[Updated] Dora the red-tailed hawk returns to Tompkins Square Park

A rep from the Wildlife in Need of Rescue and Rehabilitation (WINORR) returned Dora to Tompkins Square Park today.

The red-tailed hawk injured a wing back in late November. She has been in WINORR's care since then.

She has apparently made enough rehab progress to attempt a release on her home turf...



No one really knows how this is going to work. Injured wing aside, Dora's longtime partner Christo has basically set up house a nest with another red-tailed hawk, the mysterious Not-Dora/Nora. Goggla has the latest on that situation here.

EVG correspondent Steven, who shared these photos, said that after taking off, Dora has been perched in a tree near the dog run and hasn’t left.

Will update later. Be sure to visit Goggla's site here as well for more observations on Dora's return.

Updated 2 p.m.

More photos from Steven...









Updated 7 p.m.

Well, quite a day, per the red-tailed hawk watchers in the Park.

First, the good news. Dora appeared to be getting around OK on her rehabbed wing.

Then Dora visited last year's nest...



Then she swung by the nest that Christo has been making with Not-Dora/Nora...



She also went atop St. Brigid's on Avenue B at Eighth Street...



Steven last saw her leave to roost on Seventh Street...



There was some kind of skirmish between Dora and Christo and Not-Dora/Nora. (Hopefully Goggla will fill in the narrative here on her post.)

And there wasn't any romantic, fairy-tale reunion between Christo and Dora, who have had like 10 hawklets together.

Christo and Not-Dora/Nora were spotted mating on the Christodora House... not too far from where Dora was perched...



Updated:

Here's a link to Goggla's post with a lot more photos — and video.

Reminders: CB3 votes on the mayor's proposed tech hub tomorrow night

Community Board 3 is expected to make its final vote tomorrow (Tuesday!) night regarding the Mayor's plans for a tech hub.

Earlier this month, CB3's Economic Development Committee and Land Use, Zoning, Public & Private Housing Committee voted in favor of creating a "workforce development and digital skills training center" at the former P.C. Richard site on 14th Street at Irving Place.

The mayor's 20-floor project requires several zoning changes, and faces many hurdles before getting the final OK. After the full CB3 board, the Manhattan borough president and the City Planning Commission will weigh in before the issue comes before City Council for a vote later this year.

Back on Friday, amNew York explored the ramifications of the proposal in an article headlined Village residents worry proposed Tech Hub could speed neighborhood’s transformation into ‘midtown south’

The CB3 meeting starts at 6:30 p.m. at PS 20, 166 Essex St. just south of Houston. Tomorrow's CB3 meeting will be streamed live on YouTube, as the Lo-Down noted.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Behold Civic Hall, the high-tech future of Union Square — and NYC

Speaking out against a 'Silicon Alley' in this neighborhood

P.C. Richard puts up the moving signs on 14th Street; more Tech Hub debate to come

Valentine's Day post-mortem

Sad photo on Second Avenue and Fifth Street via Derek Berg...

650 E. 6th St.prepped for demolition; new condoplex on the way

An EVG reader shared the news this past Friday that workers started prepping the four-story 650 E. Sixth St. for demolition.

The building here just west of Avenue C is coming down to make way for a 7-story building that will apparently house condos.



This comes nearly two years after the building's new owners filed plans for the project. (The DOB OK'd the new-building permit in December.)

As New York Yimby noted in January 2016: "The 8,491-square-foot project will include 7,761 square feet of residential space, which means units will average 1,552 square feet apiece, indicative of condominiums."

Public records show that this building changed hands for $2.8 million in August 2013. The new owner is named East Village LLC in the filing.

No sign of a rendering just yet via RSVP Architecture Studio, whose other EV work includes the incoming condoplex on Second Avenue and First Street.

Meanwhile, in a positive development on this block, the city finally removed one of the two portable boilers late last year that had been parked here since Superstorm Sandy in 2012.



Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Plans in the works to convert 650 E. 6th St. to condos

Residents voice concerns about quality-of-life issues on 14th Street and 1st Avenue

There has reportedly been an increase in the number of residential complaints about a variety of activities on 14th Street and First Avenue.

The intersection was a focal point of discussion during a recent 13th Precinct Community Council meeting. (The 13th Precinct has jurisdiction starting on the north side of 14th Street.)

