Grant Shaffer's NY See

Here's the latest NY See panel, East Village-based illustrator Grant Shaffer's observational sketch diary of things that he sees and hears around the neighborhood.

Gut renovations continue at the soon-to-be-expanded 264 E. 7th St.

The gutting of 264 E. Seventh St. between Avenue C and Avenue D is in full swing...





According to the approved permit filed with the city, the owners plan to gut renovate No. 264 and convert it to a two-family dwelling (from three units), apparently leaving the exterior of the building in place and adding an extension in the rear.

Things didn't look so good here in September 2016, when a permit was filed with the DOB to demolish the three-level, circa 1842 townhouse.

Preservations rallied to try to have the string of pastel-colored residences here considered for landmarking. However, in late October 2017, the Landmarks Preservation Commission refused to consider them for such a designation.

This past April, word came via the Village Preservation (GVSHP) that new owners purchased the property and were doing away with a full demolition. (Public records show an LLC paid $7.7 million for the address.)

We haven't seen any renderings for the all-new No. 264 just yet.

And as noted before, Felicia Bond lived in the garden duplex at No. 264 when she illustrated the renowned children's book "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie" in the mid-1980s.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Live in the house that inspired the art for 'If You Give a Mouse a Cookie'

City says no to landmarking row of 7th Street homes, clearing way for demolition of No. 264

A sign of love at the incoming Paloma Rocket-Carbone Pizza on 7th Street

EVG reader Chris Rowland spotted this illuminated LOVE neon sign outside the former Jimmy's No. 43 space the other day.

So we asked proprietor Jimmy Carbone what this was about.

As we previously reported, Carbone is collaborating with Graham Winton of Paloma Rocket for a new venture in the basement space here between Second Avenue and Cooper Square. The plans for Paloma Rocket-Carbone Pizza were put on hold during Carbone's health scare.

In an email this week, Carbone said that the two are still awaiting on the final approval from the State Liquor Authority.

As for the sign, he said "in these troubling times all you need is ❤️ LOVE." He explained that Winton bought a vintage sign collection, many of which will hang in the new space.


[Photo by Jimmy Carbone]

There isn't a firm opening date yet, but they are in the sign-decorating stage!

Previously on EV Grieve:
Jimmy Carbone on the long recovery ahead: 'Starting each day is a challenge'

Jimmy Carbone and Paloma Rocket collaborating on new venture for the Jimmy's No. 43 space

These 5 East Village restaurants are seeing Michelin stars

[Ko file photo]

ICYMI: Back on Monday, Michelin announced its 2020 Starred Selections for New York City restaurants ... for the 15th edition of the "Michelin Guide New York City and Westchester County."

Five East Village restaurants are on the list of selections, including for the first time — Ukiyo at 239 E. Fifth St. between Second Avenue and Cooper Square.

Here's what Michelin had to say about the place from the wife-and-husband team behind fellow Michelin-starred Jewel Bako: "This lovely counter run by Chef Marco Prins is a delight for its high-quality ingredients and impeccable seasoning."

And the rest...

Two Stars, "excellent cooking, worth a detour"
• Momofuku Ko, 8 Extra Place

One Star, "high quality cooking, worth a stop"
• Jewel Bako, 239 E. Fifth St. between Second Avenue and Cooper Square

• Kanoyama, 175 Second Ave. at 11th Street

• Tuome, 536 E. Fifth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B

Meanwhile, Kyo Ya, 94 E. Seventh St. between Avenue A and First Avenue, was dropped from the list. Chikara Sono, their longtime chef, left at the end of March.

Michelin released the list of Bib Gourmands last week.

Renovation tour: A look at the under-construction Irving Plaza

Irving Plaza, the 1,200-capacity music venue on Irving Place and 15th Street, closed back in July for an eight-month rehab.

For anyone interested in renovation updates, the Irving Plaza Instagram account (where we spotted this top photo) is now promising weekly updates ahead of its reopening in the first quarter of 2020.

As for the renovations, here's Billboard with the story from this past April:

[T]he renovations at Irving Plaza will be overseen by Live Nation clubs and theaters division and include revamps of the lobby area and the music hall, new bars on all levels, the addition of a downstairs VIP lounge and remodeling of the mezzanine including a new box-seating section configuration.

