Reminders: The 23rd annual tree lighting at Tompkins Square Park is today

Workers made some final preparations yesterday (more lights!) ahead of today's 23rd annual tree lighting in Tompkins Square Park.



The details for the ceremony, which takes place between 4-5 p.m.:

Music from Mandel & Lydon Trio
Carolers of Olde New York from Theatre for the New City
Refreshments from Veselka Restaurant
Additional Support from East Village Books, Vazacs/7B, Saifee Hardware, Apple Savings Bank

HOSTED BY:
East Village Parks Conservancy
Third Street Music School Settlement
Tompkins Square Park Neighborhood Coalition

Photos via Bobby Williams

Sunset, just now

Photo by James and Karla Murray via Facebook

Meanwhile, on 2nd Avenue…

Near East Ninth Street outside the 13th Step … where one Santa has his own Beer Pong kit…



Photos via EVG reader Steven…

And so much for official SantaCon bars…

Along the Millions March route

Checking in with supporters of Good Ole Lower East Side (GOLES) now on Sixth Avenue…

Noted

Santas taking a piss on a roof in the East Village. Nice. cc @evgrieve pic.twitter.com/Y86QTbwZ9g

— gaminette (@gaminette) December 13, 2014

Noted

EVG reader John notes a free hideaway bed/couch combo on East Eighth Street at Avenue B… but there are some stipulations…

Millions March NYC

The March starts today at 2 in Washington Square Park.

If you're looking for a local group to meet up with, supporters of Good Ole Lower East Side (GOLES) are gathering on Astor Place (near where the cube was) at 1:30 p.m. to convene with the Millions March.

And the route:

BEGIN at Wash Square Park then march north on 5th Ave.
Head west on 14th St. to 6th Ave.,
Turn north on 6th to 32nd St.,
Turn east on 32nd to Broadway,
Head south on Broadway until Worth/Lafayette St. turns,
END at 1PP - NYPD Headquarters

A tribute to Our Lady of Guadalupe

EVG contributor Derek Berg caught part of a small procession this morning down Second Avenue … in honor of the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe …





And they have a lot of nerve to do this on the same day as SantaCon. (C'mon — someone was going to say it.)

Testing, testing

EVG reader William Klayer spotted a preliminary tree lighting last night in Tompkins Square Park … ahead of tomorrow's tree-lightng ceremony between 4-5 p.m.

And maybe they need another strand of lights on the tree?

Sign of the times?

EVG reader Riian Kant-McCormick spotted this outside Elsewhere Espresso on East Sixth Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue this morning…

Morning

Tompkins Square Park around 7:30 a.m.-ish

The 23rd annual Unsilent Night returns tomorrow

[Image via]

Per the official website:

Composer Phil Kline will lead a massive chorus of boomboxes from the West Village to the East Village in the 23rd annual holiday presentation of UNSILENT NIGHT. People gather at the arch in Washington Square Park, and less than an hour and mile later, end up in Tompkins Square Park.

Phil Kline will hand out a limited number of vintage boomboxes from his collection — and cassettes and CD’s for those who bring their own. The public is strongly encouraged to bring their own boom boxes ... and to pre-download the track. Find out more about how to participate and download the tracks here.

A Little bit of pop heaven

A fine pop song from 1986 via Mitch Easter and Let's Active called "In Little Ways."

Dorm reveal on Cooper Square

Workers this afternoon are removing the scaffolding and netting from the new dorm at 35 Cooper Square and East Sixth Street for Marymount Manhattan College....

Previously on EV Grieve:
City OKs 13-floor dorm for Cooper Square

Updated: Here's what the newest East Village dorm will look like

Dig bottoms out on Cooper Square; here comes the dorm, here comes the dorm!

The 23rd annual tree lighting at Tompkins Square Park is Sunday

[Photo today by Derek Berg]

Workers were hanging the lights on the Tompkins Square Park holiday tree this morning (didn't the Park keep the lights up year-round for awhile???) ... ahead of the 23rd annual tree lighting ceremony Sunday from 4-5 p.m.

Here are details via the EVG inbox...

Music from Mandel & Lydon Trio
Carolers of Olde New York from Theatre for the New City
Refreshments from Veselka Restaurant
Additional Support from East Village Books, Vazacs/7B, Saifee Hardware, Apple Savings Bank

HOSTED BY:
East Village Parks Conservancy
Third Street Music School Settlement
Tompkins Square Park Neighborhood Coalition

The tree was planted in 1992 in memory of Park advocate Glenn Barnett, "and each of our neighbors whom we have lost to AIDS," per the sign that hangs near the tree.

EV Grieve Etc.: Mourning Edition

[Ongoing transformer work at the ConEd substation via EVG reader Salim]

Remembering Benny's (The Villager)

Public hearing set for next month on Success Academy's new LES location (DNAinfo)

Toxic paint drama on Rivington Street (The Lo-Down)

The activist history of Union Square (Off the Grid)

A walk on Clinton Street in 1985 (BoweryBoogie)

A Paris Review pop-up shop inside Contrada on Second Avenue on Sunday (The Paris Review)

Mystery hawks in the Park! (Gog in NYC)

Inside the new Dee Dee Ramone exhibit (Newsweek)

Ian Schrager discusses his new luxury property coming to Chrystie Street (The Commercial Observer)

A look at Tower Records circa 1983 (Flaming Pablum)

KIDS (NOT CUTE) group exhibition now at Umbrella Arts on East Ninth Street (Umbrella Arts)

Other Music picks its best new albums of 2014 (Other Music)

Merry Mixmas with a free Christmas music mix (BoingBoing)

A new tenant for old-timer The Back Fence on Bleecker and Thompson (Jeremiah's Vanishing New York)

… and EVG reader Olympias Epiriot recently told us that the Big D Store at 22 W. 14th St. near Sixth Avenue is going out of business… a useful and inexpensive option for various items and off-brands…

Here is the New York Sports Club building on Avenue A

[EVG photo from spring 2013]

Workers this morning are removing the scaffolding and construction netting from the incoming New York Sports Club at 28 Avenue A... A reader sent us this photo of the exterior...



