By Eric Uhlfelder At least it didn’t rain this year! There was the occasional mist and it was cold up on the BQE and the Verrazano. But Bike New York’s 40th annual TD Five Boro Bike Tour was terrific. And what a milestone for the event. Having started in 1977 during the dark days of
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St. Luke Asks: Who Do We Let In?
By George Capsis I received a carefully-worded invitation from Wellspring Consulting, a firm that “provides strategic planning for nonprofit organizations,” to attend a meeting to help explore how St. Luke Church in the Fields could “expand its service offerings to meet the needs of the West Village community.” Following that meeting, I received a letter
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Post No Bills Except Ours—NYPD
A few weeks ago, I was walking home from Cinema Village on 12th Street after viewing The Lost Village—a film cataloguing how our old, familiar West Village is being shattered by inflation. The film featured interviews with female NYU students who are turning to prostitution to pay the breathtaking tuition and also Village restaurant owners
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MoMA Lost My Art
By Martica Sawin In 1979, MoMA curator Kynaston McShine was walking along SoHo’s West Broadway when he noticed a display of exquisitely-decorated artificial cakes in the window of the Holly Solomon Gallery. He tracked down the artist, Pat Lasch, and commissioned her to create a monumental cake for the Museum’s 50th anniversary celebration. Lasch, at
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11 Jane Street and Other Sorrows—What Are We Losing Here?
By Robert Widmann As parking garages go, this one was something of a sweetheart, like an old love you could count on—never overbearing, always sort-of cheery, not too gassy. When returning from places dark and distant, she welcomed the lonely sojourner looking to find home, with her low-rise crenelated fortress-top beset with eight diamond-shaped panels
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We Cannot Save What We Have Already Lost
By George Capsis The evening of May 24th, I met the Peruvian-born, and very young (age 28) and handsome (he is an underwear model, artist, and former student at Le Cordon Bleu), owner of the week-old Baby Brasa—Franco Noriega. The restaurant is located at 173 7th Avenue South, near Greenwich Avenue—its 100-plus seats were nearly
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Parks and Gardens of the West Village: Exploring the Church of St. Luke in the Fields and Jane Street Gardens
By Justin Matthews The West Village contains a variety of parks and gardens, several of which, along with hosting native bird species, preserve or complement the abundant historical heritage of the area. Here, we’ll explore two in particular. The Gardens of the Church of St. Luke in the Fields The Anglican Church of St. Luke
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The Cyber Hand in Your Pocket
By George Capsis I recently opened this email…“CHASE FRAUD PROTECTION SERVICES: Please tell us if you, or somebody you authorized, charged your card for: Navy Yard Gas $96.85.” On this day, the cyber crooks went right around the globe from the U.S. to China and Russia with sweeping electronic speed and the exquisite arrogance of
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Lenox Health Greenwich Village Wins Prestigious Award for Excellence in Preservation
By Barbara Osborn In May 2017, Lenox Health Greenwich Village (LHGV), located at the corner of 12th Street and 7th Avenue, was recognized by the New York Landmarks Conservancy for excellence in the restoration and adaptive use of the historic New York City building, which it occupies. LHGV received the Lucy G. Moses Award, which
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Cities Are for Walking
By Barry Benepe When I was but six years old, I accompanied my father on Saturday morning walks from Gramercy Park to Madison Square Park; his office was on the 12th floor of the Victoria Building at 230 5th Avenue. One warm spring morning, as we crossed Madison Avenue, we heard the screeching of brakes.
