Our Town - April 18, 2019

The local paper for the Upper East Side

WEEK OF APRIL

TELLING THE STORY OF AUSCHWITZ

18-24 2019

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INSIDE

The Sutton East Tennis Club’s facility at the Queensboro Oval at York Avenue and 59th Street. Photo: New York City Department of Parks & Recreation

CPC PASSES MECHANICAL VOIDS PROPOSAL Critics pan “stunningly weakened” zoning text amendment, which now heads to City Council for review P. 5

TENNIS BUBBLE CONTRACT SET PARKS City awards a new 10-year concession contract to current operator. Public access and costs to play still up in the air

MAPPING PLACARD ABUSE City Council data maps 311 complaints about parking permit misuse, most of which result in no action P. 6

BY EMILY HIGGINBOTHAM

The city’s Parks Department ended years of a back-and-forth rally between the agency and local politicians Friday by announcing that the tennis bubble under the Queensboro Bridge will continue to be privately operated by its current concessionaire, with the expectation of expanded public access at a lower cost.

The decision comes a year after the department filed a request for proposals to operate the sports facility as the agency’s license agreement with Sutton East Tennis was expiring. The department received seven bids total, according to spokesperson Crystal Howard.

Sutton East, which has been the concessionaire at the site since 1979, will be running the courts for

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The city subsidizes NYC Ferry trips at a ride of $10.73 per ride, a recent Citizens Budget Commission study found. Photo: NYC EDC

CITY FERRY DEAL DRAWS SCRUTINY TRANSPORTATION Comptroller Scott Stringer calls for DOT to take charge of heavily subsidized Economic Development Corporation service

BY MICHAEL GAROFALO

Mayor Bill de Blasio has touted his administration’s expansion of East River ferry service as an over-

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whelming success, but the mayor’s signature transportation initiative has drawn criticism in recent weeks for its high costs and contracting process.

NYC Ferry launched service in 2017 and now consists of six routes serving Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens. The de Blasio administration has claimed its expansion of East River ferry service is a means of expanding transit options for under-

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Restaurant Ratings 14 Business 16 Real Estate 17 15 Minutes 21

served outer-borough residents, and plans to add two more routes by 2021.

But the initiative has drawn criticism from transportation advocates for its high subsidies and low ridership as compared to other forms of mass transit. The Citizens Budget Commission recently found the administration’s ferry program is subsidized at nearly 10 times the rate of

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SHOWING UP FOR THE STREET FAIRS With so many businesses shuttered, the face-to-face transactions are welcome P. 8 Jewish women and girls light up the world by lighting the Shabbat and the Passover Holiday candles.

Friday, April 19 - 7:21 pm Saturday night, April 20 – after 8:23 pm from a pre-existing flame For more information visit www.chabaduppereastside.com

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APRIL 18-24,2019

Our Town|Eastsider ourtownny.com

A REFLECTION OF FAITH AND ARTISTRY RESTORATION Parishioners raised millions to restore their beloved church and its stunning stained glass window

BY EMILY MASON

The church is for the people of God. They see this as their temple, their place.”

The Rev. John Duffell, pastor of the Church of the Blessed Sacrament Photo: Chris Sheridan, Catholic New York, via William Moran

The largest rose window in New York City is shining brightly once again, following the restoration of the Church of the Blessed Sacrament on West 71st Street. The Roman Catholic church has been serving the Upper West Side since it was built in 1917.

When a piece of the church’s facade fell off in 2016, the parishioners began a fundraising drive to repair the slate roof and stone exterior, as well as the prized rose window, the third largest in North America,

which hovers proudly above the entrance.

Modelled after the Sainte Chapelle in France, and designed in the Gothic style, the window depicts angels offering worship to God, surrounded by incense and musical instruments. The restored window was unveiled on April 7th. The reveal brought some onlookers to tears, said the Rev. John Duffell, the pastor of Blessed Sacrament.

The restoration, which took 17 months, was necessary to restore glory to the window, Duffell said. “You couldn’t see physical damage unless you went up close to it. But you also didn’t have the brilliance of color you now have, because it was dark and dirty.”

All 240 stained glass pieces of the window were individually removed and restored. Clear glass was then installed on the

exterior of the window to protect it from the elements. Damage to the old exterior glass had contributed to the deterioration of the window.

The parish raised $3.9 million for the overall renovation of the church. Reverend Duffell talked about how the fundraising and renovation effort affected members of the Blessed Sacrament community. “I think it brought people to consider the temple in which they worship,” he said. “The church is for the people of God. They see this as their temple, their place.”

Duffell expressed excitement at the near completion of the renovations, which will allow the building to reflect the energy of the congregation. “It’s a sign of life in the church. We’re alive and this place is very much alive,” Duffell said.

EVENTS AT THE BRICK PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH MAUNDY THURSDAY SERVICE APRIL 18 - 7:30 P.M.

GOOD FRIDAY - STAINER’S THE CRUCIFIXION APRIL 19 - 12:15 P.M.

EASTER SUNDAY–APRIL 21 8:30 a.m.

9:00 a.m.

10:30 a.m.

11:00 a.m.

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Pre-Service Music Service of Worship Pre-Service Music Service of Worship 1140 Park Avenue at 91st Street, 212-289-4400, www.brickchurch.org

APRIL 18-24,2019

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Our Town|Eastsider ourtownny.com

CRIME WATCH BY JERRY DANZIG ONCE MORE, WITH FEELING: LEAVE THAT PRICEY WATCH AT HOME

STATS FOR THE WEEK Reported crimes from the 19th precinct for the week ending Apr 7 Week to Date

Locker hinges were no match for a determined thief in a tony health club. On Tuesday evening, Apr. 9, a 38-year-old man stored his belongings in a locker inside the Equinox Fitness Club at 330 E. 61st St. When he returned an hour later, he noticed damage to the hinges of the locker and discovered that his watch and cash were missing. He later told police that he had locked his locker and had the key with him throughout his workout. The items stolen included an Audemars Piguet 41-mm Royal Oak chronograph, valued at $35,000, and $380 cash, for a total of $35,380.

HELLO AND GOODBYE Photo by Tony Webster, via Flickr

At 9:28 p.m. on Monday, Apr. 8, a 36-year-old woman was walking home on East 95th St. when an unknown man ran up from behind her and snatched her phone from her hand, police said. The victim started to chase the man, but he took off, heading west. The stolen phone was an iPhone XR valued at $970.

NOT SO FUNNY MONEY A cabbie became the latest victim to

be conned with a counterfeit hundred dollar bill. At 5:05 p.m. on Tuesday, Apr. 2, the 43-year-old male driver of a yellow taxi delivered a fare to the corner of First Ave. and East 71st St. The passenger gave the cabbie what appeared to be a real hundred dollar bill, exited the vehicle, then fled in an unknown direction. Upon closer inspection, the cabbie discovered that the currency was fake. Adding insult to injury, the unfortunate cabbie had

given the passenger change in the amount of $70.40 — in real currency.

NEWPORTS IN A STORM Were two recent bodega robberies committed by the same menthol cigarette smoker? At 1:20 a.m. on Friday, Apr. 5, an unknown man smashed the front glass door at the York Deli & Convenience store at 1661 York Ave., police said. He was later

Year to Date

2019 2018

% Change 2019

2018

% Change

Murder

0

1

-100.0 0

1

-100.0

Rape

2

0

n/a

4

125.0

Robbery

0

3

-100.0 34

37

-8.1

Felony Assault

4

3

33.3

31

37

-16.2

Burglary

4

5

-20.0

61

57

7.0

Grand Larceny

34

22

54.5

405

377

7.4

Grand Larceny Auto

0

0

n/a

3

7

-57.1

seen on surveillance video pushing his way through the broken glass and jumping over the store counter to the register area, where he stole numerous cartons of Newport cigarettes. He next opened the store’s Lotto register and took money before opening the main store register and grabbing more money. The items stolen included $1,500 in cash and 16 cartons of cigarettes valued at $1,840, making a total take of $3,440.

According to police, the second — related? — incident, took place at 10:26 a.m. on Tuesday, Apr. 9,

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when an unknown man entered the Lexington Avenue News bodega at 1248 Lexington Ave., went behind the store counter and pushed the manager before taking money from the cash register. The supect also grabbed two packs of Newports, as well as the manager’s cell phone, before fleeing south on Lexington and then west on East 84th Street. The items stolen included $1,400 in cash, a Samsung cell phone valued at $200 and the Newports, worth $28, for a total of $1,628.

This is more than great rates This is more savings for wherever you’re going.

