Memorial for Eric "Taz" Pagan grows outside Forbidden City

And down the street at Common Ground...




Previously.

Report: Lawyer representing alleged killer says his client is innocent

From the Daily News:

A lawyer representing an ex-con charged with murdering an East Village bouncer claimed Tuesday an off-duty cop witnessed the shooting and told police the alleged killer was innocent.

"An off-duty cop was present," said Paul Brenner, a lawyer for Louis Rodriguez, 29. "He said Mr. Rodriguez was definitely not involved."

Brenner's comments came after Rodriguez was arraigned in Manhattan Criminal Court on murder charges in the slaying of Eric (Taz) Pagan outside Forbidden City on Avenue A early Sunday.

"My client wasn't there," Brenner said, adding that he asked prosecutors about the cop -- whose name he did not know -- but got "no response."

The prosecution said they stood behind the charges.

The Village Pourhouse turns three (though it feels longer)

On Sunday, the Village Pourhouse at Third Avenue and 11th Street celebrated its third anniversary...



...and on this occasion, VP introduced its new Take Out Window... (The window has been there for some time, though apparently was never put to use... )



Over the past three years, the Pourhouse has helped bring numerous cultural events to the East Village, including the Snuggie Pub Crawl, the King of Pop Pub Crawl, the Toga Pub Crawl, the Halloween Pub Crawl, the 11th Annual Luck of the Irish St Patrick’s Pub Crawl, the Halloween Hangover Pub Crawl, the Cinco de Mayo Pub Crawl, the Olympic Pub Crawl...

Never been to the place myself. So I went to Yelp to find out what the people think. A sampling of various reviews...

Two stars!

Yes, it's right next to the NYU dorms, so there's bound to be trashiness and other obnox-auchery going on.

Sure, the food and cheap beer will attract ditzy, but hot, girls and ditzy, fratty guys, all of whom at one point of the evening will be spilling drinks on you, stepping on you, or crotch spooning you or all of the above.

Whatever. (I, of all people, can appreciate any or all of these things.)

But really. Really? This place attracts the douchiest crowd ever.

That's the bottom line. It's not really about the place, or the set up, or anything like that. It's merely the fact that for some reason, 90% of the people who spend a majority of their night here, end up being really irritating, obnoxious, trashy drunks.

And honey, it's okay to be drunk and messy and sometimes funny - even when you're not trying to be --

But for goodness sake, this isn't Hoboken. Now stop crying about how your boyfriend doesn't love you and get away from this congregation of douchebags.

Three stars.

Strange but pretty girl walks up to me...moves her scarf, insists i look at her chest and asks if I like Kansas...

she is making her breasts jump up and down and I realize she is wearing a Jay Hawks shirt. I hardly notice cause all I see are breasts...I don't lie...I say, I didnt even know who the jay hawks were until just now but from what i see i'd gladly learn more about them...she starts talking...i hear womp womp womp, womp womp womp, womp womp womp womp...not in that order. I come out of my fog and realize, she is still talking...and i remember some of the womps as south dakota then kansas then dc then New York. Then she excuses herself to go talk to her friend...yay.

And four stars...

Friendly staff, lots of tv's showcasing a variety of sports, three large rooms, great owners, great beer selection, food is simple but executed well. This is a sports bar and it accomplishes its goal.

Atmosphere is a bit on the popped collar side but it's a sports bar, so the whole goal is to attract sports fans, and if you don't like watching sports, then don't go to a sports bar, which you will notice because of the trail of polo shirts that lead you through the door :)

There you have it! Meanwhile, I keep hearing womp womp womp, womp womp womp, womp womp womp womp...

New place with sliding glass doors coming to Avenue C

Baraza on Avenue C near Ninth Street closed up earlier this summer... Something new is coming to the space...it looks to be another bar/restaurant. And those are sliding glass doors, which, depending on the volume inside, the neighbors will just love during the warmer weather months...



And Baraza was owned by the same folks up as Esperanto up the street.

Previously.

Window pain on the Bowery

The Chase branch on Bowery and First Street lost a window the other day. And someone else left behind a little saliva on the window next to it...

Press Advisory: "Stop the violence"

COMMUNITY UNITES TO CALL ON ELECTED OFFICIALS TO STOP SPIRALING VIOLENCE ON THE LOWER EAST SIDE

LOWER EAST SIDE COMMUNITY RESIDENTS JOIN TOGETHER TO PETITION ELECTED OFFICIALS AND GOVERNMENT TO WORK TOGETHER TO STOP THE VIOLENCE, PROVIDE JOB OPPORTUNITIES AND RESTORE FUNDING TO COMMUNITY PROGRAMS

Wednesday, Aug. 26, 11 a.m.

At
CAMPOS PLAZA TENANTS’ ASSOCIATION

205 AVENUE C at 12th STREET

(ENTER THROUGH THE ‘L’ on 12th and C)

Memorial service information for Eric "Taz" Pagan

One of Pagan's former co-workers at Forbidden City provided the following information:

VIEWING

Redden's Funeral Home:
325 W 14th St. N.Y. 10014
212-242-1456

Days:
Wed 4pm -9pm
Thurs 4pm -9pm

SERVICE

Immaculate Church 14th St. Btwn 1st Ave. + Ave A.
Friday MASS
UPDATE: The service begins at 9 a.m.

