Walking by 310 Bowery last evening...
Friday, April 2, 2010
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Scenes from last night's accident on 12th Street via Twitter
Last evening, an EV Grieve reader passed along an e-mail saying there had been an accident on 12th Street near First Avenue: "5 folks hit according to cops nobody seriously injured." (I was busy at the time looking for models on Avenue A.)
East Village resident Chris O'Leary (who also blogs, blogs about beer and tweets) tracked down what happened via Twitter....: "According to the cop outside, it was a drunk driver who fled on foot. Happened around 6pm."
And Chris tracked down these photos at the scene from Twitter users....
Via @Jromanceonline
...and this one...
Via @marianocarranza
East Village resident Chris O'Leary (who also blogs, blogs about beer and tweets) tracked down what happened via Twitter....: "According to the cop outside, it was a drunk driver who fled on foot. Happened around 6pm."
And Chris tracked down these photos at the scene from Twitter users....
Via @Jromanceonline
...and this one...
Via @marianocarranza
Meet your new neighbor! What an East Village townhouse builder wants removed
An EV Grieve reader passed along this gem of a discussion from StreetEasy...
Hello, I'm hoping that someone here knows about street renovation work. Specifically, how does one go about getting a large smooth stone removed from in front of a building? I'm referring to the type of tan stone, possibly granite, that you see in front of older buildings. They are potentially very dangerous, especially when wet or icy. The reason I ask is that we're considering building a townhouse in an historic neighborhood like the East Village and one of the properties has this type of slippery stone in front of it on the sidewalk. From what I understand, property owners can be held liable if a resident or passerby slips and falls. We hope to add a few extra storeys to the top of our home as rental apartments and don't want our residents nor our children getting hurt. Is there a city agency that deals with this sort of thing or can we have a contractors dig up the sidewalk? We have yet to decide on the exact lot, but have looked at different locations and if this is a complicated process it would add to our costs which could already be high if they include removing an old automotive shop or entrenched rental occupants. Also, how does one deal with patches of old cobblestones? There is potentially the same problem with them on the street and I've heard of instances of them being removed by the city for the safety of residents.
Given the date, we'd almost say this was a hoax....except that she posted this two weeks ago....
Q-and-A with 'East Fifth Bliss' author Douglas Light
"East Fifth Bliss," the first novel by former East Village resident Douglas Light, is being adapted into an independent film by Michael Knowles. The filming starts this month in the East Village. "Dexter"/"Six Feet Under" star Michael C. Hall plays the title character of this darkly comic tale. Per the description: "At age 35, Morris Bliss is clamped in the jaws of New York City inertia: he wants to travel but has no money; he needs a job but has no prospects; he still shares a walk-up apartment with his father. Enter Stefani, an 18-year-old girl in a catholic school uniform, and Morris’s once static life quickly unravels... 'East Fifth Bliss' follows Morris as he confronts the intricate and often confusing aspects of relationships, family and identity."
Douglas shared some thoughts on the East Village and the film with me via e-mail.
Did the idea for the character of Morris Bliss specifically come out of your experience of living in the East Village?
It did. The building I lived in from 1995 to 2004 was a shabby, walk-up tenement on Fifth Street off of First Avenue. About half of tenants there where people who’d entrenched themselves in their places for 25-plus years. They paid ridiculously cheap rent, a few hundred dollars a month. The other tenants were more transient. A year, maybe two tops. Their rent tapped over $2,000 a month, which the landlord would kick up every time someone new moved in.
While some of the 25-plus year tenants truly struggled to cover their rent and get by, the majority seemed to have simply locked themselves into their places, and lifestyles, out of apathy. Beyond exerting the minimal amount of effort to stay aloft, they had no goals, only vague long-term plans they never acted on.
Morris was launched with this type of person in mind.
You lived in the East Village for nearly 13 years. Why did you decide to move to a different part of NYC? Was there a defining moment -- a point that you know that you had to leave?
The things I once found endearing about the East Village started to irritate me. Nothing specific, no one incident or event. It’s probably true of everything. You just get to a point where you say, “All right, I’m ready for the next thing.” For me, Washington Heights was that next thing.
Do you ever miss the East Village?
