Sunday's parting shot

This evening in Tompkins Square Park via Bobby Williams...

Week in Grieview

[14th Street yesterday morning]

Memorial for Elizabeth Lee on Cooper Square (Saturday ... Wednesday ... Thursday)

Malik Campbell shot and killed on Avenue D (Friday)

Northeast corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Avenue will yield to a 7-story office building (Friday)

RIP Richard Hambleton (Wednesday)

Joe Ricketts shuts down Gothamist and DNAinfo (Thursday)

HiFi’s last stand (Tuesday)

Out and About part 2 with Siobhan Meow (Thursday)

1st Avenue fruit vendors pack up for the season (Wednesday)

On Monday, a rally for the former P.S. 64 at City Hall (Friday)

Graffiti space giving way to Greek restaurant on 10th Street (Monday)

Ho Foods coming to 7th Street (Thursday)

Happy No. 50 to the cube of Astor Place (Wednesday)

Landmark Bicycles closes on Avenue A (Thursday)

East Village subs for the Forest Moon of Endor in Halloween speeder video (Monday)

Everyone's favorite 14th Street triplex with a garage door for a wall is back on the market (Friday)

Mama Fina's signage arrives on Avenue A (Monday)

Look at the old BP station on 2nd Avenue now (Monday)

An early start on the holidays on St. Mark's Place (Wednesday)

4 East Village restaurants earn Michelin stars (Tuesday)

Cabaret law repealed; they'll be swinging, swaying, records playing (Tuesday)

Reader report: Driver crashes into Town & Village Synagogue on 14th Street (Monday)

... and at Mikey Likes It at 199 Avenue A... this month's 1980s-inspired mural is Daniel from "The Karate Kid" ... (goes with this flavor) ...


[I’m Daniel…with a “D”]

---

Follow EVG on Instragram and/or Twitter for more updates

John Wilcock's history of The East Village Other

Ethan Persoff and Scott Marshall have been sharing an ongoing comic book history at BoingBoing of underground publisher-Warhol biographer John Wilcock's years in New York.

On Friday, they did a segment on The East Village Other, the underground paper Wilcock helped launch in 1965. You can check it out here.

A reminder about time

As a reminder, we're marking the end of Daylight Saving Time at 2 a.m. on Nov. 5 ... so set those clocks-watches back an hour (and wonder, if you're at a bar at that time, whether they will stay open an extra hour)...

To illustrate Fall Back, let's look at the clock tower at the Most Holy Redeemer/Nativity church on Third Street where it is either 5:15 or 2:25. Tomorrow at this time, it will be 4:15 or 1:25.

Anyway, here's advice from the FDNY...

When you change your clocks for #DaylightSaving, test your smoke/CO alarm & replace batteries. It could save your life. pic.twitter.com/vJFKKB1U6f

— FDNY (@FDNY) November 4, 2017

Memorial for Elizabeth Lee on Cooper Square

Friends and loved ones have placed flowers on Cooper Square where Elizabeth Lee was reportedly gunned down on Wednesday morning by a onetime boyfriend who had been stalking her.

Lee, who was 56, lived on the Upper East Side and worked at Grace Church School on Cooper Square. According to published reports, she had just docked a Citi Bike when Vincent Verdi approached her and shot her twice. He then reportedly shot himself in the head. Verdi, 62, is in critical condition at Bellevue.

The Daily News delves into his past.

He reportedly worked for the CIA and the Defense Department in Afghanistan, and elsewhere, for years.

The person close to him said Verdi suffered from severe depression from his years in the combat theater, and that may have contributed to his shocking crime.

“I think it has to do with him dealing with suicidal depression since he came back from Afghanistan,” the person said. “He was never the same person. And he had told the military that he needed to get help and they just ignored it.”

“That does not make up for his actions. I’m totally horrified by his actions. I can’t even express how sad I am for his family.”

Also:

Verdi has five sealed arrests in Florida for battery, domestic violence, lewd and lascivious behavior and fraud stretching over the past 30 years, police sources said.

