More items from last night's CB3/SLA meeting: New eatery OK'd for Nice Guy Eddie's space

A few more items of interest from last night's CB3/SLA committee meeting... We mentioned that the committee OK'd the Joe's-to-Josie's change on East Sixth Street.

Meanwhile, according to Hannah Leighton at Eater, Team Andre Balazs withdrew plans to discuss a revamped Standard East Village until next month's meeting.

In addition, the committee approved the transfer of assets from Nice Guy Eddie's on Avenue A at Houston/East First Street to an entity called Downtown Dining LLC led by Darin Rubell of the Gallery Bar. Plans call for a restaurant serving "American comfort food." An EV Grieve tipster noted that Rubell was noncommittal about keeping the Kiss mural on the restaurant's south wall along East First Street.

Read the rest of Eater's coverage here. ... and The Lo-Down.

Still no sign of construction at the David Schwimmer estate

On the afternoon of April 3, the DOB issued a Stop Work Order at 331 E. Sixth St., the future six-floor home of David Schwimmer. (DNAinfo reported that a piece of debris "caromed off a scaffold" and struck a passerby, who EMTs took to Bellevue with a minor arm injury.)

And now, 10 work days later... there's still no sign of the full work crew as of this morning. According to the DOB website, the city lifted the Stop Work Order to allow workers to address the specific problems — "missing guardrails, openings at egress, housekeeping, and interior scaffold no permits."

In recent days, we've spotted two or three workers at the site to take care of these issues.

[Photo last week by Bobby Williams]

The DOB website notes that there are seven open violations/non-compliance issues at the address.

In any event, you can see that the construction site looks more secure.

On April 4. the morning after the city issued the Stop Work Order:

Today:

Not that residents miss the construction. Back in January, one neighbor called the work "insanely noisy."

Hellbound and down

This past Friday, Stacie Joy began a photo shoot with Samantha Clark (left) and Amanda Whip. The first stop was on the sidewalk on East 10th Street near Avenue A... which happens to be beside The St. Nicholas of Myra Church.

Quickly enough, a priest came out and, well, started yelling for them to leave. Despite being on a public sidewalk, Stacie and company packed it up "so as not to offend him further."

Anyway, probably no more randy than the scenes "Gossip Girl" filmed at the church back in October 2010...

A sidewalk shed for historic 106 Avenue C

Yesterday, workers arrived on Seventh Street and Avenue C to erect a sidewalk shed... usually not newsy, but this address is worth noting — 106 Avenue C.

[Photos by Matt LES_Miserable]

In September 2008, the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) designated this address as a landmark, according to an article in The Villager. Some history from the article:

The two-story Public National Bank of New York was completed in 1923 ... It was designed by Eugene Schoen, who was the architect for other Public National Bank branches, which totaled 30 in 1928 and had $135 million in deposits.

Schoen, a New York City native, studied in Vienna with Josef Hoffmann, a founder in the late 1890s of the Viennese Secessionist school, which broke away from the prevailing academic and historic style of art and architecture.

The Public National Bank, later known as the Tompkins Square Bank, closed the Avenue C branch in 1954 and merged the following year with Bankers Trust.

Originally two stories, an intermediate floor was added between the first and second floors when the building was converted in 1954 to a nursing home. In the 1980s the Avenue C building was converted to apartments.

Anyway, given the landmark status, nothing too drastic can happen here (we think!) ... There isn't much information about the job on the DOB website — "INSTALLATION OF 106 LINEAR FEET OF HEAVY DUTY SIDEWALK SHED FOR BUILDING ALTERATION."

And later last night...

The address is particularly notable for its entrance. Here's how the LPC described it back in 2008 (PDF):

The entrance is surmounted by notable polychrome Viennese-inspired terra cotta ornament in the form of a decorative band above which is a cartouche with a wreath of fruit (which originally held a clock) above an eagle, flanked by curvilinear forms and decorative urns.

The corner entrance was filled in through the years ...

[Wikipedia Commons]

And here it is (sorry about the quality of the photo) in 1939...

