[Updated] When a Dodge Charger drove down the sidewalk on 2nd Street during a high-speed chase

With reporting by Stacie Joy 

Updated below with info from the NYPD

We heard about a high-speed car chase through parts of the East Village today just after noon. We haven't been able to piece it all together just yet. 

We received reader reports of a Dodge Charger tearing down Second Avenue, turning on Second Street, and driving up on the sidewalk on the south side of the street to avoid the vehicles stopped at the light.

The car exits the sidewalk, sending pedestrians scurrying, crossing First Avenue, and heading the wrong way eastbound on Second Street. There is one eyewitness report of the driver abruptly abandoning the car on Avenue C, sparking a foot chase.

A TikTok user captured 11 seconds of the chase from the SE corner of First Avenue and Second Street. (Unfortunately, the embed code isn't working. The link is here.) 

[Updated] 

The clip is now on Instagram, too...

 

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A second clip includes an ending showing the NYPD towing the car on the Lower East Side. There is no word yet on what happened to the driver (and any occupants in the vehicle).

 

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We reached out to the NYPD for more information about what transpired today... (see below)

Two NYPD sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak about the case, told EVG's Stacie Joy that the driver "stole" his own car from the impound lot in Brooklyn. 

Officers spotted the car in the 5th Precinct, which serves Little Italy, Chinatown and the Bowery. The car continued into the 9th Precinct and the 7th Precinct before the driver was apprehended with assistance from the NYPD Aviation Unit back in the 5th Precinct. 

The chase remains under investigation, and the sources said the narrative could change.

You can visit the New York Marble Cemetery this weekend on 2nd Avenue

The historic New York Marble Cemetery is open today (Saturday!) from noon to 4 p.m. ... as part of Lower East Side History Month. 

The cemetery, incorporated in 1831, is at 41 1/2 Second Ave. between Second Street and Third Street...

The gates are usually open once a month from April through October. You can check the schedule here. 

As of now, it's set to be open tomorrow too, though that can change if it rains.

Spin-offs: Throwback Two debuts on 9th Street

Photo by Steven

Welcome back to the south side of Ninth Street, Mr. Throwback.

Throwback Two has its soft opening today at 428 E. Ninth St. between Avenue A and First Avenue. 

The shop, which sells vintage clothes and accessories for men, women, and children, is directly across the street from Mr. Throwback, the retro sports apparel specialist. (Plot twist: No. 428 was the original Mr. Throwback space.)

Throwback Two is open Wednesday-Saturday from noon to 8 p.m., with a 6 p.m. close on Sundays. Throwback 2 has an Instagram account here.

Michael Spitz opened Mr. Throwback in November 2012 and took business across Ninth to No. 437 in late 2017.

About the Rock Against Racism show [Updated: Postponed]

Updated 5/5: Due to the rain, the show has been postponed...

EVG's Stacie Joy spotted longtime East Village resident Chris Flash the other day with flyers for the Rock Against Racism concert on Sunday (May 5).

The free show is now set for Washington Square Park (it was once slated for Tompkins).

From 2-6 p.m., the featured bands will be Lake Lanier... Butter Brain... Rebelmatic ... Paragnosis ... and a "special guest band"...

Brought to you by RAR NYC and The Shadow.

Taking it to the streets

 

Pretty Sick has just released the eponymous single from the band's forthcoming (June 27!) EP, Streetwise. 

On the track, Sabrina Fuentes introduces some new electronic elements, adding a fresh twist to Pretty Sick's sound. (Check out Paper's interview with her here.) 

Previously on EV Grieve:

• Catching up with Sabrina Fuentes of Pretty Sick

Tea Dealers & Ceramics is leaving Avenue B

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

After seven years at 29 Avenue B, Tea Dealers & Ceramics is moving away from its storefront here between Second Street and Third Street. 

Owner Stefan Ramirez (pictured) said they have a great relationship with their landlord, but they need more space. (They will be staying in NYC, though no word on the new address just yet.)

So, there is a moving sale for the rest of today and tomorrow (noon to 6 p.m.).

One request: Please bring a tote or shopping bag, as none are available.