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ÑÝÜäÓàâÓÒ âÝ ÏÜÝâÖÓà ÑÖÓÑÙ×ÜÕ ÞàÝÒãÑâ Ýà ÑÚÝáÓÒ \ `^_g ËÓÚÚá ºÏàÕÝ ¶ÏÜÙ Â µ µÚÚ à×ÕÖâá àÓáÓàäÓÒ ¸ÓÞÝá×â ÞàÝÒãÑâá ÝøÓàÓÒ Ðç ËÓÚÚá ºÏàÕÝ ¶ÏÜÙ Â µ ÁÓÛÐÓà º¸½· ÂÁÀÇÆ ½¸ aggf^_

4

Useful Contacts

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POLICE NYPD 19th Precinct

153 E. 67th St.

212-452-0600

159 E. 85th St. 157 E. 67th St.

311 311

1836 Third Ave.

311

221 E. 75th St.

311

211 E. 43rd St. #1205 244 E. 93rd St.

212-818-0580

State Sen. Jose M. Serrano State Senator Liz Krueger Assembly Member Dan Quart Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright

1916 Park Ave. #202 1850 Second Ave. 360 E. 57th St.

212-828-5829 212-490-9535 212-605-0937

1485 York Ave.

212-288-4607

COMMUNITY BOARD 8 LIBRARIES

505 Park Ave. #620

212-758-4340

Yorkville 96th Street 67th Street Webster Library

222 E. 79th St. 112 E. 96th St. 328 E. 67th St. 1465 York Ave.

212-744-5824 212-289-0908 212-734-1717 212-288-5049

100 E. 77th St. 525 E. 68th St.

212-434-2000 212-746-5454

E. 99th St. & Madison Ave. 550 First Ave. 4 Irving Place

212-241-6500 212-263-7300 212-460-4600

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212-517-8361 212-369-2747

201 Varick St. 128 East Broadway 93 4th Ave.

212-645-0327 212-267-1543 212-254-1390

FIRE FDNY 22 Ladder Co 13 FDNY Engine 39/ Ladder 16 FDNY Engine 53/ Ladder 43 FDNY Engine 44

CITY COUNCIL Councilmember Keith Powers Councilmember Ben Kallos

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BY MARC BILGREY

APRIL 18-24,2019

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CPC PASSES MECHANICAL VOIDS PROPOSAL DEVELOPMENT Critics pan “stunningly weakened” zoning text amendment, which now heads to City Council for review

BY MICHAEL GAROFALO

The City Planning Commission voted April 10 to advance a long-awaited proposal that would place new limits on the use of mechanical voids, tightening a loophole that developers have exploited with increasing frequency in recent years to inflate building heights through the use of largely empty spaces.

But the proposed text amendment approved by the CPC is more permissive than an earlier version of the policy put forth by Department of City Planning staff. It was met with a tepid response from many zoning reformers who have spent years advocating for stronger mechanical void restrictions.

Current city zoning law exempts spaces designated for mechanical use from the floor area calculations that in many districts effectively govern a building’s maximum permissible height.

These mechanical spaces are not currently subject to height restrictions. As a result, some developers have utilized large, tall spaces in towers’ middle sections — which nominally hold mechanical equipment but are often mostly empty — to boost the sightlines and values of residential units on the floors above. In some extreme cases, the city has approved buildings with mechanical voids exceeding 100 feet in height.

The text amendment approved by the CPC would discourage excessive void spaces by limiting the floor area exemption to mechanical spaces 30 feet tall or shorter; voids exceeding this height would count toward a project’s buildable floor area. The DCP’s earlier proposal had

The Department of Buildings has approved revised plans for Extell Development’s in-progress 775-foot tower at 36 West 66th St., which includes over 170 feet of mechanical space in its middle section.

Rendering: Snøhetta.

I am deeply disappointed that ... the City Planning Commission would disregard the community, evidence from their own experts at the Department of City Planning, and vote in favor of taller buildings for billionaires.”

Council Member Ben Kallos

suggested a height limit of 25 feet for exempted mechanical spaces.

Under the proposal, buildings would be permitted to claim the exemption for multiple void spaces, provided that each void space is separated by at least 75 feet in ver-

tical distance.

The commission increased the height threshold in response to feedback from construction industry experts, who had testified that taller spaces would allow for greater flexibility to house new equipment that meets energy efficiency and resiliency standards.

“This [change] is based on the testimony of the various engineers, and our desire to assure that new, more energy efficient mechanical equipment not be constrained by zoning,” CPC Chair Marisa Lago said. “Further, the analysis that was done by the department shows that the excessive mechanical voids that we believe violate the intent of our current zoning aren’t spaces that are a foot or two above the norm, but rather are patently unreasonably tall spaces.”

CONTINUED ON PAGE 7

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Contact Jane at (212) 686-0010 x363 or giving@nyct-cfi.org www.GiveTo.nyc

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The location of 311 parking placard complaints since May 2017. Image: NYC Council

MAPPING PLACARD ABUSE STREETS City Council data maps 311 complaints about parking permit misuse, most of which result in no action

BY MICHAEL GAROFALO

New Yorkers made 3,165 ofďŹ cial complaints last year regarding improper use of cityissued parking placards, just 11 percent of which resulted in a ticket or summons, according to 311 data analyzed by the City Council.

The vast majority of placard complaints — 68 percent — resulted in no police action, either because investigating officers reported that they could not find the vehicle in question or determined that no action was necessary.

Roughly 125,000 city employees hold official parking placards, which are not administered by a single entity but rather issued separately by individual agencies — primarily the Department of Transportation, New York City Police Department and Department of Education.

Placard holders are permitted to park in loading zones or metered spots for free, but abuse of the system is widespread. The Twitter account @placardabuse regularly posts images of personal vehicles blocking ďŹ re hydrants, bus lanes, bike lanes and crosswalks, or displaying

Illegally parked vehicles owned by city employees are a common sight on many Chinatown streets near City Hall and NYPD headquarters. Photo: @ placardabuse, via Twitter.

fake or expired permits.

The City Council, which is currently weighing a package of legislation that would crack down on placard abuse, produced an interactive map tracking the location of every

311 placard complaint since May 2017. The full map is available at council.nyc.gov/ data/placard-abuse. “The days of giving a free pass on illegal parking are over,� Council Speaker Corey Johnson said at a March 27 hearing on the bills. “Personal convenience cannot trump safety or the needs of bus riders, pedestrians and cyclists.�

One bill under consideration would create a standardized application process for placards; another would require traffic enforcement officers to call for a tow of any vehicle obstructing a bicycle lane, bus lane, sidewalk, crosswalk, or ďŹ re hydrant in a nonemergency situation.

Shortly after the Council legislation was introduced in February, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced his own proposal to step up enforcement and enact stronger penalties on placard abuser. Under de Blasio’s plan, the city will create a new three-strike policy that would permanently revoke the placard of any city employee found to have misused their privileges three times.

The mayor also said the city would replace placards with a new digital parking system by 2021, but the administration has resisted calls to reduce the number of parking permits in circulation.

Are there placard abuse hotspots in your neighborhood? Tell us where: reporter@strausnews.com

APRIL 18-24,2019

7

Our Town|Eastsider ourtownny.com

VOIDS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5 “Developers Write the Rules” Many Manhattan community boards and land use advocacy groups had pushed for the CPC to strengthen the original proposal, arguing in favor of shorter height limits for exempted mechanical spaces with larger intervals between voids.

Critics also point to several other perceived shortcomings with the proposal, which would apply strictly to enclosed spaces (meaning voids classified as outdoor space would be unaffected) and only targets certain residential zoning districts, primarily in Manhattan. The Department of City Planning plans to expand the scope of the proposal through a second zoning text amendment later this year.

Assembly Member Linda Rosenthal, state Senator Robert Jackson and seven prominent land use nonprofits issued a joint statement criticizing the “stunningly weakened” proposal as “a prime example of what happens when City Hall shirks its responsibility and developers write the rules.”

“Buildings simply do not need 30 feet of space, every 75 feet, to house mechanical equipment,” the statement read, continuing, “This is space that could be used for affordable hous-

ing, to maintain access to light and to open air, but will now be empty so that luxury developers can continue their assault on our skies to reap skyhigh profits.”

Rosenthal and Jackson have introduced state legislation that would place stricter limits on voids, as well as discourage excessive floor-to-floor heights on non-mechanical floors by mandating that floor area calculations correspond to ceiling height.

The CPC’s proposal now heads to the City Council, which has 50 days to review and modify the text amendment before sending its decision to the mayor for final approval.

Council Member Ben Kallos, a longtime supporter of efforts to close the voids loophole, vowed to push for the Council to reverse the height limit increase.

“I am deeply disappointed that after every Community Board and nearly a dozen elected officials in Manhattan spoke out for fewer and shorter mechanical voids, that the City Planning Commission would disregard the community, evidence from their own experts at the Department of City Planning, and vote in favor of taller buildings for billionaires,” Kallos said in a statement. “The City Council must overturn what the City Planning Commission has proposed by reducing the heights of mechanical voids.”

A rendering illustrating the proposal to tighten restrictions on mechanical void space. Image: Department of City Planning

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APRIL 18-24,2019

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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.

