we left a message about the status of this outpost.)
Al Horno, which has four other NYC locations, arrived on First Avenue back in November 2016

The address at No. 57 is now on an awning watch. It will be difficult for any new business to top the Pudgie's-Nathan's-Arthur Treacher's action-packed combo during a few glorious months in 2012.

Reopenings on Avenue A: the Library, Sing Sing

Two Avenue A establishments are back open for the first time since the PAUSE of March 2020. 

The Library, 7 Avenue A between Houston and Second Street, reopens today at noon... and moving forward, the bar will be serving during their usual hours (noon-4 a.m.). 

The ownership team is also behind other recently reopened bars: Milano's and d.b.a. Doc Holliday's (141 Avenue A) is expected to return soon. 

Meanwhile, Sing Sing returned to karaoke service this past Wednesday at 81 Avenue A between Fifth Street and Sixth Street...
Their listed hours: Monday-Wednesday 6 p.m. to 4 a.m., with a 4 p.m. start Thursday through Sunday. 

Planet Rose, the longtime (20-plus years) karaoke bar at 219 Avenue A between 13th Street and 14th Street, reopened on June 1.

Sunday, June 20, 2021

Sunday's parting shot

The sunset from Fourth Street and Avenue A... 

#EndlessSummer

Week in Grieview

Posts this last week included (with a photo in Union Square by Derek Berg) ... 

• RIP Hash Halper, aka New York Romantic (Tuesday

• At fire-damaged Middle Collegiate Church, it's moving day for the historic New York Liberty Bell (Thursday

• Behold the new Loisaida CommUnity Fridge (Wednesday)

• Gov. Cuomo lifts COVID restrictions; local vaccination rates top 65% (Wednesday

• Addressing the "out of control" rooftop parties in the East Village (Thursday

• Details on the additional funding for the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project (Monday)

• At the Spring Zine Fair on St. Mark's Place (Monday)

• Saturday out and about (Wednesday

• Beware of low-flying juvenile red-tailed hawks! (Thursday

• Check out the latest NY See panel (Thursday

• Cinema Village reopens (Wednesday

• Coyote Ugly ready to work it at new East Village home (Monday

• "June Bug" in Tompkins Square Park (Friday)

• Zum Schneider popping up in Williamsburg for the UEFA European Championship (Tuesday

• Chef Hans Asian Kitchen closes after a few weeks at 120 1st Ave. (Tuesday

• Renovation reveal at the former Provident Loan Society building (Wednesday)

• d.b.a. reopens on 1st Avenue (Monday

• A smoke shop for 9th Street at Avenue A (Monday)

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A father-fledgling moment in Tompkins Square Park

Photos by Steven

Here is Christo, one of the resident red-tailed hawks in Tompkins Square Park, after a successful food run.

Christo is later seen feeding one of the 2021 fledglings that he is raising this summer with Amelia...
Then, well, the food transfer broke down, and the morsel of (pigeon? rat?) fell to the ground...

Keith Haring was here: New exhibit captures work on Puerto Rican beach in 1986

Photos of Keith Haring's art in San Juan circa 1986 is the subject of a new exhibit this evening at Village Works, the gallery space at 90 E. Third St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue. 

Per the listing:
The collection of photographs was taken in December 1986 of Keith Haring's public art. Haring executed this beach wall mural in early Summer 1986 on the Condado Beach in San Juan, Puerto Rico. D.C. Larue photographed details of the work over the December 1986 holiday season. The mural had been weathered over the months by the sand, wind and rain and the effect beautifully resonated with Larue. 
In February 1987, a hurricane washed the entire retaining wall the mural was on into the sea. The photographs were authenticated by the Keith Haring Foundation for D.C. Larue in 1993.
The opening reception is tonight from 7-10 ... with the closing taking place July 1 from 7-10 p.m. 

Thanks to Clare for the tip!

Saturday, June 19, 2021

In progress: Skate Pride on Avenue A

Photos by Stacie Joy 

Pro skateboarder Brian Anderson is working on his very first mural outside 50 Avenue A between Third Street and Fourth Street...
This is a collaboration between Clown Skateboards and the LISA Project... here's more about it via Anderson's Instagram account...

