Our Town - March 22, 2018 by Our Town

The local paper for the Upper East Side

WEEK OF MARCH INSIDE THE BOX ◄P.12

22-28 2018

CYNTHIA NIXON’S GUBERNATORIAL GAMBIT POLITICS The actor-activist and consummate Manhattanite says farewell Miranda, throws her hat in the ring. But can she take down the incumbent pol who may be the most powerful man in the state? BY DOUGLAS FEIDEN

It is now official: Conjuring up her humble upbringing — living in a onebedroom, fifth-floor Yorkville walkup with a single mom — lifelong New Yorker Cynthia Nixon declared on Monday that she was running to unseat Governor Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic primary. “I love New York,” she said in a gauzy, two-minute political video statement unveiling her candidacy. “New York is my home. I’ve never wanted to live anywhere else.” As the camera portrayed her descending into a subway station, waiting on a platform, taking a train, walking purposefully down city streets, she got straight to the point. “Our leaders are letting us down,” Nixon said. She didn’t mention any names. But she briefly explored themes that have been the calling card of her No. 1 political ally and top Cuomo nemesis, Mayor Bill de Blasio, saying that the Empire State has become the “most unequal state in the entire country with both incredible wealth and extreme poverty.” And she demanded, “How did we let this happen?” Nixon’s response to her own rhetorical question: “Something has to change,” and she called on “government to work again on health care, ending mass incarceration, fixing our broken subways.” It wasn’t particularly subtle. “We

Police seized over 200 electric bicycles in the ﬁrst six weeks of 2018, often posting photos of conﬁscated e-bikes to social media. Photo: NYPD, via Twitter

Mayor Bill de Blasio and ﬁrst lady Chirlane McCray visit backstage with Cynthia Nixon after watching the actor in a performance of“The Little Foxes” at the Samuel J. Friedman Theater in Midtown Manhattan on May 12, 2017. Nixon announced Monday that she is bidding for the Democratic nomination in the New York governor’s race. Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office are sick of politicians who care more about headlines and power than they do about us,” she said. “It can’t just be business as usual anymore.” Does she have a chance? Well, Nixon’s announcement came out on the same day a Siena College poll found Cuomo would trounce her by a 66-to19 margin among registered Democrats. On the other hand, consider another series of numbers that are retro and stark and could possibly portend change in a political climate shifting toward the empowerment of women: Starting with George Clinton in 1777 and continuing all the way up to Cuomo, New York has had 56 governors in 241 years — and not a single one has been a woman.

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More than 2,000 governors have held office across the U.S. since the founding of the republic – and all but 39 have been men, according to data provided by the Center for American Women and Politics. And today? Nearly a century after women got the vote nationwide, the 50 statehouses boast only six women governors — two Democrats and four Republicans, or 12 percent — down from a peak of nine in 2007. Expect that tally to rise, perhaps dramatically, in November, fueled by the #MeToo movement, a surge in political fundraising for women and the drive to ﬁx, or supplant, a broken male-dominated system.

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Restaurant Ratings Business Real Estate 15 Minutes

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NYPD E-BIKES CRACKDOWN CONTINUES SAFETY City’s efforts to rid streets of electric bicycles focus on seizures, fines BY MICHAEL GAROFALO

Electric bicycles — outﬁtted with battery-powered motors that can propel riders at sustained speeds of upwards of 20 mph — have become an increasingly familiar piece of Manhattan’s streetscape in recent years. They’ve become so common that an out-of-towner who didn’t know better could be forgiven for thinking that the motorized bikes, favored by food delivery workers for their speed and ease of mobility, are a fully sanctioned mode of transportation in New York City.

But in spite of their ubiquity, e-bikes are, in fact, illegal to ride on city streets — and the city has gone to increased lengths to stamp out their use. From Jan. 1 to Feb. 11, the most recent period for which data is available, police seized 209 e-bikes and issued 238 moving summonses to e-bike users citywide.

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MARCH 22-28,2018

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‘THE MOMENTUM IS THERE’ LEGISLATION The Equal Rights Amendment Bill sponsored by Rebecca Seawright passes the New York State Assembly BY SHOSHY CIMENT

History is being made this Women’s History Month. The New York State Assembly passed the Equal Rights Amendment Bill that provides for equal rights for women and men in the New York State Constitution, on Tuesday, March 13 in a unanimous vote of 113 to zero. Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright (Upper East Side, Yorkville, and Roosevelt Island) sponsored the bill, which seeks to include the word “sex” into Section 11, Article 1 of the New York State Constitution that outlines the equality of rights based on race, color, creed or religion.

A state’s constitution can be amended either through a constitutional convention or by a proposal in the legislature. Both methods are subject to voter approval and any proposal must be approved by two consecutive legislatures before being presented for voter approval. Now that the ERA has passed through the Assembly, it will be delivered to the Senate for consideration. If it passes there, the bill will go to a vote. Pending Senate and voter approval, New York will be the 24th state to ratify the ERA in its state constitution, Seawright noted. “The momentum is there,” said Seawright, who acknowledged that the passing of this bill comes in the middle of Women’s History Month, as well as close to the 100th anniversary of the suffragist movement. Seawright’s ultimate hope is that the ERA will be ratiﬁed and put in the Federal Constitution as well.

The Washington, D.C.-based ERA Coalition has endorsed the legislation. “As our society embraces the #MeToo movement, it is past time to see New York’s foundational legal document updated for the 21st century,” said ERA Coalition President Jessica Neuwirth in a press release. “We thank Assemblywoman Seawright for being a champion for constitutional equality.” On the national level, the ERA passed Congress in 1972 and Nevada was the 36th state to ratify it in March of 2017. By ratifying the ERA for the State of New York, Seawright hopes to give recognition and protection for women in the state as well as momentum to get the ERA passed federally. “Women have waited more than 200 years for the equality promised to all men in the constitution,” said Seawright. “I think the timing could not be better.”

Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright. Photo: New York State Assembly Photography

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MARCH 22-28,2018

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CRIME WATCH BY JERRY DANZIG WALLET TAKEN FROM TRUCK A truck driver from Pennsylvania just learned an expensive lesson about the perils of leaving a wallet in a vehicle parked on a New York City street. At 11:45 a.m. on Sunday, March 18, a 38-year-old man left his white commercial vehicle parked on Lexington Avenue near East 63rd Street while he took a break. When he returned after 30 minutes his wallet was missing from the cabin of his truck, and indeed he received an alert on his cell phone advising him that some $400 in unauthorized MetroCard charges had been placed using his stolen debit card.

UNLOCKED LOCKER CLEANED OUT At 2:40 p.m. on Sunday, March 18, a 25-year-old man left his locker unlocked in the NYSC facility at 349 East 76th Street while he took a shower. When he returned to his locker 10 minutes later his possessions, including a laptop, a briefcase, and two phone chargers, were missing. In all, the property has a value of $2,250.

SUEDE-Y CHARACTERS

PACKAGE THEFTS

STATS FOR THE WEEK

It would seem that two shoplifters have an eye for ďŹ ne leather garments. At 12:20 p.m. on Sunday, March 18, two men in estimated to be in their 40s went into the Peter Elliot store at 996 Lexington Avenue and made off with two suede leather jackets totaling $3,000.

Area residents away on vacation might want to have packages held or rerouted during their absence. Sometime between Wednesday, February 28 and Sunday, March 4, a 37-year-old woman living at 300 East 77th Street was away on vacation when someone took a package that had been sent to her containing $339 worth of shoes by. On Thursday, March 15, someone also stole a package addressed to her containing shoes valued at $48.

Reported crimes from the 19th district for the week ending Mar. 11

COMPUTER SCAM At 9 a.m. on Saturday, March 17, a 74-year-old woman living on the Upper East Side received a phone call from an individual with a thick accent claiming to be an Apple security representative and alerting her to a security ďŹ&#x201A;aw in her computer. He asked her to let him access her computer so he could ďŹ x the problem, in exchange for ďŹ ve Apple gift cards totaling $500. The unsuspecting woman complied and later discovered that the intruder had also racked up $500 in purchases on her eBay account while he had access to her computer.

Week to Date

Year to Date

2018 2017

% Change

2018

2017

% Change

Murder

n/a

Rape

-100.0

-33.3

Robbery

-75.0

61.5

Felony Assault

-83.3

-26.5

Burglary

-75.0

5.4

Grand Larceny

-36.7

284 260 9.2

Grand Larceny Auto

n/a

16.7

Photo by Tony Webster, via Flickr

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Useful Contacts

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POLICE NYPD 19th Precinct

153 E. 67th St.

212-452-0600

159 E. 85th St.

311

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CITY COUNCIL Councilmember Daniel Garodnick

211 E. 43rd St. #1205

212-818-0580

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244 E. 93rd St.

