Our Town February 5th, 2015

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The local paper for the Upper er East Side THINK YOU KNOW CENTRAL PARK? <TAKE OUR QUIZ, P.7

FRICK FIGHT GOES ONLINE NEWS New digital campaigns by the museum and its opponents BY GABRIELLE ALFIERO

The battle over the Frick Collection’s much-debated expansion plan continues, with the museum and its opponents going online to rally support.

Unite to Save the Frick, a coalition fighting the proposed expansion, launched an online petition in September, amassing 3,600 signatures to date. Now, the Frick Collection is advocating its expansion plan with a quiet rollout of a website dedicated to its contested proposal. Frickfuture.org outlines the East 70th Street insti-

tution’s proposal, which includes a six-story structure that has been hotly contested by the neighboring community, preservationist groups and critics since the museum first announced its plans in June. Launched Jan. 30, the website details the renovation and outlines what the institution has flagged as priorities since announcing the construction project, including access to the mansion’s second-f loor residential rooms, a first for the 80-year-old museum, and space for special exhibitions (presently, the museum must remove works in its permanent collection to accommodate visiting shows of larger pieces). For its part, Unite to Save

CONTINUED ON PAGE 7

Caption: Ian Wardropper, Director of The Frick Collection; photo: Michael Bodycomb A recent photograph of The Frick Collection (above) juxtaposed with a rendering of the proposed plan illustrating the same view (below). Photograph Michael Bodycomb; artist’s rendering courtesy Neoscape Inc., 2014.

When the D.A.’s office failed to win a conviction of the driver who killed Alan Dershowitz’s sister-in-law, victims’ families say it made prosecutors gun-shy about future cases. A civil trial starting this week rekindles the debate.

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2015

OURTOWNNY.COM

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DE BLASIO RETURNS TO HIS ROOTS

NEWS

Do you know where this is?

5-11 In Brief

DERSHOWITZ TRAFFIC-DEATH CASE HEADED TO TRIAL

Families for Safe Streets staged a rally Sunday calling on New York district attorneys to take more seriously cases where reckless drivers kill or injure pedestrians. Photo by Daniel Fitzsimmons

WEEK OF FEBRUARY

BY KYLE POPE

A traffic-death case that has become a rallying cry for fami-

lies who have lost loved ones to pedestrian crashes goes to trial this week in a Manhattan federal court. Marilyn Dershowitz – the sisterin-law of famed trial lawyer Alan Dershowitz – was killed in 2011 while bicycling in Chelsea with her husband, Nathan. She was struck by the driver of a post office truck, who then faced criminal charges of leaving the scene of the accident. A jury cleared the driver a year later after less than a day of

After a first year that can best be described as challenging for New York’s new mayor, Bill de Blasio’s State of the City address on Tuesday returned to the theme that got him elected in the first place. In a speech at Baruch College in Manhattan, de Blasio made quick work of the laundry list of accomplishments that usually dominate the traditional startof-the-year mayoral address. Instead, he spent most of his time reprising the “Tale of Two Cities” theme of his election campaign, zeroing in on the high price of housing. “While the state of our city is strong, we face a profound challenge,” he said. “If we fail to be a city for everyone, we risk losing what makes New York, New York. We risk losing the very soul of this place.” In one sense, de Blasio’s reemphasis on housing represented smart politics. City housing is one area of policy over which the mayor has near-complete control -- a necessity given his continuing spats with Gov. Andrew Cuomo and uncertainty stemming from the loss of city-friendly Sheldon Silver in the speaker’s seat. The mayor, for instance, said in the address that he will use city zoning laws to require that developers include affordable housing options in their plans. “We need stronger rent regulations that reflect today’s New York,” he said. “To preserve our city as a place for everyone.”

CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

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2 Our Town FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015

NEIGHBORHOOD NEWS CHECK NEW YORK WAGE BOARD SUGGESTS $7.50 WAGE FOR TIPPED WORKERS Restaurant servers and other tipped workers in New York state would make $7.50 an hour before tips under a proposal recommended by a state wage board Friday. The proposal from the state Wage Board would go into effect Dec. 31 if approved by Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s labor commissioner. That looks likely to happen after Cuomo signaled his support Friday. “For far too long, wages for tipped workers in New York State have been too low,� Cuomo said in a statement.

“Today the Wage Board has recommended a course that begins to rectify that.â€? State law allows restaurants, hotels and other hospitality businesses to pay tipped workers less than the minimum wage as long as gratuities make up the difference. Servers are now paid an hourly wage of $5. The state’s minimum wage rose to $8.75 at the end of 2014 and is set to go to $9 at the end of the year. Restaurant owners had warned that a sharp increase in the so-called tipped wage would signiďŹ cantly increase labor costs and force some to either cut positions or raise menu prices. On Friday Melissa Fleischut, president of the New York

State Restaurant Association called the recommended increase “outrageous and unprecedented.â€? “Nobody won today,â€? she said, predicting that restaurant owners would be forced to reduce pay for non-tipped workers and cut hours for servers in response. To ease the burden of higher labor costs on employers, the Wage Board also voted to allow businesses to pay workers a dollar per hour less — or $6.50 — if they make signiďŹ cantly more than the minimum wage when tips are factored in. Labor advocates wanted the tipped wage eliminated altogether so servers would make the standard minimum wage before tips. “We would have been thrilled by the elimination, but this is a signiďŹ cant increase,â€? said Sara Niccoli, director of the LaborReligion Coalition of New York State. Niccoli and others pushing for higher wages are urging the Cuomo administration to reject the recommendation that businesses could pay highertipped workers $6.50 an hour. The group (hash)OneFairWage, a coalition of servers and several labor advocacy groups, said

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the recommendation would be difficult to enforce. Timothy Grippen, chairman of the three-member board, said the panel tried to listen to both sides before making a decision. “It’s fair for employees and for employers both,â€? he said of the $7.50 recommendation. “It’s a compromise.â€? Lawmakers are expected to debate another increase — and whether to give New York City authority to raise it even higher. The Wage Board recommendation includes a provision that would raise the tipped wage to $8.50 in New York City if the city is allowed to raise its wage higher than the state. AP Parking Garage to be Converted to Luxury Condos The Daily News reported that the owner of a parking garage at 152 East 87th Street received ďŹ nal approval from the Board of Standards and Appeals to convert the site to residential use, and will build a 19-story luxury apartment complex on top of where the garage currently sits. The garage will still operate but will reduce the number of spaces from 510 to 150, and the Budget Rent A Car operating there will leave the location.

The proposed residental unit will contain up to 60 units. Daily News

ATTORNEY SUES HIS RAPE ACCUSER Sanford Rubenstein, the highpowered lawyer retained by the family of Eric Garner and often in the company of Al Sharpton, ďŹ led a defamation suit against a woman who said he raped her at his apartment in October of last year. The woman ďŹ led a police report stating that Rubenstein sexually assaulted her after a party celebrating Sharpton’s birthday at the Four Seasons Hotel. She and a friend went to Rubenstein’s Upper East Side penthouse after the party, which is where she alleges the assault took place. The Manhattan District Attorney’s office declined to ďŹ le charges against Rubenstein, citing a lack of available evidence. Now Rubenstein is suing the woman seeking unspeciďŹ ed monetary damages and demanding that she recount details of the alleged event as well as details of her personal life and medical history. New York Post

NYPD SAYS COUNTERTERROR OFFICERS WILL NOT POLICE PROTESTS New York Police Department officials say 300 to 350 officers will receive special training in counterterrorism tactics — but they won’t be used to police protests. Department spokesman Stephen Davis says Friday the group will learn how to respond to active threats like the attack earlier this month in Paris. They’ll be armed with assault ries and protective gear and will visit sensitive locations like the Empire State Building regularly. That so-called “critical responseâ€? show of force is currently done by precinct officers from the ďŹ ve boroughs. Davis says another cohort of about 300 officers currently assigned to borough task forces will be used to supplement protest policing and other assignments. Commissioner William Bratton announced changes to the department’s organization in a speech Thursday to the Police Foundation. AP

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FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015 Our Town 3

CRIME WATCH BY JERRY DANZIG

DECADES AFTER DIS- 19TH PRECINCT APPEARANCE, BOY’S Report covering the week 1/19/2015 through 1/25/2015 MURDER TRIAL OPENS Thirty-five years after a 6-year-old boy disappeared in Manhattan, ushering in an era of protectiveness for America’s children, trial began Friday for a mentally ill man with a low IQ who confessed to his murder and kidnapping. Etan Patz was a “tiny man with a big heart” whose life was snuffed out by a worker in the corner candy store on the first day he was allowed to walk alone to catch his bus to school, a prosecutor said. “You will see and hear his chilling confession,” Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Joan Illuzzi-Orbon told jurors. “What you will see is someone who very keenly controls the information that he puts out.” The defense of Pedro Hernandez, 54, of Maple Shade, New Jersey, depends on convincing jurors his confession was false. “He has visions. He hears voices,” defense lawyer Harvey Fishbein said. “He cannot distinguish between what is real and what is not.” Etan was last seen alive walking to the bus stop in 1979. His body has never been found, and memories can falter with the passage of time. But the prosecutor told jurors that Hernandez, a teenager at the time of the crime, implicated himself long before police questioned him. Etan’s disappearance prompted changes in how police and parents think of missing children. His face became one of the first to appear on milk cartons. His parents advocated for legislation that created a nationwide law-enforcement framework to address such cases. The day of his disappearance is now National Missing

Week to Date

Year to Date

2015 2014

% Change

2015

2014

% Change

Murder

0

0

n/a

0

0

n/a

Rape

0

0

n/a

1

0

n/a

Robbery

2

0

n/a

6

4

50

Felony Assault

1

1

0

5

9

-44.4

Burglary

4

6

-33.3

7

22

-68.2

Grand Larceny

32

16

100

90

83

8.4

Grand Larceny Auto

0

1

-100

5

3

66.7

Children’s Day. The trial is expected to last up to three months.

