At the 24th annual Tompkins Square Park tree lighting

Late this afternoon, East Village residents gathered for the 24th annual Tompkins Square Park tree lighting ... EVG contributor Stacie Joy stopped by the event, which was hosted by the Tompkins Square Park Neighborhood Coalition, East Village Parks Conservancy and Third Street Music School Settlement.

The Mandel & Lydon Trio and carolers from Carolers of Olde New York from the Theatre for the New City provided the music. Veselka served hot chocolate with mini marshmallows and hot apple cider. Albert Fabozzi, who planted the tree 24 years ago to commemorate the loss of his friend, switched the lights on.

Here are a few scenes ...

The Tompkins Square Park holiday tree — now with the lights on

[Photo by Steven]

The 24th annual Tompkins Square Park holiday tree lighting ceremony is happening now until 5 p.m. ... and the lights just went on (thanks ConEd!). We'll post 458,223 more photos in the weeks ahead, or until the lights go dark in April.

We'll have photos of the festivities from EVG contributor Stacie Joy later on...

Week in Grieview

[Dog run serenade Friday via Derek Berg]

RIP Brian Fair, owner of Sounds on St. Mark's Place (Tuesday)

NYPD looking for suspects in apparent random East Ninth Street stabbing (Wednesday)

So you want to buy a tree for the holidays in the East Village (Tuesday)

Danny's Cycles closing East Village location (Monday)

Out and About with artist Tony Feher (Wednesday)

As the Hotel Indigo and Mr. Purple continue efforts to be part of the LES neighborhood (Thursday)

Report: Manhattan’s vacancy rates are highest in the East Village (but rent is still going up) (Thursday)

Jimmy McMillan quits politics (Thursday)

Caffe Bene opens on St. Mark's Place (Wednesday)

Elected officials call on SantaCon to adopt good-neighbor principles (Monday)

Patricia Field closing her Bowery storefront (Monday)

Construction watch: 22 Bond St./25 Great Jones (Thursday)

What's going behind 43 St. Mark's Place? (Monday)

Biang! is hiring, and looks to be open soon in the former Alder space on Second Avenue (Monday)

Ruffian Wine Bar signage arrives on East Seventh Street (Thursday)

Activity to note at interesting new business coming to East 14th Street (Thursday)

Ramen Zundo-ya opens on East 10th Street (Monday)

Makki Deli & Grocery has closed (Wednesday)

605 E. 11th St. is for sale (Monday)

Report: Fewer arrests and complaints about graffiti in the city

[East 2nd Street at Avenue C]

The Post checks in with an article titled "Graffiti arrests drop 30% as complaints keep pouring in" about how NYC is in ruins and stuff because of de Blasio.

To some stats!

• Graffiti arrests are down 31 percent since 2013.

• The police have arrested 2,497 "aerosol artists" (as the Post puts it) in the city so far this year, compared with 2,772 over the same period last year, and 3,598 in all of 2013, according to NYPD data.

• To date in 2015, there have been 13,185 graffiti-related calls to 311 ... which is down 11 percent from the 14,830 complaints in the same period last year, but up 3 percent from the 12,854 complains in 2013.

So. Fewer complaints than last year... and fewer arrests.

Sunset Park received 970 graffiti complaints this year... followed by Williamsburg/Greenpoint with 877 and the East Village/Lower East Side with 678.

As the Post notes:

Graffiti is a bellwether of “broken windows” crime, experts have said.

[Updating] Santa Clauses (and the Easter Bunny) came to town, as you probably noticed

A few scenes today from SantaCon in the East Village...

















Above photos by Derek Berg...

-----



















Above photos by EVG contributor Steven...

-----

To be continued...

12/13

Slum Goddess has photos and videos in a post titled I bring you: The annual nightmare that is SANTACON ... "I dealt with being groped, being told I am a "hottie" and being high fived over and over though I kept saying get away from me, and even lifted off the ground by drunk asshole saints."

9:30 a.m.

Here is Casey Neistat's SantaCon video...



1 p.m.

Several people asked what the sidewalks/streets/shrubbery/etc./ were like this morning.

There were some signs of what had occurred...


[Photo on 1st Avenue by William Klayer]


[Photo outside the Copper Still on 2nd Avenue by Mike]


[Photo off of 3rd Avenue by EVG]

Otherwise, it could have maybe been any other Sunday morning ...


[Photo on 1st Avenue & St. Mark's by EVG]


[Photo on Ave. A & 6th Street by EVG]

... and Det. Dave on 7th put this together with the help of his partner, EV Arrow, outside Black Rose on Avenue A near East Seventh Street...







Think that you got this one...



1:22 p.m.

The Post reports that an off-duty EMT dressed in Santa garb was arrested at the Village Pour House on Third Avenue and East 11th Street for throwing a beer mug at a bartender. The EMT reportedly got into a fight over the bill with the bartender. She was charged with second-degree assault.

4:59 p.m.

The sign outside Elsewhere Espresso on East Sixth Street made Reddit...

The 1970s NYC photography of Camilo José Vergara

[Photo on Avenue C by Camilo José Vergara]

Mashable has a photo essay on Camilo José Vergara, who started taking photos in the the South Bronx and Lower East Side in 1970 while a grad student at Columbia.

Read the essay and browse the photo gallery here.

The Santa bike gang has arrived...

It's getting dangerous in the East Village. pic.twitter.com/WREU1HUG3H

— Ainsley B (@AinsleyB) December 12, 2015

Arriving on St. Mark's Place...

Hot Kitchen is back open

[Photo by Steven]

Hot Kitchen is back in action today at 104 Second Ave.

The Sichuan restaurant here at East Sixth Street had been closed for three weeks after the building's landlord had work done on the main gas pipe.

On Thursday, the restaurant posted a sign with emojis to show their frustration at having to wait for Con Ed to turn the gas back on...

And obviously this is good news as well for the building's residents and the other storefront, Lions BeerStore.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Gas work in building temporarily shuts down Hot Kitchen on 2nd Avenue

The wait for the gas to return at Hot Kitchen explained with emojis

The Neighborhood School Holiday Fair is Sunday

The biggest fundraiser of the year is coming up tomorrow (Sunday!) at The Neighborhood School.

The fair includes a few familiar activities (photo studio, maze, car derby, etc.) and some new — Human Hungry Hungry Hippos??!??!??

Festivities last from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday (tomorrow!) at the school, 121 E. Third St. between Avenue A and First Avenue.

SantaCon signs of the times

[East 10th Street and 4th Avenue]


[Avenue A and East 11th Street]


[Phebe's, the Bowery and East 4th Street]


[East 10th Street]


[The Bowery and East 4th Street]