Chips ahoy in Tompkins Square Park this weekend

Sure, you could toss your tree in front of your building with the ornaments and stuff still on it...

[EVG reader Corina]

... or you could take it out to get drunk, then abandon it in a grocery cart on East 13th Street...

[Via THE NOTORIOUS L.I.B.E.R.A.T.I.O.N.]

... or you can drag it over to Tompkins Square Park for the annual MulchFest, holiday days of obligation in the EVG household...

The trees continue to pile up in the middle of the Park...

[Bobby Williams]

We've also spotted someone trying to mulch fake cottony snow ... or, perhaps, hide the beard evidence from SantaCon...

Yes, that fake cottony snow...

The MulchFest is 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. tomorrow and Sunday, and we'll have 38 more posts on it before the weekend is over...

Previously.

Winter Friday Flashback: Last day for Love Saves the Day is Sunday

On Fridays this winter, and probably spring and summer ... we'll post one of the 16,000-plus EVG, uh, posts from yesteryear, like this one from Jan. 13, 2009 ...

-----

On Dec. 2, Jeremiah was first to report that Loves Saves the Day will shutter its iconic corner store on Seventh Street and Second Avenue. A sign on their storefront confirms the store's last day.


Meanwhile, what will become of the pay phones on the south side of the store? No way will Duane Reade keep them once they open their newest location here...(And yes -- I will burn in Hell for writing that...)

Rumors: Is Ben Shaoul selling his East Village properties?

Word began spreading yesterday that controversial landlord Ben Shaoul was selling an unknown number of his East Village properties, estimated to be some 40 buildings in total. (The rumor prompted a discussion on Facebook as well.)

One tipster said that the sale was a done deal. Another source said that some behind-the-scenes employees in Shaoul's empire have openly been telling residents about the sale. No official word on the buyer just yet.

Shaoul's current East Village projects include the addition of the much-maligned 7-Eleven at 170 Avenue A as well as the residential conversion of the former Cabrini Center on East Fifth Street. It is not believed that these two properties are/were part of the deal. Ditto for his pool-topped A Building on East 13th Street.

Back in May, Shaoul, president of Magnum Real Estate Group, put his buildings at the recently renovated 118-122 E. Fourth St. on the market for $25 million. According to public records, 118 East 4th LLC bought the properties in November 2010 for $11.5 million. (The price is now down to $23.5 million.)

Here's a passage from a lengthy feature on Shaoul from The New York Times last July (the article includes quotes from EV Grieve):

Mr. Shaoul made his inauspicious East Village debut in 2006, the same year the 21-story Cooper Square Hotel broke ground and the legendary rock club CBGB closed.

In March of that year, he bought out members of an artists’ squat on St. Marks Place in order to turn the building into rental apartments. A neighborhood photographer snapped Mr. Shaoul, accompanied by sledgehammer- and crowbar-wielding construction workers, as he confronted some of the squatters. At some point the police were called in; the photographs soon circulated around the neighborhood.

The episode led the real estate blog Curbed to dub Mr. Shaoul “Sledgehammer Shaoul” and — although he was not actually holding a sledgehammer in any of the photos — the name and image have stuck. His reputation was reinforced as he renovated more buildings: rent-stabilized tenants in his buildings reported threats of eviction, and he racked up Department of Housing Preservation and Development complaints and violations for the interruption of heat and hot water, blocked fire escapes, broken locks and other issues related to construction and maintenance.

Shaoul's expanding portfolio reportedly includes properties in TriBeCa, the West Village, Harlem, the Financial District and on the Lower East Side and Upper East Side.

Much more as details become available.

What's going on at the Middle Collegiate Church building on East Seventh Street?

[Late December]

Late last year (Dec. 19 to be exact!), you may have noticed the plywood arrive outside the Middle Collegiate Church building on East Seventh Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue... Since then, workers have been busy gutting the space — a sign that always makes a few people nervous. Like, hey — it's becoming a condo or a hotel or an artisanal condiment shop.

Turns out it's nothing so sinister, in case you haven't heard.

"Our office space is being renovated, so that the building will be fully accessible to the people of the East Village and allowing us to better fulfill our goal of being a place that welcomes everyone," Kate Tull, a technical administrator with Middle Collegiate, told us via email.

The Church website has some construction FAQs here.

The price of a 99-cent pizzeria is now just $100,000

Mamani Pizza on Avenue A near East 10th Street hit the market back in early October ... and the price for the 99-cent pizzeria has been reduced this week, dropping nearly 23 percent to $100,000, according to the listing at Trulia NYC. That's just about 101,000 slices...

