Broadway in Bloom

A tipster tells us about a Kate Spade "Broadway in Bloom" event this morning... the brand partnered with five NYC florists to create a "visual love letter" to the city. 

And we're told these bouquets of flowers will be free for the taking at 11 a.m. on Broadway at 8th Street...

EVG Etc.: A pool finally for the East River; a fundraiser on 3rd Street for Off-Broadway

• A list of vaccine incentives in NYC (Gothamist) 

• There is finally a city-approved spot for the long-proposed floating Plus Pool to drop anchor in the East River — just north of the Manhattan Bridge (Curbed) 

• Revisiting this oral history with community organizer Carlos "Chino" García (Off the Grid)

• The "public and impermanent work" of East Village artist Tom Manco (Pavement Pieces ... previously on EVG)

• Rachel Brosnahan bringing a one-act play to the Wild Project on Third Street to help benefit the Off-Broadway theater community (Deadline) 

• Thoughts on Precious Okoyomon's installation that is ending its run at Performance Space 122 (ArchPaper) 

• Former New York Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver is being sent back to federal prison after a request for community placement was denied (NBC 4) 

• New Michelin stars include one for Tsukimi on 10th Street (Eater) A map of Michelin Bib Gourmands is here. 

• Diversions: Revisiting Downtown — MTV's animated, cinéma-vérité-style series about New York in 1999 (Vulture)

Check out the solar-paneled tree lights on 3rd Street

If you happen to be walking in the evening on Third Street between Avenue C and Avenue D, then you'll see the new solar-paneled tree lights up along the block... courtesy of the 3CD Block Association. 

Block Association reps say these lights will be up indefinitely. 

Thanks to Kathleen Keene for the photo!

Another look at DJ Mother May in Tompkins Square Park

Here are a few more photos showing the latest upcycled cardboard installation in Tompkins Square Park courtesy of East Village-based artist Tom Manco of Manco Studio.

Steven took these on Thursday evening when the Mother's Day-related work first arrived...

DJ Mother May, complete with a detailed deejay booth, is expected to be up through this weekend here at Temperance Fountain...

The Regal Union Square returns to movie-showing action

The Regal Union Square ScreenX and 4DX is now back in movie-showing mode here on 13th Street and Broadway ... complete with "CinemaSafe protocols in place."

The theater chain's phased reopening started last month nationwide... NYC locations were originally going to open on May 7, though that timeline was pushed up. The multiplex at Essex Crossing on Delancey and Essex is also up and running. 

Other area theaters, including the Loews Village 7, Village East by Angelika and the IFC Center, all returned on March 5 with mask requirements and assigned seating.

Theater capacity in NYC is currently at 33 percent, per Gov. Cuomo. However, the capacity restrictions will be lifted on May 19... though theaters will still need to stick to 6-foot-distancing rules.  Which theater operators are scrambling to interpret.

Friday's parting shot

On the Open Streets of Avenue B today, featuring a Charlie Parker tribute and chalk art for kids ... photo by Derek Berg...

Dog day afternoon

 

Local band Earth Dad — featuring at least two lifelong East Village residents — recently released a single titled "Good Dog" ... check out the above video with some very familiar locales.

You can find their music on Bandcamp. (And today is Bandcamp Friday — where the music platform waives its revenue share for the day.)

Bake news: The annual plant and bake sale is this weekend at the 6th & B Garden

The annual plant and bake sale is going on this weekend at the Sixth Street and Avenue B Community Garden. Per the Facebook invite:

Our annual fund raiser to help bring you events for the rest of the open season. Delicious home-made baked goods and lots of plants for you to grow at home or in your backyard are available for sale.

The sale is Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the garden on the southwest corner of Sixth Street and Avenue B... 

An afternoon out with Hello Mary

Local rock trio Hello Mary — (above left) guitarist Helena Straight, bassist Mikaela Oppenheimer and drummer Stella Branstool — are playing an early show on May 21 at the Bowery Electric (ticket info here. Update: The limited-capacity show has sold out). 

