Tuesday's parting shot

Tompkins Square Park in bloom (bluebells?)... thanks to Goggla today for the photo.

Hello Mary takes the stage at Webster Hall

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

We've enjoyed watching Hello Mary continue to grow as a band... from the almost shows in Tompkins Square Park to playing smaller venues like Bowery Electric, Nublu and Mercury Lounge (opening for Pretty Sick). 

This past Thursday night, the local band opened for Sunflower Bean at Webster Hall, their biggest stage yet. (Hello Mary is playing with Sunflower Bean on a variety of East Coast dates.) 

EVG contributor Stacie Joy was with the band — guitarist Helena Straight, bassist Mikaela Oppenheimer and drummer Stella Wave — at Webster Hall...

After the show, the band members shared their thoughts on playing Webster Hall... 

Mikaela: "This is the largest stage we’ve ever performed for sure, not just in NYC. I think that’s the main thing that made it different from other performances. There was also really good sound and people helping us out a lot, which is a big shift from where we started in the DIY scene [lol]." 

Helena: "We've never played a show like the Webster Hall show. I’d say it was important because it helped us recognize just how much we’ve grown in only three years. It felt so surreal and exciting that I basically blacked out during the entire performance, which is always a good thing in my book." 

Stella: "The show went super well; that’s easily the biggest crowd we’ve played to, which was really exciting. It feels exhilarating to perform in front of that many people, and it makes me excited for what’s next to come."

You can keep tabs on Hello Mary via Instagram.

Previously on EV Grieve:

• An afternoon out with Hello Mary

First look at the new residential building for 280 E. Houston St.

A rendering for the new 6-story mixed-use building at 280 E. Houston St. is now on the plywood here between Avenue A and Avenue B... 

In January, we had the scoop on this new building when the permit for a 6-floor, 68,000-square-foot residential building on this property first arrived. (At the time, a reliable source said the building was likely to be taller than 6 stories, which proved NOT to be the case.)

Work permits classify this as R-2-Residential (Apartment Houses). Not sure at the moment how many units the new 280 E. Houston St. will feature.

Last fall, workers demolished the one-level strip of storefronts here (Dunkin'/Baskin-Robbins, Subway, China Town restaurant, etc.) adjacent to the 13-floor residential building formerly known as Red Square. 

The rendering lists "2022" as the completion date for the new building. 

Previously on EV Grieve:

• Workers finish demolishing the old retail spaces along 250 E. Houston St.; now what's next?

New storefront and interior reveal at the fire-damaged Essex Card Shop on Avenue A

Photos yesterday by Stacie Joy 

Workers have taken down the construction plywood from outside Essex Card Shop at 47 Avenue A ... revealing a new front door and windows...

EVG contributor Stacie Joy got an interior update as well... as the renovations are shaping up here at the shop destroyed by a fire in early January...

Supporters of the business have helped it raise more than $90,000 in a GoFundMe campaign. 

You can check out our previous posts on Essex Card Shop, located in the retail space of the Ageloff Towers between Third Street and Fourth Street, for more background on what has transpired to date.  

The Alamo is free on Astor Place (though it's not ready to spin)

ICYMI: Workers removed the barricades surrounding the Alamo on Astor Place late last week. (Noted here and here on Saturday.) 

As previously reported, barricades had surrounded the Cube — aka the Alamo — since late last fall.

We were told that the spinning mechanism for the 1,800-pound cube, which manually rotates around a pole hidden in its center, was not working.

The Department of Transportation installed the temporary in-house fabrication and support for the cube on April 27. After some painting, workers then took away the barricades. A DOT spokesperson previously told us that they didn't have a timeline for repairing the spinning component.

Tony Rosenthal's sculpture first arrived here in November 1967. 

A terrible way to try to kill rats

Updated 5/23: Several residents report that, via 311 calls, the city has removed the cement from the tree pit.

To combat rats burrowing in the tree pit outside 185 E. Third St., building management decided to cover the space in concrete.

As an unhappy resident here between Avenue A and Avenue B noted, the concrete will inhibit the tree's ability to take in water and oxygen and could likely result in its death.

There are better options ... which the city discusses via its online Rat Academy courses for property managers, business owners, etc.  Find other rat resources via the city here.

Thanks to Suzy Kunz for the photo. 

Monday's parting shot

Between downpours early this evening on First Avenue at St. Mark's Place...

Report: Man shot dead on 3rd Street and Avenue D last night

A man was shot and killed last night on Avenue D and Third Street around 11:15, according to media accounts and police sources.

CBS 2 reports that the victim is 39-year-old Bronx resident Brandon Atkinson. He was found with a gunshot wound to the head and pronounced dead at Bellevue. 

No other details are currently available. 

This was one of four shootings last night or early this morning in the southern half of Manhattan. 

