In case you weren't around during the July 4 holiday … we originally posted this on Friday… an update on the status of B&H Dairy on Second Avenue with comments from owner Fawzy Abdelwahed. Find the post here.
Monday, July 6, 2015
Repost: Progress and frustration at B&H Dairy
In case you weren't around during the July 4 holiday … we originally posted this on Friday… an update on the status of B&H Dairy on Second Avenue with comments from owner Fawzy Abdelwahed. Find the post here.
Sunday, July 5, 2015
Relive the July 4 fireworks with this East Village drone footage
In case you missed the fireworks last night… or want to relive them… here's some drone footage… it doesn't have any sound, so you may want to pick whatever you think might make some good accompaniment …
Updated 7-6
Here is more East Village drone footage from another source… this video has some musical accompaniment …
Week in Grieview
[10th and A this morning via Michael Sean Edwards]
On East 9th Street Dusty Buttons is closing after 125% rent hike: 'Saying goodbye will hurt like hell' (Thursday)
189 Avenue C is converting to condos (Monday)
Progress and frustration at B&H Dairy (Friday)
Dutch Elm Disease inoculation continues in Tompkins Square Park (Monday)
More about the 10-story building taking the place of the former BP station at 24 Second Ave. (Thursday)
Rent freeze on 1-year leases for rent-controlled apartments (Monday)
Out and About with Nelson Vercher (Wednesday)
Via Della Pace opening a pizzeria on St. Mark's Place (Thursday)
Screen time for Fledgling #1 (Thursday)
Pushcart Coffee opens on Third Avenue (Thursday)
About Superiority Burger (Tuesday, 37 comments)
Here's the trailer for 'Ten Thousand Saints,' set in the 1980s East Village (Monday)
Nonna's Pizza arrives on Avenue A (Monday)
Opening Day at New York Macaroni Co. on St. Mark's Place (Monday)
Boutique 67 ready for sales on Avenue C (Wednesday)
The Dry Dock Playground is closed for reconstruction (Wednesday)
Former Dolphin Gym will work out as medical office space (Monday)
PYT bringing its offbeat burger creations to the Bowery (Tuesday)
Happy Birthday Debbie Harry! (Wednesday)
Checking out Centre-fuge Cycle 17 on East First Street (Monday)
Demolition underway at 127 Avenue D (Wednesday)
We found some legs (Tuesday)
Court gives NYU OK for $6 billion expansion (Wednesday)
Construction watch: 397-401 E. Eighth St. (Tuesday)
Despite Grand Opening banner, Capital Laundry & Dry Cleaners has closed on Avenue B (Monday)
The Subway (sandwich shop) has closed on the Bowery (Tuesday)
[Photo on Avenue D via EVG reader Plumpy]
Saturday, July 4, 2015
If you don't like construction noise, then...
From the Post today:
Sixty-two percent, or 33,533, of the complaints logged with the Department of Environmental Protection from July 1, 2014, through June 30 of this year were tied to off-hours construction or noise from equipment such as jackhammers.
Read the whole article here.
Rest assured, there isn't a fire in the hole at 98-100 Avenue A
Just to put your mind at ease this holiday. Over at 98-100 Avenue A, workers continue [and continue] to put in the foundation for Ben Shaoul's new
Readers have noted a generator running 24/7 since early May, at least. And lately there has been some smoke billowing up over the plywood.
An explanation for this arrived this past week.
Per the sign: "We are currently performing dewatering on this construction site. This is condensation (water vapor) coming up through the pipes. There is no fire, no smoke, and no reason for alarm."
So remain calm, all is well.
And for people who don't like reading the fine print…
Friday, July 3, 2015
Progress and frustration at B&H Dairy
[B&H in happier days by Ken Goldstein via Facebook]
B&H Dairy has remained shuttered since the deadly Second Avenue gas explosion on March 26.
The 73-year-old lunch counter at 127 Second Ave. between East Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place was close to reopening several times this spring, only to encounter an unexpected setback, such as in early May when the FDNY said that B&H needed a new fire suppression system. (Safety requirements from the city have become stricter since March 26.)
This upgrade, expected to cost $28,000, has kept the small restaurant from opening these past two months. The upgrade is also looking like the major factor that could permanently close B&H.
For starters, owners Fawzy Abdelwahed and Ola Smigielsk needed approval from the Landmarks Preservation Commission (the building is in the East Village/Lower East Side Historic District) to install the new fire suppression system. The LPC approval finally came through last week. And as of Wednesday, the DOB had issued the necessary permit for the job. Work starts on Monday. (The contractor needed to be first approved by the FDNY.)
Now it looks like another few weeks before B&H can possibly reopen. "Another few weeks" is something that Abdelwahed has heard all too often in recent months. Meanwhile, other nearby restaurants were able to reopen fairly quickly after the explosion.
We spoke with Abdelwahed on the phone this week. He was understandably frustrated.
"I have bills to pay. What am I going to do? Where am I going to get assistance from? I just need to open the restaurant — simple," said Abdelwahed, who estimates that his monthly costs are $30,000, which includes rent, taxes and labor costs. (B&H successfully raised $26,000 in a crowdfunding campaign back in April.)
How about the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City, which promised financial assistance to residents and businesses impacted by the Second Avenue explosion?
"They promised to give people money who have been affected by the explosion, but this has never happened," he said. "I've never heard from them."
However, he expressed his gratitude to Bernadette Nation from the Small Business Services agency (a mayoral agency), who has lately been advocating on B&H's behalf along with Community Board 3 officials. And there are the B&H faithful. "We have very big support from our customers," he said. "Since being closed the only people who care about us are our customers."
While there is progress to report, B&H still has a labyrinth of red tape to navigate before reopening. For example, after the contractor finishes the work, the FDNY must approve the new system, then ConEd has to approve the building's new gas lines (already installed). Once B&H gets final approval by all involved parties, the Department of Health steps in for an inspection before the restaurant is permitted to serve food again. (B&H had an A rating before.)
And if there is another setback, what will that do to B&H's chances of reopening?
“As each day goes by, I cannot pay the rent if we are closed. Two more weeks and I cannot afford it anymore," he said. "Two more weeks and I’m done. That’s it."
For his part, Abdelwahed just wants to get back to work.
“I miss the whole operation. I miss my customers. I miss seeing them. They are my friends — I know them by name. I miss serving people every day. I miss my job every day," he said, "I get up every day and I don’t know what to do. It is a very bad feeling."
[Photo of Fawzy and Ola from May 9 by Derek Berg]
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For further reading:
Save the B&H (Jeremiah's Vanishing New York)
NYI featured B&H last night on its "NY1 For You" segment.
Plywood arrives for Tompkins Square Bagels build-out on 2nd Avenue
As we've been reporting, Tompkins Square Bagels is opening a second East Village location — this one at 184 Second Ave. between East 11th Street and East 12th Street.
Workers erected the plywood outside the storefront for the renovations yesterday. Owner Christopher Pugliese told us previously that he hopes to be up and running here in December.
Read our interview with Pugliese here.
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