RIP Penny Rand

Penny Rand, a longtime East Village resident who was a familiar presence in the Tompkins Square Park dog run, died on May 12. A family member said that she passed away suddenly from complications of her treatment for throat cancer. She was 71.

Her friends recall her as a talented photographer and clothing designer as well as a loyal community member and housing activist. 

With city budget cuts preventing the usual maintenance of Tompkins Square Park this past year, Rand helped organized volunteer days to pick up trash and weed and rake parts of the gardens.

In March 2015, she started the Sidewalks of New York Facebook group, which attracted nearly 4,600 members who shared "memories of New York, past and present." 

Her decades-long residency dating to the early 1970s here included a friendship with Allen Ginsberg ... and allowed her to document the early days of punk. (Her photo of Harley Flanagan graces the cover of the Stimulators' first single from 1980, "Loud Fast Rules!")

Rand was an animal lover and adored her dog Leeluu and cat Annie.

She will be interred at a private graveside service this afternoon at Cypress Hills Cemetery in Brooklyn. Rand's friends are planning a celebration of her life in the Tompkins Square Park dog run on June 10 from 4-7 p.m.

Thank you to Steven for the reporting on this post.

787 Coffee is opening a new location (and office) on 10th Street at 2nd Avenue

787 Coffee is continuing its East Village expansion, having signed a lease for two storefronts on the southwest corner of Second Avenue and 10th Street (officially 159 Second Ave.). 

A tipster told us about this pending arrival, and 787 Coffee confirmed the news. 

The space that was previously Third Rail Coffee (on the right in the above photo) will serve as 787's retail space, while the former dry cleaners next door will be an office for the company. 

With this opening, 787 will have four East Village locations, joining 131 E. Seventh St., 101 Second Ave. and 319. E. 14th St. (The company currently has eight coffee shops citywide.) 

The Seventh Street store, which opened in October 2018, was the first for co-owners Brandon Pena and Sam Sepulveda, who wanted to bring Puerto Rican coffee to NYC. Their coffee is grown and roasted from a mountain-top farm in Maricao. (And 787 takes its names from Puerto Rico's area code.)

Third Rail Coffee did not reopen here following the PAUSE of March 2020. Next door, Danny's Cleaners merged their business with Lois Cleaners on the southeast corner of 10th Street and Third Avenue.

Thanks to Steven for the photo!

Spiegel said to be returning to 1st Avenue

Multiple tipsters have shared the news that Spiegel will return to its former home at 26 First Ave. at Second Street. 

Several readers say they have seen owner Shmulik Avital at the space in recent days. (He apparently confirmed the news of the return to one reader.) 

There isn't any notice of a reopening on the Spiegel Instagram account, and no one responded to a message about the comeback.

The corner cafe that first opened in 2014 was serving takeout and delivery for part of last summer before going dark in early August. While there wasn't an official notice about a closure on any fronts, workers removed the signage on Sept. 9. The storefront has remained vacant since then.

Tuesday's parting shot

Photo from Tompkins Square Park today by Derek Berg...

Tenants: Pigeons have made empty apartment a health hazard in this Steve Croman-owned building on 7th Street

Tenants at 127 E. Seventh St. say that a "toxic health hazard" exists in this building owned by convicted felon Steve Croman between Avenue A and First Avenue.

According to the residents, who asked to remain anonymous out of fear of retaliation by the landlord, four rent-regulated apartments remain vacant (since 2019) in the 12-unit building.

One of the residences, apartment 4A, is said to be in deplorable shape. 

Tenants say that someone left a window open inside the apartment. As the photos below show, the apartment is now home to several pigeons... as well as several dead pigeons. The apartment is also "filled with feces, flies and maggots on the dead animals," per the tenants, who have dubbed this space "Croman's Poison Pigeon Coop."

Croman's management company and the New York State Attorney General's office were made aware of these conditions on May 8. However, neither side responded to the conditions, the tenants said. (The tenants also said they were disappointed with the lack of action by the AG's Tenant Monitor, established as part of Croman's settlement with the State.)

Meanwhile, at least one city agency is investigating the conditions in the apartment... which you can see for yourself ... 

Croman was released from jail in June 2018 after serving eight months for mortgage and tax fraud. In a separate civil case with the AG's office, Croman agreed to pay $8 million to the tenants he was accused of bullying out of their rent-regulated apartments. 

Croman agreed to relinquish direct control of his 100-plus rental buildings — including 47 with 617 units in the East Village — for the next five years as part of a settlement agreement. NYC Management — a division of the Besen Group — serves as the property manager for the portfolio. 

