Check out the Sirovich Holiday Art Sale TODAY

An EVG reader shared this with us today... the annual Sirovich Holiday Art Sale is happening. 

We missed Day 1. You can stop by today from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. ... in the auditorium at the Sirovich Center for Balanced Living at 331 E. 12th St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue. 

We've bought a few things here through the years, and the proceeds support the art programs at Sirovich.

FYI: SantaCon is today

In case you were blissfully unaware, today is SantaCon, which Curbed noted is "perhaps the most dreaded NYC event of the year." 

Con24 officially kicks off at 10 a.m. on Broadway and 39th Street, with an announced end at 8 p.m., when participants will quietly and orderly return home. 

The $15.93 "donation" (read about their charity here) gets your Santa Badge and access to participating bars, mainly in Midtown West and East... As always, the East Village is a main attraction. 

• Amsterdam Billiards & Bar, 110 E. 11th St. at Fourth Avenue 

• 10 Degrees Bar, 121 St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue 

• The Laurels, 231 Second Ave. at 14th St. 

• Coyote Ugly, 233 E. 14th St., between Second Avenue and Third Avenue 

• Solas, 232 E. Ninth St. between Second Avenue and Third Avenue (serving as a "Huge Venue") 

• Bull McCabe's, 29 St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue 

• The Phoenix, 447 E. 13th St., between Avenue A and First Avenue 

• Doc Holliday's, 141 Avenue A at Ninth Street 

• Horseshoe Bar/7B, 108 Avenue B at Seventh Street 

The map lists The Grayson at 16 First Ave. near First Street. They closed in the spring, and a new owner operates Lydia's there. Not sure if they are taking part or not.

As we've seen in previous Cons, bars not on the official list also participate, including Downtown Social on Second Avenue at Ninth Street. The SantaCades arrived here earlier this week. (Photo by Steven)

Enjoy the day! Let us know how it goes. We're in Ittoqqortoormiit, Greenland, right now.

95 Bulls session

 

This mini set via 95 Bulls was released on Nov. 22... filmed live at Mrs. Morgan's Flower Shop in Bronxville... and presented by Show Brain, which brought lots of live music to Tompkins Square Park (and elsewhere) this past year (bands that included 95 Bulls).

EVG Etc.: Anthony Weiner eyes Council race; Ramones film with Pete Davidson looks in doubt

Second Avenue and Ninth Street the other morning 

Headlines of interest this past week include...

• After acquittal in subway chokehold trial, Daniel Penny says he was vulnerable in the encounter (The Associated Press) ... Opinion: The Penny verdict reveals how NYC failed Jordan Neely (The Washington Post) 

• Anthony Weiner, jailed for sexting child, eyes political comeback in City Council race for Carlina Rivera's term-limited seat (The Associated Press) 

• Fatal stabbings exceeded gun deaths in NYC in November (Gothamist) 

• Dozens of low-income New York City families will soon begin receiving regular cash payments through a new program funded by City Council (Gothamist) 

• Get ready for the next big fight over Airbnb's reach in NYC (Politico) 

• DOT pushes back on a Council bill to require the agency to register and issue license plates for electric bikes and e-scooters (Streetsblog) 

• Coffee prices climb to near 50-year highs (CNBC)

• The 2025 edition of the New Colossus Festival — March 4-9 at venues in the East Village and Lower East Side — just added 100 artists to the schedule (Brooklyn Vegan) 

• Panna II keeps the spirit of Little India alive (The New York Times ... previously on EVG)

• Ramones Netflix film with Pete Davidson is in doubt as Johnny Ramone's estate wins latest legal round (Variety) 

• "A Christmas Carol" this December at the Merchant's House on Fourth Street (Official site) 

• Moody Tongue Pizza, serving Tokyo-Neapolitan-style pizza, debuts at 123 St. Mark's Place (Time Out ... previously on EVG) 

• Bar Miller on Sixth Street receives its first Michelin star (Eater ... previously on EVG) 

• A centennial celebration of the work of photographer, filmmaker and artist Robert Frank (Anthology Film Archives)

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Sweet! Get your 10,000 steps in at the Cookie Walk this weekend

Reminder! The 2024 edition of The Cookie Walk (CW24!) takes place this weekend (Dec. 14-15) at St. Nicholas of Myra Orthodox Church on Avenue A and 10th Street. 

