There's a campaign underway to co-name St. Mark's Place at Second Avenue "Club 57 Way" — after the seminal nightlife venue (1978-1983) at 57 St. Mark's Place.
EVG contributor Stacie Joy recently met Stanley Strychacki, Club 57's founder, and the petition organizers, East Village residents Dany Johnson (in Club 57 shirt below) and Ande Whyland...
The organizers, via Club 57 Artists Fund, a nonprofit organization, are looking to collect signatures (the petition is here) of support from residents who live in this immediate area to present to Community Board 3 for consideration.
"Usually, they consider the naming for people who have died. But we figure that many artists and performers who came out of Club 57 have died, most from AIDS," said Johnson, the resident DJ at Club 57. "Instead of trying to get a co-naming for one person, this would be a great way to bring attention to that part of the history of the East Village."
Club 57 was housed in the basement at the time of the Holy Cross Polish National Church. Workers refurbished the building last year, adding a plaque commemorating Club 57.
The subcultural heyday of the venue received significant attention in the fall of 2017 with the MoMa exhibit titled "Club 57: Film, Performance, and Art in the East Village, 1978–1983" — "the first major exhibition to fully examine the scene-changing, interdisciplinary life of this seminal downtown New York alternative space."
The Bagel Boss at 238 E. 14th St. has not been open in recent days... and passersby note that the display cases are empty — a surprising discovery given that this outpost between Second Avenue and Third Avenue just opened in late July.
According to a message to EVG from Bagel Boss: "The location is temporarily closed due to gas and electric problems. We hope to open back up before the end of December!"
Bagel Boss, founded in 1975, has 15-plus locations in NYC and on Long Island. A location at 55 E. Houston St. (at Mott) also recently debuted.
The Mermaid Inn's East Village outpost is expected to reopen in the spring.
This nugget of news of interest to EV residents was part of a larger story at Eater about Mermaid Inn opening an outpost on West 43rd Street.
Mermaid Inn closed here on Second Avenue between Fifth Street and Sixth Street during the pandemic. Co-owner Daniel Abrams and partner Cindy Smith decided to close the restaurant in the wake of failed attempts to reach a workable rent deal, Eater reported at the time.
In April, Abrams said that the Mermaid Inn would return to the East Village, though the SLA would reportedly not grant a temporary liquor license to the seafood restaurant that had been here for 17 years.
There has been a little activity here and there at the Second Avenue space...
For the second time (that we're aware of!) in 2021, there's activity inside the former Benny's Burritos space on the southwest corner of Avenue A and Sixth Street.
Photos from Salim (top pic!) and John Tymkiw (pic below) show some tools and signs of pending construction inside the long-vacant storefront...
Benny's closed here on Nov. 29, 2014, after 27 years in business.
The prime corner space has sat empty since then. At least one prospective tenant kicked the tires on the space in 2017. (The Benny's to-go spot next door, which closed in February 2015, is now the 99¢ pizza place called 99¢ Pizza.)
Will we finally see a new tenant here? Or will the Benny's Museum shutter again for another six months?
The city's first nor'easter of the season (per NY1) has been moving through (over?) the area.
Depending on your location, up to three (or more!) inches of rain has fallen, per the National Weather Service.
EVG correspondent Steven checked out Tompkins Square Park, where there is standing water in locations... up to an ankle-deep on the flood-prone east side of the main lawn ...
There's also standing water on the north side of the park office ... these photos are both looking toward 10th Street...
Thankfully, there isn't any sign of fallen branches/trees in the park.
As the top pic shows, there was a big turnout for the event after last year's primarily virtual offering (there wasa small in-person/dog eventat Lucky on Avenue B).
And as always, there were pop (pup?)-cultural references galore represented in the costumes, from standbys such as "Star Wars," "It" and "Joker" to recent phenomenons like "Squid Game."
In the end, the panel of judges, which included local resident Lindsey Jordan, the singer-songwriter behind Snail Mail, selected a more topical Best in Show...
... an essential workers tribute created by Bronx resident Ruben Santana and featuring his dog Amun ...
EVG contributor Stacie Joy was there ... and she shared this look at some of the costumes seen on this dog day afternoon...
The Dog Parade, which outgrew Tompkins Square Park, took place in East River Park in2018and2019.
Opponents of the city's current resiliency plan for the Lower East Side stormed the stage at one point to protest the impending "destruction" of East River Park. The move drew some criticism from attendees, to which East River Park Action responded in an Instagram post with: "Is the city's destruction of our park more onerous than disrupting the doggies in costume?"
Yesterday, workers removed the scaffolding and construction netting from 21-23 Avenue B. Workers have been adding two new floors and combining the existing two four-story structures between Second Street and Third Street. (First reported here.)
And here's another view via an EVG reader...
The retail spaces are on the market via landlord Icon Realty. One slot is $10k a month, and it appears that both combined are $20k.
The residential listings for the 6-floor building are not online just yet. So here's what New York Yimby had on these units back in the spring:
All combined, available apartments will include six five-bedroom homes and eight two-bedroom units, with select units offering private outdoor space. All residents will have access to a large open-air roof terrace and cellar-level bike storage. In addition to a residential lobby, two 800-square-foot commercial suites will occupy the ground floor of each building...
And a flashback to when work got underway in October 2020...
For starters, ICYMI: Papaya Dog has closed here on the NW corner of First Avenue and 14th Street after 16 years of peddling hot dogs and sandwich combos ... as we first reported back on Thursday. (Thanks to KT and Pinch!)
