Week in Grieview

[A Stay Safe message WIP on 5th Street via Derek Berg]

• Exercise options and at-home workouts from East Village-based fitness providers (Monday)

• This is a list of laundromats and dry cleaners still open in the East Village (Wednesday)

• A visit to High Vibe on 3rd Street (Thursday)

• Another 'Star Spangled' cheer for health-care workers on 7th Street (Saturday)

• The East Village photography of Martin Mahoney (Friday)

• Demolition permits filed for former Church of the Nativity and La Salle building next door (Monday)

• On Avenue B, Ben's Deli is closing for now; first time in 45 years (Thursday)

• Construction next door causes Rossy's Bakery & Café to temporarily close on 3rd Street (Wednesday)

• B Bar & Grill lays off its staff without severance; August closing date rumored (Thursday)

• Tompkins Square Library launches online programming this week (Thursday)

• Documenting the coronavirus and helping 2 LES legends (Sunday)

• Coronavirus Urban Etiquette Sign of the day (Thursday)

• Sauce Pizzeria deliver free pies to hospital workers; landlord chips in and freezes rent (Friday)

• "We will not go quietly into the night!" A midnight fireworks display (Saturday)

• Odessa is back open for takeout and delivery (Friday)

• This week's NY See (Friday)

• The Chippery, now with signage on 1st Avenue (Monday)

• Report: These 9th Street tenants don't have to pay rent until building has C/O, judge rules (Monday)

• East Village Organic now closed until April 10 (Friday)

• Yonah Schimmel's Knish Bakery temporarily closes (Wednesday)

• Black Seed Bagels closes for duration of coronavirus outbreak (Monday)

• Commodities is now temporarily closed on 1st Avenue (Tuesday)

• B-Side has closed for good on Avenue B (Tuesday)

• The Starbucks on Avenue A and St. Mark's Place reopens today (Monday)

... and as seen on 7th and A last night...



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Follow EVG on Instragram or Twitter for more frequent updates.

A necessary Saturday morning errand there and back pic.twitter.com/jQy6wTNaAh

— evgrieve (@evgrieve) April 4, 2020

Instagram follow of the day

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Nirvana, 1989, NYC. 📸 by Steve Double. Kurt Cobain (2.20.67 - 4.5.94) #ripkurtcobain #april5th #1994 @kurtcobain #nirvana #kurtcobain #kristnovoselic #chadchanning @thechadchanning

A post shared by sᴛᴇᴠᴇ ʙɪʀɴʙᴀᴜᴍ (@sbirnbaum1) on Apr 4, 2020 at 10:13pm PDT

@sbirnbaum1 takes archival photos of musicians around NYC and matches them up to the same setting today, such as this pre-Dave Grohl shot of Nirvana at the East River Park bandshell.

Also, today (April 5) marks the 26th anniversary of Kurt Cobain's death.

And one more...

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Joe Strummer of The Clash, March 1980, East 14th Street NYC. 📸 by Roberta Bayley @bayley1950 #joestrummer #TheClash @joestrummerofficial @the_clash #robertabayley

A post shared by sᴛᴇᴠᴇ ʙɪʀɴʙᴀᴜᴍ (@sbirnbaum1) on Feb 27, 2020 at 2:28am PST

A webinar for East Village small business owners

From the EVG inbox via the East Village Independent Merchants Association...

The programs and initiatives in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act that was just passed by Congress are intended to assist business owners their immediate needs. These programs are beginning to come online each day. As of today, applications for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) are live.

We know that applying to these programs can be complex and often raise more questions than answers. To that end we are hosting an in-depth legal webinar with the generous support of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer in partnership with Community Board 3. After a guided how-to of the PPP application process, the Freshfields team will be available to answer questions.

The webinar for East Village small business owners is tomorrow (Monday, April 6) at 1 p.m. You can register and find more details via this link.

Last day for Two Boots for the next few weeks

Two Boots Pizza on Avenue A and Third Street is taking a break after service today.

The longtime pizzeria hopes to return the week of April 20. Here's more via Instagram...

