Construction site at 185 Avenue B remains shut down for now

Back in November, we pointed out the pounding noise coming from the construction site at 185-193 Avenue B... where workers are putting in the foundation for the new apartment complex at East 12th Street.

Per a resident adjacent to the space:

That construction at Ave B and 12th has become the bane of the neighborhood. The vibrations and shaking from it are endangering the old buildings nearby. The noise is unbearable. Why isn't there an uproar in protest from the local residents and merchants? Has the EV become a neighborhood of sheep?

According to one complaint to the DOB:

"Pile driving is shaking old buildings nearby; this new construction is set up to do a lot more of this; it is unnecessary and inappropriate construction technique for this old neighborhood."

Apparently the DOB finally took notice, issuing a Full Stop Order on Dec. 18 ... the site remains shut down several weeks later. A DOB inspector found a "vertical crack between buildings 181/183 Avenue B" directly next door to the site, per DOB paperwork.

In addition, the inspector didn't notice "a flagman" when deliveries were being made at the site ... this is especially troublesome given its proximity to the school next door.

The Specific Violation Condition(s) and Remedy via the DOB website:
FAILURE TO SAFEGUARD ALL PERSONS AND PROPERTY AFFECTED BY CONSTRUCTION OPERATIONS.

There's a hearing on the matter scheduled for Feb. 7. Meanwhile, some neighbors are enjoying the construction-free days. "That was like Christmas coming early," said one resident of the Stop Work Order.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Inside the Charles

Former landmark countercultural theater now for rent on Avenue B

7-story building in the works to replace former countercultural theater/church on Avenue B

Bargain Express has closed on East 14th Street

The months-long closing sale at Bargain Express has come to an end on East 14th Street. Ace photographer East Village Hawkeye was on the scene yesterday as the store, which lost its lease, closed for good here between Avenue A and Avenue B...

... and later...

And what's next? A still-unspecified new development that will eat up much of the block. As we previously reported, eight parcels consisting of 222 Avenue A and 504 - 530 E. 14th St. (not including No. 520) were leased for a 99-year period by the respective owner of East Village 14 LLC.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Conspiracies: What next for 14th Street and Avenue A?

Those ongoing rumors about the future of East 14th Street between Avenue A and B

Petland is moving away from East 14th Street, fueling more new development rumors

This winter at the Tompkins Square Greenmarket

From the EV Grieve inbox...

[Dec. 23 via the EVG Twitter account]

Tompkins Square Greenmarket is open year round with a great winter farm lineup. Note that we have a special addition for the winter: W. Rogowski Farm will be filling in for Norwich Meadows Farm while they are out over the winter.

Tompkins Square Greenmarket
Avenue A & East 7th Stret
Sunday 9am – 5pm year round

• Baker's Bounty Breads and pastries from Union County, NJ
• DiPaola Turkeys Turkey and turkey sausage from Mercer County, NJ
• Meredith's Bakery Baked goods from Ulster County, NY
• Pura Vida Fisheries Wild-caught fish and seafood from Suffolk County, NY
• Red Jacket Orchards Orchard and small fruit, juices and preserves from Ontario County, NY
• Ronnybrook Farm Dairy Milk, yogurt, butter, and ice cream from Dutchess County, NY
• W. Rogowski Farm certified Naturally Grown vegetables from Orange County, New York
• Stannard Farms Vegetables, orchard fruit, plants and meat from Washington County, NY

EBT accepted 9am – 4pm
WICx2: Double your WIC Fruit & Vegetable Checks at the Market Info Tent
Compost Collection & Textile Recycling 8am – 1pm

[UPDATED] Mamoun's remains closed on St. Mark's Place, thanks to Con Ed

Just after Dec. 25, we noticed that Mamoun's was closed on St. Mark's Place... we didn't think much of it... maybe they were taking time off when so many people were away, or something ... Well, one week later, the place is still closed. And there's a sign on the door with an explanation...

