Thursday, March 28, 2013

Avenue A 7-Eleven construction update



On the topic of the incoming 7-Eleven on Avenue A and East 11th Street ... we haven't looked at its progress in ... three whole weeks! (The last update was here.) As you can see, workers have removed the shanty-like plywood roof...

Flashback!



We are also curious about what kind of 7-Eleven signage will represent the store here. Not entirely sure, but we did spot this on the DOB website, in the standard ALL-CAP DOBese...

ERECT NON-ILLUMINATED NON-ADVERTISING AWNING ON WALL. 12 SQ FT COPY TO READ STRIPE 7-ELEVEN STRIPE. NOT WITHIN VIEW OF ARTERIAL HIGHWAY OR PUBLIC PARK. NO CHANGE IN USE, EGRESS OR OCCUPANCY.

As for the end of renovations/construction, the sign on the plywood points to a July 31 end date...



In other 7-Eleven news, BoweryBoogie has an update on the franchise opening on Grand Street here.

DOH temporarily closes Blue Owl on Second Avenue

The DOB temporarily closed Blue Owl on Second near East 12th Street Tuesday after an inspection yielded 49 violation points, according to city records.

Among the violations at the basement cocktail lounge/tapas joint: "Food contact surface not properly washed, rinsed and sanitized after each use and following any activity when contamination may have occurred."

Good Friday blues explosion at St. Mark's Church-in-the-Bowery



From the EV Grieve inbox...

Tony Award winner and Grammy nominee Ann Duquesnay joins historic St. Mark’s Church-in-the-Bowery to tell Good Friday story through blues music

WHAT: St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery provides worshippers with a unique, spiritually moving Good Friday experience with its annual Good Friday Blues. The service uses American blues music to recreate the Passion story of Jesus. Framed by powerfully rendered blues and gospel music, Good Friday Blues tells the story of the betrayal and death of Jesus as written in the Gospel of John.

WHEN and WHERE: Friday, March 29 from noon to 3 p.m. at St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery, located at Second Avenue and East Tenth Street.

This year’s performance marks the 12th year of this liturgy, a collaboration between The Right Reverend Catherine S. Roskam, Bishop Suffragan of New York; Otis, and the St. Mark’s Choir.

WHO:Duquesnay and composer-guitarist Ana Hernandez will join the talents of the St. Mark’s Choir and the Good Friday Blues Band. Liturgy dancers include Dawn Crandell and a dancer from the Vissi Dance Theater. Co-narrating the Passion are Vinie Burrows and Amelia V. Anderson. Leading insightful and thought-provoking meditations throughout the service will be the Rector of St. Mark’s, The Rev. Winnie Varghese and The Rev. Richard Witt and Nell Gibson.

Billy Hurricane's is expanding, and looking for 'tattooed bartenders'



Spotted this link over at The Lo-Down yesterday ... apparently Billy Hurricane's on Avenue B is opening (or re-opening?) a new outpost in the area... and they are hiring bartenders... specifically via a listing at ShiftGig:

Tattooed Bartenders Wanted!
Job Description
Upcoming Lower East Side / East Village Bar w/ Kitchen Looking for some New Staff for New Location!
Bourbon... Beers... Burgers... Blastin' Rock!

What we are looking for...

>> Male or Female
>> Age 21- 31
>> Professional, Reliable & Punctual
>> Experienced (Mixology a Plus)
>> Outgoing & Fun
>> Tattoo'd ( not a unicorn on your ankle kind of tattoo)
>> Non-Complete-Alcoholic
>> Social Media Savvy
>> Possible Following of Friends / Fans

Previously.

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

On the April CB3/SLA docket: A billiards hall for Red Square; move for the Living Room; new partners for Boca Chica?

CB3 just released its schedule for April meetings... and there are some interesting applications on the SLA docket. We'll have more about the meeting, scheduled for April 8, later... for now, here are the more intriguing applicants:


[Boca Chica from several weeks ago]

Applications within Saturated Areas
• Golden C Hospitality (Golden C Hospitality), 13 1st Ave (op)

This is the address for Boca Chica, which, as Serena Solomon at DNAinfo first reported on Feb. 26, closed while the remaining owner looked for new partners. Perhaps she has found some.

New Liquor License Applications
• NYC Billiards Club Inc, 250 E Houston St (op)

Well. This address is for the shops along Red Square between Avenue A and Avenue B ... and there's a big fat vacancy ever since Blockbuster closed last year. Interesting... seeing as Soho Billiards closed several blocks away late last year.

• The Living Room (ACP Project), 173 E 2nd St (op)

Back on the docket after withdrawing last month. The acoustic-music venue is hoping to take over the Klean & Klenaer laundromat, as we previously reported.

