East Village landmarking hearing set for this afternoon

This afternoon is the long-awaited public hearing with the Landmarks Preservation Commission on the proposed East Village/Lower East Side Historic District.

You can find the background information here via the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, who along with other organizations, have been working to document the neighborhood's historical significance.

Per the GVSHP website, "The proposed district is far and away the largest expansion of landmark protections ever considered in the East Village." The GVSHP also has photos here of some of the significant buildings in the proposed historic district.

Meanwhile, for an opposing view, Rob at Save the Lower East Side! doesn't support the landmarking. He lays out his four reasons in a post from earlier this month ... You can read his arguments here.

He also talks about how the housing market is forcing out "anyone who is devoted to the life of the mind or the creation of cultural products." And an excerpt:

Who remains? Increasingly the wealthy devoted to the life of consumption. The city is gradually becoming a monoculture of nightlife augmented by tourism, a huge nightclub for the rich and their gawkers and their servants. There is nothing in that economy that guarantees a place for the arts or intellectualism beyond the elite artists and elite intellectuals. We've seen it already in the East Village.

Info: The Landmarks Preservation Commission hearing room, One Centre Street (at Chambers Street), 9th floor

Report: Crusty trouble at St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery

Catching up to an article in the current issue of The Villager by Lincoln Anderson titled "Crusties cross line, graffiti obscenities on East Village church."

You may have already read it. (Read the whole article here.)

Quickly... a group of crusties/travelers have been hanging out at the St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery ... "Things came to a head [June 15] around 3 p.m. when three of the crusty punks graffitied over the church’s front with white latex paint. Using a paintbrush, in large block letters, they scrawled obscenity-laden messages on the portico’s bluestone slate floor, on walls and on statues and also on a small lion statue in Abe Lebewohl Park outside the church grounds."

Church officials called the NYPD ... and the trio hasn't been seen there since...

Winnie Varghese, the church’s rector, said that the crusties hanging out in the Park "are fewer in number, but more aggressive and troubled, in her view, than before." Because of drug use, the church has closed its public restrooms (only opening them for intermission during plays and Poetry Project performances).

However, one crusty isn’t deterred when he finds the bathroom locked. “I don’t know how to say this, he — takes a dump outside the theater,” the reverend said.

P.S.
Probably unrelated... but I did notice this recently...

East Village Social is now open on St. Mark's Place

We've been meaning to stop by East Village Social, the new bar-saloon that opened last week at 126 St. Mark's Place near Avenue A. (In the space previously occupied by Lychee and Why Curry?)

Anyway, looks like a good, low-key neighborhood bar.

We tracked down proprietor Dee Dee Patton on Facebook. She has been bartending in the City for 12 years now, the last four split between Niagara and the Bowery Electric. This is her first place.

"I really want East Village Social to be a locals spot that I want to hang out in," she said.

There are 10 beers on tap as well as seasonal sangrias. They also serve "comfort food with a southern spin," such as pulled pork on a biscuit with applesauce.

And they have a cool ceiling.


[Via Facebook]

Avenue B is for Bistro Avenue?

There's a new listing for a three-bedroom rental at 212 Avenue B at 13th Street (above the B Cup Cafe) ... blah, blah, the usual... and usual price ($3,500).

One line jumped out at me in the listing:

Located In The Heart Of The East Village In A Condominium Building With Brand New Gut Renovated Granite Hallways On Bistro Avenue

Bistro Avenue? Anyone ever hear this one before...? Anyone ever want to hear it again? Brokers for the building used the "Bistro" line back in April 2010. So it doesn't seem to have caught on...

FINALLY, your chance to share a studio with 5 guys in the East Village

A rental opportunity via Craigslist (apologies in advance for the ALL CAPS ... that's how Craigslist ran the ad...):

SHARE STUDIO APT WITH 5 OTHER GUYS WHO AREN'T IN THE APT MUCH FOR JUST $475 A MONTH PLUS A $475 REFUNDABLE DEPOSIT. I'LL PAY ALL UTILITY BILLS. THAT AMOUNTS TO SPENDING LESS THAN $16 A DAY TO LIVE IN MANHATTAN!