...and 1983...

...and almost present day...

[Top three photos via the LPC]

Southeast corner of Fourth Avenue and East 13th Street is up for grabs

The retail space on the southeast corner of Fourth Avenue and East 13th Street — currently home to Brothers Deli and Dryden Gallery — is for lease...

...which might be why Brothers never fixed their sign...

Here's the listing at RKF ... looks as if they're pushing for retail...

The listing includes the currently vacant space behind the deli on 13th Street...

Meanwhile, the new Hyatt Union Square will be opening across the street one of these days...

CB3/SLA committee approves Joe's to Josie's change on East Sixth Street

[Photo via Melanie at East Village Corner]

Only one item to note from tonight's CB3/SLA committee meeting... we understand that the committee has approved a license for Josie's to open in the space that last housed longtime favorite Joe's Bar on East Sixth Street between Avenue A and Avenue B.

Richard Corton and his business partner Kirk Marcoe, who own Mona's and Sophie's, signed a lease and sales contract for the space last month. Proprietor Joe Vajda, who opened the bar at this address in 1973, died last November. (Joe's longtime partner Dottie requested that they not use his name for the bar.)

Corton has said that they aren't expecting to modify much about the space. Corton and Marcoe are eyeing a July opening.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Joe's Bar is joining the Sophie's-Mona's family

Photographer takes photos of photo shoot

In Tompkins Square Park today... photos by Bobby Williams.

FAKE LETTER suggests that NYU taking over 41 Cooper Square in 2015

Updated: Ha. We saw this item below on Gothamist and quickly linked to it. However, after we posted it, Gothamist had an update: Turns out the whole thing is a fake. So. With that in mind. Here is the original post ... keep in mind the whole thing is some kind of prank...

Cooper Union President Jamshed Bharucha announced today that the school is going to lease out its newish 41 Cooper Square to NYU's Polytechnic Institute, according to a post on Gothamist.

Gothamist is citing a letter from Bharucha that reads, in part:

Beginning in academic year 2015, The Cooper Union will lease its recently completed New Academic Building at 41 Cooper Square to NYU-Poly to ensure $20 million in new revenue annually by 2018, putting our institution on a sustainable path for the future while maintaining reverence for its past.

The 41 Cooper Square has been, for the community, a reminder of past ill-planning and fiduciary neglect. We have, and must continue, to live within the means provided to us in order to preserve Peter Cooper's innovative social mission. We shall not falter in this regard.

In the coming weeks, I will be appointing a Relocation Task Force comprised of engineering faculty, alumni, students, and industry leaders who will be charged with locating an ideal, alternative site for the Albert N. Nerken School of Engineering and the School of Art studios in one of New York's neighboring boroughs. This bold plan of relocation will not be without contention, so we are launching cooperrelocation.info as an information hub and receptacle for community opinion.

As an administrator, it is my understanding that generosity begets generosity, and so, as a first goodwill gesture to the community, I am also announcing a relocation of my own. The President's Residency at the landmark 21 Stuyvesant St. will be moving to the Cooper Union's academic housing at 29 3rd Avenue. Known as the Stuyvesant-Fish House, No. 21 was built by Petrus Stuyvesant, great-grandson of Peter-Stuyvesant, in 1803, and gifted to the Cooper Union. Per its intended use, No. 21 will be promptly leased to generate further revenue for the preservation of our institution.

Notes Gothamist: "Guess the stories about Cooper Union being broke were true."

Weekend recap: Lakeside Lounge is closing after April 30

On Saturday, we posted a report from New York Music Daily that the Lakeside Lounge on Avenue B at East 10th Street is closing at the end of the month.

Trixie, who owns the vintage photo booth in the bar (and ran Live Shop Die on East 13th and later Avenue A), left this comment on our post:

I own the photobooth at Lakeside Lounge and am saddened as any of you by the news of its closing. I'm going to try and find a place for it right here in the East Village though so that everyone can continue to enjoy it. I've lived on e 12th Street since 1978 and I'd really like to keep the booth in the neighborhood. In the meantime though, come on down, the bar is open until the end of the month and the photobooth is ready and waiting to take your picture!