A tree grows on Astor Place

EVG contributor James Maher shared this photo with us... a shot of a lonely-looking Chase branch on Astor Place. Upon closer inspection, you can make out a little life...

Per James: "Thought it showed this interesting spark of life and human presence within the soulless empty bank."

Boulton and Watt is open on Avenue A

Boulton & Watt, the new bar-restaurant concept from the people behind Ella and the Blind Barber, officially opened this week at the former Nice Guy Eddie's space.

BlackBook described the space this way:

[T]he prime spot has a steampunk twist with salvaged windows, an antique steam engine used to power the restaurants fan system, and a spattering of repurposed furniture.

[Via Facebook]

And the food? Chef David Rotter said it was "a revised take on rustic American comfort food." Zagat points out that Rotter "pays homage to [the industrial revolution] with twists on throwback dishes such as Scotch egg with béarnaise; and short rib and bone marrow toast in bordelaise. There’s also a 'pickling station' featuring an array of fruits and veggies, including figs, pineapple, radish, Brussels sprouts and beets."

We've heard from people that the food is good, though "pickling station" might make parody fodder for a TV show that has a poster near the restaurant...

Previously on EV Grieve:
Rumors about the new name for the former Nice Guy Eddie's space

Last night at Nice Guy Eddie's

[Updated] Street fight erupts at Raphael Ward's memorial service on Second Avenue this afternoon

There was a memorial service this afternoon for Raphael Ward, the 16-year-old gunned down for his jacket last Friday night on the Lower East Side.

Witnesses described a wild scene after a fight among students apparently broke out outside the Provenzano Lanza Funeral Home on Second Avenue between East Third Street and East Second Street around 3 p.m.

These pictures by Event Photos NYC show panicked students fleeing the scene, heading south toward Houston...

Bobby Williams was also in the vicinity and took these photos...

He reports that a large contingent of NYPD officers quickly arrived and restored order... no word on any arrests...

Police are looking to question four "persons of interest" about the murder. His funeral will take place at Our Lady of Sorrows Church on Pitt Street tomorrow morning, according to the Lo-Down.

More details on today's altercation as they become available...

[Courtesy of Event Photos NYC]

Updated 1-10:

The Lo-Down has more on the incident:

A friend of The Lo-Down witnessed the confrontation, telling us that at one point a teen was being beaten with a large chain and a frying pan. Another source said at least one fight began inside the funeral home. Cops were forced to shut down traffic on 2nd Avenue to deal with the situation.

Updated 1-10:
The Post reports that the NYPD arrested a 16 year old for his alleged role in the shooting last Friday night.

EV Grieve Etc.: Mourning Edition

[Yesterday in Tompkins Square Park via Bobby Williams]

Get your SPURA RFP! (The Lo-Down)

An illegal backyard dining area at Mission Chinese on Orchard? (BoweryBoogie)

Archival shots of Union Square (Curbed)

Recalling Luc Sante's "My Lost City" (Essay Daily ... h/t Flaming Pablum)

Revisiting a great album, "Mink Deville" (Clash Magazine)

Suzie's Chinese restaurant on Bleecker closes after 39 years (Jeremiah's Vanishing New York)

... and a photo while crossing First Avenue at St. Mark's this morning...

Out and About in the East Village

In this weekly feature, East Village-based photographer James Maher provides us with a quick snapshot of someone who lives and/or works in the East Village.

By James Maher

Name: Lee Schramm
Occupation: Retired, English as Second Language Teacher
Location: 10th Street and Avenue A
Time: 12:45 on Saturday, Jan. 5

I’ve lived in the neighborhood since 1974. I teach English as a second language. It has been my profession all my life but I’m retired now. I taught at a private language school called Cambridge School. I got into English because I was in the Peace Corps in Turkey and that’s what I did there. I liked it so it became my career.

I met a boy, a man, whatever he is, and we moved in together into the neighborhood in ‘74. He didn’t have a job at the time because he was living in San Francisco and I had my teaching job, which didn’t pay a lot. So we moved here because it was cheap. We lived on Avenue A and, at that time, we would never go left toward Avenue B. There was nothing on Broadway and nothing on Lafayette. You would never believe it by looking at Broadway now, but there was really nothing. It was dead! The only thing you could do was go to the West Village, which was active, but you could only walk down 8th Street because that was the only street that had shops and people.

It wasn’t a very good neighborhood at the time. There were a lot of burnt-out buildings. It looked similar to what you’ve heard about the South Bronx with a lot of drugs and a lot of burnt-out, empty buildings. Because I never was into drugs, I think that I was relatively safe and I never had any problems. But also, I didn’t roam. I walked fast and I went to a certain place and I looked determined and I think that may have had something to do with it.

