Week in Grieview

[St. Mark's Place and Third Avenue this morning]

A death in the Grassroots family (Monday)

Schwimmer confirmed as owner and destructor of 331 E. Sixth St. (Monday)

Celebrating a Giants Super Bowl victory on Third Avenue in Speedos (Tuesday)

The eighth Subway opens in the East Village (Wednesday)

East Village Farms (and EVG) on WABC-7 (Thursday)

Neighborhood schoolkids express themselves about Starbucks (Friday)

Interpol (not the band) gets involved in East 13th Street short-term rental (Friday)

The Pink Dorms of East 14th Street (Thursday)

First mention of the East Village in The New York Times (Tuesday)

No more East Village Farms (Wednesday)

316 E. Third St. prepped for the end (Tuesday)

New beginnings for Obscura Antiques (Tuesday)

This is what concert posters on East 10th Street looked like on Feb. 12, 1989 2012

Eh.

She's a cart breaker

Third Avenue near 11th Street this morning.

Tonight in photos of stretch Hummers blocking the crosswalk on Avenue A

At 11th Street. Typical Saturday night hereabouts, of course.

Photos by Shawn Chittle.

Sunday at Bar 82

Tonight at Rage and Boner

Outside Rag & Bone on East Houston and Elizabeth.

Via Billy Leroy.

Rue B is open

Last night we mentioned that Rue B was closed on Avenue B because of some water-power problem ... in any event, it's back open ....

Photo by Bobby Williams.

Reader report: Police shutter La Zarza Lounge on First Avenue

EV Grieve reader Spike brings word on an NYPD closure last evening at La Zarza Lounge near East 10th Street....

Per the sign taped to the gate: "Illegal sale of alcoholic beverages."

Seriously?

10 a.m. or so on East Houston near the Bowery.

Unattended iPad in Cafe Cortadito commode leads to sanitation worker's arrest

Police arrested an on-duty sanitation worker yesterday morning after he reportedly stole an iPad from Cafe Cortadito on East Third Street near Avenue B, the Daily News reported.

He had asked to use the Cafe's restroom. Per the News: "Maldonado found the unattended electronic tablet in the restrooom and hid it in his pants, said police."

The Cafe owner quickly realized that the iPad was missing, and confronted the worker, who handed it over and left. She called the cops, who arrested the worker nearby. Police charged him with with petit larceny.

[Image via Gizmodo]

Reader report: Rue B back open tomorrow

EV Grieve reader Ann sent along this photo earlier tonight... Reliable sources say that Rue B here on Avenue B between 11th Street and 12th Street will be back open tomorrow. There are electrical and plumbing issues from the upstairs apartment, we hear...

Dogs and taxes in Tompkins Square Park today

Photos By Bobby Williams

Can you feel the 'Love' tonight?

An early Valentine's greeting from The Damned with "Love Song" circa 1979.

Roastown Coffee now Eastside Bakery.net on St. Mark's and Second Avenue

That's a really catchy name! Kinda seems exactly like Roastown Coffee, which opened here in November 2010.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Roastown Coffee coming to Second Avenue and St. Mark's Place

[Updated] Reader report: Construction worker falls on East Ninth Street

Via @guywasko —

Construction worker falls over 15', hitting another worker. FDNY to bring man down on ladder. 9th & Ave C

Workers are converting the former Henry Street Settlement Day Care #3 between Avenue C and Avenue D into a community facility space on the ground floor... the upper levels will house 46 units (28 studios and 12 one-bedroom apartments). The housing will serve homeless young adults and young adults aging out of the foster-care system. An additional 12 units will be set aside for young single adults with a child.

Updated 3:57 p.m.

EV Grieve reader Mike sends along a message from Notify NYC — "Emergency personnel are on the scene of a partial structural collapse near East 9th Street and Avenue C"

Updated 4:04 p.m.

@ruthie06 notes that Ninth Street is full of emergency-response vehicles. "Looks like the ambulance parked on the NE corner of 9th/Ave C. Eerily calm."

Updated 4:11 p.m.

Per the DOB website, filed this afternoon:
FDNY REPORTED PARTIAL BULKHEAD COLLAPSE
BUILDING SHAKING/VIBRATING/STRUCT STABILITY AFFECTED

Updated 4:16 p.m.

Via @ruthie06 — "the calm was just interrupted by the ambulance whizzing by, sirens ablazing."

Updated 7:10 p.m.

Photos via Bobby Williams...

Updated 7:15 p.m.

DNAinfo reports that the worker "sustained minor injuries to his head just before 3 p.m., when he fell from one stairwell landing to another."

Previously on EV Grieve:
Community center and supportive housing coming to East Ninth Street

East Village first and second graders display anti-Starbucks sentiments at the Bean

Back in September, we told you about the anti-Starbucks flyers that two first graders from The Neighborhood School (PS 363) on First Avenue and Third Street created...