212-860-1950

STATE LEGISLATORS State Sen. Jose M. Serrano

1916 Park Ave. #202

212-828-5829

State Senator Liz Krueger

1850 Second Ave.

212-490-9535

Assembly Member Dan Quart

360 E. 57th St.

212-605-0937

Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright

1365 First Ave.

212-288-4607

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LIBRARIES Yorkville

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MARCH 22-28,2018

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A COMMUNITY ROARS, A DELI OWNER LISTENS

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BUSINESS BACKLASH Neighbors of a new store around the corner from a middle school fear its smokeoriented products could tempt kids into drug abuse BY DOUGLAS FEIDEN

The opening of a gourmet deli on the Upper East Side – where dozens of bodegas, greengrocers and other boutique food shops have fallen victim to ecommerce and online shipping – is typically happy news. But when a gleaming new store with big glass display windows opened a couple of weeks ago on the northwest corner of First Avenue and 90th Street, some community residents greeted it with anger and dismay. That’s because it showcased an array of smoke-related products that neighbors feared could be used as drug paraphernalia – including water pipes, hookahs, nitrous oxide, vaping liquids, ﬂavored or colored rolling papers, liquid nicotine and “Bob Marley Cigarette Papers.” Making matters worse: The First Avenue Gourmet Deli is located right around the corner from the East Side Middle School, or PS 114, at 331 East 91st Street, a top-ranked school with an enrollment of 443. “They’re marketing their products as if it were candy for kids,” said Dave Rosenstein, a Yorkville resident since 1965 and longtime member of Community Board 8. “It sends a bad message when you display drug paraphernalia in a place where children will be coming in on their lunch breaks,” he added. “It is legal, but very offensive.” Rita Popper, another CB8 member who has lived in the area for 52 years, also found the display inappropriate. “When you come in for a sandwich or a pizza or a Coca Cola, you shouldn’t also find drug paraphernalia,” she said. “No other deli in the neighborhood has it displayed so openly in its windows.” Meanwhile, the middle school’s PTA has discussed complaints from both commu-

The new gourmet deli on First Avenue and 90th Street initially displayed an assortment of products and implements in its picture windows that neighbors feared could be used as drug paraphernalia. After numerous community complaints, the owner removed some offending items from display on the avenue, though others still remain visible on the side street. Photo: Dave Rosenstein nity members and some parents, said Leonard Silverman, the group’s co-president. “We’re concerned about the proliferation of these kinds of businesses in close geographical proximity to our schools, and we’ve beginning to examine the issue,” he added. Rosenstein was the first to take action. He went in and complained to the owner. It turned out he wasn’t alone. Other area residents, acting on their own with no group organizing the opposition, also aired their gripes.

A MERCHANT’S LAMENT In an interview, owner Abdul Mohsen says he wasn’t overjoyed by the pushback, noting that he’d invested $350,000 in the new store. But he also acknowledged that he heard his new neighbors clearly and wanted to accommodate their concerns as best he could. “I wanted to make everybody happy,” he said. On the other hand, he’s got a business to run: “Are the neighbors going to pay my rent?” he asked. Mohsen decided he’d compromise on the issue, and a couple of days ago, he removed the paraphernalia from the larger First Avenue-facing windows – while leaving it in place in the smaller 90th Street-facing window. “I lost almost $6,000 in taking down the showcase win-

dow,” he said. “But I said, ‘Let me get rid of it and everything will be ﬁne.’” Mohsen said he does everything by the book and retained an attorney to ensure compliance with all relevant laws. He’ll never sell to anyone under the age of 21, the legal minimum, and he’s posted a big sign in the store, as legally required, to ensure compliance from customers and employees. “I would never, ever, ever sell to school kids,” he said. “What am I going to do, lose my license? I have great respect for the law.” An aggressive package of bills recently passed by the City Council and signed into law by Mayor Bill de Blasio cracked down on smoke-related businesses and some displays, set limits for licenses, created tougher controls, upped the age for legal sales to 21 and required the posting of signs. “It’s a district-wide problem,” said East Side City Council Member Ben Kallos. In comments before the First Avenue window was altered, Kallos added, “If residents are as troubled as I am by this deli being a tobacco shop, they should communicate to the owner that they’d like to see the tobacco and drug paraphernalia removed in order to have their patronage.” invreporter@strausnews.com

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SECOND AVENUE SUBWAY’S NEWSSTANDS STILL EMPTY COMMERCE New line’s outlets have been “coming soon” for over a year BY MICHAEL GAROFALO

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October of last year. The tenant, Tobmar International, Inc., entered into a 10-year agreement to operate the newsstands at the 72nd, 86th and 96th Street stations at an initial annual rent of $204,812.94, with a 3 percent annual increase, according to the materials presented to the board. The lease included a grace period for the tenant to customize the spaces. The rent period begins May 20. Tobmar representatives did not respond to a request for comment. The RFP initially included a fourth newsstand at the 63rd Street-Lexington Avenue station, which was subsequently repurposed for storage. The vacant newsstands are a visual representation of potential revenue foregone by the beleaguered transportation agency, which is currently seeking $836 million in emergency funding to implement MTA Chair Joe Lhota’s action plan to improve subway service.

An empty newsstand at the 96th Street station on the Second Avenue subway. Photo: Michael Garofalo

In response to a follow-up inquiry in December, an MTA spokesperson said a tenant had been selected and the stands would “open in the near future.” Work on the Second Avenue subway began in 2007, but the MTA did not issue a request for proposals for prospective tenants to operate the line’s newsstands until December 2016, less than two weeks before the subway’s opening. The newsstands were, by appearances, completed and ready for tenants to move in and begin selling snacks and magazines from day one — the kiosk in the 72nd Street station was even put to use as a bar at a New Year’s Eve party hosted by Gov. Andrew Cuomo celebrating the line’s completion before it opened to the public Jan. 1, 2017. The MTA’s Real Estate Department, which handles the leasing of agency-owned spaces, presented an agreement with a tenant to the MTA board’s finance committee in

have

Trains aren’t the only things that the MTA can’t get into its stations on time. The newsstands in the Second Avenue subway have stood vacant, their shelves empty, since the $4.5 billion line ﬁrst opened its turnstiles to commuters nearly 15 months ago. Though the MTA selected a tenant to operate the newsstands last fall, vendors have yet to occupy the retail spaces in the new stations. “The tenant is working on a new retail concept that requires more planning and redesign than traditional concession stands,” MTA spokesperson Amanda Kwan said in an emailed statement. The MTA declined to elaborate on the nature of the redesign or provide a timeline for the opening of the newsstands. Our Town first reported on the vacant newsstands in April of last year, when an MTA spokesperson said that the agency would award a contract “soon” and that the newsstands would open “in a few months.”

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Voices

Write to us: To share your thoughts and comments go to ourtownny.com and click on submit a letter to the editor.

SEEN AND HEARD EAST SIDE OBSERVER BY ARLENE KAYATT

Getting what he asks for — While our mayor claims to not speak for his wife, he was loud and clear in saying he thought Chirlane McCray should be paid for what she does in her role as first lady. Before he gets what he asked for or taken up on that request, he may want to speak to an accountant, or to the city comptroller. As first lady, McCray travels the city, the state, the country, even the world. If she were paid, the cost of her travel could conceivably be imputed to her as income. Maybe it can be anyway. Don’t know. When former first lady Donna Hanover (at the time married to then-Mayor Rudy

Giuliani) wanted to be paid for her work, she went to NY’s favorite TV show employer of NY actors at the time, “Law and Order,” and was cast as a judge, and she can be seen to this day on that show’s never-ending reruns. In rebutting — maybe rebuking — her husband, McCray may be envisioning the beneﬁts of her non-paying ﬁrst ladyship — being seen and heard without having to deal with or reach out to pesky donors who can sully her good name and work as she aspires to a political career. To each her own. Not bad work if you can get it.

Going route-less — I heard a rumor some months ago that the M4 and Q32 bus routes were being terminated (they share the last stop at 32nd Street between Sixth and Sev-

enth Avenues) and that that 32nd Street block was going to be turned into a pedestrian mall of sorts. It is a shabby block, but turning it into a pedestrian-only traverse in Penn Station/Madison Square Garden country doesn’t seem like good city planning. Picky picky. Haven’t been able to conﬁrm that bit of upset to urban planning. I cannot imagine that cutting those bus lines will make for fewer vehicles on the street or that better scheduling of buses on their routes wouldn’t make for better ridership. Taking away buses that transport people to and from Penn Station to stops through Manhattan and as far away as Queens (Q32) just doesn’t make sense. How will obliterating the routes cut down on the number of cars and taxis (Uber, Lyft, Via included) clogging traffic? Trying to track down whether or not the two bus routes were being cut was fruitless. And now comes the conﬁrmed promise of cuts to the M104 bus route as set

forth in a letter to the new head of NYC Transit, Andrew Byford, from UWS and Hell’s Kitchen Assembly Member Linda Rosenthal. Rosenthal is calling on Byford to “drop the implementation” of scheduled cuts to the M104. While the MTA statistics show a drop in ridership on the M104, Rosenthal’s constituents, in a petition, explain that the reason for the drop in ridership is attributable to long waits and riders having to opt for more reliable (and expensive) means of transportation. Rosenthal requested a hearing so that her constituents (and others) “can address the transportation challenges they face when trying to use the M104 bus.” Stay tuned while waiting for the next bus. Be assured that they will arrive at least two or three at a time. And the MTA will attribute more cuts to lack of ridership.

