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DOWNTOWN
POST NYC 
 
News and Events
in Lower Manhattan
 
 
Volume 2, No. 19  Feb. 13, 2015
IN THIS ISSUE

Quote of the day: 
"We had no idea this was coming."
     - Michael Kramer, real estate broker, urban strategist and South Street Seaport resident of The Howard Hughes Corporation's purchase of $31 million worth of air rights in the South Street Seaport.               

* Howard Hughes Corp. buys $31million of Seaport air rights 
* Bits & Bytes: Lease deal for Hudson River's Pier 55; 11 Beach St.; Ferry commuting; Arctic air
* Letter to the editor: 'Great reporting' on a long, complicated CB1 meeting
* Downtown Bulletin Board: Restaurant Week; Citizen Preparedness Training
* Community Board 1 meetings: Week of Feb. 16
* African Burial Ground observes African-American History Month
* Calendar: Week of Feb. 9
 
PARKING: Alternate Side Parking regulations are suspended for snow removal on Saturday, Feb. 14. Alternate Side Parking regulations will also be suspended on Monday, Feb. 16, in observance of Washington's Birthday (Presidents' Day).

WEATHER INFORMATION: For current weather information, click here.

BREAKING NEWS: Go to www.DowntownPostNYC.com for updates on breaking news.

All ads in Downtown Post NYC have clickable links. Click on an ad for more information.

Winter sunset, South Cove. Feb. 12, 2015 (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer) 


 

HOWARD HUGHES CORP. BUYS $31M WORTH OF SEAPORT AIR RIGHTS
The Sciame building at 80 South St. was purchased by The Howard Hughes Corp. on Dec. 29, 2014. (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)

As Community Board 1 and members of the public earnestly debated and often criticized The Howard Hughes Corporation's proposals for the landmarked portions of the South Street Seaport on Jan. 5, 2015 and again on Feb. 5, Howard Hughes executives undoubtedly watched and listened to these proceedings with complete composure. They knew what no one else in the room knew - namely that on Dec. 29, 2014, they had purchased 333,329 square feet of air rights in the South Street Seaport, for which they paid $30,812,500.

This purchase would allow them to build even taller structures than had previously been discussed - up to 41 stories taller. The eligible receiving sites for these air rights would be 80-85 South St., the site of the New Market Building on South Street and 200 Water St., where there is currently a parking lot.

The Howard Hughes air rights purchase only came to light on Feb. 11, 2015, when it was reported in The Real Deal that the purchase had surfaced in City property records the day before. Hughes bought the air rights from JP Morgan Chase Bank, which had acquired them in 1973.

The same day that Hughes bought the air rights, it also completed the purchase of the small Sciame building at 80 South St. for $100 million. Hughes had already indicated that it wanted to tear that building down and erect a residential tower on that site. To date, plans for that tower indicate that it would be 1018 feet tall, exceeding Gehry's 8 Spruce St. skyscraper in height. At the time it opened in February 2011, Gehry's building was the tallest residential tower in the Western Hemisphere.

Air rights, once called Transferable Development Rights, have been a factor in New York City real estate since 1961 when zoning laws changed. Since then, if a property shorter than the allowable height in an area is next to a property whose developer wants to build tall, the developer can buy the air rights from the short property and transfer them to its neighbor.

The South Street Seaport differs from other parts of the city in that air rights can be transferred to non-contiguous buildings.

"We had no idea this was coming," said Michael Kramer, a real estate broker and urban strategist, of the Howard Hughes air rights purchase. Kramer is a public member of Community Board 1 and of Save Our Seaport, a group formed to preserve the historic Seaport and its maritime heritage. He also served on the Seaport Working Group (elected officials and Seaport stakeholders) which met for half a year in 2014 to hammer out development guidelines for the South Street Seaport.

Kramer said that it was unclear what Howard Hughes planned to do with its newly acquired air rights. At the time of purchase, they need not be transferred to a specific location. In addition, they could be parceled out among more than one building, he said.

Developer Frank Sciame, the previous owner of 60,000 square feet of these air rights, had bought them in 2008 for $7.6 million and just held on to them, as Howard Hughes apparently plans to do, at least for the time being.

Kramer commented that Howard Hughes acquired the Seaport air rights for $92.44 a square foot. "In this market, air rights typically trade for $250 to $750 a square foot," he said. "That would be the value for the worst neighborhood in East Harlem."

