This week in CB3 committee meetings: plans for P.S. 64 town hall, updates on Mount Sinai Beth Israel's new hospital

A few items of interest this week at Community Board 3 committee meetings (aside from the SLA), which are open to the public to attend:

Monday (tonight!)
Arts & Cultural Affairs Subcommittee
6:30 p.m., Theater for the New City, 155 First Ave. between Ninth Street and 10th Street

• The committee is finalizing plans for a town hall about the former P.S 64 and CHARAS/El Bohio community center on Ninth Street between Avenue B and Avenue C. This event will take place on Sept. 23 at Theater for the New City. We'll update when the details of the town hall are made public.

On Feb. 7, local elected officials gathered outside the building and urged the city to reclaim the property for community use. Read more background about the long-vacant property here.



Tuesday (tomorrow!)
Transportation, Public Safety, & Environment Committee
6:30 p.m., University Settlement at Houston Street Center, 273 Bowery

• There's an informational presentation on Mount Sinai Beth Israel's new hospital at 302 E. 14th St. and 311-315 E. 13 St. Mount Sinai reps will provide info about the loading zone, traffic and construction plans.

As previously reported in the fall of 2016, the Mount Sinai Health System is in the midst of its years-long project to rebuild Mount Sinai Beth Israel, transitioning to a network of smaller facilities throughout lower Manhattan.

The plans include an expanded facility on 14th Street and Second Avenue, which includes a new 7-story hospital on 13th Street. In July, Mount Sinai Beth Israel officials released more details on their "$1 billion downtown transformation," which you can read about at this link.

A new (familiar) owner for Takahachi on Avenue A

Takahachi, the 29-year-old sushi restaurant at 85 Avenue A, will have a new owner.

Jack Hlaing — aka Jack the Chef — will appear before CB3's SLA committee tonight for a new wine-beer license for the restaurant between Fifth Street and Sixth Street.

Hlaing, who has worked here for 19 years, says in a letter to CB3 that owner Hiroyuki Takahashi is giving him the opportunity to buy the place.

"I have no intention to change [the] method of operation or [make] alterations related to new business," he writes. "It will be resumed as it was before."

You can find the letter with the questionnaire on file at the CB3 website.


[Photo of Hlaing from 2018 by True World Foods]

Takahachi opened here in 1990. The owner later expanded to Tribeca with a restaurant on Duane Street in 2002 and a bakery on Murray Street in 2010.

As The Infatuation wrote about the East Village location: "On any given night, it’s safe to assume 75 percent of the restaurant are regulars. It’s that kind of spot. Good food and a personal connection, no wonder people keep coming back. Next time you need sushi in the East Village, Takahachi is the move."

[Updated] C&B is weekends only at the moment at Paper Daisy on St. Mark's Place

This post has been updated...

Over the weekend, the C&B logo was replaced at 39 St. Mark's Place with signage for Bar Ilegal. (Thanks to Brian I. Oxman for the photos!) The letters on the door read "11C Mezcal Bar."



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Updated 9/10

According to a Paper Daisy rep:

C&B is still in operation. We are operating weekends only at the moment while we work on growing Paper Daisy. Bar Ilegal is a collaboration between C&B and some friends who are doing a brief pop-up in the space during the evenings. While the space looks different for the time being, we are still serving the same product on the weekends as always.

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C&B Cafe opened in the late winter in this spot just east of Second Avenue.

Some background. C&B chef-owner Ali Sahin was brought in to be the executive chef for Paper Daisy, which opened in March and whose creative team features East Village residents Jaime Felber, Darin Rubell and Thomas Flynn. Combined, their local credits include Boulton & Watt, Drexler’s and Mister Paradise.

Meanwhile, the 4-year-old C&B Cafe continues on at its original location at 178 E. Seventh St. near Avenue B.

As for this St. Mark's Place address, Cafe Orlin closed here in October 2017 after 36 years of service.

Previously on EV Grieve:
C&B Cafe now part of new venture taking over the former Cafe Orlin space on St. Mark's Place

C&B Cafe debuts outpost on St. Mark's Place

Could there be news soon about the reopening of the Tompkins Square Park Avenue B children’s playgrounds?