Looking back — Some weeks ago The Times and this column wrote about the return of David Santiago

to his home in the new Essex Crossing housing development on the Lower East Side after 50 years. The site was razed starting in 1967 and, as one of the original tenants, Santiago had the right to come home. And he did. It just took too too long. Shortly after moving in, he died of a heart attack. His brother found him in the apartment. RIP David.

Some hope — After hearing that Yorkville’s Glaser’s Bake Shop was closing down, I found myself checking in on another old-time bakery, Moishe’s, on Second Avenue and Seventh Street. Asked if they had any plans for leaving. “No,” assured the woman behind the counter, “he owns the building.” Hmm. So did Glaser’s, I thought. Hate to be a naysayer. Moishe’s is more than just an old-timer. They have the best kosher sponge cake in town. And in the East Village. A developer’s dream. Oy.

WHY I LOVE MY UES POKER GAME BY JON FRIEDMAN

If you live long enough in Manhattan or any other part of the city, you learn to accept upheaval. Not mere change. I’m talking about a bank replacing a Gap, which replaced a Shakespeare & Co. book store, which replaced a usedrecord shop, which replaced a coffee house in the ﬁrst place. And probably all of that tumult taking place in — what? — ﬁve years? That’s one of the reasons I like to hold on to what has endured, a favorite coffee shop or a bodega or a bakery. Or, for that matter, my weekly poker game. I have been playing in the same game on the Upper East Side for 23 years. Funny, in college, when my disreputable buddies played hands of tablestakes poker literally all night, I never participated — and not only because I was cheap and I knew I had no chance of making any money. I’d get back to my dorm and there would be six or seven of them going at it from dusk to dawn. Thank God, I had my work at the college paper to keep me occupied or I might have succumbed and lost my

shirt (both of them). What made me join the Monday night game in 1995, then? I could talk about peer pressure — my editor at Bloomberg had perfected the art of gentle persuasion. Many of the players were my Bloomberg colleagues so I would be among friends. And it sounded like fun. I ﬁgured I’d play for a year and then have material for my Mediocre American Novel. People like to say that you can take the measure of people’s character by confronting them on the tennis court. I disagree. I’d transfer the setting to a poker table. More is at stake. And not only money. Can someone bluff effectively? Can he or she take your last ten bucks with a smile? In poker, as in life, fear of success can be more debilitating than fear of failure. You need a killer instinct to play poker well. Sentiment is someone else’s problem. I also immediately liked the guys at the poker table. Those who weren’t Bloombergers had worked in Europe as reporters and editors. One black sheep worked in advertising. Another was a psychologist. I would have

feared his ability to read my mind but I couldn’t help but notice that he looked just like Al Goldstein, the adultmagazine king, so I laughed more than I cringed at him. My first year was a rocky one. I lost money every night. I was in way over my head and I knew it. We’ve always played a high-low game and I once was dealt a 6-5-4-3-ace hand in five-card draw — virtually unbeatable. But I was so intimidated that I insanely folded it when one of the guys raised my bet. (I’ve gotten much better over the years). My favorite all-time hand occurred about 10 years ago. We were playing a round of seven-card draw: that means you get three cards down and four cards up and you can use ﬁve of them to go high or low (or high and low). The round starts out with each player getting two cards down and one up. I was dealt three aces, a virtual statistical impossibility. Then I got a deuce and a three and a six. I raised every bet and glowed inwardly. So, the players assumed I would be going “low.” For the fourth card, which was also dealt down, I got — you guessed it! — the

fourth ace. Four aces!! A miracle. We all declared high. One guy had three queens. Ha! Another boasted a small full house! Double ha! Then, Charlie, the best and toughest-minded player at the table, ﬁxed his death-ray look on me, and smiled: “Sorry, Jon. Four jacks.” I said, “Sorry, Charlie. Four aces.” As they had all gone high, I won the entire pot — roughly ﬁfty bucks. It was truly one of the great moments of my life. Sadly, our game is slowing down. A few of the guys have hit the age of ninety and they don’t get around so easily. When it snows, they understandably don’t want to go outside. You probably know someone who plays in a game like this. I hope you have the good fortune to play in one. It’s like a little clubhouse. Women, of course, are welcome — as long as they bring their money — and we’ve had several competing over the years. But week after week, you’ll generally see six or seven men sitting around a cramped table, with a frayed green felt covering. It’s an eclectic group of retirees (one of whom, who shall go

Photo: Poker Photos, via ﬂickr nameless, is a broadcasting legend), freelancers and the occasional poor sap who has to get up in the morning to go to work and frets about the reliability of the Q train. Usually, the big winner takes home north of a hundred bucks. I have — ahem — the table record from the night I pulled in $278. Honestly, I do tend to win most nights. I’d be a fool to play for the rent money. I like to match my wits against the others in what is actually a pretty serious neighborhood. I relish the opportunity to talk about sports and movies and politics for four-and-a-half hours. I like the other guys. Play to win. But considering the fun I invariably have, I never really lose. Jon Friedman, who most recently wrote about Michael Wolff and Paul Simon in these pages, teaches journalism courses at Hunter College and Stony Brook University

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Editor-In-Chief, Alexis Gelber Deputy Editor Richard Khavkine

Senior Reporter Doug Feiden

Director of Digital Pete Pinto

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Director, Arts & Entertainment/ NYCNow Alizah Salario

MARCH 22-28,2018

FEDS NAB CITY DOCTORS LAW ENFORCEMENT Five are accused of participating in a kickback scheme related to prescription opioid medication

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BY RICHARD KHAVKINE

Lap dances, fancy dinners, drinks. Those were some of the perks — along with payments reaching into the six-figures — five Manhattan doctors received from an Arizona pharmaceutical firm in exchange for prescribing millions of dollars worth of a potent and highly addictive fentanyl spray, a synthetic opioid, federal officials alleged last week. Gordon Freedman, 57; Jeffrey Goldstein, 48; Todd Schlifstein, 49; Dialecti Voudouris, 47; and Alexandru Burducea, 41, were arrested March 16 and charged with violating a federal anti-kickback statute, related conspiracy counts and other charges, officials from the offices of the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York and from the FBI’s New York Field Office said. The payments were in the form of fees for a series of bogus “educational programs,” the indictment alleges. Prosecutors said the pharmaceutical company started a “speaker’s bureau” in 2012 ostensibly to educate health practitioners about the company’s fentanyl spray, Subsys, which the firm had begun marketing in March of that year. The presentations, though, were “predominantly social affairs” where attendance was inflated by forged sign-in sheets, according to the indictment. Freedman, who specializes in pain management and anesthesiology in private practice on the Upper East Side, received $308,600 from the company in exchange for writing scripts for “large volumes” of the fentanyl spray, prosecutors said. The indictment recounts how Freedman, an associate clinical professor at Mt. Sinai Hospital, was contacted by one of the pharma company’s representatives and told he would receive additional speaker programs because the company wanted to increase prescriptions for the fentanyl spray. The rep asked Freedman to up his scrips of the spray, to which

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www.CarmelLimo.com Five Manhattan doctors together received hundreds of thousand of dollars in kickbacks from an Arizona pharmaceutical ﬁrm in exchange for prescribing millions of dollars worth of this potent and highly addictive fentanyl spray, a synthetic opioid, federal prosecutors alleged in a 75-page indictment. Freedman responded “Got it.” Prosecutors allege Freedman’s fentanyl spray prescriptions increased, subsequently netting the company more than $1 million in the final quarter of 2014 alone. Goldstein, in private practice on the Upper East Side specializing in osteopathic medicine, got about $196,000 through the speaker program. Goldstein’s prescriptions for the spray accounted for about $809,275 in the last quarter of 2014. At one point, a senior executive from the company took Schlifstein, then an attending physiatrist NYU Langone Medical Center, and Goldstein, who co-owned a private medical ofﬁce on the Upper East Side, to a Manhattan strip club and spent about $4,100 on a private room, alcohol and lap dances for the two doctors, according to the indictment. In the month following that October 2013 outing and Schlifstein’s recruitment into the speaker program the doctor’s fentanyl spray prescriptions increased substantially, prosecutors said. Fentanyl is roughly 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine and is often cited as the predominant reason for the fourfold spike in overdose deaths attributable to synthetic opioids in recent years. The company is not named in the 75-page indictment, but several references, including the names of two co-conspirators, make it clear the firm in question is Insys, which is

based in Chandler, Arizona. The company advertises its Subsys product as “the one and only fentanyl sublingual spray for breakthrough cancer pain.” The company’s founder, John Kapoor, is alleged to also have taken part in a scheme to bribe doctors to prescribe the spray and was arrested in October on charges of conspiracy to commit racketeering and mail and wire fraud. Kapoor’s arrest followed, by about 10 months, the arrests of several other Insys executives on similar charges. The U.S. Attorney’s office here also said on March 16 that two former Insys employees, Jonathan Roper and Fernando Serrano, had pleaded guilty in connection with the bribery and kickback scheme and were now cooperating with prosecutors. The company put out a statement on March 19 saying that last week’s indictments of the New York doctors are tied to allegations involving “former employees” but that it was working with authorities. “The company continues striving to take responsibility for inappropriate actions of some former employees and has invested significant resources over the last several years to establish an effective compliance program and build an organizational culture of high ethical standards,” the statement said. The five doctors pleaded not guilty in federal court on March 16. Each was released on $200,000 bond.

