Not in bloom: Sunny's Florist closed until early March

If Sunny's Florist is your go-to spot for Valentine's Day, then you'll need a plan B this year. 

The sliver of a storefront on the SE corner of Sixth Street and Second Avenue will be closed through February.

EVG regular Lola Sáenz ran into owner Sun "Sunny" Ja Hwang and her son Edward late Friday. They explained that business has been slower (and generally so in these colder-weather months) ... and combined with the spread of the omicron variant in recent weeks, the two decided to shut down until March 1. 

Unfortunately, the closure includes Feb. 14, a day when the popular shop sees lines around the corner for the tasteful arrangements wrapped to perfection with a flourish (especially when Eddie is doing it).

The business dates here to 1988.

Irving Farm New York is opening an outpost on 10th Street

Irving Farm New York is coming soon to 79 E. 10th St. between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue. 

This will be the sixth cafe/coffee shop in NYC (plus one upstate in Millerton, where they also operate a roastery) for the company that started on Irving Place in 1996. (There was an outpost on Orchard Street, though the owners sold it to a manager, who now runs Sunday to Sunday in the space.) 

And we're assuming that the 10th Street location will offer breakfast and lunch items like at the other outposts. 

No. 79 was previously City of Saints Coffee Roasters, which debuted in June 2014 and never reopened after the PAUSE of March 2020.

LES Convenience is coming soon for your convenience on Avenue A

The proliferation of smoke-snack shops continues. 

Signage for LES Convenience arrived late last week at 105 Avenue A between Sixth Street and Seventh Street. The signage promises an ATM, snacks, drinks, hookah and more. 

No. 105 was previously home to Hub Thai, which moved to 50 Avenue A this past March. 

LES Convenience will mark the third deli-snack-smoke establishment to open on the west side of Avenue A within three blocks. A more-upscale looking deli-market is coming to 93 Avenue A ... while a mystery deli-market is said to be in the works for 123 Avenue A. 

Meanwhile, I would have been happy if East Village Farms had never vanished at 100 Avenue A.

Abandoned curbside dining structures attracting more attention on the NE corner of 6th and A

The abandoned curbside dining structures on the NE corner of Sixth Street at Avenue A continue to attract attention... both from residents who want to see them removed and from people looking for a space to shelter...

Several handmade signs noting "Waiting on DOT for removal" now adorn the exterior walls ...

As previously mentioned, several readers-residents have complained about the lengthy structure on the Sixth Street side. The bar-restaurant August Laura closed in the corner space here in early December, and up to 10 people were said to move into the structure the night workers cleared out the restaurant. Another reader said that it has become "a 24-hour shooting gallery."

In late December, reps for the Department of Homeless Services posted notices for a cleanup on the Sixth Street structure. According to a resident who lives nearby, that action saw the removal of some mattresses and several abandoned household items.

In October, then-Mayor de Blasio ordered the Department of Transportation to remove unused dining sheds erected as part of the Open Restaurants program. City workers have reportedly taken down dozens to date.

We're told that residents have contacted 311, the DOT and local City Councilmember Carlina Rivera's office about these structures.

While the retail space is for lease, 94-96 Avenue A is also set for auction on Jan. 31 with an opening bid of $4.8 million. Penn South Capital paid $9.6 million for the property in March 2019. The building's new owners added a one-floor extension here in 2020.

Week in Grieview

Posts this past weekend included (with a playful snowball fight on 7th Street — pic by Derek Berg) ... 

• Reports: Theatre 80, the crown jewel of St. Mark's Place, enters bankruptcy, hopes to refinance loan (Tuesday)

• East River Park greenway now closing up to 10th Street (Monday) ... Tree sitters take to East River Park (Wednesday)

• About Hekate Café & Elixir Lounge, opening soon on Avenue B (Thursday) 

• An SUV collision on 1st Avenue at 5th Street (Monday)

• Cops searching for a dapper gun-toting suspect who robbed the Villager Smoke Shop (Tuesday) 

• An end of the ride: Busy Bee Bikes closes on 6th Street (Monday) 

• Tamam Falafel has closed on 14th Street; new location in the works (Wednesday) 

• 2022 corner watch: St. Mark's Place and 3rd Avenue (Thursday) 

• FIRST SNOW OF 2022 (Friday — here and here and here) 

• Dim Sum Go Go makes it sign official on 1st Avenue (Tuesday) 

• Kurt Russell to the rescue at Metrograph (Wednesday) 

• Check out the new video by local faves Hello Mary (Friday)

• The 'High Line East vibes' of 799 Broadway (Monday) 

• 58 1st St. awaits another restaurant (Tuesday) 

• A look at the corner market coming to 6th and A (Tuesday) 

• Boilermaker is closing on 1st and 1st (Wednesday) 

• To the Tompkins Square Park tree stump art with love (Thursday) 

• Christo, badass (Tuesday)

... speaking of Christo, here's another shot from this past week of our resident red-tailed hawks high atop 10th Street and Avenue A ... photo by Steven...

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Sunday's opening shot

A mulch mound courtesy of the chipping weekend in Tompkins Square Park... residents can come by and grab some fresh mulch for tree beds, gardens, etc.

Saturday's parting shot

A discarded balancing act on 10th Street ... thanks to Steven for the pic...

Please be mine

 

A special edition of the weekly Fridays at 5 feature... Remembering David Bowie on what would have been his 75th birthday... this is the video for "Be My Wife," from Low, which was almost released 45 years to the date.

David Robert Jones was born on Jan. 8, 1947, in Brixton, London. He died on Jan. 10, 2016. He made his home nearby on Lafayette Street just south of Houston.

Hot chip: Scenes from MulchFest Day 1

Day 1 of Chipping Weekend, the grand finale of the MulchFest season, is in the books here in Tompkins Square Park. 

Steven braved the low double-digit wind chill for these shots...

Back at it tomorrow (Sunday) for Day 2 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. 

So if you have a Christmas tree to dispose of, you still have time to take it to the park. Better, save it for discarding until, say, August, so we will have a Christmas in August post to look forward to... 

#Mulchfest

'Gifts of the Magi' — and Chesney the camel! — at St. Mark's Church-in-the-Bowery

Thursday afternoon saw a production of "Gifts of the Magi" at St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery in 10th Street at Second Avenue ... sponsored by the Henry Street Settlement and Trinity Church Wall Street... 

EVG contributor Stacie Joy stopped by the church before the performance was underway (the festivities began with a parade here from Haven Plaza on 11th Street and Avenue C) ...

Cast member Chesney, a 5-year-old camel from Pennsylvania (here with his trainer Jason Martin of Home School Camels), attracted the most attention... as Stacie said: "Everybody loved Chesney."