Kramer explained that the price of air rights depends on the market. In the South Street Seaport, he said, The Howard Hughes Corporation would be the only company that could use them because "Hughes has a single source contract."

Kramer said that "If the air rights [purchased by Hughes] were transferred to a specific, designated receiving site, the transaction would be subject to an administrative action at the City Planning Commission in order for the development rights to be utilized."

Should The Howard Hughes Corp. and the City be interested in seeking a compromise to the Hughes proposal to build a 494-foot-tall tower on the site of the New Market Building - a proposal that has been vehemently opposed by many members of the Seaport community and by Borough of Manhattan President Gale Brewer and City Councilmember Margaret Chin - it might be possible to transfer the air rights elsewhere. The Seaport Working Group has advocated allowing the Seaport air rights to be applied outside the district - perhaps to a tower on Greenwich Street.

But it is by no means clear that Howard Hughes desires such a compromise.

In the stealthy game that Hughes is playing at the Seaport, the developer seems to be holding some winning cards and has no reason to show its hand.

- Terese Loeb Kreuzer
 


 

Bits & Bytes
LEASE DEAL FOR HUDSON RIVER'S PIER 55; TRIBECA PENTHOUSE;  GROUND ZERO REBUILD; 11 BEACH ST.; FERRY COMMUTING; ARCTIC AIR
South Cove in Battery Park City. This weekend is supposed to bring the coldest temperatures in 20 years to New York City. (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)

"Lease Deal for Pier 55 Park in Hudson River Is Approved," New York Times, 2/11/15. "Plans for a cultural island in the Hudson River took a step forward on Wednesday, when the Hudson River Park Trust approved a lease agreement with a group controlled by Barry Diller that plans to help create a new $130 million pier with performance spaces and sylvan paths," says The New York Times. "The lease agreement would be between the trust, the public benefit corporation that oversees development of the four-mile park and Pier 55 Inc., a nonprofit organization headed by Mr. Diller, a billionaire and prominent figure in the media industry. Mr. Diller, chairman of IAC/InterActiveCorp and former head of Paramount Pictures and Fox, has pledged $113 million through a family foundation to construct the park. The balance will come from New York City. Pier 55 Inc. will also operate and program the 2.4-acre pier, which will jut 186 feet into the river from the shoreline at 13th Street. Some residents and elected officials, while acknowledging Mr. Diller's generous philanthropy, have complained about the secrecy with which the proposed park was hatched. And environmental groups have demanded a full environmental review, pointing out that the new pier would involve construction in an undisturbed area of the river that is a designated estuarine sanctuary." For the complete article, click here.

"Uber-Private 250 West PH Sells For $13M Less Than It Wanted," Curbed.com, 2/13/15. "Somebody with an inclination towards privacy has purchased the penthouse of Tribeca's 250 West for $29.5 million, a steep discount from its original $42 million ask," says Curbed.com. "The cavernous, 7,200-square-foot pad is surrounded by a wrap-around terrace replete with jacuzzi, and has a private garage, four bedrooms, and all the fancy fixings one would expect." For the complete article, with photos, click here.

"In Politics of Rebuilding Ground Zero, a Lone Critical Voice," New York Times, 2/11/15. "Platitudes, bromides and evasions are the typical fare in public pronouncements about the redevelopment of the World Trade Center site," says The New York Times. "So it was a terrific surprise on Oct. 6, 2005 - bracing and heartening at once - when someone actually said something critical in a public forum out of a sense of principle. That someone was John C. Whitehead, who was the chairman of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation at the time. He died on Saturday at 92. As the corporation was vetting tenants for a cultural building at ground zero in September 2005, Gov. George E. Pataki pulled the rug out. Before the review could be completed, Mr. Pataki unilaterally evicted a politically contentious prospective tenant called the International Freedom Center. In response, executives of the planned center gave up their idea entirely. And Mr. Whitehead was not pleased." For the complete article, click here.

"HFZ Capital's 11 Beach Street in Tribeca is 50% sold," The Real Deal, 2/11/15. "Five months after launching sales, 50 percent of HFZ Capital Group's 11 Beach Street in Tribeca is in contract," says The Real Deal. "The building's largest penthouse also hit the market today with an asking price of $22.5 million. Penthouse B measures nearly 6,000 square feet with nearly 2,000 square feet of outdoor space spread over two terraces." For the complete article, click here.

