High times: New clock appears above East 13th Street and 4th Avenue

So last Saturday we spotted our old friends from Bay Crane doing something or another on the southeast corner of Fourth Avenue and East 13th Street… we took the above photo (remember: you always take photos of cranes).

And that was that. Until blogger Andrew Fine pointed out to us the arrival of an old-timey clock …





Per A Fine Blog:

It appears to be part of the re-branding of Pan Am Equities' 4000 unit apartment portfolio by Mirador Properties, which is now in charge of marketing and leasing. Mirador is overseeing the upscaling the properties with Restoration Hardware fixtures, high end appliances, and sleek lobbies. It is being branded as "True North", dedicated to combining "Old New York design" with "modern technology and amenities". Ok, whatever.

Early morning car fire on East 8th Street

The FDNY was quick to respond to this car fire on East Eighth Street between Avenue C and Avenue D… EVG reader Peter H. from 8th Street shared these photos …











No word at the moment what caused the fire…

Liar, liar

Babes in Toyland. "Bruise Violet." 1992.

Noted

Apparently East 10th Street between First Avenue and Avenue A is flowing green at the moment, as this photo by @FashionByHe shows... not sure why at the moment.

Perhaps there was a spill at one of the two Juice Press locations on East 10th Street... the sight of this lends some credence to the theory...

EV Grieve Etc.: Mourning Edition

[Tompkins Square Park last night via Michael Sean Edwards]

Feature obituary on the great Leee Black Childers (The New York Times)

Video: An interview with the Birdman of Rainbow Music on First Avenue (GammaBlog)

A "die-in" protest on Grand Street (The Daily News)

"The Two-Character Play" gets a two-week extended run at Bullet Space (292 Theatre)

Details on "The Real Estate Show, What Next: 2014" (BoweryBoogie)

Ai Weiwei's first museum show in the city opens next week at the Brooklyn Museum (The Wall Street Journal)

More about the future of the restaurants on East Houston and Orchard (The Villager)

There's a new NYC summer concert venue at Pier 97 (Brooklyn Vegan)

... and via the EVG inbox...

Ukrainian Easter Egg Decorating Workshop with Anna Sawaryn
Saturday April 12, noon - 2 p.m.

6th & B Garden - Avenue B between 5th & 6th Street

(Since we work with candles and hot beeswax children under 10 must be accompanied by an adult.)

Ukrainians have been creating beautiful pysanky using a batik process for centuries. Eggs represent life and were given to friends, as a symbol of good fortune and protection from harm. With the acceptance of Christianity in 988 the pysanka, a symbol of rebirth, became a part of Ukrainian Easter traditions.

Eggs are dyed, starting with the lightest and ending with the darkest, usually black. A stylus and hot beeswax are used to cover, the color beneath. Whatever is covered with beeswax will remain that color and be protected from the next dye. In the end all the beeswax is removed revealing the many layers of color.

Report: Rent hike forced Gino to retire and close his Royal Tailor shop

[James and Karla Murray]

As we first reported on Tuesday, Gino DiGirolamo is retiring, and closing his Royal Tailor shop at 520 E. 14th St. on May 31.

After 50 years in the business, it seemed as if a retirement was in order for Gino.

However, that's not the case. As NY1 reported, a rent hike left him no choice but to close.

"The man, he want a thousand dollars more. I pay the $3,000, he want $4,000," DiGirolamo said.

Also from the article:

"This level of craftsmanship, this level of care, this level of pride is really disappearing," said James Murray, an East Village resident.

Gino is also known for staying open and in his store literally all night. Max Chanoch came in to drop off pants to be tailored at 11 p.m., they were ready by 7 a.m.

520 E. 14th St., which also houses Dunkin' Donuts on the ground floor, is the lone holdout between ...


[Via Google]

… the two new retail-residential buildings expected at 500 E. 14th St. and 524 E. 14th St. …


[500 E. 14th St.]

And!


[524 E. 14th St.]

Per NY1: "Many say when DiGirolamo leaves it will be another piece of the old neighborhood no longer around."

You can say that again. And again …

Previously on EV Grieve:
A pile of clothes at the Royal Tailor

After 50 years in business, Gino DiGirolamo is closing the Royal Tailor shop

East 14th Street exodus continues

The disappearing storefronts of East 14th Street

[Updated with correction] 8-lot parcel of East 14th Street primed for new development

Reader report: These street lights along East Houston have been out for several years

An EVG reader tells us that there are two street lights out just west of Avenue A along East Houston and East First Street ...



