You're a good mural, Charlie Brown

This mural/ad started going up on East 12th Street near First Avenue yesterday… (And that is Charlie Brown, right? Looks like the lone shirt that he owns.)

H/T dwg

Reminders: PS 64 press conference tomorrow

As noted on Wednesday, the Department of Buildings has put a stop to developer Gregg Singer's plans to convert the former PS 64 and CHARAS/El Bohio community center on East Ninth Street into a dorm.

The DOB had approved Singer's application to have tenant Joffrey Ballet considered a not-for-profit with housing accommodations as opposed to a dormitory. However, Joffrey is not a nonprofit, meaning the lease did not meet the DOB's requirements for educational institutions.

Councilmember Rosie Mendez and other local elected officials will discuss this latest development during the press conference.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Rebranded P.S. 64 up for grabs: Please welcome University House at Tompkins Square Park to the neighborhood

Deed for 'community facility use only' at the former P.S. 64 now on the market

Efforts continue to fight the dorm planned for the former PS 64 on East 9th Street

Testimony Of Councilmember Rosie Mendez regarding the former PS 64

[Updated] At the 'Save Our Community Center MARCH AND RALLY'

Landmarks Preservation Commission asks to see modified plans for former PS 64

The Landmarks Preservation Commission approves application for modifications at PS 64

'Misinformation' cited as DOB issues Stop Work Order at the former PS 64; community meeting set for Sunday afternoon

Just wanted to be the first to wish everyone a…

East Second Street near Avenue A this morning.

A memorial for bendy tree in Tompkins Square Park tomorrow

[This morning in Tompkins Square Park]

Rev. Billy and East Village residents are meeting tomorrow afternoon from 2:30-3:30 to hold a memorial for the leaning elm that the city removed last Saturday. From the EVG inbox…

The memorial will involve testimonials from residents of the community, including community garden, environmentalists and artists. The Stop Shopping Choir will sing.

The beloved 130-year-old elm was suddenly chain sawed on Saturday the 20th. Mystery surrounds the action taken by the Parks Dept., as the tree was healthy, not "structurally unsound" — as described in an anonymous sign. Bendy leaned to the east, as she has for more than a century.

The NYPD arrested Rev. Billy last Saturday after he tried to prevent workers from cutting down bendy tree. The NYPD charged him with Obstruction of Government Administration (he pleaded guilty), and sentenced him to time served — about 14 hours.

Previously on EV Grieve:
UGH: Bendy tree in Tompkins Square Park has been condemned

Bendy-lujah

That's it for bendy tree

NYPD arrests Rev. Billy for trying to stop Bendy Tree's removal

NYPD releases Rev. Billy after yesterday's Bendy Tree arrest

This morning at the East River Park Track

Spotted by EVG reader Brad212.

And beware…

@evgrieve angry raccoon-sized east river park (5th st) opossum!! pic.twitter.com/ksYIIO4Iqb

— East Village Kit (@EastVillChris) September 27, 2014

Rejected headlines:
Opossum, where art thou?

Feed a pigeon, feed a hawk

Tompkins Square Park this early evening around 5:30 ... photos by Bobby Williams

The big sleep

Here's "Endless Sleeper" by The Raveonettes from the new album "PE'AHI."

The Danish duo will be at the Music Hall of Williamsburg on Monday and Tuesday.

1 reason to eat at Chipotle on St. Mark's Place this evening

Info. via the Arts For All Facebook page ...

Between 5:30 and 8:30, Chipotle St. Mark's (19 St. Mark's Place) will donate 50% of your purchase to Arts For All if you mention us at the register and show them this flyer.

Arts For All is an NYC-based non-profit that provides arts outreach to in-need children.

The looking for a girlfriend guy now looking for funds for a documentary on looking for a girlfriend

But of course! Spotted on First Avenue and East Fourth Street by EVG reader Lauren Baier today.

Previously

298 E. 2nd St. latest development site up for grabs

Looks like people will need to find a new place to find inexpensive cases of Yuengling.

Houston Street Beer Distributors on East Second Street between Avenue C and Avenue D is now on the market.