Town & Village covered the meeting. From their report:

The intersection at East 14th Street and First Avenue has recently become a hub for the homeless as well as unsavory characters who’ve been loitering, making neighborhood residents feel unsafe, a number of neighbors have been saying.

StuyTown Property Services general manager Rick Hayduk told the precinct commanding officer, Steven Hellman, that management has gotten an uptick in calls about the area.

“We wanted to heighten awareness about First and 14th because there’s been an increase in vagrants,” Hayduk said.

Residents have also voiced complaints to [City Council Member Keith] Powers’ office about aggressive panhandlers on the north side of East 14th Street across First Avenue from Stuyvesant Town and in front of the Papaya Dog and near the vendors at the corner.

There was a report of a stabbing outside Community Grocery & Candy on Jan. 11. Two men had reportedly gotten into an argument inside the store, and it turned violent out on the sidewalk.

More about the new venture from Pilotworks on the Bowery

Two weeks ago I mentioned that Pilotworks was the new commercial tenant at 347 Bowery. (Just the ground-floor space.) That was after spotting signage touting Pilotworks — which offers co-working space for food professionals — arrived on the corner here.





A rep for Pilotworks shared more about what they will be doing with the space. (Basically businesses who are part of Pilotworks will be selling their stuff here.)

Via the EVG inbox:

Pilotworks - Culinary Incubator is Opening FIRST Retail Space on Bowery

I’m excited to announce Pilotworks ... is opening their FIRST RETAIL concept on the Bowery in Spring/Summer 2018. Located at 347 Bowery ... food businesses (AKA members or makers) that operate in Pilotworks kitchens across the country will have access to increased visibility and exposure for the very first time.

The location is already catching eyes because the exterior is outfitted with REAL RESIGNATION LETTERS from members at Pilotworks, including Hometown Poke from the Pilotworks Providence (RI) kitchen, and Stagg Jam and Watermelon Road, both based out of the Pilotworks Brooklyn kitchen. These resignation letters represent the moment a dream becomes a reality and a true testament to the importance of pursuing what you LOVE.

Here's more about Pilotworks from their website:

Pilotworks is a new kind of business on a mission to change the landscape of the food industry. We operate high fidelity culinary incubators across the United States that provide specialized products and services to entrepreneurs in the food community to help them bring new companies and ideas to market.

Through our holistic approach, selected companies benefit from our flexible and affordable infrastructure, outsourced services, personalized mentorship, distribution reach, educational events and workshops as well as our vibrant community of culinary professionals looking to innovate the industry. Pilotworks (headquarters in Brooklyn) recently closed a $13MM round of Series A financing led by Techstars Ventures and Acre Venture Partners, alongside a group of world class venture capitalists and food industry veterans.

Pilotworks also has outposts in Chicago, Dallas, Portland, Maine, and Newark, N.J.

As for the residential portion of No. 347, the Annabelle Selldorf-designed 13-story luxury building features five stacked and expensive town homes. The site was previously the Salvation Army's East Village Residence, which closed in 2008.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Salvation Army's former East Village Residence will be demolished on the Bowery

Whatever happened to that really ugly hotel planned for the Bowery?

Looks like 347 Bowery will be home to a 13-floor mixed-use residential development

The future of 347 Bowery (sorta!) revealed

Let's take a look at 347 Bowery, now and in the future

347 Bowery getting its zinc supplements

Openings on Avenue A: Mama Fina's House of Filipino Sisig

Mama Fina's House of Filipino Sisig, an Elmwood Park, N.J.-based restaurant, recently opened its first NYC outpost at 167 Avenue A between 10th Street and 11th Street.

The family-owned restaurant serves dishes such pork sisig, lumpia shanghai and crispy pata. (You can find their menu here.)

A post shared by Mama Fina’s NYC HOFS 🇵🇭 (@mamafinasnyc) on Feb 24, 2018 at 11:10am PST

Mama Fina's hours are Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday-Saturday until 10 p.m.; Sunday from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. They are closed Tuesdays.

This space had been empty since Moonstruck Eatery closed in July 2016.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Mama Fina's signage arrives on Avenue A

Garbage bags now adorn the windows at Out East

Out East has been closed the past two months here on Sixth Street between Avenue A and Avenue B.

There hasn't been any sign of activity at the restaurant — except for the black trash bags that someone covered the windows with last week...



