Judge issues temporary restraining order, halting construction for now at East River Park

Photos Monday by Daniel Efram 

A judge has issued a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) to East River Park Action, halting the demolition of East River Park as part of the $1.45-billion East Side Coastal Resiliency (ESCR) project.

Here's more via an email from East River Park Action last night:

Appellate court judge Judith Gische heard arguments from Arthur Schwartz and Kathryn Freed, attorneys for East River Park Action, who requested the TRO.

The City's lawyer argued that the city was only doing preparatory work, and would not impose "irreparable harm" … until Thanksgiving.

The judge decided that because park users were already excluded from the tennis courts, she would grant the TRO and cause all work to cease pending further expedited hearings on our Parkland Alienation appeal.

The City has until [noon today] to file a reply, and our attorneys have until Monday at 10 to reply to the reply. The hearing should be in the afternoon. Stay tuned!

One notable thing was that the judge did, at one point, refer to the "formidable appeal." Kudos to our pro bono attorney wizards.

Right now in East River Park work has stopped because the community has fought back pic.twitter.com/rgdScRMGNQ

— Our Park (@ERPAction) November 5, 2021

East River Park Action and 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.

"Phased work operations" began on Monday below Houston Street at the Brian Watkins Tennis Center. According to the construction notice, four tennis courts on the north side and the tennis center will remain open through the end of the 2021 permit season on Nov. 21. All tennis courts and the tennis center including restrooms will be closed until 2024 — subject to change, per the city.  

Two activists were arrested on Monday at the site for not heeding freshly posted "no trespassing" signs at the tennis courts.

Opponents of this plan were at the site all week, drawing a huge police presence on Monday...

CBS 2 and The Village Sun also have coverage.

Commemorating the 20th anniversary of the eviction of the Charas/El Bohio Community & Cultural Center

A group of community leaders, local elected officials and residents will gather tomorrow (Saturday) to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the eviction of the Charas/El Bohio Community & Cultural Center.

We've written a lot about what has (and mostly HAS NOT) transpired here through the years here at 605 E. Ninth St. between Avenue B and Avenue C. (The commemoration looks to be happening on the 10th Street side of the building starting at 12:30.)

Here's a recap via the office of District 2 City Councilmember Carlina Rivera:

Lower East Side elected officials, residents, and artists rally to commemorate the 20th Anniversary of the eviction of Charas/El Bohio Community & Cultural Center to call on the City to take action to immediately stop the destruction of the building.

 

For over 20 years, Charas/El Bohio Community & Cultural Center provided arts, community and nonprofit space for the Lower East Side and greater New York City area. Mayor Rudy Giuliani auctioned the city-owned building in 1998. Developer Gregg Singer purchased the building and evicted the center on Dec. 27, 2001. 

 

Two decades later, the building remains vacant and has been allowed to deteriorate to the extent the Department of Buildings issued a Full Vacant Order in 2019 for failure to maintain the property. 

 

The owner Gregg Singer has taken no significant steps to repair the damage, stabilize the building, or restore the facade, and is currently in foreclosure by mortgagor Madison Capital Realty.

 

Mayor Bill de Blasio stated at a Town Hall on Oct. 12, 2017, that the city would take steps to reacquire the building. The administration has yet to act, despite follow-up inquiries from the community coalition and its elected officials. Community activists and elected officials alike call on the City once again to take steps to save this local treasure. 

 

The rally will kick off hours of street performances by local artists, poets and musicians that showcase our decades-long efforts to return this once-vibrant center to the community.

As previously reported, Singer has wanted to turn the building into a dorm called University Square. The DOB continues to maintain a Stop Work Order — dating to August 2015 — on the property. 

In years past, several local elected officials, community activists and residents have asked for the return of the building for community use. The building became the Charas/El Bohio Community & Cultural Center after the school left in 1977. The group was eventually evicted when Singer took over as the landlord. It has sat empty these past 20 years, causing locals to be concerned about its crumbling façade, among other issues. 

This link features Singer's POV on what has transpired with the building.

Previously on EV Grieve:

• A walk around inside the long-abandoned — and ghoulishly beautiful — P.S. 64

Photo from March by Stacie Joy

USA Super Stores debuts on Houston Street and Avenue D

Yesterday saw the GRAND OPENING of USA Super Stores — "Your Friendly Neighborhood Savings Center" — on the NW corner of Houston and Avenue D (address is officially 310 E. Second St. in the retail space of the Adele). 

