downtown

CAPT. KREVEY
REMEMBERED, PG. 12

®
VOLUME 23, NUMBER 39
express THE NEWSPAPER OF LOWER MANHATTAN FEBRUARY 9 - 15, 2010

Lines, lotteries signal

same old song
for elementary schools
BY ALINE REYNOLDS
The lines in front of
Lower Manhattan elemen-
tary schools are once again
forming, the same way they
have been for the last two
years. Kindergarten registra-
tion for the 2011-12 school
year is already creating angst
among Downtown parents
who are itching to know
where their child will be
going to school next fall.
Pre-registration, which
began on January 10, is a
good forecaster for next
year’s enrollment at the
Lower Manhattan elemen-
Downtown Express photo by Milo Hess
tary schools, which have
already received more
resort to a lottery for the
third year in a row.
Public schools citywide
are mandated by the New
York City Department of
Education to arbitrarily
admit students in these
situations, since they aren’t
allowed to admit them on
a first-come, first-serve
basis, according to D.O.E.
Spokesperson Jack Zarin-
Rosenfeld.
“If a school has more
applicants than more zoned
spots for during pre-reg-
istration period,” he said,
“they have a responsibility
to determine which pre-reg-
istered zoned students are

Local pols looking for rabbit luck applications than they have
seats.
P.S. 234 is once again
proving to be an extremely
getting an offer, and which
pre-registered zoned stu-
dents they waitlist on a ran-
dom basis.”
The Chinese Lunar New Year Festival was held last Sunday. According to the Chinese Zodiac, the rabbit is the
luckiest of the symbols. popular choice for Lower Magdalena Lenski, the
Manhattan families. The school’s parent coordinator,
school has received 163 said the stress level among

No flat screens, just smiles needed applicants for 125 seats one
month into pre-registration,
causing its administrators to
parents this year is lower
compared to three years
ago, when administrators

for this SOUPerBowl party Continued on page 20

BY HELAINA N HOVITZ
It’s 6:15 p.m. on Super Bowl Sunday
and even the most notorious restau-
rants in the city are empty — some
haven’t bothered to open. Everyone is
watching the Super Bowl with friends
and family, gathered at bars or relax-
ing at home — but there’s still a line
outside the NYC Rescue Mission at
90 Lafayette Street. The hungry and
homeless men who have nowhere else
to go will realize once inside that they,
too, will get to celebrate the big game
at the place they’ll call home for the
night.
SOUPerBowl Week, a seven-day
event that pairs soup kitchens with
some of the city’s best chefs, was
initially a fundraising event launched
by Michael Colameco, host of WOR’s
Food Talk and Colameco’s Food
Show on PBS. After volunteering at
the Mission in 2007, he began mak-
ing public service announcements for
SOUPerBowl week and directing dona-
tions to the Mission.
A year later, Mayor Michael
Bloomberg caught on, and officially
declared the week before Sunday’s
big game SOUPerBowl week citywide.
“The mission is always edifying, but
not always festive,” explained Joe
Little, the mission’s community rela-
tions manager. “This week, chefs sent
soup, chowder, chili and gumbo, and
helped make the entire week celebra-
tory and warm.”
These chefs included Tribeca’s
own David Bouley, Vikas Khanna,
Fox Sportscaster Duke Castiglione, Al
Yeganeh, the man behind the Seinfeld
“Soup Nazi” Ron Silver of Bubby’s
restaurant. Wade Burch, winner of
Food Network’s Chopped and Head
Chef of Southwest NY in Battery Park
City brought chili so hot and spicy that
the guys were still sweating it off on
Monday.
Continued on page 16 Local BPC girl performs on the big stage. Page 14
2 Februar y 9 - 15, 2011 downtown express

Squadron named
“Champ” by United
Neighborhood Houses
Last week NY State Senator Daniel
Squadron was recognized by United
Neighborhood Houses, a non-profit orga-
nization that promotes and advocates for
settlement housing communities throughout
New York City.
As the inaugural recipient of the Settlement
House Champion Award, Squadron was
honored specifically for his role in securing
$9 million in state funding for settlement
house programs and for his overall dedica-
tion to the issue since he arrived on the
scene in Albany two years ago.
The roots of his advocacy on behalf of
these communities, 38 of which exist as
members of U.N.H., can be traced to their
high concentration in the district Squadron
represents — primarily Lower Manhattan
and a small portion of Brooklyn.
The settlement housing model focuses on
vulnerable populations including young chil-
dren, senior citizens, homeless individuals,
or people suffering from mental illness. Each
settlement house community has programs
specifically designed to nurture individuals
from a young age through adulthood and
into old age by providing services geared to
their specific needs.
“We thought Senator Squadron to be
an extraordinary example of commitment
tenacity and generosity when it came to
these communities,” said UNH executive
director Nancy Wackstein.
“We didn’t even need to lobby for this
money,” said Wackstein. “Senator Squadron’s
efforts were assisted greatly by Assembly
Speaker Silver. Their districts overlap and
they both share the commitment to he
cause.”
Senator Squadron together with Assembly
Speaker Sheldon Silver spearheaded the ini-
tiative over the past two years.
— John Bayles

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Photo courtesy of NYS Senator Squadron’s office
Senator Squadron is standing with Chester Lee (left), president of the board of
directors of Chinese American Planning Council, and David Chen (center), executive
director of C.P.C. C.P.C. was one of the recipients of the funds; other recipients include
the Educational Alliance, Grand Street Settlement in Chinatown, Hamilton-Madison
House, Henry Street Settlement, and University Settlement.

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  :HOOV)DUJR$GYLVRUV//&0HPEHU6,3& — Aline, Suzie, David and Ben
downtown express Februar y 9 - 15, 2011 3
NEWS . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-9, 12-20

New Ferry Service

D OWNTOWN
DIGEST
The East River will soon have 24-hour ferry
service, according to a recent NY1 report.
The ferries, which are scheduled to
be operating by June, will be run by NY
Waterway, a family-owned business that has
the largest ferry and excursion fleet in NY
Harbor, according to its website. The boats
will make stops at several waterfront points
between Long Island City and Brooklyn,
including Pier 11 on the Lower East Side.
During peak hours, the ferries will arrive
at each stop every 20 minutes. Fares, which
would vary based on the length of a pas-
senger’s trip, will range from three dollars to
three-dollars-and-fifty-cents.
They will not replace the NY Water Taxi
ferries, which will continue to make a hand-
ful of trips along the East River each day.
Canal Street Vendors
Illegal vendors along Canal Street are
becoming combative toward New York
Police Department officers trying to catch
them breaking the law.
The sellers are more regularly contesting their
arrests, according to Captain Edward Winski,
commanding officer of the first precinct.
“They fight with us, and then they run,”
he told Downtown community members at
a recent First Precinct Community Council
meeting.
Winski said that the increasing aggres-
siveness by the vendors is likely an outcome
of heightened crackdown by the NYPD and
the Manhattan District Attorney’s office that
has resulted in more arrests, confiscations
and jail time.
The NYPD has put 1,605 unlawful ven-
dors behind bars and took nearly $50,000,
24,675 handbags, 8,748 DVDs and 6,619
watches, according to Winski.
The newly renovated Pussycat Lounge is
reportedly reopening next year, according
to the NY State Liquor Authority. Robert
Kremer, the owner of the nearly half-centu-
ry-old topless lounge on Greenwich Street,
informed the S.L.A. about his plans to
reopen the bar soon, after repairs to the
building’s interior are finished.
New York City shuttered the bar last October,
saying the building at 96 Greenwich Street was
unsafe for occupancy. Contractors were hired to
start fixing the building in November.
Community Board 1 approved the renewal
of the lounge’s liquor license at the Financial
District Committee meeting last Wednesday.
Ro Sheffe, chair of the Financial District
Committee, said the bar has been a good
neighbor overall, and has caused very few
disturbances in the community.
Deutsche Bank trial set
to begin next month
The trial of three John Galt construction
employees accused of neglecting to restore
water supply to the former Deutsche Bank
building at 130 Liberty Street will begin
next month, according to reports. It is set for
March 21 at the Manhattan Supreme Court.
Abatement manager Mitchell Alvo, 58,
Salvatore DePaola, a foreman, and Jeffrey
Melofchik, a site safety manager, are charged
with manslaughter and criminally negligent
homicide, according to reports.
Their failure to fix a faulty standpipe
purportedly resulted in firefighters Robert
Beddia and Joseph Graffagnino trying to
extinguish a fire in August 2007. They both
Continued on page 4
EDITORIAL PAGES . 10-11
YOUTH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
ARTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22-27
CLASSIFIEDS. . . . . . . . . . . 26
C.B. 1
M EE TING S
A schedule of this week’s upcoming
Community Board 1 committee meet-
ings is below. Unless otherwise noted, all
committee meetings are held at the board
office, located at 49-51 Chambers St.,
room 709 at 6 p.m.
ON WED., FEB. 9: C.B. 1’s Tribeca
Transportation and Parking Regulations
Sub-Committee will meet at 5 p.m.
C.B. 1’s Tribeca Committee and the
Arts and Entertainment Committee will
hold a combined meeting.
ON THURS., FEB. 10: C.B. 1’s
Landmarks Committee will meet.
ON MON., FEB. 14: C.B. 1’s WTC
Redevelopment Committee will meet in
the State Assembly Hearing Room at 250
Broadway, 19th Floor.
ON TUES., FEB. 15: C.B. 1’s Seaport/
Civic Center Committee will meet.