The word from Tompkins Square Park: Inspectors are expected to look over the new equipment in the recently renovated Avenue B playground today (Monday!)...



If all goes well, then we should have word of a grand re-opening here soon.

The work started last Oct. 1 on the southeast portion of the Park, which saw the closure of the entrances on Seventh Street at Avenue B and Eighth Street at Avenue B. The space was expected to reopen some time this month.

H/T Steven!

Previously on EV Grieve:
Nearly 11 months in, Tompkins Square Park playground rehab winding down

Fire temporarily closes Gyu-Kaku on Cooper Square

A small fire inside Gyu-Kaku on Cooper Square Thursday evening has temporarily ko'd the restaurant.



The official FDNY Twitter feed puts the fire at just before 8 p.m. The FDNY had the fire under control in 20-plus minutes...

MAN ALL HANDS 34 COOPER SQ, COMMERCIAL FIRE ON FIRST FLR,

— FDNYalerts (@FDNYAlerts) September 5, 2019

MAN ALL HANDS 34 COOPER SQ, COMMERCIAL FIRE ON FIRST FLR, UNDER CONTROL

— FDNYalerts (@FDNYAlerts) September 6, 2019

No word on where the fire started. The Citizen app mentioned the fire started on a table. (That information has not been verified.)



Gyu-Kaku is a chain of Japanese yakiniku restaurants specializing in barbecue that diners can prepare at their tables. As the sign on the door notes, their Midtown locations are open.

On tonight's CB3-SLA agenda, applicants for 185 Avenue C, 507 E. 6th St.

[185 Avenue C]

Here are a few of the items on tonight's CB3-SLA agenda...

New Liquor License Applications

• Rumba NYC Bar & Grill Corp, 185 Avenue C between 11th Street and 12th Street

A bar-restaurant with a Latin-influenced menu called Rumba NYC Bar & Grill is in the works for this space. The proposed hours are 2 p.m. to midnight Sunday through Thursday; with a 2 a.m. close on Friday and Saturday.

The applicants also run Salome Latin Cuisine on Westchester Avenue in the Bronx, per the questionnaire on the CB3 website.

There has been a lot of turnover in recent years at this address. The last tenant, Bar Taco, which closed earlier this year, arrived in early 2018, taking over the space from a short-lived venture called Malcriada, a self-described "Latino Gastropub" ... which arrived after Kaz, another short-lived venture that lasted seven months.

Cafecito, the Cuban-style cafe, had a good run here, closing in early 2016 after 14 years in business.


[505 E. 6th St.]

Items not heard at Committee

• Entity to be formed by Jae Lee, 507 E. Sixth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B. (wine-beer only)

A Korean-American restaurant called Nowon will open in this space.

The applicant, Jae Lee, has been running the well-regarded kitchen at Black Emperor on Second Avenue. He was previously the executive chef of Rice & Gold at Hotel 50 Bowery.

NowOn's hours are listed at 5 p.m. to midnight during the week, with a noon opening on Saturday and Sunday. Find the full questionnaire here.

No. 507 was last Carma East, the dim sum bar that closed in early 2019.

Tonight's CB3-SLA committee meeting starts at 6:30 at the Perseverance House Community Room, 535 E. Fifth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Pub in the works for longtime corner bar space on Houston and Suffolk

Sunday's parting shot

An early morning shot along Avenue A today...

Week in Grieview

[Tropical paradise on 2nd Avenue via Derek Berg]

Posts this past week included...