CELL KNELL Thieves have been going right to the source to steal cell phones. At 7 p.m. on Friday, January 23, unknown perpetrators removed five cell phones with a total value of $2,896 from a display in a local wireless store. Stolen were three Samsung phones, one Apple, and one LG. Video is available of the robbery.

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STROLLER STRIKE A bad guy has to sink pretty low to steal a man’s stroller! Between 5 and 6 p.m. on Thursday, January 22, a 45-year-old man was inside the library on 67th Street, having left his stroller outside on the sidewalk. When he came out at 6 p.m., his stroller was missing. It was valued at $1,632. Unfortunately, there is no video of the theft.

PUNCH-DRUNK PASSENGER

One cabbie paid the price when he turned away a passenger under the influence. At 12:30 p.m. on Friday, January 30, a 36-year-old male cabbie refused to provide a ride to an inebriated passenger, saying he didn’t allow drinking in his cab. The rejected passenger did not take kindly to the cabbie’s refusal and reached through the driver’s side window to punch the hack in the head, causing swelling of his temple. The angry passenger then fled in an unknown direction.

IRT (INTERBOROUGH ROBBER TRANSACTIONS) It pays to keep an eye on your bank statements -- or have your assistant do it! On Thursday, January 29, a 59-yearold female Upper East Side resident reported to police that her assistant had informed her that between January 16 and 22, unknown perpetrators had made two unauthorized withdrawals against her bank account in Queens and Brooklyn, totaling $9,000. Police said an investigation is ongoing.

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4 Our Town FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015

Useful Contacts POLICE NYPD 19th Precinct

153 E. 67th St.

212-452-0600

FDNY 22 Ladder Co 13

159 E. 85th St.

311

FDNY Engine 39/Ladder 16

157 E. 67th St.

311

FDNY Engine 53/Ladder 43

1836 2nd Ave.

311

FDNY Engine 44

221 E. 75th St

311

FIRE

PRIVATE MONEY, PUBLIC PARKS NEWS Council member seeks bills that will help solve New York’s park equity problem

CITY COUNCIL Councilmember Daniel Garodnick

211 E. 43rd St. #1205

212-818-0580

Councilmember Ben Kallos

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 2nd Ave.

212-490-9535

Assembly Member Dan Quart

360 E. 57th St.

212-605-0937

Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright

1365 1st Ave.

212-288-4607

COMMUNITY BOARD 8

505 Park Ave. #620

212-758-4340

LIBRARIES Yorkville

222 E. 79th St.

212-744-5824

96th Street

112 E. 96th St.

212-289-0908

67th Street

328 E. 67th St.

212-734-1717

Webster Library

1465 York Avenue

212-288-5049

100 E. 77th St.

212-434-2000

HOSPITALS Lenox Hill NY-Presbyterian / Weill Cornell

525 E. 68th St.

212-746-5454

Mount Sinai

E. 99th St. & Madison Ave.

212-241-6500

NYU Langone

550 1st Ave.

212-263-7300

CON EDISON

4 Irving Place

212-460-4600

POST OFFICES US Post Office

1283 1st Ave.

212-517-8361

US Post Office

1617 3rd Ave.

212-369-2747

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BY DANIEL FITZSIMMONS

Council member Mark Levine wants to solve New York’s park equity problem. But before he can do that, he said, he needs to know just how deep the problem runs. New York City has more than 1,700 parks, playgrounds and recreational facilities across the five boroughs. Of those, only a handful are well-funded and maintained by conservancies, which are private, nonprofit organizations that enter into agreements with the parks department on the upkeep and programming of a particular public space. The majority of parks, by contrast, are forced to make do with the department’s limited resources and backlog of work orders. The disparity between these well-endowed parks and the less-affluent ones, especially in the outer boroughs, has led to a debate among urbanists, community advocates and elected officials about how the city’s resources, both private and public, should be distributed. To that end, Levine recently introduced a bill that would require park conservancies to detail their revenue – much of it in the form of donations - and expenditures on an annual basis to the parks commissioner, who would create a report on all conservancies for the city council. The report will itemize monetary and material donations made by individuals and organizations to a particular conservancy, as well as how the conservancies allocate those resources. Levine introduced a similar bill that would require the same disclosures of the parks department. Together, he said, they form the bedrock for identifying how vast the funding disparity is between the city’s parks and how the parks department allocates what money it has for maintenance and programming across its jurisdiction. “I know what the parks department’s annual budget is,” said Levine, “but I can’t tell you how exactly they spend that money.” Eventually, Levine said, the information will be used to put in place a plan that addresses the park equity problem.

“To really understand how big the gap is, we have to understand how much private money is going into parks and how much public money is going into the parks,” said Levine, who is chair of the council’s parks committee. The bill concerning conservancies would affect organizations that enter into or renew an agreement with the parks department after July 1, 2015. Anonymous donors to conservancies would not be identified in the annual report, which would be released to the public every fall. As non-profits, conservancies currently disclose this information, said Levine, but such disclosures are currently haphazard and sporadic. For instance, he said, park conservancies report this information on tax documents but in different cycles and sometimes up to 18 months after the period in question. Levine said the bill isn’t aimed at any one conservancy, but “as a group, they have different fiscal years and they report on different cycles.”

Central Park is one of the city’s most well-funded parks; its conservancy says it would support a bill to make park funding more transparent.

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The bill essentially brings into line conservancies’ fiscal reporting with the city’s budget schedule, “so we can start making apples to apples comparisons between public and private spending,” said Levine. The Central Park Conservancy, easily the most high-profile and well-funded of the city’s private park conservancies, declined to comment on the bill “other than to say that we support it,” said a conservancy spokesperson. Friends of the High Line testified at the parks committee hearing in support of Levine’s bill, and the Central Park Conservancy has made comments to the press in support of the bill, according to Levine. “I’ve been really pleased to hear reports that conservancies are on board with this, are not opposed, and are all pledging to comply,” he said. Levine said the conservancy bill was laid over for further discussion by the committee.

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6 Our Town FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015

DERSHOWITZ TRAFFIC-DEATH CASE CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 deliberation. That loss by the Manhattan district attorney’s office has since been seized on by families of people who have been killed in pedestrian deaths. They claim that the D.A.’s highprofile loss in the Dershowitz case made prosecutors gunshy about pursuing subsequent pedestrian-death cases, even ones where the driver clearly is at fault. A spokeswoman for Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance denied any chilling effect as a result of the Dershowitz case. “In the strongest terms possible, the DA’s Office does not view this acquittal by a trial jury as a ‘loss,’ nor is ‘inuence’ ever a factor in making charging decisions,â€? the spokeswoman, Joan Vollero, said. Nevertheless, the fact remains that in New York, drivers who kill pedestrians or bicyclists are much less likely to be prosecuted than drivers who live in other states. Fewer than 7 percent of drivers in fatal crashes are even ticketed, and only a tiny fraction – usually only those driving drunk – face any criminal charges. “Drivers need to be held accountable,â€? said Dana Lerner, an Upper West Sider whose 9-year-old son, Cooper, was killed just over a year ago while crossing the street with his father. “There’s this idea out there that people who drive will not convict other drivers, and that is a problem.â€? Lerner is a member of Fami-

Central Park lies for Safe Streets, an advocacy group that has focused on the lack of prosecution. The group earlier this year held a rally at City Hall to raise awareness of the issue, and one of its members in January loudly confronted Vance at a Crain’s breakfast, asking him why he isn’t doing more. Lerner said the families are hoping that if the Dershowitz family wins the civil trial, it will put added pressure on Vance to change his approach. “I hope that the message is that there has to be a way to look at these things criminally,â€? she said. “Maybe if this case is won, he will reconsider.â€? In the civil case, Nathan Dershowitz, the brother of Alan Dershowitz, who is himself an attorney in Manhattan, is suing the federal government for wrongful death (because the driver was a postal service employee) and is seeking $17 million in damages. In a brief telephone conversation, Dershowitz declined to comment, saying he would not speak about the matter until after he has testiďŹ ed in the trial. His lawyer, Ben Rubinowitz, said he expected the trial to last two weeks. Nathan and Marilyn Dershowitz had been married 48 years at the time of the accident, having met as children at summer camp when she was 13 and he was 12. They married in college and had two children. On the July 4th weekend in 2011, they left their Tudor City home to take advantage of a quiet holiday weekend and ride their bikes together. They made their way to Manhattan’s West Side, crossing 9th Avenue on 29th Street. It was on that

block that Marilyn was struck by a postal service truck, and died shortly after arriving at the hospital. The driver of the truck, Ian Clement, stopped briey after the accident, after feeling “a bumpâ€? in the road, then drove away, ignoring honks from other drivers and screams from bystanders rushing to Dershowitz’s aid. It took Clement two hours to tell a supervisor, “I think I’m the guy you’re looking for.â€? Despite that, the jury cleared Clement of leaving the scene, and his lawyers argued that the case only went to trial because the Dershowitzs put pressure on the D.A’s office to pursue the case. “There was influence placed on the D.A.’s office,â€? Clement’s lawyer said at the start of the trial, though he never offered proof of that inuence. Ironically, the high proďŹ le of the Dershowitz family did end up being a factor in the case – though not in the way Clement’s lawyer had claimed. The families now say that the loss of the criminal case involving such a high-proďŹ le victim – as well as sharp post-trial criticism by Nathan Dershowitz about how the D.A. tried the case – helped create a climate in which not a single high-proďŹ le prosecution has been pursued by Vance, despite a number of well-chronicled deaths, including that of Dana Lerner’s son. Lerner said the arrival of the civil trial now, in the midst of an aggressive Vision Zero push by Mayor Bill de Blasio, gives her hope that a verdict in favor of the Dershowitzs could begin to change people’s minds on what she and others have come

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On Valentine’s Day, come and watch artists from Okamoto Studio carve more than 3,000 pounds of ice into glistening sculptures. Experience a 1980s-themed silent disco with live DJs and colorful lights at nightfall. Sat 2/14: 3 - 7 p.m. Naumburg Bandshell area.