We'll go back for a walk around the store on another day. (Not at all familiar with this store brand.)

For now, we'll just check out the sale circular... It looks like a solid place to pick up a gallon of milk ($2.99, limit 2) ... a 12-pack of Bounty paper towels ($22.99, and perfect before the next threat of snow flurries) and a Queen Super Plush Micro Mink Blanket ($17.99) ... not to mention a Portable Party Speaker (49.99)... 

Anyway, as you can see, they have a little bit of everything, from groceries to housewares to clothing... all at discounted prices...

This large retail space was previously home to a Duane Reade (RIP November 2019).

H/T to the EVG readers who pointed out this arrival!

Breaking: It's Christmas time at Rite Aid

The Rite Aid on First Avenue at Fifth Street is introducing Christmas-related items. (Given the supply chain issues, don't wait to buy!) 

No sign yet of a headless Santa here. 

Thanks to Goggla for the pic!

Work on green space for long-vacant site on 4th Street near the Bowery is underway

Construction is now underway on an open green space in the long-vacant lot on Fourth Street between 2 Cooper Square and the Merchant's House Museum. (Thanks to the EVG reader for the photo!) 

Since the 1990s, the Department of Environmental Preservation has used this city-owned space to work on shafts connected to the underground network of tunnels that supply NYC's drinking water. 

Several years ago, there were public meetings to gather ideas for some sort of "passive recreation space" here between the Bowery and Lafayette. 

Here's a look at a schematic via the Parks Department website ... (click on the image for a better view) ... as you can see, the space will include benches, synthetic turfgrass and some trees...

This project, which dates back years, was funded by Mayor de Blasio and now-former City Councilmember Rosie Mendez. Per the Parks Department, work here is slated to be complete in October 2022.

New outpost of the Wild Son opens Tuesday on 1st Avenue

Photo by Steven from September

Updated 5 p.m. The post has been updated to reflect a new opening date — Tuesday, Nov. 9. The Wild Son outpost at 132 First Ave. will be closed starting tomorrow for a minor refresh.

Starting Tuesday (Nov. 9), the Wild Son will be open in its new outpost at 130 First Ave. — directly next door from its current spot on the SE corner of St. Mark's Place.

As previously reported, the restaurant is opening a lunch counter at No. 130 with a daytime breakfast and lunch service.

In late September, Robert Ceraso, the cafe's co-owner, told us they were extending the daytime service currently only offered on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday to all weekdays.

The new Wild Son space will also feature an updated menu (find it here), which features some "greatest hits," like the Good Morning Sunshine and the Grandma Anna egg sandwiches, plus a few other sandwiches, salads ... along with coffee, teas and juices.

The lunch counter seats 10 patrons, with additional room outside. Hours: Tuesday-Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

And what will become of the corner space where the Wild Son is now?

According to a rep for Endless Hospitality, who also operate EV spots the Wayland, Goodnight Sonny and Pop’s Eat Rite, 132 First Ave. will close for a few weeks and reopen as a cocktail bar/restaurant called Bar Lula, which "will take inspiration from modern French bistros and the bold flavors, colors, and culinary traditions of Mexico."

The Wild Son relocated to the East Village from Little West 12th Street in May 2020. 

A very quick pivot for Chichen Itzá, now going as Tompkins Village Cafe on 10th Street

Photos by Steven

After less than three weeks in business, Chichen Itzá has apparently closed at 277 E. 10th St. between Avenue A and First Avenue. 

The Mexican restaurant is now dark ... and there are signs in the window noting a new venture titled Tompkins Village Cafe (thanks to the commenter who pointed this out in the previous post)...

The menus posted to the storefront yesterday show a variety of breakfast items (including a Good Morning Salad), sandwiches and burgers...

It's not immediately clear if the folks behind Chichen Itzá are also doing the new cafe concept ... or what made them pivot the business after two-plus weeks in existence here. (We first saw them open on Oct. 16.)

The former Central Bar being converted to office use on 9th Street

Renovations continue in the retail space at 109 E. Ninth St. between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue. 

According to the posted work permits, workers are converting the former Central Bar space to "office occupancy" ...

The Central Bar, the bi-level sports bar-lounge, closed this past March after nearly 20 years in business. In a letter to patrons, the bar owners noted: "Our landlord has sold the building, and the new owners will not be keeping us as tenants."

The building changed hands for $3.35 million. No word on what might be happening to 109's 13 residential units.