Here are details via Corcoran:

This one story warehouse at 298 East 2nd Street sits atop a 25' x 105.92' parcel at the cross roads of the bustling East Village and Lower East Side neighborhoods. It is located in an R8A zoning district with an FAR of 6.02 (approx. 15,941 SF) or up to 7.2 FAR with Inclusionary Housing designated area bonus (approx. 19,066 sq. ft.) This prime development site is across the street from Hamilton Fish Park and a branch of the New York City public library, offering unobstructed southern exposures.

A new development would enjoy sweeping views of downtown and midtown Manhattan, Williamsburg, LIC and more. With City plans in the works to completely rehabilitate the piers on the East River from Midtown to the Financial District as well as the new construction that is sweeping the neighborhood including The Essex Crossing makes this a promising opportunity. A short distance to the promenade, fields, courts and tracks of East River Park, lively restaurants and shops of both the East Village and the LES. Lot area square feet: 2,648. Potential to combine with neighboring building which is situated next to an empty city owned lot...

This is a booming area now adjacent to the luxury rentals of The Adele on East Houston and Avenue D … The Robyn on East Third Street near Avenue D … and the new retail-residential complex coming to the former Mobil station on East Houston and Avenue C.

The listing also notes the proximity to the incoming Essex Crossing on Delancey… which seems like a stretch...



In any event, the asking price for No. 298 is $8.5 million.

Take a peek at the latest peephole dioramas on Avenue C

Since 2005, East Village artist J. Kathleen White has created a set of peephole dioramas that she displays along the fence in the Ninth Street Community Garden at Avenue C.

And the 2014 edition is now on display...







As always, be sure to check them out in person... and here are dioramas from 2013 ... 2012 ... and 2011....

This year's theme: Gold Eggs. (Or "Gold Eggs")



Photos by Bobby Williams

October CB3/SLA highlights: The International and The Cock on the move

[EVG file photo of the International]

CB3 released the SLA licensing committee docket yesterday … there will be two meetings this month — Oct. 6 and Oct. 20. We'll look at the whole agenda (only 21 items in total) in another post.

For the time being, we'll note two bars on the move.

First there's The International, whose owner Molly Fitch is eyeing the vacant space next door that previously housed South Brooklyn Pizza Co. We first reported this last Thursday. You can find out what's in store for 122 First Ave. here. (This item will be heard on Oct. 20.)

Meanwhile, The Cock appears to be leaving its Second Avenue home for Avenue B … specifically 25 Avenue B, according to paperwork at CB3. (The item is set for Oct. 6.)



No. 25 near East Second Street is currently home to Idle Hands. No word on what might become of Idle Hands.

You may find the full agenda here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The International eyeing move next door to the former South Brooklyn Pizza space

'The Grand Canyon' lives on East 4th Street

[Last September]

Last year at this time, "the Grand Canyon of East Fourth Street" received some attention via NY1.

Residents have been complaining for years about the cracks and uneven sidewalk on East Fourth Street between Avenue B and Avenue C (on the north side, a little closer to C).

Said one resident: "Anybody could fall break their leg or something. It's terrible. That needs to be addressed."

Per NY1 last September:

According to the city's Department of Transportation, it's the property owner's responsibility to fix the sidewalk. It turns out that the sidewalk sits in front of a city housing authority building. After NY1 told that to DOT, inspectors went out to take a look at what needs to be fixed. DOT said it'll start the process to make that happen.

The DOT never actually specified when they would make that happen. A resident notes that the Grand Canyon lives... as these photos from this week show...



Step right up! Don't be shy!



Previously on EV Grieve:
One of these years someone may finally do something about 'the Grand Canyon of E. 4th St.'

Noted

Well then! EVG reader Riley McCormick spotted this brand-new signage today in the long-tempty corner space on Avenue A and East Fifth Street.

Likely just an alleged wacky ad for the Bartrendr app.

Still, the sign gives you pregnant pause.

Updated

Here's a longer view of the corner... Gestations!



And for added impact — a State Liquor Authority notice...



We'll reach out to the broker for more info on the space... The ads originally stated no bars or restaurants, per the landlord's wishes...

There is also a Facebook page...

Davey drill arrives ahead of rumored development at former East 14th Street post office

Here's further proof of some kind of future development at the former Peter Stuyvesant Post Office branch on East 14th Street.