THIS IS A 1 ROOM UNPARTITIONED STUDIO APT THAT IS SORT OF SET UP DORMITORY STYLE WITH LOFT BEDS AND CURTAIN DIVIDERS.

WE ARE LOOKING FOR SOMEONE WHO WON'T BE SPENDING A LOT OF TIME IN THE APT AND WON'T BE BRINGING IN MUCH STUFF.

...

NO SMOKERS PLEASE AND YOU MUST BE A CAT LOVER BECAUSE I OWN A VERY AFFECTIONATE CAT.

...

AVAILABLE JULY 1ST.
SAINT MARKS PLACE at 2ND AVENUE

h/t @serenaspeaks

From ConEd to shining ConEd

Sunset on East 14th Street this evening ... via EVG reader Emily...

I Know What You Did Last Summer

Really like this photo that @farrisXe took on the Bowery during the late afternoon storm today.

[Updated] New red-tailed hawk delights crowd in Tompkins Square Park, eats pigeon

This afternoon before the storm, Bobby Williams and peter radley noted the arrival of a new adult red-tailed hawk in Tompkins Square Park...






[Top 3 photos by peter radley]

The hawk dined on pigeon.






[Top 3 shots by Bobby Williams]

And thanks to EVG reader John Iz for some photos as well...

UPDATED:

Thanks to Jacquelyn Gallo for sending us this video of the red-tailed hawk in action yesterday...

Wet yarn

An Olek cart on East Seventh Street ... photo by Marjorie Ingall.

Here is what's left of the tree that fell this morning on East 14th Street

EVG reader Joe provides the update...



Ugh.

Earlier today on EV Grieve:
Large branch falls on East 14th Street

Updated: Life Cafe closing Bushwick outpost

We just received a news release... nine months after closing Life Cafe on East 10th Street and Avenue B, owner Kathy Kirkpatrick is retiring and shutting down her Bushwick outpost of the restaurant after Saturday night.

Updated 3:02:

According to the Life Cafe website, "A new café/bar will open immediately thereafter under a new name."

Kirkpatrick also writes that her Bushwick landlord announced a few months ago that he would not renew the Life Cafe lease.

Per Kirkpatrick: "I’ve finally come to terms with the events of the last year. My husband John and I have gotten over our disbelief, anger and sadness at losing both places in one year."

The Brooklyn outpost of Life opened in 2002 on Flushing Avenue.

Previously.

More details about Friday afternoon's stairwell collapse at 86 E. Fourth St.

As we reported Friday afternoon, emergency crews responded to a report of an accident inside 86 E. Fourth St. at Second Avenue... According to witnesses, a woman was leaving the building, and the landing on the third-floor staircase collapsed and she fell through to the next floor.

EMTs took her to a hospital. We do not know her condition at the moment.

Meanwhile, Occupy East 4th Street has more details on the accident. Yesterday, the blog noted that the following flyer appeared (after the collapse).



The firefighters reportedly built a temporary landing before leaving. Occupy East 4th Street had this account from a witness at the scene Friday afternoon: "The thing about this is that there were tons of cops and firemen around, but none of them were asking questions of the construction crew, unless they were doing that inside. I didn't see any workers going in or out of the building, and I'm guessing they ran as soon as the accident occurred."

As we've been reporting, RURU & Associates purchased the building last fall ... residents have said that the new owner and management — ID'd by multiple readers and tipsters as the (Oheb)Shalom family — are declining to offer new leases as current tenant leases expire.

Find further coverage of 86 E. Fourth St. here.

Have other tips or photos about the situation here? Please send them our way via the EV Grieve email

[UPDATED] With new restaurant opening this week, will Extra Place finally become a dining destination?

Late last week, workers installed new planters in Extra Place...




[Top two photos by Bobby Williams]

They are part of the sidewalk cafe for a new restaurant called Heidi that is apparently opening some time later this week... that's according to one of the workers at the space this past weekend...

UPDATED 2 p.m.

Heard from the folks helping to open the restaurant. Important clarification here:

"While this week was the original opening timeframe, some construction delays have set the restaurants back. We don’t have an exact date yet, but it’s coming up – just not this week.