WALKING TOURS

SLEDDING Grab your sleds and head to the slopes of Central Park for some winter fun in the recent snow! Pilgrim Hill has the steepest slopes and is the best place to ride in Manhattan. Get there by entering the park at 72nd St and Fifth Ave. Cedar Hill is a less-crowded alternative and

Take a birding walk with Birding Bob and enjoy visiting many of Central Park’s most famous landmarks while you search for different species of birds. Weekends at 9 a.m. More info at www.birdingbob.com. Go on a Hidden Secrets walking tour with a licensed tour guide and experience the lesser known and often missed parts of Central Park Daily at 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Contact tours@ centralpark.com for reservations or visit www. centralpark.com/guide/tours.

COMING UP THIS WEEK ICE SKATING AT WOLLMAN RINK Mon/Tue: 10 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Wed/Thu: 10 a.m. - 10 p.m. Fri/Sat: 10 a.m. - 11 p.m. Sun: 10 a.m. - 9 p.m. www.centralpark.com/ events

TODDLER TIME AT THE ZOO (2-3 YEAR OLDS) Meet a variety of furry, scaly and feathery zoo animals in these interactive classes for

toddlers and their caregivers. Live animals, movement and musical activities and a craft. Tickets required. Saturdays & Tuesdays 10 11 a.m. www.centralpark.com/ events

adventure up a magical beanstalk. Reservations required. Tues - Fri: 10:30 a.m. & 12 p.m. Wed: 10:30 a.m., 12 p.m. & 2:30 p.m. Sat-Sun: 1 p.m. Swedish Cottage Marionette Theater www.centralpark.com/ events

JACK AND THE BEANSTALK MARIONETTE THEATER A fresh retelling of the classic English Fairtytale takes Jack on an enchanting

Event listings and Where in Central Park? brought to you by CentralPark.com.

WHERE IN CENTRAL PARK? Do you know where in Central Park this photo was taken? To submit your answer, go to centralpark.com/ where-in-centralpark. The answers and names of the people who guessed right will appear in next week’s paper.

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Located east of the Pond on what used to be swampland, is Inscope Arch. This twelve foot, pink and gray granite arch was designed by Calvert Vaux. It has a railing of 100 feet and a passageway that is 34 feet in length. Congratulations to Gregory Holman and Robyn Roth-Moise for (again) answering correctly!

FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015 Our Town 7

Neighborhood Scrapbook “MAYOR” OF J.H.L. RECEIVES MENTORING AWARD

FUNDRAISER FOR KALLOS

Jewish Home Lifecare nursing home resident Drucilla Marshall, 86, known as “The Mayor,” received the Mentor of the Year Award from the Association of Jewish Aging Services, a national service organization. Marshall serves as an Elder Mentor to high-school students participating in Jewish Home Lifecare’s Geriatric Career Development Program. The program, now in its 10th year, gives at-risk teens a leg up while helping to shape the next generation of healthcare workers. The program has a high school graduation rate of 98%, and 91% of its roughly 250 alumni – once in danger of failing out of high school – are in college and/or employed. Don Shulman, president and CEO of the Association of Jewish Aging Services, made the award presentation at a ceremony at which Marshall’s friends, family members and students were present.

Former Councilmember Jessica Lappin joined former Assembly Member Jonathan Bing and many others to host a fundraiser for East Side Councilmember Ben Kallos ahead of the 2017 elections. About 100 people showed up. Pictured is Rebecca Seawright, the neighborhood’s newest state assembly member.

FRICK FIGHT GOES ONLINE CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 the Frick continues to focus on one of the most disputed aspects of the plan: the loss of the museum’s 70th Street viewing garden, a 1977 addition designed by landscape architect Russell Page that is destined to become collateral damage in the current plan. The group sent a video to its supporters on Jan. 26 showing Frick patrons dismayed at the loss of the garden. Shot on a sunny day in October, the video has 450 views, and, according to the coalition, has been well-received. The Frick addresses the garden controversy on the new site, noting that expansion on the garden lot was part of the

museum’s long-term growth plans, a consistent refrain for the institution. As early as 1940, issues of space, the Frick website suggests, became apparent as the institution continued to acquire work. Unite to Save the Frick underscores possible alternatives to the museum’s current plan, such as offsite administrative offices and underground excavation, and continues cataloguing its allies on its campaign web page, recently adding actress Isabella Rossellini and former public advocate and Parks Department commissioner Betsy Gotbaum to its list of supporters; both wrote letters to Mayor Bill de Blasio and Frick trustees. The Frick’s new website chronicles its own support, posting a selection of favorable clippings along with approval

from a Frick trustee (and Henry Clay Frick’s great-grandson), a museum neighbor and New York University art history professors. The museum has yet to schedule formal presentations with Community Board 8 and the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, which must approve any changes to the historic property. LPC has not yet received an application for the project. To share thoughts, comments or concerns about the Frick Collection’s expansion efforts, email frickfuture@ frick.org or show approval through http://www.frickfuture.org/show-your-approval/ To sign Unite to Save the Frick’s petition or donate to the efforts, visit, http://unitetosavethefrick.org/

8 Our Town FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015

Voices

AIRBNB: WHO REALLY BENEFITS? So AirBnB actually comes right out and says in a newspaper interview that the laws must be changed in order to accommodate their cash cow (oops, mean ”business”)? The arrogance alone is enough to make me

want to shut them down. AirBnB claims they’re standing up for the little guy. In reality, they’re looking out for themselves. Who profits? AirBnB; the landlords who ignore our city’s laws and their ten-

Feedback

ants’ safety; rent-regulated tenants who take advantage of the lucrative benefits handed them by the city to keep their costs down and flip their apartments for market rate at a handy profit.

All this at the expense of whom? Our affordable-housing stock, residents who can no longer afford to live in their own houses or neighborhoods and are forced out, and the honest landlords who follow

the rules and are yet just scraping together enough to pay their everincreasing taxes, utilities and other expenses. Mark, via the web

LETTER

MORE ON THE PEDESTRIAN FORUM To The Editor: Thank you for sponsoring the “Pedestrians Vs. Cars” forum on January 21st. It was a well-thought-out and well-executed event. I simply wanted to set the record straight. In his letter (Jan. 29), Pete Drexler asks why Barnes Dances (when all signals are red for vehicles and green for pedestrians) are not an option. Although used at some intersections in NYC, it would be impossible to do this on every corner, or even most corners, since it would make traffic flow impossible both north-south and east-west, given that lights could no longer be “timed” even for short distances. With regard to a comment at the forum, Community Boards only have a “binding” voice on budget and land use issues. In all other areas, including transportation, their resolutions are advisory only. Thus, they do not “tell” DOT what to do. In fact, although it is true that CB7 has an excellent relationship with the DOT’s Manhattan Borough Commissioner, neither she nor DOT has never been a “rubber stamp” on CB7 requests or resolutions, either in favor or against a particular proposal. As for comments made by Ms. Lerner and another woman at the forum with respect to Transportation Alternatives’ 2008 “Blueprint for the Upper West Side,” they are not quite correct that CB7 “ignored” that report and that, had they not, Ms. Lerner’s son might not have died. The Blueprint is 50 pages long. There is no mention of pedestrians until Page 32, and no actual recommendations for pedestrian safety until Page 38. Ian Alterman

PEDESTRIAN DANGERS IN YORKVILLE BY ARLENE S. KAYATT

Believe it: Yorkville really is an especially dangerous place for pedestrians. And we heard it from expert traffic engineer Sam (“Gridlock Sam”) Schwartz, who explained at the East Side Democratic Club’s forum, Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety in Yorkville, at the Church of the Holy Trinity. He says that, thanks to the Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge and commuters seeking to avoid tolls, our Upper East Side neighborhood gets 40,000 extra cars that “don’t belong here.” The other members of the panel, moderated by ESDC President Betsy Feist, were Judge Arlene P. Bluth, who presides over the Motor Vehicle Accident Part in New York County Supreme Court, Manhattan, and Paul Steely White, Executive Director of Transportation Alternatives, a group that advocates for bicycling, walking and public transit. Paul White started off the meeting with a spirited statement about biking and pedestrian safety. He emphasized that he and his friends were very careful bike riders, and followed all the rules of the road, but acknowledged that many riders do not obey the rules and perhaps bicycle safety should be returned to the high school curriculum, which is where he learned how to be a responsible cyclist. There was some discussion about whether an injured person could sue the cyclist but the consensus

seemed to be that most cyclists are not insured and although you could always sue, there might not be any money. Judge Bluth explained New York’s Vehicle and Traffic Law statutory requirement about bicycle’s having lamps and other equipment. She emphasized the safety issues involved in walking New York City streets and that she sees cases in her courtroom every day where people are killed or maimed by cars and bikes. While they are referred to as “accidents,” calling them “collisions” or “crashes” is a more accurate description of their seriousness. Judge Bluth emphasized that pedestrians should never ever assume that the driver of the car or bike sees them - it’s the pedestrian who gets hurt or killed - so avoid dangerous corners or crossings and be aware of where you are and what you are doing. Texting and talking on a cell phone should not be going on while crossing the street - and whether you have the right of way or not, the pedestrian, whose life is at risk, should defer to the motorist running the red light. Sam Schwartz, a former New York City Traffic Commissioner, became “Gridlock Sam” when he popularized the word “gridlock” during the 1980 New York City transit strike. He also writes a traffic-related column for the NY Daily News and is currently working for Asphalt Green trying to make the entrances to the dump site safer. It was his idea to switch the ramp

from 91st St. to 92nd St. However, it does not look as if that will happen. He emphasized that, when the facility was being designed, the safety factor was not sufficiently considered. After all, there are hundreds of children who use the playground at Asphalt Green, and the ramp, if left as planned, is going to create a danger for the children when the trucks are turning from 91st St. onto the ramp. He has been advocating for narrower lanes on streets to slow traffic, including pedestrian grassy knolls in the middle of avenues and thinks more intense lighting and improved traffic signal timing is

needed. He emphasized the importance of rear wheel guards for trucks because many fatalities are caused by the pedestrian’s being pulled under the rear wheels of a turning truck. Unfortunately, despite all its failings and shortcoming, he believes the dump will be built and the best the community can hope for is that next time such a facility is being planned something. Not much comfort for the children and families in the area. Arlene S. Kayatt, a former Our Town editor, is an attorney, and a member of the Executive Committee of the East Side Democratic Club.

