Grant Shaffer's NY See

Here's the latest NY See, East Village-based illustrator Grant Shaffer's observational sketch diary of things that he sees and hears around the neighborhood.

As previously mentioned, Grant was switching up this format: He's now creating a single panel each week so he can focus on his new project: short stories for a graphic novel.

EVG Etc.: LGBTQ landmarks in the East Village; affordable housing lottery at Essex Crossing

[TBT to Sunday in Tompkins via Derek Berg]

• Exploring 23 LGBTQ landmarks in the East Village and Noho (6sqft)

• Pride and Stonewall through the lens of Fred W. McDarrah (The New Yorker)

• Affordable housing lottery for seniors underway in Essex Crossing (The Lo-Down)

• E-bikes and e-scooters are now legal in New York (CBS 2)

• Prosecutor: Dealer sold deadly fentanyl out of Union Square restaurants (Daily News)

• Opinion piece on how the NYPD ignores reckless drivers who injure cyclists (Streetsblog) Hunter College survey finds that nearly one-third of Manhattan cyclists are distracted by electronics while riding. Also in the survey: Only 2 percent of pedestrian injuries are caused by people on bikes, according to NYPD data. (The Post)

• Pete Wells finds menu items with "nuance" in one-star review of Vietnamese newcomer Van Da on Fourth Street near Avenue B (The New York Times)

• Best bagels in NYC — mapped (Eater)

• This series, starting tonight, showcases works representing "different aesthetic and critical relationships to the prison institution: from provocative, activist documentaries to inmate-made films, from commercial exploitation cinema to classic escape dramas, and more" (Anthology Film Archives)

• An illustrative look at the harsh summer life in LES tenements during the 1890s (Ephemeral New York)

• In the West Village, Three Lives & Company bookstore is back in action after a DOB-mandated building closure (JVNY)

• Ugh from 58th Street: "The Paris Theater, the last great single-screen prestige picture palace in New York, is expected to shutter in late August" (Deadline)

• "Jaws" and "Eraserhead" play (in separate theaters!) this weekend at midnight (IFC Center)

Garbage truck parking situation on 10th Street still stinks, residents say

With the arrival of a new season, residents who live on 10th Street west of First Avenue are anticipating a long, hot summer with garbage trucks continuing to park on their block.

A resident from 240 E. 10th St. shared this from a recent warm weather day:

Due to the three enormous sanitation trucks parked directly in front of our building ... there were dozens of flies in my apartment. You could see them on and around the trucks and flying up to people’s apartments. I have a new-born daughter in the apartment and there were flies on her pacifier, flies in my apartment and flies in her room. This is unacceptable.

As first reported last Sept. 18, the Department of Sanitation (DSNY) is now using this section of 10th Street to park up to seven garbage trucks or other vehicles. The DSNY no longer has use of their garage on 30th Street, and their solution for the foreseeable future has been to relocate their fleet elsewhere, including overnight on residential blocks.

And why park here? The Theater for the New City complex at 155 First Ave. near 10th Street was previously used by DSNY for storage, and they still maintain space in the facility for crews.

Meanwhile, residents say they continue to have quality-of-life and safety concerns — as expressed in previous posts — over the row of trucks parked on this block.







Last September, shortly after the trucks arrived, Mayor de Blasio promised to "relieve the immediate pressure" on 10th Street. "Do we want garbage trucks parking on residential streets? Of course not," said de Blasio, as CBS 2 reported on Sept. 26. "What we’re trying to do every day is figure out the kind of facilities that will help avoid that in the future."

Nine months later residents here are still waiting.

"Making phone calls and writing letters doesn’t seem to be doing anything," resident Michelle Lang said. "While Mayor de Blasio promised to relieve the residents of 10th Street from this undue burden back in September, nothing has been done."

Apparently there isn't any quick solution to the parking situation. DSNY included in their capital plan funding to start designing Manhattan Garage 6 (now temporarily on Montgomery and Jefferson streets) in 2022 with an anticipated completion date in 2028.

Local Councilmember Carlina Rivera has advocated for City Council to call to move the sanitation vehicles from residential neighborhoods in its 2020 Preliminary Budget Response.

