How you can help save the historic 135 Bowery

From the EV Grieve inbox ...

Dear Friends of the Historic Bowery,

The historic buildings on the Bowery are under extreme threat. In May, New York lost the 1835 townhouse at 35 Cooper Square to a proposed tower development. The Bowery Alliance of Neighbors and others have urged the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) to act swiftly to save the remaining historic buildings on the Bowery and the LPC listened.

In June, the LPC voted to designate the circa 1818 Federal-style house at 135 Bowery as an individual landmark — but the future is still uncertain! Its landmark designation still awaits ratification in City Council where the bank that owns it will be applying tremendous pressure opposing the designation.

Please add your name to the petition to demonstrate broad public support for saving this rare surviving and intact townhouse from the Federal era. Sign the petition to tell Councilmember Margaret Chin and City Council that we do not want to lose this Bowery landmark.

Find the petition here.

Thank you for your support.

Jean Standish, Vice Chair
Mitchell Grubler, Chair, Landmarks Committee
Bowery Alliance of Neighbors

Catching up with the developers who turned the Christodora House into luxury housing

On Sunday, we reposted that New York magazine article titled "The Lower East Side: There Goes the Neighborhood." A reader provided an update about two of the people featured.

Real estate investors Harry Skydell and Samuel Glasser bought the abandoned Christodora House on Avenue Bin the early 1980s and turned the building into luxury condos in 1986.

As The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported back in June 24, Glaser "was sentenced to time served and 100 hours of community service for a kickback scheme that cost a bank $133,000."

To the article:

Glasser, 65, owner of Samuel & Co. LLC, pleaded guilty in federal court in St. Louis Feb. 25 to a bank fraud charge and admitted he'd inflated invoices for asbestos removal, lead abatement and the interior demolition of the Ford Building at 1405 Pine Street in St. Louis.

The building's owner, Matthew Burghoff, passed those invoices on to Montgomery Bank to document expenditures from a loan. Glasser kicked back $133,332 of the inflated amount to Burghoff in 2007.

Under federal sentencing guidelines, Glasser faced 15 to 21 months in prison. Lawyer Scott Rosenblum argued for Glasser to be sentenced to the day in jail he'd already served, citing the fact that Glasser did not personally benefit from the scheme, his community service and his cooperation with the government, among other factors.

Glasser thanked court officials, his lawyer and the prosecutor for their professionalism and then apologized to his family for bringing shame on them. He also said that he was unemployed and no longer in business. "I couldn't get a loan to buy a head of lettuce," he said.

The reader noted that Skydell, a lawyer, resigned from the bar for disciplinary reasons in 1997.

Interestingly enough, someone claiming to be Sam Glasser commented on the post the first time we ran it. Per his comment:

Yes, I paid $3M for the Christodora House and I borrowed $2M of that at 24% interest. What a great building! What fun it was to renovate. The Black Panthers had been the last occupants. It was TRASHED. While my flooring subcontractors were installing the last of the oak flooring in the building, someone stole the engine and back seat out of their car which they had parked across the street from the building. The neighborhood was off the charts. I loved it. Sam Glasser December 9, 2009 1:41 AM

Previously on EV Grieve:
A voice from the Christodora's past

[Image via Streeteasy]

Disturbing trends: Truck nuts in the East Village

EV Grieve reader Atron passes along this photo from Sixth Street at Avenue B ... Despite being around for years now, this is the first time that we can recall seeing truck nuts, or, bumper balls, on a vehicle parked in the neighborhood. Maybe we just haven't been looking hard enough.

The abandoned bike as an urban garden (or vice versa)

The urban garden as an abandoned bike?

Anyway, we've always appreciated the abandoned bicycle as some kind of street art. (Oh, the one below... we're charging $50,000 for it!)

Last week, when there was sun, blue glass noted this installation/takeoever in progress on Second Avenue near 10th Street...

Or as Jeremiah put it yesterday: "The fate of bicycles in hot and jungly post-Apocalyptic New York."

