JUNE 12, 2014, THE VILLAGER

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The Paper of Record for Greenwich Village, East Village, Lower East Side, Soho, Union Square, Chinatown and Noho, Since 1933

June 12, 2014 • $1.00 Volume 84 • Number 2

Gov’s Pier 40 secret air-rights agreement is sunk: Attorney BY LINCOLN ANDERSON

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M.O.U., continued on p. 16

Sandy, looming rent put stained-glass artist on the edge BY HEATHER DUBIN

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atti Kelly’s earliest recollections of stained glass are not filled with beauty and streaming light. She is originally from Midwood, Brooklyn, where she attended Catholic school at St. Brendan’s Church. “I hated stained glass from being stuck in church — get-

PHOTO BY TEQUILA MINSKY

ttorney Arthur Schwartz said he met with Madelyn Wils, the president of the Hudson River Park Trust, last Friday afternoon, and she informed him that the secret $100-million memorandum of understanding, or

M.O.U., for transfer of Pier 40’s air rights has officially been scrapped. The Villager reported last week that Schwartz was considering a lawsuit to block the air-rights transfer altogether on the grounds that a comprehensive, lengthy environ-

ting yelled at by the priest, we were all such sinners,” Kelly said with a laugh. “I wanted to be outside, and stared at the window.” Years later, Kelly put her childhood associations aside, and took a class in stained glass, at her younger sister’s suggestion. She was hooked, KELLY, continued on p. 10

Making the cut, with P.S. 41’ers, from left, Manhattan Parks Commissioner Bill Castro; park designer George Vellonakis; D.D.C. Commissioner Feniosky Pena-Mora; Borough President Gale Brewer; Parks Commissioner Mitchell Silver; Councilmember Corey Johnson; C.B. 2 Chairperson David Gruber; and Councilmember Margaret Chin.

Finally! Officials and kids cut ribbon in renewed park BY LINCOLN ANDERSON

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fter a six-year, threestage renovation costing $30.6 million, a ceremony was held Tuesday to celebrate the completion of the Washington Square Park work. A crowd gathered on the park’s west side under a tent near the bust of Alexander Lyman Holley, the renowned steel engineer. “I am proud to say this park looks better than it ever did before,” pronounced

Mitchell Silver, the Parks Department commissioner. Seated in the audience along with community board members, park activists and other V.I.P.’s were the students from teacher Lindsay Litinger’s firstgrade class at P.S. 41. “Do you all enjoy the park?” Silver asked the kids. “Yes!” they shouted back. “Parks are really what make our cities livable,” Silver said. The refurbished park, he added, will be a place where the students

will make their own memories, as generations have done before them. His father, as a young man, used to take photos in Washington Square Park, “60 or 70 years ago,” he said. “People proposed here,” he told the first graders. “Kids, you’re too young to understand that — but you will.” In physical terms, the park’s renovation was intended to “create a renewed sense of place,” Silver said. PARK, continued on p. 15

Local posse reins in Boots & Saddle................page 2 Former C.B. 3 chairperson backs change.....page 13 Rev. Jen on the (Lower) Lower East Side......page 17 Softball girls ‘T’ off...............page 26 | May 14, 2014

www.TheVillager.com

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COME CHECK US OUT AT THE NEW

Whoa! Neighbors and patrol head off bar move at the pass BY SERGEI KLEBNIKOV

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ast month, a posse of local residents circled the wagons to keep Boots & Saddle bar from relocating to their block. The well-known West Village bar, at 76 Christopher St., had planned to move to new digs on Barrow St. because its building is being sold. But a coalition of local residents and neighborhood associations quickly cowboyed up to block the move. On May 15, Boots & Saddle representatives appeared before Community Board 2’s State Liquor Authority Licensing Committee to present an application for a new on-premise liquor license for the vacant space, at 37 Barrow St. After the relocation plan was announced, local opposition organized against it within a week, including the Bedford-Barrow-Commerce Block Association, with the support of the Christopher St. Patrol, a volunteer anti-crime group. “The neighborhood got together and decided what would be best for the community,” said Kathy Donaldson, president of the B.B.C. Block Association. Six Barrow St. residents

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Neighbors protested it would be a ‘restaurant along the lines of Lips and Lucky Chengs.’

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Christopher St. Patrol volunteers, speaking about Boots & Saddle, cited increased “loud noise and disturbing actions coming from the bar,” and “crowds and unruly behavior on the street,” subsequently causing many complaints from neighbors. “In the last couple of years, Boots & Saddle has gotten more troublesome,” Bob Gormley, C.B. 2 district manager, told The Villager. The community board also received a letter from another block association, Waverly Bank 11 Neighbors, citing the concerns of Bank St. residents. It described how Lips had been an “ongoing nightmare for its neighbors” while located on Bank St. The association concluded by stating, “Any group of neighbors opposing such a venture has our sympathy and support.” Barrow residents stressed the impact the business would have with its late-night operation — hours were to be 11 a.m. to 4 a.m. — on the otherwise quiet and residential neighborhood. In addition, Boots & Saddle would aggravate the area’s existing traffic issues, the antis said, plus the bar failed to provide a comprehensive plan to C.B. 2. Residents argued that the volume of the music and entertainment at the bar would be a nuisance, especially because of the minimal soundproofing in the historic restaurant space that the bar would be moving into. “It was a disaster as far as the neighborhood was concerned,” Donaldson said. Boots & Saddle, described as the “best gay bar in the West Village” and the “NYC Premier House of Drag,” is also unlike any other type of business operated at 37 Barrow St. for the last 17 years, neighbors noted. C.B. 2 ultimately recommended denial of a new on-premise liquor license for Boots & Saddle at the Barrow St. location, with the committee’s resolution subsequently passed unanimously by C.B. 2’s full board. The board’s resolutions are advisory only, but the landlord and the bar did not want to proceed in the face of the community board’s denial. Gormley announced soon afterward that the bar’s lease for the new space had been pulled, as Boots & Saddle had withdrawn its application. Potential legal action against the relocation would have resulted in delays and compromises, using up time and resources, and it apparently just wasn’t worth it for the bar. Boots & Saddle declined to comment.

spoke at the C.B. 2 S.L.A. Committee meeting, with an additional 10 in attendance, some representing the two community groups. The committee also received a petition with signatures of 16 residents opposed to the proposed Barrow St. move, as well as a letter of opposition from the Christopher St. Patrol. A patrol member spoke against the issuance of a license, saying that in the last two or three years, Boots & Saddle had “seemingly changed their operation.” Boots & Saddle had said its new location would be a “restaurant and bar serving American-style food.” But neighborhood residents described it as a “restaurant along the lines of Lips and Lucky Chengs,” two well-known former Downtown drag entertainment venues that have since moved Uptown.

TheVillager.com


at St. Anthony’s

EVERY FRIDAY SATURDAY & SUNDAY Printing House workers Michael Christie, Omardath Rooplal, Arturo Vergara, Wendel Campbell and Michael Suggs on strike on Wednesday afternoon.

JANE’S SCHOOL — SOUNDS GREAT! Local education and parent leaders are set on making the future middle school at 75 Morton St. truly a model of what a new school can be when the community is closely involved in shaping it from the start — down to the actual physical facility itself. There have been ongoing task force meetings on the school, but it’s now starting to get down to crunch time. The city’s School Construction Authority is set this Fri., June 13, to present the task force a preliminary “walk through” of uses that the agency envisions for each of the building’s floors. The task force will then send back its formal written feedback to the plans on Fri., June 20. Things are moving quickly, though — the design process could be completed by late summer or early fall. David Gruber, chairperson of Community Board 2, said the name people want is the Jane Jacobs School. Shino Tanikawa, president of Community Education Council District 2, said student diversity at the new school — and in the district — is something the task force really wants to look at. The advocates eagerly hope 75 Morton St. can open in 2016, but if it can’t be until 2017, then they hope the school can be “incubated” somewhere else; there are several sites that could work, they said. A major concern is that they do not want a combined gym and auditorium, a.k.a. a “gymnatorium” — “unacceptable,” they say — but, rather, a full gym and a separate auditorium, the latter which can also be used for theater productions. As Keen Berger, the task force’s chairperson, noted, this is the Village, so the school has to have a proper place for acting and performing. Tanikawa added that 75 Morton needs to have a cook-in kitchen, not a modified kitchen, since the latter can only warm up processed food. There are also issues about how a percentage of District 75 special-ed students will be incorporated into the school space. Heather Lortie, of the Morton Community Alliance, pointed out that the advocates working to make 75 Morton St. the best that it can be won’t ever see their own children go there, since they will have aged out. Sounds a lot like the local sports parents who are selflessly pushing to save Pier 40 as a great athletic facility for future generations of kids. Every community should be so lucky to have such concerned activists as these! PRINTING HOUSE STRIKE! Building workers at 421 Hudson St., the Printing House, went on strike Wednesday afternoon, in response to what they called intimidation and management’s threat to fire a worker after he was quoted in The Villager about wanting to join a union. The Printing House has made headlines TheVillager.com

for its luxury accommodations, and an apartment is currently listed for $14 million. But its roughly 10 concierges and cleaners make as little as $12 an hour and don’t have access to affordable healthcare. After The Villager article, in which Printing House porter Kevin Samuel expressed a desire for better pay and a union, management threatened to fire him, according to Samuel and 32BJ SEIU. He has worked at the building for more than 15 years. “I started speaking out, because it is almost impossible to make ends meet on my salary,” said Samuel, 58, who works as a night porter at the luxury building. “I’m trying to do right by my family, but we are barely making it. These apartments go for millions, so I know there is enough money to pay us decently.” Management also reportedly threatened to fire longtime concierge Arturo Vergara in response to his vocal support for improved working conditions. Samuel and Vergara were pictured on the front page of The Villager’s May 1 issue, along with Judge Frank Nervo, a resident, standing beside them in solidarity. Vergara, who has 3- and 6-year-old daughters, has worked as a concierge at the building for seven years. “We’re fighting for our families,” he said. “On my salary, I can barely afford the $800 a month I’m paying for my family’s healthcare coverage.” 32BJ has filed unfair labor practices charges in response to management’s alleged threats. Last year, the condo board, led by developer Myles Horn, hired what 32BJ calls “one of the most irresponsible contractors in the industry,” Planned Lifestyle Services, to act as the subcontractor and manage the Printing House’s building staff. P.L.S. is the residential arm of Planned Companies, a New Jersey-based maintenance and security contractor with what the union calls a long, documented record of labor violations.

PUTTING THE WORD OUT: The Hudson River

Park Trust and the Friends of Hudson River Park are no longer being represented by SKDKnickerbocker, the high-powered and politically connected lobbying firm. According to a source, the reason is that Gregory Boroff, the Friends’ executive director, wants to focus their P.R. more on fundraising, which is the Friends’ primary role, and “brand building.” A good example of this new tack was the Friends’ recent star-studded HRPK Experience auction, in which people bid to go sailing in the park’s waters with Brooke Shields and play tennis on the Canal St. courts with Dennis Leary or minigolf on Tribeca’s Pier 25 with reality TV real estate broker Fredrik Eklund. SKDKnickerbocker represented both the Trust and Friends, and was involved in lobbying the state Legislature on the air-rights transfer legislation that was passed by the Assembly and state Senate last June at the end of the legislative session. The Friends and Trust are now being represented by the equally politically connected Risa Heller Communications. A rep there told us the changeover had nothing at all to do with the recent hoopla over the Pier 40 secret air-rights transfer M.O.U.

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POLICE BLOTTER Washington Square Music Festival A PERFECT WAY TO SPEND A SUMMER EVENING The Washington Square Association invites you to the 56th summer of free concerts in Washington Square Park.

Harmonica & Harp With Robert Bonfiglio Tuesday, June 17 at 8:00 pm Lutz Rath conducts the Washington Square Festival Chamber Orchestra with guest harmonica soloist Robert Bonfiglio, the “Paganini of the Harmonica” (Los Angeles Times), and JP Saxe, a rising multi-instrumentalist, composer, lyricist, and singer. Featuring works by Claude Debussy, Gustav Mahler, Heitor Villa Lobos, JP Saxe, and Peter von Winter. Rainspace at NYU Frederick Loewe Theatre, 35 W 4th St. Vocal Music Baroque to Modern Tuesday, June 24 at 8:00 pm Soloists Lucia Hyunju Song, soprano, and Laila Salins, mezzo-soprano, highlight from four centuries of vocal music with the Washington Square Music Festival Ensemble. Featuring works by Alessandro Scarlatti, Luigi Cherubini, Louis Spohr, Giovanni “Nino” Rota, Cathy Berberian (Stripsody) Francis Poulenc (Le Bestiaire) and Laila Salins, composer and arranger of poems by Anne Sexton. Rainspace at NYU Frederick Loewe Theatre, 35 W 4th St. A Partnership Concert with the International Double Reed Society and NYU Friday, August 8, 8:00 pm Oboist Matthew Sullivan hosts a diverse program in partnership with the 43rd Annual International Double Reed Society Conference, a celebration of bassoon and oboe music hosted by the NYU Steinhardt School of Music, Culture, and Human Development. Rainspace at St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church, 371 6th Ave.

Visit washingtonsquaremusicfestival.org for more information, or call 212-252-3621. The Washington Square Music Festival is made possible with public funding through Council Member Margaret Chin, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, and the New York State Council on the Arts. Generous grants from the Earle K. & Katherine F. Moore Foundation, Washington Square Association, Music Performance Trust Fund, Margaret Neubart Foundation Trust, New York University Office of Government and Community Affairs, NYU Community Fund, Salamon-Abrams Family Fund, Down the Hatch/Three Sheets/Off the Wagon, Con Edison, and the Washington Square Hotel are deeply appreciated, as is invaluable help from the NYC Department of Parks & Recreation.