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We are AMAZED at the support we have received, not just during this unprecedented time in our history, but for the past 33 years. We will see you sooner rather than later ... #weareinthistogether #twobootspizza #nyceats #veganeats #itsnotgoodbyeitsseeyoulater #pizza #nycpizza #pizzalovers #pizzalove #nycfood #nycrestaurant #nyc

A post shared by Two Boots Pizza (@twobootspizza) on Apr 4, 2020 at 1:56pm PDT

Free tomato seedlings on 7th and A

Someone carefully placed these seedlings out on Seventh Street and Avenue A at the entrance to Tompkins Square Park this morning.

The neatly written sign explains:

These seedlings were raised on a windowsill. Grown from seed (from a beefsteak tomato from Trader Joe's).

Planted on Feb. 20, so they should bear fruit in 4-6 weeks.

Plant them in a big pot (they'll get big!) (the paper pots will dissolve)

If you want to grow them outside, they'll need to be hardened off. (Google it. It's easy)

Thanks to the reader for this photo!

Another 'Star Spangled' cheer for health-care workers on 7th Street

Once again tonight, the #ClapBecauseWeCare cheer for health-care workers and first responders featured an electrified "Star Spangled Banner" here on Seventh Street between Avenue A and First Avenue.

And there were two special guests: two off-duty ER doctors from Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx who drove up via a police escort. (They had seen the previous night's video.)

Alice Owen and Randi Himelfarb shot these videos...

Instagram follow of the day

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1980 & now: 5 Saint Marks Place. #nycthenandnow

A post shared by NEW YORK CITY: THEN & NOW (@nyc.thenandnow) on Apr 3, 2020 at 10:30am PDT

Check out New York City: Then & Now, which is pretty much exactly what it sounds like ... find the account here.

'We will not go quietly into the night!' A midnight fireworks display

An EVG reader shared the above video from last night.

A description from the reader: "Nearing midnight, an explosive celebration on April 3 in the East Village, looking Northwest-ish from First Avenue and Third Street."

There were apparently two rounds of rooftop fireworks — with one lasting nearly a minute. Several people were able to catch the second round...

Fireworks going off around midnight in the east village in nyc. Whoo. pic.twitter.com/qBoo0rXTFh

— EdenBrower (@edenbrower) April 4, 2020

H/T President Whitmore for part of the headline!

Village Farm Grocery has closed for now on 2nd Avenue

The corner market on the northeast corner of Second Avenue and Ninth Street closed yesterday...



This after reducing hours in recent days. As EVG correspondent Steven noted, Village Farm Grocery remained open even after the blackout and Superstorm Sandy... and they are the latest neighborhood deli to close during the COVID-19 crisis.

Meanwhile, several blocks to the south on Second Avenue... East Village Farm and Grocery at Fourth Street is open — but only for deliveries... no customers permitted inside...

Friday's parting shot

Outside Forbidden Planet on Broadway today... photo by Derek Berg...

The 7 p.m. cheer, 7th Street style

The #ClapBecauseWeCare cheer for health-care workers and first responders tonight at 7 had a new wrinkle on Seventh Street — someone blasted the Jimi Hendrix version of "The Star Spangled Banner."

Thanks to Susan Schiffman for the clip!

Your very own Oh Sees concert

In lieu of any live shows in the foreseeable future... here's a recently (March 21!) released video of Oh Sees rehearsing their new record (not sure which one, given that they release about eight LPs a year!).

Enjoy all 56 minutes. Depending where we are in the world, Oh Sees are currently scheduled to play Webster Hall in September.

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.

Previously on EV Grieve:
RIP Nashom Wooden

The East Village photography of Martin Mahoney

Earlier this year, East Village-based photographer Martin Mahoney invited me to his upcoming group show at Westbeth Gallery, which was to take place March 19 to April 19.

Given the COVID-19 crisis, Westbeth cancelled the show.

Mahoney had planned to show a selection of his photographs. I asked him if I could share some of his work here (find more at his Instagram account) ...



Mahoney moved to the East Village in 1985 from Wexford Town in Ireland.

"While I’ve always had an interest in photography, I’ve lost many pictures of the old neighborhood and it’s characters and regret not taking more of the rapidly disappearing buildings and people who are being replaced with soulless glass boxes," he told me. "So I decided about two years ago to try to capture the essence of what is left of the old neighborhood and preserve it as best I can before it’s lost forever."











... and here's a selection of his black-and-white shots ....