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DOWNTOWN
POST NYC 
 
News and Events
in Lower Manhattan
 
 
Volume 2, No. 67  Sept. 29, 2015
IN THIS ISSUE

Quote of the day: 
"I love them all dearly. And I ask you to please support them going forward, because this is a complicated process and we all need to do it together."
     - Tessa Huxley, former executive director of the Battery Park City Parks Conservancy, speaking about her staff on the occasion of an award given to her at the annual Battery Park City block party. Huxley was ousted by the Battery Park City Authority after 27 years of service.          

* CB1 supports Seaport Museum's request to LMDC for funds to upgrade Melville Gallery
* Dine Around Downtown returns on Sept. 30 with a festival of restaurants
* Downtown Post Diary: Pope Francis at the September 11 Memorial & Museum 
* Bits & Bytes: Huxley honored; Bargain hotel in Tribeca; 1 WTC tenant cutting back
* Downtown Bulletin Board: Blessing the animals; LMCC programs for artists
* Community Board 1 meeting: Sept. 30
* Calendar: Week of Sept. 28
 
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MASTHEAD PHOTO: Total eclipse of the moon as seen from Lower Manhattan.
Sept. 27, 2015 (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer) 



CB1 SUPPORTS SOUTH STREET SEAPORT MUSEUM'S APPLICATION TO LMDC TO UPGRADE MELVILLE GALLERY AS EDUCATION FACILITY  
Capt. Jonathan Boulware, executive director of the South Street Seaport Museum, asking Community Board 1's Seaport/Civic Center Committee to support the museum's application to the LMDC for a $4.8 million grant to upgrade the upper floors of the Melville Gallery on Water Street.  (Photos: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)

While The Howard Hughes Corporation hammers away at Pier 17, where it is building a shopping mall, and revises its plans for that structure (apparently there will be no view-blocking canopy on the roof as previously proposed), the South Street Seaport Museum has been making its own plans and proposals. On Sept. 24, Capt. Jonathan Boulware, executive director of the museum, came before Community Board 1's Seaport/Civic Center Committee to explain what the museum has in mind.

The South Street Seaport Museum recently got a grant of $10.4 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), he told the committee, which will be used as needed to make the museum "resilient." Now the museum has its eye on a $50 million pot of money that the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation is about to distribute for worthy projects in Lower Manahttan. The museum would like to have $4.8 million of that to renovate and upgrade some of its spaces on Water Street.

Above the museum's Melville Gallery at 213-215 Water St. are four floors that are currently not
The five-story Melville Gallery was built as a warehouse and dates from 1848.
publicly accessible. The museum would like to use them for educational purposes and as a community center.

Renovating the upper floors of the Melville Gallery would create around 11,000 square feet of space to be used as classrooms and for community groups. "Seventy-one percent of our programs right now are for underserved New York City public schools," said Boulware. "We've just been awarded a grant by Councilmember [Margaret] Chin to work with the New York Harbor School in arts. We've historically had excellent summer programs, excellent pre-school programs, excellent after-school programs and a pre-school program for longer days."

Boulware asked the Community Board to weigh in with LMDC in support of the museum's application. "One of the key criteria for awarding these grants is a demonstration of community support," he said.

Catherine McVay Hughes, chair of CB1, said, "We welcome this permanent, ongoing investment in the South Street Seaport." She emphasized the word "permanent." This would not be a pop-up cultural effort but something that the community could rely on for years to come, she indicated. In the current budget proposals, she said, "CB1 has made it a top priority to request a community space on the East Side and a community education center on this side of Community Board 1 because there's nothing over here."

However, since McVay Hughes sits on the LMDC board that will decide on the grant awards, the resolution supporting Boulware's request could not simply come from the Community Board. The CB1 resolution had to state that it backed a Sept. 17, 2015 letter issued in support of the South Street Seaport Museum proposal that was signed by Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, U.S. Congressman Jerrold Nadler, Assemblymember Deborah Glick, Assemblymember Sheldon Silver, New York State Senator Daniel Squadron, and City Councilmember Margaret Chin.

The resolution will be discussed at CB1's full board meeting on Sept. 30 and if passed, as it probably will be, then go to elected officials with a copy to the LMDC.

- Terese Loeb Kreuzer

The ground floor of the Melville Gallery at 213-215 Water St. has been used for performances such as this past summer's "The SeaWife," exhibitions and markets. The top floors of the five-story building have not been publicly accessible.




DINE AROUND DOWNTOWN RETURNS ON SEPT. 30 WITH TEMPTING FOOD FROM 50 RESTAURANTS - MOST, IN LOWER MANHATTAN

The Harlem All-Stars performing at last year's Dine Around Downtown at what was formerly called Chase Manhattan Plaza. They will be back for this year's Dine Around festival. (Photos: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)

Dine Around Downtown, a food festival created by the Downtown Alliance, brings 50  restaurants to 28 Liberty Plaza on Wednesday, Sept. 30 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. For anyone who loves good eating, this is an event not to be missed.

The Downtown Alliance's president, Jessica Lappin, was correct when she observed that, "From tiny cafes to four-star gourmet establishments, we are redefining dining in Lower Manhattan." Much of that abundance will be available at Dine Around Downtown to be sampled.

