The Astor Place Kmart has your holidays covered!

If you're looking to knock off all your upcoming holiday shopping with one trip, then look no further than the Astor Place Kmart.

Aside from the expected Valentine's Day (this coming Friday!) gifts ...



Goggla reports that the St. Patrick's Day goods (no beer display!) ...



... and Easter (April 12) items are all ready...



We'll check back next month for the Thanksgiving display.

Ray returns!

Ray is out of hospital ... and back at Ray's Candy Store today at 113 Avenue A, Peter Brownscombe tells us.

As previously reported, Ray, who turned 87 last month, was hospitalized for emergency hernia surgery on Jan. 23.

Those who saw Ray today note that he is in very good spirits.

Local Knowledge Reading Series comes to the Parkside Lounge tomorrow (Sunday!)

Here's info about the latest reading via Local Knowledge, a biannual literary and art magazine.

Tomorrow (Sunday, Feb. 9!) afternoon at 2, the reading features Sanjay Agnihotri, Mike DeCapite and Greg Masters (a frequent EVG contributor) at the Parkside Lounge, 317 E. Houston St. at Attorney...

Daystarter (sun is back edition)

Sunrise shot from 10th and B today via Vinny & O...

'Prism' break

San Francisco's synth-pop group Cold Beat is back with a new LP (titled Mother) coming out on Feb. 28. The video here is for the record's second single, "Prism."

EVG etc.: Mokyo debuts on St. Mark's Place; The Strand expands to the UWS

[Seeing double on 7th via Derek Berg]

• Concerns mount over the hotel special permit plan below Union Square (amNewYork)

• Some of Steve Croman's tenants still have chronic issues with their apartments (Gothamist)

• Details on chef Kyungmin Kay Hyun’s new restaurant Mokyo on St. Mark's Place (Eater and Grub Street ... previously on EVG)

• The Strand is opening an outpost on the UWS (Westside Rag)

• Affordable housing lottery underway for this Essex Crossing building (The Lo-Down)

• More cities and states are saying no to cashless shops (NPR ... previously on EVG)

• NYCHA's 'RAD' plan (The City)

• Look ‘n Lick, a site-specific collaborative installation, continues at mh Project NYC, 140-142 Second Ave. — open Saturday and Sunday 2-6 p.m. (Official site)

• See "Casablanca" on Valentine's Day in the big auditorium at City Cinemas on Second Avenue and 12th Street Street (Official site)

• RIP Ivan Kral (Dangerous Minds) ... and Andy Gill (NPR)

• Patti Smith helps vandalized Portland, Ore. book shop (The Oregonian — h/t Daniel!)

Lawsuit filed to stop East River Park demolition

[Photo yesterday by Kate Horsfield via Instagram]

Opponents of the city's plan to demolish East River Park announced details of a lawsuit yesterday in hopes of stopping the project set to commence this year.

The Alienation of Parkland lawsuit was filed by Arthur Z. Schwartz of Advocates for Justice on behalf of East River Park Action, a grassroots neighborhood group, and 90 other plaintiffs.

Here's part of their statement via the EVG inbox:

The $1.45 billion flood control project will destroy the largest park south of Central Park starting in fall 2020. It will take at least three years (but likely much longer considering city’s history with park construction) to secure the neighborhood from storm surges.

Thousands of park users have demanded immediate interim flood protection and a revision of the plan to cause minimal destruction of the park.

The mayor and the New York City Council support the current East Side Coastal Resiliency Project despite vast neighborhood opposition.

“We have to sue to stop this plan. It’s clearly a violation of state law to destroy the park,” says Charles Krezell, who organized the legal efforts with East River Park Action.

Schwartz, a West 12th Street resident, previously filed lawsuits against the city's 14th Street Busway.

You can read more about Alienation of Parkland, the basis of the lawsuit, at this link.

This past Nov. 14, City Council signed off on the hotly contested flood-protection plan that will bury/elevate East River Park by eight feet as part of the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project. The Department of Design and Construction has said that it plans to break ground on the Project later this spring.

Previously on EV Grieve:
• More details on the city's new plan to keep East River Park partially open during flood protection construction (Oct. 3)

• At the march and rally to save East River Park (Sept. 21)

• An annual reunion in East River Park (Aug. 4)

• A visit to East River Park (July 10)

King Kong lives: How a favorite stuffed animal from childhood became part of a community garden

The Sixth Street and Avenue B Community Garden has a new stuffed-animal resident — one with a long history in the East Village.

The stuffed King Kong belonged to Nefertiti Jones, who was born and raised on Sixth Street between Avenue B and Avenue C in the 1970s and 1980s. At age 4, her mother gave her the King Kong stuffed animal. She instantly fell in love with him.


[Image via Instagram]

She recently shared this story on an Instagram post (and with me)...

Kong slept on my bed all through my early childhood and teen years. We would first be parted when I moved to San Francisco in 1994 ... He was in good hands with his grandmother on East Fourth Street.

Upon returning to NYC and settling into my own place, I would move Kong back in with me. Of course, for the next 20 years, I found myself moving from the Upper West Side, to Williamsburg and finally back to East Fourth Street ... Kong was with me.

