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Introducing "Hyper Local Eats"

4/30/2014

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Watch this space for a new feature called "Hyper Local Eats."  The Block Association's newsletter has a tradition of reviewing local restaurants.  I'll bring some of those reviews to your attention here, but I'll also be blogging about other nearby developments in this realm.  Many "foodies" have criticized this area, and indeed the whole of the Upper West Side, as something of a food-challenged zone.  But as residents of 10025, we know there are treasures to be found.  I'm thinking of La Toulousaine and her fine croissants.  The Dive Bar's incredible connoisseurship of all things brew.  And I'm thinking of life's little pleasures like the kale salad at Henry's, the dumplings at Xi'An, frites at PicNic, the blueberry ginger muffin at Silver Moon, and the yakitori at Sun Chan.  But there's much more...with even more on the way as Amsterdam Avenue becomes an ethnic food paradise.

Neighbor and District Manager, Peter Arndtsen of the Columbus-Amsterdam BID in our area has a nice round up of nearby restaurants here.

Keep your eye on this space. And feel free to mention your favorite neighborhood delicacies -- past or present -- in the comments section.

Bon Appétit!


By Caitlin Hawke
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Bargains and Fun Galore

4/27/2014

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It is Almost Time for the Annual Yard Sale on W. 103rd Street on May 17, 2014!

Weather Update: The May 17th Yard Sale is On!

Are you saving the date for our Annual Yard Sale?  Plans for May 17th (rain date May 18th) are ramping up with vendors reserving their spots and culling treasures from their closets to sell all day long at this yearly neighborhood fest, which rolls out all along W. 103rd Street between West End and Riverside!  Read about last year's event here.

Highlights you ask?  THE BARGAINS!  Books, vintage items, kids clothes, toys and equipment, housewares, jewelry, art, photos, and more.

The traditional split-pot raffle went up to nearly $800 last year; so look for our raffle ticket sales table to get in the game.  It's an excellent way to support the Block Association.

But that's not all.  There will also be delicious food, music, fun for kids.  And, to keep it green, there will be recycling drop-off spots for your old electronics and textiles.  Plus our neighborhood friends over at BAiP will have a table to tell you what they are up to.

So t
ell your all your friends, tell your neighbors, tell your dog-walking buddies, shout it from the rooftops:  the annual yard sale is coming....  And the only thing missing is you!

Volunteers, we need you!  If you wish to come out and help in the days leading up to the sale or on the sale date itself (and we can always use helpers!), please let us know: [email protected]

We're also looking for musicians to play sets at our open mic.  And we're looking for bakers to donate to the bake sale.

One thing every Block Association member can help us do is to take this viral by Facebooking and tweeting about it at the links below!

See you at the Yard Sale on May 17th.


By Caitlin Hawke


Photo credits (right, top to bottom): Hedy Campbell, Ozzie Alfonso, Terence Hanrahan.  Credit (below): Ozzie Alfonso.
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Nicholas Roerich, A Bloomingdale Neighbor Extraordinaire

4/26/2014

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How many NYC blocks can claim to have been home to someone for whom a minor planet was named?

Many neighbors have some notion about the ever-intriguing Nicholas Roerich, one of our more celebrated residents of days past.  Painter, writer, theosophist and philosopher, Roerich was born in 1874 in St. Petersburg and died in India in 1947.  But for a brief time in the 1920s, he settled right here on one of our blocks.

Recently, the New York Times reported that Roerich's artwork -- a very particular style -- is fetching princely sums, reaching $12 million and more at auction.  His art, it seems, is prized by Russian oligarchs, in particular.  While around here Roerich's name is most often associated with the Master Apartments on the north corner of Riverside Drive and W. 103rd Street, it is not his only nearby legacy; we have our own local jewel box of Roerich art.  It is the eponymous museum at 319 W. 107th Street.  And it is here that our neighbors have their own private stash of his work. 

Louis Horch, the financier responsible for developing the Master Apartments, originally conceived the building with a museum dedicated to these artworks.  After a falling out between the two men, the work was put into storage until it reemerged as a collection in the W. 107th Street museum in 1949.

Neighbors are often surprised to learn it is there, but residents of the Master, like Mildred Speiser, know the story of Roerich and Horch by heart.  Recently, Master residents rededicated a Roerich reproduction in the Riverside Lobby, to mark the 85th anniversary of the building.

You can read more about this in the Landmarks Preservation Commission 1989 report on the Master Apartments.  For more about Roerich, his "visions of a forgotten utopia," and his place in our neighborhood's history, see this April 3, 2014, article by Julie Besonen.  Check out the new Roerich reproduction in the Master's Riverside Lobby.  And don't forget to stop in the museum some day.


By Caitlin Hawke


Update on July 28, 2014:  Great footage from within the Roerich Museum may be seen in the first two minutes here in a July 2014 NYC Arts episode.
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Flower Power

4/26/2014

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The Eye Candy from Spring Planting Day 2014

Behold the tree wells and boxes that resulted from the April 26th Spring Planting Day.  Thanks to everyone who bent, dug, knelt, schlepped and gave of their time.  Every passerby can appreciate the fruits of your labor.