Here's part of a missive from City Council:

The Council calls upon the Administration to relocate DSNY operational vehicles that are currently parked in residential neighborhoods to new, centralized locations within their respective sanitation districts. By centrally locating personnel and vehicle fleet, specifically in areas of Manhattan and Brooklyn, DSNY would improve efficiencies and reduce safety/air quality risks to local residents and small businesses.

Updated 8 p.m.

I asked Avi Burn, an owner of Pinks, whose bar-restaurant looks out at the parked garbage trucks, for his thoughts.

"Obviously businesses and neighbors are quite worried as the trucks are still parked on the block and the summer is the most perilous time for us as the stench is magnified, consumer foot traffic is heavier (will avoid smelly truck lined blocks) and there is more potentially hazardous street behavior late at night."

Previously on EV Grieve:
Questions and concerns as the sanitation department begins using 10th Street to park garbage trucks

More trash talk about those garbage trucks parked on 10th Street

Local elected officials continue to press city for alternatives to parking garbage trucks on 10th Street; muggings now a concern

A waste of space: 10th Street still waiting for the garbage trucks to move on

Report: LPC approves transfer of air rights across St. Mark's Place

[The proposed 3 St. Mark's Place as seen from Astor Place]

As expected on Tuesday, the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) approved developer Real Estate Equities Corporation's (REEC) plan to transfer air rights from the landmarked Hamilton-Holly House at 4 St. Mark's Place to add square footage to their office building coming to the northeast corner of Third Avenue and St. Mark's Place.

As previously reported, REEC wants to buy $4 million in air rights from the landmarked Hamilton-Holly House at 4 St. Mark's Place. According to terms of the deal, 5 percent of the $4 million — $200,000 — would go to maintaining No. 4, whose history includes being home to Alexander Hamilton's son and Trash & Vaudeville. The circa-1831 building was recently privy to a full gut renovation over the course of two years.


[4 St. Mark's Place as seen in January]

Here's Curbed with coverage from Tuesday:

LPC commissioners had reservations about the proposal, but ultimately relented and gave it the green light to ensure the continued maintenance of the Hamilton-Holly House.

“This is an important building to get right and I think it’s a tradeoff that we’re talking about,” said Frederick Bland, LPC vice chair, during the Tuesday vote. “We’re going to have that building, so let’s have the building with the landmark.”

Commissioners didn’t have say over the design of the building because it isn’t within a historic district; instead, they were tasked with reviewing restoration plans for the landmark and determining how “harmonious” a specific sliver of the new building created out of the air rights exchange is with the Hamilton-Holly House.

Gothamist was also at the meeting, and pointed out the opposition to this plan:

All told, the commission said it had received 390 emails campaigning against the project.

Despite that, of the 11 commissioners, only one voted against the transfer of air rights. Among the conditions that must be met for the city to grant the air rights is that the project must have a “harmonious relationship” with the landmarked site.

“I just can’t seem to wrap my head around this,” said Michael Goldblum, the commissioner who voted against the application. “The historical context of the landmark was a continuous row of three-to-four story buildings. That is the context in which this landmark has been seen for decades, at the very least.”

Goldblum added that he could not see how a building of this scale “could be deemed as a positive enhancement to the landmark.”

Up next: The project now moves before the City Planning Commission as part of the city’s Uniform Land Use Review Procedure. City Council will have the final say.

Even if the LPC had rejected the plan, REEC's office building with ground-floor retail would still happen — only without the extra square footage from the air-rights deal.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Demolition permits filed for northeast corner of 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place

End is nearing for the businesses on the northeast corner of 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place

New building plans revealed for 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place

Concern over potential air-rights transfer for new office building on St. Mark's Place and 3rd Avenue

Developers of 3 St. Mark's Place are looking to increase the size of their proposed office building at 3rd Avenue to 10 floors with air-rights deal

The lobbyists behind the air-rights transfer and zoning variance for 3 St. Mark's Place

Final demolition phase for 1 St. Mark's Place; more questions about lobbyists attached to project

[Updated] Another look at the southwest corner of 11th Street and Avenue C

A few weeks ago we had a reader report (thx Jose Garcia!) on the vacant retail space at the southwest corner of 11th Street and Avenue C.

