Do you remember the Unicorn Frame Shop?

Via the EVG inbox... 

I recently acquired a 16th-century print in a frame from the Unicorn Frame Shop in New York City. I am attaching a photograph of the label on the back of the frame. The telephone number looks quite old. It reminds me of telephone numbers from my youth in Jersey City in the 1950s. It may be older.

The correspondent was hopeful someone here might recall the shop, which was at 505 E. 12th St. between Avenue A and Avenue B (the current home of Dhom). 

 

Last summer for the current configuration of the multipurpose courts in Tompkins Square Park

It appears the city will start the pavement reconstruction of the multipurpose courts in September after all.

We first reported on this date back in February... though, during a CB3 committee meeting this spring, a Parks official said the work would start here along Avenue A and 10th Street after the Dance Parade in May.

However, the Parks Department website still lists September... Quartersnacks yesterday also noted the September start date.

We covered the city's presentation to Community Board 3's Parks, Recreation, Waterfront, & Resiliency Committee back in September. Find that recap, which includes schematics, here. 

The Parks Department will reconstruct the multipurpose courts, adding various amenities, including a two-lane seal-coated walking loop, and new asphalt.

According to Max Goodstein, a landscape architect with the Parks Department, there's a lot of "asphalt structural damage," and it "needs to be replaced and repaired. And the only way to do that is to take all the asphalt down to the sub base and put new asphalt down." 

Other additions: new benches, a kickball court, a high-low fountain that kids and adults can use simultaneously, and three new basketball backstops at the eastern end, replacing the ones that always seem to be damaged. 

And subtractions: the space used for dugouts during softball games are being removed for bench seating. Officials say the space won't be used for softball again.

And the impact on skating here?

Some thoughts via Quartersnacks ...

It will be a shock to the system in terms of the park's Feng Shui, but skateboarders have adjusted to way worse changes.

The fate of the ramps, rails and boxes can obviously be decided later in the summer, though it stands to reason the contractors are going to toss them once construction begins unless we opt to save and relocate them. (Not 12th & A because that shit won't last a day there.)

A few people have asked, "Can we do anything?!" a la the Save Tompkins campaign from summer 2019, but this is not a fundamental restructuring of how the park is used by the public like it was when they wanted to cover it in soft Astro Turf. The pavement hasn't been redone in ~30 years, and petitioning the city to not fix a deteriorating sports field when the time has come is like petitioning them to not fix a pot hole.

The last resurfacing here is estimated between 1992 and 1995.

Work is expected to last a minimum of three months.

Meanwhile, reconstruction of the Tompkins Square Park field house began in May ... for the anticipated 18-month project.

Previously on EV Grieve:

• What is the city planning for the multipurpose courts in Tompkins Square Park? 

• Big changes are coming to the iconic skate spot in Tompkins Square Park

• Work on the multipurpose courts in Tompkins Square Park expected to start in September 

Retail moves: Westerlind relocates to East Houston Street

Earlier this month, Westerlind opened in its new home at 77 E. Houston St. between the Bowery and Elizabeth. 

The outdoor apparel and gear boutique, which stocks various brands, moved here from Spring Street in Nolita. 

The new space on Houston will feature a pop-up collaboration through Aug. 13 with like-minded brand Varsity Headwear. 

Part of this retail footprint previously housed Rag & Bone, which closed late last year. The corner space at 73 E. Houston St. remains for lease.

Roasted NYC slated for this 2nd Avenue storefront

Photo by Steven

Signage is up now for Roasted NYC, a coffee shop for 128 Second Ave. between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place. 

Here's what to expect via the shop's Instagram account: " ... we will be providing you with a real coffee experience, not a corner store coffee. Elegant incredibly flavored coffee with latte art, pour overs and some of your finest roasts." 

Roasted NYC takes over the space from the weed-related NYC Kind Cafe ... which took over for the short-lived Paint Puff "N" Peace last year.

Coffee seems to be a hot item around here now. Poetica Coffee opened on the SW corner of Second Avenue and St. Mark's Place in April. Kuppi Coffee Company is in the works for 82 St. Mark's Place just west of First Avenue. And mainstay Porto Rico Importing Co. is right around the corner on St. Mark's Place. (OK, and MUD is near enough on Ninth Street near Second Avenue.) 

H/T Derek Berg

Tuesday's parting signage shot

Photos by Stacie Joy 

Signage went up today at the new home of East Village Buyers at 39 Avenue A between Second Street and Third Street. 

