In a links roundup on Oct. 7, I posted the above photo noting that workers removed the remaining sidewalk bridge and scaffolding on the west side of Avenue C between Seventh Street and Sixth Street ... in front of the NYCHA-owned buildings.
Per an EVG reader: "I've been living on C for 6 years now and can't remember a day when it wasn't a fixture of the buildings along that stretch of sidewalk."
Anyway, the sidewalk freedom was short-lived... another sidewalk bridge returned this past week...
The DOB webiste doesn't offer much about what's exactly happening with the address (99-103 Avenue C), other than "INSTALLATION OF TEMPORARY SIDEWALK SHED AS PER PLANS."
On the Sixth Street side, the temporary boilers that arrived after Sandy will be celebrating their 5-year anniversary on Oct. 29.
The 11th annual NYC Zombie Crawl takes place today... Per the flyer, zombies are congregating starting at 4 p.m. at three neighboring Avenue B establishments — Maiden Lane, Dream Baby and Lucky. Following a zombie crawl, participants will meet at the Continental on Third Avenue before the Zombie Afterparty at Bowery Electric.
City officials this morning unveiled the new street blades that co-name the northwest corner of Second Avenue and Seventh Street after Moises Locón, 27, and Nicholas Figueroa, 23, who died in the gas explosion here on March 26, 2015.
Ana and Nixon, parents of Nicholas Figueroa, and Alfredo Locón, brother of Moises Locón, were at the dedication as well as several local elected officials and first responders at the time of the explosion.
These flyers are up outside the Ottendorfer branch of the New York Public Library on Second Avenue near St. Mark's Place.
On Thursday, Kamala last the viola his father gave him before he turned 17. Kamala is now 70. He lost the viola, which is in a khaki canvas case, either at the Ottendorfer branch or the Sirovich Center on 12th Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue.
The viola has "purely sentimental value." Kamala is offering a $100 reward for its return. You can leave your contact info at the library or the front office at the Sirovich Center.
Jimmy Webb's rock 'n' roll boutique now open on the LES (official site ... read my interview with Webb here)
Gettin' Wet with Miss Guy: The Photography of Guy Furrow at Art on A through Nov. 2 (Facebook) ... and scenes from the Mike Diana closing party (Slum Goddess)
Natasha Lyonne checks out a condo above the congregation Adas Yisroel Anshe Meseritz on Sixth Street (6sqft)
The New Museum expanding on the Bowery (BoweryBoogie)
The 2017 HONK NYC Festival wraps up tomorrow afternoon at multiple East Village/LES locations, starting at the Children's Magical Garden on Stanton Street and ending at La Plaza Cultural on Ninth Street and Avenue C, with a parade along Avenue C in between [Updated: The parade on C is no longer happening] ... it's part of the HONK for MORE Gardens! Procession.
Everyone is welcome to join the day's events starting at Children's Magical Garden at 129 Stanton St. near Essex at noon, where we'll have craft & prop-making time accompanied by music from Damas de Ferro of Rio de Janeiro.
• At 2 pm our procession steps off on Stanton to Pitt Street, and we march/dance up Avenue C, ending at La Plaza Cultural Community Garden at approximately 2:45 pm. This is a permitted street parade.
• At 3 pm Liberation Drum Circles will lead a one-hour workshop, free to all, at La Plaza.
• At 4:15 pm Batala New York returns for a performance of Northern Brazilian samba reggae drum rhythms, at La Plaza.
• At 5 pm all welcome to join the procession from La Plaza to DROM on Ave A, for the HONK NYC Closing Party.
Mayor de Blasio and outgoing City Councilmember Rosie Mendez co-hosted a Town Hall last night at P.S. 188, The Island School, on East Houston Street.
EVG regular Peter Brownscombe shared these photos and this one item of particular interest:
During the proceedings, de Blasio said that a mistake had been made in the past and his administration would take steps to reacquire the former P.S 64 and CHARAS/El Bohio community center on Ninth Street between Avenue B and Avenue C.