The word from here: A martial arts studio is opening soon ... Vinny & O shared these photos showing how the space is shaping up...



The space has sat empty for nearly two years ... when the New York Healthy Choice (aka Eastside Market) closed after nearly five years in business.

Updated 6/23

Signage is now up for Champions Martial Arts...

Wednesday's parting shot

So many caption possibilities today on Second Avenue and Seventh Street via Derek Berg...

Report: Ricky's will be down to 2 NYC locations

In recent years, the two East Village locations of Ricky's — Third Avenue between 13th Street and 14th Street and First Avenue between Sixth Street and Seventh Street have closed.

Now comes word that the chain selling accessories, cosmetics and novelties will close all but two outposts.

Per the Post:

Ricky’s has been shrinking at a heart-stopping pace of late. It’s down to just four locations from 13 in the fall. At its peak just four years ago, Ricky’s operated 29 locations, all in the New York area except for an outpost in Miami.

The last two storefronts are at 830 Broadway near Union Square and 590 Broadway.

What happened?

If Ricky’s meets a sticky end, retail experts will partly blame soaring Manhattan rents and stiffening competition with Amazon, as well as an increasingly crowded market when it comes to Ricky’s bread and butter: cosmetics, skin care and hair products.

The company started as Ricky Love in 1989.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Ricky's is closing on 3rd Avenue

The Ricky's on 1st Avenue has apparently closed

A visit to St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery

Photos and interview by Stacie Joy

I’d been to St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery on 10th Street and Second Avenue before — for poetry readings, the St. Francis Day blessing of the animals, and a community event or two. However, I'd never seen the full scope of the historic space.



The Rev. Anne Sawyer, who started as the church's 14th Rector in June 2017, met me in her attic office. She provided a tour of the grounds and rectory to share more details about her work and the work the church is doing for the community ... as well as discuss its history and what she sees as its place in the East Village now and in the future.





Can you speak a bit about the background of the historic St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery?

St. Mark’s is an Episcopal Church and one of the oldest sites of continuous worship in New York, dating back to 1660. Over the past century, our church has also been used for dance, music, poetry and theatre by many notable artists.

Today, it remains the home for Danspace, The Poetry Project and The New York Theatre Ballet, in addition to a vibrant and passionate congregation that worships on Sunday mornings and gathers at various times during the week. St. Mark’s is an important architectural landmark in New York City.















You came to this church with your wife (the Rev. Susan Anderson-Smith) about two years ago from Arizona, where you focused a lot of your energy on working with children and families, especially those in economically challenged areas. Do you have local plans for similar programming?

In the Episcopal Church, clergy and congregations engage in a process of discernment with respect to ordained leadership and congregational ministry. I was drawn to St. Mark’s for many reasons, including its commitment to social justice and expressed desire to live into those beliefs through action in our community.

While I have spent years working with children and families, ministries within a church should always reflect the people of faith who gather and where the Spirit leads us to serve. To date, the areas of ministry include: Sunday school for children, racial justice, reparations, and support and recovery from incarceration; gun safety and anti-gun violence; efforts to support Puerto Rico in recovery from natural disaster; farmworkers rights and safety; and support for community members in recovery from addictions.



Why did you accept the call to helm this particular church and can you speak more about what St. Mark’s Church offers to the community?

I was giving prayerful thought to a possible change in ministry when I learned about St. Mark’s, and thought, this could be fun!

A call to ministry is always more than a job. Rather, it’s a response to where we believe God is leading us, and where we meant to be. It is my prayer that everyone at St. Mark’s feels the same. Together, we seek to understand the world in which we live, and discern how best to live and respond.

The people of St. Mark’s offer God’s love and acceptance, a caring community, fabulous music, questions to ponder, and an opportunity to grow in relationship with each other and with God.

Is there a typical parishioner at the church? How do you see the church’s place in the East Village?

