DOWNTOWN EXPRESS, JAN. 29, 2015

VOLUME 27 NUMBER 17 JANUARY 29-FEBRUARY 11 2015

1 METROTECH bull NYC 11201 bull COPYRIGHT copy 2015 NYC COMMUNITY MEDIA LLC

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WITH COMMUNITY

BOARDSBY DUSICA SUE MALESEVIC

It had all the makings of a typical teen party mdash pizza and soda excited chatter and of course young people But it was no

party but rather a meeting to dis-cuss a serious commitment that some adults would shy away from serving on a community board

Late last Friday afternoon Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer hosted an informational ses-sion for young people interested in serving on their community board At Brewerrsquos urging Gov Andrew Cuomo signed a law last summer that allows 16- and 17-years-old to be members of a board

As the application for this year draws almost to a close mdash Jan 30 at 5 pm is the deadline mdash this will be the first time that teenagers can apply and be legally appointed

In a packed room at her office at 1 Centre St one of the hopefuls Heebong Kim a 17-year-old student at Battery Park Cityrsquos Stuyvesant High School said he wants to apply to Community Board 1

ldquoI never felt that I had political capitalrdquo he told Downtown Express

Continued on page 14

BY JOSH ROGERS

Last year when Downtown school advocates renewed their battle to get more classroom space in the Schools Chancellorrsquos confer-

ence room Sheldon Silver their most powerful ally had a simple solution for the school leader Use my confer-ence room across the street

Although the idea was reject-ed by Chancellor Carmen Farina Assembly Speaker Silver did say he was able to get her to agree to more class space in her Tweed Courthouse headquarters for later this year

It was just one of many instanc-es where Silver used his clout in

Albany to get results on local issues in his Lower Manhattan district Itrsquos an enormous power that Downtown lost Tuesday when the speaker agreed to give up his leadership post after the feds accused him of using his power to illegally rake in

Downtown loses its power broker

Photo by Mike GrollAssociated Press

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver in Albany on Monday the day more and more Assembly Democrats called on him to resign his leadership post

Continued on page 5

2 January 29-February 11 2015 January 29-February 11 2015 3DowntownExpresscomDowntownExpresscom

BY JOSH ROGERS

A local leader who has lent a sym-pathetic ear to South Street Seaport preservationists fighting the proposed development project there has just been tapped to join the city Landmarks Preservation Commission mdash the same commission which is about to begin reviewing the proposal

Mayor Bill de Blasio last week nom-inated Wellington Chen executive director of the Chinatown Partnership Local Development Corp to the 11-seat commission

Chen 62 said he has a lifelong love of the sea and has taken a particular interest in the South Street Seaport Historic District

ldquoMy father was a seaman who died at seardquo Chen told Downtown Express Jan 21 the day his appointment was announced ldquoI believe in the [South Street] Seaporthellip Thatrsquos the quint-essential mdash our local [development corporation] points to the sea This is the essence of the areardquo

Chen attended a Save Our Seaport rally against the Howard Hughes Corprsquos project in October 2013 and said he was pleased to learn there that another attendee Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer has a deep connection to the South Street Seaport Museum since her grandfather was involved in its creation

ldquoI was there not to protest just to listenrdquo Chen added

Similarly Chen attended Community Board 1rsquos public hearing on the land-marks application for the proposal last month at St Paulrsquos Chapel but did not speak That standing room only hearing drew hundreds and it appeared there were more supporters than opponents of the project so he got to hear both sides

Chen said he had not decided if he should recuse himself from voting on the Seaport proposal and he wanted to check with Landmarks Chairperson Meenakshi Srinivasan to see if she thought he should The commission is expected to begin reviewing the appli-cation sometime soon Feb 17 is the earliest possible date

Itrsquos not clear if Chen has taken any public positions against the Hughes proposal and any statements he may have made about the need to preserve the Seaport Historic District would essentially amount to the commissionrsquos mandate for all of the cityrsquos historic districts

Last week he did not offer an opinion as to whether he thought the

Seaportrsquos district should be extended to include the New Market Building site of Hughesrsquo proposed 500-foot tower which has been the center of much of the opposition

The 1939 building was used a part of the Fulton Fish Market and is includ-ed in the non-binding national and state historic districts but the Landmarks Commission has rejected previous attempts to include it in the city historic district and appears to have no interest in revisiting the issue

But CB1 is poised to pass a new Seaport resolution which includes a renewed call to landmark the New Market (The board was to take the matter up Jan 26 but the meeting was canceled because of an expected bliz-zard The tentative date is now Feb 5)

The community board resolution will be sent to the commission which is likely to soon include Chen and Kim Lee Vauss an architect with Outsource Consultants who was also appointed last week

Their appointments to the unpaid positions are subject to City Council confirmation and its Rules Committee will consider the nominations on Feb 4 But there is no reason to think therersquoll be any hitches there City Council fights over landmarks appoint-ments are unusual to say the least and in Chenrsquos case he has a long-stand-ing and friendly working relationship with Councilmember Margaret Chin a tower opponent whose district includes Chinatown and the Seaport

With the Chinatown Partnership Chen has pushed to keep the streets clean as one of many efforts to help the neighborhoodrsquos small businesses

Though he will occupy the only ldquolay memberrdquo seat on the commission meaning he has no professional land-marks expertise on landmarks he is experienced on the issue

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Wellington Chen

Friend of Seaport tower foes to join Landmarks

BY DUSICA SUE MALESEVIC

The speculation is over Michael Fortenbaugh is officially out of North Cove Marina as the Battery Park City Authority named Brookfield Office Properties and its partner Island Global Yachting the marinarsquos operator at their Thurs Jan 22 morning meeting

Brookfield Properties will pay $45 million in license payments over ten years as well as an up-front capital improve-ment offer of $450000 for the marina lighting new signage and landscaping said Shari Hyman president and COO of the authority

Fortenbaughrsquos North Cove Marina Management was paying the authority $300000 a year and offered $400000 during this bidding process

The meeting took place at 200 Liberty St once the World Financial Center and now Brookfield Place Supporters of Fortenbaugh who has run the marina for the past ten years lined up down-stairs to attend the meeting The room adjacent to the boardroom was packed and many carried signs that said ldquoStop

Albany Pay-to-Playrdquo Dennis Mehiel the chairperson and

CEO of the authority explained its position before a vote was taken on the request for proposals or RFP for the marina operator

Community Board 1 had passed a resolution in December asking that the BPCA to withdraw the current RFP process and asked for more community input Elected officials then wrote a Dec 29 letter to the authority supporting CB 1rsquos unanimously passed resolution

Mehiel said that the authority was ldquopleasedrdquo and ldquooverwhelmed a little bit at the tremendous interestrdquo that the commu-nity has shown in the meeting

ldquoIn two and half years or a little more that Irsquove been here Irsquove never seen such a crowdrdquo he said

He stressed that the authority has pro-tocols that are not subject to discretion

Mehiel said that the authority ldquosat-isfiedrdquo itself that it had made the right decision on the successful bidder in the extra time that it had after the unplanned delay at its December meeting mdash the

board did not have a quorum for the vote because Mehiel did not attend and mem-ber Martha Gallo recused herself

ldquoWe took that time went back spent a little bit more time with the successful bidder clarified our expectations and their commitmentsrdquo he said ldquoand decid-ed again that we are doing the right thing for Battery Park City residents for the marina for the community at large and of no small significance for the taxpay-ersrdquo

Mehiel said that when the RFP was issued the current operator Fortenbaugh was invited to bid He did not refer to Fortenbaugh by name calling him the ldquoincumbentrdquo

ldquoWe got the bids in We looked at it we saw the deficienciesrdquo said Mehiel ldquoWe do value incumbency we do not ignore incumbency so we decided to invite all the bidders in for additional meetingsrdquo

Mehiel did not offer details of the bidrsquos ldquodeficienciesrdquo

The authority has received letters and phone calls from the community the

community board and elected officials he said

ldquoItrsquos all their right to do thatrdquo said Mehiel ldquoBut when you think about it what it really amounts to is an individual bidder in a RFP process who believes he is unsuccessful and decides to mount political pressure on the authority to subvert our process and preserve his economic interests in the operation of the marinardquo

The crowd in the back started booing ldquoWhen we donrsquot respond with a

change in our process or protocol we are accused of running a process subject to political manipulation by the governor of the state of New Yorkrdquo said Mehiel ldquoWe start with political pressure to change the outcome If itrsquos not successful we accuse the authority of having political pressure to have made the decision that we are going to vote on this morningrdquo

He also answered questions about the fact that his yacht has sometimes docked at Brookfieldrsquos partner Island Global

Authority picks Brookfield to run marina


Continued on page 8


POLICE ARREST RESTAURANT THIEF

On Sun Jan 25 police say they arrested the thief that has been hitting restaurants in Tribeca and the Financial District mdash working in the dead of night to steal from registers

The policersquos anti-crime team saw the man break into a Pret a Manger near City Hall

The 63-year-old got in through the front door at around 3 am while the restaurant at 319 Broadway was closed Police say he then tried to open a locked cash box to get at the money but did not succeed He was then arrested

The man has been suspected in a rash of break-ins that happened since last December

On Thurs Jan 15 he is suspected of robbing Arome Cafe at 7 Dey St at 245 am The man shattered the glass front door of the restaurant with an unknown object went in and grabbed $1600 from two registers He then fled east on Dey St towards Broadway police say

At 1230 am on Sun Dec 28 police say he broke into the Asian restaurant Obao at 38 Water St by

kicking in the glass side entrance and got away with $400 from two registers On Tues Jan 6 he used a fire hydrant cap to break a glass door at Anejo a restaurant at 301 Church St at 1240 am Police say he looked around the restaurant and left empty-handed mdash seeing nothing that he could grab

SHOPLIFTER THREATENS TO STAB

A shoplifting incident at an Urban Outfitters in the Financial District was taken up a notch when the man who stole a pair of $60 pants brandished a box cutter to get out of the store police say

Two employees at the clothing store at 182 Broadway saw the man grab the pants As he tried to leave he said ldquoYou better move before I cut yourdquo and showed the box cutter The employees one 25 and one 20 told police that the suspect had a ldquodead right eyerdquo and a tattoo on his neck with a picture of lips

GRAB AND GO IN SOHOTwo men and one woman pulled

off a $1500 jacket heist from Mackage store last Sunday

An employee told police that the three took the leather jacket and shoved it into a shopping bag at 530 pm on Jan 25 They then fled from the 123 Mercer St store jumped into a 2002 tan Toyota sedan and sped off

In another incident in Soho at the Celine store at 67 Wooster St video surveillance shows a man taking a python classic navy purse worth $6200 at 3 pm on Tues Jan 20 and then leaving the store Police say that the store has motion-detecting cameras but for some reason it did not pick up the removal of the purse

DISNEY DREAMS DASHEDThree Brazilian tourists were getting

drinks at Starbucks at 195 Broadway in the Financial District on Mon Jan 19 when the bag that contained $1800 credit cards and three vouchers for Walt Disney World were stolen police say

One of the group a 29-year-old man went to the counter and left his Calvin Klein brown bag on the table with his two friends A stranger came up to them and started talking The two women didnrsquot understand why the stranger was talking to them and thought that she was trying to start a fight

While the conservation continued the stranger took off her coat and put it on the table When she left the friends didnrsquot think to look for the bag mdash but it was gone

SUBWAY ROBBER CAUGHTA ldquolush workerrdquo mdash one who preys

on the sleeping or drunk on the train mdash was caught after the arresting officer saw the man take an iPhone 6 valued at $869 from a sleeping passengerrsquos pock-et on Fri Jan 16 according to police

The victim a 24-year-old man who lives in the Bronx was on the A train when the robbery took place at 330 pm The suspect got off the train at the Chambers St station and was appre-hended with the phone at the corner of

Warren and Church Sts Police say the suspect a 32-year-old Queens man was found with a razor blade on him mdash a common tool for lush workers who slice pockets to get what is stored inside

COPS FASTER THAN SNEAKER THIEVES

Thieves using fraudulent gift or cred-it cards have hit the high-end clothing store Balenciaga in Soho for the third time this month mdash each time for costly sneakers

Police say that on Wed Jan 14 at 1220 pm two teenagers came into the store at 149 Mercer St and used forged gift cards to buy two pairs of sneakers worth $1330 The two men mdash one 17 one 18 mdash were caught later that day and arrested The sneakers were recovered and the teens both from Brooklyn were found with several fake gift cards from other stores such as Zara

Three days later on Sat Jan 17 a man 20 used either fake credit cards or gift cards to buy two pairs of sneakers valued at $665 a pair Police arrested the Brooklyn man later that day and the sneakers were recovered

The previous week on Jan 10 three people were busted for using fake credit cards at the same store to buy sneakers which the police also got back

THIEF SHOPS AMAZON A New Jersey woman was enjoying

her Chipotle at 2 Broadway in the Financial District leaving her wallet next her on a chair while she ate on Mon Jan 19 at 250 pm She left and forgot her wallet When she came back five minutes later it was gone

Inside her Prada wallet worth $500 was $120 in cash as well as a debit and credit card The woman 24 told police there was an unauthorized charge of $57 made to Amazon

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Downtown without Silverrsquos power

nearly $4 millionIf convicted Silver 70 faces at least 20 years

in jail ldquoFrankly I think Downtown should be draped

in blackrdquo said Paul Hovitz one of the school advo-cates who worries about the effect of Silverrsquos loss of power

He said if convicted Silver of course should go but he feels the speaker is ldquobeing tried in the pressrdquo and shouldnrsquot have been pressured to give up the leadership position

