Downtown Express April 18, 2012 by Schneps Media

downtown n ®

VOLUME 24, NUMBER 48

TRIBECA FILM FEST GUIDE, P. 13

express ss THE NEWSPAPER OF LOWER MANHATTAN

APRIL 18 - 25, 2012

Wall Street sleepover denied, O.W.S. moves on

Downtown Express photo by Milo Hess

Dog-day afternoons

BY ZACH WILLIAMS For Occupy Wall Street activists the past week has been about reasserting themselves, both in name and in the spirit of the movement. With two weeks left until the promised mass mobilization on May 1, aimed at ushering in the ‘American Spring,’ activists last week, reasserted their claims to public spaces by sleeping on the sidewalks of Wall Street directly across from the New York Stock Exchange. But a 2000 court ruling allowing people to sleep on city sidewalks as a form of political expression did not deter NYPD officers from ending the protest Monday morning. Five arrests were made, according to activ-

ists. But that was not the end of the ‘occupiers’ presence in the neighborhood. Tess Cohen, a Brooklyn resident, said Thursday night that police actions which forced protesters to vacate Union Square in the middle of the night spurred activists to sleep on nearby streets, an “organic and spontaneous” strategy which soon led them to Wall Street. “The cops totally forced our hands in this,” said Cohen. “They don’t let anybody sleep anywhere. Obviously at the very beginning of all this, if there was one thing that they were protecting and trying to keep a distance from us, [it] was right here. It’s just amazing that the name Occupy Wall Street

Continued on page 26

With the temps rising to degrees that resemble summer rather than spring, even man’s best friend needs to keep hydrated.

Army agrees to hold Chen trials on U.S. soil BY ALINE REYNOLDS Community advocates and elected officials involved in the Danny Chen case have scored a major victory by helping to persuade the U.S. Army to hold the trials of eight soldiers implicated in the soldier’s apparent suicide on U.S. soil. Last week, Army officials announced that the courts-martial, which were scheduled to begin earlier this month at Kandahar Airfield in Afghanistan, will instead be administered at the Fort Bragg military base in North Carolina. The

military’s decision about the trials’ locale follows months of petitioning by the New York chapter of the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA-NY) to have the trials moved to the U.S. “This is a welcome victory for the community and the family,” said OCA-NY President Elizabeth OuYang at an April 12 press conference at the organization’s Chinatown offices. “It’ll be easier for our community to get there, and it’ll be easier for the family to get there. The family deserves to be there, and the

public needs to see what’s going on, in order for there to be legitimacy to this process.” Making the courts-martial accessible to Chen’s parents and other relatives is one of the main reasons why the Army decided to hold them on U.S. turf, according to Colonel Kevin Arata, chief public affairs officer at Fort Bragg. The Army had previously advised the family against traveling to Afghanistan for the trials for safety reasons.

Continued on page 9

Merchants River House in BPC Beat. Page 12.

April 18 - 25, 2012

Your company insurance changed again?

downtown express

Downtown Express photo by Terese Loeb Kreuzer

Jake Cullens and Kaitlyn Huczko in “Amicable Parting” by George S. Kaufman and Leueen MacGrath, part of the Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University’s fiveweek repertory season.

Pace’s Actors Studio holds annual repertory season Another reason to call.

You want an outstanding doctor and we can connect you with one who’s right for you. Whether near your home or office, doctors affiliated with Continuum Health Partners hospitals – Beth Israel Medical Center, Roosevelt Hospital, St. Luke’s Hospital, New York Eye & Ear Infirmary – are conveniently located throughout Manhattan and Brooklyn. Our doctors participate in all major insurance plans.

Need a great doctor? Call (877) 996-9336. w w w. c h p n y c . o r g

BY TERESE LOEB KREUZER In a five-week repertory season, the graduating M.F.A. class of the Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University is once again showing what this school teaches and what the graduates have learned after three years of study. Anyone with affection for theater would likely find the Actors Studio Drama School productions interesting. Some of the acting is memorable. Sets and costuming are professional. The plays and scenes range from the familiar to the offbeat,

giving each of the acting students an opportunity to show their stuff. And it’s all free, though reservations are required. This year’s graduating class consists of 31 actors, four directors and one playwright. They range in age from their early 20s to their late 40s. Their backgrounds are diverse. Among the actors are a U.S. Navy veteran, the daughter of a Japanese martial arts master, a Junior Olympic

Continued on page 5

downtown express

April 18 - 25, 2012

OWNTOWN

NEWS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9, 12, 24, 26-27 EDITORIAL PAGES . . . . . . . . . . 10-11

DIGEST

PARK51 TEACHES CALLIGRAPHY On Sat., April 21, anyone interested in learning calligraphy can take advantage of a free lesson on the ancient art form, thanks to Park51. The organization, located at 51 Park Place, promises to present the art form in its classical style, with one-on-one lessons from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. Materials, including brushes, ink and paper will be available for purchase from the instructor for approximately $12 - $15. Participants should, if possible, bring their own glass jars to store their brushes. Small jam jars or condiment containers work best for holding water and keeping the tips of the brushes clean. For more information visit www.park51.org.

SEPARATION OF POWERS The New York County Lawyersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Association will host its 49th Charles Evans Hughes Memorial Lecture on Thurs., April 26. The guest of honor will be the Honorable Judith S. Kaye, of Counsel, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, and former Chief Judge of the State of New York. Judge Kaye will lecture on â&#x20AC;&#x153;Interbranch Tangling: Separating Our Constitutional Powers,â&#x20AC;? and will explain the separate powers of the three independent branches of the United States government. The Hughes Lecture Series, in its 49th year, was instituted by NYCLA in 1948 to pay tribute to the Hon.

YOUTH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Charles Evans Hughes (1862-1948). Hughes served as NYCLAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s eighth president (1919-1921), was Governor of New York (1907-1910), Associate Justice of the Supreme Court (1910-1916), U.S. Secretary of State (1921-1925) and Chief Justice of the United States (1930-1941). The New York County Lawyersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Association is located at 14 Vesey St. For more information on the NYCLA and the Hughes Memorial Lecture visit www.nycla.org.

RESHAPE YOUR WATERFRONT On May 18 and 19, Downtown residents can take the future of their waterfront into their own hands. The Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance will host its 2012 conference, entitled â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our Harbor: An Environmental Engine and Economic Resource,â&#x20AC;? at Chelsea Piers. The conference promises two days of exploring the economic benefits of harbor revitalization, environmental protection and restoration, improving water mass transit, waterfront finance and governance, and the working waterfront. Speakers for the conference include Adrian Benepe, Commissioner of New York City Department of Parks & Recreation; Colonel John R. BoulĂŠ II, New York District Commander U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; and Commissioner Maria Burks, National Parks of New York Harbor. To register, visit www.waterfrontalliance.org.

ARTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-22 CLASSIFIEDS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

C.B. 1 EE TING S

A schedule of this weekâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s upcoming Community Board 1 committee meetings is below. Unless otherwise noted, all committee meetings are held at the board office, located at 49-51 Chambers St., room 709 at 6 p.m. ON WED., APRIL 18: The Quality of Life Committee will meet. ON MON., APRIL 23: The Nominating Committee will meet at 5 p.m. The Housing Committee will meet at 6 p.m. ON TUES., APRIL 24: Community Board 1 will host its monthly meeting at the Downtown Community Television Center (D.C.T.V.), located at 87 Lafayette St. between White and Walker Streets.

Come follow the Yankees & Mets with us at M1-5 HIGH $ElNITION &LAT 3CREENS 0ROJECTORS 3Q &T ON -AIN &LOOR

Happy Hour -ON 7ED 4HURS &RI 3AT

M1-5 Lounge 52 Walker Street â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Between Church and Broadway â&#x20AC;&#x201C; New York, NY 10013 212-965-1701 WWW M COM s INFO M COM

(AVE YOUR "DAY 0ARTY AT - .O COVER COMPLIMENTARY BOTTLE OF CHAMPAGNE RESERVED SEATING WITH NO FEES OR BOTTLE REQUIREMENTS

April 18 - 25, 2012

downtown express

C.B. 1’s new members boast neighborhood roots BY TERESE LOEB KREUZER Three new Community Board 1 appointees with a range of backgrounds and interests take their seat on the board this month. One, Adam Malitz, 24, is a life-long resident of Independence Plaza North who works in government relations for a non-profit organization. Another, Linda Gerstman, 41, moved to the Financial District “five or six years ago” and is interested in the issues that confront it as it grows and evolves. The third, Tammy Meltzer, who has lived in Battery Park City for 16 years and is the mother of young children, is particularly interested in Battery Park City and World Trade Center Redevelopment issues. Manhattan has 12 community boards, each with 50 members, all volunteers, who are appointed by the Borough President, Scott Stringer, in consultation with the City Council member for the district. In District 1 that would be Margaret Chin. Board members serve two-year terms. Community Boards have an advisory role to city lawmakers on land use, transportation, quality of life problems, business development and more. There were 82 new community board appointments this year in Manhattan, half of them, like Adam Malitz, under the age of 40. Malitz attended P.S. 234 and I.S. 89. He graduated from Hobart College in 2009 with a major in American Studies. He also studied public policy, political science and human relations. “I want to be active in my community,” he said, explaining his interest in the community board. He is already on the board of Washington Market Park, which borders Independence Plaza North, and is running for secretary of the Downtown Independent Democrats. Malitz said that he is interested in affordable housing and education. “I want to be sure that there are the same

Battery Dance Company presents...

Perceptual Motion

Wednesday, April 25th – Friday, April 27th, 2012 Evening-length performances begin at 7:30pm at the 3LD Art + Technology Center on Greenwich St General Admission: $20

Student/Senior: $15

For tickets or more information go to www.batterydance.org or call 212-219-3910

Adam Malitz, one of three people newly appointed to Community Board 1, works in the Financial District and has lived at Independence Plaza North in Tribeca all his life.

opportunities and access available to future generations and Tribeca residents as I had,” he said. “I had a very positive experience with the schools down here.” Malitz also said that he’s interested in infrastructure and development projects and in how the neighborhood is changing — “making sure that it’s livable for everyone. I would like to sit on the Tribeca and the Planning and Community Development Committees and I would like to be active on the Affordable Housing Committee.” Linda Gerstman grew up on Long Island but has lived in Manhattan for 22 years. She is on the board of the Financial District building where she lives. “I own a retail services company,” she said. “We do merchandising, fixture installation and store remodeling for big box retailers. It’s a family business.” She graduated from the University of Rochester where she studied political science and psychology and was formerly a vice president at the New York advertising agency Jordan, McGrath, Case & Partners. Gerstman is a co-founder and member of the Board of Directors of the Lisa Beth Gerstman Foundation, named for

an older sister who was killed in a bus accident before Linda was born. The Lisa Beth Gerstman Foundation enables children with special needs in the New York Metropolitan Area and the Northeast United States to go to summer camp. Gerstman and her dog, Luca, are also a certified therapy team with The Good Dog Foundation, visiting schools to help struggling readers improve their reading skills. “There are a lot of new homeowners living in the Financial District that need a voice,” she said. “I’m interested in being on the Financial District and Quality of Life Committees. I hope to ensure that services continue to expand to meet the needs of this rapidly growing residential neighborhood.” Tammy Meltzer, in early 40s, lives in Gateway Plaza. She graduated from Cornell University, where she studied hospitality. She has three young children. The oldest, Leila, 7, attends P.S. 276. Meltzer said that she has connected with the downtown community in many ways — first as a single woman working at Windows on the World in the World Trade Center, then as a wife and mother, and as the daughter Continued on page 27

downtown express

POLICE BLOTTER Attempted rape indictment

He is charged with larceny, assaulting the officers and resisting arrest.

A grand jury indicted Michael Torres, 29, on March 14 for the sexual assault and attempted rape of a woman in the Bowery station of the J train on Feb 8 of this year. A spokesperson for the Manhattan District Attorney said Torres is charged with pulling the victim off an escalator using a choke hold, dragging her to the end of the platform and onto the track where he repeatedly banged her head against the rails, pulled her by the hair further into the tunnel and sexually assaulted her. An MTA employee who heard her screams came to her aid.

Loaded gun

“Why are you looking at me?” Police responded to a call from an employee of a baby shop at 230 Mulberry St. shortly before 3 p.m. Wed., April 11 who told them a suspect had just snatched her iPad from the counter and fled with it on foot toward Houston St. Two Transit Anti Terrrorism officers decided to check out the Bleecker/ Lafayette St. subway station at Houston St., where they spotted someone fitting the description of the suspect and holding an iPad. “Why are you guys looking at me like I just stole this iPad,” said the suspect just before he fled with the officers in pursuit. The suspect, Kevin Chavis, 22, fought with the officers, inflicting a broken wrist on one and cuts on both of them.