Jury selection starts for defendants in 2nd Avenue gas explosion that killed 2 men (Tuesday)

Parks officials say they will NOT be putting down a synthetic turf in Tompkins Square Park; skateboarders rejoice (Friday)

On Avenue A, Coney Island Baby transforms into Lola; live music to share stage with club nights (Thursday)

Streecha Ukrainian Kitchen is back open for the fall (and winter and spring) (Wednesday)

2nd acts: Sushi counter for the former Amato Opera on the Bowery (Tuesday)

Artichoke Basille’s Pizza vying for former Nicoletta space on 2nd Avenue and 10th Street (Tuesday)

This week's NY See (Friday)


[At the 6 & B Garden via riachung00]

L train work moves to the entrance of the future Trader Joe's on 14th Street (Wednesday)

Report: Stabbing on Avenue A sends police on chase through Tompkins Square Park (Friday)

At Gallery 72, everything that John Holmstrom did with the Ramones (Thursday)

Frisson Espresso has closed on 3rd Avenue (Tuesday)

Reader report: A dog-kicking incident on 10th Street (Wednesday)

A new-look storefront emerges on 7th and B (Friday)

An unsettling find on 5th Street (Tuesday)

Now the Basics Plus on University Place is closing (Tuesday)

Report: Man arrested for attempting to kidnap 5-year-old boy outside Katz's (Monday)

Openings (Night Music) and reopenings (Sauce Restaurant) (Friday)

The return of "yuppie scum" at the former home of the Sunshine Cinema (Thursday)

Pub in the works for longtime corner bar space on Houston and Suffolk (Wednesday)

A warning about sitting on these tree guard railings on 5th Street (Monday)

Whatever happened to the former Heathers space on 13th Street? (Wednesday)

The Alley now in soft-open bubble tea mode on Cooper Square (Tuesday)

...and a photo via Eden from the women's restroom in Tompkins Square Park — "keep out crackheads" ...



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Today's free show in Tompkins Square Park

SOS & Friends are hosting a free concert — a little rock, metal and punk — in Tompkins Square Park this afternoon in the usual place.

The lineup:

2:30 p.m. — Phantom Rocket
3 p.m. — SOS NYC
3:30 p.m. — Drownyard
4 p.m. — Final Siege
4: 30 p.m. — Blueblack
5 p.m. — Violent in Black
5:30 p.m. — Crimshaw

Part 2 is Sept. 14.

Saturday's parting shots

A few scenes from the 49th annual 10th Street Block Party today ... photos by Derek Berg...

A farewell to Unkle Waltie

Friends gathered this afternoon at the International Bar on First Avenue to pay tribute to longtime East Village resident (and iBar regular) Walter Kohl aka Unkle Waltie. He died July 30 at age 69.

Photo by Steven

The 49th annual 10th Street block party is today (on 10th Street)

Happening today (Sept. 9/7) from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on 10th Street between Second Avenue and Third Avenue.

As always, there will be antiques, collectible and music brought to you by the 10th Street and Stuyvesant Street Block Association. #GoodTimes

H/T Steven

Breaking: Parks officials say they will NOT be putting down a synthetic turf in Tompkins Square Park; skateboarders rejoice

[EVG file photo]

On the eve of a rally to save the Tompkins Square Park multipurpose courts from a future of synthetic turf, Parks officials have announced that they will no longer move forward with their plans.

Organizers behind tomorrow's rally posted the news on Instagram...

View this post on Instagram

WE WON. The city called and announced they are NOT going to install AstroTurf at Tompkins. It’s not a coincidence they made the decision the day before the rally. We organized, made our voices heard, and made a difference. TF IS HERE TO STAY! Big thanks to @quartersnacks @stevernyc @carlinalrivera @supremenewyork @hardbody.nyc Everyone still come out tomorrow! It’s a celebration! Not a protest! I could cry right now 😅✊

A post shared by Adam Zhu (@z.h.u1) on Sep 6, 2019 at 2:55pm PDT

View this post on Instagram

Thanks to the Tompkins community who made this happen and @nycparks for listening.

A post shared by Steve Rodriguez (@stevernyc) on Sep 6, 2019 at 2:22pm PDT

As we reported on July 2, the city had plans — apparently only known to residents who may have attended a Community Board committee meeting in May — to cover the courts with synthetic turf, rendering the space useless for skateboarders and street hockey players, among other groups.

The turf project, happening at several area parks, is a result of the city's flood-protection plan that will close East River Park next March for 3.5-plus years. The city needs to find space for the sports teams and youth leagues who use the fields along East River Park.