There were many calls for him to resign from the state and on editorial boards immediately after the charges were first reported Jan 22 but Downtown there seemed to be a sense of shock and unwillingness to go that far (State Sen Brad Hoylmanrsquos tweet calling for a resignation last week was a notable exception)

Even Democratic District Leader Paul Newell

who challenged Silver in 2008 emphasized the problems of legislators getting outside pay but he was careful not to call for Silver to leave unless the accusations were true

By Sunday he and his fellow leaders of Downtown Independent Democrats called for Silver to give up his leadership post

Silver has maintained he will be vindicated and on Tuesday he said he had no plans to give up his Assembly seat His district covers FiDi the Seaport Chinatown most of Battery Park City and much of the Lower East Side where he lives

State Sen Daniel Squadron like many Downtown leaders has been mostly quiet since news broke but he this released this statement Wednesday

ldquoTherersquos no question the charges are serious and disturbing As with all allegations against public officials itrsquos sad for the state and peoplersquos faith in their government In this case itrsquos particularly acute in Lower Manhattan where he has been a stalwart for rebuilding schools and beyond As

the state heads into its budget negotiations I hope the Assembly leadership can focus without distrac-tion and earn the confidence of New Yorkers across the staterdquo

Tammy Meltzer a Community Board 1 member said last week that she hopes the charges are not true but regardless it ldquodoes not diminish all of the good work hersquos done for Lower Manhattanhellip

ldquoI am torn between being hopeful that he will have the power he has had because the charges prove to be incorrect and worry what it will mean for Lower Manhattanrdquo she said ldquoSpeaker Silver has been an amazing advocaterdquo

She and Hovitz have served on the speakerrsquos School Overcrowding Task Force which has suc-cessfully pushed the city Dept of Education to build more schools in Lower Manhattan the cityrsquos fastest growing area

Hovitz said he hoped the task force would continue but that was one of many things he was wondering about now

Continued from page 1

BY LINCOLN ANDERSONA political tsunami hit Lower

Manhattan and all of New York State last Thursday as Sheldon Sheldon the powerful speaker of the Assembly sur-rendered to the FBI on multiple cor-ruption charges

According to US Attorney Preet Bharara Silverrsquos alleged crimes include two forms of graft involving his outside income over the past 10 years namely accepting kickbacks from a real estate law firm as well as engaging in a quid pro quo involving asbestos patients and state funding altogether totaling nearly $4 million

ldquoThese charges in our view go to the very core of what ails Albanyrdquo Bharara said last week ldquoLack of transparency lack of accountability and lack of prin-ciple joined with an overabundance of greed cronyism and self-dealingrdquo

Silver 70 was charged with five counts of corruption extortion and fraud each carrying a maximum sen-tence of 20 years in prison

He turned himself in at 26 Federal Plaza at 8 am Thursday Then mdash with his hands cuffed behind his back mdash he was driven in a white Impala to nearby Federal Court and arraigned of his charges Pleading not guilty on all counts he was freed on $200000 bond

Exiting court as TV news reporters thrust microphones at him he said a few words mdash including ldquoI hope Irsquoll be vindicatedrdquo mdash then walked off

Last Friday Silver in conference

with his fellow assemblymembers laid out a scheme under which he hoped to retain his speakership while agreeing to delegate temporarily some of his pow-ers mdash including negotiating the state budget mdash to a committee of five senior assemblymembers while he confronted the charges

But his plan was panned and by

early this week it was clear that the majority of Assembly Democrats want-ed Silver to step down as speaker

Joseph Morelle the Assembly major-ity leader initially conveyed to Silver the message that he had until next Tuesday to decide on whether to step down or face being ousted

However as of this Tuesday evening

Assembly Democrats had agreed that Morelle who is from Rochester area would temporarily assume the role of acting speaker for eight days starting next Monday as the Assembly searches for a new leader On Feb 10 an election will be held to fill the speaker position

Speaker arrested and charged with taking $4 million

Downtown Express photo by JB Nicholas

Sheldon Silver in handcuffs is driven from FBI headquarters to Federal Court last Thursday morning

Continued on page 6


permanentlySilver said ldquoI will not hinder the processrdquo He intends to keep his Assembly seat but if ulti-

mately convicted of a felony he would no longer legally be allowed to serve

In the days leading up to Tuesday eveningrsquos news calls for Silver to step down had been mounting

ldquoHe should understand that hersquos lost the confidence of a majority of our conferencerdquo Assemblymember Brian Kavanagh said

Governor Andrew Cuomo offered that ldquoit would be a good thingrdquo if someone else took over as speaker and that ldquogoverning by committeerdquo doesnrsquot work

ldquoItrsquos not time to step aside itrsquos actually time to step downrdquo City Comptroller Scott Stringer declared ldquoWe need one leader in the Assembly someone who can guide these budget negotiationsrdquo

Other influential voices calling for Silver to throw in the towel included Assemblymember Keith Wright and Public Advocate Letitia James

Itrsquos been a swift and dramatic fall for Silver who has been the powerful Assembly speaker for the past 20 years A native Lower East Sider he has represent-ed Lower Manhattanrsquos 65th Assembly District since 1976

Silver is accused of two separate schemes occur-ring over the past decade In the first he allegedly directed real estate developers with business before the state to a small real estate law firm run by his former general counsel for which the firm allegedly paid him $700000

In the second he is accused of secretly funneling two state grants totaling $500000 to a Columbia University cancer researcher who in turn referred asbestos cancer patients to Weitz and Luxenberg mdash the law firm where Silver is a personal-injury lawyer Prosecutors say the firm then paid Silver a total of $32 million in ldquoreferral feesrdquo

Bharara said Silver did ldquonothingrdquo to collect his legal fees except trade on his influence in the Assembly

Over the years Silver was famously well known for resisting efforts to make him reveal information about his outside income He has said that he earns more than $650000 per year from the law firm though exactly what he did for it was always shrouded in secrecy His government salary is $121000

The investigation originally grew out of the Moreland Commission Governor Cuomorsquos anticor-ruption panel which focused on probing Albany legis-latorsrsquo outside income and campaign finance

However legislators took legal action to block the investigations into their outside income

News of Silverrsquos imminent arrest was first announced early Thursday morning in a New York Times article

State Senator Brad Hoylman was the first to call publicly mdash on Twitter mdash for Silver to step down

ldquoSpeaker Silver should resign for the good of the people of New Yorkrdquo Hoylman tweeted

Wednesday night Cuomo had given his State of the State speech with Silver seated prominently right beside him on the stage

He has previously called for ldquoserious new restric-tionsrdquo on state politiciansrsquo outside income which he said is often ldquoshadyrdquo

Democratic District Leader Paul Newell who ran a spirited race against Silver in the 2008 Democratic primary issued an e-mail statement around 6 am last Thursday on Silverrsquos ldquoimminent arrestrdquo

ldquoIf the report in The New York Times is true this is a sad day for Lower Manhattan and a sad day for New Yorkrdquo Newell said

ldquoI canrsquot speak to the specific charges against the speaker but I can say that outside income for legisla-tors is a certain recipe for corruption Speaker Silver and Majority Leader Skelos should have banned it long agordquo

Asked if he thought Silver should resign Newell said ldquoIf the allegations are true certainly If not he has the right to defend himselfrdquo

Silver is a champion among many progressive Democrats for his support of bread-and-butter causes like unions teachers and programs to help the poor

Indeed in the wake of the shocking news Mayor Bill de Blasio voiced support for the Assembly speaker calling him ldquoa man of integrityrdquo and saying that he was owed ldquodue processrdquo

Similarly last Thursday two of Silverrsquos longtime Assembly colleagues from Manhattanrsquos West Side Deborah Glick and Richard Gottfried stressed that Silver has not been convicted of anything and praised him for his work in the Assembly

Gottfried said that in fact in his view Silver is nothing less than a political hero And he indicated that he felt Silver should remain as speaker while the charges are being resolved

ldquoSpeaker Silver is presumed innocent until proven guilty like every Americanrdquo Gottfried said in a state-ment ldquoA criminal complaint is an accusation it is not evidence

ldquoI have confidence that Speaker Silver with the strong support of the Assembly majority will continue to do the job of working for a progressive agenda while the current charges are being resolvedhellip

ldquoThere is no one in public life in New York who has fought more effectively for decades for almost everything I care about in public policy than Sheldon Silverrdquo

Meanwhile Glick in a phone interview said ldquoThere are constitutional protections that apply to everyone from the highest person to the lowest per-son Those include the presumption of innocencerdquo

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ALTERNATE SIDE PARKING RULES ARE IN EFFECT ALL

WEEK Check 311 for updates

Below-freezing temperatures and even more snowfalls are in the fore-cast through the week so the snow will most likely stick around Avoid driving if at all possible but if you must use extreme caution Follow me on Twitter GridlockSam to stay up-to-date on the latest news on road closures alternate side parking sus-pensions and transit service changes

Itrsquos that time again Lower Manhattanites in case you missed it the MTA will be raising tolls and fares Herersquos a guide to what yoursquoll be paying starting March 22

Subway fare $275 base MetroCard $3 single ride $31 week-ly $11650 30-day unlimited

Verrazano Bridge $16 cash $1108 E-ZPass

Robert F Kennedy Bridge Bronx-Whitestone Bridge Throgs Neck

Bridge Hugh L Carey Battery Tunnel Queens Midtown Tunnel $8 cash $554 E-ZPass

Henry Hudson Bridge $550 cash $254 E-ZPass Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge $4 cash $208 E-ZPass

All Manhattan-bound lanes of the Brooklyn Bridge will close 11 pm Thursday to 6 am Friday midnight Friday to 7 am Saturday mid-night Saturday to 9 am Sunday and 11 pm to 6 am Monday through Wednesday nights Expect extra traffic on the Manhattan and Williamsburg bridges as well as in the Battery Tunnel Canal Delancey and West Sts will slow down as a result

In the Lincoln Tunnel the New York-bound south tube will close 11 pm Thursday to 5 am Friday That will drive inbound traffic south to the Holland Tunnel in which one New York-bound lane and one New Jersey-bound lane will be closed during the same period Expect late

night delays and extra traffic on Canal and Varick Sts

On West StRoute 9A one south-bound lane from Vesey St to West Thames St will be closed 10 am to 3 pm both Thursday and Friday

Email your traffic transit and parking questions to TransitSamdowntownexpresscom

13

Chabad of Great Neck a nonprofit organization is seeking Quotes for equipment and materials under the

Bureau of Justice Funding

Work includes design and installation of security CCTV system and Intrusion Alarm equipment

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13

TRANSIT SAMI N P R I N T O R O N L I N E

W W W D O W N T O W N E X P R E S S C O M

Silver out as speaker



Speaker Silver after leaving Federal Court last Thursday

Downtown Express file photo by Terese Loeb Kreuzer

Sheldon Silver in happier days The Downtown Little Leaguersquos Opening Day 2013 Continued on page 8


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Montessori Certified TeachersFull and Half Day Classes for Children 2-6 YearsYoga Art Spanish and Performing Arts for All AgesAfter School ProgramsTae Kwon Do Organic CookingMeditation amp MindfulnessLatin Dance amp RhythmSpanish

Wednesday March 4th530-630 pmWednesday March 4th530-630 pmFiDi CAMPUS2 Gold St NYC 100382 3 A C 4 5 J Z

This week after Silver agreed to leave his leadership position Glick said ldquoItrsquos sad He had a huge num-ber of key victoriesrdquo rattling off a number of these ldquoWe donrsquot have a West Side stadium because he knew it was the wrong thing to do Obviously we have marriage equality because he put it on the agenda and we voted on it several times before the governor stepped in to help with the Senaterdquo

She also noted that Silver had pro-tected rent regulation

ldquoHe has a great record mdash and itrsquos very sadrdquo she concluded

Kavanagh who has been outspo-ken in calling for Silver to step down unlike Glick and Gottfried is a rela-tive newcomer to the Assembly having only served since 2007

Newspaper editorials last week promptly called for Silver to resign with The New York Times declaring it ldquoincrediblerdquo for him to think of continuing to serve in his Assembly job while defending himself against

bribery and kickback charges involv-ing millions

Last Friday City Councilmember Margaret Chin released a statement calling the charges ldquodeeply serious and deeply concerning The speaker has been a strong advocate for the Lower Manhattan community and he has especially been a champion for local schools and affordable housing I am personally very troubled by these allegations against the speaker but I will refrain from passing judgment on his current legal situation until the judicial process is completerdquo

Among the names mentioned as the most likely permanent replacement for Silver have been Morelle Wright Joseph Lentol from Greenpoint Carl Heastie from the Bronx and Cathy Nolan from Queens

Glick too has at times in the past been mentioned as a possible candi-date for speaker

Asked about that last Thursday though she said ldquoIrsquom not going to engage in any musings or hypotheti-cals at this pointrdquo

Who might replace Silver Downtown

Continued from page 6 In the eventuality that Silver is in fact convicted of a felony meaning his seat would become open or he does not run for reelection next year there is no shortage of candidates who would be ready to run for the position

Some names that have been men-tioned include his former primary opponent Newell Julie Menin the cur-

rent Department of Consumer Affairs commissioner and former Community Board 1 chairperson and Alan van Capelle former executive director of the Empire State Pride Agenda and current president of the Educational Alliance

No doubt other candidates might emerge

He said he was proud to have help lead the effort to landmark Flushing Town Hall as chairperson of Community Board 7rsquos Landmarks Committee He was on the Queens board from 1977-90 and was the first Chinese-American ever appointed to the board