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June 12, 2014

Clip was the tip

Grabbed her breast

Last Sunday, at 11 p.m., a man was stopped in the Eighth Ave. and W. 14th St. subway station when police observed a silver clip on his back right shorts pocket. Upon a frisk search, the man was discovered to have been carrying a gravity knife. He carried no valid ID, and initially gave police a false date of birth. Upon a full search, police found that the man was carrying a metal can in his right-hand shorts pocket, with alleged marijuana inside. In a bag he was carrying, the man had a second metal can of marijuana, a plastic bag containing the same substance, five cans of resin, a hidden G.P.S. tracker and a pouch containing $643. In addition, police found a large plastic container with 19 boxes of marijuana marked “Acme Organics,” as well as various sealed food products allegedly laced with the substance. Georgantiz Evangelos, 32, had a previous conviction for criminal possession of a weapon. He was arrested and charged with criminal possession of marijuana.

A newsstand operator at the Broadway and E. Eighth St. subway station was arrested for sexual harassment last Sunday afternoon. Police said a woman, 21, reported that the newsstand vendor had walked from behind the cash register counter to forcibly touch her. Her account was backed up by a female witness, 22. The victim stated that after she had bought some candy, the man walked over to her and used his right hand to grab her breast, “without permission or authority to do so,” according to the police report. Mohammad Chowdhury, 59, was charged with misdemeanor forcible touching.

Give this guy a raise!

On the afternoon of June 5, a salesperson from the Marc Jacobs clothing and boutique store on Bleecker St. called police to report a transaction made with a stolen credit card. David Tripp, 31, called the store at 3 p.m. to make a purchase for $4,401. According the arresting officer’s report, Tripp told the sales rep over the phone that he was part of a band, and “needed to make a purchase for such.” After taking the order, the Marc Jacobs employee became suspicious and googled the name on the credit card to find a phone number. He called the cardholder, who said that she had not authorized the order. In order to lure the perpetrator into the store, the worker went along with the order. At around 8 p.m., Tripp entered the store, and attempted to identify himself as the registered name on the card, despite a gender difference. The Marc Jacobs employee notified police, and had the victim restate that she had not authorized the transaction over the phone. Tripp was charged with grand larceny for attempted use of a stolen credit card.

Pees...then flees

Police arrested a man last Friday for public urination and charged him with resisting arrest. Connor Duhaime, 21, was observed urinating on the sidewalk in front of 15 Cornelia St., at 12:10 a.m. When patrolling officers approached to give Duhaime a summons, he ran away onto a one-way street, creating “hazardous conditions,” according to the report of the officers who chased him down. When police caught up to him, Duhaime further resisted arrest by placing his arms underneath his body.

Bouncer bashed

A man was thrown out of the Standard Hotel bar, at 444 W. 13th St., for being “disorderly and causing public alarm.” A bouncer took the intoxicated man outside, at around 4 p.m. on Sunday. While being escorted out of the premises, Gregory Watkins, 21, allegedly punched the bouncer in the face, causing swelling and a laceration to the man’s bottom lip. Police arrived on the scene soon after, and charged Watkins with assault.

Sergei Klebnikov TheVillager.com


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June 12, 2014

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Artist finds fertile soil in immigrant experience BY SERGEI KLEBNIKOV

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PHOTO BY SERGEI KLEBNIKOV

mmigrants put down roots in a new country. In a public garden / art installation in Duarte Square, artist Juanli Carrion expressed this theme by installing unique plants picked by new Americans. On Wed., June 4, in partnership with the Parks Department, Carrion unveiled the garden, which explores the diversity of New York City’s immigrant experience. He was joined at Canal St. and Sixth Ave. for the ribbon-cutting ceremony by Bill Castro, the Manhattan borough Parks commissioner; City Councilmember Margaret Chin; Inigo Ramirez de Haro, from the Spanish Consul for Cultural Affairs; George Pisegna, deputy director at the Horticultural Society; and Ellen Baer, executive director of the Hudson Square Connection business improvement district.

Carrion’s project, called “Outer Seed Shadow #1,” is composed of a variety of different plants, each one chosen by Manhattan-based immigrants. He conceived the idea in 2012, when he was considering permanent residence in the U.S. after four years of living in New York. The Spaniard wanted to investigate the realities of immigrant life in New York, and conducted a series of on-camera interviews with immigrants living throughout the borough. At the end of each discussion, the subjects chose a unique plant that represented both them and their home country. All of the plants were planted in the 1,000-square-foot garden — which is in the shape of Manhattan — to represent the diversity of the city. Chin and Castro both spoke at the ceremony, and expressed their support for the project.

Planting at the press conference, from left, Bill Castro, Parks borough commissioner; Councilmember Margaret Chin; and BID Director Ellen Baer got some pointers from artist Juanli Carrion.

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Sue to stop Cooper tuition BY SERGEI KLEBNIKOV

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year after The Cooper Union decided to charge tuition, a group of professors, students and alumni have filed a lawsuit to block the move. Two weeks ago, the Committee to Save Cooper Union, a coalition formed this past December, sued in Manhattan Supreme Court to stop the elite school from implementing tuition next fall. The lawsuit charges Cooper Union’s board of trustees with various infractions, mainly fiscal mismanagement, and seeks a permanent injunction against charging tuition. In its court papers, the Committee to Save Cooper Union states that the board repeatedly violated the school’s deed of trust and charter over the past few years. The lawsuit describes how the school was founded on three pillars to support its governance: free education, transparency and fiscal conservatism. The plaintiffs charge the board of trustees has violated these fundamental principles, in clear violation of Cooper Union’s founding documents. The plaintiffs accuse the board of trustees of violating the vision of school founder Peter Cooper. In short, they argue, charging tuition would go against 155 years of tradition, as well as Cooper’s famed credo that education should be “as free as water and air” and “free to all.” The committee also accuses the trustees of being spendthrift and squandering Cooper Union’s endowment. The lawsuit states that, in recent years, trustees invested in risky hedge funds, organized “unsound” real estate transactions, accumulated huge debt, and forged ahead with plans to build a new academic building, despite an obvious lack of funds. After an unsuccessful fundraising campaign, the suit argues, the trustees moved ahead with the school’s new Engineering Building project, despite the fact that there was no primary donor who had contributed funding in exchange for his or her name on the building. Later that year, after a court petition to take on more debt, the school mortgaged Cooper Union’s most valuable asset, the Chrysler Building. The suit states that the trustees used many of the loan proceeds to increase the school’s hedge-fund investments. A key aspect of the committee’s case is its accusation that it was irresponsible to appoint Jamshed Bharucha as the school’s new president. The trustees’ president search was “plagued with irregularities,” the committee states. Bharucha was

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hired the same weekend as a chance encounter with a trustee, before all the trustees had even met him, the suit alleges. According to the suit, Bharucha spent lavishly on his inauguration party, and quickly began championing the idea of charging tuition. From the moment he took office, the new president “seemed to have a different agenda” according to Adrian Jovanovic, a co-founder of the Committee to Save Cooper Union and a plaintiff in the case. Justin Harmon, a Cooper Union spokesperson, said, “The decision to charge tuition was tremendously difficult and every member of the Cooper community feels the profound effect it has had. … We are disappointed that the Committee to Save Cooper Union would choose costly litigation over constructive conversation.” Harmon added that the decision “came after many decades [since the 1960s] of using every means available to preserve Cooper Union’s tradition of free education, including budget cuts, borrowing and selling assets.” However, after two years of failed negotiations to avoid charging tuition, Jovanovic said that the administration “didn’t participate in discussions in good faith,” adding, “They do not take Peter Cooper’s vision seriously.” Bharucha and the administration rejected a plan by a working group created to advise the trustees and explore ways to save free tuition, and also nixed trustee Jeff Gural’s plan to donate a large sum of money in order to delay charging tuition for another year. Both those options were “viable economically,” according to attorney Andrew Wilson, of the firm Emery Celli Brinckerhoff & Abady, who is representing the committee. “The board turned their backs on them,” Wilson said. Raising money to retain an attorney and file suit was not something taken lightly. “Legal action was our last resort,” Jovanovic said. As well as a permanent injunction against tuition, the committee hopes to create “an oversight body” for the trustees, Wilson explained. Even after tuition starts being charged, he noted, “Cooper Union will remain among the most affordable elite institutions in the world.” Attorney Wilson said the committee’s goal is to resolve the issue “in time for the fall.” They won’t be lacking for support, assured Jovanovic, the committee’s co-chairperson. “Students, faculty and alumni will all rally to Peter Cooper’s vision,” he said. TheVillager.com


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June 12, 2014

9


Sandy, rent put stained-glass artist on the edge KELLY, continued from p. 1

PHOTO BY HEATHER DUBIN

which has resulted in a 35-year career as a designer, restorer and instructor of stained glass. Twenty-five years ago, she opened her own business, Kelly Glass Studio & Gallery, currently located on E. Eighth St. near Avenue C. “ “If you don’t take a risk, you never know,” she said. Kelly completed a degree in fine arts and sculpture at Brooklyn College, and worked at several different studios. When she landed her first job in glass at Rambusch, a decorating company, she was in for a surprise. Her very first assignment was at her former alma mater, St. Brendan’s Church. “I don’t know how that happened,” she said, “but there’s an irony in life.” Kelly was in her early 20s at Rambusch, and absorbed as much as she could from the diverse range of craftspersons who worked in glass, lighting, paint and design. “It was an old-school way of doing things,” she said. “I was a sponge. ‘Show me how to do this’ — I was annoying.” Kelly was also one of the few women there.

Patti Kelly in her E. Eighth St. studio.

“Back then, in the ’80s, they didn’t like the idea of women in crafts at all,” she recalled. “The ones that stuck it out really got good, just out of sheer stubbornness.” Kelly has lasted, and after a studio job in Brooklyn for four years, she moved her work to the East Village, where she branched out on her own. She also lived in the neighborhood for nine years before heading to Brooklyn for eight, until her building was recently sold. Kelly had a studio on St. Mark’s Place in the early ’90s — “before

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10

June 12, 2014

Kmart and McDonald’s,” she noted — and then on Essex St. near Rivington St., followed by 12 years on Avenue C by E. Eighth St. Seven years ago, she moved her studio around the corner to a spot on E. Eighth St. The space gets plenty of light. There are two large worktables and a wall of tools. Her craftsmanship — door panels, a double-hung window, light boxes and lamps — fills out the front windows and the space. Luckily for Kelly, none of her work was destroyed during Hurricane Sandy. The surge flooded Avenue C, but did not make it down E. Eighth St. She did lose family antiques in a storage unit, and also her car, which she relied on to get to job sites. While she replaced her car, without studio phone service for four months following the storm, there was a steep decline in her business. “A lot of it has been trying to catch up from those four months,” she said, “and this past winter, which was extremely harsh. Who wants you to take out windows when it’s 14 degrees?” Kelly has one more year left on her lease, and faces a stiff rent increase. Like many other businesses and artists in the East Village, she now fears being displaced from the neighborhood. So she’s putting out an appeal. If people are thinking of a restoration or commission, or might be interested in buying any of her works for sale, now is the time. Over the years, she has adapted to the market for stained glass. She likes to do restoration work, which prevents someone from having to throw out a window. “It’s nice to take something old and rebuild it,” she said. “Then it’s as fresh as a daisy, and will last another 100 years.” Kelly also favors new pieces, allowing her to use her imagination. She creates atypical copper lamps with fish and trees, and added “lamp triage” to her workload a few years ago. “Lots of lamps came in from China

and Korea and put people out of the business here making them,” she said. “For me, it got better, and I got really good at fixing the lamps, because they weren’t very well made.” Also an activist, she was involved with the Committee to Save St. Brigid’s Church. The group played a pivotal role in saving the historic house of worship, built in 1848, on Avenue B and E. Eighth St., from demolition. “Buildings have such a vast history, especially in this neighborhood,” she said. “They survive changes in the neighborhood, and out of respect, you have to do what you can to save them.” Kelly noted that St. Brigid’s newly restored windows are well preserved. However, another studio worked on them. The Irish “famine church” ’s original windows were less-expensive painted glass. The current windows were salvaged from an Uptown church. Kelly previously restored church windows, but has not had an offer since she joined the committee nine years ago — it’s payback, she thinks. “I will never get another church job, I’m going to lose a lot of money,” she said she told fellow committee members. “They thought I was lying.” Kelly has built her clientele mostly by word of mouth. Years ago, she was offered a stained-glass Star of David in need of repair that had hung over the altar in a former synagogue on E. Seventh St. near Avenue C. She did not have room for it. A few years later, it came up again. “Someone told me, ‘I rescued this from the synagogue [before the building was renovated], and you’re the only one I know who can fix it,’ ” Kelly related. This time, she agreed. To restore it, she used glass from a 110-year-old piece from another synagogue that was shutting down. “I like the history behind it,” she said. “I knew three people who wrote and spoke Hebrew. I did the calligraphy for it, got the wording correct. They were rather impressed for a Catholic girl that I got all the Hebrew right. I would love to sell that,” she added. Meanwhile, she will continue to design pieces like the beautiful door with ’70s-style swirled glass, inspired by a vine near St. Mark’s Place, restore Tiffany pieces and teach glasswork. “It’s such an old art form, and glass is so versatile to work with,” she said. “If you can draw it, you can make it.” Kelly, who taught at Parsons for three years, will begin her summer session this month in her studio. Visit kellyglassstudio.net to view her work and for class schedules. TheVillager.com


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June 12, 2014 5/27/14

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12:27 PM


Named best weekly newspaper in New York State in 2001, 2004 and 2005 by New York Press Association PUBLISHER JENNIFER GOODSTEIN

EDITOR IN CHIEF LINCOLN ANDERSON

ARTS EDITOR

SCOTT STIFFLER

CONTRIBUTORS IRA BLUTREICH SARAH FERGUSON TEQUILA MINSKY JEFFERSON SIEGEL JERRY TALLMER

ART / PRODUCTION DIRECTOR TROY MASTERS

SENIOR DESIGNER MICHAEL SHIREY

GRAPHIC DESIGNERS CHRIS ORTIZ ANDREW GOOS PHOTO BY MILO HESS

SENIOR VP OF ADVERTISING / MARKETING FRANCESCO REGINI

RETAIL AD MANAGER COLIN GREGORY

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES BILL FINK ALLISON GREAKER MIKE O’BRIEN REBECCA ROSENTHAL JULIO TUMBACO

CIRCULATION SALES MNGR.