The people who gather for worship at St. Mark’s on Sunday morning share much in common, yet they are a diverse community. We vary in age, skin color, gender, sexual identity, and financial means. We tend to be well educated, savvy about politics, passionate about justice, a bit subversive, faithful, soulful in music, with and without partners, and/or children, and generous. Some parishioners have lived in the East Village for decades and can tell stories; other members wake early to travel.

We are an inclusive community that reflects the East Village in the heart and soul through worship, music, dance, poetry, and historical preservation.

Can you speak a bit about the new clock faces — you mentioned a lightning strike, and a fallen face. Also, the church recently lost an angel off the steeple. What are the plans for replacing it, if any?

I do not know the exact history of the clocks, other than after a lightning strike in the '90s they stopped working, and over time, the temporary clocks installed after the great fire in July 1978 began to weather and slip. We now have beautiful clocks that tell accurate time thanks to our neighbors, and the Saint Mark’s Historic Landmark Fund.

As for the inside of St. Mark’s (and the angel), we could use your help to restore beauty to this grand, historic landmark in the heart of our neighborhood. A half million [dollars] is needed to stop water from creating damage inside. Then, plaster, paint and carpet would create a clean, simple and fresh sanctuary for another century of arts and to glorify God. Talk about making an impact!


[Part of the old clock]




[The missing angel on the steeple]

What’s next for St. Mark’s?
The next chapter of the vibrant history of St. Mark’s is being written now by people like you. Come join us on Sundays at 11 a.m. You are most welcome. We will be celebrating our annual Pride Disco Mass on Sunday, June 30! And after that? The next chapter...

The 411 on the 101 Condominium

[99-101 E. 2nd St. from last month]

As we've been reporting, 99-101 E. Second St. and its property mate, 24 First Ave. (the onetime home of Lucky Cheng's), are making way for a 7-story, 22-unit residential building with ground-floor retail via developer Sergey Rybak.


[24 1st Ave.]

We first saw renderings back in February. Now Rybak has released more details on what to expect. For starters, the condoplex is now known as The 101 Condominium...


[Rendering of the 1st Avenue side via Zproekt Architects]

The 101 Condo website notes this in all caps:

HIP GROWS UP.
CHIC EVOLVES.
STYLE ENDURES.

The site also contains several interior renderings ...





Residential amenities include a gym as well as an indoor/outdoor communal courtyard with lounge areas, cooking areas and a wet bar. Residences run in size from studios to three-bedroom units. The 101 will also feature "two one-of-a-kind luxury penthouse units exclusive to 101 East 2nd Street." No word on pricing.

Project delivery is expected by the first quarter of 2021, per New York Yimby.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Building that housed Lucky Cheng's on 1st Avenue now on the auction block

Onetime home of Lucky Cheng's and adjacent property sell for $12 million

7-story residential building pending at the former Lucky Cheng's space

Demolition permits filed to bring down former Lucky Cheng's building on 1st Avenue

The Gem Spa Zoltar is alive and well and telling fortunes an L-train ride away in Bushwick

[Zoltar as seen in — sob — December]

In late May, Zoltar — everyone's favorite Animatronic Fortune Telling Machine — was removed from its post of nearly seven years outside Gem Spa on Second Avenue at St. Mark's Place.

Unfortunately, as you may have sensed by now, this Zoltar will NOT be returning. The official word from Gem Spa: "The Zoltar machine was removed by its owner due to our scaled-back hours to prevent vandalism."

Turns out that this Zoltar remains in the five boroughs. We've had several reports of sightings of Zoltar in... Bushwick, specifically on Myrtle and Central Avenue. The photo below is from EV resident Grant showing Zoltar ready to ply his wisdom trade outside OMG Pizza ...



... and for further documentation...

View this post on Instagram

Apparently the Zoltar that once sat outside of Gem Spa in the East Village is now sitting outside of the meh pizza joint at the end of my block. #zoltarinbushwick #gemspa #fortunetelller #Bushwick #Brooklyn #bushwickgrillclub

A post shared by Frank Davis (@bushwickgrillclub) on Jun 18, 2019 at 10:50am PDT

We did compare the graffiti markings on the Gem Spa and the Bushwick Zoltar and can confirm the two are one in the same. While a move to Bushwick seems a little, oh, 2014, we hope that Zoltar is happy and can win over the new neighbors.