The venue has been in use for concerts the past 41 years. The Polish Army Veterans of America have owned the building since 1948. Here's more history via the Irving Plaza website:

Originally, the building was four separate brownstones, which were eventually combined into a hotel in the 1870s. In 1927, the building was gutted and turned into a ballroom-style theater and christened Irving Plaza.

Over the next few decades Irving Plaza would serve as a union meeting house, a performance space for folk dance troupes, and a Polish Army Veteran community center, as well as a venue for the Peoples Songs Hootenannies with Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie.

In 1978, Irving Plaza was converted into a rock music venue ...

Previously on EV Grieve:
Irving Plaza is now closed for renovations

Hitchcocktober movie of the week — 'The Lady Vanishes'

Hitchcocktober is rolling along ... tonight's movie of the week is an early AH classic — the 1938 train thriller "The Lady Vanishes."

Take a look...



The film is at 7:30 tonight (Oct. 24!) in the big auditorium — the Jaffe Art Theatre — at City Cinemas Village East on Second Avenue and 12th Street.

And upcoming:

• "Psycho" — Oct. 31

Find advance ticket info at this link.

Noted

Sign high jinx outside the Cooper Station Post Office on 11th Street at Fourth Avenue.

Eden spotted the addition to the sign.

We reached out to the Postmaster General's office to see if they approved the "only weed" message.

Seems like old times: The post-prison life of Steve Croman

[60 Avenue B]

ICYMI: The Real Deal recently took a deep dive on the post-prison business life of landlord Steve Croman.

Croman was released from the Manhattan Correctional Facility on June 1, 2018 after serving eight months of a one-year jail sentence and paid a $5 million tax settlement following separate criminal charges brought by the AG's office for fraudulent refinancing of loans and tax fraud. In a separate civil case, Croman agreed to pay $8 million to the tenants he was accused of bullying out of their rent-regulated apartments.

A supposed independent management company is now overseeing Croman's residential properties — including 47 buildings with 617 units in the East Village — for the next five years.

However, per TRD, it's pretty much business as usual for Croman. The piece starts with an anecdote about three NYU students getting the boot from the Croman-owned 60 Avenue B.

To some excerpts:

Croman’s prison stint was widely seen as a turning point in how New York pursues criminal and civil cases against alleged predatory landlords. Since his release, though, little seems to have changed for Croman. The landlord remains a regular presence at his properties, sources say, and is facing a fresh crop of lawsuits accusing him of violating New York rent laws and backing out of deals, among other claims.

As part of a settlement with the state attorney general’s office, he gave temporary control of more than 100 buildings to Michael Besen’s New York City Management last year, and the firm took over the East Village property this past July.

But while Besen’s firm was picked to oversee Croman’s properties until 2023, it’s far from a victory for tenants. In some cases, the properties are managed by former employees of Croman’s 9300 Realty, who jumped over to NYC Management soon after the deal with prosecutors was announced.

“You have individuals who worked in a corrupt culture,” said Sean Madden, the father of one of the NYU students [at 60 Avenue B]. “All they did was trade their business cards … but the business practices didn’t change at all.”

And...

According to a TRD analysis of city records, Croman’s Manhattan properties raked in an estimated $47.5 million in 2018.

The landlord also continues to visit his buildings, giving orders to supers and porters, essentially ignoring the state’s five-year ban on managing his properties, said Cynthia Chaffee, a founder of the Stop Croman Coalition who lives in one of his buildings on East 18th Street.

A spokesperson for New York AG Letitia James told TRD that Croman is allowed to visit the properties but should have “minimal, if any, contact with tenants.”

But Chaffee said tenants have already started meeting with James’ office about the time he spends at his buildings.

“We’ve been stuck with the same property managers and supers that worked for Croman, and then they were hired by NYC Management,” Chaffee said. “We have to deal with these abusive people all the time.”

And...

“He’s ferocious. Nothing has changed,” said one broker who has worked with Croman on deals. “He’s buying [properties] left and right, and it’s not like he’s using a shill or a fake name. His name is right on the contract. This guy isn’t afraid of anything.”