According to a published report at The Real Deal in October 2019, "The notorious landlord is back in action and hasn't changed his ways" since his release from behind bars.

Department of Buildings: 202 Avenue A does not have a 'valid certificate of occupancy'

Early Friday morning, a 26-year-old woman from the Bronx died after falling from a fire escape on a building on 28th Street near Second Avenue. 

According to published reports, Tyler Thorpe was heading to the roof of the 5-story building to hang out with friends around 1 a.m. 

Media outlets were quick to note that this was the second fatal fall from a Manhattan building in less than a week. 

On May 22, Cameron Perrelli reportedly slipped and fell while climbing up from 202 Avenue A to the roof next door at 200 Avenue A. 

"These accidents will not stop till something is done," her father, Louis Perrelli, told the Daily News on Saturday. "It is so heartbreaking for my family, and now another has to endure this tragedy." 

In one development involving 202 Avenue A, the Department of Buildings inspected the address on May 26 regarding a "report of recreational use of the rooftop, contrary to the C of O."

The inspector found the following, per public records:

OBSERVED ROOF CONVERTED TO RECREATION SPACE PER DRAWING #A-106.01 ON ALT 1 APPLICATION #121188231 (PERMIT VALID THRU 10/17/2021) WITH SEATING FOR APPROX. 20 PERSONS, TABLES, BARBECUE AND SINK. BUILDING IS FULLY OCCUPIED WITH TENANTS OBSERVED ON MULTIPLE FLOORS. BUILDING ALTERED UNDER ALT 1 APPLICATION AND OCCUPIED WITHOUT A VALID CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY.

The DOB subsequently issued a Class 1 Environmental Control Board (OATH) violation.

There are three classes of OATH violations:

Class 1 (Immediately Hazardous)

Class 2 (Major)

Class 3 (Lesser)

According to public documents, the DOB imposed a $2,500 fine and scheduled a hearing for July 15. 

The DOB states that Immediately Hazardous violations must be quickly rectified. If an acceptable Certificate of Correction is not received, then additional civil penalties may apply.

Highpoint Property Group owns 202 Avenue A, which goes by The Topanga, having purchased the building in late 2017 for $6.75 million. Workers later added a horizontal and vertical enlargement to the existing 4-floor structure, doubling the total square footage from 5,334 to 10,920.

The penthouses, which include outdoor spaces, rent for $12,000 a month, listings at Streeteasy reveal. According to 311 records, there have been nearly 75 noise complaints at the address going back to December, when occupancy began at the renovated building.

Media outlets reported that Perrelli, 24, who worked as a project manager for a global research firm, was attending a birthday party at 202 Avenue A when she fell into an airshaft around 3 a.m.

Perrelli's death, coupled with reports of other disruptive rooftop parties in the neighborhood, prompted local elected officials to introduce new legislation to demand accountability from property owners. 

"This tragedy shows just how dangerous overcrowded or mismanaged rooftop parties have become and how often they have little to no safety protections or monitoring," local City Councilmember Carlina Rivera said following Perrelli's death.

Rivera is working on two bills to address this issue. She has already introduced Intro 1292, which would require tenants to sign and acknowledge their understanding of the city's noise codes. She's planning on introducing a second bill that would ensure enforcement agencies have easier access to phone numbers of overnight building supers or contacts and require better oversight of rooftop use and capacity.

Gaia Italian Cafe teases a return

Last July, Gaia Bagnasacco closed her Gaia's Italian Café at 251 E. Houston St. between Norfolk and Suffolk after nine years in business. 

At the time, Bagnasacco recommended following her social media accounts for possible updates on an encore for Gaia's.

And anyone who did so was rewarded the other day on Instagram with this news of a Gaia's return ... there's a to-go spot in the works at an unnamed location ...

 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Gaia Italian Café (@gaiaitaliancafe)

Previously on EV Grieve:

Closing Day at Gaia’s Italian Café

Something to sing about: Planet Rose is reopening on Avenue A

Planet Rose, the longtime (20-plus years) karaoke bar at 219 Avenue A between 13th Street and 14th Street, reopens this evening for the first time since the PAUSE of March 2020...

The gates have been up for the past few days ... and the zebra-print seats look to be in prime shape. 

Not sure what their hours will be for now. 

Meanwhile, no word of a return date just yet for Sing Sing at 81 Avenue A.

Gia signage arrives on the Bowery

Signage is up now for Gia Trattoria here at 334 Bowery between Great Jones and Bond. 