Collegaues at Grace Church School remembered Lee as someone who really cared about the students.

Olivia Nunez, 34, met Lee-Herman a decade ago when they worked at Go Project, a nonprofit organization.

“She was really kind,” she said. “Welcoming. Always had a smile on her face. She was just the sweetest, sweetest person.”

We are deeply saddened to say we have lost an irreplaceable member of our community, Elizabeth Lee, a Grace parent as well as assistant to the assistant head of school. These difficult times remind us how important staying together and supporting one another is. Acts of kindness can go a long way. As Rev. Hummel expressed in this morning's chapel, Ms. Lee can be remembered for her kindness and care for her family and GCS. Updates on funeral arrangements will be posted on the school's website.

A post shared by The High School @ GCS (@gcshighschool) on Nov 2, 2017 at 1:47pm PDT

It's the 'End of the World' as we know it

Here's the East Village's own Jesse Malin with a new video for his song "Meet Me at the End of the World," which features some well-known faces and places.

Malin and band will be at the Bowery Ballroom on Nov. 18 for a special benefit show. Details here.

Report: NYPD searching for suspect after man gunned down on Avenue D

DEVELOPING: Man shot in East Village, police search for shooter: NYPD https://t.co/hR5Xlj5vUZ

— NBC New York (@NBCNewYork) November 3, 2017

There are reports that a man was shot at 108 Avenue D at Eighth Street around 4:15.

CBS 2 reports that the victim, 23, was shot in the head in the Jacob Riis Houses.

The victim is in critical condition, and police are looking for the suspect, per PIX 11.

Will update when more information on the shooting becomes available.

Updated 11/4

According to the Daily News, Malik Campbell died at Bellevue from the gunshot.

Per the News: "Cops are trying to determine if the violence was connected to an earlier stabbing, according to sources."

Oh, but the adventures that we had!

The concrete horse head bust has had such a busy week! And now the "phantom horse" is "under restoration" on Seventh Street outside its stable the Shape of Lies.

Photo by Derek Berg

Report: NE corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Avenue will yield to a 7-story office building

Plans are in the works to redevelop the three-building assemblage on the northeast corner of Third Avenue and St. Mark's Place.

According to The Real Deal:

[Real Estate Equities Corporation REEC], led by Brandon Miller and Mark Siegel, is planning to demolish the existing low-rise buildings at 3 St. Mark’s Place, 23 and 25-27 Third Avenue to make way for one new property. Plans call for a seven-story, 66,000-square-foot office building, including 6,000 square feet of corner retail.

That will mean the end of the businesses along here, including the Continental, Korilla BBQ, E Smoke Shop and Papaya King. (The former McDonald's structure is also part of the new development.)



REEC picked up the 99-year leasehold for the properties for a little more than $150 million, per The Real Deal.

In June 2015, The Real Deal reported that real-estate investor Arthur Shapolsky was in contract to buy the corner buildings for roughly $50 million.

However, Joseph Gabay, whose family owns the properties, told me this past June that they had not been sold despite the continued rumors.

That situation has apparently changed. Gabay did not respond to an email to confirm this deal.

As of last evening, there weren't any new permits on file with the Department of Buildings indicating any new work on the properties. There isn't any word just yet on a timeline for the businesses to close.

The development will likely fuel more talk of the Midtown Southification of this part of the neighborhood with 51 Astor Place/IBM Watson Building/Death Star right across the Avenue.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Shake Shack effect? McDonald's on 3rd Avenue at St. Mark's Place has closed after 20 years

Report: Northeast corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Ave. fetching $50 million for development site

On Monday, a rally for the former P.S. 64 at City Hall

[Photo from October]

Community activists, preservationists and local elected officials remain cautiously optimistic over Mayor de Blasio's recent statement that his administration would take steps to reacquire the former P.S 64 and CHARAS/El Bohio community center on Ninth Street between Avenue B and Avenue C.

