'Past Future Past,' a book launch and reception for Michael Sean Edwards

[Avenue A near East 5th Street circa 1979]

Through the years, we've posted some of the 1970s-1980s photography of Michael Sean Edwards (like here ... and here). And we're posting his current photos as an EVG contributor.

Michael has gathered some of his images for a self-published book titled "Past Future Past — The East Village 1978-1980."

He is hosting a reception Monday evening at Eleven B (woo! free pizza!), 174 Avenue B and East 11th Street.



It starts at 5:30 … to 8:30 or so.

Find more of Michael's photos here.

Report: Attack on East 6th Street leaves 69-year-old man in critical condition

A 69-year-old man is in critical condition after a vicious attack last night on East Sixth Street near Avenue D.

Police say the man pictured approached the victim and began yelling at him, the Post reports. The man pushed the victim to the ground and continued to punch and kick him in the head.

It was unclear what prompted the attack. The victim is in critical condition at Bellevue, according to the Post.

Street fair! Street fair! Street fair!

A sign that winter may finally be officially over. (Maybe!) Or a sign that spring/summer is here. Yes, Street Fair! Today, it's on Second Avenue from East 14th Street to East Fourth Street (why stop there — keep it going!).



Come and get all the stuff that probably wasn't sitting in storage all winter!



All under his watchful eyes… (Also, Zoltar is not a kissing booth.)



Previously on EV Grieve:
Street fair! Street fair! Street fair!

Street fair! Street fair! Street fair!

Street fair! Street fair! Street fair!

Street fair! Street fair! Street fair!

Street fair! Street fair! Street fair!

Street fair! Street fair! Street fair!

Street fair! Street fair! Street fair!

Street fair! Street fair! Street fair!

Get your glop on at the 20th annual CWS Arts and Science Fair today

Today from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. … at the The Children's Workshop School at 610 E. 12th St. between Avenue B and Avenue C…

So Now You've Seen the Video

"Luminous," the new record by The Horrors, is out this week ... and it includes this song, "So Now You Know." (Anyone else prefer the band's previous sound ... like this?)

Tickets for two shows in NYC this fall went on sale today as well.

EV Grieve Etc.: Mourning Edition

[Tompkins Square Park this morning via Derek Berg]

OddFellows Ice Cream Co. opens today on East 4th Street (DNAinfo)

Residents living near the Avenue A 7-Eleven now have to put up with employee smoking breaks (No 7-Eleven Blog)

Video of the Bowery from 1934 (BoweryBoogie)

Home with retractable facade sells on East 14th Street (Curbed)

Check out the work of Michel Auder this weekend at Anthology Film Archives (AFA website)

Survey finds that the majority of CitiBike users are men (New York Post)

Video flashback: Pearl Jam and Joey Ramone cover the Dead Boys (Rolling Stone)

And the Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space (MoRUS) is offering a walking tour led by veteran activist and squatter Jerry the Peddler. "Jerry will provide a narrative of the neighborhood once known as The Dry Dock, beginning from when the area that is now Stuyvesant Town was the site of brothels and risky bars ... to the tumultuous 1980s leading up to the Tompkins Square Riots of 1988. As Jerry asserts that the history of squatting on the Lower East Side begins and ends on 9th Street, his tour is titled 'A Walking Tour of the Republic of 9th Street' and takes place tomorrow and Sunday at 1 pm starting at MoRUS, 155 Avenue C between 9th and 10th Streets." To register, please email MoRUS with the word Republic in the subject line. Admission is $20, which includes a copy of the ‘zine by Frank Morales, "Squatting in New York City."

Breaking (heh) news: The hawks of Tompkins Square Park are officially parents

[Photo by Francois Portmann]

Goggla broke (sorry!) the news yesterday that Christo and Dora's chicks have hatched in their nest up on the Christodora House on Avenue B.

The top shot, showing the hatching in action, is courtesy of photographer Francois Portmann.

Find more hawk/egg photos at his photography site here. Photos like this…



He'll have photos of the chicks from the nest cam soon.

Meanwhile, please visit Goggla's Gog in NYC site for much more on the hawks.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Red-tailed hawks nest on the Christodora House

The hawks of Tompkins Square Park have laid an egg at the Christodora House

More eggsciting hawk news from the Christodora House

A look at the transformation of 243-245 E. 2nd St.