Gia's Instagram account describes it as a "rustic and fun Italian restaurant." No word on an opening date. (As you can see on the storefront pic above, they are still hiring for all positions.) You can sign up for updates on the Gia website.

Not sure who's behind the new venture at the moment. Coincidentally, there was a restaurant called Gia Trattoria at this address for a brief time in 2015. 

Actually, there were a lot of places here for a brief time between November 2014 and June 2015 ...  this is when the storefront was divided into two spaces, and Forcella, Espoleta, Gia Trattoria, Slice of Naples, SRO and Bowery Pizza came and went over a six-month period. 

Most recently this space was Gino Sorbillo, the first U.S. pizzeria from "the Neapolitan celebrity super-chef" of the same name. The "temporarily closed for renovation" sign arrived here in early January ... after a November 2017 opening. 

Marinara Pizza makes this corner of 10th Street and 2nd Avenue their own

As first reported on May 13, Marinara Pizza is opening on the northeast corner of Second Avenue at 10th Street.

This past Friday, workers decked out the red exterior in white Marinara signage and awnings.

This will be the fifth outpost for Marinara, which has locations on the UES, UWS, Midtown East and Park Avenue South. 

An EVG reader told us that their most popular slice is the MVP, which features stripes of marinara sauce, vodka sauce and pesto on a square pie (the pic is from the Marinara social media) ...

Two hyped pizza joints have been at this address (160 Second Ave.) in recent years. Lions & Tigers & Squares — the Detroit-style pizzeria from the Artichoke team — debuted in October 2019 before closing during the pandemic last summer. And before this, Nicoletta spent six-plus years in business here until the end of 2018.

Previously on EV Grieve:
• Cafe Centosette closes on Second Avenue

New alt.coffee concept vying for former Meatball Shop space on Stanton

East Village resident Nick Bodor recently told us about his plans to revive several of his former businesses under one roof, including alt.coffee (1995-2007 on Avenue A) and Cake Shop (2005-2016 on Ludlow Street).

It looks like he has found a potential new home for the business that will include an all-day cafe service, small bar, several weekly live music performances (ending by 10 p.m.) and a t-shirt emporium. 

Bodor is applying for a liquor license for alt.cafe at 84 Stanton St. between Allen and Orchard — the former Meatball Shop, which shut down in February 2020.

He's on this month's CB3-SLA committee docket for the address. (The meeting is on June 14.) You can find the questionnaire online here. 

Read more about his plans at this link.

Previously on EV Grieve:

• The owner of alt.coffee and Cake Shop is looking to start a new cafe concept 

Monday's parting shots

On this Memorial Day, a Christmas purge ... as seen on 10th Street and Second Avenue by William Klayer (above) ... and Derek Berg...

6 posts from May

A mini month in review... (with a wisteria flashback to May 1 on Stuyvesant Street)...

• Honoring the memories of Nicholas Figueroa and Moises Locón on 2nd Avenue (May 27) 

• Woman dies after falling from Avenue A rooftop; Rivera demands review of building enforcement procedures (May 23) 

• St. Mark’s Comics is reopening this summer (in Brooklyn) (May 20) 

• The remains of the Gem Spa can now be found in homes (and a barn) across the U.S. (May 18) 

• This East Village Easter footage from 1966 includes a crucifixion in Tompkins Square Park (May 14) 

• Cinema Paradiso looks to bring foreign and independent films to Avenue A (May 10)

Tompkins Square Library hosting an online discussion with Grant Shaffer

East Village-based artist and illustrator Grant Shaffer, who contributes the NY See panel to EVG, is the guest tomorrow (Tuesday, June 1) evening during an online discussion with Tompkins Square Library manager Corinne Neary. 

Per the invite, Grant "will show and talk to us about his work. He will discuss his process and inspirations, including the work he has created inspired by life in NYC during the COVID pandemic." 

Grant's illustrations have appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times and Interview. 

The discussion is from 6-7 p.m. Sign up at this link. 

And coming up on Saturday: Longtime East Village resident Sarah Schulman will discuss her upcoming book "Let the Record Show: A Political History of ACT UP New York, 1987-1993." Details here.

Food Emporium has closed on Union Square

An EVG reader reports that the Food Emporium on Union Square East has officially closed... we're told Saturday was the last day...

The salmon fillet deal was still being advertised even though the deli department had been packed up days earlier...

As we first reported back in March, this 14th Street location was to close on May 30, according to a WARN notice filed on Feb. 25 with the New York State Department of Labor. 

