May 2005

 

 
Pataki Seeks to Breathe Life into Rebuilding Effort
Gov. George Pataki speaks at Pier 40. Behind him are, from left: Stefan Pryor, newly appointed president of the LMDC; former LMDC president Kevin Rampe; John Cahill, who will take charge of the rebuilding; and Charles Gargano, president of the Empire State Development Corp. Photo: Allan Tannenbaum
Gov. George Pataki, facing criticism over the plodding progress in the renewal of the World Trade Center site, on May 12 named his chief of staff, John Cahill, to take charge of the effort. He also called for remaining federal
9/11 funds to go towards long-sought Downtown projects.
Posted May 13
 
 
Mayoral Hopefuls Speak to Downtown Democrats
For the more than 100 democrats who filed into a Soho gallery space on May 9, the mission of the Downtown Independent Democrats’ mayoral forum was clear. As one member put it, “We have to find somebody to beat Bloomberg and end the 12 year reign of Republican rule.”
Posted May 13
Fernando Ferrer arrives at Downtown Independent Democrats mayoral forum. Photos by Allan Tannenbaum
 
State Rules for Owners in Artist Evictions
A state agency last month gave the go-ahead for the eviction of rent-stabilized tenants living above City Hall restaurant at 131-135 Duane Street. The decision by the Department of Housing and Community Renewal, which the tenants say they will appeal, allows the owners to gut the interior of the building above the restaurant and convert it to luxury apartments.
Posted May 6
 
Place of Tribute Is Planned
Information about Sept. 11 is on a fence along Church Street. Photos: Stephanie Keith
They come from all over the world to a place they call Ground Zero. They have plenty of questions. “What are they going to build here?” “Where is the wall with the names?” “Is there more to see?” With the completion of the memorial still more than four years away, the September 11th Families Association plans to open a Tribute Center to give visitors those answers as well as the story of the place and of the people who worked and died there.
Posted May 6
 
Madelyn Wils Says Goodbye to CB1
Madelyn Wils waves goodbye to fellow board members after delivering a farewell speech. At center is her husband, Steven, whom she thanked for his support. Photo: Carl Glassman
Following the Borough President’s refusal to reappoint her to Community Board 1, Madelyn Wils said a tearful goodbye last month to the board she has led for almost five years. Meanwhile, a number of board members, initially critical of the Borough President’s move to oust Wils, found their reappointments to the board held up until they toned their rhetoric.    
Posted May 6

An Interview with Madelyn Wils.
 
 
Glass Lofts to Transform Tribeca Gateway
Rendering of a proposed residential loft building at 1 York Street. Architect Enrique Norten said it was time to embrace a “new moment” in Tribeca architecture. Rendering: Ten Architechtos
The view from the upper floors of a residential tower planned for 1 York Street will no doubt be astonishing. When the final panes of glass are in place next year, new residents of the loft building will have a clear, 360-degree view of the surrounding Manhattan skyline. Perhaps as striking as the vista from within the building will be the neighbors’ views of the loft dwellers themselves as they go about their lives in glass houses high above Canal Street.
Posted May 6
 
Fair Weather Runs Afoul
Wet but no washout, the Tribeca Family Festival on April 29 slogged through the sort of rainy day better suited to a double-feature at the cinema.
Posted May 6
Performers from Randy's World act up on Greenwich Street during a wet Tribeca Family Festival. Photo: Allan Tannenbaum
 
The Film Fest's Red Carpet Arrivals
Only the paparazzi got a good look at the celebrity arrivals for last month's Tribeca Film Festival. In case you were wondering what all the hubbub was about, here's Trib photographer Allan Tannenbaum's picture report.
Posted May 10
Mariah Carey is interviewed at the premiere of the "The Interpreter" at the Ziegfield Theater. Photo: Allan Tannenbaum
 
Rescue Grads
Donning helmets and vests, not caps and gowns, Tribeca’s first civilian emergency responders get their diplomas.
Posted May 6
CERT team members get a lesson in handling a fire extinguisher from firefighter Charles Hendry. Photo: Carl Glassman
 
At Forum, Many Agree on How to Spend $735 Million
The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation needs to spend more money on affordable housing, parks and community improvements. That was the predominant message at an April 27 public forum on how the agency’s remaining $735 million of federal community development block grants should be spent.
Posted May 6
 
Renewed Pier Plans Again Run Aground
Just when it appeared that the long-awaited transformation of Pier A into a tourist and dining destination was finally getting underway, the project has hit another snag.
Posted May 6
At a Community Board 1 meeting, William Wachtel, a partner in the company developing Pier A, discusses long-delayed plans for the pier. Photo: Allan Tannenbaum
 
Months of Effort Is Recipe for Tasty Event
On May 21, as many as 3,500 people will descend on Duane Street to spoon some 14,000 samplings of local cuisine into their mouths and a very generous portion of funds into the enrichment programs at Tribeca’s two public elementary schools. What does it take to pull off the annual Taste of Tribeca?
Posted May 6
Taste of Tribeca planners meeting at P.S. 234 last month. Photo: Carl Glassman
 
Bronx Poets of Warren Street
From a world away, kids come to Amy Sultan’s loft, where they are changed by the power of words and the warmth of a newfound family.
Posted May 6
Chantay Garcia reads a poem during a Power Writing Seminar session for students from Bronx and Brooklyn alternative high schools. The group regularly meets in a Tribeca Loft. Photo: Carl Glassman
 
The Festival, Seen Through a Filmmaker’s Bleary Eyes
The Tribeca Film Festival can be a whirlwind 10 days for any filmmaker breezing from premieres to panel discussions to parties and, for a lucky few, to meetings and negotiations with film distributors. For first-timers like James Bai, the festival can feel like a 10-day twister. “I made time for myself to rest for like a week before it started” he said. “It wasn’t enough.”
Posted May 6
James Bai talks to an audience member last month following the premiere of his film “Puzzlehead.” Photo: Carl Glassman
 
Firehouse Filmmakers
From a once-abandoned building on Lafayette Street spring the gritty and award-winning documentaries of Jon Alpert’s Downtown Community Television.
Posted May 6
Alpert in DCTV’s editing room. Photo: Carl Glassman
 
IN BRIEF
Dine Around Downtown
Wall Street Walk
Park Parties
Dance Benefit
Yard Sale
Whole Foods Market Signs Tribeca Lease
 

 

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