More than 32,000 people had signed the petition — titled "Save Tompkins Square asphalt!" — since early July.

Instead of a rally tomorrow, the skateboarders are now planning a celebration.

Previously on EV Grieve:
• No winners yet in Tompkins Square Park synthetic turf battle (Aug. 27)

• Petition to 'Save Tompkins Square asphalt!' closing in on 19,000 signatures (July 8)

• Skateboarders upset over plan to add synthetic turf to the northwest corner of Tompkins Square Park (July 2)

Great 'Pains'

The Brooklyn-based Tempers have a new album, titled Private Life, coming out on Oct. 25. The video here is for the first single, "Capital Pains."

A back-to-school BBQ at La Plaza on Saturday

La Plaza Cultural is hosting its annual back-to-school BBQ tomorrow (Saturday, Sept. 7) at the community garden on the southwest corner of Ninth Street and Avenue C.

Aside from the BBQ, there's a book bag/school supplies giveaway as well as other activities for kids.

The event is also in honor Ninth Street resident and fellow gardener Felicia Mahmood, who passed away on April 14. The La Plaza invite notes that Mahmood "pretty much singlehandedly organized, sponsored and ran this event for many years."

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.

Report: Stabbing on Avenue A sends police on chase through Tompkins Square Park

An early morning confrontation on Avenue A near Ninth Street left one man with a stab wound while police chased a gun-toting suspect through Tompkins Square Park.

Patch has details:

About 4:40 a.m., a group of guys was filming a video when a second group of men became angry they were filming, telling the group, "Yo, why you filming us?," an NYPD spokesperson told Patch.

The two groups began fighting, and one person was stabbed in the back, police said. The person was rushed to Mount Sinai Beth Israel for stitches, but had non-life-threatening injuries, officials said.

The victim told police that one of the men in the other group had a gun.

Cops chased him through Tompkins Square Park, and the gunman unloaded it and drops it on the ground, police said.

Two men were reportedly arrested. Other details weren't immediately available.

Here's how the incident played out on the Citizen app...

Sip Ahoy: A remembrance for Unkle Waltie at the International

Friends are gathering tomorrow (Sept. 7) at the International Bar to celebrate the life of longtime East Village resident Walter Kohl (aka Unkle Waltie).

Kohl, who had been recently diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, died on July 30. He was 69.

The iBar is at 102 First Ave. between Sixth Street and Seventh Street.

For further reading about Unkle Waltie's phrase "Sip ahoy," check out these posts from 2011 via our old friend Marty, who's actually not that old.

Flashback Friday fashions

EVG reader Jason Solarek spotted this on Ninth Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue yesterday. The piece of box on the street reads: "Fashions from S Klein on the Square."



Not sure how this ended up here — given that the last S. Klein closed 41 years ago. Someone cleaning out a closet... or discarding a department store box collection?

S. Klein is well-known to longtime residents. Here's a thumbnail history via Forgotten New York:

Samuel Klein founded the discount chain S. Klein in 1906, with the flagship store at Union Square East and East 14th Street, and the business eventually grew as large as 19 stores in the metropolitan area before the inevitable decline. The Union Square flagship closed in 1975.

The last of the S. Klein stores closed in 1978.



Today, the Zeckendorf Towers and the Food Emporium occupy the former S. Klein space.

A new-look storefront emerges on 7th and B

Many readers have pointed out the ongoing renovations in the storefront on the southeast corner of Seventh Street and Avenue B.

Jillery, the jewelry and home accessories shop, vacated the corner space in late May 2018.

And the space has been behind plywood in recent months.

There's a for rent sign up on the window...



Not sure what might be next. Perhaps this Flashback Friday quote when Jillery moved in might offer a clue. The president of the board of directors of the co-op here told me this in 2013: "Our co-op is very proud to have rejected chain stores, banks, bars and loud food establishments. We are proud to have chosen a local business like Jillery who has been in the neighborhood for many years ..."