MARCH 22-28,2018

Our Town|Eastsider ourtownny.com

Discover the World Around the Corner

Discover the world around the corner. Find community events, gallery openings, book launches and much more: Go to nycnow.com

EDITOR’S PICK ‘YERMA’ Previews: Fri 23 – Mon 26 Performances: March 27 – April 21 Park Avenue Armory, 643 Park Ave. 8 p.m. $30+ 212-249-5518. armoryonpark.org Federico Garcia Lorca’s 1934 drama is radically reimagined by Australian director and dramatist Simon Stone, who transforms the tale of a provincial Spanish woman’s desperate desire to have a child into a parable of modern life. Making her New York stage debut, actress Billie Piper delivers a fearless performance as the woman — now a blogger and journalist who brutally documents her trauma amidst the internet-surﬁng blogosphere of today.

Get the best Neighborhood Arts & Culture newsletter emailed to you each week Free wine tastings Exclusives at the Met, Guggenheim, and other East Side institutions Music performances at local bars

Thu 22 Fri 23

Sat 24

Group exercise classes

MOSHE SAKAL IN CONVERSATION WITH RUBY NAMDAR ►

NYC MASTER CHORALE PRESENTS ‘LET THERE BE LIGHT’

SUTTON PLACE EASTER EGG HUNT ▲

Shakespeare and Co. 939 Lexington Ave. 6:30 p.m. Free For the launch of his new novel, “The Diamond Setter,” Israeli author Moshe Sakal will be joined by Ruby Namdar, author of “The Ruined House.” Sakal’s novel chronicles how the life of a jeweler from Tel Aviv is altered when Fareed, a handsome young man from Damascus, Syria, crosses illegally into Israel and heads to Jaffa in search of his roots. 212-772-3400 shakeandco.com

St. Jean Baptiste Church 1065 Lexington Ave. 8 p.m. $25-$50 This lively a cappella choral concert in St. Jean Baptiste’s gorgeous sanctuary will feature music by Brahms, Howells and Copland. 212-288-5082 chorusamerica.org

Seasonal events Lectures

OurTownNY.com

Sovereign Side Park 425 East 58th St. 10:15 a.m. Free BYOB (bring your own basket) to this massive Easter egg hunt featuring arts & crafts, a raffle, prizes and photo opportunities with the big bunny himself. Ages 1-4 start hunting at 10:15; ages 5-8 begin at 11:15. suttonareacommunity.org

MARCH 22-28,2018

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Sun 25 Mon 26 Tue 27 FREEDOM ART JAM

‘PRURIENCE’

The Jewish Museum 1109 Fifth Ave. Noon, free with museum admission/free for kids Dance to the soulful sounds of ShirLaLa, craft a holiday artifact, create a freedom painting, add to a Passoverthemed art installation, explore the galleries and more at this Passover extravaganza for families. 212-423-3200 thejewishmuseum.org

The Guggenheim 1071 Fifth Ave. 8 p.m. $40-$45 Works & Process, the performing arts series at the Guggenheim, presents the U.S. premiere of “Prurience,” an experiential piece about pornography, written and directed by Christopher Green and co-directed by Holly Race Roughan of “People, Places & Things.” 212-423-3575 theguggenheim.org

EXPRESSIONS IN DANCE, ART AND FILM WITH SHEN WEI DANCE ARTS ▲ Asia Society, 725 Park Ave. 7 p.m. $30/$25 students, seniors Shen Wei, the acclaimed choreographer, painter and founder of Shen Wei Dance Arts, reveals his artistic inspirations and processes as a multi-media artist in a dialogue on Buddhism, childhood memories, explorations of dreamscapes, and his journeys to Tibet with YiLing Mao, 212-288-6400 asiasociety.org

Wed 28 JAPAN, THE WEST, AND THE EMERGENCE OF JAPONISM IN DESIGN Cooper Hewitt 2 East 91st St. 6:30 p.m. $20/$10 student & seniors Celebrate the exhibition “Passion for the Exotic: Japonism” with a lecture on the historical context of the Japanese inﬂuence on European and American design at the turn of the 20th century. 212-849-8400 cooperhewitt.org

MARCH 22-28,2018

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INSIDE THE BOX Joseph Cornell’s assemblages at The Met BY MARY GREGORY

Juan Gris’s Cubist masterpiece “The Man at the Café” started a 13-year artistic journey for Joseph Cornell. Photo: Adel Gorgy Joseph Cornell’s Surrealist tricks and tendencies are on display in “Untitled (Le Soir),” part of the exhibit “Birds of a Feather: Joseph Cornell’s Homage to Juan Gris,” at The Met Fifth Avenue through April 15. Photo: Adel Gorgy

Joseph Cornell, “Grand Hotel Bon Port” (late 1950s). Photo: Adel Gorgy

Joseph Cornell’s “Untitled (Juan Gris Series, Black Cockatoo Silhouette).” Photo: Adel Gorgy

On October 21, 1953, New York artist Joseph Cornell was out visiting galleries. He stopped into the Sidney Janis Gallery on West 57th Street and encountered Cubist painter Juan Gris’s 1914 collage “The Man at the Café.” It was a painting that he would never forget and one that would deeply affect his own work. Over the course of 13 years, Cornell created a series that expressed the echoes pinging his artistic consciousness from that first encounter. Both the Gris painting and several of Cornell’s responses are joined together in The Met Fifth Avenue’s thoughtful exhibition, “Birds of a Feather: Joseph Cornell’s Homage to Juan Gris” on view through April 15. Gris’s painting is a symphony of space — positive and negative, crammed and empty. It’s populated by the shadow of a figure who never appears. Painted in brown, blue and gray, incorporating newspapers and paintings of newspapers, fractured forms and repeated motifs, it’s a portrait of a mystery, a Cubist conundrum. An absent man is hidden behind a newspaper. The shadow of his hat is seen from multiple perspectives. His knuckles grip the edges of a page from Le Matin containing an article titled “The Bertillon Method / One will no longer be able to make fake works of art.” Bertillon was a forensic expert and proponent of fingerprinting. The whole painting reads like a delightful art pun as seen through a detective film noir. That same kind of mystery suffuses Cornell’s work. His Surrealist shadow boxes, filled with found objects, carefully collected and curated, laid the foundations for generations of assemblage and installation artists. Cornell’s complex miniature dream-like tableaux fit inside roughly cigar-box sized cases. Full of birds and maps, they present both constraints and freedom at once, as was fitting for the artist. Cornell, a recluse who lived in Queens in a small house with his mother and his disabled brother, possessed expansive

knowledge joined with insatiable curiosity and an exquisite artistic sensibility. So admired was Cornell’s vision that, though he never left New York, the art world came to him. He was friends with Duchamp, Motherwell, Rothko, de Kooning and Warhol. He had a chaste but long-term love affair with Japanese avant-garde artist, Yayoi Kusama, whose dots and infinities mirrored Cornell’s obsessive nature. Eventually, though, she withdrew from his intensity. Ultimately, Cornell lived in his imagination and his work. Within his diminutive cases, constellations and stars, classical literature, magazines, movie stars, works of art, random or studied things that appealed to the artist’s imagination were captured and then frozen behind glass in time and space. The boxes he based on Gris’s work, presented in the exhibition, feature a great white-crested cockatoo from an image he found in a 19th century print. He photocopied it, cut and pasted it or its shadow onto wooden forms or directly to the boxes and then filled them with other objects. In works like “Untitled (Le Soir)” from 1953–54, Cornell plays with reality and illusion, a favorite Surrealist trick. Rather than introducing pictorial elements like lines, circles or spheres, he inserts a birdcage bar, a ring and a ball, blurring the divide between art and life. The work also includes mirrors, a twist that brings the outside in and allows snippets of the viewer to become part of the scene. Curated by Mary Clare McKinley, “Birds of a Feather” inaugurates the museum’s planned series of exhibitions delving into Cubism. It’s designed to welcome and engage audiences with the extraordinary Leonard A. Lauder Cubist Collection, from which Gris’s exquisite painting is a promised gift. The exhibition offers a rare in-depth glimpse into the mind of a quiet New York artist who never achieved global fame but profoundly influenced the course of art. Self-taught, compulsive, an outsider who ran with the in-crowd, Joseph Cornell produced boxes filled with mystery and magic. They draw you close, entice you to enter, captivate with their secrets, and maybe, if you look carefully, allow you to enter their artist-made worlds.

MARCH 22-28,2018

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MARCH 22-28,2018

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FOES AIM TO TOPPLE TOWER PLANS DEVELOPMENT Appeal hearing on 55-story residential building planned for 200 Amsterdam set for March 27 BY MICHAEL GAROFALO

200 Amsterdam Avenue, near 69th Street, is the site of a planned 668-foot residential tower that would be taller than any building on the Upper West Side. Photo: Stephen Strasser

RESTAURANT INSPECTION RATINGS MAR 7 - 13, 2018 The following listings were collected from the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s website and include the most recent inspection and grade reports listed. We have included every restaurant listed during this time within the zip codes of our neighborhoods. Some reports list numbers with their explanations; these are the number of violation points a restaurant has received. To see more information on restaurant grades, visit www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/services/restaurant-inspection.shtml. Alex Cafe & Deli

1018 Lexington Avenue

Green Bean Cafe

1413 York Ave

Le Reveil Coffee Shop

1322 2nd Ave

Not Yet Graded (25) Raw, cooked or prepared food is adulterated, contaminated, crosscontaminated, or not discarded in accordance with HACCP plan. Evidence of mice or live mice present in facility’s food and/or non-food areas. Food not protected from potential source of contamination during storage, preparation, transportation, display or service.

