Exclusive: The Smurfs show their immature side while filming in the East Village

The corner of 10th and C ripe for something new and trendy?

Christine's Deli and Grocery on Avenue C at 10th Street has closed... the inside has been gutted.... and the roll-down gate was freshly painted by workers this week...



There's always the Avenue C Deli on the corner of 12th Street, though be mindful about loitering....



Anyway, as for 10th and C... I'm curious about the future here... what direction will it go? Something for the community (grocery, laundromat, etc.) or, say, another bar to complement the nearby Sunburnt Cow and East Village Tavern?

A lot of fuss to watch Neil Patrick Harris exit a cab for 10 seconds

I was one of the many fools people who stood around for a bit to witness the filming of "The Smurfs Movie" on Seventh Street between Avenue A and First Avenue tonight... we were all basically there to watch Neil Patrick Harris exit a cab and enter 111 Seventh St. carrying a box. Then they did it again... and again...









And this is a huge production... with trucks and equipment on Avenue A from Sixth Street up to 11th Street...

Seventh Street, 5:41 p.m., April 29

Your Shepard Fairey/Cooper Square Hotel daily update!

"7th grade heaven" on Seventh Street

Previously on EV Grieve:
On Seventh Street tomorrow: Smurfs, Ted Danson, craft services

EV Grieve Etc.: Mourning edition

Ray's benefits denied again (Neither More Nor Less)

Punk redux (Flaming Pablum)

Billy Leroy is a "believer in the spirits and ghosts of the old Bowery" (Jeremiah's Vanishing NY)

Remembering "Little Spain" on West 14th Street (Ephemeral NY)

The future of Coney Island boardwalk is worse than you think (Curbed)

Farewell to Freddy's (The Brooklyn Paper)

Proposed Belgian Ale House in the "Crazy Landlord" building on Second Ave. unleashes some branding (Eater NY)

A Bank of America treasure map? (BoweryBoogie)

Smart Crew hits Second Avenue...



Also, noted on 10th Street:

Exclusive first look at "The Smurfs Movie" filming today in the East Village

Well, I can dream that they film a scene in the Mystery Lot...

Previously.

How Lit Lounge is trying to be a better neighbor

During the CB3/SLA meeting on March 15, the owners of Lit Lounge -- the two-floor bar/music venue/art gallery at 93 Second Ave. -- were requesting a license transfer to launch a new venture in the space.

As Eater reported that night: "The pitchforks and community outcries came out ... several community members brought signs and spoke out against the owners of Lit, complaining about crowds on the sidewalk forcing pedestrians to walk in the street and music that plays past 4 a.m. on weekends."

There was more: "You run an unbelievably irresponsible business," said one young man who moved above the bar six months earlier. (He's not renewing his lease.) Nearly every speaker invoked the same phrase: 'Lit is not a good neighbor.'"

As The Lo-Down reported: "One resident called the owners 'a lawless group,' who don't bother cleaning up broken glass on the sidewalk, refuse to control their customers and are unresponsive to complaints."

The owners withdrew their transfer request until they can demonstrate that they are willing to make changes.

I recently contacted David Schwartz, one of Lit's co-owners, and asked him what Lit has — and will — be doing in the coming weeks to be a better neighbor.



Via e-mail, he sent me a lengthy list of the steps they are taking. Among them:

Security
Hired an extra person outdoors for crowd control from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m., and to tell patrons to watch belongings inside. Also, we're now asking people to kindly move on after smoking outside or go back inside. We also have brand-new red ropes for two separate corrals for smokers outside.

Noise control
Limiters for sound system
Turn amps down to take control away from DJs.
Informed all staff to tell appropriate parties to lower music if too loud.
Informing people who are controlling the levels how to adjust the system to keep levels fair and balanced.
Lowering bass.
Hiring sound engineer to do meter readings next door.
Soundproofed whole side of bar.
Music off at 4 a.m. mandatory

Safety
All signs have been replaced or made noticeably bigger.
Cameras.

Band loading
Making sure someone is at Lit while load in takes place and load out happens safely and earlier than later.

Staff
Gave out a memorandum that stated that the some neighbors and community board were not happy with Lit. Listed different topics for them so they could give me some more creative, serious ideas to help us be better neighbors.

The Lit owners have also places fliers on adjacent apartment buildings...



Last Thursday, Schwartz met with members of the East 5th Street Block Association, several of whom spoke out at the March 15 CB3/SLA meeting. The Block Association will be approving and signing a list of the stipulations... I hope to have those soon...along with some more local reaction.

Schwartz said that Lit will likely wait several months before returning to the CB3 to make sure that they're doing things right...

Mud Truck ready again for action?

Nearly two weeks have passed since the Mud Truck was seen on Astor Place... as Eater noted, the truck was hit by the Department of Health...

However, last night, I spotted the truck out front of its home on Ninth Street near Avenue C...



... looking ready for action... and no sign of the telltale DOH sticker...



Updated:

Maybe not... no Mud Truck in the usual spot on Astor Place a little bit earlier this morning ... but the guy in the DOT van here was drinking coffee...

Final dance for the Musical Box?

Given it's draped front door, it's always hard to tell when the Musical Box on Avenue B near 13th Street is actually open... However, it appears the well-worn former hotspot might be closed for good...

Northern Spy expands

Six-month-old Northern Spy on 12th Street was closed on Monday and Tuesday for some renovations...



The restaurant reopened last night... and team Spy have simply removed the cases that sold to-go items in the back and replaced them with a few more tables... makes sense, given that the place seems to be getting more popular...



More info via the Northern Spy Web site.

Will old PS 64 get a theater for nonprofit groups?

Last Thursday I noted that the sidewalk shed had been removed by workers at the old PS 64 space owned by developer Gregg Singer ... fueling plenty of speculation, mostly by me.

Anyway! The plot thickens here on East Ninth Street ... Scoopy notes the following in his column in The Villager this week..

"Michael Rosen, a Christodora House neighbor and founding member of the East Village Community Coalition, tells us there may be a new twist: A local preservationist ... recently told him that, while plans are still to make the building a dorm, now the owners also want to renovate the old school's existing basement theater and rent it out to a nonprofit theater company. And Singer is still very much involved."

And then the Scoopster let's loose:

"Clearly, Singer wants to exploit preservation-specific tax credits he can get for renovating the landmarked building — the same building he ironically defaced only a few years ago, trying to reverse its landmarking. Talk about 'theater of the absurd.'"

I forgot what H was for

Here's an exclusive, upclose look at the H in the new HSBC branch sign at Second Avenue and Ninth Street... yep, she's a beaut. Thanks guys!



Hoist her up!