Big storm ⛈ coming this way. #eastvillage @evgrieve pic.twitter.com/4KsZZOzaED
— Evan Kapitansky (@evan_kapitansky) August 9, 2019
Thursday, August 8, 2019
Thursday's parting storm tweet
Grant Shaffer's NY See
Here's the latest NY See panel, East Village-based illustrator Grant Shaffer's observational sketch diary of things that he sees and hears around the neighborhood.
Time capsules: The Gap of St. Mark's Place
An anonymous commenter left the link to this YouTube clip on yesterday's post about the northwest corner of St. Mark's Place and Second Avenue being for rent.
From 1988 to 2001, the Gap was in that retail space.
A YouTuber named Steve Haskin created this video — "circa 1997" — on St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue...conducting interviews with passersby about the Gap's arrival. (At this point, the store had been there for nine years already, so...)
In any event, the four-plus minute clip is an entertaining time capsule (#tbt!) ... and a document showing how much the block has changed these past 20-plus years...
Previously on EV Grieve:
When the Gap moved into the East Village
New 14th Street busway regulations go into effect on Monday
[Click on image to go big]
On Tuesday, a judge lifted a temporary injunction on the 14th Street busway... and the city is quickly putting the new bus- and truck-only route into effect starting on Monday (Aug. 12).
Here's a quickie overview via the DOT:
6 a.m. to 10 p.m.: Buses and trucks only between Ninth Avenue and Third Avenue. All other vehicles may make local trips, but must turn at the next available right.
10 p.m. to 6 a.m.: All vehicles may make through trips along the corridor.
In late June, right before the new busway was to launch on July 1, a coalition of block associations filed a last-minute lawsuit to block the project, arguing that the city failed to complete the proper environmental review for the work.
However, State Supreme Court Judge Eileen Rakower stated on Tuesday that the city "went to great lengths to describe the consideration that went into the analysis, considering pedestrian deaths, dangerous intersections and not just the speed of the bus that is going to traverse 14th Street." (Quote via Gothamist.)
The busway was to coincide with the arrival of the new M14 Select Bus Service, which launched July 1 featuring off-board fare payments and all-door boarding... all in an effort to speed up the notoriously sluggish M14 line during the L-train slowdown.
Analysis from Transportation Alternatives and Riders Alliance found that rush-hour M14 bus riders spent a combined 8,654 additional hours commuting over the last month than would have been the case under the city’s plan to transform 14th Street into a busway.
The Boilery up next for 58 3rd Ave.
[Photos by Steven]
Signage arrived this week for the new restaurant opening at 58 Third Ave. — say hello to The Boilery...
We don't know too much about this self-described "seafood & grill." The applicants, who also operate Meet Noodles a few storefronts away, were on this month's CB3 agenda for a beer-wine license for the space here between 10th Street and 11th Street. The hours are listed from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, with a midnight close on Friday and Saturday.
Perhaps the owners of The Boilery can bring stability to the address. This space has been three restaurants — Jin Kitchen and Bar, Shu Han Ju II and Mulan East — in the past four years.
Updated:
The Boilery has a second location on Amsterdam Avenue... find their website here. (Thanks Upper West Sider for the tip!)
Bowlmor Lanes-replacing condoplex cleared of construction equipment on University Place
EVG reader Doug shared these photos of the 22-floor retail-residential complex on University Place between 12th Street and 13th Street (space that was, in part, home for 76 years to Bowlmor Lanes).
Doug notes that all the construction barriers around the complex have been removed, perhaps signaling the end to the exterior work here...
We last checked in on the building in March 1, 2018. At the time the condoplex with the sandstone-colored façade, via William Macklowe Company and Goldman Sachs, was set to open in the summer of 2018.
Curbed had reported in February 2018 that 75 percent of the building’s 52 apartments at 21 E. 12th St. (21E12!) were in contract, including the $17.5 million penthouse. The building's website now lists three availabilities.
The retail space in the base of the building is still on the market. Per the listing at Acadia:
The location provides unparalleled foot traffic and eyeballs from affluent professionals, millennial students, artists, and tourists. The building’s modern, glassy design and double-height facade will allow retailers to maximize their branding and visibility, and make a strong impression on the local population.
The retail component consists of approximately 13,000 sf, which is divisible into 3 or 4 stores. These stores sit at the base of 20 floors of residential units, providing immediate access to this upscale population. The retail spaces feature 17 ft ceilings, and striking glass storefronts.
And the rendering...
Preservationists and other residents remain concerned that these types of out-of-scale development will flourish in this area south of Union Square following the upzoning — with a minimum of zoning protections — that was approved for the tech hub on 14th Street.
Bowlmor Lanes closed in July 2014.