• Goats (Goat Brothers Inc), 213 2nd Ave (op)

This is the address for the Nightingale Lounge. Anyone know what's going on here?

• The Nugget Spot (Uncle J's Inc), 230 E 14th St (wb)

Hmm. Quite a name. This is likely going in the former Walid Menswear space. They closed last fall.

I loved their storefront.

[Photo by James and Karla Murray]

Corporate Change with Complaint History
Cafe 81 (81 E 7th Pastry Shop Corp), 81 E 7th St (op)

New life for the bar that has been closed since the fall?

Free clothes up for grabs as East 10th Street laundromat closes



The laundromat (Chow & Lam Corp.) here at 204 E. 10th St. near Second Avenue has now apparently closed, victim of a large rent increase. EVG regular Steve Carter passed along these photos from today...



Mimi and her son Antony worked steadily here for many years. Mimi opened the Laundromat with her husband Peter, who passed away in May 2000.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Rent hike KOs East 10th Street laundromat

Report: Soho House plans more outreach as they put liquor license application on hold

As you know, there has been a bit of an uproar about Soho House expanding to Ludlow Street. Team Soho planned to be on next month's CB3/SLA committee docket.

But! As The Lo-Down reports today:

[T]he operators of the members’ club have decided to take some more time for community outreach before moving forward with their Lower East Side expansion plan, so the liquor application has been withdrawn, for now.

Previously on EV Grieve:
L.E.S. Dwellers make the case against Soho House expanding to Ludlow Street (32 comments)

Out and About in the East Village

In this weekly feature, East Village-based photographer James Maher provides us with a quick snapshot of someone who lives and/or works in the East Village.


By James Maher
Name: Lucille Krasne
Occupation: Designer, Argentine Tango dance organizer
Location: 10th Street between Avenue A and B.
Time: 4 on Sunday, March 25

I’m from Tulsa, Oklahoma. I always wanted to live in New York and so I ended up making the big move to the East Coast while everyone else was making the move to the West Coast. This is the only place I’ve ever lived in New York and I’ve been here for 43 years. This is it.

I am so proud of Tompkins Square Park, which I consider my front yard. Important things happen here. When I first arrived here, I thought it was heaven, paradise on earth, because in the Park on May Day you had all the young people with big red flags celebrating May Day, Communism, Collectivism, and then you had a group of Ukranians with great big signs saying, “Free the Captive Nations,” free all the people in communist countries.

I’ve also seen it go through terrible times. In 1988, I was so stunned to find the entire place surrounded by helmeted police with nightsticks during the riots. I couldn’t believe what was going on. I remember the screaming when they were throwing out all of the homeless people from the Park. I know there were a lot of dangerous things going on, but it killed me to hear that. I was yelling, “Why are you doing this to those people?”

But it’s been wonderful for me since they closed the Park at night because I can now actually sleep. People used to scream and make noise all night. Noise has been a terrible issue in this neighborhood. For years I wanted to blow my brains out and everybody used to think of ways to try and stop the noise. There were also the car alarms. I’ve had a lot of tubes of lipstick that I’ve written on cars with.

I’ve had a very checkered career. When I moved to LA after college, one of my first oddball jobs was creating a hand-puppet show for the County Parks Department out of a converted park washroom. We eventually took it on the road and showed it to zillions of children and then had big puppet workshops all over the place.

When I moved here, I worked for an arts funding organization. It was the perfect job for me. Having no money, I was able to give away money that was provided by the New York State Council in the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts. It was quite a wonderful organization. I was a traveling consultant and I went out to meet with all sorts of groups around the state having to do with issues of arts, saving interesting architecture, poetry groups, dance groups. I advised groups on how to stimulate the community to support them. My role was to instigate them to instigate excitement within the community and bring in more people. I also worked on prison projects and with migrant worker programs.

I also created a jewelry business with my sister for 10 years. We named it Krasne Two. We were designing imaginative accessories and jewelry. We made quite a splash but it is very hard to keep that kind of world going when you are limited financially and don’t have enough backing. It was fun while it lasted. Now I design floor cloths and murals and all kinds of accessories

And then I went into the Argentine Tango business. I fell in love with the Argentine Tango as so many other have. I first fell in love with the music and then I fell in love with the dance. If it grips you it grips you and you’re really caught. I helped start the first New York City tango festival, which was about the wonders of New York and the wonders of Tango. I took the Milanga (Argentine Tango Party) outdoors to Central Park about 15 years ago. I called it the hit and run tango because if the police came you ran. You find a beautiful place, free or pretty free, open to the public, attractive, and everybody dances like crazy and you expand this community, which was teensy weensy. I don’t run it anymore but it’s still going on every Saturday afternoon.