SCENE

New York’s nuevo alcalde, Bill de Blasio, led the Puerto Rican Day Parade up Fifth Ave. last Saturday. He also salsa’d with Congressmember Nydia Velazquez to the cheers of the crowd.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

MARVIN ROCK

PUBLISHER EMERITUS JOHN W. SUTTER

Member of the New York Press Association

Member of the National Newspaper Association

The Villager (USPS 578930) ISSN 0042-6202 is published every week by NYC Community Media LLC, 515 Canal Street, Unit 1C, New York, N.Y. 10013 (212) 229-1890. Periodicals Postage paid at New York, N.Y. Annual subscription by mail in Manhattan and Brooklyn $29 ($35 elsewhere). Single copy price at office and newsstands is $1. The entire contents of newspaper, including advertising, are copyrighted and no part may be reproduced without the express permission of the publisher - © 2011 NYC Community Media LLC.

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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 others errors or omissions in connection with an advertisement is strictly limited to publication of the advertisement in any subsequent issue. Published by NYC Community Media, LLC 515 Canal Street, Unit 1C, NY, NY 10013 Phone: (212) 229-1890 • Fax: (212) 229-2790 On-line: www.thevillager.com E-mail: news@thevillager.com © 2012 NYC Community Media, LLC

12

June 12, 2014

Who’s running the show? CGBG was place to be

A day in the life

To The Editor: Re “Pier 40 M.O.U. is still M.I.A., but suit could appear soon” (news article, May 29): If Gale Brewer hasn’t seen the agreement, that means her reps on the Hudson River Park Trust board of directors haven’t seen it. And you’ve got to wonder how the Trust’s staff has authority to sign such an agreement without consulting the board. The agreement was not on any of the Trust board public agendas before or since the agreement was said to have been signed. F.Y.I., the mayor also has representatives on the board, as does the governor. The current Trust board members for the mayor and Manhattan borough president are holdovers from the previous administration, but should still be accountable to the current office holders and the citizens.

To The Editor: So it is now 2 a.m. and I have had my one hour of sleep, having been awakened once again by the loud music and crowd noise from a local club, revving motorcycles, car radios, delivery trucks going to the supermarket, garbage trucks. I call 311, the Sixth Precinct and the local club to complain. At 5 a.m., I give up, get up and face the day. I am showered and dressed and ready to go to my doctor’s appointment. But of course Access-ARide does not show up, so I miss my appointment. After using more of my monthly cell phone minutes calling A.A.R. and its car-service subcontractor, I pick up my land line and make fruitless complaint calls to A.A.R. So I write letters to A.A.R. and local elected officials. Ready to do chores, I leave the

Nicole Vianna

To The Editor: Re “Karen Kristal, 88, stern partner in CBGB with her ex, Hilly” (obituary, June 5): My band the Beatniks From Mars were always treated well at CBGB by Karen and Hilly. Even though we did not have a following to speak of, we were booked constantly. In fact, we recorded most of our songs and videos there and felt is was our home away from home. Other bars were, well, bars, and we enjoyed playing there. However, CBGB was the center of our lives at the time, and the experience is something that none of us will ever forget. God, I miss it all. Rest in peace, Hilly and Karen. Long live CBGB! Lawrence White

LETTERS, continued on p. 14 TheVillager.com


C.B. 3 problems loom large in chairperson race TALKING POINT BY ANNE JOHNSON

T

It’s time to elect someone who will run the board not as a dictatorship but as a collaboration.

In addition, when a committee chairpersonship became vacant, two different, eminently qualified African-American women asked to be appointed, and were turned down. One had asked to be a co-chairperson along with another person, and one had asked to be the chairperson by herself. The two who asked to be co-chairpersons were turned down because, Ms. Li told them, according to the bylaws, co-chairpersons were not allowed. The other woman was turned down because Ms. Li claimed that she had not been on the board long enough. So what does Ms. Li do? She appoints two white men to be committee co-chairpersons, one of whom had been on C.B. 3 for the same amount of time as the African-American woman she turned down due to her short tenure on C.B. 3. Ms. Li’s appointments resulted in one of the two white males becoming chairperson of four committees, simultaneously, and he was not the only white or Asian appointed by Ms. Li to hold multiple committee chairperson positions. Now, is that racism or is it what we called in the 1960s a “white blind spot,” where a racist omission isn’t even seen as racism? Or is it possible that there is another reason — specifically that the Svengali who really runs C.B. 3 didn’t want these three people to sit on the Executive Committee, where they might really ask some questions about how the board has been improperly run in the last TheVillager.com

FILE PHOTOS

his letter is being written to clear up some inaccuracies and omissions in a couple of your articles regarding Community Board 3, and to ask some questions. First, a bit of history. When Scott Stringer became Manhattan borough president, he set out to make the appointments on the community boards more representative of the areas they covered. As a result, C.B. 3 became more culturally diverse. However, although the board has become more culturally diverse, the committee chairpersons — who are appointed solely by the board chairperson and make up a good portion of the Executive Committee — still are not. Currently, C.B. 3 has two Asian-American committee chairpersons and the rest are white. This fact — and it is definitely a fact, no denying it — was pointed out to the current C.B. 3 chairperson, Ms. Gigi Li, on several occasions, and she did nothing.

Incumbent Gigi Li, left, is being challenged by Chad Marlow, right, in C.B. 3’s chairperson election. Board members will vote on June 24.

several years? It could be a bit of all three. The community should know that many members of C.B. 3 have been very concerned about how the board has been run for the past several years. A lot needs changing. Our board has a terrible reputation. Three times in the past eight months alone, two Manhattan borough presidents have had to step in to question the actions of our chairperson. Has the current chairperson been willing to make some necessary changes to ensure that all of the C.B. 3 members and the community we represent get fair treatment? Not at all. With that being the case, is it then time for a change, to elect someone who will run the board more fairly, not as a dictatorship but as a collaboration among all its members? Seems to me, it is time. Now, the big question as C.B. 3 approaches its June election is whether its members will vote for chairperson based on each candidate’s record and merits. I hope so. But one concern I have is that those who do not vote for change will take this position because they do not want to cast a vote against Ms. Li that might be viewed as a condemnation of her as a racist. I think that is a false concern. The accusations about Ms. Li’s actions are currently being investigated

by Borough President Gale Brewer’s Office, which will make that determination. C.B. 3’s vote is about who will do the best job running our board for the next year — that’s it. But to those who are still concerned about the racial implications of the June vote, I would ask them to consider this: Would not a vote in favor of Ms. Li have negative implications for the African-American and Latino members of our board? Would not a vote to reward Ms. Li with another term be seen as a statement that most members of our board do not see the exclusion of two “racial” groups from chairing C.B. 3 committees for two full years to be a big deal? Would not a vote re-electing Ms. Li spread blame for her exclusionary policies from her alone to the full board? Might her re-election cause a racial rift on our board that could spill over to the community at large? A lot to consider. Anne K. Johnson Johnson is a member and former chairperson, Community Board 3

IRA BLUTREICH

Is the Pier 40 M.O.U. really dead? Only Governor Cuomo knows for sure. June 12, 2014

13


Annual Feast Day and Street Procession LETTERS TO THE EDITOR CELEBRATE SAINT ANTHONY’S FEAST FRIDAY, JUNE 13, 2014 Continued from p. 12

AT HIS CHURCH

Shrine Anthony ofwaitPadua house, cane in hand, then for entire nature Franciscan FriarsChurch of St.

’Tain’t so, Mr. Lentz. Because the of the N.Y.U. 2031 ULURP plan has changed, a new ULURP should then be presented. And certainly the change of zoning from residential to commercial in our neighborhood should not be reapproved.

elevator longer than I should, andan Sullivan Streets because one elevator has been out in my building for almost a year. Shrine Church of New St. Anthony of Padua York NY 10012 Phone 212-777-2755 I go toward Bleecker St., having

Annual Feast Day and Street Procession West Houston FRIDAY, FRIDAY JUNE 13, 2014 West Houston and Sullivan Streets New York NY 10012 Phone 212-777-2755

www.stanthonynyc.org maneuvered my way

www.stanthonynyc.org

Friday, June 13 Mass Schedule:

ANTHONY’S FEAST CHURCH

9 AM (English) 11 AM (English) 2 PM (Italian) Novena and Veneration of Relic at each Mass

6:00 PM Solemn Mass followed by Street Procession

an Friars nd Street Procession NE 13, 2014

ITALIAN FOOD FESTIVAL Friday, June 13 ALL DAY

through the broken Washington Square Village driveway. I attempt to cross the street, watching carefully for bikes going the wrong way. Hooray! I am on the other side of the street! I dodge cell phone users who can’t see me and others who do not think the old gal is walking quickly enough, so they slap her with their backpacks as they pass. I am schlepping down Bleecker, or what is left of it, with so many store closings. I do my chores, reverse my destination, say a prayer for my safe return, and head home. Back at home. I begin my real job — e-mails, phone calls, letters to comrades in the Washington Square South Citizens Action Committee and fellow residents and members of the Washington Square Village Tenants Association, calls to my aging-in-place posse members to see what indignities they suffered since I last spoke with them. Now I will settle down and watch the Yankees lose again. And then some recliner time before bed and dreams of a better day tomorrow. Really?

Sylvia Rackow

Friday, JPetrosino une 1purgatory 3 To The Editor:

Mass Schedule: Re “Rolling on the river: Focus on speeders and joggers” (news article,

9 AM (English) June 11 5): AM (English) Could we get some enforcers over 2 PM (Italian) here at Petrosino Square where the — Novena and inVmy eneration opinion — illegally placed bike depot destination for speeding of Relic at each isMa ass

cyclists hurrying to dock their bikes by riding up the ramp, which was St. Anthony’s Bread, Water, and Oil will be available in the vestibule of the church each day of built for wheelchair access, and onto the Novena. Religious articles and refreshments in the Church Hall on June 7, 8, and 13. the sidewalk where pedestrians must NOVENA IN HONOR OF ST. ANTHONY-­‐ JUNE 5-­‐13 walk? And could the Department of Transportation please correct the situation by relocating the depot to across the street into the roadbed where it belongs? Sorry to sound like a broken record, but I want to avoid broken bones. And by the way, Chop’t has never answered me in writing about the complaint I first made online, and Franciscan Friars then on paper, delivered by a pedesAnnual Feast Day and Street Procession Judith Chazen Walsh trian messenger, and finally in perconversation with a manager FRIDAY, JUNE 13, 2014 St. Anthony’s Bread, Water, and Oil will be available in the vestibule of tson he inchurch each day of in the newly opened Spring St. store, Shrine Church of St. Anthony of Padua the Novena. Religious articles and refreshments the Church 7, 8, and 13. been that their the complaint having Morein N.Y.U. spin Hall on June West Houston and Sullivan Streets New York NY 10012 Phone 212-777-2755 delivery man had cycled on the sidewww.stanthonynyc.org To The Editor: walk of Spring St. at 12:24 p.m. on Re “N.Y.U. rumors” (Scoopy’s May 16. But thanks to Cafe Habana for Notebook, May 29): telling their deliverymen never to Philip Lentz, like his employer, Friday, June 13 New York University, uses his own ride on the sidewalk while delivering Mass Schedule: interpretation of the court decision to for them. 9 AM (English) 11 AM (English) justify whatever he seeks to justify. 2 PM (Italian) Novena and Veneration And if the appointed N.Y.U. faculty Minerva Durham of Relic at each Mass working group’s decision not to put 6:00 PM Solemn Mass retail stores in the academic “Zipper” followed by Street Procession Building is not what Mr. Lentz and N.Y.U. President John Sexton want, ITALIAN FOOD FESTIVAL E-mail letters, not longer than 250 then why was that group formed? All Friday, June 13 words in length, to news@thevillager.com of which just shows how far N.Y.U. ALL DAY or fax to 212-229-2790 or mail to The Vilwill go to get what it wants. N.Y.U. may present a ULURP lager, Letters to the Editor, 515 Canal St., Suite 1C, NY, NY 10013. Please include application, make a promise, then phone number for confirmation purposes. St. Anthony’s Bread, Water, and Oil will be e available available in the vestibule of the church each ach d day ay of break it, try to steal public park areas, The Villager reserves the right to edit letthe Novena. Religious articles and refreshments n the Church Hall on JJune une 7, , 8 efreshments iin 8, , and 13. receive an adverse court decision, ters for space, grammar, clarity and libel. NOVENA IN HONOR OF ST. ANTHONY NTHONY-­‐ JJUNE NTHONY-­‐ UNE 5-­‐13 -­‐13 yet still believe it has the right to do The Villager does not publish anonymous whatever it wants despite the law. letters.

t. Anthony of Padua

nd Sullivan Streets Phone 212-777-2755

honynyc.org

CELEBRATE SAINT ANTHONY’S FEAST AT HIS CHURCH

Friday, J une 13 Friday 3

6:00 PM Solemn Mass followed by Street Procession ITALIAN FOOD FESTIVAL Friday, June 13 ALL DAY

Mass Schedule: chedule:

9 AM (English) English) 11 AM (English) English) NOVENA IN HONOR OF ST. ANTHONY-­‐ JUNE 5-­‐13 2 PM (Italian) Italian) Novena and Veneration eneration ass of Relic at each Mass

6:00 PM Solemn Mass rocession followed by Street Procession ITALIAN FOOD FESTIVAL Friday, June 13 ALL DAY

available in the vestibule of the church each day of 14

June 12, 2014

TheVillager.com


Celebration day for Washington Square Park PARK, continued from p. 1

TheVillager.com

The “chairmen” of the board.