EVG Etc.: NYPD arrests 56 in clearing NYU and New School protest encampments; Knickerbocker Village sells for $85 million

Sky view from St. Mark's Place 

• The NYPD clears protestors at NYU and The New School; 56 arrested (NBC News ... ABC News ... ABC 7 ... The Guardian) 

• Mayor Adams and top NYPD officials continued to blame "outside agitators" for the campus protests (The City) 

• The number of homeless New Yorkers moving into city public housing under the Adams administration has dropped to the lowest number in a decade (Gothamist) 

• Multiple NYCHA buildings going under renovation, part of the agency's PACT/RAD program, which converts Section 9 public housing into Section 8 housing operated by private landlords (Arch Paper)

• L+M buys Knickerbocker Village for $85 million (The Real Deal) 

• Assemblymember Harvey Epstein unveils pilot program legalizing basement apartments (NY1) 

• Cafe Mogador on St. Mark's Place — same as it ever was (Grub Street) 

• A new book celebrates Lee Quiñones, subway graffiti pioneer (Vanity Fair) 

• "NYC 2000-2005" at WHAMM! on Elizabeth Street features the photos of Alain Levitt (PAPER) 

• What your NYC tourist recommendations really say about you (McSweeney's) 

• Eva's Kitchen, an all-day cafe, debuts on Grand Street (The Lo-Down) 

• A collection of rarely seen work by Marguerite Duras (Anthology Film Archives) 

• Classics coming to Village East by Angelika on Second Avenue and 12th Street include "The Third Man" and "Metropolis" (Official site) 

• The new shop on Canal called Fugazi has nothing to do with the band (Brooklyn Vegan) 

• Diversions: About the new reality fashion series featuring (former EV resident) Julia Fox (Variety)

How to take part in Lower East Side History Month activities this May

Flyer photo by Q. Sakamaki at Tompkins Square Park

Lower East Side History Month is underway, and more than 60 Lower East Side cultural and community groups, small businesses, and residents are hosting a variety of public events, exhibits, tours, and festivals.

There are activities planned for just about every day this May. Check out the calendar here. And find a list of this weekend's events below...

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He has risen

Top photo by Stacie Joy; second pic by Steven 

The fellow "looking for a girlfriend" is now "looking for the perfect woman." And the flyers seem to be posted about every five feet along Avenue A.

(What the &*&^%&* we are talking about here)...

D.A. Bragg: Landlord indicted for harassing rent-regulated tenants, including in the East Village

Manhattan D.A. Bragg yesterday announced the indictment of Daniel Ohebshalom, also known as Dan Shalom, who is considered one of the city's worst landlords. (He topped the list via Public Advocate Jumaane Williams in 2023.) 

The charges stem from allegations of harassment against rent-regulated tenants, including coercing them to vacate their apartments and allowing Shalom to reap substantial profits by selling the buildings. (His companies include Keystone Management, Inc.; Liberty Ventures, LLC; Highpoint Associates XII, LLC; and Belmont Ventures, LLC.) 

The California-based landlord's Manhattan properties include 331 E. 14th St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue. (Steven's Photo below was taken in November 2022.)

In 2022, 331 Tenants Association alleged the following:

Common sights at the 14th Street building (and others in the landlord’s portfolio) include: trash piled high, a broken-down elevator and intercom system, smashed mailboxes and stolen mail, graffiti across the walls, human feces, drug paraphernalia, ceiling collapses, broken doors to empty units, and more. 

Adding to the crumbling building infrastructure, unmaintained entryways have also created the difficult situation of unwanted intruders regularly breaching doors and windows to use common areas and abandoned apartments, often engaging in unaccountable and dangerous behavior like vandalism, littering, and theft of personal belongings. 

The indictment, brought forth in New York State Supreme Court, includes multiple counts of Harassment of a Rent Regulated Tenant in the First Degree, Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree, and Endangering the Welfare of a Child. 

According to D.A. Bragg, Shalom is accused of exploiting rent-regulated tenants across five Manhattan apartment buildings by subjecting them to perilous living conditions in a bid to force them out. "New Yorkers deserve to live in their apartments without fearing for their safety," Bragg said.

The tenants endured a range of issues, from a lack of heat and hot water during winter months to persistent leaks culminating in ceiling collapses, endangering even young occupants. His tactics allegedly included warehousing unsecured vacant apartments and ignoring repeated warnings about insufficient heating oil, among other safety hazards. 

Furthermore, Shalom purportedly obscured his ownership of the properties by employing deceptive tactics, such as having associates sign paperwork falsely certifying compliance with city agencies. By doing so, he obstructed efforts to address the neglectful conditions within his buildings, prolonging tenants' suffering and impeding their ability to seek redress.

In March, Manhattan Judge Jack Stoller issued an arrest warrant for Shalom. Two weeks later, he turned himself in to NYC authorities over the hazardous conditions at his two Washington Heights apartment buildings. As of March 25, he was reportedly serving a 60-day jail sentence on Rikers Island. 