We now run a weekly Milonga at The Ukrainian on 140 Second Ave. on Wednesdays. It’s called “Esmeralda’s E.V. Milonga and Supper Club.” We dance from 6 to 11:30 and if you come between 6 and 7:30 and have dinner with us then you don’t pay the admission. You can listen to the gorgeous Argentine music and watch the fine dancing.

James Maher is a fine art and studio photographer based in the East Village. Find his website here.

Dutch Kills crew aiming to take over former Mercadito Cantina space on Avenue B



Looks as if the former Mercadito Cantina space on Avenue B near East 11th Street is getting a big-name suitor. The flyer attached to the window shows that applicants repping a new bar/tavern called The Asphalt Jungle will be on the April 8 CB3/SLA committee docket...



... and (at least) two of the names involved are part of the team behind Dutch Kills, the popular Long Island City cocktail lounge where bartenders hand-cut block ice down to size for cocktails behind the bar. (You can read more about their ice program here at the Times and here at Forbes.)



One of the applicants, Richie Boccato, is a veteran of Milk & Honey. He also co-owns tiki lounge Painkiller/PKNY on Essex Street, among other ventures (including Sweetleaf). We emailed Boccato yesterday afternoon to find out more about The Asphalt Jungle.

Mercadito Cantina closed in January 2011.

Previously on EV Grieve:
About Mercadito Cantina closing:'Open letter to EV Grieve and CB3' (58 comments)

Price drop on the former Luca Lounge space on Avenue B



While on the topic of Avenue B storefronts... Luca Lounge closed on Avenue B last spring... the first listing that we spotted for the space between East 13th Street and East 14th Street had an insane $19,995 monthly rental ask... (A stated 1,800 square-foot space.)

Now! An Avenue B tipster points out that the rent is now $14,000, per this Loop Net listing. Our tipster notes the price is still high, but slightly closer to market...

Previously on EV Grieve:
What the rent is for the former Luca Lounge space on Avenue B

Subway taking over from Ben & Jerry's on Third Avenue



In recent weeks, the for rent sign came down and contractors arrived at the former Ben & Jerry's on Third Avenue between East Ninth Street and East 10th Street. The ice cream shop closed after 22 years here back in September 2010, as Jeremiah Moss first reported.

The space has remained vacant since then.

We asked Richard Colligan, proprietor of Metroplis next door, if he knew who the incoming tenant was.

Yes he does — it will become a Subway.

So this will reverse the trend of Subways closing around here ... like the franchise on East 14th Street and the one on Second Avenue near East Ninth Street ...

Previously on EV Grieve:
So what's going on with the former Ben & Jerry's space on Third Avenue?

Metropolis: 20 years of selling vintage clothes in the East Village

Noted



Spotted outside Alumni Hall, Third Avenue and East Ninth Street...

What we learned today about 51 Astor Place



The New York Times has an article today titled "A Sleek Office Building Rises Over Gritty Astor Place."

Here are a few soundbites and factoids about 51 Astor Place from the article:

• "Three storefronts will wrap around the ground floor, one of which will house a bank ... A school will occupy a second-floor space."

• "Ultimately, 51 Astor might have to settle for $80 a foot, said Greg Kraut, an Avison Young principal who is not involved with the project, in order to compete with its chief rival in the area, 770 Broadway, which has large floor plans like 51 Astor and where rents are around $75 a foot."

• “You’ve got life down here, so it’s safe at night when 25-year-olds leave work,” said [51 Astor Place developer] Edward Minskoff.

And how might 51 Astor Place and its 13 stories of office workers and students impact the shops-bars-restaurants on St. Marks Place between Third and Second Avenues?

Despite periodic attempts to change the mix of retail, the block seems proudly resistant to change, even while the rest of the East Village has become more upscale, says William Kelley, executive director of the Village Alliance, the business improvement district responsible for keeping the area clean. “I think the office workers will bring a new audience,” Mr. Kelley said. “But I don’t foresee any sweeping changes here for the next 100 years.”

Previously on EV Grieve:
51 Astor Place demolition begins July 1; 17 months to build new black-glass tower

East Village — the new Midtown?

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Today in East Village cloud coverage



By Bobby Williams

Hoop dreams in Tompkins Square Park









Photos by Bobby Williams.

Is it Al Kavadlo?

East Second Street, 6:32 p.m., March 26

How you can learn to use tools on the DOB website just like a blogger!



From the EV Grieve inbox...

