Videos: Witnesses describe spotting alleged subway shooter Frank James before his arrest in the East Village

Top photo from an impromptu press conference on 1st Avenue by Derek Berg

Two men working outside Saifee Hardware & Garden on the SE corner of First Avenue and Seventh Street are being praised for spotting alleged subway shooter Frank R. James minutes before his arrest this afternoon.

As previously reported, James was the sole suspect in the mass shooting on a crowded subway train and platform yesterday morning in Sunset Park. 

At least 30 victims were treated at four local hospitals following the attack, and all but seven had been released as of this afternoon, per Gothamist. 

James, wearing a blue t-shirt and brown pants, was reportedly inside the McDonald's on First Avenue between Sixth Street and Seventh Street. According to the Associated Press and other outlets, James called in a tip himself, telling police where he was. 

He was already gone when the police got to the scene. However, Zack Tahhan, who was working for MACA security integrators installing cameras outside Saifee Hardware & Garden, and the shop's manager, Frank Puebla, spotted the alleged shooter walking by on First Avenue.

Puebla said he flagged down an NYPD cruiser from the 9th Precinct that had just stopped at the light on the SE corner of First Avenue and Seventh Street. James was then arrested on the NE corner of St. Mark's Place and First Avenue without incident.

EVG correspondent Stacie Joy was on the scene and filmed this clip of Tahhan recounting what happened this afternoon...

... and here's Puebla telling his story...  

According to NBC 4, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York is considering filing federal criminal charges in the subway attack. The station reported that one potential federal charge being considered is using a weapon/arson on mass transit/train. 

Meanwhile, Saifee is showing its appreciation for the longtime manager...

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Saifee Hardware & Garden (@saifeehardware)

Updating: Suspect in Sunset Park subway shooting arrested in the East Village

Photo/video by an EVG reader

This just in from St. Mark's Place and First Avenue (the NE corner) ... the NYPD has arrested Frank R. James, 62, who was named a "person of interest" after the mass shooting on the subway in Sunset Park yesterday morning. 

Here's a short clip after the NYPD cuffed James...

   

Elsewhere...

#BREAKING: Suspect is in custody according to five senior law enforcement officials. He was arrested in the East Village this afternoon. https://t.co/Dh9NFZ3PMh

— myles miller (@MylesMill) April 13, 2022

Just witnessed the subway shooter Frank James being arrested in the middle of the East Village…crazy…. pic.twitter.com/g5CJsUpUSF

— lex (@Ayy_Korobow) April 13, 2022

Per published reports, the shooting left 10 people with gunshot wounds and an additional 13 injured from panic attacks or smoke inhalation during the rush to escape. 

Updated 5 p.m. 

According to the Associated Press, James is awaiting arraignment on "a charge that pertains to terrorist or other violent attacks against mass transit systems and carries a sentence of up to life in prison." 

James was reportedly in the McDonald's on First Avenue between Sixth Street and Seventh Street where several witnesses, including Zack Tahhan, 21, who was working for MACA security integrators outside Saifee Hardware, and the shop's manager, Frank Puebla, spotted the alleged shooter. 

Puebla said he flagged down an NYPD cruiser that just stopped at the light on the SE corner of First Avenue and Seventh Street. (We an interview with Tahhan and Puebla here.) 

CNN is reporting that James called the tipline on himself.

Back to the AP story: 

James was gone when officers arrived, but they soon spotted him on a busy corner nearby. 

Four police cars zoomed around a corner, officers leaped out and, soon, a compliant James was in handcuffs as a crowd of people looked on, witness Aleksei Korobow said.

Officers from the 9th Precinct on Fifth Street made the arrest.

Owner: City's bureaucratic red tape forces business to close before even opening

Last August, Gurjaipal Singh and his partners took possession of a storefront at 75 Second Ave. between Fourth Street and Fifth Street. 

They aimed to open Desi Stop, a deli serving Indian food, tea, coffee and snacks, in the fall. 

As of mid-April, Desi Stop remains in limbo, and Singh says he's gone bankrupt waiting for the city to OK the address to open and start serving food. 

"Unfortunately, after six months and spending thousands of dollars and meeting with all requirements of city departments, we are still waiting for clearance to open up," he said in a text message. "Slow working of city departments is killing small businesses like us even before they can open." 