There was never any announcement about a closure at the seafood-centric restaurant that aspired to bring a little Montauk to Sixth Street. The Out East website has "expired" while Open Table notes the place has permanently closed.

One EVG reader who dined here a few times noted that after a strong debut last April, Out East quickly fell apart, with disorganized service and marginal food and portion size for the price.

The operators of the two-level, 124-seat restaurant — which underwent an extensive gut renovation to make it Out East — have been involved with hotspots such as Beauty & Essex and Stanton Social. Perhaps they will try something different in this space.

Noted

[Click for a better view]

Goggla shares this photo today from East River Park ... art doubling as an Urban Etiquette Sign (or the other way around).

Feb. 25

An EVG reader just spotted someone discarding this tree on Second Avenue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place... the tree still looks plenty lively a mere two months after The Big Day.

Anyway, one of the first candidates for MulchFest 2019.

Week in Grieview

[Last night at Royal Tailor on 11th Street]

Stories posted on EVG this past week included...

Pile driving for new building on Avenue C prompts arrival of crack monitors next door (Wednesday)

At the annual Mr. Lower East Side Pageant (in Queens) (Monday)

Jimmy Carbone and Paloma Rocket collaborating on new venture for the Jimmy's No. 43 space (Tuesday)

The latest I Am a Rent-Stabilized Tenant (Friday)

Honoring actor Joseph Sirola at Theatre 80 on St. Mark's Place (Monday)

Bad news for fans of Siggy's Good Food (Wednesday)

Still House relocating to 9th Street (Friday)

Clay Pot opens on St. Mark's Place (Tuesday)

A London-based hairdresser gave free haircuts to the homeless in Tompkins Square Park (Tuesday)

Avant-Garde-Arama at Performance Space grand re-opening (Thursday)

Retail for rent signs arrive for Steiner East Village storefronts (Tuesday)

A look at the former GG's space on 5th Street (Friday)

McSorley's turns 164 (Monday)

A spin through Downtown Yarns on Avenue A (Thursday)

Awaiting repairs for a sidewalk vault on 4th Street (Wednesday)

All is quiet at 75 1st Ave. (Thursday)

Last weekend for the Stone on Avenue C (Thursday)

Report: Financial firm takes the Death Star penthouse (Wednesday)

Chat 'N Chew reboot opens (Tuesday)

...and an opossum update from last night in Tompkins Square Park...

Opossum spotting! Dog barking at poor Opie up in his tree! @evgrieve pic.twitter.com/NiXovGhM0O

— EdenBrower (@edenbrower) February 25, 2018

---

Follow EVG on Instragram or Twitter

The Landmarks Preservation Commission under Mayor de Blasio's watch

In the Daily News today, Eric Uhlfelder — author of “The Origins of Modern Architecture” — contributes an opinion piece titled De Blasio vs. NYC’s historic buildings.

As he writes, even properties within historic districts are at risk of redevelopement ... and "the Landmarks Preservation Commission, the last line of defense for protecting historic New York, is rolling over rather than pushing back."

Two key players are responsible for LPC contradicting its own mandate: Chairwoman Meenakshi Srinivasan — who openly questions the LPC’s right to tell architects what to do — and Mayor de Blasio, who is promoting redevelopment at the cost of the city’s architectural heritage.

A recent study commissioned by the New York Landmarks Conservancy showed the Landmarks Commission in a typical year approved more than 99.5% of all applications in historic districts.

De Blasio named Srinivasan chair of the LPC in 2014 after her stint as chair and commissioner of the Board of Standards and Appeals, "an agency known for granting zoning variances to expand development rights."

In the East Village, Uhlfelder notes how "the LPC ignored requests by preservationists to landmark a group of Beaux-Arts apartment buildings, permitting development of a new graceless hotel." This would be the incoming Moxy hotel on 11th Street between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue.

Saturday's parting shot

Photo on Fourth Avenue today by Derek Berg...

Point of no return

NYC-born artist Yuno (now in Jacksonville, Fla.), who was recently signed by Sub Pop, released his first music video this past week... and Tompkins Square Park has a starring role... the above video is for "No Going Back."

H/T EVG reader VP!

The Webster Hall marquee

Here's a look at the Webster Hall marquee this morning.