According to the reader, the lights have been dark "for several years."

"I have called 311 several times and even talked to the guys who have been working on [the East Houston Reconstruction Project] for the last 600 years. They never get fixed," the resident says. "It is very dark on both Houston and First Street. I have almost stepped on little dogs since I can't see them and tripped on the horribly uneven sidewalk."



This can be a rather treacherous thoroughfare here. There's a lot going on with various traffic patterns … not to mention the construction equipment, the bus stop, the pedestrians, etc. … made all the more challenging along a darkened corridor …



As for the East Houston Reconstruction Project, the city expects the work between the Bowery and the FDR to be completed by December 2105. (Find an update here, PDF) Perhaps the lights will come back on then.

Shakespeare & Company space is for lease on Broadway

The longtime home of Shakespeare & Company is up for grabs at 716 Broadway. As we first reported on Monday, via a tipster, the store had lost its lease here between Washington Place and Waverly Place.

Our tipster said that the landlord wants a big rent hike. How big?

Massey Knakal agent Brendan Gotch told The Commercial Observer, who first reported the news of the listing yesterday, that the asking rent is now $50,000 a month. While he does not know Shakespeare's current rent, the new rate is "probably two or three times what they're paying now."

Mr. Gotch explained that while both he and the landlord are sad to see the Shakespeare & Co. go, business is business. "That part of Broadway has changed," he said. "Their lease has expired and they're staying on briefly until the landlord acquires a new tenant. The fact of the matter is that along with many bookstores, they are having trouble paying rents that were affordable 10 years ago when they signed these leases."

Our tipster mentioned that some store regulars were interested in a crowd-funding campaign. However admirable, such a campaign is likely not going to help the store stay in a space asking twice as much rent as before…

Previously on EV Grieve:
Reader report: Shakespeare & Company loses lease on Broadway

6 St. Mark's Place is for lease; NY Tofu House officially closes

[Image via Massey Knakal]

There's a new retail listing for 6 St. Mark's Place. Which means that NY Tofu House, which papered up their front windows/doors after service on Sunday, isn't actually closed for renovations.

Here are listing details from Massey Knakal:

The offering could include the Second Floor as well for a total of 7,200 SF.

New build out with vented kitchen.

Existing full liquor license

Selling lower level, with kitchen and seating

Thanks to the local student, tourist, and resident populations, thousands of people walk by the space every day.

Neighboring Tenants: 51 Astor Place, Chipotle, Pinkberry, Yoga to the People, Cooper Union, NYU

There's no mention of the rent. Tofu House opened in November 2011. In late 2010, Cafe Hanover flamed out after just five months. The asking monthly rent for the two floors then was [dun dun dun] $50,000.

Previously, before the quick succession of restaurants, No. 6 was home to Mondo Kim's ... and going back ... No. 6 was first, starting in 1913, home to the Saint Marks Russian and Turkish Baths ... which, in 1979, became the New Saint Marks Baths, the gay bathhouse (purportedly the largest one in the world) that the city eventually closed in 1985 during the AIDS epidemic.

Also, in 1914, The Modern School — "an anarchist school with Emma Goldman on the board," according to NY Songlines — had space in the building.

Food writers looking for remembrances of Princess Pamela

[Image from the East Village Eye via Ephemeral New York]

We received this email the other day:

Princess Pamela ran Princess Pamela's Little Kitchen on East 10th Street starting in the 1960s, and later in the less-glorious years, Princess Pamela's Southern Touch over on 1st. During the heyday Dizzy Gillespie was going. Miss Pamela wore a red wig, was known to sing and host bizarro salons, and let you in only after chatting you up at the door and approving of your entry into the fold. I have been completely captivated by this lady and surely its a story worth telling — at this juncture though we are not even sure what became of Pamela.

The request comes from an assistant working with Charleston, S.C. and New York-based food writers Matt and Ted Lee, who often freelance for Travel + Leisure, Bon Appetit and The New York Times. They have their own recollections of Princess Pamela that they'd like to build on. "As Pamela is famously elusive, they are casting a wide net trying to find any definitive details."

You may email the writers here.

Here's one remembrance from blogger Mangozeen:

Princess Pamela had a well-deserved reputation for orneriness. After ringing the buzzer, she checked you out and a woman in a white nurse's dress came to get you and walk you up to the restaurant that looked like it had been a railroad apartment. On a good night Pamela would drunkenly sing along with the jazz quartet. Their shining glory was a prominently displayed picture of Jackie Kennedy. I lived across the street. My hillbilly girlfriend and I went a few times. Once we climbed the stairs. Princess Pamela took a look at us she said, "We're full." I peeked inside. There wasn't a soul in the room, but she said, "Come back tomorrow." And we did.