Definitely. I have to say, though, I’d be hard pressed to find the EV I miss. A lot of the old haunts have closed, the people have moved on. But that’s what makes the EV, and NYC in general, so vibrant. It’s always evolving, reinventing itself — not always for the best, of course.
I really fight the urge to say, “Oh, I remember back when…” It makes a person sound old. Nostalgia isn’t so much a pining for the way the city once was, but a pining for the way we once were.
In the book, Morris drinks at the Homestead (called the Homeplate in the novel) on First Avenue, which, of course, is now closed. Will the film have a look more of, say, 1995 East Village rather than the present day?
I envision the film set in NYC circa 1995. I’ve spoken with the director, Michael Knowles, about it and his thinking is the same. I don’t see him loading the streets with ’93 Ford Tauruses or anything, but the overall look and feel will be more mid-nineties than 2010.
What would you like people to take away from the book/movie?
I hope people come away thinking, “Wow, this Douglas Light knows how to tell a great story.”
Previously on EV Grieve:
About the building that inspired the novel "East Fifth Bliss"
[Bowery image via 1996 from Alex at Flaming Pablum]
Douglas shared some thoughts on the East Village and the film with me via e-mail.
Did the idea for the character of Morris Bliss specifically come out of your experience of living in the East Village?
It did. The building I lived in from 1995 to 2004 was a shabby, walk-up tenement on Fifth Street off of First Avenue. About half of tenants there where people who’d entrenched themselves in their places for 25-plus years. They paid ridiculously cheap rent, a few hundred dollars a month. The other tenants were more transient. A year, maybe two tops. Their rent tapped over $2,000 a month, which the landlord would kick up every time someone new moved in.
While some of the 25-plus year tenants truly struggled to cover their rent and get by, the majority seemed to have simply locked themselves into their places, and lifestyles, out of apathy. Beyond exerting the minimal amount of effort to stay aloft, they had no goals, only vague long-term plans they never acted on.
Morris was launched with this type of person in mind.
You lived in the East Village for nearly 13 years. Why did you decide to move to a different part of NYC? Was there a defining moment -- a point that you know that you had to leave?
The things I once found endearing about the East Village started to irritate me. Nothing specific, no one incident or event. It’s probably true of everything. You just get to a point where you say, “All right, I’m ready for the next thing.” For me, Washington Heights was that next thing.
Do you ever miss the East Village?
Definitely. I have to say, though, I’d be hard pressed to find the EV I miss. A lot of the old haunts have closed, the people have moved on. But that’s what makes the EV, and NYC in general, so vibrant. It’s always evolving, reinventing itself — not always for the best, of course.
I really fight the urge to say, “Oh, I remember back when…” It makes a person sound old. Nostalgia isn’t so much a pining for the way the city once was, but a pining for the way we once were.
In the book, Morris drinks at the Homestead (called the Homeplate in the novel) on First Avenue, which, of course, is now closed. Will the film have a look more of, say, 1995 East Village rather than the present day?
I envision the film set in NYC circa 1995. I’ve spoken with the director, Michael Knowles, about it and his thinking is the same. I don’t see him loading the streets with ’93 Ford Tauruses or anything, but the overall look and feel will be more mid-nineties than 2010.
What would you like people to take away from the book/movie?
I hope people come away thinking, “Wow, this Douglas Light knows how to tell a great story.”
Previously on EV Grieve:
About the building that inspired the novel "East Fifth Bliss"
[Bowery image via 1996 from Alex at Flaming Pablum]
Plans for a fishmonger and seafood restaurant in the works for Avenue A
In recent years, 171 Avenue A near 11th Street has been home to a series of restaurants, none of which seemed all that remarkable... the space has been dormant the last few years...
However, 171 Avenue A appears on the April 19 CB3/SLA docket. A Keith Masco is listed on the docket for 171 Avenue A. I contacted the only Keith Masco who I could think of -- the one who is president of Radical Records. Same person, it turns out. So I asked him what his plans are.
"I am planning on opening a seafood market/restaurant/high-end cocktail bar in that space... We certainly need a place to buy fish around here."
Seafood market? As in a fishmonger?
"Yeah, yeah -- fishmonger. There will be a display case when you first walk in about 6 feet by 3 feet with approximately 20-25 different types of fresh seafood. Most of it will be kept in the basement and brought up as we run out of things in the case. This way we can do the volume of a bigger store with a fraction of dedicated space."