Gino’s Pizzeria Restaurant

345 East 83 Street

Starbucks

1280 Lexington Ave

Luke’s Lobster

242 East 81 Street

Jaques Brasserie

204 E 85th St

Pascalou

1308 Madison Avenue A

Yura & Company On Madison

1292 Madison Avenue A

Pio Pio Express

1746 1 Avenue

Bonjour Crepes & Wine

1442 Lexington Ave

Oriental Palace Kitchen

1728 Madison Avenue A

Brothers Bakery Cafe

2155 2nd Ave

Healthy Living 106 (Herbal Life)

167 East 106 Street

Las Panteras Negras Restaurant

2130 2 Avenue

Thai Paragon

1406 Madison Ave

Opponents of a planned 668foot tower at 200 Amsterdam Avenue are gearing up for a key appeal hearing in their bid to block construction of the tower, which if built would be taller than any building on the Upper West Side. The city’s Board of Standards and Appeals will hold a public hearing March 27 on a local land use group’s contention that the project’s building permit was not validly issued and should be revoked. At 668 feet, the luxury condominium tower would exceed the height of any existing building on the Upper West Side. (Another proposed condo development, on West 66th Street, would top the nearby 200 Amsterdam project by just over 100 feet.) Excavation work is underway at the site of the planned tower, near 69th Street and Amsterdam, the former location of Lincoln Square Synagogue. An organizational and informational meeting in advance of the appeal hearing attracted dozens of Upper West Siders to Rutgers Presbyterian Church on West 73rd Street March 19. “Apparently everybody in this neighborhood realized that if this building goes up, it’s going to be the whole neighborhood that’s open to 700-footers,” said Olive Freud, the president of the Committee for Environmentally Sound Development, the group that ﬁled the appeal. Freud urged those at the meeting to voice their support at the March 27 hearing. Helen Rosenthal, who represents the Upper West Side in the City Council and has signed on in support of the appeal ﬁled by Freud’s group, said at the meeting that the 200 Amsterdam project speaks to

“concerns about the broader issues of development on the Upper West Side: buildings that seem — and in my opinion, are — completely out of scale and out of context that keep getting proposed for our district.” “The New York City zoning laws are supposed to prevent this kind of development, to ensure predictable, contextual proposals,” Rosenthal said. “But the developers keep ﬁnding loopholes – or they perhaps are inventing loopholes – in order to build bigger and bigger buildings.” At issue is the large, irregularly shaped zoning lot that forms the basis of the building’s height, the shape of which opponents have likened to a gerrymandered political district. The tower itself would occupy only a small portion of the zoning lot, which stretches across much of the block, winding throughout the paths and driveways of the neighboring Lincoln Towers housing complex, at some points connected by narrow 10-foot strips of open space. The 110,000-square-foot zoning lot encompasses portions of several tax lots on the block. Members of the Committee for Environmentally Sound Development argue that zoning lots, which are used in determining a building’s maximum permissible ﬂoor area, must be composed of entire tax lot — rather than partial tax lots, as are used in the case of the planned development. The Department of Buildings disagreed with that assessment in issuing the building permit for the project in September 2017. But in a March 9 letter to the Board of Standards and Appeals, the Department of Buildings changed course, stating that its previous interpretation of the zoning resolution — that zoning lots can consist of partial tax lots, which it relied on in issuing the building permit — was incorrect. But despite this reversal, the Department of Buildings argued that to apply this new standard to the already-issued building

permit would be “arbitrary and capricious,” and stated that the validity of the building permit should stand. “Now that the Department of Buildings has accepted the fact that the zoning lot does not comply with the zoning resolution and should not have been approved, the argument now becomes: can the permit be revoked based on that acknowledgement?” said Frank Chaney, the attorney representing the Committee for Environmentally Sound Development. Chaney will argue that the permit for 200 Amsterdam should be revoked at next week’s hearing, but declined to share speciﬁc details on the argument he will make, which he said is still being refined. Chaney said the Board of Standards and Appeals will likely require one or more follow-up hearings before making a determination on the case. “We’re going to push very hard to minimize the number of follow-up hearings so we can get a decision, because all along while this is going on they’re continuing to prepare the site to build the building,” he said. The five-member Board of Standards and Appeals is the city agency responsible for ruling on appeals of zoning determinations. The board’s chair, Margery Perlmutter, recently announced she would recuse herself from the case, Rosenthal said, because the law ﬁrm at which she was formerly employed had worked on behalf of the developer on the 200 Amsterdam project. Whatever the outcome of the appeal, Chaney said he is “very certain” that the case would subsequently end up in court. “If the Board of Standards and Appeals decides in our favor and revokes the permit, I guarantee that the property owners and their attorneys are going to take it to court,” he said. “If they decide in favor of the owners to not revoke the permit, then very likely we’re going to go to court.”

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Your neighborhood news source Police seized over 200 electric bicycles in the ďŹ rst six weeks of 2018, including these two by officers from the Upper West Sideâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 24th Precinct. Photo: NYPD, via Twitter

E-BIKES CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 This rate puts the city on pace to surpass the 1,007 ebikes confiscated citywide by police last year, which itself was a signiďŹ cant increase over the 551 seized in 2016. The uptick in enforcement coincided with a crackdown on e-bikes announced by Mayor Bill de Blasio last October at a press conference on the Upper West Side, during which the mayor called e-bikes â&#x20AC;&#x153;a growing safety problemâ&#x20AC;? and referenced riders â&#x20AC;&#x153;going the wrong way down streets, weaving in and out of traffic, ignoring traffic signals, sometimes going up on sidewalks.â&#x20AC;? Much of the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s enforcement efforts have been concentrated in Manhattan. The NYPDâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 20th and 24th Precincts on the Upper West Side confiscated a combined 89 ebikes last year, while the 17th and 19th Precincts on the East Side seized a combined 103 ebikes through mid-October of 2017. A number of precincts have used social media to publicize seizures in recent months, posting photos of impounded e-bikes online. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Illegal #EBikes for as far as the eyes can see,â&#x20AC;? read one caption accompanying images posted to Twitter by the NYPDâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 19th Precinct in January. â&#x20AC;&#x153;All conďŹ scated from

the #UpperEastSide streets & sidewalks.â&#x20AC;? The city issued nearly 1,800 summonses related to e-bike use in 2017, as compared to roughly 1,200 in 2016. Due to e-bikesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; status under the law â&#x20AC;&#x201D; illegal to operate on city streets, but legal to own â&#x20AC;&#x201D; riders who have been subjected to conďŹ scations are able to recover their e-bikes in short order after paying a ďŹ ne of up to $500 â&#x20AC;&#x201D; or, alternatively, can opt to outďŹ t a new bike with a motor kit, some of which can be purchased for less than the cost of the fine. Critics claim that ďŹ ning riders does little to keep e-bikes permanently off the street and unfairly punishes delivery workers, who make up a signiďŹ cant portion of the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s e-bike ridership. In hopes of reducing the number of delivery workers using ebikes, the de Blasio administration instituted a new policy at the beginning of the year that targets businesses that employ e-bike riders. As of 2018, businesses that use e-bikes or allow employees to use them are now subject to ďŹ nes of $100 for the ďŹ rst offense and $200 for each subsequent offense. Though riders can still be subjected to ďŹ nes and conďŹ scation, the mayor said that the policy would help hold accountable â&#x20AC;&#x153;those at the top of the food chain.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;We did not want them to bear the brunt for an illegality that was actually being created

by the stores and the restaurants they were working for,â&#x20AC;? de Blasio said of delivery riders at a January town hall meeting on the Upper East Side. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You will see more and more NYPD activity to make sure there are not e-bikes creating a safety problem in this city,â&#x20AC;? he added. Though the administration has cast the crackdown as a safety issue, data on the hazards caused by e-bike use is limited. The city does not track e-bike collisions or injuries as a distinct category, and some police precincts that have communicated data have reported few incidents involving e-bikes. Of the 58 bicycle collisions recorded last year by the Upper West Sideâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 20th Precinct, for example, only one involved an e-bike. One bill currently before the City Council, introduced by Brooklyn Council Member Brad Lander, would assemble an interagency e-bike task force comprised of representatives from the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Transportation, City Planning and Parks Departments, as well as other transportation and bicycle use experts appointed by the mayor and council, charged with the goal of developing safety and legislative recommendations regarding e-bike use. Michael Garofalo: reporter@ strausnews.com

OurTownNY.com ACTIVITIES FOR THE FERTILE MIND

thoughtgallery.org NEW YORK CITY

The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment

THURSDAY, MARCH 22ND, 7PM 92nd Street Y | 1395 Lexington Ave. | 212-415-5500 | 92y.org Best-selling author Robert Wrightâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s newest book, Why Buddhism Is True, combines evolutionary psychology and the latest in neuroscience to back the philosophies of Buddhism. Catch him in conversation with the President of Union Theological Seminary, Serene Jones ($29).

