Celebrating Community
The 9th Street warehouses were erected in 1910, the Culver-Smith St line in 1927–1933 (Depression slowed things down). Over 100 buildings were condemned along the corridor between 9th & 10th Street but the Roulston properties were never in play. Why? The elevation of the span over the Canal was dictated by the War Department — the City was required to […]
Rolling Orange Bikes Tours (ROBT), the local Dutch bicycle shop-turned-touring company that thrives on international tourism, has been struggling to stay afloat the last six months. Shelly Mossey, ROBT owner and licensed New York City sightseeing guide, said the Dutch – who make up 100-percent of his customer base and who normally visit New York in the spring and autumn […]
Pete Hamill was a poet disguised as a reporter disguised as a novelist disguised as a memoirist – there is such a word, I assure you, but Pete would never have used it. It sounds too phony. Like the pre-recorded cheers they pipe in for the radio and TV gasbags at COVID-emptied ballparks. Remember Pete’s columns in the New York […]
Located in the middle of Grand Street, just one store down from Ferrara’s Pastry Shop, E. Rossi & Company, opened in 1910. It is one of the last remaining authentic stores in Little Italy. “Initially,” says Ernie Rossi, grandson of the owner, “we sold newspapers and magazines. Then we began publishing translation books, enabling native Neapolitans to translate their dialect […]
Displacement Is No Myth Across the country, gentrification continues to be a sexy political topic for those least vulnerable to its effects, booming in and echoing out of consciousness. Regarding gentrification and the Black church in NYC, displacement is top of mind. For those most negatively affected by gentrification; lower-income, and long time residents, mostly people of color, gentrification […]
Italy has always been a Catholic country thanks to the Pope living in Rome. That being said, ever since the XII century in the boot there’s a little Protestant community, called Waldensian Evangelical Church, which makes a lot of noise in both Italian and European public debate. The Waldensians number only 25,000 in Italy and 45,000 worldwide of which 5,000 […]
As the reign of the Anti-Christ mercifully nears its end, how else will 2020 be remembered? The pandemic, of course. 30,000+ New Yorkers dead. Hundreds of infected Red Hookers. A new Depression. George Floyd. Rage against the machine. The Pentagon confirms UFOs exist… What? UFOs exist!? Yeah, and it was barely news for ten minutes. Like many other thoughtful well-groomed […]
Despite encountering setbacks due to the pandemic, Keg & Lantern Brewing Company opened its second location on 158 Beard Street (in back of Hometown and Brooklyn Crab) earlier this summer, following much success at its original Greenpoint location (97 Nassau Avenue) that opened in 2014. Neighborhood Reception and Inspiration When owner Kieran Breen applied for a liquor license in May […]
Founded in 1890, Frankel’s began by selling clothes and goods to union workmen, such as longshoremen and ironworkers on the corner of Third Avenue and 40th Street. “My father, Marty, named me Erik to sound more Norwegian,” chuckles Erik, great-grandson of the founder. Erik, who spent years living in Hanoi, now lives above the store. “Many people don’t know it, […]
I just got a blast message from Governor Cuomo advising New Yorkers: “When you get a call from NYS Contact Tracing – Answer your phone! Any information you give a COVID contact tracer will be strictly confidential and treated as a private medical record.” Wow! If only I had a Governor paving the way for my phone calls when I […]