After the usual summer break (though this one seemed a little longer)...
Saturday, September 2, 2017
Michael Hrynenko, Jr., awaiting trial for his role in the 2nd Avenue gas explosion, dies at 31
A cause of death has not been disclosed for Hrynenko, who was also called Mischou.
He was the son of Maria Hrynenko, the landlord of 119 and 121 Second Ave., two of the three buildings destroyed by the deadly blast on March 26, 2015. He lived on Seventh Street before moving to Rockland County in 2014, according to published reports. (His father, Michael, owned the Kiev Restaurant on Second Avenue and Seventh Street. He died in 2004.)
In February 2016, Manhattan DA Cyrus Vance's office charged Maria and Michael Jr. along with contractor Dilber Kukic and plumber Jerry Ioannidis with manslaughter in the second degree, criminally negligent homicide and assault in the second degree, among other charges. (The final defendant, licensed plumber Andrew Trombettas, was charged with offering a false instrument, for allegedly lending his name and license number to paperwork.)
The five were accused of installing an illegal gas system, which they hid from inspectors, at No. 119 and 121. All five pleaded not guilty.
In announcing the charges in February 2016, Vance singled out Michael Hrynenko, who served as a building manager, and Kukic for their actions on March 26 at 121 Second Ave., the site of the restaurant Sushi Park.
As the Post reported at the time:
The two were caught on building surveillance video the day of the deadly blast and fire responding to a fumes complaint from the ground-floor sushi restaurant, then quickly running to fiddle with their hidden basement gas set-up — literally sprinting through the restaurant without warning a single patron, officials allege.
Moments later, restaurant-goer Nicholas Figueroa, 23, and restaurant worker Moises Lucon, 26, were fatally engulfed in the blast, which also injured two dozen others, among them Kukic and Michael Jr.
The criminal case has yet to go to trial while the multiple civil actions are still making their way through the courts.
To date, Maria Hrynenko and her companies have reportedly been hit with 28 lawsuits.
In June, Hrynenko filed a lawsuit, claiming that her management company was "careless and reckless" in its work. In the spring of 2015, as investigators focused on her actions, a lawyer for Hrynenko said that Con Edison bore responsibility for not shutting off the gas during the visit to the property earlier that day.
"Maria would not have sent her son in there if she knew the building was going to explode," the lawyer, Thomas M. Curtis, said in 2015, according to The New York Times.
The Hrynenkos were expected to appear on Sept. 12 in New York Supreme Court in front of Justice A. Kirke Bartley Jr., per court records.
Updated 12:24 p.m.
Giovanni shared this link from the Orangetown Daily Voice from February:
A Sparkill man accused of drunkenly crashing his car and failing several field sobriety tests immediately after is facing a felony count of driving while intoxicated, according to police.
Michael Hrynenko, 31, was taken into custody about 4:50 p.m. Monday after officers responded to a reported one-car crash in a parking lot off Route 303, according to Orangetown police.
According to authorities, Hrynenko was found behind the wheel of the crashed car and appeared to be drunk. He submitted to several field sobriety tests at the scene, which he's accused of failing, according to police.
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Read the previous coverage here.
Prepping for the Animal Rights March on Avenue A
Barricades line the east side of Avenue A from St. Mark's Place to 10th Street this morning ... ahead of today's Official Animal Rights March.
The march starts at the Flatiron Building at 2 p.m. ... and ends in Tompkins Square Park. You can read more about it on Facebook.
The march will impact bus service this afternoon along Avenue A...
Friday, September 1, 2017
'Sphere' of influence
Frankie Rose (ex Crystal Stilts, Dum Dum Girls and Vivian Girls) has a new record out... the above video is for "Dyson Sphere."
Noted
A discarded item an EVG reader spotted this afternoon on Fourth Street between Avenue A and Avenue B... we contacted the Bureau of Fish and Wildlife Services.
Blue Bottle now open on University Place
Starbucks is not the only chain to expand around here. Blue Bottle opened on Wednesday at 101 University Place between 12th Street and 13th Street.
As Eater reported back in June, the San Francisco-based coffee chain "is on an East Coast expansion tear," with six new locations set to open across the city — making for a grand total of 15 stores in NYC alone.
This Blue Bottle, housed in the former Andrade Shoe Repair, is between the incoming Sweetgreen and the News Bar Cafe.
Summer's end: So long to the hawklets of Tompkins Square Park
After an entertaining few months in Tompkins Square Park this summer, the two red-tailed hawk fledglings have apparently moved on.
Goggla has a post with more details here.
There is Christo and Dora's only 2017 offspring, nicknamed Manhattan (or 10, for being their 10th hawklet) ...
[Photo by Steven from Aug. 19]
Here's Dora feeding Manhattan back on May 15...
[Photo by Bobby Williams]
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And on June 14, Ranger Rob (aka Rob Mastrianni, a Manhattan Ranger supervisor) released a juvenile red-tailed hawk into the Park that had been injured earlier in the month in Brooklyn. Hawk watchers nicknamed him Flatbush, as he fell from a nest on Flatbush Avenue.
