A City Vanishes
Can de Blasio return it? “Huge tax breaks up to half a billion dollars a year were being given to developers to build luxury buildings,” […]
A Kaleidoscope of the 1970s
By 1969, we were wondering what the decade of the l970s would bring. As it turned out, the Seventies was a time of changes and […]
‘THE VILLAGE GATE’ REDUX
On February 16th,a crowd of music groupies from ‘the good old days’ gathered at Le Poisson Rouge(formerly the Village Gate) on Bleecker Street,to hear a […]
150 Charles Street: Large but Friendly
Publishers Note: Architect and urban planner Barry Benepe surprised me when he announced thathe wanted to do an article on 150 Charles. Barry is fiercely […]
Meet Shino Tanikawa, Education Leader and Activist
Shino Tanikawa began her foray into New York City’s public school system “from the bottom up” when she volunteered for a fundraiser at PS 3 […]
Closing Hospitals Saves Money: A Failed Theory
“…many a beautiful theory was slain by an ugly fact.” Thomas Huxley One of the many reasons for the closing of St. Vincent’s Hospital is […]
Going to Prison with Philip Johnson
“Oh wow,” I thought, as I read the Times article on what to do with the rusting 1964 World’s Fair New York State Pavilion. I […]
Philip Seymour Hoffman – Reflections
With great sadness I heard of the passing,the death, of Philip Seymour Hoffman. He was a Village neighborhood guy. I was a sympathetic acquaintance, passed […]
Testimony of David D. Turner before the Landmarks Preservation Commission regarding the construction of a residential tower at 100 Barrow Street
February 4, 2014 In their presentation, the applicant goes out of its way to remind us “there will be no demolition.” But there are many […]
Come See, Come Saw
“February is merely as long as is needed to pass the time until March.” – Dr. J. R. Stockton Millie, in her corgi-ness, pulls me […]
Science from Away: Backwards Learning
In 1967, after finishing a fancy education, I received an offer to be an assistant chemistry professor in Ann Arbor, the University of Michigan. I […]
West Village Original: Ralph Lee
This month’s West Village Original is Ralph Lee, founder of the Village Halloween Parade. Born in Middlebury, Vermont in 1935, he is a master mask-maker […]
Oh Pussy My Love
In New York, and no doubt Chicago and Kansas City, the general rule is that you should try to get along with the people next […]
New and Old Cold Evening Destinations
Ramen Thukpa rides the Ramen wave and focuses on an assortment of fortified hot soups that are especially appealing in the cold of this winter. […]
Jim Fouratt’s REEL DEAL: Movies that Matter
Let’s Go To The Movies! ROBOCOP 2014 dir José Padilha Only when I saw that Brazilian José Padilha would be the director did I become […]
The Continuing Story of Leftover Lane
SnackBar I’ve been wandering the world recently, doing Yemen one day, hopping over to Japan the next, and sometimes experiencing both cultures in one dish. […]
Why 12 Years a Slave Isn’t Exactly History to Me
It felt and still feels like recent history to me, not like something from the long-ago past. I’ve seen 12 Years a Slave three times […]
Billionaires Behaving Badly: Connecting the Dots to the Hudson River Park Board
For many a West Village resident, the most hair-raising revelation in Kevin Roose’s New YorkMagazineexpose, “The One-Percent Jokes and Plutocrats in Drag: What I Saw […]