Friday's parting shot

A longtime EVG reader shared this from outside the former P.S. 64/Charas/El Bohio Community Center on the 10th Street side: "Racoon spotted climbing off the old P.S. 64 scaffold and scurrying up 10th before turning south on B."

Next stop?

'Round' trip

 

Emma Anderson, songwriter, guitarist and singer in the shoegazing/Britpop band Lush, recently (Oct 20!) released her debut solo record, Sonic Cathedral. 

The track here is for "Bend The Round."

From Tompkins Square Park: Christo in Don't You (Forget About Me)

Photos by Steven 

Flaco, the Eurasian eagle-owl, is getting all the attention this week after decamping to the East Village and Lower East Side from Central Park. (And yes, we have a Flaco post coming soon.) 

This may be why Christo, the resident red-tailed hawk of Tompkins Square Park, has been extra photogenic of late ... as seen yesterday near 7th and A ...

And 2023 marks Christo's 10-year East Village anniversary.

Headline H/T

No more Funzi at Funzi's Pizzeria on St. Mark's Place

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

After nearly five months, Funzi's Pizzeria has a new name at 36 St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue. 

The restaurant is going for now as ... Pizzeria...

As of yesterday, the Funzi's name has been removed or taped over...

... from most places...

We're told the investors are taking over the business with a yet-to-be-determined new name. Hospitality vet Kevin Cox, who launched the restaurant, is out, and he took the Funzi's name with him to use for a new version of the pizzeria in another EV location. (Funzi's was named after the youngest of Cox's three sons.)

The pizzeria opened in late June, and aspired to be an East Village throwback with a 1970s-80s decor modeled after his grandmother's house.

Hey Bay: Con Ed preps for more transformer work at the Avenue A substation

Reporting by Stacie Joy

In recent weeks, workers have been doing some prep work at the Con Ed substation on Avenue A between Fifth Street and Sixth Street... work that includes 24/7 security on the scene, moving cones and barriers here and there. 

As of yesterday, the first of the Bay Cranes arrived ... now the work is getting serious. (Emphasis ours.) 

As per workers on the scene, this is a two-week process. First, they will remove and disassemble the old transformer on the Fifth Street side — starting today. This will take a while. (Editorializing.) Then, slated for the weekend after Thanksgiving, the new transformer will go in and provide an Instagram-worthy photo extravaganza. (Try to get a window seat at Sophie's or Somtum Der!)

This is the second transformer replacement at the substation this year... the previous job was a five-month-long project.

Updated 7:37 a.m.

We have liftoff...

Report: Just 1 bid for the former P.S. 64 during its bankruptcy auction

The bankruptcy auction for the former P.S. 64/Charas/El Bohio Community Center at 605 E. Ninth St. between Avenue B and Avenue C was reportedly canceled this week. 

The Real Deal reported that "the property failed to solicit any bids outside of a $55 million credit bid from its lender."

A few weeks back, per TRD, Madison Realty Capital sold the loan secured by the property to 605 East 9th Community Holdings LLC, which allegedly has ties to Aaron Sosnick, a billionaire hedge fund manager who lives next door in the Christodora House.

As we first reported, the building was headed to a bankruptcy sale on Nov. 8 — this past Wednesday. 

So what happened? 

Real estate adviser Hilco claims it marketed the property, spoke to over 50 people and conducted individual site tours for four separate groups. But it ultimately received no offers, according to a letter obtained by The Real Deal. 

Buyers were turned off by the building's landmark status and the various difficulties Singer had obtaining building permits, according to Hilco. Others lost interest after reading about "the billionaire neighbor who wants to control the property."

It's unclear then what might happen next to the long-vacant property that Gregg Singer bought in a city auction in 1998. Given the history here, the narrative will likely take several more twists and turns.

Through the years, Singer wanted to turn the one-time P.S. 64 into a dorm, though those plans never materialized, and the building has sat in disrepair. The 135,000-square-foot building is zoned for “community facility use,” and any conversion to a condoplex or residential housing would require a zoning variance. 

As previously noted, some residents want to see the space used again as a community center, as it was during its time as Charas/El Bohio Community Center. Singer evicted the group on Dec. 27, 2001. 

Sosnick also reportedly bought the former Boys' Club of New York on 10th Street and Avenue A, now home to the Joyce Theater, several nonprofit arts groups, and a gallery. 

Noting

Every so often, Blogger, the content management system that this site uses, seemingly randomly updates something, like the photo-uploading feature. 

On that note, the photo-uploading feature is currently displaying error messages when trying to upload photos. 

Back with posts AND photos when all systems are go. 

Meanwhile, we can still cut and paste the code from previously published photos... like this crowd favorite, currently on loan to the National Gallery of Art...

 

The St. Nicholas Cookie Walk returns for the 1st time since 2019

A favorite local holiday tradition is back.

The Cookie Walk, slated for Dec. 9 and 10, is taking place once again this year at St. Nicholas of Myra Orthodox Church on Avenue A and 10th Street. This will be the first one since 2019... and before the pandemic.

The always-festive event, held in the church basement, offers about 65 varieties of homemade cookies and pastries. As the name implies, you take a walk around cookie-filled tables and pick your favorites. 

Find more details at the church website.

Have a community service project? The George Jackson Academy would like to hear from you

Sharing some info from the George Jackson Academy, the middle school for boys at 104 St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue. 

George Jackson Academy will host a Community Service Day on Monday, Nov. 20. GJA would love to know if there are specific institutions and organizations that would be interested in our students' help on that day. 

If there is an East Village institution or organization interested in partnering with us on Community Service Day, please email us at nmccabe@gjacademy.org by Monday, Nov. 13.

Stoned Gourmet Cannabis Pizza's Chris Barrett is opening a slice joint on 4th near B

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Chris Barrett, the owner of the popular Stoned Gourmet Cannabis Pizza brand, is opening a new joint, Eighths — Pizza by the Slice, at 240 E. Fourth St., just west of Avenue B. 

He's looking at a mid-December debut. 

Barrett told me the menu will feature all cannabis-infused items but available in smaller quantities than at his Stoned Gourmet Cannabis Pizza places (like the one directly across Fourth Street). All slices will cost $10, with a recommended order of one to three, depending on your tolerance. The shop will also offer gelato, wings and garlic/ganja knots.

A few other details: There won't be any liquor available here, and patrons must be 21+ for the slices. Projected hours are Thursday through Sunday from 4 p.m. to midnight. (And no reservations are required — this is a walk-up operation.) 

Barrett said he plans to open a few more of these slice shops; he already has outposts in the Bronx and Brooklyn. 

No. 240 was most recently the pizzeria Johnny Favorite's.