The high-end consignment shop specializing in sneakers, jewelry and other collectibles moved here in April... given that the awning inspection and approval process was onerous (and expensive), owner Gabe Shaulov decided to do the lettering himself. 

Meanwhile, he put in an X-Men vs. Street Fighter machine... free for people to enjoy while their friends shop.

Bonus tip: Don't go up against Gabe in X-Men vs. Street Fighter — he will win.

For those who rocked: Legendary East Village venue Fillmore East closed on this date in 1971

Archival photo courtesy of Amalie R. Rothschild 

On this date (June 27!) in 1971, the Fillmore East closed its doors after a legendary three-year run at 105 Second Ave. near Sixth Street. 

The sibling to Bill Graham's Fillmore West in San Francisco brought performers such as Led Zeppelin, the Doors, B.B. King, Roberta Flack, the Byrds, the Grateful Dead, Taj Mahal, Jefferson Airplane, Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, Joan Baez and the Who to the East Village starting in March 1968. 

For the last show (an invitation-only performance), there were reportedly three billed acts — headliners The Allman Brothers Band plus The J. Geils Band and Albert King ... and special surprise guests Edgar Winter's White Trash, Mountain, The Beach Boys and Country Joe McDonald. 

The concert was simulcast live by WPLJ and WNEW ... with running commentary from DJs Dave Herman, Vin Scelsa, Scott Muni and others. You can check out the audio here (courtesy of Dave on 7th!).

   

Today, part of the address is an Apple Bank. There is a Fillmore East plaque out front that arrived in 2014 courtesy of The Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation (now Village Preservation) and Two Boots.

You can read about the history of the building and the 2,700-seat venue right here. And find a listing of every band who played the Fillmore East here.

Weeping for this lost tree on Avenue A

The city has cut down the lone tree along the west side of Avenue A between Houston/First Street and Second Street. 

The New York City Tree Map identified this as a weeping willow. [Updated: It was actually a corkscrew willow — thanks to the reader for this ID!]

Last Friday morning around 10:30, according to witnesses and a report on the Citizen app, a white, unmarked box truck violently lurched into the tree, causing a sizable gash across its trunk...

Some time yesterday, the tree was cut down (the first pic is from a tipster) ...

A tipster shared a clip of surveillance footage showing the truck running into the tree. 

 

The driver of the truck did not get out and inspect any damage, and drove off, per a witness.

There was some hope from nearby residents that the tree — with its unique corkscrew trunk — could stay put.

Volunteers and donations sought for asylum seekers in the East Village this week

Photos and text by Stacie Joy 

Here is information about the next distribution for asylum seekers temporarily staying at the former St. Brigid School on Avenue B and Seventh Street ... featuring an interfaith coalition with participating religious institutions including: 

• St. Brigid/St. Emeric/Most Holy Redeemer 

• Trinity Lower East Side Lutheran Parish 

• Graffiti Church 

• Middle Middle Collegiate Church 

• Hope Church NYC

Residents can drop off clothes and goods starting today ... plus tomorrow and Thursday from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. at the St Brigid's rectory, 119 Avenue B between Seventh Street and Eighth Street. 

The distribution will be on Thursday, June 29, from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Volunteers are welcome to attend and help. (A bonus if you speak French or Spanish.)

In-demand donations include adult clothing, blankets and bedding, backpacks, and shoes (especially chancletas). (Please note: no children or infants are at this location.)

Previously on EV Grieve:

• Inside the East Village 'respite center' for asylum seekers

• Missed meal deliveries and a need for basics: the developing situation at the East Village respite center for asylum seekers

• At the former St. Brigid School, a generous outpouring of community support for asylum seekers

• Despite the city's endless bureaucracy, East Village residents continue to aid asylum seekers at the former St. Brigid School 

• How these East Village volunteers finally made Wi-Fi a reality for asylum seekers

• Cafe Mogador provides a free meal to asylum seekers staying in the East Village

On St. Mark's Place, Funzi's Pizzeria is a throwback modeled after grandmother's house

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Funzi's Pizzeria, now in soft-open mode at 36 St. Mark's Place, aspires to be an East Village throwback here between Second Avenue and Third Avenue. 

Hospitality vet Kevin Cox is behind the venture, which he calls "a passion project."

You've likely seen him hanging out in a lawn chair on the Funzi's patio in recent months...