Previously.

At Lucy's: "We miss you!"

Well, Lucy's is on holiday until Sept. 10.

Unfortunately, not everyone knew. There are several notes on Lucy's door for people to meet elsewhere. Like, Amanda's birthday party was moved to the Niagara.





And there are people who just miss Lucy.



Like us. So. A few randomy random photos from our Lucy's photo archives from this past year...

Former Cedar Tavern is now "retail space available"

Well, plenty has been written about what's taking the space of the former Cedar Tavern location on University Place...six "floor-through loft-like residences," according to the listings. And it looks as if two units are left -- including the $3.4 million duplex penthouse!



And what about the groundfloor? I thought a tenant had already been lined up ...



For further reading:
Development Du Jour: 82 University Place (fka Cedar Tavern) (Curbed)

Pining for the Cedar (Flaming Pablum)

Meanwhile, Back on University Place (Flaming Pablum)

2 Coop shows some ledge, netting and numbers

And over on the Bowery, a few noticeable changes at 2 Cooper Square, the 15-story rental-retail combo. Such as the netting...and balconies...



and numbered floors...The numbers go to nine... and there are 12 floors, it looks like...




Previously.

Bloomy cover-up on Avenue B

Wondered how long it would take for someone to cover this up.

Arrest made in shooting death of Eric "Taz" Pagan

Not a lot of information so far on the arrest. According to reports, police arrested Louis Rodriguez on charges of murder, assault and criminal possession of a weapon. (1010 WINS)

UPDATE: The Times has more information. The Times reports that the man charged in the shootings is Louis Rodriguez, 29, of 452 East 117th St. He was arrested in Gramercy Sunday night.

UPDATE (Aug. 25, 8:51 p.m.):
The Daily News posted a story a few hours ago. According to the paper:

Police said the quarrel started when Rodriguez rolled up on the club in a white van and accidentally struck bar patron Salvador Moran, 31, as he stood outside with Pagan and Robert Calbo, 30.

Moran and Rodriguez started arguing until Rodriguez ended the back-and-forth with gunfire, hitting Moran in the neck.

Calbo was shot in the hand trying to push the gun away, police sources said.

That's when Pagan jumped in and tried break up the fight.

He was fatally shot in the face, cops said.

Rodriguez, who served nearly five years in state prison on a Bronx assault charge, was fingered as the gunman by witnesses

.

Tribute outside Forbidden City for Eric "Taz" Pagan

This was originally posted last night.

Dozens of people gathered outside Forbidden City on Avenue A tonight to pay their respects to Eric "Taz" Pagan, an employee of the lounge who was shot and killed earlier this morning after trying to break up a fight.




Pagan was not on duty at the time. According to the Daily News, the part-time electrician had stopped by Forbidden City on Avenue A near 13th Street to pick up some tools. Pagan, who had two teenage children, was 42.






No arrests have been made.



There's coverage in the Daily News and the Post.

Update Monday:

A few more details are emerging from the deadly shooting early Sunday morning that claimed the life of Eric "Taz" Pagan. According to the Post, Pagan was helping people try to find a set of keys outside Forbidden City:

A dispute began as several of the men searching for the keys were grazed by a passing white Nissan Quest, the sources said. The men on the street angrily yelled something at the driver, prompting him to stop and his passengers — three men and a woman — to jump out and start attacking them.

A witness, who asked not to be identified, said Pagan was trying to break up the fight when one of the men returned to the van, grabbed a gun and began firing.

Meanwhile, the Daily News checks in with a piece titled, "At city's clubs, violence is often part of job for bouncers." The article mentions other violent incidents in recent years, including two from the East Village:

• Dana (Shazam) Blake, 32, a bouncer at Guernica on Avenue B, was stabbed to death in 2003 by a patron he asked to put out a cigarette.

• Carlos Salome, a bouncer at Sing Sing Karaoke on Avenue A, survived being shot in the chest in May 2008 after breaking up a series of bar fights.



Earlier on EV Grieve:
Sources: One dead, two wounded in early-morning shooting on Avenue A

Bob Arihood was the first on the scene.

The slacktivists are back: Rally for the homeless set Friday night in front of the Christodora

For further reading:
"Mosaic Man" and the "Slacktivist" Promise New Tent City for the Homeless ... (Neither More Nor Less)

Saturday on the quad

Ah, Saturday afternoon... a little humid, threat of rain. Maybe won't be so many... Oh.

The tail end of the mammoth golf-themed (we assume!) pub crawl... Lining up for a putt across Avenue A...



Then catching up to meet the others in argyle and plaid.



P.S. Bonus!

...later, a bachelorette party featuring a penis-shaped balloon.



For further reading:
Frat-style hijinks (Jeremiah's Vanishing NY)

Noted: "It's all about sex all the time, and you're our star" edition

The Post checks in with a piece on the swanky Standard Hotel along the Highline.