"The restaurant at 8 Extra Place will be called Extra Place, and it’s Mediterranean; the one at 6 Extra Place will be called Heidi, and will serve Swiss cuisine. They’re under the same ownership."

We don't know much about what's coming here... well, it looks nice anyway. The proprietors were on April's CB3/SLA agenda. According to documents on file with CB3, the restaurant will serve Swiss and Mediterranean fare... with 16 table and 46 seats... featuring a beer and wine license with a sidewalk cafe...

Anyway, we're sure that one of the excellent restaurant-nightlife sites will have a preview offering more details about the restaurant. We're a little more curious if the new restaurant, which looks to open at 10 a.m., will be the thing to finally help transform Extra Place into some kind of destination...

About five-plus years ago, we first heard of the plans the developers of Avalon Bowery Place had for the former shit-strewn alley that ran behind CBGB — "a slice of the Left Bank, a pedestrian mall lined with interesting boutiques and cafes."


It hasn't been easy. Businesses have come and gone. It took four years to finally replace the roadway with a sidewalk and add lights.

So Extra Place will have two restaurants (the other being Oaxaca Taqueria) with sidewalk cafes... plus, there's the high-end eatery taking over the former Bowery Wine Co. space across East First Street... (And not sure where the promised commissary from DBGBer Daniel Boulud fits into all this... UPDATED: See comments for more on this.) Is this all enough to ward off the ghosts of the Bowery's past?

[Extra Place, one day some years back]

Previously on EV Grieve:
Extra Place now officially a Dead End

Meanwhile, Extra Place continues to maintain its proud heritage

Looking at Extra Place

Large branch falls on East 14th Street

EVG reader Joe reports that, just before 6 a.m., a large branch of the flowering pear tree outside the Duane Reade on East 14th Street near First Avenue split and fell...





No word on the shape of the rest of the tree...

Here is the new home for the Lower Eastside Girls Club

[ Elise Shin/HPD via Facebook]

Last Thursday, workers removed the sidewalk bridge along the front of the new Lower Eastside Girls Club Center for Community on Avenue D...

And here's how it's looking as of yesterday...









The 30,000-square-foot building will include 78 affordable and market-rate rental residences, a community facility and retail space ... not to mention an Airstream trailer... and Tyra Banks.

(Here's the official news release from 2010 with more details on what the HQ will house.)

On Oct. 29, 2010, the Lower Eastside Girls Club held their official groundbreaking here between Seventh Street and Eighth Street.

More details on all this later.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Passion and progress at the new home of the Lower Eastside Girls Club

Why there's an Airstream trailer inside the new Lower Eastside Girls Club home

Ray's is now selling popcorn

Introduced last week here at Ray's Candy Store ... $1 for a pretty nice size cup of popcorn.

Like this...


[Photo of Ray by Shawn Chittle]

21 E. First St. rises

Every so often we'll check in on the progress at 21 E. First St. at Second Avenue...

Jan. 7.

June 23.





Coming soon. A 12-story apartment building. Previously.

Beyond Sushi is the name of the restaurant taking the Royal Wigs space

Well, uh, the headline kind of says it all ... just a quick follow-up to our post last Tuesday about the sushi-vegetarian place taking over the Royal Wigs space on Ihop Way on East 14th Street ... the sign is now up for the new restaurant...



Seeing this reminded me that I have never tried any of the places on the north side of East 14th Street between Second Avenue and Third Avenue... like Hawkers... or Bite... or 211 New Taco Grill... any of these places worth a visit?

Perhaps the new owners of 200 Avenue A would consider straightening up their front windows

Some folks along Avenue A here between 12th Street and 13th Street are wondering if the new owners of the storefront at 200 Avenue could tidy the windows up... Considering how long and hard the owners fought to open their restaurant-bar-gallery concept and all...

Chico's latest ad mural on East 10th Street

On Friday, Bobby Williams spotted Chico creating a new ad on East 10th Street at Avenue C...



...and the finished product for El Camion, the restaurant on Avenue A at East 12th Street...



P.S.

Earlier this month, Chico touched up the murals outside the Nuyorican Poets Café on East Third Street...