OUR SIDEWALK CAFE PROBLEM EAST SIDE OBSERVER

BY ARLENE KAYATT

Sidewalk indigestion — The city’s streets and sidewalks are the pride and plight of New York, from the uneven sidewalks to the crammed spaces intended to accommodate pedestrians, pets, and all the other means of sidewalk transportation, like bikes, strollers and the ever-growing alternate methods, such as skateboards.

Sidewalks are where we enter and exit business storefronts.

And, lest we forget, sidewalks are also where vendors vend from their street carts as customers stand and wait for their orders, or maybe stay and stand to eat. And, of course, the sidewalks are where vendors and restaurants add tables and chairs, creating “unen-

closed outdoor cafes.”

These sidewalk extensions require permits, and the number of tables, and how far they extend on the sidewalk, are limited by the permit. As the weather gets warmer and outdoor dining becomes a desirable option, the sidewalks get gobbled up with tables and chairs.

It sometimes seems that the number of tables and chairs exceed their permit. However, a cursory review of the permits posted in restaurant windows authorizing unenclosed sidewalk cafes, suggests that the licensing agency — or other governmental bodies involved in the approval process — ignores boundaries that make it possible for pedestrians and unenclosed outdoor cafes to co-exist.

More tables and chairs inevitably will lead to more business. That’s a good thing, but not at the cost of safety and denial of access to side-

walk traffic. Two cases in point come to mind. One is the popular San Matteo restaurant, located on the southwest corner of East 90th Street and First Avenue, where tables practically extend to the curb.

The other is the newly opened Otto’s Tacos, at the northwest corner of East 88th Street and Third Avenue, where 12 tables and chairs surround the restaurant on the Third Avenue side and on the 88th Street side. The tables and chairs are not a problem on 88th Street, where the sidewalk is wider. The same doesn’t hold true for the avenue. Not only is the sidewalk narrower, but other businesses on the street use the sidewalk for delivery bikes.

Community boards and other agencies involved in approving unenclosed outdoor cafes cannot continue to ignore or give short shrift to the public’s right to safe

and unfettered access to the city’s sidewalks.

Laughable landmark — When one thinks of landmark protection in NYC, the historic and iconic structures come to mind, and so do the efforts of Andrew Berman, the executive director of the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, and the group’s efforts on behalf of neighborhood preservation. The GVSHP has been instrumental in securing landmark protection in the Meatpacking District, the Greenwich Village waterfront and in the Village itself. Landmark status issues are in the news regularly.

The recent fight over whether to landmark the building where the Strand bookstore is located has made front page news.

But it was an April Fool’s story in the West Side Rag about possible landmark status for “280 miles” of scaffolding at 599 West 78th Street (which would be somewhere in the Hudson River) that highlighted a painful truth about our ever-endangered streetscape

— the plague of scaffolds that render our neighborhoods both ugly AND dangerous for pedestrians is out of control. I have to admit, I fell for the joke. But scaffolds are no laughing matter. Let’s hope UES Side Council Member Ben Kallos can finally get some traction on his proposed legislation to regulate scaffolding, including length of time it should be allowed to stand and the obligations of those responsible for it. Or the joke will be on us.

Forever 16 — Point of personal privilege, if I may. Had to bid goodbye to my 16-year-old cat, Gracie Allen, whom I adopted from a killshelter 10 years ago. Gracie never forgot where she came from and gave her love and appreciation 24/7. She had renal problems the past few years and took whatever meds and treatment like a trouper.

She passed peacefully at home in her favorite chair. Gracie is survived by her cat sibs, Betty Boop, Molly Magee, and me, her forever Mums. Good night, Gracie.

SHOWING UP FOR THE STREET FAIRS

BY LORRAINE DUFFY MERKL

‘Tis the season for avenues to shut down so that vendors can display their wares, fresh lemonade can be squeezed under white tents, and the sizzle of sausage has the power to eclipse horn honking.

Anyone who has spent a good amount of time in Manhattan understands that the bond between our denizens and the ubiquitous street fairs is as off-and-on as was Carrie’s relationship with Mr. Big. This year, I’ll be showing up when they hit the Upper East Side. With so many businesses shuttered or razed from First to Madison, as well as along 86th Street, I’ve been working Amazon Prime pretty hard. I welcome some face-to-face transactions.

In fact, I’m as excited about 2019’s outdoor markets as I was back in

1975 when I experienced my first.

I was a junior in high school and my boyfriend asked me if I wanted to spend our Sunday out of our Bronx neighborhood, roaming the mystical world of Manhattan. The street fair ran across 52nd Street from the then very scary Ninth Avenue to the still quite posh Sutton Place. The energy on this one street alone made my outer borough seem dead. By the time we’d made our way all the way east, I was both exhilarated and exhausted.

I didn’t want to go home — ever.

Before we left, I bought my mother a second-hand trinket from a table boasting vintage finds. When I presented it to her, she looked at me confused as to why I was giving her a piece of old junk (which it was). I waxed poetic for an hour about the sights, the sounds, and the vibe of what had to be one of NYC’s more

fun events. I had fallen in love and I wanted all to know it.

I went to many fairs after that, mostly in my twenties. I often sought them out, always trying to recapture the rapture of that afternoon on 52nd Street. I could never quite do so. Was love waning?

As with any long-term association, I began to get a bit bored. By my thirties, the catch-phrase of the day was “did it, done it, seen it, been there,” and nothing better described my interest in the open-air bazaars. I still went, though, but with a turned-up nose and fewer purchases than before.

What happened next, well, I don’t want to call it a break-up; just a break. A well needed one. I knew it was time when over a decade ago I approached Third Avenue at 86th Street and all I could think was Oh, no, as though I’d just come upon a

Greenwich Village street fair. Photo: Ed, via flickr

ditch in need of digging.

From time to time though I forced myself to put on a happy face and attend, especially when my husband Neil would come home and announce a la the town crier, “You know, there’s a street fair over on Lex,” and my preteen daughter Meg would beg with excitement to, “Please go.” (Just because I was over this omnipresent New York experience didn’t mean I had to rain on her parade literally up and down the avenues.)

I’ve found though that I’ve mellowed of late. It’s not because I’ve missed watermelon cut up into clear Solo cups or Jaipur Indian print genie pants in one size fits all or faux-

Pandora beads or ...

My UES nabe has changed quite a bit in the recent years. The aforementioned stores and restaurants I’ve frequented are gone, the Q is completed and brought the crowds with it, and obstructive scaffolding indicates that new buildings are going up all over, such as the one across the street from me and the other one right next door. Hence, I take comfort in the familiar, of which the street fair is one.

So, get ready for me vendors, I’m back to buying — lemonade in hand.

Lorraine Duffy Merkl is author of the novels “Fat Chick” and “Back to Work She Goes.”

President & Publisher, Jeanne Straus nyoffice@strausnews.com

STRAUS MEDIA your neighborhood news source nyoffice@strausnews.com 212-868-0190

Vice President/CFO Otilia Bertolotti Vice President/CRO Vincent A. Gardino advertising@strausnews.com

Associate Publishers Seth L. Miller, Ceil Ainsworth Regional Sales Manager Tania Cade

Account Executives Fred Almonte, David Dallon Director of Partnership Development Barry Lewis

Editor-In-Chief, Alexis Gelber Deputy Editor David Noonan

Senior Reporter Doug Feiden Staff Reporter Michael Garofalo

Director of Digital Pete Pinto Director, Arts & Entertainment Alizah Salario

APRIL 18-24,2019

FERRIES CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 the New York City Transit, despite serving fewer passengers per year than the subway system does each day.

The program is overseen by the city’s Economic Development Corporation, which hired the San Franciscobased company Hornblower to operate the service. As reported by the recently launched nonprofit news outlet The City, the EDC’s deal with Hornblower required the city to purchase the boats to be operated

by Hornblower. On top of Hornblower’s $168.4 million operating contract, the city also committed to spending $232 million to buy 38 ferries, with another $137 million allocated for future boat purchases.

The EDC selected Hornblower over a competing bid that had a higher price tag for operating costs, but did not require the city to purchase boats.

New York City Comptrol-

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Our Town|Eastsider ourtownny.com

TENNIS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 The [EDC]’s contract with NYC Ferry operator Hornblower raises serious questions about the exploding costs and liabilities that the City is choosing to absorb, all while handing over millions in revenue to a private contractor.”

Comptroller Scott Stringer

ler Scott Stringer has called on the city’s Department of Transportation to explore taking over NYC Ferry in light of what he characterized as budgetary and transparency concerns with EDC’s management of the program.

“The Economic Development Corporation’s contract with NYC Ferry operator Hornblower raises serious questions about the exploding costs and liabilities that the City is choosing to absorb, all while handing over millions in revenue to a private contractor — questions that to-date have not

been sufficiently answered,” Stringer said in a statement.

The City Council has requested that the administration provide additional financial reporting on the ferry program as part of ongoing budget negotiations.