Police arrested a suspect in the Canal St. C train subway station around 10 p.m. Tues., April 10 and charged him with weapon possession after they found a .38 caliber Taurus handgun loaded with hollow point bullets in his pocket. The suspect, Rahmeek Younger, struggled with the arresting office and was charged also with resisting arrest.

Groping arrest Police arrested Karl Vanderwoude, 26, on Fri., April 13 and charged him with groping four women in Lower Manhattan, the Village, and the Upper East Side over the past few months. Vanderwoude is accused of groping a woman, 22, on March 30 and sticking a camera under her skirt as she exited the Chamber St. subway station. On Feb. 26 he was accused of grabbing a woman’s buttocks and crotch on Varick and King Sts. The following day, he was alleged to have groped a woman on Second Ave. near E. 67th St. On the afternoon of Feb. 25 he was accused of groping a woman, 33, on E. 62nd St. and Park Ave. Vanderwoude’s lawyer, Lori Cohen, said that her client, a “gentleman who conducted weekly Bible classes “ in

Pace’s Actors Studio on display Continued from page 2 gymnast who is also a screenwriter and novelist, a Fulbright scholar, an opera singer who has performed at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. Some have significant acting credits. The Actors Studio Drama School program dates from 1994 when James Lipton, now Dean Emeritus, developed the curriculum with the assistance of some of the famed actors in the Actors Studio itself. Ellen Burstyn, Harvey Keitel and Al Pacino are still mentors to the school and appear in the repertory season program. Lipton resigned in 2005 and Andreas Manolikakis became the chairman of the school. “This is not training for a specific style. It’s training of the instrument so that the actor will be able to do whatever he’s asked to do,” Manolikakis said. Everyone in the program takes acting classes. Directors and playwrights have additional instruction. “You get a firsthand experience of what it’s like to be on stage so when you ask an actor to do something, you know exactly what they’re going through,” said Chris Triebel, one of the directors in this year’s graduating class. The annual tuition for the program is $35,320. In addition, there are living expenses. “I figure it costs about $57,000 a year to go through the program,” said Michael Crowe, who turned to acting after having spent five

April 18 - 25, 2012

years in the Navy, where he worked as a chef, followed by a couple of years in business school. But, he said, “I don’t view this as an expense. I view it as an investment...I feel a better man, artist, human, from being here,” he said. “In order to be an actor, you have to be so vulnerable. It’s a really sacred, safe place here.” One of the interesting things about the repertory season is the opportunity to watch the actors and directors work on several plays and scenes. This week brings scenes from “Topdog/ Underdog” by Suzan-Lori Parks, “Brilliant Traces” by Cindy Lou Johnson and “Raised in Captivity” by Nicky Silver. The repertory season concludes the following week with a scene from “Fallen Angels” by Noël Coward, a new play, “All An Act” by Sean Michael Welch, the sole playwright in this year’s graduating class and already the recipient of several important awards, and scenes from “The Producers,” with a book by Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan and music and lyrics by Mel Brooks. The performances take place in the theater at Dance New Amsterdam, 53 Chambers St., Wednesdays through Fridays at 8 p.m. and Saturdays at 3 and 8 p.m. through April 28. The full schedule and information about plays, actors, directors and playwrights is online at www.Pace.edu/ASDSRep. Admission is free, but reservations must be made in advance by phone or email as seating is limited. The 24-hour reservation line is: (212) 501-2099 and email is ASDSRep@pace.edu.

his Brooklyn apartment, was innocent. He was released on his own recognizance,

Hand grenade scare A mail room employee at 2 World Financial Center in Battery Park City on Thursday morning April 12 spotted what looked like a World War II hand grenade in the x-ray image of an arriving package and alerted authorities who ordered everyone to leave the 44-=story building. The grenade was a harmless novelty mounted on a plaque that read, “Complaint Department. Please take a number,” with a number tag on the pin of the grenade. An employee of Nomura Holdings, the Japanese bank whose U.S. head office is in the building, had ordered the item and had it shipped to his office. The worker “was placed on leave,“ the bank said.

Tapped the money More than $5,000 was reported missing on Mon., April 9 from the basement safe of Tribeca Tap House, 365 Greenwich St., police said. Employees said they locked the money in the safe on Fri., April 6. Police said there were no signs of forced entry.

Occupy Wall St. An Occupy Wall St. protestor who stood on the northwest corner of Broad and Wall Sts. around 12:30 p.m. Fri., April 13 was

arrested for shouting obscenities at the lunchtime crowd, police said. While in the car being taken for booking, the suspect, Zachary William, 25, was restrained when police saw him biting his own right hand. In the struggle one of the cops sustained a broken left hand, police said.

Downtown assaults A man from Blue Point, L.I., was arguing with an acquaintance in Dubliner Bar, 45 Stone St., around 12:40 p.m. Thurs. April 5 when his adversary hauled off and punched him, knocking him unconscious and breaking his cheek bone. The victim told police he spent two and a half days in Bellevue undergoing five operations to repair his face. A Lower East Side man, 45, told police he got into a conversation with a woman stranger at Warren 77, the bar at 77 Warren St., around 2:40 a.m. Sat., April 14 when she took exception to something he said, picked up a glass, hit him in the face with it and fled.

Copped copper piping The manager of a construction site at 6 Liberty St. told police that copper piping, valued at $5.500, was installed on the site on March 17 and was reported stolen April 4. Workers from various trades had access to the site, and security guards were on duty, police said.

— Alber t Amateau

April 18 - 25, 2012

downtown express

Non-profit gets by with a little help from its friends NATIONAL VOLUNTEER MONTH SPOTLIGHT BY HELAINA N. HOVITZ Misinformation has led many to believe that Lower Manhattan is solely populated by well-to-do-families with children that attend the city’s top performing schools. In reality, a large fraction of Downtown residents are among some of the more needy families in the city with children in dire need of special support. Fortunately, GO Project provides yearround educational, emotional, and social support services to over 450 struggling downtown students performing below grade level. These children, who come from lowincome households, often lead lives of instability and face serious learning challenges; many of them have parents who work multiple jobs, speak little English and have few resources. The main goal of the non-profit is to help equip students in over 30 public elementary schools with the confidence and skills they need to succeed at school, at home and in life. Lower East Side schools like P.S. 134, P.S. 137, and P.S. 20 have reported an average of 38 percent proficiency in English and 53 percent in Math. By providing an educational environment for students both after school and on weekends — and for

five weeks during the summer — the GO Project assures these children are given individualized attention. The GO Project works with numerous schools below Canal Street including P.S. 2, P.S. 184, and P.S. 124, among others. The organization also relies almost entirely on volunteers. Luckily, volunteer organizations like nycTIES, which partners young people with local charities, have stepped in to help the GO Project increase their volunteer base. “The nycTIES volunteers helped us created a better system for volunteer recruitment, giving us new access to many community members and volunteers,” said Erica Ahdoot, executive director at the GO Project. “We were able to reach out to the community in ways we were never able to before.” The GO Project enlisted nycTIES to put together a professional video for the GO website, which would have normally cost thousands of dollars to produce. In addition to helping them develop various marketing strategies, volunteer Victor Simoes, 25, who lives in the Wall Street area, organized a group of 30 volunteers to tutor children at the GO Project on

NOW OPEN! 18,000 Sq. Ft Preschool and Therapy Center Brand New ! y Facilit C O M PA N I E S

101 Norfolk Street | New York, NY 10002 (CORNER OF DELANCEY STREET AND NORFOLK STREET)

• Interactive Metronome • Therapeutic Listening • Feeding Therapy (SOS)

Introducing a State-of-the-Art Sensory Integration and Multi-Sensory Gym

• PROMPT Articulation Therapy • Lee Silverman Voice Treatment Program

• Myofascial Release • Lidcombe Program (Early Stuttering) • Play Therapy • Social Skills Training • Oral-Motor Therapy • PECS • ABA

Speech Therapy Physical Therapy Occupational Therapy Special Education Counseling SEIT Evaluations We accept private insurance.

FOR INFORMATION AND TO SCHEDULE YOUR TOUR CALL SIREESHA EDARA 212.566.8853 x1412, sireesha@comprehensivekids.org

Photo courtesy of Dick Chung

A volunteer from nycTIES at a school where the GO Project assists students with special needs by ensuring individual attention both in and out of the classroom.

Saturday mornings. Rallying volunteers in New York City, he said, isn’t as easy as it may seem. “Everyone has a day job, and asking to take away from the few free hours people

“It’s hard to figure out how to volunteer after college. There aren’t many channels to come through independently, especially ones that let you volunteer when you can,” said nycTIES president Elise King. “There’s no required commitment level. If you have a free Saturday, come help.”

have is difficult,” explained Simoes, who also volunteers as a math teacher at P.S. 188 on Houston Street. “We reached out to large corporations, and some have allowed people to take time out of their workdays to come help.” By offering varying levels of commitment, nycTIES finds creative ways for young professionals to impact their community, inviting them to “start small and do what

excites you.” “It’s hard to figure out how to volunteer after college. There aren’t many channels to come through independently, especially ones that let you volunteer when you can,” said nycTIES president Elise King. “There’s no required commitment level. If you have a free Saturday, come help.” Fellow volunteer Rosalyn Sovarimuthu, 28, who works in mergers and acquisitions at a bank, taught a financial literacy course to parents of GO Project children that was so well-received they asked her to teach a second one. “GO is trying to give kids who come from low income households a fighting chance,” said Sovarimuthu. “I spoke to a little girl who said she liked school but struggled to stay awake during class. She has to wake up at 4am every morning because her mother works far away, and is so exhausted by time she gets to school that she can’t focus.” By providing free education and family services to academically challenged kindergarten through sixth graders, social workers and volunteers help these students foster the skills they need to succeed at school and make their everyday lives a bit more manageable. Several students have learning disabilities and other emotional and developmental needs, so GO brings in social workers to conduct workshops on mental health. Priority is given to students who attend one of the GO Project’s “target schools”, which are schools that have a larger percentage of free/reduced lunch eligibility and are underperforming by New York City Department Of Education standards. Many GO Project students have a Special Education classification and are assigned Individualized Education Plans as a result of a learning disability, speech or language impairment, or an emotional disturbance. Keisha Browne, 25, a nycTIES volunteer Continued on page 24

downtown express

April 18 - 25, 2012

Donna Downes, activist and artist, dies at 64 OBITUARY Donna Downes, community activist and advertising professional, passed away from smallcell neuro-endocrine cancer, an extremely rare and potent disease, at age 64 on Thurs., April 12. She outlived dire predictions by almost a full year. Downes was a talented artist, art director, writer and designer. Born in Maryland, Downes was an honors graduate of George Washington University and held degrees from Columbia College and the Corcoran College of Art and Design. Donna and her husband, David Zaus, were guest lecturers at Savannah College of Art and Design. With her husband/partner, Donna designed numerous fabrications and exhibit displays, which were featured in trade and consumer publications and were given numerous awards including the Clio Award for excellence in advertising. She and her husband also designed a promotional campaign for Lower Manhattan entitled Celebrate Downtown. Donna was a community activist and a resident of Tribeca since 1985. She championed the preservation of the neighborhood’s cobblestone streets, and its historic district. Donna was an official class parent at P.S. 234 and MAT. She mentored and helped fifth grade students at P.S. 234 create a school newspaper,

the Newsies. She also coached the girls’ basketball team for three years. Downes was an expert downhill skier, a seven-time participant in the NYC Marathon, who finished in the top 15 percent of her age group every time she ran. Other accomplishments included being an expert sailor and helmsperson for over 40 years, and mastering both the French and Spanish languages. Downes’ family roots were in Maryland and Virginia and she was the oldest of seven children. She leaves behind her brothers Kenneth and David, and sisters Denise, Susie, and Doris, her husband David Zaus, a high-school-aged daughter Margaux, a stepson Zachary Zaus of Brooklyn, and a step-daughter Kimberly Kinkaid of Houston, Texas as well as her mother, Doris Downes of Scottsdale, Arizona. Please feel free to make contributions to the American Cancer Society in her honor. A memorial service will be held on Saturday to celebrate Downes’ life at her home in Tribeca.

P,A9 t o

LEARN

this summer . . . Starting June 25th

We at Church Street School for Music and Art believe that everyone has unique creative potential, and that the development of this creativity is essential to the health and happiness of the individual and the community.

Programs for students 16 months to adult

$3 Miller High Life Bottled Beer $4 Mixed Drinks Choice Select Wines by the Glass $6 Martinis, Cosmos & Manhattans Long Island + Long Beach Iced Teas

Enjoy a complimentary glass of our select wine with the purchase of any lunch or dinner entrée. PRESENT THIS AD

offer expires May 11, 2012

Fighting to make Lower Manhattan the greatest place to live, work, and raise a family.

Arts Medley ■ Arts Express ■ Creative Arts Workshop ■ Rock the House ■ NYC Art Adventure Camp ■ Private & Group Instrumental ■ Birthday Parties ■

Open enrollment for Spring!

Spring Vacation Camps, April 9 – 13th!

