Week in Grieview

Posts this past week included (with a random skyline shot from the EV)...

• Dec. 31 is the last day for East Village mainstay Dallas BBQ (Monday) 

• DA-hosted East Village gun buyback nets 16 firearms (Tuesday) 

• Part-time New School faculty reach a tentative contract agreement with the university (Sunday) 

• Howl! Happening explores the history of street art and graffiti with 'City of Kings' (Wednesday) 

• Bang a gone: Stomp's long run on 2nd Avenue concludes in January (Wednesday) 

• It's 'Time for Christmas' with the book man of Astor Place (Wednesday) 

• Bye Bye Blondie; hello Bad Brains? (Sunday) 

• Kim's Video, storied film and music retailer in the East Village, gets the documentary treatment (Thursday) 

• Checkpoint Santa (Saturday) 

• Jay Joe's Classic Cuts now open on 3rd Street (Thursday) 

• 1st Avenue old-timer Royal Bangladesh Indian Restaurant is being replaced by — obviously — a smoke shop (Monday) 

• First Avenue Laundry Center is closed for now (Monday) 

• A walk among the trees on 2nd Avenue and 10th Street (Friday) 

• Hello again: Sidewalk on the NW corner of 2nd Avenue and 9th Street returns to view (Monday) 

• A Panera To-Go is opening on University Place (Tuesday) 

• The city serves notice to more abandoned East Village curbside dining structures (Tuesday) ... Workers remove Somtum Der's curbside dining structure (Saturday) 

• Sacco has apparently gone out of business on 11th Street (Tuesday)

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Part-time New School faculty reach tentative contract agreement with the university

Photo from Nov. 28 by Daniel Efram 

After 25 days on strike, nearly 2,600 part-time faculty members at the New School and the Parsons School of Design have reached a tentative contract agreement. 

Here's more via the New School website from last evening: 

A Joint Statement from ACT-UAW Local 7902 and the New School 

We are extremely pleased to announce that ACT-UAW Local 7902 and the New School have reached a tentative collective bargaining agreement. This is a strong, fair, five-year contract that increases compensation significantly, protects health care benefits, and ensures that part-time faculty are paid for additional work done outside the classroom to support our students. 

The union leadership will unanimously recommend this agreement to its members, and it will now go to part-time faculty union members for a ratification vote over the next few days. In the meantime, the union has ended the strike and all university classes and events will resume as scheduled effective immediately. 

And from an Instagram post via New York Indivisible: 

While the part-time faculty are saddened that the university’s intransigence at the bargaining table forced them to leave their classrooms and take to the picket line, they emerge from their work strong, organized, and eager to face the struggles ahead. This tentative agreement is only the beginning, and the part-time faculty will continue to take power back from The New School’s top executives and place it back where it belongs: with the faculty and students, without whom the university could not function. 

As EVG contributor Daniel Efram previously reported, 95% of the faculty voted against accepting the last and best New School offer on Nov. 30.

From our last report: 

"Part-time faculty have not gotten a raise since 2018," said Rachel Aydt, a 20-year part-time New School/Parson faculty member. "And the increase being offered amounts to 1.8% per year, which does not come close to the cost of living increases in New York City during this time." 

According to Annie Lee Larson, part-time faculty at the New School/Parsons, roughly 87% of the teaching faculty are part-time. They seek fair compensation, including for work performed outside the classroom, reliable health care, tangible recourse against discrimination and harassment, and job security.

The tentative agreement ends seven months of negotiations. The part-time faculty were to return to teaching as soon as today.

Bye Bye Blondie; hello Bad Brains?

After five-plus years on Bleecker at the Bowery, the Blondie mural is no more... a worker painted over the space yesterday (by the newish J Crew). 

Our friend Alex took this photo (be sure to check out his site Flaming Pablum) ...

Shepard Fairy — in connection with The L.I.S.A. Project NYC — created this mural in August 2017, replacing the two-year-old Joey Ramone/CBGB mural.

Word is the space will give way to another CBGB favorite — Bad Brains. 

By the way, CBGB debuted on Dec. 10, 1973, across the way at 315 Bowery.

And now to 1982 with Bad Brains live at CBGB ...

 

Checkpoint Santa

Photos by Stacie Joy 

During SantaCon today in the East Village, the 9th Precinct had two checkpoints set up for several hours ... one on Avenue B between Third Street and Fourth Street ... and on Avenue A between 11th Street and 12th Street...

Officers at the scene said they were there to monitor quality-of-life issues, with tickets for open containers (and at least one minor with alcohol).

SantaCon started this morning at 10 on 40th and Broadway, with 60-plus bars throughout Midtown East and West and elsewhere participating ... as well as eight East Village bars officially taking part ... with others following suit. 

There were also more than a dozen (by our unofficial count) bars and restaurants with a Santa ban.

At the movies

Two of EVG's favorite 2022 films — "Decision to Leave" and "Aftersun" — are now both playing at Village East by Angelika on Second Avenue at 12th Street. (With an assist by EV Arrow.) 

Meanwhile, on the fence about "Bones & All." 

Find theater info here.

Workers remove Somtum Der's curbside dining structure

From the EVG tipline... workers from a private hauler were out early this morning removing Somtum Der's curbside dining structure outside 85 Avenue A between Fifth Street and Sixth Street. 

The streetery didn't appear to be in use any longer. Plus, as of June, this lane south of Sixth Street is a No Standing zone, and parking is not allowed between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. seven days a week. 

The signs arrived ahead of the new Bus Only lane on the southbound section of Avenue A.

The nearby Takahachi removed its curbside structure back in August. 

Updated:

Saturday's opening shot

The anarchy Christmas wreath is now in place over the door outside Search & Destroy, 25 St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue ...

Friday's parting shot

As seen on Second Avenue this evening... photo by Derek Berg...

Do it Clean

 

Hamish Kilgour, a founding member of New Zealand's The Clean, died this past week at age 65. 

Here's more about the influential (and underappreciated IMO) band via NPR:

The Clean's open, do-it-yourself approach certainly stood the test of time, crystallized in a lyric Kilgour wrote: "Anything could happen and it could be right now / And the choice is yours, so make it worthwhile." That aesthetic heavily impacted later indie rockers such as Pavement, Yo La Tengo and Superchunk. The band's influence extended into numerous scenes around the world, from the Elephant 6 collective in America, to current bands like The Courtneys in Canada and The Beths back in New Zealand. They've all found inspiration in The Clean's impulsive creativity and lack of pretense.

The above video for "Dunes" from 1989 was filmed in NYC... and you'll spot some familiar and long-gone music venues on the Bowery and East Houston and elsewhere.

Headline H/T  

One shining moment (hopefully)

Photos by Steven

We've noted that the lights need to be fixed on the holiday tree in Tompkins Square Park. 

But! 

Full illumination is on the way ahead of Sunday's lighting ceremony. Parks employees were on hand this morning working on the lights...

And as a reminder, the holiday tree lighting is this Sunday (Dec. 11) from 4-5 p.m. The 31st edition features familiar names: the Carolers of Olde New York from Theater for the New City and music from the Mandel & Lydon Trio ... with refreshments via Veselka and C&B.

As you may recall, the Parks Department forgot to wire the tree last year.