As a veteran of 18 years of public hearings ldquoI have a very good sense of whorsquos lying and whorsquos not whorsquos mak-ing up things and whorsquos notrdquo he said

Chen looks forward to working with the commission and the public to get the best result on every proposal

ldquoThe thing is itrsquos not really a simple up or down voterdquo he said ldquoIt requires a dialoguerdquo

The appointment came as a surpriseldquoI had no idea this was going to

happenrdquo Chen said ldquoEvery oppor-tunity I was ever given in this great country I was presented with it I never asked for itrdquo


Wellington Chen


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The World Trade Center Performing Arts Center mdash an important part of the original plan for the site but which has been plagued with delays mdash still does not have an architect but is moving for-ward with a clear vision of what kind of performing arts space it would like to be

ldquoOne upside of the shift in archi-tects is that we really have had time to put together what this building is going to be mdash what we want it to berdquo said Lucy Sexton associate artistic director

Architect Frank Gehryrsquos design for the Performing Arts Center was dropped last September

Sexton explained that the cen-ter would not only present art but would also commission it

ldquoYou donrsquot build a theater in the middle of the greatest city in the world to import workrdquo she said ldquoWe took the idea of it being a World Trade Center not just for the exchange of goods but also a World Trade Center for the exchange of cul-tures and ideas and a place to gather and come togetherrdquo

There will be three theaters with different seat capacity mdash 550 350 and 150 mdash that will be configured in such a way that they can be combined said Sexton The center will mount theater musical theater dance music and new opera performances

Sexton who said she had ldquodeep rootsrdquo in the dance and theater world and also runs the New York Dance and Performance Awards said that there have been many conversations with artists to discuss needs It was brought up repeatedly that there wasnrsquot a venue to perform new or smaller operas thus its addition to the list

Sexton said that the PAC as the arts center is often called is talking to Pace University Gibney Dance Sam Miller of the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council and to the Apollo about co-producing or

working togetherldquoTo not give in to this idea that

theaters need to be competitive with each otherrdquo she said

The center intends to be ldquoalive all dayrdquo mdash open from 8 am to 1 in the morning The idea that people come in during the daytime have coffee meet for lunch see perfor-mances and linger after mdash or per-haps are visiting the 911 Memorial and Museum and decide to stop by the PAC

ldquoThe public space is very import-ant to us We want it to be a place where the people who work in this neighborhood the people who live in this neighborhood will come in will gatherrdquo Sexton said ldquoA place that gets a lot of traffic going through it all times of dayrdquo

The center would be the ldquomost digitally advanced space in the city in the country one of the most dig-ital advanced spaces in the world so that it can respond to the art thatrsquos being made increasingly with digital mediardquo explained Sexton

ldquoIf you built it with enough digital infrastructure so that you could actu-ally connect with another theater you could have performance happening in New York City and in Seoul and in Riordquo she said

In addition to the global ties that digital infrastructure will also allow streaming a rehearsal or master class so that students in other boroughs or just down the street can watch or be a part of it

ldquoThese are lofty goals theyrsquore adventurous goals but I think that they are ones that its mdash if yoursquore going to build a new theater itrsquos what requiredrdquo said Sexton who called the center a ldquoconnecting noderdquo

David Lan who runs the Young Vic in London was named the con-sulting artistic director of the PAC and has been in that position since September of 2013 according to The Guardian

Both Sexton and Maggie Boepple the centerrsquos president touted Lanrsquos

record mdash a 96 percent capacity for the audience at the Young Vic a theater founded to stage innovative plays at affordable prices Boepple called it ldquoastonishingrdquo that Lan has maintained an almost packed house for the past five years The makeup of the audience is also diverse

Boepple said that it is important that the PAC will be a ldquocultural community center for this areardquo and to have an audience that represents the community

ldquoItrsquos a challenge no doubt but it is definitely one of our goals that it should a place where lots of differ-ent people come to see theater not just rich peoplerdquo said Sexton

Boepple said that the center could be open by late 2018 or 2019 depending on the Port Authority which is still completing infrastruc-ture The site of the PAC is at Vesey and Greenwich Sts currently the temporary PATH station

ldquoHowever you will see some PAC productions before that because we want to wet everyonersquos whistlesrdquo said Boepple although she doesnrsquot yet have a venue or timetable for

thatShe said that their operations are

moving higher in One Liberty Plaza thanks to a gift from Brookfield Properties mdash a five-year lease that costs the PAC nothing

CB 1 member Kathleen Gupta asked Boepple what were PACrsquos ldquosynergiesrdquo with the 911 Memorial and Museum and the various family groups

ldquoI know therersquove been issues in the past about what type of art would be presented so close to Ground Zerordquo said Gupta refer-ring to a dispute a decade ago which ended up moving the cultural center off the memorial block

ldquoWe are very close to the people in the memorial We obviously will be very respectful of the family groups But I think the PAC always was about the futurerdquo said Boepple ldquoThat was the way it was started up way before we got there The memo-rial is about what happened and wersquore about the future We are liv-ing we are breathing and itrsquos sort of a slightly different feeling than the memorial and the museumrdquo

Downtown Express photo by Dusica Sue Malesevic

Maggie Boepple president of the World Trade Centerrsquos Performing Arts Center

WTC arts center ideas taking shape

I N P R I N T O R O N L I N E


Do you remember when ______________ happened downtownWe do

Visit Our Archives At Downtownexpresscom

Yachting marinas Andrew Farkas is the chairperson of IGY and was one of the largest contributors to Governor Andrew Cuomorsquos campaign

ldquoI own a yachtrdquo he said ldquoGuilty Guilty as chargedrdquo

He said that the boat lives in the Caribbean and the ldquosuggestion is put for-ward that businesses conducted between my boat and IGY that is to say Mr Farkasrsquo company has somehow contaminated this process and I [have] a conflict [of interest] and should recuse myself Preposterousrdquo

Cries of ldquoyes yesrdquo were heard from the people in the back People yelled ques-tions and when Mehiel didnrsquot respond ldquoanswer the questionrdquo was shouted

ldquoWe donrsquot have questions unfortu-natelyrdquo he said ldquoI apologize for this mdash with the protocols that we have here there are no public comments and we canrsquot change that precedent unfortunatelyrdquo

When pressed again he reiterated that there is no public comment during the meeting ldquoI donrsquot want to get into a dialoguerdquo he said to many laughs in the room

Many within the community decried the lack of transparency of this RFP process

ldquoIt is disappointing that the Battery Park City Authority ignored the resolu-tion from the community to withdraw the RFPrdquo said Tammy Meltzer CB 1 member said by phone

Ina Woronoff whose husband is a member of the club said ldquoItrsquos disgusting that big business takes away pleasure from this community and from people in this cityrdquo

ldquoMr Mehiel referred to political pressure it was community pressurerdquo said Sinclair

Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer attended the meeting and told Downtown Express that moving forward ldquoWersquoll see what we can dordquo

Meltzer said ldquoA greater conversation needs to be hadrdquo about the authorityrsquos relationship with the community

ldquoAt the end of the day it is a state agency that runs a local communityrdquo said Meltzer who said she couldnrsquot think of another area in the city that the state con-trols without any major community input

Brewer along with Congressman Jerrold Nadler State Senator Daniel Squadron and Councilmember Margaret Chin sent a Jan 22 letter to Governor Cuomo asking for more local represen-tation asking him to ldquotake advantage of

current vacancies and appoint additional residents to the board as soon as possi-blerdquo

They also requested that ldquomoving for-ward major authority decision-making including RFPs incorporate local inputrdquo

ldquoToday the BPCA failed to provide the Battery Park City community with the representation it deservesrdquo said Jenifer Rajkumar a Democratic district leader in an email ldquoThe BPCArsquos process violated fundamental principles of good govern-ment and transparency and revealed an organization out of touch with the com-munity and insensitive to the negative perceptions it has created We now need to consider whether the Battery Park City Authority should be restructured and refor-mulated so that it will fairly and properly represent the interests of our communityrdquo

After the meeting a BPCA press release listed community programming that Brookfield Properties proposed a wide variety of programs a sailing school accessible to all income levels a summer camp programs water safety classes and a corporate sailing league

The specifics of these programs have not been revealed

ldquoWe will be working on a compre-hensive plan for the marina over the coming months We are also reaching out to members of the communityrdquo said Melissa Coley vice president for investor relations and communications for Brookfield Property Group when asked about details

She issued this statement via email ldquoOur vision includes a sailing school for the community summer and learn to sail programs Our vision is an active attractive and sustainable hub for the community We will look to our 25 years of experience at Battery Park City in programming free community programs and eventsrdquo

For his part Mehiel said ldquoIndeed it is our opinion hellip that these changes that we intend to implement at the marina are going to result in wider not narrower community use access to the marinardquo

IGY and Governor Cuomorsquos office did not respond

Fortenbaugh said after the meeting that he has got to keep going and he is moving his operations to Liberty Harbor in New Jersey

Asked if he has had any discussions with the Howard Hughes Corporation about their proposed marina at the Seaport he said that IGY is designing it

ldquoI donrsquot think wersquore going to be invited thererdquo he said


Brookfield to run marina


Private Pool bull Field Sports bull Pier 25 bull Karate bull Tennis Arts amp Crafts bull Music amp Drumming bull Movement

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Community Center


A research and educational center to study the Hudson River estuary at Pier 26 was a seed planted in the lsquo90s that is now beginning to blos-som mdash funding and partners are now in place

The Hudson River Park Trust has announced the consortium that will operate and run the ldquoestuariumrdquo mdash with upstate Clarkson University taking the lead

Madelyn Wils president and CEO of the Trust a state-city public authority presented to Community Board 1rsquos Tribeca Committee on Wed Jan 14 and explained that the idea of having a research center has been around since the park was created in 1998 and that it has been actively pursued for over ten years

The Hudson River Park Pier 26 Estuarium will be located between N Moore and Hubert Sts in Tribeca but construction looks to be a few years away

ldquoWe very excited that the park after many years has been able to put together the funding as well as

the partner to do whatrsquos called the estuarium on Pier 26rdquo said Peter Braus the committee chairperson ldquoItrsquos going to be a great resource for the people within CB 1rdquo

Clarkson University located at Potsdam New York will lead the effort and work with the New York Hall of Science and the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater

Wils said that they were look-ing for institutions that could make the estuarium happen but not be a drain on the Trustrsquos resources Wils said the Trust reached out to every university in the region that could have been interested before selecting Clarkson

The university also has a math and engineering program special-izes in waterfront management and said that they are willing to pay for the operations of the estuarium she said

ldquoThey have a sensible way of how theyrsquore going to get thererdquo said Wils ldquoAnd theyrsquore guaranteeing it That is a very big deal that we know that just as they run their university theyrsquore

going to be running their facility and itrsquos going to openrdquo

Nicolette Witcher the Trustrsquos vice president of education and environ-ment said the centerrsquos goal is ldquoto really promote and inspire and edu-cate about the Hudson River envi-ronment Our kind of pinnacle of that is to have a place where we can really focus the publicrsquos attention on the river on the estuaryrdquo

Witcher described an estuary as ldquothe special place in the river where the freshwater meets the saltwater and creates this brackish environ-ment so itrsquos salty but not too salty and it creates this really unique ecosystemrdquo

The center will take up about 12 percent of the pier and the Trust is ldquotrying to figure out what the rest of it will be but definitely a place for the public to enjoyrdquo said Witcher

People will be able come in and learn about the estuary mdash park patrons boaters and students on school field trips to name a few

Scientists will be able to do real-time work Witcher said and will be

able to make connections upstate downstate and in the harbor The Hudson River estuary is 153 miles long and stretches from the New York Harbor to Troy NY

The Beacon Institute of Rivers and Estuaries is a research facili-ty that is now a part of Clarkson University The institute is located in Beacon New York and in 2008 it launched the River and Estuaries Observatory Network which is a ldquosophisticated network of real-time acoustic and optical sensors that reflect nearly instant changes in important physical and chemical parameters within the Hudson River itselfrdquo according to its website

Clarkson recognizes the need of working with local groups Witcher said and is interested in other part-ners such as the River Project which started studying the estuary on Pier 26 a few decades ago

ldquoWersquore all having talks and I think everybodyrsquos hopeful that it might work out that all these organi-

Tribecarsquos river center puts its trust in Clarkson

zations can work in there togetherrdquo Cathy Drew the executive director of the River Project said in a phone interview

The River Project a marine field station was at Pier 26 for about 25 years and is now temporarily located at Pier 40 Drew is excited about the upcoming season that includes Wetlab Look-Ins

Witcher said ldquoItrsquos just the begin-ning of the process but wersquore so excited that we have all these I think great players at the table now I think everyone has a smile on their face so far We have a lot of work to dordquo

Wils said that the estuarium will likely be two stories and about 10000 sq ft and what it looks like will depend on the programming class-rooms research space and exhibits She also said the Trust would come back to the community board about the planning process

There will be a ldquorequest for pro-posalsrdquo for a landscape architect

later this year said WilsThe Trust has received fund-

ing from the Port Authority the state Dept of Environmental Conservation and New Yorkrsquos Dept

of State for a total of $95 million for the research center

However Wils explained that more funding was needed to finish the rest of the park

ldquoWe are requesting money from our government parents to do that and we would like your supportrdquo she said ldquoWe canrsquot open the pier until the park is finishedrdquo

The committee unanimously passed a resolution that supported the Trustrsquos efforts to finish the park and to encourage Clarkson to work with the River Project and other local groups that have been involved with educational programs on the river

