Tompkins Square Park, 4:15 p.m., Dec. 9

Photos courtesy of Bobby Williams.

Tompkins Square Park red-tailed hawk is 'much more cool than a hipster'

I totally missed Stephanie Cohen's piece in the Post today of the red-tailed hawk of Tompkins Square Park.... An excerpt!

" ... this Tompkins Square chick boasts something just as important: downtown street cred. Call her the hipster hawk.

So it’s only fitting that Jonathan Ames, the indie writer behind the HBO hit 'Bored to Death,' is a fan.

“I was thrilled to see such a proud and fierce raptor in Tompkins Square Park,” says the Brooklyn-based Ames.

“Right after seeing the hawk, I saw a young man projectile-vomit, so it was quite the full outing.”

Per a Post commenter: "Please, she's no hipster. She kills rats and pigeons and lives off of them. She's much more cool than a hipster."

Many thanks to BaHa for the two photos...

That darn cat!

So! Earlier I shared my exclusive interview with Minnie McSorley... Well! I was unaware that there was a second "exclusive" interview today! Anyway, Jen Doll at Runnin' Scared also has a fun interview with Minnie today... you may find that here.

PS
Q: What do you get if you cross a cat with a bottle of vinegar?
A: A sourpuss!

This is what the Mars Bar may look like one day

BoweryBoogie attended last night's CB3 subcommittee meeting to hear more about the future of lower Second Avenue at First Street. He took that photo of the proposed 12-story building coming to where the Mars Bar is... and may return in two years.

The Local East Village, who first broke the story, was also at the meeting. Read that report here.

UPDATE:

Curbed has coverage too, with the bone-chilling headline: Mars Bar Faces Wrecking Ball as New Tower Gets Unveiled

Exclusive: Minnie McSorley's first interview

As you've likely heard, Minnie, who lives at McSorley's, is being sued... Per the Post the other day (read more here):

A New Jersey woman has kicked up a feline fury at the 156-year-old McSorley's Old Ale House, by filing a lawsuit claiming she was viciously attacked by the venerable bar's pet cat and had to be hospitalized.

Now, Minnie has a Facebook page... So, via Facebook, I asked Minnie for an interview. I realized that, on the advice of her attorney, she couldn't discuss the specifics of the pawsuit. However!

Intro:

"Things are calming down here so I have some time on my paws. I'm glad to learn I have fans, but really the saloon is the celebrity — and all the nameless, faceless cats working out there every day to make hoomans a little more civilized. With that said..."

(Transcribed, as always, from my dictation. I do not type well with paws.)

How are you coping with your new-found celebrity?

Minnie: Celebrity, like a full food dish, is fleeting. Many famous people have visited McSorley's and I've heard tell that its age made them all feel a bit more humble. Although we don't usually get the arrogant ones. We got John Lennon, and Elvis and TR and Houdini and Chet Arthur and Belushi. The stuck-up ones go elsewhere. Meh. Their loss.

Besides, while dogs have been known to let fame and fortune go to their head (Lassie demanded bowls of red kibble only on her dressing room), we cats always land on our feet and therefore keep them planted firmly on the ground.

I will say I'm enjoying the outpouring of support. I don't even mind the requests for autographs. I love the cat people and am even patient with the non-cat hoomans, the well-meaning ones who'll ask me to "do something." Uh, come again? I met the Purina Cat Team a few times. They do tricks and are the exception to the rule.

Best/worst part about living at McSorley's.

Minnie: The best part of living in McSorley's is the opportunity to experience things you can't find anywhere else. I ask you, where ELSE could an 18-month-old cat get sued! Mew, mew, mew! (Transcriber: Here Minnie broke down in laughter.) Seriously, I love the history of McSorley's and the look on people's faces when they first walk in the door. Usually you only get that sort of look when you see a cat walk into the Vet's office. I can pick a first-time visitor 10 miles away. (Our eyesight is keener than humans, and so are our metaphors.)

I am also very fond, as McSorley's cats have been for a century, of the potbellied stove — especially this time of year. One of us was in e.e. cummings lap while he wrote the poem "I Was Sitting in McSorley's," about a snowy day in the saloon.

Worst part? There is really no worst part about McSorley's, unless you count Bloomberg's thugs stomping around and picking on us. "Why, yes, there is dust and the occasional fly, Mr. Health Inspector! Shocking in a 150-year old bar. Do you go to the Pyramids and complain about the dust? Do you go to the Statue of Liberty and complain about the corrosion? Do you go to Venice and complain about the trash in the canals?"

Wait, never mind. Bloomberg probably does.

That line etched in the window, Mr. Mayor, the one that says "we were here before you were born"? That's a message from 30 generations of McSorley's cats — and we'll be here after you're gone, too.

Do you prefer the light or dark ale?