"Howard Hughes Corp. pays $31M for Seaport air rights," The Real Deal, 2/11/15. "The Howard Hughes Corp. paid roughly $31 million to buy more than 300,000 square feet of air rights at the South Street Seaport," says The Real Deal, citing property records filed on Feb. 10. "The Dallas, Texas-based development firm, whose proposed 42-story residential tower on the East River is a source of controversy, paid $30.8 million to buy about 333,329 square feet of air rights from above the South Street Seaport Museum and a handful of properties on the block north of Front Street." For the complete article, click here.

"More New Yorkers having a Ferry good time commuting," New York Post, 2/12/15. "More New Yorkers are cruising to work," says the New York Post. "New York Waterway, which runs ferries on the East and Hudson rivers, saw a spike of more than 500,000 riders between 2013 and 2014 - a 7 percent jump from about 8 million to 8.53 million. The city's Department of Transportation said the Staten Island Ferry saw a jump of more than 1 million passengers, with ridership growing from 20.5 million to 22 million. SeaStreak, whose boats ply the waters between Wall Street, East Midtown and New Jersey, saw an increase of 7 percent, from about 815,000 to 875,000. Waterfront development was a major factor in the boost, officials said." For the complete article, click here.

"Tribeca Film Festival to Open With 'Saturday Night Live' Documentary," Wall Street Journal, 2/12/15. "The 2015 Tribeca Film Festival will open April 15 with the world premiere of a documentary about 'Saturday Night Live,' NBC's influential comedy show that is now celebrating 40 seasons on television. Directed by Bao Nguyen, 'Live From New York!' follows the development of the show from its early, experimental days to its present status as a star-maker led by creator and executive producer Lorne Michaels. Jane Rosenthal, co-founder of the festival, said that while the documentary itself is funny, its greatest strength is in capturing how 'Saturday Night Live' broke barriers and changed the entertainment industry." For the complete article, click here.

"Arctic air strikes New York City, could produce record-cold temperatures this weekend as mercury expected to drop near zero mark," Daily News, 2/13/15. "An Arctic onslaught has descended on New York that could produce the coldest temperatures the city has seen in 20 years," says the Daily News. "Temperatures were in the high single-digits early Friday, and forecasts predicted it would not get any better over the weekend, with the worst of it coming Sunday night." For the complete article, click here.


Letter to the editor
'GREAT REPORTING' ON A LONG, COMPLICATED CB1 MEETING

Roger Byrom, chair of Community Board 1's Landmarks Committee, at Community Board 1's full board meeting on Feb. 5 with a slide showing Pier 17 topped by a polymer canopy. (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)

To the editor:
(Re: "Community Board 1 is wary of Howard Hughes Corporation's segmented proposals for landmarked parts of Seaport," DPNYC, 2/11/15). Thank you for your superb summary of the long, involved and often complicated Howard Hughes Corporation/CB1 goings-on at the full board meeting on Feb. 5 that many of us, already invoked in working to save the historic Seaport, could not attend. Great reporting.

Jean Grillo
District Leader 66AD part B

From the editor:
We welcome letters to the editor. Email them to [email protected]. We reserve the right to edit them for clarity and length. 

 



 

Downtown bulletin board
RESTAURANT WEEK IN LOWER MANHATTAN; ASPHALT GREEN SUMMER DAY CAMP; CITIZEN PREPAREDNESS TRAINING
Col. Trevor Jackson of the New York National Guard holding up a backpack like ones that will be given to each family that attends the Citizen Preparedness Training on Feb. 20. (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)
Restaurant Week: "Restaurant Week" is actually two weeks. It runs from Feb. 16 to March 7 with discounted meals at hundreds of New York City restaurants. During Restaurant Week, a three-course lunch costs $25 and a three-course dinner costs $38 at participating restaurants, plus tax and tip. Reservations are now being accepted.