STRAUS MEDIA-MANHATTAN President, Jeanne Straus nyoffice@strausnews.com Vice President/CFO Otilia Bertolotti Vice President/CRO Vincent A. Gardino advertising@strausnews.com

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Block Mayors, Ann Morris, Upper West Side Jennifer Peterson, Upper East Side Gail Dubov, Upper West Side Edith Marks, Upper West Side

FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015 Our Town 9

Op-Ed

How you can help the homeless BY COUNCILMEMBER BEN KALLOS Since the launch of “Ben in Your Building,” where I go to meet with residents in their homes along with their neighbors, co-op and condo boards, many of you have brought up the issue of homelessness as a serious and increasing concern. A recurring question is what you can do to help a homeless person in need. Homelessness is on the rise. According to the New York City Department of Homeless Services there are a staggering 58,506 individuals in our shelter system. A surprising 42,343 of individuals in shelters are in families with children--part of a sad reality that 24,904, nearly the majority of our homeless, are just children. Here is how you can help: If you see someone sleeping on the street whom you think is homeless, please call 311 within one hour and ask for them to dispatch a “homeless outreach team.” The operator will connect you with the Department of Homeless Services (DHS) who will ask about where you saw the person, what they looked like, and offer

you a call back to report on the status of your call. The whole process should take less than five minutes. Following your 311 call, an outreach team will be dispatched to reach out to the homeless person to offer them services, and DHS will call back with the results. If they have received multiple calls regarding one individual, they may flag that person for follow up so they can build a relationship leading to that person accepting the services they need. “Code Blue” is implemented by DHS when the temperature drops below 32 degrees, wind chill goes below zero degrees, or during severe weather such as ice storms, freezing rain, or snow greater than six inches. Code Blue doubles outreach vans in the field and allows individuals to access services without going through the usual intake process. During severe winter conditions, your call could save a life. In all cases, please call me and let me know how the 311 call goes and the results of the outreach team dispatched on your behalf. Please also join me and 3,000 volunteers for the 10th Annual Homeless Outreach Population Estimate (HOPE) on Feb. 9 starting at 10:30 pm, to canvass the neighborhood and count how many people are living unsheltered. Training is available from DHS at Hunter College for a team that will survey the Upper East Side and Roosevelt Island. Sites are

available throughout the city on a first come first served basis. Volunteers must be at least 18 or at least 16 and accompanied by an adult. The information collected will help their outreach teams improve support and services for our city’s homeless population. Please visit http://on.nyc. gov/hope-2015 or call me so I can help get you registered to volunteer. The high and ever-increasing homeless problem is a symptom of our affordable housing crisis. As tenants lose their affordable housing in rent regulated apartments, families are left without anywhere else to go. Far too many of our city’s families are working one or more jobs, just to earn below the poverty line, trapped in a shelter with nowhere they can afford to move. Meanwhile children go to public school and back home to sleep in a shelter. Beyond calling 311 and participating in HOPE, your advocacy for mandatory affordable housing in new development and funding for social services to support and build more shelters as well as supportive housing is essential to helping the homeless. Remember, if you see a person on the streets who needs help, please call 311. These phone calls just take five minutes, but it is worth it to help a fellow New Yorker or even save a life. Ben Kallos represents the Upper East Side on the New York City Council.

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10 Our Town FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015

YOU READ IT HERE FIRST The local paper for the Upper East Side

Out & About 6 asiasociety.org/new-york

READY RABBIT GETS READY

THE SEATED STAGE: EXPLORING SHAKESPEARE’S PLAYS

November 5, 2014

April 17, 2014 The local paper for the Upper West Side

67th street Library, 67th St. and Second Ave. 2-3 p.m., Free. Come read with others one of Shakespeare’s famous plays, The Merchant of Venice (Act 2). Open to all ages. Registration required via phone or in person. 212-734-1717. www.nypl.org/events/ calendar?location=4

The Jewish Museum, 1109 Fifth Ave., at 92nd St. 11 a.m., $15. This exhibit examines the career of Polish-born cosmetics mogul, Helena Rubenstein. Patrons can examine personal artifacts of the entrepreneur. 212-423-3200. thejewishmuseum. org

LOCAL NEWS

A family hopes that Upper West Siders will help bring their Cavalier King Charles Spaniel back home Upper West Side For the past week, Eva Zaghari and her three children from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, have been papering the Upper West Side with over 1,300 flyers asking for information on their beloved dog Cooper. ?We are devastated, please return our dog,? the sign implores. The catch though, is that Cooper didn?t technically get lost, or even stolen. He was given away. When she explains the story, sitting at Irving Farm coffee shop on West 79th Street before heading out to post more flyers around the neighborhood, Eva and her kids are visibly distraught. About a month ago, on September 5th, her husband Ray had arranged to give the dog away, via a Craigslist ad. He mistakenly thought that removing a source of stress from his wife and kids ? walking and feeding and caring for a dog, tasks which had fallen mostly to Eva ? would make everyone happier

October 2, 2014

October 8, 2014

The local paper for the Upper East Side

A CENTURY OF SEX TALK ON THE EAST SIDE MILESTONES Shirley Zussman, who recently celebrated her 100th birthday, worked with Masters and Johnson, and still sees patients as a sex therapist BY KYLE POPE

UPPER EAST SIDE Some people’s life stories write themselves, and Shirley Zussman, the 100-year-old sex therapist of the Upper East Side, is one of those people. She was born in 1914 at the start of World War I (less than a month after the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand), lived in Berlin at the height of the Cabaret era, became a protege of the original Masters and Johnson, and, now into her second century, continues to see patients in an office in the ground floor of her apartment building on E. 79th Street. Last month, more than 50 people crowded Yefsi restaurant, a Greek place

August 7, 2014

August 20, 2014

FI R S T I N YOU R N E I G H BO R H O O D

(212) 868-0190 The local paper for the Upper West Side

The local paper for Downtown

7 EAST ASIAN VIBRANCY Asia Society, 70th St. and Park Ave. 8 p.m., $25 members, $30 students/seniors, $40 nonmembers. Enjoy and experience sounds from China, Korea and Japan through “Exploring the Music of East Asia,” by Ralph Samuelson. 212-288-6400. www.

Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, 1071 Fifth Ave. at 89th St. 10 a.m., $22. In his first American exhibition, Wang Jianwei uses multiple platforms, both still and moving, as a commentary on societal order. 212-423-3500. guggenheim.org

9 CECILIA AND THE UNIVERSE

HELENA RUBINSTEIN: BEAUTY IS POWER

LOST DOG TALE, WITH A TWIST

The local paper for the Upper East Side

Barnes and Noble, 86th St. and Lexington Ave. 11 a.m., Free. Children can learn how to get ready for school through Ready Rabbit Gets Ready by Brenna Maloney. Come to Story time. 212-369-2180. www. barnesandnoble.com

WANG JIANWEI, TIME TEMPLE

8 LY LYRICS AND LY LYRICISTS: HE HERE’S TO THE GIRLS GIR 92 street Y, 92nd Kaufman Concert Ka Hall, 92nd St. and Lexington Ave. 2 p.m. & 7 p.m., $55- $60. Stories and songs about the llegendary women of Hollywood’s movie musicals from 1930 to mus 1960. Each 1960 ac studio had its own ow style and stars to match: ma ch: MacDonald, Garland, Garl nd, Powell (Eleanor (Eleanor andd Jane), e), Keeler, Rogers and Grable. 2124155500. www.92y. 2y. org/ Event/L-L/L-LHere-s-tos-tothe-Girls Girls

The New York Society Library, 79th St. and Madison Ave. 6:30 p.m., $20. This period piece illustrates the 1920s and Cecilia Payne’s journey before becoming a famous female scientist. Full cast reading includes Darcy Fowler and Charles Socarides. 212-2886900 ext.222. www.nysoclib. org/events/

WOODY ALLEN AND THE EDDY DAVIS NEW ORLEANS JAZZ BAND Cafe Carlyle, 35 E. 76th Street. 8:30 p.m., $155. An event worth the monetary splurge, see Woody Allen perform his hidden talents as a clarinetist with Manhattan local Eddy Davis. 212-744-1600. www. thecarlyle.com

FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015 Our Town 11

10 NIKKI MOUSTAKI’S THE BIRD MARKET OF PARIS: A MEMOIR Barnes and Noble, 86th St. and Broadway. 7 p.m., Free. Poet Nikki Moustaki will talk about her memoir that honors her grandfather and documents her trip to Paris. 212-362-8835. www.storelocator.barnesandnoble.com/ event/85205

BUDDHIST ART OF MYANMAR Asia Society, 70th St. and Park Ave. 9:30-11 a.m., Check website for prices. Guest curator Donald M. Stadtner, will talk in depth on the first exhibit in the West solely exhibiting Myanmar art. Stone, bronze, and lacquered wood sculptures are on display. 212-2886400. www. asiasociety. org/newyork/events/ buddhist-artmyanmarintersectionfaithandkarma

Weill Recital Hall, Carnegie Hall, 881 Seventh Ave. 8-10 p.m., $150. Artists such as the Brentano String Quartet and more perform an evening of chamber music. All proceeds from ticket sales will be donated to the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center to fund cancer research, and all performers have volunteered their time to support this cause. 212-247-7800. www.carnegiehall.org/ Calendar/2015/2/11/0800/ PM/Benefit-for-MemorialSloan-Kettering-CancerCenter/

THOMAS HART BENTON’S AMERICA TODAY MURAL REDISCOVERED

12 FREEDOM JOURNEY 1965: PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE SELMA TO MONTGOMERY MARCH The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, at 77th St. 10 a.m., $19. Stephen Somerstein was a student at the City College of New York during the civil-rights march from Selma Montgomery. His photographs of the march are now being featured. 212-873-3400. nyhistory. org

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1000 Fifth Ave. at 82nd St. 10 a.m., Suggested $25. This 10-panel mural depicts America’s Jazz Age and was originally commissioned by New York’s New School of Social Research in 1930. 212-535-7710. metmuseum. metm org

Your Neighborhood News Source Making News Our “Pedestrian Vs. Cars” Town Hall meeting was standing-room-only — and attracted a lot of media attention.

