Photo by Derek Berg
A lower-budget Nativity scene on Seventh Street...
Tuesday, December 19, 2023
EV Loves NYC looks for support and a partnership with the city to aid in feeding asylum seekers
Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy
Note: Faces of the asylum seekers have been blurred
The situation at the reticketing center at the former St. Brigid School hasn't improved since the last time we visited.
There are still almost 1,000 people being processed at the center on Seventh Street and Avenue B daily, and few shelter placements. Asylum seekers who have received their 30- or 60-day notice evicting them from their shelter wait in long lines, sometimes overnight, to be given a wristband and hopefully temporary placement or a cot assignment.
The overwhelming majority do not get placed and can opt to go to Bathgate in the Bronx, where they may be able to sleep on the floor, or, if it’s a Code Blue or weather event, a center in Gramercy, where they can stay but are only offered chairs overnight. They can also opt for oneway reticketing anywhere else in the world, but this does not seem to be a popular choice.
Meals are also an ongoing crisis for asylum seekers, refugees and migrants, with city no-bid contract providers often offering spoiled or moldy food or items that can't be eaten by Muslims.
Last week, The New York Times reported that DocGo, which has a $432 million no-bid contract with the city, discarded more than 70,000 uneaten meals between Oct. 22 and Nov. 22. The Post spoke with asylum seekers who said the meals — which DocGo charges the city $11 each for — were unhealthy and inedible.
"The breakfast and lunch is so cold we can't eat it, so it gets thrown in the trash," said one mother.
Mutual aid groups like the volunteer-run East Village Loves NYC have been working to provide hot meals as often as possible, with Sunday's distribution providing a choice of vegan sweet potato curry, balsamic-glazed chicken or beef meatball stew with side slaw Halal meals to just shy of 600 people at the site. Also available are hot coffee, snacks, and socks — desperately needed in the cold weather. (Although fewer than the last time I attended a distribution, many people still wore chancletas or sandals.)
Almost everyone I spoke to mentioned being hungry, often pantomiming by rubbing their stomachs and gesturing for food. In Spanish, women gathered around me and asked for help with shoes, underwear, warm clothes, blankets, or tents.
A group of 20 women were escorted to the nearby Sixth Street Community Center between Avenue B and Avenue C, where they were offered donated clothing.
Sasha Allenby, co-founder of East Village Loves New York, explained the numbers game of fundraising to provide food to those in need. Since the long lines at the reticketing center at St Brigid's started three weeks ago, the nonprofit has already delivered 3,300 free meals plus fruit and coffee, costing them over $10,000.
"This would have cost the city over $40,000 considering they pay their contractors between $11 to $14 to provide a sub-par meal," Allenby said. "Since the asylum seekers began arriving last year, we've spent around $60,000 on providing free meals. We care about every asylum seeker and want to keep helping. Still, at the end of the day, we're the little guy on a shoestring budget raised by small donations from the community, and we can only continue helping if we are supported by the City."
Aside from feeding the asylum seekers on Sunday, East Village Loves NYC partnered with multiple organizations this week to help provide hungry New Yorkers with meals in Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, and the Bronx. (Find a list here.)
We contacted David Schmid, deputy commissioner of external affairs of the NYC Office of Emergency Management. He said that "the guests were extremely appreciative (as are we)" of the meals and assistance East Village Loves NYC provided.
Schmid said they have a meeting set up with Mammad Mahmoodi, co-founder of the group, tomorrow for the city to discuss how they can continue the partnership.
"We'll walk him through the Strengthening Communities program in the hopes that they'll apply for our next cohort in 2024," Schmid said. "In the meantime, we've also discussed using some private funds that we've raised internally to make a monetary donation to EV Loves NYC to recognize their contribution and ongoing support. It will be a modest donation for now, but we certainly want to acknowledge their incredible work while we explore how to best formalize and sustain the relationship going forward."
NYCEM Commissioner Zach Iscol mentioned the partnership in the Dec. 15 public safety update at City Hall, and you can hear his remarks about EV Loves NYC and the Strengthening Communities program around the 16:30-minute mark here.
Curious about how you can help? EV Loves NYC is hosting a sock drive. Details here.
Previously on EV Grieve:
ICYMI: Cacio e Vino has closed on 2nd Ave.; new cafe on the way
There wasn't any mention of a closure on the Italian restaurant's Instagram page. (The last post about a speed dating brunch was from September.)