The mayor dismissed criticism of EDC’s contracting process at an April 4 press conference. “I think it was a smart approach and I think it will prove to be cost effective,” de Blasio said. He added that NYC Ferry should remain under the purview of EDC “for the immediate future [...] because it’s working.”

at least ten more years. The club will continue to operate and maintain the facility, paying the city either a minimum fee (starting at $1.7 million in its first year and reaching $2 million by year 10) or 35 percent of its annual gross receipts. In 2016, the club paid $2.6 million for use of the facility.

Who Gets to Play?

The decision put a pin in the debate among local politicians, residents and the agency on whether the 1.25-acre Queensboro Oval should be returned to the public as a full-time park.

“While I am disappointed not to be able to open the Queensboro Oval to the public, I am glad that the award reflects concerns I raised with the Parks Department,” said Council Member Ben Kallos, who represents the district encompassing the courts.

Kallos and others argued that the tennis bubble was not accessible to most residents, noting that the property was blocked to the public nine months out of the year, and the hourly rates ranged between $80 and $225 to play. (Though rates could be as low as $15 an hour during the summer session.)

“As a kid walking by and seeing this bubble, I felt like I couldn’t afford to go in,” said Kallos, who grew up on the Upper East Side.

Up until March 2018, there was some discussion about returning the land to the public and turning it into a park with a multi-use turf field and amenities, a project likely costing $6.1 million.

Kallos said despite allocating $1 million in discretionary funding from his office, the department decided to continue to lease the land to a private operator.

Public Hearing Scheduled At this point, Kallos is op-

timistic that the new agreement will be better than the status quo, but thinks more can be done by the Parks Department to provide the public with access to local parks.

“The Upper East Side has some of the least park space per capita in the city, and at least some if not all of the $2 million being paid for this park should be invested in our local parks,” Kallos said.

The length of the public session, cost of court time and the number of public drop-in hours are terms that are still being negotiated, according to Howard.

If residents purchase a season pass from the Parks Department for $100, they can play at Sutton East without additional fees.

A joint public hearing between the Parks Department and the Franchise and Concession Review Board will be held 2:30 p.m. Monday, May 6th, in the 14th floor auditorium at 2 Lafayette Street.

Holy Week & Easter Thursday, April 18 7:30pm - Choral Eucharist followed by stripping of the Altar.

The church will be open until 11:00 PM for private vigils. th

Friday, April 19 12:00pm - Good Friday Liturgy th

Saturday, April 20 9:00pm - Easter Vigil Reception following th

Sunday, April 21 Easter Sunday 10:00am - Festive Choral Eucharist

230 EAST 60 STREET NEW YORK, NY 10022 TEL. (212) 758-0447 FAX. (212) 758-0448 Website: www.allsaintsnyc.org E-mail: info@allsaintsnyc.org TH

st

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APRIL 18-24,2019

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Join the Celebration

75 Years of

No-Kill Action and Compassion A D O P T

A

P E T

T O D AY !

Calendar NYCNOW

A C O O P E R AT I V E A D O P T I O N E V E N T:

M U D D Y PAW S R E S C U E & NORTH SHORE ANIMAL LEAGUE AMERICA

&CXKU #XG 2QTV 9CUJKPIVQP 0; r animalleague.org r r 44

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

EDITOR’S PICK

April 18 - Sep 2 AUSTRIAN MASTERWORKS The Neue Galerie 1048 5th Ave 11:00 a.m. Free neuegalerie.org 212-628-6200 Highlights from the museum’s extensive collection of Austrian art from the period 1890 to 1940 are on view, including major works by Gustav Klimt, Oskar Kokoschka, Alfred Kubin, and Egon Schiele.

NOW OPEN | Free Admission

Smithsonian

National Museum of the American Indian AmericanIndian.si.edu

T.C. Cannon: (1946–1978, Caddo/Kioma), Soldiers (detail), 1970. Oil on canvas. Collection of Arnold and Karen Blair. Š 2019 Estate of T.C. Cannon. Photo by Scott Geffert.

Thu 18

Fri 19

Sat 20

FILM - THEY DRIVE BY NIGHT (1940) â–ş

â–˛ SPRING BREAK AT WEBSTER: COLORING CLUB

FOCUS ON MORONI

96th St Library 112 East 96th St 2:00 p.m. Free In this ďŹ lm, two wildcat drivers — men who buy their trucks on installment plans and then worry that loan sharks will repossess their vehicles — ďŹ nd themselves involved in murder and the mob. Starring George Raft and Humphrey Bogart. nypl.org (212) 289-0908

Webster Library 1465 York Ave 1:00 p.m. Free Come color at Webster in this fun, free activity that kids and adults will both equally enjoy! nypl.org 212-288-5049

The Frick 1 East 70th St Noon Free with museum admission Meet in the Oval Room to hear a ďŹ fteen-minute talk about a portrait from the Moroni exhibition. frick.org 212-288-0700

APRIL 18-24,2019

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Sun 21

Mon 22

Tue 23

ART IN THE ROUND PUBLIC TOURS

SONGBOOK AT LPA: BROADWAY’S FUTURE

FRANK GEHRY IN CONVERSATION WITH PAUL GOLDBERGER

The Guggenheim 1071 Fifth Ave 2:00 p.m Free with museum admission Queer Classicism. Explore the exhibition Implicit Tensions: Mapplethorpe Now. All tours encourage close looking and conversation among participants, while each educator uses creative approaches to build unique, sometimes surprising encounters in the museum.

Meet on the rotunda floor. guggenheim.org 212-423-3500

Library for the Performing Arts 40 Lincoln Center Plaza 6:00 p.m. Free A concert of new music by Broadway composers and lyricists, sung by Broadway vocalists. Produced and directed by John Znidarsic. nypl.org 917-275-6975

92y 1395 Lexington Ave 7:00 p.m. $40 Gehry discusses his life and work with Pulitzer Prizewinning architecture critic, and author of “Building Art: The Life and Work of Frank Gehry,” Paul Goldberger. They’ll talk about Gehry’s early career in Los Angeles and Paris in the 1960s, his iconic cardboard furniture line and the visionary, high-concept buildings that have made him — and continue to make him — the world’s most celebrated and influential architect.

92y.org 212-415-5500

Wed 24 ▲ MELINDA GATES: THE MOMENT OF LIFT

Planning is an important part of life.

JOIN US FOR A COMPLIMENTARY MEAL AND SEMINAR!

WHY PLAN AHEAD? In life, we plan for many important events – vacations, tuition, weddings –

Symphony Space 2537 Broadway 8:00 p.m. $48 Philanthropist and businesswoman Melinda Gates makes her literary debut with “The Moment of Lift,” exploring how female empowerment contributes to the betterment of society. Gates intertwines her own journey with stories of women around the world, passionately advocating for gender equality and blazing a trail to a brighter future. In conversation with author and researcher Brené Brown. symphonyspace.org 212-864-5400

so it also makes sense to plan for the inevitable.

Making funeral arrangements now, before the time of need can help to spare your loved ones from guessing what you would have wanted and protect your family from unnecessary financial stress.

Thursday, April 25, 2019 @ 5:30 pm

FRANK E. CAMPBELL THE FUNERAL CHAPEL 1076 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10028 (212) 288-3500 www.frankecampbell.com Kindly RSVP to William Villanova at 212-288-3500 or Email: william.villanova@dignitymemorial.com New York state law mandates that all contracts for prearranged funeral agreements executed by applicants for or recipients of supplemental social security income or medical assistance be irrevocable. Owned and operated by a subsidiary of Service Corporation International, 1929 Allen Parkway, Houston, Texas 77019. 713-522-5141.

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APRIL 18-24,2019

TELLING THE STORY OF AUSCHWITZ The most comprehensive exhibition about the Nazi death camp ever presented in North America opens at the Museum of Jewish Heritage on May 8

BY CHRISTOPHER MOORE

Bruce Ratner learned the lessons of the Holocaust at an early age.

“It was so much a part of my growing up that it’s almost hard to describe,” Ratner said.

Now he’s helping New York to remember — and learn from — the horror.

Ratner, a famed developer and chairman of the board of trustees of the Museum of Jewish Heritage — A Living Memorial, grew up in Cleveland with an awareness of the slaughter of his ancestors. Ratner’s father sponsored many Holocaust survivors for jobs and Ratner and his brother would accompany his mother as she made the rounds, assisting people in need.

“She would look for apartments for survivors. On Friday nights she would bring them to meals,” Ratner recalled. His brother, Michael, became a world-famous human rights activist and attorney before his death in 2016.

Ratner, who developed Atlantic Yards in Brooklyn, continues his

This child’s shoe and sock found in January 1945 among thousands of others at Auschwitz-Birkenau— abandoned by the Nazis as the Red Army approached. Photo: AuschwitzBirkenau State Museum, Oswiecim, Poland. ©Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum

IF YOU GO WHAT: “Auschwitz: Not long ago.

Not far away.”

WHERE: Museum of Jewish Heritage — A Living Memorial to the Holocaust 36 Battery Place WHEN: May 8, 2019 through Jan. 3, 2020 HOW: Tickets available online at Auschwitz.nyc $16 adults, $12 seniors, $10 students and veterans, $8 museum members family’s mission on May 8. That’s when the museum he helps lead will present an exhibit whose name stresses the relevance: “Auschwitz.