WARRIORS AND MOTHERS: EPIC MBEMBE ART The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1000 Fifth Ave. at 82nd St. 10 a.m., Suggested $25. The Met showcases artifacts from 17th, 18th, and 19th century Nigeria that range from several inches to several feet in size. 212-535-7710. metmuseum. org

The local paper for the Upper East Side The local paper for the Upper West Side

11 BENEFIT CONCERT FOR MEMORIAL SLOAN KETTERING CANCER CENTER

The local paper for Downtown

Your neighborhood newspaper FOR MORE PHOTOS OF THE EVENT GO TO ourtownny.com westsidespirit.com otdowntown.com

12 Our Town FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015

Artist Jeessica Blowers at work on her mural of downtown artist Jean-Michel Basquiat.

TRANSFORMING STREETS INTO GALLERIES ART A grant to the Lower East Side BID will pay for artists to turn security gates into paintings BY OLIVER MORRISON

LOWER EAST SIDE The metal gates that cover storefronts at night often serve as blank slates for graffiti, but a pair of local artists wants to make them over into legitimate commissioned art spaces. The city just awarded a Neighborhood Challenge Grant of $30,000 to the Lower East Side

Business Improvement District (BID) to provide materials for artists to turn the metal gates that protect storefronts at night into public murals. Called the “100 Gates Project,” it’s spearheaded by local skateboarder Billy Rohan and his girlfriend, the artist Jessica Blowers. They approached a few businesses last year about painting their metal gates but decided to expand their idea even bigger when they met Stanley George, the owner and pharmacist at Stanley’s Pharmacy, who had been looking for someone to paint his gate. George and Blowers went back and forth about design

ideas. “He wanted something to uplift the community,” Blowers said. “So when the gates are down people feel good instead of seeing all the graffiti on there.” “It had to be all about bringing nature to the city,” George wrote. “That’s what our interior is about, so the exterior had to echo that vibe.” So Blowers came up with the idea of painting cherry blossoms from the park in the spring. George liked the painting, but he went home that night and couldn’t sleep. It wasn’t right for the brand, he realized. His store was colored orange to symbolize health. So

he had Blowers come back the next day and redo it, but this time as an orange tree. A small crowd stopped in the street to watch Blowers work and George was so pleased he came back that night with his wife to look at it again. “Stanley’s such a positive guy,” Rohan said. “He was like, ‘This could transform the whole city. This would be great for the neighborhood. He kind of inspired the whole thing.” Although other businesses were interested, they were often reluctant to shell out the $300 it would cost for the paint. The new funding should provide plenty of metal canvas for the dozens of artists that Rohan said are interested in painting. They believe this will make the Lower East Side an even bigger attraction for artists and art-lovers. One of Blowers first gate-murals was a portrait of the late artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, near a park where Basquiat once lived. Not all of the work will have such a literal

connection to the community. But Rohan and Blowers believe that by letting each mural be the expression of a unique artist’s vision, rather than a commissioned work by a business, the collective street gallery will represent the eclectic artistic sensibility of the Lower East Side. The process of how businesses and artists will get matched up is still being worked out, according to Tim Laughlin, the executive director of the Lower East Side BID. “Everything will be unique and different, and that is very emblematic of what happens here on the Lower East Side,” Laughlin said. Everyone is hoping that the murals will have a secondary benefit: deter taggers from vandalizing the storefronts with graffiti. “In the graffiti world they want fame, that’s why they’re putting their name up everywhere,” Rohan said. “If you put that up over someone’s mural, that’s like saying you’re a dick, that’s the wrong kind of fame.

Why do you want to be that kid that goes over someone else’s work?” He’s seen the same thing work with skateboarding, a world he’s more familiar with. Business owners often got mad at kids for skateboarding in their neighborhoods. But when a skate-park went up, the kids suddenly had a place to express themselves. He’s hoping this project will encourage some street artists to participate rather than vandalize. “I’m really still surprised that there still isn’t a place where kids can just go paint in the whole city in all five boroughs,” Rohan said. “You see that sort of thing a lot in Switzerland and France.” Blowers and Rohan plan to start commissioning the first murals in April, when the weather warms up, and finish by the end of June.

5 TOP

FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015 Our Town 13

Sports ASPHALT GREEN SOCCER GIRLS WIN FIRST TOURNAMENT

FOR THE WEEK BY GABRIELLE ALFIERO

GALLERIES

ROSS BLECKNER AND VOLKER EICHELMANN

Inspired by 19th-century American landscape artists, painter Adam Straus’ new work takes a slightly humorous approach to landscapes, incorporating references to digital photography and social media as a means of experiencing the natural world. His work considers how green space is often sacrificed for development projects, and how Instagram cropping and effects manipulate scenery. Feb. 11-March 21 Nohra Haime Gallery 730 Fifth Ave., at W. 57th Avenue Gallery Hours: Tue.-Sat., 10 a.m.-6 p.m. FREE

MUSIC BETTYE LAVETTE Detroit soul singer Bettye LaVette--born Betty Jo Haskins in 1946-- cut her first single when she was 16, and continued finding success in the industry for decades. She made the 2005 album “I’ve Got My Own Hell to Raise” with producer Joe Henry, a covers record with songs written by female musicians (the title is a reference to the Fiona Apple song, “Sleep to Dream”, which closes the album). She’s back with a new record, “Worthy,” also produced by Henry, and closes out a two-week residency at Cafe Carlyle on Saturday. Through Feb. 7 Cafe Carlyle 35 E. 75th St., at Madison Avenue 8:45 p.m. Tickets $45-$145

NEW AMSTERDAM SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA 24-year-old Juilliard graduate Yuga Cohler first conducted the Juilliard Orchestra as a lastminute substitution. Since then, he’s conducted symphonies throughout the country, in Europe and Canada, and leads New York’s New Amsterdam Symphony Orchestra on Feb. 12 with the program “Dark Moods,” which includes Brahms’ “Tragic Overture” and a cello concerto featuring cellist Julian Schwarz. Thursday, Feb. 12 Symphony Space 2537 Broadway, at 95 Street 8 p.m. Tickets $25

FILM THE CANTERVILLE GHOST Jules Dassin’s 1944 film, based on a short story by Oscar Wilde, stars Charles Laughton as a ghost trapped in his family’s manor, who is discovered by the home’s six-year-old resident Jessica and plots with her to rescue his descendant from the family curse. Screened as part of Film Forum’s ongoing series of classic films for children, the showing also includes a 1954 cartoon short with animated penguin Chilly Willy. Sunday, Feb. 8 Film Forum 209 W. Houston St., near Varick Street 11 a.m. Tickets $7.50

Do

something

you You’d

like us to

look

?

into

ADAM STRAUS

Asphalt Green Wave’s Girls U10 soccer team picked up their first tournament victory ever at the Armonk Indoor Invitational on Sunday, Jan. 25. They went undefeated, beating a tough team from Greenwich, Conn., in the championship game. The team received stellar play from several players including Leila Nielsen, who had key saves in goal, and Keira Singh, whose strong shot wowed opponents.

have

In a joint exhibition with German artist Volker Eichelmann, Native New Yorker Ross Bleckner presents a series of his 18-inch paintings for the first time in public view. These works were mostly created in tandem with another painting, serving as experimental canvases for his larger compositions and explorations of life and spirituality. Feb. 11-March 15 Sargent’s Daughter 179 East Broadway, near Canal Street Gallery Hours: Wed.-Sun. noon-6 p.m. FREE

Email us at news@strausnews.com

14 Our Town FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015

RESTAURANT INSPECTION RATINGS

Real Estate Sales

JAN 22 - 28, 2015 Neighborhd

Address

Price

Bed Bath Agent

Lenox Hill

233 E 70 St.

$1,925,000

3

3

Corcoran

Lenox Hill

21 E 61st St.

$4,636,287

2

2

Extell Development Company

Lenox Hill

21 E 61st St.

$4,636,287

2

2

Extell Development Company

Lenox Hill

21 E 61st St.

$8,627,827

3

3

Extell Development Company

Midtown E

212 E 57 St.

$5,000,000

Murray Hill

235 E 40 St.

$828,000

Upper E Side

35 E 76 St.

$4,000,000

Upper E Side

930 5 Ave.

$1,100,000

1

1

Halstead Property

Upper E Side

333 E 75 St.

$892,000

1

1

Upper E Side

206 E 73 St.

$2,675,000

2

Upper E Side

970 PARK Ave.

$1,725,000

2

Yorkville

345 E 93 St.

$485,000

Yorkville

300 E 90 St.

$2,900,000

Yorkville

33 E END Ave.

$675,000

2

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. Mezzaluna

1295 Third Avenue

A

Vegan Divas

1437 1 Avenue

Grade Pending (27) Food Protection Certificate not held by supervisor of food operations. 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.

Modlin Group

Trend Diner

1382 2 Avenue

A

2

Sotheby’s

Sushi Para Manhattan

1461 3 Avenue

2

Corcoran

Not Graded Yet (18) Hot food item not held at or above 140º F. Evidence of mice or live mice present in facility’s food and/or non-food areas.