This corner has been on a watch-list for years ... with the mostly single-level strip of commercial buildings seemingly waiting to be gobbled up for new development. Plus, the four-story 239 First Ave., where the shuttered Salt & Pepper sold Indian and Chinese cuisine from the storefront next to Papaya Dog, remains vacant.
Anyway, there's nothing in public records to suggest anything is afoot here for the time being.
A lot of people also had feelings about Papaya Dog's departure, especially on Twitter. And there was a lot of conversation about the ongoing issues — fights, drug use, etc. — along this corridor.
Work on the $1.45-billion East Side Coastal Resiliency (ESCR) project will close the southern section of East River Park — below the Houston Street entrance — starting on Nov. 21 ... with construction completion not set for by the end of 2026 "given project pause during COVID and procurement delays."
The city released the first set of dates for ESCR construction and a revised phasing plan for this Project Area 1 last Wednesday during Community Board 3's Parks, Recreation, Waterfront, & Resiliency Committee.
As we first reported here, the Compost Yard has been relocated, and that area will be turned into "a passive lawn" during the interim.
On Nov. 1, all but four tennis courts will close, with the remainder to shutter on Nov. 21 along with most of the southern end of East River Park.
According to the latest timeline from the city, leagues will be able to use the ballfields through Nov. 30. Permits for the BBQ areas and amphitheater will no longer be available after Nov. 30.
Click on the image below for more detail on all this...
Also, on Nov. 21, the entire "shared-use path" — the Greenway that runs between East River Park and the FDR — will close until the end of 2026. Looking at the city's presentation, it's not immediately apparent what route cyclists and pedestrians need to take in the interim. (The presentation only shows a bike detour for the area starting at Stuyvesant Cove on 20th Street.)
Meanwhile, the rest of East River Park — the area north of Reach F on the city's snapshots — will be open for at least another year. There appears to be a small closure at the north end above 10th Street sometime before next summer. (The city has said that they will maintain public access to a minimum of 42 percent of the park throughout construction.)
There aren't any other specific dates at this time attached to gutting the 57.5-acre East River Park — burying the existing park under fill and elevating it by 8-to-10 feet above sea level. You can find the updated 22-page presentation from last week at this link.
Opponents of this version of the reconstruction project continue to speak out, stressing there's a better path forward to protect the Lower East Side and surrounding neighborhoods from a 100-year-flood event and sea-level rise — one that doesn't cause 1,000 mature trees to be chopped down.
As Archpaper noted in an article on the project this past summer:
Though the city has committed to planting approximately 2,000 new trees, consisting of 50 different tree species that will be more resilient to salt spray and extreme weather, it will take decades for the new saplings on the reconstructed park to achieve a full canopy.
East River Park Action and other advocates say there are alternatives to preserve the park and provide flood protection, such as the one mapped out in the years after Sandy. In late 2018, the city surprised community stakeholders by announcing a complete overhaul of a plan discussed over four years of local meetings.
Efforts to spur Council Speaker Corey Johnson to hold an oversight hearing on this phase of the East Side Coastal Resiliency project have yet to materialize. However, he's aware of what's happening here now.
Meanwhile, work continues in Project Area 2 between East 15 Street and 25th Street, including Asser Levy Playground, Stuyvesant Cove Park and Murphy Brothers Playground.
This is the latest outpost for the fast-growing NYC brand that launched with a mobile cart in Williamsburg in the summer of 2020.
Just last week, we reported that a Blank Street location is coming soon to 36 Third Ave. between Ninth Street and 10th Street. That post has more background about the company founded by Vinay Menda and Issam Freiha, who have aggressive plans for 100 locations operational by the end of 2022.
We're continuing to monitor the now-vacant old retail strip at 250 E. Houston St. ... adjacent to the renovated 13-story residential complex and storefronts. (Background here.)
The latest update comes via an EVG reader, who spied some info inside the former Mattress Mart (the first space after the renovated zone).
While walking by the old Mattress Mart, I could see they are building a new retaining wall. The plans were right there on a table by the window. I included close-ups of two interesting items: one describes separating the stores from Red Square (250) into a new "280 E Houston."
The other was partially covered but clearly says "demolition." I'm pretty sure whatever's coming is going to suck — especially for those residents on Second Street with southern-facing windows.
According to some of the former business owners at No. 250, a new development will rise from the one-level strip of storefronts between Avenue A and Avenue B. Demolition permits have already been filed. What's not known yet is the size/scope of the new building.
Joey Batista (aka Bats) started selling the Portuguese custard tarts several years back before opening his first outpost at 129 Allen St. near Rivington.
Here's more via a Hungry City feature at the Times from April 2019:
The Avenue B location — a sizeable two-level space — will feature elements of the cafe as well as a lounge featuring comedy and live music. Joey Bats received approval for a liquor license here during last month's CB3 meeting.
No. 50 has sat empty for several years. The pizzeria Johnny Favorite's shuttered on the Fourth Street side in August 2017 after debuting in April 2015. Lovecraft, inspired by horror writer H. P. Lovecraft, closed in early 2018 after three-and-a-half years in business.
The organizers, via Club 57 Artists Fund, a nonprofit organization, are looking to collect signatures (the petition is here) of support from residents who live in this immediate area to present to Community Board 3 for consideration.
Club 57 was housed in the basement at the time of the Holy Cross Polish National Church. Workers refurbished the building last year, adding a plaque commemorating Club 57.