The WARN filing says that the Food Emporium lease is expiring. The closure will impact 50 employees, per the notice. 

In February 2020, Lois Weiss at the Post reported that Target signed a lease for the 32,579 square feet here in the base of the Zeckendorf Towers. At the time, the Food Emporium was said to stay here through the end of April 2023. Perhaps now Target will push forward their opening date.

And we'll walk off with a passage from Rachel Sugar's March 11 essay at Grub Street titled "New York Grocery Stores Are Uniquely Weird. That’s Why They’re Important" ...

In itself, the Union Square Food Emporium was not special. It was — and is! (until May 30) — what one might call "serviceable," which is to say that it does indeed sell groceries and has two stars on Yelp. But it is emblematic of its kind. It is, like Key Food and Foodtown and C-Town and Gristedes and Associated and Bravo and D’Agostino, a quintessential New York City chain. Are these stores largely mediocre? Of course, but they are distinctly mediocre. And while there are recognizable differences between them, such as quality and ownership and location, spiritually, they are the all same.

Previously on EV Grieve:

• The Union Square Food Emporium looks to be closing at the end of May

Monday's opening shot

Several readers have asked about the hot ball of glowing gases in the sky as seen here from Houston at First Avenue... if this helps...

🤔

Week in Grieview

Posts from this past week included (with a random sky pic from Tompkins Square Park) ... 

• Elected officials call for more rooftop oversight; details emerge about woman who fell from 202 Avenue A (Tuesday) 

• Honoring the memories of Nicholas Figueroa and Moises Locón on 2nd Avenue (Thursday) 

• Volunteer help wanted for the new Loisaida CommUnity Fridge and Pantry (Monday) 

• Opinion: Against Upzoning (Wednesday) 

• Report: One of Amelia and Christo's 2021 offspring has died (Thursday) 

• Gas service is restored at Pangea after 7 months (Wednesday) 

• The owner of alt.coffee and Cake Shop is looking to start a new cafe concept (Tuesday) 

• A follow-up to the fire on Bleecker Street late Friday night (Monday) 

• March gallery debuts on Avenue A (Friday) 

• How expensive are the flowers here? (Friday) 

• An organic grocery for the Bowery (Monday) 

• Marufuku Ramen next up for 92 2nd Ave. (Tuesday) 

• 7th Street Burger for 7th Street (Tuesday) 

• Sidney's Five in soft-open mode on 1st Avenue (Monday)

... and in case the skies miraculously clear by this evening...

Happy Manhattanhenge! It's TONIGHT- don't miss it!!#exit9 #exit9giftemporium #shoplocal #eastvillage #brooklyn #manhattanhenge pic.twitter.com/TbG05IuciY

— Exit9 Gift Emporium (@ShopExit9) May 30, 2021

---

Follow EVG on Instagram or Twitter for more frequent updates and pics.

Spring into Pride extended through June at 3rd & B’Zaar on 3rd Street

Today was set to be the last day for Spring Into Pride over at 3rd & B’Zaar, the mixed-vendor market and event space at 191 E. Third St. between Avenue A and Avenue B.

However! Based on the feedback this past month, the organizers have decided to extend Spring Into Pride through June (June 28 to be exact). 

There will be a few new vendors joining the more than 30 local designers, vintage sellers and artists.

Spring into Pride is open from 1-6 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday.

3rd & B’Zaar debuted late last year with a month-long Holiday Market ... followed by Sex, Love & Vintage in February.... with several art shows in between. 

Today is the last day for Streecha Ukrainian Kitchen before summer break

Streecha Ukrainian Kitchen on Seventh Street will close after today for its customary summer break. (They broke tradition and stayed open last June, July and August.)

The basement cafe, which generates income for the St. George Ukrainian Catholic Church on Seventh Street, is open today from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. for takeout. 

Stock up your freezer!

Streecha is at 33 E. Seventh St. between Second Avenue and Cooper Square. Look for their return in late August.

Previously on EV Grieve:
A visit to the Streecha Ukrainian Kitchen on 7th Street

Top photo from 2018 by Stacie Joy!

Today's concert at the East River Park Amphitheater has been postponed

Today's wind and rain has forced the cancellation of the free concert this afternoon at the East River Park Amphitheater. Organizers will be announcing a rain date soon.

Saturday's opening shot

The eternal springs of Avenue A gently being replenished this morning...

'Crisis' communications

 

For the holiday weekend... Holiday Ghosts have a new record out (the UK-based band's third)... the video here is for "Total Crisis."