Meanwhile, Jill recently posted a comprehensive history of 171 Avenue A...
However, 171 Avenue A appears on the April 19 CB3/SLA docket. A Keith Masco is listed on the docket for 171 Avenue A. I contacted the only Keith Masco who I could think of -- the one who is president of Radical Records. Same person, it turns out. So I asked him what his plans are.
"I am planning on opening a seafood market/restaurant/high-end cocktail bar in that space... We certainly need a place to buy fish around here."
Seafood market? As in a fishmonger?
"Yeah, yeah -- fishmonger. There will be a display case when you first walk in about 6 feet by 3 feet with approximately 20-25 different types of fresh seafood. Most of it will be kept in the basement and brought up as we run out of things in the case. This way we can do the volume of a bigger store with a fraction of dedicated space."
Meanwhile, Jill recently posted a comprehensive history of 171 Avenue A...
Baoguette continues to keep the Bamn! memories alive
Wow, it has been a little more than one year since Bamn!, the garish automat on St. Mark's Place closed... The location is now a Baoguette ... and we just want to salute Michael Hunynh's gang for keeping the Bamn! spirit alive by never covering up its old sign...
And quickly, yet another salute to the EV eateries who continue to honor those restaurants that came before them...
Such as Hea to Friend House on Third Avenue...
... and Wally's Pacific Catch to Marfa on East Second Street...
And quickly, yet another salute to the EV eateries who continue to honor those restaurants that came before them...
Such as Hea to Friend House on Third Avenue...
... and Wally's Pacific Catch to Marfa on East Second Street...
East Villagers form non-Yelp-like community on Facebook
There's a newish Facebook group called "I know a great little place in the East Village NYC."
Here's the description:
A group for all things great in the East Village, if you know of a great place to shop, eat or do anything in your spare time, share it with people from your neighborhood. The East Village was formerly known for its sense of community, so share what you love whether popular or obscure.
This is not a forum to slag off places though, only places you enjoy.
This is an attempt at a community that isn't Yelp. A community that is actually driven by sharing and experiencing the hidden gems in the East Village. This is for people to discuss all things East Village for each other.
There are a ton of awesome people running small businesses trying to survive in this expensive NYC environment. Through people exposing these great little gems, we're helping to keep cool places in and awful chains/franchises out.
Dinosaur Jr.? When a studio apartment is considered "gigantosaurus"
The following studio has been on Craigslist the past week...
Which means this one isn't actually available! So, all we know is it's on East Fourth Street and costs $2,100 a month, a gigantosaurus rate if you ask us.
Just look at this beautiful studio apartment! It has great sunlight, lots of space, and AMAZING Hardwood Floors and Walls. This place will make a great showcase for your art and style. In addition to that, the alcove kitchen contains a dishwasher, and there is a full-sized bathroom.
This very safe low-rise elevator building contains a video intercom system and there are laundry facilities internal to the building. Pets are acceptable in this building as well. Call me right away to see this apartment and others like it!
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
A model day on Avenue A
Following up on that previous post about models invading Key Food on Avenue A... apparently the model crew has been camped out here between Sixth Street and Seventh Street....
...Atlas Productions was working on a photo shoot for Sisley, a clothing line for skinny people and people who want to think they're skinny...
Anyway, quite an itinerary! Aside from posing on the street (where are the photos?!), the models took to Key Food, Odessa and 7B for the shoots...
...and, for some reason, catering was on hand. Probably for the crew.
...Atlas Productions was working on a photo shoot for Sisley, a clothing line for skinny people and people who want to think they're skinny...
Anyway, quite an itinerary! Aside from posing on the street (where are the photos?!), the models took to Key Food, Odessa and 7B for the shoots...
...and, for some reason, catering was on hand. Probably for the crew.
Breaking: Models invade Key Food, hold melons
From an EV Grieve reader:
major fashion photo shoot right now in the produce aisle at key food on ave. a.
i counted 25 models, photographers, make-up artists, security, etc.
they just walked in and started shooting. looks like key food management had no idea.
saw model holding up 2 melons- is this for american apparel? sheesh!