Most participating restaurants are from Lower Manhattan. In addition, there will be two guest
Steamed buns from the Nanxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant at Dine Around Downtown. 
participants from Shanghai, China: Lubolang Restaurant and Nanxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant. This reflects the fact that the former Chase Manhattan Plaza where Dine Around takes place, is now owned by Fosun, a Chinese investment firm. Fosun is co-presenter of the festival, which is being sponsored by The Seaport District, (the name that The Howard Hughes Corp. has given to its leaseholds in the South Street Seaport).

This year's event will feature celebrity host Amanda Freitag, owner of the Empire Diner, Food Network star and cookbook author. She will be promoting her new cookbook, "The Chef Next Door: A Pro Chef's Recipes for Fun, Fearless Home Cooking." Freitag is a judge on Chopped, a co-host on American Diner Revival and has been a contestant on Iron Chef America.  
     
Participating restaurants include: Adrienne's Pizza Bar; ATRIO Wine Bar | Restaurant; The
Adriana Luque of Barbalu in the South Street Seaport, serving meatball sandwiches at last year's Dine Around. 
Bailey Pub & Restaurant; Barbalu; Bavaria Bier Haus; Beckett's Bar & Grill; Bill's Bar & Burger; The Black Hound; Bobby Van's Steakhouse; BonChon Chicken; The Capital Grille; City Hall Restaurant; Cowgirl Sea-Horse; Delmonico's Restaurant; Dorlan's Tavern & Oyster Bar; The Dubliner; Felice 15 Gold Street; Financier Patisserie; The Growler Bites & Brews; Gunbae; Harry's Caf� & Steak; Harry's Italian; Haru Sushi; Jersey Mike's Subs; Le District; Les Halles; Lubolang Restaurant; Mad Dog & Beans Mexican Cantina; The Malt House; Morton's The Steakhouse; Nanxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant; Nelson Blue; OBAO Water Street; The Open Door Gastropub; The Paris Caf�; Pound & Pence; Route 66 Smokehouse; Sm�rg�s Chef; Southwest NY; St. George Tavern; Stone Street Tavern; Stout Fidi; Suteishi; Trading Post; Trinity Place; Ulysses' Folk House; Vintry Wine & Whiskey; and Wei West.

As an extra bonus at the event (should a surfeit of food not be enough), diners who post a photo of their plate using the hashtag #DineAroundDowntownNYC on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter will be entered for the chance to win a two-night stay for two at the W New York - Downtown. The photos must be posted on Sept. 30 between 11 a.m. and 11:59 p.m.

Admission to the festival is free. Small plates cost $3 to $7. The festival will take place rain or shine.

- Terese Loeb Kreuzer



Downtown Post Diary
POPE FRANCIS AT THE NATIONAL SEPTEMBER 11 MEMORIAL & MUSEUM

The interfaith service for peace in which Pope Francis prominently participated was shown on a large screen erected on the grounds of the National September 11 Memorial & Museum.  (Photos: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)

On Friday morning at 8:30 a.m., the line to get into the grounds of the National September 11 Memorial & Museum went up the block between Liberty and Courtlandt Streets and snaked around three more times before it delivered people, around 45 minutes later, to the security tents at the entrance to the memorial park. Everyone in the line - old and young, clergy of many denominations in their vestments, the frail elderly, leaning on their canes - had to be screened and have their bags opened and inspected.

Through a lottery, around 1,000 people had obtained tickets to be on the grounds of the memorial during Pope Francis' visit on Sept. 25. Those eligible for the lottery were first responders, families of victims and Lower Manhattan residents. Another 700, including many dignitaries, were ticketed to be inside the museum for an interfaith service for peace.

The wait for the pope to arrive was long, but the September 11 Memorial had provided folding stools for those unable to stand for hours.

Waiting for the pope.
Some news reports commented that this crowd was somber compared with the boisterous throngs that greeted Pope Francis elsewhere in the city. There were few people in this crowd who had not lost someone on 9/11 - a family member, a friend, a colleague from work. I was seated on a folding stool between two elderly women. One was there with her firefighter son - a battalion chief. The other was there because she had lost two friends on September 11, 2001. Near me was a woman whose daughter had died that day. Yes, the crowd was somber.

These people have suffered. They were waiting for the pope to comfort them and heal them. "We won't really be able to see him!" I said to a woman sitting next to me. "We're too far away." - "That's all right," she said. "Just to be in his presence will be enough."

Pope Francis.
(Photo: Catherine McVay Hughes)
Finally, around 11:15 a.m., the pope arrived in a motorcade of police vehicles and ambulances, their lights flashing and their sirens wailing. The crowd cheered. From where I was sitting, he was a tiny figure, dressed in white, at the far end of the southern memorial pool. He paused before a large candle and prayed. He talked to, and blessed, some members of victims' families. Then he and Cardinal Dolan, the archbishop of New York, placed white roses on the border of the memorial pool and went inside the museum.

The September 11 Memorial staff had set up a large screen on the grounds on which the interfaith service for peace was projected.

It began and ended with a Shaker song, "Simple Gifts," a perfect choice for this pope who has made it clear that he prefers to dine with the homeless than with the powerful, and that the world's frail and struggling are never far from his heart. The song was written in 1848 by Elder Joseph Brackett of the Shaker community in Sabbathday Lake, Maine. He was also a woodworker. A box that he made to hold firewood is still in use in the Sabbathday Lake meetinghouse.

Brackett's song begins, "Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free/'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,/And when we find ourselves in the place just right,/'Twill be in the valley of love and delight."