A City Made by Women: New Perspectives

SUNDAY, MARCH 25TH, 1PM Museum of the City of New York | 1220 Fifth Ave. | 212-534-1672 | mcny.org Mark a century of suffrage and Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s History Month with a symposium on the untold stories of New York female activists. The afternoon is presented in conjunction with the exhibition Beyond Suffrage: A Century of New York Women in Politics ($20).

Just Announced | Ehud Barak in Conversation

TUESDAY, MAY 15TH, 7:30PM 92nd Street Y | 1395 Lexington Ave. | 212-415-5500 | 92y.org Ehud Barak, one of the most decorated soldiers in Israeli history, a classical pianist, and the tenth Prime Minister of Israel, will talk about the lifetime that led him to his proposal of a two-state solution. A book signing of his new memoir follows ($38).

For more information about lectures, readings and other intellectually stimulating events throughout NYC,

MARCH 22-28,2018

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Business

Real Estate

Salads from Sweetgreen. Photo: Michael Sheehan, via ﬂickr

FRESH FOOD ON THE RUN DINING Window guards, Christopher Street, Greenwich Village. Photo: Spencer Means, via Flickr

ASK A BROKER

Where New Yorkers can find healthy options for a quick snack BY LIZ RICHARDS

BY ANDREW KRAMER

We live in apartment #1D, which in our building is actually the second floor above the lobby level apartments. Our listing has lingered on the market for months without much activity with our current broker. We interviewed several new brokers to take over the listing and they all agree that it’s priced right and it is in wonderful move-in condition. One said that first floor apartment tend to have a stigma as buyers oftentimes eliminate seeing them as they assume that they have bars on the windows or look out onto the street or the back of the building. Are there any strategies we can employ? I’ve been down this road before and a little ingenuity goes along way. When I met with my seller, who was in a similar position, I discussed the challenges that this presented and we decided to remove any reference to the apartment number in our marketing efforts. Whenever we received an inquiry, we were able to elaborate on this at length. For open houses, we posted a sign in the lobby indicating the apartment number. Our strategy paid off when we were presented with a healthy offer! Andrew Kramer is a licensed associate real estate broker with Brown Harris Stevens Residential Sales

Healthy eating in the city can seem like a challenge, especially when we’re always on the go. For better or worse, convenience foods and fast-food stops certainly make our busy lives easier. Luckily, New York is full of “good junk foods” to grab before a meeting, after a gym class or on the way to the next adventure. Good fast food in the city runs the gamut from dishes with wholesome plant bases, to open markets with a variety of fresh and fun selections, to quick-moving salad joints tailored to your tastes. A look at some of the best fast foods in the city:

Blossom du Jour Blossom du Jour is the perfect culinary combination — delicious fried food that is one hundred percent vegan. With locations in Chelsea, Midtown West, and the Upper West Side, there’s no place in town where they aren’t accessible. The menu includes smash

hits like buffalo cauliﬂower bites (with Caesar dressing) and butterﬁnger milkshakes. From mac n’ cheese to Philly fries to Sloppy Jack (BBQ jackfruit sandwich), everything on the menu is plantbased, making this grab-and-go junk food with a conscience. And they have much more than fried food. If you’re looking for something fresh and fast, the menu includes a good selection of grain bowls and salads. For dessert, don’t forget to pick up a chocolate chip cookie or date-based brownie. Blossom du Jour is a one-stopshop for plant-based goodies on the run.

Gansevoort Market The Meatpacking District is a cultural hub in the city. It’s packed with museums, galleries, restaurants and the stunning High Line, which is perfect for a sunny stroll — if you have the time. But if you work in the Meatpacking District, you’re likely to be constantly on the move, running from place to place for meetings or conferences or classes or events. You probably don’t have time to sit in one of the many beautiful restaurants in the area and order a full meal. Thankfully, there’s the Gansevoort Market to the rescue. Think of the Gan-

sevoort Market like a food court, but unlike your hometown mall, the choices are diverse and all of the ingredients are fresh. Lunch options include Burger, Inc. burgers, Gotham Poke, Luzzo’s Neapolitan Pizza and Mission Ceviche. Talk about variety: each choice is packed with ﬂavorful, nutritious cuisine that you can take on the road with you. And don’t forget to stop by Dana’s Bakery on your way out for “not your ordinary” macarons.

Sweetgreen Fast casual isn’t just for Chipotle anymore. Sweetgreen is slowly taking over the city, and for good reason. With an overwhelming eighteen locations sprinkled throughout the city (and two in Brooklyn!), Sweetgreen is a fast and fresh place for salads. Their menu is seasonal and boasts recommended combinations like the classic Kale Caesar salad, Guacamole Greens (mesclun, avocado, chicken, red onion, tomato, tortilla chips, lime cilantro jalapeno vinaigrette), Rad Thai (arugula, mesclun, bean sprouts, cabbage, spicy sunflower seeds, carrots, cucumbers, basil, citrus shrimp, spicy cashew dressing) and more. They have a wide variety of warm grain bowls if you aren’t in the

mood for salad. And you can always build your own bowl or salad, for the perfectly tailored lunch on the go. The only real criticism of Sweetgreen is that they don’t take cash in any of their locations, which could come across as a smidge elitist, but hey, who carries cash anymore?

Dig Inn For fast, fresh, seasonal ingredients and a well-rounded menu that provides options for everyone, Dig Inn is the place that stands out. Dig Inn has fourteen pickup locations, one delivery location and three to come in Manhattan. What’s fun about Dig Inn is that it’s easy to pick and choose what you’re looking for, whether you’re vegan, gluten-free, dairyfree, grain-free or just looking for quick and tasty roasted chicken. The foods they use to prepare their fast and friendly meals are seasonal and nutritious. Food here is sourced mindfully and conscious of the time and year. At the same time, it’s priced affordably and offers a great quick lunch. Try their grain bowls or salads, or go for the instant classic — the Farmer’s Favorite Market Bowl — where you get to skip the main and load up on any three sides you want.

MARCH 22-28,2018

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MARCH 22-28,2018

THE SHED’S OPEN-DOOR POLICY CULTURE Manhattan’s newest arts center is an ambitious undertaking — with a lofty goal of attracting diverse audiences by engaging youth in Chelsea. BY ALIZAH SALARIO

Want people to show up for the arts? Then bring the arts to the people. That ethos is a driving force behind artistic commissions at The Shed, the new arts center currently under construction where the High Line meets Hudson Yards at West 30th Street between 10th and 11th Avenues. No matter that the futuristic structure isn’t scheduled to open for another year. Two pre-opening commissions, both of which engage youth in Chelsea, and throughout the ﬁve boroughs, in the arts are already in full swing. “We want to make sure our audience reﬂects the diversity of New York City. That’s something we want to aspire to — to make sure that no matter if you live in the high-rises that are being built right adjacent to us, or whether you live in Fulton Houses or ChelseaElliot, that you feel that you have ownership in our building, and that it belongs to you,” says Tamara McCaw, chief community officer at The Shed. The first of two commissions, FlexNYC, is a dance residency in partnership with Flexn dance pioneer Regg “Roc” Gray and the D.R.E.A.M. Ring dancers. The intensive, eightmonth program is led by teaching artists-in-residence in schools and community centers throughout the five boroughs. Approximately 400

students from first-graders to high school seniors participate; a high percentage of participating schools serve subsidized lunches. With roots in Jamaican Bruk Up and reggae dance halls in Brooklyn, Flexn, at its core, is about self-expression through movement, says McCaw. “A lot of what makes Flexn unique from other street styles of dance is that it’s really based on storytelling. It’s an opportunity for students to talk about the issues that matter to [them], that matter to [their] community.” In Chelsea, participating schools include Landmark High School on West 18th Street, where about 25 students are involved in the program. Landmark principal Caron Pinkus says she’s seen an increase in confidence among student dancers not just on the stage, but in other areas of their lives as well. “Several of our dancers have stepped into leadership roles in the school. For example, three of them are currently serving as peer mentors, where they are helping to guide and assist their ninth-grade peers,” says Pinkus. “Two of our dancers joined the restorative justice advisory and are planning and facilitating circle discussions with their peers. Three of our dancers enrolled in College Now and are taking college level classes to earn college credits.” As The Shed’s opening approaches in spring 2019, some students may have the opportunity to perform at the new art space.