The Banjo Jim's sign is gone

Banjo Jim's was able to stay open nearly two weeks longer than expected ... last night, though, the live music spot on Avenue C and Ninth Street had the final of its farewell shows... Earlier in the day, we noticed that someone had already removed the Banjo Jim's sign...

And last night...

A rainbow for your commute

Our friend BaHa sends along these shots from a little bit ago...

[Updated] Report: Fire at Flea Market Cafe on Avenue A this afternoon

That's the word from Patrick Hedlund at DNAinfo, who reports that a small fire started inside the cafe near St. Mark's Place this afternoon. The fire broke out while the restaurant was closed. The FDNY had the blaze under control in less than 25 minutes. Paramedics treated one firefighter at the scene for minor injuries, according to DNAinfo.

Photos by Bobby Williams

Workers chopping down the trees at 51 Astor Place

You know all those nice trees out front of 51 Astor Place?

Workers are on the scene chopping them down right now...

...to make way for the ugly new office building here.

Previously.

Jerry Delakas' Astor Place newsstand will live a little longer

[Photo via Facebook]

Jerry Delakas, operator of the iconic newsstand on Astor Place, as been given a temporary reprieve from efforts to evict him, the Post reports today. He now has until November until the city can toss him. And the fight continues.

Read more about Delakas at Jeremiah's Vanishing New York.

Open Mic returns to Sidewalk tonight

From the EV Grieve inbox

[Photo by Katie Sokoler for Gothamist]

The Music is Back at Sidewalk Cafe. Legendary Open Mic Returns to its Renovated Home August 15

After five months in exile, Sidewalk Cafe's open stage returns to the back room of the newly renovated East Village restaurant. For more than 18 years Sidewalk has hosted what has become a landmark event each Monday, a marathon open stage that has helped propel the careers of many songwriters and performers including Regina Spektor, the Moldy Peaches, Jeffrey Lewis, Diane Cluck and Darwin Deez.

During the restaurant's renovations, that community banded together immediately and continued at an alternate location. But now that the restoration is completed, the Sidewalk's open stage and nightly shows are back in buffed-up new digs. The doors are open for anyone who wants to perform or become part of Sidewalk’s rambling corps of talented and eccentric regulars. The open stage is run by Ben Krieger, who took over for founder Lach in 2008. Sign-up at 7:30 pm, music from 8 pm until everyone has played or the club closes at 4 am.

You can find more about the new stage at the Sidewalk's Sidewalk blog here.

The release also thanked Steve Cannon at the Gathering of the Tribes, where the group held Open Mic nights these previous months. The Gathering of the Tribes could use your support too.

33-unit, Karl Fischer-designed building rising at former home of Community Board 3 member

On Friday, Curbed reported that a Karl Fischer-designed, 33-unit apartment building is coming to 316 and 318 East Third Street, which is between Avenue C and Avenue D.

In May 2010, we posted info about the sale of the four-story brick townhouse dating to 1900. It was on the market for $3.995 million.

According to the listing, "The townhouse is surrounded on 3 sides by bucolic garden, open lawn and mature trees. The townhouse itself is not landmarked, and there are approximately 22,900 buildable square feet available to the purchaser of these combined 2 lots, offering myriad opportunities for creative expansion."

Several readers and tipsters at the time said that the home was owned by Barden Prisant, a member of Community Board 3. Prisant confirmed this via a message on Facebook. We sent him a message on Facebook asking for comment on Friday. We have not heard back yet.

Meanwhile, Karl Fischer is keeping busy in the East Village. On July 21, we first reported that Fischer is bringing his luxurious touch to 427 E. 12th St., where a six-story, 11-unit residence will rise.

The TSP Ratstravaganza — in video

From the director of "Bed Bugs 2: Bugs in Space."



Thanks to EV Grieve reader Atron for this.

Why you don't always want to follow the 2nd Avenue Deli van

Yes!

Oh.

Second Avenue at First Street.

Burkina's new First Avenue home

BoweryBoogie pointed out a few weeks ago that hip-hop clothing shop Burkina NYC was moving from its home the last 16 years on Houston ... to a new location on First Avenue... Anyway, signs are up at the new space near East Fourth Street.... Careful — you might miss it!