Clergy of many denominations spoke at the service, and there was more music. Park Avenue Synagogue cantor Azi Schwartz sang "El Malei Rachamim," a Jewish prayer for the dead. Translated from Hebrew, the words mean, "To the souls of the victims of Sept. 11 who have gone to their eternal home, may their place of rest be in Gan Eden, may the All-Merciful One shelter them with the cover of His wings forever and bind their souls in the bond of life. The Lord is their heritage; may they rest in peace."

Schwartz was followed by children from the Young People's Chorus of New York City, who sang "Let There Be Peace On Earth." It opens with the line, "Let there be peace on Earth and let it begin with me."

After the pope left the September 11 Memorial for his next engagement, the crowd dispersed. A woman paused next to one of the names engraved on the edge of the south memorial pool and left a token of her love for a firefighter who had died on 9/11. He was an ex-Marine who had served in the Persian Gulf War. He died at the age of 35 leaving a wife and three young children.

In the Financial District, not far from the September 11 Memorial, a panhandler sat on the ground, asking for help. A woman leaning on a cane and wearing a Pope Francis T-shirt, walked past him. The pope had prayed for "Peace for those faces which have known nothing but pain" and elsewhere in his New York sojourn, he prayed for "All those who don't appear to belong or who are second-class citizens."

"In big cities, beneath the roar of traffic, beneath the rapid pace of change, so many faces pass by unnoticed because they have no 'right' to be there, no right to be part of the city," Pope Francis said later that day in a Mass before 20,000 at Madison Square Garden. "They are the foreigners, the children who go without schooling, those deprived of medical insurance, the homeless, the forgotten elderly. These people stand at the edges of our great avenues, in our streets, in deafening anonymity."

The pope has left New York City, but his prayers remain.

- Terese Loeb Kreuzer

To see a video of the interfaith peace service at the September 11 Memorial, click here.
To see a video of cantor Avi Schwartz singing El Malei Rachamim, click here.
To see a video about the Shakers of Sabbathday Lake, Maine, click here.

Selling Pope Francis T-shirts on Broadway near the September 11 Memorial, where Pope Francis had prayed for "Peace for those faces which have known nothing but pain."




Bits & Bytes
HUXLEY HONORED; SHARIF EL-GAMAL BUILDING A SYNAGOGUE; BARGAINS AT NEW TRIBECA HOTEL; 1WTC TENANT CUTTING BACK   
Anthony Notaro with Tessa Huxley, former executive director of the Battery Park City Parks Conservancy, at the annual Battery Park City block party on Sept. 20.
 (Photos: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)

Tessa Huxley honored at annual Battery Park City block party: There were cheers for Tessa Huxley, former executive director of the Battery Park City Parks Conservancy, and also tears when she appeared at the annual Battery Park City block party on Sept. 20 to be honored for her 27 years of service to the community. Huxley was the mastermind for the parks and gardens that are among BPC's greatest glories. She worked passionately to keep them beautiful and healthy despite the devastations of 9/11 and Superstorm Sandy. However, in July, the Battery Park City Authority, which oversees the Conservancy, forced her to retire.

At the block party, New York State Sen. Daniel Squadron and City Councilmember Margaret Chin praised Huxley's accomplishments. Anthony Notaro and Rosalie Joseph, who chaired the block party, told her that a tree was being planted in her honor in a New York City park.

Tessa Huxley
"For almost three decades, in a real sense Tessa has provided the leadership, stewardship and passion of our parks and their infrastructure," Notaro said. "Her accomplishments go beyond the time I have today. Not only did she launch the Conservancy and our parks but she fostered a generation of horticulturalists, craft people and managers who continue to achieve great things here in Battery Park City. I've heard it said that one mark of a great civilization is to plant a tree under whose shade they may never sit."  He added that it was fitting to honor Huxley by donating a tree in her name to be planted in New York City by the New York Restoration Project. "Someday maybe we can sit in the shade of that tree," he said.

Huxley had tears in her eyes when she replied. She said that she was hired "to create a soul for Battery Park City, because there wasn't one in 1987, when there weren't a lot of people living here. There needed to be connective tissue, and the parks were going to be that tissue. It has been my privilege to help birth that." Then she thanked her staff. "I love them all dearly," she said.  "And I ask you to please support them going forward, because this is a complicated process and we all need to do it together."

There were more tears after Huxley left the stage. BPC Park's director of horticulture, Eric T Fleisher, showed another of his talents as he played "Stand By Me" on his guitar, with rewritten lyrics telling Huxley that all who listened would "stand by thee." - Terese Loeb Kreuzer

"An Unexpected Partner Helps Preserve a Manhattan Synagogue," New York Times, 9/22/ 15. People who have lived or worked in Lower Manhattan for a few years will probably remember the name Sharif El-Gamal. He was the man who wanted to build an Islamic prayer space and community center on Park Place, igniting a national furor because of its proximity to Ground Zero. Now, says The New York Times, El-Gamal is building a synagogue. "The rolldown gate of the Garment Center Congregation has not risen in months, the lights are out, the menorahs and Torahs are gone, the vestibule is full of refuse," says The Times. "By the end of the year, demolition will begin on the six-story building at 40th Street and Seventh Avenue that housed the congregation. It was also the former fashion campus of the Parsons School of Design. In its place a 29-story hotel will rise. But what could have been the synagogue's demise has instead led to its rebirth, thanks to an unconventional lease signed nearly 40 years ago and an unexpected landlord better known for a very different religious project." Says The Times, El-Gamal's "new hotel project will include a 300-seat sanctuary, a 75-seat chapel for daily services, a kosher kitchen, a community room and even a small terrace for a sukkah, the ceremonial tent erected each fall for the harvest holidays." For the complete article, click here.