The two-day Walk will be held in the church's lower level tomorrow from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 3 p.m. (while supplies last).

As the name suggests, you take one of the provided boxes and walk (slowly) around cookie-filled tables (there are more than 60 varieties — of cookies, not tables) to pick your favorites. 

More details are available at the church's website. The first Cookie Walk here took place in 2009.

Thursday's parting shot

Photo by Robin McMillan 

Billy Idol photo shoot today outside Cherry Tavern on Sixth Street (not sure for what).

Check out 2 classic bands in documentaries at Howl! Happening

Howl! Happening tomorrow evening is hosting free screenings of two rarely-seen films by Merrill Aldighieri... at 6 p.m., there's "Shox Lumania Mania," featuring live performances and interviews with the cult electronic band Shöx Lumania. 

Then at 7:40 ... there's "Illustre," a 33-minute film that documents the NYC debut of New Order in September 1980 at Hurrah on West 62nd Street.

   

Howl! Happening is at 6 E. First St. near the Bowery. More info here.

City launches community engagement campaign for '100% affordable housing' on 9th Precinct parking lot

EVG file photo

The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) yesterday announced plans to redevelop the city-owned parking lot at 324 E. Fifth St. into "100% affordable housing" ... starting with a community engagement campaign for the proposed new project.

The 9th Precinct currently uses the 11,540-square-foot site between First Avenue and Second Avenue for parking and various towed vehicles. Affordable housing on this parking lot was one of the points of agreement from the City Council vote to approve the controversial SoHo/NoHo rezoning in December 2021.

Here are the next steps in what is likely a years-long process, per a city release on the project: 

The process of creating new affordable housing at 324 East 5th Street begins with a robust community engagement process culminating with the creation of a community visioning report summarizing the community's input. Together with local stakeholders, HPD will lead an in-person community workshop, local tabling events, meetings with the local community board and stakeholders, and other activities, all while collecting responses through a questionnaire (link), available online and in print at each event. Community members, local organizations and residents are invited to provide feedback and suggestions via the questionnaire. 

Following the community visioning report, HPD will release a request for proposals (RFP) where affordable housing development teams may submit their proposed plans for the site. Responses from developers must be responsive to the community priorities laid out in the community visioning report. Additional information, including updates on the process and upcoming public tabling events, is available on the HPD website (link). 

Said HPD Commissioner Adolfo Carrión Jr. in a statement: 

"The reuse of public land currently used for parking of city vehicles for affordable housing is exactly the right thing to do. We are excited to use this property owned by the taxpayers to confront our historic housing crisis in a creative and sustainable way. ... we will engage with the host community, which is the neighborhood of my early years, to ensure that what gets built at 324 E. Fifth St. addresses local needs and aspirations."

A group called 5th Street Park Coalition has advocated for a park in this space adjacent to P.S. 751. 

Previously on EV Grieve:

• Community groups advocating for low-income housing on these 2 East Village sites

Scrooged: 14th Street Trader Joe's employees say their hours are being cut this holiday season

Some workers at the two Trader Joe's outposts on 14th Street — Union Square near Irving Place and at Avenue A — claim their hours are being cut while the stores operate with a skeleton crew. 

According to a tipster at one of the locations, a typical work week for a full-time employee is 35 hours/five days per week. For the past few weeks, the worker says that these two Trader Joe's locations have been cutting employee shifts from five days a week to two and three days. 

Says the tipster, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal by management: 

A lot of the Trader Joe's employees have kids, and with the holidays upon us, they don't know how they're getting by. Even the employees who don't have kids are having difficulty making ends meet. Some are late with rent, others have had their phones turned off, and we are all having to cut back on basic things like food, ironically. 

