Blessing the pets at St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery

Yesterday morning, St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery celebrated St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals, with a blessing of the pets ceremony.



The Rev. Anne Sawyer presided over the service, blessing an array of dogs, a few cats and one Japanese fighting fish named Fifi. EVG contributor Stacie Joy stopped by the church yard on Second Avenue and 10th Street for the ceremonies...






















[Rev. Anne blessing Fifi the Japanese fighting fish]

Reports: Chinatown murders bring renewed attention to the city’s street homeless

[Comptroller Scott M. Stringer at a vigil for the victims this morning]

The shocking murders of four homeless men early Saturday morning in Chinatown have brought more media attention to the dangers of living on the street.

In a story published in today's paper, the Times provides historical context for the area around the Bowery in which the men were killed.

[T]he Bowery, an area of Lower Manhattan known in the 1930s as New York’s skid row, has long served as a daunting example of the city’s difficulties in addressing street homelessness. If anything, the problem is getting worse: The area is now drawing younger homeless people, many with drug and mental health problems, a population that the city’s traditional outreach methods have struggled to confront.

Despite the luxurification of the Bowery and surrounding area in recent years, the area — specifically Community District 3 — still has one of the highest concentrations of homeless shelters (some two dozen) in Manhattan.

The article discusses the ongoing concerns "about a new subpopulation within the homeless community."

A recent report described them as “travelers” or “young homeless people who travel to destinations depending on the weather, and often include instances of drug use and aggression.”

Over the past three years, complaints have increased about these younger arrivals, and the police and homeless outreach workers have said that “traditional outreach is not successful with this population,” according to the report.

The article includes comments from local community leaders on the need for better mental health services and additional supportive housing and safe-haven beds. Find the article at this link.

In court yesterday, the suspect, 24-year-old Rodriguez “Randy” Santos, was charged with four counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.

Meanwhile, city officials say they will dispatch mental health outreach teams and increase the number of homeless outreach teams who have access to psychiatrists and substance abuse resources, per ABC 7.

The Times says that the homelessness crisis "has been the most intractable problem of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s tenure."

Late-morning dance break

All we need is music, sweet music. Dancing around Temperance Fountain in Tompkins Square Park this morning.

Photo by Derek Berg.

Gov. Cuomo approves bill to create public liquor license database

Gov. Cuomo has approved a bill (S55/A4315) that requires the State Liquor Authority (SLA) to create and maintain a public database of information specific to on-premises liquor licenses.

Two local elected officials — Assemblywoman Deborah Glick and Sen. Brad Hoylman — sponsored the bill that will enable residents a means to look up information on a bar, including whether it has permits for live music or sidewalk seating.

The two released statements on Friday after Cuomo's signature made it all official:

Sen. Hoylman:

Community boards, block associations, and residents across my district have for years called upon the State Liquor Authority to make information on these licenses more available and accessible, so that they can better understand their impact on our neighborhoods. This is basic, good government. Yet until now, to our enormous frustration, the only option for the public to learn this information was through filing a Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request.

You shouldn’t have to file a FOIL request just to find out whether a bar in your neighborhood has a liquor license that permits live music or an outside patio. What’s more, under these constraints, police precincts aren’t able to respond to neighborhood noise complaints — as they have no way to confirm whether an establishment is operating within the parameters of their license or not.

Assemblywoman Glick:

For too long, it has been nearly impossible for community members to get very basic information about State Liquor Authority licensees that operate in our neighborhood. Now that liquor license information will be easily obtainable, people can see for themselves if nearby establishments are being good neighbors and are operating within the constraints of their license.

The news release included a statement from Susan Stetzer, district manager for Community Board 3: "Having information available online would be a tremendous help. We spend a lot of time working with community groups and with our local precincts to resolve issues that require information about a licensed business, particularly method of operation and outdoor use questions."

No word on when the SLA will actually make this online resource available to the public.

St. Mark's Market is dead

St. Mark's Market has officially closed at 19-23 St. Mark's Place. An EVG reader said they wrapped up this past Thursday evening.

As made known last Monday, the grocery between Second Avenue and Third Avenue was having a buy-one, get-one-free deal to thin out its stock.

We heard a variety of reasons for the closure (nothing related to rent, however). One worker blamed the sidewalk bridge that has been out front for the past two-plus years as a cause for business to drop off. (And as one commenter noted: "The dope fiend brigade hanging out under the scaffolding didn't help matters.")

Several EVG readers mentioned that the store changed ownership several years ago, and the quality of the produce and other offerings diminished — especially in the face of newer competition such as the Westside Market on Third Avenue at 12th Street.

There were anecdotes that Daniel Craig was a semi-regular here while renting the place upstairs. One reader claimed he once cut in line and used an Amex Black Card for a small purchase.

I do recall the place seeming pretty upmarket when it opened in 2003 in the now-mall-like building that replaced layers of history at the address that included the Dom, the Exploding Plastic Inevitable (featuring the Velvet Underground as the house band) and the Electric Circus.


[Photo from Saturday]

Prediction: The landlord will chop up the former market into several smaller retail spaces to make renting possibly easier.

Ruby's Café debuts on 11th Street

Ruby's, the popular all-day café with two NYC outposts, debuted over the weekend at 198 E. 11th St. at Third Avenue.