Here's basically the same message via Mamoun's Facebook page:

Con Edison shut off our gas at the Saint Marks location because of a gas leak at the building. Our line was not affected but they shut it off anyway. We cannot get con edison to come back and turn it back on because of their huge bureaucracy! We have been trying since Friday. Any suggestions people? Does anyone out there know anyone at Con Edison that could help us out?

Earlier in the fall, East Village Thai on East Seventh Street had to close because of a gas problem in the building. They didn't reopen for two months.

Updated Jan. 5.
Back open!

@evgrieve happy to report Mamoun's on St. Mark's is back open. Couldn't resist so of course I had falafel for breakfast.

— joshappelbaum (@joshappelbaum) January 5, 2013

From Naked Pizza to Joe's Pizza on East 14th Street

In recent months, we've noted for some reason that Naked Pizza on East 14th Street near Third Avenue has been closed ... turns out that's a permanent closure, though with a promise of a new location.

Meanwhile, The Daily Meal reports that the second location of Joe's Pizza will be taking over this space.

Here's what New York has to say about the Carmine Street pizzeria that has been around since 1975:

It's the epitome of what a slice is supposed to taste like: thin-crusted, with the proper balance of bold sauce and cheese that tastes like cheese, not rubber. Joe's also bakes Sicilian slices and pies, but he doesn't do fancy pie concoctions, heroes, garlic knots, or other diversions.

H/T Grub Street

Exclusive first look inside the new TD Bank coming to the former Mars Bar space

As you likely heard, the Post reported this week that a 4,300-square-foot TB Bank branch is opening in the former Mars Bar space. Now, a TB insider tells us that the branch will be modeled after the actual Mars Bar... with some former patrons working as tellers...

Here's an exclusive, hush-hush look at a training session at the branch one recent evening...

[Photo by Slum Goddess]

Oh, please don't boo! I'm very sensitive!

Winter Friday Flashback: Nickel beer at Sam's

On Fridays this winter, and probably spring and summer ... we'll post one of the 16,000-plus EVG, uh, posts from yesteryear, like this one from Jan. 6, 2009 ...

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Jeremiah's awful news yesterday on the possible demise of the Holiday on St. Mark's inspired to me look into some other old haunts on the street from year's past...I came across this article in the Time magazine archives on Sam's Bar & Grill.

The Nickel In St. Mark's Place
Monday, Apr. 4, 1949

Pale and shaken, 51-year-old Sam Atkins backed away from himself with a feeling somewhere between disbelief and awe. By a single, splendid cerebration he had been lifted out of the ruck into the status of a television curiosity. In his humble Manhattan saloon, Sam had decided to cut the price of beer (the 7-oz. glass) from a dime to a nickel.

Up to that moment Sam was just a pensioned pumper driver from the Bayonne (N.J.) fire department, and Sam's bar & grill was like any neighborhood joint around St. Mark's Place on the Lower East Side. Its only distinctive touch was Sam's cousin, "Bottle Sam" Hock, who amused the trade by whacking tunes out of whisky bottles with a suds-scraper. But the customers got a joyful jolt when Sam opened up one morning last week.

All around the walls, even over the bar mirror, tasteful, powder-blue signs proclaimed in red letters: "Spring is here and so is the 5¢ beer." The early birds drank and took their change in mild disbelief. The nickel wasn't obsolescent after all. The word spread. Sam's bar & grill started to bulge like Madison Square Garden on fight night. People drank, shook hands with strangers and sang.

Then something went sour. The two breweries that supplied Sam cut him off, and an electrician came around and took the neon beer sign out of the flyspecked windows. Somehow, it seemed, Sam had betrayed free enterprise. An organization of restaurant owners muttered that Sam might not be cutting his beer, but he was cutting his throat. The Bartenders Union threw a picket line in front of the place because it was nonunion.

But Sam hung on. He signed up with the union, managed to get his beer through a couple of distributors and a Brooklyn brewery, announced that he was going to have the windows washed, and keep at it. Said he solemnly: "The people want it." By this week Sam's idea had spread to other saloons in Washington, D.C. and New Jersey, and Sam was getting more trade in a day than he had drawn before in a week. The nickel beer was here to stay, Sam announced.