Not long ago. Not far away.”

This will be the most comprehensive Holocaust exhibition about Auschwitz ever presented in North America. An international team of experts, 74 years after the liberation of the concentration camp, uses 700 original objects and 400 photographs to tell the tale of the largest documented mass murder in human history.

“There is something about the authenticity of artifacts that allows you to feel,” Ratner said. “Shoes in particular are interesting. Two very meaningful shoe aspects are here.”

He mentions a pair of red women’s shoes, likely from a woman who died. And then there are the shoes of a four-year-old boy, who took his shoes off before walking into the showers that would kill him.

Before becoming a patron and advocate of the exhibition, Ratner was a visitor. George Klein, a museum trustee, recommended the show, a traveling exhibition which was originated in Madrid and conceived

by Musealia and the AuschwitzBirkenau State Museum. So Ratner traveled to Spain with Abraham Foxman, the national director emeritus of the Anti-Defamation League. They were stunned by what they saw — and now the exhibition

A German-made World War II-era freight car was installed outside of the Museum of Jewish Heritage on March 31. Train cars such as this were used by the Nazis to deport people to Auschwitz and other concentration and extermination camps.

Approximately 80 people were crammed into a freight car. Photo: Museum of Jewish Heritage/John Halpern

Photo: Michael Benabib

History doesn’t exactly repeat itself, but we learn from history.”

Bruce Ratner, chairman of the board of trustees, Museum of Jewish Heritage

is moving to New York for the first stop in North America. Following the stop here, the exhibition is expected to continue to other cities around the world.

“We were so moved by both its impact — its memorable and emotional impact — and the accuracy,” he said.

“We thought it should come to New York City.” He added the exhibit particularly speaks to those who, like Ratner, come from families where relatives fled places full of violence, hate, economic turmoil or racist governments. In this era, one in which refugee numbers are exceeding those after World War II, there’s a fresh resonance to these issues.

“History doesn’t exactly repeat itself, but we learn from history,” Ratner said.

“We have a world where democracy is under attack,” Ratner insisted, “and it’s not only the last two years.

But over the last 10 years we have so

many countries which we thought were going to basically remain democratic, which have now been taken over by dictators essentially.”

That happened in Germany, too, and Ratner said that traveling through the exhibit and learning about that reality becomes a shared experience for visitors. “Walking through the exhibit creates a certain community that makes the artifacts that much more powerful,” he said, pointing to moments where he saw visitors standing quietly around an item and then wondering what exactly that was.

The exhibition, running through Jan. 3, 2020, underscores what hate and discrimination can do, Ratner said. The relevance stings.

“This still happens today,” he said.

“We all thought — there was a famous expression ‘Never Again.’ That was a wish, a vision, and it hasn’t happened.”

APRIL 18-24,2019

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Your Neighborhood News Source

BEYOND BROADWAY - EAST SIDE The #1 online community for NYC theater:

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Repertorio Español presents an inspiring musical about the power of song and self-discovery.

A vibrant satirical odyssey portraying the great exodus of Black Americans out of a country plagued with injustice.

Ronnie Marmo stars as the legendary comedian Lenny Bruce in this solo show directed by Joe Mantegna.

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IRISH REPERTORY THEATRE - 132 W 22ND ST

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14

APRIL 18-24,2019

Our Town|Eastsider ourtownny.com

YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD, YOUR NETWORK WEST SIDE STORIES The country’s largest nonprofit community media center is right here in Manhattan

BY MEREDITH KURZ

The MNN control room. Photo: Meredith Kurz

RESTAURANT INSPECTION RATINGS APR 3 - 9, 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.

Eats

1055 Lexington Ave

Grade Pending (21) Filth flies or food/refuse/sewage-associated (FRSA) flies present in facility’s food and/or non-food areas. Filth flies include house flies, little house flies, blow flies, bottle flies and flesh flies. Food/refuse/sewageassociated flies include fruit flies, drain flies and Phorid flies. Food not protected from potential source of contamination during storage, preparation, transportation, display or service.

Workshop

1415 2nd Ave

A

Tang’s Garden

1328 3rd Ave

Grade Pending (23) Cold food item held above 41º F (smoked fish and reduced oxygen packaged foods above 38 ºF) except during necessary preparation.

Raw, cooked or prepared food is adulterated, contaminated, crosscontaminated, or not discarded in accordance with HACCP plan. Food not protected from potential source of contamination during storage, preparation, transportation, display or service.

Bigoi Venezia

1415 2nd Ave

A

Sashimi Express II

223 E 74th St

A

Caffe Bacio

1223 3 Avenue

A

Wa Jeal

1588 2 Avenue

A

Ramen Meijin

1574 2nd Ave

A

Pitchounette 81

245 E 81St Street

A

Conmigo

1685 1st Ave

A

Akami Sushi

1771 1st Ave

A

Lolitas Kitchen & Burger House

1364 Lexington Ave

A

Yours Truly

1592 3rd Ave

A

Bluestone Lane

2 E 90th St

A

Oaxaca Taqueria

1709 2nd Ave

A

Piatto D’oro

347 E 109th St

Grade Pending (2)

El Nuevo Caridad Restaurant

225759 2nd Ave

A

Bawarchi Indian Cuisine

1546 Madison Ave

A

Dreamers Pizza

1850 3rd Ave

A

“Let’s put on a show!”

Did you know you can learn to create a movie or television show, including production, lighting, and software, in Manhattan? Did you know you can borrow state-of-theart equipment to film your own work out in the field?

Manhattan Neighborhood Network, MNN, is the country’s largest non-profit community media center. MNN courses cover all aspects of production and post-production. The software covered includes Adobe Premiere Suite, Photoshop and iMovie.

There are specialty classes geared toward younger residents on the Upper East Side, and older residents on the Upper West Side. All of this is available to residents for no cost or a very small fee.

Touring the facility on West 59th Street with managing director Greg Sutton, I watched the prep work for “Max and Natalie, Live!” Cohosted by Max Reinhardsen & Natalie Rich, the show has aired on MNN for two years.

Access to MNN allows creatives folks like Max and Natalie to produce on a modest you budget. When y ou o u produce MNN, airing work att MN NN, its ts first air i in ng be must b e on one of their public channels. You are then free to

place the content where you like. Max and Natalie use YouTube, and their show has been covered by Time Out New York, among others.

Classes, Classes and More Classes Tiffany Blount, manager of media education, develops the course curriculum.

“Technology changes minute-by-minute and Tiffany has to be learning, and then creating for each new step,” said Sutton. “There is no longer any ‘pass, fail’ in our classes. If you need further work, we’ll train you until you understand how something works. We want you to succeed,” explained Sutton.

Basic Studio Production is a hands-on course where you learn the process of creating a television production — how to work with crew members, how to operate studio and control room equipment.

There are also certification classes for video editing using iMovie or Adobe Premiere CC, field production with an iPad Mini, a portable HD camera, or the powerful Canon C100 Digital Cine. Advanced classes include motion graphics using Adobe Premiere CC, Directing for the Studio, The Art of Editing using Adobe Premiere CC, and Documentary Storytelling Intensive.

The Older Adult Media Edu-

cation course is “designed for users who are not fluent in the language of new technology,” according to the MNN website. The Youth Media Center on East 104th Street offers courses in the technical, creative and social aspects of production.

There are fundamental skills courses for creating a story, camera and equipment use, and video editing.

Pick Your Channel MNN shows are aired on seven public-access cable channels — Community, Lifestyle, Spirit, Culture (multi-lingual arts-oriented programming), HD Community (high definition), MNNFSTV (free speech) and their latest innovation, the first of its kind, NYXT.nyc.

NYXT.nyc was “created as a way to showcase a growing collection of short stories from a variety of organizations that need your help,” explains the NYXT website.

They’ve partnered with over 90 community organizations to give locals a chance to get a feel for what it’s like to work with the groups. Girls Who Code, Autism Speaks, and Big Brothers Big Sisters are examples of non-profits highlighted on NYXT. In house productions like “Run Don’t Walk,” a series about and a ab out fr ou free e local sports ee spo exercise Manhattan and e ex e ciise iin er n Manhatt ““Finding “F in nding n Silence,” which sshowcases sh o case ow s s quiet spots island, are throughout our isla available on the cha channel as well. well l. classes, or To sign up p for o cla go for more information, informa www.mnn.org to www ww.mn

MNN sstaffers.

Firstt R Row: Leon Taylor, T Barbara Barba Niveyro, Niveyr Victoria Bert, B Be rt, Fran Frances Bruey. Second Seco Row: w Cory Brice, Br Richard Swa Swanson, Greg Sutton.