The tipster continued: 

It's even worse for those who have a second job as Trader Joe's is no longer accommodating their previously agreed-upon hours, leaving them no choice but to forfeit their overlapping hours. 

Employees say they have discussed this problem with management but claim that the managers play good cop/bad cop. 

"The store captains will say they'll take care of it, the supervisors who make the schedule say, 'Sorry, we can't do anything.'" 

Our sources say that management has blamed slow sales for the cut in hours. However, a worker with knowledge of the finances noted that both of the 14th Street Trader Joe's remain busy, with daily tallies in early December between $192,000 and $260,000 at the East Village outpost. 

"The real reason this is happening is the stores' management gets a higher year-end bonus the more the overhead is lowered, in this case, overhead being human beings," the tipster alleged. 

The Trader Joe's corporate office did not respond to an email about the reduced hours and other worker claims. 

And the challenges may extend into the New Year: Workers were recently told that as of January, there will be no set schedules.

Openings: BKLYN MACS on 9th Street

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy

BKLYN MACS debuted a few weeks back at 438 E. Ninth St. between Avenue A and First Avenue. 

The husband-and-wife founders, Brooklyn natives Gene (pictured above) and Rebecca, serve "macaron-inspired desserts" and beverages (including Partners Coffee from Brooklyn).

Per the business website: "We've mastered and improved the classic French technique of macaronage to create the ideal macaron cookie shells — a balance between crunchy and chewy..." 

Gene said that so far, the best-sellers from the rotating selection of 30-plus macarons include pistachio, fruity cereal, Mexican hot chocolate, and dulce le leche. (They also offer custom-printed macarons.)

In 2019, the two quit their corporate jobs and launched Phivi Marketplace, an e-commerce events platform, before pivoting to desserts during the pandemic.

The hours are Sunday-Wednesday 1-9 p.m., Thursday 1-10 p.m., and Friday-Saturday 1-11 p.m.

Signage alert: Tipsy Shanghai on 2nd Avenue

Photos by Steven 

The Tipsy Shanghai signage arrived Tuesday at 104 Second Ave. at the NE corner of Sixth Street.

As previously noted, reps were on this month's CB3-SLA committee docket for a beer-wine license and had received conditional approval. 

The restaurant serves traditional Chinese cuisine and has West Village and Murray Hill locations. (Their outpost on East Broadway shuttered last year.) 

While the chainlet started in 2018, its signage notes "century-old restaurant from China." 

Monsieur Vo closed here earlier in the fall after a September 2022 debut.

A Look Back on The East Village Eye

Tomorrow evening at 6, the Jefferson Market Library (Sixth Avenue near Ninth Street) is hosting a panel featuring one-time contributors to the East Village Eye.

Some background: 

In February 2023, the New York Public Library acquired the East Village Eye archive from founder and editor Leonard Abrams. The collection consists of documents, manuscripts, artworks, videos, ephemera, and a complete run of the original printed publication (72 issues in total), which was published from 1979 to 1987 and covered the neighborhood's arts, politics, and social currents during a transformative decade. 

The collection also documents the daily workings of a small publication – advertising, correspondence, datebooks, financial records, and more. Contributors included resident advice columnist Cookie Mueller, Richard Hell, and David Wojnarowicz, and the newspaper featured images from dozens of acclaimed photographers early in their careers. 

Sadly, Abrams died in April 2023, only a few months after the collection came to the NYPL. He was 68.

 

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St. Marks Veterinary Hospital is closing this month

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

After nearly 40 years in practice, St. Marks Veterinary Hospital is closing its doors this month at 348 E. Ninth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue. 

The last day for the business, founded in 1986, is Dec. 20. The hospital team will continue to take appointments until then.

Here's part of their closing via social media: 

With heavy hearts, we want to let you know that our hospital will be closing its doors on Friday, Dec. 20, at 2 p.m. This wasn't an easy decision. Reduced consumer demand in the area for primary veterinary care services has hindered our ability to meet our operational goals. 

We deeply value the trust you've placed in us to care for your pets and sincerely apologize for any challenges this change may present to you and your family. 