As first reported last Sunday, the marquee became partially dislodged from the front of the landmarked building on 11th Street between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue. Crews erected this sidewalk bridge to keep the marquee from landing on the sidewalk.

Anyway, I fixed it...



Updated 2 p.m.

The downside of the repair...

Thanks, little help here! cc: @evgrieve. pic.twitter.com/MO6mLPOank

— pinhead (@evpinhead) February 24, 2018

Please remember to take your rice cooker with you when exiting the train

Thank you for your patience as we investigated a suspicious item at the Delancey/Essex St station- Service is back up and we have determined the item was not threat- Enjoy your night on the Lower East Side pic.twitter.com/jaIIcNpel5

— NYPD Transit (@NYPDTransit) February 24, 2018

A rice cooker that someone left behind on the F train last night at Essex and Delancey led to a bomb scare.

Per the Daily News:

Initial reports from authorities said the device was a pressure cooker with wires sticking out of it, but police later determined the electronic was not an explosive.

Subway trains were stopped while the bomb squad investigated and resumed running moments after cops gave the all clear around 8:45 p.m.

Meanwhile, in other MTA news from last evening, via PIX 11:

According to data released at an MTA meeting this week, New Yorkers took 1.727 billion trips taken last year, compared to 1.756 million taken in 2016, so roughly 30 million fewer trips.

"I'm not surprised. The subways have been pretty bad lately," said subway rider Leslie Spencer.

'Metro' NY

"Street Safari," the second record from Public Access T.V., was released today ... the above video, featuring actor Kevin Corrigan, is for the song "Metrotech."

Not sure where the band calls home these days... in 2015, they were living at 123 Second Ave., which was destroyed during the deadly gas explosion. (The band was on tour out west at the time.)

The decibelists tell New Yorkers' displacement stories in this new music video

Decibelists are an experimental pop band founded by native New Yorkers Emma Alabaster and Leo Ferguson.

They're sharing their new music video for “Galapagos” here (the East Village makes a few cameos).

Here's the band with more about it:

This video features born-and-raised New Yorkers who have experienced loss in some way brought on by gentrification. With powerful visuals, it shows the ways that People of Color, low-income New Yorkers, queer folks and artists experience displacement, loss of community spaces, and heartbreak as more and more neighborhoods gentrify.

The video was created through an interactive process of community engagement in which born-and-raised New Yorkers were invited to tell their “displacement stories” and create short narratives for the video. The song was written and performed by decibelists and uses rising tides and extinction as a metaphor for this displacement.

The video is a mix of dreamy cityscapes and ocean surf, real estate signs, construction sites and yuppie douchebags, set against the stories of real, very pissed-off New Yorkers.

And here it is...



On March 1, the band is hosting a fundraiser for grassroots anti-gentrification organizations featuring local artists and performers at Starr Bar in Bushwick. Find more details here.

Report: Gothamist will return via WNYC thanks to 2 anonymous donors

The amazing news is true—Gothamist is returning! https://t.co/rU1yg8I51m

— Gothamist (@Gothamist) February 23, 2018

Per WNYC:

In a deal largely funded by two anonymous donors, WNYC is acquiring the news site Gothamist, including its archives, domain name and social media assets. The move comes as part of a larger deal involving two other public radio stations and Gothamist's network of local news sites. KPCC in Pasadena, Calif., will take over LAist, while WAMU in Washington will acquire DCist.

"For more than a decade, Gothamist served as a source of trusted local news," New York Public Radio president and CEO Laura Walker said in a press release. "That resonates with us at WNYC, where we are committed to telling stories rooted in New York and that matter to New Yorkers. As we’ve seen a decline in local journalism in even the largest metropolitan areas across the country, even at a time when it’s so vital, we remain committed to strong, independent reporting that fills the void."

Per Wired, the deal was spearheaded by Gothamist founders Jake Dobkin and Jen Chung, who will start publishing again this spring.

DNAinfo, however, will not be returning. Its archives will live on.

Publisher Joe Ricketts abruptly shut down Gothamist and DNAinfo last Nov. 2.

Updated:
Find more details in the post at Splinter titled The Many Questions Surrounding the Revival of Gothamist.


Previously on EV Grieve:
Updated: Joe Ricketts just shut down Gothamist and DNAinfo (46 comments)

Audrey Hepburn print continues curbside tour

[Jan. 29 via Steven]

From Second Avenue and St. Mark's Place... to the Bowery and Great Jones this morning...


