Saturday, August 17, 2024

A pop-up plant sale on 10th and A THIS afternoon

From the EVG inbox... 
There's a pop-up plant sale by longtime East Village fixture Peter Martin ... he will be offloading tropical tree-like plants, orchids, and more out of his van at hugely discounted prices. Today only on the NW corner of 10th Street and Avenue A until 6 p.m.

The long-ass line this morning in the East Village for those viral chocolate muffins from the Olympic Village

Photos by Steven 

"Muffin Mania" has descended upon the East Village. 

This morning, Isshiki Matcha at 138 Second Ave. between St. Mark's Place and Ninth Street is (was!) serving up the fudge-centered chocolate muffins that became a thing during the Paris Games. It started when Norwegian distance swimmer Henrik Christiansen posted some TikTok videos raving about the creations served at the Olympic Village. You know the rest!

So Isshiki Matcha said they "imported 300 muffins from Coup de Pates France, the actual supplier of the Olympic Village muffin."
The line started about 100 feet east on Saint Mark's, split into at least two lines on Second Avenue, and wrapped around Ninth Street.
An RSVP was required, by the way.

No word of any selfie-related injuries while posting photos and videos of the muffins.

East Village musician Jesse Malin provides an update on his spinal stroke and thanks everyone for their ongoing support

Image via Instagram 

East Village singer-songwriter Jesse Malin is making progress in his recovery from a rare spinal stroke that he suffered in May 2023. 

Malin provided an update in a short video, where he's standing with the assistance of a walker, posted to Instagram on Thursday. 

"[T]hey got me out of the chair a lot of the day, out of the wheelchair and up on the walker, and it feels good to be up," he said. "I can't feel below my upper thighs, still ... I'm working at it. But, you know, it's weird walking without any feeling. I have these braces on below my knees, and that helps me get around doing this a few times a day. So it's getting a little better. I'm on it — just working it." 

Malin, a Queens native and longtime East Village resident, has been receiving treatment with a physical therapist since undergoing intense physical therapy and stem-cell treatments at a clinic in Buenos Aires, Argentina, starting last fall. 

"I have really good people who come and help me out, and real good instructors," Malin said. "I just wanted to say thank you. You know, for everything, all the support ... the letters and the notes and the love and the support of my music." 

Malin, a partner in several local establishments, including Niagara, 96 Tears and the Bowery Electric, plans to return to the stage for the first time since early 2023 on Dec. 1-2 at the Beacon Theater, billed as "the largest hometown show of his career." 

He will perform a set with his band, and then special guests, among others, Lucinda Williams, Rickie Lee Jones, Jakob Dylan, Butch Walker, J Mascis, Adam Duritz and David Immergluck of Counting Crows, will join him on stage. Michael Imperioli and Mary Louise-Parker are serving as the hosts.

"I can't wait for the Beacon Theater shows to play again, live with the band, and get up there. It gives me something to look forward to, to live for and work toward," he said. "So I hope you guys have a great, great, great, rest of the summer." 

You can find ticket info here. (Photo below from outside 2A on Avenue A and Second Street.)
You can watch the full Instagram clip below...

Tree down on 14th Street

The driver of a Penske box truck collided with a tree on the south side of 14th Street between Avenue A and Avenue B last night, according to witnesses. 

The collision occurred about 8:40 p.m. A witness alleged that the driver claimed to have only "bumped" the tree with the passenger side mirror. 

Helluva bump...
The driver left, the police were called... and someone captured the aftermath on the Citizen app...

 

Vehicle Crash Into Tree @CitizenApp

538 E 14th St Yesterday 8:46:42 PM EDT

Friday, August 16, 2024

Friday's parting shot

Photo by Lola Sáenz 

As seen on 12th Street between Avenue A and First Avenue today...

50 years of the Ramones

 

Today (Aug. 16!) marks the 50th anniversary of the first show by the Ramones at CBGB. (Anyone take a ferry ride to Rockaway Beach?)

Fast-forward three short years to the above footage from the Rainbow Theatre in Finsbury Park, London, on Dec. 31, 1977.

The 4-year-old East Village Neighbors Community Fridge will no longer be in service on 12th Street and 1st Avenue

Photo and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Sunday is the last day for the East Village Neighbors Community Fridge and Pantry on the NW corner of 12th Street and First Avenue. 

For the past four years, the fridge and pantry have been stationed outside S'MAC, where owners Sarita and Caesar Ekya, along with East Village Neighbors, a local volunteer group, helped provide food for people in need. 