Anyone?

Reminders: CB3/SLA meeting tonight; what is Nice Guy Eddie's future?

CB3's SLA Licensing Committee meets tonight at 6:30 — JASA/Green Residence, 200 E. Fifth St. at the Bowery. We looked at the agenda here. The full docket is here.

Here's a recap of a few of the more interesting items on the docket:

• Major alterations are in store for the public spaces at the Standard East Village (April 12)

• 34 Avenue A is now off this month's CB3/SLA docket (April 9)

• Joe's Bar is joining the Sophie's-Mona's family (March 29)

Meanwhile, it looks as if Nice Guy Eddie's run on Avenue A at East First Street is coming to an end. (As far as we know, CB3 member Dave McWater is still involved with the current ownership of Eddie's.)

An entity called Downtown Dining LLC is looking to open a restaurant in this space, according to documents on file at the CB3 website (PDF).

The applicant's paperwork doesn't mention anyone by name. However, in the section about principals having other businesses in this area... three are listed: Tower Brokerage, Ella and The Gallery Bar...

Knowing that Josh Boyd is a principal at Ella and The Gallery Bar, I sent him a message via Facebook about the Nice Guy Eddie's space... Boyd responded that he isn't involved with the new venture; that his partner Darin Rubell is.

Rubell, who's related to Studio 54 owner Steve Rubell, is also the founder of Mercadito on Avenue B.

In any event, at this point, I don't have any other details on the venture... no word on the fate of Chico's Kiss mural either...

[Old photo of the mural via Eater]

One reason why there were police barricades outside the Starbucks on Astor Place yesterday

Several news photos related to the events Saturday night outside the Astor Place Starbucks show police barricades alongside the store... such as this one in DNAinfo...

The accompanying caption notes, "The Starbucks on Astor Place with police barricades in front on April 15, 2012." (The Daily News published a similar photo.)

Yes, those are police barricades. However, it's unclear from any media accounts or live tweets whether police actually used the barricades Saturday in the skirmish that led to the arrest of three men.

However, one thing is certain about the police barricades... the NYPD used them earlier on Saturday for an Astor Place street fair.

Crews likely stacked up the barricades after the street fair ended early Saturday evening for pick up later.

This doesn't change what transpired on Saturday night... but there is a difference between using the barricades to block off an intersection for a street fair and put them to use to protect a storefront from so-called anarchists.

Previously.

[Street fair photos by Bobby Williams]

Here's your Proto's Pizza signage; and no $1 slices

Sign is up now at Proto's Pizza, where Enzo's was on Second Avenue between Third Street and Second Street... Enzo's closed last May...

Neighborhoodr has more on the incoming pizzeria:

The owner’s first go at a pizza place. Aims to hit the sweet spot of offering a high-quality slice for around $2.50. No dollar slices here. "I'd rather go out of business than have to compromise quality. You’re in New York. Do it right," says Mr. Proto, a Brooklyn native.

Updated:

EVG reader @bndo sent along this photo from Saturday...

Patricia Field announces move on the Bowery

Oh, just a follow-up on our post from last month about the Patricia Field boutique moving up a storefront on the Bowery to the current Patricia Field showroom ... Signs are now up announcing the move...

302 Bowery, home of the current Field shop, is on the market for $30,000 a month. Details here.

Noted

Outside JoeDough on First Avenue. Photo via @PeterHambyCNN

[Updated] Report: NYPD arrest 3 men in last night's melee in the East Village

[The broken window at 7-Eleven on St. Mark's Place. Photo by Shawn Chittle]

The Post is reporting this evening that the NYPD arrested three men who were involved in last night's melee on Astor Place and St. Mark's Place.

The Post, who in the headline refer to the men as "anti-government goons," reported that "a gang of 25 authority-haters, some wearing masks, wielded 8-foot-long metal pipes and smashed the windows of the Starbucks at Astor Place and Lafayette Street, police said."

