Closings: Yifang Taiwan Fruit Tea, Wild Mirrors

After nearly four years at 33 St. Mark's Place, it appears the Yi Fang Taiwan Fruit Tea shop here between Second Avenue and Third Avenue has closed. (Thanks to Steven for the photo.)

The shop has been dark in recent weeks, and the location is no longer on the Yi Fang website. (The site now only lists the Flushing outpost.)

The chainlet took over the space from CoCo Fresh Tea & Juice, the Taiwan-based chain that closed in late May 2019 after nearly five and a half years in business.

This space here between Second Avenue and Third Avenue was Rockit Scientist Records until the spring of 2012. There was also, for a sec, Iris Cafe.

Meanwhile, multiple readers have pointed out that the gate has been down at Wild Mirrors, 95 Second Ave., for at least six weeks...

The quick-serve restaurant, offering "healthier options of your favorite food" (burgers! wings!), opened this past November here between Fifth Street and Sixth Street. 

There's no mention of a closure on their website or Instagram account, which hasn't been updated since December. The website mentions that a liquor license is "coming soon."

The space was home for years to Thailand Cafe, which went dark in the summer of 2020.  

How these East Village volunteers finally made Wi-Fi a reality for asylum seekers

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

It has been a never-ending challenge to navigate the red tape and bureaucracy since the city quietly established the East Village respite center for asylum seekers in late May, but we can report some much-welcomed progress.

This past Wednesday, Father Seán Connolly from St. Brigid/St. Emeric met with MedRite reps and the NYC Mesh Wi-Fi install team as we strategized how best to get equipment in place to provide access to the hundreds of refugees and asylum seekers at the former St. Brigid School on Seventh Street and Avenue B.

We toured the roof (where we all stared at the thick yellow wildfire smoke and smog that coated the sky), the electrical room, and the basement and looked in on some classrooms (currently being used as sleeping quarters lined with cots) with window access.    

I'm not this tech-savvy, so I zoned out during line-of-sight, nodes and hubs conversation and used the time to check in with a few of the people who are staying at the site. A gay couple from Russia mentioned (via Google Translate) that their "kidneys are freezing" and requested a mattress or pad, or pillow, and blanket. Two men from Mauritania asked for shoes. I assured them we are getting them in as quickly as possible. I wish I spoke French, as so many asylum speakers here do. 

Then, just when I think we are ready for the Wi-Fi installation, the site supervisor alerted us that approval has not been granted — despite the earlier letter drafted by Father Seán and the church. So the NYC Mesh team is back to square one. 

Paul Gale, a board member at the East Village Community Coalition and tech wizard co-creator of the peak-pandemic era What's Open in the East Village site, bought and donated a T-Mobile hotspot that someone can plug in at a nearby location, and we awaited word on the efficacy of that. 

We disbanded for the day and prepared for Thursday's planned distribution, although the ominous and dangerous air quality casts doubt on this. 

By the following afternoon, the air quality improved enough that we felt safe to do the distribution, although we scaled back the duration and size. While volunteers ran clothing and supplies from the drop-off site at 107 Avenue B, I got everyone on board for the planned Free Store: Site supervisors, MedRite staffers, OEM and security personnel, and officers from the 9th Precinct who are stationed at the site for round-the-clock police presence as mandated by the Mayor. 

The asylum seekers helped the volunteers set up the tables and then patiently waited in line as we got items sorted. We had fewer people today due to the atmospheric conditions. But by now, the system is in place and we had items sorted into categories quickly. Bags up front so each shopper can fill their sacks with needed supplies. Clothes, then bedding and bath, followed by personal care items. Shoes line the wall with a chair nearby so folks can try them on for size.

An EVG reader and volunteer named Helen arrived to assist the lone Mandarin speaker. It turned out that Helen's parents are from the same province as the woman, and they talked about basic needs of the asylum seekers and other challenges they are facing. The woman was relieved to have someone to speak with. 

At the end of the night, she showed me a Google-translated note on her phone thanking us.

Hilary, an EVG reader who lives near the site, donated two soccer balls to the Free Store, and they were a big hit, with impromptu matches breaking out. It was Mauritania vs. Colombia up first. 

We also heard back from the precinct officers trying to get the donated supplies to the Police Academy Gym respite center site in Gramercy Park, but they have, once again, been turned away. An officer lamented, "There has to be a way to get this stuff to the people who need it." 

