Tuesday's parting shot

Photo in Tompkins Square Park this afternoon by Lola Sáenz...

A visit to Anyway Cafe

The New Yorker's Bar Tab feature heads to Anyway Cafe on Second Street near Second Avenue in this week's issue.

An excerpt:

In this cavernous subterranean space, the chairs are filled with East Village denizens out for an evening of Russian music and appropriate refreshments; chilled carafes of vodka and plates of pelmeni (Siberian dumplings) are scattered on the tables, consumed dreamily to the sound of an accordion.

Empty corner storefronts on Avenue A

Someone spray painted this message — "Tax Commercial Vacancies" — over the weekend on the side of the former Benny's Burritos space on Sixth Street and Avenue A.

In late March, Mayor de Blasio told the following to WNYC:

"I am very interested in fighting for a vacancy fee or a vacancy tax that would penalize landlords who leave their storefronts vacant for long periods of time in neighborhoods because they are looking for some top-dollar rent but they blight neighborhoods by doing it."

Anyway, by my count, there are currently six corner storefronts sitting vacant on Avenue A between Houston and 14th Street. (This doesn't count the new retail space for lease in Steiner East Village at 11th Street ... or the incoming Target at 14th Street.)

• Southeast corner of A and Second Street. The Chase branch closed here in November 2015. The space has had six or seven brokers since then. Last October, EastVille Comedy Club looked at taking part of the storefront. However, CB3 denied the application, citing, among other reasons, that this address was never licensed before and that it exists in a saturated zone.

• Northwest corner of A and Third Street. Landmark Bicycles closed here back in October.

• Northwest corner of A and Fourth Street. The Santander bank branch closed here on Friday.

• Southeast corner of A and Fifth Street. This space shouldn't be empty for too much longer: Mast Books is relocating here from a few storefronts away.

• Southwest corner of A and Sixth Street. Benny's shut down in November 2014. The owners of the bar the Black Rose were going to apply for a liquor license for this corner, but those plans never materialized.



• Southeast corner of A and 13th Street. I don't know exactly when Percy's Tavern closed. Back in August they started opening later in the day, foregoing weekend afternoons. In September, a reader told me they were done. I walked by to see — and they were open. My guess is they closed for good at the end of September, about the time applicants for the the Honey Fitz made an unsuccessful attempt for a new liquor license here.

City Council investigating claims of tenant retaliation at NYCHA properties

[Photo of Carlina Rivera yesterday at City Hall via Twitter]

City Council members are taking action following published reports that a resident of the Jacob Riis Houses on Avenue D received an eviction notice after complaining about the NYCHA during a PIX-11 story earlier this month.

During a press conference at City Hall yesterday, New York City Council members Carlina Rivera (District 2) and Ritchie Torres (District 15), chair of the Council Committee on Oversight and Investigations, joined NYCHA residents and advocates to rally against negligent property managers at the Riis Houses. The elected officials say that the property managers are allegedly retaliating against residents who have gone public over the lack of repairs and possible lead exposure in their apartments.

Keshia Benjamin, a Riis Houses resident and organizer of the rally, had her apartment featured on PIX-11 earlier this month over numerous unrepaired health hazards, including leaking pipes that flooded her apartment, damaged doors and bathrooms, and pest, mold, and lead exposure.

Management at Riis Houses reportedly then sent Benjamin a notice that they were examining her record to possibly begin eviction processes for unpaid rent, even though Benjamin said that she had fully paid.

NYCHA officials denied any retaliation, the Daily News reported yesterday.

Following a query by the News, NYCHA officials said that Benjamin's termination notice has been canceled. Per the paper: "It was automatically generated because she had been delinquent on rent within a 12-month period, but has been rescinded because she is now up to date, a spokesperson said."

The spokesperson also said, "NYCHA does not retaliate against residents for any reason."

City Council members claim that Benjamin's story is not the only one at the Riis Houses, and "it appears that Riis property managers are held unaccountable by central staff at NYCHA and use that power to promote a culture of silence amongst residents looking for help."

The Council’s Committee on Oversight and Investigations is now investigating reported instances of retaliatory actions at Riis Houses, as well as the grievance process for tenants and the overall accountability structure within NYCHA.

In addition to the Council investigation, Rivera is planning to introduce legislation to create a formal grievance system so that NYCHA tenants can submit their complaints anonymously and have them investigated fairly. This piece of legislation comes after the recently introduced legislation from Council member Rafael Salamanca that would mandate performance reviews for NYCHA employees.

"NYCHA seems to be focused on moving bad actors around the system whenever they are in the spotlight and not on providing accountability," Rivera said at City Hall yesterday. "This simply cannot continue — the NYCHA must explain themselves in person for these actions."

VVN’s Tea bringing art and tea to the former Neptune space on 1st Avenue

VVN's Tea will mix tea and art when the shop opens at 194 First Ave.

