Report: Steve Croman case pushed back to September

[Photo via a Croman tenant]

Landlord Steve Croman appeared in Manhattan Supreme Court yesterday. Croman, who owns more buildings in the East Village than any other landlord, was hit last month with a 20-count indictment on charges including grand larceny and filing false documents.

As The Lo-Down reported, Supreme Court Justice Jill Konviser adjourned the hearing until Sept. 20. Croman's high-powered defense lawyer, Ben Brafman, said that they were close on a plea deal, according to the Post.

A handful of Croman tenants were on hand to greet their landlord at the courthouse.

Per The Lo-Down:

Tamalyn Miller, a Croman Tenant at 521 East 5th St., said that even though Croman’s case was pushed back, she’s happy. “The court case may go on and on,” she said, but Croman’s reputation is forever tarnished. “When we were going through this in 2009, 2010, nobody would listen to us,” she added.

Meanwhile, across the street yesterday, The Lo-Down reported that another controversial East Village landlord, Raphael Toledano, was in New York City Housing Court for civil and criminal contempt. He reportedly was there after failing to pay a settlement to tenants at 444 E 13th St.

St. Mark's Bookshop, which closed 4 months ago, receives an eviction notice

After 38 years at four locations, St. Mark's Bookshop closed last Feb. 28 (with an "epilogue sale" on March 5) at 136 E. Third St. between Avenue A and First Avenue.

As you probably know, the long-struggling store reportedly owned some $70,000 in back rent to the city (the NYCHA is the landlord here).

In any event, several readers noted that an eviction notice, dated June 9, had been taped to the gate this past week...



Seems a little late. NYCHA reportedly initiated eviction proceedings last July, per DNAinfo.

Inside, there are still some books on the shelves... looking the way it did on its last day in business.

The photo below is from May 22 by Arthur Nersesian ... the inside looks the same inside today...

Report: Man shot in stomach during fight on East 4th Street

An EVG reader shared these photos from early this morning after a man was shot once during a confrontation at the Bracetti Plaza on Fourth Street near Avenue C.

According to published reports, there were three shots, with one hitting the 22-year-old victim in the stomach around 2:40 a.m.

Per NBC 4:

Police said that the man got on his bike and road toward his home and was stopped and helped by housing police at Avenue D and East 8th Street.

The victim hasn't been cooperating with investigators, police said, and no description of a suspect was available.

The victim is expected to survive the shooting, police said.

Anyone with information that could help in the investigation is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477). You may also submit tips online.

More residential units and a 5th-floor addition in the works for landmarked 4 St. Mark's Place

A few weeks back we reported that plywood arrived outside 4 St. Mark's Place, where workers are presumably going to renovate the empty storefront here between Second Avenue and Third Avenue.

An Eastern Consolidated listing shows that two retail spaces will be available following the renovation.

Being a landmarked building, the new owners of the building (Liberty Place Property Management) will need the proper OKs before any work can take place.

Tonight, reps for the applicant will appear before CB3's Landmarks Committee. The flyer on the plywood says that the applicant is seeking approval to renovate the "existing street and rear facade, interior alterations, modifications to existing windows, and roof and rear yard addition."



A look at the proposed plans at the CB3 website (PDF here) reveals that the 4-floor building would increase its residential units from three to eight... with the help of a fifth-floor addition and expansion in the rear ... (the proposed renderings are on the left)


[Click for more detail]

...and the profile section...



To date, there aren't any new work permits on file for the address — outside the construction of the plywood fence.

...also, you can ignore the post-modern rendering on the plywood...



According to the CB3 website, the meeting is tonight at the JASA/Green Residence, 200 E. Fifth St. at the Bowery. (The posted flyer at No. 4 gives the wrong address of the meeting.)

Until this past February, the retail space at 4 St. Mark's Place was home to Trash & Vaudeville for 41 years. (The store is now at 96 E. Seventh St.)

Report: Steve Croman due back in court today

Vanity Fair files a piece on Steve Croman, whose real-estate empire includes 47 buildings with 617 units in the East Village. (As previously noted, Croman owns more buildings in the East Village than any other landlord.)

In May, Croman of 9300 Realty was hit with a 20-count indictment on charges including grand larceny and filing false documents ... as well as a civil suit via the New York state Attorney General's office. He faces up to 25 years in prison. Croman pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges. Per the article: "The civil suit is seeking to strip him of his real-estate business entirely and force him to pay millions of dollars in fines and restitution to tenants."

The Vanity Fair piece notes the "fever dream" pace at which the Cromans — Steve and wife Harriet — live on the Upper East Side and in the Hamptons. "They feted their son with a bar mitzvah under the whale at the Museum of Natural History, at which pop star Ariana Grande sang a tune for the crowd."

Croman, 49, has hired Ben Brafman, "the famed attorney who is also representing the so-called 'pharma bro' Martin Shkreli in his securities-fraud case." They are due in court this morning.