Updated
(not done yet):

Celebrate Juneteenth today with Joe's Pub on Astor Place

Joe's Pub is presenting "A Juneteenth Celebration" this afternoon on Astor Place. 

The free event features live performances by Celisse, Ché Buford and mal sounds, and the Juneteenth Legacy Project. 

The show starts at 4:30. Visit the Joe's Pub website here for more details.

Saturday's opening shot

Pride at Webster Hall on 11th Street. 

And the venue recently announced ticket sales for upcoming shows, the first of which is taking place on Aug. 11. Read the announcement here.

Friday, June 18, 2021

Friday's parting shot

Here's a look at Tom Manco's completed upcycled cardboard installation today in Tompkins Square Park... the East Village artist named this "June Bug," and it will be up through Sunday at Temperance Fountain. 

This photo is from Tom's Instagram account.

The fast and the curious


Bachelor is a collaboration between Melina Duterte of Jay Som and Ellen Kempner of Palehound ... the summer blockbuster-y video here is for "Stay in the Car" from the duo's recently released debut record, Doomin' Sun.

In progress: A 'June Bug' for Tompkins Square Park

East Village-based artist Tom Manco of Manco Studio is installing his latest upcycled cardboard creation today at Temperance Fountain in Tompkins Square Park...   
The work, titled "June Bug," is expected to be up through Father's Day on Sunday. 

Thanks to Steven for the photos!

Updated:

The finished version...
Photo from Tom's Instagram account.

Noted

Dave on 7th shares this urban etiquette note from 7th Street... 
It's not right to leave your dog poop in the backyard for Raymond to clean up. Please develop better manners.

EVG Etc.: an NYC Primary guide; a curious decision on relocating vehicles

Thank you to the staff at Most Holy Redeemer for sharing this photo from Fourth Street at Avenue A... 

• A tipsheet for the NYC primaries (The City) ... and a recap of the last mayoral debate (The Associated Press

• A call for a permanent curfew in Washington Square Park (Gothamist) ... Here's another recap via Streetsblog. ... and what the hell is going on there? (Curbed)

• SUV kills pedestrian on Delancey and the Bowery (The Daily News

• Accidental Bar — specializing in sake — debuts on Avenue C (Resy ... previously on EVG)

• The DOT towed vehicles to the dedicated 14th Street bus lane between Avenue B and Avenue C (Streetsblog)

• Rainbow lights next week for the Stonewall Inn (TONY)

• Early history of Black theater downtown (Off the Grid

• ICYMI: The Tenement Museum reopened on June 12 (The New York Times

• About "The Kids," a new documentary explores "the lives that were upended" by the overnight success of "Kids" (Variety ... Jezebel

• And the acclaimed documentary on Sparks — "The Sparks Brothers" — is out today, playing at the AMC Village 7, Regal Essex Crossing and Regal Union Square 

... and this evening, a live comedy show with Dr. Honeybrew to benefit the Sixth Street Community Center... ticket info here.

Thursday, June 17, 2021

Beware of low-flying juvenile red-tailed hawks!

Amelia and Christo's 2021 offspring are in the flier education phase of their young life in Tompkins Square Park... so their flight patterns, for now, can be at the park-bench level...
Derek Berg took these photos this morning... the juvenile red-tailed hawks usually seem to be frolicking in the early morning hours...

Grant Shaffer's NY See

Here's the latest NY See panel, East Village-based illustrator Grant Shaffer's observational sketch diary of things that he sees and hears around the neighborhood and NYC... (click on the image for a bigger view)

At fire-damaged Middle Collegiate Church, it's moving day for the historic New York Liberty Bell

On Dec. 5, a fire destroyed the southeast corner of Second Avenue and Seventh Street, including the neighboring Middle Collegiate Church.

As previously reported, the fire spared the steeple and its historic contents — the New York Liberty Bell, which dates to the early 1700s. 

