A bag of 'fuck you' under the Tompkins Square holiday tree

Ah, Santa has come early this year...

What did he/she leave for us?

Oh.

Photos by Bobby Williams.

Is anyone missing a tuft of hair?

Or maybe a weave? Or wig? If so, then let us know. We found this on Avenue A this afternoon. (And is there a reward?)

Photo by Bobby Williams.

Max Fish opening a summer outpost on the Asbury Park boardwalk

Paper has the scoop that Max Fish is opening an Asbury Park outpost this weekend. Owner Uli Rimkus said that the bar will be open weekends through Memorial Day, then daily the rest of the summer. Rimkus said that she has made the space to "look like Max Fish but beachy, with blues, greens and clouds." [Via Eater]

EV Grieve Etc.: Mourning edition

[An EVG favorite]

Funding campaign under way for the Living Theatre (BoweryBoogie)

The mean rent for Manhattan in April: $3,429 (Curbed)

One reason why the 5 train sucks (Gothamist)

Why you won't be getting any more of those Mikey's Burger menus shoved under your door (Eater)

Another High Line victim (Jeremiah's Vanishing New York)

German bakery opening on Orchard Street (The Lo-Down)

And from the EV Grieve inbox...

The Here Kitty Kitty Titty show is a neo-burlesque extravaganza featuring crazy cat ladies, sexy kittens and of course, titties. We know everyone has a little cat love inside of them and we want to celebrate that naughty feeling through burlesque!

Tonight
The Kraine Theater
85 e. 4th Street
Doors at 10 pm, Show at 10:30 pm sharp

Meet the landlord who owns 50-58 E. Third St.

[Bobby Williams]

The Voice filed a story yesterday on the ongoing situation at 50-58 E. Third St., which included a rally on Monday in which City Council member Rosie Mendez spoke.

As you may know, Abart Holdings LLC has sold (or is selling) the buildings at 50, 54 and 58 E. Third St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue. Seventeen residents of the building with market-rate apartments received letters that stated they must move out within 60 days.

Wasim Lone of Good Old Lower East Side told the Voice that he has been trying to contact the landlord on behalf of the tenants, but they've refused to take any calls. "The landlord's request is quite outrageous, considering he's trying to kick out 17 families out of the houses in just two months," Lone said.

And Ben Kim at the Voice did a little digging and discovered who the landlord is behind Abart Holdings LLC: Abe Haruvi. (The Voice wrote in October 2000 about how Haruvi allegedly tried to evict long-term tenants elsewhere in the city.)

In November 2010, the Post reported that Haruvi owns more than 40 Manhattan buildings. And, "Several years ago he allegedly tried to evict rent-stabilized tenants by wrongly claiming he needed their homes for his personal use."

Also, according to the Post in November 2010: "A 65-year-old housekeeper at the Palm Beach home of Manhattan landlord Abe Haruvi says she was made to work from 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. and forced to share living quarters with her employers' dogs." She filed a lawsuit for unspecified damages.

Anyway, here's a photo of the house that Haruvi bought last November in Palm Beach for $7.8 million (down from an early high of $17 million). You can read about it here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Reader report: Three apartment buildings sold on East Third Street

Know your rights: Help with understanding NYC rent laws

More about the lease renewals at 50, 54 and 58 E. Third St.

Tenants at 50, 54 and 58 E. Third St. banding to together in face of building sale

Tompkins Square Park still not quite rat-free

[Monday in the Park. Photo by Bobby Williams]

Dunno about you, but I've noticed an increasing number of rats in Tompkins Square Park of late. Well, not quite return to the bad old days of July 2011.

Not really a surprise. After all, it is Hey-Let's-Buy-A-Pizza-and-Leave-Half-of-it-in-the-box-and-leave-the-Park-to-get-drunker season.

Plus, it's spring.

Back in March, The Villager reported that Park officials had brought Ratstravaganza under control. Park officials have certainly done a lot to curb the rat population.

And has anyone seen the Elusive Pigeon Lady? We also haven't seen the red-tailed hawk(s) as much either. Among other things, they eat rats.

Here then, where Nevada Smith's once stood

I've been wondering what has been going on behind that sidewalk shed-plywood combo where Nevada Smith's once stood at 74 Third Ave. between 11th Street and 12th Street ...

So I asked a passerby for a lift so I could dangle over the plywood with my camera.

OK then. Here we are.

Just an empty lot for now. I thought workers may have already started a little excavating for this — the future.

As The Deal Deal reported, the corner will one day house an 82,000-square-foot, nine-story residential building with 94 units.

The city approved the plans last month.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Those persistent rumors about 74-76 Third Avenue and the future of Nevada Smith's

The East Village will lose a parking lot and gain an apartment building

Here is your 5 Napkin Burger sidewalk cafe

Back in January, the CB3/SLA folks OK'd a sidewalk cafe for 5 Napkin Burger at 14th Street and Third Avenue. Several times we questioned whether they'd be enough room for a sidewalk cafe on a busy stretch that features food carts, bicycles, Trader Joe's food pallets, food truck lines, commuters, that one guy, etc.