In Lower Manhattan, Restaurant Week offers include: 2 West (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday); American Cut (dinner, Monday to Friday); Atrio Wine Bar and Restaurant (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday and Sunday dinner); BLT Bar & Grill (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday, Sunday, lunch, brunch and dinner); Blue Smoke (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday, Sunday, lunch, brunch and dinner); Bobby Van's Steakhouse & Grill/Broad Street (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday); The Capital Grille Wall Street (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday); Church & Dey (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday); Cipriani Wall Street (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday); City Hall Restaurant (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday); Delmonico's Restaurant (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday); El Vez (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday, Sunday lunch/brunch and dinner); Felice 15 Gold Street (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday, Sunday lunch/brunch and dinner); Fino Ristorante Italiano (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday); Les Halles Downtown (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday, Sunday, dinner); Little Park (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday); MarkJoseph Steakhouse (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday, Sunday, dinner); Morton's the Steakhouse, World Trade Center (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday, Sunday, dinner); Mr. Chow's New York Tribeca (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday, Sunday, dinner); Nobu New York (lunch, Monday to Friday); Nobu Next Door (dinner, Monday to Friday, Sunday, lunch, brunch, dinner); Sarabeth's Tribeca (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday, Sunday, dinner); Saz�n (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday, Sunday, lunch/brunch); Tamarind Tribeca (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday); Thalassa Restaurant (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday); Tribeca Grill (lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday, Sunday, lunch, brunch and dinner).

For more information, and to make reservations for Restaurant Week, click here.

Asphalt Green Battery Park City Summer Day Camp:
Enrollment is now open for Asphalt Green's summer day camp for children ages 4 � to 15 years old. Asphalt Green at 212 North End Ave., has programs for age-specific groups: Pee Wee Camp (4 � - 6 years),  Junior Camp (6-8 years), Senior Camp (8-13 years) and Counselors in Training (14 - 15 years). Camp is in session from June 29 to Aug. 21, with five separate sessions. The fee to attend for the entire eight weeks ranges from $5,750 to $6,250, depending on age. Asphalt Green is holding monthly open houses through May to introduce the camp program and staff. The next open house is on March 22  from 11 a.m. to noon. Click here for more information.

Citizen Preparedness training: Citizen Preparedness Training, a New York State program, gives residents the tools and resources to prepare for natural, man-made and technological disasters, respond appropriately and recover as quickly as possible to pre-disaster conditions. City Councilmember Margaret Chin and Community Board 1 invite your participation on Feb. 20 in a two-hour training session led by the New York National Guard, working with experts from the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services' Office of Emergency Management and Office of Fire Prevention and Control. Each family participating will receive a free Citizen Preparedness Corps Response Starter Kit. Place: Schimmel Center at Pace University, 3 Spruce St. Time: 1:30 p.m. All participants must register in advance. Click here to register.


COMMUNITY BOARD 1 MEETINGS: Week of Feb. 16

Pier 17 in the South Street Seaport as it looked on July 6, 2014. The status of Pier 17 construction, including pier pilings, will be discussed on Tuesday, Feb. 17 at CB1's Seaport/Civic Center Committee meeting. (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)

Community Board 1 meetings take place at 49-51 Chambers St, Room 709, starting at 6 p.m. unless otherwise stated. All are welcome to attend. Bring photo ID to enter the building.

 

Feb. 16: Office Closed - President's Day

Feb. 17: Seaport/Civic Center Committee -  6 p.m.
            Location:         Southbridge Towers
                                    90 Beekman St., Community Room
* Howard Hughes Corporation Update
   a. Status of Pier 17 construction, including pier pilings
   b. Fulton Market Building
*  South Street Seaport Museum: Presence on both land and water - Update by Captain Jonathan Boulware, Interim President
* Reverting Peck Slip to two-way and closing during school dropoff/pickup - Update by NYC Department of Transportation
* Brooklyn Banks Skate Park - Presentation by Jason Friedman, CB1 Board Member & Discussion
* 233-235 Water St., BSA Building Code Variance Appeals Application - Resolution
* 121 Fulton St., application for NYC Department of Transportation Street Seats program - Presentation by Alex Rodriguez, Managing Partner of 121 Fulton Street & Resolution
* Review of Map of Public Pay Telephones in CB1
* Street activity permit for The Association of Indians in America on Sunday, Oct. 4, 2015 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Water St between Fulton Street and Fletcher Street, John Street between Front Street and Water Street, and Front Street between John Street and Maiden Lane - Resolution
* Street activity permit for Community Board 1 on Sunday, Sept. 20, 2015 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Fulton Street between Dutch Street and Broadway - Resolution
* 90 Baxter St., application for wine and beer license for Jaya 88 Inc. - Resolution
 
The following notices have been received for renewal, upgrade, or transfer of wine and beer or liquor licenses or sidewalk cafe permits:
* 2 Lafayette St., application for renewal of a restaurant wine and beer license for Corte Caf� LLC
 