212-571-7290

74 Warren Street www.churchstreet.org

Assemblyman Shelly Silver If you need assistance, please contact my office at (212) 312-1420 or email silver@assembly.state.ny.us.

April 18 - 25, 2012

downtown express

South Street Seaport Museum stages Titanic exhibit

Downtown Express photo by Terese Loeb Kreuzer

Costumes made for a television miniseries on the Titanic are part of an exhibit at the South Street Seaport Museum at 213 Water St. It opened on April 10 and will run through May 16.

plans of the ship, a large model and many photos including one wall-size picture of an iceberg taken by someone aboard

Trinity Wall Street THURSDAY, APRIL 19, 1pm Concerts at One Wanmu Percussion Trio Trinity Church THURSDAY, APRIL 19, 2-6pm Open Labyrinth Walk Open to all for walking, prayer, meditation. St. Paul’s Chapel FRIDAY, APRIL 20, 6pm Family Friday Pizza & Movie Night Relax with your kids and meet other downtown families for free pizza and Disney/Pixar’s Finding Nemo. Charlotte’s Place

All Are Welcome All events are free, unless noted. 212.602.0800

the Carpathia, the ship that rescued the Titanic survivors, a few hours after the collision.

Let’s do something together

SUNDAY, APRIL 22, 10am Virtual Pilgrimages: The Holy Land of Paul and John Journey as Metaphor: Philo of Alexandria. Led by Dr. Deirdre Good, General Theological Seminary. 74 Trinity Pl, 2nd Fl, Parish Hall SUNDAY, APRIL 22, 2pm Sunday Lecture/Recitals Caroline Hartig, clarinet, and Anna Vinnitsky, piano Charlotte’s Place

But some of the most evocative items are the telegrams sent to and from the Titanic by Marconi operators. “The Marconi messages give you an almost minute by minute account of what was happening, and not just what was happening aboard Titanic but on the other ships that were in the area,” said Greg Dietrich, a marine historian, who consulted on the exhibit. “Most of the messages are between Titanic and her sister ship Olympic, which was 500 miles away. And then you have the silence from Titanic and the other ships radioing to each other, ‘Have you heard from Titanic?’ And you realize by then she was gone. It took around three hours for her to sink from the time she hit the iceberg.” Sarah Henry, deputy director of the Museum of the City of New York and curator of the exhibit, compared the panicked search for information following the sinking to what occurred on 9/11 after the destruction of the World Trade Center. “You can see it playing out, the confusion, the lack of information, and yet [there is] an incredible amount of information compared with what would have been available a few short years earlier because of the advent and spread of the wireless system,” said Henry. “I think people must Continued on page 26

trinitywallstreet.org

worship SUNDAY, 8am and 10am St. Paul’s Chapel Holy Eucharist SUNDAY, 9am and 11:15am Trinity Church Preaching, music, and Eucharist Sunday school and child care available MONDAY – FRIDAY, 12:05pm Trinity Church Holy Eucharist

MONDAY, APRIL 23, 1pm Bach at One The Trinity Choir and Trinity Baroque Orchestra present a service featuring J.S. Bach’s cantatas. St. Paul’s Chapel

MONDAY – FRIDAY, 5:15pm All Saints’ Chapel, in Trinity Church Evening Prayer, Evensong (Thurs.)

TUESDAY, APRIL 24, 6pm If I Forget You O Jerusalem An exploration of Jerusalem from different viewpoints. Led by Rabbi Peter J. Rubinstein, Central Synagogue 74 Trinity Pl, 2nd Fl, Parish Hall

74 Trinity Place is located in the ofﬁce building behind Trinity Church.

Watch online webcast

TRINITY CHURCH Broadway at Wall Street

Leo Sorel

BY TERESE LOEB KREUZER At the entrance to the South Street Seaport Museum’s Melville Gallery, a display of clothing reminds visitors to “Titanic at 100: Myth and Memory” that the exhibit is about real people who were aboard the ship on April 15, 1912 when it sank after hitting an iceberg. A handsome outfit for Col. John Jacob Astor IV, reputedly the richest man in the world, is there. So is one for philanthropist Margaret Brown, who became known as “the unsinkable Molly Brown,” and Benjamin Guggenheim, who changed into evening clothes so that he could “die like a gentleman.” J. Bruce Ismay, chairman and managing director of the White Star Line, is represented by a posh coat. The plain clothing of an unnamed steerage passenger shows the Titanic’s distinctions of class and wealth. The clothing was created for a recent television mini-series about the Titanic but there are numerous objects in the exhibit that really are from a hundred years ago — a gold ring set with a small diamond that was a 21st birthday gift to a man who drowned, a cribbage board made of wood from the ship, a commemorative hatband, letters from Thomas Andrews, the father of the Titanic’s builder, Thomas Andrews, Jr., referring to “our dear lost son.” And there are drawings and deck

The labyrinth is available to walk the third Thursday of every month at St. Paul’s Chapel.

ST. PAUL’S CHAPEL Broadway and Fulton Street CHARLOTTE’S PLACE 107 Greenwich St, btwn Rector & Carlisle The Rev. Dr. James H. Cooper, Rector The Rev. Canon Anne Mallonee, Vicar

an Episcopal parish in the city of New York

downtown express

April 18 - 25, 2012

Chen trials moved, but a battle still remains Continued from page 1

Another factor was that Chen’s unit is being redeployed back to America this week, Arata noted. Holding the trials in Afghanistan, therefore, “would involve keeping people deployed [overseas] for more than one year, which is not congruent with our timeline,” he said. Chen’s grieving parents were comforted by the news. “When she heard the news, her heart felt so much better,” said Council Member Margaret Chin, translating for Chen’s mother, Su Zhen Chen. “She wants to make sure they bring the eight people back to the U.S. so she could see the trials.” Chin expressed her own thoughts, saying, “I hope that from now on, we can help heal her heart. Together, we got the Army to listen… In North Carolina, the parents will be able to look at these eight people in the face, in their eye, and ask them, ‘Why, why did you do that to Danny?’ And hopefully we’ll get justice.” U.S. Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez also praised the Army’s decision, particularly since the Army wasn’t forthcoming in the weeks after Chen’s death. Velazquez vowed to continue fighting along with the community against the wrongdoings tied to Chen’s death. “I’m so proud of the Asian community for coming together and forcing the army to take a hard look as to how we put in place measures that will prevent another death to take place among our soldiers,” said Velazquez. “This is the best reassurance that we can give to any mother or father who confronts the reality that one of their children might be joining the army.” Last October, Chen, a 19-year-old native of Chinatown, was found lifeless in a guard tower in Kandahar, Afghanistan, with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. Kandahar is where Chen’s unit has been stationed since last summer. It wasn’t immediately clear exactly when the courtmartials would begin. The trial of 25-year-old Army Sergeant Travis Carden, charged with having assaulted and recklessly endangered Chen, was supposed to start in Afghanistan on April 4. However, due to the change of venue, the trial has been delayed, and the charges against Carden that were recommended by Major General James L. Huggins, Jr., the Afghanistan-based Staff Judge Advocate, have been transferred to Fort Bragg. According to the military, the process is following normal protocol. As of Mon., April 16, none of the eight cases had been referred to courts-martial, according to Col. Runo Richardson, an attorney from Fort Bragg’s Staff Judge Advocate’s office. Using the evidence presented to them, the S.J.A. attorneys are charged with recommending by the month’s end which of the eight soldiers’ charges should be referred to the courts-martial, Richardson said. Lieutenant General Frank Helmick, representing the Court-Martial Convening Authority, will then make a final decision on the referral of charges, based on the attorneys’ recommendation. “If charges are referred,” Richardson said, “the accused will be arraigned, and their cases will be scheduled for trial.” Another locale previously under consideration for the Chen trials was Fort Wainwright, Alaska, the home base of Chen’s military unit. But holding the trials at Fort Bragg, one of the military’s largest domestic installations, ultimately made more sense, according to Arata. “The bottom line is resources,” said Arata, noting that Fort Bragg has ample facilities, including courtrooms and hotels, to accommodate the trials and their participants. Fort Bragg also has a pool of approximately 56,000 soldiers to choose from in appointing members for its panel, the courts-martial equivalent of a jury, as

Downtown Express photo by Aline Reynolds

At a press conference last week, community advocates and elected officials praised the U.S. Army’s decisison to hold the trials of the soldiers accused in the death of Chinatown resident Danny Chen in North Carolina rather than Afghanistan.

well as a plethora of judges to arbitrate the cases. “We have the ability to pull a lot of support from there,” said Arata. “We also have a large pool of people within our post for both the prosecuting and defense trial counsel.” The Army cannot predict how long the trials will last. An attorney representing Chen’s family told OuYang that the military is expected to complete the trials in seven months, but Arata said that this time frame might be wishful thinking. “Putting us down for a specific [end] date would be kind of dangerous, since we haven’t referred charges yet,” said Arata, noting that unforeseen snags could potentially stall the judicial process. “The important thing from our end is going through the correct court procedures to make sure we do it right.”

Continuing the fight for justice Chen’s family, OCA-NY and elected officials continue to pressure the Army to pass on all of the soldiers’ initial charges to the courts-martial, including involuntary manslaughter, which carries a 10-year prison sentence, and negligent homicide, which carries a maximum sentence of three years. Following last week’s press conference, OuYang resent the petition advocating the cause to Major General James L. Huggins, Jr., in Afghanistan. Some 2,400 people from around the globe, including Malaysia, Vietnam and Europe, have signed the petition in just the last month, OuYang said, bringing the total signature count to 3,600. “The family and community has every expectation they will be referred to the court-martial,” said OuYang. “They need to be tried to the fullest extent of the law.” To commemorate Danny’s 20th birthday, which is on May 26, OCA-NY is organizing an arts performance at Pace University High School featuring artists including

R&B singer Taiyo, photographer Corky Lee, and spoken word artist Kris Lew, among others. OuYang anticipates a large turnout for the event, scheduled for Thurs., May 24. OCA-NY is also sponsoring a birthday card campaign for Chen, with the goal of collecting 10,000 cards and hand-delivering them next month to the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee in Washington, D.C. “The fight for justice is far from over, and we need your help with the next step,” reads a template created by OCA-NY available to card-writers. Alternatively, people may make their own cards or submit a message online at www.justicefordannychen. tumblr.com/submit. The cards are due by Mon., May 14. Participants making their own cards are asked to send them to OCA-NY, P.O. Box 3233, Church Street Station, New York N.Y. 10018.

Aaron Bronson House, Southbury, Connecticut. Authentic 258-year-old 2-story Cape in garden setting overlooking meadows on state bridle trail. Exceptional interior woodwork, 4 working fireplaces, beehive ovens, wide board chestnut floors and 3 baths. Master bedroom wing (1987) with cathedral ceiling opens to terrace, gardens. 2 barns with 8 vehicle/horse bays. 2.8 acres. Minutes from the villages of Southbury and Woodbury. Conveniently located near I-84. 90 min. from New York City, 30 min. from New Haven. Low taxes. On National Register of Historic Places. Contact owner (917 579-7436) or Joyce Drakely Real Estate, Woodbury, CT (http://www.drakeley.com/ 203 263-4336).

April 18 - 25, 2012

EDITORIAL PUBLISHER & EDITOR John W. Sutter

Solving Pier 40

ASSOCIATE EDITOR John Bayles ARTS EDITOR Scott Stiffler REPORTERS Aline Reynolds Albert Amateau Lincoln Anderson SR. V.P. OF SALES AND MARKETING Francesco Regini RETAIL ADVERTISING MANAGER Colin Gregory ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Allison Greaker Julius Harrison Alex Morris Julio Tumbaco BUSINESS MANAGER / CONTROLLER Vera Musa ART / PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Troy Masters SR. GRAPHIC DESIGNER Vince Joy GRAPHIC DESIGNER Christina Entcheva CONTRIBUTORS Helaina N. Hovitz • Terese Loeb Kreuzer • Jerry Tallmer PHOTOGRAPHERS Milo Hess • Jefferson Siegel • Terese Loeb Kreuzer

Published by

COMMUNITY MEDIA, LLC 515 Canal St., Unit 1C, NY, NY 10013 Phone: (212) 229-1890 Fax: (212) 229-2790 On-line: www.downtownexpress.com E-mail: news@downtownexpress.com

Gay City

NEWS

Downtown Express is published every week by Community Media LLC, 515 Canal St., Unit 1C, New York, N.Y. 10013 (212) 229-1890. The entire contents of the newspaper, including advertising, are copyrighted and no part may be reproduced without the express permission of the publisher - © 2012 Community Media LLC. PUBLISHER’S LIABILITY FOR ERROR The Publisher shall not be liable for slight changes or typographical errors that do not lessen the value of an advertisement. The publisher’s liability for other errors or omissions in connection with an advertisement is strictly limited to publication of the advertisement in any subsequent issue.

