A familiar new owner for the development site at 280 E. Houston St.

The development site at 280 E. Houston St. has a new owner who's familiar to residents of the Lower East Side.

As The Real Deal first reported, landlord Samy Mahfar, whose descriptions in the press often include the words "notorious" or  "oft-embattled," and investors picked up the property from members of the Hirsch family for $36.8 million.

In January, we had the scoop on this new building when the permit for a 68,000-square-foot residential building with 67 units first arrived here between Avenue A and Avenue B. However, as you'll read ahead, the complex will likely end up much larger than this... 

Per TRD:

The Hirsch family obtained demolition permits and did enough foundation work to qualify the site for the 421a property tax abatement before it expired in June...

And...

The apartment building and retail space [the former Red Square at 250 E. Houston St.] were partially sold in 2016 to a group led by Dermot Company in a condominium structure, with the family entities retaining a percentage. When the site was later upzoned to R8-A, which permitted bonus floor area for voluntary inclusionary housing, it added roughly 65,000 square feet as-of-right to any project, which would nearly double to 127,000 square feet if it qualified for 421a. 

So we'll see where No. 280 ultimately ends up. Last fall, workers demolished the one-level strip of storefronts (Dunkin'/Baskin-Robbins, Subway, China Town restaurant, etc.) adjacent to the 13-floor residential building at No. 250. Qualified projects under the 421a designation must be completed by June 15, 2026, to receive the incentive, per TRD.

In 2017, a years-long investigation into Mahfar "uncovered harassment tactics, dangerous living conditions and failure to provide heat and hot water," according to DNAinfo at the time. He reached a $225,000 settlement with then-Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. 

At 102 Norfolk St., dust covering the building's stairs was found to contain as high as 40,000 micrograms per square foot and 110,000 micrograms per square foot of lead, according to the settlement agreement. The limit for lead concentration on floors per the city's health code is 40 micrograms per square foot.

Mahfar also owns the newish 14-floor residential complex across the street at 255 E. Houston St./171 Suffolk St.

He also recently unloaded several of his multifamily properties on the LES (99 Allen St., 177 Ludlow St. and 102 Norfolk St.). 

For rent: space ideal for a gallery on 6th Street

The folks at the co-op at 629 E. Sixth St. let us know there's a vacancy in the 525-square-foot storefront space here between Avenue B and Avenue C.

The last tenant, 3A gallery, recently relocated down to Canal Street. 

Per a co-op rep: "We'd really like someone with roots in the neighborhood and ideally tenant related to the arts. The space is ideal for a gallery."

You can find the link to the listing here. 

Tuesday's parting shot

Prom night As seen on Sixth Street and Second Avenue... photo by Derek Berg...

This is no dream. This is really happening!

There's a great new Halloween-themed mural by BKFoxx up on the Third Street side of The Bean, 54 Second Ave. ... showing Mia Farrow from a scene in the 1968 horror classic "Rosemary's Baby." 

And the headline reference from the film.

The 3rd annual Mask-Querade taking place on 7th Street this Oct. 30

East Village restaurateur Ravi DeRossi's Overthrow Hospitality group is once again hosting a Trick-or-Treat Halloween festival for children ages 12 and under on Seventh Street between Avenue A and First Avenue.

The third-annual event takes place on Oct. 30 from 1-3 p.m.

Details via the EVG inbox...

Come join the East Village for an afternoon of fun-filled trick-or-treating! Now in its third year, Overthrow Hospitality's Maskquerade offers an afternoon of trick-or-treating to over 1,000 neighborhood children — plus treats for adults, bag-decorating stations and more. 

Hosted on Seventh Street, Overthrow Hospitality transforms the open street into a Halloween scene with the help of a 12-foot skeleton, lifesize dragon, cobwebs galore and more. 

Residents interested in helping out on Oct. 30 can sign find a volunteer sign-up here. Donations are also being accepted via a GoFundMe here. Candy donations can be made directly at Amor y Amargo, 95 Avenue A at Sixth Street, during business hours.

Overthrow has five establishments on this block of Seventh Street: Cadence, Ladybird, the Fragile Flour, Rabbit and Avant Garden.