And in other news about Sharif El-Gamal: "'Ground Zero mosque' developer Sharif El-Gamal proposes 70-story luxury condo tower at 45 Park Place," Daily News, 9/26/15. "Manhattan developer Sharif El-Gamal has settled on constructing a luxury condominium skyscraper instead of his controversial passion project - the 'Ground Zero mosque,'" says the Daily News. "El-Gamal's Soho Properties has released specs behind his 70-story high-rise with units costing more than $3,000 per square foot when completed in 2017, Bloomberg Business reported. The condos are El-Gamal's third proposal for the 45 Park Place property near the World Trade Center." For the complete article, click here.

"Landmarked TriBeCa office building turned hotel to charge $200 a night-a bargain price," Crain's New York Business, 9/21/15. "The Amirian Group and Bridgeton Holdings are converting a landmarked former office building in TriBeCa into a 171-key hotel," Crain's New York Business reports. "The conversion comes years after the Chetrit Group, the property's previous owner, attempted to transform it into rentals. The developers announced Monday they have begun renovating the 10-story building, located at 396 Broadway on the corner of Walker Street, and hope to hold a soft opening during the fourth quarter of 2016. Bridgeton Holdings paid $42 million for the property in 2013." The hotel will have small rooms and will charge around $200 a night. For the complete article, click here.

"1 WTC's first tenant looks to shrink its space by 85%," Crain's New York Business, 9/23/15. "Vantone Industrial, the first tenant to sign up for office space at 1 World Trade Center, is seeking to dramatically slash its space at the 1,776-foot tower," says Crain's New York Business. "The request comes a year after it asked to cut its original commitment in half. The Beijing-based company now wants to downsize its lease by 85% to take only a single floor in the 104-story tower for a total of 31,344 square feet, down from 202,000 square feet. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which owns the tower along with the Durst Organization, is expected to vote on the matter at its board meeting scheduled Thursday at 4 World Trade Center." For the complete article, click here.

"Brooklyn Bridge Park operator broke its promise, says former city parks commish," Crain's New York Business, 9/14/15. Crain's New York Business reports that, "The Brooklyn Bridge Park Corp. broke a promise to limit the height of a luxury condo-cum-hotel called Pierhouse to 100 feet, the city's former parks commissioner said. And by allowing the project to move forward, the group that manages the park has alienated key Brooklyn Heights constituents, noted Adrian Benepe, whose comments followed a state court ruling in favor of the development earlier this week." With The Howard Hughes Corp.'s high-rise tower in the South Street Seaport still on the table, what happened at Brooklyn Bridge Park should be of interest to opponents of the HHC plan. "The 1.3-mile Brooklyn Bridge Park was built with public resources, but it was designed to be self-sustaining," says Crain's. "Park maintenance and operation are to be funded by income generated from a handful of real estate developments within its footprint. Among those buildings is the Pierhouse project, which is being developed by Toll Brothers City Living and Starwood Capital Group. Under the park's written guidelines from 2006, the larger of two buildings at Pierhouse was supposed to be capped at approximately 100 feet in order to preserve views from the Brooklyn Heights promenade. However, when construction began, a group of residents sued the developer and Brooklyn Bridge Corp., arguing that substantial portions of the buildings rising at the site exceeded the 100-foot limit by more than 30 feet." For the complete article, click here.

"Retracing Alexander Hamilton's Historic Steps Through NYC," Curbed.com, 9/25/15. "No show in recent memory has taken Broadway by storm with quite the speed or spirit of
Hamilton's tomb in Trinity Churchyard at Rector Street.
Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda's game-changing hip-hop musical about the life and death of the titular Founding Father," says Curbed.com. "Alexander Hamilton's story is a classically American one; an immigrant kid who rose from nothing to become one of the most influential figures in Western history, his life reads like the American Dream before America even existed. It's also a quintessentially New York story: Hamilton forged his life and fortune in a Manhattan that, even in those early days of the nation's history, was the place to be for an ambitious scrapper on the rise."  Curbed.com goes on to say that, "Many of Hamilton's former stomping grounds are places you can still visit today" and shows where they are. For the complete article, with photos, click here.

"Four Seasons owners have sights set on downtown skyscraper," New York Post, 9/25/15. "Four Seasons restaurateurs Alex von Bidder and Julian Niccolini, who are getting booted from the Seagram Building next July, have their eyes on a new, sky-high venue," says the New York Post. "They're quietly negotiating to take over the top of 28 Liberty, the reincarnated former One Chase Manhattan Building in the heart of downtown, The Post has learned. The Chinese owners of the tower are in the midst of negotiating not just with the world-renowned Four Seasons, but with three other 'household names' to run the restaurant, events and conference center in the magnificent former Chase conference center on the 60th floor of that building, sources said Friday." For the complete article, click here.


Downtown bulletin board
BLESSING THE ANIMALS; LMCC PROGRAMS FOR ARTISTS
 Father Kevin Madigan conducting the annual Blessing of the Animals in Battery Park City's St. Joseph's Chapel in 2010. The non-denominational blessing will take place this year on Oct. 4. All pets are welcome. (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)

Blessing of the animals: The annual Battery Park City Blessing of the Animals celebration will take place Sunday, Oct. 4, at 2 pm, at St. Joseph's Chapel on Kowsky Plaza. All are invited to bring their pets to this non-denominational blessing, and all pets are welcome.