A reader spotted workers taking soil samples outside 438 E. 14th St. yesterday.

Signs about asbestos removal went up on Aug. 15.

A quick recap:

This post office branch just west of Avenue A closed for good in February. (The USPS is leasing the former Duane Reade at 333 E. 14th St. for retail services.) Previously, the Stuyvesant Stationery shop next door to the post office lost its lease and closed. Both single-level buildings share the same landlord.

To date, there's nothing on file with the DOB to suggest any demolition or new development here.

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

First sign of more development on East 14th Street?

Asbestos abatement to begin at former Peter Stuyvesant Post Office

Torah ark from East Village synagogue finds new home on Wall Street

[Photo from April by Bobby Williams]

The ornate Torah ark from the soon-to-be-condoed Congregation Mezritch Synagogue at 415 E. Sixth St. has been been moved to Episcopal St. Paul's Chapel, part of Trinity Wall Street.

According to The Wall Street Journal:

Changing demographics and a real estate deal played into this ark's path to an Episcopal church. Local historians and preservationists say Anshei Meseritz, built in 1910, was the last surviving tenement shul in the East Village. It was one of hundreds of similar shuls created to memorialize the birthplaces of immigrants living in what is now the East Village and Lower East Side.

The aron ha kodesh, or sacred ark, at Anshei Meseritz filled most of a back wall, reaching at least 12 feet high to a stained-glass window. The white and gold ark, with its painted faux marble, plump carved birds, striped spheres and a mix of Hebrew and Yiddish writing, represented a mix of new and old-world design...

As previously reported, the city approved the condo-conversion plans last December. Workers will renovate the building and add two floors.

The landmarked building between Avenue A and First Avenue was in disrepair and the congregation's population had dwindled. Synagogue leaders signed a 99-year lease with East River Partners worth some $1.2 million. The renovations include a penthouse addition and an elevator. The synagogue will reportedly retain space on the ground floor and basement for their use.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Plan to add condos to historic East Sixth Street synagogue back on

Play spot the potential penthouse atop the East Village synagogue

A final look inside the Anshei Meseritz synagogue on East Sixth Street

Stained-glass windows removed ahead of condo conversion at Congregation Mezritch Synagogue

Noted

Heh.

Spotted along Avenue A yesterday.

Previously.

Construction gets loud at 277 E. 7th St., but for different reasons

During the seemingly never-ending construction of the six-floor, six-unit residence rising from a former parking lot at 277 E. Seventh St. near Avenue D, we've heard a fair share of grumbling from neighbors.

Such as!

This construction is unreal. They start LOUD at exactly 7 am every day. I'm not sure what exactly they're doing that takes so long with such little progress.

I think they might actually be building their own powertools to use.

And!

The worst of the noise (yelling, banging, throwing things off high floors) starts right at 7am and lasts until 8:30 or so. The rest of the day, the guys are mostly looking at their cell phones.

Construction achieved a new milestone yesterday. A neighbor reported that the workers were blasting music from inside the under-contruction building... when they weren't texting or talking on the phone.

Some reports on Boilermaker, now open on 1st Avenue and East 1st Street

Golden Cadillac, the 1970s-themed bar that opened in the former Boca Chica space on First Avenue at East First Street, closed for good last July 3 after just eight months in business.

The owners revamped the space for another retro creation called Boilermaker, which is now open ... and enjoying press galore.

Here's a look at some of the previews/reviews.

First, Fork in the Road:

If design details and personnel are reminders of the previous concept, though, the menu couldn't be more different. Boilermaker takes its cues from a different era, the late 19th and early 20th century, when dockworkers would hunker down in bars for a post-shift beer and a shot, usually whiskey.

And the Daily News:

[Y]ou can try an All American ($6) which is Narragansett Lager and a shot of Ancient Age Bourbon, and groups of three or more can order the Bucket of Boilermakers ($45), that comes with a six-pack of Miller High Life and six shots of Buffalo Trace Bourbon.

The bar features cocktails on tap, like the the Uncle Jalapeño ($10) with tequila, jalapeño and pineapple soda. Or get nerdy with the Ken Burns Effect, which is a stirred drink with rye whiskey, oloroso sherry, maraschino liqueur and Angostura bitters.