Chinatown buses could

require permits
BY ALINE REYNOLDS
On the morning of the second day of the
Chinese New Year, community activists and
politicians weren’t celebrating at a restau-
rant or a park. Instead, they were huddled
outside in the cold, announcing a new state
law intended to streamline the intercity bus
pick-up and drop-off system in Chinatown
and around the city.
The bill, if passed, would implement a
citywide permit system for private buses that
now chaotically pick up and unload passen-
gers onto city streets. The new requirement
would mean safer conditions for pedestrians
and result in fewer fines for bus drivers,
according to its proponents.
“Right now, the streets of Chinatown are
like the Wild West,” said NY State Senator
Daniel Squadron at a press conference held
last Friday at Canal and Allen Streets in
Chinatown.
Buses today, Squadron noted, can stop
anywhere, double-park, and aimlessly circle
around city blocks to avoid the cops; while
sidewalks overflow with anxious passengers
who often don’t know where they’re being
picked up.
“The fact is,” Squadron said, “we love
having low-cost buses. We love the fact that
we have an industry that’s growing and that’s
centered in the Chinatown community. But it
has to grow and thrive in a way that works
for the community.”
,verything kids
“[Permits] would allow the legitimate
bus companies to have a process they can
want... everything
depend on and that riders can depend on,”
said NYC Councilmember Margaret Chin,
parents need.
who also spoke at the press event.
“Both from a customer point of view and Kids and parents agree that they love
the provider point of view, you want a certain the 92YCamps experience, with
reliability,” echoed Wellington Chen, execu-
tive director of the Chinatown Partnership. dedicated counselors, high quality
Bus drivers, he said, would prefer to have a facilities and exhilarating activities like:
dependable way of dropping off passengers
than risk paying fines.
At a Chinese New Year’s celebration in • Sports with program partners • Studio arts and music
Sara D. Roosevelt Park last Thursday, a including Super Soccer Stars • Digital photography and filmmaking
gentleman asked Chen if he knew where a and The Baseball Center
• Specialty Camps:
bus coming into the city would drop off his • Challenge course, zip lines and Fantastic Gymnastics, Tevah for
relative. nature adventures Science & Nature and Baseball
“I didn’t know, and [the gentleman’s rela-
tive] didn’t have a cell phone,” Chen said.
• Swimming, cooking, archery
The new regulations would also tighten
and gymnastics
the reins on bus companies that break traf- Serving Manhattan, Northern New Jersey, Rockland County and Riverdale.
fic laws, according to NY State Assembly Convenient bus pick-up and drop-off available throughout Manhattan.
Speaker Sheldon Silver. Apart from issuing
permits to the companies and designating We’re Serious About Summer Fun!
spaces for pick-up and drop-offs, the law, he
Visit 92Y.org/Camps or call 212.415.5573. An agency of UJA-Federation
Continued on page 17
4 Februar y 9 - 15, 2011
POLICE BLOTTER
Downtown fire victim
Fire in a 10th floor apartment at 77 Columbia St. in the
Masaryk Towers on Wednesday morning Feb. 2 critically
injured a 97-year-old woman who was pulled from the blaze
by a neighbor.
The neighbor, Wanda Camacho, 53, opened her door
around 5:30 a.m. to find smoke pouring into the hall from
the apartment of her neighbor, Wei Chee Hu, who was sitting
immobile at a coffee table. Camacho dragged Hu out of the
fire and into her own apartment where they remained until
firefighters arrived.
Hu was taken to the burn center of New York Presbyterian
Hospital in critical condition. Camacho was treated for
smoke inhalation at Beth Israel Hospital and 11 other resi-
dents of the floor were treated for minor injuries.
Subway attack
An off-duty woman transit worker was attacked in the
East Broadway F train station at Essex St. at 6:15 p.m. Fri.
Feb. 4. and knocked onto the tracks by a deranged man who
also fought with another man who had come to her rescue.
The attacker chased the victim, Sabrina Scott, around the sta-
tion, repeatedly asking, “Are you scared of me?” and grappled
with the man who responded to her cries for help, according
to reports. Scott, however, was knocked onto the tracks dur-
ing the fracas and fell unconscious but her rescuer managed
to bring her back onto the platform. The attacker, described
only as a skinny Hispanic man in his 40s with a shaved head,
fled. And the rescuer, described as a tall black man wearing
headphones and a baseball cap, also disappeared.
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DWI fender-bender
Police charged a motorist with driving while intoxicated
after a two-car accident on the southbound FDR Dr. at
Clinton St. around 7:10 a.m. Sun. Feb. 6. The suspect,
Rodney Gripper, 43, of the Bronx, was identified as an off-
duty transit employee. He was freed on his own recognizance
pending an April 6 court appearance.
Robbers try boutique
Police arrested one of two men who grabbed a woman
working at the Emile Lafaurie boutique at 199 Prince St.
around 4 p.m. Thurs. Feb. 2 and tried to drag her to the
basement and bind her hands. Albert Anderson, 48 was
charged with robbery but his accomplice, identified as
Anthony Gilman, 49, escaped, police said.
Foils phone snatch
A Queens man, 58 was walking on Canal St. between
Wooster and Greene Sts around 1 p.m. Thurs., Feb. 3 when
a stranger punched him in the chest and grabbed his cell
phone from his coat pocket. The victim grabbed the phone
back and police grabbed the suspect, Rumako Manwaring,
28, and charged him with robbery.
CDs hard sell
Three strangers stopped a man, 19, on Broadway in
Soho around 4 p.m. Sun., Feb. 6 and sold him two CDs
for $100, police said. The strangers followed the customer
to the corner of Spring and Thompson Sts. and shouted,
“Hey, take our phone number and let us know how you like
Downtown digest
Continued from page 3
died of smoke inhalation during the attempt.
The defense lawyers, however, contend that the three men
are not responsible for the firefighters’ deaths, since the city
previously approved the construction work on the site.
Charter School scouts out students
Innovate Manhattan Charter School is starting to recruit
students this month, even though plans for them to move
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downtown express
the CDs.” When the customer tool out his cell phone, one
of the trio grabbed it and another told him, “Give me your
wallet. I have a knife and I’ll poke you.” The three fled with
the victim’s cell phone and his wallet with $2,000 in cash,
police said.
Gallery theft
Two men walked into Pom Gallery, 133 Greene St.
around 3:25 p.m. Sat., Feb. 5 and after one of them engaged
the attendant with questions, both walked out. The atten-
dant told police that he discovered his digital camera had
been stolen from his desk.
Rabbits hole entered
A woman working at Rabbits Café, 142 Sullivan St.,
told police she was in the rear of the place around 11:50
p.m. Sat., Feb.5 after the place was closed and spotted a
man leaving the place. She discovered that her handbag,
which she left on a counter in the front, had been stolen.
Wallet lifted
A woman told police that she discovered her wallet with
her Taiwan passport, $170 in cash, and credit cards were
gone from her backpack when she emerged from the Prince
St. subway station at Broadway around 2:30 p.m. Sat., Feb.
5. The victim, 43, said she had bought a MetroCard with
cash from the wallet a short time earlier.
Dancing the night away
A woman, 19, visiting from Greenville, S.C., put her bag on
the floor by her table at the Canal Room, 285 Broadway near
Reade St. around 2 a.m. Sun. when she went to the dance floor.
She discovered 10 minutes later that it had been stolen along
with her South Carolina driver’s license and credit cards.
— Alber t Amateau
into the Tweed Courthouse have not been finalized by the
New York City Department of Education.
The school will host a series of information sessions at
such Downtown venues as University Settlement and the
Downtown Community Center, according to its website,
innovatemanhattancharterschool.org.
The next open house is scheduled for Wednesday, March
2 at the Downtown Community Center.
The D.O.E. has not yet signed off on its plans to assign the
school to the site, though a spokesperson there recently acknowl-
edged that it is one of the main candidates for the space.
The thought of a charter school moving into Tweed has
perturbed the Downtown education community, who is
strongly urging the D.O.E. to open up a new district middle
school there instead.
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Road Runners’ half marathon draws B.P.C. ire