Previously on EV Grieve:
Building that houses Bowlmor Lanes will convert to condos, like everywhere else around here
76-year-old Bowlmor Lanes closes for good today
Bowlmor says goodbye
Bowlmor Lanes replacement: 22-floor residential building
Major changes coming to University Place and East 13th Street
How about some more condos for University Place
Here's what's left of the block of University Place that once housed Bowlmor Lanes
Oh hi: The 23-floor Bowlmor Lanes-replacing luxury building
[July 2014]
Wednesday, August 7, 2019
Report: New owner of the Boys' Club building on 10th Street and Avenue A — revealed!
Aaron Sosnick, an East Village resident and founder of the investment fund A.R.T. Advisors LLC, is the new owner of the Boys' Club of New York's Harriman Clubhouse, Crain's reported yesterday.
Last month, the Boys’ Club completed a deal to sell its East Village property on Avenue A and 10th Street. The buyer was only mentioned as "a wealthy, anonymous individual." The 7-story building was sold to 287 East 10th Street LLC c/o Denham Wolf Real Estate Services for $31.725 million. (The only rumor we heard was that the buyer lived in the neighbor.)
More from Crain's last month:
Paul Wolf, a real estate broker and adviser who specializes in working with nonprofits and who represented the foundation, said the buyer wanted to remain anonymous. Wolf said the buyer was planning to sell the property, potentially at a substantial loss, to a nonprofit that would maintain its civic use.
"The goal is to keep this as a community facility," said Wolf, who is co-president of the firm Denham Wolf. "The intent is to sell it to a nonprofit at a lower price than the purchase price."
And as for figuring out who the buyer was:
City records show that a limited liability company, 287 East 10th LLC, named for the address of the Boys’ Club building, purchased it. A woman named Carey Thorpe is listed as the authorized signatory for the LLC. Thorpe, according to public records, is the spouse of Benjamin Pierson, the chief operating officer and general counsel for Sosnick’s A.R.T. Advisors.
A.R.T. Advisors has $3.7 billion in assets under management, according to The Real Deal in January 2018. Sosnick’s name has been in the news here before for reportedly opposing Gregg Singer's plans to redevelop P.S. 64 on Ninth Street. (Sosnick owns two units in the Christodora House next door, as news reports have pointed out.)
Sosnick is also the principal trustee of La Vida Feliz Foundation, "and uses his foundation quietly to support philanthropy in the arts, education, human services and community projects."
The Boys' Club quietly began the sales process in June 2018, as I first reported. Stephen Tosh, executive director of the Boys' Club, said that the sale of the East Village building would allow the organization the opportunity to start new programs in other neighborhoods in need of its services. (To be clear, the Boys' Club decided to sell their building — they were not forced out. The building was pitched for educational purposes as well as residential conversion.)
For their part, community activists and parents said that a compelling need remains in the East Village and Lower East Side for the kind of activities that the Boys' Club offers.
The Boys' Club is expected to lease space here for another year.
Previously on EV Grieve:
Local elected officials urge Boys' Club officials to postpone sale of the Harriman Clubhouse
Boys' Club of New York selling East Village building; will remain open through June 2019
During noon rally today, local elected officials will seek postponement of Boys' Club building sale
[Updated] Exclusive: The Boys' Club of New York puts the Harriman Clubhouse on the sales market for $32 million
Boys' Club fast tracks sale of East Village clubhouse as final bids are due Oct. 30
RUMOR: The Boys' Club building on 10th and A has a new owner; will remain in use as a nonprofit
The Sunshine is gone, and an empty lot awaits a 9-story office building
Workers have finished the demolition of the circa-1898 building that last housed the Sunshine Cinema here on East Houston between Forsyth and Eldridge.
The lot has been cleared ... and all the scaffolding and sidewalk bridge have been hauled away for the time being. There's a clear view of Yonah Schimmel Knish Bakery next door now too. (Open daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Stop on by!)
The halt in construction is only temporary, though. The newish owners of the address, East End Capital and K Property Group, have approved plans to erect a 9-story office building. Our previous post has more details on what's to come.
The five-screen Landmark Sunshine Theater closed Jan. 21, 2018, after 17 years in business.
[EVG photo from December 2017]
Previously on EV Grieve:
Sunshine Cinema-replacing office building moving forward; demolition watch back on
Discarded theater seats and goodbyes at the Sunshine Cinema
The 9-story boutique office building coming to the former Sunshine Cinema space
A celebratory ad on the purchase of 139 E. Houston St., current home of the Sunshine Cinema
The boutique office building replacing the Sunshine Cinema will be 'unbounded by walls' with an outdoor space called Houston Alley
Former Nobletree Coffee space for rent
[Photo by Steven]
The for rent sign arrived yesterday on the northwest corner of St. Mark's Place and Second Avenue.
This is the first time in six years that this high-profile retail space is on the market.
Nobletree Coffee closed here in May after just five months in business. A sign on the door for Nobletree's "beloved customers" offered thanks ... along with a reason for the closure: "Because of the slow foot traffic at this location we were forced to close." (And we've noted the notes here and here.)
