EV Grieve

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Noted

@evgrieve if you need something positive about the 'hood: someone barfed salad in front of our shop! The appropriateness warmed my heart.
— Big Gay Ice Cream (@biggayicecream) January 2, 2013

The former Mars Bar is becoming a fucking bank branch

[A Mars Bar mural circa October 2009]

A 4,300-square-foot TB Bank branch, actually, as Steve Cuozzo reported today at the Post. It makes sense that the soulless new building rising here — dubbed Jupiter 21 — has an equally soulless type of retail tenant.

And whatever happened to Mars Bar owner Hank Penza's plan to open a new bar... or at least have the opportunity to reopen in the new building here on Second Avenue at East First Street?

East Village stories to watch in 2013 (Part 1)

• The reopening of St. Brigid's on Avenue B

[From October]

The restoration/renovation of the historic Avenue B church is winding down after several years... last we heard from a St. Brigid's watcher, the church is expected to reopen in the first few months of this year... and we can't wait to see the inside... Bonus question: Will neighbors ever get used to the bells?

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• Filling in the Mystery Lot

Ah, our old friend the Mystery Lot...

[Some time ago]

...will soon look like this on East 14th Street/13th Street east of Third Avenue...

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• The end (and new beginning) of Astor Place

Workers are quickly erecting the 430,000-square-foot office complex at 51 Astor Place ... which will shape up this year to look like...

Building aside, the city is also expected to dramatically reconfigure streets, parks and traffic islands around Astor Place and Cooper Union ... leaving us with that Midtown feeling...

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• 84 Third Ave. grows taller

We learned last month that the Karl Fischer-designed building rising at 84 Third Avenue at East 12th Street will be 12 stories, not nine as originally expected. Of any of the area's new development, this just may look like the most out-of-place project. And that's saying something.

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• A dorm for 35 Cooper Square

The former 35 Cooper Square was demolished 18 months ago here at East Sixth Street. Perhaps soon in the New Year we will learn more about developer Arun Bhatia's plans for a 9-story dorm, which are currently on file with the DOB.

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• Something for 100 Avenue A

[A scene outside 100 Avenue A yesterday by Bobby Williams]

Not much seems to be happening at 100 Avenue A, where East Village Farms closed in February 2012. The city disapproved the first round of plans to renovate the space, including adding a "dwelling unit" and roof garden on the upper floors.

The sidewalk outside the storefront has mostly been used to accommodate some people in need of a place to sleep this past year.

However, in one small bit of progress, the DOB did approve the foundation work here back on Nov. 9, per city records. Will we finally see work start on the renovations in 2013?

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• Development for the former Mary Help of Christians school, church and lot

Staying on Avenue A ... the saga of the Mary Help of Christians Catholic Church enters its fifth year... The Catholic Archdiocese sold the church property, which includes the Don Bosco Salesians rectory adjacent to the church and the church's former school on East 11th Street, for a reported $41 million. Douglas Steiner, owner of the Brooklyn Navy Yard's Steiner Studios, is the new owner, and he has plans for in the works for an 80/20 residential development.

...and this promises to be an enormous development ...

[Via Off the Grid]

Will the church be demolished to make way for the new housing? (The Landmarks Preservation Commission has already turned down requests to landmark the circa-1917 church.) Or will at least part of the church be incorporated into the design of the new building, much like NYU did by sort of including the façade of St. Ann's into the entrance of the 12th Street dorm?

Meanwhile, nothing will likely happen with the new development until workers have shored up the eastern wall at the East Side Community School on East 12th Street.

Tomorrow: East Village stories to watch in 2013 (Part 2)

In case you are looking for Out and About in the East Village . . .

The feature returns next Wednesday. Meanwhile, revisit all the posts from 2012 here.

Tomorrow at MoRUS: Growing up on Avenue B; recalling the squatter movement

From the EV Grieve inbox...

The Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space (MoRUS) will welcome 2013 with an artists salon giving voice to the very history the museum seeks to preserve. Eric Drooker, Fly Orr and beat-rhyming duo The Adventures of Kaila & the Kid will participate in this one-night-only event on Thursday, January 3, beginning at 8 PM. MoRUS is located at 155 Avenue C between 9th and 10th Streets. This is the museum’s first membership drive event since officially opening on December 8, and the event is free and open to the public.

Lower East Side native Drooker will give a slide lecture exploring his early years as a street artist in New York City, and trace the evolution of his graphic novels into animated films — and from his cover paintings of The New Yorker, to his slow infiltration of the mainstream. The artist will talk about growing up on Avenue B and how the changing landscape has shaped his vision.

Orr will present a slide lecture, "UnReal Estate: A Brief Squatter History on the Lower East Side" based on her forthcoming book of the same title. Since the 1980s, Orr has been a squatter on the Lower East Side where she paints and draws comics and illustrations.

[Updated] Subway shove victim worked in the East Village for 16 years

As you may have read, a woman shoved a man in front of an incoming 7 train at the 40th Street-Lowery Street station in Sunnyside last Thursday. Police identified the victim as Sunando Sen, a 46-year-old native of India who had lived in Queens for several decades.

Sen worked in the East Village for 16 years at NY Copy & Printing, 204 E. 11th Street, as EVG reader Tad pointed out in an email.

Per Newsday:

"People have been coming to remember him with us," said Bidyut Sarker, Sen's boss. "He was brilliant. He was kind. We all miss him."

Sen had recently opened his own copy shop on the Upper West Side. His funeral was Monday.

Police have arrested Erika Menendez, who was being held without bail on a murder charge. She reportedly told police she pushed Sen because she thought he was Muslim.

Updated Jan. 4
The Villager has a feature on Sen here.

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

A red-tailed hawk's rat trap, of sorts

Robert K. Chin shares this photo and anecdote from earlier today with us... in Tompkins Square Park, a red-tailed hawk waited for a rat to show up to the trash pile. (Clever!) One rat did come by ... and the hawk chased it into a sewer drain. The hawk waited for it to emerge, but a dog got away from a woman nearby ... and the dog chased away the hawk...

The party's over...

... at least until Friday... Photos today via EVG regular William Klayer...

The year in East Village photos, 2012

Happy 2013. Before moving forward, let's take a quick look back at a few of the photos (not in chronological order) from the more than 3,300 EV Grieve posts circa 2012... thank you to everyone who shared photos from last year ... Happy 2013 to you...