Feb. 18: Sidewalk Caf� Working Group
* Discussion of issues related to sidewalk caf� in CB 1 area with Mary Cooley, Department of Consumer Affairs and Yume Kitasei, Office of Councilmember Margaret Chin
(All CB1 members are invited to attend)

Feb. 19: Quality of Life Committee 
* Construction update by NYC DOT
* Community Board 1 Vendor Restricted Streets - Presentation by Marline Paul, Fund for the City of New York Community Planning Fellow

Feb. 24:  CB 1 Monthly Board Meeting -  6 p.m.
              Location:      Borough of Manhattan Community College, Richard Harris Terrace
                                    199 Chambers St.
* Meeting preceded by a Public Hearing on Mayor's Preliminary Budget FY 2016
 To view the City's response to CB 1's budget requests, click here.

AFRICAN BURIAL GROUND NATIONAL MONUMENT OBSERVES AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY MONTH WITH FILMS, LECTURES AND MORE
A granite memorial designed by Rodney Leon at the African Burial Ground National Monument in Lower Manhattan resembles the ships that, in the 17th and 18th centuries, brought millions of enslaved Africans to the eastern seaboard of what is now the United States. (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)
Throughout February, the African Burial Ground National Monument at 290 Broadway, 1st floor, celebrates African American History Month with an array of activities and special events.

The African Burial Ground is a 17th- and 18th-century cemetery that was rediscovered in 1991 when construction began on a federal office building in Lower Manhattan. In 1993, the site was preserved as a National Historic Landmark by the Secretary of the Interior and was later designated as a National Monument by Presidential Proclamation on Feb. 27, 2006. The National Monument is part of an original 6.6-acre site containing the remains of approximately 15,000 people, making it the largest and oldest African cemetery excavated in North America.

The schedule is subject to change. All events and activities are free and open to the public, first come, first served. For more information, call (212) 637-2019 or click here
 
Feb. 14: Noon: Screening of "The City that Lit the World" from New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park

Feb. 17: Noon: Screening of "Booker T. Washington: The Life and the Legacy"

Feb. 19: 11 a.m.-4 p.m.: A Reenactment and Commemoration of the 150th Anniversary of the 26th U.S. Colored Troops

Feb. 21: Noon: Screening of "Never Lose Sight of Freedom" from Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail

Feb. 27: 12:30 p.m.: Dramatic performance by David Mills on the works of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.


CALENDAR: Week of Feb. 9
An exhibit at the Museum of Jewish Heritage called "Against the Odds: American Jews & the Rescue of Europe's Refugees 1933-1941" closes on Monday, Feb. 16. This photo, taken when the exhibit opened in May 2013, depicts relatives of David and Jacob Kestenbaum. The Kestenbaum brothers worked with organizations in their Orthodox community to bring hundreds of Jews out of Europe, before, during and after the Holocaust. Place: Museum of Jewish Heritage, 36 Battery Place. For information about the exhibit, click here. (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)
Feb. 14: In celebration of Valentine's Day, Poets House presents Albert Lamorisse's children's film classic, "The Red Balloon." Afterward, children will make their own floating valentines in the form of hot-air balloon mobiles. Place: 10 River Terrace. Time: 11 a.m. Suggested donation, $5 per child. For more information, click here.

Feb. 14: Kids and their families can listen to "Love and Roast Chicken: A Trickster Tale from the Andes Mountains" by Barbara Knutson at the National Museum of the American Indian. In this folktale from the Andes, a clever guinea pig repeatedly outsmarts the fox that wants to eat him for dinner. Children will also have the opportunity to make a heart-shaped picture frame to take home. Place: National Museum of the American Indian, 1 Bowling Green, New York Resource Center on the 2nd floor. Time: 1 p.m. Free. For more information, click here.

 

Feb. 17: A panel co-sponsored by the AIA New York Chapter Planning and Urban Design Committee will discuss "Times Square at a Tipping Point? The speakers are Kent Barwick, Claire Fellman, Bruce Fowle, Lynne Sagalyn, and Paul Whalen with an introduction by Lance Jay Brown and an overview by Carol Willis, Director, The Skyscraper Museum. As an economic engine for the city and an unparalleled magnet for tourists, Times Square's turnaround in the past decades is phenomenal. The reduced vehicular traffic and new pedestrian plazas allow almost enough ground space for the 360,000 visitors a day to the world's No. 1 tourist ticker. But other forces threaten its future: mega-signs; high rents; corporate homogeneity; errant Elmos. This program of experts on Times Square past and present will consider pressing questions about its future. Place: Center for Architecture, 536 LaGuardia Place. Time: 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Tickets: $10; free (all Skyscraper Museum and AIA members). Members of The Skyscraper Museum must RSVP to [email protected].  