Sut u ton. Photo: Meredith t Kurz

APRIL 18-24,2019

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Our Town|Eastsider ourtownny.com

Warburg Realty Congratulates SHEILA TRICHTER C E L E B R AT I N G 3 5 Y E A R S I N B U S I N E S S

One of the Ghanian youths who painted the denim that New York teens used to create clothes for Denim Day. Photo: Courtesy of Beauty for Freedom

THE LESSONS OF DENIM DAY SCHOOLS New York teens design and create original fashions as they learn about, and raise awareness of, the global problem of sexual violence

BY EMILY MASON

Old-fashioned Singer sewing machines line the long wooden tables in the design room of the High School of Fashion Industries on West 24th Street. Along the walls hang colorful clothes designed and created by the students.

Every Tuesday, participants in the Denim Day Design Project gather in this room to take part in a program that teaches students professional skills, educates them on sexual assault and violence, and helps them use their passion for design to raise awareness about an issue of international importance.

They are currently designing and sewing unique denim pieces under the guidance of Celestino Couture co-directors and designers, Kade Johnson and Sergio Celestino Guadarrama. Celebrities, including Wade Davis and Indya Moore, will be photogaphed and filmed in the clothes. The clothes will also be displayed at the annual Denim Day rally in Foley Square on April 24th.

A Notorious Legal Decision The global event began in 1992 after a rape conviction in Italy was overturned by the Supreme Court when the

defense argued that the victim was wearing tight jeans, which she must have helped her attacker to remove, implying consent. The outcome gained notoriety over the years, and today people all over the world wear denim on Denim Day to protest sexual violence.

“The way to distract and make a difference and grab attention is by making something beautiful,” Johnson said. “As soon as you make something beautiful and put it out into the world it starts a dialogue when people’s guards are down.”

From Ghana, With Love Beauty for Freedom is a nonprofit committed to providing art therapy to youth who have experienced trauma.

Each summer, the organization travels to Ghana to provide their services to at risk youth and survivors of labor trafficking. This year, Monica Watkins, the founder of Beauty for Freedom, brought denim and paint (donated by Rialto Jean Project) with her to Ghana and hosted a threeday workshop where the Ghanian youths painted the denim. And that is the material the High School of Fashion Industries students are using to create their designs.

“Everyone who has touched this denim has a positive intent to make it mean something beyond waste,” Watkins said. “It was thrown away and then we took it back and it’s being turned into something that is the ultimate gift, which is some-

thing that could potentially save more lives in this fight to end sexual violence.”

Many Lessons to Learn A key component of the program is to mentor the next generation of designers and activists. The students learn from their design directors how to perform couture sewing on a difficult material like denim, and speakers are brought in for their Tuesday workshop. They range from survivors of sexual violence to big-time designers like Michael Costello.

“Our mentoring program is multiple pronged,” Watkins said. [The students] are learning how to conceptualize, create, and execute garments. But they’re also learning these life lessons that they will take with them. I really want the students to take away from this not things just for the moment, but why advocacy is so important.”

In addition to professional guidance, the program is designed to educate students early about sexual violence and abusive relationships.

That is the priority of the Rising Ground Relationship Abuse Prevention Program, which introduces the subject to students in elementary school, according to Connie Marquez, director of Teen Services & Strategic Programming at Rising Ground.

“At any point in which youth are starting to relate and communicate and interact, that’s the time we need to talk about and teach them what respect looks like,” Márquez said.

“Sheila, I am delighted to congratulate you on your 35th anniversary of work here at Warburg Realty.

As a consistent top producer whose deep market knowledge, engaging personality and fine character have made you a pleasure to work with, I can only look forward to another 35 years. I know your hundreds of satisfied clients and customers join me in thanking you for your outstanding performance.”

- Frederick Warburg Peters, CEO

SHEILA TRICHTER | LICENSED ASSOCIATE REAL ESTATE BROKER

STRICHTER@WARBURGREALTY.COM | 212.439.4535 | 654 MADISON AVE, NY, NY 10065 REAL ESTATE BROKERS AND SALESPEOPLE AFFILIATED WITH WARBURG REALTY PARTNERSHIP LTD ARE INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS AND ARE NOT EMPLOYEES OF WARBURG REALTY. EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY.

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Business

RECOVERY AND RETREAT IN MANHATTAN REAL ESTATE In early 2019, the NYC market shifts as sales activity returns

BY FREDERICK W. PETERS

The trajectory of our New York City real estate market since the recession defies national trends.

In this as in almost all things, New York goes its own way. Both supported and buffeted by global market forces, the financial industry, and Silicon Alley, New York has established itself as a center of world commerce, art, and real estate.

When the rest of the country was struggling to recover, Manhattan and Brooklyn were already preparing to soar again. Riding a condominium market propelled forward

by Russian, Chinese and Korean money, and benefiting from a co-op market in which locals found prices reasonable relative to their 2008 levels, the real estate market in the city surged ahead, even as markets languished in most other parts of the tri-state area, not to mention the rest of the country.

But all good things must end. Just as the market here recovered quickly, it began to decline during the latter half of 2015, while the market in many other parts of the country

Photo: Steven Strasser

was finally accelerating. The Russians departed, as their situation at home became increasingly fraught and their ability to make enormous investments in the United States became curtailed. Many high-end condominiums, planned while the market was still accelerating, hit the market just as interest in paying those enormous prices began to

fail. And many of the condos, which had been sold to investors who hoped to rent them, hit the rental market and created a glut of similar properties, driving that market down as well.

The years between 2016 and 2018 saw ever-increasing inventory in most parts of Manhattan, as sellers resisted accepting the changed mar-

ket reality and buyers moved to the sidelines to wait it out. The Brooklyn market was hit less hard than Manhattan. And Queens, especially Long Island City, appealed increasingly to both investors and locals because of its shiny new buildings and subway proximity to midtown Manhattan.

While the market throughout the country continued its recovery, New

York was in retreat.

In the middle of 2018, the slowdown which had hit New York began to impact the rest of the country.

The National Association of Realtors noted the arrival of a buyer’s market throughout much of the country. To New York, that was old news. We were years into the buyer’s market by then, and price capitulation by sellers gained more and more traction every month. Price drop emails clogged every agent’s mailbox. And, little by little, buyers began to respond.

In early 2019, a shift in the New York market became palpable. Fewer price drop emails arrived; more properties went into contract. Average days on market in several price ranges declined out of the hundreds.

As we approach the spring market, a pricing plateau seems to have arrived. New listings, properly priced, once again receive offers in a few weeks and, sometimes, even multiple offers. Real sales activity has returned. No one can predict when this increased activity will begin, again, to nudge prices upward. It may not be soon. But for today, albeit at prices anywhere from 10% to 25% below the highs of 2015, Manhattan has an active market again.

Frederick W. Peters is Chief Executive Officer of Warburg Realty Partnership.

Ask a Broker

AFFORDABLE STAGING OPTIONS

BY ANDREW KRAMER

We had an accepted offer on our Yorkville apartment when we closed on our new place in Harlem, and all of our furniture came with us. Unfortunately that deal fell apart and the apartment is still on the market empty. Our agent continues to suggest that we stage the place to help facilitate a sale. When the quotes of $13,000 to $15,000 for a threemonth furniture and accessories rental, we were in shock. Are there any other staging options that are easy on the wallet?

Furnishing an empty apartment can help facilitate a sale. Photo: Anastassios Mentis

You’ve asked the right one! I’m representing a seller now as their third agent and they’ve been down this road before and refused to go back. Their dated place has lingered on the

market with every flaw in full view, with no furnishings to hide or detract from a potential buyer’s eye. We hit gold when I discovered a resource that sells delicately-used quality furniture and accessories. For less than the cost of one month’s maintenance, we were able to purchase (not rent) beautiful living room and bedroom furniture and accessories including window treatments ... all delivered, installed and house ready! The place never looked better.

Andrew Kramer is a Licensed Associate Real Estate Broker with Brown Harris Stevens. Direct your real estate questions to askandrew@bhsusa.com. You can learn more about Andrew at www.kramernyc.com or by contacting him at 212-317-3634.

APRIL 18-24,2019

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LEADERSHIP LESSONS FROM CAMP CAMPING Who’s really in charge? A counselor reflects on what it’s like for teenagers who supervise kids

BY LAURA MEASHER

Friends at Misty Meadows camp. Photo courtesy of Laura Measher

When I was a kid, I went to Camp Misty Meadows — four summers running, from age 7 to age 11. It was a Girl Scout horse camp in the pine forests of Texas, and I called it paradise. But even paradise had rules. Counselors, omniscient and omnipotent, enforced camp law. And with a giddy kind of hero-worship, we campers obeyed without question.

My third year at Misty Meadows, we had this counselor.

Her camp name was Tink, like Tinker Bell. Tall, pretty and nice to everyone, she was every camper’s dream friend. A small crowd followed her at all times, and there were daily races to her lunch table.

That year, my best friend came to camp with me. To my despair, she was in Tink’s group, and I wasn’t. All summer, I fumed over their apparent friendship. Rather than sit with me, my friend took her prized seat with Tink everyday, leaving me to watch everyone’s favorite counselor talk to my best friend.

