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April 2010
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Shelly's Advice to Spitzer, Subway Ridership Decreases, Poking Holes in Fairey's Mural

Shelly’s advice to Spitzer: shut your trap (Daily News).

Leading up to transit cut announcements, the MTA releases station-by-station subway ridership figures (NYT, 2nd Avenue Sagas).

Transportation Alternatives: more people riding bikes (NYT).

Continue reading Shelly’s Advice to Spitzer, Subway Ridership Decreases, Poking Holes in Fairey’s Mural

Good Morning!

Lots of people made their way to Hester Street Fair this weekend on two wheels. Saturday’s gorgeous weather, of course, gave way to rain yesterday. It’ll be gray and soggy through tomorrow afternoon, when the sunshine and blue skies return.

Residents of 289 Grand Allowed to Enter Apartments

The Grand Street fire has upended the lives of 200 Grand Street residents in countless ways. The people who lived in 283 and 285 Grand were dealt the worst blow, of course. Their homes – declared to be structurally unstable – are being demolished. But the tenants of 289 Grand (aka 91 Eldridge) have not had an easy time of it either. This weekend, however, they’re finally able to go back inside their apartments – if only for a few moments.

Yesterday afternoon the residents gathered alongside the barricade blocking the path to their building. One by one, they were escorted into their apartments to retrieve small items and any important documents that could be salvaged.

Continue reading Residents of 289 Grand Allowed to Enter Apartments

More Than 10,000 Visit Hester Street Fair

Photo by Pietro Filardo

So much for starting slow. The Hester Street Fair was a hit from the moment it began at 10 o’clock this morning. A ton of media exposure during the past month and a gorgeous day obviously did the trick. There were plenty of neighborhood folks turning out – but also lots of people who seldom (if ever) venture below Delancey, on the Lower/Lower East Side. On its first day, more than 10-thousand passed through the Hester Street Fair’s brand new ornamental gate to visit 60 diverse vendors. Click through to see photos from day 1.

Continue reading More Than 10,000 Visit Hester Street Fair

Hester Street Fair: Day 1

Photo by Mitch Weinstein

In just an hour, the Hester Street Fair will be open for business. Neighborhood foodie Mitch Weinstein snapped this shot of this morning’s set-up. The Fair opens at 10am.

Bennyroyce Dance Productions at University Settlement

If you’re still looking for something to do tonight or tomorrow, here’s an idea. Check out four of the city’s most promising choreographers at the Performance Project, at University Settlement. Brian Gibbs, Nilas Martins, Monique Meunier and Bennyroyce Royon will present four different perspectives on the “dimensions of time.” Chronos Project is Bennyroyce Productions’ first dance concert. The concerts are at 730pm. Click here for more information and to buy tickets.

Hester Street Fair Signage!

Earlier today, the Hester Street Fair posted this photo on their Facebook Page. They’re putting the finishing touches on a new gate leading to the tree-lined courtyard where the fair will be taking place. It all begins tomorrow morning at 10. This weekend we’ll take a closer look at Hester Street and its storied pushcart past.

Downtown Political Club Picks New Leaders

Jeanne Wilcke. Photo from Soho Politics

One of Lower Manhattan’s most influential political clubs elected new officers last night. Jeanne Wilcke is the new president of the Downtown Independent Democrats. She replaces Sean Sweeney, who becomes treasurer. Adam Silvera and Jim Stratton were chosen as vice presidents. Alex Li, who was tweeting from the event, will serve as secretary. The meeting was apparently a rather civilized affair.

Continue reading Downtown Political Club Picks New Leaders

Free Health Screenings Tomorrow

State Assemblymember Brian Kavanagh is sponsoring a Health Fair tomorrow at the Health Professions & Human Services High School on East 15th Street. There will be free blood pressure, glucose and cholesterol screenings. You’ll also be able to get more information on breast and prostate Cancer,  diabetes, elderly pharmaceutical insurance coverage (EPIC), HIV, services for children with disabilities nutrition and substance abuse. The hours are noon to 4. The High School is located at 345 East 15th Street, between 1st & 2nd Avenues. For more information, contact Izzy Murguia or Liana Jourdain at 212-979-9696.

Gallery Openings and Exhibits on the L.E.S.

This week, we’ve asked artist Walter O’Neill, director of  the Educational Alliance’s Art School, to recommend some openings and exhibits in the neighborhood. Here are his top picks (and some great bits of insight):

Orchard Street, below Delancey, seems to have become the main street for contemporary art galleries on the Lower East Side. In the few blocks between Delancey and Canal Street there are at least eight galleries. (!) Next door to the Tenement Museum, Bridge Gallery has a mini-retrospective of the exuberant paintings of Marjorie Strider.

 

Continue reading Art Worth Seeing on the Lower East Side

Friday News Links

Transportation Alternatives identifies the neighborhood’s most dangerous intersections (DNA Info).

Charter school hearing becomes shouting match (Daily News.)

A British day school comes to the East Village (Crain’s).

Continue reading Friday News Links

Hack Attack

After a really un-fun day in IT hell, we’re back in business this morning. As many of our readers noticed, The Lo-Down was flagged yesterday by Google as a site that “might harm your computer.”  Turns out we were caght up in an attack on our server (Network Solutions) that impacted several thousand web sites.

It doesn’t appear that The Lo-Down was actually infected with a virus, or that anyone visiting was infected. But we have cleaned up every page on the blog just to make sure. It’s going to take time for Google to re-evaluate our web site. So, for the time being, many browsers are still giving users a warning message. Hopefully Google will give us a clean bill of health today.

If anyone has experienced a problem after visiting The Lo-Down please let us know. Thanks for all of your emails yesterday about the situation. Now back to all things LES!

Urban Planners Begin Working with SPURA Panel

SPURA

Photo by A. Jesse Jiryu Davis

It felt a little bit like group therapy. Everyone had the opportunity to speak their mind. A professorial facilitator offered encouragement. They even passed around a bowl of grapes and some cookies. But last night’s gathering in a stuffy meeting room on the Bowery was not simply a feel-good get-together. It represented a major new phase in the quest for community consensus about the future of the Seward Park Urban Renewal Area.

Continue reading Urban Planners Begin Working with SPURA Panel

This Week's Music Picks

Here are musician Ken Beasley’s top music picks on the Lower East Side this week:

Gotan Project

GOTAN PROJECT  | Wednesday, April 21 | 7pm

The musical group Gotan Project may be based in Paris, and comprised of members who are all from different countries, but the music they create is purely Tango. Continue reading This Week’s Music Picks

Elected Officials, Firefighters Battle to Save Firehouses

Councilmembers Elizabeth Crowley and Margaret Chin at South Street firehouse this morning. Photo by William Alatriste/New York City Council

Months ago, Mayor Bloomberg telegraphed his intention to close up to 20 firehouses to help narrow the city’s huge budget gap. He won’t reveal exactly which fire companies are on the chopping block until May 6th. But this morning, elected officials, community leaders and firefighters launched a preemptive strike. Continue reading Elected Officials, Firefighters Battle to Save Firehouses