BY TERESE LOEB KREUZER
The plans for a half marathon that is sched-
uled to bring 10,000 runners plus spectators
and support personnel into Battery Park City
on March 20 met a chilly reception from
Community Board 1’s Battery Park City
Committee at its monthly meeting on February
1. The event, now in its sixth year, is sponsored
by New York Road Runners.
“While I think the Half Marathon is wonder-
ful and the Road Runners do a great job, this is
not something I would support,” said commit-
tee member Anthony Notaro. “I would recom-
mend that this committee turn this down.” This
view was echoed by others on the committee.
As it did last year, the course for the race
will start in Central Park and then go through
Times Square and 42nd Street, where the run-
ners will head to West Street and a finish line
just north of Chambers Street. Then the runners
are slated to head west on Chambers Street into
Battery Park City. They would be directed to
River Terrace, and from there to North Cove,
where there would be post-race ceremonies and
refreshments.
Preparations for the Battery Park City seg-
ment of the race would begin on Friday night,
March 18, when some equipment would be
installed along North End Avenue. “No park-
ing” signs would go up on North End Avenue,
Chambers Street between West Street and
River Terrace and on River Terrace starting at
midnight on Saturday, March 19. The streets
It’s too late to stop this year’s race, but some B.P.C. residents hope it will be the
last.
would not reopen until 5 p.m. on March 20.
Cars would be towed from North End Avenue
beginning at 10 a.m. on March 19, from
Chambers Street beginning at noon, and from
River Terrace beginning at 1 p.m.
“You are literally closing off that entire
Downtown Express file photo
neighborhood,” said Notaro to Philip Santora,
N.Y.R.R.’s Senior Manager for Volunteers and
Community Outreach, who presented the Road
Runners’ race plans to the Battery Park City
Committee.
Santora said that people from New York
Road Runners would come down to the neigh-
borhood prior to the event to let residents know
what would be happening.
“Notice is better than no notice,” said com-
mittee co-chair Jeff Galloway, “but basically all
that does is let people know that they should
evacuate their homes for the weekend.”
Because the Half Marathon goes through
several neighborhoods and the jurisdictions
of Community Boards 4 and 5 as well as
that of Community Board 1, New York Road
Runners was not required to get approval for
its plans from any of these community boards.
Santora’s presentation was strictly informa-
tional. Approvals for the race were arranged
by Road Runners with the Mayor’s Office for
Special Events, with the N.Y.P.D. and with
other City agencies.
B.P.C. Committee member George
Calderaro, who lives in the northern part of
Battery Park City, said in a telephone interview
that he heard anguished complaints last year
from Battery Park City residents, who said that
their lives and tranquility had been disrupted
by the half marathon. “Our comments last
year that this shouldn’t happen again went
unheeded,” said Calderaro. “[Road Runners]
did come to the meeting, which is good, I
guess – just to say that they’re going to do the
same thing all over again.”
Calderaro said that he questioned the
Continued on page 18

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New York Downtown Hospital’s new Wellness & Prevention Center.

Dr. Klapper is a recognized leader in the field

of Obstetrics and Gynecology, specializing in
the treatment of female urinary incontinence,
bladder pain, pelvic pain, and pelvic organ
support disorders (bladder, uterus, and vagina).
He is also a recognized leader in the minimally
invasive treatment of gynecological disorders.

His team of board certified obstetricians, gynecologists and subspecialists

utilizes leading diagnostic and treatment methodologies across a broad Photos by Albert Amateau

spectrum of women's health issues including: David Mulkins, BAN chairperson, right, led Friday’s rally. Also speaking were, to his
left, Simeon Bankoff of H.D.C. and Assemblymember Deborah Glick.

• Comprehensive screening, disease prevention, and educational services

•
•
Routine gynecological assessment
Adolescent gynecology
Cooper Sq. faces demo
• Menopause management BY ALBERT AMATEAU
Preservation advocates gathered in front
• Assessment and treatment of urinary incontinence, bladder pain / of 35 Cooper Square on Friday afternoon
urinary frequency and pelvic support disorders demanding that the Landmarks Preservation
Commission protect the early-19th-century,
• Assessment and treatment of gynecologic conditions including Federal-style building by giving it landmark
abnormal bleeding, fibroids, endometriosis, pelvic pain and designation.
L.P.C., however, has said the building
ovarian cysts has been too altered by the addition of a
• Cancer prevention and treatment brownstone coating to its facade to qualify
as architecturally eligible for historic des-
• Infertility evaluation and treatment ignation.
• Genetic counseling For the past decade, the building was
the location of Cooper 35 Asian Pub — a
bar popular with New York University and
The Center also provides DEXA Scan and Digital Mammography services. Cooper Union students. Last November, 35
Cooper Square and its adjoining space at
the corner of E. Sixth St. were purchased
Dr. Klapper’s team at the Women’s Health Center looks forward to for $8.5 million by Bhatia Development,
providing superb service and clinical excellence in our comfortable, an organization that intends to demolish Photos by Albert Amateau
the building. Indeed, the Asian Pub served
state-of-the-art Center. its last drink on Saturday night Jan. 22 and
Carolyn Ratcliffe quoted poet Diane
diPrima, a former 35 Cooper Square
closed for good.
resident, on her sign.
For an appointment with Dr. Klapper, Chairman of the Last Friday’s rally, led by David
Mulkins, chairperson of the Bowery neighborhoods.
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, call (646) 588-2500 Alliance of Neighbors, or BAN, included “The Bowery that has been known over
Assemblymember Deborah Glick and state the centuries is vanishing before our eyes,”
Senator Tom Duane, as well as preserva- Bankoff said. “At this point we have to say,
tion leaders Simeon Bankoff, executive Stop.
director of the Historic Districts Council, “The Landmarks Preservation
and Andrew Berman, executive director of Commission said this building cannot be
the Greenwich Village Society for Historic designated because it has been altered,” he
Preservation. went on. “Of course it was altered, it’s more
“This is one of the most significant than 100 years old.”
buildings on this street,” said Mulkins. Demonstrators waved signs saying,
“If we lose this building, Cooper Square “Build Memories, Not Luxury Hotels,” and
loses a much earlier sense of its history,” displayed photos showing the neighbor-
he added. Mulkins referred to the recently hood as it was at the turn of the last
built 20-story Cooper Square Hotel across century. Carolyn Ratcliffe, an East Village
E. Sixth St. from the site, saying, “If preservationist, carried a poster reminding
170 William Street,New York, NY 10038 we have this kind of out-of-scale, out-of- passersby that the poet Diane diPrima and
(212) 312-5000 Ň www.downtownhospital.org context development, we will destroy the the singer Liza Minnelli once lived in the
sense of place that we get in these historic building.
neighborhoods.” He noted that the Bowery
was one of the world’s most renowned Continued on page 8
downtown express Februar y 9 - 15, 2011 7