The New Amity Restaurant

1134 Madison Avenue Grade Pending (22) Cold food item held above 41º F (smoked fish and reduced oxygen packaged foods above 38 ºF) except during necessary preparation. 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.

Beyoglu

200 East 81 Street

A

Hot & Crusty Bagels Cafe

1276 Lexington Avenue

A

Cafe Jax

318 East 84 Street

A

Guo’s Garden Restaurant

1685 1 Avenue

Grade Pending (7) Food not protected from potential source of contamination during storage, preparation, transportation, display or service.

San Matteo Pizza Espresso Bar

1739 2 Avenue

A

Bonjour Crepes & Wine

1442 Lexington Avenue

A

Cantina

1436 Lexington Ave

Not Graded Yet (20) Personal cleanliness inadequate. Outer garment soiled with possible contaminant. Effective hair restraint not worn in an area where food is prepared. Food not protected from potential source of contamination during storage, preparation, transportation, display or service.

New Fresh Wok

1777 1St Ave

A

Corner Cafe And Bakery

1645 Third Avenue

Grade Pending (22) Cold food item held above 41º F (smoked fish and reduced oxygen packaged foods above 38 ºF) except during necessary preparation. Evidence of mice or live mice present in facility’s food and/or non-food areas. Sanitized equipment or utensil, including in-use food dispensing utensil, improperly used or stored.

Three Decker Restaurant

1746 2 Avenue

A

Prime One 16

2257 First Avenue

A

Hot Jalapeno Restaurant

219 East 116 Street

A

1

Corcoran

St.Easy.com is New York’s most accurate and comprehensive real estate website, providing consumers detailed sales and rental information and the tools to manage that information to make educated decisions. The site has become the reference site for consumers, real estate professionals and the media and has been widely credited with bringing transparency to one of the world’s most important real estate markets.

More

neighborhood news? neighborhood celebrations? neighborhood opinions? neighborhood ideas? neighborhood feedback? Email us at news@strausnews.com

FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015 Our Town 15

Going to the Airport?

LIVE FROM THE LIVING ROOM ARTS As the cost of performance spaces rises, artists -- and their audiences -- turn to the intimacy of home concerts. BY GABRIELLE ALFIERO

When Dr. Yelena Grinberg entertains in her Upper West Side residence, guests often ask the professional pianist how she got her Steinway into the apartment. “Some people ask me if I brought it through the window,â€? Grinberg said from her couch in her pre-war apartment, the handsome mahogany instrument behind her. “It just goes through the door.â€? The piano is the main attraction in her home, and with good reason. Grinberg, who received her doctorate in performance from the Juilliard School, opens up her living room for regular concerts, making classical music accessible while offering her fellow musicians a crucial performance element often hard to come by: a venue. Originally conceived as a vehicle for her own performances, she now invites fellow artists to perform in her Grinberg Classical Salon Series. “A lot of people have approached me, asking if they can play in the series because they’re in a similar situation, where they can’t ďŹ nd a space or they can’t afford to rent a hall,â€? said Grinberg, who made her Carnegie Hall debut in 2005. Beyond the ďŹ nancial beneďŹ ts of the house venue—performance spaces can cost anywhere from $200-$1,000 per hour to rent, and artists often only break even or lose money in the venture, Grinberg said— the intimacy brings audiences close to the performers and offers a more personal connection to the repertoire, which helps musicians cultivate a following. “Playing for a full house, even if it’s just 25 people, it feels like a very successful and fulďŹ lling experience,â€? Grinberg said of the performers in her series. “A lot of them play in very big halls and more prestigious venues, but a lot of times they’re half full or they don’t ďŹ ll the seats. Maybe the prestige is there but

it doesn’t feel emotionally satisfying because you’re playing for empty chairs.â€? The series includes one to two concerts a month, and always on Sundays at 5 p.m. in Grinberg’s living room, a white-walled space with crown molding and warm wooden accents, of which her grand piano is the centerpiece. Admission is nominal, comparable to a movie ticket and a bag of popcorn, and includes a cocktail reception with food donated by neighborhood restaurant Turkuaz. Concerts, which can accommodate an audience of nearly 30, sell out quickly or come very close, she said. Musicians don’t worry about breaking even; Grinberg pays all her performers. Grinberg, who also teaches music history at Fordham University and offers private piano instruction, started the salon series in 2012, a year after she moved into the residence from her previous home, a small one-bedroom that barely fit an upright piano. Impressed with the acoustics in her new living room, Grinberg bought a 100-year-old Steinway grand piano, which she refurbished with a rich mahogany ďŹ nish. Soprano Karyn Levitt previously attended Grinberg’s salons, and made her series debut on Sunday with a concert of songs by Austrian composer Hanns Eisler and lyrics by poet and playwright Bertolt Brecht. “As an audience member, it’s wonderful to mingle with the artists and tell them your experience,â€? said Levitt, who recently moved to Harlem from Boston. “Performers love that. They love to know that what they’ve put out, however small the venue, that it hits home.â€? Levitt performed with piano accompaniment by Eric Ostling to an audience of about 20, all seated in four short rows of folding chairs and on Grinberg’s couch. Some knew the performers, and some were repeat guests at the series. One woman traveled in from Westchester for the performance. Another came from Brooklyn. Rebecca Sanandres met Levitt when she complimented the singer’s outfit at a party. Levitt invited her to the Grinberg salon, and Sanandres at-

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“We’ll Be There For You!â€? tended with her friend Laura Wagner, who said the intimate parlor setting reminded her of “Downton Abbey.â€? “It is a throwback in a way to old music salons,â€? said Wagner. “When people didn’t have venues like movie theaters and entertainment consisted solely of inner groups and small groups at home.â€? The tradition of house concerts dates back to the mid18th century, Grinberg said, when friends gathered in private residences for small, informal concerts. “This was how classical music was meant to be experienced,â€? she said. “Sonatas, string quartets, chamber music. This was the setting for it.â€? Grinberg still performs in the series, weaves a lecture component throughout her shows and enjoys championing the work of less celebrated composers. Her Jan. 31 concert featured Beethoven and Mendelssohn sonatas, as well as a piece by the less-performed Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, the son of Johann Sebastian Bach. Upcoming performances highlight Russian and Hungarian composers (Grinberg is from Moscow). For a performer, the space provides a connection with the audience, Levitt said. “The audience is two feet away from youâ€? she said. “You’re in direct touch with them. It’s very personal and direct.â€? Libby Skala traveled to the Upper West Side from Brooklyn for Levitt’s performance, and ďŹ nds the small space and casual environment more appealing than a large, prestigious venue at Lincoln Center. “I probably wouldn’t seek out the New York Philharmonic or be regularly buying tickets to classical music, but I do love the intimacy,â€? she said. “I feel like there’s a connection, where I’m not one of thousands sitting in the audience. It’s like this person is singing for me.â€? Panyin Conduah contributed to this report

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Cross Harbor Freight Program UPDATED PUBLIC HEARING SCHEDULE AND COMMENT PERIOD EXTENSION NOTICE The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) have released a NEPA Tier 1 Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) to evaluate alternatives to improve the movement of goods in the region by enhancing the transportation of freight across New York Harbor. The Cross Harbor Freight Program (CHFP) DEIS evaluates both near-term and long-term improvements to the regional freight network. Public Hearings provide an opportunity for the public and agencies to comment on and provide input on the DEIS. Due to severe weather conditions and anticipated travel disruptions, two public hearings that were originally scheduled for the week of January 26, 2015, are rescheduled. The FHWA and PANYNJ remain committed to a robust outreach and public participation process. The public comment period on the Draft DEIS has been extended and will remain open until 5 p.m. on March 20, 2015. Your comments are encouraged and may be provided orally or in writing at the public hearings, by mail to Cross Harbor Freight Program, c/o InGroup, Inc., PO Box 206, Midland Park, NJ 07432, or via email to feedback@crossharborstudy.com. Public Hearings for the CHFP will be held at the New York and New Jersey locations listed below: Tuesday, February 3, 2015 • 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Brooklyn Borough Hall 209 Joralemon Street • Brooklyn, NY 11201 Thursday, February 5, 2015 • 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Bronx Borough Hall 851 Grand Concourse • Bronx, NY 10451 Tuesday, February 10, 2015 • 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority One Newark Center • 17th Floor • Newark, NJ 07102 Tuesday, February 10, 2015 • 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Mary McLeod Bethune Life Center 140 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive • Jersey City, NJ 07305 RESCHEDULED FOR: Wednesday, February 25, 2015 – 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Suffolk County Legislature • W.H. Rogers Legislature Building 725 Veterans Memorial Highway • Smithtown, NY 11787 RESCHEDULED FOR: Tuesday, March 3, 2015 – 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Queens Borough Hall 120-55 Queens Boulevard • Room 213 • Kew Gardens, NY 11415 The DEIS is available to download at www.crossharborstudy.com. Hardcopies are located at numerous repositories throughout the region. A complete list of repositories can be found on the project website. All public hearing dates, times and locations are subject to change due to inclement weather conditions. An informational recording regarding any change in the hearing schedule will be available at (201) 820-2170 at least two hours before the scheduled start time of the hearing. The public hearings are accessible to people who are mobility impaired. Sign language interpreter services or other translation services are available, upon advance request. To make arrangements for such services, please contact the Port Authority’s outreach consultant at (201) 612-1230 or via email at feedback@crossharborstudy.com no later than three (3) days before the hearing for which the services are being requested. For more information about the Cross Harbor Freight Program or to download a copy of the DEIS document, please visit the project website at www.crossharborstudy.com.