Photos via the Time archive.

Roosting on Avenue A

Photo today by Bobby Williams.

Mars Bar primed to make an East Village comeback?

[Photo by Goggla]

We heard the unsurprising news yesterday that the former Mars Bar in the Jupiter 21 (will never get used to that name) building will be home to a fucking bank branch.

And we wondered whatever happened to idea that the Mars Bar would return here some day.

Well!

Billy Gray has this scoop this afternoon at the Commercial Observer:

Now, a source familiar with the deal tells us that the lease includes a second retail space that could assume the notorious Mars Bar’s trade name and liquor license. The development company BFC Partners reached an agreement with the Mars Bar crew that would allow the next commercial tenant to occupy a 4,456 basement and ground floor space under the proud, stubborn and–who knew?–business-minded Mars Bar auspices.

Back in July 2011, we heard that owner Hank Penza already had a manager for the new space ... and the manager has the actual bar and jukebox from the Mars Bar for the next place. Perhaps we'll see it one day in the bowels of Jupiter 21.

[Photo via @IrisBlasi]

Or maybe we should just let all this die...?

EV Grieve Etc.: Mourning Edition

[THEBMBLB on East FOurth Street...]

Wetland proposed for East River Park (DNAinfo)

A walk on East Third Street (Off the Grid)

Good question: What happened to East First Street? (Flaming Pablum)

Ruff Club — the social club for dogs — opens this week at 34 Avenue A (The New York Times ... reaction to this from Jen Doll at The Atlantic)

The Fiscal Cliff deal's impact on New York (Runnin' Scared)

On the scene with the DOT's "Pothole Gang" (BoweryBoogie)

Another blue-collar business dies at the hands of the High Line (Jeremiah's Vanishing New York)

Sietsema's NYC restaurant trends for 2013 (Fork in the Road)

And there's a benefit tonight at Bar 82 (136 Second Ave. at St. Mark's Place) for longtime East Village photographer-artist Shell Sheddy... she has had to spend thousands of dollars in a legal battle the past few years with her landlord (Steve Croman), who has been trying to evict her... there will be live music, performances and a raffle... starting roughly at 7 p.m.

A fare to remember

A Toyota Prius cab from Baltimore spotted on East 11th Street and Avenue C...for some reason.

And, you ask (maybe), What is the fare from Baltimore to the East Village?

Hmm — $444.02 from Baltimore-Washington International. Roughly 198 miles at three hours and 26 minutes. Estimated.

Photo and headline via Andrew Adam Newman on Ave C

East Village stories to watch in 2013, (Part 2)

• New housing at the former Cabrini Center

[Dave on 7th]

Work continues at the former Cabrini Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation on Avenue B and East Fifth Street. We've already seen the listings for the two retail spaces available here.

Some time this year we'll certainly see listings for the residential portion too, which might make for a rather delicate sell. After all, Cabrini was a nonprofit, 240-bed nursing home that provided health care for low-income elderly residents in the East Village. How do you spin the broker babble to make buying into a place where people were spending the last days of their lives desirable? Well, we'll find out soon enough...

• David Schwimmer moves to East Sixth Street

Plenty of celebrity types move in and out around here and no one really cares. Daniel Craig, for instance. And then there is David Schwimmer, who is reportedly moving to the former site of a circa-1852 townhouse demolished prior to the area's landmarking.

Per the Post on Feb. 6, 2012:

Schwimmer, 45, snapped up the property for $4.1 million in 2010 — and the city Landmarks Preservation Commission send him notices on March 31 and May 27 of last year that it could get landmark status by the end of 2012, said commission spokeswoman Elisabeth de Bourbon.

But by September 2011, the building was gone, just four months after the city’s latest letter was sent to Schwimmer’s representatives.

So, just to spell this out, Schwimmer and/or his people knew that the building was under landmark consideration, yet they hurried and destroyed it anyway. (All perfectly legal though. So lay off!)

Then there has been the matter of some 18 month's worth of construction noise to understandably annoy the neighbors.

