APRIL 2005

 

 

 
Wils Says Goodbye to Community Board 1
Following the Borough President’s refusal to reappoint her to Community Board 1, Madelyn Wils said a tearful goodbye to the board she has led for almost five years
Posted April 23
Former Community Board 1 chairwoman Madelyn Wils waves goodbye to fellow board members on April 19 after delivering a farewell speech to the board. At center is her husband, Steven, who she publicly thanked for his support. Photo: Carl Glassman
 
LMDC Issues Priorities for Remaining Funds
The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC) released a plan on April 14 that outlines priorities for spending the remaining $735 million of the $2 billion of federal grant money earmarked for Downtown's post-9/11 recovery.
Posted April 18
 
Plans Presented for Transforming a “No-Man’s Land”
A state-of-the-art automated bus garage, a park arching over the Battery Tunnel and a new bridge across West Street are the centerpieces of a long awaited plan aimed to transform the eight-acre area around the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel.
Posted April 16
To make it easier to cross this lower end of West Street, there is a proposal to create a park and pedestrian passageway by decking over the top of the tunnel between Morris and Edgar Streets.
 
Parents Speak About Downtown Schools
Elementary school crowding and the need for a local middle school dominated a town hall meeting on April 6, as parents and school principals addressed City Councilman Alan Gerson, Department of Education officials and community board members.
Posted April 10
 
Visions of East River Waterfront
A long-awaited city plan to reconnect Lower Manhattan with its East River waterfront won immediate praise and approval last month from members of Community Board 1.
Posted April 2
Retail shops would line a new boardwalk on the East River waterfront, beneath the illuminated underside of the FDR Drive.
 
Unsettled Seaport Mall Plans Leave Merchants Wary
Shop owners at the South Street Seaport mall are delighted that the city finally has a plan to makeover the East River waterfront. They fear, however, that those plans do not include them. Posted April 2
Gerry Nally, owner of Seaport Watch Company, is one of 17 South Street Seaport shop owners who are suing their landlord claiming that the mall was mismanaged. Photo: Allan Tannenbaum
 
From P.S. 150, Film Fest Stardom Is Born
A new documentary with local kids and Tribeca roots hits the big time.
Posted April 2
In a scene from “Mad Hot Ballroom,” Karina Sanchez and Kelvin Muñoz give the rumba a go in Washington Heights. Photo: Claudia Rashke-Robinson
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The Tribeca Film Festival:
A Preview
It just keeps getting bigger. From April 19 to May 1 the Tribeca Film Festival brings an almost unfathomable array of films from 35 countries-most having their world or New York premieres. Many of the movies will come with their makers, who will answer questions after the screening. Here are just a taste of the offerings.
Posted April 8
 
Residents Fear Risks from Cell Antennas
“On top of a tall building, I can understand,” said Aaron Tomlinson, pointing to the cell phone antennas that had recently sprouted outside his window. “But here?”
Posted April 2
Aaron Tomlinson stands at the window of his apartment at 145 Nassau St. Just outside can be seen the antennas recently installed by T-Mobile. Photo: Allan Tannenbaum
 
Call Is Growing for Zoned Middle School
Neighborhood parents ratcheted up their campaign for a zoned neighborhood middle school last month, bringing their cause to meetings of the community board and the district’s Community Education Council (CEC), the parent body that replaced the local school board. And on April 6, Community Board 1 and Councilman Alan Gerson will hold a town hall meeting about middle schools and school overcrowding
Posted April 6
 
Massive Construction and  City’s Man in the Middle
Charles J. Maikish has his work cut out for him. He is the man recently picked by Gov. Pataki and Mayor Bloomberg to oversee the myriad construction projects slated to begin soon in Lower Manhattan. It is up to him, in other words, to head off the fearsome noise, pollution, traffic and other problems that many people Downtown see coming their way.
Posted Month Year
Charles Maikish speaking last month at a meeting of Community Board 1. Photo: Carl Glassman
 
New BPC Plaza: Space for Tots, Dogs and Relaxation
Monsigner Kowsky Plaza, once little more than the roof of an underground pumping station, has been renovated with a wood trellis, park benches and, soon, trees. Rendering: Weisz+Yoes ARCHITECTS
On a bitterly cold morning last month, architect Claire Weisz and her partner Mark Yoes sat down on a bench in Monsignor Kowsky Plaza and declared themselves satisfied. The pair are the designers behind the renovation of the plaza at the foot of Liberty Street just north of the 500 building of the Gateway Plaza residential complex. The plaza was set to reopen this month. “The space feels good,” said Weisz. “Before, it didn’t feel like a space at all.”
Posted April 2
 
Tribeca Is Test Site for Robo Trash Can
The city’s only solar powered and self-compacting trash can sat last month on the corner of Church and Chambers streets. The can, a prototype being tested by the Sanitation Department, not only holds up to 450 gallons of waste, it also beeps and flashes a red light when it’s ready for a pickup.  But on this recent afternoon, the so-called “Big Belly” drew more second looks than litter.
Posted April 2
The solar powered “Big Belly” trash can drew double-takes on Church Street last month. Photo: Carl Glassman
 
Group Offers Mothers Valuable Support
The room was abuzz with the babbling of babies and the chatter of their adoring mothers. Beneath the playful banter and mundane exchanges that filled the room that recent afternoon lay an uncommon and flowering community of support. It is called the Hudson River Park Mothers’ Group and since its humble beginnings, the group has grown into an extended family for more than 100 Downtown mothers.
Posted April 2
Julie Hamill and daughter Sadie at a moms meeting. Photo: Carl Glassman
 
Downtown Street Fairs Set for Season Off Broadway
From Maiden Lane to Murray Street, the streets of Lower Manhattan will yield to more than a dozen one-day street festivals this year. But unlike years past, festivals scheduled in the Community Board 1 district have been banned from Broadway.
Posted April 2
 
Parents Question Developer Over Disruption to P.S. 234
Just a few weeks after construction work began on the lot west of P.S. 234, parents met with the developer of what will be an even larger building project just south of the school. But next year there will be no pre-k at the school.
Posted April 2
 
P.S. 234 Principal Says There  Is No Room for Pre-k in Fall
It was a neighborhood rite of spring-parents lining up in the dark of night or anxiously awaiting the results of a lottery to get one of the 36 coveted spots in P.S. 234's pre-k classes. But next year there will be no pre-k at the school.
Posted April 2
 
P.S. 89’s Hallway of Science
It was the first  science fair at P.S. 89, and from test tubes to turnout, the experiment last month was a success.
Posted April 2
Zisis Gribas watches as Cliff Benfield’s pupil contracts in the light during a science fair last month at P.S. 89. Photo: Carl Glassman
 
Time for T.O.A.S.T.: The Great Studio Tours
Ten years ago, artists Patrick Weisel and the late Alicia Torres, a gallery owner, organized a studio tour of artists in their building on Franklin Street. That modest beginning gave birth to the Tribeca Open Artist Studio Tour (T.O.A.S.T.)—with over 100 artists and as many as 1,000 visitors over three days.
Posted April 2
Left to right: Theresa Greenberg, Judith S. Miller, Regina Silvers, Eileen Herman and C.J. Collins make T.O.A.S.T. happen along with Patrick Weisel (not in photo). . Photo: Carl Glassman
IN BRIEF
Choppers Flying Higher Over BPC
Taste of Chinatown
Friends Seek Friends
Free 9/11 Counseling
Adoption Seminar
Lifeguard Training
NYC History Lecture
Filmmakers Seeks 9/11 Cleanup Footage
  Content From Previous Issues