Edgar Tafel, 98; Worked with Wright

Family Series 2010/11
OBITUARY ARTS CENTER

BY ALBERT AMATEAU
Edgar Tafel, who apprenticed with Frank
Lloyd Wright and designed St. John’s in
the Village Episcopal Church and First
Presbyterian Church Community House,
died Jan. 18 in his Greenwich Village home
at age 98.
Tafel was a resident of E. 11th St.
between Fifth Ave. and University Place,
where he worked and lived for more than 40
years. He was a member of the committee
for the 1970 redesign of Washington Square
Park, said Norman Rosenfeld, a friend and
neighbor who also served on the Washington
Square architectural committee with him.
Born March 12, 1912, to Russian immi-
grants, Edgar A. Tafel graduated from
Manhattan’s Walden School and attended New
York University, but left at 20 to study architec-
ture at Taliesin, Wright’s Wisconsin colony.
As a Wright apprentice, he worked on
Fallingwater, the private house cantilevered
over Bear Run Creek in Pennsylvania, and
the Johnson Wax Building, since demolished,
in Racine, Wis., as well as Wingspread,
home of Herbert F. Johnson, the company’s
president, near Racine.
Although a senior apprentice to Wright,
Tafel resisted the master designer’s autocrat-
ic rule and left in 1941 to work in a Chicago
architectural firm. During World War II he
served in Army photo intelligence in India.
Tafel returned to Manhattan after the war,
qualified as an architect and designed 80
houses, 35 religious buildings and three col-
lege campuses, among many other projects.
In 1960 he designed the First Presbyterian
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Village, on Waverly Place at W. 11th St. based on the award-winning book by Doreen Cronin and
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His first marriage ended in divorce and
his second wife died in 1951, according to
Robert Silman, an architectural engineer
and close friend of Tafel. A cousin, Joan
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Scott, survives. A memorial will be held on
Feb. 17 at the Center for Architecture, 536
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Earth School), at Sixth St. and Avenue B, wrote and hand-delivered a letter to the office of
Cathie Black, the Department of Education’s new schools chancellor, inviting her to an anti-
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that she was not going to attend. Sh
8 Februar y 9 - 15, 2011
Cooper Sq. faces demo
Continued from page 6
Jim Power, 62, “The Mosaic Man,” who
transformed lampposts all over the neigh-
borhood with tile mosaics, urged demon-
strators to employ direct action to preserve
the area. Power was also incensed about
the city’s proposed alterations that would
close Astor Place between Lafayette St. and
Fourth Ave., which he fears would elimi-
nate lampposts with his mosaics.
Glick, who sent a letter to L.P.C.
Chairperson Robert Tierney urging him to
reconsider his finding that the building does
not qualify for landmark protection, told
the Friday crowd that, “We are at a critical
point. There is a tipping point at which this
area will no longer have a connection to
the past.” Glick pledged not to give up her
efforts to save the building, which dates
back to 1825.
Duane, whose district includes the
building, said, “There is so little left of our
beloved Village, of the history we’re proud
of. To risk losing a piece of that, even just
one building, is tragic.”
Last fall, City Councilmember Rosie
Mendez also sent a letter to Tierney urg-
ing landmark protection for the building,
located on a site once owned by a member
of the Stuyvesant family.
The original address of 35 Cooper Square
Trinity Wall Street
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 1pm
Concerts at One
Camille Dereux, soprano
Audrey Abela, piano
Trinity Church
THROUGH MARCH 31
Daily During Church Hours
Art Exhibit: Writes of Passage
Featuring the art of Ryan Roa
Presented in conjunction with
Phenomena Project
Trinity Museum, inside Trinity Church
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 10:10-11am
Children & Youth
Sunday School Classes
Children learn to encounter God in
their lives through music, crafts, and
lively discussions. Pre-K to 5th grade,
middle school, and high school.
74 Trinity Pl, 3rd Fl
All Are Welcome
All events are free,
unless otherwise noted.
trinitywallstreet.org · 212.602.0800
@ trinitywallst · trinitywallstreet
downtown express
was 391 Bowery, according to a research
paper that Sally Young, a BAN member, sent
to L.P.C. The original two-and-a-half-story
building, with a gambrel roof, twin dormers
and large end chimneys, had a ground-floor
storefront with a brick arch and decorative
cast-iron pilasters added around 1876. The
crushed-brownstone stucco covering the
Flemish-bond brick facade was likely added
around the same time.
Owned by the Stuyvesant family, it was
first occupied by a John Snider. By 1867,
Herbert Marshall sold liquor out of the
ground floor, continuing until 1876. In
1900 the building apparently operated as
a hotel. In the second half of the 20th cen-
tury, a painter, J. Forrest Vey, whose works
are in the Whitney Museum of American
Art, lived in the building. In the 1960’s,
tenants like diPrima and Minnelli began
renting upstairs rooms in the building.
Poet diPrima and her then husband, Alan
Marlowe, ran a few seasons of the New
York Poets Theatre from 35 Cooper Square.
Claude Brown, author of “Manchild in the
Promised Land,” also lived there. In 1970,
Stanley Sobossek, a painter, ran a bar on
the ground floor.
In 1976, a woman named Hesae owned
a restaurant known by that name at 35
Cooper Square until 1990. She returned Downtown Express photo by J. B Nicholas
around 2000 and ran Cooper 35 Asian Pub In Tompkins Square Park, a red-tailed hawk, dubbed by some the Hipster Hawk,
until last Saturday. was dining alfresco on a pigeon that it had caught in midair.
Let’s do something together trinitywallstreet.org
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 10am worship
Using the Bible to Make Choices
SUNDAY, 8am and 10am
Can using the Bible to make choices
St. Paul’s Chapel
be problematic? The Rev. Frank
An energetic celebration of
Morales looks at how the “good news”
Communion in the round.
for some may be bad for others.
74 Trinity Place SUNDAY, 9am and 11:15am
Trinity Church
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 10am
Worship, preaching, and ceremony
The Gospel, Times, Journal,
in the best Anglican/Episcopal
and You
tradition. Sunday school and child
Discuss newspaper editorials and
care available.
the Gospel. Led by the Rev. Mark
Bozzuti-Jones. Meets every Sunday. MONDAY – FRIDAY, 12:05pm
74 Trinity Pl, 3rd Fl Holy Eucharist
Trinity Church
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 1pm
Film: Faubourg Tremé: THURSDAY, 5:15pm
The Untold Story of Black Evening Prayer
New Orleans All Saints’ Chapel
Faubourg Tremé is home to civil inside Trinity Church
Leah Reddy
rights struggles, the first black-
Watch online webcast
owned daily, and music. Executive
producers: Wynton Marsalis and TRINITY CHURCH
Stanley Nelson. Broadway at Wall Street
74 Trinity Pl, 2nd Fl, Parlor ST. PAUL’S CHAPEL
Broadway and Fulton Street
an Episcopal parish
The Rev. Dr. James H. Cooper, Rector in the city of New York
The Rev. Canon Anne Mallonee, Vicar
downtown express Februar y 9 - 15, 2011 9

Avenues: the world school debuts grand plan

BY SCOTT STIFFLER
Any student navigating the first day
of school knows that appearances count
— and first impressions can last forever.
So when organizers of a filled-to-capac-
ity February 1 luncheon/launch event
observed that the room’s circular tables
and white linen aesthetic reminded them
of a wedding reception, they weren’t far
off the mark. A good reception, followed
by a lasting union, is precisely what they
were aiming for.
Invited community members, parents
and education advocates (including Joel
Klein, former NYC schools chancellor;
Teach for America founder Wendy Kopp;
and City University of New York chancel-
lor Matthew Goldstein) politely listened
and occasionally nodded affirmation as
leaders of Avenues: The World School
put forth their plan for fall 2012. That’s
the preordained time by which 259 Tenth
Avenue (a former warehouse, which dates
back to 1928 and bears the mark of
renowned architect Cass Gilbert) will
make its debut as the Avenues’ flagship
campus.
Presented as “A new school with
global ambitions whose Chelsea loca-
tion will be a template for things to
come,” Avenues will school its students
in the shadow of the High Line and mere
steps from Chelsea Piers. Organizers
Avenues’ classrooms will be flooded with natural light.
frequently referenced a mutually ben-
eficial relationship between the school
and these two neighborhood institu-
tions — also foreseeing synergy between
artistically inclined students and local
galleries. As for the school itself, a series
Photo courtesy of Avenues: The World School
of renderings portrayed a space whose
10 floors and 215,000 square feet have
been refitted to flood every classroom
with natural light. Those classrooms will
be populated by teachers whose annual
pay/benefits package totals $110,000. In
the coming weeks, information sessions
will be held for NYC parents who wish
to apply for early enrollment. Students
who begin their Avenues education dur-
ing the 2012-2013 school year will rep-
resent 12 grades — from nursery school
to 9th. Grades 10, 11 and 12 will be
added over the following three years.
Avenues’ first graduating class will be
in spring 2016.
“As the first truly global network of
pre-K-12 schools, Avenues is uniquely
equipped to prepare students to excel
in the highly competitive and networked
21st-century world.”
That promise was made by Avenues
chairman Benno Schmidt. A former presi-
dent of Yale University, who current-
ly chairs the board of trustees of the
City University of New York, Schmidt is
only one of the major names in educa-
tion who’ve signed on to the ambitious
Avenues vision of a 15-grade educational
cycle, which produces bilingual citizens
of the world.
Others who’ve staked their reputa-
tions, careers and legacy on the Avenues
plan include co-head Tyler T. Tingley (who
led Phillips Exeter Academy for 12 years);
Robert “Skip” Mattoon, Jr. (co-head of
the school and former headmaster of the
Continued on page 19

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EDITORIAL LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