Last month, she made the difficult decision to part with him. He was falling apart. Jones asked her husband Jimi to dispose of Kong when she was away.

He did. But Jimi had become attached to Kong too, so rather than put him in the trash he put him on top of a recycling bin in the neighborhood hoping someone would take him home.

Last week, she was walking on the Sixth Street side of the Sixth Street and Avenue B Community Garden when she saw a familiar figure.

I nearly fell over when I saw Kong in a tree in the garden. My beloved Kong found his way back home and is now in the garden hanging in a tree.

Someone patched up his paws and placed a bunch of pussy willows in them.


[Image via Instagram]

"It has taken all of my will power not to take him back home with me," she said, "but I think he is happier in the garden."

Duane Reade by Walgreens closing on 10th Street and Third Avenue

Store closing signs are now up at the Duane Reade by Walgreens location on the southwest corner of Third Avenue and 10th Street. The last day for this location is March 2. (Thank you to Steven for the photos!)

Pharmacy customers are being transferred to the DR on 14th Street and Third Avenue.

In late 2015-early 2016, the drug store expanded into the two adjacent spaces along here, causing retail tenants Excel Art and Framing Store and East Village Cheese (which was never the same) to relocate.

This also marks the third Duane Reade by Walgreens to close nearby in the past few months. The outpost on Avenue D at Houston and First Avenue between 14th Street and 15th Street shuttered last November.

This block-long strip of shops has been under cover of a sidewalk bridge now for years (one estimate places it here toward the end of 2015)...



In May 2016, the FDNY responded to a threat of bricks falling from the facade at the building, officially 115 E. Ninth St.

Thursday's parting shot

The two formerly mysterious pink gumball machines (part of an album release promo for Fab Moretti's side project) were recently removed from Avenue A ... and as Goggla notes tonight, the remains of the machine at Seventh Street is now serving as an ashtray ...

A Broadway-worthy marriage proposal where east meets west

[Photo courtesy of Diana Catherall]

Diana Catherall grew up on Fourth Street in the East Village. Her boyfriend, Daniel Heydebrand, grew up on Fourth Street in the West Village. Their respective families still live on the street.

So this past Sunday, when Heydebrand proposed to Catherall, he decided to do it in a familiar location — on Broadway, in the crosswalk where East Fourth Street meets West Fourth Street.

"I loved the setting. It was perfect because it’s the halfway point to where we both grew up," Catherall told me. "It was very thoughtful and appropriate."

The proposal included the presence of their dogs and a moving truck owned by Heydebrand's family adorned with a colorful "Diana, will you marry me?" message. Heydebrand's cover story for that morning: They were going to have photos taken of their dogs, hence the presence of a photographer.

Given the time on Sunday morning, there was light traffic on this usually busy Broadway intersection. But it wasn't as if they had time to dawdle.

"Cars eventually honked for us to get out of the way," Catherall said. "But that’s New York ... I would expect nothing less."

Report: Target will replace the Food Emporium in Union Square — in 2023

[EVG photo from 2015]

ICYMI: Lois Weiss at the Post yesterday reported that Target is taking over the Food Emporium space at 10 Union Square East in the base of the Zeckendorf Towers. However, the takeover won't happen until 2023.

Per Weiss:

While Target has just signed a lease for 32,579 square feet at 10 Union Square East, the space is still occupied by the Food Emporium until the end of April in 2023.

Despite the wait, sources said Target wanted to lock in the location along East 14th Street. The nearly 16-year lease had an asking rent of $183 per square foot.

In December 2015, Key Food acquired the Food Emporium banner name and related intellectual property assets, per published reports.

This will mark the departure of yet another traditional grocery store in the area. Associated closed on 14th Street in Stuy Town in December, a location very close to the Target that opened in July 2018.

Le Sia is back in action on 7th Street

After nearly two-plus months of renovations, Le Sia reopens this evening on Seventh Street near Cooper Square.

EVG reader Jonathan Michael Fung shared this photo from last night, showing that the paper had been removed from the front windows. (It's not immediately known what changes ownership made to the Chinese restaurant during these recent weeks.)

Le Sia debuted in January 2018, and quickly received positive notices for its seafood boils and various skewers. As Eater put it — "NYC’s Most Exciting New Chinese Restaurant Dares to Pile the Heat on Seafood." And then there was The New Yorker: "At Le Sia, Find Nirvana in Crawfish Domination."

Report: State says landlords must now pay broker fees, not tenants

Updated 2/10

The New York Supreme Court issued a temporary restraining order halting the ban on landlord-hired brokers charging tenants a commission, per Gothamist.

--

Making headlines last evening: "Surprise for New York Renters: No More Broker Fees."

From The New York Times:

In an unexpected addendum to last year’s rent laws, state regulators said renters can no longer be charged broker fees, potentially upending the market and delivering the latest blow to an industry already reeling from new regulations and sweeping tenant protections.

Brokers can still collect a fee, the state said in the revised rules, but it must be paid by the landlord unless a prospective tenant hired them to help find an apartment.