Wils a Tribeca resident and for-mer chairperson of CB 1 said that the park is the second largest water-front park in the country and it is about 70 percent finished mdash with around 70000 sq ft of park space that still needs to be built

ldquoWersquore focused on working towards getting this park finishedrdquo she said ldquoThatrsquos really what we want to do and thatrsquos what our intention is mdash so that every neighborhood in Hudson River Park has their park Certain neighbor-hoods have their park built and other neighborhoods like Tribeca have half their park finishedrdquo

Pier 26 as it looked last summer




ldquoEspecially as a youth where no one votes I felt like the political scene was really dominated by older per-sonsrdquo

Passionate about environmen-tal science Kim lives in Flushing Queens but wants to serve in Lower Manhattan and has already gone to Board 1 meetings

ldquoI didnrsquot feel that government had a place for merdquo he said ldquoTo have a more active role in that process would just be incredible mdash especially at 17 I never thought I could do this even at 18rdquo

Brewer started the meeting by talking about the long road that led to the passing of the legislation A former community board member for ten years Brewer said the idea started when she was a city councilmember and thought about having teenagers younger than 18 vote

ldquoWe should have young people vote in city electionsrdquo she said ldquoThe adults hated it as the young people loved itrdquo

When that idea failed to gain sup-port mdash although she says she hasnrsquot given up on it mdash she turned her sights to 16- and 17-years-old being a part of the community boards

ldquoItrsquos a huge dealrdquo said Brewer who said that the teens could be a part of ldquoreal stuff that goes on in the neighborhood I am so excited to have all of you hererdquo

The law applies to the 55 com-munity boards citywide There are 12 boards in Manhattan and Brewer appoints all 300 members with local councilmembers recommending half Each unpaid member serves a stag-gered two-year term

Brewer said the majority of com-munity boards have been receptive albeit some are a little nervous about the teens serving She told Downtown Express later that some chairpersons may have to be sensitized to the issue

ldquoIrsquove been to thousands of com-munity board meetings in my lifetime and there is not a youth voicerdquo she said ldquoThe young people in some of these high schools are extraordinary Theyrsquore voice needs to be out thererdquo

Brewer said that she thinks that they can add ldquorealistic agendas things that need to be addressedrdquo

There have been several meetings and Brewer said one in Washington Heights turned out 50 young peo-ple Last Fridayrsquos in Brewerrsquos Lower Manhattan office drew a few dozen

Brewer said at public appearances audiences are particularly enthusias-tic about young people joining com-munity boards

ldquoWhen I speak about what the office is doing and I talk about land use and so on and so forthrdquo she said ldquoAnd then I talk about 16- and 17-years-old they all start clapping Land use nothing Therersquos a huge interestrdquo

Each potential applicant took turns introducing him or herself

stating their age and their school or university The ages ranged from 15 to 21 and people were from all over Manhattan as well as some from Brooklyn

The meeting gave the teens the opportunity to learn community board basics and ask questions that are specific to their age and circum-stances homework going off to col-lege and working with mostly adults

Leila Eliot 16 was recently select-ed to be a part of CB 3 and talked about her experience of being a teen member Brewer said she is the first minor to legally serve on a communi-ty board in the United States

ldquoIrsquom sure most of [you are] here because you want to be on a commu-nity board which is amazingrdquo she told her peers ldquoItrsquos greatrdquo

Eliot said that there is ldquoa big lapse in my community There are teenag-ers who donrsquot get to say what they feel say what they think have a voice in their local communityrdquo

She attends Bard High School Early College and talked about how it is difficult to get homework done on nights that she has meetings and the need for time management

ldquoItrsquos definitely a time commit-mentrdquo agreed Austin Ochoa who was 19 when he joined CB 4 last year

Ochoa now 20 fielded questions about issues community boards tack-le He talked about CB 4rsquos focus on affordable housing and said that the job is 365 days

ldquoItrsquos going to be interesting to

bring the next generation into the foldrdquo said Ochoa who attends City College and cites current City Councilmember and former CB 4 chairperson Corey Johnson as one of his idols

For 17-year-old Shirlyn Perez a junior at High School for Media and Communications to serve on a board is an opportunity that is ldquovery appealing mdash not only because I get to contribute to my community but also learn a lot from itrdquo

Perez who lives in Washington Heights said she will definitely be applying to her neighborhoodrsquos board CB 12

ldquoItrsquos an exposure to many other things that we donrsquot get to experience at schoolrdquo she said

Perez said she would focus on the issues of low undergraduate rates and drug use in her neighborhood

Her classmate Marleny Delarosa 16 and from the Bronx said she would also apply for CB 12

ldquoI care for my community so Irsquom interested in knowing whatrsquos going on and what I can do to help improve itrdquo she said

Some of the teens were concerned about leaving for college after serving on the board for a year

ldquoWersquore aware of that and itrsquos some-thing that we [will] take into con-siderationrdquo said Brewer ldquoYou could also serve a year and then when you go off wersquoll have to find somebody else Itrsquos a hard onehellip

NOVUS NY

THE CHOIR OF TRINITY WALL STREET

THE TRINITY YOUTH CHORUS

THE WASHINGTON CHORUS

THE WASHINGTON NATIONAL CATHEDRAL CHORISTERS

JULIAN WACHNER CONDUCTOR

300 MUSICIANS 5 ENSEMBLESTHE GREATEST 20TH CENTURY MASTERPIECES

YOUrsquoVE NEVER HEARD

CHARLES IVES Symphony No 4

ALBERTO GINASTERA Turbae ad Passionem Gregorianam

Saturday February 21 8pm Stern Auditorium | Perelman Stage at Carnegie Hall

TICKETS TRINITYWALLSTREETORGTHEBIGCONCERT SAVE 15 WITH CODE TWS20848

Community boards open up to high schoolers

Downtown Express photos by Dusica Sue Malesevic

Teens interested in applying for community board positions debated the best way to spend $100 million of public money during an exercise in Borough President Gale Brewerrsquos office last Friday

Brewer speaking to the group thinks all community boards need more young people

ldquoWe try to look for the best people to repre-sent the neighborhoodrdquo said Brewer ldquoI am really committed to mak[ing] sure that every community board has young people on itrdquo

Amir Stewart 16 goes to Frederick Douglass Academy in Harlem and loves football He lives in Harlem and thinks that building more after-school youth programs is important and necessary

Growing up he went to the Police Athletic League a non-profit that provides all kinds of pro-gramming for kids and remembers how a member of the organization took them to play football and basketball on the weekends

ldquoHonestly if it wasnrsquot for him it would be a different scenario for a lot of kidsrdquo said Stewart who is undecided about applying because of his schedule

A school project that focuses on ldquosocial actionrdquo spurred Hector Hicks 17 to come to the meeting

Hicks lives in Midtown and attends Pace High School in Chinatown A project to help the com-munity got him and his classmates thinking about the park by their school they frequent Sara D Roosevelt Park

Hicks said the meeting spurred him to find out whether the park is publicly or privately funded and whether they need to go before the community

board for help in renovating it Hersquos unsure about applying as he is graduating this year but if he did he would want to be part of a Lower Manhattan board

At 15 Sarina Gupta is technically too young but will be 16 this year Gupta an intern at Brewerrsquos

office lives on the Upper West Side and goes to Hunter College High School an elite public school

ldquoTherersquos been all this talk about community boards here and I know thatrsquos a huge thing now that wersquove gotten 16- and 17-years-old allowed on the boardrdquo she said

Gupta said she has been interested in serving

her community for a long time and would apply to CB 7

ldquoI just think itrsquos so important that we need to have youth voices on the boardrdquo she said ldquoWe need to start young We need to start the conversa-tion young If we donrsquot have leaders who are young then we wonrsquot have any idea what wersquore doingrdquo

Gupta said that there needs to be greater aware-ness about teen dating violence and she would bring this issue before the board

At the meeting the teens were broken up into four groups for a budget exercise activity With a $100 million surplus each member had some time to determine how they would spend the money for certain areas such as affordable housing or parks

Then the tricky part debating and discussing with the group how they wanted to allocate the funds It was harder than it looked when one group went down to the wire to make the allocations

After each group presented what it would spend Matthew Washington chairperson of CB 11 in East Harlem spoke about his experience of being on a community board

Washington joined his community board at 22 and at that time he was the youngest member by 15 years He was elected chair at 26-years-old and has been at the helm for the past five years

ldquoI think itrsquos incredible that yoursquore all hererdquo said Washington ldquoItrsquos exciting because we get to give our voice to what is happening in our community

Continued from page 1 Continued from page 14


lsquoI didnrsquot feel that government had a place for me to have a more active role in that process would just be incredible mdash especially at 17 I never thought I could do this even at 18rsquo


Monday through Friday 830 AM ndash 900 PMSaturday 830 AM ndash 530 PM

235 East 11th StreetNew York NY 10003

(212) 777-3240wwwthirdstreetmusicschoolorg

COME EXPLORE WITH USwersquore your community music school

Beginner group classes

Individual or partner lessons

Free trial lessons

Weekly music and danceinstruction for all ages andlevels after school and onSaturday afternoons

Third Street Preschool fulland half-day programs

Daytime ToddlerEarly Childhooddance and movement classes

BR INGING THE ARTS TO L IFESINCE 1894

BY ZACH WILLIAMSThe Streitrsquos matzo company will

vacate its longtime Lower East Side factory and relocate later this year

For nine decades the family-owned company has manufactured matzo from four adjacent former tenement buildings at 148-154 Rivington St growing over that time from a local to international brand But just as com-pany founder Aron Streit moved the business there in 1925 from a smaller operation on Pitt St the time has come to secure a more modern space for the manufacture and distribution of the unleavened pockmarked bread eaten at Passover

ldquoWersquore basically at the same cross-roads nowrdquo said Aaron Gross a great great-grandson of Streit who works at the company ldquoManufacturing for national distribution on the Lower East Side of Manhattan is not an easy thing to do Wersquore good at it I think we do it as well as anyone couldrdquo

A critical factor in the decision to move is the factoryrsquos aging equipment Gross said The two 72-foot-long ovens are more than 70 years old and repairing them is simply not economi-cal anymore according to Gross New ovens are typically 150 to 200 feet long an obvious challenge in a factory thatrsquos only 100 feet from front to back

The machines that form flour and water into sheets of dough before bak-ing known as sheeters also present spatial challenges Gross said

ldquoOur sheeters are about 12 feetrdquo he explained ldquoYou canrsquot get a new sheeter thatrsquos under 30 feet longrdquo

A decision on where the com-pany will next set up shop will be announced this year around Passover Gross said He declined to give fur-ther details or divulge to which real estate developer the current site has been sold

Streitrsquos matzo production which now comprises about 40 percent of the US market will continue without interruption he added

Consolidating operations into one new location will allow for some obvi-ous efficiencies to be added into the production process The current facil-ity has no loading dock leaving the shipments prone to delays on busy neighborhood streets A move would also eliminate the need to bag matzo mix only for the trip to the companyrsquos warehouse in New Jersey In one facil-

ity a single person with a hand truck could accomplish that task Gross said

The current factory has six floors among the four buildings necessi-tating the employment of six rabbis in order to ensure products adhere to religious strictures Two or three rabbis could handle that task in a sin-gle-story building he added

ldquoI want to make this move and go from making matzo the most ineffi-cient way to making it the most effi-cient wayrdquo he said

Certain characteristics of a Streitrsquos matzo derive from the factoryrsquos some-times-zany setup The archaic ovens utilize convection rather than direct flames to bake matzo said Gross who credited this method with producing the brownish blistering on their prod-uct as well as an even complexion on both sides The squares of unleavened bread then travel in package-sized portions via a basket system carry-ing them from floor to floor As they do this they cool off giving them a freshness absent from matzo from other companies that use refrigera-tors Gross said

Staircases and corridors appear through walls and ceilings in the same places where Aron Streit wanted them way back when Not a lot has changed since the last relocation in how they make matzo

ldquoWhen we started looking to design a new factory the equipment man-

ufacturers came through and were amazed that the old stuff still works and that the place was so well-de-signed especially the basket systemrdquo said Alan Adler the companyrsquos chief operating officer and great-grandson of Aron Streit

Gross added that certain elements of the current production process such as paper packaging and the basket sys-tem might continue in a new factory

The move will also involve a human cost with some longtime employees unable to continue working for the company once it leaves the Lower East Side An upcoming documentary film ldquoStreitrsquos Matzo and the American Dreamrdquo will portray the company its employees and the surrounding neighborhood

One of the last bastions of manu-facturing in the neighborhood Streitrsquos

got its start at a time when the Lower East Side was filled with Jewish immi-grants Such a readily available cus-tomer base made Rivington St a con-venient site for business back then

But international competition par-ticularly from Israel now threatens Streitrsquos market share Deep-pocketed investors now control Manischewitz and two other former domestic com-petitors making Streitrsquos the last of four original family-owned matzo pro-ducers in the US

Emotions will take over the day when the Rivington St factory closes but the greater tradition of maintain-ing a family business will remain in place as the company finally under-goes the inevitable said Gross

ldquoTo hang on here just for the sake of hanging on doesnrsquot make senserdquo he said

Moses 40 years in the desert Streitrsquos 90 on the LES

Downtown Express photo by Zach Williams

Streitrsquos plans to close its Lower East Side factory sometime later this year

January 8 2015 7TheVillagercom

E D U C A T I O N

BY DUSICA SUE MALESEVICThe new Peck Slip School in the

Seaport is expected to open to stu-dents this September and its principal Maggie Siena is looking forward to having a library and dedicated space for music art and science

ldquoItrsquos always nice to have a room thatrsquos really dedicated for a single pur-poserdquo Siena said in a phone interview this week