 
Ongoing: The Children's Saturday Morning Show will bring live music, games, stories, puppetry, magic and more to Hudson Eats on Saturday mornings. Every Saturday through March 14. Place: Brookfield Place, 250 Vesey St. Time: Shows at 11 a.m. and noon. Free. For more information, click here.

Ongoing: The Battery Park City Parks Conservancy's 2015 Annual Art Exhibition of artwork created in the Conservancy's free art programs such as Figure al Fresco, Elements of Nature Drawing,  Art + Games, and Preschool Art. Place: 75 Battery Place. Time:  The exhibition will be on view weekdays from Jan. 26 to March 27, 2 p.m.-4 p.m. Free.

Ongoing: The Woolworth Building was designed by Cass Gilbert to house the offices of the F. W. Woolworth Company and was the tallest building in the world from 1913 until 1930. With its ornamental gothic-style exterior, it dominated the New York City skyline and served as an icon of American ingenuity with state of the art steel construction, fireproofing and high-speed elevators and it was dubbed "the Cathedral of Commerce." The building is still privately owned and operated, and has long been closed to the public. Tours of its magnificent landmarked lobby featuring marble, mosaics, and murals have only recently been made available and can be taken for 30-minutes, 60-minutes or 90-minutes. Custom and Private tours for groups of 10 - 35 can also be arranged. Place: 233 Broadway. Various times. Tickets: $20, $30 and $45, depending on the length of the tour. For more information and to buy tickets, click here.

Ongoing: Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays in February, The Howard Hughes Corporation in partnership with FiDiFamilies.com and sponsor New York Presbyterian Lower Manhattan Hospital invites local families inside the Community Cube at the South Street Seaport. Children will have a chance to partake in music, arts, crafts, film and yoga for kids. Time: 10 a.m.-12 p.m. For more information, click here.

Ongoing: The Jewish Art Salon presents "Lashon Hara: On the Consequences of Hate Speech." This exhibit examines the power of words, both within hate speech and as "a catalyst for salvation" The exhibit features several mixed media textile works by Robin Atlas. Place: The Anne Frank Center USA (44 Park Place). Time: Tuesdays through Saturdays (except holidays), 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tickets: $8 (adults); $5 (students and seniors 65 and over); Free for children ages 8 and under.

Through Feb. 27, 2015. For more information, click here.  

 

Ongoing: An exhibit at Poets House called "Winter Wedding: Holiday Cards by Poets" is a compendium of imaginative and sometimes touching holiday greetings. The exhibit has been drawn from the Raymond Danowski Poetry Library at Emory University and was curated by Kevin Young and Lisa Chinn. See "Happy Holidays" greetings from Langston Hughes, "Seasons Greetings" from Seamus and Marie Heaney and handmade valentines exchanged by Alice Notley and Ted Berrigan. This exhibition explores the vibrant, often funny, and always fascinating portraits of time, affection and ties of love and friendship. The exhibition is on view during library hours through March 21, 2015. Place: 10 River Terrace. Free. For more information, click here.

Ongoing: "Glittering World: Navajo Jewelry of the Yazzie Family" opened on Nov. 14 and continues through Jan. 10, 2016. The exhibit includes more than 300 examples of beautifully crafted jewelery, most of it made by the Yazzie family, with some from the National Museum of the American Indian's collection. Through a video, photographs and a handsome catalog, the exhibit shows how the jewelry expresses Navajo cultural values and way of life inspired by a majestic landscape of buttes, mesas and desert. The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily and on Thursdays until 8 p.m.; closed December 25. Admission is free. 

  

Ongoing: The Skyscraper Museum presents "Times Square, 1984: The Postmodern Movement," on view through Feb. 15, 2015. Times Square today is bright and crowded - a tourist mecca, entertainment district, retail powerhouse and pedestrianized precinct that matches in vitality, both economic and populist, any decade of its storied past. But 30 years ago, the future of Times Square was in limbo - caught between a series of false starts at clean-slate urban renewal by New York City and New York State and an emerging philosophy of urbanism that favored history, preservationist values, electric signs and semiotics, and delirious diversity. Place: 39 Battery Place. Open, Wednesday to Sunday, noon to 6 p.m. Admission: $5; $2.50 (students and seniors). For more information, click here.  
  
