An amenity to die for, apparently, at Stuy Town

Stuy Town shows us that, once again, they are ahead of the curve when it comes to amenities. In the past few years they've added a cafe, a study, a mini-movie theater, a playroom for the kids as well as a seasonal greenmarket and ice skating rink. Got all that? Good!

Via an EV Grieve Facebook friend, now comes word of a new amenity – cremation services!

For a mere $795, Stuyvesant Town – Peter Cooper Village Direct Cremation Services will handle all of the morbid details involved with cremating a loved one.

And to answer the question of one Facebook commenter, no, they do not take requests.

These East Village bars will be open all night on New Year's Eve

[Outside gem on St. Mark's Place]

The New York State Liquor Authority has posted its approved 2012-2013 "New Year's All Night Permits," extensions that allow for licensed venues to serve past the usual 4 a.m. last call.

Here is the list of East Village bars/restaurants... (and there a few on the Lower East Side... I just didn't list every one here...)

• Duck's Eatery, 351 E. 12th St.

• Double Down Saloon, 14 Avenue A

• Keybar, 432 E. 13th St.

• Motor City Bar, 127 Ludlow

• Bowery Diner, 241 Bowery

• Esperanto, 145 Avenue C

• The Cock, 29 Second Ave.

• Black & White, 86 E. 10th St.

• Kings Head Tavern, 222 E. 14th St.

• Niagara, 112 Avenue A

• The Bowery Electric, 327 Bowery

• Vazac's, 108 Avenue B

• Coal Yard, 102 First Ave.

• The International, 120 1/2 First Ave.

• Webster Hall, 125 E. 11th St.

• Mug Cafe, 446 E. 13th St.

• Karma, 51 First Ave.

• B Side, 204 Avenue B

The complete New York State list is here.

Residents already 'chipping in' (heh) with recycling their Christmas trees

Someone started the first pile of discarded Christmas trees yesterday in Tompkins Square Park ...

[Bobby Williams]

And we are still weeks away from the city's official MulchFest:

Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 12 and 13, 2013
10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Per the City's Parks & Rec site:

These wood chips are used to nourish trees and plants on streets and gardens citywide. Or, take home your very own bag of mulch to use in your backyard or to make a winter bed for a street tree. More than 24,000 trees were recycled last year. Help us top this number!

Previously on EV Grieve:
Parents accidentally throw out children with Christmas tree

Reader report: Wine store in the works for East Ninth Streeet

Cigkoftem, a Turkish vegetarian fast-food chain, opened its first U.S. location on East Ninth Street back in January ... and it was gone by early October... Now, a neighborhood tipster reports that the space here near Avenue A will become a wine shop... there's a notice about it on the front door, though it doesn't yield too much information...

Know more about the incoming wine shop? Please let us know in the comments or via the EV Grieve email...

EV Grieve Eatery Etc.: Nino's 2.0 back open; crepes for East 7th Street

The newly remodeled Nino's on Avenue A at St. Mark's Place is back open after a bout of the DOH... Inspectors found 9 violations points during a revisit on Monday...

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Salon Champu moved from 122 E. Seventh St. to new digs on East Fourth Street ... Dave on 7th got word that the former salon space will be home to a cafe specializing in crepes...

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There's a new broker for the former dry cleaners at 137 First Avenue next door to Joe Dough on First Avenue... the new sign says that the landlord will now consider "food use" ...

We didn't spot the listing online at Bond just yet... so we don't know what the asking rent is here...

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Verso opened in May 2011 on Avenue C at Eighth Street. The Italian bistro hasn't been open since Sandy's floodwater filled up the restaurant's basement ... earlier in the week, Matt_LES noted the following back-rent noticed taped to the eatery's front door...

(Sort of) White (day after) Christmas

Tompkins Square Park around 5 or so...

Reader report: Shots fired early this morning?

From the EV Grieve inbox...

This is what happened: I was awake already for a short time, when at 4.12 am on the 26th, I heard two people coming along our block (E 9th bet 1st & A), talking quite loudly and clearly aggravated. They didn't seem drunk, just totally angry at each other. About a minute later, they must have left the block, I heard gun shots, twelve in a row, each regularly interrupted by a pause of about one half to one second. The shouting continued after that, then three more shots were fired, I heard one of the guys shouting/howling like being hit, and then a last single shot. After that everything was quiet. No police sirens, no nothing. Very very weird. I assure you I wasn't dreaming or drunk.

By the echo of the shots I assume that it happened either on 1st Ave or probably even on E 9th bet 1st & 2nd Aves. The sound would have been quite different if the shots were fired around Tompkins Square.

Anyone else hear/witness this...?

EV Grieve Etc.: Mourning Edition

[East Houston at Avenue B]

Last chance for "Art Around the Bowery" at the New Museum (The New York Times)

Robert Sietsema on Mighty Quinn's new BBQ (Fork in the Road)

Serving holiday meals at the Bowery Mission (Fox 5)

The LowLine's projected financial boon for SPURA sites (The Lo-Down)

Yesterday morning's red-tailed hawk show in Tompkins Square Park (The Gog Log)

Major LES drug bust (BoweryBoogie)

Renovation plans for Pier 17 (Curbed)

NYC's TV yule log tradition (Ephemeral New York)

IT'S GOING TO SNOW OR SLEET TODAY! (Gothamist)

And a new lamp shop is opening very soon here on East Sixth Street near Cooper Square ...

Out and About in the East Village — 2012 recap

Since Aug. 1, East Village-based photographer James Maher has provided us with a quick snapshot of someone who lives and/or works in the neighborhood for our series Out and About in the East Village.