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Washington Square Park Designer Nabs Dual Role
By Geoffrey Croft The irony. George Vellonakis, the controversial NYC Department of Parks & Recreation (NYC Parks) landscape architect behind the much-vilified $30 million renovation of Washington Square Park, has recently been appointed to head the historic park. On May 15th, Vellonakis became the Washington Square Park Administrator, a City job, as well as the
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Praising George Vellonakis and Washington Square Park
By Barry Benepe With all due respect to Geoffrey Croft, I feel that we are fortunate to have George Vellonakis in charge of the design and maintenance of Washington Square Park, probably one of the most heavily utilized and historic parks in the City. Through careful and thoughtful research on the park’s original 1836 design,
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The Black Mounds in Washington Square Park
By George Capsis I was reminded of an unpleasant incident when I read Barry Benepe’s pleasure at the removal of the black asphalt mounds in Washington Square Park. (See his article on this page.) Barry evidently does not know what they were or how they got there—I do. The mounds were demanded by the ‘Crazies’—a
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Hold the Mayo! The Future of Grocery Prices in the West Village
By W. Russell Neuman I know I should, but I don’t pay a lot of attention to price tags in stores. I should also keep track of sale items and I don’t do that either. But when I picked up a jar of Hellmann’s Mayonnaise at a chain grocery store/supermarket in the West Village recently,
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Local Residents Challenge Democratic Candidates at Village Forum
Oh wow! The election for Mayor and other sundry City offices is coming up fast—on September 12th. And, although there has been some disenchantment with Bill de Blasio, no for-real opposition candidate has emerged. At a recent meet-the-candidate rally at the LGBT Center on 13th Street, the only sparks were over the Mayor’s insistence to
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Getting to Know the American Tap Dance Foundation
By Kelly Bayer What do you get when you mix African tribal dance and an Irish jig? Tap dance—America’s traditional dance form. If you’ve ever wanted to give it a try, get your kids involved, or even just watch the pros have at it, the American Tap Dance Foundation (ATDF) is a fantastic resource for
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Blue Money: A Scathing Debut Memoir by Janet Capron
By Andreea Ioana Pantor The controversial new memoir Blue Money is about to hit bookstores on June 20th. For its author, Janet Capron, prostitution was a defiant retort, an exotic adventure that didn’t impede her ongoing search for love amid the ruined landscape of drugs and rock ‘n’ roll in the streets of 1970s New
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Trump and the Saudi Connection
By Gary Tomei Trump recently traveled to Saudi Arabia and told the Saudis that they are our friends, even though they espouse a type of Islam, known as Wahhabism, which essentially preaches hatred of America and promotes Jihadism. Trump made this connection even though the Saudis are, in fact, the leading promoters of terrorism in
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A Food Tour of London’s East End—in the West Village
By Caroline Benveniste Recently, while in London, we (my husband and I and about 10 other people) took a wonderful East End food tour. This was not really a surprise, as we’d previously gone on an Eating Europe’s tour in Amsterdam, which was equally brilliant. I didn’t know much about the East End, which turns
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7th Avenue South to Get Bike Lane, But Residents Demand More Pedestrian Safety
By Andrew Buemi In 1811, the City of New York adopted an urban design plan that became famous for its logical, navigable grid system. While it has helped preserve the character of the West Village, it has also contributed to unintended consequences that continue to reverberate as the City evolves. The Commissioners’ Plan of 1811
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The Village is Alive and Well (on West 4th & Bank Streets)!
By Claude-Noëlle In the Spring of 1987, two recent college graduates, who had brought wares from Provence to the brocantes of NYC for more than a year, decided to open a little store on the corner of West 4th and Bank Streets in the West Village. The space had just been renovated, and when a
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Who’s Coaching Your Kids?
By Paul Caccamo It’s a challenge to raise kids in the West Village, which is why we need to take a much closer look at some of the adults with the greatest influence on them. One group, in particular, is their coaches. I’ve lived in the West Village for 20 years and have focused my
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West Village Houses: The Saga Continues
By Brian J. Pape, AIA In the April and May issues of WestView News, I reviewed the history of West Village Houses (WVH), beginning with their 1960s inception as residences to replace dilapidated industrial buildings along the elevated railroad on Washington Street. The railroad had erected the elevated tracks, starting slowly in 1929, due to
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The Broadway Musical Trail—So-So Shows with One Exception
By Robert Heide Two shows which recently opened on Broadway, Bandstand at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre at 242 West 45th Street and Anastasia at the Broadhurst Theatre at 235 West 44th Street, are just so-so. Both are around the corner from Hello Dolly! at 225 West 44th Street on Shubert Alley at the Sam