PHOTOS BY TEQUILA MINSKY

The first phase, which opened in 2009, included a renovated and accessible plaza — with the fountain shifted 22 feet to the east to align with Fifth Ave. and the arch. There were also expanded lawns and new planting beds that increased the park’s green space. Phase two opened in 2011, including a new — though lower — stage area, chess plaza, renovated playground, petanque courts, a dog run for small dogs, sitting areas, landscaping, fencing and light poles. The recently completed third phase included a new park house — including public restrooms and office space for park staff — a 24-hour dog run for large dogs, a new lawn where the dog run used to be located, and a rope-cable play structure suspended over the reimagined “mounds.” Silver and other officials at the ceremony praised the park house as an example of state-of-the-art sustainable design. Designed by local firm BKSK Architects, the structure runs almost entirely off self-generated energy from rooftop solar panels and ground-source heat pumps. The project actually has one final step left — the renovation of the sidewalks around the park’s perimeter, which will be done this winter. Silver also praised George Vellonakis, the Village resident who designed the park renovation project, drawing a round of grateful applause. The city’s Department of Design and Construction oversaw the work’s phase three. Dr. Feniosky Pena-Mora, D.D.C. commissioner, said the new energy-efficient park house meshes with Mayor de Blasio’s “vision to create more sustainable city buildings.” Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer and City Councilmembers Margaret Chin and Corey Johnson also gave remarks. “The job that D.D.C. and Parks have done here is phenomenal,” Brewer raved. “You’ve taken the environmental and energy issues here to another level.” Brewer called the park “iconic — not just because it’s a destination, and not just for the kids,” she said, “but it’s also a place for people who just want to be themselves. The renovation doesn’t change any of that.” A young busker was banging away at an array of white spackle buckets and pots and pans on the east side of the fountain, and the sound carried. “I’m so glad that I can hear drums right now,” the borough president said. “Washington Square continues to be the iconic, gritty, authentic place it always has been.” “Gritty?” someone in the audience

The first graders were really on a roll after the ribbon-cutting.

wondered aloud skeptically. Chin said she recalled her son playing chess as a young boy in the park — “but he was playing an adult,” she noted. “This is a truly exciting day for Washington Square Park, the Village and all the city,” she declared. The park is in the northern end of Chin’s District 1. Johnson represents neighboring District 2. Johnson acknowledged state Senator Brad Hoylman and Assemblymember Deborah Glick, who were in Albany on Tuesday, for their work on the park’s behalf. He also paid homage to the spirit of protest and free speech that has characterized the park through its history.

“The people that come here on a weekly basis to protest their rights — we have to keep it open for everyone,” he stressed. David Gruber, chairperson of Community Board 2, saluted a community group that has been around a while and engaged in park issues, as well as the Village’s most famous activist. “One hundred years ago, the Washington Square Association successfully blocked an attempt to put a courthouse in the park, splitting it,” he noted. “And of course, yes, that other woman, Jane Jacobs. If it wasn’t for her, we would all be standing in the middle of an eight-lane highway. “George Vellonakis did a great job,” he said. “We had a few bumps

along the way at the beginning — but look what we got.” Those “bumps” included several community and environmental lawsuits lodged against the renovation. Opponents charged that the project would do everything from decimate the park’s birds and squirrels to destroy the unique nature of the sunken fountain plaza, which has since been leveled out in the redesign. Silver also acknowledged three founding members of the new Washington Square Park Conservancy who were in the audience, Veronica Bulgari, Gwen Evans and Justine Leguizamo, who stood up briefly to applause, and also Anne-Marie Sumner, of the Washington Square Association, who did the same. Critics of the renovation were also on hand. Asked her thoughts, Washington Square blogger Cathryn Swan offered, “It’s a good thing that the work is complete.” However, she noted that the initially budgeted cost and expected duration of the project both doubled, in the end. Queried if she’ll now hang up her mouse and end her probing posting about the park, she said, “No, no! The blog is not over yet. My big concern is about the potential privatization.” Swan has kept a close watch on the conservancy’s activities — and even their e-mails. Sharon Woolums, who was a leader on one of the environmental lawsuits against the project, stated, “I stand by everything I said — nothing has changed.” Yet, she said, she likes some elements of the spruced-up park. One notably is the cable-rope play structure over the sunken, turf-covered valley that Councilmember Alan Gerson and others fought to create where the three children’s play mounds once stood. “This works perfectly — the mounds,” Woolums said, as the P.S. 41 first graders cavorted nearby on the slopes and ropes. “And people fought for that and won, and that’s the most successful part of the park.” Nevertheless, disabled activist Margie Rubin said the new mounds area actually is not accessible to kids in wheelchairs because “they put down a rug,” i.e. the springy artificial turf. On the pro side, Bette Jedding, a Fifth Ave. resident, said designer Vellonakis really was involved in each detail of the renovation. “Every single plant — it’s been his life,” she said. Afterward, asked if the park renovation turned out better than he had imagined, Vellonakis said simply, “It was what I imagined.” June 12, 2014

15


G.P.P. seems sunk, but search for M.O.U. continues M.O.U., continued from p. 1

PHOTO BY LINCOLN ANDERSON

mental impact study would need to be performed. “Madelyn told me, ‘I read The Villager article. I want to meet with you,’ ” Schwartz told the newspaper later on Friday. “She confirmed that the M.O.U. is dead,” he said. The M.O.U. was signed by Wils; a representative of the Empire State Development Corporation; and a representative of Atlas Capital Group, a part owner of the St. John’s Center building, located across the West Side Highway from Pier 40, at W. Houston St. The language of the M.O.U. — which still reportedly has not been seen publicly — refers to a state-run General Project Plan, or G.P.P., for the project — not the city’s Uniform Land Use Review Procedure, or ULURP. A ULURP has a greater level of community review, plus binding votes by the City Planning Department and the City Council, and also normally takes more time than the faster G.P.P. However, according to Schwartz, Wils described the document’s language as conditional. “She said the M.O.U. reads, ‘Should

Legislation passed in Albany last year allows the Hudson River Park Trust to sell the park’s unused development rights, such as from Pier 40, above, for projects on the east side of the West Side Highway up to one block inland. However, the state reportedly has the power — even without the legislation — to do the park air-rights transfers on its own under a General Project Plan.

the state engage in a G.P.P. …’ not ‘The state would engage in a G.P.P,’ ” he noted. “The M.O.U. was conditioned on there being a decision made to do a G.P.P. But given the reaction, it’s not going to happen.” In short, Schwartz said, “There won’t be a G.P.P. There will be a ULURP process.” According to the attorney, who is a longtime Hudson River Park activist, the Trust president said the M.O.U.

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June 12, 2014

was circulated in December, but was not actually signed until late February or early March. In a statement this Tuesday, Wils said, “We look forward to working with the city on a ULURP that will save the pier, achieve the Legislature’s vision, and fully engage our community’s stakeholders.” According to a source, politically speaking, Wils can’t take it upon herself to say publicly if the M.O.U. is dead since it’s essentially a deal that was made by Governor Cuomo. Similarly, Schwartz related, Wils said she couldn’t show him the M.O.U. because the decision to release it is up to E.S.D.C. and the Governor’s Office. However, as of a week or more ago, other park insiders were also already saying the M.O.U. was now kaput, including Tobi Bergman, a leader of the Pier 40 Champions group, which is anxious to patch up the pier A.S.A.P. The area’s politicians have all said they were shocked to have learned only a few weeks ago — and only through a New York Times article, no less — that an agreement had been signed concerning a planned massive air-rights transfer from Pier 40 for a project at the St. John’s site, all to be done with city review. They quickly all signed onto a joint letter opposing a G.P.P. process — similar to another letter they had written only a few weeks before, when rumblings of the G.P.P. grew louder after not having been heard of since last fall. However, the idea of the M.O.U. plan now moving forward in the face of such overwhelming and united political opposition was highly unlikely. Schwartz said Wils was clearly annoyed at criticism she has received in the past few weeks in the wake

of the bombshell story. He added that sources close to the governor with whom he is in touch are furious about the fallout, feeling it’s been bad publicity for the governor — which he doesn’t want in an election year. In fact, Schwartz said, Cuomo believed doing a G.P.P. at the St. John’s Center site was something that local politicians and the community actually wanted. “A lot of people were onboard last year with a G.P.P. — but with a ULURP review,” Schwartz noted. A source familiar with the project told The Villager last week that what the Bloomberg administration, Cuomo and E.S.D.C. all actually favored was something that could be called a “modified G.P.P.,” which would have had some ULURP-like elements. However, in a follow-up to the initial bombshell article, the Times reported that Alicia Glen, a deputy mayor under Mayor de Blasio, is now calling for city review for transferring unused Pier 40 air rights to the St. John’s building. Borough President Gale Brewer told The Villager that she called the reporter of the Times articles, Charles Bagli, who explained that the second article used the vaguer term “city review” for Glen’s statement instead of, specifically, ULURP since the former would be more understandable to readers. (Of course, Villager readers all know what a ULURP is.) Finally clarifying things somewhat, an E.S.D.C. spokesperson sent The Villager the following statement on Wednesday, saying the project would now go through a so-called “expedited ULURP”: “Pier 40 is a vital community resource and an integral part of Hudson River Park. It, however, is suffering from severe structural issues that, if not quickly addressed, imperil the pier’s future, and the state and city administrations are committed to finding an appropriate and expeditious remedy. The St. John’s Warehouse [sic] General Project Plan (G.P.P.) provided one potential solution. Historically, E.S.D.C. has always worked in concert with the city on G.P.P.’s and E.S.D.C. remains committed to doing so here. While the prior city administration supported our approach, the current one has asked us to work with them through an expedited ULURP, which we support fully. And as we have explained throughout, we stand ready to work with them, the local elected officials, and community stakeholders to move this project forward.” Under the M.O.U., the three-blockM.O.U., continued on p. 24 TheVillager.com


The Adventures of an Underemployed Urban Elf Rev. Jen brown bags it below Delancey PLACES TO GET DRUNK AND WATCH MEN PLAY WITH BALLS, FAKE INJURIES, AND LOOK CUTE:

BY REV. JEN (rev-jen.com)

T

This friendly “Lower Lower East Side” business won’t shoo you from its chairs.

PHOTO BY DAN PERICO

TheVillager.com

PHOTO BY JOHN FOSTER

his month’s column is all about avoiding boredom and work…oh wait…that’s each month! However, there comes a time in every underemployed elf’s life when one must look for a job — especially when you spend half your day trying to log onto the NY Department of Labor’s website, to no avail. Unfortunately, the World Cup (June 12-July 13) has derailed any plans for possible future employment because what’s better than men with nice legs playing with balls? The answer is, nothing. Soccer is known as the “beautiful game” for a reason. One of the best things about the World Cup is that, every four years, it gives me a reason to live while simultaneously stealing money from my nieces and nephews via gambling. This year’s Cup will be especially awesome because it takes place in Brazil — which means I don’t have to wake up at 4 a.m. to start drinking and watching TV, as I did in 2002 when it was in South Korea. I simply can’t be awake at that hour unless I’m seeing morning from the wrong end of the day. Question is: How to enjoy the matches without emptying one’s wallet (and therefore fattening one’s front butt) at sports bars full of vociferous d-bags? If you have a working television, the answer is obvious: Drink at home and watch the games alone! (This way you can even do it pants-less.) If you are unfortunate enough to not have a working television, I have some tips for you.

GLOB wrestling in Tompkins Square Park (Our Lady of Perpetual PMS, in the “Love You Krampus” T-shirt).

As was evidenced by my most recent Villager story, the Olympic Restaurant (115 Delancey St.) is my fave place to watch soccer. (Many readers might mistake me for a girly girl, but I am actually a “tomboy drag queen” who lives to watch and play sports, drink beer, curse and climb trees.) There is also Lucky Jack’s (129 Orchard St.), undoubtedly the best bar on the Lower East Side. They have several televisions and you will likely find me passed out on the bar there during the entirety of the Cup. I asked friends for other “Cup Watching” destinations and the only one that came up was the “waiting room at Bellevue,” which I’ve already covered in a previous story. But then I ran into a fellow named Ryan. He’s co-owner of Grey Lady (77 Delancey St.), a seafood restaurant specializing in massacring lobsters so that we can all be happy and well-fed. I don’t eat lobsters, despite them being delicious, since I found out writer Gerard Nerval had one as a pet. However, Ryan and friends just opened a new Caribbean-themed restaurant on Orchard Street called Norman’s Cay (74 Orchard St.). I recently visited along with my friend, CC John, and we were treated to a rum punch that was not only tasty, it also made me sleep through two hours of my Anti-Slam that evening (I am becoming REV. JEN, continued on p.20

June 12, 2014

17


Coney Island Museum returns to form

New features include interactivity, 3D PHOTO BY BILL SCURRY

BY TRAV S.D. (travsd.wordpress.com)

A

mong Coney Island’s many attractions — the amusement parks, the beach, the boardwalk, the eateries, and Brooklyn Cyclones baseball — there lives one that is less noisome but just as significant and true to the spirit of the neighborhood.