Here's a look back at our 18 subjects from the year... we'll be back with Out and About in the East Village on Jan. 9.

• Aug. 1 — Mike Stupin

• Aug. 8 — Roger Jazilek

• Aug. 15 — Madeleine Von Froomer

• Aug. 22 — Patrice Suncircle

• Aug. 29 — Joey McGibbon

• Sept. 5 — Anthony Pepe

• Sept. 12 — Rembrandt Duran (and Lucy)

• Sept 26 — Jocelyn Francon Saldana

• Oct. 3 — Sarah "Sas" Stewart

• Oct. 10 — Derek Berg (and Nikita)

• Oct. 17 — Jesus Picayo (and daughter Alina)

• Oct. 24 — John Cannatella (and Paesano)

• Nov. 14 — Tamara Hey

• Nov. 21 — Cosmo Yannis

• Nov. 28 — Michael Feeney (and Misty)

• Dec. 5 — Karen

• Dec. 12 — Angel Eyedealism (and Marlena)

• Dec. 19 — Ben Treuhaft (and Zsofi)

An anti-7-Eleven sticker campaign

We've already seen some anti-7-Eleven sentiment outside where the convenience store will set up shop on Avenue A and East 11th Street...

Now there are these stickers... like the ones spotted alongside on Avenue B (on CVS stickers too — nice touch!)

Have you seen this stickers? Wasn't sure how widespread they are...

Meanwhile, nearby neighbors have said that they are already opposed to the new 7-Eleven.

Updated:

Wanted to note this painting that V.H. McKenzie created back in February in collaboration with Tompkins Square Bagels too...

Previously on EV Grieve:
7-Eleven alert: Are 2 chain stores replacing Bar on A and Angels & Kings?

First sign of the incoming 7-Eleven on Avenue A

Reviving those 7-Eleven + another chain rumors for Avenue A

A 'grand reopening' at La Vie

In late November, a tipster told us that the State Liquor Authority had revoked La Vie's liquor license on East First Street. (The license had apparently expired in February 2011, but La Vie had been operating under the NY State Administrative Procedures Act, aka SAPA).

As we understood it, La Vie can still apply to have its license reinstated at a future SLA hearing. Meanwhile, there was a "sorry but due to an emergency La Vie will be closed" sign on the door.

An East First Street resident pointed us to La Vie's Facebook page... where there's a post stating that they have reopened as of last Friday ... ("Cash only" per a sign on door...)

Meanwhile, there's no record of an active license on the New York State Liquor Authority website...

However, a neighbor with knowledge on the ongoing situation here explained it this way:

"They petitioned a court for a stay of the SLA's decision based on financial hardship while the Article 78 proceeding is pending."

Neighbors have long complained that La Vie was operating as a club under the guise of a restaurant. According to residents speaking out at past CB3/SLA meetings, the dance music emanating from the two-level club is loud and disruptive to their quality of life ... and there's often chaos in the streets as clubgoers come and go.

Publicity campaign continues for the tree house living room

Been a few weeks since we checked in on the tree house living room. So! Back in late November, the tree house living room over here on First Avenue near East 14th Street received a mention in New York magazine's "Neighborhood News" feature...

... a fact that the tree house's new publicity team stealthily has noted at the scene...

Meanwhile, we understand that the tree house living room is carefully weighing several TV cameos as well as a feature spread in Dwell ...

Previously.

Fish Bar Film Night: 'Trading Places'

Haven't mentioned the Fish Bar Film Night in some time. (Read more about it here.)

There's a fine holiday offering tonight (at 9-ish) with "Trading Places."



Fish Bar
237 East Fifth Street, between Second Avenue and Cooper Square.

And all together... Constance Fry, Constance Fry...

Holiday meal for a red-tailed hawk in Tompkins Square Park

EVG reader Lia shares this photo of the red-tailed hawk's Christmas meal today in Tompkins Square Park ... some type of unspecified rodent washed down with a Monster Energy drink... Always a fine pairing...

Season's Greetings, etc.

[Seasonal Urban Etiquette Signage on East Third Street]

[Leftover trees on Dec. 25 on East 14th Street and First Avenue]

[East Seventh Street]

[Popeye Doyle as Santa in "The French Connection"]

[Vazac's]

[Christmas spirit at the 7-Eleven on the Bowery]

[East 11th Street parking garage]

[The Mystery Lot]

Noted

Free Xmas trees on 1st Ave. outside Rite-Aid. twitter.com/evgrieve/statu…

— evgrieve (@evgrieve) December 25, 2012

When we shot turkeys on the Bowery for Christmas

Per the description at the New York Public Library Digital Galleries:

A Christmas "turkey-shoot" on the Bowery. (1897)

Happy holidays to you... and whatever your traditions are...

Henry with your coat so bright...

Andrew Adam Newman on Ave C shares this... from tonight in Tompkins Square Park ... with his dog Henry... "He was thrown over the fence at the Tompkins Square Park dog run and abandoned eight years ago."

And Henry has had a loving home ever since...

Looking at the snow (sort of), enjoying the quiet streets

Dave on 7th is out looking at the snow... and enjoying the empty holiday streets...

Breaking: Workers gutting Little Italy Pizza on Third Avenue

Little Italy Pizza opened up here at 23 Third Ave. at St. Mark's Place in August... and EVG regular Stephen Popkin notes this afternoon that workers were gutting the space... not sure yet if this is some kind of renovation or permanent closure...

Most recently, the space was home to Tahini, which closed for good in June... and a few years back... St. Mark's Pizza.

Anyway, did anyone ever try Little Italy Pizza? They had a breakfast deal too... Almost seemed like the brightest storefront around...