Peck Slip also known as PS 343 has been ldquoincubatingrdquo at the Dept of Educationrsquos Tweed Courthouse head-quarters during the construction of the new facility

Siena said that she has been work-ing with a vendor who will supply the school with new books for the library which she described as a corner room with lots of sunlight

The classrooms at Tweed have been ldquochock blockrdquo full of books she said

ldquoOur classes have gone to the New York Public Library which has been fantastic actually and wersquoll probably want to consider ways that we can con-tinue doing thatrdquo said Siena ldquoBut we

havenrsquot had a library on site yet so itrsquoll be exciting to have our own libraryrdquo

At the beginning of the school year Peck Slip parents complained about the noise at Tweed as the school had to divide some classrooms to accommo-date its growth

Siena said it will be wonderful to have the new spaces

ldquoBut I can say we really loved it hererdquo she said ldquoWersquoll going to be leav-ing the nest and itrsquoll be time to leave the nest Wersquoll be excited to have these new facilities But there be a little bit of wistfulness in leaving kind of where we were bornrdquo

The new school will be at the for-mer post office building on Peck Slip between Pearl and Water Sts It is still a construction site so Siena has not been able to tour it She has however visited the site and spoken with the construction team about plans

ldquoWersquore starting to wrap our minds around what itrsquoll be like to be in a much bigger spacerdquo she said

The new school will go up to third grade its first year and Siena said that

they are still waiting to hear the word on pre-K Peck Slip plans to eventually expand to the the 8th grade

Siena also will be expanding her staff and itrsquos ldquoexciting to watch our staff grow and to watch the school community growrdquo

ldquoIrsquove been in lots of different school buildings mdash it really is the people more than the space that really makes

a schoolrdquo said Siena ldquoIrsquom sure itrsquoll be a beautiful space but wersquove been happy here too itrsquos a beautiful space [at Tweed] toordquo

Siena said that they are expecting to move into the new building in late August

ldquoSchool Construction [Authority] is committed to coming in on schedule and I really believe they willrdquo she said

Peck Slip principal makes plans for new building


Maggie Siena Peck Slip Schoolrsquos principal in the schoolrsquos temporary Tweed Courthouse home


wwwbmcccunyeduStartHereBorough of Manhattan Community College

Go Anywhere Start Here

Same great programs with new options for preschool and pre-kindergarten classes

Join us 9am-3pm 9am-12noon 2pm-5pm or 8am-6pm

NURSERY SCHOOL bull PRE-K bull SUMMER




215 South End Ave Battery Park City(Two blocks south of Brookfi eld Place)

CALL FOR A VISIT212-945-0088

Singer song-writer amp Storyteller Lou Gallo will lead a 9 week Music amp Rhythm Class

Mondays 415-500 pmJanuary 25th through March 30th

Open for children ages 12 months - 5 yearsMust be accompanied by an adult

Space is limited $15000 for the 9 week series

For more information or to register your childplease call 212-945-0088

or email infobpcnerserycom

Music with Lou Gallo

ldquoChildren who learn rhythm at an early age develop stronger reading amp math skillsrdquo

Last Wed Jan 21 around 200 parents teachers and school activists attended a forum in Greenwich Village at PS 3 to protest what they slammed as the ldquotest-obsessedrdquo public school system

Ravitch urged audience members to join the ldquoOpt-Outrdquo movement and refuse to allow their children to take the tests If enough parents join the effort she said the powers that be will have to get the message

After Ravitchrsquos speech the crowd broke down into groups to work on alternatives to the testing system

Yet the same night as the PS 3 event Governor Andrew Cuomo in his State of the State address said teacher evaluations should be based even more heavily on their studentsrsquo test scores

Ravitch tells parents to buck testing obsession

Photos courtesy PS 3 PAC

At the forum Diane Ravitch inset urged parents to ldquoopt outrdquo of the deluge of prescribed tests After her remarks audience members broke up into working groups


E D U C A T I O N


E D U C A T I O N

The cityrsquos Dept of Education is continuing to take applications for kindergarten with the deadline being Feb 13

Families who apply on the last day have the same chance as getting their first choice as those who have already applied

A 5- year-old child who is zoned for a school and who has a sibling already enrolled is given top priority followed by children already zoned for a school

Education officials advise parents that there is no advantage to being ldquostrategicrdquo about choice lists and to list them in true preference order

In Lower Manhattan there have been kindergarten waiting lists in most recent years but with the expect-ed expansion of Peck Slip School into its new building it is possible there will be none this September Last year PS 276 in Battery Park City was the only one with a waiting list for zoned students

PS 234 in Tribeca which has con-sistently waitlisted applicants because the school is in such high demand last year was able to offer spots to non-

zoned families when it had room to offer two extra kindergarten classes

For more information or to apply visit schoolsnycgovChoicesEnrollmentElementarykin-dergarten Parents may also apply by calling 7189352400

PRE-K

The cityrsquos Dept of Education has not yet announced the pre-K spots this year but Schools Chancellor Carmen Farina told Downtown Express last year that there will be a few class-es in the DOErsquos headquarters on Chambers St

Last year the city expanded its full-day pre-K program to over 50000 fulfilling one of the central promises of Mayor Bill de Blasiorsquos 2013 campaign The city hopes to expand to 70000 full-day seats for this September which should be enough to offer a spot somewhere to every eligible family who wants one

The pre-K registry is expected to be released in March at schoolsnycgovChoicesEnrollmentPreKdefaulthtml or call 718-935-2009

Kindergarten applications

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

The Tweed Courthouse where new Pre-K classes are expected to open


Member of theNational

NewspaperAssociation

Member of theNew York Press

Association

copy 2015 Community Media LLC

PUBLISHED BY

NYC COMMUNITY MEDIA LLCONE METROTECH CENTERNEW YORK NY 11201PHONE (212) 229-1890 FAX (212) 229-2790WWWDOWNTOWNEXPRESSCOMNEWSDOWNTOWNEXPRESSCOM

Downtown Express is published every week by NYC Community Media LLC One Metrotech Center North 10th Floor Brooklyn NY 11201 (212) 229-1890 The entire contents of the newspaper including advertising are copyrighted and no part may be reproduced without the express permission of the publisher - copy 2015 Community Media LLC

PUBLISHERrsquoS LIABILITY FOR ERRORThe Publisher shall not be liable for slight changes or typographical errors that do not lessen the value of an advertisement The publisherrsquos liability for other errors or omissions in connection with an advertisement is strictly limited to publication of the advertisement in any subsequent issue

PUBLISHER Jennifer Goodstein

EDITORJosh Rogers

REPORTERDusica Sue Malesevic

ARTS EDITORScott Stiffler

SENIOR VP OF SALES amp MARKETINGFrancesco Regini

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVESJack AgliataAllison GreakerJennifer HollandJulio Tumbaco

ART DIRECTORMichael Shirey

GRAPHIC DESIGNERSAndrew GoossChris Ortiz

WEB MASTERTroy Masters

PHOTOGRAPHERSMilo Hess Jefferson Siegel

PUBLISHER EMERITUSJohn W Sutter

ldquoBON VOYAGE FOR THE PEKING SEAPORT MUSEUM TACKS IN

THAT DIRECTIONrdquo(PRINT EDITION JAN 15)

A museum is one thing It is not a seaport What is the history that we want to be our memory Study other historical seaportsare they with-out sails

Diane Fabrizio

My late father the artist Leon Dolice (1892-1960) arrived in this country in 1920 and some of his first etchings of New York were of the fishing ships that used to proliferate in this neigh-borhood

Back in the 1950rsquos I accompanied him to the Fulton Fish Market that was then down there where we bought seafood for Friday dinners on many occasions as did almost all of the restauranteers from all over the city who wanted the freshest and best of the catch for their customers Much of the charm of that neighborhood in those days was its apparent ldquogrittynessrdquo Some years after his death in 1960 my mother moved downtown into that neighborhood and I lived for a few years myself at Southbridge Towers -- one of the best of the Mitchell-Lama developments near the Seaport Late at night I often walked the mostly deserted streets and myself became enamoured of the artist lofts the old printing company small shops and great restaurants (like the Bridge Cafe) because they preserved the old flavor of what that part of Manhattan had for years Both the ships were the jewels in the crown of the Seaport

Letrsquos hope that someone comes up with the funds to preserve those things -- including both of the ships -- and

not turn this area into another part of Manhattan that is a magnet mostly only for tourists

Joe Dolice

The film mentioned in the article--rdquoAround Cape Hornrdquo--is one of the greatest sailing movies ever made To watch it and then set foot on the ship on which it was shot is a fantastic edu-cational experience and by itself a good reason to keep the Peking at the seaport Mayor de Blasio the son of a boatbuild-er should step up sink the tower and save the ship

Rob Buchanan

ldquoAUTHORITY PICKS BROOKFIELD TO RUN BATTERY PARK CITY

MARINA BUT QUESTIONS REMAIN

UNANSWEREDrdquo(POSTED JAN 22)

If I was a lawyer I would have advised BPCA Chair Mehiel to not defend his boardrsquos decision on the mari-na at such length That he had to defend points to serious problems with the ldquoprocessrdquo He pushed blame for community activism by the people on the ldquovictimrdquo Fortenbagh He disclosed that they allowed Brookfield to modify their RFP after the community out-pouring I sat next to another bidder Suntex Marinas I asked him if they had been given the opportunity to clarify ldquoexpectations and their commitmentsrdquo They had not nor had Fortenbaugh ldquoProtocolsrdquo were not subject to change yet they were changed

When the community and taxpayers raise a great number of appearances of impropriety and ethical challenges

- whether those improprieties or con-flicts-of-interest are actual or implied - it is the ldquoprotocolrdquo in our democracy to address the process

Only a truly transparent process with community input could have allayed these concerns Otherwise this deal and the people involved including the BPCA will always be tainted and smell like a rotten fish sitting on the marina dock

Jeanne Wilcke

Itrsquos interesting to note how onersquos perspective may be warped by precon-ceived notions and strong biases Jeanne Wilcke reveals her biases here in her closing paragraphs by parroting the ldquoSave North Coverdquo Kool-Aid drinkersrsquo tired call for a ldquotransparent process with community inputrdquo Your allegation that any bidder (let alone Brookfield) was permitted to ldquomodify their RFP [propos-al] after the community outpouringrdquo is patently false Listen again to the video dear Jeanne and you will hear that which you donrsquot want to hear Itrsquos clear that the BPCA took every precaution to ensure the fulfillment of their legally mandated bid evaluation process

The only rotten fish smell I can detect is emanating from the still smol-dering efforts by a very noisy few to ignore the very clear imperatives of the Authority on behalf of the taxpayers of New York to fulfill their obligations to optimize use of a public park for more than just few hundred sailors who are now obviously far more wor-ried about their increased commutation time to Jersey City to board their aging yachts than any youth sailing operation that North Cove Marina Management NEVER RAN

Guy WT Fawkes

Posted To

Downtown Express photos by Milo Hess

Scenes from a blizzard that wasnrsquot

With predictions of up to 3 feet of snow the subway was shut down at 11 pm Mon Jan 26 when a car travel ban also went into effect in the city and surrounding suburban counties Only eight inches of snow ended up falling in much of the city and Gov Andrew Cuomo lifted the travel ban at 730 am the next day and limited subway service resumed at 9 am Meanwhile in Lower Manhattan though it was not a blizzard the effects could be seen all around

EVAN FORSCH


THURSDAY JANUARY 29

NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY BATTERY PARK CITY BRANCH175 North End Ave 212-790-3499 nypl orglocat ionsbattery-park-city Baby Laptime for Pre-Walkers Enjoy simple stories lively songs and rhymes and meet other babies in the neighborhood Limited to 50 babies and their caregivers first-come first-served Ages 0-18 months | Free | 1130 am

Crafternoon Enjoy a story followed by an art project 129 Princess Sparkle Heart Gets a MakeoverAll ages| Free | 400 pm

FILM SCREENING LITTLE FUGITIVEsouthstreetseaportcomevents 14 Fulton StreetldquoTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II - The Secret of the OozerdquoThe crime-fighting Turtles Michaelangelo Donatello Raphael and Leonardo return in this sequel to the popular superheroesrsquo first film PG | Free | 7-9 pm

FRIDAY JANUARY 30

WINTER AFTERSCHOOL SPORTS AND GAMESBattery Park City Ball Fields West Street between Murray and Warren Kids ages 7 and up can come play soc-

cer flag-football hockey and more at the Battery Park City Ball Fields Find winter activities organized by parks pro-gramming leaders or play independently Equipment will be providedAges 7+ | Free 330 pm - 500 pm

BABY STORYTIMEMcNally Jackson Book Store 52 Prince Street mcnallyjacksoncomkids-holiday Head to McNally Jackson every Friday for Baby Storytime Their storyteller Michael Fentin sings interactive songs with kids and reads entertaining sto-ries to the youngest book lovers Ages 0-2 | Free | 400 pm - 500 pm