PUBLISHER & EDITOR
John W. Sutter Where’s the real Park51 Festival critics are snobs who blame the feast for their lack of busi-
Last May, Daisy Khan, who heads the American ness and customers during San Gennaro,
ASSOCIATE EDITOR Society for Muslim Advancement, approached a C.B.1 how do they explain their empty stores
John Bayles
committee about appearing at its upcoming meeting to To The Editor: throughout the rest of the year? Why are
ARTS EDITOR share plans for an Islamic community center. Re “Effort to shorten San Gennaro Fest their businesses empty for 351 days when
Scott Stiffler The wording on the meeting’s agenda stated that the falls short” (news article, Jan. 27): there is no feast?
presentation would be made by the Cordoba Initiative, The San Gennaro Feast was forced to Julie Dickson from Fox & Boy hair salon
REPORTERS an established organization focused on interfaith relations accept vendors of other backgrounds than speaks about the feast and “the dangerous
Aline Reynolds
Albert Amateau whose founder was Khan’s husband, Feisal Abdul Rauf, Italian and Italian foods and merchandise element it attracts.” Really, Julie, you’re embar-
Lincoln Anderson an internationally recognized religious scholar and Imam. by the city of New York. That decision was rassing yourself. San Gennaro is one of the
Nine months later, that original presentation seems like out of our hands. As for public drunkenness, most well-known and beloved feasts that exists
SR. V.P. OF SALES a mischaracterization at best. At worst it seems like noth- there is absolutely no alcohol sold at any of today. It is a secret to no one that it takes over
AND MARKETING ing more than the jump-off point for a public relations the stands during the feast. Restaurants with Mulberry St. for 11 days every September.
Francesco Regini spin campaign. The message we applauded and the project liquor permits are allowed to sell alcohol Rather than have these elitist snobs move in,
SR. MARKETING CONSULTANT this community has become as murky and muddled as the within the confines of their stands, which then try to force us to change for them, why
Jason Sherwood Hudson after a good dredging. they pay handsomely for. If any of these can’t they be good neighbors and respect an
Since that first introduction to our community in early patrons happen to act stupidly and raucously 85-year-old neighborhood tradition that they
ADVERTISING SALES
May of last year, the project has been called by three dif- once they leave these establishments, how is knew existed before they ever moved their
Allison Greaker
Michael Slagle ferent names, has had two different spiritual leaders, two San Gennaro responsible for that? families and/or their businesses to the area? I,
Julio Tumbaco different blogs and now a Facebook page that is serving as I’m sure Nicolas Dutko from Tartinery has for one, am a lifelong Little Italy resident.
the major method of promoting the project’s mission. And seen more than a fair share of stupid behavior One more thing I’m curious about: Are any
RETAIL AD MANAGER disturbingly, it is becoming harder and harder for the con- from drunken patrons who got that way after of these boutiques participating in the upcom-
Colin Gregory stituency that supported this project from day one, includ- drinking at his establishment. Is he going ing February Fashion Week since there is no
BUSINESS MANAGER / CONTROLLER ing the press, to communicate with the shifting leadership to blame San Gennaro for that during May, feast around to get in their way? Just asking.
Vera Musa of this increasingly muddled organization. June, July and August when the bars and res-
This paper interviewed Rauf in early December and it taurants along Mulberry St. are jampacked? Emily DePalo
ART / PRODUCTION DIRECTOR was then that we began to question his motives about the For Mr. Dutko to say that “the people are DePalo is a board member, Figli di San
Troy Masters project he had for so long been the face of. During that very rude that come” to the feast is showing Gennaro
ART DIRECTOR interview, he brought up for the first time his notion of the his stupidity and his biased attitude. How in
Mark Hasselberger Cordoba Movement, that in his own words had taken root the name of God can anyone make a public
right here in Lower Manhattan. statement like that? Who is he to paint every-
GRAPHIC DESIGNER We were surprised, to say the least, when the rift that is one who visits the feast with the same brush? The Feast of ‘San Generic’
Jamie Paakkonen all but crystal clear now, began to materialize between Rauf Are all those hundreds of thousands of people
CONTRIBUTORS and Sharif El-Gamal, the President of SoHo Properties rude, yet all the people patronizing his estab- To The Editor:
Terese Loeb Kreuzer • David who is spearheading the development of the project. Rauf lishment perfectly mannerly and respectful of Re “Effort to shorten San Gennaro Fest
Stanke • Jerry Tallmer hired his own publicists, and El-Gamal, his. The project others? Who is he kidding? falls short” (news article, Jan. 27):
soon adopted a new nickname: Park51, also the name of a Many of us have dealt with snobs like this They say the feast is for everyone. That’s
PHOTOGRAPHERS mysterious nonprofit that, according to SoHo Properties, who think they are better than the rest of us. the problem. A generic street fair should
J. B. Nicholas • Milo Hess • would run the future community center. The group, con- That attitude alone speaks volumes about not get a permit for 11 days. If they made
Jefferson Siegel • Terese Loeb
sisting of El-Gamal and others, began holding “public how delusional they are regarding their own it authentic and local, they might get more
Kreuzer
information sessions” at their Downtown offices which, importance. And by the way, why is he in support. I haven’t heard Italian spoken in
INTERNS strangely enough, were not open to the press. business if not to make money? Why is it Little Italy since I was a kid.
Jhaneel Lockhart The aim was to clarify the goals of the project. But O.K. for him but not for the vendors of the
their myriad attempts to demystify things only led to more San Gennaro Feast? As for the boutiques Davide Gentile
confusion. Rauf and El-Gamal seemed to be contradict-
Published by ing rather than reinforcing each others’ apparent shared
COMMUNITY MEDIA, LLC vision when publicly describing the project, as tensions
145 Sixth Ave., NY, NY 10013 between them have become increasingly apparent.
Phone: (212) 229-1890 “The Cordoba Movement and the Cordoba Initiative are
Fax: (212) 229-2790 separate nonprofit entities from Park51 with different mis-
On-line: www.downtownexpress.com sions and leadership,” El-Gamal said in a press release.
E-mail: news@downtownexpress.com Sharif also recently announced that neither Rauf nor
Khan would be speaking on behalf of Park51, nor would
Gay City
NEWS
TM

they be raising funds for the project.

Weren’t “Cordoba” and “Park51” one in the same last
spring? Wait, no – wasn’t the original name of the project
Downtown Express is published every week by “Cordoba House”? Were Khan’s and Rauf’s philosophies
Community Media LLC, 145 Sixth Ave., New
York, N.Y. 10013 (212) 229-1890. The entire not the inspiration for the proposed community center?
contents of the newspaper, including advertising,
are copyrighted and no part may be reproduced
Enter a new spiritual advisor, Iman Adhami, who espous-
without the express permission of the publisher -
© 2011 Community Media LLC.
es some controversial views on homosexuality very much at
odds with the original vision that embraced openness and
PUBLISHER’S LIABILITY FOR ERROR
The Publisher shall not be liable for slight inclusion. Days later, Iman Adhami exits the project.
changes or typographical errors that do not
lessen the value of an advertisement. The We embraced this project from the very beginning,
publisher’s liability for other errors or omissions
in connection with an advertisement is strictly
as did our Community Board, most of our elected lead-
limited to publication of the advertisement in any
subsequent issue.
ers, and the Lower Manhattan community. It would be a
shame if the very cause we rallied behind turns out to be
Member of the
New York Press something altogether different.
Association And while we hope that this is not the case, and we
Downtown Express photos by Milo Hess
Member of the understand that all non-profits encounter growing pains, we
National implore the real people behind Park51 to step forward once On Saturday, about 500 Egyptian and Egyptian-American demonstrators rallied
Newspaper
again and show the same level of transparency and openness across from the United Nations, denouncing President Mubarak’s regime and call-
Association
to dialogue and inclusion that impressed and inspired us. ing for him to resign immediately. Some painted small Egyptian flags or the word
© 2011 Community Media, LLC “Egypt” — in red, white and black — on their faces.
downtown express
DOWNTOWN NOTEBOOK
An author comes clean about her mother’s hoarding
BY WICKHAM BOYLE
Jessie Sholl is a hyper-clean, nearly elfin,
41-year-old woman who for nearly a decade
has lived in the West Village between great
bookstores: Three Lives and Bonnie Slotnick
Cookbooks. I met her at a dinner party, also
in the West Village, and when I saw that
her book was about to debut, I asked if she
would indulge me in an interview to discuss
this very brave memoir. She suggested Joe
on Waverly.
So in the penultimate week of 2010, I
peddled my trusty 1968 Raleigh up Sixth
Ave. to hear how Ms. Sholl found the cour-
age and words to pen this beautiful memoir,
billed as the first by the child of a compulsive
hoarder.
W.B.: This book is so kind and loving
toward your mother, yet I was in a rage at
her by the time you and your long-suffering
husband were infected with scabies for the
second time. How did you find that enlight-
ened approach?
J.S.: The biggest thing that helped me
was that the more research I did into the
condition of hoarding, the more I came to
recognize it as a disease. When I saw it as
an illness I didn’t give her a free pass, but,
because she has a mental illness, it put her
behavior into a different context.
Also, when I began to talk to her in depth
about the book — to which she gave her
blessing — I began to see the depth of her
horrific upbringing. And of course my own
therapy helped.
I didn’t want to write a “bad mommy”
or “Oh, poor me,” self-pitying memoir. So
TALKING POINT
A valentine for Village businesses
BY DEBORAH GLICK
As someone who has spent nearly my
entire adult life in Greenwich Village, I was
crestfallen when St. Vincent’s shut its doors.
Not only was the hospital the center for our
community’s physical health, it also has been
the lifeblood for many small local business-
es. Now the health needs of our community
have been severely diminished, and the local
stores that give our neighborhood its charac-
ter are withering in silence.
My connection to small businesses goes
back many years. During my formative years,
my family ran a print shop in the Far West
Village, when operations like Superior Ink
actually manufactured ink on the premises
and weren’t condominiums. I saw firsthand
how much work it takes to make a small
business successful and how few resources
exist to assist mom-and-pop operations.
Unfortunately, this fact remains as true
today as it did then. The city invites small
Februar y 9 - 15, 2011
deciding on this direction gave me the push to
regard the good things I got from her as well
as the fear, filth and shame. I am a minimalist
about having stuff. I consider myself a purger.
I go overboard about cleaning when people
are coming over, but — unfortunately — not
always. I don’t want folks to think, “Oh, look
at those dirty glasses on the table, she is on
the slide to become just like her mother.”
You also describe in detail many things
that happened in your childhood. For me, as
the adult child of an alcoholic and a chronic
suicide attempter, I know that denial is and
was my drug of choice. This means I have
intense, but spotty memories of childhood.
I could not provide an arc the way you do.
Did you always have this clarity of memory
or did it come as you wrote?
I decided I wanted to write about this.
I told my husband, the wonderful writ-
er David Farley, stories for years, and he
encouraged me to write them down. I talked
with my agent and I wrote a proposal and
she was a huge help at putting the tales in
order. Everyone would be surprised at how
many memories emerge once you begin writ-
ing. It may not be linear at first, but you can
reorder and create a timeline after the fact.
Writing this was very important to me and it
was always my hope that it would be a way
for others to unlock shame and live more
transparent lives.
This book is about hoarding but you
allude a few times to the similarity between
A.C.O.A.’s (adult children of alcoholics),
and you clearly state that being able to
businesses to open their doors but then does
little to help them be successful. It’s hard
enough to make it in New York City as it is;
so imagine the effect when a 3,500-person
operation, like St. Vincent’s, suddenly shuts
its doors. The wake of such a closure has
been harsh and swift.
The closing of St. Vincent’s has been
a devastating blow to the Village and
just as devastating for the businesses
that depended on St. Vincent’s for sur-
vival. Many businesses have already
closed, while others are struggling to
survive. To help confront this prob-
lem, my office invited the Greenwich
Village-Chelsea Chamber of Commerce,
Community Board 2, Congressmember
Jerrold Nadler, Borough President Scott
Stringer, state Senator Tom Duane and
Council Speaker Christine Quinn to par-
ticipate in a Valentine’s-themed shop-
ping extravaganza on this Sat., Feb. 12,
Photo by Kate Lacey
Jessie Sholl.
come clean, if you will, with friends was so
liberating.
Yes, I have to say that many of my friends
or colleagues have said, “Oh, my Mom was
a hoarder,” or an aunt was, so I hope it is
freeing in that sense to be able to talk about
it. No one is just a hoarder. This condition
announces many other problems. Hoarding
is a kind of blindness. A “normal” person
knows to call a repairperson if the refrigera-
tor breaks. But a hoarder has deep shame
about the state of their home, and thus
entitled, “Love the Village,” with the goal
of supporting businesses that have been
adversely impacted. The event will kick
off at 10 a.m. on the northwest corner of
Seventh Ave. and Greenwich Ave., across
the street from Roasting Plant Coffee. On
the weekend before Valentine’s Day, we
want to show local businesses how big
our hearts in the Village really are.
“Love the Village” will be a daylong
shopping extravaganza that will encour-
age the public to engage with businesses
in the immediate vicinity of St. Vincent’s.
Participants will be given a map of busi-
nesses on Greenwich Ave., Sixth Ave. and
Seventh Ave. and, after shopping at these
businesses, they will have an opportunity
to exchange their receipts (that value at
least $10) for raffle tickets on the first
floor of the Lesbian and Gay Center, at
208 W. 13th St. between Seventh Ave. and
Greenwich Ave. between 10 a.m. and 3
11
doesn’t call, and this only exacerbates the
mess. Many hoarders live in great danger,
amid health challenges and the very real pos-
sibility that fires will start and the firefighters
will be unable to find their way through the
mess. There is also a version of hoarding
that involves adopting and often mistreating
animals. People have homes or apartments
filled with filthy animals, who are in great
distress. My husband and I adopted a small
dog that we named Abraham Lincoln, and it
felt good to save someone from that life.
How did you come to this project, and
are there any things you wanted to write
but discarded as too difficult either for you
or your family? You don’t have to disclose
what, but just if that was the case?
I started as a fiction writer and got my
M.F.A. at The New School, and I had been
working on a novel for young adults. I began
writing health articles as a “day job” and
this gave me an entree to think about my
own past and to research. I had this “Ah
ha” moment as I was doing research when
I saw that my mother’s hoarding was also
an extreme type of brain malfunction, and
I started researching it. When I saw that it
was a disease and talked to my mother about
the book project, it freed me to be able to
use any story, all the stories, as a way to tell
where I came from, but also to free others
who have held onto this dirty secret.
“Dirty Secret: A Daughter Comes Clean
About Her Mother’s Compulsive Hoarding,”
by Jessie Sholl, Gallery Books. For more
information, visit www.jessie-sholl.com .
p.m. Multiple raffles will be held through-
out the day with the chance to win prizes
donated by local businesses. To show
Valentine’s Day appreciation, giveaways
will include locally designed “Love the
Village” T-shirts for the first 100 people to
participate.
Although a one-day event may not save
a business that is teetering on the edge, it
may help introduce people to businesses
that they might pass every day without
ever entering. If we do want our neighbor-
hood to be more Jane Jacobs than Marc
Jacobs, a good first step is by stepping foot
inside an independently owned local busi-
ness. I look forward to seeing all of you on
Feb. 12. Now, more than ever, we need to
come together as a community and help
those businesses that are in need.
Glick is assemblymember for the 66th
District.
12 Februar y 9 - 15, 2011 downtown express