[Photo by Derek Berg from June 24]
Christo and Dora took him under their wing (sorry) fed him rats, taught him to hunt and treated him like their own hawklet.
Anyway, as Goggla reported on Wednesday, the juveniles have not been spotted of late.
She writes:
[Photo by Steven of Christo, left, and Dora from February]
Goggla has a post with more details here.
There is Christo and Dora's only 2017 offspring, nicknamed Manhattan (or 10, for being their 10th hawklet) ...
[Photo by Steven from Aug. 19]
Here's Dora feeding Manhattan back on May 15...
[Photo by Bobby Williams]
---
And on June 14, Ranger Rob (aka Rob Mastrianni, a Manhattan Ranger supervisor) released a juvenile red-tailed hawk into the Park that had been injured earlier in the month in Brooklyn. Hawk watchers nicknamed him Flatbush, as he fell from a nest on Flatbush Avenue.
[Photo by Derek Berg from June 24]
Christo and Dora took him under their wing (sorry) fed him rats, taught him to hunt and treated him like their own hawklet.
Anyway, as Goggla reported on Wednesday, the juveniles have not been spotted of late.
She writes:
People often ask me where the young hawks go when they leave the park. I wish I knew! They instinctively disperse, but I don't know if they fly a few miles away, or migrate somewhere completely different. I also don't know if they return. Flatbush is banded, so if he does decide to visit, he will be identifiable.
All we can do is wish them safe travels and a long healthy life.
Although it's sad to bid farewell to the fledglings, we still have Christo and Dora, who should stick around and defend their territory.
[Photo by Steven of Christo, left, and Dora from February]
Jesus Saves shines again on 11th Street
Workers yesterday re-installed the neon tubes in the Jesus Saves cross on 11th Street between Avenue A and Avenue B...
Last October, workers had removed and stored the tubes during a capital improvement project here at the landmarked Father’s Heart Ministry Center, which provides a variety of services, from classes to meal services for the homeless, the elderly and working poor.
Find more details about the renovations at their crowdfunding page. And you can read my interview with Carol Vedral, co-founder and executive director of Father's Heart, here.
Previously on EV Grieve:
Renovation work starting at the landmarked Father's Heart Ministry on 11th Street
Thursday, August 31, 2017
Flashback: A mural for Princess Diana on Houston and Avenue B
As you likely know, today marks the 20th anniversary of the death of Diana, Princess of Wales.
Shortly after her death in the Paris car crash, LES-based artist Chico created a mural in her honor on Houston at Avenue B (6 E. Houston St.) ...
Someone wasn't a big fan of the Royal Family....hence the "die" mustache ...
Shortly after her death in the Paris car crash, LES-based artist Chico created a mural in her honor on Houston at Avenue B (6 E. Houston St.) ...
Someone wasn't a big fan of the Royal Family....hence the "die" mustache ...
[Updated] Starbucks opened today on Avenue A and St. Mark's Place
This location made the end-of-summer deadline by opening today...
The posted hours are 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. during the week... until 10 p.m. on weekends.
This location features a mural by Brooklyn-based artist Misha Tyutyunik, a custom piece that flows across three walls. According to the Starbucks newsroom, this collaboration was made possible via the East Village-based Citizens for the Arts.
[Image via Starbucks]
As previously reported, this wasn't a case where business was off and Nino's, the previous tenant, had to close. The pizzeria had to close on Oct. 21, 2015, due to a gas leak in the building. On Nov. 17, Nino's received an eviction notice. Owner Nino Camaj had said that the gas was shut off in the building without any notice to him.
In late November 2015, Camaj's lawyers were reportedly in discussion with landlord Citi Urban Management to dispute the rent charged for the month during which they weren't open due to the gas leak. Camaj still had 10 years left on his lease, and had been in court with the landlords.
He accepted a buyout in February 2016, after having been closed for nearly five months. Camaj told DNAinfo that he could no longer afford the $14,500 monthly rent. (Not to mention court expenses.) Camaj said that the rent for the corner space was $3,500 when he first opened in 1989. Starbucks is reportedly paying upwards of $40,000 a month for the space.
Updated 7:30
Today was apparently a soft opening with an early closing. An EVG reader stopped by early this evening to find it closed until tomorrow.
Previously on EV Grieve:
Starbucks confirmed for Avenue A
At the 'Not Another Starbucks Rally'
I Am a Rent-Stabilized Tenant
East Village resident Susan Schiffman has been photographing the apartments of rent-stabilized tenants living in the East Village for her Instagram account, I Am a Rent Stabilized Tenant. She will share some of the photos here for this ongoing EVG feature.
Tenants: Sacha, since 1991, and Mike, since 2005
Sacha came to Manhattan from Wales in 1988 to be an au pair for a family in Soho. She found this apartment in the East Village through The Village Voice in 1991. Mike moved here from Texas in 1997.
Sacha and Mike met in 2004, and he moved in the following year. They were married in the nearby New York City Marble Cemetery — the first couple to have this honor — in 2008.