“I asked people what they’d be willing to pay for a cocktail or beer and lowered it by a dollar,” says Greg Boehm of Cocktail Kingdom, one of the co-owners.

And here's the drinks menu that we borrowed from Gothamist...

Boilermaker Cocktail Menu

Previously on EV Grieve:
Boca Chica apparently won't be reopening on First Avenue; and the return of Golden Cadillac

End of the road: Golden Cadillac closes tomorrow night (29 comments)

5 years later, Os Gêmeos returning to the Houston/Bowery Mural Wall

[EVG photo from July]

While construction continues on the new two-floor building that will rise from the former home of Billy's Antiques on East Houston and Elizabeth, the adjacent Houston/Bowery Mural Wall makes a return next week.

Yesterday, Goldman Properties, the property owner and curator of the wall, issued a news release saying that the currently covered mural will be unveiled again this coming Tuesday at 5 p.m.

In July, workers trashed the makeshift canvas that covered the wall. What remained, though, was the original wall with the mural from 2009 by Os Gêmeos, the twin brothers and street artists from Brazil. This was the first mural that Goldman commissioned for the space.



Previously on EV Grieve:
The Houston/Bowery Mural Wall has been boarded up

The mural wall will remain on the Bowery and East Houston

Os Gêmeos: (Almost) day by day

Exit flagger

The flag man directing traffic at the construction site along 185-193 Avenue B waved the black SUV through the red light, according to witnesses, where it was promptly hit by another car at East 12th Street …



Meanwhile, the construction crew is pouring concrete at night without lights for the 7-story mixed-used residential building.

Thanks to EVG Facebook friend Derrick Loris for the photos.

BEWARE OF TREE CAT

Going for a walk today in Tompkins Square Park…

Photo by Bobby Williams

'Misinformation' cited as DOB issues Stop Work Order at the former PS 64; community meeting set for Sunday afternoon

[EVG file photo]

Developer Gregg Singer's plan to turn the former PS 64 and CHARAS/El Bohio community center into a dorm are on hold once again.

Here's the information we just received from Rosie Mendez's office...

Councilwoman Rosie Mendez will be joined by colleagues and community residents to celebrate a major step in trying to reclaim the historic landmarked building The Former P.S. 64 that once housed CHARAS/El Bohio Cultural Community Center.

On Sept. 22, the Department of Buildings (DOB) issued a Stop Work Order to halt any construction that may have begun under a Partial Work Permit that was issued based on misinformation to the Department.

Gregg Singer, the owner of 9th & 10th Street LLC, entered into separate lease agreements with Cooper Union and the Joffrey Ballet Center Concert Group Program (CGP) to convert the building into a student dormitory. On July 25, 2014, the Department of Buildings (DOB) approved Singer's application to have the CGP considered a not-for-profit with housing accommodations as opposed to a dormitory and issued a partial work permit in August to convert the ground and 1st floor into dormitory rooms for CGP.

After reviewing the objections raised by Councilwoman Rosie Mendez in a letter dated September 3, 2014, DOB determined that the lease agreements in which Singer and the two parties entered into did not meet the agency's criteria for a lease with an educational institution.

Moreover, DOB determined that CGP could not be considered a not-for-profit with housing accommodations since the application contained misinformation that disqualifies CGP for this status.

The Councilwoman surrounded by community residents will be presenting DOB’s findings in the latest of that this long standing battle to reclaim the building for community use.

The presentation is Sunday afternoon at 1 outside 605 E. Ninth St. between Avenue B and Avenue C.

Singer bought the building from the city in 1998.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Rebranded P.S. 64 up for grabs: Please welcome University House at Tompkins Square Park to the neighborhood

Deed for 'community facility use only' at the former P.S. 64 now on the market

Efforts continue to fight the dorm planned for the former PS 64 on East 9th Street

Testimony Of Councilmember Rosie Mendez regarding the former PS 64

[Updated] At the 'Save Our Community Center MARCH AND RALLY'

Landmarks Preservation Commission asks to see modified plans for former PS 64

The Landmarks Preservation Commission approves application for modifications at PS 64

City approves dorm conversion plans for the former PS 64 on East 9th Street

Report: 50,000 square feet of condos coming to the former 2nd Avenue BP station

The BP station on Second Avenue and East First Street closed in early July.