Dis Obey Following in the tradition of the Persian poet Saadi, who in turn inspired Henry David Thoreau, the second

commission, Dis Obey, uses poetry and interdisciplinary arts to explore how nonviolent engagement and civil disobedience can be vehicles for social change. Led by artist and educator Kameelah Janan Rasheed and poet and performer Najee Omar, the program is designed for students involved “to think about how their art can actually impact society, and how their work can raise awareness about particular issues,” said Rasheed. Though just getting off the ground — the program began March 12 — Rasheed notes that each of the three teaching artists is using their own strengths and experiences in the classroom. For the poet and teaching artist Jayson Smith, that means focusing on the radical potential of close reading the poetry of Gwendolyn Brooks and others. It’s a crucial skill, says Rasheed, at a point in history when people are spending a lot of time not reading as closely as we would like them to. “For them to focus on poetry and close reading is a great extension of the skills of being aware and understanding nuance outside of reading poetry,” says Rasheed. “What are the radical potentials of thinking through who I am as a person, and how who I am as a person is a useful asset in the world?” Dis Obey may culminate in an anthology of work or a public performance, as well as participation in City Council or community board meetings, where students can directly impact issues they’ve engaged with through the arts. Says Rasheed, “The main goal is that the work leaves the setting that it was

Left to right: Poet and performer Najee Omar and visual artist and writer Kameelah Janan Rasheed, advisors on The Shed’s DIS OBEY pre-opening program for young artists, with The Shed’s assistant producer of partnership productions, Maria Fernanda Snellings. Photo courtesy of The Shed originally created in and actually has a public presence so that young people can see their work being engaged with by the public, rather than by just the smaller cohort of their class.”

Public Engagement If The Shed’s eclectic inaugural commissions are any indication, the institution is trying to attract audiences where high art and pop culture intersect. In early March, The Shed’s artistic director Alex Poots announced commissions to launch in spring 2019 that include “Soundtrack to America,” a concert series conceived by Quincy Jones and Steve McQueen exploring the history of African-American music from 17th-century spirituals to modern-day hip-hop. Inspired by Euripides’ “Helen” and the life of Marilyn Monroe, the poet Anne Carson is commissioned to write a play titled “Norma Jeane Baker of Troy.” In addition to commissions, The Shed is trying to engage community artists in various ways. In early March, the institution put out an open

call for emerging artists to submit proposals for a six-month residency at The Shed. Artists who look at the urgent issues of our time are encouraged to apply. It’s part of the proactive effort the institution is making to engage the community, says McCaw. From youth commissions to engaging tenant associations at NYCHA’s Fulton and Chelsea-Elliot Houses about ticket access, local hiring and internships, The Shed is reaching out to the community long before tickets go on sale. But how these ambitions play out has yet to be seen. “We’re aware of the location we’re in, right?” notes McCraw. “We’re part of this very large-scale development, and we’re very appreciative of that. But we’re on city-owned land, we’re a nonprofit institution that has had signiﬁcant public investment, and we take that very seriously. There’s a responsibility that we have to make sure all New Yorkers feel they belong to our institution, and that we belong to this neighborhood.”

PROVIDING FOR PUERTO RICAN PUPPIES PETS Camp Canine on the Upper West Side is helping find homes for some of the dogs left homeless following last year’s hurricane BY ASHAD HAJELA

Puppies tussle for a knitted toy at Camp Canine on the Upper West Side. Photo: Ashad Hajela

Choca arrived from Puerto Rico on Sunday, March 11. She prefers to be alone in her cage and tends to scurry around anxiously when she is outside of it. That may be because she was found in an abandoned house on the Caribbean island, which was battered by Hurricane Maria in September. It was not clear how long she had been there, but she now ﬁnds herself on the

Upper West Side. Choca is one of 45 “satos” — street dogs — that were flown into New York through an Animal Lighthouse Rescue initiative in Puerto Rico. The goal was to take dogs from people’s houses and the streets of Humacao, on the island’s east coast, and ﬁnd a home for them. For now, they are being cared for by Camp Canine on the Upper West Side. “The dogs have various reactions to being over here,” said Camp Canine’s owner, Tania Isenstein. On a recent weekday, Choca stays clear while a litter of puppies tussle over knitted toys and a visitor’s boots. Knitted toys, bags of dog food, dog carriers and sealed cardboard boxes crowd a narrow corridor inside Camp Canine, “That’s what we ask for and

that’s what we get,” said Esentstein of the donations from clients of Camp Canine and people from the neighborhood. Most of the dogs from the island arrived healthy, according to Lisa Lippman, the veterinarian responsible for the arriving dogs’ checkups. Leesha, the mother of seven puppies, did arrive with heartworm, a disease carried by mosquitos that limits activity for a month. Another arrived with ehrlichia, a tick-borne disease, neither of which are contagious. While the initiative is helping the 45 dogs find companionship, there remain hundreds of thousands of dogs in Puerto Rico without a home, Isenstein said. “We do whatever we can,” she said.

MARCH 22-28,2018

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NIXON CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Indeed, 80 female candidates have either ﬁled to run in the 2018 gubernatorial elections or are likely to do so – and if that number holds, it will shatter the record of 34 women who ﬁled in 1994, CAWP says. Enter Cynthia Nixon, a longtime Upper West Sider, one of the most gifted Broadway performers of her generation, part of a quartet that rocketed to global fame with “Sex and the City,” and perhaps the only candidate whose theatrical portrait adorns the wall of Sardi’s. The 51-year-old public school advocate, LGBT activist, left-of-center progressive — and longtime friend and supporter of de Blasio – will face enormous hurdles in her insurgent challenge to Cuomo. A two-term incumbent who has made no secret of his quest to lock up a third term by a landslide margin, Cuomo has amassed a bloated $30.5 million campaign account to do just that, so he won’t be easy to topple.

LIFE AFTER MIRANDA But Nixon — Hunter College High School, class of 1984, Barnard College, class of 1988 — is the classic New York success story, the overachieving child actor who made her TV debut in 1976 as a 9-year-old imposter on “To Tell the Truth,” and any uphill, upstart campaign she undertakes cannot be so easily dismissed. Best known for inhabiting the role of Miranda Hobbes, the long-single, later-married, working attorney-mom she created for HBO’s “Sex and the City” from 1998 to 2004, she changed course almost from the moment the series came to an end, embarking on a very personal de-Hobbesification process. First, Nixon returned to her ﬁrst love, the theater, not that she’d ever really left it, winning two Tony Awards, for “Rabbit Hole” in 2006 and “The Little

Cynthia Nixon in a 2-minute video statement unveiling her candidacy for New York governor. Courtesy CynthiaForNewYork.com Foxes” in 2017, and a third Tony nomination. Along the way, she scooped up two Emmys and a Grammy. Her private life also evolved. In 2003, she had broken up with boyfriend Danny Mozes after a 15-year relationship that produced two children, including daughter Samantha, who was bat mitzvahed at B’nai Jeshurun Synagogue on West 88th Street. By 2004, she had fallen in love with a woman who she met at a rally to support public education, Christine Marinoni, then the director of the Alliance for Quality Education, a union-backed advocacy group that’s long blasted Cuomo for his support of charter schools. And in very theatrical fashion, Nixon trumpeted their engagement on a street corner, Sixth Avenue and 45th Street, during the “Love, Peace and Marriage Equality Rally” in May

2009 to support same-sex marriage, which had yet to be legalized. Two years later, the couple had a son, and in 2012, they wed. “It’s the perfect personal and professional resume,” said Lisa Wagner, a paralegal and actor active in gay politics in Chelsea who said she found inspiration both in Nixon’s life story and that of the ﬁctional Miranda. “I’d vote for her if she ran for borough president or mayor or governor or president or anything else you can think of,” Wagner added.

POLITICAL PATRON AT CITY HALL Of course, Nixon will need big-time help mastering the nuts-and-bolts of a maiden campaign as she plunges into the fray. In addition to multi-million dollar fundraising, she’ll have to circulate nominating petitions, collect 15,000 legitimate signatures statewide

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in a five-week window between June 5 and July 12 and meet numerous state Board of Election filing deadlines. And that’s where the de Blasio connection comes in: “The view of the statehouse is that she’s a creature of the mayor,” said George Arzt, the Democratic political strategist who served as Mayor Ed Koch’s third-term press secretary. In fact, Nixon has lined up Bill Hyers, the manager of de Blasio’s 2013 campaign, and Rebecca Katz, a longtime aide, both of Brooklyn-based Hilltop Public Solutions, and was recently spotted with an associate of Hyers and a camera crew filming on the streets of SoHo. Shortly before she declared her candidacy, Katz said it was “premature” to discuss any political endeavors and referred calls to a Rebecca Capellan, a Nixon publicist who has worked on

19 Tony and Emmy campaigns. Capellan didn’t return messages. Will de Blasio go to the mat for Nixon, who has campaigned for him, contributed to his races, huddled with him at City Hall and took the stage at his inaugurations in 2014 and 2018? “The mayor will not be front and center, but he’ll operate behind the scenes and through surrogates,” Arzt said. “He doesn’t want more of an allout war with the governor than he already has.” If Nixon hopes to vie in the September 13 primary, she’ll need to ﬁnd a rationale for dislodging the incumbent: “You need a stellar argument, lots of money, plenty of experience, and huge numbers of people who will turn out for you,” said Democratic political consultant Hank Sheinkopf, who has worked on the campaigns of Bill Clinton and Mike Bloomberg and helped derail Cuomo in his failed gubernatorial bid in 2002. “The rationale for running against him from the left is hard to ﬁnd when he’s passed gay marriage, stopped fracking and enacted the toughest gun laws in the country,” he added. “It can’t just be that de Blasio wants to give the governor a headache.” How will the New York electorate cotton to an actor-turned-politicianand-would-be-dragon slayer as she morphs into a serious candidate? “California has a tradition of going to the stage or the screen to pick its leaders – think Ronald Reagan, George Murphy, Sonny Bono, Clint Eastwood, even a body-builder like Arnold Schwarzenegger,” said Mitchell Moss, professor of urban policy and planning at New York University and an occasional adviser to the Cuomo family. “In New York, we tend to pick people from the real world, not the fantasy world,” Moss added. “We pick doers, not performers.” Douglas Feiden: invreporter@strausnews. com

MARCH 22-28,2018

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A BROADWAY FUSION LIKE NO OTHER The operatic soprano Alyson Cambridge will rock out in her Great White Way debut BY HEATHER E. STEIN

“Rocktopia,” now in previews, begins a limited six-week engagement on Broadway March 27. Created by Broadway veteran Rob Evan and conductor Randall Craig Fleischer, the rule-busting extravaganza features state-of-the art lighting and video projections. The New York Contemporary Symphony Orchestra and a choir will be performing with a rock band at the Broadway Theatre. The soprano and Upper West Sider Alyson Cambridge, who makes her Broadway debut in the extravaganza, shared some thoughts about the show.