Gruppo owner opening Mezcla on Second Avenue and East 19th Street

A little out of our usual coverage zone… but we wanted to mention this… We had been to Capucine's Restaurant with its tuxedo-clad waiters on Second Avenue and East 19th Street a few times through the years… A rent hike helped shutter the place after 33 years in business on April 1, 2013, as Jeremiah Moss reported.

While walking by 327 Second Ave. the other day, we spotted the signage for what's coming next…



Mezcla will serve Latin and Spanish food here … with a soft opening expected on Monday, according to DNAinfo.



Owner Antonio Gomez, a Lower East Side resident, operates Posto across Second Avenue at No. 310 … (he also owns Gruppo on Avenue B).

Per DNA:

Gomez plans to source most of Mezcla's ingredients — including eggs, pork and rabbit — from his own farm upstate.

Gomez has already begun growing tomatoes and basil on his farm to use at his Manhattan pizzerias — in addition to Posto, he also owns Gruppo, Vezzo, Spunto and Tappo — but he soon plans to dedicate the entire 92-acre farm for ingredients to use at Mezcla, he said. Changes include expanding egg production from 100 per week to about 1,000, he said.

High times! CBGB to sell 'gourmet cannabis edibles'

Just noting a Help Wanted ad that Gothamist spotted at Eater:

Recipe Consultant , CBGB, New York

CBGB is globally recognized as the birthplace of punk & new music. One natural expansion is into world of high-end, gourmet cannabis edibles. From the Bowery & Berlin to Red Rocks and The Gorge Amphitheatre; CBGB is a trusted curator for new experiences. This includes the exciting world of hand made cannabis treats.

We have developed a full line of edibles that will soon be available in 20 states but we need you to fine tune the recipes as we strive to set a new industry standard for quality, taste and originality.

Do you have the punk spirit? Can you speak well on camera and in the press? We want to hear from you!

The ad is dated March 25.

[Updated] The Marshal seizes Luca Bar on St. Mark's Place

Several readers pointed out this notice, dated Monday, on the bar-restaurant at 119 St. Mark's Place. There isn't any mention of a closure at this time at the Luca Bar Facebook page. Calls to the bar are directed to an automated voice-message system.

This isn't the first time that the Luca Bar has had a run-in with the Marshal/landlord/State of New York. There was an eviction notice served last June.

In June 2011, the Marshal seized the bar as well. According to The Local , the owners owed state tax officials $31,385.49, not including interest and penalties; that the bar has six open warrants for unpaid taxes dating to November 2009.

They always seem to be able to bounce back.

The folks behind Luca Bar recently opened the Roost on Avenue B.

Updated 4/11
Luca Bar is back open for business.

EV Grieve Etc.: Mourning Edition

[Spotted on 2nd Avenue and East 4th Street by Derek Berg]

A last look at Rizzoli Bookstore, destined for the wrecking ball (Jeremiah's Vanishing New York)

3 people injured in fire on Grand Street (DNAinfo)

Café Rakka on St. Mark's Place a "cheap eats" destination (Eater)

A new look for Kelly's on Avenue A (BoweryBoogie)

First signs of demolition on Grand Street ahead of the Essex Crossing project (The Lo-Down)

An update on the Washington Square Park redesign (Washington Square Park Blog)

J&R closes for major revamp (Curbed)

… and two upcoming events to note at the Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space at 155 Avenue C…

• Friday, April 11: “Technologies of Friendship in the Urban Space,” Discussion and Video Presentation, 7 PM

MoRUS is pleased to welcome visiting activist and sociologist Dr. Syd Krochmalny to present a unique, video-documented study of reclaimed urban space through peaceful and creative activism in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

The viewing and discussion will be followed by a Q&A with Dr. Krochmalny and a reception. Details here.

• Saturday, April 12: “Rent Rebels: Resistance Against the Sellout of a City,” Film screening with two showtimes, 6 PM and 9 PM

Berlin has changed a lot in the last years. Flats that once were unattractive are now being used as secure investment objects. Massive rent increases and the transformation into owner-occupied flats make affordable housing a rare good. The recent tenant protests are a reaction to this city transformation disregarding the lives of its inhabitants. The movie is a kaleidoscope of the tenants’ struggles in Berlin against their displacement.