Their apartment is one of three rent-stabilized units in a tenement building. The other non-rent-stabilized apartments have been renovated and divided into smaller spaces. They turn over each year to new tenants.
One of their favorite things about their upper-floor home is "the feeling of living in a treehouse."
As for the East Village, some of their favorite things include that it still feels like a neighborhood, where they can run into longtime friends on their front stoops or have a package delivered or leave a set of keys for a friend at the corner deli.
They have a long list of favorite neighborhood places, including 4th Street Food Co-Op, Russ & Daughters, Gizmo Notion, Casey Rubber Stamps, the Tompkins Square Park Greenmarket, Panna II, Lil Frankie's, Supper, Mermaid Inn, Block Drug Stores, yoga at the Bhakti Center, the $8 movies before noon at the Village East Cinema on Second Avenue, and so much more.
"Despite it changing rapidly, there is still lots to love."
And they love their apartment...
If you're interested in inviting Susan in to photograph your apartment for an upcoming post, then you may contact her via this email.
Tenants: Sacha, since 1991, and Mike, since 2005
Sacha came to Manhattan from Wales in 1988 to be an au pair for a family in Soho. She found this apartment in the East Village through The Village Voice in 1991. Mike moved here from Texas in 1997.
Sacha and Mike met in 2004, and he moved in the following year. They were married in the nearby New York City Marble Cemetery — the first couple to have this honor — in 2008.
Their apartment is one of three rent-stabilized units in a tenement building. The other non-rent-stabilized apartments have been renovated and divided into smaller spaces. They turn over each year to new tenants.
One of their favorite things about their upper-floor home is "the feeling of living in a treehouse."
As for the East Village, some of their favorite things include that it still feels like a neighborhood, where they can run into longtime friends on their front stoops or have a package delivered or leave a set of keys for a friend at the corner deli.
They have a long list of favorite neighborhood places, including 4th Street Food Co-Op, Russ & Daughters, Gizmo Notion, Casey Rubber Stamps, the Tompkins Square Park Greenmarket, Panna II, Lil Frankie's, Supper, Mermaid Inn, Block Drug Stores, yoga at the Bhakti Center, the $8 movies before noon at the Village East Cinema on Second Avenue, and so much more.
"Despite it changing rapidly, there is still lots to love."
And they love their apartment...
If you're interested in inviting Susan in to photograph your apartment for an upcoming post, then you may contact her via this email.
Updated: Tagging the cube
Astor Place this morning... photo by EVG reader Brian Polay...
Updated
Here's another view via @brittsullivan ...
Updated 3 p.m.
Squiggle removal commenced... photos via Derek Berg ...
1st look at the condoplex coming to the site of the former beer distributor on 2nd Street
Work is underway at 298 E. Second St. between Avenue C and Avenue D ...
And here's the first look at what's next, courtesy of the rendering on the plywood...
As previously reported, East Village-based Starleeng Equities is putting up an eight-story, seven-unit residential building. New York Yimby noted that the residential units should average 1,967 square feet apiece — most likely condos. There will be a duplex apartment on the ground and second floors, with full-floor apartments on the third through eighth floors.
According to public records, the building that housed the Houston Street Beer Distributors sold for a little more than $7 million in the fall of 2015.
Previously on EV Grieve:
298 E. 2nd St. latest development site up for grabs
East Village now minus 2 beverage distributors
Something brewing (demolition) for former beer distributor on East 2nd Street
[Photo from August 2016]
Good hair day: On the Mark opens second location; Bonefade Barbers debut on Avenue A
[Photo by Pinch]
On the Mark Barber Shop has opened a second location, which debuted on Tuesday at 350 E. 13th St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue.
As we understand it, they will continue to operate their other location for the time being at 400 E. 13th St. between First Avenue and Avenue A.
The new space is larger with nine chairs, per EVG reader Samir Randeria (one of the first customers on Tuesday).
In other hair-cutting news, Bonefade Barbers is now open at 115 Avenue A near Seventh Street. Read more about them here.
Resobox, a Japanese cultural center, opening in the former Edge space on 3rd Street
Back on Aug. 2, an EVG reader spotted workers putting up some decorations on the marquee at 95 E. Third St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue... the former home of the Edge.
For now, the signage looks like this...
The space will be home to the third NYC location of Resobox, a gallery, workshop (with a variety of classes) and café that celebrates Japanese culture. The first location opened in Long Island City in 2012. (The other location is in Chelsea.) You can read more about Resobox and its founders here.
For now, the Third Street location, until it's fully operational, is offering flower-arranging classes on Saturdays...
The Edge, a neighborhood bar, closed last September after 29 years in business.
Wednesday, August 30, 2017
Meanwhile, on the corner of 7th and A...
[Photo by @edenbrower]
At the entrance to Tompkins Square Park at Seventh Street and Avenue A.
As far as I know, this isn't a new, abs-out (and headless and armless) version of the Samuel S. Cox statue ...
Big Kitty is missing
An EVG reader shared this... Big Kitty is missing... last seen on Fifth Street between Avenue A and Avenue B...
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