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Are you looking to earn a little extra cash this summer and beyond? Why not join The Lo-Down team. We’re looking for a Lower East Side resident interested in helping to sell advertising. You’ll be paid on a commission basis. The job is part-time (around 20 hours per week).
If you know the neighborhood well, have a passion for all things LES and have a desire to help sustain and build The Lo-Down as a neighborhood news and information source for the years to come, we should talk!
If interested, email us at: ads@thelodownny.com.
 
- Arson, burglary, a fight with their landlord and the loss of the family dog — an East Village couple is having a tough go of it (Post).
- Dicker: Former Sheldon Silver aide gets SUNY job (Post).
- The city is approving a lot of sidewalk cafes, but violations are falling. One Lower East Side observer wonders whether lax enforcement is the real reason few citations are being written (WNYC).
- Dismantling Mars Bar, speculating about a new location (EV Grieve).
 Outside the city clerk's office in Lower Manhattan -- Sunday, June 24, 2011. Hundreds of same sex couples waiting to be married. What a relief! The heat wave has finally been broken. Today we’ll see a high of just 80 degrees, with some scattered thunderstorms this afternoon. Look for warmer temps the rest of the week – tomorrow it’ll be 90. Today we’ll have the Lower East Side angle on a special Sunday — the first day gay weddings were allowed in New York. There’s a lot happening in the neighborhood this week. Check out our Calendar for the latest. And don’t forget to send us those news tips at tips@thelodownny.com.
 Carol Anastasio and Mimi Brown, among the first same sex couples married in New York today. Photo by thelodownny.com Lower East Side “love birds” Carol Anastasio and Mimi Brown posed for pictures after helping to make history in New York today. They were among the first same sex couples married at the city clerk’s office early this morning. The Daily News has been profiling Carol and Mimi throughout the week. This afternoon the Old Homestead Steakhouse in the Meatpacking District is throwing them a big party. Among the invited guests: City Council Speaker Christine Quinn.
It’s quite a scene at the Marriage Bureau on Centre Street, where hundreds of gay couples are tying the knot on the first day same sex weddings are permitted in the state. We’ll be heading back downtown this afternoon, to witness another wedding. Dominic Pisciotta, chair of Community Board 3, and his partner, Andy Berg, will be the last couple married at the clerk’s office today. Dominic, an IT director for the city, has played a leading role in preparing New York for the big day. He and Andy have also found themselves in the media spotlight this weekend (see the Daily Beast).
We’ll have more on both Lower East Side couples tomorrow…
The District 1 Community Education Council (CEC) has announced its officers for the upcoming school year. Lisa Donlan is continuing as president. Other members include: Latrina Miley (1st vice president), Cynthia Bonano (2nd vice president), Doug Stern (secretary), Andrew Reicher (treasurer), Daniel Becker and Katy Stokes. The CEC advises the Department of Education about issues facing neighborhood schools. This year’s elections were plagued with problems. More information on the CEC’s web site, including a complete schedule of meetings.
Period details abound in this warm and inviting renovated one bedroom in the historic Amalgamated Coop on the Lower East Side. Hardwood strip floors throughout, lovely picture moldings, and hi ceilings are the order of the day. Continue reading Sponsored Post: Grand Street Apartment of the Week
 Borough President Scott Stringer spoke during the ribbon cutting at the LES Jewish Conservancy's Visitor's Center this past spring. Earlier this week, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer called on the City Council to reform the way it awards grants to community organizations. The grants, known as “member items,” are seen by many as pork-barrel spending, tools elected officials use to repay political supporters. Others view the “discretionary” fund as an essential lifeline to the city’s many non-profit social service and cultural institutions.
Stringer released a report detailing which Council districts get the most money. The unsurprising conclusion?
The analysis, the most comprehensive study to date, reveals deep inequities within the current system over the last four fiscal years and recommends that these taxpayer dollars—totaling $49.6 million in this year’s budget—should be transferred to mayoral agencies for distribution, to take politics out of the process… Under the current system, some districts receive more than four times the amount of discretionary member items than others. The Borough President’s report notes that the adoption of a uniform, across-the-board distribution of member items would have given added funding to 32 districts across the city. Continue reading City Council Cash – How the LES Stacks UP
 Daisy Duke's BBQ. Hardly any Lower East Side restaurants took part in New York Restaurant Week this year. But do not despair! The organizers of the Hester Street Fair suggest you use a little imagination — and join them for a delicious-sounding three course lunch this weekend. They recommend you…
Start off with an oyster appetizer from one of our newest food vendors, Brooklyn Oyster Party. The world is your oyster with these 100% raw, cold water growing, fresh oysters. Move on to land with hearty Daisy Duke’s BBQ for your main course. A savory pulled pork sandwich covered in vinegary slaw will definitely hit the spot. Last, but certainly not least, end your meal on a sweet note with another newbie food vendor: e.e. cookies! Baker Kori Staton of e.e. cookies offers all natural, small batch, gourmet cookies in classic flavors such as Triple Chocolate with Pecans, Old-Fashioned Chocolate Chip, and Oatmeal with Dried Cranberries, Blueberries, and Walnuts – just like mom used to make! If you have a particularly big sweet tooth, maybe you’ll even want to eat dessert first! With a whopping 9 dessert vendors this week, that definitely will not be a problem! Try a treat from first-time vendor Filled with Sweets who offers delicious desserts with Asian-inspired flavors such as Vanilla Taro Cupcakes and Matcha Black Currant Cupcakes.