In any event, the restaurant will not be reopening.
New operators were granted administrative approval for a beer-wine license from Community Board 3 last month. The unnamed establishment looks to be an all-day cafe/restaurant (proposed hours were 9 a.m. to 11 p.m.).
You can find the questionnaire, which includes a sample menu, here. The new owners were also behind Fillup Coffee on the Upper West Side and in Sunset Park in Brooklyn. No word on an opening date.
H/T Steven
The new smoke shops of lower Avenue B
Photos by Stacie Joy
Grab & Go Convenience is now open at 23 Avenue B between Second Street and Third Street.
It's a full-service smoke shop offering flower, cartridges, edibles, prerolls, lozenges/candies, etc. Plus, tobacco products. And, uh, sex toys. (We said full service!)
Meanwhile, a smoke shop is also in the works for 9-11 Avenue B, one block to the south... in space that was, for six decades, Raul's Barber Shop.
These shops will compete with Green Line, which opened in late October at 42 Avenue B between Third Street and Fourth Street...
The 9-11 Avenue B and 42 Avenue B spaces are in buildings owned by Steve Croman.
Monday, December 18, 2023
Plywood down on 2nd Avenue
Top photo by Steven; 2nd pic by Gabriel Sommer
Emergency responders were spotted this morning on the NW corner of Second Avenue at Ninth Street... where the plywood along the under-renovation storefront apparently fell over onto the sidewalk ... likely due to the wind and rain...
There weren't any reports of injuries.
As previously mentioned, a fast-casual restaurant, Balkan StrEAT, was in the works for the space (the former Starbucks). We're not sure what the status of this project is. The site has been dormant recently, and the Balkan StrEAT on Sixth Avenue closed in October.
Displaced 14th Street tenants seek support after city orders them to vacate their building
Photos courtesy of the Cooper Square Committee unless marked
On Nov. 28, the residents — most of them in rent-stabilized units — were abruptly vacated after ongoing excavation on a Madison Reality Capital-owned 24-story development next door on the SW corner of Avenue C destabilized the five-story building. (We were the first media outlet to report on the situation.)
The city gave tenants a short time on Nov. 28 to leave the premises. The Red Cross put up the residents in a Chinatown hotel through Dec. 3. We've heard from tenants staying with friends... and others are now said to be in shelters. Parents with children discussed how their routines are upended as they have been shuttled from the building to hotels to shelters and have missed days of schooling.
On Thursday, with the support of elected officials and the Cooper Square Committee, several tenants spoke out, detailing how they are struggling to reestablish their lives this holiday season without much help from anyone. Residents said they have heard little to nothing from the landlord, Jeremy Lebewohl, or the building's property manager, Ranger Management.
Before the rally, Madison Realty Capital reportedly told District 2 City Councilmember Carlina Rivera that they are open to discussing housing accommodations with the displaced residents from the firm's LES portfolio, though no other specifics were offered.
The residents
"Over two weeks ago and without any notice, myself and fellow residents of 642 were abruptly displaced from our homes. Amid this crisis, our landlord and management company's silence has been astonishing. They have left us tenants to fend for ourselves and forced us to find other accommodations, whether it be crashing with friends or utilizing shelter services in an already inaccessible city. This deeply traumatic experience has underscored the urgent need for stronger tenant rights." — Sky Yeatts
"I was so astounded and frightened to learn that MRC seemingly did not take proper precautions to protect the 120-year-old building where I have lived for over 30 years BEFORE they started digging the foundations for their 24-story building next door. I am approaching retirement with modest means to support myself. Because of MRC’s carelessness, I am effectively homeless and afraid for my future." — Michael Hawley
"I have lived in this building since 1986. My kids were raised there ... The city knew about the damage in 2019 from the construction, but they still allowed them to build the 24-story building. Because of that, me and my family have no choice but to live in a shelter, and my kids have missed too many days of school. They all miss their neighbors and friends dearly, and the company’s responsibility right now is to figure out a way for us to move back so we can come back to our neighborhood. Me and my brother [Sayed] have never been separated, and now he's at another shelter, and my kids miss him so much, and he can't even visit us because our shelter doesn't allow visitors." — Mohamed Dawod
[Above photo by Camila Soliz]
The elected officials
"What occurred at 642 East 14th Street is a tragedy, which has displaced many of my constituents. My team has been working hard to help those impacted find shelter. The city and the landlord should make all diligent efforts to get these folks back into their homes as quickly as possible. We must ensure that when developments are green-lighted, they do not cause damage to neighboring buildings." — Assembly Member Harvey Epstein
"Construction next door should never lead to residents not knowing where they will sleep at night. Yet, after months of reporting concerns to the Department of Buildings, that is exactly what happened to the residents of 642 E. 14th St., whose building was issued a full vacate order due to structural damage caused by construction in the adjacent lot. Property owners, developers, and the Department of Buildings have an obligation to put residents first and ensure full protection during construction. The residents of 642 E 14th Street need answers, and they need housing. Madison Realty Capital and Ranger Management must provide impacted residents with month-to-month leases at the same rate on apartments in the neighborhood, ensure their belongings are secured and stored for free, and provide the right to return to their apartments or the long-term housing option of their choosing." — City Councilmember Carlina Rivera
The landlord
Jeremy Lebewohl, who also owns the famed Second Avenue Deli, was not present during the rally. Lebewohl told the Post that he "warned the city that construction next door could compromise his building — and even hired an engineer to access the property who 'warned them that what they were doing was excessive.'"