The NYPD news release notes that Starbucks patrons hid under tables during the incident. However, a store manager told amNewYork "there was no damage done and that the only 'panic' was outside the store."

The Post article says that two police officers were treated for minor injuries; an NYPD news release on the incident cites one injury.

Gothamist points out that one of the men arrested is Alexander Penley, an attorney who has been an Occupy Wall Street organizer. Police took one man in custody at Starbucks. Police arrested Penley and Nicholas Thommen at the Sixth Street Community Center about 90 minutes later. The two were attending a party related to the 2012 NYC Anarchist Book Fair. Among the reported charges: "assaulting a police officer, menacing, criminal possession of a weapon, resisting arrest and inciting a riot."

According to various reports, the group that swept through the neighborhood last night was not associated with #OWS.

Previously.

At the 2012 NYC Anarchist Book Fair

The 2012 NYC Anarchist Book Fair ends today...

...here's the website with all the details.

Meanwhile, Joann Jovinelly attended yesterday and shared some photos...

Boukiés opens tomorrow

The Post has a feature today on new Greek restaurants around the city... and they note that Boukiés opens tomorrow on Second Avenue and East Second Street. It's the latest place from restaurateur Christos Valtzoglou, who also owns Pylos on Seventh Street. Previously, this space was home to the short-lived Heartbreak Cafe.

Previously.

More about last night's Tompkins Square Park closure and the black bloc on St. Mark's Place

Last night, we watched the NYPD shut down Tompkins Square Park around 9. We spoke with several people watching the police assemble on Avenue A at St. Mark's Place. One man spoke of a "mob" that broke windows at the Astor Place Starbucks. And that this pack was headed toward the Park. He seemed excited about this prospect. Another couple confirmed hearing the "mob" story as well. Several of the officers who arrived said that they didn't know why they were there. "We just show where they tell us to go," said one.

@mcompost, described as an Oakland, Calif.-based "anarchist legal worker," followed the group. @mcompost later described what happened as a "very loosely organized anti-police protest" — aka "NYC FTP"

I got roped into attending a NYC #FTP march. About 40 mostly white punk kids. My hopes are not high.

— Marcus (@mcompost) April 15, 2012

From there, this so-called black bloc headed down St. Mark's Place between Third Avenue and Second Avenue.

About 50 ppl dressed in black bashing windows, attacking 7-11 sign, chanting "nypd go to hell" @evgrieve

— Ewing (@Ewingweb) April 15, 2012

(Runnin' Scared has a recap of the events here.)

Six undercovers just tried to grab someone.crowd rushed back and freed their comrade. Shit is heating up

— Marcus (@mcompost) April 15, 2012

After a few run-ins with the NYPD, the group quickly dispersed.

And poof, they're gone! Crowd split up, presumably to regroup elsewhere. #nyc #ftp

— Marcus (@mcompost) April 15, 2012

A whole lots of nypd rolling through tompkins but no protesters at all. No idea where they went. #nyc #ftp

— Marcus (@mcompost) April 15, 2012

Later last night, as Gothamist reported, the NYPD shut down East Sixth Street between Avenue B and Avenue C and arrested two men at an after-party of the Anarchist Book Fair at the Sixth Street Community Center. There were reports that someone was throwing bottles from a rooftop.

At the time last night, several people thought these incidents were all related. However, attendees of this party told Gothamist that the two incidents were unrelated.

(There were a lot of crazy stories making the rounds last night. One person told us the police closed Tompkins Square Park because it "smelled like urine.")

Meanwhile, this morning, we walked on Astor Place and St. Mark's Place. There wasn't any evidence that windows were broken at the Astor Place Starbucks. However, as noted last night, someone did smash a window at the soon-to-open 7-Eleven on St. Mark's Place near Second Avenue.

Someone also smashed the side of this payphone on St. Mark's Place. Of course, this could have been a typical Saturday night act of vandalism...

Ditto for all this...

Previously.