Member of the New York Press Association

Member of the National Newspaper Association

Last week, we reported on Major League Soccer’s ambitious plan to build a 25,000-seat soccer stadium and community youth sports facility at Pier 40, at W. Houston St. The stadium would be home to a new pro soccer team, which would play 20 to 30 games there per season. Matches would mostly be on Saturday evenings, from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. With Pier 40 continuing to deteriorate and needing more than $100 million in repairs over the next 15 years — including urgent repairs — it behooves everyone to keep an open mind about this important facility and the long-term health of Hudson River Park. So, first, let’s look at the pros of the M.L.S. proposal. For starters, M.L.S. would pay for the pier’s repair. In addition, local youth and adult sports leagues would be able to use the stadium field when it’s free, and there would also be other playing fields open for community use on the pier. Indeed, M.L.S. says, under its plan, field space on the pier and playing time for local leagues would both increase. Contact with the M.L.S. team, and their outreach programs, would provide an enormous boost to New York, and Downtown, soccer at all levels. However, on the con side, first, one has to wonder if the existing transportation network could accommodate such a stadium. Yes, there are multiple subway lines relatively nearby — but some of the stations are quite small, such as the closest, at Houston and Varick Sts. Also, already on summer Saturday nights, the Village is packed with both car and foot traffic. Simply put, would there be any way to mitigate the impact of 20,000-plus soccer fans flooding through the neighborhood at peak times before and after the games? M.L.S. has hired traffic consultant Sam Schwartz to devise an “aggressive traffic plan.” We’ll be curious to see the results. While the M.L.S. proposal is intriguing in some ways, there are some very big questions about it that must be answered. More to the point, now is the time that everyone — from the Hudson River Park Trust, to local politicians, to the community task force studying both Pier 40 and the whole park, to local residents — must keep their minds open about solving the Pier 40 dilemma. Two previous attempts to redevelop the pier sunk. Requests for proposals (R.F.P.s) from developers netted such unpopular mega-plans as a huge oceanarium and The Related Company’s “Vegas on the Hudson,” featuring Cirque du Soleil. Again, the impact on the pier and the surrounding community were the chief concerns. But the question remains — what kind of use will work on the pier? Some think high-end housing and/or a hotel could work, with the sports fields retained, of course. However, as with a stadium, the Hudson River Park Act would need to be changed to allow these uses. Also, in the last R.F.P., the short-term lease mandated by the park act (not more than 30 years ) was a deal-breaker — thankfully so, in that case. But to land a viable tenant to fix the pier and pay the Trust sufficient rent, the lease term likely must be extended, to 50 years, maybe to 75. The local nonprofit group Pier, Park and Playgrounds (P3) is funding an outside consultant to brainstorm on ideas for Pier 40. Tishman/Aecom recently took over this study from HR & A Advisors. This study is unconstrained by the limitations of the park’s legislation — all options are on the table. The study should finish in the next several weeks and will be presented to the task force. Our local leaders can’t be afraid to modify the park act, as needed, if it means the difference between saving and losing Pier 40. We’re very eager to see the study’s recommendations. That would be the starting point for any possible changes to the park act. As the study is doing, it’s time for everyone to think outside the box on Pier 40 — because, at this point, that’s likely where the solution will be found.

downtown express

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Abuse of power at Southbridge Towers On April 3, at the Southbridge Towers Board of Directors’ “open monthly board meeting,” held in the S.B.T. community room, the S.B.T. Board passed a resolution refusing the use of the community room to the pro Mitchell-Lama group for discussion of any informational material pertaining to the privatization process underway. The resolution was solely based on the fact that five members of the S.B.T. Board are running for re-election through May 2. The board members are working under a “gag” order, which bars them from discussing their own opinions about the process. However, the community room is open for rental and use by any S.B.T. residents when the room is not in use. To begin with an informational meeting doesn’t necessarily require rebuttal. In addition, there are certainly other residents who could come forward to provide feedback to any assertions made by the pro Mitchell-Lama group. Apparently, the board believes that they are the only residents capable or interested in addressing the pro-privatization issue. This is a violation of freedom of speech and of procedures previously in force at S.B.T. It is clearly self-serving and an attempt to prevent shareholders from receiving informa-

tion to make informed decisions concerning the election and the privatization process that is underway. Paul Hovitz Hovitz is the former member of S.B.T.’s Board of Directors and a resident of S.B.T. since 1984.

Indians will be fine, dam it To The Editor: Re. “Tribeca Film Festival: ‘Xingu’ ” (Downtown Express arts section, April 11): To correct you in your last paragraph, The Villas Boas saga has become part of the Brazilian government policy regarding the country’s indigenous peoples. For this reason, the Belo Monte Hydropower Dam will not affect the 122 Indians living along the 62-mile stretch we call “The Xingu Big Bend.” This part of the river will not dry and fish and river transportation will be preserved. By the way, as opposed to other countries in the Americas, Indian extermination was never a government policy in Brazil, as you have probably concluded after watching the movie “Xingu.” Joao Pimentel

Downtown Express photo by Milo Hess

Take it off, paint it on When the temps rise, one way to beat the heat is to have artist Andy Golub do a little body painting.

downtown express

April 18 - 25, 2012

ON THE SPOT WITH JENNY BONNET Jenny Bonnet began last month as the interim acting principal of P.S. 150, Tribeca Learning Center. Her goal is to permanently replace Maggie Siena once Seina takes the helm at the new Peck Slip School starting next fall. Bonnet discusses her affinity for P.S. 150, her experience in the city public school system and school overcrowding Downtown.

BY ALINE REYNOLDS Which other public schools have you worked at? For nine years, I was an academic director of a school called the Special Music School on W. 67th Street. I left there a couple of years ago to work as an assistant principal for P.S. 199, a bigger school on W. 70th Street. Then I had the opportunity to become an assistant principal at the AmPark Neighborhood School in Van Cortlandt Village in the Bronx, near to where I live. What drew you to P.S. 150? I realized that it was time for me go and take the reins somewhere. I wanted to have my own vision. So when this opportunity arose, I met with the superintendent, we got along really well, and it just seemed like it was a really good fit. This school year, P.S. 150 received a ‘C’ on its progress

report and many say you have big shoes to fill following the leadership of Maggie Siena. What game plan do you have in mind to improve the curriculum iculum and student performance? ? I know this past year wasn’t great for P.S. 150. It’s very ery difficult to run a school that’s t’s one class per grade, especiallyy when you’re dealing with progress rogress reports and testing, because use you have such a small population. ulation. My goal for next year is to o really start looking at doing more ore differentiation in the school. I want to work on professional developevelopment to help teachers meet eet the needs of the kids, so we’lll really be taking a look at thesee state tests and then do an item analysis, to figure out where we need to look into small group instrucnstruction and decide which kids ds need what type of instruction.

a lottery. Like zoned schools, the first priority goes to sibling kids in the Downtown area. There’s about 40 children on our waitlist right now. The difference with our waitlist is, some of the kids may have already gotten into their zoned schools.

Give us a refresher on P.S. 150. How and when did it start? It started in 1988 as thee early childhood center with grades pre-k to two. It merged in 2001 with a school called Bridges. ges. I guess at that point, they just decided to change the name me to Tribeca Learning Center. It’s t’s a choice school, so it’s different rent than a zoned school in that it’s open to families of 28 Lower wer Manhattan kindergarteners rs who come and apply, and nd children are chosen vis-à-vis is

What are your thoughts on the overcrowding situation at the Downtown schools? What needs to be done to rectify the situation? It’s just a matter, I guess, of opening new schools, like they’re doing with the Peck Slip School. But it also seemed like every year in

JEN N Y BON N ET

District Three, when there were waitlists for kindergarten, they always seemed to resolve themselves by September because of parents parent moving or kids getting into gifted-and-talented prog grams or deciding to go to private privat schools. I guess it’s the same situation in District sa Two — we’re going to have to see what happens. Eventually, w the Peck Slip School is going Pe to grow to four or five kingro dergarten classes. In a year dergar or two, that’d alleviate the tw problem, but it clearly doesn’t proble alleviate allevia the problem for next year. I guess it’s just something the D.O.E. has to look into D further. furthe Do you have a favorite Downtown hang-out? Downt I have a few, actually. It’s h going to sound silly and celebrity-like, rity-lik but I’ve been going to Nobu in Tribeca, on Franklin and Hudson Streets, for years H since it opened, even before I was working down there. w I have also had dinner at h Odeon. I’m a real food perOd son, son but I really haven’t had ha too much time to enjoy the th restaurants after work. I love the neighborhood and an the artsy feel, which is why I’m looking forward to the Taste of w Tribeca. It’s such a wonT derful fundraiser for the d local schools!

S EAPORT R EPORT BY JANEL BLADOW The early spring weather has brought out the crowds to our ‘hood. That’s a good thing. With all the noisy, ugly construction, it’s surprising anyone would want to wander our pock-marked cobblestone streets, let alone hang outside drinking beer or dining al fresca. But we love our nabe.

BONE-AFIDE GOOD DEED… The love spread around the Seaport last month, offering hope for a little boy from a fatal disease and a 25-percent discount to the “Bodies” exhibit for do-gooders. Friends, family and Gift of Life volunteers encamped at Fulton and Front Sts. with swab kits, hoping to find a bone-marrow match for little Ezra Fineman. The toddler has a rare tissue type and identifying the right donor from a simple saliva sample could save his life. Without a transplant, Ezra is at risk of devel-

oping liver disease, lymphoma and tumors. He was diagnosed with a life-threatening genetic disorder called Hyper IgM syndrome when he was just four-months old. His mom Robin says his tiny body is unable to produce antibodies. “He can’t fight infections.” Miraculously he celebrated his third birthday at home in New Jersey on March 11, the same day as the Seaport drive. Because of his condition, having the boy at a public place with big crowds puts him at risk. More than 70 people took part in the drive and visited the show. The connection, Robin told SR, was “a great way for people to give back.” And both the Gift of Life organization and the “Bodies” team agreed. With a swab of the inside cheek, adults aged 18 to 60 are entered into a national donor registry. Processing each swab kit costs $54. So both donors and donations are needed. To date, Erza’s team has raised more than $215,000 and made 28

matches (the latest on April 3, when a donor matched a five-year old boy with an immune system disorder). For more on how you can help, visit www.giftoflife.org/help4ezra.

BABY NEWS… There’s more good news to

ents for the first time. Cody DeCoons was born Dec. 6, 2011 to their daughter and son-in-law, Cari and Keith DeCoons. Baby Cody has blue eyes and reddish, blond hair and as the proud grandfather boasts “just adorable. What’s best is that Cari and Keith live in Gateway Plaza in Battery Park City and are so close, we can see Cody all the time!” Congrats to the new parents and happy grand ones! Also new to our Seaport family is little Ethan Lim, born March 26 to parents Adam and Fay. Adam, his brothers Jeff and Jackson and grandmother Lyn are well known and loved Seaporters, from their restaurant Fish Market where Lyn makes a really delicious Drunkin’ Fish soup, to the newly reopened Cigar Landing (see next item). As the family’s first grandchild, Ethan is getting all of grandma’s attention! Congrats to everyone.

celebrate. Long-time SouthBridge Towers residents Bob and Cathy Gelber became grandpar-

Continued on page 27

ANOTHER YEAR… Happy Birthday to SouthBridge Towers’ Diana K. who turned a whopping 23! And also to Jeff Pickett who was the long-time manager of Radio Mexico. Both were born on April 4 and touched the life of Meade’s main barmaiden, Kathleen Joyce and waitstaff Chano and Izzy. “I saw Jeff almost every day for years,” says Katie, adding that she bonded with Diana who as a child would come to Radio with her dad. “Now she’s an adult. I adore her and she’s a fixture in the neighborhood.”

BY TERESE LOEB KREUZER

SPRING/SUMMER MENU AT MERCHANTS RIVER HOUSE: As reliably as the appearance of robins and daffodils in Battery Park City, spring means a revised menu at Merchants River House — the restaurant on the esplanade with two outdoor patios and a great view of the Hudson River. The revised menu partially reflects the desire for lighter, warm-weather fare and partially the practicalities of feeding hundreds of people at a time from a small kitchen. “In winter, when we just have indoor seating, the restaurant seats 125 people,” said Merchants Hospitality Executive Chef Wade Burch. “In summer, that goes up to 300, so I have to put things on the menu that can be prepared quickly.” A highlight of the new menu is a Chardonnay poached salmon served with mixed greens, radishes, capers, haricots verts and hard-boiled eggs with a tarragonmustard vinaigrette ($16). It’s similar to a salade niçoise except made with salmon instead of tuna. The salmon is delicate, offset by its spicy accompaniments. Burch

April 18 - 25, 2012

said the salmon comes from Scotland and is purchased fresh daily every day but Sunday. A goat cheese and roasted tomato ravioli new to the menu should please vegetarians. It’s served with wilted spinach, a plum tomato broth and toasted pine nuts ($15). And with a nod toward summer days at the beach, there will be Maryland crab cakes served with angel hair pasta and New Jersey corn and tomatoes ($24.95). Burch has enlivened the dessert menu with a silky Bailey’s Irish Cream cheese cake drizzled with caramel ($5.75) and a favorite from SouthWest NY, a large wedge of Red Velvet cake with cream cheese frosting ($6.75). Speaking of SouthWest NY, Abraham Merchant said that he expects his restaurant at the corner of South End Avenue and Albany Street to open in three months. In the meantime, SouthWest NY will deliver from 5 p.m. to midnight daily. Call (212) 945-0538. Merchants River House is open daily. The kitchen is open Mondays to Fridays from 11:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays the kitchen hours are 11

Downtown Express photos by Terese Loeb Kreuzer

The spring/summer menu at Merchants River House brings some new dishes including a Chardonnay poached salmon salad with haricots verts, hard-boiled eggs and a tarragon-mustard vinaigrette and panko-crusted zucchini squash with a spicy ranch dip.

a.m. to 10:30 p.m. The bar remains open until midnight. Call (212) 432-1451 for reservations.

TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL DRIVE-IN AT W.F.C.: Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff launched the Tribeca Film Festival in 2002 to try to help Lower Manhattan recover from 9/11. An enduring part of the festival are the community evenings on the World Financial Center plaza with free movies, free food — usually popcorn and soft drinks — and free entertainment before each film. This year, the Tribeca Film Festival Drivein opens on Thursday, April 19 with that classic 1975 thriller, “Jaws” followed by “The Goonies” from 1985 on Friday, April 20 and the world premiere of a baseball documentary called “Knuckleball!” on Saturday, April 21. The drive-in opens each night at 6 p.m. The entertainment starts at 6:30 p.m. and the films are shown at dusk — roughly 8:15 p.m. “Jaws” will be preceded by trivia contests to celebrate Universal Studios’ 100th anniversary, live music from Afro-jazz pioneers Nomo, and some special guests from the upcoming New York Downtown Jazz Festival. There will also be live music on the second and third nights of the drive-in. Baseball fans will have a special treat on Saturday when pro knuckleballers R.A. Dickey of the New York Mets, Tim Wakefield, formerly of the Boston Red Sox, and former New York Yankee Jim Bouton are on hand to show their pitching techniques.

DOWNTOWN LITTLE LEAGUE SEASON OPENER:

Large Fothergilla (Fothergilla Major), also called “witch alder,” is native to the southeastern United States. It is growing on the Battery Park City esplanade.

downtown express

Another hotly contested season of Downtown Little League softball and baseball games starts on Saturday, April 21 with the requisite trappings — speeches from politicians and a performance by Lower Manhattan’s own community band, the TriBattery Pops, playing the National

Anthem and “Take Me Out to the Ballgame.” The festivities begin at 9 a.m. on the Battery Park City ball fields between West Street and North End Avenue at Murray and Warren Streets. The games start at 11 a.m.

BATTERY PARK CITY IN BLOOM: In spring, Battery Park City’s gardens burst with color and with exotic blooms from all over the world. An interesting looking plant with flowers that look like white bottle brushes is currently decorating the esplanade near West Thames Street. This plant, called Large Fothergilla (Fothergilla major) or witch alder, is native to the American southeast. Its spiky flowers have no petals. The white blooms are actually a clutch of stamens — the male fertilizing organ of a flower. The plant was named for John Fothergill (1712-1780) an English physician and plant collector. In the practice of medicine, he was innovative and prescient. He lectured about mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and was one of the first doctors to identify streptococcus as a cause of sore throats. He was fascinated by botany. In his home at Upton near Stratford, he grew plants from all over the world. He sponsored scientific expeditions to the South Seas and also bankrolled William Bartram, the American botanist and son of the famed botanist John Bartram of Philadelphia. The younger Bartram traveled through the southern United States from 1773 to 1776 and probably came across witch alder at that time. Fothergill and the Bartrams were Quakers. Fothergill commissioned and paid for a Quaker Bible and founded a Quaker school called Ackworth in West Yorkshire. Battery Park City’s Fothergilla is a lovely tribute to a man who did much good in his 68 years of life, advancing human wellbeing and knowledge. To comment on Battery Park City Beat or to suggest article ideas, email TereseLoeb@ mac.com

downtown express

April 18 - 25, 2012

downtown express

This is my neighborhood

Schechter’s slice of urban life stays close to home BY SCOTT STIFFLER Decades after “Taxi Driver” and “Annie Hall” left indelible marks on the silver screen, audiences continue to eagerly consume and digest their iconic visions of NYC. The result? Many who’ve never been to the island (and don’t plan to visit) will forever regard it as a land of foreboding urban decay or whimsical neurosis — or, worse yet, the place where Carrie Bradshaw clones shop, sleep around, sip cocktails and dish, dish, dish. Filmmaker Daniel Schechter — whose “Supporting Characters” takes place in modern day Manhattan — set out to create a film that would give audiences a more realistic, and equally enduring, vision of Gotham.

‘I live a very ordinary, almost middle class life in New York City. These guys,’ says Schechter of the two main characters, ‘don’t make a fortune. They barely get by. They don’t go to the hottest clubs or the trendiest restaurants. There’s none of that in the film.’

It’s a daunting task to change the popular notions so firmly established by Martin Scorsese and Woody Allen. Even Queens-born Schechter finds it difficult to escape their gravitational pull. When I see New York films,” he notes, “I see a very wealthy, polished ‘Sex and the City’ New York or gritty ’70s urban dramas.” But, the Manhattan resident maintains, “I live a very ordinary, almost middle class life in New York City. These guys,” says Schechter of the two main characters, “don’t make a fortune. They barely get by. They don’t go to the hottest clubs or the trendiest restaurants. There’s none of that in the film.” What “Supporting Characters” does have to offer is a casual, practically mundane rendering of life’s everyday epic struggles — set against a million dollar backdrop that the filmmaker found right outside his doorstep. “My first goal,” he says, “was making a high production value-looking film for practically no

Photo by Richard Ulivella

We can work it out: Darryl Wiggins (Tarik Lowe), left, and Nick Berger (Alex Karpovsky) put their relationship on the chopping block.

SUPPORTING CHARACTERS Feature Narrative Runtime: 87 Minutes Directed by Daniel Schechter Screenplay by Tarik Lowe & Daniel Schechter Fri. 4/20, 10pm & Fri. 4/27, 10pm at AMC Loews Village. Sun. 4/22, 6pm at Clearview Cinemas Chelsea.

money. Shooting in New York affords you skylines and view you couldn’t do in a rural area. We made the movie for fifty thousand dollars in twelve days…and I don’t think there’s been a [New York] film that looks as good as this.” From park bench conversations to restaurant brainstorming sessions to a striking shot of two friends standing in the middle of a street framed by tall apartment buildings (as a yellow cab whizzes past and clouds hang low in the sky), the film’s title could be as much a reference to the city itself as the characters who find themselves at personal and professional crossroads. Film editing duo Nick (Alex Karpovsky) and Darryl (Tarik Lowe) are thinly veiled versions of real life friends — and

Photo by Richard Ulivella

Liana (Melonie Diaz) and Darryl Wiggins (Tarik Lowe) negotiate love and loyalty.

“Supporting Characters” screenwriters — Lowe and Schechter. Their bromance is tested when Nick is offered a gig sans his longtime partner — while, unbeknownst to him, Darryl is planting seeds of dissent with the director of their current project. As that project’s flirtatious starlet injects some temptation into Nick’s stable relationship with his girlfriend, Darryl falls for a pop star who may have a hidden

agenda of her own. Life’s never-ending editing process soon makes the splicing being applied to the film-within-a-film pale in comparison — as all the characters contemplate the costs and benefits to changes to their own narrative. Schechter’s decision to favor wry real-

Continued on page 15

downtown express

April 18 - 25, 2012

Film full of ‘Characters’

SATURDAY, APRI L 28 10 AM – 6 PM

FREE

(Rain or Shine)

FAMILY FESTIVAL STREET FAIR Presented by American Express®

Greenwich Street (Hubert to Chambers Street) Celebrate family fun in Tribeca! Experience the creativity of neighborhood schools, merchants, restaurants and performers. Enjoy a fabulous day of entertainment, activities, Broadway performances, arts and crafts, kite flying and so much more!

Photo by Richard P. Ulivella

Darryl Wiggins (Tarik Lowe), left, and Nick Berger (Alex Karpovsky) are a film editing duo at personal and professional crossroads.

TRI BECA/ ESPN SPORTS DAY Sponsored by Time Warner Cable®

N. Moore Street (Between Greenwich and West Sts) ATTENTION SPORTS FANS : We’re taking sports to the streets of Tribeca! Kids of all ages

Continued from page 14 ism over the punchlines and pratfalls usually associated with such comedies of error pays off — as does the casual, understated way he portrays the city. “Whenever I make a film,” Schechter asserts, “I want to ground it as much in reality as possible so my audience can see what it would be like to live in New York City. It’s a really personal story. I wanted to reflect my life, my friendships and my career…so we shot in the actual locations where these [real life] events took place.” By the time the script was done, Schechter’s own personal trials and tribulations weren’t the only things that served as fodder for what would end up on the screen. “It seemed like every location was written for some place I go, or work at or live,” he recalls. His own apartment ( and those of friends) served as the main characters’ Brooklyn and Union Square domiciles. Shooting a scene at the restaurant

he frequents for soup dumplings (China Fun, on the Upper West Side) was an easy sell, Schechter recalls. “One day, I was sitting there thinking, why not ask them if we could shoot a scene there.” Soon after, the scene was in the can — and Schechter found his real and cinematic life blurring. While that may be enough to freak some people out or push them over the edge (see another Tribeca Film Fest entry, “Francophrenia,” for an extreme example), Schechter notes, “I thought it would be more surreal to see a doppelganger of myself [and my life] than it turned out to be.” After awhile, he says, the shoot for “Supporting Characters,” became like that of every other movie. The filmmaker’s casual disregard for synchronicity will be put to the test when he begins his next project this summer. He’s been tapped to write and direct “Switch.” Based on the Elmore Leonard novel, it’s a prequel to “Jackie Brown” that stars another veteran of Manhattan friendships — Jennifer Aniston.

can participate in an array of sports activities and games while hanging out with their favorite New York athletes, mascots and sports personalities!

FOUN DI NG SPONSOR

S IGNATUR E SPONSORS

S IGNATUR E M E DIA SPONSORS

CU LTURAL PARTN E R

April 18 - 25, 2012

16 BY BONNIE ROSENSTOCK When Safinez Bousbia wandered into Mohamed Ferkioui’s cluttered antique shop in the Casbah of Algiers (the capital of Algeria) in 2003, to inquire about a mirror, little did she suspect that she would find herself embarking on a two-year quest which would unite old friends and change many lives. Craftsman and musician Ferkioui, 83, regaled the Algerian-born filmmaker (who lives abroad) with tales of chaabi music. He showed her precious memorabilia — including photographs of a music class from the 1940s where Muslim and Jewish musicians played together, before the Algerian revolution against the French (1954-1962) tore them apart and destroyed their beloved music. Her interest piqued, Bousbia began searching for the surviving members, who are now in their 70s to late 90s and living in Paris, Marseilles and across Algeria. The Jews fled their homeland during and after the bloody war. “It was the suitcase or the coffin,” one displaced musician recalled. Then Muslims from the Casbah were relocated, their neighborhood left to crumble and disintegrate. Chaabi (pronounced sha-bee) has been described as a rhythmic cocktail of European and Arabic traditions — classical Andalusian music carried to North Africa from the Jewish/ Arab expulsion from Spain in 1492, plus Berber melodies and religious chants. It is sweet, mournful, nostalgic, deeply emotional. The lyrics (translated in the subtitles) are surprisingly conservative, but also feisty and provocative. They sing of injustice, betrayal, spiritual, moral

BY TRAV S.D. “Room 514” is a laudable attempt by first time writer/director Sharon Bar-Ziv to talk about the complexities of the unsolvable tangle of the Israel-Palestine crisis. Anna (Asia Naifeld) is a deceptively pretty interrogator for Israeli military police who has taken it upon herself to investigate claims that patrolling soldiers abused a Palestinian family. Her relentless pursuit of answers takes her up the food chain from a low-level sergeant

But the camera doesn’t lie, and we can’t help but have a strong sense that there is nothing outside that room. How can there be war out there if there isn’t even an outer office? (Guy Kapul), to the commander of a special unit (Udi Persi), to a General Major (Rafi Kalmar). Every step of the way she is being pressured by her own superior officer (Ohad Hall) to close the file on the investigation, which of course only strengthens her resolve to continue. There are plenty of interesting elements here. Anna and her supervisor are lovers,

downtown express

EL GUSTO Feature Documentary Written & Directed by Safinez Bousbia In French and Arabic with English subtitles Runtime: 88 Minutes Mon. 4/23, 8:30pm at AMC Loews Village. Tues. 4/24, 6:45pm & Sat. 4/28, 3pm at Clearview Cinemas Chelsea.

and political corruption, exile, loss, God’s and man’s retribution, freedom, independence — and, of course, love and lots of drinking. It is a sublime blending of traditional percussion and stringed instruments and flute (plus piano for concerts), and that ethereal, guttural North African voice. No electric instruments (unlike hip, urban rai) are permitted. Chaabi, which means “people” or “folk” in Algerian, originated in the poor and working class Casbah (old part of the city), where Muslims and Jews lived, worked and played side by side. (Christians and Europeans lived elsewhere in the city.) Concerts took place in concert halls and theaters, at festivals and weddings, as well as in barbershops, cafes, brothels and cannabis dens, giving it its populist roots. In addition to the nostalgic interviews and wonderful music, cinematographer Nuria

Photo by Jakie King

Safinez Bousbia’s visit to a cluttered antique shop led to a two-year quest.