He also said that reps from the Department of Buildings told him that his structure was fine. Now 642's future is potentially in doubt.
Lebewohl's attorney, Adam Leitman Bailey, told the Post that three independent engineers hired to assess the damage each concluded the building would have to be demolished. There is nothing on file with the Department of Buildings to collaborate on that evaluation.
The developer
Madison Square Realty is the third owner of the long-empty lot (since 2009) in the past seven-plus years. Madison Realty Capital paid Opal Holdings $31.3 million for the property in May 2020. Opal Holdings bought the parcel in June 2016 from Brooklyn's Rabsky Group for $23 million.
A rep for Madison Square Reality told the Post that the developer had "provided structural safety solutions" for 642 E. 14th St. at the outset of the project, a building going as 14+C. The foundation work in this phase started in July.
"This issue was avoidable," the rep said in a statement, claiming the owners of 642 “have long neglected the property and have stonewalled our efforts to provide assistance to tenants by refusing to engage with us or local officials."
A Partial Stop Work Order on the site allows crews to perform dewatering operations to prevent further destabilization.
An addendum
Following the press conference, residents described "an extremely strange thing" that took place. While the tenants and speakers were gathering for a group photo, "a mysterious woman," mostly hidden under winter clothes and a hat, made her way through the crowd to get to the padlocked entrance, where there's now a makeshift plywood wall and door.
It's not known who she was — a rep from the city, or possibly the landlord or management company.
"No one knows really what was going on there or why she chose that moment to open the building — temporarily and for a brief period of time," one resident told us.
The former Gaia Italian Café is for rent on 3rd Street
Photo by Stacie Joy
A for-rent sign now hangs in the front window at 226 E. Third St. between Avenue B and Avenue C ... presumably marking the official end of Gaia Italian Café's time on the block.
On Dec. 6, we noted that the landlord was now in legal possession of the storefront.
An Instagram post noted the following about the situation: "Our location has been closed due to, again, malicious situations that jeopardized the business after we reopened with so much effort." The message states the business will continue online, including "the delivery of Christmas dinner for two." (Find the delivery link here.)
Chef-owner Gaia Bagnasacco opened here in June 2022... after nine years at 251 E. Houston St. between Norfolk and Suffolk.
Hopefully, she'll return with a new space in the area in 2024.
Closings: Mi Salsa Kitchen on Houston and Allen
In an Instagram post, the owners of the Cuban restaurant said they are looking for a new location... and they are continuing with catering orders.
Mi Salsa opened in early 2021.
Last month, as we reported here, the owners of C as in Charlie on Bleecker Street appeared before Community Board 3 for a liquor license for a new establishment serving Korean cuisine in this space.
Instant Noodle Factory ready to punch the ramen clock on 7th Street
According to an Instagram Story, this fast-casual DIY concept offering instant noodles — more than 150 types that you prepare yourself and eat on the premises — is expected to open today. (A broken rolldown gate pushed the soft opening to Dec. 20.)
Ownership — the wife-husband team of Cierra Beck and Tat Lee — previously received administrative approval from CB3 for a beer-wine license for the address.
The first outpost opened last summer in Long Island City... Eater's Robert Sietsema gave it a whirl (and liked it!).
No. 130's former tenant, Avant Garden, moved around the corner to Avenue A and Sixth Street in July.
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