The problems started in November when the Department of Buildings conducted the gas inspection. According to Singh, DOB officials said that they could not find any records in their database for the space after 1999. The DOB could not then approve the inspection. (It's not clear how the previous restaurants at the address, Nostro Ristorante and ZaabVer Thai, among others, were able to open.) 

So Singh said that they started from scratch with the DOB, which included getting clearance from the Landmarks Preservation Commission (the building is within the East Village/Lower East Side Historic District), submitting new drawings and applying for new permits. 

Singh also hired a fire suppression company. There was an initial delay by the company and then with the FDNY, Singh said. The certificate of approval remains in the review process. 

"They open the file only once in four to six weeks. Ask for the requirements, then again another six weeks of waiting," Singh said. "We have made all the investments. But now, we have reached our limits. It's a small-business startup, and we can't pay bills from our own pockets for months. And now it looks like we have to close it even before opening this business." 

Desi Stop's most recent, and perhaps last, Facebook post reads:

Going Bankrupt.  It's very unfortunate to share that we are going out of business without opening the business. Slow and unresponsive behavior of different city departments killed this small business.

Felix Roasting Co. opening an outpost on Astor Place

The coming-soon signage is up for Felix Roasting Co. at 740 Broadway on Astor Place. (Thanks to Steven for the pic and a tipster for the heads up on the signage.)

The first Felix arrived on Park Avenue South in 2018, with another outpost following in 2020 on Greene Street. Google describes the place this way: "Stylish venue offering specialty coffees, toasted snacks & pastries amid refined surrounds." 

And as Eater put it:

In short, Felix Roasting Co. is the kind of coffee shop that New Yorkers love to love or love to hate, depending on who's being asked. Yet despite everything, it also serves one of the city's best cups of espresso, even if it comes served in a wine glass with tonic water.

The Astor Place Felix has a June opening, and it replaces the Blue Bottle outpost that seemed to open and close about 10 times during the pandemic.

Tuesday's parting shots

A handmade heart in Tompkins Square Park... photos by Steven...

Early pick for your fall 2023 reading list

Photo on Bleecker at the Bowery from Saturday 

Blondie co-founder Chris Stein has a book deal for his first memoir titled "Under a Rock." 

Trade pub The Bookseller had the news the other day about the deal in the U.K. 

Publisher James Gurbutt acquired U.K. and Commonwealth rights from Thomas Flannery at Vigliano Associates. Corsair plans to publish autumn 2023. 

The book is billed as a "quintessentially New York story of the golden age of the East Village and the makings of international superstars." 

Corsair said: "At its heart, 'Under a Rock' is a love story. The co-dependent bond between Chris and Debbie carried Blondie through their many tribulations: terribly misogynistic music scenes, greasy record execs, bitter bandmates, grueling schedules and hard-drug abuse abound. Chris lays it all bare, with blunt sincerity and humor. Ultimately, Chris and Debbie broke up, but their bond never dissipated; they remain the closest of friends, and continue to tour and promote their various projects together to this day." 

In a tweet, Stein said the U.S. deal is pending. 

Stein previously published two photography books: "Point of View: Me, New York City, and the Punk Scene" and "Negative: Me, Blondie, and the Advent of Punk." 

Meanwhile, Blondie is touring now in the U.K. ... with U.S.venues slated for May and August (13 dates with the Damned, including Aug. 17-18 atop at Pier 17).

East Village treasure Katinka crowdfunding to remain in business and support its work in India

Katinka, one of the most unique shops in the East Village, has launched a crowdfunding campaign to help the boutique pay its back rent during the lockdown ... and continue to support the Lasksh Foundation, an NGO in Mangar Village, Haryana, India, that co-owner Jane Williams works with.

Williams, and her longtime partner Billy Lyles, opened their closet-sized shop in 1979 at 303 E. Ninth St. just east of Second Avenue... offering hand-made pieces — including shirts, vests, quilts and rugs — all made and imported from India. 

Here's part of the GoFundMe appeal from Williams: 

For the last 14 years, I have been working on a self-empowerment project teaching and producing products to sell in my store, and in craft markets in India. I travel to India twice a year, paying my own plane fare and volunteering my design services and supplies to educate about 40 to 50 women in the village of Mangar, New Delhi, India. 