SATURDAY JANUARY 31

YOUNG EXPLORERS mdash KIDS SERIESMakerBot 298 Mulberry Street makerbotstore-nycmakerbotcomMakerBot is bringing 3D printing to kids Educational and fun this class lets kids play while learning and designing in 3D thanks to easy-to-use software A MakerBot instructor will help children make individual 3D prints on their very own MakerBot Replicator Desktop 3D PrinterAges 8+ | $10 per child | 900 am - 1200 pm

lsquoCAN DO DUCK THE MUSICALrsquoThe Lynn Redgrave Theater at Culture Project 45 Bleecker Street Contact Haven Mitchell-Rose candoduckthemusicalcom ldquoCan Do Duck The Musicalrdquo is a pos-itive motivational musical for children and families about believing in your-self and saying ldquoI canrdquo The musical is based on the childrenrsquos book series ldquoThe Can Do DuckrdquoAges 3-11 | $30 for children $40 for adults | 1100 am - 1200 pm

GROW YOUR OWN POEMThe Anne Frank Center 44 Park Place annefrankcomcoming-events As part of her exhibit ldquoLashon Hara On the Consequences of Hate Speechrdquo currently on view in the gallery textile artist Robin Atlas will lead a horticul-tural poetry workshop for young peo-ple using text and collage techniques to decorate a plant pot In addition to the workshop admission includes entry to the gallery where through a permanent exhibition on Anne Frankrsquos life Ages 8+ | $5 - $8 | 200 pm - 330 pm

ULTIMATE FRISBEEBattery Park City Ball Fields West

Street between Murray and Warren fbelliardbpcparksorg bpcparksorgeventultimate-fris-bee-2015-01-102014-12-13Come to the BPC Ball Fields for a game of Ultimate Frisbee The game is great fun for novices and experts alike Newcomers are welcome Co-edPick-up Discs are provided All ages | Free | 300 pm - 500 pm

lsquoLEGENDS OF THE ENCHANTED TREASURErsquoTeatro SEA 107 Suffolk Street sea-nyorgSEA_BuyTicketshtmlTeatro SEA a bilingual theatre compa-ny presents a magical shadow puppet play about legendary tales of the indig-enous people of Mexico Guatemala Puerto Rico and PeruAll ages | Adult $18 child $15 | 300 pm

SUNDAY FEBRUARY 1

PS 150rsquos SKATE PARTY FUNDRAISER Seaport ice rink southstreetseaportcomeventsJoin PS 150 Tribeca for a skate party All Skate Shop proceeds collected between 10am-12pm that day will be donated back to the school by the South Street Seaport All ages | donations welcome | 1000 am - 1200 pm

FILM FORUM JR SUNDAY MATINEE SERIESFilm Forum 209 West Houston St filmforumorgseriesfilm-forum-jr-se-ries-page A weekly Sunday matinee series for kids and families through 329 February 1 ldquoMatildardquoAge 5+ | $750 | 1100 am

WOMENrsquoS AND GIRLSrsquo SOCCERBattery City Ball Fields West Street between Murray and Warren StreetWomenrsquos and Girlsrsquo Soccer at the Battery Park City Ball Fields is good for aspiring athletes or simply those wanting to try a new sport Ages 12+ | Free | 200 pm - 400 pm EVERY SUNDAY UNTIL 222

MONDAY FEBRUARY 2

COMMUNITY CUBE MUSIC FOR AARDVARKSSouth Street Seaport 14 Fulton Street httpwwwsouthstreetseaportcomevents Kids music fun with catchy tunes and interactive experience All ages | Free | 1000 am

ActivitiesTHURSDAY JANUARY 29ndashWEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 11

NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY BATTERY PARK CITY BRANCH175 North End Ave 212-790-3499 nyplorglocationsbattery-park-city Baby Laptime for Pre-Walkers Enjoy simple stories lively songs and rhymes and meet other babies in the neighborhood Limited to 25 babies and their caregivers first-come first-served Ages 0-18 months | Free |930 am

Toddler Story TimeA librarian shares lively picture books finger plays and action songs with toddlers and their caregiversAll 12-36 months | Free| 400 pm

TUESDAY FEBRUARY 3

NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY BATTERY PARK CITY BRANCH175 North End Ave 212-790-3499 nyplorglocationsbattery-park-city Baby Laptime for Pre-Walkers Enjoy simple stories lively songs and rhymes and meet other babies in the neighbor-hood Limited to 25 babies and their caregivers first-come first-served Ages 0-18 months | Free |1130 am

Picture Book TimeA librarian will share classic picture books and new storiesAll ages | Free| 400 pm

WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 4

COMMUNITY CUBE JAM WITH JAMIESouth Street Seaport 14 Fulton Street southstreetseaportcomevents Providing upbeat and interactive musical entertainment for ages 0-7 years old0-7 | Free | 1000 am

NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY BATTERY PARK CITY BRANCH175 North End Ave 212-790-3499 nyplorglocationsbattery-park-cityToddler Story Time A librarian will share lively picture books finger plays and action songs with toddlers and their caregivers Ages 12-36 months | Free | 1030 am EVERY WEDNESDAY AT 1030 AM

Slippery ScienceExamine the properties of polymers and make a batch of slime Recommended for children ages 5 and older Presented by Mad Science Limit to 25 children 5 or older accompanied by an adult first-come first-served Ages 5+ | Free| 400 pm

WINTER AFTERSCHOOL SPORTS AND GAMESBattery Park City Ball Fields West Street between Murray and WarrenSee 130 for info

THURSDAY FEBRUARY 5

NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY BATTERY PARK CITY BRANCH175 North End Ave 212-790-3499 nyplorglocationsbattery-park-city Baby Laptime for Pre-Walkers See 129 for info

Harry Potter CrafternoonKick off Harry Potter Book Night with a trivia game and by creating your very own golden snitch to take home Children of all ages with the help of a grown up are welcomeAll ages | Free| 400 pm

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 6

COMMUNITY CUBE BILINGUAL BIRDIESSouth Street Seaport 14 Fulton Street southstreetseaportcomevents Music and language immersion class that encourages cross-cultural awareness through foreign language and live music curriculum All ages | Free | 1000 am


SATURDAY FEBRUARY 7

VALENTINE MAKING WORKSHOP6 River Terrace Create something special for your val-entine Make your own valentines with dried flowers lace and ribbon and an assortment of papers If you wish bring a photograph or some other memento to personalize your valentineAll materials are provided4+ | Free | 1100 am - 100 pm

lsquoLEGENDS OF THE ENCHANTED TREASURErsquoTeatro SEA 107 Suffolk StreetSee 131 for info

LAURIE BERKNER BENEFIT CONCERT FOR THIRD STREET MUSIC SCHOOL SETTLEMENTThird Street Music School Settlement 235 East 11th Street thirdstreetmusicschoolorgLaurie Berkner will perform a solo concert benefiting Third Street

Music School Settlement All ages | $25 | 1100 am

SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8

FILM FORUM JR SUNDAY MATINEE SERIESFilm Forum 209 West Houston St httpfilmforumorgseriesfilm-forum-jr-series-page A weekly Sunday matinee series for kids and families through 329 February 8 The Canterville GhostAge 5+ | $750 | 1100 am

lsquoCAN DO DUCK THE MUSICALrsquoThe Lynn Redgrave Theater at Culture Project 45 Bleecker StreetSee 131 for info

NYC AUDUBONrsquoS WINTER SEALS AND WATERBIRDS OF NEW YORK HARBOR ECOCRUISESPier 16 at 89 South Street The winter ecocruises depart from South Street Seaportrsquos Pier 16 aboard NY Water Taxirsquos eco-friendly vessels A NYC Audubon naturalist provides a narrated tour of the surprising wildlife of the harbor Look for harbor seals on the rocky shores of Governors Island and the more remote Hoffman and Swinburne Islands Learn about the surprisingly diverse winter birds of New York City including ducks geese loons and sandpipers that migrate south from the Arctic Dress warmly and bring your binocularsAll ages | $35 for adults $25 for children 3-12 | 1200 pm - 200pm

CIRKIZCielo 18 Little West 12th Street cirkizcom CirKiz is a dance party for kids Each exclusive NYC nightclub is transformed into a unique kid-centric daytime party space where families together can listen amp dance to DJs There will be a special performance by THE DREAM LAB DJ Natalie 8-year-old DJ Alden and his dad DJ Jesse will be back providing the soundtrack Age 6-12 | $20 general admission | 100 pm ndash 500 pm

MONDAY FEBRUARY 9

NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY BATTERY PARK CITY BRANCH175 North End Ave 212-790-3499 nyplorglocationsbattery-park-city Baby Laptime for Pre-Walkers and Toddler Story Time See 22 for info


TUESDAY FEBRUARY 10

NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY BATTERY PARK CITY BRANCH175 North End Ave 212-790-3499 nyplorglocationsbattery-park-city Baby Laptime for Pre-Walkers and Picture Book Time See 23 for info

BY VICTORIA GRANTHAM

Assuming Snowmageddon 2015 or some other overblown snowmer-gency hasnrsquot turned you into a shut-in herersquos a short list of family-centric activities Downtown to consider over the next couple weeks

The Anne Frank Center on Park Pl which I didnrsquot even know existed is holding a family program for children eight and up called ldquogrow your own poemrdquo Kids can mix text and collage to decorate a plant pot then explore the center and learn about Annersquos life

Another thing I was clueless about in spite of the fact that Irsquove lived Downtown for more than a decade is that the NYC Audubon holds winter ecocruises that depart from Pier 16 Tour guides provide narrated insights on NYC landmarks and lucky riders get to glimpse harbor seals and assort-ed winter birds

If yoursquod rather stay inside show options close to home include a pup-pet show presented by a bilingual the-ater company called ldquoLegends of the Enchanted Treasurerdquo and a Laurie Berkner benefit concert for the Third Street Music School Settlement I also still want to get my boys to ldquoCan Do Duckrdquo a motivational musical about believing in yourself Lastly former

club kids who now have children ages six to 12 can get their groove back with Cirkiz a dance party DJed by an eight-year-old

There are also special happenings at the local libraries including ldquoSlippery Sciencerdquo at the Battery Park City branch for five and up

South Street Seaport is screening ldquoTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IIrdquo (Irsquom not a big fan of the crime fighting tur-tles personally but I know the kids are obsessed so I grudgingly included it)

The Battery Park City Parks Conservancy has cleared a patch of snowice away to enable Winter Afterschool Sports and Games to continue and to help your young ones get their energy out

Other programs that are con-tinuing include MakerBotrsquos Young Explorer series for ages eight plus I still want to get to this Anyone with older children want to do a two-hour kid swap The Seaport Community Cube program ndash free ndash is still going strong

Finally in the run up to the national day of love there will be a Valentine Making Workshop at 6 River Terrace Kids can make love notes with dried flowers lace and ribbon and paper Mwah Details on all below Enjoy

Lower Manhattanrsquos Anne Frank Center is hosting a poetry event


home and find old pictures of the area I decided to use a technique called lsquore-pho-tographyrsquo which involves finding an old picture of a place then going to that site lining everything up and photographing what it looks like nowrdquo After taking a series of re-photography images she real-ized they could become originals

Doing more research she found hotels she never knew existed ldquoI was searching for any traces of the erardquo Local people family friends and even the police helped (they helped her contact a hotel owner whose permission she need-ed) Scheinfeld comments ldquoI couldnrsquot have done this project if I hadnrsquot grown up around hererdquo

Discovering sites like Grossingerrsquos she says ldquoIt was sad to see modern ruins where the rooms had become jungles and swimming pools had turned into outdoor ponds with fish swimming around After Irsquod photographed a tree growing out of a floor in an indoor pool I realized there was a story here although I didnrsquot know what it was at the timerdquo She concluded that her photographs could tell a story about the effects of time nature and people on a place ldquoI saw that the ruins were really alive but they were no longer being used as places of leisure as original-ly intended Dining rooms had become paint ball war zones kids had turned showrooms into skate parks and wild turkeys lived in other roomsrdquo

The 23 large color images in the exhi-bition document many of these changes

In the Grossingerrsquos coffee shop image

all thatrsquos recognizable are 10 dust-cov-ered green stools Their fading color is a sharp contrast to all the devastation which looks man-made Even more dev-astation is apparent in the picture of Grossingerrsquos lobby The starkness graffiti paint ball splotches and inane scrawled profanities do grab your attention The image of Grossingerrsquos indoor pool 2 feels ghostly the chaise lounge looks pristine as if someone had just left for a swim but the green carpet underneath is very thick moss mdash itrsquos nature at work for decades The hotel building still intact is visible through the rear windows

Several re-photograph diptychs are

also part of the show In one an undat-ed publicity photograph of The Laurelrsquos indoor pool ringed by frolicking young adults is displayed next to Scheinfeldrsquos 2011 photograph of the same pool devoid of life filled with snow and surrounded by trees And her collection of ephemera ranging from hotel postcards and menus to a big Concord button that says ldquoAsk about Big Thursdayrdquo fuels the memories Theyrsquore all signs of life long gone

For those who spent time in the moun-tains Scheinfeldrsquos work evokes waves of nostalgia and awe I for one found the image of The Concordrsquos remains mdash giant piles of rubble mdash particularly sad How

could the final demise of the Borscht Beltrsquos largest resort come so quickly and completely while other hotels died a slow death No doubt a developerrsquos plans or hopes were waylaid but itrsquos still not a pretty picture But many here mdash in their own way mdash are quite memorable

Norman Borden is a New York-based writer and photographer The author of more than 100 reviews for NYPhotoReviewcom and a member of Soho Photo Gallery and ASMP his image ldquoWilliamsburgrdquo was chosen by juror Jennifer Blessing Curator of Photography at the Guggenheim for inclusion in the 2014 competition issue of ldquoThe Photo Reviewrdquo He is also exhibiting in Soho Photorsquos annual Krappy Kamera reg exhibition Feb 4ndash28 Visit normanbor-denphotocomContinued on page 25