In those days you would not go into Tompkins Square Park with all the homeless people living there. I wouldn’t even consider going in there. Now I spend a lot of time in the Park. I used to go to Washington Square Park, even though they had a lot of drugs over there at the time. But it was safe.

Only one time did I ever have a problem. It was after a huge snowstorm. We had like two feet of piled-up snow and there was nobody on the streets. I got robbed by a man with a gun. Whether he had a real gun or whether it was loaded or not I didn’t know. I didn’t care. I only had six dollars on me and so I gave him the six dollars! I actually wasn't scared until it was over. I’m lucky for all my times in New York City to only have that one little incident.

When I first came here, really the only things you had were the Odessas and the Polish restaurants. There were not many places to eat. Now, of course, the restaurants are fabulous in the East Village.

I spend all my life here because there’s so much to do. There are galleries coming back and there are fabulous restaurants ... and in close walking distance I have Cinema Village on 12th Street, the Quad on 13th Street, the Angelica, and the Film Forum too. I like the indie movies much more than the blockbusters.

My favorite restaurant in the neighborhood is Prune. A new one that’s very nice and quite good is Toucan & the Lion on East 6th Street near 1st Avenue. And on Avenue C and 5th street is Casa Adela — the best chicken in New York City, I think. You could never go down to C before and now there are so many nice places there.

Just don’t ask me my rent. You wouldn’t like me.

James Maher is a fine art and studio photographer based in the East Village. Find his website here.

Is something finally happening to the long-vacant, mysterious 6 Avenue B?

An EV Grieve regular noted that, in the past two days, workers have been hauling junk out of the long-vacant building on the northwest corner of Avenue B and East Houston... Bill the libertarian anarchist took this photo of the work yesterday...

The owner of the liquor store on the corner died in the fall of 2009... and the store has been closed since then... Chico created the tribute to the owner in February 2010.

[February 2012]

Back in February 2010, we heard that the owner's nephew was weighing his options about what to do with the store. As for the rest of the building, it has been vacant as long as many people can remember.

Scoopy had this item at the time:

"The nephew is currently trying to locate the paperwork for the old tenement, the upper floors of which have sat empty for some 20 years. 'Maybe there's some money in the building, a secret hideaway — could be, I didn't say there is,' Chico quipped. As for 'Mom,' he said, 'She used to give everybody credit. She was a hard-working woman. She would lock the gates. She was open till midnight.'"

We understand that this is one of the abandoned buildings owned by the mysterious team of Arthur and Abraham Blasof, now both deceased. Among their rundown properties: 85 Attorney Street, which is slated for some type of unspecified renovation, per BoweryBoogie ... and 43 MacDougal St., which the Greenwich Village Society of Historic Preservation is fighting to protect.

There's nothing in the DOB records showing that anything is imminent with 6 Avenue B. Arthur Blasof is still listed as the owner. Can't imagine that this prime real estate will sit empty for much longer. For now, though, the building will keep making money for someone by hosting the cellular antennas on the roof... and we'll probably never know what's up there...

Relief from the BBQ smell on the way for residents who live above Mighty Quinn's?

Shortly after Mighty Quinn's opened last month, we heard from some anonymous upstairs neighbors about the smell coming from the popular BBQ joint on Second Avenue and East Sixth Street.

We live in the building and our apartments & hallways reek of barbecue, all the way to the top floor — it's coming up through the radiators, walls & floors.

Perhaps some relief is on the way. CB3's Landmarks Subcommittee meets tomorrow night, and on the agenda:

Cert of Appropriateness: 103 Second Ave to show the exhaust duct running along the façade of the building

The CB3 website includes a PDF of the engineering plans for this new exhaust system ... from inside the restaurant...

... and on the East Sixth Street side...

The building here is part of the East Village Historic District that came into existence last fall. According to the plans for the new exhaust system, the work "will not affect any significant architectural features or decorative masonry." In addition, plans show that the new ductwork "will bypass the decorative cornice feature at the sub-roof and coping stone at roof and will not alter or compromise it in anyway."