The Lo-Down was there, and here is the full P.S. 64 quote:
…the decision made a long time ago by the Giuliani administration was a mistake. For the Giuliani administration to put that building into private hands failed miserably, and we’ve seen the negative effect that has had on the community. So I’m announcing tonight, the city’s interest in re-acquiring that building. We are ready to right the wrongs of the past and will work with Council member Mendez and her successor (almost certainly Carlina Rivera) to get that done.
The mayor did not expound on this.
Some background on this ongoing story. Developer Gregg Singer, who bought the property from the city in 1998, had reportedly been pushing de Blasio's administration to remove a stop-work order that has been in place since 2015.
According to public records, Singer is continuing to retain lobbyist Jim Capalino, a former de Blasio ally, for the remainder of 2017.
Among Capalino's lobbying targets: the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development and the Office of the First Deputy Mayor. Capalino, according to a New York Daily News story in March 2016, steered $50,000 to de Blasio after pushing the city to lift the deed restriction at the Rivington House. (The mayor said in August 2016 that he has cut off contact with the lobbyist in the wake of multiple investigations into his administration, per Politico.)
It was previously reported that Singer has a signed lease with Adelphi University, with hopes of having students move in by the fall of 2018. That move-in no longer seems plausible given the current state of the building.
Preservationist groups and other residents have been opposed to Singer's plans, and want to see a return of the landmarked building to use as a cultural and community center.
...Singer has no intention of selling the building, according to his spokeswoman, who said the property is appraised at $60 million and that the owner has already poured $80 million into upkeep.
"Singer has absolutely no plans to give the 'building' back," spokeswoman Nicole Epstein wrote in an email. "The city is trying to be a bully here."
... and you can watch the full 3-hour Town Hall here...
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: J and T, since 1980
J, a native New Yorker, moved into the apartment before T. J lived for awhile in New Hampshire, but wanted to come back. She worked at a longstanding neighborhood business, which recently closed.
How did you find your apartment?
There was a Russian guy, a fixture on First Avenue. He sat on a wooden box with a cane, maybe he was Siberian. He collected old rubber bands on his cane. His name was Max. Although he spoke little English, he thought I was really funny. I told him that I was looking for an apartment. He took me to see a man who had apartments in a building that he owned. He had an apartment available on the top floor with loads of light. He rented it to me that day for $150.
If you're interested in inviting Susan in to photograph your apartment for an upcoming post, then you may contact her via this email.
The inspection report with the reported violations has not been posted online just yet. Pubic records show that this location has an A rating from an August inspection with 9 violation points for "Food not protected from potential source of contamination during storage, preparation, transportation, display or service."
Updated:
The DOH report is now online.
An inspector levied 33 violation points, the most critical being No. 1:
1) Evidence of mice or live mice present in facility's food and/or non-food areas.
2) Facility not vermin proof. Harborage or conditions conducive to attracting vermin to the premises and/or allowing vermin to exist.
Updated:
The city gave this location the OK to reopen after an inspection on oct. 18. According to the inspection report, there were 0 violation points.
The Earth School (on Sixth Street and Avenue B) is hosting its annual Fall Fair on Saturday Oct. 14, from noon-5 p.m. in Tompkins Square Park, on the corner of Avenue A and 10th Street. The fair brings kids and adults together for an afternoon of outdoor fun and camaraderie. The fair is also an important fundraiser for The Earth School and its proceeds will benefit the school's enrichment programs.
Enjoy:
• silk screening
• a slime workshop
• make your own re-usable Halloween trick-or-treat bag
• cupcake decorating
• face painting
• the beloved photo booth
• fantastic PRIZES!
For the sporty, we have Mini-golf, Basketball, Toddler Games, and the Amazing Maze! The Fall Fair Shop will offer unique fashions and books for sale. Delicacies from around the world will highlight the diversity and multicultural heritage of the school.
Admission is free and tickets start at $1 for food and activities. Tickets can be purchased directly at the fair.