And yesterday morning, workers removed the bell from the belfry to transport it to the New York Historical Society, where it will be part of an exhibit on the resiliency of NYC for the 20th anniversary of 9/11.

EVG contributor Stacie Joy was there to capture the delicate operation to move the bell to its temporary new home on Central Park West...
Before the bell left Second Avenue, the Rev. Dr. Jacqui Lewis from Middle Collegiate Church rang it 19 times in honor of Juneteenth ... and for a celebration of liberty...
Those involved also wanted to give a shout-out to the crews from the DOB, Triton Construction and Gramercy for their professionalism in ensuring a safe transfer of the bell ...
And some history of the bell via the Times:
It is about 25 years older than the cracked Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, according to a 1959 New York Times article.

Cast in Amsterdam in 1729, the bell was rung in 1735 to celebrate freedom of the press after John Peter Zenger, a German journalist, was acquitted of charges of seditious libel. He had published criticism of British tax collectors, according to the Times article.

It also was rung on the day that Representative John Lewis died in July and a week after the presidential election to celebrate "that love and justice" prevailed... 
The bell will be housed in the New York Historical Society lobby until the church is rebuilt. Find out how you can help support the rebuild at this link.
The FDNY previously said that faulty wiring at 48 E. Seventh St. was to blame for the six-alarm fire. An FDNY spokesperson told 1010 WINS that the fire has been deemed "non-suspicious." 

Addressing the 'out of control' rooftop parties in the East Village

Curbed checks in with a piece on a contentious topic in this neighborhood — "East Village Rooftop Parties Are Out of Control — Can a New Bill Change That?

The article looks at the ongoing problems of these rooftop ragers, where partygoers have been known to climb/leap from building to building. 

On May 22, 24-year-old Cameron Perrelli reportedly slipped and fell while climbing up from 202 Avenue A to the roof next door at 200 Avenue A. 

Her death prompted local City Councilmember Carlina Rivera to introduce a bill that would ensure enforcement agencies have easier access to phone numbers of overnight building supers or contacts and require better oversight of rooftop use and capacity. (She has already introduced Intro 1292, which would require tenants to sign and acknowledge their understanding of the city's noise codes.)

The Curbed piece wonders how effective the new bill could be...
Rivera's newest proposal has its potential limitations, especially in the East Village, where many rooftop spaces would not require a certificate of occupancy. Under current DOB rules, only spaces that can hold 75 or more people or host events involving “excessive noise, vibration and other nuisances” need one. Smaller rooftops must meet other safety requirements, like having a code-compliant railing and exit signs, but the certificate is not required.
And there's another issue with putting an end to the rooftop parties...
Longtime East Village residents say those young renters only stay for a few years, and the constant turnover makes it harder to actually make any headway on tamping down the parties. 
"You can't really control it, because every time you get some tiny grip on the situation, there's a whole bunch of new residents," says Nicholas Peate, who lives on East 7th Street. Both Peate and [Robert] La Force are so fed up with the constant loud parties, they are thinking of moving out. 
"They market [these apartments] as a sort of a luxury frat house, that's the issue," Peate says. "So basically, they say, 'You're here, you're entitled, you're wealthy, you're white, and you can just do whatever the fuck you want.'"
Reader-submitted photos: 330 E. 6th St. (top); 100 Avenue A

 Previously on EV Grieve

Neighbors address the rooftop parties at this 6th Street building 

Department of Buildings: 202 Avenue A does not have a 'valid certificate of occupancy'

Saramsam remains closed for now on 7th Street

Multiple EVG readers have noted that Saramsam, the plant-based Filipino restaurant at 111 E. Seventh St. between Avenue A and First Avenue, has been dark these past few weeks. 

According to an Instagram post dated May 12: [D]ue to unforeseen circumstances, Saramsam will be temporarily closed." 

Saramsam, part of Ravi DeRossi's Overthrow Hospitality, debuted this past September.

Overthrow Hospitality has had an active year, opening three restaurants: Cadence on Seventh Street, Soda Club on Avenue B and Etérea on Fifth Street.