The meeting is tomorrow night at 6:30 at the BRC Senior Services Center, 30 Delancey St. between Chrystie and Forsyth.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Resident claim: Living above Mighty Quinn's can be mighty smelly

Rent this East 11th Street apartment; enjoy the artificial turf out back

Here's an apartment that just hit on the market on East 11th Street between Second Avenue and Third Avenue... Per Streeteasy:

Spacious studio / Junior 1 bdrm with private backyard access! A rare find in NYC!
Separate kitchen that will be totally renovated (will feature new cabinets and appliances)
Brand new bathroom
2 large closets
A/C unit in wall
Entire apartment will be cleaned and painted

The rent is $2,600. (Maybe you could get it for less if they didn't clean or paint it? Ha.) Anyway, perhaps you can offset that cost by opening up a miniature golf course in that private backyard... here's the lone photo that accompanied the listing...

You may want to run it by the World Minigolf Sport Federation first.

Sidewalk stories

Yesterday, a little sidewalk work commenced on St. Mark's Place...

Today, the final product.

Much better!

Photos by Bobby Williams.

Here's your 2013 Frigid New York Festival info

From the EVG inbox today...

Horse Trade Management Group will present the 7th Annual FRIGID New York Festival, an open and uncensored theatre festival that gives artists an opportunity to let their ingenuity thrive in a venue that values freedom of expression and artistic determination.

In true support of theatre on the fringe of the mainstream, 100% of box office proceeds will go directly to the artists. Boasting over 150 performances and 30 shows over 12 days in 3 theaters, FRIGID New York will kick off the annual North American Fringe Circuit with a bang!

Riding the fringe of winter, the hit celebration of independent theater will run February 20-March 3 at The Kraine Theater & The Red Room (85 East 4th Street between 2nd Ave and Bowery) and UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place between 1st Ave and Ave A). Tickets ($10-$16) may be purchased online here or by calling 212-868-4444.

You can find the complete 2013 Frigid New York Festival lineup here.

Meanwhile, the Lo-Down has details here about three other local festivals... the Under the Radar Festival at Public Theater, Coil 2013 at Dixon Place and American Realness at the Abrons Arts Center.

Noted

East 12th Street this morning. Waking up on the wrong side of the Honda, via Andrew Adam Newman on Ave C.

Avenue A's anti-7-Eleven campaign now includes arsenal of 20,000 stickers

Well, it's becoming clear(er) that some residents aren't interested in having a big 7-Eleven on the corner of Avenue A and East 11th Street.

We received the following missive yesterday:

Attached is an image of stickers (20,000) that just came in and will be distributed throughout the East Village as part of a sticker campaign for when the 7-11 on Avenue A opens up. Basically people will be constantly stickering the door of 7-11 with these ... delicately placed next to the usual MasterCard Accepted stickers by the handle of the door entrance. The idea is to a) constantly remind consumers to turn around and shop elsewhere before going in and also to b) be a nuisance to the 7-11 store itself...

The email was signed,
@PoliticoNympho

Previously on EV Grieve:
[Updated] More from the anti-7-Eleven front on Avenue A and East 11th Street

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

First sign of the incoming 7-Eleven on Avenue A

Meanwhile: There's a 'No 7-Eleven' meeting set for Jan. 16

From the EV Grieve inbox...

7-Eleven is coming to Avenue A at 11th Street. The residents of 11th Street won't sit for it. We're drawing the line of suburbanization here.

We have had about enough of chain stores and suburban franchises, Duane Reades, Walgreens and Chase Banks on every corner. We've chosen to fight. Join with us and let's start a city-wide resistance. Let's not sit for it any more.

MEETING: NO 7-11
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 16, 6:30PM
545 EAST 11TH STREET
(Father's Heart Ministries, btwn A&B)

San Francisco has laws to restrict chain stores. NYC zoning laws don't prevent big box commercialism and the current mayor's planning department won't change those regulations. But a local election is coming.

Next year, this mayor will be gone — now's our opportunity to tell the coming administration that this does matter to us. If we don't raise the cry loud and clear, the new administration won't address it either.

It is not an exaggeration to say that the wholesale suburbanization and selling of New York lies in the hands of the people of New York. We've got to create the political will to fight against the death of this city. We've got to be visible and loud and persistent. New Yorkers have been sitting for it for a long time. We mustn't sit for it any longer.

There's likely a 7-Eleven near you, and if not, there will be. The 7-Eleven corporation has targeted the city for many more openings, intending to displace local commerce especially local bodegas. Don't sit for that.

Join the 11th Street resistance. Let's turn it into a Lower East Side resistance and a Manhattan resistance a Harlem and the Heights resistance and a Village and Chinatown resistance. Complacency=Suburbanization.

We're meeting on the 16th. Tell your friends. Bring your inventive ideas and your righteous indignation.