Zoltar first arrived at Gem Spa on Sept. 23, 2012. A tribute will follow here at a later date.

Your chance to hear about the proposed bike lane for Avenue B

[Photo by Sam Bleiberg]

Updated 6/20: Community Board 3's Transportation, Public Safety, & Environment Committee unanimously voted in favor of asking the DOT to report back on the feasibility of bike lanes on Avenue B.

--

As we first reported on April 15, a movement is underway to secure bike lanes on Avenue B, an increasingly congested 14-block corridor currently without any marked paths for cyclists such as on Avenue A and Avenue C.

You can hear more about the proposal tonight during a presentation before Community Board 3's Transportation, Public Safety, & Environment Committee. The meeting starts at 6:30 at the University Settlement, Houston Street Center, 273 Bowery.

Avenue B bike-lane organizers are hopeful that the CB3 committee will recommend further study by the DOT.

Per organizers:

We need your support at this meeting to send the message that our community needs to prioritize street safety, bike lanes and green infrastructure over space for cars! The East River Greenway will be closing for three years next Spring, and our community needs a protected space for bike riding in the Lower East Side!

Some background: The idea came about via parents who bike their children to area schools — including the East Village Community School, the Children's Workshop School, Tompkins Square Middle School, the Earth School and East Side Community High School.

You can read more via a petition at this link.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Making the case for 2-way bike lanes on Avenue B

Parents, students ride together in bid for 2-way protected bike lane on Avenue B

2 storefronts shaping up on 2nd Avenue for Calexico and Brasserie Saint Marc

Renovations continue at 99 Second Ave., where Calexico, the Cal-Mex burrito-beer chainlet, will be opening an outpost here between Fifth Street and Sixth Street.

The owners — brothers Brian, Dave, and Jesse Vendley — received the OK from CB3 last August for a liquor license for this space, which was previously home to Brick Lane Curry House. (Brick Lane moved one block to the south.)

Calexico currently has a handful of NYC locations (Upper East Side, Greenpoint, Park Slope, Red Hook, among them) as well as in Detroit — and Bahrain. No word on an opening date in the East Village.

---

And over at 136 Second Ave. between St. Mark's Place and Ninth Street, you may have noticed the signage go up in recent days for Brasserie Saint Marc ...



We don't know too much about this establishment, other than a lot of work is going into getting the former Bar 82 (RIP March 2013) into restaurant shape. The construction plywood went up three-plus years ago — May 6, 2016 to be exact.

The applicants, listed as Greg Lebedowicz and Jerry Lebedowicz, were previously licensed for Nitedreams in Greenpoint from 2003 to 2008.

In July 2018, CB3 OK'd a full liquor license for No. 136. Here are a few items from the meeting's official minutes (PDF here):

• "The applicant has stated that this location will be a restaurant which will host Ukrainian events, meetings and dinners by organizations from the longstanding local Ukrainian community."

• "It will operate as a full-service French American Ukrainian restaurant, with a kitchen open and serving food during all hours of operation."

• "Its hours of operation will be 8 A.M. to 2 A.M. all days"

There is a basement space here fitted with a bar and dining room for those meetings and events.

Thanks to Steven for the photos yesterday!

Tuesday's parting shot

Today's weather, in summation... photo in Tompkins Square Park today via Bobby Williams...

The NYPD is looking for suspect who stole bike from building's courtyard

The NYPD is looking for the following suspect... info via the EVG inbox this afternoon...

It was reported to police that on Saturday, June 8, at approximately 12:30 p.m., at a residential building in the vicinity of East 6th Street and 2nd Avenue, the male forced open the building's rear exterior door to gain entry into the building's rear courtyard. Once inside, he removed the 33-year-old male victim's bicycle.

The person wanted for questioning is described as a light complexioned male; last seen wearing a dark colored baseball cap, a black hooded sweater, black pants and light colored shoes.

Anyone with information that could help in the investigation is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477). You may also submit tips online. All calls are strictly confidential.