Welcom

Nestled on the second floor of Coney Island USA, the same organization that produces Sideshows by the Seashore and the Mermaid Parade, one can find the Coney Island Museum. The creation of a museum was part of Coney Island USA’s mandate since the organization’s inception in 1980. It has been a going concern since 1985. The museum had been closed for 18 months to allow an extensive city-funded renovation that included restoration of the 97-year-old building’s decorative architecture and the installation of a new heating and cooling system. This is welcome news to longtime visitors, who will remember

©2014 NORMAN BLAKE

PHOTO BY KENNY LOMBARDI

“Thompson and Dundy’s Luna Park: 3D” is a 1:13 scale replica of the original Luna Park, populated with 3-D images of modeled on players in the contemporary Coney Island scene.

Fun house mirrors, show posters, passenger cars from amusement park rides, and a Mermaid Parade float are among the permanent collection items.

the stifling temperatures that once were an expected feature of a trip to the Coney Island Museum. This reporter attended opening day (Memorial Day Weekend) and was pleased to observe a veritable gale of Arctic breezes flowing out of the vents. The bulk of the museum’s floor space is devoted to the permanent collection, which contains an abundance of artifacts related to the culture of Coney Island’s recreational beaches and amusement district: fun house mirrors, show posters, passenger cars from amusement park rides, souvenir post cards, a Mermaid Parade float, an entire wall of vintage picnic gear, photographs, ephemera such as tickets to long-gone rides, and oddments like a game-of-chance doll prize topped with the grinning face of the Steeplechase man. Documentary footage of Coney Island’s amusement parks in their heyday is projected onto a screen on a continuous loop. An interactive exhibit displays sev-

eral postcards with fun glow-inthe-dark elements. Also on view at present are several exciting new features. Longtime Coney Island USA performer Fred Kahl, a.k.a. “The Great Fredini” has opened the Coney Island Scan-A-Rama 3D Portrait Studio where, for a fee, visitors can immortalize themselves in 3D scan plastic sculptures, a kind of modern updating of the old time Coney island photo booth. His ultimate creation in this cutting edge format now sits upstairs, occupying an entire room of the Coney Island Museum. Called “Thompson and Dundy’s Luna Park: 3D,” it is a 1:13 scale replica of Coney Island’s original Luna Park (different from the current one by that name) which operated from 1903 through 1944. (Frederic Thompson and Elmer Dundy were the visionary entrepreneurs who built the origiCONEY ISLAND, continued on p.19

e To The

R I NN A E Est. ����

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A LANDMARK FOR FINE FOOD AND GROG The Ear Inn is inside The James Brown House, one of the very few Federal Houses left in the city, and a designated Landmark of the City of New York on the National Register of Historic Buildings of the U.S. Department of the Interior. It is largely in the original condition it was when it was built two centuries ago and features a wood post construction with a Flemish brick bond facade. The noted architectural critic Ada Louise Huxtable writing of Federal houses in her book Classic New York, notes, “Their value is... a sudden sense of intimacy scale... evocative of another century and way of life. The Ear Inn hopes you enjoy its historicity and home cookin’. Please tell us if you see any ghosts!

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June 12, 2014

TheVillager.com


Museum embraces its ‘Darkside’

PHOTO BY KENNY LOMBARDI

The mural “Negroes on the Corner” is part of local artist Africasso’s “The Darkside of Dreamland” exhibition.

CONEY ISLAND, continued from p. 18

nal park.) In addition to depicting Luna Park’s historic structures, the piece is populated with 3D images of people, all of whom were modeled on players in the contemporary Coney Island scene: sideshow

performers, burlesque dancers, Mermaids, etc. — and standing at the center of them all, Coney Island USA Founder and Director Dick Zigun. “The brilliance of this piece is that it recreates the lost architecture of the original Luna Park even as the new Luna Park finishes its

build-out,” says Zigun. “It is the largest 3D printed art project ever attempted.” Kahl plans to expand his Luna Park by adding new pieces to it throughout the season. Directly across from the exhibition, something a little different: an exhibition of visual art by a Coney Island native. “The Darkside of Dreamland” is a showing of paintings, collages and sculptures by local artist Africasso (Daniel Blake). Some of Africasso’s work seems to be about the culture clash between the amusement district (and its rubber-necking hipsters) and the urban poor who live only a block away, but seldom seem to factor into public discussion about the present and future disposition of the neighborhood. Other pieces, such as his mixed-media “Miles Davis” are more celebratory, or like the mural “Negroes on the Corner,” politically suggestive in a more general way. Zigun says, “Africasso is the most prominent artist living in Coney’s often forgotten residential West End. We were attracted to the way his works deal with the surrealistic nightmare of violence juxtaposed to the business of fun.” In addition to the ongoing exhibitions, the Coney Island Museum is the site of a variety of public programs, such as events in the recent Congress of Curious Peoples, an an-

nual collaboration between Coney Island USA and [the Gowanus] Morbid Anatomy Library and Museum. (Full disclosure: this reporter gave a talk there just a few weeks ago). Now that summer is here, visitors can also enjoy the return of the annual film series put on by the Coney Island Film Society. This year’s season is a mix, including documentaries about Coney Island, historical oddities like the 1923 Harry Houdini silent, “Haldane of the Secret Service,” and co-presentations of B-movies with the likes of Phantom Creeps Theatre and Ghoul A Go-Go. Admission to the Coney Island Museum (1208 Surf Ave.) is $5, and only $3 for students, seniors, and residents of the 11224 zip code. Summer hours are 1-6 p.m. For more info on the Museum: coneyisland.com/programs/coney-island-museum. Trav S.D. has been producing the American Vaudeville Theatre since 1995, and periodically trots it out in new incarnations. Stay in the loop at travsd.wordpress.com, and also catch up with him on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, et al. His books include “No Applause, Just Throw Money: The Book That Made Vaudeville Famous” and “Chain of Fools: Silent Comedy and its Legacies from Nickelodeons to YouTube.”

Take Charge of Your Health Today! 3rd Annual Community Health Forum with VillageCare and NYU Wednesday, June 18 — 12:00 pm health expo, 1:00-3:00 pm panel NYU Kimmel Center, 10th Floor Rosenthan Pavilion 60 Washington Square South (at LaGuardia Place) Join moderator Dr. Max Gomez for a panel discussion on crucial health care issues, including the relationship between mind and body in overall wellness, with a group of health care experts. Light lunch and informational materials will be provided.

Topics Include

• Managing long-term health care needs • Being your own best health care advocate • Using functional fitness for pain-free living

Featuring

• • • •

• Recognizing and recuperating from depression • Connecting psychological & physical well-being • Questions and answers from the audience

Tara A. Cortes, PhD, RN, FAAN Executive Director; NYU College of Nursing, Hartford Institute for Geriatric Nursing Linda Rose Iennaco, Founder, Dance and Fitness Inc.; expert in functional fitness for ‘pain-free’ living Susan Light, MS, LCSW; Psychoanalyst and Psychotherapist Dr. Jonathan Whiteson, MD, Director of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation, NYU Medical Center

An RSVP is required: register with the NYU Office of Civic Engagement at nyu.edu/nyu-in-nyc, or by calling (212) 992-7323.

TheVillager.com

June 12, 2014

19


Tips to sidestep the menacing spectacle known as reality REV. JEN, continued from p. 17

PHOTO BY JOHN FOSTER

the George Jones of the open mic scene!). If you need a break from the menacing spectacle known as reality, I suggest paying them a visit and pretending you are actually in the Caribbean, or very far from a place called reality. But wherever you go, enjoy the World Cup. It gives us a good reason to party. Not that there is ever a bad reason. The world is clearly ending, so we should all have some fun. And if soccer and alcohol abuse doesn’t work for you, I have other tips on enjoying the end of the world.

DRESS AS A NINJA AND WATCH HORRIBLY DEPRESSING FILMS

SABOTAGE YOUR FRIEND’S CALENDAR:

Do you have overly organized friends who have calendars? If so, here’s a fun activity: Grab a Sharpie. Then, fill in your friend’s calendar with activities normally not enjoyed by the regular populace. Faceboy recently commandeered my calendar — and things I’ll be doing this month include time travel, getting pregnant, getting a court summons, standing on the corner, attending dolphin rape counseling, weeping alone all day, getting a divorce, attending both a séance and a gypsy wedding, and going gay. I’m gonna be busy! Luckily, in July, all I have to do is give up, according to calendar instructions.

Why preplan with us?

Appalled at the dearth of chain establishments, Rev. Jen hoofs it to Norman’s Cay, a great Caribbean joint at 74 Orchard St.

CHECK OUT GORGEOUS LADIES OF BLOOD WRESTLING

What’s even cooler than “the beautiful game?” Gorgeous ladies wrestling in vats of fake blood, of course. Durr. Many a Generation X male I have known hath harbored a crush on the ladies from G.L.O.W. (Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling). But a friend of mind who goes by the wrestling name “Our Lady of Perpetual PMS” went a step further by creating GLOB, wherein fearless ladies go to combat in fake blood. The results are entertainment insanity. You can check them out on July 1, at Tammany Hall (152 Orchard St.), where they’ll be performing alongside several bands (including the Slut Junkies, who I’ve profiled in this column several times). Find out more, at facebook.com/bloodwrestling.

JUST WALK AROUND WITH A FRIEND

The good news: There’s no more polar vortex! Bad news: We are all living through a second Great Depression. No one I know has any money. In fact, my sabotaged calendar states that I will soon be evicted, which isn’t far from the truth. Simply buying a calendar broke my budget (and I think it was free). But sometimes,

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you have to entirely ignore your finances and go for a walk with a friend and a couple brownbagged large beers. CC John and I took advantage of a sunny day to explore the “Lower Lower East Side” (stuff below Delancey). What ensued was a lovely day of meandering through a neighborhood where I’ve eked out an existence for almost two decades and discovering new stuff. We noted the plastic chairs outside of “Good Luck Car Service” (47 Ludlow St.). Like me, they are open 24 hours a day! Their prices are good, and they didn’t seem to mind two lunatics sitting on their plastic chairs. Also, when it comes to riding through New York sans helmet, I like good luck to be involved. We noted other places, like Silk Cakes (53 Ludlow St.), a wedding cake shop you can visit if you ever make the terrible mistake of getting married. At least when you suffer a bitter divorce, you will have had some good cake in your lifetime. There are many other fun things that don’t cost you a thing Downtown — but really, the best thing is good company. Sometimes just sitting with a friend in the sun outside of a car service that advertises “Good Luck” while laughing, talking and swigging brown-bagged beers is a cure for urban existential despair. Go out and have fun.

B BIIS STTR RO O ******

Because my computer is broken and I am too poor to get it fixed, I have been writing all of my columns at the pad of my BFF, Faceboy. Upon my most recent visit, he surprised me by having “Apocalypse Now” playing on his TV and then dressing up as a ninja. He then handed me a French maid getup, which I have worn throughout the entire laborious process of writing this brilliant essay. It’s see-through! “Having a ninja outfit can boost ones self-esteem,“ Faceboy noted, adding, “I don’t feel so hideously ugly while dressed as a ninja.” I am still wearing my see-through maid outfit and am determined to suggest things to do, even though there’s hardly anything left to do Downtown. So here are some things that will maybe (if you have the right pharmaceuticals) make you happy. No promises!

Corne r of Jane & West 4th St. (at 8th Ave.) 212-2 42-95 02

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Just Do Art BY SCOTT STIFFLER

PHOTO BY SALLY J. BAIR

PHOTO BY MICHAEL LITWAK

Interpersonal strife proves just as dangerous as invading dinosaurs, in “The Life and Death of Tommy Chaos and Stacey Danger” — part of NY Filmmakers Night, at The Lower East Side Film Festival. The Washington Square Music Festival’s 56th season begins on June 17.

THE LOWER EAST SIDE FILM FESTIVAL

TheVillager.com

“Eternally experimental” and “eclectic” are among the affectionate superlatives we’ve used to describe past editions of the Washington Square Music Festival — and that’s just from the “E” section. Come up with some of your own when you take in the completely free, priceless sights and sounds of (as we’ve previously noted) one of the city’s “top summer highlights for those with a love of serious music.” The 56th season begins on June 17 — with Lutz Rath conducting the Washington Square Festival Orchestra, joined by harmonica soloist Robert Bonfiglio. The program includes work by Claude Debussy (“Reverie” arranged for harmonica and orchestra) and Gustav Mahler’s “Adagietto” for strings and harp (from his Fifth Symphony). On June 24, the “Vocal Music: Baroque to Modern” program features soloists Lucia Hyunju Song (soprano), Laila Salins (mezzo-soprano), and the Washington Square Music Festival Ensemble performing four centuries of vocal music — including Anne Sexton-themed works by composer and arranger Laila Salins. The season concludes on Aug. 8, when oboist Matthew Sullivan hosts “A Partnership Concert with the International Double Reed Society/NYU.” Free. Seating is on a first-come, first served basis. At 8 p.m. on Tues., June 17, 24 and Fri., Aug. 8. At Washington Square, main stage south of Fifth Avenue. June 17 & 24 rainspace: NYU’s Frederick Loewe Theatre (35 W. Fourth St., at Greene St.). Aug. 8 rainspace: St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church (371 Sixth Ave., btw. Waverly Pl. & Greenwich Ave.). For info, call 212-252-3621 or visit washingtonsquaremusicfestival.org.

holics and drug addicts. Year after year, musical performers who represented the rich ethnic and cultural diversity of the East Village and the Lower East Side drew the community back. In 1996, the park and the series were named after Lebewohl — after he was fatally shot during an early morning ATM deposit. Now in its 33rd year, the free outdoor summer concert series continues to entertain those old enough to remember (and those too young to appreciate) how far the neighborhood has come. Celebrate Abe’s legacy and the current state of the East Village/L.E.S. arts — with upcoming concerts from, among others, the Claire Daly Quartet (June 26), the Third Street Music School Settlement Players (July 10), and the Gypsy Jazz Caravan (July 24). Free. Thursdays, through June 24, 12:30 p.m. in Abe Lebewohl Park (corner of 10th St. & Second Ave., in front of St. Mark’s Church-in-the-Bowery). For info, visit thirdstreetmusicschool.org or call 212777-3240.