[243-245 E. Second St. from last month]

Last week, four longtime residents of 245 E. Second St. shared their story about how they helped rehab the building in the early 1980s …

Hoping to make one last bit of coin before allowing the building to deteriorate further, the then owner permitted the artists to move in and renovate their crumbling units in the all but abandoned building with no front door, no heat or hot water, and a constant flow of drug traffic to the notorious heroin shooting gallery that occupied the top floor. The artists united with the remaining two families in the building to form a tenant's association.

The residents also discussed the nightmarish two-year-plus gut renovation here and next door at No. 243.

Refurbished units from each building are now on the rental market. Average prices for No. 245 are $4,050. The four units here listed at Streeteasy have been rented.

Meanwhile, there are new units available at No. 243., where the average rental is $4,566.

Let's take a look at the 3-bedroom penthouse duplex that's asking $6,000.







And here's the descriptive description:

Sleek and Modern, Danish Finished White Oak Flooring juxtaposes perfectly with the pre- war exposed brick. Apartment details include custom designed open kitchen, pale gray European Cabinetry which is the subtle backdrop highlighting the Pebble Caesarstone countertop and custom backsplash tiling. Appliances are well thought out, including a GE Profile Cooktop with Convection Microwave/Oven, concealed Dishwasher and stainless fridge with ice maker.

The Italian tiled bathroom is pure luxury, with open custom glass shower, adorned with Kohler fixtures. Stainless Steel Vanity reflects more of the custom work that spares no expense.

[The former exterior of No. 245]

Previously on EV Grieve:
Continued development concerns at 243-245 E. Second St.

Construction watch: 536 E. 13th St.

Just a quick check in at 536 E. 13th St. west of Avenue B, where work has passed the 5-floor mark… on the way to 6. Approved plans call for six residential units (presumably condos?).

The rendering looks like …



It hasn't always been easy at the site… development here stalled out in 2009 … DOB records showed that the construction then caused cracks in the foundation at the adjacent building.

A former next-door neighbor shared this with us back in December 2009:

I lived on the second floor of 530 East 13th until last January. Ours was the apartment with the terrace overlooking this "space". There were three huge trees which gave a beautiful dappled effect on a sunny day. Then in August '08 the so-called construction began. I came home from work one day to discover that all three trees had been felled. Work stalled almost immediately, but by then it was too late, and our apartment became infested with rodents almost overnight. I disposed of 11 mice between August and December (and those were just the ones I caught).

Previously on EV Grieve:
Your chance to own a stalled project lot on East 13th Street

A dormant construction site on East 13th Street

[December 2009]

CVS reminds us that CVS is coming soon to East Houston

Just noting the recent arrival of the CVS brandage at 42-56 E. Houston St. between Mott and Mulberry...



Soho Billiards closed here back in October 2012… the other tenants of this rather ugly building were a Subway and dry cleaners , which got the boot last August.

BoweryBoogie first reported on the CVS arrival last May.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Retail space that included Soho Billiards is up for grabs on East Houston Street

Apiary is now Après on 3rd Avenue

[Photo from Saturday]

We noticed that Apiary, the nearly 6-year-old restaurant at 60 Third Ave. near East 11th Street, was closed for renovations last weekend… there was a quick changeover, as Apiary has become Après, which Grub Street reports features a new chef and a "modern, vegetable-centric menu."


[Wednesday]

They also serve a ramp cocktail.

You can check out the new menu at Zagat. Après has a good publicist. There are also features at Gothamist and The Village Voice.

Bar Primi neon arrives on the Bowery

The transformation of 325 Bowery continues … as workers turn the former Peels space into Bar Primi … aside from a paint job, the new neon Primi sign is now up here on the corner of Joey Ramone Place.

As Eater first reported, restaurateurs Andrew Carmellini, Josh Pickard and Luke Ostrom are opening Bar Primi, a casual Italian restaurant.

Peels closed on Jan. 22 after three-plus years in business.

