Friday, May 3, 2013

*Everyday Chatter

Save the Mermaid Parade--it might not happen this year! [SM]

While you're at it, save the Mosaic Trail, too! [IGG]

Max Fish is moving to Brooklyn. [NYT]

"How do the most glamorously dressed people in the world dress up for the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute gala honoring the museum's new "Punk Fashion" exhibit without looking like total poseurs?" [AW]

Three cheers for the seltzer man. [NYT]

A bunch more residential-retail complex plans for the East Village. [EVG]

Struggling to survive in Bloomberg's New York. [Nation]

How to go undercover in Williamsburg, "among the rooftop gardeners and the sustainability consultants and the chickeneers." [NYT]

New Yorkers are not too excited about the bike-share program. [CBS]

...and here they are--blocking Gene's Restaurant:

photo: Lynn Lieberman

Check out the New York photos of Charles le Brigand. [CLB]

On the loss of Cooper Union. [JB]

The privatization of city parks. [HP]

"Owners of fashion-forward fidos in Manhattan's toniest neighborhood are starting to beg groomers for temporary tattoos — reflecting a burgeoning international interest in dog body art." [DNA]

Remembering the Rawhide. [Out]

In the Cave of the Fallen Angels. [GLF]

On barber shops. [HNY]

Smith & 9th back in business. [OMFS]

A peek inside the luxurious Domino Sugar factory. [LI]

"Today’s teenagers are more materialistic and less interested in working hard than the baby boomers were in their teens, according to a new study. But sorry, boomers, the researchers say it’s probably your fault for creating a culture that breeds narcissism and entitlement." [MSN]

16 comments:

Herb Westphalen Chef/Mixologist said...

WTF?! Gene's has been one on my favorites for over 30 years. It's been there for ages and makes us realize this city still has some great history. Bike docks, really?
This really shows no consideration or respect for the historic districts in our town.

Choresh Wald said...

why say blocking ?
a car that parks in front of the restaurant is way more higher the the bicycles and the docking stations and blocks the view way more.
also, instead of 1 parking place that will serve 2 people at most you have 8 docking stations for 8 potential customers.
clearing parking spots from cars reveals so many beautiful views around the city that were otherwise being blocked by huge SUVs

3sigma said...

I don't get it: congestion and excessive traffic and decrepit subway stations are often complaints of many people.

Then, when some good initiative like bike sharing is put out there (it is affordable to virtually anyone with above-zero income), people will loathe that as well?

Anonymous said...

Why are the bike docks worse than the parked cars obscuring the same thing in this google map picture?

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Gene%27s+west+village&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&ie=UTF-8&ei=UMuDUayaK4Lj4AP1k4CAAg&ved=0CAsQ_AUoAg

mazzer said...

LOL ... "blocking"? I'm with Choresh. Bike docks show way more "respect for the historical districts" than cars do. What is that argument even supposed to mean? Should we be driving cars from the 1960s? 70s? WAIT, SHOULD WE BE DRIVING CARS AT ALL???

Anonymous said...

I just saw in The Villager that St. George school is closing next month and LaSalle is moving back to their old digs on 2nd St. You know either Cooper Union or NYU will buy that building in half a heartbeat. Or maybe they already did so they can build another eyesore.

Anonymous said...

Wouldn't having a bike dock out front be a boon for a restaurant? Potentially adding foot traffic? Unless--are these racks actually blocking people from entering, like are they right up against the door so it can't open? Because I'd be against that. That sounds dangerous.

Little Earthquake said...

If you consider that blocking your ingress, perhaps you don't belong here.

Brendan said...

I bike almost every day and am generally pro-bike, but I don't understand the point of the bike share at all. What problem is it supposed to solve? Unlike in other cities with successful bike shares, you can already get everywhere with mass transit and walking here. And I'm tired of corporate branding infiltrating every level of daily life. The bike share stations might not look so bad now but wait until the bright blue logo-covered Citi bikes are docker there.

Laura Goggin Photography said...

Those Charles le Brigand photos are fantastic - thank you for sharing.

The issue of the privatizing our public parks needs more attention. As there is now talk of making improvements to Tompkins Square Park, you can bet it will be controlled the same way.

Unknown said...

And the blue-logo-covered Fords and BMWs blocking the restaurant's views are somehow less "corporate"? Bicycles are somehow less "historic" than parked cars? You are all aware that bicycles have been used in these streets far longer than cars have, don't you? What world do you people live in?

Brendan said...

The bikes are going to look like this: http://assets.inhabitat.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/2/files/2012/07/citi-bike-share-1.jpg

When was the last time you saw a car that ugly, or with logos that big? Don't you get tired of being made to say the names of giant global financial institutions in conversation (Citi Field, Barclay's Center)? Isn't it creepy?

Again, I like bikes! I just don't get this. With the pricing structure it's clear that the idea is you use these bikes for quick trips. In Portland or Minneapolis that makes sense because the city is more spread out and mass transit isn't very good. But we don't have that problem! We're a walking city above all and we have great mass transit!

DF said...

A 35 bike docking station appeared outside my building last week... the DOT claims to have done community outreach but nobody in our building was expecting to find this monstrosity on Friday. The stations were placed directly in front of the entrance to two building on our street and are about 10 feet from residents' bedrooms. If they had been placed about 50 yards away they would have been in front of a park/bar and not imposed any quality of life issues. I have no problem with the bike share program (apart from Citibank using our public space for advertising) but these locations were obviously chosen with little consideration given to the residents that would be directly affected. Most NY'ers that cycle already have a bike, and probably a bike room in their building, these bikes targeted at touriest, put the docking stations in front of hotels, Empire State building, Staten Island Ferry... tourist spots. OR, why not place them in front of the gazillion Citibank branches around the city.

Big Tsunami said...

Leave it to Little Earthquake to make the inane "if you don't like_______, then move to_______" comment.

Anonymous said...

To: 'info@thorequities.com'
Subject: question for Thor Equities


Hello,

I understand you bought up most of Coney Island. The area suffered much devastation after Hurricane Sandy. I understand that you are a wealthy developer and am wondering if you donated any money or materials to the greater community there. Many of the local residents there live at or under the poverty line. Also, the annual Mermaid Parade is under threat because due to said damages they are massively under budget by $100,000. This parade is an extremely popular part of the essential fabric and history of Coney Island and brings great joy to thousands upon thousands of attendees every year. Why don’t you donate funding so that it may proceed? The profits you stand to gain from your acquisitions in the area are enormous, and they are a result of the unjustifiably favorable deal you struck with the city of New York that enabled you to purchase one of our most important cultural and historic landmarks for a pittance (and do what you please with it against many zoning ordinances, and, against the better interests of the culture and future of this great city). I am remaining optimistic that you will at the very least endeavor to make a benevolent gesture in the form of a donation to this year’s Mermaid Parade, and, to give without conditions or the opportunistic manipulations that have marked your previous “transactions” in the area thus far.

Thank you,

Native New Yorker and

Longtime Patron of Coney Island, aka, THE PEOPLE’s PARK.

glamma said...

the only thing bike share is for is to make money for citibank the the govt govt officials they are paying off.
also, to the above, you can walk thru 2 parked cars but u cant walk thru a bikerack.