Bleecker Bob's closing in May; will be replaced by — FROYO

Word is spreading this morning about what will replace Bleecker Bob's Records. Here's an update from the store today on their Facebook page:

STORE UPDATE:: 3/6/13

looks like the new tenant has signed the lease. we've heard they want to be open by June 1. it will take probably around 2 months to get work permits for the massive remodeling job they'll need to do so we're figuring we should be open until May 2013!!
--- get ready for another chain of self serve yogurt/coffee/hot chocolate cafes NYC!!

The store opened in December 1968.

The asking rent for the space was $17,000.

Previously on EV Grieve:
[UPDATED] Let's help Bleecker Bob's find space in the East Village

Bleecker Bob's is for rent

Bleecker Bob's won't be moving to the East Village — or anywhere else, for that matter

Out and About in the East Village

In this weekly feature, East Village-based photographer James Maher provides us with a quick snapshot of someone who lives and/or works in the East Village.



By James Maher

Name: Manny Garcia
Occupation: Owner, Cafecito
Location: Avenue C between 11th and 12th
Time: 5 pm on Friday, Feb 1

I was originally born in Jersey City but I grew up in Miami. My parents are Cuban. My father’s actually a Spaniard but he lived in Cuba for 25 years. I’ve been to Spain but I haven’t been to Cuba yet. I’ve been waiting till it opens up. I still have relatives there who’ve I’ve never met.

Miami is paradise. Most of my family is there. It’s very multicultural. But it’s too much fun and so it’s hard to get serious. It’s a party town, the weather’s beautiful — it’s 80 degrees and you’re trying to work. My first job was at McDonald's when I was 14 and after that I worked in barbacking and bartending and as an assistant manager.

At the same time I was going to FIU Hospitality School and that’s where I met my business partner for the restaurant. He was from New York and one day he called me and said he knew a neighborhood and he thought a Cuban restaurant would be perfect there. So I made a trip and we signed a lease for half the space we have now. Initially it was just a little takeout café with sandwiches, small menu, milkshakes, coffee, and we used to press the sandwiches at the bar. Then about a year later the bakery next door left and we combined both spaces.

Until a year and a half ago I lived right upstairs. I was very connected to my work. Living above made my life very intertwined with the restaurant. My whole life was the restaurant. Even on my day off… I didn’t have a day off. They’d call me and say, “Where are you?”

We just had our 10-year anniversary. There was not much around here when we first opened. On this block was just a bodega on the corner. There wasn’t much entertainment for the neighborhood. Esperanto and Zum Schneider were the only ones here, and people thought we were crazy. They said, “Oh, you’re opening here? Everything has failed here.” But the neighborhood has been great and they supported us from the beginning.

The first year was pretty much all locals. They’ve been our base and they were excited that they had a place to go that they could identify with. Even though there weren’t that many Cuban people in the neighborhood, there were a lot of Puerto Rican, Dominican, and every other Latin culture here. It was much different from working in a restaurant in Miami. Miami was crazy and 90 percent tourists. There were different people every night. There’s more of a community here.

Right after we opened we had the blackout in 2003. It was my birthday. We just opened the doors and gave everything that we had away. We had beers, food, and there was a line outside the restaurant. It was a blackout party.

The hurricane was tough, but we all chipped in together in the same way. We helped people and people helped us and it brought everybody together in the neighborhood. We supported each other. We were all in boots trying to drain basements with generators. Friends who had gas had to go to Jersey to get more gas for people. People chipped in with whatever was needed — flashlights, lights, ice, milk. People would take turns going to Costco on 116th. They would take a list and ask everybody what they needed. They would buy milk and pampers for the kids. The burden was on everybody.

The restaurant itself got hit pretty hard. There was four feet of water in the building and we were closed almost a month. We’re still trying to recover financially. We had to replace everything. We didn’t have power for 3 weeks and to this day we still don’t have Verizon. It’s five months later.

A hurricane, a flood, here? I’m from Miami and I would never think that I would move to New York and have it worse than in the tropics. It’s unbelievable.

James Maher is a fine art and studio photographer based in the East Village. Find his website here.

Report: THE EAST VILLAGE IS REALLY NOISY!

So, amNY analyzed 311 data and found that! The East Village is the noisiest neighborhood in the City.

Woo! High-fives everyone!

Oh.

According to the paper's not-really-surprising analysis, the East Village (2,108 noise complaints), the Lower East Side (2,069) and Williamsburg (2,061) are the city's top three offenders.

Local leaders responded:

Susan Stetzer, district manager of Community Board 3, which oversees the East Village, said the area has had the most complaints "for many years" and that it's "nothing new."

How will you celebrate this hard-earned victory?

[St. Patrick's Day 2012 via Bobby Williams]

7-Eleven fallout: East Village groups propose resolution 'to restrict corporate formula stores'

There's a proposed resolution on the docket for tonight's CB3 Economic Development Committee meeting to restrict corporate formula stores in the neighborhood through a zoning amendment. The resolution comes from members of the No 7-Eleven group and the 11th Street A-B-C Block Association.