The proprietors, three friends who list artist and designer among their occupations, reportedly signed a five-year lease for the space here between 11th Street and 12th Street.

Here's the concept via the VVN website:

VVN's TEA is a place that not only sells tea, but also promotes a lifestyle. A lifestyle that is centered around the appreciation of tea and the sharing of art.

Every cup is an open canvas, printed with artworks by local artists. When you a cup of tea, you are not just buying the drink, you are buying the whole experience.

You get to take home with you, a tiny piece of artwork and share it with your friends on social media.

The space previously housed the Neptune. The Polish-American restaurant closed in December 2016 after 15 years in business.

The landlord chopped the former Neptune space in half. Chelsea Thai has leased the storefront on the south.

5 big events in May that you may or may not already know about

[Loisaida Festival photo by Stacie Joy]

May marks Lower East Side History Month, the annual celebration created by Fourth Arts Block and Downtown Art, with other local organizations and businesses taking part.

In addition to the activities (see the calendar here) associated with the History Month, here are a few more high-profile events this May...

• May 18-20 — Saint George Ukrainian Festival, Seventh Street. Details here.

• May 19 — Dance Parade and DanceFest, Astor Place, St. Mark's Place and Tompkins Square Park. Details here.

• May 25-27 — The Lower East Side Festival of the Arts, Theater for the New City, 155 First Ave. Details here.

• May 27 — Loisaida Festival, Avenue C. Details here.

6 posts from April

[Photo on 7th Street Saturday by Derek Berg]

A mini month in review...

• HAWK FIGHT (April 2)

• In memory of Kelly Hurley (April 5)

• New-look Alphabet Scoop reopens on 11th Street (April 13)

• A call to help preserve Theatre 80 on St. Mark's Place (April 13)

• Props for the Skateboard Gardener of 7th Street (April 18)

• The Donut Pub opening an outpost on Astor Place (April 20)

Joe & Pat's now open on 1st Avenue

Joe & Pat's, the Staten Island-based pizzeria, opened its first Manhattan location today (as you probably know) at 168 First Ave. between 10th Street and 11th Street.

EVG regular Lola Sáenz stopped by for a pizza to go...



As Eater noted:

The hallmark of the pizza here is the cracker-thin crust with fresh-mozzarella. The food, from the Pappalardo family, has earned the restaurant cult status, and fans will be pleased to know that the Manhattan location is a straight-up duplicate of its older Staten Island sister.

You can find their menu here.

This Joe and Pat's outpost is open weekdays from 11:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. ... and 11:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. on weekends.

Updated 5/1

You can find more details on the pizzeria at Eater and Grub Street...

Construction starts at 118 E. 1st St., future home of a 9-floor residential building

The extended plywood arrived on Friday at 118 E. First St. between Avenue A and First Avenue...



... as work officially started in the lot that will be home to a 9-story residential building featuring seven units divided over 12,500 square feet of residential space (likely condos). The building will include a small retail space on the ground floor.

Meanwhile, no sign of a rendering just yet. (Warren Freyer's Freyer Architects is designing the building.) Perhaps one will eventually show up on the plywood along with the required work permits.

Not much has happened here in the past 12-14 months since workers demolished the three-story building that was standing here.

As noted in a previous post:

No. 118 was one of five new East Village projects identified by the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation as an oversized new development ... "in the neighborhood's affordable housing zones [that] were approved by the city without requiring affordable housing."

According to their investigation released in February 2016 (find the letter to the mayor here), the city approved new developments "with greater square footage than allowed for market-rate developments, without requiring any affordable housing either on-site or off, as mandated by law."

We also heard from a dismayed next-door neighbor when construction started in the lot on Friday.

I am now going to lose 70 percent of light in my place. The kitchen, bathroom and a bedroom will all have shaft windows. I am not even going to rant about another luxury condo absurdity but to lose all this light feels tragic. It is stunning that nobody considered this or there was no hearing in place.

Previously on EV Grieve:
118 E. 1st St. arrives on the market with so many possibilities, and air rights

118 E. 1st. St. will yield to a new 9-floor residential building

Demolition of 118 E. 1st St. begins to make way for 9-story residential building

Moving day for Bareburger

Bareburger is moving out of its corner space on Second Avenue and Fifth Street today ... for the short relocation down to Orchard and Stanton...



Matt Kouskalis, who owns and operates a handful of the city's Bareburger outposts, told me in February that escalating rents at this location were behind the reason for the move.

"So we are moving to a slightly smaller and cozier spot on the Lower East Side," he said in February. "We are sad to leave the East Village but our new location is only a few blocks away and our delivery area will remain the same!"

Bareburger opened here in January 2012.

The asking rent for the two-level space (plus basement) is $25,000, per the listing.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Bareburger is leaving 2nd Avenue; new outpost slated for Orchard Street