While this chapter is closing, we’re still here for you and your furry family members! We encourage you to visit our partner hospital:  

Reade Street Animal Hospital (2 miles away) 

Address: 146 Reade St.

Phone: (212) 519-0245 

This location is part of our Thrive community and accepts Thrive Plus members. You will continue to receive the high-quality care you expect at St. Marks Veterinary Hospital, and your pet’s records will transfer seamlessly. If you want a copy of your pet's records sent directly to you, please email us at stmarks.info@thrivepet.com. 

We're so grateful to have been a part of your pet's journey and your family's life. Thank you for the love and support you’ve shown us — we'll miss you all dearly and hope to see you at Reade Street Animal Hospital.

Strand employees reach tentative agreement, return to work pending ratification vote

Photo Saturday by Stacie Joy

After a three-day strike, management at the Strand Book Store has reached a tentative contract with its 80-plus union staff, who are represented by the UAW Local 2179. 

The employees returned to work yesterday. According to @strandbooksellers: "Later this week, we will vote to decide whether or not to ratify the contract and formally end the strike." 

Will Bobrowski, Local 2179's second vice president and a former Strand employee, told Publishers Weekly that if the contract is ratified, it will last through Aug. 31, 2028. 

More details: 

Among the changes to the contract, Bobrowski told PW, are an increase to the store’s per-hour hiring rate, which will now be $0.50 above New York State minimum wage and a $1.50/hour raise in an employee's fourth year, amounting to a roughly 37% wage increase over four years for Strand workers who begin at the base salary. (The minimum wage in New York will increase by another $0.50 on January 1, 2026, and on Jan. 1, 2027, the state's rate will be tied to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, taking inflation into account in the establishment of a minimum.) 

Striking workers were from the flagship Broadway and 12th Street store, the Upper West Side outpost, and the Brooklyn warehouse. This marked the first strike at the Strand since the early 1990s. 

During the strike, the store was reportedly maintained by a skeleton crew that included store managers, part-time non-union workers and other non-union administrative staff.

 

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9 Bleecker St. is for sale — and rent

There are dueling realtor signs at 9 Bleecker St. just west of the Bowery. 

First, there was a listing to buy the building via Corcoran for $6.6 million.

More recently, the space showed up for lease via RealNY... the floors are available for retail or office space...

This past Nov. 7, after 10 years at No. 9, Overthrow closed its boxing gym on the ground floor. As ownership wrote on Instagram: "Unfortunately, we took on immense debt during and post-Covid, which kept the doors open, but we can no longer afford our current lease, and the building has been listed for sale by the owner, making staying open unsustainable." 

This one-time home (41 years) of the Yippies, named and created by Abbie Hoffman and Paul Krassner, ended in January 2014 after a protracted legal battle. (Read this archived story in the Times for all the legal wrangling and history.) 

Overthrow was named after one of the countercultural newspapers that the Yippies published here.

Openings: Noona's Ice Cream & Bakeshop

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy

Noona's Ice Cream & Bakeshop debuted last Saturday at 304 E. Fifth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue.

This is the first storefront for entrepreneur Hannah Bae, a Queens native who launched her brand of Asian American ice cream flavors eight years ago. Her products are sold in several NYC businesses, including H Mart. 

The shop features scoops of ice cream, mini sundaes, ice cream sandwiches, ice cream cakes, regular cakes (baked on-site), and other baked goods. 

Hannah was not in when we stopped by... store manager Shantel (below left) gave us the rundown on the top-selling flavors to date: pandan coconut crunch, toasted rice, and the ube latte with Viet coffee. 

Store hours: Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday from noon to 10 p.m., with midnight close on Fridays and Saturdays.

This storefront was previously home to Anna. Designer Kathy Kemp moved her business to the Garment District late last year.

Tomorrow's weather tonight

The metropolitan area is under a severe weather alert until tomorrow night, with high winds, heavy rain, and thunderstorms expected. 