BY NORMAN BORDENIn an era when weekend jaunts to

Florida or weeklong Caribbean cruises are commonplace Marisa Scheinfeldrsquos engaging images of the ruins of Borscht Belt hotels are a poignant reminder of a way of life that no longer exists

For generations of Jews vacationing in the Catskill Mountains 90 miles from New York City was like a rite of passage You would pile into the family car head northwest on Route 17 and soon you were in ldquothe mountainsrdquo also known as the Borscht Belt mdash a 250 square mile region that over the years would have a profound influence on Jewish culture and identity

The big resorts like Grossingerrsquos The Concord The Nevele and Kutsherrsquos pio-neered the all-inclusive vacation three meals a day Kosher or Kosher-style cui-sine and no one blinked if you ordered

two or three main courses plus four desserts The big hotelsrsquo menus also included golf tennis indoor and outdoor swimming pools childcare ballroom dancing nightclubs andhellipthen it was time for breakfast again

Besides the food another main attrac-tion of the big hotels during their golden years mdash the 1940s lsquo50s lsquo60s and early lsquo70s mdash was the entertainment Playing the Borscht Belt was virtually mandato-ry for young Jewish comedians Some like Mel Brooks Danny Kaye and Red Buttons started out as ldquotummlersrdquo a Yiddish word for someone whose job was to create excitement or laughter as guests left the dining rooms or swim-ming pools Buddy Hackett Billy Crystal Woody Allen Henny Youngman and countless other comedians toured the big hotels There were also shows with per-

formers like a young Barbra Streisand Bob Dylan and well you get the picture mdash the Borscht Belt rocked In the mid lsquo60s at the peak of its popularity there were over 600 hotels and 400 bungalow colonies in the region Grossingerrsquos was serving 150000 guests a year

Marisa Scheinfeld missed the Borscht Beltrsquos golden years ndash she was only six years old when her family moved to a town near the Concord in 1986 Still she says ldquoKutsherrsquos and The Concord were a big part of my childhood I spent week-ends playing there But I didnrsquot realize the hotels were virtually empty in the 1980s compared to what they were like in the lsquo50s and lsquo60srdquo

The fact is by the late 1960s the Catskills had lost their appeal for the young-er generation Jet planes air conditioning and changes in society all played a role

As the hotels and bungalow colonies lost their customer base they started to close one by one Grossingerrsquos called it quits in 1986 The Laurels closed in the late lsquo80s and burned down in the lsquo90s The Concord shut down in 1998 and was demolished in 2000 Now all thatrsquos left there are piles of rubble mdash and memories

Scheinfeld began photographing the hotelsrsquo remains in 2009 when she was a graduate student at San Diego State Her mentor had advised her to ldquoshoot what you knowrdquo Since she was very interested in documenting ruins and sites where events had occurred shooting in her own backyard mdash The Catskills mdash made perfect sense

The artist explains ldquoI began the proj-ect by using my vacation time to go

The Borscht Belt Revisited Catskills photos tell a story of time nature people

copy Marisa Scheinfeld 2011

At the coffee shop of Grossingerrsquos Catskill Resort and Hotel in Liberty NY all thatrsquos recognizable are 10 dust-covered green stools

ECHOES OF THE BORSCHT BELT CONTEMPORARY PHOTOGRAPHS BY MARISA SCHEINFELD

On View through April 12

At Yeshiva University Museum at the

Center for Jewish History

15 W 16th St (btw 5th amp 6th Aves)

Sun Tues amp Thurs 11 amndash5 pm

Mon 5 pmndash8 pm

Wed 11 amndash8pm

Fri 11 amndash230 pm

Admission $8

($6 for studentsseniors)

Free Mon amp Wed 5ndash8 pm

Info 212-294-8330 and yumuseumorg

Visit marisascheinfeldcom

Contemplating the Catskills legacy


Dining rooms had become paint ball war zones kids had turned showrooms into skate parks and wild turkeys lived in other rooms when Marisa Scheinfeld revisited the Catskill Mountains haunts of her youth Here what was once the lobby of Grossingerrsquos Catskill Resort and Hotel

Courtesy of the filmmakers

Pioneers of stand-up comedy join their modern counterparts in the Catskills documentary ldquoWhen Comedy Went to Schoolrdquo Robert Klein does the QampA thing following a Feb 2 screening

FILM SCREENING QampA AND OPEN GALLERY

On Mon Feb 2 trace modern stand-up

comedy to its Catskill roots by listening

to the tales of those who were there when

it all began Sid Caesar Joe Franklin

Jackie Mason and Jerry Stiller are among

those featured in the documentary

ldquoWhen Comedy When to Schoolrdquo There

will be a QampA featuring comedian singer

and actor Robert Klein after the screen-

ing mdash which is preceded by a gallery

viewing with ldquoEchoes of the Borscht

Beltrdquo photographer Marisa Scheinfeld

Tickets $8 $6 for seniors students CJH

and YUM members For reservations vis-

it smarttixcom Open Gallery at 6 pm

screening at 7 pm For info on the film

whencomedhywenttoschoolcom

THE BORSCHT BELT mdash PAST PRESENT amp FUTURE

On Thurs March 26 at 6 pm Marisa

Scheinfeld is joined by historian and For-

ward columnist Jenna Weissman Joselit

for a lively discussion about the history

legacy and future of the Borscht Belt

Tickets $8 $6 for students seniors and

YUM members through smarttixcom


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Katz Moving has a stellar reputation for excellence in the moving industry

Please mention ldquoCommunity Mediardquo when placing your move

Katz Moving will donate 5 of your move to The Ali Forney Center

Check out our 5 Star Customer Reviews

47-47 Austell Pl Long Island City NY 11101 bull NYSDOT T-38598 bull USDOT 2280679 Terms and conditions apply cant be applied with any other offer offer expires on 3312015

Must mention community media when calling

BY SCOTT STIFFLER

MONK IN MOTION THE NEXT FACE OF JAZZ

BMCC Tribeca Performing Arts Center and the Thelonious Monk Institutersquos annual partnership concert series returns with performances by the finalists from 2014rsquos Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition Three top trumpet players emerged from a Gala Concert event last November chosen by a judging panel whose members included Quincy Jones and Arturo Sandoval Each will appear with their combos perform-ing selections that demonstrate the versa-tility and skill that made them winners The winner Chicago native and current NYC resident Marquis Hill snared a recording contract with Concord Music Group and secured the opening Jan 31 slot On Feb 14 Billy Buss (who backed up saxophonist Godwin Louis during last yearrsquos series) returns to the ldquoMonk in Motionrdquo stage this time as a run-

ner-up Brookynite and respected com-poser Adam OrsquoFarrill (second runner-up) closes the series on Feb 28

All shows at 730 pm In Theater 2 at BMCC Tribeca Performing Arts Center (199 Chambers St | btw Greenwich Ave amp West St) Tickets are $25 for each con-cert (studentsseniors $15) Purchase by calling 212-220-1460 at the box office or at tribecapacorg For info on the artists visit monkinstituteorg

THE NEW YORK NEO-FUTURISTS present ldquoTHE HUMAN SYMPHONYrdquo

Those hardworking New York New Futurists deserve a break considering the pressure theyrsquore under This is the troupe that performs 30 plays in 60 minutes twice a week in the East Village (ldquoToo Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blindrdquo) For their new mainstage production (cre-ated and directed by Dylan Marron) you might be the one tasked with breathing life into various permutations of the human condition These funny tragic uplifting

depressing and deeply bizarre scenarios were culled from Marronrsquos trolling of the web for well people who troll the webhellipfor love The result ldquoThe Human Symphonyrdquo creates a performance ensem-ble culled from randomly selected audi-ence members They follow instructions given to them via mp3 tracks provid-ing the remaining viewers with firsthand accounts of Internet dating in NYC

Through Feb 14 Mon Wed amp Sat at 8 pm Sun at 3 pm At The New Ohio (the Archive Building at 154 Christopher St | btw Greenwich amp Washington Sts) Tickets are $18 online $20 at the door For reservations and info visit nynforg

TALKING BAND presents ldquoTHE GOLDEN TOADrdquo

Having created over 50 original works over the course of its 40-year existence Talking Band can hardly be accused of failing in their commitment to ldquoradical collaboration and a fusion of diverse theatrical styles and perspectivesrdquo If only

the same confident sense of self could be said for the shifting searching characters who populate ldquoThe Golden Toadrdquo Asking ldquoWhere is the lsquorealrsquo person to be found in the ebb and flow of identityrdquo more out of curiosity than the need for a defini-tive answer ldquoToadrdquo unifies site-specific works undertaken over the past few years at a townhouse garden in downtown Brooklyn on a bus tour of the New Jersey Meadowlands and in a pop-up thrift store This La MaMa production moves its audience through reimagined versions of those locations mdash then concludes at the titular Golden Toad karaoke bar where the characters intersect for an evening of revelation and transformation

Through Feb 7 at La MaMarsquos Ellen Stewart Theatre (66 E 4th St | btw Bowery amp 2nd Ave) Jan 29 30 amp Feb 4ndash6 at 7 pm Jan 31 amp Feb 7 at 2 pm Feb 1 at 4 pm Tickets $25 ($20 for students amp seniors) Reservations call 646-430-5374 or visit lamamaorg For artist info visit talkingbandorg

Just Do Art

Courtesy of Monk in Motion

Brooklynrsquos own Adam OrsquoFarrill per-forms on Feb 28 at the final ldquoMonk in Motionrdquo concert

Photo by Suzanne Opton

A karaoke bar is the fourth and final stop as intersecting characters con-verge upon ldquoThe Golden Toadrdquo

Photo by Joseph Bensimon

Audience members act out online dating scenarios by following mp3 directions ldquoThe Human Symphonyrdquo plays through Feb 14

28 January 29-February 11 2015 DowntownExpresscom


BY JOSH ROGERS

A local leader who has lent a sym-pathetic ear to South Street Seaport preservationists fighting the proposed development project there has just been tapped to join the city Landmarks Preservation Commission mdash the same commission which is about to begin reviewing the proposal

Mayor Bill de Blasio last week nom-inated Wellington Chen executive director of the Chinatown Partnership Local Development Corp to the 11-seat commission

Chen 62 said he has a lifelong love of the sea and has taken a particular interest in the South Street Seaport Historic District

ldquoMy father was a seaman who died at seardquo Chen told Downtown Express Jan 21 the day his appointment was announced ldquoI believe in the [South Street] Seaporthellip Thatrsquos the quint-essential mdash our local [development corporation] points to the sea This is the essence of the areardquo

Chen attended a Save Our Seaport rally against the Howard Hughes Corprsquos project in October 2013 and said he was pleased to learn there that another attendee Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer has a deep connection to the South Street Seaport Museum since her grandfather was involved in its creation

ldquoI was there not to protest just to listenrdquo Chen added

Similarly Chen attended Community Board 1rsquos public hearing on the land-marks application for the proposal last month at St Paulrsquos Chapel but did not speak That standing room only hearing drew hundreds and it appeared there were more supporters than opponents of the project so he got to hear both sides

Chen said he had not decided if he should recuse himself from voting on the Seaport proposal and he wanted to check with Landmarks Chairperson Meenakshi Srinivasan to see if she thought he should The commission is expected to begin reviewing the appli-cation sometime soon Feb 17 is the earliest possible date

Itrsquos not clear if Chen has taken any public positions against the Hughes proposal and any statements he may have made about the need to preserve the Seaport Historic District would essentially amount to the commissionrsquos mandate for all of the cityrsquos historic districts

Last week he did not offer an opinion as to whether he thought the

Seaportrsquos district should be extended to include the New Market Building site of Hughesrsquo proposed 500-foot tower which has been the center of much of the opposition

The 1939 building was used a part of the Fulton Fish Market and is includ-ed in the non-binding national and state historic districts but the Landmarks Commission has rejected previous attempts to include it in the city historic district and appears to have no interest in revisiting the issue

But CB1 is poised to pass a new Seaport resolution which includes a renewed call to landmark the New Market (The board was to take the matter up Jan 26 but the meeting was canceled because of an expected bliz-zard The tentative date is now Feb 5)

The community board resolution will be sent to the commission which is likely to soon include Chen and Kim Lee Vauss an architect with Outsource Consultants who was also appointed last week

Their appointments to the unpaid positions are subject to City Council confirmation and its Rules Committee will consider the nominations on Feb 4 But there is no reason to think therersquoll be any hitches there City Council fights over landmarks appoint-ments are unusual to say the least and in Chenrsquos case he has a long-stand-ing and friendly working relationship with Councilmember Margaret Chin a tower opponent whose district includes Chinatown and the Seaport

With the Chinatown Partnership Chen has pushed to keep the streets clean as one of many efforts to help the neighborhoodrsquos small businesses

Though he will occupy the only ldquolay memberrdquo seat on the commission meaning he has no professional land-marks expertise on landmarks he is experienced on the issue

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Wellington Chen

Friend of Seaport tower foes to join Landmarks


The speculation is over Michael Fortenbaugh is officially out of North Cove Marina as the Battery Park City Authority named Brookfield Office Properties and its partner Island Global Yachting the marinarsquos operator at their Thurs Jan 22 morning meeting

Brookfield Properties will pay $45 million in license payments over ten years as well as an up-front capital improve-ment offer of $450000 for the marina lighting new signage and landscaping said Shari Hyman president and COO of the authority

Fortenbaughrsquos North Cove Marina Management was paying the authority $300000 a year and offered $400000 during this bidding process