On that note... via a Facebook invite:

Join Us As We Mark the Anniversary of the late Community Leader and CHARAS Co-Founder Armando Perez’s birthday and Celebrate the Mayor’s Announcement of His Intent to Reacquire CHARAS!

RALLY & PRESS CONFERENCE
CITY HALL STEPS
Monday, Nov. 6
Noon

With speakers Councilmember Rosie Mendez, Carlina Rivera, Congresswoman Nydia Velasquez, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, Assembly member Brian Kavanaugh, Senator Brad Hoylman, Carlos ‘Chino Garcia, CHARAS, Inc., Andrew Berman, GVSHP, Laura Sewell, EVCC and others!

Find more details here.

A spokesperson for owner Gregg Singer, who bought the property from the city in 1998, responded that he has no plans to sell the building. The spokesperson, who said that the city is being a bully, told DNAinfo the appraised value of the property is $60 million, and that Singer "has already poured $80 million into upkeep."

Singer, who wants to turn the landmarked property into a dorm called University Square, continues in a holding pattern while the DOB has a Stop Work Order on the building.

Previously on EV Grieve:
During Town Hall, Mayor announces city's interest in re-acquiring former P.S. 64

At the rally for the former PS 64 today at City Hall

Car fire on 14th Street

Don't have much, if any, info about this... a car caught fire early this morning/late last night in the westbound side of 14th Street at Second Avenue ... the FDNY quickly extinguished the blaze (and there is a firehouse on the block...)



Thanks to @jcastro_nyc for the photos!

Everyone's favorite 14th Street triplex with a garage door for a wall is back on the market

[Image via Streeteasy]

Once, again, your favorite floor-through condominium triplex with a fully retractable second floor façade/wall that flips open like a garage door overlooking 14th Street returns to the market here between Second Avenue and Third Avenue.

The home (in the building "Brownstone East Village"), which has been on and off and on the market for years, is again for sale.

Bringing the news is 6sqft:

Among numerous other media mentions, the triplex has been on the cover of New York magazine and was selected as Elle Decor’s Pick of the World’s Most Beautiful Homes.

Adding up to about 2,000 square feet of eclectic architect-designed custom finishes, the home offers ordinary luxuries like an elevator, 12-foot ceilings, a 500-square-foot private garden with a cabana, exposed brick walls, laundry, and a home office and rec room. Joining the retractable walls on the eclectic side is an aquarium that runs the width of the apartment.

Here's one photo...



Price: $4.2 million.

The place looks pretty nice, though everyone always seems to want to sell it.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Finally, your chance to own the 3-level penthouse at the Brownstone East Village

More photos of the apartment with the garage door for a living-room wall on East 14th Street

A mailbox returns to 9th and A

EVG reader Dennis noted yesterday that a USPS mailbox has returned to Avenue A and Ninth Street.

The box had been gone for more than a year (or longer?) after sidewalk work started along Ninth Street. As Dennis said, it was previously anchored on Ninth Street off the Avenue A corner near the M8 stop. It is now on Avenue A a little north of Ninth Street near GelArto. (Speaking of GelArto, the DOH temporarily closed them yesterday.)

And Dennis checked: Pickups at this mailbox are 1 p.m. weekdays and 2 p.m. Saturdays.

Updated: Joe Ricketts just shut down Gothamist and DNAinfo

Woah.

This message now greets visitors to both DNAinfo and Gothamist...



Here's that message from publisher Joe Ricketts:

Dear DNAinfo and Gothamist Readers:
Today, I've made the difficult decision to discontinue publishing DNAinfo and Gothamist. Reaching this decision wasn't easy, and it wasn't one I made lightly.

I started DNAinfo in 2009 at a time when few people were investing in media companies. But I believed an opportunity existed to build a successful company that would report unbiased neighborhood news and information. These were stories that weren't getting told, and because I believe people care deeply about the things that happen where they live and work, I thought we could build a large and loyal audience that advertisers would want to reach.

