The other day we reported on the continuing efforts to reach a community consensus on how to develop what was once known as the Seward Park Urban Renewal Area. The 10 sites have sat vacant for 40 years while neighborhood organizations argued about the amount of low income housing should be built where run down tenement buildings once stood. Last week, David Quart of the Economic Development Corporation, walked a Community Board 3 committee through the current uses of the sites, and the possible impediments to redeveloping each one. His power point presentation is posted on the community board's web site.
         
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Today we kick off a series of interviews with the candidates running to represent the 1st District in the New York City Council. The District includes the Lower East Side, Chinatown, Soho, Tribeca and Wall Street. There are four candidates seeking to unseat Councilman Alan Gerson, who was only able to run for a third term after the Council voted to extend term limits this year. Gerson supported Mayor Bloomberg's controversial campaign to extend the limits. Our first interview is with Margaret Chin, a community organizer, affordable housing advocate and former teacher. This is the fourth time she's run for the City Council. We discussed a range of issues last week in her modest campaign headquarters in Chinatown. She shared her views on Chinatown development, the redevelopment of the Seward Park Urban Renewal Area, a variety of transportation issues and how she feels about Councilman Gerson's unexpected decision to jump into the race. We want the candidates to be able to discuss the issues important in the 1st District fully. For this reason, the interview is largely unedited – we have simply removed extraneous phrases and streamlined the questions. Read the entire Q & A after the jump. For more information on Chin and the 1st District, see: Margaret Chin's web site Continue reading TLD Interview: City Council Candidate Margaret Chin  
The previous tenant of 365 Grand, "Isabella's Oven," used the open air patio, which is adjacent to the Seward Park handball courts. But Hartman said he plans to enclose the backyard. A couple of residents who were present at last month's meeting asserted that the enclosure would not help muffle the noise. At the suggestion of the committee, Hartman has used the past month to build support for his project in the community and to have an architect draw up plans for the backyard enclosure. Continue reading Committee to Review Grand Park Application Tonight
State Senator Hiram Monserrate says he's coming home to the Democrats (until he decides otherwise). Meanwhile, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver says he'll tell his members to go home this week if the Senate can't get its act together. As one observer put it, Albany is like "feudal Japan. There's a weak emperor (the governor) and strong warlords." Gotham Gazette details all of the key legislation in jeopardy, as Albany burns. Mayor Bloomberg likes Shelly Silver's proposals for tweaking mayoral control of the schools. The assembly could pass the legislation by the end of the week. The Senate? See above. After that accident at the foot of the Williamsburg Bridge last week, the city is finally imposing new requirements for pedicab drivers. The blog, "Lost City," really hates the "Recover New York Program", announced by the city's Economic Development Corporation. Lost City says the plan would "basically hand over those parts of the city (including Chinatown) that haven't yet been raped The Obama administration's loan modification plan could help thousands of New Yorkers. But housing advocates say the program "is slow to get off the ground" here.
We've received an email from the president of the Downtown Independent Democrats, clarifying one of several bizarre incidents that occurred at the political club's June 2nd endorsement meeting. We previously reported that challenger Pete Gleason won the endorsement over City Councilman Alan Gerson. In the press release wrapping up the dramatic evening (more on that in a moment), Sweeney (a Gerson detractor) wrote: Tensions ran very high throughout the evening. In one
instance, Luke Henry, a ringer from Gerson's VRDC Executive Board, attempted to vote, only to be discovered and have his ballot shredded as he attempted to place it in the ballot box.