On that day, the band will also be releasing a new song/video — "Take Something." 

Their first record, the 7-track EP titled Ginger, came out in December 2019. In an interview with Loser Zine last year, the three described Ginger as a collection of everyday experiences. 

"A common theme recurring throughout the album is social anxiety, and the obstacles that come along with it, as well as the boredom that erupts from the monotony of high school." (A fresh topic, as Helena and Mikaela, both 17, are finishing up high school.) 

Since then, Hello Mary has been working on songs for a new record... perhaps some of that unreleased material will get a sneak preview at Bowery Electric. 

The other day, EVG contributor Stacie Joy spent part of an afternoon with the band as they strolled around the East Village. (Stella's parents, Charles Branstool and Christy Davis, co-own Exit9 Gift Emporium on Avenue A. Christy herself is an accomplished percussionist. She plays drums for Gold, who's also on the bill on May 21.) 

On the walk, Hello Mary and Stacie talked about COVID-19 vaccines, strong women and role models. And they had a really good time...

You can find Hello Mary on Bandcamp here. (On the first Friday of the month, Bandcamp waives their revenue share, so bands receive all the profits.) 

The video here from last spring is for Ginger's title track...

 

Repairs finally for the 'warped' intersection of 1st Avenue and 7th Street

Workers from the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) are back at the intersection of Seventh Street and First Avenue to replace portions of the water main...

As you may recall, there were back-to-back breaks here in late December ... the ruptures sent water rushing into businesses and residences along Seventh Street. 

It took a while for these more substantial repairs. The "fucked-up street surface," as one nearby resident called it, has been a topic of frustration in conversations on the East Village Neighbors Facebook group (and in the EVG inbox) this late winter and early spring.

In the weeks/months after the breaks, there was a patchwork of quick fixes on the wonky-looking intersection...

Said one resident: "Basically, the second water main break warped the avenue ... They come out to jackhammer constantly, make a hole, fill it with dirt, and then it caves in. "

Then another sinkhole would form.

And after residents file a complaint: "They come, throw some asphalt onto a sunken hole, leave and nothing is fixed."

The DEP contractors then started covering the holes with metal plates instead ... and the sound of cars, trucks and buses driving over the plates overnight has disrupted the sleep of some residents living nearby.

Said the previously quoted resident: "The trucks wake me up at 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 a.m. and I've started getting migraines, which I've never had."

Hopefully, the repairs that started this week will prevent any future breaks and stabilize the roadway — and put an end to the various headaches.

Today at Temperance Fountain

A reader shared the above photo from Tompkins Square Park from earlier this afternoon... and this evening... East Village resident Tom Manco of Manco Studio set up his latest upcycled cardboard installation... this one in honor of Mother's Day... photo by Steven...

Grant Shaffer's NY See

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

Take part in this Jacob Riis Art Walk today

Local artists Lee Jiménez and Joalis Silva are giving a tour this afternoon of their artwork currently on display outside the Jacob Riis Houses...

The art walk starts at 1 p.m. in the roundabout on 10th Street between Avenue D and the FDR (Jiménez's photos taken during 2020 are hanging in this area). 

If you can't make it today, then take the time on another day (it should be up all summer) to check out their work inspired by the Riis community.

Photo of Joalis Silva via Instagram. The top pic in the post is part of the Lee Jiménez display.

Reconstruction of the McKinley Playground appears to be winding down

Here's a look at the reconstruction of the McKinley Playground on Fourth Street between Avenue A and First Avenue... where work started last September here adjacent to The Neighborhood School (PS 363) and Star Academy (PS 63). 

Workers have put in a new playground and spray shower as well as safety surfacing, benches, lighting, play equipment, etc.

And there's a new "comfort station"...

And a view through the fence...

And for more details on the final product...

The NYC Parks website states that the project is 84-percent complete. There's a September completion date, though the rendering onsite lists a summer finish.