EV Grieve Etc.: Mourning edition
When Sonny and Cher played the Waldorf-Astoria (The Bowery Boys)
Spiked egg creams at Julius' (Jeremiah's Vanishing NY)
Television loft rehearsals circa 1974 (Stupefaction)
Nissan's publicity stunt outside Whole Foods (BoweryBoogie)
Fraunces Tavern will open in June (NewYorkology)
The "kissing post" of Ellis Island (Ephemeral New York)
13th Street condo battles (Curbed)
Le Da Nang not so good so far (Fork in the Road)
Recaptioning New Yorker cartoons with "Christ, what an asshole!" (BoingBoing)
And an EV Grieve reader sent along a sign of spring the other day from Fourth Street near the Bowery...
...looks like the work of De La Vega...
Trouble on the F stop on Houston/First Avenue this morning?
From a reader:
We haven't heard anything. Anyone?
Update:
Saw this on Twitter: Expected 20min delay to to work extends to 40min. Brought to you buy the IDIOTS fighting on the F train. Happy Hump Day
What was going on this am at 1st ave and Houston subway station? Tons of cops, ambulances etc. Cop cars were almost blocking Houston, and some people looked pretty shook up.
We haven't heard anything. Anyone?
Update:
Saw this on Twitter: Expected 20min delay to to work extends to 40min. Brought to you buy the IDIOTS fighting on the F train. Happy Hump Day
Where else?
Not sure if "Where else?" is even the Sears slogan anymore.... Anyway, saw several of these Sears price tags attached to various buildings around the neighborhood this morning... Who's responsible? Jokesters/artists/Sears employees. Dunno!
If anyone sees a good placement, like, on, say, the Christodora or an NYU dorm, please let me know!
A few questions for spring
Food and real estate edition
1) When will the escalator renovations at the Zeckendorf Towers be completed on Union Square? (Now entering the third year...)
2) When will the 123 Third Ave. sales center open?
3) What will happen to the southwest corner of 14th Street and Third Avenue?
4) Who will post the first bill on the sidewalk shed on Seventh Avenue and Avenue A?
5) When will Diablo Royale open at 167 Avenue A?
6) Will anything happen with the long empty building that housed the former Angelica's Herbs on First Avenue and Ninth Street?
7) Who will be the new owners of Superdive, and will they keep the same keg-service concept?
8) Who will be the first to introduce the 89-cent slice?
9) When will we see more of Veselka on the Bowery?
10) Will Duane Reade expand into the basement space of the former Dolphin Gym on Avenue B?
11) Will Cabin Down Below do something about its stairs?
12) When will Curbed get the sordid details of the first beserk A Building pool party of the 2010 season? (My guess: June 2)
13) When will the Village Green gym show itself?
14) Will the Cooper Square Hotel keep the noise down this season? ... Or! When will we get the first installment of Notes from the Backside at the Cooper Square Hotel this season? (My guess: April 27)
15) When will the Pita Pan Sports Grill at Second Avenue and Sixth Street open?
1) When will the escalator renovations at the Zeckendorf Towers be completed on Union Square? (Now entering the third year...)
2) When will the 123 Third Ave. sales center open?
3) What will happen to the southwest corner of 14th Street and Third Avenue?
4) Who will post the first bill on the sidewalk shed on Seventh Avenue and Avenue A?
5) When will Diablo Royale open at 167 Avenue A?
6) Will anything happen with the long empty building that housed the former Angelica's Herbs on First Avenue and Ninth Street?
7) Who will be the new owners of Superdive, and will they keep the same keg-service concept?
8) Who will be the first to introduce the 89-cent slice?
9) When will we see more of Veselka on the Bowery?
10) Will Duane Reade expand into the basement space of the former Dolphin Gym on Avenue B?
11) Will Cabin Down Below do something about its stairs?
12) When will Curbed get the sordid details of the first beserk A Building pool party of the 2010 season? (My guess: June 2)
13) When will the Village Green gym show itself?
14) Will the Cooper Square Hotel keep the noise down this season? ... Or! When will we get the first installment of Notes from the Backside at the Cooper Square Hotel this season? (My guess: April 27)
15) When will the Pita Pan Sports Grill at Second Avenue and Sixth Street open?
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