This action caught many people off guard, chief among them the Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY), who is exploring legal action.

A REBNY spokesperson told The Real Deal that the new cost of landlords paying brokers fees instead of tenants would lead to an increase in rent.

Cloud99 Vapes has closed on 2nd Avenue

[Photos by Steven]

Cloud99 Vapes has closed at 50 Second Ave. between Second Street and Third Street.

As you can see, the space has been cleared out...



This had been expected. As reported back in October, the shop announced it was closing amid the public health crisis involving vaping products.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a total of 2,711 hospitalized e-cigarette, or vaping, product use-associated lung injury cases or deaths have been reported from 50 states, the District of Columbia, and two U.S. territories (Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands) as of Jan. 21.

As MSN reported last fall, business at Cloud99 had dropped by 70 percent.

In December, Mayor de Blasio officially signed into law a ban on the sale of flavored electronic cigarettes and flavored e-liquids in wintergreen, mint and menthol flavors. The ban goes into effect on July 1.

Cloud99 Vapes opened in 2015 at the site of the former Yoo's Convenience Store.

Wednesday's parting shot

Second Avenue at Seventh Street this evening via Derek Berg ...

Noted

EV reader Grant shared the above screengrab from Google Maps... showing that the description for Asian Taste on Avenue B and Third Street shows up as "My hot china wok balls, dipped in chilli oil, placed ..." when you type "24 hour food" into the Goggle Map search. Apparently it has showed up since at least this past weekend.

A variation of that description came up on our own search today...



From here, you could then find the full geo-tag description, which ends with the placement of those said "hot china wok balls."

Typing in Asian Taste Avenue B (or a variation of that) leads you to the usual listing on Google Maps.



Not sure why someone targeted the quick-serve restaurant with the sophomoric hack. This 2014 piece in Wired outlined how Google Map hackers have targeted small businesses in the past.

At the opening night of 'The Devil Probably: A Century of Satanic Panic' series at the Anthology Film Archives

Text and photos by Stacie Joy

There’s a line forming when I arrive early this past Friday for the opening night of "The Devil Probably: A Century of Satanic Panic" series at Anthology Film Archives.



I’m at this East Village treasure, 32 Second Ave. at Second Street, where I meet guest curator, Genevieve HK, media preservation coordinator at the New York Public Library, Kolbe Resnick, head theater manager, and Jed Rapfogel, programmer at the Anthology.


[Genevieve HK]


[Resnick]


[Rapfogel]

Tonight, Lucien Greaves, cofounder of The Satanic Temple, as well as some members of the Satanic Temple of NYC, are leading what’s billed as a black mass ritual but may, in fact, be a destruction invocation ritual before the sold-out screening of "HÄXAN." I'm there as everyone is setting up for the screening...











There's also a slideshow by Greaves that touches on pseudoscience and the history of satanic panic and hysteria in the media. Before his arrival, Temple chair of events and rituals Stryder Crown urges the enthusiastic audience to chant “Hail Satan” as part of the call-and-response to the ritual.



The evening included an appearance by several protestors, who prayed and demonstrated on the sidewalk outside the theater...



The series runs through Feb. 20 with notable visits from filmmaker Jacqueline Castel and occult historian Mitch Horowitz, who'll provide an intro to horror classic "Rosemary's Baby" this coming Saturday night.



You can see the schedule and learn more about the series at this link.





--

The Anthology Film Archives will celebrate its 50th anniversary later this year. Visit this link to learn more about their expansion project.

Doma Food and Drinks debuts on 1st Avenue

[Photo by Steven]

Doma Food and Drinks, a Korean bistro, is now in soft-open mode at 120 First Ave. between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place.

As you may recall, the Tang closed here back in the fall with a notice that owner Yu Li was going to reboot the space with a new concept.

Florence Fabricant had this preview online yesterday at the Times:

[C]hef Jackie Kim weaves traditional dishes like bibimbap and Korean fried chicken into an eclectic menu. More offbeat are kimchi arancini made with kimchi rice, ceviche in a Korean mustard vinaigrette, and bossam to wrap in steamed buns instead of lettuce. (Ms. Kim is from South Korea, and has lived in Spain, which accounts for some of the influences.)

And the design?

The room, designed by Mr. Li’s partner, Minn Hur, who is also from South Korea, is done in pale tones with eye-catching pink velvet and strips of neon on the back wall.

Find the menu as well as photos of the food and interior at the Doma website.

The Tang opened here in July 2016.

Thai Direct is under renovation on Avenue A

[Photo from Saturday]

As you may have noticed, the windows at Thai Direct on Avenue A between St. Mark's Place and Ninth Street are now covered with paper...


[Photo by Steven]

The paper is also covering the closed-for-renovations sign that appeared last week. In an Instagram message, management confirmed the renovations, with a reopening date set for Feb. 14.

The quick-serve establishment, which bills itself as offering a healthy take on Thai street food, also has a beer-wine license in the works. CB3 gave approval back in December.

Thai Direct opened here in September 2018.