Meanwhile, the NYC Mesh team mapped out a plan to install equipment on the rectory of the church next door on Avenue B, which will allow access on the courtyard and some of the north-facing windows of the school. The team, helmed by Brian Hall, works for hours getting it up and running, and by the time we left at 8 p.m., dozens of folks have signed on and are receiving service!

Paul made a sign with QR codes and a multi-language approach, and we start handing them out and getting them posted within the building. 

Now limited Wi-Fi is available in two locations — the back of the building with Mesh and in front of the building with Paul's T-Mobile hotspot. This admittedly limited WiFi, which doesn't stretch into the central portion of the building, will allow the asylum seekers to make their immigration calls and check-ins and also message family and friends.

There are smiles. People here could use some much-need positive developments.

If you'd like to volunteer, the next — and last planned distribution on the calendar — is tomorrow, Tuesday, from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. Please show up at 107 Avenue B during that time frame to assist.

Thank you to all the community members who have taken the time to donate or help out — the effort is truly appreciated.

Previously on EV Grieve:

• Inside the East Village 'respite center' for asylum seekers

• Missed meal deliveries and a need for basics: the developing situation at the East Village respite center for asylum seekers

• At the former St. Brigid School, a generous outpouring of community support for asylum seekers

• Despite the city's endless bureaucracy, East Village residents continue to aid asylum seekers at the former St. Brigid School 

Signage arrives for Downtown Burritos Cocina Mexicana on 1st Avenue

A new era is closer to starting for an old favorite. Signage arrived on Friday for Downtown Burritos Cocina Mexicana at 69 First Ave. (The DTB is short for Downtown Burritos.)

As we first reported, Ivan and Mario Marín, the longtime managers (20 years) of Downtown Bakery, bought the longtime business (established 1990) earlier this spring when the owner decided to retire. 

This came on the heels of a DOH-mandated closure in February for Downtown Bakery operating with an expired health permit. The new owners then decided to spruce up the interior here between Fourth Street and Fifth Street. 

In renaming the business, the brothers mentioned the confusion regarding the inclusion of "Bakery" — people would call and ask about baked goods.

(Thanks to the reader for the signage tip!) 

A Tacombi takeover on 12th Street

Brandage and signage has arrived for the new outpost of Tacombi at 139 E. 12th St. at Third Avenue. 

This is the latest location for the fast-casual Mexican restaurant chain that has 15 outposts in NYC, Miami and Washington, D.C. 

Dario Wolos reportedly started the business from a van in the Mexican beach town Playa del Carmen back in 2006. 

Oh, and those Vista Hermosa Totopos tortilla chips are quite good and have been on sale at Key. 

The previous tenant here, iSouvlaki, closed last summer after a two-year run.

Yet another broker for 20 St. Mark's Place

Your attention please, now pitching for 20 St. Mark's Place: Tri State Commercial Realty. 

The landmarked building between Second Avenue and Third Avenue is now on its fifth (by our count) broker for the retail spaces here since the space became available after the Grassroots Tavern closed here on New Year's Eve 2017 after 42 years (upstairs tenant Sounds shuttered in 2015) ...

Per the listing: 

• Formerly Grassroots Tavern 
• Ground Floor unit has backyard potential 
• 2,000 SF basement included with Parlor Level
• White-Boxed 
• 1st floor parlor has great fitness space potential 
• Can combine spaces

Speaking of White-Boxed, here's a listing photo showing the space that housed the GR...  

At least two potential tenants have kicked No. 20's tires (including this pub concept that signed a lease) but nothing ever materialized these past 5.5 years.

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.

Sunday's parting shot

Photo by Derek Berg 

At the third annual WasteFest today in Tompkins Square Park...

Week in Grieview

Posts this past week included (with a photo from Tompkins Square Park by Stacie Joy... yesterday was the 47th Annual Hare Krishna Parade and Festival in NYC)... 

• Support for the family of Salvino Luis Ceballos (Wednesday) 

• Despite the city's endless bureaucracy, East Village residents continue to aid asylum seekers at the former St. Brigid School (Thursday) ... A call for volunteers and donations for asylum seekers (Monday)

• Decades-spanning ghost signage disappears from this East Village building (Monday)

• Reports: Woman in custody after menacing rampage in and around Tompkins Square Park (Monday) 

• Sky watch: A breath of fresh air heading into the weekend (Friday) ... Holy smokes, that sky today! (Tuesday) 

• Pinks moves on from 10th Street (Tuesday) 

• The Astor Place Greenmarket returns (Tuesday) 

• Tramezzini NYC has closed on Houston (Wednesday) 

• Almost-opening report: Caffe Corretto on 12th Street (Monday) 