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A Restoration Without Shortcuts
By Anne Olshansky In 2015, Joe Ienco purchased the West Village landmark building at 35 Perry Street. As an experienced property owner and landlord, he had plans to renovate and restore its original beauty and character. Being a West Village resident for the past 30 years and a Village history aficionado, Joe dove enthusiastically into
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One Guy’s Story and a National Epidemic
By M. Zakir Sabry, MD “There was always a moment of inertia.” That was the best way that Guy could explain his every movement prior to having weight-loss surgery. As he so eloquently put it, “Every time I moved, there was a pause of a second or two and, then my large hanging skin and
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Bread and Roses
By Keen Berger Affordable housing is a top priority. Every community needs housing that is truly affordable. Yes and yes. I agree completely with both statements. I state this at the outset to prevent critics of the Elizabeth Street Garden (including Mayor de Blasio and Councilmember Chin) from implying that they are noble, and fighting
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Kill the Zombie Park Already Part I: Build Housing
By Alec Pruchnicki It should be dead, but somehow it’s still alive. Advocates continue fighting to keep the Elizabeth Street Garden entirely open space rather than a site for housing. Since WestView News first examined this issue in its articles: “Selfishness One, Housing Zero” (May 2016) and “Parks Are Good, Housing is Better” (November 2016),
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Using State and City Law to Fight Bad Landlords
By Joseph Turco, Esq. The battle between landlords and tenants is epic. It’s like a jungle, where the landlord predator can smell weakness from a mile away. In my April 2017 article in WestView News, “Landlords: From Best to Worst (and So Much in Between),” I wrote about a longtime West Village tenant, Lydia Martinez.
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Carnegie Concert to Honor Sylvia Olden Lee
By Dennis Speed The Foundation for the Revival of Classical Culture is presenting a concert at Carnegie Hall, in collaboration with the Schiller Institute, New York Chorus, and Harlem Opera Theater on June 29, 2017 at 7:30 p.m., to honor the 100th birthday of the extraordinary musician and vocal coach, Sylvia Olden Lee. Performers will
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Are We Alone? Ruminations About Extraterrestrial Life (Part One)
By Josef Eisinger In these troubled times, it is enlightening and consoling to ponder our place in the larger scheme of things. We are today privileged to have gained a realistic perspective of our place in the universe thanks to the great progress scientists have made in the past century. Their observations of the universe
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Signs of the Times: “Store For Rent”
By Allyn Freeman A walking tour of the West Village offers the sight of flowers that bloom in the spring but also the distressing proliferation of empty stores displaying “For Rent” or “For Lease” signs. Not in recent memory have there been so many vacant retail establishments in the neighborhood. A first consideration is to
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A Brief Note on the Diller Island Decision
By Clive I. Morrick On the front page of the April WestView issue, Publisher George Capsis joyfully reported the cancelation of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ permit to build the proposed Pier 55 “Diller Island.” This note briefly explains (with much simplification) the legal decision. In this case, the federal court confirmed that it
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Valid Anxiety in West Village Residents About Heart Attack Care
“There are clear deficiencies in our health care system. It fails the test of providing universal coverage but beyond that, the major problem is the extremely high cost. It is cost ineffective—prohibitively so. I personally attribute much of this enormous expense to waste, fraud, and to the unchecked cost of drugs and medical devices.” It
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Mt. Sinai To Lower Manhattan: DROP DEAD!
By Arthur Z. Schwartz The best way to learn about the state of our health care is to get sick, or to be responsible for the care of a loved one, and experience it first hand. I had a heart attack in January and learned firsthand how important the survival of Beth Israel is. But,
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“Each Day Catches Fire”: Revisiting the Latvian Poet Imants Ziedonis
By Bitite Vinklers I first met Imants Ziedonis in New York, in 1978, at a reading he gave at Columbia University during his first visit to the United States. The room was packed, and there was excitement and anticipation in the air. Not only was Ziedonis one of Latvia’s most prominent poets, but Latvia
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Rolling With the Derby
By Eduardo Cavalcanti Having recently moved from a city that offered little cultural diversity, I made a resolution to explore as much of New York as I could once I settled in. Before long, I had signed up for museum memberships in all five boroughs, newsletters, walking tours, and lectures on arcane topics. That’s how
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A Foundation for New York Art Dealing From the 19th Century
By Agnès Penot Last year, while reading “The Art of Power,” an article on Larry Gagosian published in the WSJ Magazine, I was astonished at how much a 21st century gallerist’s profile echoes that of another superstar art dealer of the 19th century: Adolphe Goupil. A closer look at Goupil’s story reveals that his marketing
