Polar bear, party of one

Aw, not everyone is happy about these above-freeezing temps... such as the formally more rotund polar bear here on East Ninth Street...

Photo and headline via Grant Shaffer

Introducing the East Village Independent Merchants Association (EVIMA)

From the EVG inbox...

Introducing EVIMA

A gathering with food, conversation and more information about the East Village Independent Merchants Association (EVIMA)
Monday, Feb. 24
7-9 pm
Ciao For Now
523 E 12th Street (between Aves A & B)
Light Snacks Provided

East Village Community Coalition (EVCC) has been collaborating with small business owners in order to create the East Village Independent Merchants Association (EVIMA).

This meeting will be an informative, yet fun opportunity to hear about EVIMA, meet other local merchants and learn how you can join us in promoting, connecting and representing local merchants in the East Village.

While EVIMA’s main focus will be to support independently owned businesses with daytime hours, we welcome any East Village business owner to attend the meeting.

For more info ... and to RSVP, visit the EVCC website here.

[EVG file photo]

Dumpsters are ready for the remains of the Peter Stuyvesant Post Office

As we first reported earlier, the Peter Stuyvesant Post Office on East 14th Street closes for good at 1 p.m. today. (The branch here near Avenue A will be open tomorrow JUST for P.O. Box customers make arrangements for the new P.O. outlet at 333 E. 14th St.)

Meanwhile, @nyev_eliza noted the arrival this morning of dumpsters outside the East 13th Street loading docks... perhaps we'll finally find that "lost" box from xmas 1994 in the dumpster.

The Peter Stuyvesant Post Office closes for good TODAY

After nearly a year of speculation, the day is upon us (without much notice): The Peter Stuyvesant Post Office closes for good today at 1 p.m.

EVG reader EVJenn shared this sign hanging in the lobby from yesterday … where there was "hysteria abounding"…



The branch here on East 14th Street near Avenue A will be open tomorrow JUST for P.O. Box customers… and the new location will be open Monday at 333 E. 14th St., the former Duane Reade that the USPS is leasing JUST for retail services, such as stamp sales and P.O. boxes. (EVG regular Ken from Ken's Kitchen has pointed out that large parcel services will operate out of the F.D.R. Station at East 54th Street and Third Avenue. Convenient!)


[Photo from Feb. 12]

Initially, word was that the USPS was unable to come to terms on a new lease with the building's owner. However, a rep for the owner, Benenson Capital Partners, told the Town & Village blog and the Save the Post Office blog that it was actually the USPS's decision to leave because of a desire to downsize.

Last fall, the Stuyvesant Stationery shop next door to the post office at 432 E. 14th St. lost its lease and closed. So they'll be some space here for some kind of new development.

Previously on EV Grieve:
UPDATED: Did you hear the rumor about the Peter Stuyvesant Post Office branch closing?

Report: Closure of the Peter Stuyvesant Post Office is pretty much a done deal

Today in rants: the Peter Stuyvesant Post Office

Meanwhile, at everyone's favorite local post office branch...

Reader mailbag: What has happened to the Cooper Station Post Office?

Con Ed unveils new signage to warn pedestrians and their pets of stray voltage

Last night, Con Ed displayed its first, new warning sign in the East Village along an electrified sidewalk in front of the Key Food recycling center on East Fourth Street and Avenue A. Con Ed created these signs to more clearly communicate possible electrical danger (as opposed to some tape and cones and some dude sitting in a car with an orange vest on).



East Village resident Garrett Rosso, a board member of NYCdog (the New York Council of Dog Owner Groups) told us this last night:

Perhaps it's too soon to know whether the new signs will be effective in warning pedestrians and dog owners of the danger of electric shocks in the area. Or perhaps New Yorkers are too busy to even notice.

NYCdog urges dog owners to recognize Con Edison's new signange. People walking pets should change their route whenever they see the signs. The area is usually safe for pedestrians to pass because their shoes provide some insulation. However, dogs can recieve shocks anywhere around the area through their bare paws — especially when the ground is wet.

This past weekend, Bella, an 11-year old pit bull terrier mix, was electrocuted by frayed wiring from a scaffolding light on Clinton Street.