Apparently the campaign didn't end there. Marjorie Ingall tells us that more first- and second-grade students from the school created an array of anti-Starbucks messages ... which are now on display in the window at the Bean on Second Avenue and East Third Street.

We asked the Bean's Ike Escava how this came about.

"A teacher from the school came in and said that the kids prepared something for us and asked when it would be a good time for them to present it to us...they ended up coming in the next day — about 25 kids with handwritten cards about how much they love our shop and support us," he said. "It was truly heartwarming, as is all of the continuous support that we get from this remarkable neighborhood."

Previously on EV Grieve:
Today's sign of the apocalypse: Starbucks taking over The Bean's space on First Avenue and Third Street

Report: Kips Bay 15 to get bigger?

Seeing a movie at one of the chain theaters in the neighborhood (oh, Regal Union Square!) is a soul-sucking experience that makes me question whether there is any good left in the world kinda sucks save for that 11:15 a.m. weekday showing (and even then...).

Which is why we don't see many mainstream movies.

But, if the mood strikes, we will, on occasion, traipse up to the AMC Loews Kips Bay 15 on this suburban stretch of Second Avenue ... less painful and less crowded usually...

[Via]

We're not alone in this pilgrimage. Which is why you might be interested in this item over at pcvstBee ... word there is that the theater will be expanding into the former Borders space next door... Not sure if this will make it better or worse. (More theaters, more crowds?)

Empanadas coming to East Ninth Street

That's the sign up in the window at the former Itzocan Café space on East Ninth Street just west of Avenue A. Perhaps this will make up for the loss of empanadas around here since Ruben's closed on First Avenue back in August 2010.

Anyway, a little food life here on East Ninth now with the arrival of Cigkoftem, the Turkish vegetarian fast-food, a few weeks ago...

Thanks to @jeneanchapman for the tip and photo.

[Updated] HomeAway mystery host allegedly keeps deposit for E. 13th Street 'stylish alcove studio'

Updated, Noon: The tenant from South Africa wrote in to say, "My husband reported him to Interpol and emailed him, after which he repaid my deposit."

We're used to hearing bad things about 'old futon as DIY hotel' website Airbnb but not so much with its lesser known competition HomeAway.

From the EV Grieve inbox we are getting word from a resident of South Africa that there is possibly an illegal hotel room operating at 528 E. 13th Street ... in which the host may have walked off with the traveler's $200 deposit. Says her email:

"Good morning. I wonder if you could help me in anyway possible. I think I've been scammed, trying to rent an apartment listed on airbnb.com. The address 528 East 13th street, and investigating a bit, I came across your blog that reported on the collapse of part of the building.

I've paid a $200 deposit, and have since not heard from 'Andy Melton.' This is the 2nd time I've been scammed in 14 months trying to book an apartment in NYC, after having rented several different ones over the last 8 years.

The listing on Homeaway, not AirBnb as she mistakenly writes, was placed by someone who says he's a Property Manager at CitiStyle NYC, a relatively new company with offices at 444 Park Avenue. Melton previously emailed her info on the listing:

Thank you very much for your inquiry. This spacious and stylish alcove studio on 528 East 13th in the East Village is available for $150 a night plus a $70 cleaning fee for your desired dates. The total would be $1120. We don’t charge taxes or any other fees.
If interested in booking please let me know and I will forward you the rental agreement with the booking check in details.
Please feel free to let me know if you have any further questions or concerns.
All the best,
Andy Melton
CitiStyle NYC Property Manager

The HomeAway listing titled 'Stylish Alcove Studio in Great East Village Locale.' The interior shots of the apartment look too staged for a real person to be living there.

CitiStyle NYC has three listings — the East 13th Street unit and two in Midtown.

The area code listed for CitiStyle NYC is based in Northern Illinois...

This same number shows up on a Craigslist ad for a Wall Street "luxury rental" that someone named Blake is offering for "for $120 from February 14th to February 15th."

New York law prohibits stays of less than 30 days in all Class A buildings in the five boroughs. (We checked to see if 528 E. 13th St. was a Class A or B building, but there wasn't a Certificate of Occupancy of file with the DOB. See here.)

Anyway, perhaps someone at 528 E. 13th St. knows more about the apartment?

Thanks to new EV Grieve contributor Atomic for helping put together this post...

Updated July 6:
See response from Andy Melton of CitiStyle NYC in the comments...

Something Sweet is back open

We hadn't seen Something Sweet, the homespun bakery on the corner of First Avenue and East 11th Street, open at all so far in 2012. A few weeks ago, we called the shop, and received a "temporarily disconnected" message.

They've been known to close here or there through the years (death in the family, broken oven, vacation) without leaving a note taped to the gate. So we don't worry (too much)...

Last week, a reliable source said that the owners were having a few issues with the landlord... not to mention Verizon... the doors were semi-open last week, and we saw some people working inside...

In any event, the bakery reopened yesterday... another shop to appreciate...