Roldos uses her exquisite camera skills to explore all the nooks and crannies of the narrow, winding Casbah streets, as if we were walking besides the old-timers, stopping from time to time to remember and reminisce. Comparisons to “Buena Vista Social Club” are inevitable. Old guys, a long forgotten musical form rediscovered by independent filmmaker, accolades, recording contract, tours, CDs. It has that going for it (including the tours and CD), but it is so much more.

It a heart-warming and heart-wrenching 50-year history of a country, of two peoples, old friends, shattered lives of suffering and sacrifice. El Gusto means pleasure or passion — and the name given to the revitalized 42-member orchestra, featuring the original musicians with younger talents. And as one thrilled veteran commented, “On the El Gusto ship, you’ll always be content.” If the movie doesn’t make you tear up, you have no gusto.

ROOM 514 Feature Narrative Written & Directed by Sharon Bar-Ziv In Hebrew & Russian with English subtitles Runtime: 90 Minutes Sat. 4/21, 7pm & Thurs. 4/26, 3pm at AMC Loews Village. Sun. 4/22, 9:45pm at Clearview Cinemas Chelsea.

and he’s about to get married — adding nice cross currents to the dynamic. The fact that she is a woman adds another layer of tension beyond that caused by the Palestine question. Each man she deals with treats her with an arrogance they would never show to a male inquisitor in the same situation. Anna must use every arrow in her quiver to throw them. When intimidation doesn’t work, she uses feminine tactics. There are many challenges here for the actors to tackle, and I don’t really see any missteps from them (although a couple of them seem too young for their roles). Especially well written are some of the impassioned speeches the soldiers make in their own defense, which shows a largeness of spirit on the part of Bar-Ziv since his point of view is obviously closer to Anna’s. The main problem with the film is that there’s too little on the screen. As a defender

Photo by Edan Sasson

Asia Naifeld, as Anna, demands answers.

(and even an advocate) of low-budget cinema, this may be the first time I have ever had this particular problem with a film. “Room 514” feels like it really wants to be a play. As the title implies, almost all of it takes place within the elevator-sized interrogation Room 514, which is barely large enough to contain a desk, a filing cabinet and two chairs. If the entire movie had been set there, there might have been some justification (it might have been seen as a gimmick, a challenge on the part of the filmmaker).

But there are also several scenes staged on a bus, which makes it seem less an artistic choice than an economic one. Particularly worrisome were scenes where the interrogated officers enter the room, armed, and hand their weapons over to her. Surely they have some better procedure for this? Something outside the room. But the camera doesn’t lie, and we can’t help but have a strong sense that there is nothing outside that room. How can there be war out there if there isn’t even an outer office?

downtown express

April 18 - 25, 2012

SIDE BY SIDE Feature Documentary Runtime: 99 Minutes Directed by Chris Kenneally Tues. 4/24, 8:30pm at SVA Theater. Thurs. 4/26, 7pm, Fri. 4/27, 2:30pm & Sat. 4/28, 4pm at AMC Loews Villager.

BY RANIA RICHARDSON Celluloid or digital film — which is the better format? Directors, cinematographers, editors and other film professionals weigh in on the question in Chris Kenneally’s densely packed new documentary. The film’s producer and narrator, Keanu Reeves, sits down with an astounding number of Hollywood insiders at their workplace and elicits candid opinions on the state of filmmaking (past and present) to learn, in his words, “the impact on motion pictures and the way stories are conceived, created, and experienced.” Master craftsmen interviewed include directors and cinematographers who frequently collaborate — such as Martin Scorsese and Michael Ballhaus (“The Departed,” “Goodfellas”) and Danny Boyle and Anthony Dod Mantle (“127 Hours,” “Slumdog Millionaire”). A relentless stream of sound bites from the interviews, combined with educational footage on film equipment and processes, form a nar-

Photo by Chris Cassidy

Reeves and Scorsese invite you to join the digital age.

rative that takes viewers through a history of film mediums and techniques. A broad picture is created by also questioning actors, curators, 3D experts, camera manufacturers and many others. There is a nod to inclusivity with interviews of female cinematographers Ellen Kuras (“Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”) and Reed Morano (“Frozen River”) as well as African-American Bradford Young (“Pariah”). Analog filmmaking is rapidly becoming obsolete, due to the ease, speed and economic advantages of working with new technologies.

Even films shot on celluloid are now edited and visually enhanced digitally, and often projected that way. Director Steven Soderbergh, who regularly acts as his own cameraman, says that without the smaller, lighter cameras he would not have had the agility to hike through the jungles of Bolivia to shoot “Che.” Not everyone is happy that the industry is moving away from traditional methods, particularly the relatively young director, Christopher Nolan, and his frequent cinematographer Wally Pfister (“Inception,” “The

Dark Knight”). It seems inevitable that 35mm film will join vinyl records and newsprint as a marker of a romanticized past, of quality over convenience. Nevertheless, the continual improvement of digital systems convinces holdouts to embrace a new world — even if they still fight for the richer images of celluloid which, as it turns out, will last longer in the archives. As resolution and overall on-screen image improve, though, it looks like there is no turning back.

April 18 - 25, 2012

downtown express

Beyond the red carpet

Tribeca fest more then the sum of its flickering parts BY SCOTT STIFFLER During the April 18-29 run of the Tribeca Film Festival, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be able to hunker down in a stadium seat, sink your choppers into a tub of popcorn and not come up for air until the sprawling event has presented 89 features and 60 short films (most of them, several times over). Just beyond the red carpet arrivals, the world premieres and the freewheeling Q&As that follow many screenings, thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an equally packed schedule of outdoor events and panel discussions. For much more information, visit tribecafilm.com.

will offer the immediate areaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s finest foods, refreshments and merchandise. The screening of a classic family-friendly film will be held at BMCC Tribeca PAC (at 199 Chambers Street). At 4pm, at the Tribeca Film Center Screening Room (375 Greenwich Street, 2nd Floor), there will be a special screening of â&#x20AC;&#x153;Freej Folkloreâ&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x201D; presented by the Doha Film Institute and directed by Animator and TFF Juror Mohammed Saeed Harib. Tickets are limited, so email ldomnitz@tribecaenterprises.com for reservations, Outside, weather permitting (it rarely rains on this street fair), kids can create kid-sized bubbles in the Bubble Garden, dance to live music and channel their inner artists at one of the Arts & Crafts pavilions. FREE. Sat. 4/28, 10am-6pm, on Greenwich St. (from Hubert to Chambers Sts.).

TRIBECA/ESPN SPORTS DAY

Photo by John Bayles

The Tribeca Film Fest Family Street Fair includes the ESPN Zone for kids interested in shooting some hoops, tossing a few touchdown passes or playing a little street hockey.

TRIBECA FAMILY FESTIVAL STREET FAIR

The activities include football and cricket training as well as an appearance by former New York Knicks shooting guard John Starks (as well as some mascots and members of other sports teams). The â&#x20AC;&#x153;Wheels of Freestyle BMX Stunt Showâ&#x20AC;? has BMX riders flying high and performing daring tricks (on North Moore Street, at noon, 1:30pm, 3pm and 4:30pm). This free event happens Saturday, 4/28, from 10am-6pm at North Moore St. (from Greenwich St. to West St.).

TRIBECA/NYFEST SOCCER DAY

Greenwich Street, from Hubert to Chambers, will be packed with food, games, activities and entertainment â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and not a single vendor hawking cheap sunglasses in sight. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s what sets this annual spring event far apart from the crowded field of cookie cutter street fairs poised to clog up our city streets, somewhere, pretty much every single weekend throughout this summer. Broadway veterans and emerging Tribeca talent will perform on stages, while local restaurants and merchants

With its debut last year and return this year, Soccer Day seems locked down to join the Family Festival Street Fair as a regular featured event that encourages the exploration of festival life outside the screening room. Produced by TFF in partnership with NYFEST, this day of soccer and special invites (or, more accurately, challenges) you to â&#x20AC;&#x153;kick it.â&#x20AC;? Company teams from the film, music, sports, fashion,

Continued on page 23

Junior & Teen Sailing Camps These week-long programs inspire kids and develop self-confidence. Each week includes lots of fresh air, sunshine and healthy activity. Ages 8 to 18 Tuition ranges from $390 to $690 per week Full details & color pictures at www.sailmanhattan.com or call Manhattan Sailing School At 212-786-0400.

Hudson Wine & Spirits Huge Selection from around the world s #HILLED 7INE s #HAMPAGNE s 6ARIETY OF ,IQUORS s #ASE $ISCOUNTS s 0ROMPT $ELIVERY

Just 1 "LOCK 7EST OF 4RIBECA #INEMAS

Corporate Accounts Welcome s -AJOR #REDIT #ARD !CCEPTED

165 Hudson Street (Corner of Laight St.)

Hours -ON 4HURS AM PM &RI 3AT AM PM

downtown express

April 18 - 25, 2012

Finding a festival within a field of 5,950 New TFF programming team, on making the cut BY ALINE REYNOLDS Although the 10th anniversary of 9/11 has come and gone, the Tribeca Film Festival (TFF) — launched in 2002 to help revitalize a neighborhood shattered by the terrorist attacks — continues to thrive as an internationally recognized event that showcases films from all parts of the globe. Since its inception, TFF has hosted upwards of 3.5 million theatergoers and has generated approximately $725 million in economic activity for New York City. The festival turns 11 this year with a new programming team of seasoned film curators and movie aficionados who chose 150 films from a record number of 5,950 submissions (including nearly 3,100 features and 2,900 shorts). TFF’s new artistic director, Frederic Boyer, recently ran the Directors’ Fortnight at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival. “Programmers not only need to have good taste, they need to have a deep pool of contacts, [which Boyer has,]” said TFF Executive Director Nancy Schafer. Many of this year’s films are by firsttime filmmakers, and more than 50 of them are world premieres, according to new Programming Director Genna Terranova. The themes range from psychological and action thrillers to love tales to documen-

taries. Nine of them, including four feature films and five shorts, are available for viewing on the festival’s revamped website, tribecafilm.com. Four additional shorts will

The programmers don’t go into the screenings with a set agenda, Terranova noted. ‘It’s a bit of an organic process,’ she said. ‘It’s never really forced. You want to go in with a clean slate and try and experience every film for what it is.’

Photo courtesy of Tribeca Film Festival

New Programming Director Genna Terranova logged lots of couch time to help whittle down the record number of entries for this year’s TFF.

be available for viewing, starting April 25, once they’ve had their world premieres at the festival. This season, the festival is also putting

Continued on page 22

Focusing on the Future Fiterman Hall to Open Fall 2012 Our new, environmentally friendly Fiterman Hall will showcase soaring glass atriums, a stylish café, and world-class ﬁne arts gallery. Students will build their futures in over 100 spacious Smart Classrooms and computer labs overlooking the rising World Trade Center site, one of the country’s most historic reconstructions.

Start Here. Go Anywhere. Borough of Manhattan Community College www.bmcc.cuny.edu/ﬁtermanhall

April 18 - 25, 2012

TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL

DIRECTORY To order tickets, visit tribecafilm.com or call 646-502-5296

SINGLE TICKETS: Evening & Weekend screenings (after 6pm, Mon.-Fri. and Sat./Sun. prior to 11pm) are $16. Matinee & Late Night screenings (prior to 6pm, Mon.-Fri. or after 11pm daily) are $8. Tribeca Talks are $25.

VENUES:

1 Clearview Cinemas Chelsea (CCC), 260 W. 23rd St. (btw. 7th & 8th Aves.). 2 AMC Loews Village 7 (AV7), 66

Third Ave. (at 11th St.). 3 SVA Theater (SVA), 333 W. 23rd St. (btw. 8th & 9th Aves.). 4 BMCC Tribeca PAC (BMCC), 199 Chambers St. (btw. Greenwich & West Sts.). 5 Tribeca Cinemas (TC), 54 Varick St. (at Laight St.). 6 Apple Store, SoHo, 103 Prince St. (at Greene St.). 7 Chanel Art Awards Gallery at NYAA, 111 Franklin St. 8 Barnes & Noble Union Square, 33 E. 17th St.