This prompted the following warning from NYCdog:

NYCdog (the New York Council of Dog Owner Groups) has issued a emergency alert for dog owners in all 5 boroughs. There have been numerous reports of dogs and their owners being shocked from sidewalk voltage.

The predicted warm weather combined with street flooding over the next few days are likely to trigger more incidents of dogs and their owners recieving shocks.

NYCdog urges all pet owners to exercise caution and be aware of their surroundings. Avoid manhole covers, sewer caps, metal gratings, Con Edison repair locations as well as all overhead scaffolding at constructions sites. The public is urged to call 911 if you or your dog is shocked.

If you suspect your dog is recieving a shock, dog owners should not touch their pet or the ground. Pet owners are adivised to immediately about face and use their leash or other non-conductive object to maneuver their pet away from the area — voltage may increase as you travel forward.

For more information, please email: info@NYCdog.org

There were several reports of stray voltage around the East Village back in December … The stray voltage reportedly shocked several dogs… and some residents were upset that Con Ed took too long to respond to the issue… as well as did a lousy job of communicating, what, exactly, all the tape and cones were for on sidewalks.

Following this, Community Board 3 officials as well as Councilmember Rosie Mendez's office contacted Con Ed officials about how to better manage and communicate issues related to stray voltage.

Con Ed officials will also be present to answer any questions or hear any concerns at the CB3 Public Safety/Transportation meeting on March 11 at 6:30 p.m. Location: University Settlement at Houston Street Center, 273 Bowery.

Huertas, opening this spring on First Avenue

[Photo by Bill the Libertarian Anarchist]

Just taking a quick look at 107 First Ave. between East Sixth Street and East Seventh Street… where renovations continue for Huertas, a restaurant featuring "the cuisine of Northern Spain."

Here's more about chef-owner Jonah Miller's first restaurant via the Huertas website:

Born and raised in New York, Jonah Miller ... began spending his summers working in some of New York’s greatest kitchens when he was 14, beginning with two seasons at Chanterelle and then moving on to Gramercy Tavern and Savoy, among others. Most recently, Jonah was part of the opening team at Danny Meyer’s Maialino, where he spent three years.

After leaving Maialino, Jonah returned to Spain, where he had spent a semester during his Food Studies and Restaurant Management B.S. program at NYU. A month spent eating his way around northern Spain provided the finishing touches to the vision behind Huertas.

The restaurant is expected to open this spring. You can find a sample menu here.

This address was previously home to L'asso EV, the pizzeria that closed in July 2013.

Senior year is going by so quickly

Hey, time again for Doc Holliday's annual Prom Night tonight at Ninth Street and Avenue A. As you can see, there are prizes for the Dance Queen Dance Contest and the Best Dressed Dude.

Please be nice to everyone's parents… and don't forget to remove the corsages and boutineers from the fridge.

… and now, an old person's prom reference… oh Randy!

East Village Ukrainian community mobilizing as fighting continues in Kiev

The violent clashes in Kiev — where the death toll reached 75 today, according to Reuters — have mobilized the Ukrainian community in the East Village.

Per amNY:

The Ukrainian Congress Committee of America, located in the East Village, announced a protest in front of the Consulate General of Ukraine, 240 W. 49th St., at 2 p.m. Sunday, with a march to the Russian Embassy.

"Everyone is extremely worried and concerned. Things seem to be escalating so fast — on a minute by minute basis," said Elizabeth Szonyi Donovan, UCCA Assistant Director. Local Ukrainians, she said, are glued to coverage of Kiev on the news and via social media

Father Bernard Panczuk, pastor for the East Village's St. George Ukrainian Catholic Church, where about "3,000 souls" worship, announced that he would hold a "requiem memorial service following the Sunday's noon liturgy for those who have been killed in Maidan," the city plaza where riot police have clashed violently with protestors.

At the Daily News, Denis Hamill talked with Irene Bracero, St. George's secretary.

"My phone doesn’t stop," she says. "Calls from my father, who is 74. My grandmother. My two sisters text me all night. Things are so bad in Ukraine. All we want is peace."

She stands. She paces. She checks her phone. She sits. She drops her head in her hands.