Now the space between First Avenue and Second Avenue is on the rental market. Been waiting for the listing to show up online... but it's not there just yet.
Mr. Bing has been in soft-open mode this past week at 115 St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue.
The quick-serve shop, which specializes in the Northern Chinese street food crepe — aka a jianbing or bing for short — is having its Grand Opening tomorrow morning.
Per the EVG inbox: "The first 100 customers will enjoy a free bing [starting] at 11 a.m."
This is one of three new Mr. Bings to open in NYC. The St. Mark's Place location is apparently "the first to offer seating and late hours." The news announcement about the opening notes that "wine and beer [is] coming later this fall."
However, this Mr Bing is just temporary (as in a pop-up shop, not going out of business in three months): It's only going to be on St. Mark's through the end of the year. The other Mr. Bing shops will remain open. (Not sure what the deal is on the beer-wine license for the address, if that is temporary too. Mr. Bing was on the September CB3 SLA committee docket.)
The previous EVG post on Mr. Bing has more on the owner and operation.
The rental shop that specialized in Indian music and Bollywood cinema closed at 343 E. Sixth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue in October 2015.
After two months as J-Mar Special Touch barber shop ... workers bricked up the storefront in February and turned it into what everyone thought would be a residential space...
[Photo from February]
Per Streeteasy, the studio was asking $1,999 per month.
Anyway!
In the past week... the space quietly became ... a ... PSYCHIC!
East Village resident Robert Galinsky is the writer and performer of a new play opening this Sunday at the Cherry Lane Theatre in the West Village.
Here are details via the EVG inbox...
Golden Globe Nominated Chris Noth
Drama Desk, Obie, and Olivier Award-winner Barry Shabaka Henley and Cherry Lane Theatre present
THE BENCH, A HOMELESS LOVE STORY
Inspired by Real People and True Stories
Written and performed by Robert Galinsky
Directed by Jay O. Sanders
Based on true stories, "The Bench," set in urban decay and rubble, explores the emotional heartbreak of five homeless characters and the catastrophic hysteria surrounding AIDS in the 1980s. The sparse set is accented with hand-drawn imagery, from Daphne Arthur's graphic novel adaptation of the play, and audio design is by world renowned composer and multi-instrumentalist Deep Singh.
Oct. 15 - Dec. 17
Playing Sundays at 7 p.m.
Exceptions: NO Performances on Nov. 5 and Dec. 3
The show runs 65 minutes, no intermission
Said Galinsky in an email to me: "I am simply telling the story of every human who has the potential to be more than society wants them to be."
This Saturday morning at 11, city officials will be on-hand on this corner for the official co-name ceremony ...
Organizers who were behind the co-naming hope that the street sign bearing the names of the two men will both help commemorate their loss and serve as a warning against unscrupulous landlords.
In a story at DNAinfo on the co-naming proposal this past May, Ana Lanza, Figueroa's mother, said, "It's not going to bring him back — nothing is going to bring him back. But at least this brings a little bit of comfort, that he's going to be remembered somewhere, somehow. That his life wasn't taken in vain. That he meant something."
Authorities have said that illegally siphoned gas at 121 Second Ave. was to blame for the explosion. In February 2016, Manhattan DA Cyrus Vance's office charged landlord Maria Hrynenko and her son Michael Hrynenko 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.
On the topic of the Second Avenue explosion... several readers have asked about the scaffolding that arrived at the end of September on the south-facing wall at 125 Second Ave.
A reliable source told me workers are will be repointing the building, and it has nothing to do with any possible new construction in the now-empty adjacent lots.
As for those parcels... late last spring, Shaky Cohen's Nexus Building Development Group paid $9.15 million for 119 and 121 Second Ave. at Seventh Street. To date, there haven't been any new permits filed at the DOB.
In September 2016, the lot that housed 123 Second Ave. sold for $6 million. The buyer was reported as Ezra Wibowo under the LLC 123 Second Ave. Corp. His plans? "[I]t’s a long-term investment. He’s not in a rush to build or develop," a source told the Post last March.