Hindsight is funny. Tink was probably 18 years old, humoring her young fan club. The counselors we’d treated like deities were teenagers working a fun summer job. Looking back now, as a counselor myself, I see past the illusion of control.

It’s apparent now: we’re all a little in over our heads.

Last summer I worked at a day camp in Florida. Most weeks, I’m in charge of the Junior Group, ages 5-7. Their antics often remind me of my own camp days.

One particularly stormy day, we took the kids indoors.

Indoors means quiet time.

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Dreading the struggle for silence to come, I jokingly asked if my campers wanted to play naptime: they immediately dropped to the ground and pretended to sleep.

That unquestioning obedience, at least, was something my younger self could relate to.

Yet at 18, working at a summer camp made me realize just how young my counselors had been.

I’d assumed that they were full-fledged adults running the show with little effort. Yet being in the same position myself, that assumption, though handy and adorable, seemed pretty unfounded.

Enforcing a Set of Rules Sometimes, being a counselor is hard. Kids don’t make for monotonous work — every day is something new. As new situations emerge, things I’d assumed were set in stone must be flexible.

Rules are the best example of this. There is a set of rules

all counselors are given to enforce day-to-day. But while as a kid I thought these were fixed in place by the camp gods, I’ve since learned that no, there are people actually in charge who create those guidelines. The thing about rules, though, is that they can’t be stagnant.

For example, when a 5-yearold camper asked me, “Can I text my mom that I’m okay?” I certainly didn’t respond with, “No phones allowed.”

On the other hand, while “No yoga on the paddleboards,” was never a formal rule, “No jumping off the paddleboards” was. When Tree Pose became purposely “falling” into the water, adjustments were made.

As a camper, camp seems like easy work. Rule-enforcing seems like power, not work, and you mostly just show up to find craft tables and activity plans at the ready.

Campers may not realize that these things don’t just manifest themselves. I never

APRIL 18-24,2019 truly considered that Tink would have been behind-thescenes cutting out dozens of construction paper cat ears.

Or that she would’ve taught herself to make friendship bracelets to teach us. Or that she probably spent nights searching, “camp games,” “fun kids crafts,” and “please just tell me a craft with paper towel rolls.”

Yet as much as I discredited my counselors, I inevitably do the same to my campers now. Invariably, the campers always dream up the best crafts and games. Whereas the games you researched the night before, and planned thoroughly, and think will be big hits? Never quite there.

One day of camp, this became abundantly clear. My coworker and I planned a game of Sharks and Minnows for pool time, agreeing on timing and rules. When we called the kids to play, however, we received a chorus of groans. Giving in, we dumped a bucket of numbered rubber ducks into the deep end as toys instead.

Unthinkingly, I said, “Find number 17!” To my awe, the kids scrambled to do so, wa-

19

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Laura Measher today. Photo courtesy of Laura Measher

Sometimes it feels like what you really learn as a camp counselor is seeing different perspectives. As a kid, counselors were adults with everything figured out; as a counselor, I know things like college and writing are only just starting to make sense.

ter arcing through the air. We called number after number, for the rest of pool time.

Sometimes it feels like what you really learn as a camp counselor is seeing different perspectives. As a kid, counselors were adults with everything figured out; as a counselor, I know things like college and writing are only just starting to make sense.

Even the people I look up to as role models today are humans, with their own problems to figure out.

I also know not to underestimate kids. Their perspective, sometimes forgotten in the rush of planning and line-leading and instructing, is the most important part of camp. As a kid, I didn’t see my counselors for who they were, but I certainly don’t have an unbiased view of my campers today. Their ideas and attitudes drive summer camp — after all, we’re all there for them.

As a camper, I thought it was the counselors who were the all-powerful controllers of camp life. As a counselor, I’ve learned that it’s the other way around.

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Bill de Blasio has traveled to early primary states but draws sparse crowds — and opposition from NYC voters

BY KAREN MATTHEWS

At 6 feet, 5 inches tall, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio stands out in a crowd.

But does he have any shot of standing out in the packed ďŹ eld of potential Democratic candidates for president?

A would-be progressive standard bearer, de Blasio has spent the past few months exploring a run, traveling to events in early primary states including New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada, and appearing on “The Simpsons� and “The View.�

So far, scant evidence of enthusiasm for his candidacy has emerged. He’s drawn sparse crowds — or no crowds at all — at his out-ofstate speaking engagements.

A recent Quinnipiac University poll found 76% of New York City voters believe their mayor should not run.

The headlines chronicling his flirtations with the race have been snarky at best, including The New Republic ‘s “Bill de Blasio’s Embarrassing Quest for National Fame.�

De Blasio has been undeterred. “I’m glad I could unify the people of New York City,� he quipped when asked about the Quinnipiac poll.

Observers of New York politics say even if de Blasio doesn’t have much chance of winning, a run could raise his proďŹ le and possibly position him for a role in another Democrat’s administration. “Part of what he’s doing is campaigning for a chance to be in the Cabinet or maybe an ambassador,â€? said Mitchell Moss, an urban policy professor at New York University and onetime adviser to de Blasio’s predecessor, Michael Bloomberg.

Term limits prevent De Blasio, 57, from running for mayor again after 2021.

Mayor Bill de Blasio announced $500 million resiliency plan to protect Lower Manhattan from climate change at on Thursday, March 14.

Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office

“When you’re term-limited and you’re looking for a new job, why not try the obvious path? It’s free publicity,� said veteran political consultant George Arzt.

A former city councilman, public advocate and federal housing official, de Blasio was elected in 2013 pledging to ďŹ ght the inequities he said had turned New York into “two cities,â€? one rigged to beneďŹ t the rich, one impossible to navigate for the poor.

In office, de Blasio won praise for expanding full-day prekindergarten citywide and for curtailing stop-andfrisk policing. But he also developed a reputation for selfinicted wounds.

Early in his tenure, he offended the governor, fellow Democrat Andrew Cuomo, who then spent years taking every opportunity to embarrass and belittle de Blasio.

Federal prosecutors investigated de Blasio’s political operation over possible campaign ďŹ nance law violations before deciding not to press charges. Two donors pleaded guilty to charges related to contributions to de Blasio.

He easily won re-election in 2017, but liberals turned elsewhere for inspiration.

He has governed more like a business-friendly centrist than some of his liberal supporters expected. He backed a deal to offer Amazon nearly $3 billion in incentives for a headquarters in New York, only to see the deal collapse when the company got frus-

trated with local opposition.

A March 11 Monmouth poll found that 18% of Democratic voters nationwide had a favorable opinion of de Blasio while 24% have an unfavorable view.

Still, de Blasio has pulled off come-from-behind wins before, including in 2009 when he ran for the citywide position of public advocate.

Arzt, who was de Blasio’s spokesman during that race, remembers feeling dejected when a poll pegged de Blasio’s support at 9% of likely Demprimary voters, compared to 42% for the front-runner. “He didn’t lose any sense of optimism,â€? Arzt said. “He just looked at it and said, ‘That’s the highest he gets and that’s our oor.’ And he won.â€?

Asked Friday in a radio interview whether he is contemplating running for president, de Blasio reiterated that he has “not ruled it out.�

In hinting at a White House campaign, de Blasio joins a long line of New York City mayors who have run for president or irted with doing so, including John Lindsay in 1972, Rudy Giuliani in 2008 and Bloomberg, who announced last month he would not seek the 2020 Democratic nomination. “There is something about being mayor of New York that makes them all feel they should be and could be president,â€? Moss said.

None were able to make the leap. De Blasio may or may not be the next to try.

APRIL 18-24,2019

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YOUR 15 MINUTES

To read about other people who have had their “15 Minutes” go to ourtownny.com/15 minutes

NUREYEV: WITHOUT PRECEDENT OR EQUAL A new documentary captures the extraordinary life and art of the dancer for whom the world truly was a stage

BY MARY GREGORY

“How can we know the dancer from the dance?” asks W.B. Yeats in his 1926 poem, “Among School Children.” It’s a tough question about art and artists and where one begins and the other ends. In the case of Rudolf Nureyev, the dancer was the dance, we see in “Nureyev,” a complex, moving portrayal created by the accomplished documentary filmmakers Jacqui and David Morris. “Nureyev” makes its debut in New York on April 23rd. It’s a gorgeous, affecting combination of dance, music, memories and imagery that combine to transcend one story, and instead, tell many.

With his movie-star looks, brilliant artistry, indomitable nature and passion, Nureyev was a tempest of cultural, political and personal energy colliding in a kind of spectacular supernova, illuminating a path across the globe. We sometimes think of the artist as apart from society — a visionary, a lone voice rising above the din — but the directors present the complicated reality behind this romantic myth.

In portraying the life of Nureyev, the Morrises have managed to tell the story of an individual, an art form, a tense political era, and a sweeping, volatile arc of history that covers most of the 20th century.