Portraits of Iranian prisoners on display in Tompkins Square Park

[Photo by Bobby Williams]

This was the scene in Tompkins Square Park this afternoon. And here's the official explanation of what was on display (via Facebook):

The Iran Human Rights Documentation center teamed up with the Inside Out Project, created by the Parisian street artist J R, in a pop-up protest against the incarceration of journalists, artists, feminists and other activists in Iran on the morning of February 18th outside the United Nations and at Tompkins Square Park on February 20th.

Like the J R project, in which large portraits of ordinary people are plastered on walls and sidewalks, the installation at the protest included portraits of 11 people who are currently imprisoned in Iran, and two who were recently executed.

[Photo by Goggla]

DNAinfo has the story from today here.

Walter De Maria's home/studio on East 6th Street is now on the market for $25 million

A few weeks ago, the Times brought the news that the longtime home-studio of the late Walter De Maria was ready to hit the real-estate market for $25 million. The artist, who died last summer at age 77, had lived/worked here since 1980.

The listing arrived on Streeteasy yesterday. Here's the pitch:

421 East 6th Street is a 4-story, 16,402 square foot loft-style building featuring soaring ceilings, original 1920s interior fixtures and spectacular views, ideal for an ultra-luxury single-family. Since 1980, the building has been the home and residence of the renowned artist Walter De Maria.

Constructed in 1920 as a Con Edison substation, 421 East 6th Street maintains many of its original 1920s industrial finishes and features including exceptional slab-to-slab ceiling heights ranging from 14-3 to 32-3. Other remnants of its classical design include dramatic multistory warehouse windows, an old-fashioned through-floor pulley system and exposed brick and ceilings.

The building is one of the tallest in the immediate vicinity providing spectacular views of the surrounding area and New York City skyline. Constructed on a through-block lot, the Property has a driveway entering the rear of the building from East 7th Street. The building is also afforded light and air on three sides.

And some photos…









… and the view from the roof…



The sale also includes the empty lot next door at 419 E. Sixth St.

To date, we are still waiting for someone to randomly lend us, or better, give us, $25 million.

Seriously, though: Any thoughts/predictions on what might happen with this building? Converted to condos? Kept as a single-family home? Turned into an art gallery/museum? (Heh.)

Previously on EV Grieve:
About that "giant-robot laboratory" on East Sixth Street

RIP Walter De Maria

What is your East Village dream home?

Walter De Maria's 'giant-robot laboratory' going for $25 million; inside is amazing as you'd expect

Alphabets is closing, and moving to its other store on Avenue A

[Via Facebook]

Last July, Alphabets opened a new outpost at 64 Avenue A for its gift shop ... this was done ahead of a planned move from its home of nearly 30 years at 115 Avenue A... As you can see from the sign above, a moving sale is underway...

According to public records, the building at 115 Avenue A was sold in August 2012 for $3 million. The LLC that bought the building shares the address as the notorious 9300 Realty (owned by Croman Realty). A tipster told us that Alphabets could not negotiate a new lease.

Per the sign: "We are not throwing in the towel — in spite of the rising rents in our neighborhood."

We're happy that they're sticking around…


[The newer Alphabets at 64 Avenue A]

Previously on EV Grieve:
Alphabets opens new outpost on Avenue A

Reader mailbag: Can the landlord 'drill' the lock to gain access to my apartment for simple repairs?

An EVG reader shared a note from his landlord ("not one of the usual suspects") about repairs taking place to the building's intercom ... Seems fairly routine, but the workers need access to each apartment... per the note, the residents must either be at home or leave their keys with the super... if not ...



... "we will be forced to drill your lock and provide you with new keys" ... presumably to the new locks that will magically appear after being drilled off...

The reader asks, Is this legal? (And for the record, the reader says the landlord/management company is generally cool.)

Seems kinda extreme? (And yes, looking forward to the inevitable, "If you don't want the landlord drilling off your lock, then buy your own apartment/building" comment.)

-------------

We often get reader queries ... asking for help with, say, donating clothes or books ... or finding an East Village-based caterer... If you have a question for the masses, then try the EV Grieve email...

Previously on EV Grieve:
Reader mailbag: Places to eat that have that old East Village vibe (45 comments)

Reader mailbag: What do I do about my new neighbors who smoke pot all the time? (52 comments)

Reader mailbag: Where is a good place to get a cup of coffee in the East Village before 6 a.m.? (25 comments)

Reader mailbag: What has happened to the Cooper Station Post Office? (41 comments)