Here's an alert from the New York City Emergency Management Department: 

Drizzle turns into steady light rain overnight tonight with periods of moderate showers and embedded thunderstorms tomorrow morning. Little to no impact is expected during this time, including during the morning commute. A period of heavy downpours and potential severe storms is then expected between noon and 6 p.m. tomorrow. Heavy rain during this time may cause minor flooding of low-lying and poor drainage areas, and may temporarily disrupt the evening commute. 

In addition, there's a low chance for severe thunderstorms to produce sudden, localized damaging wind gusts, which may result in downed trees and power outages. A few lingering showers will be possible through midnight Thursday, but the heaviest of the rain is expected to end before 6 p.m. Citywide rainfall totals of around 2 inches are expected with locally higher amounts possible. Outside of thunderstorms, winds increase citywide out of the south tomorrow morning, reaching gusts of up to 55 mph...

And from the National Weather Service (and beware of loose outdoor holiday decorations!)...

A storm system brings strong winds and heavy rain to the region tonight through Wednesday.

🌧️Total rainfall of 2 -3 inches, locally higher amounts
🌬️Wind gusts 45 to 60 mph expected Wednesday
🎅Secure loose outdoor holiday decorations!

Forecast: https://t.co/wTqdsonfJ9 pic.twitter.com/RJf2EQOmCZ

— NWS New York NY (@NWSNewYorkNY) December 10, 2024

The curbside dining structure is coming down at Il Posto Accanto

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

The curbside dining drama is coming to an end at Il Posto Accanto. 

The owners of the decades-old restaurant at 190 E. Second St. started removing the roadside structure yesterday. The remaining wood flooring will be recycled today or tomorrow.

As reported last week, husband-and-wife owners Julio Pena and Beatrice Tosti di Valminuta had resisted removing the setup by the city's mandated date of Nov. 29. Diners were still using the heated event tent with side walls and a weatherproof vinyl top. Pena told us that losing the 20-plus-seat space would impact their business, forcing them to lay off staffers during the holidays. 

"We do not want to cut the hours of our staff or lay off staff. Give us until after the holidays," Pena told us last week. 

The DOT, which oversees the city's new permanent Dining Out NYC program, served Il Posto Accanto with a 30-day notice to remove the streetery over the weekend. 

However, ownership chose to go ahead and remove the outdoor dining spot here between Avenue A and Avenue B.

"We will not change who we are, how we interact with the neighborhood we love," Pena said. "We heard the community, we respect the community, and it's coming down. That's it."

Under the city's new guidelines, year-round roadway dining structures will no longer be permitted. The revised regulations stipulate that roadway cafes must now be open-air, easily portable, and simple to assemble and dismantle. Additionally, these establishments are restricted to operating only from April through November. Sidewalk cafes are permitted year-round.

Lower East Side cafe puts a Pause on laptops and iPads

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Laptops are off the menu at Pause Cafe. 

Management has implemented a policy banning laptops, iPads, and similar devices in the space at 3 Clinton St., just south of Houston. 

Instead, per the signage: "Reading, day dreaming and chit chatting encouraged."

Owner Amine Sadki shared that after removing his roadway dining structure last month and eliminating some seating, he decided it was time to make his cafe a laptop-free zone.

The rise of remote and hybrid work during the pandemic turned cafes into unofficial offices, with patrons sometimes nursing a single cup of coffee while occupying tables for hours. This trend has limited seating for customers looking to purchase food and drinks, reducing table turnover and ultimately impacting revenue.

This place on 1st Avenue is going to be Bananas

Photos by Lola Saénz 

Some clever signage has arrived at 174 First Ave. ... 

As you may have guessed, the coming-soon restaurant is called Bananas. (And no duct tape on the bananas? Must not be worth much!)

Here's more via a preview at The Infatuation: 

Shrimp wonton étouffee sounds promising. You can get some, once Bananas opens in the East Village. The minimalist Asian-American restaurant, from a few folks who worked at Shmoné and Blue Ribbon, will also be serving things like a miso caesar, alongside sake flights and shochu-based cocktails. 

The space was previously home to Emilia by Nai.