Entrepreneur Krevey brought historic ships to City

OBITUARY
BY ALBERT AMATEAU
John Krevey, a waterfront entrepreneur
and activist who brought historic ships to
Chelsea and ran the popular gathering
place Pier 66 Maritime, died on Friday,
February 4 at the age of 62 while on vaca-
tion with his son in Santo Domingo.
The cause appeared to be a heart attack
and came as a surprise to his devastated
family, friends and colleagues.
The Working Harbor Committee — a
not-for-profit civic association honored
Krevey last September for helping to revi-
talize the formerly decaying North River
waterfront.
“He was the waterfront before the
waterfront was cool,” said his friend and
colleague John Doswell.
Krevey was one of the earliest mem-
bers of Friends of Hudson River Park, the
civic group advocating for the five-mile-
long waterfront park. He was a member
of the Friends’ board of directors until
last year.
An electrical contractor by profession,
Krevey ran his company, R-2 Electric, from
rented space on Pier 63 at 23rd Street for
more than 30 years. A life-long enthusiast
for historic ships, he bought the decom-
missioned U.S. Lightship Frying Pan —
which was lying in the mud in Chesapeake
Bay in the early 80s. At great expense and
with a group of a half-dozen like-minded
enthusiasts, Krevey got the ship afloat,
With Frying Pan as an
attraction, Krevey turned
the 350-foot-long barge
into a public access boat
landing, Pier 63 Maritime
— with a small bar and
restaurant that became a
neighborhood gathering
place where boat owners
could tie up.
installed a truck diesel engine and started
a legendary coastwise sea voyage to the
Hudson River in 1983. They encountered
storms, engine failures and short rations
before they brought the limping vessel
Captain John Krevey: Honored on Sept.
21, 2010 by the Working Harbor
Committee.
into the Hudson.
The Frying Pan had several berths over
the next few years: among them at Pier
25 in Lower Manhattan, Chelsea Piers,
and the Intrepid Pier at 46th Street. The
ship was even moored in the middle of
the river at one point. In 1995, Krevey
acquired an old railroad barge that had
been used to ferry railroad cars across
from New Jersey to Manhattan and tied it
up on the north end of Pier 63.
With Frying Pan as an attraction,
Krevey turned the 350-foot-long barge
into a public access boat landing, Pier
63 Maritime — with a small bar and
restaurant that became a neighborhood
gathering place where boat owners could
tie up.
In 2000, Krevey and friends put in a
bid to buy the John J. Harvey, a decom-
missioned fireboat, from the city. The
Harvey found a home at Pier 63 Maritime.
On September 11, 2001, the vessel helped
evacuate Battery Park City residents dur-
ing the World Trade Center attacks and
then, under radio direction from FDNY,
trained its powerful functioning water
pumps on the blazing towers.
Four years ago, when the Hudson River
Park Trust acquired Pier 63, Krevey was
able to convince the Trust to designate the
former railroad float bridge at 26th Street
as the new site for the barge. It became
Pier 66 Maritime.
Plans for Pier 66 Maritime are uncer-
tain at this point.
Krevey leaves his wife, Angela, son
Kyle and daughter Kyra. Funeral arrange-
ments are pending.