The East Village outpost was open for dinner on Friday and Saturday. Now, moving forward, the restaurant is open daily from 9 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. The Australian-influenced bistro fare includes a variety of salads, pastas and burgers as well as breakfast items all day.

Ruby's first opened in 2003 on Mulberry Street between Prince and Spring (they expanded next door in 2014) ... with an additional cafe on Third Avenue between 30th Street and 31st Street arriving in 2016.

The space was previously Martina, which opened in August 2017 in 55 Third Ave., aka Eleventh and Third, the 12-floor residential building on the corner. The pizzeria, from Danny Meyer's Union Square Hospitality Group, never caught on, closing this past March.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Ruby’s Cafe bringing its Australian vibes to the former Martina space on 11th Street

Report: Tenant leasing alleged sex-party house on 7th Street is leading a 'double or triple life'

Orthodox Jew leads double life hosting wild East Village sex parties: wife https://t.co/bav19jm27s pic.twitter.com/15oC04n585

— New York Post (@nypost) October 5, 2019

The Post continues its expose of Avraham Adler, who allegedly hosted advertised sex parties at the tony townhouse he's renting on Seventh Street.

The tabloid claims that he "is leading a 'double or triple life' as an ultra-Orthodox Jew with a pregnant wife and three kids in suburban New Jersey."

“I want a divorce,” an angry Shana Adler told The Post Thursday outside the couple’s modest three-bedroom home in Clifton, New Jersey. “He is not supporting us whatsoever. He’s cut us off completely. My friends are paying our bills.”

For his part, Adler denied that he’s breaking his marriage vows or shunning his religion. "I’m going through a separation and possibly a divorce."

In a Manhattan Supreme Court filing, Wonwoo Chang, the owner of 189 E. Seventh St. between Avenue B and Avenue C, claimed that Adler, who signed a two-year lease here on April 1, has hosted "lewd" parties where "on premises sex took place."

Neighbors have also accused Adler of constantly parking his luxury cars in front of a fire hydrant on the block.

Adler admitted to the Post that he parks in front of the hydrant: If I pay the fees [fines], why is it anybody’s problem?"

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Landlord alleges tenant using 7th Street townhouse for sex parties

Vanessa's Dumpling House temporarily closed for 'modernization' on 14th Street

Cheap-eats favorite Vanessa's Dumpling House is currently closed at 220 E. 14th St. between Second Avenue and Third Avenue.

A worried regular alerted us to the closure last week. At the time, the reader said there wasn't any note on the gate for customers. Meanwhile, the Vanessa's signage has been covered. Worse, this location no longer appears along the other NYC outposts on the Vanessa's website.

However, there is a sign now on the gate — possibly post-dated to Sept. 26 — noting a closure for "modernization" ...

Sweetgreen status check on the Bowery

As we first noted on Aug. 12, Sweetgreen is setting up in the retail base of the 347 Bowery condoplex.

This is the first business for this corner space at Third Street ... and as these photos from Friday via EVG regular Lola Saénz show, this outpost is a ways off from opening...



The California-based chain recently boosted its valuation to $1.6 billion.

Snapshot of the former International Center of Photography space on the Bowery

The International Center of Photography (ICP) ended its three-year tenure at 250 Bowery in late June.

An EVG reader points us to the now-vacant space, where a for lease sign recently arrived on the front window.

The rent is available upon request for the nearly 11,000 square feet of space over two floors. (The listing notes "Divisions Considered.")

As you may know, ICP will open in January on Broome Street in the Essex Crossing complex. ICP announced this move in the fall of 2017. The new venue — encompassing a full city block between Ludlow and Essex — will have space to house both the ICP Museum and the ICP School.

ICP paid $29 million for the Essex Crossing properties. In turn, the Essex Crossing developers bought ICP’s 250 Bowery space for $25 million, in a deal reported in May.

Previously on EV Grieve:
ICP now closed on the Bowery ahead of move to Essex Crossing

Sunday's parting shot

Parishioners from St. Stanislaus on Seventh Street took part today in the annual Pulaski Day Parade ... float photo by Derek Berg...

'Joker' weekend

This sign greeted moviegoers this weekend at the City Cinemas Village East on Second Avenue at 12th Street.

"Downton Abbey" fans who wanted to wear Lord Grantham or Lady Mary masks were out of luck. "Downton Abbey," which has been criticized for normalizing dinner parties, is currently playing here.

The sign arrived here ahead of screenings Thursday night for "Joker."



Theaters across the country were reported to be on high alert for the opening weekend of Todd Phillips' film starring Joaquin Phoenix as the title character. Village East had a lot more employees working the front door than usual, though I didn't see any police presence. The film is also playing at the Loews Village 7 on Third Avenue and 11th Street and the Regal Union Square.

The Associated Press reported the following: "Extra layers of security, intense on-screen action and a frightening incident inside a New York theater combined to create an unsettling experience for some moviegoers who went to see 'Joker' on its opening weekend."

Security had to remove a patron from the AMC Empire 25 on 42nd Street on Friday after he clapped and cheered for a good minute during an especially intense scene.

As for the Village East, "Joker" is playing on two screens, including in 70mm in the Jaffe Art Theatre...