Sarita said that her landlord, with whom she has a great relationship — she says he's "one of the good guys" — has been fielding calls and complaints from tenants and neighboring businesses about the fridge and pantry for months. (Complaints range from people blocking the street to fighting among those seeking food.)
 
During a phone call, Sarita said that she has been unable to secure another business to take this operation over and was hoping to find a religious or community-based spot, but that has also been proving difficult. So Sunday is the last day for the fridge and pantry; on Monday morning, both will be recycled.

In the interim, starting Monday, donated food will be brought to the Chelsea Fridge or the Loisaida Community Fridge on Ninth Street and Avenue B. 

"Hosting the East Village Neighbors Fridge at S’MAC the last four years has made us feel all the feels. We've met so many incredible people and have had a village help keep it going this entire time," Sarita said. "The amount of food being rescued daily and the amount of meals provided to our neighbors by such a strong community who cares has been heartwarming. We know the fridge will be a loss to the community, but we hope to find a new home soon." 

She expressed concern for all the daily regulars who depend on the food, meals and supplies.

The fridge debuted on Oct. 7, 2020. Their first attempt was knocked over and KO’d after only three days. The refrigerator was vandalized again in August 2021

Previously on EV Grieve
• A Visit to the East Village Community Fridge and Food Pantry (October 2020

• East Village Community Fridge providing free food outside S'MAC on 1st Avenue; donations welcome (October 2020

• A Thanksgiving feast for neighbors in need at the East Village Community Fridge (November 2020

• A new look (and name!) for the East Village Neighbors Fridge (December 2020

• The East Village Neighbors Community Fridge is up and running again after vandal strikes (August 2021)

Details about Ramones-themed rides to Rockaway Beach today and tomorrow

Also, tonight, you can catch a screening of "End of the Century: The Story of the Ramones" with a post-film Q&A in Queens. Details here.

Thursday, August 15, 2024

Hoarding in Tompkins Square Park

Photos by Donald Davis 

This spread arrived overnight In Tompkins Square Park... inside the mid-block entrance on Seventh Street between Avenue A and Avenue B...
... and we understand that the Parks employee doing cleanup knows who may have left this...

Former research scientist tells all in solo comedy show at Under St Marks Theater

Another day, another former reproductive health research scientist turned comedian taking the stage. 

Sarah Adelman is a native New Yorker who started her professional career working in a lab (a sperm bank, to be specific) before moving full-time into stand-up comedy.

With a background in science, Adelman has taken the analytical mind of a researcher and combined it with sharp wit in her solo show, "EGG," which plays for a three-night run (Aug. 22-24) at Under St Marks Theater, 94 St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue.

"EGG" is about Adelman's path to becoming a researcher, the hijinks involved with running clinical trials, and the intersection between science and art. You can find ticket info here, including details on a sliding admission-price scale.

In this Q&A with EVG, she discusses the transition from the lab to the stage and the role of humor in science. 

Growing up, were you a class-clown type or more of a laid-back observer with a knack for a well-placed zinger? Or maybe none of the above! 

None of the above. I was an enormous goody-two-shoes growing up. I was the kind of kid who attended my own parent-teacher conferences instead of taking the day off because I wanted to hear the compliments, which, in retrospect, was psychotic. 

I liked to invent my own holidays and would call my classmates on their landlines and ask them to dress up for me, which they usually did not. But I would be funny in my own way — aka in a controlled setting, like at a talent show — and I wish I'd seen as a kid that being funny and easygoing and getting good grades were not mutually exclusive! 

So, how did you first come to use humor to enhance your work as a research scientist? 

Humor is the easiest way to get people to like you, and I figured that out at a young age. 

When I was working as a research scientist at a sperm bank, I felt like a lot of the participants felt extremely awkward about having to interact with me before and after, which is very fair. Humor was the easiest way to make them feel at ease and make my own job easier. I found that it also helped me connect with coworkers and supervisors and get people to help me out like it would in any job! 

As an undergrad and grad student, I also had many times when I had to recruit people to a study or try to speak with people for interviews for reports, and humor was always the fastest way to earn trust. Scientists aren't really known for their humor, so it was relatively easy to become the "funny" one at the lab. I actually wrote a little article about this topic here

Was there a specific moment or situation where you realized humor could play a role in your scientific work? 

I remember during one of my first clinical visits with a sperm bank participant, he was concerned that the female scientists were going to use his sperm to bear his offspring without his knowledge. Usually, I'd give a long speech about medical ethics and why that would be illegal, but this tended to confuse everyone more. One day, I just said, "Don't flatter yourself," and I got a huge laugh, and the matter was settled. So I gave myself to try jokes from there on out. 