And now The Deal Deal hears what's next: 50,000 square feet of condominiums and 7,000 square feet of retail.

AORE Capital, which purchased the site for $32 million, will take charge of the site’s development. There are no details yet on how tall the building will stand, how many residential units it will include or the prices of those units.

As a comparison of what is in store here ... the newish Jupiter 21 across the Avenue at the site of the former Mars Bar is 57,658 square feet.


[EVG file photo]

There's nothing yet on file with the DOB about the new development.

Previously on EV Grieve:
RUMOR: Gas station going, boutique hotel coming on Second Avenue? (31 comments)

BP station on 2nd Avenue closes this month

The 2nd Avenue BP station has closed

Post discovers that cyclists often run the light at 1st Avenue and St. Mark's Place

From the Post today:

For New York cyclists, red lights means go almost 80 percent of the time — despite an NYPD crackdown and the recent deaths of two pedestrians hit by bikes, The Post has found.

From 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday, reporters at three busy intersections observed 1,006 cyclists encounter a red signal — often with pedestrians in the crosswalks — and a staggering 796 of them passed through before it turned green.

As your can see from the graphic, First Avenue and St. Mark's Place was one of the intersections where a Post reporter hung out for 8 hours watching.

Out and About in the East Village, Part 1

In this weekly feature, East Village-based photographer James Maher provides us with a quick snapshot of someone who lives and/or works in the East Village.



By James Maher

Name: Michael “Mikey” Cole
Occupation: Owner and Head Chef, Mikey Likes It Ice Cream
Location: 199 Avenue A (Between 12th and 13th)
Time: 1:30 pm on Wednesday, Sept. 17

Thirty-Five years ago, born and raised on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. I grew up in Stuyvesant Town, across the way. My parents are from Sierra Leone, West Africa. [They came here] when they were around their late 20s or 30, I think.

They tried to teach me lessons that I didn’t really know. They tried to be very rigid when I was a child, which kind of also makes you want to venture off and see the crazy side of the world. My mom was a nurse. My dad worked at the supermarket and then he worked for the City of New York. He carried like two, three jobs and my mom had two jobs, so sometimes they wouldn’t see each other for two or three days. I see my parents work hard and that’s what instilled the value of working hard myself. They tried to get me what I needed. I wanted them Jordans, ‘You’re getting the Avias.’ Damn. But they’re sneakers, so, you know? I’m glad that they instilled a hardworking value in myself.

As a child the neighborhood was cool. You had to stay out of trouble. You went anywhere around here and there was trouble up and down. I remember Friday the 13th or Rookie Day, that’s what we used to call it. It was real. I would get out of school at PS 19 and would go outside and be like, ‘Man, this is some fake bullying holiday.’ There were like 60 kids waiting outside to pummel you. You were like, ‘Damn, I’m gonna have to pull the Barry Sanders off to get home.’ But it was definitely fun growing up.

From Avenue B, 14th and Avenue B, the Campos projects there, they always had problems with the kids from Avenue D, which was two blocks from there, so when you came down to this area people didn’t want to venture off past Avenue B. Even Avenue A was tough. You would get off the train and just stay on First Avenue until you’d find your street and then you’d turn left or right. People rarely wanted to come into these areas. On 14th and First, there was drug dealing going on and clashes between people. In the 80s, even the 90s, you’d come outside and there was always something going on. You’d walk outside and walk down 13th Street and there was a bunch of people hanging outside and drinking on the stoop.

What was cool was the competitiveness. Kips Bay, up on 28th Street, these guys played basketball. Then you’d get the kids from Campos, Avenue D, 12th Street, 6th Street, who would play basketball. So all of us would roam around with our own teams of five. You’d roll five deep. After you’d lose, ‘Okay lets pack it up, let’s go over here.’ That’s what the weekends were like. You’d get to know other kids because we were all playing basketball. We all did the same damn thing anyway. You might not know their names but you’d say what’s up walking by. I can’t really walk down the street without someone saying, ‘Hey Mikey, how you doing?’ Now I have the store but way before that it was like that.