Live at 1 St. Mark's Place this summer; views of 51 Astor Place are free

This past weekend, I took photos of the "for rent" signs at the now-vacant Little Italy Pizza at 23 Third Ave. ... I've always been curious by the building that stands here on the northeast corner of Third Avenue and St. Mark's Place... long a witness to generations of new people entering and exploring St. Mark's Place and the East Village...

What's it like to live up there, behind that Falafel/Shawarma lettering? Turns out there's a new listing for a summer-only rental here. And it turns out to be much more luxurious than I ever imagined.

Check out the listing for 1 St. Mark's Place aka 23 Third Ave.:

Furnished Loft Rental – 1 Saint Marks – At Astor Place, the Heart of the Village, with views of Cooper Union and the Cube.

Enjoy loft living this summer in this spectacular Astor Place townhouse. This approximately 2000 square foot floor-through duplex features 14’ ceilings, exposed brick, original plank floors and oversize windows. There is also top of the line open kitchen with stainless steel appliances and granite counter-tops. Baths are modern with marble and an en-suite washer/dryer.

AND, there is an enormous private patio, an ideal space for entertaining this summer.

Here's a shot of that patio... (and it would be better with a view of the Gringo mural)

...and the interior...

The monthly rent: $6,000, and it's only available for July and August.

Just think, by then, you'll likely be able to see new office workers arrive inside the Death Star 51 Astor Place directly across the street...

Bonus shot of the corner from 1980 via our friend Michael Sean Edwards ...

Coyote Ugly turns 20 this month in the East Village

Coyote Ugly is gearing up for its 20th anniversary on Jan. 26. Per the Coyote Ugly website:

This anniversary is extra special and will be the best ever! Open to the public at 4pm! Private party 2-4pm for our regulars from the first 10 years.

Don't think I know anyone who was (or is) a regular here at the bar at 153 First Ave. between East Ninth and East 10th Street... was only here once myself.

Anyway, per the sign out front, Coyote Ugly founder Liliana Lovell will be at the bash ... you can read the bar's history here. There are 13 Coyote Ugly bars in the United States now... and a few more overseas... (A Coyote Ugly opened in Constanta, Romania, on Oct. 11, and Coyote Ugly Saloon opened in Novosibirsk, Russia, on Oct. 3. There are four other locations in Russia.)

Meanwhile, a reader said that the bar was closed part of last week. Not sure what happened. (It was NOT related to the DOH, though that was an issue in the past.)

Finally the NY bar is up and running!! OK that is a load off my shoulders. It doesn’t matter how old you are but... bit.ly/VnOcUr

— liliana lovell (@coyotelil) January 4, 2013

What do you get for a bar on its 20th birthday?

The Wayland's expansion on Avenue C will sell sandwiches

Back in July we noted that The Wayland on the corner of Avenue C and East Ninth Street was expanding into the empty space next door that previously housed Bite Me Best.

New York magazine this week (via Grub Street) has the scoop on the space, a 15-seat shop called Animals that will serve sandwiches from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Per New York:

About a dozen selections are priced between $8 and $10, including a pulled-bacon torta with refried baked beans and chile mayo, hot shrimp with harissa butter and celery slaw, and a vegetarian “kitchen sink” with jalapeño pesto.

No word yet if they will sell offbeat sandwiches such as, say, turkey with lettuce and tomato on whole wheat. Animals opens next Monday.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Wayland plans to expand on Avenue C

Elvis Presley in New York City

Elvis Presley was born on this date in 1935. On this occasion, we look at some of his time in NYC...

Here's an excerpt from a press conference he did June 9, 1972, at Madison Square Garden in the Mercury Ballroom at the New York Hilton prior to a four-show stint at Madison Square Garden. (Yes, I did post this 3 years ago.)



Here's a transcript of the press conference.

Also!

There is the Elvis-Mary Tyler Moore vehicle Change of Habit from 1969, one of the most grittily gritty movies ever made about New York and drug habits.

Per IMDB:

This movie is a stark portrayal of life among a group of heroin addicts who hang out in "Needle Park" in New York City. Played against this setting is a low-key love story between Bobby, a young addict and small-time hustler, and Helen, a homeless girl who finds in her relationship with Bobby the stability she craves. She becomes addicted too, and life goes downhill for them both as their addiction deepens, eventually leading to a series of betrayals.

Oh wait. That's the description for "The Panic in Needle Park." Sorry.

No, Elvis is a doctor. MTM is a nun. Bring some butter for this corn. "Flapper skirts on a bride of Christ! I don't like undercover nuns." Zing! Here's the first 8 minutes (with Spanish subtitles...) showing some vintage Midtown NYC.