9 Tribeca Film Center (TFC), 375 Greenwich St. (2nd floor, btw. N. Moore & Franklin Sts.). 10 Tribeca Drive-In, at the World Financial Center Plaza, West St. (btw. Vesey & Liberty Sts.). 11 Apple Store, 401 West 14th St. (at 9th Ave.). 12 Hudson River Parkâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Pier 40, 353 West St. (Houston at West Side Highway). 13 92YTribeca, 200 Hudson St. (btw. Canal & Vestry Sts.).

TICKET PACKAGES: (sold online and by phone only)

A HUDSON PASS c o s t s $ 1 , 2 0 0 and includes access for one to all evening, weekend and matinee/ l a t e n i g h t p r i c e d s c r e e n i n g s , Tr i b e c a Ta l k s and Filmmaker/Industry Lounge. More passes available at tribecafilm.com. DISCOUNTS AVAILABLE for students, seniors and select Downtown Manhattan residents (ticket outlet locations only). Service charges and fulfillment fees may apply. CHELSEA TICKET PACKAGE is $75 for six general screening tickets to films showing at SVA Theater and

downtown express

Clearview Cinemas Chelsea (two per screening).

DOCUMENTARY FILM FAN PACKAGE is $75 for six general screening tickets (two per screening).

MATINEE FILMS TICKET PACKAGE is $39 for six matinee screening tickets (two per screening).

LATE NIGHT/MATINEE SINGLE TICKET PACKAGE is $39 for six single late night or matinee screening tickets (one per screening).

EVENING/WEEKEND SINGLE TICKET PACKAGE is $75 for six single evening or weekend screening tickets (one per screening).

RUSH TICKETS: Screenings and panels that have no more advance tickets available will be listed as Rush Tickets. Rush ticket lines will form approximately 45 minutes prior to scheduled event times at the venue. Admission will begin approximately 15 minutes before program start time based on availability. Rush tickets are priced as noted above, except at the BMCC Tribeca PAC Theater, where all Rush tickets will be $8 and Tribeca Talks will be $15. No discounts apply and admission is not guaranteed.

downtown express

TRI-1722 2012 CorpAd-DwntwnExp.indd 2

April 18 - 25, 2012

4/6/12 9:25 AM

April 18 - 25, 2012

downtown express

TFF programmers, on whittling down and branching out countries have quality movies.” The programmers make a point of cultivating rapport with filmmakers from the getgo so that, following each TFF, they continue to support their work through media visibility and distribution. Tribeca Enterprises’ distribution branch Tribeca Film releases an

Continued from page 19 on its usual activities targeting the local community, including the Tribeca Drive-In, the Family Festival Street Fair, the Tribeca/ ESPN Sports Day and the second annual Tribeca/NYFEST Soccer Day. To select this year’s feature films and shorts, which represent 46 different countries, Terranova and her team traveled around the world to view them and then spent hours upon hours discussing them to reach a consensus about whether or not they would make the final cut. The programmers don’t go into the screenings with a set agenda, Terranova noted. “It’s a bit of an organic process,” she said. “It’s never really forced. You want to go in with a clean slate and try and experience every film for what it is.” The challenge comes when the programmers must explain why they thought a particular film worked, said Terranova, deeming it an “imperfect science” that is comparable to alchemy or wine tasting. “I think there’s a matter of personal taste, but I wouldn’t say it’s a completely subjective process,” she said. “The films are put through too rigorous of a screening process.” “In the end,” Terranova added, “the filmmakers are the true tastemakers.”

live element and go completely digital. If anything, they said, smartphones and the Internet have strengthened the movie-going experience by compelling filmmakers and festival curators to nurture a countermovement to web entertainment. “I feel like every time we step further

Schafer and Terranova have no short-term plans to wind down the festival’s live element and go completely digital. If anything, they said, smartphones and the Internet have strengthened the movie-going experience by compelling filmmakers and festival curators to nurture a countermovement to web entertainment. Photo courtesy of Tribeca Film Festival

Good taste and a deep pool of contacts, says Executive Director Nancy Schafer, are musts when programming TFF.

As the program gets filled, the programmers become increasingly selective as they strategize about what types of films are missing, Terranova said. “There’s a balancing act that goes on,” she said. “If we have 10 movies from one country [for example], maybe we should think about what other

estimated 25 movies per year through videoon-demand cable providers as well as on DVD, premium TV and in theaters. “It’s really to try to make this experience go across the country,” said Terranova. Gauging a film’s success post-TFF screening is difficult, she noted, since it entails predicting the forces of a constantly shifting marketplace. “Because everything changes so quickly,” said Terranova, “all we can rely on is finding quality films and help launch them on whatever journey they’re going to go on — whether it’s distribution, more film festivals or university tours.” As in previous years, the programmers settled on a modest count of TFF films to show on the web this year since, while wishing to expand digitally, the festival’s free web-viewing feature is in no way meant to undercut the live experience of going to the theater. “It’s not meant to replace the festival that’s actually happening on the ground,” commented Schafer. “We’ve chosen the four [feature-length] films because we believe they create an interesting film festival experience online.” Schafer and Terranova have no shortterm plans to wind down the festival’s

into the virtual world, someone else is also stepping forward in the real-life world,” said Terranova. Moving into the digital realm, she said, has been a “natural evolution.” “We’re thinking about expanding the different ways people are storytelling and exploring what’s happening with narrative in a different medium.” TFF also has no plans to do away with its local, interactive events, which attract hundreds of thousands of parents and children each year. This season, the festival is aiming for a turnout of 300,000 to 400,000 people for its annual Family Festival Street Fair on April 28, the last Saturday of the TFF season. The Tribeca Drive-In, held April 19-21, will present screenings of the classic 1970s thriller “Jaws,” the 1980s adventure-comedy “Goonies” and the 2007 sports documentary “Knuckleball.” All three evenings will offer games and activities inspired by the featured movies, including pitching clinics by New York Mets starting pitcher R.A. Dickey and former New York Yankees pitcher Jim Bouton. The events are first-come, first-served, and all activities are free of charge. For more information, visit tribecafilm.com.

Moving Visions’ Murray Street Studio A Wise Choice for your child’s dance education!

Dance for Children and Teens • Modern Ballet (ages 5-18) • Choreography (ages 8 & up) • Creative Movement/Pre-Ballet (ages 3-5)

ADULT CLASSES

Yoga - Tai Chi • Chi/Dance/Exercise for Women

19 Murray St., 3rd Fl.

212-608-7681 (day)

(Bet. Broadway and Church)

www.murraystreetdance.com

downtown express

April 18 - 25, 2012

TFF talks and ‘fair’ games Continued from page 18 TV, advertising and design industries will compete in a 5-a-side tournament — while the Youth Soccer Showcase provides skillsharpening drills, pointers and competitions. FREE. Sat. 4/21, 9am-6pm. At Hudson River Park’s Pier 40 (353 W. St.).

TRIBECA TALKS This series of panels and conversations brings together creative minds and big thinkers with one eye on the past one on the present and the other on the future (that’s not fuzzy math, folks, these are all capable multitaskers). Our favorite: “Avant-Garde Masters: A Decade of Film Preservation” celebrates the 10 Anniversary of the Avant-Garde Masters

grants — which were created in 2003 by the National Film Preservation Foundation and The Film Foundation to preserve American Avant-Garde cinema. Among the films screened will be Kenneth Anger’s “Rabbit Moon” (1950-70), Carolee Schneemann’s “Body Collage” (1967) and George Kuchar’s “Motel Capri” (1986). Afterwards, filmmakers Carolee Schneemann, Abigail Child and Larry Gottheim participate in a conversation with Tribeca Film Festival experimental film programmer Jon Gartenberg (moderated by Assistant Director of the National Film Preservation Foundation Jeff Lambert. On Sat. 4/21, 5:30pm at Chelsea’s SVA Theater (on 23rd St., between 8th and 9th Aves.). For ticketing info, visit tribecafilm. com.

Photo courtesy of Tribeca Film Festival

From 2011’s NYFEST Soccer Day.

April 18 - 25, 2012

!3+ &/2 $!),9 30%#)!,3

HOMEMADE MACARONI 2AVIOLI "AKED :ITI ,ASAGNA

.EAPOLITAN 3ICILIAN SLICES #HICAGO 3MALL .EAPOLITAN -INI 0IE ,!2'% 3%,%#4)/. /& 4/00).'3 %ACH

DAILY SPECIALTY PIES CALL FOR PRICE

CALZONES TOPPING

SALADS

0OTATO %GG %GGPLANT 0ARMIGIANA -EATBALL 0ARMIGIANA 6EAL #UTLET 0ARMIGIANA 'RILLED -ARINATED #HICKEN #HICKEN -OZZARELLA ,EMON )TALIAN 0HILLY #HEESE 3TEAK

HOT PLATES CHICKEN %GGPLANT 0ARMIGIANA #HICKEN 0ARMIGIANA #HICKEN -ARSALA #HICKEN &RANCAISE #HICKEN 3ORRENTINO

6EAL -ILANESE OR 0ARMIGIANA 6EAL -ARSALA

#HICKEN 2OLATINI

VEAL

(OUSE 3ALAD #AESAR 3ALAD 'RILLED #HICKEN 3PINACH 3ALAD 'REEK 3ALAD 0ASTA 3ALAD #AESAR WITH #HICKEN

SELECTION OF APPETIZERS, SOUPS & SIDES SEE FULL MENU * Prices may vary

GO Project and nycTIES

HOT HERO SANDWICHES

^ &REE $ELIVERY #HICKEN 0ARMIGIANA #HICKEN #UTLET -INIMUM ~ 3AUSAGE 0EPPERS PIZZA PIES

downtown express

ROLATINI

SEAFOOD

&RIED #ALAMARI APPETIZER 3HRIMP 3CAMPI #ALAMARI ,INGUINI RED SAUCE 'RILLED 3ALMON

7E 3PECIALIZE IN #ATERING ,ET US CATER YOUR NEXT PARTY Â&#x2C6; 9OUR PLACE OR OURS

'REENWICH 3T s -ON 7ED AM PM s 4HUR 3UN PM AM

Continued from page 6

and public school teacher by day, replaced a third grade head teacher in GO Schoolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Saturday program. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As a classroom teacher, I know first-

â&#x20AC;&#x153;As a classroom teacher, I know firsthand what the limitations are when you see kids who need extra help. It makes you wish you had clones that could give those kids individual attention,â&#x20AC;? said Browne. hand what the limitations are when you see kids who need extra help. It makes you wish you had clones that could give those kids individual attention,â&#x20AC;? said Browne. â&#x20AC;&#x153;GO sends three or four volunteers per classroom to assist teachers during the school

day, which makes a big difference for kids who are falling behind and may â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;feel stupidâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; because they donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get it.â&#x20AC;? Kids who struggle socially and academically are especially vulnerable to bullying, which is why the GO Project organized a classroom-based intervention at P.S. 124 at 40 Division St., where there was a pressing need. They have since been working closely with their partner public schools to address emerging issues of bullying and peer relationships. Without intervention, what begins as poor academic achievement or lack of confidence may result in a dislike for school, truancy, and, ultimately, dropping out. GO parents said the volunteers are crucial to helping their children understand writing and math concepts they have trouble grasping during the regular school day. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been a blessing for her to get the help she needs,â&#x20AC;&#x153; said downtown parent Annette Rodriguez, whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 10-year-old daughter, Morgan, has been in the program for three years. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve seen big improvements, and theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve even brought the fun back into learning for her.â&#x20AC;? The GO Project is currently in the process of developing programming for students in sixth through eighth grade. If youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d like to volunteer with either organization, visit www.nycties.org or www. goprojectnyc.org.

downtown express

CLASSIFIEDS

April 18 - 25, 2012

www.thevillager.com

sea Chelnow

downtown

www.chelseanow.com

ÂŽ

express www.downtownexpress.com

DEADLINE WEDNESDAY 5:00 PM MAIL 515 CANAL STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10013 TEL 646-452-2485 FAX 212-229-2790 VACATION RENTAL

CLASSES

French Riviera, Charming Townhouse. Location: le Bar sur Loup (10 Kms Grasse, 25 Kms Nice), France. Breathtaking views, 2 BM, 2 Baths, LR, DR, EIK. $1250/wk. Turn key furnished. Photos at www.vrbo.com/268911. (941) 363-0925 Nr Montpellier France 2BR apt on river in medieval village 700/wk July Aug 600/wk June Sept photos FlipKey fk#347337 For details call 917/535-7486

PROFESSIONAL OFFICE FOR SALE

! "#$ #

CHELSEA â&#x20AC;&#x201C; FSBO â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Prof. Medical/Dental Condo. $1.5M, 1600sf, ideal small group practice also Pod/Chirop. NO BROKERS. Email: Robert.0923@hotmail.com

HOME IMPROVEMENT Wall Women Painting & Plastering Over 25 yrs experience. Located in Chelsea area. Excellent References. Free estimate Call 212-675-0631

EMPLOYMENT

ECOM Atlantic, Inc. Position in New York, NY. Submit resume to Diana Campbell c/o ECOM Atlantic, Inc., 13760 Noel Rd., Suite 500, Dallas, TX 75240. In your submission, please reference the applicable job code. International Logistics Specialist - Perform operations analysis of all logistics regarding sale and purchase contracts relating to variables such as deliveries, trucking, warehousing, sampling approvals/rejections, weighing, payables and receivables (Job Code 1730.1); requires Bachelorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s in Business Administration and 5 yrs progressive exp. For full job descriptions, job openings, and job locations go to http:// www.ecomtrading.com/en/about-ecom/ global-office.html. EOE.