LMCC programs for artists:
There's still some room in the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council's free workshop series, Art & Resilience, designed to help NYC-based artists develop knowledge, build best practices, meet experts, and explore strategies to strengthen their practices today as well as their resilience for the future. The workshops take place as follows: Sept. 30: Arts & Insurance with Scott Raker from Fractured Atlas; Oct. 7: What Your Archive Can Do For You with Amy Davila from ArtSmart; Oct. 14: Rights and Relationships with Sergio Munoz Sarmiento. Click here to learn more about the program and to RSVP. For other information, email [email protected].

Battery Park underpass closures:  From Sept. 29 to Oct. 3, the north tube of the Battery Park underpass will be closed for installation of temporary lighting and sump pumps as part of the restoration of the electrical and mechanical systems damaged by Superstorm Sandy. Early-morning full closures of the north tube (FDR Drive to West Street) will be in effect through Oct. 3.  Beginning on Oct. 6, early-morning full closures of the south tube (West Street to FDR Drive) will be in effect at least through October 10. The schedule for the closures is Tuesday to Friday mornings, 12:01 a.m. to 5 a.m., and Saturday mornings, 1 a.m. to 8 a.m.  Only one tube will be closed at a time. 

Resiliency meetings: With plans currently being made to try to protect Lower Manhattan from sea level rise and storm surges, the East Side Coastal Resilience Task Force (ESCR) is holding several meetings, as follows:

Sept. 30: East Side Coastal Resilience Task Force. Place: Gouverneur Health Auditorium, 227 Madison St. Time: 6:30 p.m. Oct. 6: ESCR Community Engagement Session 1. Place: Grand Street Settlement, 80 Pitt St. Time: Doors open at 5:30 p.m., presentation begins at 6 p.m. Oct. 8: ESCR Community Engagement Session 2. Place: Washington Irving School, 40 Irving Place. Time: Doors open at 6:30 p.m., presentation begins at 7 p.m.
 
The ESCR community engagement sessions will be identical with a slight focus toward the geographic areas where the sessions take place. These ESCR community engagement sessions build on the planning undertaken as part of HUD's Rebuild by Design competition. Spanish, Mandarin and Cantonese interpreters will be present at both meetings. A Fujianese interpreter will be present on Oct. 6. For special needs assistance, call (917) 933-7444 by Friday Oct. 2. Dinner will be provided.
 
More free Wi-Fi in Lower Manhattan
: The Alliance for Downtown New York recently announced that more than one million square feet have been added to its free Wi-Fi network, bringing plans to provide access for the entire Lower Broadway corridor halfway to completion. In total, the Alliance now provides more than 3.7 million square feet of coverage throughout the district. The most recent addition to the network provides uninterrupted service on Broadway from the Battery to Trinity Church. The Downtown Alliance's network is free. For more information about the network, click here.

Downtown Boathouse:
Weekday evening kayaking at the Downtown Boathouse, Pier 26 in Hudson River Park (near North Moore Street), is over for the season but Saturday, Sunday and holiday kayaking continues. It runs from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. through mid-October, weather permitting. For more information about the Downtown Boathouse, which is run by volunteers, click here.
 
Downtown Post Portfolio: Downtown Post Portfolio is a feature in Downtown Post NYC, showcasing artists and photographers who live and/or work south of Canal Street or who create images (paintings, drawings, photographs) of Lower Manhattan.

To have your work considered for publication in Downtown Post Portfolio, send up to seven high-resolution jpeg files attached to an email to [email protected]. (One of the photos should be a picture of you.) Several of these photos will be published in Downtown Post NYC, along with a short artist bio and a statement about the work submitted, including whether or not it is for sale and how to purchase it.

Not all entries can be published. Copyright remains with the artist. Before publication, each contributor will be asked to sign a release stating that Downtown Post NYC has the right to publish the work in the emailed newsletter and in the Downtown Post archives, and that there is no payment.

Independence Day in Lower Manhattan photo gallery:
The Independence Day celebration in Lower Manhattan started on July 1 with the arrival of the Hermione at Pier 15 in the South Street Seaport. Hermione is a replica of the 18th-century frigate that brought the Marquis de Lafayette to the U.S. colonies in March/April of 1780. Also at Pier 15, El Gale�n, hosted parties and tours. It is a replica of a 16th-century Spanish ship such as Ponce de L�on would have sailed when he landed on the east coast of Florida 500 years ago. On July 4, there were fireworks over the East River. For photos of some of the Independence Day celebrations, click here.

Downtown Little League opening day photo gallery
: The Downtown Little League kicked off its 2015 season on April 18. This year, there are just under 1,100 players on 81 teams. For photos of the opening day, click here.

Whitney Museum of American Art photo gallery: The Whitney Museum of American Art at 99 Gansevoort St. opened to the public on May 1. For photographs of the Whitney Museum's new building and of its opening exhibition, click here.

South Street Seaport Museum Opening Day: The South Street Seaport Museum opened its 2015 season on April 25 with events on Pier 16 and activities for kids and their families in the lobby of the museum's 12 Fulton St. building. For photographs of the museum's opening day, click here.