Were you concerned that using humor in that role could diminish your credibility as a researcher? 

I think there's always the concern that anything lighthearted could take away from the seriousness of a topic. But just like in stand-up, it's all about knowing your audience. 

For example, when publishing in peer-reviewed journals or giving a presentation to the head of a lab department, I kept everything super professional. But if I got to speak in front of just my coworkers or was interviewed for a non-academic publication, I let myself loosen up. It's the same with comedy — I take an audit of the crowd when I first get on stage; are they young? Old? Locals? Tourists? Parents? And then I try to tailor the material to what I think they'll like, and I'm always ready with other jokes in case what I'm giving them isn't landing. So, I think it's just about knowing your audience! 

Was there a particular event or realization that made you make the leap into comedy full-time? 

Let's just say it wasn't totally my choice, and you'll have to come to "EGG" to see why I'm not a scientist anymore. 

But generally speaking, I just felt like all my life, I secretly wanted to be a comedian. I remember so clearly in high school, someone asking me what I wanted to do after graduation, and I said, "Well, if I could be ANYTHING, I'd be a comedian, but I'm going to college to become a medical researcher." It felt so natural to say that, like, Yes, duh, I want to be a comedian, but I assumed that it would be a thing I always yearned for from a distance, like the way people dream about going to outer space. 

It wasn't until I got older that I realized 1) not everyone secretly wishes they were a stand-up comedian; in fact, that sounds like a nightmare to most people, and 2) you can break into it just like you can at any job, I just didn't know how. 

So once I did my first open mic, when I'd already finished my masters and was starting at my lab, I was like, WHOA, I didn't know life could feel like that. It felt like all my nerve endings were exposed for the first time. And then I just became totally addicted, and I've been doing comedy every single day since then. It's all I think about. 

As I got deeper and deeper into the comedy scene in NYC, the more I felt like that was the "true" me and that the Sarah at work was a muted version. It feels so amazing to just be fully myself all the time now. 

Stand-up also gave me a chance to really stand on my own two legs, not hide behind a fancy university or hospital, but just be rawly myself, share my thoughts with the world, and make people laugh. 

I'll never get sick of that feeling. I feel like I'm now squeezing every drop out of life. This isn't to say that I don't love/miss science; that's why I'm so happy I have this show! "EGG" allows me to combine my love of writing and performance with scientific exploration. 

Despite filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the local Blink Fitness outposts will remain open

After filing for bankruptcy on Monday, Blink Fitness said it may close an unspecified number of its 101 clubs. 

However, according to a report in Our Town, the 11 NYC locations, including on Avenue A between Sixth Street and Seventh Street and the NoHo outpost on Lafayette and Fourth Street, will remain open.

Equinox Group, Blink's parent company, is not filing for bankruptcy protection, per published reports.

Reported ABC 7
Around 25% of US gyms and studios permanently closed during the COVID-19 pandemic — roughly 10,000 facilities, according to the Health & Fitness Association, an industry trade group. Several major chains, including 24 Hour Fitness and Gold's Gym, filed for bankruptcy. 

Blink's bankruptcy shows the lingering impact of the pandemic on the fitness industry. During the height of the pandemic in 2020, Blink temporarily closed all of its clubs, leaving it without revenue to fund operations. Blink said in its bankruptcy filing that it is still financially constrained by rent payments it had put off and was still trying to catch up on from the pandemic. 
The 98 Avenue A Blink location opened in October 2017 in the retail space of Ben Shaoul's luxury condoplex

Before the demolition, the vast retail space was East Village Farms. That building opened as the Avenue A Theatre in 1926. RKO operated it, followed by Loew's, and it closed in 1959. 

Building the ramp to the new Delancey Street pedestrian bridge

EVG regular William Klater shared this photo from yesterday morning, which shows the ramp to the new Delancey Street pedestrian bridge under construction.

Crews installed the new bridge, one of the new access points for East River Park, overnight on June 8. (The previous bridge was removed in early 2022.) 

According to a City Department of Design and Construction spokesperson, the 215-foot-long bridge weighs 125 tons (much larger than the previous one) and is fully ADA-accessible. 

There's a partial-lane closure this week on the FDR from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. while work continues. It is expected to be ready for pedestrians early next month. 

Here's a video from June showing workers assembling the new bridge...