In his email to us late last week, Sweeney explained there had been a misunderstanding:
With
some 124 voters there was a lot of confusion, and one of our members, Luke Henry, asked if he could vote and I said, amidst all the turmoil: "Certainly." Someone then noted that Luke had voted at VRDC. When we brought this up to him, he readily admitted it and surrendered the ballot when I informed him that DID has a rule that an individual can only vote in one club. I also made the erroneous assumption that Luke was sent in by VRDC to vote for Gerson. I later discovered that I was incorrect in that assumption, an assumption made in haste and released to the press in the wake of a tumultuous meeting. The Lo-Down did not refer to the press release in our recounting of the meeting, but several days later, we mentioned an article in Tenant Planet.org that linked to it. Got that? Now on to the really surreal stuff. For the past week, local political reporters have been trying to sort out a quote "physical showdown" between Councilman Gerson and Gil Horowitz, a 72-year old member of the club. According to the reports (City Hall News, Downtown Express), Gerson rushed over to defend his 84-year old mother Sophie, who was having an argument with Horowitz. Horowitz said Gerson "grabbed me and hurled me about 20 feet away." Gerson has told reporters that there may have been some contact with Horowitz as he attempted to separate him from his mother, but there was certain;y no "physical altercation." At any rate, Horowitz threatened to call the cops – Gerson said something like "go ahead," and even handed Horowitz his cell phone. Horowitz was unamused: he threw the phone against a wall, with "all the force I could muster," he says. Amazingly, a lot of people at the meeting didn't even hear the incident. Just another routine night in the First District Council race, I guess.
Newly arrived Commanding Officer, Captain Nancy Barry, was introduced on Wednesday night at the 7th Precinct Community Council Meeting. It’s a homecoming of sorts. She got her start as a police officer in 1981, in the 7th. Thirty years later, after moving up through the ranks of the NYPD, she’s back in the old neighborhood. This week Barry gave awards to the two officers who went to great lengths to catch a suspect accused of stealing several ATM machines in Lower Manhattan (noted a few weeks ago in our “Dumb Crook Alert”). One of the officers jumped into the East River to catch the suspect. Awards were also given out to two officers who caught a woman suspected of numerous grand larcenies and many robberies (Police Officer Lugo and Police Officer Ducreton, pictured above) . Barry reported monthly crime stats, noting that overall crime in the neighborhood is down by 27%. Crime statistics for the 7th Precinct can be found online here. She also noted that overall crime city-wide is down 12% since last year. In our area, murder and rape are down 100% since last month and robbery is down by 42% (there were 11 reported). Grand larceny is down by 43% (there were 18 reported) but felony assaults are up by 33% (8 reported) and burglaries are up by 50% (3 reported). Continue reading 7th Precinct Report – Captain Nancy Barry Takes Command
Drummer Milford Graves The Met's Summer Recital Series takes place tonight in East River Park at 7. Featured will be soprano Joyce El-Khoury, bass Keith Miller, accompanied by Vlad Iftinca. Actor/conductor Damon Gupton, a Juilliard graduate, will host the park concert. Rooftop Films: Tonight on the Open Road Rooftop Above the New Design High School, " The ring toss, hoola hoops, jump ropes, face painting and obstacle courses… all part of the third annual field day at East River Park. Registration is at 10am, open to all families with children.
As we reported earlier, Mayor Bloomberg has decided to cut 100% of the city’s after-school youth programs supported by OST2. These cuts will affect 88 programs and almost 11,000 students city-wide, leaving many disenfranchised youth without a safe place to go after school. We’ve been following the efforts of The Educational Alliance to fight the cuts. We were there with them at City Hall on Wednesday for a big rally and press conference. It was an impressive gathering of over 200 students representing many different programs throughout the city. Several City Council members spoke, and as the crowd grew, television cameras seemed to materialize out of nowhere. The rally concluded with students from the Educational Alliance handing Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott petitions with almost 5000 signatures of support to reinstate these life-altering programs.
As Albany turns. The governor pretty much summed up the week: “The dysfunction and chaos in the Senate has wasted an entire week of the people’s business.” The City Council wants to require NYPD traffic cops to snap a photo every time they write a ticket. The Daily News reports more than 2600 employees of the New York public schools will lose their jobs this fall due to budget cuts. No teachers will be fired, but the impact of axing school aides, counselors and hall monitors will be felt in the classroom. At Levant East, formerly Thor, in the Hotel on Rivington you will be greeted (or turned away, as the case may be) by a doorman.