16 Our Town FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015

< SHAKE SHACK’S SKY-HIGH I.P.O. Wall Street went wild for burgers Friday. Shares of Shake Shack, a burger chain that started as a New York City hot dog cart, more than doubled in their first day of trading. The company raised $105 million in its initial public offering Thursday, selling 5 million shares at $21 per share. It had initially forecast that its shares would fetch

In Brief HOSPITAL FACES $201,000 IN FINES OVER DIRTY LAUNDRY Federal inspectors say NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital faces $201,000 in fines for exposing employees to the risk of infection from dirty laundry. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration says the hospital replaced linen laundry bags with thin plastic bags about a year ago. OSHA says the bags broke and needlessly exposed workers to laundry contaminated with blood, bodily fluids and other infectious materials. Kay Gee, OSHA’s director for Manhattan, said Friday that management knew the bags were deficient but kept using them. In addition, OSHA says its investigation found that the hospital failed to screen patients for an increased risk of tuberculosis. The hospital in upper Manhattan faces $201,000 in proposed fines. Hospital officials say they disagree with OSHA’s citations and are contesting them.

SILVER TENURE AS N.Y. SPEAKER ENDS Sheldon Silver’s 21 years as the leader of the New York state Assembly came to a close Monday night when he steps down in the wake of federal corruption charges. The Manhattan Democrat’s resignation marks an unceremonious end to the second-longest tenure by a sitting speaker in any U.S. statehouse. One of the most powerful men in New York state, Silver was known as a shrewd negotiator and the ultimate insider in a capital city long known for its backroom culture. Two lawmakers are vying to replace him. Bronx Assemblyman Carl Heastie is considered the frontrunner. Assembly Majority Leader Joseph Morelle of Rochester will serve as acting speaker until the next speaker takes over. Silver was arrested Jan. 22 and faces charges that he took nearly $4 million in payoffs and kickbacks. He has said he expects to be exonerated and plans to keep his Assembly seat. Silver, 70, initially tried to keep his position by offering to temporarily cede power to a handful of senior lieutenants. Assembly members balked at that idea, and following two days of closed-door hearings, they announced that Silver had to go. His spokesman, Michael Whyland, announced Friday night that Silver had filed his letter of resignation.

Business

$14 to $16 per share from investors, and raised that prediction to $17 to $19 per share on Wednesday as demand grew. Shake Shack is known for its burgers, milkshakes and crinkle-cut fries. Its journey from a hot dog cart in Madison Square Park to Wall Street started in 2001. Three years later, Union Square Hospitality Group, a com-

pany owned by restaurateur Danny Meyer, opened a kiosk in the same park. Restaurants throughout New York City followed, and in 2010, it ventured out of its hometown for the first time with a Miami restaurant. It now has 63 locations, mostly on the East Coast, with plans for more. Shares of Shake Shack Inc. rose $24.90, or 119 percent, to close at $45.90 Friday, valuing the small chain at more than $1.6 billion.

A BOUTIQUE COMES BACK SMALL BUSINESS Chris Warren brings her former mother-in-law’s namesake store back to the Upper East Side

Chris Warren in her store’s new home on East 96th Street.

BY MARY NEWMAN

A beloved women’s clothing boutique has made its way back to the Upper East Side. Marjory Warren has been bringing stylish and comfortable clothing to women for decades, and became a neighborhood staple with her original location on 3rd Avenue, which opened in 1979. Chris Warren, Marjory’s former daughterin-law, took over the store’s ownership five years ago when Marjory was ready to retire and moved the shop to the East Village; now she has returned to East 96th Street between Lexington and Park Avenue, to the neighborhood where it all began. “I had always helped out with the shop through the years,” Chris Warren said. “So I have been with the store through many different transitions.” The store began as a craft studio, but Marjory started using women’s sweater’s to apply the appliques she made in the studio. From there it evolved into a clothing store, and as Chris spent more time in the store she realized her skill for dressing women, even teaching them how to dress for their figure. “Women come in all different sizes and ages,” she said. “So many women get discouraged when they are shopping but we are all beautiful, it’s just a matter of finding what works best for your body.” The store moved to Madison Avenue, where “it was extremely beloved by women in the neigh-

Photos by Mary Newman

borhood,” Chris remembers. As Marjory retired, Chris began to look for a more affordable location, but they couldn’t find anything uptown. She moved the store downtown to the East Village, where she stayed for four years. Things were going well in the new neighborhood, but it was a different customer base, so she had to make some adjustments. “Every neighborhood has a different feel to it,” she said. “We had a lot of great foot traffic in the Village, but it never had the same sense of community you find uptown.” Her business savvy allowed her to roll with the punches, and brought an opportunity to bring a lot of her

own identity into the store. “I had to curate to a new customer base downtown, but I think my aesthetic has a much more solid customer base in this area.” Things were going well until Hurricane Sandy wiped out the downtown area, and although the store was lucky to avoid any physical damage, Warren says they still took a hit. Business slowed down as the area began rebuilding itself, and Warren started worrying about the store’s future. She took free business classes offered by the city, and through a program called Fast Track, she learned a lot about what it takes to keep a small business profitable in to-

day’s economy. “Once the success of the store was solely on my shoulders, I knew I had to make a major change to keep it alive,” she said. “I’m an artist myself, so I’m always trying to look at things with a new perspective.” Warren is also a photographer and painter, and her creative nature can be seen all around her store. After searching for a new space, Warren was happy to find a new home in the store’s original neighborhood. The rent is much more affordable, allowing her to expand the business in other ways. She is currently developing a new styling feature for the website, making an interactive experience for her customers. “Being multi-generational is a big thing for me,” she said. “I want to create a place where women of all ages, all sizes, can come and connect with one another. This store is a place that celebrates women.” In addition to developing the website, she is also planning a monthly feature of the interesting women who shop in her store. Each month she will profile one of her regular customers, highlighting her career, hobbies, interests, and personal style. The store has only been in its new location for a month, so Chris is focused on getting acquainted with the neighborhood again. She is attending community events, reaching out to local business owners, and keeping her ears open to what women are looking for today.

FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015 Our Town 17

COLD WEATHER RISKS TO YOUR PET PETS How to keep dogs and cats safe in freezing temperatures Some say it originated in the Australian Outback. Others point to Alaska or Siberia as the source. No matter where it came from, the expression “three dog night� means a night so bitterly cold you’d need three dogs in bed with you to keep you warm. But what about our beloved pets? What can we do to keep them warm, healthy, and safe during the frigid days of winter? Here are a few tips from North Shore Animal League America to help you make this winter a warm and safe season for your best pal. Know your pet’s limits when it comes to outside exposure. Some breeds – Huskies, Alaskan Malamutes and German Shepherds, to name a few – do very well in the cold temperatures but still need to be kept inside when not on walks or outdoor breaks. Other breeds – Chihuahuas, Poodles and Terriers, for example, should not be left out in the cold for long periods of time.

ter runoff can carry poisonous substances like anti-freeze. Even a tiny amount can make your dog deathly ill. Call your veterinarian immediately if you think your dog has ingested anything that might be toxic.

Fireplaces pose an additional indoor danger to animals. Screens are a must to avoid flying sparks and ames. Pets need to be kept a safe distance from fireplaces and portable heaters to avoid overheating.

“Beef� up your pet’s diet in the winter. Dogs and cats burn more calories in the cold weather staying warm. It’s important to balance their healthy di-

Rock salt and anti-freeze are toxic and harmful to pets. Use pet-friendly ice melting products and/or booties. If pets are exposed to rock salt, be sure to wipe off their feet, tummies and any exposed areas. Anti-freeze is fatal to humans and animals alike. If you have a basement or an attached garage that you allow your dog to explore, be careful to store antifreeze, batteries, deicers, cleaning products, and other chemicals securely out of reach. When outside, be sure to keep your dog from eating snow, which might contain contaminants, or drinking from ditches or gutters, where win-

WINNING THE PRIZE -- FOR CHARITY

ets with increased portions.

Check your pets’ water supply regularly. If water bowls are left outside they may freeze barring your pet or neighborhood cats from access to fresh water.

Remember that outdoor cats need your help. If you regularly feed outdoor

animals consider using a Styrofoam cooler and straw to construct a makeshift shelter to help them weather the winter. It is important to remember that

pets are members of the family and should always be treated as such. When it comes to extreme conditions – be it cold, rain, snow or storms – it’s always best to err on the side of caution.

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18 Our Town FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015

YOUR FIFTEEN MINUTES

THEATER WITH A POWERFUL FEMALE VOICE Q&A Girl Be Heard’s Associate Artistic Director explains how the organization changed her outlook on issues of social justice BY ANGELA BARBUTI

When she started attending NYU, Noelia Mann Googled this word combination: political theater, New York and women. The serendipitous result, Girl Be Heard, would affect her life more than she could ever know at the time. The nonprofit theater program, headquartered in the East Village, works to empower young women by creating original plays and curriculum based on such topics as domestic violence, displacement, bullying, and body image. Mann started as a “feminist-in-residence,” which is their version of an intern, and was then hired full-time as an associate artistic director. As fate would have it, when she started, the company was in need of another performer, so she stepped in and has been acting with them ever since. As she graduates from college this semester, with a degree in theater, she is certain of one thing: that her work with Girl Be Heard will continue. She said, “I have just learned so much being a part of this organization about how theater and art can directly affect legislation and politics. I really want to continue in that vein. I really believe in fostering young women’s voices who are the future leaders of the world.”

When did you join Girl Be Heard?

Noelia Mann, the associate artistic director at Girl Be Heard, helps shape the organization’s productions and outreach.

I joined in the winter of 2012. I worked there first as an intern, with Jessica [Greer Morris] and Ashley [Marinaccio], the two co-founders. I volunteer interned for them for about seven months and then was hired as their first staff member the following year. And I have been there ever since in a variety of different roles. When I started, we had a budget of about $30,000 and it was just the three of us. Now, three-and-

a-half years later, we have over 15 full-time staff members, our budget is over a million and we’ve got 170 members.

You started as a feminist-in-residence. What does that mean? That’s what our earliest internship titles were called. The organization had had a few feminist-in-residences at different times as they were building up. But I was the only one there at the time who stayed on to become a paid staff member.