The Hester Street Fair is held every Saturday from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. in the tree-lined space next to Seward Park (where Hester and Essex Streets meet.
You probably don’t need this handy/depressing graphic from AccuWeather to know it’s going to be a miserable day in New York. As the heat wave reaches its peak, the city has opened lots of cooling centers across the five boroughs. The NYC Office of Emergency Management has a searchable database of cooling center locations. Here are a few of them on the Lower East Side:
- Grand Coalition Senior Center, 80 Pitt Street
- United Jewish Communities, 15 Bialystoker Place
- Hamilton Fish Park Library, 415 East Houston Street
- University Settlement, 189 Allen Street
- Educational Alliance, 197 East Broadway
- Seward Park Library, 192 East Broadway
- LaGuardia Senior Center, 280 Cherry Street
- Rutgers Houses, 200 Madison Street
- Protesters step up efforts to keep Walmart out of New York (NY1).
- The proposed SOHO BID is downsized; some opponents are not appeased (Crain’s).
- The city’s year-old restaurant health inspection system has its shortcomings (Huff Post).
- A first look at Bowery House, “a boutique hotel for the stylish but frugal traveler.” (NYM).
- After “a string of soft, chic, empty-calorie shows,” the New Museum is “getting some of its grit back;” a new group exhibition centered on contemporary art from former Soviet bloc countries is a case in point (NYT).
- Five things to do at the New Museum Block Party this weekend (Time Out).
 Photo by Joel Raskin; www.joelraskin.blogspot.com. The heat and humidity will be stifling today. It’s already 85 — heading up to 101. Tomorrow’s high is expected to be 98. The heat wave breaks on Sunday, when it’s supposed to cool down to 88 and we’re likely to see some rain showers and thunderstorms. Check out our Calendar for a list of weekend events (some of them are even indoors)!
Here are musician Ken Beasley’s top music picks on the Lower East Side for this weekend:
 Buck 65 BUCK 65 – Fri, July 22 | 8pm at the Bowery Ballroom
They do have Hip-Hop in Canada. But even by Canadian standards, this is different. Buck 65 is a producer/songwriter/emcee hailing from Nova Scotia, and specializing in Alternative/Experimental Hip-Hop. How is it Alternative or Experimental? Well, for starters, it’s not overly heavy on the bass, and the beats are fairly minimal. Buck 65 also mixes folk, blues, and North American Roots sounds in his compositions. The final product boasts memorable hooks, and is ultimately a solidly pleasant listening experience that gets your head bopping before you even realize it. $15 //Delancey Street
Continue reading Weekend Music Picks
The Street Vendor Project (part of the Urban Justice Center) is coming to the defense of the Forsyth Street vegetable merchants. Yesterday they staged a news conference under the Manhattan Bridge, alleging that city agencies are unfairly targeting the vendors, who they said are only trying to provide a low-income neighborhood with fresh produce. Continue reading Group Alleges Unfair Treatment of Forsyth Street Vegetable Vendors
Parks Department planners have been working on designs for a new and improved Luther Gulick Park — now they’ve got a bit more money to get the job done. This week, neighborhood activists learned City Councilwoman Margaret Chin has allocated an additional $400,000 (on top of $550,000 her office already earmarked for the project). Manhattan Borough President has kicked in $250,000 (last year he allocated $500,000). Continue reading Chin, Stringer Give Gulick Park $650,000
For the past several months, supporters and opponents of the Chinatown Business Improvement District have argued bitterly about whether businesses, property owners and residents see a need for the proposed organization. As a City Council vote on the BID draws near, that dispute is growing even more heated.
Earlier this month, the coalition fighting against the business improvement district sent a letter to City Council members asserting that a record number of objection forms had been filed at City Hall against the proposal. Their letter stated, “Over five hundred properties in the proposed BID object to the formation of a Chinatown BID.”
Now City Councilwoman Margaret Chin, a key BID backer, has released the final numbers. According to her office, 562 objections were received from 388 property owners (or 20% of building owners). Ninety of the objection forms were received from residents, who would be assessed $1/year if the district is created. The objections are linked to properties representing 19% of the assessed land value in the BID catchment area.
In presentations before three downtown community boards last year, BID supporters said about half of the property owners within the proposed district had returned ballots and, of those responding, 97%, or about 550 property owners, were in favor.
The official threshold for approving a BID proposal is 51%, but city and state officials generally like to see widespread support in a community before approving a new business district. A City Council vote has not yet been scheduled.
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