PHOTO BY SELIMA HARLESTON-LUST

With Landmark Sunshine Cinema, Anthology Film Archives and East Village Cinema as its anchor venues, the 11-day Lower East Side Film Festival has thematic sprawl and ambition to rival its physical reach (which goes all the way to Chelsea Market). Specialty programming is the hook, by way of evenings devoted to sci-fi, horror, documentaries, music videos, animation, shorts, and international films. The festival opens on June 12, with “The Sturgeon Queens” — a documentary celebrating the 100th anniversary of L.E.S. institution Russ & Daughters. That one’s already sold out, but visit thesturgeonqueens.com to view the trailer and pre-order the DVD. LGBTs and their allies have nothing to fear at Friday, June 13’s “Gay Night” — when a rooftop pool party, a full moon, plenty of bare flesh and a dusk screening of “Dragula” conspire to up the chances of getting lucky. Director Frank Meli will be in attendance for the New York premiere of this short film about a high school senior whose meeting with the toothy, titular character helps him overcome low self-esteem and emotional dysfunction. Barry Bostwick and Carmen Electra are among the cast. On June 14, the “NY Filmmakers Night” features shorts written and/ or directed by locals — including Sha Huang’s “Under Ground,” about a young Chinese woman dreaming of indie rock fame while busking in the subway, and David Kestin’s “Open House,” in which a recently evicted French woman embarks on an intense NYC apartment hunt. June 18’s “GLASS Shorts” event features a screening of short films created by using Google GLASS. Screen the flicks, schmooze with the filmmakers and take the tech for a test spin. On June 19, a panel explores the present and future viability of digital distribution as a platform for emerging filmmakers. June 12-22, at various Downtown venues. Most general admission tickets are $12.50 in advance, $15 at the door (some events are free). For the schedule, visit lesfilmfestival.com.

THE WASHINGTON SQUARE MUSIC FESTIVAL

MUSIC IN ABE LEBEWOHL PARK

Back in 1981, it took a petition drive organized by the combined forces of 2nd Avenue Deli owner Abe Lebewohl, the Third Street Music School, and the 10th and Stuyvesant Streets Block Association to bring concerts to a 155-acre patch of land that had become a haven for alco-

The Third Street Music School Settlement Players will perform at the July 10 installment of Music in Abe Lebewohl Park. June 12, 2014

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NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that an on-premise license, #TBA has been applied for by 98 Rivington Restaurant LLC d/b/a Galli Restaurant to sell beer, wine and liquor at retail in an on premises establishment. For on premises consumption under the ABC law at 98 Rivington Street NY, NY 10002. Vil: 06/12 - 06/19/2014 NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a license, number #1277191 for on-premise liquor has been applied for by the undersigned to sell beer, liquor and wine at retail in a restaurant establishment under the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law at 5025 Broadway Store #3, New York, NY 10034 for on premises consumption. The Laser Restaurant Group, LLC. Vil: 06/12 - 06/19/2014 NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that an on-premise license, #TBA has been applied for by 19th Street Hospitality Partners, LLC to sell beer, wine and liquor at retail in an on premises establishment. For on premises consumption under the ABC law at 225 Park Avenue South NY, NY 10003. Vil: 06/12 - 06/19/2014 NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF NEWYORK.COM ONLINE ENTERTAINMENT GROUP, LLC App for Authority filed with Secy of State (SS) of NY on 8/21/12. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in DE on 1/5/12. SSNY designated as an agent upon whom process may be served. PO address to which SSNY shall mail copy of process against LLC: 19495 Biscayne Blvd, Ste 600, Aventura, FL 33180, which is also the FL address of LLC. Cert of LLC filed with SSDE located: 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: any lawful act. Vil: 06/12 - 07/17/2014 NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF TICKETSATWORK – PLUM BENEFITS, LLC App for Authority filed with Secy of State (SS) of NY on 4/17/14. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in DE on 1/31/14. SSNY designated as an agent upon whom process may be served. PO address to which SSNY shall mail copy of process against LLC: 19495 Biscayne Blvd, Ste 300, Aventura, FL 33180, which is also the FL address of LLC. Cert of LLC filed with SSDE located: 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: any lawful act. Vil: 06/12 - 07/17/2014

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF AR NEWYORK 1, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with NY Dept. of State on 5/2/14. Office location: NY County. Princ. bus. addr.: 1430 Spring Hill Rd., Ste. 300, McLean, VA 22102. Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: c/o CT Corporation System, 111 8th Ave., NY, NY 10011, regd. agent upon whom process may be served. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 06/12 - 07/17/2014 NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF CCATT LLC Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 11/20/13. Office location: NY County. Princ. bus. addr.: 1220 Augusta Dr., Ste. 600, Houston, TX 77057. LLC formed in DE on 11/14/13. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: c/o CT Corporation System, 111 8th Ave., NY, NY 10011, regd. agent upon whom process may be served. DE addr. of LLC: 1209 Orange St., Wilmington, DE 19801. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Sec. of State, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 06/12 - 07/17/2014 NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF POLYPLEX USA LLC Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 3/25/14. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in AL on 7/19/11. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: c/o CT Corporation System, 111 8th Ave., NY, NY 10011, regd. agent upon whom process may be served. AL and principal business address: 3001 Mallard Fox Dr. NW, Decatur, AL 35601. Cert. of Org. filed with AL Sec. of State, 100 N. Union St., Ste. 770, Montgomery, AL 36104. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 06/12 - 07/17/2014 MACNEE LLC Arts. of Org filed NY Secy of State (SSNY) 5/09/14. OFC in NY Co. SSNY design. Agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 119 Bank St, #3H, NY NY 10014. Purpose: any lawful act. Vil: 06/05 - 07/10/2014

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF 340E24 JV LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 3/25/13. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: Benjamin Shaoul, 594 Broadway, Ste. 1010, NY, NY 10012. Purpose: any lawful activity. Vil: 06/05 - 07/10/2014 NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that an on-premise license, #TBA has been applied for by Birds and Bubbles NYC, LLC to sell beer, wine and liquor at retail in an on premises establishment. For on premises consumption under the ABC law at 100 B Forsyth Street NY, NY 10013. Vil: 06/05 - 06/12/2014 AMITALIE LLC Arts. of Org filed NY Secy of State (SSNY) 3/27/14. OFC in NY Co. SSNY design. Agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 225 Rector Pl #9K, NY NY 10280. Purpose: any lawful act.1928233 Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/2014 NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a summer restaurant wine license, #TBA has been applied for by Jean’s Cafe Corp. d/b/a New York Film Academy Cafe to sell beer and wine at retail in an on premises establishment. For on premises consumption under the ABC law at Peter Minuit Plaza NY, NY 10004. Vil: 06/05 - 06/12/2014 NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF FIREMON, LLC Authority filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/22/14. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Missouri (MO) on 10/01/03. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: National Registered Agents, Inc., 111 Eighth Ave., NY, NY 10011. Address to be maintained in MO: 120 S. Central Ave., Clayton, MO 63105 . Arts of Org. filed with the MO Secy. Of State, 600 W. Main St., Rm. 322, Jefferson City, MO 65102. Purpose: any lawful activities. Vil: 06/05 - 07/10/2014

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF 95TH STREET REALTY COMPANY LLC Cert. of Conversion filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/19/14, converting 95TH STREET REALTY COMPANY to 95TH STREET REALTY COMPANY LLC. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 55 Fifth Ave., 15th Fl., NY, NY 10003. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Robert Kantor, c/o Cityprop Management Corp., 55 Fifth Ave., 15th Fl., NY, NY 10003. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Vil: 06/05 - 07/10/2014 NOTICE OF FORMATION OF 102-116 EIGHTH AVENUE ASSOCIATES LLC Cert. of Conversion filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 02/11/14, converting 102-116 EIGHTH AVENUE ASSOCIATES, L.P. to 102-116 EIGHTH AVENUE ASSOCIATES LLC. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, c/o The Brodsky Organization, LLC, Attn: Daniel Brodsky, 400 W. 59th St., NY, NY 10019. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Vil: 06/05 - 07/10/2014 NOTICE OF FORMATION OF UB LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/22/14. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 228 W. 47th St., NY, NY 10036. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Hotel Edison at the princ. office of the LLC. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Vil: 06/05 - 07/10/2014 NOTICE OF FORMATION OF 451 TENTH AVENUE MEMBER LLC Arts. of Org. filed with NY Dept. of State on 3/31/14. Office location: NY County. Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: 666 Third Ave., NY, NY 10017, Attn: JeffreyMoerdler, Esq. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 06/05 - 07/10/2014 NOTICE OF FORMATION OF 451 TENTH AVENUE OPERATING LLC Arts. of Org. filed with NY Dept. of State on 3/31/14. Office location: NY County. Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: 666 Third Ave., NY, NY 10017, Attn: JeffreyMoerdler, Esq. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 06/05 - 07/10/2014

PUBLIC NOTICE – 3RD AND 72ND STREET Cellco Partnership and its controlled affiliates doing business as Verizon Wireless is proposing to collocate antennas on an existing building, with an overall height of 192 feet, located at 155 East 72nd Street, in New York, New York County, NewYork. Public comments regarding the potential effects from this site on historic properties may be submitted within 30-days from the date of this publication to: Andrew Maziarski - IVITelecom Services, Inc., 55 West Red Oak Lane, White Plains, New York 10604, CulturalResources@ivi-intl.com, or (914) 740-1930. Vil: 06/12/2014

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June 12, 2014

NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF FTI CONSULTING TECHNOLOGY LLC Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 2/18/14. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in MD on 1/11/05. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: c/o CT Corporation System, 111 8th Ave., NY, NY 10011, regd. agent upon whom process may be served. MD and principal business addr.: 909 Commerce Rd., Annapolis, MD 21401. Cert. of Org. filed with Custodian of Records, MD Dept. of Assessments & Taxation, 301 W. Preston St., Baltimore, MD 21201. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 06/05 - 07/10/2014

NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF ACF FINCO I LP Authority filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/20/14. Office location: NY County. LP formed in Delaware (DE) on 04/25/14. Princ. office of LP: 245 Park Ave. - 44th Fl., NY, NY 10167. SSNY designated as agent of LP upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. Name and addr. of each general partner are available from SSNY. DE addr. of LP: c/o CSC, 2711 Centerville Rd., Ste. 400, Wilmington, New Castle Cnty., DE 19808. Arts. of Org. filed with Jeffrey W. Bullock Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Vil: 05/29 - 07/03/2014

NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF GOLDENTREE PARTNERS LOAN FUND LLC Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 5/12/14. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in DE on 3/31/14. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: Attn: General Counsel, 485 Lexington Ave., 15th Fl., NY, NY 10017, principal business address. DE address of LLC: 615 S. DuPont Hwy., Dover, DE 19901. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Sec. of State, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: any lawful activity. Vil: 06/05 - 07/10/2014

NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF 21 CROSBY STREET LLC Authority filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/22/14. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 05/21/14. Princ. office of LLC: c/o Corigin, Attn: Spencer Romoff, 505 Fifth Ave., NY, NY 10017. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the addr. of its princ. office. DE addr. of LLC: c/o Corporation Service Co., 2711 Centerville Rd., Ste. 400, Wilmington, DE 19808. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of the State of DE, Corp. Dept., Loockerman & Federal Sts., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Vil: 05/29 - 07/03/2014

NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF HONDA AVIATION FINANCE COMPANY, LLC Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 5/20/14. Office location: NY County. Princ. bus. addr.: 20800 Madrona Ave., Torrance, CA 90503. LLC formed in DE on 1/21/14. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: c/o CT Corporation System, 111 8th Ave., NY, NY 10011, regd. agent upon whom process may be served. DE addr. of LLC: c/o CT Corporation System, 1209 Orange St., Wilmington, DE 19801. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Sec. of State, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 06/05 - 07/10/2014 ORTAGGI LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/18/2014. Office loc: NY County. SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against the LLC may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: 304 Hudson St., # 507, NY, NY 10013. Purpose: Any Lawful Purpose. Vil: 05/29 - 07/03/2014

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF PING GUI LLC Articles of Organization filed with Secy. Of State of NY (SSNY) on 4/4/14. Office location: QUEENS County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: 1824 COLLEGE POINT BLVD, COLLEGE POINT, NY 11356 Purpose: Any lawful act Vil: 05/29 - 07/03/2014 NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF ALVAREZ & MARSAL ASSET MANAGEMENT SERVICES, LLC Authority filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/15/14. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 05/12/14. Princ. office of LLC: 600 Madison Ave., 8th Fl., NY, NY 10022. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: 2711 Centerville Rd., Ste. 400, Wilmington, DE 19808. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of State of DE, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Vil: 05/29 - 07/03/2014