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downtown express Februar y 9 - 15, 2011
A confetti-filled Sunday
Hours before confetti started falling
from the rafters of Cowboy Stadium in
Fort Worth, Texas on Sunday, revelers in
Chinatown were blasting it into the air
to mark the beginning of the Year of the
Rabbit.
Children and adults alike used confetti
cannons to shoot tiny bits of paper into the
sky while drums and cymbals provided the
soundtrack to the annual Chinese Lunar
Year Festival parade. The New Year official-
13
Downtown Express photos by Milo Hess
ly began last Thursday and the celebration
stretches for two weeks.
This year’s Chinese Zodiac symbol is
the Rabbit and is said to be the luckiest
symbol of all. United States Senator Chuck
Schumer was the parade’s Grand Marshall
and was joined by U.S. Representative
Carolyn Maloney, NY State Senator Daniel
Squadron, NYC Councilmember Margaret
Chin and NYC Comptroller John Liu,
among others.
14
BY TERESE LOEB KREUZER
VALENTINE WORKSHOP: The B.P.C.
Parks Conservancy’s conference room was
jammed on Saturday as 120 people trans-
formed construction paper, doilies, colored
beads and dried flowers into tokens of their
affection.
“I love my mom because she is the best in
the world,” a girl wrote in red Magic Marker
on pink paper. “I know you’re always there
for me.”
“It’s Valentine’s Day and everything’s red,”
another girl wrote — the start of a verse
about the “redness” of it all, ending with
“red, red everything, red except me” — then
she changed to blue ink to write, “I’m blue
because I didn’t get a valentine from you.”
The Conservancy’s Valentine Workshop
started in 1999. Its founder, Abby Ehrlich,
director of Parks Programming for the
Conservancy, noted that there had been a
different theme each year.
“One year the theme was the “Book of
Love,” said Ehrlich. “We made small val-
entine books with guest book artists from a
small press in Tribeca. Another year we had
a Valentine Tea. We drank tea and sewed
sachets with tea, herbs and dried flowers.”
Battery Park City residents Michelle and Ken Yoon with their twin daughters, Sarah
and Stephanie, 11, and Judy Woo, who teaches piano to both girls. Sarah had just
played in a recital at Carnegie Hall on Saturday, Feb. 5.
Februar y 9 - 15, 2011
This year the theme was “Green
Valentines,” all of which were made with
recycled materials.
“Many people followed our suggestion
and brought in their own photographs and
small mementos - ticket stubs, match book
covers — to include in their ‘Tiny Treasures,’
the project’s sub-theme,” said Ehrlich.
Battery Park City resident Jeff Mihok
and his daughter Lola sucked on red, heart-
shaped lollipops as they made a valentine
for someone whose name they refused to
disclose so as not to ruin the surprise.
George Calderaro, who also lives in
B.P.C., made valentines for the people who
had sent him Christmas cards. “I didn’t get
around to sending cards at Christmas or
New Year’s,” he said, “so I’m sending valen-
tines now to make up for it.”
There were valentines for best friends,
valentines for moms and dads and a val-
entine made by Miani Jean-Charles for her
student teacher, Ms. Greenberg, who had
recently completed her student teaching at
the young girl’s school. “I miss her so much,”
said Jean-Charles.
Jean-Charles attended the workshop with
a group from St. Catherine of Genoa Church
on West 153rd Street.
Some of the scores of valentines that were created at the Battery Park City Parks
Conservancy’s Valentine Workshop on Feb. 5.
CARNEGIE HALL RECITAL: On
February 5, the elegant, ivory-and-gold jewel
box at Carnegie Hall known as Weill Recital
Hall played host to 28 young musicians from
the Tri-state area who had earned Certificates
of Excellence from The Royal Conservatory, a
music accreditation program based in Toronto,
Canada. Each performed a short piece and
received an award. Among the certificate
recipients was B.P.C.‘s own Sarah Yoon, 11,
who scored the top mark in New York State
for her Grade 7 piano examination.
This was the third time that Yoon had played
at Weill Recital Hall, and her fourth award
from The Royal Conservatory. Nevertheless,
she said she felt nervous at first and then
“focused more on the music.”
Yoon and her twin sister, Stephanie, have
been taking piano lessons since they were five
years old. The girls said that it had been their
mother’s idea that they take piano lessons.
“Music should be a part of everybody’s lives
and piano is a great way to learn music,” said
Michelle Yoon. “It’s a basic necessity. I studied
music for a few years when I was growing
up and then I gave up. Later, I blamed my
parents.”
There will be no giving up for the twins.
“When it’s close to the exam, the girls prac-
tice two hours a day,” said Michelle, “but
before that, it’s like an hour — hopefully
three times a week.”
Judy Woo, who has been the girls’ only
piano teacher, said that this year both Sarah
and Stephanie have been playing Bach inven-
tions, plus sonatinas, modern pieces and
technical studies.
Woo explained that The Royal Conservatory
exam system was originally British “and many
of the colonies had used the same system,
so a lot of the parents and grandparents
of the kids who played today had gone
through the system.” Woo, who grew up in
Vancouver, Canada, went through The Royal
Conservatory system herself. “When I started
teaching here in New York, I couldn’t find
teaching materials that I liked,” she said, “so I
brought these books over from Canada. Soon
after, they started the system here.”
To earn a certificate, said Woo, “students
downtown express
Downtown Express photos by Terese Loeb Kreuzer
are marked on three contrasting pieces from
different periods, two studies, technique, ear
training and sight reading. The whole idea is
that you become a well-rounded musician,
playing from different eras and being able
to read music.” The students are also tested
on theory.
Both girls are students at the Anderson
School, a public school for gifted and talented
students on West 77th Street. Asked if she
wanted to be a professional musician when she
was older, Sarah said she wasn’t yet sure.
“I’m only 11!”
POETRY CLASSES: Poets House in
B.P.C. is offering poetry-writing classes for
experienced poets as well as for beginners. A
series of two-day master classes over the next
few months are for writers who are not new
to poetry writing. Applications are required
so that the teacher can choose the best writ-
ers for the class. The next master class will
be on March 5 and 6 with Kevin Young,
author of seven volumes of poetry and editor
of “The Art of Losing: Poems of Grief and
Healing.” Applications for this class are due
by February 11. The fee for the class is $375.
To apply, send three poems accompanied by
a cover sheet with your name, address, e-mail
address and phone number to ATTN: Classes,
Poets House, 10 River Terrace, New York,
NY 10282 or send an e-mail to classes@poet-
shouse.org. No names or addresses should
appear on the poems themselves.
In addition to the Master Classes, Poets
House is offering six-week Open Enrollment
classes for which there is no application.
There are three upcoming sessions. A work-
shop with Priscilla Becker focuses on in-class
writing (February 22-March 29); Christopher
Schmidt teaches “Writing Between the
Lines” (February 23-March 30) and Jill Magi
teaches “Text, Image, Theme & Between”
(February 24-March 31). Open Enrollment
classes cost $295. For more information or
to enroll call (212) 431-7920 or go to www.
poetshouse.org.
To comment on B.P.C. Beat or to suggest
story ideas, e-mail TereseLoeb@mac.com
downtown express Februar y 9 - 15, 2011 15

Protestors in Times Sq. tell Mubarak to get out now

Times Square was busting at the seams on
Friday, as hundreds of Egyptian-American protest-
ers gathered to support those in Egypt who are
calling for President Hosni Mubarak to step down
immediately.
Braving rain and chilly temperatures, Egyptians
and Americans alike descended on 42nd Street,
carrying Egyptian flags and signs that read “Down
with Mubarak “ and “Mubarak must go.”
Prior to the protest, Mubarak had announced
that he would not be running for re-election.
However, many of his decriers want assurance
that Mubarak’s allies in the government won’t step
in after he leaves.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the
Obama administration is also in talks with the
Egyptian government and the military to come up
with a plan, in which a transitional government
would peacefully replace Mubarak immediately.
The protest comes as the uprising in Egypt
intensifies, as Friday marked the “day of leaving,”
in which over a 100,000 Egyptians gathered in
Cairo to send a forceful message to Mubarak.
The demonstration in Times Square also con-
tinued to the United Nations building on East
44th Street, as protesters argued for “real democ-
racy” in the conflict-ridden country.
Speakers from organizations, such as the
Alliance of Egyptian-Americans were present,
representing the large community of Egyptians in
the tri-state area.

— Jhaneel Lockhar t
Downtown Express photos by Milo Hess

LOWER
MANHATTAN
EATS

THE DOWNTOWN ALLIANCE’S CULINARY WALKING

TOURS ARE BACK. TAKE A TOUR AND DISCOVER
DELICIOUSNESS IN LOWER MANHATTAN.

Let us introduce you to some of the area’s most exciting eateries and
purveyors with thematic culinary expeditions.