The meeting took place at 200 Liberty St once the World Financial Center and now Brookfield Place Supporters of Fortenbaugh who has run the marina for the past ten years lined up down-stairs to attend the meeting The room adjacent to the boardroom was packed and many carried signs that said ldquoStop

Albany Pay-to-Playrdquo Dennis Mehiel the chairperson and

CEO of the authority explained its position before a vote was taken on the request for proposals or RFP for the marina operator

Community Board 1 had passed a resolution in December asking that the BPCA to withdraw the current RFP process and asked for more community input Elected officials then wrote a Dec 29 letter to the authority supporting CB 1rsquos unanimously passed resolution

Mehiel said that the authority was ldquopleasedrdquo and ldquooverwhelmed a little bit at the tremendous interestrdquo that the commu-nity has shown in the meeting

ldquoIn two and half years or a little more that Irsquove been here Irsquove never seen such a crowdrdquo he said

He stressed that the authority has pro-tocols that are not subject to discretion

Mehiel said that the authority ldquosat-isfiedrdquo itself that it had made the right decision on the successful bidder in the extra time that it had after the unplanned delay at its December meeting mdash the

board did not have a quorum for the vote because Mehiel did not attend and mem-ber Martha Gallo recused herself

ldquoWe took that time went back spent a little bit more time with the successful bidder clarified our expectations and their commitmentsrdquo he said ldquoand decid-ed again that we are doing the right thing for Battery Park City residents for the marina for the community at large and of no small significance for the taxpay-ersrdquo

Mehiel said that when the RFP was issued the current operator Fortenbaugh was invited to bid He did not refer to Fortenbaugh by name calling him the ldquoincumbentrdquo

ldquoWe got the bids in We looked at it we saw the deficienciesrdquo said Mehiel ldquoWe do value incumbency we do not ignore incumbency so we decided to invite all the bidders in for additional meetingsrdquo

Mehiel did not offer details of the bidrsquos ldquodeficienciesrdquo

The authority has received letters and phone calls from the community the

community board and elected officials he said

ldquoItrsquos all their right to do thatrdquo said Mehiel ldquoBut when you think about it what it really amounts to is an individual bidder in a RFP process who believes he is unsuccessful and decides to mount political pressure on the authority to subvert our process and preserve his economic interests in the operation of the marinardquo

The crowd in the back started booing ldquoWhen we donrsquot respond with a

change in our process or protocol we are accused of running a process subject to political manipulation by the governor of the state of New Yorkrdquo said Mehiel ldquoWe start with political pressure to change the outcome If itrsquos not successful we accuse the authority of having political pressure to have made the decision that we are going to vote on this morningrdquo

He also answered questions about the fact that his yacht has sometimes docked at Brookfieldrsquos partner Island Global

Authority picks Brookfield to run marina


Continued on page 8




































Free

Delivery

Min $10



wwwwarriorbridgecom





































Continued on page 6























































13







13





























OPEN HOUSE


























Wellington Chen















(917) 305-7780






































































BUSING AVAILABLE




Color Color



AT OURDowntown

Community Center









































































NOVUS NY














































Free trial lessons

































E D U C A T I O N



















































E D U C A T I O N


E D U C A T I O N









PRE-K











Association


PUBLISHED BY





EDITORJosh Rogers













Diane Fabrizio





Joe Dolice


Rob Buchanan








Jeanne Wilcke



Guy WT Fawkes

Posted To




EVAN FORSCH


THURSDAY JANUARY 29




FRIDAY JANUARY 30




SATURDAY JANUARY 31







SUNDAY FEBRUARY 1




MONDAY FEBRUARY 2





TUESDAY FEBRUARY 3








THURSDAY FEBRUARY 5



FRIDAY FEBRUARY 6



SATURDAY FEBRUARY 7





SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8





MONDAY FEBRUARY 9



TUESDAY FEBRUARY 10
















































Mon 5 pmndash8 pm

Wed 11 amndash8pm


Admission $8












































BY SCOTT STIFFLER













Just Do Art











































Free

Delivery

Min $10



wwwwarriorbridgecom





































Continued on page 6























































13







13





























OPEN HOUSE


























Wellington Chen















(917) 305-7780






































































BUSING AVAILABLE




Color Color



AT OURDowntown

Community Center









































































NOVUS NY














































Free trial lessons

































E D U C A T I O N



















































E D U C A T I O N


E D U C A T I O N









PRE-K











Association


PUBLISHED BY





EDITORJosh Rogers













Diane Fabrizio





Joe Dolice


Rob Buchanan








Jeanne Wilcke



Guy WT Fawkes

Posted To




EVAN FORSCH


THURSDAY JANUARY 29




FRIDAY JANUARY 30




SATURDAY JANUARY 31







SUNDAY FEBRUARY 1




MONDAY FEBRUARY 2





TUESDAY FEBRUARY 3








THURSDAY FEBRUARY 5



FRIDAY FEBRUARY 6



SATURDAY FEBRUARY 7





SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8





MONDAY FEBRUARY 9



TUESDAY FEBRUARY 10
















































Mon 5 pmndash8 pm

Wed 11 amndash8pm


Admission $8












































BY SCOTT STIFFLER













Just Do Art






























































13







13





























OPEN HOUSE


























Wellington Chen















(917) 305-7780






































































BUSING AVAILABLE




Color Color



AT OURDowntown

Community Center









































































NOVUS NY














































Free trial lessons

































E D U C A T I O N



















































E D U C A T I O N


E D U C A T I O N









PRE-K











Association


PUBLISHED BY





EDITORJosh Rogers













Diane Fabrizio





Joe Dolice


Rob Buchanan








Jeanne Wilcke



Guy WT Fawkes

Posted To




EVAN FORSCH


THURSDAY JANUARY 29




FRIDAY JANUARY 30




SATURDAY JANUARY 31







SUNDAY FEBRUARY 1




MONDAY FEBRUARY 2





TUESDAY FEBRUARY 3








THURSDAY FEBRUARY 5



FRIDAY FEBRUARY 6



SATURDAY FEBRUARY 7





SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8





MONDAY FEBRUARY 9



TUESDAY FEBRUARY 10
















































Mon 5 pmndash8 pm

Wed 11 amndash8pm


Admission $8












































BY SCOTT STIFFLER













Just Do Art




























OPEN HOUSE


























Wellington Chen















(917) 305-7780






































































BUSING AVAILABLE




Color Color



AT OURDowntown

Community Center









































































NOVUS NY














































Free trial lessons

































E D U C A T I O N



















































E D U C A T I O N


E D U C A T I O N









PRE-K











Association


PUBLISHED BY





EDITORJosh Rogers













Diane Fabrizio





Joe Dolice


Rob Buchanan








Jeanne Wilcke



Guy WT Fawkes

Posted To




EVAN FORSCH


THURSDAY JANUARY 29




FRIDAY JANUARY 30




SATURDAY JANUARY 31







SUNDAY FEBRUARY 1




MONDAY FEBRUARY 2





TUESDAY FEBRUARY 3








THURSDAY FEBRUARY 5



FRIDAY FEBRUARY 6



SATURDAY FEBRUARY 7





SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8





MONDAY FEBRUARY 9



TUESDAY FEBRUARY 10
















































Mon 5 pmndash8 pm

Wed 11 amndash8pm


Admission $8












































BY SCOTT STIFFLER













Just Do Art






















(917) 305-7780






































































BUSING AVAILABLE




Color Color



AT OURDowntown

Community Center









































































NOVUS NY














































Free trial lessons

































E D U C A T I O N



















































E D U C A T I O N


E D U C A T I O N









PRE-K











Association


PUBLISHED BY





EDITORJosh Rogers













Diane Fabrizio





Joe Dolice


Rob Buchanan








Jeanne Wilcke



Guy WT Fawkes

Posted To




EVAN FORSCH


THURSDAY JANUARY 29




FRIDAY JANUARY 30




SATURDAY JANUARY 31







SUNDAY FEBRUARY 1




MONDAY FEBRUARY 2





TUESDAY FEBRUARY 3








THURSDAY FEBRUARY 5



FRIDAY FEBRUARY 6



SATURDAY FEBRUARY 7





SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8





MONDAY FEBRUARY 9



TUESDAY FEBRUARY 10
















































Mon 5 pmndash8 pm

Wed 11 amndash8pm


Admission $8












































BY SCOTT STIFFLER













Just Do Art













BUSING AVAILABLE




Color Color



AT OURDowntown

Community Center









































































NOVUS NY














































Free trial lessons

































E D U C A T I O N



















































E D U C A T I O N


E D U C A T I O N









PRE-K











Association


PUBLISHED BY





EDITORJosh Rogers













Diane Fabrizio





Joe Dolice


Rob Buchanan








Jeanne Wilcke



Guy WT Fawkes

Posted To




EVAN FORSCH


THURSDAY JANUARY 29




FRIDAY JANUARY 30




SATURDAY JANUARY 31







SUNDAY FEBRUARY 1




MONDAY FEBRUARY 2





TUESDAY FEBRUARY 3








THURSDAY FEBRUARY 5



FRIDAY FEBRUARY 6



SATURDAY FEBRUARY 7





SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8





MONDAY FEBRUARY 9



TUESDAY FEBRUARY 10
















































Mon 5 pmndash8 pm

Wed 11 amndash8pm


Admission $8












































BY SCOTT STIFFLER













Just Do Art










































NOVUS NY














































Free trial lessons

































E D U C A T I O N



















































E D U C A T I O N


E D U C A T I O N









PRE-K











Association


PUBLISHED BY





EDITORJosh Rogers













Diane Fabrizio





Joe Dolice


Rob Buchanan








Jeanne Wilcke



Guy WT Fawkes

Posted To




EVAN FORSCH


THURSDAY JANUARY 29




FRIDAY JANUARY 30




SATURDAY JANUARY 31







SUNDAY FEBRUARY 1




MONDAY FEBRUARY 2





TUESDAY FEBRUARY 3








THURSDAY FEBRUARY 5



FRIDAY FEBRUARY 6



SATURDAY FEBRUARY 7





SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8





MONDAY FEBRUARY 9



TUESDAY FEBRUARY 10
















































Mon 5 pmndash8 pm

Wed 11 amndash8pm


Admission $8












































BY SCOTT STIFFLER













Just Do Art















Free trial lessons

































E D U C A T I O N



















































E D U C A T I O N


E D U C A T I O N









PRE-K











Association


PUBLISHED BY





EDITORJosh Rogers













Diane Fabrizio





Joe Dolice


Rob Buchanan








Jeanne Wilcke



Guy WT Fawkes

Posted To




EVAN FORSCH


THURSDAY JANUARY 29




FRIDAY JANUARY 30




SATURDAY JANUARY 31







SUNDAY FEBRUARY 1




MONDAY FEBRUARY 2





TUESDAY FEBRUARY 3








THURSDAY FEBRUARY 5



FRIDAY FEBRUARY 6



SATURDAY FEBRUARY 7





SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8





MONDAY FEBRUARY 9



TUESDAY FEBRUARY 10
















































Mon 5 pmndash8 pm

Wed 11 amndash8pm


Admission $8












































BY SCOTT STIFFLER













Just Do Art



































E D U C A T I O N


E D U C A T I O N









PRE-K











Association


PUBLISHED BY





EDITORJosh Rogers













Diane Fabrizio





Joe Dolice


Rob Buchanan








Jeanne Wilcke



Guy WT Fawkes

Posted To




EVAN FORSCH


THURSDAY JANUARY 29




FRIDAY JANUARY 30




SATURDAY JANUARY 31







SUNDAY FEBRUARY 1




MONDAY FEBRUARY 2





TUESDAY FEBRUARY 3








THURSDAY FEBRUARY 5



FRIDAY FEBRUARY 6



SATURDAY FEBRUARY 7





SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8





MONDAY FEBRUARY 9



TUESDAY FEBRUARY 10
















































Mon 5 pmndash8 pm

Wed 11 amndash8pm


Admission $8












































BY SCOTT STIFFLER













Just Do Art












Association


PUBLISHED BY





EDITORJosh Rogers













Diane Fabrizio





Joe Dolice


Rob Buchanan








Jeanne Wilcke



Guy WT Fawkes

Posted To




EVAN FORSCH


THURSDAY JANUARY 29




FRIDAY JANUARY 30




SATURDAY JANUARY 31







SUNDAY FEBRUARY 1




MONDAY FEBRUARY 2





TUESDAY FEBRUARY 3








THURSDAY FEBRUARY 5



FRIDAY FEBRUARY 6



SATURDAY FEBRUARY 7





SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8





MONDAY FEBRUARY 9



TUESDAY FEBRUARY 10
















































Mon 5 pmndash8 pm

Wed 11 amndash8pm


Admission $8












































BY SCOTT STIFFLER













Just Do Art









THURSDAY JANUARY 29




FRIDAY JANUARY 30




SATURDAY JANUARY 31







SUNDAY FEBRUARY 1




MONDAY FEBRUARY 2





TUESDAY FEBRUARY 3








THURSDAY FEBRUARY 5



FRIDAY FEBRUARY 6



SATURDAY FEBRUARY 7





SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8





MONDAY FEBRUARY 9



TUESDAY FEBRUARY 10
















































Mon 5 pmndash8 pm

Wed 11 amndash8pm


Admission $8












































BY SCOTT STIFFLER













Just Do Art










































Mon 5 pmndash8 pm

Wed 11 amndash8pm


Admission $8












































BY SCOTT STIFFLER













Just Do Art
















BY SCOTT STIFFLER













Just Do Art









Documents

DOWNTOWN EXPRESS, JAN. 29, 2015