The profits from this project also help educate about 1,000 Indian children in our tutoring centers in the area. 

Since the COVID crisis we have been hard hit, as many others. I spent five months working there on lockdown in 2020. 

We need funds to keep our store and project going. 

You can find the campaign here. 

And you can watch this 2021 video about the shop and the couple by photographer-filmmaker Josh Charow ...

   

Image via @katinka_ny

Organic Grill's East Village location has closed ahead of move to new space on West 3rd Street

Photo by Stacie Joy

Organic Grill is now closed at 123 First Ave. between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place. Sunday was its last day in service.

As we reported last week, the health-food restaurant with a vegan menu was opening a new outpost at 133 W. Third St. in Greenwich Village. Co-owner Vlad Grinberg had been planning on opening a second location... in the meantime, the building at 123 First Ave. changed hands twice during the pandemic. Organic Grill had until the end of the summer left on their lease, but the new landlord didn't want them to stay and negotiated for an early release from the lease. 

Organic Grill opened here in August 2000. Grinberg said he hopes to open somewhere else in the East Village. 

You can follow the OG Instagram account for updates on the West Third Street opening.

Another smoke shop for 14th Street

A new smoke shop recently opened (maybe 6 weeks ago?) at 329 E. 14th St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue.

The signage for K & H Convenience was only installed last week (thanks Pinch!) ... the shop has the usual items popping up at like-minded businesses around the neighborhood — hookah, vapes, snacks, soda, etc.

These are all things you can find directly across 14th Street at the Ali Baba Smoke Shop...

... or a few storefronts to the west at newish The Tree Shop NYC...

Interesting to see how these shops have evolved... the signage for PJ's Grocery, a block to the west on 14th Street, still touts Sports Cards, Comic Cards, Phone Cards and Cigars...

ICYMI: Raising Cane's bringing the fried chicken fingers to Astor Place

Photo from 2020 by Vinny & O 

Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers — a fast-food chain specializing in, uh, chicken fingers — is opening an outpost on Astor Place. 

Several business pubs (New York Business Journal and Commercial Observer) reported that the Louisiana-based company signed a 20-year lease for 4,300-square feet on the ground floor at 10 Astor Place at Lafayette Street. 

Raising Cane's has more than 615 restaurants in 32 states ... with an outpost slated for Times Square. 

No. 10 was, until August 2020, a Walgreens.

Thanks to the EVG reader for the tip!

New York magazine pays homage to the East Village with 'Tales From Little Ukraine'

Via the EVG inbox... 

New York magazine's annual "Yesteryear Issue" celebrates the magazine’s 54th anniversary by paying homage to the East Village's Little Ukraine. 

"The issue tells the neighborhood’s story through successive waves of immigration, and shows how the neighborhood retained its identity and culture," says features director Genevieve Smith. "These stories are told through a deeply reported history by city editor Christopher Bonanos, as well as first-person accounts and archival photographs and illustrations." 

And the cover? 

The cover features a painting by Yaroslava Surmach Mills (1925–2008), who grew up in the East Village (her father was the proprietor of Surma Book & Music Co.), attended Cooper Union, and became a well-known children's-book illustrator in the 1970s. 

You can find the issue here.

Today in urban etiquette signage

Photos by Stacie Joy 

First, from Third Street and Avenue, a note about an annoying car alarm that went off over the weekend. "PLEASE fix your car's alarm — it was going off all night."

And, from an undisclosed building lobby: "If you stole my Keurig pods you're CLASSLESS" ...

Inside the food-and-drink empire that included the now-shuttered Angel's Share and Sunrise Mart

Top photo by Steven last week 

Three longtime East Village businesses on Stuyvesant Street — Village Yokocho, Angel's Share and Sunrise Mart — recently closed ... and a fourth, Panya, will soon follow. 

The New York Times yesterday had the first (and very rare!) interview with the owner of the businesses — the Yoshida Restaurant Group. 

Over the past 50 years, Tadao Yoshida, known as Tony, the mystery mogul of the East Village, has built a food-and-drink empire that few of his generation can rival. It all started in the early 1970s with the humble vegetarian-friendly joint Dojo and has expanded to include, most recently, the sprawling Japan Village food court in Industry City, Brooklyn. 