Per NBC New York: 

The shootings will compound the problem already plaguing Manhattan this year, as the city confronts a massive spike in violent crime. Year-to-date through May 8, shooting incidents in the NYPD"s Patrol Borough Manhattan South are up 31% over last year. 

According to the NYPD's CompStat system, for the period from Jan. 1 to May 8, shooting incidents in Manhattan South are now at their highest since 1997.

On April 29 at 9 a.m., a 42-year-old man was shot and killed outside the Mariana Bracetti Plaza public housing development on Fourth Street at Avenue C. Police arrested a suspect in that shooting. 

The St. George Ukrainian Festival returns to 7th Street this weekend

After a two-year pandemic-related hiatus, the St. George Ukrainian Festival returns to Seventh Street between Second Avenue and Cooper Square this coming weekend. (The 2019 Festival was the 43rd edition.) 

The three-day festival celebrates Ukrainian culture, music, and food with various performances and vendors selling traditional arts and crafts...

This has long been the neighborhood's best annual event. With Ukraine in the hearts and minds of so many people worldwide, this promises to be an especially emotional festival. 

Stuy Town ownership nixes plans for 2 heat and power plants

Beam Living and Blackstone have agreed not to move forward with the two proposed Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plants in Stuyvesant Town. 

This news came via the Stuyvesant Town-Peter Cooper Village Tenants Association late last week. 

Over the past 18 months, the TA had been working with local elected officials in speaking out about the proposed plans. (Here and here.) 

In 2018, Beam Living announced plans to build a fossil-fuel-burning CHP plant between 245 and 271 Avenue C. Two years later, they announced their intention to create a larger CHP plant under a garage floor on 20th Street. 

Via the EVG inbox:

"This is a highly satisfactory resolution to an issue that concerned many residents. I am grateful to all who signed petitions and postcards and came to our rallies, and to the cadre of hard-working tenants who formed our CHP strategy committee," said Susan Steinberg, president of the Stuyvesant Town–Peter Cooper Village Tenants Association. "I also want to acknowledge the effective support of our elected representatives. In particular I want to call out our Council Member Keith Powers, whose nonstop negotiations with Blackstone resulted in their pulling the project. Finally, I want to acknowledge Blackstone for its willingness to recognize how critical this issue was for us and for doing the right thing."

After years of working tirelessly with the Tenants Association, my colleagues, and residents, this is a great outcome.

Big thanks to @ST_PCV_Tenants, @RepMaloney, @bradhoylman, @HarveyforNY, @MarkLevineNYC, & every single person who helped organize. https://t.co/REpJ0p0qy2

— Keith Powers (@KeithPowersNYC) May 12, 2022

A spokesperson for Beam Living, which manages Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village, released this statement to the media: 

"We always take our community’s feedback seriously and are pleased with the dialogue we have had about our collective commitment to making StuyTown and Peter Cooper Village more sustainable and resilient. We are proud of the progress we have made to date and remain committed to bringing resilient and green infrastructure to our community." 

No word at the moment what might happen to the already-built CHP structure (top pic) on Avenue C.

Davey's Ice Cream will reopen on 9th Street

Photos by Steven 

Davey's Ice Cream will reopen this summer in a new home — 309 E. Ninth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue.

Owner and local resident David Yoo made the announcement Friday on social media.

After eight-plus years, Davey's closed its original outpost at 137 First Ave. in March. At the time, Yoo promised that the shop would be opening elsewhere in the neighborhood.

Hopefully, there will be space here for the Davey's Ice Cream lettering from the previous shop... 

Calexico team trying Asian-Latin fusion with Big Cat on 2nd Avenue; a move for Keybar

Calexico is changing up concepts at 99 Second Ave. between Fifth Street and Sixth Street. 

The Cal-Mex chainlet will its East Village outpost for Big Cat, "serving Asian-Latin fusion cuisine and a mix of classic cocktails, regional draft beers and a modest wine list." 

Reps for the company (founded as a food truck in 2006 by brothers Dave, Jesse and Brian Vendley) will appear before CB3's SLA committee tonight for this change in operation. 

The questionnaire on file on CB3's website has more info about the new concept, including this sample menu...

Calexico arrived in the EV in July 2019. The restaurant has been closed since late 2020. 

In other items on tonight's agenda...

The owners of Keybar on 13th Street between Avenue A and First Avenue are looking to relocate to the more high-profile SE corner of Avenue A and 13th Street (the former Caffè Bene). You can read the Keybar questionnaire here. 

And what about the soon-to-be-former Keybar space at 432 E. 13th St.? 

The team behind the Spotted Owl on Avenue A and Iggy's Keltic Lounge on Ludlow Street have designs on a yet-to-be-named bar. Questionnaire here. 

The committee meeting starts tonight at 6:30. Find the Zoom link here.