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF BRONX FOOD PROCESSING AND DISTRIBUTION CENTER FUND, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/15/14. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: c/o NY City Regional Center, LLC, 99 Hudson St., 15th Fl., NY, NY 10013. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the addr. of its princ. office. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Vil: 05/29 - 07/03/2014 NOTICE OF QUAL. OF COBBLE HILL HEALTH AND WELLNESS PARTNERS LLC Auth. filed Sec’y of State (SSNY) 3/19/14. Office loc.: NY County. LLC org. in DE 3/19/14. SSNY desig. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of proc. to NRAI, 111 Eighth Ave., NY, NY 10011, the Reg. Agt. upon whom proc. may be served. DE off. addr.: 160 Greentree Dr., Ste. 101, Dover, DE 19904. Cert. of Form. on file: SSDE, Townsend Bldg., Dover, DE 19901. Purp.: any lawful activities. Vil: 05/29 - 07/03/2014 NOTICE OF QUAL. OF COB 3420 BROADWAY LLC Auth. filed Sec’y of State (SSNY) 2/19/14. Office loc.: NY County. LLC org. in DE 2/12/14. SSNY desig. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of proc. to NRAI, 111 Eighth Ave., NY, NY 10011, the Reg. Agt. upon whom proc. may be served. DE off. addr.: 160 Greentree Dr., Ste. 101, Dover, DE 19904. Cert. of Form. on file: SSDE, Townsend Bldg., Dover, DE 19901. Purp.: any lawful activities. Vil: 05/29 - 07/03/2014 NOTICE OF FORMATION OF MAJESTIC ACQUISITIONS LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 5/8/14. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: The LLC, 721 Fifth Avenue, Ste. 45C, NY, NY 10022. Purpose: any lawful activity. Vil: 05/29 - 07/03/2014 NOTICE OF FORMATION OF 15BUNP LLC Arts. of Org. filed with NY Dept. of State on 5/14/14. Office location: NY County. Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: Solomon Blum Heymann LLP, 40 Wall St., 35th Fl., NY, NY 10005, principal business address. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 05/29 - 07/03/2014

NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF THE RICHMAN GROUP OF CONNECTICUT, LLC Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 5/14/14. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in CT on 10/24/94. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: National Corporate Research, Ltd., 10 E. 40th St., 10th Fl., NY, NY 10016, regd. agent upon whom process may be served. CT and principal business address: 340 Pemberwick Rd., Greenwich, CT 06831. Cert. of Org. filed with CT Sec. of State, 30 Trinity St., Hartford, CT 06106. Purpose: any lawful activity. Vil: 05/29 - 07/03/2014 NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF SOHO-LUDLOW TENANT, LLC Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 5/12/14. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in DE on 12/26/12. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: c/o Andy Childs, 515 W. 20th St., NY, NY 10011, principal business address. DE address of LLC: c/o The Corporation Trust Co., 1209 Orange St., Wilmington, DE 19801. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Sec. of State, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 05/29 - 07/03/2014 NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF SPG MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATES III, LLC Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 5/13/14. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in IN on 1/29/14. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: c/o CT Corporation System, 111 8th Ave., NY, NY 10011, regd. agent upon whom process may be served. IN and principal business addr.: c/o Corporate Paralegal, 225 W. Washington St., PO Box 7033, Indianapolis, IN 46207-7033. Cert. of Org. filed with IN Sec. of State, 302 W. Washington St., Indianapolis, IN 46204. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 05/29 - 07/03/2014 NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF LINDSAY GOLDBERG IV L.P. Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 5/6/14. Office location: NY County. Princ. bus. addr.: 630 5th Ave., 30th Fl., NY, NY 10111. LP formed in DE on 4/2/14. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LP upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: National Corporate Research, Ltd. (NCR), 194 Washington Ave., Ste. 310, Albany, NY 12210. DE addr. of LP: NCR, 615 S. DuPont Hwy., Dover, DE 19901. Name/addr. of genl. ptr. available from NY Sec. of State. Cert. of LP filed with DE Sec. of State, 401 Federal St., Ste. #3, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: any lawful activity. Vil: 05/29 - 07/03/2014

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NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF LINDSAY GOLDBERG IV - A L.P. Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 5/6/14. Office location: NY County. Princ. bus. addr.: 630 5th Ave., 30th Fl., NY, NY 10111. LP formed in DE on 4/2/14. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LP upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: National Corporate Research, Ltd. (NCR), 194 Washington Ave., Ste. 310, Albany, NY 12210. DE addr. of LP: NCR, 615 S. DuPont Hwy., Dover, DE 19901. Name/addr. of genl. ptr. available from NY Sec. of State. Cert. of LP filed with DE Sec. of State, 401 Federal St., Ste. #3, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: any lawful activity. Vil: 05/29 - 07/03/2014 TIME TUNNEL HERITAGE SERVICES LLC a domestic LLC, filed with the SSNY on 5/2/14. Office location: New York County. SSNY is designated as agent upon whom process against the LLC may be served. SSNY shall mail process to The LLC, P.O. Box 1126, Gracie Square Station, NY, NY 10028. General Purpose. Vil: 05/22 - 06/26/2014 E&L EPICERIE LLC Art. Of Org. Filed Sec. of State of NY 02/05/2014. Off. Loc.:New York Co. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY to mail copy of process to The LLC, c/o Laurent Baud, 37 West 26th Street, Suite 302, New York, NY 10010. Purpose:Any lawful act or activity. Vil: 05/22 - 06/26/2014 NOTICE OF FORMATION OF ERICA SILVERMAN INTERIORS LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 5/6/14. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: Capitol Services, Inc., 1218 Central Avenue, Ste. 100, Albany, NY 12205. Purpose: any lawful act or activity. Vil: 05/22 - 06/26/2014 NOTICE OF FORMATION OF BROADWAY BUILDERS LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 5/6/14. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: The LLC, 826 Broadway, 11th Fl., NY, NY 10003. Purpose: any lawful activity. Vil: 05/22 - 06/26/2014

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NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF NEST FILM PRODUCTIONS LLC Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 5/7/14. Office location: NY County. Princ. bus. addr.: 100 Universal City Plz., Universal City, CA 91608. LLC formed in DE on 3/20/14. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: c/o CT Corporation System, 111 8th Ave., NY, NY 10011, regd. agent upon whom process may be served. DE addr. of LLC: c/o The Corporation Trust Co., 1209 Orange St., Wilmington, DE 19801. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Sec. of State, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 05/22 - 06/26/2014 NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF ONVOY, LLC Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 4/21/14. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in MN on 3/10/14. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: c/o CT Corporation System, 111 8th Ave., NY, NY 10011, regd. agent upon whom process may be served. MN and principal business address: 10300 6th Ave. N., Plymouth, MN 55441. Cert. of Org. filed with MN Sec. of State, 60 Empire Dr., Ste. 100, St. Paul, MN 55103. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 05/22 - 06/26/2014 SW10 PICTURES LLC Art. Of Org. Filed Sec. of State of NY 10/04/2013. Off. Loc.: New York Co. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY to mail copy of process to The LLC, c/o Guy Godfree, 67 E 2nd St, Unit 43, New York, NY 10003. Purpose: Any lawful act or activity. Vil: 05/15 - 06/19/2014 AVERAGE HUSTLE PUBLICATIONS, LLC a domestic LLC, filed with the SSNY on 1/22/14. Office location: New York County. SSNY is designated as agent upon whom process against the LLC may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o United States Corporation Agents, Inc., 7014 13th Ave., Ste. 202, Brooklyn, NY 11228. General Purpose. Vil: 05/15 - 06/19/2014 HANCHUK KHEIT LLP a domestic LLP, filed with the SSNY on 3/13/14. Office Location: New York County. SSNY is designated as agent upon whom process against the LLP may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: The LLP, 258 St. Nicholas Ave., No. 8A, NY, NY 100275353. Purpose: Law. Vil: 05/15 - 06/19/2014

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF 92 HENRY FULTON LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/01/14. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 299 Park Ave., NY, NY 10171. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Fisher Brothers, Attn: General Counsel at the princ. office of the LLC. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Vil: 05/15 - 06/19/2014 NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF RUBY FRESH LLC Authority filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/30/14. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 03/10/14. Princ. office of LLC: 333 7th Ave., 18th Fl., Ste. 2, NY, NY 10001. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the princ. office of the LLC. DE addr. of LLC: c/o Corporation Service Co., 2711 Centerville Rd., Ste. 400, Wilmington, DE 19808. Arts. of Org. filed with DE Secy. of State, Corp. Div., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Vil: 05/15 - 06/19/2014 NOTICE OF FORMATION OF BRO PLUS LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/05/14. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 158 W. 29th St., 3rd Fl., NY, NY 10001. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the addr. of its princ. office. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Vil: 05/15 - 06/19/2014 NOTICE OF FORMATION OF BIG TIME LEARNING LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 01/22/14. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: Jeffrey de Vito, 59 W. 12th St., 16th Fl., Ste. A, NY, NY 10011. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the addr. of its princ. office. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Vil: 05/15 - 06/19/2014 NOTICE OF FORMATION OF MUSICAL THEATER CHINA, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with NY Dept. of State on 4/25/14. Office location: NY County. Princ. bus. addr.: Rm 2005, Block 17, Hopson Intl Garden, Beijing 100022, China. Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: c/o CT Corporation System, 111 8th Ave., NY, NY 10011, regd. agent upon whom process may be served. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 05/15 - 06/19/2014

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF PALLI CAFARELLI, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with NY Dept. of State on 4/30/14. Office location: NY County. Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: Marco Antonio Palli Cafarelli, 200 Mercer St., Apt. 4D, NY, NY 10012, principal business address. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 05/15 - 06/19/2014 NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF SCCP SALINA II, LIMITED PARTNERSHIP Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 4/17/14. Office location: NY County. Princ. bus. addr.: 1075 W. Georgia St., Ste. 2600, Vancouver, BC C6E 3C9, Canada. LP formed in DE on 6/19/13. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LP upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: c/o CT Corporation System, 111 8th Ave., NY, NY 10011, regd. agent upon whom process may be served. DE addr. of LP: 1209 Orange St., Wilmington, DE 19801. Name/addr. of genl. ptr. available from NY Sec. of State. Cert. of LP filed with DE Sec. of State, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 05/15 - 06/19/2014 ELITE 106 LLC a domestic LLC, filed with the SSNY on 4/17/14. Office location: New York County. SSNY is designated as agent upon whom process against the LLC may be served. SSNY shall mail process to SMMW Consulting Corp., 220 Bristol Terr., Edgewater, NJ 07020. General Purpose. Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/2014 NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF FFP ACQUISITION I, LLC Authority filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 4/28/14. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Florida (FL) on 8/4/11. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: National Registered Agents, Inc., 111 Eighth Ave., NY, NY 10011. Address to be maintained in FL: 3300 Corporate Ave., Ste. 104, Weston, FL 33331. Arts of Org. filed with the FL Secy. of State, Clifton Bldg., 2661 Executive Center Circle, Tallahassee, FL 32301. Purpose: any lawful activities. Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/2014

NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF DIGITAL EXPANSE, LLC Authority filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 4/9/14. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 4/4/14. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: 33 Whitehall St., 8th Fl., NY, NY 10004. Address to be maintained in DE: c/o Capitol Corporate Services, Inc., 1111B Governors Ave., Dover, DE 19904. Arts of Org. filed with the DE Secy. of State, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: any lawful activities. Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/2014 NOTICE OF FORMATION OF TZFAT LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 4/29/14. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: c/o Edry, 220 E. 65th St., No. 21L, NY, NY 10065. Purpose: any lawful activity. Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/2014 NOTICE OF FORMATION OF DUCK REALTY MANAGEMENT, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 5/1/14. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: Capitol Services, Inc., 1218 Central Ave., Ste. 100, Albany, NY 12205. Purpose: any lawful act or activity. Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/2014

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF MAKOM REAL ESTATE SERVICES, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with NY Dept. of State on 3/24/14. Office location: NY County. Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: 75 Rockefeller Plaza, 18th Fl., NY, NY 10019, principal business address. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/2014 NAME OF LLC: ONEOKDREAM LLC Arts. of Org. filed with NY Dept. of State: 3/6/14. Office loc.: NY Co. Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: Business Filings Inc., 187 Wolf Rd., Ste. 101, Albany, NY 12205, regd. agt. upon whom process may be served. Purpose: any lawful act. Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/2014 CENTRAL DENIM LLC Arts. of Org filed NY Secy of State (SSNY) 3/20/14. OFC in NY Co. SSNY design. Agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 1410 Broadway #2901, NY NY 10018. Purpose: any lawful act.1928233 Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/2014 NOTICE OF FORMATION OF SUNSTRUCK LLC Arts. of Org. filed with NY Dept. of State on 3/6/14. Office location: NY County. Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to the principal business address: 11 Riverside Dr., Apt. 8UE, NY, NY 10023, Attn: Shaun M. Moss. Purpose: any lawful activity. Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/2014

NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF OAK GROVE COMMERCIAL MORTGAGE, LLC Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 4/21/14. Office location: NY County. Princ. bus. addr.: 2177 Youngman Ave., Ste. 100, St. Paul, MN 55116. LLC formed in DE on 12/1/08. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: c/o CT Corporation System, 111 8th Ave., NY, NY 10011, regd. agent upon whom process may be served. DE addr. of LLC: 1209 Orange St., Wilmington, DE 19801. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Sec. of State, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/2014 NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF VIVA GROUP, LLC Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 3/14/14. Office location: NY County. Princ. bus. addr.: 3585 Engineering Dr., Ste. 100, Norcross, GA 30092. LLC formed in DE on 12/31/13. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: c/o CT Corporation System, 111 8th Ave., NY, NY 10011, regd. agent upon whom process may be served. DE addr. of LLC: CorporationTrust Co., 1209 Orange St., Wilmington, DE 19801. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Sec. of State, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: all lawful purposes. Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/2014