A lot of what I believed would happen did, but not all of it. Today, DNAinfo and Gothamist deliver news and information each day to over half a million people's email inboxes; we have over 2 million fans across our social channels; and each month, we have over 15 million visits to our sites by over 9 million people. But more important than large numbers of visits and fans, we've reported tens of thousands of stories that have informed, impacted, and inspired millions of people. And in the process, I believe we've left the world a better place.

But DNAinfo is, at the end of the day, a business, and businesses need to be economically successful if they are to endure. And while we made important progress toward building DNAinfo into a successful business, in the end, that progress hasn't been sufficient to support the tremendous effort and expense needed to produce the type of journalism on which the company was founded. I want to thank our readers for their support and loyalty through the years. And I want to thank our employees for their tireless effort and dedication.

I'm hopeful that in time, someone will crack the code on a business that can support exceptional neighborhood storytelling for I believe telling those stories remains essential.

Sincerely,

Joe Ricketts
Chief Executive Officer

Ricketts bought Gothamist back in March.

The Times reported that the reporters and editors in the combined newsrooms "celebrated victory in their vote to join a union" just last week.

In total, the closure impacts 115 employees, including reporters, editors, sales staff, among others, in New York as well as in other cities with DNA/-ist outposts. According to the Times: "They are getting three months of paid 'administrative leave' at full salary, plus four weeks of severance."

And reactions...

Gothamist, Gawker, Village Voice, DNA Info, all gone within a year.... they're trying to end independent media, and it's working.

— Max RN (@MaxRivlinNadler) November 2, 2017

DNAinfo and Gothamist are being killed. We were the best in the game and I can't put into words what a loss this is to NYC news.

— Noah Hurowitz (@NoahHurowitz) November 2, 2017

shutting down gothamist and DNAinfo entirely -- without even leaving up an archive -- is jaw-droppingly vindictive

— Max Read (@max_read) November 2, 2017

Gothamist and DNA were both crucial sites staffed by amazing reporters and instantly deleting the archives is fucking evil

— Anna Merlan (@annamerlan) November 2, 2017

If only Joe Ricketts could have scraped together the money to keep Gothamist and DNAinfo up long enough for writers to save their clips. pic.twitter.com/XUx3h6dJn4

— Madison M. K. (@4evrmalone) November 2, 2017

DNAinfo and Gothamist are (not writing were, refuse to do it) some of the best local reporting in NYC 1/3

— Sam Biederman (@Biedersam) November 2, 2017

I just walked back from the bathroom to find out that everyone at @Gothamist and @DNAinfoNY has been laid off

— Christopher Robbins (@ChristRobbins) November 2, 2017

This is insane. They didn’t just mothball Gothamist, like Gawker or Consumerist, they actually took its entire archives offline

— Felix Salmon (@felixsalmon) November 2, 2017

Taking down the DNAInfo and Gothamist archives is really fucked up, for the city and for the reporters there who need their clips.

— Harry Siegel (@harrysiegel) November 2, 2017

The decision to shut down DNAinfo and Gothamist puts 115 journalists out of work, per NYT https://t.co/qzFDgaMhgJ

— Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) November 2, 2017

A gut punch to local journalism and the intrepid reporters who keep New Yorkers informed and hold those in power accountable. https://t.co/CDWg5Q3n8l

— Eric Schneiderman (@AGSchneiderman) November 2, 2017

Updated 8 p.m.:
The following is a statement from the Writers Guild of America, East:

"We are deeply concerned by Joe Ricketts’ decision to shut down DNAinfo New York and Gothamist, along with all their respective local outlets. The New York offices of DNAinfo and Gothamist recently voted to unionize and it is no secret that threats were made to these workers during the organizing drive. The Guild will be looking at all of our potential areas of recourse and we will aggressively pursue our new members rights. We will meet with management in the near future to address all of these issues. We are currently working with the staff at DNAinfo and Gothamist to support them in this difficult time.”