I got into ice cream because of my aunt. [Yesterday] was her birthday. When I was younger she would take me to school in the morning. Her name was Luciana but I called her Lucy. She was on my mother’s side. My grandfather was a chef on cruise ships, so my aunt came over and all she wanted to do was learn to cook just like her father.

So when I was in the third, fourth, fifth grade, since my parents weren’t home, I would sign up for Boys Club and go there a couple days a week. But my parents still didn’t want me out, so I was forced to go to cooking school with my aunt. I was the kid in the corner who would sit at the table with a whipping bowl or something smaller. Because of that, I was intrigued with cooking at a young age.

When my parents left me at home, my mom would leave like five dollars. ‘Get some pizza for you and your sister,’ and I’d be like, ‘Let’s not get pizza today, lets go to the supermarket, see what we can get for five bucks and make something.’ I made some nasty tasting ramen noodle experiments. But one day I was like, ‘I’m not eating like this anymore, I’m going to eat good tasting food’ and I just sort of learned cooking. Growing up, I became the kid that, showing up at any barbeque, and people were like, ‘Pass Mikey the tongs!’ I would be anywhere. I would be like, ‘Hey guys, I’m hanging out today,’ and it would automatically become, ‘Yo, Mikey’s cooking burgers.’ Everybody’s running to the grill.

I went to high school in Rhode Island, and then I ended up going to Johnson and Wales culinary course out there when I was in high school. I wanted to cook all the time. My mom would leave and my dad would be like, ‘I’m glad she’s gone, you’re cooking tonight.’ Then my aunt Lucy passed away. When she passed away my parents sent me to her apartment to clean. So I’m cleaning up the apartment and I saw four or five cookbooks up in the shelf. I’m short and I tried to reach for it and all the books fell and one of them opened up to an ice cream recipe and she actually was writing one herself. The school would make her write menus and stuff.

So then I came home, went to the supermarket, bought all the stuff and tried making the ice cream. I didn’t have an ice cream maker, I didn’t have nothing, I just did it in a freezer with a bowl and would stir it every half an hour. The texture came out disgusting, but the taste was kind of old school. It was like Julia Childs type stuff, but it needed to get some Mikey [influence]. So I sat there and started researching.

That recipe from my aunt is actually the base of ice cream that I use to make all these ice creams. The flavor is me giving it flavor on the top.

Next week: Mikey Cole on starting the business from home. "We’d be at my house for hours filling up the freezer with ice cream until my mom was like, ‘You gotta get that shit out of here.’

James Maher is a fine art and studio photographer based in the East Village. Find his website here.

Let's talk about rats

The 6th Street A - B Block Association is co-hosting a talk on rat prevention with the NYC Department of Health tomorrow night at 7 at the 6th & B Community Garden. Details are on the flyer below…



An organizer says that the area has been inundated with rats of late … in part because of the demolition of 98-100 Avenue A between East Sixth Street and East Seventh Street.

Meanwhile, in Tompkins Square Park, some people think the rat population is near the levels of the TSP Ratstravaganza during the summer of 2011.

And, despite the signs, people never stop feeding the birds and squirrels ... ultimately helping supply the rat colonies ...





Bottom photos this week via Scuba Diva

... and this morning in the Park...

Gut renovations enter 16th month at 338 E. Sixth St., where 1 tenant remains

[Photo from yesterday via EVG reader Michael Hirsch]

Three flatbed trucks with sheetrock arrived here yesterday on East Sixth Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue ... where Rory Denis remains the only tenant in the building at 338 E. Sixth St.

He has lived in a rent-stabilized apartment here since 1979.

As DNAinfo reported last October, Denis stayed in his apartment despite the best efforts of landlord Nurjahan Ahmed.

Denis reportedly took Ahmed to housing court last year after she switched off the electricity and water. Denis won the case in June 2013, which forced Ahmed to restore the services.

Word here now is that workers have installed the new electrical wiring and plumbing. (DNAinfo reported that the gut renovations began in May 2013.)

Meanwhile, according to city records, a Stop Work Order exists on the address. Per the DOB's ALL-CAP STYLE: "CONSTRUCTION SITE UNSAFE - WORKER CONDITIONS UNSAFE."

The city issued the Stop Work Order last Thursday. Despite this, construction work continues.


[Early last evening]

Previously.