Minnie: Light or dark, the eternal question. I'm afraid I don't drink the ale. I go to the bar and order Guinness. (Transcriber: More cat laughter.) No, just kidding. Of course all cats love the dark; we can see in it.

Local blogger stops talking about Mars Bar closing long enough to thank everyone

I was honored to be named Best Neighborhood Blog in the First Annual Village Voice Web Awards Tuesday night. I was nominated alongside four other excellent sites: BoweryBoogie, New York Shitty, Ditmas Park Blog and Fucked in Park Slope.

So, many thanks to the Voice and to the folks at FourSquare, who selected the winner in the Neighborhood category. And I said this to Patrick Hedlund at DNAinfo, who wrote a piece on me and BoweryBoogie this week:

"The site wouldn't work without the participation of so many people sharing comments, opinions, tips and photos. Their passion for the East Village inspires me every day. For that, I'm very thankful."

Thank you.

And here's a complete list of all the recipients.

Today's sign of the apocalypse: a Starbucks on Avenue A?

Allow me to bury the lead. Our friends at Neighborhoodr have some coffee-related gossip/news. First, they hear that the former Revitali hookahry on First Avenue between St. Mark's and Seventh Street will become some sort of coffee shop...



Then! Neighborhoodr links to Barney-Mugging, where Ruthy notes:

Someone told me today that there is a STARBUCKS rumored to be opening on Avenue A sometime in the near future. Personally, I don’t care for burnt coffee or impersonal service, but I still fear it’s going to give all of my beloved cafes in the area a run for their money…

Well, there's certainly enough empty storefronts to choose from... and they could afford the rent... And this isn't the first rumor of another chain on Avenue A.

Will El Cobre be an El Shitshow?

After sitting dormant for several years, the restaurant space on Sixth Street at Avenue A finally got a new tenant in the fall of 2009 after CB3 enthusiatically endorsed a full liquor license (and within a resolution area) for the Cienfuegos complex that eventually included take-out sandwich shop Carteles and a fancy rum bar called Cocteleria....



Grub Street's Jenny Miller reports this week that El Cobre, the main-floor eatery, is opening very soon... We walked by last evening, and it sure looked ready for action — minus diners...



... Per Grub Street, El Cobre is named after the town where Cuba's patron saint is located... a duplicate statue is on display inside...



The CB3 license is also good for a sidewalk cafe, so expect a foodie shitshow here come warm-weather months...

By the way, the food at Carteles gets high marks from some readers (try the sancocho!) ... though, as the crowds descended on the upstairs rum bar...



...waits for take-out on weekend nights got too long for some neighbors ... (same kitchen services Carteles and Cocteleria... and, presumably, El Cobre...) ... The neighbors moved on to make way for the weekend warriors.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The future of 95 Avenue A

Something finally coming to 95 Avenue A

Coming soon: Work starts on Cienfuegos at long-dormant (and soon-to-be-expanded) 95 Avenue A

Looking for volunteer opportunities during the holidays

A reader, fairly new to the neighborhood, is looking to volunteer somewhere in the East Village during the holidays... "Do you know which churches/shelters in the area accept volunteers?" Thought I'd open it up for suggestions... perhaps come up with some ideas a little off the radar ... and maybe inspire someone else to volunteer...

Day hawk

Thanks to EV Grieve reader Bobby Williams for these shots of a red-tailed hawk from late yesterday afternoon in Tompkins Square Park...




Perhaps daydreaming of Shake Shake line waiters?

Fab Cafe now open, serving Mud coffee

CuppaCuppa recently closed on East Fourth Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue... As promised, the Fourth Arts Block would take over the cafe...

And well: The FAB Cafe is now open... They're also serving Mud coffee....

Max Fish owner: 'I do think that the alternative culture is being forced to get out, but I don’t think we should'

Grub Street's Daniel Mauer snagged an interview with Max Fish owner Ulli Rimkus earlier this evening... Yes, the 21-year-old Ludlow Street bar is closing at the end of January... she's hopeful that she can relocate somewhere in the LES...

A few passages from the Q-and-A:

So how certain is it that you’ll close? And how long has this been in the cards?
It’s definite. I tried all year to strike a deal with the owner, and then in the end I just said, “If we can't strike a deal, give me an extension,” and he drafted this contract that basically said that after the year extension he’d be the owner of everything and not leave us with anything, so we’re getting out. It’s over; there’s no more negotiation.

Do you think the loss of places like Mars Bar and Max Fish mean that the character of New York City is changing somehow, or is it just the usual story?
I do think that the alternative culture is being forced to get out, but I don’t think we should go. I don’t agree. We have a right to live here as much as anyone else.

Read the rest of the interview here.

Baby, it's you

In case you haven't seen it yet... there's a really entertaining piece on Eden & John's East River String Band in The Wall Street Journal:

Both musicians hail from Queens. They met 14 years ago when he was the manager at Forbidden Planet comic-book store on Broadway. Ms. Brower was a new hire.