Flashback Friday

The top photo is from September 2020... when the main lawn in Tompkins Square Park had grass... and as seen last evening...

Previously on EV Grieve:

Concern for the main lawn in Tompkins Square Park

March gallery debuts on Avenue A

Photos by Stacie Joy

March gallery debuted this past weekend at 64 Avenue A between Fourth Street and Fifth Street. 

As previously reported, Phillip March Jones, an artist, writer and curator, leased this space. 

The debut exhibit, titled Pre-Renovation Potluck, is an installation of self-portraits by 16 artists whom March has worked with in the past. You can read more details on the March website.

The exhibit is up through June 30 (and before a renovation). Hours: Tuesday-Saturday 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Until June 2020, this storefront was Alphabets ... owner Linda Heidinger moved the novelty-gift shop to Palm Springs, Calif. 

And wait until you see how expensive their balloons are!

Earlier this month, the folks at Flordel Florist, 226 E. Third St., changed up the signage here between Avenue B and Avenue C. 

The sign originally said "Florist Flowers." The new signage — "Very Expensive Flowers" — is definitely more memorable. 

Anyway, they are running a special — the dozen red roses, previously priced at $19.99, are available for $101.11, which includes the "no sense of humor fee." 

Photo by Stacie Joy!

Can you Dig it? [Update: Postponed due to the rain]

Update 5/29: The organizers have postponed the show to a later date given today's wind and rain...

There's a free show tomorrow (Saturday!) afternoon at the East River Park Amphitheater to help raise awareness of the destruction to come to the Park later this year.

Dig Stop! will bring together more than a dozen local bands, DJs and speakers from 1 to 5 p.m.

You can also purchase Save East River Park T-shirts and totes ... and bid on a mystery bag raffle with items donated by Patagonia. Proceeds go to the East River Park Action legal fund.

East River Park Action has been asking for a "real environmental review" of the $1.45 billion plan to protect the Lower East Side and surrounding neighborhoods from a 100-year-flood event and sea-level rise. 

Opponents of the city's current plan — where workers will raze the 57.5-acre plot of land, bulldozing 1,000 mature trees and rebuilding the park atop eight feet of landfill — say there are better ways to preserve the park and provide flood protection, such as the one mapped out in the years after Sandy.

In late 2018, the city surprised community stakeholders by announcing a complete overhaul of a plan, part of the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project, discussed over four years of local meetings.

Previously

Thursday's parting shot

Photo on Fourth Street today by Derek Berg...

Honoring the memories of Nicholas Figueroa and Moises Locón on 2nd Avenue

Family members of Nicholas Figueroa and Moises Locón came together outside 121-123 Second Ave. yesterday morning for the dedication of a memorial plaque in honor of the two men who died here during the gas explosion on March 26, 2015.

Retired (2017) FDNY battalion chief John Dunne joined the families ... Dunne, the third-highest-ranking member of the FDNY at the time, was part of the massive response to the explosion that leveled three buildings here at Seventh Street.  

State Sen. Brad Hoylman, City Councilmember Carlina Rivera and her predecessor, Rosie Mendez, who was in office at the time of the tragedy, were also on hand to pay their respects to the family members.

The Village Preservation advocated for the inclusion of the plaque here on the new residential building at 45 E. Seventh St.  

Thank you to Steven for the photos 

Previously on EV Grieve:

• RIP Nicholas Figueroa

• RIP Moises Locón

• Dedicating Moises Locón Way and Nicholas Figueroa Way on 2nd Avenue at 7th Street 

Report: One of Amelia and Christo's 2021 offspring has died

Sad news out of Tompkins Square Park. It appears that one of Amelia and Christo's 2021 chicks has died. 

Local red-tailed hawk documentarian Goggla reported this yesterday:

Unfortunately, we have no idea what happened, when exactly the chick passed away, or where the body is now. It's likely still up in the tree, but there is no way to check up there and, without a body, no way to know what caused the chick's death. Any stories floating around the park are pure speculation. The last time we observed the chick, it appeared fine, but they were all still too small to be able to get a really good look at them. Of course, we're watching the remaining two chicks closely.

As she points out, this is not the first time that the resident red-tailed hawks have suffered the loss of their fledglings. In 2018 and 2019, at least one of the chicks died from rodenticide poisoning.

In more positive news, the other two chicks appear to be doing well ... and they are briefly in that awkward 7th-grade phase as they mature into lean, rat-hunting machines.

Thanks to Goggla for the photos!