  

The "phased work operations" in East River Park began in November 2021 in Project Area 1 between Montgomery Street and 15th Street. As part of the billion-dollar-plus East Side Coastal Resiliency project, workers have been burying the 57.5-acre park under fill and cutting down many trees. They are elevating the land 8 to 10 feet above sea level to protect the area from future storm surges. 

The city has said it will maintain public access to at least 42% of the park throughout construction, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2026. 

You can find the latest updates and notifications at this link.

Wednesday, August 14, 2024

Report of a DOA in Tompkins Square Park this afternoon

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Police and EMTs responded to a report of a body found outside the porta-potties in Tompkins Square Park this afternoon just after 3. (The temporary toilets are positioned on the walkway between the main lawn and Sandra Turner Garden.)

Sources on the scene say this is a suspected OD, though there wasn't any official confirmation. 

The deceased is a 35-year-old male, police said. His name has not been released pending family notification.

A look at the ongoing renovations at First Houses

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

We've fielded several queries about the extensive renovations at the city-owned First Houses on Avenue A between Second Street and Third Street, both in the residences and above the strip of retail spaces.
For starters, a little history of the eight four-story and five-story buildings with the residential entrances on the south side of Third Street between Avenue A and First Avenue. First Houses was the first publicly funded low-income housing project in the U.S., opening in December 1935 under the auspices of the just-created New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA). 

First Houses was originally planned to house 120 to 122 families, and all apartments had steam heat, hot water and were equipped with the modern amenities typically found in middle-class housing. Within two months of opening a rental office for the project, the Housing Authority received between 3,000 and 4,000 applications. Prospective tenants were carefully selected by a team of social workers, with preference given to the inhabitants of the worst slums and relatively small families. All but one of the families chosen were residents of the Lower East Side. 

First Houses became a NYC Landmark in 1974. 
In recent decades, the buildings have shown their age, revealing ongoing bureaucracy issues plaguing the NYCHA.

In 2011, City Limits documented many of the residents' issues here. There were stories of mice eating their way through the worn floorboards and a resident battling the NYCHA for 15 years over a persistent leak. 

Fast forward to the start of the renovations last year. According to an architect working on the $24.8-million roofing replacement and exterior restoration:
[The] project is for restorative work throughout all of the facades of buildings within the complex, including rebuilding brick parapets in kind, repointing masonry and replacing brickwork, precast coping stones and metal lintels. 

Entrance porticos will be temporarily removed to allow for the replacement or restoration of green-painted cast iron columns and railings. Work on porticos includes the replacement of portico copper roofs, copper cornices, new concrete entrance stairs, landings, and footings, and replacement of nearby concrete or asphalt pavers pathways. Roofs of all buildings will be replaced with new liquid-applied roofing membrane over new insulation. 
In addition, the construction site manager told us: "We are replacing the roof and doing masonry restoration. We've also started on the interior work, which includes drywalling and lead and asbestos removal." 

Here's a look around the complex earlier this summer...
As you may have noticed, many tenants have moved out, including the local folk hero known as The Chillmaster, known for blasting classic R&B from his open window (year-round).

Local Assemblymember Harvey Epstein told us that tenants were temporarily relocated to other complexes, including the Jacob Riis Houses and the Wald Houses, and some public housing further away from the Lower East Side. 

Epstein said that all tenants can return to the First Houses upon completion of the work, set for 2025, per the posted signage.

A Bronx Brewery cheer for miniatures artist Danny Cortes on 2nd Avenue

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 
Top pic: Bronx Brewery Creative Direct Jose Ruiz and Danny Cortes 

This past Saturday evening, the Bronx Brewery celebrated a collab release with artist Danny Cortes at its East Village outpost, 64 Second Ave., between Third Street and Fourth Street. 

Cortes is a Mexican-style lager brewed with Texas blue corn. (Hop heads can find a complete description of the beer here.) The release is part of the Brewery's Y-Series.

The can includes an image of one of his iconic hyper-realistic miniatures — the NYC ice merchandiser.
The Bronx Brewery also has a new display of Cortes' miniatures (we've featured them here and here and here) ...
"The East Village has been a significant part of my life and artistic journey," the NYC native told us. "The East Village feels like a second home to me. I've been coming here since I was 9 years old with my cousin and friends from my block, crossing the Williamsburg Bridge to visit places like the Boys Club and Pitt and Houston [Hamilton Fish Park]. The East Village has resonated with my art from the beginning." 

On Saturday night, Cortes was joined by Neyda, his life partner, and many friends...

Tuesday, August 13, 2024

Tuesday's parting shot

Photo by Derek Berg
Along St. Mark's Place today...