Which may have inspired people to write messages such as this on the plywood on the under-construction 6-floor mansion:

[I forget now who sent me this]

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• Welcoming a 7-Eleven to Avenue A

In recent weeks, we've seen signs of opposition against the incoming 7-Eleven on Avenue A and East 11th Street. First, someone carved "Fuck 7-11" into the sidewalk (twice) ... then we saw the anti-7-Eleven stickers ... and now... chalk signage on the sidewalk and crosswalks near the under-construction shop.

Meanwhile, workers are apparently getting testy, yelling at passersby who are taking photos from the very public street...

Construction worker gave me hard time for taking picture of the future 7-11... cc @evgrieve twitter.com/longom/status/…
— matt longobardi (@longom) December 31, 2012

Residents will be meeting again soon to discuss the incoming 7-Eleven. We'll post those details later.

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• New development for East 14th Street

[Click image to enlarge]

As we reported in late November, eight parcels consisting of 222 Avenue A and 504 - 530 E. 14th St. (exclusing No. 520) were leased for a 99-year period by the respective owner to East Village 14 LLC.

As some point this year, we expect to see a few more stores shutter along here (not to mention the Blarney Cove) ... as well as learn just what the new landlord has in store for these eight parcels of land.

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• A new bar-restaurant at the former Holiday Cocktail Lounge

The post-Stefan version of the Holiday Cocktail Lounge closed last Jan. 28. Barbara Sibley, the owner and chef of La Palapa next door, will eventually open a tavern-restaurant that serves staples such as fish-n-chips in the former Holiday space. She has said that she and her team will try to preserve as much of the history as possible.

Several longtime East Village residents have said that they are very optimistic about the new venture; that this will be good for the neighborhood. We're looking forward to seeing what transpires here.

We exchanged Facebook messages with Sibley back in November... she said work has been going slowly. Crews have been renovating the entire building, which Robert Ehrlich, the founder of Pirate Brands, purchased.

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This isn't meant to be any kind of exhaustive list of stories to watch... What are you keeping your eye on here in 2013? Let us know in the comments...

Previously on EV Grieve:
East Village stories to watch in 2013 (Part 1)

4 East Fourth Street apartment buildings hit market for $32 million

A new listing appeared yesterday for the sale of 195, 199, 201 and 203 East Fourth Street between Avenue A and Avenue B...

Here's part of the pitch via Massey Knakal:

The buildings are on four lots with a combined 100’ of frontage, approximately 27,770 gross square feet, 46 apartments and 1 store. ... the East Village is known for its diverse community, vibrant nightlife, retail diversity, restaurant density, artistic sensibility, and recent gentrification. The buildings feature 46 apartments split between 40 fair market and 6 rent stabilized units of which there are 18 one-bedrooms, 2 two-bedrooms, 21 three-bedrooms, 2 four-bedrooms, and 3 five-bedrooms. The fair market apartments have been fully gut renovated and feature beautiful dark hardwood floors, dark cabinetry, stainless steel appliances, granite countertops, marble bathrooms, new moldings, and high-end light fixtures.

Ownership has also completely renovated all of the building’s common areas, installed a coin-operated laundry room, upgraded the electric, repointed the facade wherever necessary, installed a new intercom system, and built newly added bulkheads leading out to private roof decks for many of the top floor units. They are in the process of creating private backyards for many of the lower rear floor units. These improvements have dramatically increased the rents being achieved in arguably Manhattan’s tightest rental sub-market. The 6 remaining rent stabilized units provide additional upside for the next owner of these assets.

We had heard some grumblings about the renovations here, especially how they were impacting the rent-stabilized units ... if you know more about the situation here, then please let us know via the EV Grieve email

Please do not spit on Zoltar

Thank you...

An Avenue D now and then; aerial view of the Lower East Side circa the 1930s

A rather random now and then... happened to spot it at the La Guardia and Wagner Archives on Flickr ... this now-and-then shot shows the northwest corner of Avenue D and East Ninth Street in 1947 and 2010...

And, as a Thursday bonus...