Cox refers to this outdoor space as St. Mark's TV, "where you can watch real New Yorkers of all shapes, sizes, ages, fashions, etc. And there are no commercials. All while eating fantastic pizza."

Funzi's is named after Cox's youngest of three sons... seen here during a recent visit...

Cox calls the place "an ode to the East Village in the 1970s and 1980s," the design is inspired by everything he loves, especially a family member. "This is my grandmother's house — I tried to rebuild it," he said.

Other Funzi inspirations include artists, thrifting, weird inside jokes, and fine attention to detail. 

That detail is evidenced in the signage, hand-painted by artist Joe Lotto, the custom woodwork and stucco by Giovanni Martini, and chain-stitched uniforms by Jose Ballena.

Cox boasted that the Funzi's team "has arguably the best culinary prowess of any NYC pizzeria." Head chef James Jaworski previously worked at Nolita hotspot Pasquale Jones, then Brooklyn-based L'Industrie and Baby Luc's. He is joined by Chefs Aminu Tedla and Alberto Estévez — also vets from Pasquale Jones. 

"We are all happy that we were able to get the band back together to launch Funzi's," Cox said.

Cox hired some of his front-of-house after meeting them on the Funzi's patio... a few days after they purportedly crashed the Met Gala...

As for the pizza, the soft opening best-seller has been the burrata tomato/Rosso pie, with a crisp thin crust, herbaceous sauce, and "no slice flop."

Also available is a chicory pie with dandelion greens, cream, housemade pesto, and bacon lardons with a lemon squeeze finish. Cox and Jaworski refer to this as a green pie.

There is a vegan pie available, but no gluten-free options just yet.

For dessert, there's an ice box cake, whose flavors include a housemade lemon curd with coconut whipped cream and crushed wafers and a banana pudding flavor with a crème anglaise. 

During this soft opening, hours are in-flux... usually opening at 5 p.m., earlier on weekends...

If you're on Instagram, you can find Funzi's here.

Ink on A can use some help

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Updated July 11. The shop has closed.

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On a recent weekday afternoon in June, Ink on A is its usual bustling self. 

People are coming into the newsstand to buy newspapers, cigarettes, a cup of coffee, or a can of soda — or maybe one of the more oddball market items for sale (a tin of Port Royal sardines, anyone?) here in the pleasantly cluttered space on Avenue A between Fourth Street and Fifth Street. There is also the usual assortment of characters inside or out, offering pointed opinions on various topics of the day.

As always, owner Ben "Benny" Dahud presides over the quintessential East Village shop from his perch at the counter...

In recent months, the future of this 33-year-old business has come into question. 

A private equity firm bought this block-long residential building and strip of retail last September for a reported $64 million. On the way out last fall, the building's previous landlord, who had run the place since the 1980s, informed Benny that he owed three years of real estate taxes, about $20,000. 

The new landlord, reportedly Derby Copeland Capital, through the entity Derby Alphabet Blues 5872, LLC, later took Benny to court. 

"And they didn't cash three of my rent checks," Benny said. "They disputed the checks — one was undated, one was incorrect, and whatever. They won in court. They won the judgment in a lump sum — three months' rent plus the real estate taxes. So more than $50,000 I owed right away. I didn't have a lawyer, so I signed the stipulation, a legal agreement. I paid 80% but hadn't paid the last 20%, and they took me back to court." 

The court again ruled in their favor, and Benny received a Marshal's notice earlier in the month. In addition, Benny said the agreement included a statement claiming that he watched someone urinating in the doorway to the building's Avenue A entrance and smiled — as if he approved of the action. 

"I didn’t do that," Benny said. "I come every day and clean the front."

Ink has another 18 months left on the lease, and Benny wants to stay. 

'I have no plans to move. I have been here 30 years," he said. "I don't want to go anywhere else."

He could use legal counsel and the negotiating skills of a nonprofit or advocacy group for small businesses ... or the diplomacy of a local elected official interested in keeping a longtime business in the neighborhood.

"I am hoping to get some help," he said. 

Meanwhile, Benny pointed out that the shop's extensive assortment of magazines — from high-end fashion pubs to supermarket-friendly tabloids — remain his best sellers. (Designers are said to particularly appreciate his harder-to-find titles.)

And don't sleep on the inexpensive self-serve coffee...

Beverages, beer included, and tobacco products are also popular items. During the pandemic, Ink added an assortment of household supplies and expanded its snacks offerings...

Ink is open daily from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., with a midnight close on weekends. 