The groups are seeking CB3's support for the resolution.

The block association has held two meetings now (read recaps here ... and here) to discuss the incoming 7-Eleven on East 11th Street and Avenue A.

Per an invite from the last Black Association meeting:

7-Eleven is coming to Avenue A at 11th Street. The residents of 11th Street won't sit for it. We're drawing the line of suburbanization here.

We have had about enough of chain stores and suburban franchises, Duane Reades, Walgreens and Chase Banks on every corner. We've chosen to fight. Join with us and let's start a city-wide resistance. Let's not sit for it any more.

Below you'll find the resolution. (Find the PDF via the CB3 website here.)


[Click on image to enlarge]

The full Board meets on Feb. 19, 6:30 pm, PS 20, 166 Essex St.

Previously on EV Grieve:
[Updated] More from the anti-7-Eleven front on Avenue A and East 11th Street

Avenue A's anti-7-Eleven campaign now includes arsenal of 20,000 stickers

'No 7-Eleven' movement goes global with BBC report

Work picks up at incoming 7-Eleven; more 'No 7-Eleven' skull posters adorn neighborhood

On the topic of the incoming 7-Eleven at Avenue A and East 11th Street... work has picked up here this week... there has been more activity than we've seen since September...


[Bobby Williams]

(And these trucks have nothing to do with the mashed potatoes vending machine found at a few 7-Elevens.)


[Crazy Eddie]

Meanwhile, we've spotted several of the No 7-Eleven Skull Posters in nearby windows... (Courtesy, presumably, of the No 7-Eleven group...)


[Crazy Eddie]


[Facebook]


[Facebook]

Previously.

13 months later, Grand Opening officially ends at the First Avenue Subway

The Subway at 108 First Ave. near East Sixth Street opened last Feb. 8. EVG Facebook friend Steven noted that the Grand Opening banner has finally been removed... to make way for a new campaign...

Cone-eating sewer grate of Avenue B — fixed!

At East Ninth Street at the entrance to Tompkins Square Park.... flashback to Feb. 23!



And now!



Photos by Bobby Williams.

Feast opens today on Third Avenue

[Photo by Dave on 7th]

Back in July, the New York Central Framing Annex moved from 102 Third Ave. around the corner to East 12th Street...to the New York Central Art Supply Warehouse... We didn't know too much about the new bar-restaurant in the works for the renovated space, which looked as if it has a similar design vibe as Boulton & Watt on Avenue A...

In any event, Feast opens today. And Gothamist has the scoop on what to expect.

Feast styles its menu around the idea of dinner parties, where diners "share plates of food and long conversations" as they would dining at someone's home. Two different "feasts" are available at dinner time, including a Union Square Greenmarket feast that changes with the seasons and a nose-to-tail feast focused around a rotating selection of animals. Diners are seated around large, communal tables made from reclaimed wood, surrounded by vintage pieces like a cast iron stove from Cape Cod, hay pulleys and picture frames.

Here's the menu via the Feast website. According to the menu, the Farmer's Market Feast is $38 per person while the "Nose to Tail Lamb Feast" is $48 person.

Doors are open from 7:30 am – 4 pm Monday through Sunday for coffee and "freshly baked-on-premise-pastries." Feast proprietor Brian Ghaw also owns Savoy Bakery in East Harlem.

Brain Rot pays homage to 171 Avenue A

The latest installment of Ed Piskor's Brain Rot: Hip Hop Family Tree is now online at BoingBoing.

Today, the comic strip visits 171 Avenue A, onetime home of Rat Cage Records and 171A, the illegal club-turned-rehearsal studio that produced records by Bad Brains and the "Polly Wog Stew" EP by the Beastie Boys...

Find today's strip here at BoingBoing. Find all of the Hip Hop Family Trees right here.

[h/t Shawn Chittle]

Previously on EV Grieve:
Remembering Adam Yauch in the East Village

Plan to add condos to historic East Sixth Street synagogue back on

Tomorrow night, CB3's Landmarks Subcommittee will hear proposed plans about a "facade restoration" for the Congregation Mezritch Synagogue at 415 E. Sixth Street.

Synagogue leaders have applied to add one story to the height of the structure, which is now part of the newish East Village/Lower East Side Historic District. (The proposed alteration is from the offices of Preservation Architect Joseph Pell Lombardi.)

There are flyers about the proposed restoration/addition posted nearby.



The proposal notes that the addition will be set back, and not visible to the public.



However, the plans don't get too specific about the interior portions of the building. (You can find a PDF of the plans here.) It appears the basement will contain space for a "community facility," with at least three or four residences taking up the remainder of the building. The plans also show the addition of an elevator.

Back in 2008, there were plans to demolish the Synagogue, which is just east of First Avenue. The plans, which called for a six-story condo, eventually fell through.

In 2010, more news surfaced about the historic building's deteriorating condition. Structure aside, the congregation dwindled to the point of not being able to attract minyan — the minimum of 10 men required by Jewish law — for some services. The hope was to add condos on top of the building to raise the money to upgrade the facilities. (Read The Villager's story on it from 2010 here.)