Per the La Guardia and Wagner Archives:

From the Bowery stop on the elevated, an aerial view straight along East Broadway, under the Manhattan Bridge approach, past The Jewish Daily Forward building (at center, rear) toward the Williamsburg Bridge in the distance, 1930s.

Find more from their extensive archives here.

East Village animal kingdom

Photos today via Bobby Williams...

Noted

@evgrieve if you need something positive about the 'hood: someone barfed salad in front of our shop! The appropriateness warmed my heart.

— Big Gay Ice Cream (@biggayicecream) January 2, 2013

The former Mars Bar is becoming a fucking bank branch

[A Mars Bar mural circa October 2009]

A 4,300-square-foot TB Bank branch, actually, as Steve Cuozzo reported today at the Post. It makes sense that the soulless new building rising here — dubbed Jupiter 21 — has an equally soulless type of retail tenant.

And whatever happened to Mars Bar owner Hank Penza's plan to open a new bar... or at least have the opportunity to reopen in the new building here on Second Avenue at East First Street?

East Village stories to watch in 2013 (Part 1)

• The reopening of St. Brigid's on Avenue B

[From October]

The restoration/renovation of the historic Avenue B church is winding down after several years... last we heard from a St. Brigid's watcher, the church is expected to reopen in the first few months of this year... and we can't wait to see the inside... Bonus question: Will neighbors ever get used to the bells?

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• Filling in the Mystery Lot

Ah, our old friend the Mystery Lot...

[Some time ago]

...will soon look like this on East 14th Street/13th Street east of Third Avenue...

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• The end (and new beginning) of Astor Place

Workers are quickly erecting the 430,000-square-foot office complex at 51 Astor Place ... which will shape up this year to look like...



Building aside, the city is also expected to dramatically reconfigure streets, parks and traffic islands around Astor Place and Cooper Union ... leaving us with that Midtown feeling...

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• 84 Third Ave. grows taller

We learned last month that the Karl Fischer-designed building rising at 84 Third Avenue at East 12th Street will be 12 stories, not nine as originally expected. Of any of the area's new development, this just may look like the most out-of-place project. And that's saying something.

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• A dorm for 35 Cooper Square

The former 35 Cooper Square was demolished 18 months ago here at East Sixth Street. Perhaps soon in the New Year we will learn more about developer Arun Bhatia's plans for a 9-story dorm, which are currently on file with the DOB.

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• Something for 100 Avenue A

[A scene outside 100 Avenue A yesterday by Bobby Williams]

Not much seems to be happening at 100 Avenue A, where East Village Farms closed in February 2012. The city disapproved the first round of plans to renovate the space, including adding a "dwelling unit" and roof garden on the upper floors.

The sidewalk outside the storefront has mostly been used to accommodate some people in need of a place to sleep this past year.

However, in one small bit of progress, the DOB did approve the foundation work here back on Nov. 9, per city records. Will we finally see work start on the renovations in 2013?

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• Development for the former Mary Help of Christians school, church and lot

Staying on Avenue A ... the saga of the Mary Help of Christians Catholic Church enters its fifth year... The Catholic Archdiocese sold the church property, which includes the Don Bosco Salesians rectory adjacent to the church and the church's former school on East 11th Street, for a reported $41 million. Douglas Steiner, owner of the Brooklyn Navy Yard's Steiner Studios, is the new owner, and he has plans for in the works for an 80/20 residential development.

...and this promises to be an enormous development ...

[Via Off the Grid]

Will the church be demolished to make way for the new housing? (The Landmarks Preservation Commission has already turned down requests to landmark the circa-1917 church.) Or will at least part of the church be incorporated into the design of the new building, much like NYU did by sort of including the façade of St. Ann's into the entrance of the 12th Street dorm?

Meanwhile, nothing will likely happen with the new development until workers have shored up the eastern wall at the East Side Community School on East 12th Street.

Tomorrow: East Village stories to watch in 2013 (Part 2)

In case you are looking for Out and About in the East Village . . .

The feature returns next Wednesday. Meanwhile, revisit all the posts from 2012 here.