It seems to be a rarity for a bar/restaurant — or any previously licensed address — to be converted into an office or other business (though it does happen).  

In case you were planning on some overnight shopping at Key Food — TONIGHT

Updated 11/4: Last night's install was canceled last-minute due to a glitch at another Key store! They will try again this coming Monday at 11 p.m., per Stacie Joy.

Avenue A's Key Food is currently undergoing a transformation that has seen multiple food categories — Bread! Cakes! ("for all occasions") Nut milks! — change aisle positions in a phased-in approach over the past several weeks. (You may revisit those posts here and here.) 

The latest update will cause the 24/7 grocery at Fourth Street to close overnight — specifically from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m.

Sources tell EVG Key contributor Stacie Joy that the grocer will be updating its self-serve stations and point-of-sale systems — perhaps to update its software for the Customer Loyalty Cards (the ones with "The Difference is Key" printed on them).

Sources also say that it is possible the staff will do some reorganization overnight, but it's also possible that they will not. 

See you at 7 a.m. tomorrow!

Election results: Rivera, Marte win local City Council races

Carlina Rivera has won another term as District 2 City Council member. 

According to tallies from the Board of Elections, Rivera easily topped indpendent candidate Juan Pagan and neighborhood candidate Allie Ryan with nearly 80 percent of the votes.

In the District 1 race for City Council, which includes Chinatown, Little Italy and the Lower East Side, Christopher Marte had more than 70 percent of the vote in beating Republican candidate Jacqueline Toboroff and independent Maud Maron.

Here's Rivera's statement...

✅ IT'S OFFICIAL ✅

Thank you, District 2. I am so proud and grateful to announce that we've decisively won our re-election to the City Council.

Tonight's win belongs to us all + mandates our continued pursuit of progress in our communities and citywide. My full statement ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/hEtVrmiJT9

— Carlina Rivera 利華娜 (@CarlinaRivera) November 3, 2021

And from Marte's camp... 

   

And as expected in the race for mayor, Eric Adams "cruised to victory" in the general election over Republican Curtis Sliwa. You can find the full NYC results here.

A look at 302 E. 2nd St., where a housing lottery is underway

Here's a look at 302 E. Second St. between Avenue C and Avenue D. 

As previously reported, the new 14-floor building— called East Village Homes — will feature 44 affordable apartments and a ground-floor community facility on this long-vacant, city-owned parcel that Asian Americans for Equality (AAFE) is developing via New York City's Department of Housing Preservation and Development.

And now, 36 of the units are available in a lottery for residents at 50 to 140 percent of the area median income (AMI) ... ranging in eligible income from $32,229 to $180,460. Half of those 36 units are set aside for residents who live within the confines of Community Board 3.

More details via the AAFE website:

7 apartments are designated for residents at 50% of Area Median Income (AMI), 14 units at 80% of AMI and 15 units at 140% of AMI. An additional 8 residential units are reserved for formerly homeless individuals and families, utilizing Section 8 vouchers.

The building includes ... a shared terrace on the 11th floor overlooking East Houston Street. The project is utilizing Low Income Housing Tax Credits. 

Dec. 20 is the deadline for application. Find information on how to apply via this link. That link also provides a breakdown of the monthly rent and income eligibility for the units, which range from $857 for one-bedroom apartments to $2,774 a month for two-bedroom apartments.

A second phase of the East Village Homes project is expected to create 10 additional affordable rental apartments on a separate site at 276 E. Third St. Construction has yet to commence there between Avenue C and Avenue D. 

Previously on EV Grieve: 

• Here are more details on East Village Homes, the affordable housing set for 2nd Street

Jiang's Kitchen signage-canopy combo arrives on St. Mark's Place

The signage-canopy combo arrived the other day for Jiang's Kitchen at 65 St. Mark's Place between First Avenue and Second Avenue (thanks to Steven for these photos)...

As we mentioned last month, Tao An, the owner of the now-closed Jiang Diner (and Hot Kitchen) is behind this new venture — previously billed as Jiang Kitchen — at the former home of Jules Bistro (1993-2020). 

An had previously received administrative approval via CB3 for a beer-wine license for the address. According to the questionnaire posted on the CB3 website, Jiang's Kitchen will have 15 tables to accommodate 60 guests. Although the restaurant will serve beer and wine with meals, there is no bar for guests inside the space. An opening date has not yet been announced. 

