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The Paper of Record for Greenwich Village, East Village, Villag ag g e, e , Lower Lo ow w er e r East Ea ass t Side, Soho, Union Square, Chinatown Square e, C Ch h inat ina in att ow o n and Noho,, Since Sin Si ncc e 1933 19 3 19 33 3
November 30, 2017 • $1.00 Volume 87 • Number 48
As the dorm turns... Old P.S. 64 lobbyist admits using actors BY SAR AH FERGUSON
A
fter a week of vociferous denials, a lobbyist hired by developer Gregg Singer is now admitting his firm paid people to turn out for a rally they orchestrated to boost support for Singer’s plan to covert the old P.S. 64 school building, on E. Ninth St. near
Avenue B, into a dormitory. In a Thanksgiving Day email to The Villager, David Schwartz, a founding partner at Gotham Government Relations, admitted his firm paid eight of the 30 people who came to cheer for Singer’s dorm scheme on the steps of City Hall DORM continued on p. 5
Jefferson branch artwork highlights ‘public’ in library BY REBECCA FIORE
T
he Jefferson Market Library didn’t start off as a library. The High Victorian Gothic structure was originally built in 1874 as a courthouse. In 1945, it ceased being a courthouse and was slated to be demolished. Locals, led by community preservationist servationist
Margot Gayle, rallied together to save the building in 1959 and have it converted to a New York Public Library branch. Then in 1974, due to budget cutbacks, the N.Y.P.L. board of trustees voted to close the branch. One month later, after public outcry, the decision was rescinded. LIBRARY co continued on p. 6
PHOTO BY TEQUILA MINSKY
At the dedication of Ms. Magazine Way, at E. 32nd St. and Third Ave., Nov. 15, from left, A ssemblymember Deborah Glick and City Councilmember Rosie Mendez were joined by Gloria Steinem, co-founder of the groundbreaking feminist women’s magazine. Ms. was launched there in 1971 as a sample inser t to New York magazine.
Pr. 40: Fields of dreams but also fears of heights BY LINCOLN ANDERSON
P
ier 40 — the Hudson River Park’s largest pier — must be developed with sensitivity to the surrounding community, meaning all of the hulking structure’s available development space should not be utilized, yet more sports fields should be added, according to a new draft report by a Community Board 2 working group. The report also notes that,
‘Shadowman’ and his art ....... p. 17
in an effort to maximize the sprawling W. Houston St. pier’s revenue-generating potential, the park’s governing agency is seeking to develop it with a massive $1 billion megaproject. The Future of Pier 40 Working Group released its draft report on Nov. 17. This report will get a fi nal review at the Nov. 30 meeting of the working group, which will then craft an advisory resolution and vote on it.
(The group’s Nov. 30 meeting is open to the public, but will be an “executive session,” meaning members of the public will not be allowed to comment or ask questions.) The full board of C.B. 2, in turn, will vote on the resolution, likely in mid-to-late December. Rather than a traditional resolution, featuring suggested actions, the recently released draft report has 21 PIER continued on p. 8
Soho’s Pornhub pop-up is pretty tame..............p. 3 Sixty seconds in a Chelsea Infinity Room.........p. 11 www.TheVillager.com