Through never-before-seen footage, specially commissioned contempo-

Jacqui Morris and her brother David commissioned contemporary dance sequences for their Nureyev documentary.

rary dance sequences, beautiful sets, an original score, interviews with artists from around the world facilitated by the cooperation of the Nureyev Foundation, and copious research, the directors have created a remarkable hybrid documentary/ feature film/work of art. Defection, famous partners and lovers, rulebreaking, risk-taking, screaming fans like those of the Beatles — it’s all here, and more. For Nureyev, the subject of artists like Avedon, Warhol and Wyeth, friend of the Queen of England and Mick Jagger, all the world was a stage, and his performance was without precedent or equal.

This is the third documentary by the BAFTA-nominated sister/brother team. Their first, which played at MoMA in 2015, featured Don McCullin, the renowned photojournalist, now the subject of a retrospective in London’s Tate Gallery. The second, “Attacking the Devil,” recounted Sir Harold Evans’ editorial campaign for compensation for victims of thalidomide exposure. They spoke with Straus News about “Nureyev,” the film and the man. The interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Why Nureyev and why now?

David Morris: Our three documentaries are all about very strong characters. They’ve all got something in common, in that they all came from nowhere, really. This time we wanted something a bit lighter, and that was Nureyev. No one else had quite the epic Russian novel kind of life, escaping the Nazis in 1941, and then ending up at [London’s] Royal Ballet.

There’s not a dull moment in his life.

David Morris and his sister Jacqui spent the better part of three years making the film.

Rudolf Nureyev. Photograph by Richard Avedon, © The Richard Avedon Foundation

How long did it take to make the film?

Jacqui Morris: The best part of three years. With feature documentaries, you don’t start with a script.

As you’re working you sort of go off down one avenue, and then you interview someone and that person tells you something really interesting. So, you could scrap the last three months’ work. It’s an incredibly long process. We had to source never seen before footage, and that takes time.

Can you tell us about that?

JM: We approached the Nureyev Foundation, and sent them our other films. They absolutely loved them. We were sent 20 big boxes of old tapes and things that were around in the 1970s and ‘80s, just rotting away. Nureyev had this entourage of slightly older, wealthy ladies that would accompany him on these world trips. He allowed them to film from the wings and the audience. So, we’d find an old tape that would have something on it, and you’d think it was over. There’d be a great big black bit in the middle, and then right at the end, maybe three minutes would appear that one of these ladies filmed from the wings, and it was an absolute gem.

Why does the nature of dance make it especially importance to document?

DM: When Elvis Presley died, you

still had recordings. You can still hear him on the radio. Because dance is ephemeral, it just evaporates unless you can track down these bits, these sort of snippets of time travel that allow you to stretch back in time.

You chose to tell many of the moments from Nureyev’s life through a series of contemporary dances. Why? JM: In all our documentaries, we try to make them as theatrical as possible. When we started making this, we knew there wouldn’t be any archives of his younger days. So, instead of just re-creating those scenes with actors or having someone tell us what it was like, we thought we would use dance. We approached one of the UK’s most celebrated choreographers, Russell Maliphant, and he came on board straightaway. It was to give it a lovely theatrical feel — a kind of hybrid doc and drama.

What did Nureyev have that no one before or since has?

JM: He was a brilliant dancer. He was an incredible force of nature.

Everything was there at the right time for him.

DM: Somebody described him and said you could literally not know that he had walked into a room, but you could feel the atmosphere

change. Even if you weren’t looking, you could just feel everything bristle.

What do you hope the film brings to the New York audience?

JM: It would be lovely if it put ballet on the map again, but the bigger story is Nureyev went out there, and he did it his way.

DM: Specifically, for the New York audience, it’s showing those American choreographers that he worked with.

JM: Martha Graham, Paul Taylor, and Murray Louis.

DM: Those are all unseen archives ... they’ve never been broadcast. It was quite underground at the time.

Specifically, for New York, I think it’s to bring him home in that sense, to show he was doing that. Nureyev wasn’t just interested in conventional ballet. He wanted to push boundaries all over the place. That’s an aspect that most people don’t know.

Hopefully they’ll have a better idea now.

“Nureyev” will be shown Apr. 23, 7 p.m., at The Landmark at 57 West, 657 West 57th St. at Twelfth Ave.

Know somebody who deserves their 15 Minutes of fame? Go to ourtownny.com and click on submit a press release or announcement.

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50. Exaggerates 51. Southwest Asian 52. Alternative word 53. Biological pocket 54. Large lake 55. Contributes 56. ___ Wednesday 57. Bird noses Down 1. Head honcho 2. See at a distance 3. Zest 4. Makes 5. Conquer 6. Way off 7. Wounding 8. Small building with a roof in a park 9. Not many 10. Big Dipper 11. Decayed 20. Type of camper 22. Augusta locale 24. Ceiling 25. Go off

Y U I S V A F P G I L C T A M

L N E I M R N M Y O Y A R N V

57

B S L W A T E R C O L O R S R

E W R Q F S E W B X M S O L P

56

C N M G M N R K Z U E G I G N

T T M K K P R L A J H D S V N

55

6 5

WORD SEARCH by Myles Mellor

S D D Z S X P J U D Z A L T H

54

6

A A T D Y L V F K R N E I W L

53

7

P E T C R I I W O L Q B O T A

51

52

4

4

49

X R Z P P R F C C R A Y O N S

48

V H J R L V E V N A F H J R U

47

E T Z G P F V T D E I E C E M

50

46

E R R R L Q Z Z T Y P R K T Z

45

Level: Medium

1

2

Y U I S V A F P G I L C T A M

44

Across 1. Muscular strength 5. NY village, with Harbor 8. Showy trinket 12. Capital on a fjord 13. ET carrier 14. 60’s hairdo 15. Train 16. Block 17. Salsa quality 18. Accord 19. Road up to a house 21. Symbol on an Australian coin 23. Get 24. Tenant 27. Mystical knowledge 31. Be a pain 32. “___ to Autumn” 33. Ancient Greek weight 37. Bow (to) 40. Roman 3 41. Exasperation 42. Disdain 46. Birthplaces of fungi

7

41

B S L W A T E R C O L O R S R

43

5

39

C N M G M N R K Z U E G I G N

40

38

E

37

S

36

I

35

B

34

1

1

32

33

42

30

E

31

29

R

28

5

E

27

2

N

26

1

54

25

23

9

57

24

22

6 1

H

21

20

4

4

C

19

2 3

5

A

18

7

S

17

9

S

16

1

A

15

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.

53

14

11

56

13

10

U

12

9

S

8

E

7

D

6

I

5

D

4

L

3

SUDOKU by Myles Mellor and Susan Flanagan

by Myles Mellor

A

2

CROSSWORD

52

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APRIL 18-24,2019

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APRIL 18-24,2019

CLASSIFIEDS PUBLIC NOTICES

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PUBLIC NOTICES

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POLICY NOTICE: We make every eort to avoid mistakes in your classiďŹ ed ads. Check your ad the ďŹ rst week it runs. The publication w only accept responsibility for the ďŹ rst incorrect insertion. The publication assumes no ďŹ nancial responsibility for errors or omissions. reserve the right to edit, reject, or re-classify any ad. Contact your sales rep directly for any copy changes. All classiďŹ ed ads are pre-pa

MASSAGE

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In accordance with Section 1-13 of the Concession Rules of the City of New York, the New York City 'HSDUWPHQW RI 3DUNV DQG 5HFUHDWLRQ Âł3DUNV´ LV LVVXLQJ DV RI WKH GDWH RI WKLV QRWLFH D VLJQLÂżFDQW Request for Proposals (“RFPâ€?) for the renovation, operation and mainte-nance of an outdoor cafĂŠ and snack bar, at Conservatory Water in Central Park, Manhattan.

There will be a recommended proposer site tour on Tuesday, April 23, 2019 at 11:30 a.m. We will be meeting at the proposed concession site (Block # 1111 & Lot #1), Conservatory Water, which is located in Central Park at about East 74th Street in the borough of Man-hattan. If you are considering responding to this RFP, please make every effort to attend this recommended meeting. All proposals submitted in response to this RFP must be submitted no later than Monday, June 3, 2019 at 3:00 p.m.

Hard copies of the RFP can be obtained, at no cost, commencing on Friday, April 12, 2019 through Monday, June 3, 2019, between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., excluding weekends and holidays, at the Revenue Division of the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, which is located at 830 Fifth Avenue, Room 407, New York, NY 10065.

The RFP is also available for download, on Friday, April 12, 2019 through Monday, June 3, 2019, on Parks’ website. To download the RFP, visit http://www.nyc.gov/parks/businessop-portunities and click on the “Concessions Opportunities at Parks� link. Once you have logged in, click on the “download� link that appears adjacent to the RFP’s description.

For more information or to request to receive a copy of the RFP by mail, prospective proposers may contact Eric Weiss, Project Manager, at (212) 360-3483 or at eric.weiss@parks.nyc.gov

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