Tell us what comes to mind when you hear “Rocktopia”? Well, ﬁrst it is a unique and an original creation thanks to creators Rob Evan and Randy Fleischer. “Rocktopia” is really a classical revolution — it is the amazing fusion between the classical: Puccini, Mozart, Handel, Beethoven and rock classics: everything from Led Zeppelin to Queen to Pink Floyd to Elton John. It is the combining of these two musical worlds in a symbiotic way that’s never been done before. You can be singing an aria one moment and then can be rockin’ out to a song in the next minute ... this is my ﬁrst time with the production. I had never heard anything like “Rocktopia” before. It’s a special show!

As a classically trained opera star what songs will you sing in your Broadway debut in “Rocktopia”? I sing Handel’s “Lascia ch’io pianga,” which then gets mashed up with Tony Vincent singing Elton John’s “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down On Me.” I do Puccini’s “Nessun dorma” and “Quando men vo” with Rob Evan, “Ode to Joy,” “Something,” Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” and Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’”.... It’s quite the mix of songs!

Will you be singing R&B and rock? What other voices and music might we hear and know? I definitely get to exercise my rock chops a bit in this show, R&B not as much. My role in this show is really to be the featured operatic female voice, in contrast to the rock voices (of Chloe Lowery and Kimberly Nichole), but it’s fun when I get to use the other parts of my voice as well!

What sort of training did you have to do for this show in order to step out of classic mode? Even though the majority of my career has been operatic and classically based, I grew up loving and singing other styles. In 2016, I released a crossover/jazz/pop album called “Until Now,” and in preparing for that I coached with pianists and teachers who were based on those genres, so I have developed similar but different techniques for the different vocal styles required of me in “Rocktopia.”

How did this extravaganza come about and how did you assume the role of one of ﬁve world class vocalists in this epic concert experience? About three years ago, I worked with a wonderful conductor, composer and arranger, Kim Scharnberg. We had performed at the Ford’s Theater gala in Washington, D.C., and had a wonderful experience working together. He heard me sing an aria and I did a Beyoncé tune and he thought ... “Wait a minute, here’s a girl who is from the opera world who is actually ctua y well e versed in the pop world and d she might be a great ﬁt for this project” ct” so then I was introduced to the rest of the team. I auditioned for them a few ew months ago and it all came to fruition on and here I am. Rob Evan, one of the creators of “Rocktopia” and I also sang ng at Kim’s wedding!

“Rocktopia” brings your voice ce to the greatest classical music fused ed with the most amazing classic rock songs ongs of the past century. What do you think hink the audience will feel and hear during uring this live experience? I think they are going to love the variety and be really lly surprised. It combines so many different genres of music, styles, composerss and bands from Puccini to o Beethoven, to Queen to Pink k Floyd. Bach, Beethoven and d Puccini were the rock starss of their day, so this is about ut translating them into the he modern times along with th the rock stars who are their ir contemporaries today and so you have passion that’s natuural in classical music and you ou still feel it in today’s popular lar and rock music and so this fusion makes sense and works orks incredibly well together. I think hink what audiences are really going to like about this show iss that there is something for everybody. ybody.

“Rocktopia” begins a limited six-week engagement on Broadway March 27. Photo courtersy of “Rocktopia” You may come in having no experience hearing an opera before or an opera aria and be surprised how you’re transported into another rock song and the fusion together is, I believe, going to blow audiences away.

With no language barriers or story line to “Rocktopia,” what do you hope the show conveys to the audience and living on the West Side and a principal artist with the Met Opera for over the course of eight g seasons do you y see this crossover show as making opera hip? “Rocktopia,” for me, is all about changing lanes. I’ve always want-

ed to sing and perform in different genres. I am thrilled, honored, loving every chance I get to change people’s perceptions of opera. I want people to see that opera and classical music are cool, sexy, fun and powerful. There are no language barriers. It’s all about the music. And I think Broadway is the perfect place for “Rocktopia” because it’s going to bring in a new audience that is hearing some of these classical tunes and arias.

What sort of voice voi warm ups will you do dif different for your performance performanc in “Rocktopia” verses verse at The Met? My w warm-up routines, I think, are quite quit similar to many man singers ... lip ttrills throughout my range to start, star then vowels in mid-range, gradually gradua progressing to scales and other exercises that easily and healthily “s “stretch” my in both full range ra directions. This show direction demands a lot of me demand vocally in several different ways, so a differe proper warm up is paramount. As for param

The oper operatic soprano Alyson C Cambridge makes hher Broadway debut this th month in the musica musical extravaganza “R “Rocktopia.” Photo: Olivia Rae James.

food/drink pre-show — I’m unconventional in that I don’t drink tea, I actually drink lots of coffee and religiously have either a tuna and spinach sandwich on gluten-free bread or a tuna sushi roll with brown rice ... and a banana! This has been my “pre-game” ritual since college!!!

What is self-preparation for Broadway like? Practice, practice, practice. Working on Broadway is not only about crazy talent, but also about endurance. In opera, we typically have several days between performances. On Broadway, we have 8 shows a week! So, for me, it was about not only keeping my operatic range stretched and diverse, but also on a consistently high level 24/7. There is no down time.... it’s all about endurance — and sounding great!

Some advice for young aspiring opera singers? For young singers, I think there are a couple things to always keep in mind: besides working hard and practice – one should get used to hearing “no.” You will hear it more than “yes.” Perseverance is key, so stay strong. Be on time and always professional and always be a good colleague. You have to truly love what you do. If you don’t, it is hard to stay engaged and enthused.... But when you do the reward is sooooo great.

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Eastsider

19 23

8 5

Level: Medium

T G R A N I T E R R R Q I A I

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R Z Z Z T G T A Q C T K T U M

L O D A D T M P Z E Q A S W U

I N L O E D U L N G S B F N T

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W Y R P D R N N R O R A O I B

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The puzzle contains the following 15 words. They may be diagonal, across, or up and down in the grid in any direction.

X B J C T M S E N J Q B C S K

Boards Bricks Carpet Cement Door Glass Granite Hammer Jamb Maple Paint Quartz Rollers Skylight Tiles

ANSWERS N

54 47

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41 28

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I N L O E D U L N G S B F N T

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W Y R P D R N N R O R A O I B

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4 8

7 5 9

1 6

9 7

3 4

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24 Executors 25 Prevent legally 26 Throughways 29 Bone marrow disease 30 Hostel 34 Parachute part 37 Bar room 41 Sleep clinic study 43 Eagle’s home 45 Severed 46 Pitch-black 47 Month earlier 48 Contemporary 49 Special effects maker, abbr. 51 Quirky 52 Trendy 53 Carry on

N F D M L V M T I L E S L D C

R Z Z Z T G T A Q C T K T U M

47 Rare 50 Jump around playfully 54 Big name in construction 55 Aggravate 56 “American ___” 57 Identical ____ 58 Whatever 59 Whirling water Down 1 Special ___ 2 Gooey stuff 3 Grazing area 4 Concluding stanza 5 Strengthen, with “up” 6 Jeans inventor 7 Shell shape 8 About-faces 9 Perched 10 Barely manage, with “out” 11 ____pite, rest 17 Neck adornment in Hawaii 19 Jumper 20 Electrical unit 21 Japanese cartoon art 22 Grill grub

I E I J L M G L A S S X Y F F

Y X C U H I H M Y X W F H U I

A M U C A R P E T G J N K E K

A R C M G Q U A R T Z J G N K

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T G R A N I T E R R R Q I A I

WORD SEARCH by Myles Mellor

N F D M L V M T I L E S L D C

I E I J L M G L A S S X Y F F

A M U C A R P E T G J N K E K

P F V H X B R I C K S K S D K

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9 1

41 44

3 2

D O

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8 1

Each Sudoku puzzle consists of a 9X9 grid that has been subdivided into nine smaller grids of 3X3 squares. To solve the puzzle each row, column and box must contain each of the numbers 1 to 9. Puzzles come in three grades: easy, medium and difficult.

G O

SUDOKU by Myles Mellor and Susan Flanagan

by Myles Mellor

T W

CROSSWORD

MARCH 22-28,2018

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