South Street Seaport Museum on Schermerhorn Row: To see photographs of some of the
As ships transitioned from sail to steam, woodcarvers who had once made figureheads now made statues that stood outside tobacconists and other shops. This Sultana, dating from around 1880, was in an exhibit called "Compass: Folk Art in Four Directions" at the South Street Seaport Museum.
(Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)
artifacts inside the South Street Seaport Museum's premises on Schermerhorn Row and photos of past exhibitions, click here.

Downtown Post Portfolio: Jay Fine: Jay Fine is a New York City fine-art photographer and photojournalist, based in Lower Manhattan whose work was featured in Downtown Post Portfolio (DPNYC, 5/6/15). To see some more of Fine's work on the Downtown Post NYC website, click here.



COMMUNITY BOARD 1 MEETING: Sept. 30

Dan Rogoski, president of The Ride, Inc., trying to persuade the members of Community Board 1's Seaport/Civic Center Committee that a tour bus with floor-to-ceiling glass windows, "equipped with state-of-the-art audio/visual technology, including 40 plasma TV screens and over 3000 LED lights," that would travel through the Seaport and Battery Park City would not be a nuisance in these neighborhoods. The matter will be discussed further at CB1's full board meeting. (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)

Community Board 1's monthly meeting takes place on Wednesday, Sept. 30 at LMHQ, 150 Broadway, 20th floor, starting at 6 p.m. (Bring a photo ID to enter the building.)

I. Public Hearing
Community Board 1 Capital and Expense Budget Requests for FY 2017

II. Public Session
Comments by members of the public (6 p.m.-7 p.m.) (1-2 minutes per speaker)
Guest Speaker:
Captain Jonathan Boulware, Executive Director, South Street Seaport Museum

III. Business Session
* Adoption of July 2015 minutes
* Chairperson's Report - C. McVay Hughes
* District Manager's Report - N. Pfefferblit

IV. Committee Reports

A. Executive Committee - C. McVay Hughes
* Capital and Expense Budget Requests for FY 2017 - Resolution
* Citywide Ferry Service Draft Scope of Work for a Draft Environmental Impact Statement - Resolution
* Selection of Community Board 1 Land Use Consultant - Resolution
* Manhattan Borough President's Office hearing on Manhattan Congestion, Thursday, 9/17
- Resolution
* Manhattan Community Board 1 Tribeca District Boundaries - Report
* Calendars for January-June 2016 - Report

B. Quality of Life Committee - P. Moore
* WTC Health Program for Survivors - Resolution
* NYC Department of Transportation construction update - Report
* Rats and garbage issues in CB1 - Report
* City Council Sanitation Committee Hearing for Int. 377 - Report

C. Landmarks Committee  - R. Byrom and B. Ehrmann
* 17 Leonard St. rooftop addition mockup - Resolution
* 27 North Moore St., application for pergola and screen design - Resolution
* 287 Broadway, application for façade restoration and window and storefront replacement - Resolution
* 136 Beekman St., application for rooftop addition - Resolution
* 27-A Harrison St., application to legalize existing rear yard fence - Resolution
* 140 Franklin St., application for storefront renovation - Resolution
* 60 Hudson St., applications for expansion of four louvers on 11th floor and new generator on 19th floor setback - Resolution
* 399 Greenwich St., application to approve existing awning and gooseneck lights at Greenwich Street Tavern sidewalk café - Resolution
* 6 Varick St., application for storefront renovation and installation of canopy and platform - Resolution
* 130 Beekman St., application for new building entry door and canopy on Beekman Street between Water and Front Streets - Resolution
* 49 Chambers St., application for modification of entrances for ADA compliance and addition of canopy, new window openings on east and west facades, and new railing on rooftop - Resolution

D. Seaport/Civic Center Committee - M. Pasanella
* 200 Water Street, application for proposed bus stop location - Resolution
* Peck Slip/Water Street traffic safety - Resolution
* 80 Centre Street, Public Design Commission application for landscaping and new handicap ramp at Worth Street - Resolution
* Howard Hughes Corporation - Report
* Seaport Museum Gets $10.4M in FEMA Funds Nearly 3 Years After Sandy - Resolution

E. Planning Committee - M. Connolly
* National Disaster Resiliency Competition, NYC Phase II Application - Resolution
* Lower Manhattan Resiliency & Sustainability - Report
* Ben Strauss, Ph.D., Vice President for Sea Level and Climate Impacts, Climate Central - Report

F. Tribeca Committee - E. Lewinsohn
* 93 Worth St., application for a Board of Standards and Appeals special permit for a Physical Culture establishment for 93 Worth Street Gym, LLC - Resolution
* 281 Broadway, application for a Board of Standards and Appeals special permit for a Physical Culture establishment for CrossFit TriBeCa - Resolution
* Application to rename the block of Sixth Avenue from Franklin Street to White Street to Avenue of the Americas - Resolution
* 349 Greenwich St., application for restaurant liquor license for 349 Greenwich Street Restaurant LLC - Resolution
* 20 Warren St., application for tavern liquor license for 20 Killarney Tavern Corp. d/b/a Tara of Tribeca - Resolution
* 221 West Broadway, application for sidewalk cafe for North of Houston LLC d/b/a White Street - Resolution
* 221 West Broadway, application for alteration of restaurant liquor license to permit use of a sidewalk cafe for North of Houston LLC d/b/a White Street - Resolution
* 211 West Broadway, application for new liquor license for Maman Tribeca LLC - Resolution
* 175 Franklin St., application for restaurant liquor license for entity to be formed by Jean Dupuy - Resolution
* Volunteer at Hudson River Park's Submerge: NYC Marine Science Festival, Saturday, Oct. 3rd, 2015, Hudson River Park's Pier 26 - Report
* MBPO Tribeca Small Business Roundtable, September 16, 2015, 6:30-8:30 p.m. - Report