Hmm. Thoughts?

As we first reported back in April 2013, New York Sports Club will be operating on the second through fifth floors here between East Second Street and East Third Street. Above the former Gracefully, which closed on Nov. 18.

So workers will need to remove that old Gracefully sign too.

The familiar Burger-Klein sign disappeared back in July. Furniture seller Burger-Klein occupied the building as early as 1939. Read more about the history of the Burger-Klein building at Off the Grid.

The NYSC website says that the gym will open this fall.

Previously on EV Grieve:
RUMOR: New York Health & Racquet Club taking over the space above Gracefully on Avenue A (24 comments)

New York Sports Club in the works for Avenue A

Sidewalk bridge and scaffolding arrive ahead of planned New York Sports Club on Avenue A

New York Sports Club says hello on Avenue A

Familiar Burger-Klein sign has disappeared from Avenue A

City Comptroller audit finds poor maintenance and shoddy oversight of the Citi Bike program

[File photo from Tompkins Square Park by Derek Berg]

We get press releases! Via the EVG inbox...

New York City Bike Share (NYCBS), the operator of the Citi Bike program, failed to both adequately inspect Citi Bike equipment and ensure stations were fully functional according to an audit of NYCBS’s compliance with its contract with the New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) released today by New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer.

“New York City Bike Share’s management of Citi Bike left too many New Yorkers in the lurch,” Comptroller Stringer said. “While Citi Bike has become part of our urban landscape, auditors found that the bike sharing program’s spotty maintenance, poorly cleaned bikes and substandard docking stations inconvenienced riders and discouraged growth in the system. Moving forward, I hope that these findings will provide a road map for ways to improve safety and performance for this critical component of our transportation network.”

The Comptroller’s audit examined maintenance of Citi Bike equipment by NYCBS during the period of May 2013 through May 2014. The Citi Bike program has a fleet of approximately 6,000 bikes and 330 stations throughout the City. Bikeshare Holdings LLC recently announced an agreement to purchase Alta Bicycle Share — the parent company of NYCBS. With a promised infusion of additional capital, Bikeshare Holdings has announced plans to improve maintenance and double the size and geographic reach of the Citi Bike system by 2017.

According to NYCBS’s own maintenance data, 28 percent of bikes system-wide were inspected in November 2013, 34 percent in December 2013 and 38 percent in January 2014, despite contract requirements that 100 percent of bikes undergo a complete maintenance check at least once per month. NYCBS cited the layoff of 16 on-street bike checkers during the winter months as a reason behind the decline in maintenance checks.

By March 2014, following the re-hiring of inspectors, inspections rose to 54 percent of the fleet and to 73 percent by April. However, a sample of the maintenance records of 25 bikes from July 2013 through December 2013 found that NYCBS completed only 60 percent (84 of 141) of required monthly maintenance checks.

Ben Shaoul's bland new 2nd Avenue building is called The East Luxe

Back in July crews finished adding 3 new floors in the total remake of 31-33 Second Ave., which is now a charmless grey box. Perhaps to compensate for the bland exterior here between East Second Street and East First Street, Ben Shaoul's rental building is sporting an upscale name — The East Luxe.

And listings for the units arrived on the market yesterday. According to Streeteasy, there are eight active listings for the 2- and 3-bedroom apartments with an average piece of $5,200.

Here's a look at a listing via Platinum:

Introducing The East Luxe - Brand New Boutique Elevator Building In Prime East Village

Condo-quality apartment features include: Each apartment is gut-renovated w/ central air. Open kitchen features black marble counter tops & stainless steel appliances w/ dishwasher. Washer/Dryer in every unit. Solid white oak flooring throughout. High ceilings. Video intercom.

Building features, Elevator and landscaped roofdeck. Pets allowed.

There aren't any shots of the apartments online just yet, so we don't know if the inside fared better than the outside.

Meanwhile, BoweryBoogie previously reported that a Petco-branded store is set for the retail space.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Ben Shaoul planning a 3-story addition at 31-33 Second Ave.

Bracing for 3 new floors at 31-33 Second Ave.

Checking in on the work in progress at 31-33 2nd Ave., where Ben Shaoul is adding 3 new floors

TakeMeHome Rotisserie Chicken hasn't been open lately after just 3 weeks in business

The quick-serve restaurant opened Nov. 23 at 151 Avenue A between East Ninth Street and East 10th Street.

And TakeMeHome Rotisserie Chicken has been closed the last two nights … and the owners haven't left any notes about a temporary closure due to some unforeseen circumstance. And there isn't any outgoing voice message. (We couldn't even find a Yelp review for them.)

IF this place is closed for good … it won't be any recent closure record. In 2011, an Italian restaurant called Tre Scalini closed after less than two weeks at 130 St. Mark's Place.

As for 151 Avenue A, the San Loco closed here back in February. The CB3/SLA Liquor Licensing Committee voted to deny high-profile restaurateurs Ken Friedman and April Bloomfield a license to open a bar cafe here in May.