Unveiling Donald Suggs Jr. Way on 6th Street and Avenue B

Photos by Stacie Joy 

On Saturday morning, friends and family of Donald Suggs Jr. came together for a street co-naming ceremony in his honor ... on the SW corner of Sixth Street and Avenue B — now also known as Donald Suggs Jr. Way.

Suggs, a longtime resident of Sixth Street between Avenue A and Avenue B, died in October 2012 of a heart attack. He was 51.

Here's more about him via the advisory for the street co-naming ceremony:

Donald lived his life as a tireless activist for justice, a courageous advocate for the lives of people in HIV-affected communities, a critical thinker, a consequential writer, an incisive editor for The Village Voice and an international media activist based in the East Village. 

He was wise, kind, generous, funny, brilliant, creative, honorable, and out of the closet — back when it was risky to be out. Donald was our good neighbor on East 6th Street.

You can read more about his life and work in this EVG post.

Gabriella Sonam, project coordinator for The Donald Suggs Jr. Street Naming Project and neighbor, speaks about Donald's impact on the neighborhood and NYC...

Guests included his son, Dr. Luis Ramirez...

... Donald’s two sisters and his niece hold the commemorative duplicate sign after program remarks and the street sign unveiling (from the left): Delali Suggs-Akaffu (niece), Dina Suggs and Dawn Suggs... 

Suggs also worked at Exit9 on Avenue A... owners Charles Branstool and Christy Davis were in attendance for the ceremony...

Nancy Jo Sales (right) and her daughter Zazie were close to Donald and embrace as they admire the street sign in his honor and think about their friend...

The 'See You Next Tuesday' book from Sophie's will be here next Tuesday

East Village-based photographer Kyle de Vre is ready to release "See You Next Tuesday," a documentary portrait project turned photo book he shot during his Tuesday afternoon bartending shifts at Sophie's between 2017-2022. 

We wrote about the start of the project in August 2018 ... after de Vre started taking portraits of patrons seated in the comfortably worn bar at 507 E. Fifth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B. 

There's a release party next Tuesday during his shift (3-9 p.m., though the festivities will likely start around 7) where you can purchase a copy of the coffee-table book ($65). You can also order a copy online here.

Previously on EV Grieve:

Tuesdays at Sophie's 

Photos here via Kyle de Vre

Another day, another cannabis operation arrives

Signage is now up for a Recreational Cannabis Dispensary on the SE corner of First Avenue and 11th Street. (Thanks to Lola Sáenz and Steven for sending photos yesterday.) 

While the shop isn't open just yet, it's the latest weed-friendly storefront to open in the East Village (and NYC) in recent months. (And we haven't mentioned the new one now on the NW corner of First Avenue and 10th Street.)

Of course, none of these operations are legal just yet. 

As Emily Stewart wrote in a piece for Vox last week titled "New York seems to have a weed store on every corner. None of them are legal.": 

New York City’s crisp autumn air has a distinct scent to it, and this year that scent is weed. Many of the city streets have a fresh look to them, too — marijuana and cannabis products are for sale, out in the open, everywhere. New York legalized recreational marijuana in the spring of 2021, but the state is still in the process of doling out licenses to legally sell it, which makes the situation ... confusing.

And... 

 "None of them are compliant, none of them are allowed," said Aaron Ghitelman, a spokesperson for New York state’s Office of Cannabis Management (OCM), in an interview. "They're jumping the gun."

Meanwhile, as Gothamist reported, nearly 1,000 cannabis entrepreneurs are competing for New York's first 150 dispensary licenses ... "all of which will be reserved for people with past marijuana convictions or their family members."

As for this corner of 11th Street and First Avenue, the last retail tenant was Eleven Consignment Boutique, which closed amid a legal battle in November 2019.

Monday's parting shot

The pigeons of Avenue A earlier today...

Otto's Shrunken Head celebrates 20 years on 14th Street

Photos by Stacie Joy

On Saturday, Otto's Shrunken Head celebrated 20 years in business here at 538 E. 14th St. between Avenue A and Avenue B.

EVG contributor Stacie Joy stopped by the tiki-themed venue and met up with owners Nell Mellon, who was sporting a variety of Otto's anniversary shirts...

... and Steve Pang and Patricia Lou ...

... and a few of the guests enjoying some free food and swag...

You can follow the Otto's Instagram account (or visit the website) to keep tabs on the live events here, including an array of bands playing anything from lounge/exotica to rockabilly, punk and surf.