At last month's 7th Precinct community meeting, Green pleaded with the NYPD to ticket trucks using the street to pass through the neighborhood. In spite of the fact that East Broadway is not a designated "through" street, police officers told him there's nothing they could do unless signs were put up. But last night, after a representative of the community board said that signs were not required in order to enforce the law, The Lo-Down asked police officials for clarification. They acknowledged that it is, in fact, their responsibility to ticket trucks that are using East Broadway to get across town. On the DOT's web site, it states, "the presence of signage is not required to enforce the Truck Route regulations." For a list of "through" streets in the neighborhood see the end of this post. Nevertheless, the transportation department will study the feasibility of adding signs as an extra deterrent. Even if signs are posted, trucks making local deliveries will still be able to use East Broadway. The committee discussed whether the signs should be posted on the entire street (from Grand to Chatham Square) or just from Montgomery to Essex Street (in the vicinity of the Seward Park towers). Ultimately, they decided to ask for signs along the entire stretch of East Broadway. The DOT said the study would take about three months. Continue reading Seward Park Co-op Seeks to Reduce E. Broadway Truck Traffic
A committee of Community Board 3 expressed bewilderment and dismay last night that the city has apparently held up the controversial reconstruction of Chatham Square without making any kind of official announcement. The project, reviled by Chinatown residents and opposed by Community Boards 3 and 1, as well as elected officials, was supposed to begin this summer. The delay came to light a week ago on the blog of the Civic Center Residents Coalition. Citing a tipster, the blog said the board of the Chinatown Consolidated Benevolent Association got the news in a private meeting with a Department of Transportation commissioner. The DOT later told Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver's office that bids for the project had not gone out. This, in spite of the fact that the DOT said back in February that it would not consider changes to the plan because the request for bids would be made in a matter of days. Last night, CB3 District Manager Susan Stetzer said the DOT declined an invitation to appear at the transportation committee meeting. The committee passed a resolution expressing disappointment with the handling of the issue and requesting new negotiations with the community about the Chatham Square plan. Continue reading CB3 “Disappointed” in City’s Handling of Chatham Square Revamp
The Democrats go to court… Albany hangs on every word uttered by a guy indicted three months ago for allegedly assaulting his companion with a broken glass… the governor's plea to lawmakers: "think of the lobbyists!" Just another day in the nuthouse known as the New York State Senate. A plan by Assembly leader Sheldon Silver allows the mayor to retain control of the city's schools, with a few adjustments. After yesterday's shootings at the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, the NYPD is tightening security at some Jewish institutions in New York. It looks like Patricia Yeo (Monkey Bar, Sapa) is the new chef at Broadway East. The Feedbag blog reports: Michael Huynh (Baoguette and Bar Bao) is opening a Vietnamese beer garden on Orchard Street. And the team behind Stanton Social is apparently looking at launching another restaurant in the neighborhood.
A large group of students and staff from dozens of community organizations came to City Hall this afternoon to fight for continued funding of after school programs (see our earlier coverage here). Mayor Bloomberg decided to cut off money the city allocates to 88 community-based after school programs. A coalition representing those programs delivered petitions with almost 5-thousand signatures to Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott. Several City Council members, including Alan Gerson, John Liu and Robert Jackson addressed the rally, promising to support their campaign. Look for a full video report tomorrow, featuring highlights from the speeches given by the councilmen and several students.
Along with his tattoos and his Harleys, Dr. Dave Ores is practically legendary on the LES for helping people gain access to affordable health care. He doesn't take insurance (doesn't believe in it) and you almost always "pay what you can". Last year he started a Health Care Co-Op for restaurant workers. We spoke with him recently about his very important non-profit program.
Curbed crunches the numbers from the Citi Habitats May rental report. Vacancy rates are extremely low, although some experts think these kind of reports mask the true vacancy situation in Manhattan. Average rents declined a little bit. On the LES, a one bedroom averaged $2117 in May. Among the casualties of the coup in Albany: legislation to protect tenants from shady landlords. The ACLU has filed a lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security, which has refused to release even the most basic details about plans to install surveillance cameras across Lower Manhattan.
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