Community Board 3 and Cooper Square Committee are co-hosting:

Department of Buildings Workshop: How to Use Tools on the DOB website

Thursday, March 28 at 6:30pm
Seward Park Extension, Community Center
56 Essex Street (between Grand & Broome Streets)

Learn from DOB how to navigate their website to find out what is happening at an address, what permits have been issued, and how to submit a challenge. DOB will also answer frequently asked questions.

The DOB website! A blogger's best friend! Learn how to see how many Stop Work Orders have been issued against your landlord! Find out if the work crew gut renovating the apartment next door actually has permits! Do those workers have permits to work on a Saturday?

And, despite the rumors, you DO NOT receive one of these for attending...

Instant umbrella collection available



If you're interested, per EVG regular William Klayer ... now on St. Mark's Place between First Avenue and Second Avenue...

Checking in on Louis 649's post-Sandy recovery on East 9th Street


[Katie Sokoler]

Louis 649 on East Ninth Street at Avenue C is one of the many East Village businesses along this corridor to feel the wrath of Hurricane Sandy. The low-key lounge, which offers free jazz, opened in 2000. Zachary Sharaga has been the owner since 2004. He answered a few questions about Louis 649 via email.

-----

How long was the bar closed after Sandy?

Louis 649 was closed for business a total of 11 days/nights. As soon as we were able to get back into the bar, three or four days after the hurricane, we deep cleaned for a few days. At that point a lot of people were opening by candlelight but we decided that for safety reasons, we'd better hold off until the power was restored to the streets at the very least.

Five days after Sandy, when most of the neighborhood had power, we were still down due to the building's power box being completely fried in the basement and being held hostage to the eponymous "waiting for Con Ed." We had a party scheduled for Nov. 8 to celebrate a book release, which featured Louis 649's mascot Hamsa that we were debating cancelling. However, we decided that it would be best for the neighborhood to have something festive, so we went ahead with the party with the intent of a intimate candlelit book signing and the power came on five minutes before opening.

What has been the biggest challenge for you since then?

Our biggest challenge has been recuperating financially from the lost goods and the need to replace them and our limited operating capacity since most of our equipment was knocked out from the saltwater damage. We had just received a full shipment of wet and dry goods the Thursday before the storm, so in addition to losing most of that, we had to replace it all. Not to mention having to pay ALL of our bills regardless of any unforeseen natural disaster.

As far as the equipment goes, we lost a lot of refrigeration, which directly affected our purchasing patterns, inventory control and food offerings, so adapting to the limitation was a challenge that we fought day after day. Catching up after such an economic blow to us, our neighbors, our longtime patrons, and the city has been a challenge worth fighting.


[Photo of Lola and Zachary by Farhad Parsa]

Are you seeing the bar return to a pre-Sandy number of patrons?

Yes and no.

The weekends have gotten back to normal but the weekdays could surely use some momentum. Our first Sunday and first live jazz gig of the season was this past Sunday. Thankfully we had a full house.

How have you seen the East Village evolve (or, de-volve) since you opened the bar?

I guess this question is all a matter of perspective. One on side of the coin, there's a food and beverage renaissance rapidly evolving in the East Village, which is bringing in a healthy amount of traffic to support all of the new businesses opening up. The expectations and standards are being raised every day with every "new" innovation.

At the same time, the commercial rents are becoming astronomical, which is leading to a rapid turnover rate in small businesses, which brings me to the other side of the coin. Too many of these businesses are gone before they're even broken in and we're left with an unstable economy of empty storefronts and a lot of unemployed people with no money to spend. Pair this with the high residential rents and we're effectively relying on people outside of our neighborhoods to inject revenue into the East Village.


[Inksy]

The bar's Tuesday Night Tastings return tonight. Find more information on that and more here.

Pangea presenting The East Village Film Series, starting this Thursday night



The folks at Pangea Restaurant & Bar, 178 Second Ave. near East 11th Street, passed along word about The East Village Film Series:

The Series was founded to showcase award-winning works from local and international filmmakers, and to celebrate the silver screen. Aiming to take cinema off the computer, and back on the big screen, the EVSF is dedicated to sharing important, entertaining, and challenging works of art with New York City.

The Film Series is a perfect opportunity for filmmakers to meet meet and mix, for old friends to get together and new friends to be made. Designed for everyone from cinephiles and to the cine-curious, the Series blends fine art and incredible stories, with a fantastic, comfortable environment, for a great evening of work by award-winning New York filmmakers. An event by a community, for a community.

NYC-based director Matt K. Firpo is the series founder.

The series kicks off Thursday night with A Night of Short Films... showcasing "Nomadique." Read more about that here.

The films start at 8 p.m. The filmmakers are expected to be around afterward to discuss their work and what not.