City offering this zoning 101 presentation

Tomorrow evening (Oct. 18), reps from the Department of City Planning are giving a presentation to Community Board 3's Land Use, Zoning, Public & Private Housing Committee on Zoning 101. 

Specifically: City Planning will be presenting a basic foundation in the zoning process: what is zoning, what tools and resources are available to understand land use and zoning, and how the process works. 

Interested residents can tune into the presentation via Zoom at this link... and by Phone: +1 646 518 9805, +1 929 205 6099. Meeting ID: 934 3993 2803 

The meeting begins at 6:30.

New ovens for Two Boots Pizza on Avenue A

After 26 years and an estimated 10 million slices, Two Boots Pizza is installing new ovens today at the shop on Avenue A and Third Street. 

With the oven work, the pizzeria is closed today... back open tomorrow at the usual time — noon. 

Image via @twobootspizza

Noted

The sign for Hairy Balls for sale ($12 a bunch) outside Key Food is apparently causing a few double takes here on Avenue A. (Thanks to Sarah Keyes for sharing the photo!) 

Apparently not the work of a prankster. 

As Wikipedia points out: 

Gomphocarpus physocarpus, commonly known as hairy balls, balloonplant, balloon cotton-bush, bishop's balls, nailhead, or swan plant, is a species of dogbane. The plant is native to southeast Africa, but it has been widely naturalized. It is often used as an ornamental plant. 

And there really isn't enough room on that sign to spell out gomphocarpus physocarpus.

Coming attractions: Beer and wine for the AMC Village 7 on 11th Street and 3rd Avenue

The AMC Village 7 on the corner of Third Avenue and 11th Street is joining the growing number of movie theaters that will serve alcohol.

Reps for parent company American Multi-Cinema Inc. received administrative approval from Community Board 3 this month for a beer-wine license at 66 Third Ave. (Here's the questionnaire on file at the CB3 website.)

Presumably, it will be a similar operation as the AMC on 19th and Broadway, the Regal Union Square or Regal Essex Crossing ... where there's a small bar to either sit before-after a film or to purchase a drink to bring into the auditorium.

Given the paperwork involved with the State Liquor Authority, it will likely be several more months before any bar is up and running at the theater. 

Last November, Village East by Angelika on Second Avenue and 12th Street received approval to sell beer-wine at a lobby cafe. That service hasn't arrived just yet. 

In January, the State Liquor Authority ruled that movie theaters could now apply for beer and wine licenses, with consumption allowed in seats — not just from a lobby bar-cafe... ending a years-long debate about alcohol in theaters.

As Eater pointed out:

Of course, theaters in NYC like Nitehawk and Alamo Drafthouse have already been doing this for years. Under the state's former guidelines, operators could only sell booze if they also had a commercial kitchen for preparing food and an individual table for customers at their seats. Others were able to serve alcohol at bars in their lobbies under a separate license but not in theaters themselves.

We've come a long way from 2012 when CB3 — responding to resident concerns — rejected an application from Landmark Theaters for a full liquor license at the Sunshine Cinema on Houston Street.

Ted Mundorff, president and CEO of Landmark Theaters, told IndieWire at the time: "That was pretty shortsighted of folks… It's not like theaters that have alcohol have people falling down [drunk]." 

The denial of alcohol sales from a lobby cafe (where they served slices from Two Boots) set in motion a series of events that saw the closure of the cinema in January 2018. Without the revenue boost, the theater chain decided against renegotiating the lease, and the building was sold and demolished to make way for a 9-story office complex.   

Another new broker for the long-vacant 20 St. Mark's Place

There's a new for-lease sign outside 20 St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue...

This is at least the fourth broker to try to lease the long-empty retail spaces.

The dearly beloved Grassroots Tavern was the last business here, closing after service on New Year’s Eve 2017... ending a 42-year run in the lower level. The upstairs tenant, the record store Sounds, shut down in October 2015.

According to the new ARA listing, two storefronts are available — separately or as a combo. 

Here's a look at the former Grassroots via the listing images ... (wonder if the place still smells like burnt popcorn?) ...

As you can see, those incredible old murals that workers uncovered during renovations have been removed/covered.

No mention of the asking rent for the storefronts. 

As noted, No. 20, known as the Daniel LeRoy House, was built in 1832. It received landmark status in 1971 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.