Read the full article here.

Here then, the Lower East Side Quality of Life Improvement Plan

[The Mayor at Max Fish via @NYCMayorsOffice]

The city yesterday unveiled a new etiquette campaign aimed to douse the flames of the hellish nightlife inferno that engulfs the Lower East Side on weekends.

Here's the release on the pilot program via the city:

The Lower East Side Quality of Life Improvement Plan is a multiagency plan to improve quality of life for New Yorkers living in one of the city’s densest nightlife districts. The plan is focused on 6 blocks of Orchard and Ludlow Streets between Houston and Delancey on the Lower East Side.

Improvements will reduce traffic and pedestrian congestion on the street and make garbage sweeping routes more effective. Nightlife patrons will also see a new etiquette campaign encouraging them to be more respectful aware of their surroundings.

Residents and businesses often complain of late-night horn honking and loud voices as traffic stops due to double-parked cars dropping off and collecting passengers on narrow streets.

The plan addresses residents' and businesses’ concerns and make their neighborhood more livable, and was designed with the support and input of the community and businesses and has the buy-in of residents, business owners, workers, and local officials.

The components of this plan include:

New parking regulations to ease traffic congestion, reduce noise

• DOT implementing “No Standing” rules overnight: from midnight to 6am on the west sides of Ludlow and Orchard streets, and 7 pm to 7 am on the east sides, seven days a week.
• Removing parked cars overnight eases congestion, honking and other noise.

Sanitation sweeper schedule coordinated with bar closing times for greater effectiveness

• Street sweepers will now operate between 3 am and 6 am, to better capture all the litter dropped by late-night patrons of bars and restaurants.
• The old schedule from midnight to 3 am was less efficient, because many streets were swept before closing time, leaving hours for patrons to drop litter.

Increased enforcement of for-hire vehicles

• TLC will increase enforcement patrols to clamp down on unlicensed for-hire vehicles double parking and making unauthorized pickups.
• A 10-person squad of TLC officers and supervisors will conduct random patrols between 11pm and 3am at least once every Friday and Saturday night.

"Night Owl" etiquette campaign urging patrons to be more considerate

• Office of Nightlife [Night Mayor!] and NYPD creating and distributing signs to bars and clubs with tips for theft prevention and other helpful tips.

Here are two of the "Night Owl" signs that will appear on LinkNYC kiosks ...





"The world loves New York nightlife, but we also have to take care of the New Yorkers who live where others play," Mayor de Blasio said in a statement. "We are creating cleaner, quieter streets to improve quality of life while ensuring bars, restaurants and clubs can thrive."

You can watch a recap of the press conference here...

The city that never sleeps has to look out for the New Yorkers who live where others play. Join me on the Lower East Side. https://t.co/UYvFf1vUak

— Mayor Bill de Blasio (@NYCMayor) October 22, 2019

So that is the plan... now the reaction...

Updated 9 a.m.

Speaking of reaction...

Office is a waste of taxpayer money, & was created by lobbyist & propped up by bogus EIS report touting all the $ nightlife brings (after lumped in w/ MSG, getting icecream at 6pm w/ your kid, & Broadway). We have a homeless epidemic, not enough good schools, trains suck! Focus! https://t.co/8aORWPKeCy

— LES Dwellers (@LESdwellers) October 23, 2019

Afandi Grill is closing on 1st Avenue

[EVG photo from September 2018]

After nearly 13 months in business, Kamola Akhmedova, the owner of Afandi Grill at 149 First Ave., has announced the closure of her restaurant between Ninth Street and 10th Street.

Here's part of her farewell via Instagram:

[W]e would like to announce that we are closing our physical location permanently. No, Afandi is not going anywhere. We will continue as a #catering brand.

We enjoyed this period that we were in #eastvillage 💕 This neighborhood became our home.

Tomorrow (Oct. 24) is the last day. The restaurant opened in the late summer of 2018, serving creative cuisine via Central Asia.

You can check out the Afandi Grill website for catering info.

H/T EVG reader Jason!