Brafman told Vanity Fair that they are "working diligently in the hope of ‎reaching a global agreement with the Attorney General that will resolve both the civil and criminal cases" against Croman.

H/T Steven

Updated 6 a.m.

Via the EVG inbox...

Tuesday, June 21st, at 9.15 am sharp, please join some of Steve Croman's tenants as they meet and greet their indicted, disgraced landlord in front of 100 Centre Street. Steve will be heading to the Criminal Court on the 13th floor immediately after.

[Sign via the email invite]

Report: Earth School students successfully lobby for LGBT studies in classroom

Fourth and fifth grade students at the Earth School on Sixth Street at Avenue B have successfully made their case to add LGBT coursework to its classroom curriculum this fall.

DNAinfo has more on the story:

BrainPOP, an interactive digital educational company based in the Flatiron that's used by students in public schools across the city, has agreed to create a new LGBT Civil Rights-specific curriculum by the fall — following nearly a year of pressure from students the East Village's Earth School as well as an outpouring of grief following the recent tragedy in Orlando.

“What is the purpose of education if not to change things for the better?” said Earth School teacher Colin Schumacher, who spearheaded the charge after his fourth grade class realized last year during their civil rights studies that BrainPOP had nothing available regarding the LGBT community's struggle.

Here are some Earth School students in a video from April...



ABC 7 has a story here from Friday... and Fox 5 from last night.

A seasonal Urban Etiquette Sign on 7th Street

An EVG reader passed along this photo of an Urban Etiquette Sign on Seventh Street between Avenue B and Avenue C... a sensible request not to throw firecrackers ... they scared the note-writer's dog... and are a potential fire hazard, she writes.

About '14th Street Peopleway'

There's a movement afoot to restrict 14th Street between Irving Place and Sixth Avenue in both directions to buses, bikes and pedestrians during the upcoming L train service shutdown... and perhaps permanently.

Meanwhile, Transportation Alternatives has launched an initiative called "14th Street Peopleway: A New Way to Get Across Manhattan." There's a launch rally for this tomorrow evening at 6:30 in Union Square South. (Find more details here.)

Here's more from TA:

The upcoming shutdown of the L train will remove a vital link from the city’s transportation network. This will make it much more difficult for people who rely on transit to get across town in Manhattan as well as getting to and from Brooklyn. The hundreds of thousands of people that count on the L train will be forced to find other options.

While the repairs are unavoidable, there is much we can do to minimize the inconvenience for everyone. By dedicating 14th St to public transit, walking, and biking, we can maximize the usefulness of our limited street space and increase safety along this very busy corridor.

Here's a link to a petition to make 14th Street vehicle free.

Thanks to car-free dreamer Chris Castiglione for the info!

Flyers call out convicted rapist Brock Turner

Slum Goddess passes along word that the above flyers, like this one on Second Avenue near East Houston, are starting to show up around the neighborhood.

Brock Turner, a former Stanford student and member of the swim team, was sentenced earlier this month to six months in jail for raping an intoxicated and unconscious woman behind a dumpster at a fraternity party in January 2015. Turner faced a maximum of 14 years in state prison.

The story has prompted outrage for many reasons, including the lenient sentence handed down by Judge Aaron Persky, who said he feared a longer term behind bars would have a "severe impact" on Turner.

Last Wednesday night, Grlcvlt, described as a national secret society, held a "Fuck Rape Culture" event in East Williamsburg to unseat Persky.

Gothamist has coverage from the event here. A similar Brock Turner rapist flyer was spotted outside the venue, Holyrad Studio.

1st night of summer, Avenue A

A video posted by EV Grieve (@evgrieve) on Jun 20, 2016 at 5:46pm PDT

You have to click on the video to start... and to stop it... or it will keep on auto playing...

Taking away our Dearly Beloved

An EVG reader notes that workers this morning carted off the Prince-inspired Sing for Hope pop-up piano (titled Dearly Beloved), which had been in Tompkins Square Park since June 8.

Brooklyn-based artist Eric Inkala designed the piano, which Sing for Hope will now place in an NYC public school.

Thanks for the memories, Dearly Beloved...

The Dorian Grey Gallery saying goodbye to 9th Street

The gallery, which focuses on street art/graffiti and the pioneers of the 1980s New York art scene, is leaving their East Ninth Street space after six years.

There's a send-off event this Wednesday...



Back in March, we heard that the gallery was on a month-to-month lease after Benchmark Real Estate Group became the landlord of No. 437 here between Avenue A and First Avenue. And now they are closing. There was discussion on Facebook that the asking rent more than doubled.

Gallery rep Molua Muldown responded graciously about the closure.

"We're terribly sorry we weren't able to come to an agreement with the new building owner," she said via email.

Perhaps the gallery will look elsewhere for a space in the East Village?

"We've not yet decided what the next chapter will be," she said. "We have a pop up gallery in Watermill for the summer and will gather our thoughts about the future in the autumn."