Stop by and say hi to Benny — he will appreciate the support...

[Updated] At 2nd and 2nd, activity in the lot that will yield an 11-story building

Updated 6/27

A Gemini Rosemont Development spokesperson confirmed what a commenter said. This project is on hold. Specifically: "The project is frozen and we are currently evaluating options for the site."

---

There has been some activity in the empty lot on the east side of Second Avenue between Second Street and Third Street. 

In recent weeks, workers removed the wheatpaste-ad-filled plywood fencing and put in a chainlink fence. On separate occasions, we spotted two workers... once they picked up random bricks and stones and placed them in a dumpster... and then, days later, collected trash...

As previously reported (first here), there are approved work permits (as of last summer) for an 11-floor mixed-use building on the site of a former three-building parcel.

Gemini Rosemont Development is behind this 100,568-square-foot new building ... the development, using 42 E. Second St. for its address, will feature 88 residential units and 9,600 square feet for retail.

In 2020, Gemini Rosemont bought the former La Salle annex at 38 Second Ave. and Second Street. The $14.5 million purchase of the four-story building was the third of three contiguous plots they acquired. The Los Angeles-based commercial real-estate investment company closed on 42-44 Second Ave. and 46-48 Second Ave. (the former Church of the Nativity) in March 2020 for $40 million. 

As a reminder, here's the rendering for the development...

The incoming Shake Shack on the Lower East Side owes nearly $200k back rent: legal notice

From the outside, the new Shake Shack outpost looks ready to open on the SE corner of Rivington and Norfolk... the chain's first Lower East Side location of its burgers-and-fries operation.

News of this arrival dates to last July. (Signage arrived in November.) To date, this address has yet to appear on the Shake Shack website.

Meanwhile, multiple EVG readers pointed out the recent arrival of a legal notice on the front gate...

According to the 14-day notice, the landlord, ID'd here as 122 Norfolk Street, LLC, is seeking $194,974.79 "for rent for the Subject Premises."

The notice states that Shake Shack New York LLC has to pay the amount within 14 days from the date, listed here as June 13. (So that would make tomorrow, Tuesday, June 27, the deadline.) We reached out to the Shake Shack press department and will update this post if anyone responds.

This corner spot has sat empty since Schiller’s Liquor Bar closed after 14 years in 2017.

Week in Grieview

Posts this past week included (with a photo of Ray at Ray's Candy Store on Avenue A by Roflo) 

 • Iconic gay dive bar the Boiler Room is closing later this year ahead of a move to a new East Village space (Tuesday) 

• About The Pastry Box, now open on 12th Street (Thursday)

• The Regal Union Square multiplex is not closing after all (Monday) 

• Openings: Caffe Corretto on 12th Street (Tuesday) 

• At the start of the 2023 Drag March in Tompkins Square Park (Saturday) 

• Someone placed an ad for AMC's 'The Walking Dead: Dead City' over the George Floyd mural on Houston and the Bowery (Monday)

• At MoRUS, a new exhibit explores the network of community fridges in NYC (Friday) 

• The arrival of the smart composting bins in the East Village (Thursday) 

• The Zine Fair has been rescheduled to July 8 (Friday) 

• Salter House bringing sustainable housewares and clothing to 2nd Street (Thursday) 

• Residents eager to track down the source of this 'loud mechanical sound' in the East Village (Saturday) 

• "Make Me Famous," a documentary on 1980s-era East Village-based painter Edward Brezinski, debuts  (Monday) 

• Watch Kim Petras (or her stand-in!) walk around the East Village in medieval-style armor (Wednesday) 

• A subway ride from Union Square to Coney Island on this day in 1987 (Tuesday) 

• Chrissy's Pizza taking over the former Superiority Burger space on 9th Street for its first pizzeria (Thursday) 

• Lower East Side venue Rockwood Music Hall crowdfunding to stay alive (Saturday) 

• The East Village Panda Express is hiring (Tuesday) 

• Reaching the top of the 21-story 360 Bowery project (Tuesday) 

• More unlicensed cannabis shops busted in the East Village (Thursday) 

• 1 St. Mark's Place looking a little close to beaming up (Wednesday)

• Closings: Sauced Up! on 2nd Avenue (Thursday) 

• About the new tenant at 37 Avenue A (Wednesday)

• A Smoke House for Avenue A (Friday) 

• A transformation for the Ugly Duckling on 3rd Avenue and 13th Street (Tuesday) 

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