• A new era for pedestrians on the NE corner of 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place (Wednesday)

• The East Village New Deli returns without the deli (Thursday) 

• Little Uluh announces itself on 14th Street (Monday) 

• PSA: The Tacos Cholula cart is still on 2nd Street (Tuesday) 

• A pop-up gallery for the summer at 42 Avenue B (Friday) 

• This prime corner storefront remains tenant-free (Tuesday) 

• The Tribeca Festival takes over Village East by Angelika on 2nd Avenue (Friday) 

• And now, your signage for the Popeyes opening on 14th Street near Avenue A (Thursday) 

• City set once again to remove the curbside structure outside Pinky's Space on 1st Street (Monday)

Speaking of Pinky's Space, someone did remove the remains of the abandoned Pinky's roadbed seating space later this past week...

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Despite hazardous air quality, ESCR work continued this past Wednesday afternoon

Photos and video by Marcella Durand

This past Wednesday afternoon, as smoke from wildfires in eastern Canada settled over NYC and the rest of the Northeast, the Air Quality Index here reached 484 — the worst in city history and the world on that day.

Despite the level that officials labeled as "hazardous," work continued on the $1.45 billion East Side Coastal Resiliency (ESCR) Project in East River Park... with the machinery's black smoke mixing into the yellow-orange haze...

 

The Department of Design and Construction (DDC) eventually shut down the site later in the day.

"Health and safety is the number one priority to the DDC. Due to the Canadian wildfire smoke effects in the area, DDC has halted late work shifts for [June 7] and suspended work for [June 8]. The City will monitor the conditions as the week progresses," the community construction liaison told a concerned nearby resident after 5 p.m.

An ESCR fact sheet on air quality monitoring (PDF here) states there is an Action Level for air pollution and that "[i]f it is determined that the construction is not meeting the standards set by oversight agencies, work will be halted and further assessed to assure protection to residents and park users."

ESCR watchers said that this "could be interpreted as only taking action if the construction itself causes the air pollution" and not necessarily from, say, wildfires. 

Meanwhile, ICYMI: The DDC has pushed back the timetable for completing vital elements of the project. Officials revealed the new schedule during an East Side Coastal Resiliency Community Advisory Group meeting on May 25. (A video of the meeting is here.) 

According to the presentation (deck here), officials moved the work's completion date south of Grand Street from this summer to June 2024... while work between Grand and Stanton changed from 2024 to early 2025.

As Hellgate reported in its coverage of the meeting: 

DDC staffers explained that the delay on these sections, which are currently closed off to the public, is due to a reallocation of construction efforts to the large section south of Houston Street, where massive floodwater conveyance systems are now being buried underground. Soon, they say, they'll begin to infill the land in that section, and raise the park between eight and ten feet, before reconstructing it entirely.

Despite the delays, officials said they'll still hit their end-of-2026 completion date.

The "phased work operations" began in November 2021 in Project Area 1 between Montgomery Street and 15th Street.

Workers have been burying the 57.5-acre park under fill, cutting down trees and elevating the land by 8-to-10 feet above sea level to protect the area from future storm surges. The city has said they will maintain public access to at least 42% of the park throughout construction. 

Residents still have access to the park via the FDR overpasses on 10th Street and Sixth Street and the north ramp at Houston.  

[Updated] Why Kim Petras was at Ben's Deli on Avenue B

Photos by Stacie Joy 

Fresh from a GovBall appearance, history-making Grammy winner (for "Unholy," her collaboration with Sam Smith) Kim Petras was at Ben's Deli yesterday at 32 Avenue B between Second Street and Third Street. 

She was there to shoot a video ahead of the release of her new album out on June 23 and accompanying tour. 

And why Ben's? The deli is known to location scouts these days after serving as a pivotal location for "Russian Doll" season 1.

And here's a photo (of a photo!) of Petras with the Ben's team (they said she was very friendly)...

And if this outfit looks familiar, it was apparently Petras then wearing the armor in Tompkins Square Park a little later in the day.

Meanwhile, you can read up on Petras in this recent New Yorker profile.

[Updated] Noted

Business casual in Tompkins Square Park... part of the 2023 Protect Yourself From Falling Tree Limbs Collection. 

Updated 

Turns out this is the stand-in for Grammy-winning pop star Kim Petras, who was spotted wearing the armor while shooting a promo video at Ben's Deli on Avenue B earlier in the day yesterday. 

Her team shot some footage in Tompkins Square Park as well.

Thanks to Eden for the photo yesterday!