As the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation (GVSHP) has noted, "the landmark designation does not cover the interior of the building (few landmark designations cover building interiors, and religious edifices by law can never be interior landmarks). Landmark designation also does not control or regulate how a building is used."

After Wednesday's meeting, the application will be heard at the Landmarks Preservation Commission's public hearing on March 19. No time has been set yet for this. GVSHP has much more background information on all this right here.

On a month-to-month lease, 9th Street Bakery hopes to last through the summer

Back in January, we first reported that 9th St. Bakery, which has been around since 1926, will have to close due to a huge rent hike ... and a downturn in business.

EVG reader Dave M. from 13th St. originally told us the sad news. He provided an update from Oleg, who has owned the bakery with his wife Tetyana since the 1990s.

The bakery is currently on a month-to-month lease with the landlord, who will give them 30-days notice when he needs to terminate. It is not known whether the landlord is actively seeking a new tenant at this time. So Oleg thinks there is a good bet that the bakery may last the summer into the fall.

Good news for now, anyway.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Reader report: 9th St. Bakery is closing after 87 years (59 comments)

For further reading:
After 87 Years, Saying Goodbye to Ninth Street Bakery in the East Village (The Village Voice)

9th Street Bakery (Jeremiah's Vanishing New York)

My Mom and Pop: 9th Street Bakery (Off the Grid)


[At the shop in 1960, courtesy of Mort Zachter via the Voice]

How you can help Coney Island without leaving the East Village

[Photo of Joe Franklin and Dick Zigun from the Coney Island USA Spring Gala 2012 by Stacie Joy]

On Saturday night, Coney Island USA takes over Webster Hall for the organization's annual Spring Gala ... which is the premiere fundraising event for Coney Island USA. Per the press materials, the 2013 Spring Gala is The Burlesque Manifesto and will honor the role Coney Island USA played in beginning the neo-burlesque movement. (Find more details about the Gala here.)

EVG contributor Stacie Joy spoke with Coney Island USA spokesperson Tim Pendrell about this year's event.

How has Coney Island USA (CIUSA) been affected by hurricane Sandy?

We had about 6 feet of water in our landmarked building and nearly half-a-million dollars in damage. The Sideshows by the Seashore Theater, Gift Shop, Freak Bar and Denny's Ice Cream were heavily damaged. Denny's was lost for good. Also, a large number of our staff live and work in the neighborhood.

Do you think CIUSA will be ready to open this spring?

We will definitely be open in the Spring. We've begun reconstruction and are on schedule to be open as long as donations from our supporters keep coming in.

How can people help out?

People can help out by going to our website and either making a donation or buying something from our Amazon Wish List. The most fun way to help out is by going to our Gala. We are also on occasion looking for volunteers, but we are at the point in reconstruction that we mostly need skilled labor.

What is the Burlesque Manifesto?

The Burlesque Manifesto is a theatrical production over 30 years in the making. It will only be a brief part of our Gala, but it will tell the true story of Coney Island USA's role in creating the neo-burlesque movement.

In 1982, our founder Dick Zigun published a call for a new burlesque movement with a raised consciousness. Gala goers will see him paste up an Art-Page titled "The Last Strip-Joint In New York (& Why There Should Always Be One)" and lead Funny Tribeca Feminists on a Times Square Sex Tour.

They will also see him mix it up with Morton Minsky... This performance stars the greatest sideshow and burlesque performers this city has ever seen and will be directed by David Kaplan, artistic director of the Tennessee Williams Provincetown Festival. One of the things that are really interesting is that this is a big part of the beginning of Coney Island USA and our work preserving Coney Island's past through performing arts and our museum programming.

Previously on EV Grieve:
At the Coney Island USA Spring Gala 2012 (Slightly NSFW)

Live Fast on Clinton Street is closing March 29

[Via Live Fast]

Live Fast, the cool roll 'n' roll boutique at 57 Clinton Street between Stanton and Rivington, is closing on March 29. The usual reason: Landlord handed down a big rent increase.

Cecilia Anton opened the shop here that features an array of designers, independent and otherwise, in May 2005. In a message to customers, she wrote: "Keep in mind we will always be alive online and also looking for a new space ... after we get kicked out we will be vending at flea markets, tattoo and horror conventions."

Until the end, everything is 50 percent off at the store.

Find the store website here.

Possible Living Room to Second Street move on hold for now

This is one of the more intriguing items on this month's CB3/SLA committee agenda:

• The Living Room (ACP Project), 173 E 2nd St (op)

The Living Room on Ludlow Street, will be leaving their home of 10 years at the end of April due to a huge rent hike.

The owners of the live music venue recently held a successful fundraising campaign to help move to an undisclosed new home. As we reported last September, Klean & Kleaner, the laundromat at 173 E. Second St. between Avenue A and Avenue B, was on the market for use as a bar or restaurant.

ANYWAY.

All this is apparently on hold for the moment. The Living Room is a scratch now for this month's meeting, which takes place on Monday.