Mr. Yoshida helped teach New York that it couldn't live without an authentic izakaya (something like a Japanese pub). And the cocktail revival of the aughts can be traced directly to Angel's Share. 

He also may very well be the man responsible for that ubiquitous ginger-carrot salad dressing found at every Japanese restaurant across America. 

As previously noted on EVG, Yoshida first opened the Ice Cream Connection on St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue in March 1970. Yoshida's Japanese-inspired vegetarian cuisine came along in 1974. 

In 1982, Dojo took over the space next door and expanded even more. Higher rents shuttered the East Village Dojo, with the West Third Street outpost continuing until 2018.

The Times also shares this anecdote about the Ice Cream Connection:

The East Village was dangerous then, and Mr. Yoshida was known to keep a long Japanese sword behind the ice cream counter for protection. A story goes that a young John Belushi, after seeing Mr. Yoshida chase away some troublemakers with the sword, was inspired to create his recurring samurai character on "Saturday Night Live."

 "People said that," Mr. Yoshida admitted. "I'm not sure. After the samurai sketch, people said, 'Tony, that’s you.'"

As for why these businesses have closed after 25-plus years here on Stuyvesant Street between Ninth Street and Third Avenue... a spokesperson for landlord Cooper Union told us (and other media outlets): "Unfortunately, the tenant informed us of their decision to vacate the property. They were not asked to move out, despite the fact that they haven't paid any rent since 2020."

Yoshida confirmed to the Times that the businesses had not paid any rent since April 2020. "In the pandemic, we could not do business, and I hoped they would give me some sort of break," he said. The Cooper Union spokesperson previously said: "The formula for calculating rent on these properties has been in place for some 30 years and has never been changed."

Also, as the Times piece references: "Cooper Union, which leases the buildings from their owners and had subleased them to Mr. Yoshida for decades."

Back in 2011, when Cooper Union and St. Mark's Bookshop were trying to hash out a new rental deal for the retail space for 29 Third Ave., WNYC reported that "Cooper Union doesn't actually own the building that holds the store, but leases it from a company called 29 Third Ave Corporation c/o Casabella Holdings, LLC."

So it's not clear what will happen with the two-level building that housed Village Yokocho, Angel's Share and the previously shuttered Sharaku. Cooper Union told us there's no new building planned on this site.

Meanwhile, Yoshida's lone business left here, Panya, will "continue for a month on a wholesale basis before it, too, closes," per the Times. Employees though, have told EVG readers that the bakery will close before the end of the month.

On the CB3-SLA docket tonight: applicants for the former Sidewalk and Rue-B spaces

Here's a look at two of the items on tonight's CB3-SLA committee meeting... (we wrote about Bar Veloce's application for a new spot on the Bowery here). 

• Offside (OT AT LLC), 94 Ave A (op) 

An applicant is looking to open Offside, a bar-restaurant serving "American comfort food" in the former Sidewalk (and August Laura) space on the NE corner of Avenue A and Sixth Street.

According to the questionnaire on the CB3 website, Offside has proposed hours of 4 p.m. to 4 a.m. on weekdays, with an 11 a.m. start on weekends. The applicants also plan on having sidewalk and streetside seating. 

The applicant previously ran the Offside at 137 W. 14th St. The tavern, which opened in 2017, closed during the pandemic in 2020. Offside was known as a gathering spot for fans watching Islanders games. 

August Laura closed last December after a fall 2019 debut. Sidewalk, the restaurant, bar and live music venue (home of the Antifolk Festival), shuttered in February 2019 after 34 years.

• Next Best LLC, 188 Ave B (op) 

Hi-Note is a proposed coffee shop-karaoke bar combo for 188 Avenue B between 11th Street and 12th Street in space that was previously the jazz club Rue-B. 

According to the CB3 questionnaire, daily coffee service will take place between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. ...  with the bar component open from 4 p.m. to 4 a.m. During the day, Hi-Note plans to serve cafe fare, including pastries, salads and sandwiches. 

Hi-Note's management team previously ran Baby Grand, the now-closed karaoke bar on Lafayette. 

Rue-B shut down last fall after 23 years in business. 