Below are just a few plantings from Saturday.  If the flowers near your building look thirsty, please give them a drink!


By Caitlin Hawke
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Photos courtesy of Terence Hanrahan and Eve Sinaiko
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Bloomingdale Neighborhood History Group News

4/17/2014

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"Battle of Harlem Heights" - Lecture on April 24th by Jim Mackin

Did you know that our neighborhood, sometimes knows as "Bloomingdale," boasts its own formal history group?  In addition to its efforts to archive and preserve precious information about the area, the Bloomingdale Neighborhood History Group presents a regular lecture series.  On Thursday, April 24th at 6:30 p.m., neighbor and New York City historian, Jim Mackin, will present his latest lecture at Hostelling International: "The Battle of Harlem Heights: A Rally in Retreat and Resolution in Resistence."  The hostel which has its own interesting history dating back to the aftermath of the Revolutionary War, is located at 891 Amsterdam Avenue and W. 103rd Street.  For information, please call 212-865-3078. 

Read a bit about this battle here.


Also, check out Jim Mackin's terrific weekday walks series which explore different nooks and crannies of NYC every Wednesday morning.

By Caitlin Hawke
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Annual Meeting Draws Record Crowd to Discuss Local Safety

4/8/2014

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The Block Association’s Annual Meeting turned out a standing-room crowd for a special line up of public officials who came to discuss community concerns about street safety.  Among others, Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance (left), City Councilperson Helen Rosenthal (center), and Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer (right) all addressed neighbors’ concerns. 

Our 24th Precinct’s interim Community Officer, William Pla, spoke about the following:

• recent burglary arrests have led to a decrease in incidents

• police are seeing a mix of fault in vehicle incidents:  some resulting from pedestrians (on cellphones or jaywalking) walking in front of on-coming cars, others from driver error such as the taxi incident that tragically killed nine-year-old Cooper Stock on West End Avenue at W. 97th St.

• the city is addressing safety concerns on the W. 96th St. corridor by way of several actions:  lengthening lights at W. 96th Street, adding crossing guards at PS 75, installing red light cameras at W. 96th St. from Amsterdam to West End Avenues, and monitoring speed at W. 96th St. and Broadway where  two officers are currently assigned from 7 am to 7 pm.


Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance made these key points:

• throughout the 1980s, there were about 500 homicides annually

• this rate decreased to 70 in Vance’s first year in office and was down to 40 last year thanks to community engagement as well as law enforcement

• gang and gun violence are a priority at the DA’s office; 14 gangs have been obliterated so far

• his office is focusing on prevention by providing alternative outlets for populations most at risk; so far they are serving 3000 kids at seven different sites

• he is supporting a  measure to open the Police Athletic League gym in Central Harlem to kids 11 to 18 years old on weekend nights


6th District City Councilperson, Helen Rosenthal, discussed a range of topics, notably about:

• Vision Zero
Mayor Bill de Blasio has launched a plan to work toward zero fatalities or serious injuries due to city traffic and pedestrian flows.  Specifically in our area with the recent spate of bad accidents and fatalities, work began in late March on crosswalks at W. 96th and Broadway to overhaul flow of pedestrian traffic. Plans include for allowing pedestrians to cross over W. 96th Street from median to median to reduce crowding on the east and west corners of the intersection.  There is legislation in progress named for Cooper Stock that would result in immediate suspension of a driver’s hack license and perhaps revocation if investigation reveals that the driver failed to yield.  Helen Rosenthal has recommended to New York State to follow suit with all drivers, not just cab drivers.

• Supports the “Twenty is Plenty” program initiated by advocacy groups, which originated in the U.K.
Although Albany regulates speed limits, “Slow Zones” may be defined and regulated by NYC’s Department of Transportation.  Helen Rosenthal is working to establish a maximum city street speed limit of 20 mph and is lobbying for home rule so that the city may proceed.


Highlights of remarks from Manhattan Borough President and neighborhood friend, Gale Brewer:

• Jessica Mates, Gale Brewer’s chief of staff also discussed Vision Zero and efforts to identify trouble spots for traffic and pedestrian safety.  Their office has introduced a bill to increase the number of audio pedestrian signals and the pace of their installation.

• Gale Brewer kindly acknowledged the Block Association, with which she’s had a long working relationship from her days as a City Councilperson.

• Gale is particularly supportive of the various age-friendly initiatives throughout the city and singled out David Reich and Bloomingdale Aging in Place of our neighborhood as great examples of how a community can become mindful and supportive of needs of older neighbors.

By Hedy Campbell and Caitlin Hawke


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In Shake Up, NYPD Commissioner Names New 24th Precinct Head

4/7/2014

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By Caitlin Hawke

NYPD Commissioner Bratton rolled out a big shake up in five of ten of the Manhattan's Precincts north of 96th Street.  After community concerns that several precincts, including ours, were still without commanders, it seems leaders are now on the way.  According to the New York Daily News, Captain Marlon Larin will head our local precinct, the 24th, which has been in transition for a month since the prior commander Nancy Barry was transferred to help a chief in the Bronx.  Captain Larin comes to our area from his prior post as second in command of East Harlem's 25th Precinct.

Read more from pieces in the New York Daily News on April 2nd and 3rd here and here.
 
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