Anyway, now we know... the sidewalk cafe is out ...

Perhaps they'll DBGB it and add some four-ton planters and stuff to provide a little barrier for eating.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Will there be enough room for a sidewalk cafe outside the new 5 Napkin Burger on 14th and Third?

On Avenue B, a living room big enough for your very own Mardi Gras

In case you are in the market for a four-bedroom apartment with terrace... take at look at 93 Avenue B at East Sixth Street, which hit the market Monday for $5,995 a month. Per Streeteasy (via EastVillage Cribs.com):

"The living room is BIG. Big enough to have 20 guests comfortably."

No word if the current tenants will be leaving behind the Bud Light Mardi Gras decorations.

Pinkerton is missing

Flyer spotted on Second Avenue and 13th Street.

Report: Misdemeanor assault charge in East 14th Street parking-space punch case‎

A Manhattan jury this morning convicted Oscar Fuller of misdemeanor assault for punching a woman in an argument over an East Village parking space in February 2011, the Post reported.

The jury acquitted Fuller, an electrician in Queens, of felony assault for punching Bronx resident Lana Rosas in the ensuing argument. He could serve up to one year in jail. The judge will sentence Fuller on June 13, the Post noted.

Rosas was reportedly in a coma for nine days. According to her mother, "Rosas is still struggling with brain injuries, unable to work or drive, and her life revolves around her therapy sessions."

Fuller's first trial ended in a mistrial last November. He has said that he was defending himself. Rosas was standing in the space on East 14th Street between Avenue A and Avenue B to save the spot for her boyfriend.

[Photo by DNAinfo/Patrick Hedlund]

[Updated] Resident creates petition to 'Stop national retailers opening in the East Village'

Now with working links!

On our post about 7-Eleven earlier this morning, a reader left a link to a new petition ...

Per the petition:

Zip code 10003, which we all know as the East Village, now has the most national retail stores of any zip code in nyc (except for one that has a huge shopping mall). This means Subway instead of CBGB, 7-Eleven instead of your friendly neighborhood bodega, Starbucks galore, and more banks that any human possibly needs.

It's time to stop the madness. It is time to say no to giant corporations and to gentrification. It is time to save whatever is left of this neighborhood's character.

Back in November, The Center for an Urban Future released its fourth annual study ranking the national retailers with the most store locations in New York City. The 10003 Zip Code, which includes Union Square and parts of Fifth Avenue, came in third for most chains overall in New York City with 169.

Meanwhile, you can find the petition here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Zip Code 10003 has 169 chain stores

Ready for CBGB the movie too?

[Horrible photoshopping via EVG]

By now, you've probably heard about the CBGB summer music festival, via The New York Times. (BoweryBoogie first got wind of the festival back in January.)

Guided By Voices are playing CBGB Festival - July 7, Central Parkcbgb.com/festival/music

— Guided By Voices (@GBVTweets) May 8, 2012

Meanwhile.

Over at Forbes this morning, Roger Friedman notes that the CBGB story is set to become a movie. Per the article:

"Husband and wife filmmakers Jody Savin and Randall Miller have placed a casting call for a bunch of characters who were part of the early CBGB's scene including singer Genya Ravan. They say they’ve cast the club's late owner, Hilly Kristal, but haven’t released the name yet. (It would be a good part for Bill Murray.)"

We first recall hearing the news of the movie last May via The Hollywood Reporter, who noted that "the film, tentatively titled CBGB, that will cover the years 1974-76."

In any event, this is all now happening.

RICK PAGANO is casting CBGB about the famous NY underground rock club, home to bands like The Ramones and Misfits. CastingAbout.com

— CastingAbout (@CastingAbout) May 4, 2012

Under-renovation 315 E. 10th St. in full view now, though how's that rooftop addition looking?

Work seems to be quickly taking place in the circa-1847 building at 315 E. 10th St. As you'll recall, the city OK'd a one-floor rooftop addition here in January hours before the Landmarks Preservation Committee approved the East 10th Street Historic District.

Last Wednesday, workers removed the sidewalk shed ...

And here's how it looks at the moment...

[Above photos by Bobby Williams]

Here's an after and before ...

Developer Ben Shaoul has been converting the building from nonprofit use to residential. Preservation groups and various neighbors had been concerned that the rooftop addition would change the aesthetic of the street. Plus, well, Shaoul and a few previous roof-top additions have caused plenty of controversy.

In early April, the addition was quite noticeable from various points in Tompkins Square Park across the street. (See this post for a look.) Particularly with the bulkhead for the elevator.

Now, with the trees filled in, it's not as easy to spot the addition from Avenue A and East 10th Street...

...though the bulkhead is visible still from several vantage points in Tompkins Square Park.

And how does it look up close? Our friend Jose Garcia sent us these... as you can see, the extra floor is currently painted an uninspired cellblock gray.

Given how it looks now, it's likely a good thing that we can't see it from the street level.

Previously on EV Grieve:
A bid to protect the integrity of 315 E. 10th St.