Tonight's virtual meeting starts at 6:30. You can find the Zoom link here.

 Thank you to Jake Bowling for the photo at 188 Avenue B.

Houston Village Farm is closing on 1st Avenue

You may have noticed the recent arrival of the for-lease sign on Houston Village Farm's storefront on the SW corner of First Avenue and Fourth Street.

Management of the deli-market told EVG contributor Stacie Joy that they will close by June, likely sooner. The cause? Slow business, high rent.

While several like-minded businesses have opened in the neighborhood in recent months, this marks the third corner market to close on First Avenue during the pandemic era  ... joining the one on the SE corner of 10th Street and the SE corner of 12th Street.

Everytable makes it signage office on Avenue B

Updated 5/25: Certified open!

Thanks to the EVG readers who pointed out that the Everytable signage is now up at 229 Avenue B between 13th Street and 14th Street. (The PEACE art pre-dates their arrival.) 

As we reported on March 29, Everytable, the Los Angeles-based fast-casual concept focused on healthy meals, is expanding into NYC with 100 new outposts expected in the next few years.

Per the company's website:

Everytable’s business model drastically reduces the costs of the standard restaurant model. Chefs at our local kitchen turn fresh, wholesome ingredients into delicious meals, which we sell through our small, grab-and-go storefronts. 

From start to finish, everything is designed to be super-efficient, and the savings are reflected in our prices. We have locations in food deserts, underserved communities with little or no access to nutritious food, and in affluent areas. To ensure that everyone can afford our meals, we price them according to the neighborhoods we serve.

No word just yet on an opening date on Avenue B.

Week in Grieview

Posts this past week included (with a pic on Second Avenue by Derek Berg) ... 

• Standoff on 9th Street (Wednesday) ... Anarchy Row (Wednesday) ... In Tompkins Square Park, speaking out against the city's sweeps of unhoused encampments (Saturday) 

• A last look at the now-closed East Village institution Sunrise Mart (Tuesday) ... Stuyvesant Street closings official: Angel's Share, Village Yokocho and Sunrise Mart are gone (Monday) 

• After being hit by a car, Noor the cat is doing well at home with his new East Village family (Tuesday) 

• Inside the Blue Door (Friday) 

• At a rehearsal for 'Hamlet in Harlem' at Theater for the New City (Wednesday) 

• East Village vegan standby Organic Grill is moving to the West Village (Thursday)

• Milling and paving continue along Houston ahead of bike lane upgrade (Monday) 

• Bake Culture opening an outpost on St. Mark's Place (Tuesday) 

• A new deli/market for First Avenue (Thursday) 

• Pour one out for Pouring Ribbons (Monday) 

• Former Coyote Ugly space on 1st Avenue hits the rental market (Friday) 

• Now open: USA Super Stores on 3rd Avenue (Monday) 

... and speaking of the now-open USA Super Stores... they are selling the 5-gallon buckets of Tide from Vietnam... per the window display ...

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Follow EVG on Instagram or Twitter for more frequent updates and pics.

Remembering International Bar owner Molly Fitch

Photos by Stacie Joy 

Molly Fitch, a longtime East Village resident and the owner of International Bar, died on Dec. 12. She was 51. 

Yesterday, her many friends gathered at the bar at 102 First Ave. near Sixth Street to honor her memory.

EVG contributor Stacie Joy was there and shared these photos...

She is missed.

RIP Billy the Artist too.

Rev. Billy brings 'Earth Church' to this Avenue C storefront

Reverend Billy and the Stop Shopping Choir is hosting an Earth Church extravaganza (a "secular earthy gathering") early this evening at 36 Avenue C, a storefront on the NE corner of Third Street. 

The "Earth Service" starts at 5... with an after-party at 6. You can also watch from afar via Instagram Live @revbillytalen. 

Meanwhile, Rev. Billy and one other activist were arrested yesterday morning in Corlears Hook Park as workers prepared to cut down dozens of trees, including a stand of blossoming cherry trees. Work is now focusing on this area of East River Park as part of the $1.45 billion East Side Coastal Resiliency project.

Saturday's parting shot

A moment late this afternoon... with the rainbow coming down around 12th Street... thanks to Jeanne Krier for this view to the east from Fourth Avenue ...