G. Financial District Committee - E. Sheffe
* Proposed Expansion of No Vending Zone - Resolution
* Street Co-Naming application, submitted by Bowling Green Association, to co-name Bowling Green Plaza as Evacuation Day Plaza - Resolution
* NEC Barclay St. and West Broadway, application for a newsstand - Resolution
* 130 Water St., application for a wine and beer license for New Water Café, Inc. - Resolution
* 108 Greenwich St., application for a liquor license for Suspenders and Belt LLC, d/b/a Suspenders Restaurant - Resolution
* 1 Battery Park Plaza, application for a wine and beer license for Coffee House Holdings, Inc, d/b/a Starbucks Coffee #7244 - Resolution
* 55 Broad St., application for a wine and beer license for Coffee House Holdings, Inc, d/b/a Starbucks Coffee #7416 - Resolution
* Governors Island Alliance Activities - Report
* Broadway Reconstruction Project - Report
* Earth Matter - Report

H. Youth & Education Committee - T. Joyce
* School Register Numbers - Report
* Status of new school in Financial District - Report
* Update on Peck Slip street closure and safety procedures - Report
* Need for crossing guards at each Downtown school - Report
* 2015 CB1 exam scores - Report

I. Battery Park City Committee - A. Notaro
* Ritz-Carlton Hotel residents report by Sol Reischer - Resolution
* BPC Parks Conservancy - Report
* Battery Park City Authority - Report
* BPC Parks Enforcement Patrol - Report

J. Old Business

K. New Business
* Elizabeth Berger Plaza renovation - Resolution

L. Adjournment




CALENDAR: Week of Sept. 28

The South Street Seaport Museum leads a walking tour called the "Hidden History of the Brooklyn Bridge" on Oct. 1, 8 and 15. (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)
 
Sept. 29:
Andrew Alpern,  a much-published architectural historian, architect and attorney, talks about his new book, "The Dakota: A History of the World's Best-Known Apartment Building" (Princeton Architectural Press, 2015), at the Skyscraper Museum. Built more than 130 years ago, New York's first true luxury apartment house, the Dakota, is still the gold standard against which all others are weighed. Alpern recounts how Singer sewing magnate Edward Clark erected a building luxurious enough to coax the wealthy from their mansions downtown to ultra-modern living on the former swamplands of the Upper West Side. Redrawn plans, published here for the first time, show how Clark created glamorous apartments that made life under a shared roof as acceptable in Manhattan as in Europe's grand capitals, revolutionizing apartment life in New York City. Place: 39 Battery Place. Time: 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Free, but RSVP required to assure admission to the event. Email [email protected].

Sept. 29:
Opening reception for an exhibit of work by Trevor Winkfield, showcasing his visionary contributions to the overall aesthetic of poetry publishing. Place: Poets House, 10 River Terrace in Battery Park City. Reception: 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Free. Exhibition will be on view from Sept. 29 to Jan. 10, 2016 during regular hours for Poets House. For more information, click here.
 
Oct. 1: Learn the "Hidden History of the Brooklyn Bridge" on a one-hour walking tour conducted by the South Street Seaport Museum in association with Archtober, Architecture and Design Month New York City, October 2015. The iconic landmark, the virtual symbol of New York in the 19th century, has secrets hidden deep within its granite towers, as well as within its 140-year history. Secret vaults, underground rooms filled with priceless drawings, a fortified (and amply provided) bomb shelter, undisclosed passages as well as some quirky and mostly forgotten construction techniques give the story of this structure a much richer and more interesting flavor then any other structure in the city. The walking tour will reveal some of these long hidden spaces and tell the stories behind the remarkable people who created this massive, wonderful, but enigmatic structure. Meeting place: South Street Seaport Museum, 12 Fulton St. Time: 12:15 p.m. Also, Oct. 8 and Oct. 15. Registration required. Limited availability. Tickets: $10 (adults); $8 (museum members); $5 (children). For tickets, click here.

Oct. 1
: Gary Fagin, music director and conductor of the Knickerbocker Chamber Orchestra, is music directing a production of Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill's "Happy End" at The New School. It's a collaboration between The New School Drama Department's second-year acting class and musicians from The Mannes School Of Music. Says Fagin, "This delightful show about what happens when Salvation Army lassies meet a gang of toughs in 1920s Chicago has some of Brecht and Weill's most memorable songs, including 'The Bilbao Song,' 'Surabaya Johnny' and 'The Sailor's Tango.'" Place: Westbeth, (entrance at 151 Bank St. between West Street and Washington Street). Time: 8 p.m. Also, Oct. 2 at 8 p.m. and Oct. 3 at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. Free, but reservations are required. To reserve, click here.

Oct. 1: Poets House presents "Passwords: Jerome Rothenberg on Outside & Subterranean Poetry." Earlier this year, Rothenberg's "Barbaric Vast & Wild: An Assemblage of Outside & Subterranean Poetry from Origins to Present" was published as the twelfth and culminating volume in his formative series on ethnopoetics, begun nearly a half century ago with "Technicians of the Sacred" (1968). Join Rothenberg as he steps back to reconsider what holds these works together and what the future might be for this omnipoetics, theoretically moving toward a final, perhaps unobtainable, "anthology of everything." Place: Poets House, 10 River Terrace. Time: 7 p.m. Tickets: $10 (adults); $7 (students and seniors); free (Poets House members). For more information, click here.