In making the announcement yesterday, D.A. Bragg's office urged any tenant affected by similar abuses to come forward and seek assistance. For further information or to report related concerns, individuals can contact the Housing and Tenant Protection Unit at (212) 335-3300 or email Danyhousing@dany.nyc.gov.

What happened to the famous East Village (replacement) pear tree on 3rd Avenue?

An EVG reader pointed out that the pear tree on the NE corner of Third Avenue at 13th Street has been removed, likely in the past 10 days.

Per the reader: "I don't know why it was removed, but it had been leaning pretty bad, as seen in the screenshot on Google Street View from 2022."

This wasn't just any pear tree. It was a living testament to our shared history. [Sob] 

In November 2003, the city planted a new tree to commemorate a pear tree that had graced this corner for nearly 200 years ... planted in the mid-1600s by Peter Stuyvesant, the Dutch governor of New Amsterdam.

Unfortunately, the tree met an untimely end. Per Village Preservation: "A collision of two wagons on the corner resulted in one wagon fatally striking the pear tree on February 27, 1867." (Rutherford Stuyvesant, an heir to the fam fortune, later presented a section of the tree to the New-York Historical Society. And it's still there today.)

Bill Van Winkle, president of the Holland Society of New York, told the Times in November 2003: "This pear tree is perhaps the most important symbol in the city of New York of the Dutch colonial heritage. We're very excited about getting it back.''

The 124-year-old commemorative plaque (read its history here) remains on the side of Kiehl's ... aka Pear Tree Place.

The plaque reads: 

"On this corner grew Petrus Stuyvesants' pear tree. Recalled to Holland in 1664 on his return he brought the pear tree and planted it as his memorial by which said he "my name may be remembered." The pear tree flourished and bore fruit for over two hundred years. The tablet is placed here by the Holland Society of New York, September 1890." 

Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, May 1862, via New-York Historial Society

[Updated, three's company] And then there were two (porta-potties in Tompkins Square Park)

Photo by Steven 

Workers yesterday removed the three porta-potties in Tompkins Square Park and replaced them with two similar (and cleaner) models. 

The triplex (only open during the day as long as someone has a key) arrived on April 1, providing the first non-open-air makeshift toilet opp since the city carted off the previous commodes on Jan. 9. 

Perhaps the Parks Department plans on switching out the toilets every month as Tompkins is getting busier with the arrival of warm weather. The first portaloos were battered from heavy use (and/or vandalism). At the time, sources told us that the previous port-o-johns were constantly trashed and not really the most fun things to use. So, the thinking was, Why replace them with more only to meet the same fate?

As previously reported, the restrooms in the Tompkins Square Park field house are now closed as part of an 18-month renovation that's nearing the one-year mark. 

Updated 10 a.m. 

OK then! Loo No. 3 was dropped off this morning...

The Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks returning to the Hudson River for some reason

2013 photo of the fireworks on the West Side as seen from the East Village 

For the first time since 2013, you'll have to awkwardly rekindle that friendship this summer with those people you really don't like who live on the west side and have a rooftop view of the Hudson River. 

Per our friends at West Side Rag: 

Macy's, along with officials from the city and New Jersey, announced Tuesday the fireworks display would be taking place over the Hudson in 2024, with "thousands of shells and an array of effects from barges position along the Hudson River with multiple viewing opportunities in Manhattan between West 14th and West 34th Streets and in New Jersey."

While the fireworks won’t be ignited on the Upper West Side, it means that any spot along the Hudson River within Riverside South and Riverside Park, or a properly positioned neighborhood roof you might be able to get on, will provide locals with a great view of the display. 

The July 4th fireworks show typically takes place over the East River, the correct river for this, but in 2009, the display shifted to the Hudson River for a special celebration of the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson's exploration of the region, and it stayed there for four long years. (It also seemed like overkill: Henry Hudson already has a parkway and a double-deck steel arch toll bridge named after him. Fireworks too, now?)

Anyway, here's a view of the fireworks in 2011 from the East Village looking to the west ...

Wednesday's parting shot

Photo by Derek Berg 

A gripping moment on Second Avenue and Seventh Street on this first day of May...

Today in thieving squirrels in Tompkins Square Park

Photos by Steven 

Caught in the act...

The Ukrainian Museum revisits the early work of East Village-based photographer Peter Hujar

Peter Hujar, Young Self Portrait (IV), 1958 

Courtesy The Ukrainian Museum/©The Peter Hujar Archive

The Ukrainian Museum on Sixth Street presents 75 photographs that feature some of the earliest work of iconic East Village-based photographer Peter Hujar (1934-1987). 

