Jim Jarmusch narrates audio walking tour of East Village poets and poetry

A reader sent us this last night via UnionDocs...

"Passing Stranger" is an audio walking tour of poets and poetry associated with the East Village, created by award-winning radio producer Pejk Malinovski. The tour – narrated by filmmaker Jim Jarmusch, with music by new music pioneer John Zorn – provides an anecdotal, digressive tapestry of the poetry that lived and continues to live in the neighborhood.

The audio walk features commentary from key figures in the East Village poetry scene, including Richard Hell, Ron Padgett, Ed Sanders and Anne Waldman along with historical recordings of Joe Brainard, Allen Ginsberg and Kenneth Koch.

The walking tour ranges from the Bowery in the west to Avenue C in the east, Bleecker Street in the south and 12th street in the north. Stops include St. Mark's On-the-Bowery, W.H. Auden's old apartment building, Tompkins Square Park, Allen Ginsberg's old building, the Bowery Poetry Club and more. Each stop presents a montage of poetry, interviews and archival recordings relating to that particular place.

From March 10th to 11th, as a part of the Armory Arts Week's Downtown Satellite Event, "Passing Stranger" will be displayed at Audio Visual Arts Gallery in the East Village as a multimedia installation.

The Audio Visual Arts Gallery is at 34 First Ave., just east off Second Avenue. The reception is 7-9 p.m. on Friday.

Here's a lot more information about "Passing Stranger." You can also download the map and audio file here.

The campaign to 'imagine a park' at 51 Astor Place

A few weeks ago, Jeremiah first pointed out the stickers that someone put on the plywood at 51 Astor Place, one day to be home to a black-glass tower.

[JVNY]

Since then, the campaign has evolved... fewer words, same sentiment... now in sticker, marker and stencil form...

How you can help support the Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space at C-Squat

Yesterday, we posted a link to the article in the Times about the Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space (MoRUS) opening at C-Squat.

In the comments, Amy pointed us to a Crowdrise page to help raise funds to launch MoRUS at 155 Avenue C. You can access that page here. (As of this morning, they had collected nearly 20 percent of their $18,500 goal.)

Per the site, "We have a storefront location, tour guides and the community's approval, we just need your support to help open the museum to the public. With every donation we get closer and closer to preserving the neighborhood's vibrant history and opening the museum..."

And here's the MoRUS website with more information.

Cotan looks closed on First Avenue

Cotan, the Japanese restaurant on First Avenue just north of St. Mark's Place, has apparently closed... Well, there's that sign on the front door...

...and when we called to check last night, we found that the number wasn't in service. The space shouldn't be empty for long: Something called Iconic Hand Rolls is on this month's CB3/SLA docket for a wine-beer license. And it's the same address as Cotan.

As you may know, Cotan took over the space after Shiki Kitchen closed at the end of 2009. (Rent hike.) Jeremiah wrote about Chef Shiki, a former boxer, and his intricate paper creations here.

Cops looking for fake cop

EVG reader Justin S. spotted this yesterday at the Delancey-Essex Street station... the man pictured allegedly flashed a silver-star-shaped badge on a chain, claimed to be a police officer, then punched the victim in the face and stole his wallet.

Naked bicycle dude replaces Wódka Vodka hooker ad on the Bowery

That Wódka Vodka ad didn't stick around too long here on the Bowery at Great Jones. We noticed it last week along with BoweryBoogie... This was the ad that got some Bronx community leaders in a snit last month... the vodka's marketing company agreed to remove the offending ad there ...

Dunno if anyone around here complained... but, as of yesterday, a new ad was in place...

If red-tailed hawks could talk...

Today in Tompkins Square Park. By Bobby Williams.

[Updated] Retna wraps up the Houston/Bowery Mural Wall

The Houston/Bowery Mural Wall by Retna is looking rather finished... thoughts?

And here's a video created by our friends at Fresh Paint NYC...

Renovations continue at Key Food on Avenue A

Among other things, workers are putting in a new deli case/counter today...

Previously.

ConEd fixing Avenue C sinkhole

Dave on 7th passes along these photos showing ConEd workers repairing/filling in/whatever the sinkhole that has been growing on Avenue C at 13th Street...

Going through the roof at 315 E. 10th St.

We've been waiting for workers to go through the roof of the circa-1847 building at 315 E. 10th St. As you'll recall, the city OK'd a one-floor rooftop addition here in January hours before the Landmarks Preservation Committee approved the East 10th Street Historic District.

Meanwhile, this makeshift fence just appeared the other day on the roof ... and there is plenty of activity at the building...

[Bobby Williams from Saturday]

However, from this view via Jose Garcia ... you can see the new addition is well underway...

Jose also notes the arrival in mid-January of a note on letterhead from a company called "315 East 10th Street Owner, LLC." The letter was an announcement on the pending construction at 315. The letter was signed "Keith Holden Project Manager," but when nearby residents called the number, no one there had ever heard of a Keith Holden. The people in charge onsite at 315 were also unfamiliar with a Keith Holden.

Holden's name is also on the DOB permits for 315 E. 10th St.

Developer Benjamin Shaoul's Magnum Real Estate Group owns the property.

Previously on EV Grieve:
A bid to protect the integrity of 315 E. 10th St.

Landmarks Preservation Commission expedites hearing on East 10th Street Historic District

Workers quickly start dismantling roof of historic 315 E. 10th St.

C-Squat will be home to the Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space

[Photo from Feb. 1 by Bobby Williams]

C-Squat at 155 Avenue C between Ninth Street and 10th Street will soon be home to the Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space — aka, MoRUS. According to an article by Colin Moynihan in The New York Times today, the museum "was being established to, among other things, tell the story of how activists in the East Village took over abandoned properties and over the years transformed them into permanent housing or community gardens."

This is the idea of Laurie Mittelmann, a neighborhood activist, and Bill DiPaola, the executive director of Time's Up. Among the items to be on display: Past issues of The Shadow.

The Museum will pay $1,700 per month to rent the storefront here, per the article.

Here's a video about the museum...