Oct. 3: The fireboat John J. Harvey embarks on her last trips of the season, leaving from Pier 66 Maritime at West 26th Street. Trips are free, but a $20 refundable deposit is required to reserve a place. Time: 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Click here to reserve for Oct. 3. There will also be Hudson River trips on Thursday, Oct. 8 and Saturday, Oct. 10. On Friday, Oct. 16, there will be a trip from 12:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. to Oyster Bay, Long Island with LIRR connections available for the return to New York City. For more information about these trips and about the John J. Harvey, click here.
 
Ongoing
: "Spirits of the Passage: Stories of the Transatlantic Slave Trade" on the museum ship Lilac at Hudson River Park's Pier 25 discusses aspects of the maritime trade in African slaves combined with profiles of slaves, former slaves, abolitionists and others whose lives were touched by this global traffic. The exhibit was created by the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum (www.melfisher.org) in Key West, Fla. Lilac received key funding from the Sandy Hook Pilots' Association (www.sandyhookpilots.com) to bring this exhibit to New York. Through Oct. 25. The ship is open from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Thursdays and 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Lilac is the last steam-powered lighthouse tender in America and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Launched on May 26, 1933, she carried supplies to lighthouses and maintained buoys for the U.S. Lighthouse Service and then the U.S. Coast Guard until she was decommissioned in 1972. For more  information about Lilac, click here.

Last week: Through Oct. 4, celebrate summer with a sail aboard the South Street Seaport Museum's historic schooner, Pioneer, and get a new perspective on New York City. Bring a picnic lunch or dinner, snack, beverage or dessert. Pioneer was built in 1885 as an iron-hulled sloop to carry cargo along the Delaware River and is the oldest ship regularly sailing in New York Harbor. For more information or to buy tickets, stop by the museum's Visitor Service Center at 12 Fulton St. or ask the Museum's Associates on Pier 16. Afternoon Sails: Tuesday-Friday 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday-Sunday, 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Tickets: $38; $28 (museum members); $32 (students and seniors); $20 (children 2 to 11 years old); $5 (children uner 2 years old). Sunset Sails: Tuesday-Sunday 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tickets: $45; $35 (museum members); $25 (children 2 to 11 years old); $10 (children under 2 years old). For more information or to buy tickets, click here.

Ongoing: "America in Circulation: A History of US Currency Featuring the Collection of Mark R. Shenkman," an exhibition at the Museum of American Finance, showcases around 250 rare examples of American paper money accompanied by large, interactive touch screen displays. From Colonial times, American money has told a fascinating story of the country's struggles and successes. Often local and national currencies competed and coexisted with each other, while economic depression, war and counterfeiting drove constant advances in design. The exhibition spans the period from the Colonial era to the present day. Highlights include rare examples of currency bearing the signatures of signers of the U.S. Constitution and Declaration of Independence; a complete set of notes from the Educational Series of 1896, renowned for being the most beautiful paper money in American history; and rare examples of high denomination notes including $5,000 and $10,000 bills. Through March 2018. To see an online version of the exhibition, click here. Place: 48 Wall St. Museum is open Tues.-Sat., 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Admission: $8; $5 (students and seniors); free (museum members and kids 6 and under). For more information, click here.

Ongoing
: "Cer�mica de los Ancestros: Central America's Past Revealed" displays 155 ancient objects from the National Museum of the American Indian's rarely seen collections of Central American ceramics. The exhibition examines seven regions representing distinct Central American cultural areas that are today part of Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama, where Central America's first inhabitants lived. Dating back to 1000 B.C., the ceramics help tell the story of the innumerable achievements of these ancient civilizations, each with unique, sophisticated ways of life, value systems and arts. Through January 2017. Place: 1 Bowling Green. The National Museum of the American Indian is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and on Thursdays, until 8 p.m. Free. For more information, click here.  

Ongoing: The Museum of Jewish Heritage presents "Designing Home: Jews and Midcentury Modernism," an exhibition that explores the cultural context in which many Jewish �migr� architects and designers created a distinctly modern American design that still has wide appeal today.  Walk-up tours will be offered on Sundays in May (except May 24) at 12 p.m. with no reservations necessary. Through January 2016. Place: 36 Battery Place. For more information, click here.

Ongoing: The Skyscraper Museum's exhibition, "Ten Tops," surveys all buildings in the world today, completed or under construction, that are 100 stories and taller. Of these 24 towers, the exhibition focuses on 10 (plus a few more), zooming in on their uppermost floors to see how they were designed and constructed. Through October 2015. Place: 39 Battery Place. Hours: Noon to 6 p.m., Wednesdays to Sundays. Admission: $5; $2.50 (students and seniors). For more information, click here.

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: "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: "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: "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: Fraunces Tavern Museum's exhibition, "Lafayette," opened in May to complement the docking of the Marquis de Lafayette's replica ship, L'Hermione at the South Street Seaport over the July 4th weekend. It includes 20 items from the museum's collection such as Lafayette's calling card and the his sash, splashed with his blood from a wound sustained at the Battle of Brandywine. Through December 2016. 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: 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. Lobby access: Fridays to Sundays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. For private tours of Schermerhorn Row and its old hotels, email [email protected].



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Editor: Terese Loeb Kreuzer

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