3 new loos for you in Tompkins Square Park

Photos by Steven 

Today saw the changing of the porta-potties in Tompkins Square Park. (Look for the pay-per-view special coming soon.)

And to be clear, the new arrivals aren't necessarily new, like factory fresh, more like cleaner (cleanish?) than the previous triplex that served with honor this summer...
Top photo: It's important to pause for a moment and strengthen your resolve before entering.
As previously reported, the restrooms in the Tompkins Square Park field house are now closed as part of an 18-month renovation. The Parks Department website lists the construction as 72% complete with a September 2024 completion date.

EVG Etc.: Blink Fitness files for bankruptcy; cops find cocaine at smoke shop

The return of "Law & Order SVU" to the EV tomorrow, Aug. 14 

• Blink Fitness, Equinox-owned gym chain with an outpost on Avenue A, files for bankruptcy (CBS News ... CNN

• The East Village is now the nexus of a $10 takeout pasta trend (Eater

• Tompkins Square Park red-tailed hawk class of 2024 ready to venture out (Laura Goggin Photography

• Ticket to ride, white line highway: Law enforcement discovers 13 pounds of cocaine at Clinton Street smoke shop (PIX11)

• The sometimes watchable "Blank Generation" with Richard Hell gets a rare screening (Metrograph

• Locking up items to deter shoplifting is pushing shoppers online (Axios

• ICYMI: Pier 35 to be home to the East River floating pool (6sqft

• Did you lose something in a public place in NYC? How to maybe get it back. (The City

• After 57 years, AM fave WCBS-880 will shift from an all-news format to sports (amNY

•  The New York Times will no longer offer endorsements of local NYC candidates, including governor (Media Nation)

• NYC travel and tourism are back, report shows (McKinsey & Company

'Make Me Famous' receives an encore presentation at the Village East by Angelika

You have five more opportunities to see "Make Me Famous" in the neighborhood where the well-regarded documentary is set. 

The film about 1980s-era East Village-based painter Edward Brezinski will be playing these five dates at Village East by Angelika on Second Avenue at 12th Street: 

• Aug. 16, 7 p.m. Post-screening guests: artist James Romberger and director Brian Vincent 
• Aug. 17, 7 p.m. No post-screening guests 
• Aug. 18, 4 p.m. Post-screening guests: photographer Allen Frame and Vincent 
• Aug. 19, 7 p.m. Post-screening guests: writer, muse Claudia Summers and Vincent 
• Aug. 21, 7 p.m. Post-screening guests: archival cinematographer Jim C. and Vincent 

Find ticket info here

The encore comes after a successful three-night run (July 27, 31 and Aug. 1) at the Village East. The documentary, featuring some never-before-seen 1980s footage of the East Village, explores Brezinski's colorful career and mysterious disappearance.

   

On Saturday, EVG's Stacie Joy spotted Vincent and producer Heather Spore handing out business cards in Tompkins Square Park for "Make Me Famous" ...
Previously on EV Grieve

'Street Leather,' the rat zine of your dreams, is now available

Photo and reporting by Stacie Joy 

The rat pack came together this past Friday night to toast the first issue of "Street Leather," a zine dedicated to stories of NYC's most beloved and hated rodents.

As we first reported back in March, two local residents — anonymous at the time — were collecting submissions for this project, an assortment of memorable encounters with rats in NYC. 

During Thursday night's unveiling at the Francis Kite Club on Avenue C, the creators revealed themselves as two journalists with a shared interest in the subject matter — Jake Offenhartz and Olivia Bensimon.

The evening was suitably strange for a launch party for a rat zine. Claudi of Pinc Louds performed a rat song and a spoken-word poem while there were readings by contributors, such as Harry Siegel. Meanwhile, guests enjoyed a drink special called the Ratini. 

Volume 1, illustrated by Sabrina Bezerra, is filled with stories, poems, photos, and other oddities about rats, dead and alive, and dedicated to "all the rats who died, often violently and in occasionally interesting positions." (We especially like the story about the Top View Hop-On-Hop-Off Double Decker tour bus.) 

The zine is available in Brooklyn at Quimby's Bookstore and Spoonbills Books. Closer to home, free copies are available at Bluestockings, 116 Suffolk St., between Rivington and Delancey on the LES. (The editors are working on getting the zine in more places.) 

Meanwhile, you can submit your rodent-related comics, poems, true stories, and songs to newyorkrathole (newyorkrathole@gmail.com) for possible publication in volume 2. 

You can also follow @streetleathernyc on Instagram for updates. 

Previously on EV Grieve