Ongoing: "A Town Known as Auschwitz" is an exhibit of photographs at the Museum of Jewish Heritage tracing the history of a town called "Oswiecim" in what is now Poland, where Jews and non-Jews lived side by side for centuries. When German forces occupied the town in September 1939, they renamed it "Auschwitz" and established a concentration and death camp there. More than 1 million people died at Auschwitz, including 90 percent of the town's Jews. The museum is at 36 Battery Place. For information the exhibit, click here. For information on the museum's hours and admission fees, click here.

Ongoing: The lobby of the South Street Seaport Museum at 12 Fulton St. on Schermerhorn Row is open three days a week with interpretive displays and activities. Access to the museum's upstairs galleries is by appointment or for education programs only. For private tours of Schermerhorn Row and its old hotels, email [email protected]. Lobby access: Fridays to Sundays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Ongoing: The South Street Seaport Museum's lightship Ambrose and its barque Peking welcome visitors Fridays to Sundays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Pier 16 (on the East River at Fulton Street). The Ambrose, launched in 1908,  once guided large ships through the Ambrose Channel into New York harbor. Peking was launched in Hamburg, Germany in 1911, one of the last commercial sailing ships ever built. She was used to carry goods from Europe to South America and to return to Europe with nitrate. The museum's Visitors Services associates explain all of the fascinating details of the ships and their relevance to the history of New York as a port city. In addition, a guide to the Ambrose can be downloaded from the Internet by clicking here. Cost: $12 (adults); $8 (students, 12-24 and seniors); $5 (children 2-11); under 2, free. To buy tickets, click here.

Ongoing: "Defining Lines: Maps from the 1700s and early 1800s" at the Fraunces Tavern
Museum. Twenty-seven maps provide a perspective on the evolving nation's place in history. A map from 1804, never before exhibited, shows the U.S. postal routes. Place: 54 Pearl St. Time: Noon to 5 p.m., daily. Admission fees: $7; $4 (seniors, students with ID, children, 6 to 8 years old. Children, 5 and under, free. Active military with ID, free. For more information, click here.
  
Ongoing: The National Museum of the American Indian is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with free admission. It offers free films, docent-led tours of its exhibitions and tours of its premises, the Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House, designed by Cass Gilbert. The building, which was completed in 1907, is a National Historic Landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. One Bowling Green. Phone: (212) 514-3700. For the museum's calendar, click here.

Ongoing: "Give Me Liberty," a solo exhibition of new works by Brooklyn-based artist Sylvanus Shaw, is at the Fraunces Tavern Museum. In this site-specific exhibition, Shaw utilizes images from the Museum's permanent collection, invoking imagery of early American statehood in media ranging from oil on panel to collaged holograms, security envelopes, and other mediums.
Through March 16, 2015. Place: Fraunces Tavern Museum, 54 Pearl St. Museum hours: Mon.-Sat., noon to 5 p.m. Admission: $7; $4 (seniors, students, children 6-8); free (children under 5 and active duty military). For more information, click here

Mark your calendar: Coming next week, Arts Brookfield's annual presentation of silent films accompanied by live music. There are two programs, both curated by John Schaefer as part of WNYC's annual New Sounds Live program. In one program, playing on Tuesday, Feb. 17 and Thursday, Feb. 19, the avant-rock band SQ�RL (Jim Jarmusch and Carter Logan) selected four silent films by the legendary Man Ray, and then created original scores for these performances. This evening alternates on Feb. 18 and Feb. 20 with the award-winning silent hit Blancanieves based on the "Snow White" fairy tale, written and directed by acclaimed Spanish director Pablo Berger in 2012. Alfonso Vilallonga's original soundtrack will be performed by the composer himself along with the acclaimed new-music ensemble Wordless Music Orchestra. Set in a romantic version of 1920's Andalusia, the silent black-and-white fantasy swept the 2013 Gaud� awards (known as the Spanish Oscars) winning Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actress, and Best Catalan-Language Film, among others, and was one of the year's most popular films in Spain. Place: Winter Garden at Brookfield Place, 250 Vesey St. Time: 8 p.m. Free. For more information, click here.


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Editor: Terese Loeb Kreuzer

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