[Photo via Lola Sāenz]

I Am a Rent-Stabilized Tenant

East Village resident Susan Schiffman has been photographing the apartments of rent-stabilized tenants living in the East Village for her Instagram account, I Am a Rent Stabilized Tenant. She will share some of the photos here for this ongoing EVG feature.



Photos and text by Susan Schiffman

Tenant: Joey, since 1995

How did you find your apartment?

I’ve been in this apartment on and off since 1995. A couple of times when I was homeless I lived on a couch right here in this spot. Another time when Babs’ roommate didn’t want to give up his share but he wanted to move in with his boyfriend, I sublet his room. The tower room, I call it, because it’s right next to the steeple on the church next door. Then he moved back in.

I screwed myself on that one, because I kind of counseled him to not staying with his boyfriend if he wasn’t happy living there with him. I became homeless again. That was all the last millennia. This millennia when Babs started getting really sick, she moved back to St. Louis. I met Babs and her director friend when they cast me in a commercial. I met her at a gay rock-and-roll club down at Don Hill's on Greenwich and Spring. It was called Squeeze Box. It was a gay rock-n-roll night on Friday nights. So there I was on Friday night after drinking at the Wonder Bar on Sixth Street and another place called the Bar, which is by the Boiler Room near Second avenue and Fourth Street. I drank a lot of vodka on that corner.

After that we went to Don Hill’s. On Friday nights it was drag queens playing rock-n-roll. Mistress Formica. It was great. I like beer and rock-n-roll. I shake it too. I’ve been known to go to a disco. I’m more into the rock-n-roll thing. Weed and wine. There she was. Her and her director friend came up to me and said “we would like to use you in our commercial if you’re available.” Babs was an actor, she did voice-over. She had a great voice, great diction, great vocabulary. Unfortunately, she had to leave the apartment. It was still in her name. It was hard for her to keep track of and her health. That was 2002.

Babs and I were practically married, but we weren’t. She was going to marry me but then she married another guy who needed a Green Card. He was going to work at the U.N. and take care of her. But that didn’t work out. I had just started at NYU in 1997 and I wanted to marry her so she could use my benefits. And we were kind of together anyway. I had boyfriends and she had girlfriends but we were still like lovers. We were inclusive. We didn’t discriminate. If there was a vibe, there was a vibe. We never forced each other to change. We would sleep together.

The landlord knew about our friendship. She said, "take your time, go month to month. When you’re ready I’ll let you sign the lease in your name."









What do you love about your apartment?

I don’t take it for granted at all. My whole life is below 14th Street. I live and work within 10 minutes. I work by Washington Square Park and I live by Tompkins Square Park. I do not take that for granted.

It’s almost like a shrine to Babs. She would be pissed if she heard me call it that.

I grew up here with Babs. We had so many great memories. That’s Saint Mark's over there. I see all kinds of parades on Saint Mark's from up here. This is the Chrysler Building chair and this is the Empire State Building chair. The lights just went on the Chrysler Building. It's 5:30.















If you're interested in inviting Susan in to photograph your apartment for an upcoming post, then you may contact her via this email.

Still House relocating to 9th Street

Still House, which sells jewelry and home goods, is moving from 117 Seventh St. between Avenue A and First Avenue ... to 307 E. Ninth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue (next to Mudspot) ...

The signage for the Ninth Street location arrived yesterday...



EVG correspondent Steven, who shared these photos, said that they will be making the move in about three weeks.

The Ninth Street space was previously the women's boutique Pinkyotto.

A look at the former GG's space on 5th Street

GG's ended its three-year run on Fifth Street between Avenue A and Avenue B two months ago to the date — Dec. 23.

The pizzeria's ownership decided to focus on other projects. It had been reported that Emmy Squared, the Williamsburg pizzeria serving Detroit-style pizza, was taking over. (CB3 OK'd their new liquor license back in December.)

A few readers asked what was happening with the space... there hadn't much activity here. In fact, a look inside in late January showed a motorcycle parked in the former dining room...



Since then, the space has been cleared out...



I reached out to the Emmy Squared folks a few weeks back... and they didn't have any updates just yet. They originally expected to open this spring, per Eater.

Emmy Squared is also opening an outpost soon in Nashville.