Jiang Diner opened on Fifth Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue opened in the spring of 2019 and drew praise for its big-plate chicken and Xinjiang-styled Northwestern Chinese food. The restaurant closed for a summer break in late July and never reopened. 

An also operated Hot Kitchen, a Sichuan restaurant, at 104 Second Ave. at Sixth Street starting in 2011. (Jiang Diner also briefly moved into this space, which is now for rent.)

Jules Bistro, a classy spot that offered French cuisine and live jazz, never reopened after the March 2020 PAUSE. Workers cleaned out the space in September 2020.

For your convenience: another smoke shop

103 St. Mark's Place is the new home of the incoming Saint Marks Convenience & Smoke Shop here between Avenue A and First Avenue. 

Unlike the ubiquitous shops that have seemingly popped all over the neighborhood, this one apparently won't be selling beer. (So no Smoke & Beer! Just Smoke!) 

This retail portion of the building was last Satori Holistic Wellness & Beauty.

Halloween in the East Village (Sunday edition)

Here's our Sunday sequel to the previous Halloween post... some more scenes from around the neighborhood courtesy of Stacie Joy... 

32 Avenue C has been demolished

As you may have noticed over on the southwest corner of Third Street and Avenue C, the crumbling three-story building that stood here has been demolished ... right down to the pit...

And a look through the blogger portal...

In our last report from here at 32 Avenue C, we noted the recently issued work permits to "partially demolish the building," specifically the "second, third and roof floors." 

Apparently, workers decided to take down the first floor too. There aren't any other new permits on file with the city offering a clue as to what might be next for the corner.

And as previously noted, there were development plans for this parcel... with the filing of permits with the city in July 2005 for a new 6-floor residential building. The city disapproved the plans in May 2006, and nothing more happened with the project.

Years later, the landlord filed a permit in the fall of 2017 with the DOB to "rebuild exterior walls; replace windows and sistering of floor joists to address" the various violations on file.

Public records list the landlord as Abraham Benelyahou of Fairfax Management Corp. In 2014, the Daily News referred to him as "Manhattan's worst landlord."

Residents have long complained about the drug activity on this corner. This past Jan. 18, a 36-year-old man was shot and killed here. For several months after this, the NYPD parked a patrol car nearby. 

Meanwhile, the sidewalk bridge has stood in various states of disrepair for the past eight-plus years. 

Outside the Bored Ape Yacht Club pop up on 3rd Street

In case you were wondering about those long lines on Third Street and First Avenue yesterday (not for Starbucks! Or Brickman & Sons!). 

The creatives behind Yuga Labs and Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) — called a "collaborative art experiment for the cryptosphere" — are hosting a two-day merch pop-up at 91 E. Third St. (RIP the Edge) yesterday and today ... part of their Ape Fest 2021. 

EVG digital collectibles reporter Stacie Joy shared these photos of the lines (which also went back toward Second Avenue) ...

The Board Yacht folks acknowledged the line and apologized...

Apes, we’re sorry for the long lines. We’re new at this and have been doing our best, pivoting wherever we can to speed things up. It’s a monumental effort getting these events together in the era of COVID and we’re busting our asses. Thank you for the superhuman patience.

— Bored Ape Yacht Club (@BoredApeYC) November 1, 2021

The people Stacie spoke with didn't seem to mind the wait...

This Rolling Stone piece from yesterday has more background on how BAYC came to be.

Last week, Bored Ape Yacht Club #8817, one of 10,000 unique cartoon apes on the Ethereum blockchain, reportedly sold for $3.4 million. The BAYC NFT collection has seen more than half a billion dollars in sales to date.

Ho, ho, no! SantaCon slated for Dec. 11

Over the Halloween weekend, we spotted this discarded (or lost!) Santa hat on Avenue A. 

We noted this in our Instagram Stories ... wrong holiday, etc. Haha. A few people nervously brought up SantaCon. Haha. As in, That's not happening this year — is it?

As of now, yes. 

According to its website, SantaCon, which Gothamist describes as "the annual debauched meathead magnet bar crawl that floods certain unfortunate neighborhoods with blathering bro-chads in Santa costumes every December," the event is Dec. 11... 

The pandemic sidelined last year's SantaCon. Participating venues are announced shortly before the 'Con... and the East Village always seems to make this Santa's list.

Monday's parting shots

As seen in recent days on First Avenue at Ninth Street ... not sure who this is... (thanks to Steven for the photos...)