The 3rd annual WasteFest is TODAY in Tompkins Square Park

Hardcore veterans Urban Waste are hosting their third annual WasteFest in Tompkins Square Park today. 

On the bill: 

• MDC 

• Urban Waste 

• Deathcycle 

• Ache 

• Action Park 

• Sewage 

• The Stress

The free show starts at 2.

Saturday's parting shot

Avenue B at Sixth Street ... and just two days after "Ghostbusters Day," which marks the anniversary of its 1984 release.

On Avenue B today: the LES Young Artists of Color Fellowship Showcase

This afternoon on the Open Street of Avenue B, FABnyc is hosting "A Reach to Gauge," an exhibition of artworks from their 2023 LES Young Artists of Color Fellowship cohort. 

Per FABnyc: 

Throughout this spring, 10 fellows, ages 18-26, have been meeting with each other, co-facilitators Alejandra Acevedo and Mark Wilson, and POC artist guests and cultural workers, to share their work and experiences in the field. 

This exhibition is the culminating event where the fellows will share what they have been working on with the public! Performances, ceramics, paintings and much more! 

The exhibit is up from 1-5 p.m. between Eighth Street and Ninth Street.

Today's free concert in Tompkins Square Park

There's a free concert this afternoon in Tompkins Square Park featuring:

• Joudy

• Incircles (read our Q&A with the band here)

• Tits Dick Ass 

• Slashers

• Cult of Chunk

The music is said to start at 1:45.

And tomorrow (Sunday!) in the park: the third annual Wastefest... will share that info in a separate post.

About Harold Hunter Weekend

Harold Hunter art by DeGrupo on Houston and the Bowery

The 16th annual Harold Hunter Weekend is underway. 

Billed as "one of NYC’s largest and most highly anticipated skateboarding events," the activities — including in Tompkins Square Park — celebrate the legacy of Hunter, a charismatic local skateboarder who was born and raised at Campos Plaza on 13th Street. He died in 2006 at age 31. 

The weekend is hosted by the Harold Hunter Foundation, a nonprofit that provides support, opportunity and advocacy for skateboarders. 

You can find more details about events here.

To 'Better Days' ahead

 

Brooklyn-based duo Locations released a new single on Wednesday titled "Better Days," written via FaceTime during the early days of the pandemic. 

This summer, Locations is embarking on the "No New Oil Tour" in collaboration with Extinction Rebellion NYC.

Per a release via the band:

Locations wants you to get out in the streets along with Extinction Rebellion to demand the U.S. government and the "big four" banks put an end to all new fossil fuel projects.

Visit the band's website for more info on their sit-ins and outreach. They're also hosting a single-release party at Alphaville tonight in Brooklyn.

A pop-up gallery for the summer at 42 Avenue B

Photos by Stacie Joy

A pop-up gallery, Life, The Universe & Everything, will be holding forth this summer at 42 Avenue B between Third Street and Fourth Street.

The first show, "Queen of Mars" by Rebecca Leveille Guayabera, opens tonight from 5-9.

This month, the gallery is open Tuesdays-Saturdays from 2-6 p.m. or by appointment. For more info on upcoming events here.

The Tribeca Festival takes over Village East by Angelika on 2nd Avenue

Even though a decent movie hasn't been made since 1915's "The Birth of a Nation," people keep trying and then hosting film festivals.

Screenings for the Tribeca Festival got underway on Wednesday at the Village East by Angelika on Second Avenue and 12th Street. 

BTW — the screenings are at various theaters around the city, not just here. Find a list of what's playing at this link.

As mentioned, the "Kim's Video" documentary on the former EV staple of the same name is showing here next Tuesday and Wednesday. Find ticket info here. 

Sky watch: A breath of fresh air heading into the weekend

As we're cutting-and-pasting from AccuWeather: "Air quality levels have significantly improved in New York City since Wednesday afternoon." 

And!

As of Friday morning, the Air Quality Index (AQI) was at 36 in New York City's Central Park. The "fair" air quality level is a significant improvement from the "very unhealthy" and "dangerous" levels it was at on Wednesday. 

At 4 p.m. on Wednesday, the AQI was at 413 for NYC — historically high levels that haven't been seen in decades (the good old days!) for NYC, as NBC 4 and other outlets pointed out.

Goggla took the above photo on Wednesday afternoon from Seventh Street and Avenue A... by Tompkins Square Park and the Samuel S. Cox statue. She has some more shots from around the neighborhood here.

Thursday's parting shot

And have a nice day! As seen on First Avenue between St. Mark's Place and Ninth Street... photo via Steven...