Previously on EV Grieve:
A few details about Bar Primi, coming to the former Peels space on the Bowery

Today on the Bowery

Photos by Derek Berg

EV Grieve Etc.: Mourning Edition

[Yesterday in Tompkins Square Park via Derek Berg]

An art weekend on the LES (The Lo-Down)

Here's the Week 2 schedule for Lower East Side History Month (BoweryBoogie)

A tale of two tenement buildings on East 11th Street (Off the Grid)

Last Saturday at MoRUS, C-Squat and Vito's Speakeasy (Slum Goddess)

Ian Schrager temporarily taking retail space in the IBM Watson Building (B + B)

Punk Rock Girls on film series at BAM (BAM)

The return of the Folsom Street East fair (Jeremiah's Vanishing New York)

Report: New 12-story, mixed-use building in the works for Avenue D

[Google Street View]

Just about a year ago news broke that 79-89 Avenue D — three single-level buildings — was for sale. Aside from two vacant storefronts, the address here between East Seventh Street and East Sixth Street includes the Rite Aid.

The space is now ready for new development. The Real Deal reported last evening that L&M Development Partners bought the parcel for $12.5 million. (The asking price had been $22.5 million.)

Plans call for a 12-story, mixed-use building here on the west side of Avenue D. And as The Real Deal notes, "The existing single-story structure contains 72,300 square feet of floor area, which can be expanded to 96,400 square feet with an inclusionary housing bonus."

Meanwhile, we have heard rumors that this Rite Aid will be closing in the coming weeks. However, there hasn't been any official announcement. This would make the second Rite Aid in the East Village to close to make way for new development.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Space that houses Rite Aid on Avenue D hits market for $22.5 million

Paul Kostabi puts some sprkl on Second Avenue

Last night, local musician-artist-folk hero Paul Kostabi added some art — specifically his character sprkl — to the roll-down gate at 80 Second Ave.

Here's a look at it all coming together…

















Thanks to PandaCat for the photos…

Watch a lot of people speak out against Steve Croman and 9300 Realty

[Photo via an Angry Croman Tenant]

This past Saturday, a few dozen residents gathered in Tompkins Square Park for an "East Village Tenant Parade" … the group's target — notorious landlord Steve Croman of 9300 Realty.

There were a number of speakers, including State Sen. Brad Hoylman …



You can find other speaker videos here.

The Stop Croman Coalition and The Good Old Lower East Side sponsored the event.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Gentrification, Steve Croman targets of this East Village tenant parade

Bibi Wine Bar is now open on East 4th Street

Yes, like the headline says. Bibi Wine Bar is now open at 211 E. Fourth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B… The Bar, in the former JujoMukti Tea Lounge (how did they get a liquor license?), is via the owners of the 8th Street Winecellar.

Per the chalkboard sign out front, they are featuring a "don't worry Bibi happy" happy hour.

We haven't heard anything about the place just yet … but there are some enthusiastic reviews on Yelp.

h/t EVG reader Chucho

Previously on EV Grieve:
Reader report: 8th Street Winecellar looking to open a 4th Street location

Perbacco is closed for remodeling

Speaking of wine bars on East Fourth Street between Avenue A and Avenue B… Perbacco has been closed of late. There's no sign up on the gate, which made a few fans of the well-regarded Italian restaurant nervous.

However, the Perbacco website has an announcement explaining that they are closed until later this month "for exciting remodeling."

One thing that we have heard loud and clear from our guests is a rapidly growing interest in wine. In order to cater to this growing interest, we will be putting more of a spotlight on our wine selection. We will even be using a Coravin wine system so that we can offer every single wine in the restaurant by-the-glass (as well as by bottle). This will enable us to introduce new food and wine pairings, flights, even classes!

Without jeopardizing the comfortable ambiance our guests have come to appreciate, we will be putting our wine cellar on display with a stunning glass wall-of-wines, and adding some lounge furniture. Imagine cozy comfort meets contemporary elegance.

The announcement states that Perbacco will reopen "in late May."

TD Bank branch opening next Friday on 2nd Avenue; party with free gift for the 1st 100 visitors!

Hey, that TD Bank branch anchoring the Jupiter 21 building on Second Avenue at East First Street is opening late next week.

The new neighborly neighbors placed welcome brochures on cars around the, uh, neighborhood with more details… the trees are coming! (And how many trees went into making these brochures???)





Any thoughts on what the gift might be? (Do banks still give out toasters? Or have they downsized to toaster mitts?)

Of course this Grand Opening Celebration will cause the new Mars Bar coming to a space somewhere in this building to ramp up their own First Day/Night Extravaganza.