Disgusted neighbors say they've seen men masturbating, professional porn films being shot and couples engaging in sex in full view of the stunning High Line park path running alongside.

The Standard's Facebook page bluntly encourages the explicit behavior.

"We encourage you to exercise your inner exhibitionist. Please share your intimate, and explicit photos with us -- those floor to ceiling windows aren't just for the views . . ."

The hotel Web site beckons:

"Whatever you do, just make sure the shots are HOT and that you get them to us in whichever way you can. It's all about sex all the time, and you're our star."

After the Post contacted The Standard for comment, the posting was abruptly changed.

And, despite the claim, the piece from the Post isn't an exclusive.

Previously:
Standard Hotel Nudity Check (Curbed)

Scarano's gated community continues to get gated and secure on the Bowery

We continue to keep watch on Scarano's E2E4 tower on the Bowery...



The gated driveway for the likes of Moby and John Legend looks nearly finished...



And the video/keypad security thingee is now up and running...



"Yes, we have the meat lover's pizza for Mr. Moby..."



Previous E2E4 coverage on EV Grieve here.

From burritos to bagels

The former Border Burrito on Third Avenue between 11th Street and 12th Street is becoming a joint called Everything Bagels Cafe.



But they sell more than just bagels, such as appetizing lads. Yuck!



Check that! Appetizing SALADS. Sorry!

Cindy gets herself worked up real good about the new pedestrian Times Square

With apologies to everyone from Whitefish, Mont., I'm sure. And why now finally? Did she just notice?

[C]ould someone please kindly tell me what the frig is happening in Times Square? Why in the middle of what is Earth's most famous urban tourist attraction -- aside from possibly seeing Brad Pitt's boxers -- are people now lying around on cheapo, crappo, junko lawn chairs?

I'm told our Department of Transportation commissioner is a very nice lady. Good to her family, donates to charity, works for the care and feeding of aging, homeless manicurists. Has a lovely-sounding hyphenated name, Janette Sadik-Khan, but . . . I mean, turning Broadway into Rockaway?

The hallway to the Street of Dreams is now Beach 34th Street? What's next? Sand? A boardwalk?

Wide-eyed tourists with cameras come from all over the planet to see the sights, look at the lights, feel the excitement, sense the thrill. To know the noise, the signs, the din, the hubbub, the action, the life. To tell their friends back home in Whitefish, Mont., or downtown Albania that they've actually, personally seen the buzz, the busyness, the traffic, the organized hysteria that is no place else in the universe but Times Square.

Now they see what? Sprawling, bused-in out-of-towners with Coke cans and brown paper bags flat out on camp chairs noshing and burping and snoozing and playing checkers in the center of the capital of the world.

Here's the whole shebang.

Sources: One dead, two wounded in early-morning shooting on Avenue A

One man was killed and two others were wounded after a dispute turned deadly early this morning on the northeast corner of Avenue A and 13th Street, according to several sources on the scene.




Not much is known at the moment. Police were still canvassing the area and protecting the crime scene. One nearby store owner said that it was not anything related to the Avenue A nightlife. However, another resident said that it was a doorman at one of the bars/restaurants on this stretch. (Note: While word on the scene from a credible source said there was a fatality, there has not been any official confirmation from the police.)

UPDATE: Bob Arihood was on the scene ... he has the timeframe at 4:20 a.m., with witnesses only reporting two gunshots and two wounded. His reporting supports what a resident told me: That the incident took place in front of Forbidden City; and that one of the men shot was employed there.



As of around 9 a.m., 1010 WINS was the only media outlet on the scene.

UPDATE: 10:43 a.m.

1010 WINS has the following report:

NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- Three men have been shot, one fatally, Sunday morning in lower Manhattan.

The shooting took place shortly after 5 a.m. outside a Mediterranean restaurant on Ave. A in Stuyvesant Town, police said.

All three of the unidentified men were rushed to Bellevue Hospital where one of them was pronounced dead. The other two were listed in stable condition, according to officials.

Area residents tell 1010 WINS' reporter Glenn Schuck, that they are upset the bars and clubs in the area stay open so late.

There's no word as to what may have caused the shooting. No suspects have been arrested.

Craigslist ad of the day: "This is for the OFFICIAL Michael Jackson Dancing Tribute Video"

Via Craigslist:

LOOKING FOR A CAR WITH DRIVER - URGENT (East Village)

Hi,
We need a car with good speakers and a driver for it for tomorrow, sunday august 23rd. This is for the OFFICIAL Michael Jackson Dancing Tribute Video, we will need you to come at 5 different locations in manhattan between 10am to 6pm and just pump up the volume of "Beat It" There will be hundreds of dancers and if you want, you can be part of the video! it will be seen all over the world.
The compensation is 100$ for the day.
please contact us soon this is urgent!!

Voice of America features the Mosaic Man

"I'm a history teller," he confesses, "because I put a lot of history into these things that somehow connects. Without the public's involvement it really wouldn't mean anything. Just another piece of work out here. I'm not doing this to stay sane. I came out here to do something. And all I know is one thing, everybody is wondering what they're doing on the planet. I'm not. It's my job. I've no choice." (VOA)