Here's more via the Museum: 

He was born to an immigrant family, and his Ukrainian grandmother raised him exclusively in the Ukrainian language until he was 5 years old. His difficult and unstable upbringing in a troubled household influenced his artistry and vision significantly as Hujar turned to a career in photography. 

And... 

The life and art of Peter Hujar were synonymous with a downtown New York that no longer exists. From the 1960s through the 1980s, the East Village was an urban buffet of creativity and danger, yet always vibrant and inexpensive. Private by nature, combative in manner, well-read, and widely connected, Hujar inhabited a world of the known and unknown.

This exhibition at the Ukrainian Museum will feature 75 of Hujar’s earliest photographs — from 1955 until 1969. Portraits, country landscapes, and city life will be the focus of the exhibition. Yet, three important vectors or series that appeared in his work during this period will also be highlighted in-depth for the first time: the Southbury (1957), the Florence (1958), and the Capuchin Catacombs of Palermo (1963).

"Peter Hujar: Rialto" opens tomorrow (May 2) and will be displayed through Sept. 1. 

The Ukrainian Museum, located at 226 E. Sixth St. between Second Avenue and Cooper Square, is open Wednesday through Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. (Several members-only events related to the exhibition are also available here.) 

Hujar died of AIDS-related pneumonia in 1987. He was 53.

Hujar lived and worked above the Louis N. Jaffe Art Theater (today, the Village East by Angelika) on Second Avenue at 12th Street. Read more about the space where Jackie Curtis and David Wojnarowicz lived before and after Hujar right here.

An extension for 'Houses and Hotels' at O'Flaherty's on Avenue A

You have a few extra days to see a cool show at O’Flaherty's, 44 Avenue A at Third Street. 

"Houses and Hotels," featuring longtime East Village resident Donna Dennis, part of the architectural sculpture movement of the early 1970s, spotlights a selection of the early work that helped launch her career. 

Dennis created these pieces while living on St. Mark's Place (they were assembled elsewhere). She now lives in Germantown, N.Y. 

The show has been extended through Sunday.

Gallery hours are today through Friday, 11 a.m. (or so) until 6 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 2-7 p.m.

Previously on EVG:

• Architectural sculpture digest: A look at some unique 'Houses and Hotels' at O’Flaherty's

On Avenue B, a there-goes-the-neighborhood building sells for $43 million

Photo by Stacie Joy 

The Villager, the 6-story apartment building that anchors the NW corner of Avenue B and Second Street, has a new owner. 

According to TradedNY, Skyline Developers sold the 61-unit complex at 194 E. Second St. to Benchmark Real Estate Group for $43 million. 

The building's completion in 1997 was seen by some as an (another) end-of-an-era/there-goes-the-neighborhood moment. (In reporting on the sale this week, Crain's called this a "Neighborhood-defining East Village rental.") 

Previously, this corner was home to a gas station... shooting gallery ... and then, for a 10-year run, The Gas Station, aka Art Gallery Space 2B (or Space 2B Art Yard), a freewheeling arts and events space.

Per the Times:

For 10 years, the Gas Station, with its towering sculpture built from discards ranging from a 1970 Plymouth Valiant to department store mannequins to television sets, has been a symbol of the Lower East Side's Bohemian ways and artistic resolve.

Alex at Flaming Pablum has written about the Gas Station and this part of its history:

The Gas Station is probably most notorious for being the site of the final, calamitous performance by G.G. Allin & the Murder Junkies. After the show in question ended in a riot (not an atypical situation for the Geeg), Allin tromped off into the East Village afternoon with some new friends, only to overdose on smack later that evening, undermining his oft-stated intention to kill himself onstage.

The Gas Station was cleared out in 1996.

An aerial view of 2B by LeoLondon from 1993.

Kōbo by Nai has not been open lately

Kōbo by Nai has been dark the past few weeks at 202 Avenue A between 12th Street and 13th Street.

There isn't any notice of a temporary or permanent closure on the storefront or online. The Mediterranean restaurant no longer accepts reservations, and Kōbo has been removed from the main Nai website. 

Meanwhile, someone looks to be packing up the interior...

The restaurant opened in late 2022. This is the second establishment from Chef Ruben Rodriguez to close in the East Village in recent months, following Emilia by Nai on First Avenue.

Rodriguez still operates the original Nai at 84 Second Ave. near Fifth Street and Bad Hombre at 29 Second Ave. 

Also on the block, Borrachito Taqueria & Spirits will not reopen at 206 Avenue A. It has been dark since January. Someone painted the marquee and added Bar TBA on March 30. (Thanks to EVG reader Joe for this photo from March.)

Tuesday's parting shot

Photo by Steven 

Ham and friend in Tompkins today...