Thanks to Steven for the bottom three photos!

Openings (Night Music) and reopenings (Sauce Restaurant)

Night Music officially debuted last night at 111 E. Seventh St. between Avenue A and First Avenue.

This is Ravi DeRossi's latest vegan entry in the neighborhood. Here's a blurb from Grub Street on this Indian restaurant:

This time DeRossi has a secret weapon: his mom. She taught executive chef Spencer Caine how to cook all the traditional dishes Ravi ate growing up during a months-long vegan-Indian-cooking boot camp at her house in Colorado.

Thanks to Vinny & O for the photos!



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[Image via Sauce]

And down on Allen at Rivington, Sauce Restaurant re-opens today following a kitchen fire that forced the 8-year-old Italian joint to close back in early January.

The restaurant has been upgraded with a refreshed interior as well as a new food and drinks menu.

Adam Elzer, who took over ownership in 2016, also runs Sauce Pizzeria on 12th Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue and Coco & Cru on Broadway at Bleecker.

Thursday's parting sunset shots

Spectacular sunset this evening... the top photo is by Bobby Williams, with a view of the Christodora House on Avenue B... and below, a shot across Tompkins Square Park by Cecil Scheib ...

Good news from 1st Avenue

EVIL is Not In Service.

Thanks to Simon Dumenco for the update!

Noted

EVG reader David shared this from outside the psychic's space on Third Street between Avenue B and Avenue C. No word if the palm reader foretold these typos on its new sign.

[UPDATED] Rally Saturday afternoon to keep the Tompkins Square Park asphalt courts free of synthetic turf

Updated 9/6
The city has announced that it will no longer cover the court with synthetic turf!

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The skateboarding community is coming together Saturday afternoon to show their support for keeping the multipurpose courts in the northwest corner of Tompkins Square Park free of synthetic turf.

As we reported on July 2, the city has plans — apparently only known to residents who may have attended a Community Board committee meeting in May — to cover the courts with synthetic turf, rendering the space useless for skateboarders and street hockey players, among other groups.

The turf project, happening at several area parks, is a result of the city's flood-protection plan that will close East River Park next March for 3.5-plus years. The city needs to find space for the sports teams and youth leagues who use the fields along East River Park.

Here's more from Adam Zhu, the East Village resident who launched the petition — titled "Save Tompkins Square asphalt!" — in early July:

For generations, Tompkins has been a safe haven for skateboarders and other marginalized activities. It serves as a melting pot for all walks of life and is an integral part of our identity as a neighborhood and community.

The city now plans to install AstroTurf there to prioritize permitted sports, which will destroy the way our community has utilized this park for decades. Please join me on Saturday, Sept. 7 at 1 p.m. in the NW corner of the Park to show the city what this park means to us!

In July, reps for the skateboarders met with the Parks Department. Both sides have reported that it was a productive meeting. However, Crystal Howard, a spokesperson for the Parks Department, told Patch last week that the proposal to turn the lot into astroturf remains. "We continue to consider the skateboarder's interests as we review the matter," she said.

You can find the petition here. As of last evening, there were over 32,000 signatures.

As Zhu recently told The New York Times: "There is something important about this specific spot, and that has to do with the history of the park at large and our personal history with the park — having grown up here, met all our friends here.

"I’m not fighting to make this a skate park," he added. “It’s a multiuse park, and it functions very well as is."

Previously on EV Grieve:
• No winners yet in Tompkins Square Park synthetic turf battle (Aug. 27)

• Petition to 'Save Tompkins Square asphalt!' closing in on 19,000 signatures (July 8)

• Skateboarders upset over plan to add synthetic turf to the northwest corner of Tompkins Square Park (July 2)

At Gallery 72, everything that John Holmstrom did with the Ramones

East Village resident John Holmstrom, the co-founder, editor and illustrator of Punk Magazine, is bringing together the huge catalogue of work he created for the Ramones for an exhibit starting tonight at 72 Gallery.