NOTICE OF REGISTRATION OF CHATILLON WEISS LLP Certificate filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 4/24/14. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLP upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: The LLP, 420 W. 14th St., Ste. 5SE, NY, NY 10014. Purpose: practice the profession of law. Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/201 NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF STONEHENGE GROWTH EQUITY INNOVATE NY FUND, LP Authority filed with NY Dept. of State on 4/18/14. Office location: NY County. Princ. bus. addr.: 191 W. Nationwide Blvd., Ste. 600, Columbus, OH 43215. LP formed in DE on 12/18/12. NY Sec. of State designated agent of LP upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: c/o CT Corporation System, 111 8th Ave., NY, NY 10011, regd. agent upon whom process may be served. DE addr. of LP: c/o The Corporation Trust Co., 1209 Orange St., Wilmington, DE 19801. Name/addr. of genl. ptr. available from NY Sec. of State. Cert. of LP filed with DE Sec. of State, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: investment. Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/2014

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF CHARLIE CHEWS LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/16/11. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: Ashley Jurgenson, 251 W. 30th St., 16th Fl., NY, NY 10001. Purpose: any lawful activity. Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/2014 NOTICE OF FORMATION OF 40 WEST 116TH STREET LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 3/19/14. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: The LLC, c/o Radius Ventures, 400 Madison Ave., 8th Fl., NY, NY 10017. Purpose: any lawful activity. Vil: 05/08 - 06/12/2014

June 12, 2014

23


M.O.U., G.P.P. and a push to save the pier A.S.A.P. M.O.U., continued from p. 16

long, four-story-tall St. John’s building was to have been demolished and rebuilt in phases, with a mix of residential and commercial uses. More particulars about the project have not been forthcoming, though, because the M.O.U., again, allegedly has not been seen by the area’s elected officials. Local politicians recently resorted to filing a Freedom of Information Law, or FOIL, request to view the document. Schwartz said Wils basically told him his potential lawsuit is now moot since the M.O.U. is sunk. “You don’t need to do this — because it’s not going to happen,” he said Wils urged him. Asked if he accepted Wils’s statement at face value — that the M.O.U. has been tossed in the trash bin — Schwartz said, “Absolutely.” He assured The Villager, though, that he could pull a lawsuit together quickly at the last minute, if needed. He gave the example of how, in 1996, after the state reneged on a promise to provide athletic field space in Pier 40’s courtyard, he hurriedly filed litigation, with the resulting settlement winning a ball field atop the three-story pier shed’s southeastern rooftop corner.

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June 12, 2014

On Fri., May 30, Brewer convened a meeting of the local politicians, City Planning representatives, Trust Vice President Noreen Doyle, community board members from Boards 1, 2 and 4 and other Hudson River Park activists to discuss the mystery M.O.U. Delores Rubin, chairperson of the Hudson River Park Advisory Council, attended. Rubin said the meeting started with everyone joking around, saying things like, “O.K., where’s the M.O.U.?” and “Who’s got the M.O.U.?” with people then pretending to search in their pockets for it and quipping, “I’ve got it!” “No, I’ve got it!” But, on a serious note, she said, “Despite the news reporting on the M.O.U., everyone in the room was moving forward, to work together to find a mechanism, a pre-certification — the process before the process. The G.P.P. would clearly be a shortcut. City Planning did say there are mechanisms to keep ULURP from being overly lengthy. “Everyone is aware of the idea that time is of the essence in bringing money to the park,” Rubin added. “But neither the electeds or anybody else wants anything [to go] too fast.” Any money from the sale of Pier 40’s air rights must, under the legislation

passed last June, be funneled back into the dilapidated 14-acre pier for its sorely needed repair. Meanwhile, the Trust is poised to release a report saying that, without a massive cash infusion, in a worst-case scenario, the pier could completely collapse into the Hudson in as little as two years. The Trust says Pier 40 needs $100 million for full-scale repairs — coincidentally, the same dollar amount as in the M.O.U. According to Assemblymember Deborah Glick, however, $44 million is sufficient for the most important repairs for the pier. State Senator Brad Hoylman was among the group in Brewer’s office. “At the meeting, city officials confirmed earlier statements made to the press that a ULURP will be the process to transfer any air rights to the St. John’s building,” he told The Villager. “The city also discussed instituting a public process for creating a mechanism for evaluating and transferring air rights to the St. John’s building and any other sites. We will be discussing this process further. I’m pleased that the city is taking an inclusive approach that will involve the local community.” Hoylman added that it’s “an ongoing outrage” that they still haven’t been able to see the M.O.U. Yet, he said, now that FOIL has been initiated, “it may take some time to get a response because a FOIL triggers a bureaucratic and legal review.” As for Brewer, she said she’s upset, too, like the area’s other elected officials, at not having access to the M.O.U. Despite the fact that three of the Trust’s 13 board of directors members are appointed by the borough president, she said she — like all the other local politicians — was unaware of the M.O.U. until only a few weeks ago. That raises the question of whether the Trust’s own board members even knew what was going on. As of last week, the local politicians said their understanding — based on what an E.S.D.C. official recently only happened to let slip to them in another meeting — was that the M.O.U. was signed in December, a month before Brewer took office. “It wasn’t on my watch,” Brewer said. “Full transparency is required,” she stressed. “We were all shocked to learn of this secret M.O.U. I am happy the city is committed to bringing the process under city review and including community input.” A spokesperson for Brewer’s predecessor, Scott Stringer, said the current comptroller similarly was also unaware of the secret agreement. Bergman, a leader of the Lower West Side’s youth sports community and a strong candidate to be the next chair-

person of Community Board 2 in November, was also at the meeting, along with David Gruber, the current C.B. 2 chairperson. Bergman said the process for Pier 40 and the St. John’s site is now focused on “moving forward with developing a zoning framework for transferring air rights, which means through the city Uniform Land Use Review Process, not a state General Project Plan that would bypass zoning, an idea which is now buried.” For Downtown “soccer moms and dads,” preserving Pier 40 — with its huge courtyard sports field, in an otherwise park-starved community — is an absolute must. C.B. 2 Chairperson Gruber said Edith Chin, City Planning’s Manhattan director, was at the May 30 meeting at Brewer’s office. “She said we’re moving forward and the G.P.P. is off the table,” he said. As for the M.O.U., he said, “Everybody wants to see a copy of it. I would hope that the Trust makes it easily available.” Andrew Berman, executive director of the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, who is on the park’s advisory council, has been a vigilant watchdog on the park airrights issue. “People have extreme frustration that secret negotiations, agreements and meetings continue to characterize this process,” Berman said. “We keep being told by the Trust and elected officials that this process — which began in secret and without public involvement or notification — will be transparent and inclusive. Thus far, there has been little or no evidence of that.” Meanwhile, Cuomo may be right to fear political payback for pushing a G.P.P. at the St. John’s site. It emerged as a hot-button issue at the Downtown Independent Democrats’ recent endorsement meeting. “Downtown Independent Democrats endorsed all the other Dems for statewide office, except Andrew Cuomo, for whom we took ‘no position’ — basically not endorsing him,” said Sean Sweeney, a D.I.D. leader. “Particularly glaring for us locals was his recent clandestine approach to the air rights at Pier 40, as well as his support of state Senate Republicans.” The ubiquitous Brewer was at Tuesday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony for the completion of the Washington Square Park renovations. Asked if she still hadn’t seen the M.O.U. yet, she compared it to the Passover tradition where the youngest child searches high and low for the hidden matzoh. “It’s like the Seder,” she said. “We always find the afikomen — but we can’t find the M.O.U.” TheVillager.com


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PHOTOS BY TEQUILA MINSKY

Elizabeth Sanchez and the T-ballers loosen up with some stretching.

Hustling through wind sprints at the start of the practice.

A league of their own: Girls softball a huge hit SPORTS BY LINCOLN ANDERSON

T

hey started out with stretching, then moved on to wind sprints, stampeding back and forth across the artificial turf like a herd of wild gazelles. Next, they broke up into various stations, hitting, fielding, throwing at red balloons on a fence. Finally, there were full-speed scrimmages. Admittedly, some of the batters needed directions on which way to run to first base, and the running in the scrimmage was way ahead of the fielding. But this is where it all begins. It was a typical Saturday morning practice for the Greenwich Village Little League girls softball T-ball program. The pint-sized players — 50 in all — were ages 4 to 7 and they represent the future of G.V.L.L. girls softball, which has been booming. Including girls up to age 14, softball has tripled in size in recent years, and now has 135 players and nine teams. “If you build it, they will come. Because of these guys’ coaching, we have really built the program,” said Carin Ehrenberg, as she looked out contentedly over the sun-splashed scene of colorful jerseys and caps in motion at Chelsea Waterside Park, on W. 23rd St. “It’s a league of their own — like the movie — a division of their own,” she said, referring to the T-balling tykes. The program even has a former Olympic softball pitcher, Elizabeth Sanchez, to help coach the budding ball players — and, when they’re old enough, show them the secrets of softball’s most fearsome weapon —

26

June 12, 2014

the windmill windup. Ehrenberg is the incoming president of G.V.L.L., taking over from John Economou, who ably led the league the past two years. Boosting the girls softball program was one of his top priorities. By “these guys,” Ehrenberg was referring, first and foremost, to Steve White, the mastermind and leader of the softball program. This will be the first year G.V.L.L. will field a girls ages-10-to-12 softball team for the Little League tournament in Williamsport. “The only team around here that had a tournament team was Downtown Little League,” White noted. On the East Side, the Lower East Side Lady Furies, a new startup team, are also making travel plans for Williamsport. Beyond the sheer fun of it, playing softball is good for girls’ performance in school, and beyond. “Studies show girls who participate in sports statistically do better in school, will get better jobs, make more money,” noted White, an attorney who lives in the Village. “It builds self-esteem and self-confidence,” added Ehrenberg, a psychologist and Chelsea resident. At the same time, Ehrenberg noted, as girls and boys get older, they start to self-segregate a bit, and the girls generally feel comfortable doing their own thing and playing softball while the boys stick to hardball. All girls do have the option of playing co-ed baseball. Like a farm team for the big leagues, G.V.L.L. is now feeding players to top local school programs. The starting catchers for both the Stuyvesant and Poly Prep girls softball teams honed their skills in G.V.L.L. And, in a point of pride for G.V.L.L., the L.R.E.I. softball team, featuring

several former players from the program, won its league championship. One might think that, along with these kind of results, comes a pressure-cooker environment, no doubt, with screaming, neck-vein-popping Little League coaches and parents. Yet, it’s just the opposite. “We don’t have coaches that bellow at the girls,” White stated. The league is a member of the Positive Coaching Alliance, which stresses the importance of character building. G.V.L.L. focuses on positive reinforcement — which can involve food rewards. “Someone learns to hit the cutoff man, and we go to Spunto Pizza to celebrate that someone ‘got it’ to hit the cutoff man,” White explained. Also always key, Ehrenberg added, is the snack the girls enjoy halfway through each session. They don’t rush things at G.V.L.L., either. The girls were using a 9-inch, hardball-size, squishy ball. By the end of the season, they will have worked up to an 11-inch soft softball. Ehrenberg added that the league’s feel-good vibe extends to the whole family. “Volunteer organizations allow parents to get involved in their community in a whole new way,” she said. “That’s one of the most important things about G.V.L.L. — the friendship. It’s building a league and building community.” Also, it’s just an unavoidable fact that every G.V.L.L. president ends up staying deeply involved with the league for at least 10 years, she added. It’s not a rule, but it just happens. On the other hand, compared to G.V.L.L., Downtown Little League, for one, has a reputation of being a bit, well, intense, according to Village coaches and players.

LiLi, 14, White’s daughter, who was helping out the young players in return for community-service school credits, vouched that there is definitely a G.V.L.L. difference. “I played for the Cowgirls about three years,” she said. “It was really fun. G.V.L.L. is more friendly, it’s more recreational. I feel like, G.V.L.L., you make more friends. Everyone gets to bat, and the players get to try different positions.” Sanchez told LiLi, one of her prized former pupils, to show her stuff, and, as dad squatted down and caught her, she flung in a flurry of fancy pitches. “Go modified!” Sanchez called out, as Lili whipped one in without a full roundhouse windup. “Go windmill!” she called, and the young pitcher really let it fly. As she watched LiLi’s mechanics, Sanchez paused to flash to The Villager the Dominican Hall of Fame ring on her finger. Not even the great Pedro Martinez is in the D.R. Hall yet because he’s not 45, the minimum age, she noted. “He’s got the numbers, but not the years,” she said. Sanchez has pitched in not one but two Olympics, and when she picked up the ball after LiLi to show her own stuff, one could immediately see why. As LiLi caught, Sanchez unleashed a barrage of screwballs and curveballs — the pitches breaking wildly by several feet up and to the right and left — a changeup, a knuckleball, a drop. You name it, she throws it. Sanchez was brought in to teach the girls, once they’re old enough, to take their game to the next level with the windmill, and blow away the competition. But the league is already making great strides — they’re just doing it the Greenwich Village way. TheVillager.com


Getting the signal. Pointing the way to first base for a young Coyote T-baller.

Whip it good! Coach Elizabeth Sanchez in full fierce windmill mode.

Give her a hand! She gets some encouragement from the first-base coach as she makes it safely down the line. TheVillager.com

What a lineup! From left, G.V.L.L. President Carin Ehrenberg, softball program head Steve White and his daughter, LiLi, and skills coach Elizabeth Sanchez. June 12, 2014

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