Past lives of this subterranean space — info via Daytonian in Manhattan — include a theater-saloon called Paul Falk's Tivoli Garden in the 1870s... in the 1930s, the Hungarian Cafe and Restaurant resided here before becoming a temperance saloon called the Growler.

After the Grassroots closed, Bob Precious tried to open a bar-pub here, but those plans never materialized after 18 months. 

Applicants for Ichibantei had been on the CB3-SLA agenda multiple times, dating to November 2018, for a liquor license for a new restaurant for the address. They've moved on to other places.

Previously on EV Grieve:
• New owner lined up for the Grassroots Tavern on St. Mark's Place

• 20 St. Mark's Place, home of the Grassroots Tavern, has been sold

• Last call at the Grassroots Tavern

• Behold these murals uncovered behind the bar at the former Grassroots Tavern on St. Mark's Place 

ICYMI: The new athletic fields at Pier 42

On Oct. 8, the city quietly debuted the new sports area at Pier 42 — aka Pier 42 Upland Park and Pier — along the East River. 

Construction on the much-discussed $46-million project started in March 2021. Per the East River Alliance: "It’s the first step in the long-awaited transformation of a former banana warehouse/parking lot into waterfront recreation and green space for the LES community." 

As The Lo-Down previously reported, the local planning process began in 2012 after funding was allocated from the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. 

Delays were reportedly due in part to the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project, which has currently seen the closure and demolition of all East River Park amenities below Houston Street. 

Part two of the Pier 42 project, which will include a playground and comfort station, is expected next summer. (You can find more city background here.) 

The new space includes soccer fields, tennis courts, basketball courts and picnic tables... here's a look...

While the area was pleasant enough on a crisp fall afternoon with Bridges and Brooklyn views, some residents may wonder what the tree-less, shade-less area will be like on a hot summer day (no sign of drink fountains yet either — BYOW). Some comments on an East River Park Action Instagram post compared the space to a prison yard.

For now, the new complex is open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. You can access the amenities at Montgomery Street/South Street at the entrance to Pier 36 (former home of the Immersive Van Gogh!) ... and follow the walkway toward the north, which doesn't seem promising at first...

... and where it is from the East Village (via Google!)...

Week in Grieview

Posts this past week included (with an autumnal Key Food scene via Stacie Joy) ...

• Remembering Manny the Peddler (Wednesday) 

• About those fireworks last night on the East River (Thursday)

• A new mural honoring Mahsa Amini (Saturday) 

• Scenes from National Pierogi Day at East Village Meat Market (Monday)

• Lighting up the 7th and A entrance to Tompkins Square Park (Wednesday) 

• Empanada Mama debuts on 14th Street and 1st Avenue (Tuesday) 

• Nomad is closed for now on 2nd Avenue while owner takes a 'much-needed break' (Thursday)

• Dumpling Lab, recipient of a new Bib Gourmand, has closed on 9th Street (Tuesday) 

• Picture this: an art gallery for 5th and B (Thursday) 

• Public art returns to the former CHARAS/El Bohio Community Center (Sunday) 

• Celebrating 60 years of Alex Harsley's photography (Friday) 

• A 14th Street storefront is available to rent for the first time in 63 years (Wednesday) 

• A sidewalk returns to full view and use along St. Mark's Place (Tuesday)

• A familiar new rendering for 3 St. Mark's Place (Tuesday) 

• The remains of a charred Acura on Houston (Tuesday) ... City removes charred and tagged Acura from Houston Street (Wednesday) 

• Will we be posting a lot of snow photos this winter? (Tuesday) 

• Openings: Íxta on the Bowery (Wednesday) ... Le Burger on 5th Street (Thursday)

• Glosslab nails down new 4th Avenue storefront (Tuesday) 

... and in recent weeks, workers have removed the sidewalk bridges from Village View — between Second Street and Fourth Street ... the labyrinth remains up on the north side of Fourth to Sixth Street and along the Fifth Street walkway...

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Scenes from an Avenue B vintage market

Photos by Stacie Joy 

There was a lot happening around the neighborhood yesterday... including a Halloween-flavored vintage-art market on Avenue B on the sidewalks between 10th Street and 11th Street... where EVG contributor Stacie Joy came across some friends and neighbors...