"He would prank call me from the office and I fell for it every time," she said, noting that it wasn't always easy to tell the difference. "We'd get questions like, 'Who do you think is stronger: the Hulk or the Thing?' That'd be a real call at the store."

Read more about John's new release, "Baby, How Can It Be? Songs of Love, Lust and Contempt from the 1920s and 1930s," over at the home of Slum Goddess (um, Eden, if you didn't make the connection...)

Read the Journal article here.


PS
It's the Hulk, right?

[Photo via Slum Goddess]

Holiday anarchy and fat cats outside the Mars Bar

Sergey is the latest artist to have his work grace the wall outside Mars Bar... Anji Shirai took the photos yesterday....






Interpret the final work anyway that you wish... and there's a new art opening here starting Sunday.

Max Fish latest nightlife institution to close

Eater has the story. Blame high rents and skyrocketing property taxes... and CB3.

[Updated. The rumors are true, reports AnimalNY. End of January she goes.]

What the Mars Bar would be torn down for

The plan to shutter the Mars Bar for two years is hardly a done deal... Meanwhile, I haven't talked to anyone yet who thinks this whole development is such a good thing ...

The "affordable housing" part of the equation is swaying some people... The city needs more afford housing... But looking at the news accounts (first reported by the Local East Village) of the plan.... the structures along Second Avenue will be combined and possibly have their height brought up to 12 stories. Curbed put it this way: "That's allowed under zoning because the developer will get bonuses for including affordable housing, which in this case will be 12 apartments (compared to 48 market-rate units). There are 9 low-income families currently in the buildings, so they'll get first dibs on the apartments."

So they'll be 12 affordable housing units in the new building... currently there are nine low-income families living in the buildings... so we'll get three extra units of affordable housing in return for demolishing a block, putting an end to an EV institution and adding MORE luxury housing?

Hmm. What am I missing here? In the end, the Mars Bar would get a spiffy new space here...

Anyway, CB3's Land Use, Zoning, Public & Private Housing Committee will discuss the plan tonight at 6:30 pm — Community Board 3 Office — 59 East 4th Street (2nd Ave & Bowery)



From a reader exchange last night:

Reader: "What is a Mars Bar in a renovated space that's 3X the size?"
Me: Another bar.

Previously on EV Grieve:
No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no: Why the Mars Bar is closing (maybe)

[Top image PropertyShark via Curbed[

Three buildings sell for $11.5 million on East Fourth Street

From the EV Grieve inbox....

Three buildings at 118 and 120-22 East 4th Street, located between First and Second Avenues in Manhattan’s East Village, were sold in an all cash transaction valued at $11,500,000. The buildings were situated on two lots, with a combined 75’ of frontage, and approximately 26,000 gross square feet. The properties consist of 69 residential apartments with a unit mix of 24 one-bedroom apartments and 45 studios. With the tenant mix consisting of 40 rent stabilized and 29 free market apartments. The properties are well kept with new brass plumbing, updated and rewired electric, two new gas burners, a newly installed laundry room and many renovated apartments.

The Seller was Bruce Miltenberg of Bread & Butter Realty, LLC. “This sale demonstrates the strength of investor appetite for the multifamily rental marketplace that the East Village offers. We have found investors are extremely attracted to the low turnover rate of the tenants and the ease with which it takes to re-rent the apartments that do become vacant. In these buildings in particular it is uncommon to have a vacancy for more the 2-3 days,” said Massey Knakal Vice Chairman and Partner John Ciraulo who exclusively handled this transaction with Massey Knakal First Vice President of Sales Joe Sitt and Director of Sales Craig Waggner.

Shake Shack poll results: The end is near! (Woo!)

Yesterday we asked: What if a Shake Shack opened in Tompkins Square Park?



We based the survey on one sentence regarding Tompkins Square Park in the Times from Sunday that read ... "The echoes of demonstrators yelling “Die, Yuppie Scum” may be very faint these days, but there is no Shake Shack ... yet."

So, as of 6:06 am, here are the results, based on 364 votes (two of which I admit were mine — I was pulling for the jeans!):



We're calling it official, though because this is America, final results of the election won't likely be known for another 2-3 months. So keep voting!

Revisiting: MARS BAR was a riot in the Nineties...

I first posted this back in February... Given yesterday's news about the possible two-year closure of the Mars Bar, I thought I'd repost...

An EV Grieve reader pointed out the Facebook page titled "MARS BAR was a riot in the Nineties..." Since then, I have been looking at the nearly 800-plus photos there, such as these by Ellen Cheever....





(And thanks to Ellen for granting me permission to repost here...)

And this!

5 similar bars to try in case the Mars Bar closes (temporarily)

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