Tell us about how you got to perform with the company. The summer I interned, we were doing a show called Traffic and they needed someone last minute so I just kind of jumped in and did a small role. I’ve been performing with them ever since. It’s allowed me to be both on the administrative side and also perform in a company setting. I feel so honored and privileged that I get to do both things.

Now you’re the associate artistic director. What does that entail? I’m essentially the artistic director’s assistant, but it’s more of a partnership. Right now I’m producing a show with Human Rights Watch that I helped write. I’m co-directing it, I’m acting in it, I’m producing it. I do everything from booking shows to negotiating contracts. I co-direct all of what we call remounts. We do one to two new works each year, but we’re frequently commissioned by organizations, community centers and schools, like the UN and Amnesty International, who want us to come and do a show. And they’ll tell me the issues most pertinent to their neighborhood and the time frame, and then I’ll build a show on those topics in that amount of time. We have a really wide body of work from the last four years. What I’ll do is put together a script for whatever the requirements are for the remounts. For example, if we want to do a 20-minute version of our full-length show 9mm America, which is on gun violence, I’ll choose which pieces, cast it and run the rehearsals.

What has been one show that really affected you? The show that we just closed last weekend was called Displaced and it was the culmination of nine months of research on the topic of displacement and the refugee crisis. This summer, I was invited with a few other actors by the State Department to go on a 30day tour of Europe and spent ten days in a refugee camp in Denmark. We talked to girls and women from all over the world who had been displaced for various reasons and took those stories, and well as the displacement stories of our own cast members, and created an hour-and-fifteen-minute show. It was just an amazing experience. We had the chance to meet some of these women who we really developed relationships with. I still talk to all of the girls I met. I transcribed their work and as we were editing the script, I would speak to them every step of the way. It felt like a true honoring of their experiences, while also making the connection between our experiences here in New York, because so many of our girls have experienced displacement, homelessness, or just the realization that the American Dream is not all they thought it would be. We had a lot of girls talk about debt and the fact that people leave their homes for a better life and what happens when it’s not the life they thought it was going to be.

Explain your work with Humanities Prep in Chelsea. That’s one of the schools we work at in Manhattan. The afterschool programs are really cool because the curriculum is very unique. We ask girls what’s important to them. We discuss a lot of social justice issues and how to talk about them through art. What’s also great is that some of the teaching artists are actually girls who have gone through the program. It’s a true anti-poverty model in that way as well. For more information on the organization, visit www.girlbeheard. org

FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015 Our Town 19

CLASSIFIEDS Classified Advertising Department Information Telephone: 212-868-0190 | Fax: 212-2868-0190 Email: classified2@strausnews.com Hours: Monday - Friday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm | Deadline: 12pm the Friday before publication ACCOUNTING/FINANCIAL SERVICES LOMTO Federal Credit Union It’s hard to beat our great rates! Deposits federally insured to at least $250K (212)947-3380 ext.3144

ADOPTION A childless young married couple (she-30/he-37) seeks to adopt. Will be hands-on mom/devoted dad. Financial security. Expenses paid. Call/text. Mary & Adam. 1-800-790-5260. ADOPTION: Unplanned Pregnancy? Caring licensed adoption agency provides financial and emotional support. Choose from loving pre-approved families. Call Joy toll free 1-866922-3678 or confidential email:Adopt@ForeverFamiliesThroughAdoption.org ANIMALS & PETS

Certified Dog Training in your home. Vet recommended. Bonded & Insured. Excellent References. Alex Himel, 516767-0747 or 516-633-3384. North Shore Animal League AnimalLeague.org 1-877-4-SAVE-PET Facebook.com/TheAnimalLeague ANNOUNCEMENTS

GrowNYC.org Recycle@GrowNYC.org 212-788-0225 ANTIQUES/COLLECTIBLES

Antique, Flea & Farmers Market, East 67 St Market (bet. First & York Ave). Open every Saturday, 6am-5pm, rain or shine. Indoor & Outdoor, Free Admission. Call Bob 718-8975992. Proceeds benefit PS 183.

CAMPS/SCHOOLS Alexander Robertson School Independent School for Pre-K through Grade 5, 212-663-2844, 3 West 95th St. www.AlexanderRobertson.com Loyola School 646-346-8132 www.loyolanyc.org admissions@loyolanyc.org River Park Nursery School 212-663-1205, www.river parknurseryschool.com York Preparatory School 212-362-0400 ext 133 www.yorkprep.org admissions@yorkprep.org

CARS & TRUCKS & RV’S Donate your car to Wheels For Wishes, benefiting Make-AWish. We offer free towing and your donation is 100% tax deductible. Call (855) 376-9474 CLEANING SERVICES/LAUNDRY

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ENTERTAINMENT

HELP WANTED

REAL ESTATE - SALE

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HEALTH SERVICES

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AIRLINE CAREERS begin here Get FAA approved Aviation Maintenance Technician training. Financial aid for qualified students – Housing available. Job placement assistance. Call AIM 866-296-7093 Associate Producer, SiriusXM overnights on Road Dog Trucking. Must have knowledge/2+ yrs exp in radio trucking industry. Supports creative processes, content development and production. Apply at https:// careerssiriusxm.icims.com/ jobs/10142/ associate-producer%2c-talk-programming/job Coordinator, Ad Sales @ SiriusXM Supports all aspects of sales process and provides general support to VP, Ad Sales. Min 3 yrs exp in sales or media/entertainment environment. Apply at https://careers-siriusxm.icims.com/ jobs/10170/coordinator%2c-adsales/job Director, Talent Relations Responsible for the procurement of talent for SiriusXM, with specific expertise in the areas of Music, Talk, Comedy, and Entertainment. 7+ yrs related exp. Apply at https://careerssiriusxm.icims.com/ jobs/ 10169/director%2c-talent-relations/job

WELDING CAREERS- Hands on training for career opportunities in aviation, automotive, manufacturing and more. Financial aid for qualified students. Job placement assistance. CALL AIM 855-325-0399 HOME IMPROVEMENTS

Beautify your home with custom radiator covers, nightstands & more. www.licrc.com Handyman/Carpet Cleaner. Skilled, Exp, , Reasonable, Reliable. Joe - 917-530-6790

LEGAL AND PROFESSIONAL ALLSTATE INSURANCE Anthony Pomponio 212-769-2899 125 West 72nd St. 5R, NYC apomponio@allstate.com Anthony Pomponio, Allstate 212-769-2899 apomponio@allstate.com

MASSAGE BODYWORK by young, handsome, smooth, athletic Asian. InCall/OutCall. Phillip. 212-787-9116

Massage by Melissa (917)620-2787 MERCHANDISE FOR SALE

Fresh California Organic Walnuts, home grown, hand picked. Reduces the risk of heart disease. One of the best plant source of protein, Omega 3 and E &B vitamins. $12 a pound shelled, $5 a pound in shell, plus shipping. Perry Creek Walnuts 530-503-9705 perrycreekwalnuts.com perrycreekwalnuts@hotmail.com Pandora Jewelry Unforgettable Moments 412 W Broadway - Soho, NYC 212-226-3414 REAL ESTATE - RENT

GLENWOOD - Manhattan’s Finest Luxury Rentals Uptown office 212-535-0500 Downtown office 212-4305900. glenwoodNYC.com OCEAN CITY, MARYLAND. Best selection of affordable rentals. Full/ partial weeks. Call for FREE brochure. Open daily. Holiday Resort Services. 1-800-638-2102. Online reservations: www.holidayoc.com

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Allstate - The Wright Agency Anthony Wright 718 671 8000 Ao65989@allstate.com Auto.home.life.retirement WANTED TO BUY

ANTIQUES WANTED Top Prices Paid. Chinese Objects, Paintings, Jewelry, Silver, Furniture, Etc. Entire Estates Purchased. 800-530-0006. CASH for Coins! Buying Gold & Silver. Also Stamps & Paper Money, Comics, Entire Collections, Estates. Travel to your home. Call Marc in NJ: 1-800488-4175 I Buy Old Tribal Art Free Appraisal 917-628-0031 Daniel@jacarandatribal.com TOP CASH PAID FOR OLD GUITARS! 1920’s thru 1980’s. Gibson, Martin, Fender, Gretsch, Epiphone, Guild, Mosrite, Rickenbacker, Prairie State, D’Angelico, Stromberg. And Gibson Mandolins/Banjos. 1-800-4010440 WE BUY-TOP DOLLAR PAID Fine & Costume Jewelry Gems-Silver-Gold-Jade Antiques-Art-Rugs Call Gregory@718 608 5854 Certified GIA Gemologist

Directory of Business & Services To advertise in this directory Call Susan (212)-868-0190 ext.417 Classified2@strausnews.com

ACTING COACH Overcome Audition Fears Prepare for Film/TV roles Free Interview

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ANTIQUES WANTED

TOP PRICES PAID

Chinese Objects Paintings, Jewelry Silver, Furniture, Etc. Entire Estates Purchased

800.530.0006

Antique, Flea & Farmers Market SINCE 1979

East 67th Street Market

(between First & York Avenues) Open EVERY Saturday 6am-5pm Rain or Shine Indoor & Outdoor FREE Admission Questions? Bob 718.897.5992 Proceeds Benefit PS 183 DOG TRAINING

&HUWL¿HG 'RJ 7UDLQLQJ ,Q <RXU +RPH Vet Recommended Bonded & Insured Excellent References

Alex Himel (H) 516.767.0747 (C) 516.633.3384

CLEANING SERVICES

RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL - Experienced - Bonded & Insured -

SEE W W W.MANHATTANWASH.COM FOR INFO OR CALL 212.410.3200

SOHO LT MFG

462 Broadway MFG No Retail/Food +/- 9,000 sf Ground Floor - $400 psf +/- 16,000 sf Cellar - $100 psf Call Mark @ Meringoff Properties 646.262.3900

20 Our Town FEBRUARY 5-11 ,2015

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