I AM LOOKING TO BUY Brooklyn condo wanted 2 bedroom/2 bath, high ceiling, Downtown Manhattan, Brooklyn Heights, Dumbo, Park Slope. Email details/photos to mykonos55@yahoo.com

Got a problem on the street? EMAIL YOUR TRAFFIC AND SUBWAY QUESTIONS TO TRANSIT SAM TO SEE THE ANSWERS EVERY OTHER WEEK IN DOWNTOWN EXPRESS.

transitsam@ downtownexpress.com

FINANCIAL

DENTIST

BPA & MERCURY FREE

&RPPHUFLDO /RDQ &RPSHWLWLYH 5DWH &'V /RZ IHH :LUH 7UDQVIHUV /RZ 0LQLPXP %DODQFH IRU &KHFNLQJ 6DYLQJV $FFRXQW &RPPHUFLDO 5HVLGHQWLDO 0RUWJDJH

Non-invasive dentistry for kids!

Helping our kids stay safe, healthy and smart

%UDQFKHV &DQDO 6WUHHW 1HZ <RUN WK $YHQXH %URRNO\Q 0DLQ 6WUHHW )OXVKLQJ 0RQGD\ Âą )ULGD\ D P Âą S P 6DWXUGD\ Âą 6XQGD\ D P Âą S P 7KH %DQN RI (DVW $VLD 8 6 $ 1 $ 0HPEHU RI %($ *URXS

COMPUTER SERVICES PERSONAL COMPUTER SERVICES Reliable! Repairs, upgrades, installations, troubleshooting, instruction, custom-built PCs and consulting. Older PCs serviced 212-242-7221

Dr. Lewis Gross, D.D.S. Dr. Lewis Gross, D.D.S. www.holistic-dentists.com | Tribeca, New York www.holistic-dentists.com | Tribeca, New York

WRITING HELP Write Right! Essays, Masterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s thesis, doctoral dissertations, manuscripts of any and all sorts, in private sessions with editor, widely published ďŹ ction writer, newspaper feature writer, and college English teacher for twenty years with Ph.D. 646-234-3224

April 18 - 25, 2012

downtown express

Costumes, photos and messages help document Titanic Continued from page 8

have been amazed that they could follow the news as well as they did.” One of the photos in the exhibit shows a crowd gathered outside 1 Park Place, the office of the newspaper New York American, as a man painted a bulletin board with the latest update. Crowds gathered outside of all the New York City newspapers as they did outside the office of the White Star Line at 9 Broadway. Reproductions of some of the newspapers are in the exhibit, and visitors can leaf through them to see how news of the tragedy emerged. There are also posters and props from the many movies that have been made about the Titanic, and an interactive reproduction of the ship that was used to create the most recent iteration of the Titanic story, the four-part television mini-series that aired this month. “Titanic at 100: Myth and Memory” is at the South Street Seaport Museum’s Melville Gallery, 213 Water St. The museum is open Wednesday to Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The main galleries of the museum are at 12 Fulton St. Through April 30, admission is $5, and children under 9 can enter for free. As of May 1, adult admission will be $10.

Downtown Express photo by Terese Loeb Kreuzer

Sarah Henry, deputy director of the Museum of the City of New York and curator of the Titanic exhibit at the South Street Seaport Museum, looks at a photo in the exhibit of Jack Phillips, the Marconi wireless operator who sent increasingly desperate messages to neighboring ships as the Titanic foundered.

O.W.S. preparing to reassert itself Continued from page 1 has… finally grown into its name for the first time.” After NYPD officers said they could not sleep on Wall Street another night, ‘occupiers’ congregated on the steps of Federal Hall Monday afternoon. While they occupied one side of the steps throughout the day, a law enforcement officer from the National Park Service warned them at 5 p.m. that they could not sleep on the steps and would face arrest should they refuse to leave. Activists chose to remain at the site and their numbers grew to roughly a hundred. About the same number of NYPD officers were soon on the scene, standing in formation across the street as National Park Service police stood at the top of the stairs. The standoff lasted until the early hours of the morning when police told protesters they could sit on the steps but could not sleep there. By then about a dozen activists had been arrested on charges including disorderly conduct and obstructing the sidewalk. As the prospect of mass arrests loomed, activists held an impromptu meeting to discuss whether or not to vacate the space. The loud discussion, as well as noise stemming from activists singing protest songs, drew another group into the ongoing fray.

The situation grew tense around 10 p.m. as a small group of local residents stood across the street. Some jeered the protesters while others claimed that the noise was preventing them and their children from sleeping. Several protesters engaged in an exchange of obscenity-laden arguments with some of the residents. After one resident crossed the street to confront the activists, a shouting match ensued and police intervened. A scuffle later broke out between another resident and activist, which led to the latter’s arrest. He and other activists maintained that the resident attacked him. Some of the residents said the protesters were demanding undue help from others and the government when they should focus instead on “holding down jobs and bettering their personal situation.” “My kids can’t sleep. I’ve been homeless. I’ve been unemployed,” said one resident that requested anonymity. “Tuck in the skirt, suck it up and stop whining and bitching. And that’s it.” Another resident, who gave only his first name, James, said while he respected the rights of the activists to speak freely, they should go somewhere else that would not disturb him and his neighbors. “If they want to protest, go to Times Square where no one cares about night noise. I don’t care. Here we are trying to sleep and that is all we care about,” said

James, who added he had to go to work early in the morning. The presence of activists at the national park drew mixed reactions from passersby. Some expressed their support, stating that their attitude towards Occupy Wall Street changed once they saw the protests in person and better understood the intent of the movment. “On T.V. it seems so far away… so to be here brings it a little bit more closer to home and you are like, ‘OK this is what is really going on,’” said Margerie Duvalseint, an administrator at Pfizer who is considering participating in the movement. “People are really not happy with what is going on and they are doing something about it. I think that is pretty cool.” But others said the movement for social and economic justice lacks the cohesion and discipline necessary to effectuate lasting change in American politics and society. Some expressed fears that the movement seeks a socialist revolution in the United Stated while others said it should focus on a set of specific issues rather than the range of social, political and economic issues discussed by the wide range of activists now falling under the O.W.S. umbrella. During the winter months some within the movement attempted to instill greater discipline and fine-tune the movement’s agenda. Meetings of the General Assembly

and Spokes Council often broke down, with some members using the forums to voice their grievances toward the movement without regard to the established meeting process. While a code of conduct aimed at bringing greater order to meetings gained some traction, the meetings eventually stopped being held as funding ran out and activists expressed dismay that a large part of their time was spent in meetings rather than staging actions in the local community. While it remains to be seen if the movement will be able to mobilize for the upcoming “general strike,” hopes are high among activists that the day will give the movement a fresh burst of momentum. They are calling for supporters to refrain from working, school, banking and shopping on May Day, a traditional holiday for labor activists. Eve Silber, who said she’s been ‘occupying’ the city for 25 years, said gauging the overall success of the movement must be done so from a “bottom-up perspective.” “This movement is supposed to change people. It’s going to have to change people more than people change it,” said Silber. “So the outcome is when individual lives are changed by participating in this movement … the change will come when truth becomes fashionable, as it’s slowly becoming again.”

downtown express

April 18 - 25, 2012

S EAPORT R EPORT Continued from page 11

SMOKIN’ GOOD… On Friday, Cigar Landing reopened at 150 Beekman St. The cigar store, long a fixture on Pier 17, closed last year, reopened for a month or so on Peck Slip until it found its new home. Looks as if it’s here to stay. The grand opening party attracted more than 100 cigar smokers and friends who enjoyed such lip-smacking treats as fish fingers, chicken wings and drinks from champagne to Glenlivet. Hiram Ramirez worked the counter, getting customers their best cigars, including the house grand opening sampler of two house blend cigars, one Rocky Patel and one Romeo & Julieta ($30). “I’m so glad our followers and Seaport neighbors came out, enjoying not only a lovely night but a great cigar,” he told SR. Andy Oh, a lawyer and partner with Jeff and Adam Lim, said the new location is “the perfect spot.”

FIESTA TIME… You can tell that summer is soon upon us. The partying has begun. Starting with a huge food truck eat-a-thon! To celebrate Cinco de Mayo, more than 15 of the city’s favorite food trucks will park around the Seaport for a roaring chow down.

From Luke’s Lobster and Frites’n’Meats to Schnitzel & Things and Eddie’s Pizza, the grub-to-go-mobiles will all feature their best fare with one twist. For this Mex Fest, each will showcase their talents by infusing one of their bestsellers with a Mexican flavor flair. SR can’t wait to taste the Mexican waffles from Wafels & Dinges. Or how about a tangy cool drink from Kelvin Slush? Besides grub, there’ll be lots to drink and live DJ music. The partying starts May 5, 11 am through 9 pm. For food and drink vouchers or more info, go to www. mexfestnyc.com.

BEACH PARTY… Or if your tastes run more to sand, sun and fun, check out the action at the Beekman Beer Garden Beach Club on the north side of Pier 17. The beach club opened this weekend with great weather and a hot party. Sit on their super fun outdoor white couches and sip a summery cocktail or take over a picnic table for such hot weather eats as burgers, pulled pork sandwiches or fish and chips. The music is great and they plan a concert or two over the summer. Memorial Day weekend features an authentic New Orleansstyle crawfish boil and concert with three jazz bands. Who needs the Hamptons when you can dig your toes into the sand, savor the view of the Brooklyn Bridge and enjoy an East River breeze?

C.B. 1’s new faces Continued from page 4

of an aged parent who lived at the Hallmark residence before he passed away. “When my dad passed on, it changed a lot of my perspective,” she said. “It reminded me of what I really love doing. I worked on the Battery Park City block party for the first three or four years, and then I helped again last year. At the end of the day, I love the community. I love Lower Manhattan over all. I like the diversity of it. I love having my kids here. It’s a great place to live. Lower Manhattan is fabulous.” Malitz, Gerstman and Meltzer replaced Elizabeth Williams, Tiffany Winbush and Peter Glazier on C.B. 1. Community Board 1 chair Julie Menin said, “We welcome the new members to the community board and look forward to working with them. Tammy Meltzer, in particular, as a P.S. 276 parent will provide increased input from the parent body there, which is very important. Adam Malitz, who is a community activist, provides a needed perspective of young people living downtown. Over the years, several members in the Financial District have cycled off the board, and Linda Gerstman will represent that area, which is the fastest growing in the board. I look forward to working with them.” Menin is precluded by law from running for chairman of Community Board 1 again

when her current term expires but said, “I have been asked by many members of C.B. 1 to run for Vice Chair and I have agreed to do so.” As for her future plans, Menin added, “We have a terrific borough president and should he decide to run for higher office, I will seriously consider running for Manhattan Borough President.” Community Board 1’s current vice chairman is Catherine McVay Hughes. “Many of my fellow board members as well as community leaders, residents and Lower Manhattan business owners are urging me to run for Chair,” she said. “I am happy to have their support as it reflects the work I have done in the community for almost 25 years — bringing people with different perspectives together to reach consensus and positive solutions on the many issues we have faced — especially in the decade following 9/11. Should I decide to run for Chair, I will follow the nominating process established in the Community Board 1 bylaws. The Nominating Committee has not yet met, and will not meet till the end of April. They have not yet elected their Chair. Elections are almost three months away. For the time being, there are many urgent matters to focus on. My immediate focus is serving the community in my current capacity as vice chair of C.B. 1, chair of the World Trade Center Committee, and as a partner to my fellow board members and other community leaders.”

ATTENTION:

Commercial Property Owners, Commercial Tenants and Residents of Lower Manhattan

The Alliance for Downtown New York, Inc. invites you to join us for our

2012 ANNUAL MEETING Monday, May 21, 2012 at 4 P.M. AIG’s Café Rooms, 180 Maiden Lane, Third Floor

The meeting is open to the public and all registered members are eligible to vote. 120 Broadway, Suite 3340 New York, NY 10271 (212) 566-6700 www.DowntownNY.com

April 18 - 25, 2012

downtown express