Here's more about the exhibit, titled "All the Stuff I Did With the Ramones":

John first met the Ramones at the very dawn of the New York Punk Scene. As the founding editor of Punk Magazine at the age of 21 in late 1975, Holmstrom's work became the visual representation of the punk era.

He featured the band on the cover of Punk Magazine issue #3 — helping to cement them as the quintessential punk band and Joey Ramone as the silhouette to be replicated in countless teenage bedrooms to this day. John went on to have a long collaborative relationship with the band — most famously illustrating the album covers Rocket to Russia and Road to Ruin.

This show give a rare opportunity to see Holmstrom's long-lasting collaboration displayed as a single body of work. One which still feels as fresh and vibrant today as it did when the ink first hit the paper.

The opening reception is tonight (Sept. 5!) from 6-9 at Gallery 72, which shares space with The Great Frog, 72 Orchard St. between Broome and Grand. (The folks behind The Great Frog created the gallery space in their rock 'n' roll ring shop and boutique.)

After tonight, you can check out the exhibit from noon to 8 p.m Tuesday through Sunday until Oct. 18.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Q-and-A with John Holmstrom, founding editor of Punk Magazine

John Holmstrom on the CBGB movie and the East Village of 2013

On Avenue A, Coney Island Baby transforms into Lola; live music to share stage with club nights

After 15 months as primarily a live music venue, Coney Island Baby recently switched up concepts — and names — here at 169 Avenue A between 10th Street and 11th Street.

As noted on July 29, the space was undergoing a reboot, which included the removal of the Coney Island Baby name from the marquee.

The space is now known as Lola.

Tom Baker, one of the original partners at Coney Island Baby, chalked up the change to the "seven-night-a-week band mill."

"You basically need the venue to be packed for the live shows so everyone goes home happy," he told me. "You have to pay the rent."

The CIB team partnered with downtown nightlife veteran Travis Bass to run public (and private) functions.

"The new vibe is more clubby in a sense," Baker said.

Here's how Bass described the space/scene at Lola in an interview published July 26 at WestwoodWestwood:

We’re keeping the stage, but incorporating it more into a dance floor with beautiful herringbone wood floors, carpeting in the front, lots of palm. It’ll have a very art-fashion world collisions. It can be very fashionable, but janky and artsy and not so perfect. There’ll be a lot of layers to this space. Decorative fabrics, bathroom tiles. We can have shows sometimes early and then turn into a party. The stage could be closed or turned into a VIP room. The various rooms give us options for variety.

The venue will still host the occasional live music and comedy nights, at which times it will go as CIB presents: @ Lola. Tonight, local rockers The Liz Colby Sound begin a Thursday evening residency here. (Find the full schedule of bands here.)

Lola takes its name from the 1961 French romantic drama directed by Jacques Demy.

"A close friend of the CIB family chose the name," Baker said. "She got the inspiration from the film — a testament to the resilience of the heartbroken."

Coney Island Baby debuted on April 26, 2018, with a show by hardcore legends Murphy's Law, HR of Bad Brains and Craig Finn of the Hold Steady. Recent highlights included a Sunday matinee featuring arena band The Raconteurs.

Previously on EV Grieve:
• A 'quick reboot' for Coney Island Baby on Avenue A (July 29)

The return of 'yuppie scum' at the former home of the Sunshine Cinema

Foundation work is underway here on East Houston between Forsyth and Eldridge, where developers East End Capital and K Property Group are putting in a 9-story office building. (Our previous post has more details on what's to come.)

And someone scrawled a message on the plywood rendering of the new building...



This is the first time that I can recall seeing the "yuppie scum" term in the wild in some years. It would make regular appearances at various neighborhood rallies in 2008 and 2009 (here and here, for example) ...


[EVG photo from 2008!]

Perhaps the term will make a resurgence. Jeremiah Moss wrote more about the history of "yuppie scum" back in 2008.

As for what the 9-story building is replacing at this address, the five-screen Landmark Sunshine Theater closed here Jan. 21, 2018, after 17 years in business.

Previously on EV Grieve:
• The Sunshine is gone, and an empty lot awaits a 9-story office building (Aug. 7)