The land trust proposed a price of $18.5 million. Of that amount, $5 million would be paid to the archdiocese upon closing. The remainder, which would use a combination of federal tax credits and state and local funding, would be paid in installments over a 20-year period.
David Brown, the church’s director of real estate, told Val Orselli [a project director with Cooper Square Community Land Trust] he would get back to him.
Several months later, Orselli returned to Brown's office. In a show of support, representatives of city councilmembers Carlina Rivera and Margaret Chin, as well as the Manhattan regional representative from Governor Andrew Cuomo’s office, accompanied him.
But Brown was unmoved. The offer was insufficient, he told them. Among the sticking points was the land trust’s inability to pay upfront.
“He told me, ‘A dollar today is worth more than a dollar tomorrow,'” Orselli recalled.
Orselli took the rejection as a sign that the church, a tax-exempt institution, was more interested in getting top dollar for its property, which has been estimated as being worth as much as $50 million.
“I was a bit naive,” he said. Referring to the land trust’s pitch to do something with the property that was aligned with papal doctrines, he added, “They couldn’t care less.”
Incoming thunderstorms over #NYC.#fridaynight @evgrieve pic.twitter.com/dYHuBrtIRr
— Evan Kapitansky (@evan_kapitansky) March 16, 2019
The way he lived his life will continue to inspire us all -#FDNY Chief of Department John Sudnik remembers FDNY Fire Marshal and @USAirForce Captain Christopher “Tripp” Zanetis pic.twitter.com/Q8Q2sYtXkA
— FDNY (@FDNY) March 15, 2019
"That morning he never had time to get out of his van. They got him right before he got out of his van," said retired NYPD homicide detective Jimmy Piccione.
Piccione responded to the crime scene, just a few blocks south of the eatery whose owner had become almost as famous as his steady stream of celebrity visitors.
"It was 8:30 in the morning, I remember thinking there is going to be a witness and it's going to be solved quickly, and 17 years later, here we are," said Piccione. "That morning Abe pulls up to that parking spot right there but before he gets out, he's accosted by one or more persons. He's taken to the back of the van and he's shot. Someone drives the van to First Avenue."
Abe, dying, manages to crawl out of the van onto the sidewalk.
"A passerby says, are you okay, and he says, "They got me."
The gun was found 2 days later in Central Park. It was later linked to 3 different shootings, but never to Abe Lebewohl's murder.
"We've been to Las Vegas, New Orleans, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina. We went wherever a lead would take us," said Piccione.
Neighbors have said work often ends at 11 p.m. on weekdays and Saturdays, although the MTA has said it tries to stop any noisy work by 10 p.m. But on Tuesday night, the MTA’s chief development officer overseeing the project, Janno Lieber, committed to stopping work by 7 p.m. at a meeting held by Community Board 3’s Transportation Committee.
“We’re constantly looking for ways to minimalize the impact of our work on neighbors, and they understandably have been asking for shorter hours,” Shams Tarek, a spokesperson for the MTA, told Town & Village.
Tarek added that the MTA wanted to first consult the contractor to make sure doing this wouldn’t lengthen the duration of the project, which includes the creation of an Avenue A entrance to the First Avenue L station. The new schedule of 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday to Friday, with possibly shorter hours on Saturday is effective immediately.
The duo is resisting traditional versions of pho or banh mi on the menu, with Ngo instead harking back to the food of her youth in Vietnam that she doesn’t often find here.
The menu is split into three sections of food from those three cities, Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) in south Vietnam; Hue, in the middle and which was once the royal capital of the country; and Hanoi up north. Ngo says that the food of central Vietnamese city Hue is very time-intensive and complex, though with gentle flavors, and she’s not seen many versions of it here. One example is shrimp and pork tapioca dumplings, which are made from tapioca flour and steamed in banana leaves. Dishes from other categories include stir-fried pho noodles and lemongrass beef tartare.
Panel Discussion with Penny Arcade, Agosto Machado, Ben Morea, and Robert Watlington
Many fondly look back on the 60s as the heyday of the East Village when throngs of youth descended on the neighborhood. Diggers arrived from San Francisco and opened a free store on East Tenth Street, Bill Graham turned a local theater into the Fillmore East, be-ins were held in Tompkins Square Park, and artists and craftsmen offered their wares in local shops.
The arts flourished during the period, as many influential theater, poetry, and dance groups formed which helped reshape American culture — and continue today. St. Mark’s Church became a focal point for poets, political activists, radical community organizing, and dance and theater groups. Ellen Stewart started Café La MaMa, presenting theatrical works in a basement on East Ninth Street. Rock music from the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane to The Group Image bellowed from the Tompkins Square bandshell at free concerts.
While the era has become mythologized over time, this evening Howl! Happening invites a panel of intrepid souls who lived in the East Village during the 1960s to reflect on their experiences.
Both the City and State are opposing the building owner's application to reject tenants' leases, an application that is a thinly-veiled attempt to flout rent regulation laws and displace tenants.
"Bankruptcy Court should not be used as a tool to unjustly oust rent-stabilized New Yorkers from their homes," James said. "In filing this motion, my office is working to ensure that the tenants are not displaced. Housing is a right, and we will continue to use every legal tool available to stand up for tenants and to enforce their rights."
"The owner of 444 East 13th St. has spent years illegally harassing the tenants living in these rent-stabilized apartments, and this legal maneuver is just the latest shady tactic to remove these long-time New Yorkers from their homes," she said in a statement. "Bad actors across New York need to be put on notice — our government is in the business of protecting and expanding rent-regulated apartments, and I certainly will not sit idly by while harassment takes place in my District."
For years, these residents have stood resilient in the face of attacks by their predatory landlords. Today we rallied to send a message that greed is not a case for displacement & won’t be tolerated. Thanks to @TishJames @MTorresSpringer @NYSHCR & @GOLESNYC for standing united. pic.twitter.com/SaCzvXCtz5
— Carlina Rivera 利華娜 (@CarlinaRivera) March 13, 2019