The listing at Winick notes that this is the "busiest intersection in the East Village." And it very well may be...
The rent is available upon request. In 2013, the asking rent was $27,000, per listings at the time.
This storefront previously sat empty for three years — ever since DF Mavens closed in January 2016 after a Dec. 26, 2014 debut. (It took the Mavenators 14 months to open the space.)
Other tenants in recent years include Eastside Bakery (.net?) and Roastown Coffee.
And the only business to last here in the past 30 years: the Gap, from 1988 to 2001...
[Photo by Barry Joseph]
Any thoughts on how much longer the space was sit empty... or who the next tenant might be...?
Previously on EV Grieve:
What a 'prized position' will cost you on Second Avenue and St. Mark's Place
Something finally happening at the former Gotham Pizza
[Photo via EVG reader Laura K.]
Brown paper has arrived in the front windows at Gotham Pizza, the first activity at the space since the pizzeria closed late last August here on Third Avenue and 12th Street.
Workers are now demolishing the interior... and how...
[Interior pics via Steven]
One of the workers told EVG interior demolition corespondent Steven that the space was going to be a Chinese restaurant. There isn't any other proof of this at the moment.
Anyway, the storefront adjacent to multiple dorms (NYU, New School and Cooper Union) has been vacant since Gotham's demise. There hasn't even been a for-rent sign.
Before Gotham, we had the one, the only...
H/T Laura K., Steven and @JCooper911!
Previously on EV Grieve:
Funkiberry-replacing pizzeria revealed on 3rd Avenue
Café Social 68 debuts on A
From the EVG tipline: Café Social 68 is now open at 68 Avenue A between Fourth Street and Fifth Street.
For now the Café is serving coffee and pastries ... and will expand their offerings with a lunch-dinner menu featuring sandwiches, salads and rice bowls. (Let us know if you try Café Social 68!)
Croissanteria closed in the spring after seven years of service.
Previously on EV Grieve:
Café Social 68 coming to Avenue A
Thoughts on Ray's (the new bar on the LES)
The bar was mocked in some quarters for its trying-too-hard nightlife entrance. For instance, as BoweryBoogie first noted, they sent out a press release pointing out their that brand new bar is a dive bar.
Ray’s joins New York City’s roster of iconic dive bars, delivering to the Lower East Side an artfully simple watering hole reminiscent of 1950s Americana.
Ray’s hopes to be a tribute to the concept of the local watering hole, where your bartender knows your drink and is your confidante.
“The vibe of Ray’s fits squarely into what I believe makes a downtown bar great,” said collaborator Justin Theroux. “Not fussy. Quick drinks. A place you can carve your initials into the table. The kind of downtown bars I used to work behind for years.”
Apparently Ray's is modeled after local stalwarts Lucy’s, Sophie’s and Josie’s.
Today the Post takes some shots at Ray's in a piece headlined "Justin Theroux’s new NYC pub is a lame excuse for a dive bar."
[T]he place teems with buttoned-up bros and Soho scenesters, with eye-popping prices (a shot of Evan Williams and a PBR is $12), fake-looking decor (even the Townes Van Zandt posters look brand-new) and clean, red leather bar stools (OK, they’re pretty comfortable).
Then they go low!
Ray’s has the cringe-inducing air of a brand desperate for cool points — think Target’s re-creation of CBGB ...
The Post also quotes Molly Fitch (Molly!), the owner of the International (and the Coal Yard before) on First Avenue. "Anyone who runs a ‘dive’ doesn’t set out to achieve such a low standard," she said. "I don’t think we’re a dive bar, just a neighborhood joint. We’re a bit worn in, like an old pair of comfortable sneakers."
Grub Street was kinder in a recent write-up:
Dives are as defined by their regulars as they are by their owners. Ray’s hasn’t had time to grow any barflies, obviously. The patrons the night I went were young and appeared to be gainfully employed. That some of them ordered buckets of KFC [ed note: wut?] from 14th Street and were eating it at the bar lent the joint an appealingly low-rent air, however. While there, I ran into a couple bartenders I know, and we ended up discussing who stood the best chance in the NFL central division this fall. I rarely talk about sports in bars. That got me to wonder if, in this, too, Ray’s was working its counterfeit dive-bar magic on me. Is there something about wood paneling and Dale Earnhardt posters that sucks all pretension and pose out a person? Possibly.
And...
Still, Ray’s is not a dive. It’s just theoretically impossible. But it may be a good lo-fi bar. No one is going to feel uncomfortable or underdressed when they walk in. And, given a decade or two, with minimal housekeeping, it may even start to look genuinely lived-in. For the time being, it’s got heart and chill and good intentions.
Tuesday, August 6, 2019
Tuesday's parting shot
From this morning, a pizza-loving pigeon on Ninth Street... thanks to Vinny & O for the photo...
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