Landmarks Preservation Commission expedites hearing on East 10th Street Historic District

Workers quickly start dismantling roof of historic 315 E. 10th St.

Perhaps you consider parking elsewhere?

On East Seventh Street alongside 7A and under a debris chute ... Hey, is there a sun roof?

Anyway, as you probably noticed since the fall, the building that houses 7A on the corner (109 Avenue A) has been undergoing renovations... including converting some existing commercial space to residential use and reconstructing a portion of the existing penthouse, per the DOB. We had planned a post on this earlier... perhaps we'll pick it up again later.

[Photo via Doug Quint at the Big Gay Ice Cream Shop]

[Updated] MCA immortalized on East Seventh Street

Tribute to the late Adam Yauch here just west of First Avenue. Artwork by Cram Concepts.

Photo by Zachary McCue via.

Updated: Another take this morning via @dens ...

Big gulping on St. Mark's Place

[7-Eleven on St. Mark's Place one recent day. The ambulance was only parked outside.]

New York magazine checks in with a feature on 7-Eleven(s), which features the scary headline: "The Big Gulp: How 7-Eleven plans to put the bodega out of business."

Gulp.

You know, 7-Eleven has this Business Conversion Program, "whose stated goal is to entice mom-and-pop shops into becoming 7-Elevens. Will bodegas be able to compete when they rarely even use scanners to keep track of inventory? When they hire extra labor just to sell sandwiches for a pittance? When they stock outdated and unpopular items like canned clam sauce and mackerels?"

And, later.

Given this Business Conversion Program, "7-Eleven could plausibly claim to simply be giving moms and pops the means to take their entrepreneurialism to new heights: The 7-Eleven takeover may merely involve the same people we already buy Doritos from selling us bags of Doritos from a different supply chain. In that case, all that will really be lost are some cats and the possibility of occasionally persuading a clerk to sell a single cigarette rather than a whole pack — that, and another set of idiosyncratic storefronts, to be replaced, à la banks and pharmacies, by the nationally uniform palettes of corporate chains."

There's a lot more to read in Willy Staley's article here.

Meanwhile, we've been keeping tabs on the 7-Eleven on St. Mark's Place and the nearby Gem Spa. We worry that Gem Spa's business will be hurt by the recent arrival of the franchise across the way.

[EVG file photo]

One morning, we watched a touristy couple in their 50s walk east along St. Mark's Place. They get to the side of Gem Spa and size up the various hats, sunglasses and what not that are for sale in the kiosks outside the store. They seem confused. As if they're looking for something that they can't find. The woman looks around and spots the 7-Eleven. They walk across the street and enter the 7-Eleven.

Another time. Two young men. 19? 20? 21? Figured one of the guys lived here; the other one was visiting. They stopped in front of the 7-Eleven. The visitor starts to move toward the door. His friend tugs at the other's sleeve and says — we swear! — you can never go in there. They continue walking and eventually head into Gem Spa.

What does this mean? Absolutely nothing at the moment. But we enjoyed the stakeout.

Previously on EV Grieve:
This is one reason why I hate 7-Eleven opening on St. Mark's Place

Purple Ginger now open on East Sixth Street

Purple Ginger, a Thai and noodle restaurant, opened here on East Sixth Street just east of Avenue A on Sunday. They're not doing deliveries just yet (so, no to-go menus to browse...).

This space had previously been home to Sixth Street Kitchen, which never reopened after being destroyed by a fire in January 2011.

Meanwhile, let us know if you try this place ...

Rally this evening at 50-58 E. Third St.

As we've been reporting, Abart Holdings LLC has sold (or is selling) the buildings at 50, 54 and 58 E. Third St. on between First Avenue and Second Avenue.

Seventeen residents of the building with market-rate apartments received letters that stated, in part: "It has been agreed with the impending new owners that your lease will not be renewed and that you will be expected to vacate at the expiration of your lease."

This evening, the residents held a rally outside the apartment buildings... City Council member Rosie Mendez was among the speakers...

... Unfortunately, we couldn't make the rally... Bobby Williams sent along these photos, noting that 40-plus people turned out...

Yesterday, resident Sue Palchak-Essenpreis told us: "All we are asking is to be treated fairly. We have a voice, and at the very least, it deserves to be heard. While currently the NYC law may state that any new owner may evict current market rate tenants at will, just because it's legal, doesn't make it right. These are our homes, and we won't leave without a fight."

Previously on EV Grieve:
Reader report: Three apartment buildings sold on East Third Street

Know your rights: Help with understanding NYC rent laws

More about the lease renewals at 50, 54 and 58 E. Third St.

Tenants at 50, 54 and 58 E. Third St. banding to together in face of building sale

And now, Florence of Florence + the Machine walking out of the Bowery Hotel

This afternoon on TMZ Grieve, Bobby Williams happened by the Bowery Hotel on the Bowery and saw the paparazzi waiting out front... for!

Florence Welch of Florence + the Machine... the band is playing at Radio City tomorrow night.

... and one fan is quite please by this sighting...

Next, those photos of Joe Jonas outside Peels...