Savor the Romance

Saturday, February 19, 2011
Noon to 3 PM | Rain or Shine

Visit www.DowntownNY.com/foodtours
for more details and to purchase tickets.
16
Not the typical Super Bowl Sunday for some
Continued from page 1
The mission has always celebrated the
big game with a party, which mainly con-
sisted of hot dogs and wings, but Little
knew that in order to launch their own
official SOUPerBowl week, they would
need to get a big name on board; more
specifically, they needed someone who
was “big” in the Downtown community.
The first name that came to mind was
David Bouley.
“Once other chefs heard that he was
on board, they jumped on, too,” Little
explained. “He has a history of commu-
nity activism, so they could tell it was a
real trustworthy cause. He set the bar,
so chef after chef said, ‘Of course, we’ll
sponsor a night.’”
The Soup-Super double entendre eas-
ily grabs the attention of perspective
volunteers, which Little said is crucial in
getting people involved.
“People want to give, but get caught
up in their every day, especially elected
officials, anchors, all the usual people
with megaphones, and they don’t know
when to do it,” Little said. “They need a
hook.”
The event falls in the middle of the
time gap between their big Thanksgiving
and Mother’s Day banquets, during what
is generally a quiet time of year for vol-
unteer organizations. It’s also a very cold
time of year, and this winter has been one
of their roughest, for reasons that span far
beyond the snow.
The mission opens its door to an aver-
age of 400 people daily, and has been
picking up the slack ever since John Heuss
House closed its 42 Beaver Street shelter
last year. Unlike most men’s recovery
missions, it doubles as a drop-in center
for transient men, women, and children.
Twenty-five beds are reserved for men in
the mission’s twelve-step recovery pro-
gram. While there was no shortage of
food during the game, there was a short-
age of something else: beer.
In fact, there wasn’t any at all. The
entire building is an alcohol-free zone.
“It’s almost counter-cultural to have
a game without beer, but it’s a problem
for many of our residents and transient
guests,” said Little. “We need to maintain
a clean, sober setting.”
Mission resident Tom Knight has been
in the program for four months and was
watching big game sober for the first time
in — well, he can’t remember. His family
got him “into drinking” and refused to
support his decision to quit, so he moved
into the Mission and began the twelve-
step recovery program.
Knight is now almost halfway through
the ten-month program, which includes
educational and vocational classes as well
as spiritual counseling, and requires com-
plete sobriety.
“It’s different, but it’s no big deal,”
Knight said with a smile that exuded a
certain humble confidence. “I can do it.”
Februar y 9 - 15, 2011
There was plenty of chicken wings, fries and, of course, soup to go around at the
SOUPerBowl party last Sunday at the NYC Rescue Mission.
Colameco’s decision to start a fund-
raising initiative for the mission came
after he spent an afternoon serving food,
clearing tables, and realizing that poverty
and hunger don’t just have one face —
especially in New York.
“Words like ‘needy’ always get thrown
around, and certain ethnic and racial ste-
reotypes come to mind, but you’d be sur-
prised to see how many elderly Chinese
people were there, even kids in their 20’s.
Some looked like they had barely gradu-
ated high school,” Colameco said.
On Monday, Al Yeganeh, the man who
inspired Seinfeld’s “Soup-Nazi” character,
sent chicken noodle soup over to the mis-
sion. He may have a reputation for being
edgy — even downright mean — but the
owner of the national Original Soup Man
chains has a history of ushering the home-
less and the poor people to the front of
the line and serving them for free.
FOX Sportscaster Duke Castiglione
helped serve on Wednesday, and was
reportedly very “sweet with the guys,”
circulating and weeding out the Steelers
fans the Packers fans. The spirit of the
day made it easier for him to bond with
the guys. For most men, he said, talking
sports is like talking about the weather:
it’s something they all have in common.
“We talked a lot of football, but they
also wanted to talk a little Mets and
Yankees,” Castiglione said. “The guys
were real knowledgeable and came up to
talk to me, and it was all very relaxed.”
Castiglione was long overdue to volun-
teer, according to his wife, Kiki, who vol-
unteers regularly and has always encour-
aged Duke to do the same. He’s glad he
finally did.
“We served 205 meals, men were com-
ing up one after the other. A lot of people
need help. The mission is always looking
for volunteers, and welcomes you with
Downtown Express photos by Helaina N. Hovitz
open arms. I’d encourage anybody to go
down there,” Castiglione said. “It’s not
a high-pressure situation. They made me
feel at home. I’ll definitely be back, and
my wife will probably come with me.”
Vikas Khanna, who was welcomed into
the shelter ten years ago on Christmas day,
has been bringing soup and brownies over
from his successful restaurant Junoon for
the past five years. After arriving in New
York from India in 2002, one of his first
jobs was in a Downtown restaurant. He
showed up on Christmas to start his
shift only to find that the restaurant was
closed. He had just enough money on him
for the subway, but wouldn’t have been
able to get to work the next day. Khanna
wandered the neighborhood and found
the mission, where he found a hearty meal
and found refuge from the cold.
Khanna was unable to attend on
Sunday, but restaurant representative
Andrew Blackmore brought his famous
lentil and spinach soup with him — along
with a large dose of reality.
“On one side of the country, you have
people paying a million dollars for a
thirty-second advertising spot, and on the
other, there’s a line of people waiting in
the cold who need soup,” said Blackmore,
who was flagged by his two children,
Rutger, 7, and Morgan, 14, also volun-
teering. “You can’t depend on a govern-
ment that’s running out of money. It’s up
to every day people, average citizens, to
create and build community.”
The Downtown community can always
depend on Bubby’s restaurant in Tribeca
to donate money to their local schools;
but when the eatery decided to stay open
for the first time on Thanksgiving to
fundraise, they gave a generous-and unso-
licited-donation to the Mission. Owner
Ron Silver stepped up again last Friday
and donated his famous chicken gumbo,
downtown express
which Miss Black New Jersey USA 2011,
Nicole Stanley, was happy to help serve
up — and then some.
“Nicole worked even harder than
expected, serving, cleaning tables, and
essentially mopping up at end of Friday
dinner,” said Little.
“Don’t worry,” Little added, “the men
were complete gentlemen around her.”
Some of the most noteworthy people
gathered in the chapel to watch the big
game Sunday weren’t just volunteers-they
were residents who have been working
diligently to get back on their feet for the
past year. The mission claims that spiri-
tual counseling has the power to change
these men in ten months — that is, if they
want to change themselves.
“I spent the last twenty five years
running from God, but I found him,”
explained Tyler Williams, 46, who spent
twenty years in and out of prison. After
almost three decades of substance abuse
and numerous unsuccessful attempts at
recovery, someone referred him to the
mission. Williams believes that the mis-
sion has given him the tools he needs to
maintain his new lifestyle.
Williams is pictured on the cover of the
mission’s bi-monthly newsletter embracing
his six-year-old son, with whom he was
reunited for the first time in five years on
Christmas Eve. He found the baby’s moth-
er on Facebook while using the mission’s
computer, and has seen him three times a
week spoken to him every day since.
“He’s so smart,” Williams said with
pride as he stared at the photo on the
front page. “I’m blessed to be in his life
now. He’s such a smart boy.”
Williams watched the Super Bowl
sober on Sunday for the first time in 25
years, and his dedication has clearly paid
off: he graduates from the program on
Thursday.
He and the eight other men that arrived
around the same time in May have prom-
ised to stay in touch after graduation,
but know that Sunday’s party may well
have been the last time they would all be
together in the same room. None of the
graduates know exactly what to expect
after Thursday, but the mission will assist
them with their job search and have
already given the men the skills they need
to start and maintain a new life.
And as the party continued in the
chapel, cold, hungry men in dusty clothes
filed into the mission’s entrance asking
for jeans and a shower. Before halftime, a
fight broke out and an unruly guest was
ejected. By the end of the game, the room
was full of excitement, but all of the men
watching the big game were painfully
aware that they were seated in plastic
chairs, in rows of ten, watching on a small
projector in a shelter where quotes from
the Bible lined the walls.
But for men in the crowd like Tyler,
something else was present in the room:
hope that they would be hosting next
year’s party in their own homes, celebrat-
ing another sober Super Bowl.
downtown express
Touting regulations for Chinatown buses
Continued from page 3
said, would “hold the bus operators account-
able for their actions, including fines for
violating these regulations.”
The permit would cost the bus companies
a maximum of $275 annually. The elected
officials purposely kept the fee low, they
said, so companies wouldn’t have to adjust
ticket prices in order to afford permits.
The politicians didn’t specify a time-
line of the bill, but said they would like it
passed “as quickly as possible.” Chin said
she’s confident that the City Council will
approve the law, since Speaker Christine
Quinn is very supportive of it.
Oversight of intercity long distance
buses has been a priority for Community
Board 3 for several years, according to
David Crane, chair of the board’s trans-
portation committee. Recently, more and
more Chinatown residents have expressed
concerns to the board about congestion,
pollution and safety surrounding the fren-
zied bus system.
“The bus companies need regulations
that provide ways for them to comply with
the law, to operate safely, and coexist on
our congested streets,” said Crane.
Eastern Coach, a bus company that
shuttles passengers between New York,
Washington and Philadelphia, accrues


Februar y 9 - 15, 2011 17
about $30,000 in parking fines each year
from idling or parking illegally. “Now, we
have no [legal] space on the street,” said
President David Wang.
The company’s bus drivers frantical-
ly scramble to avoid the traffic police,
according to Wang, causing a precarious
situation for pedestrians.
“When the drivers see the cops, they
get so scared, they try to pull out,” Wang
said, sometimes even during passenger
pick-ups.
Cops tend to issue parking tickets arbi-
trarily, according to Jimmy Cheng, presi-
dent of the United Fujianese American
Association, a nationwide nonprofit based
on East Broadway that has garnered com-
munity support for the bus law in the past
few years.
Wilson Yau, who owns a discount store
in Chinatown, agreed that today’s unregu-
lated system is not working, neither for
passengers nor the bus companies. “If the
government controls the spot[s], gives the
license, and separates the buses,” he said,
“they’re much easier to control.”
Passengers now, he added, have a hard
time deciphering the street signs that indi-
cate which bus stops at a given stop.
Approximately 20 intercity bus compa-
nies currently operate in Chinatown, accord- Downtown Express photo by Aline Reynolds
ing to Chin’s office. They would all require State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (at podium) was among the local politicians
permits if the law is passed. touting proposed regulations for Chinatown buses at a press conference last Friday.
$35 Prix Fixe Lunch
Celebrating our 15th anniversary in Tribeca
“Dark” and “romantic”, this “white-tablecloth” TriBeCa Northern italian piles
on the antipasti and other “delicious” “old-world” delights served “with flair”
by “over-the-top” waiters; just “hold your breath when the bill comes” — and
“decide the tip” before downing the gratis “housemade grappa.”
~Zagat 2008
“Romance is in the air” at this “dark” TriBeCa Northern Italian where “delicious”
food is served by waiters who put on a “great show”; be sure to “finish the
night” with the “gratis homemade grappa” — it’ll “help dull the shock of the
bill.”
~ Zagat 2007
The food, the service and the ambiance make you feel like you
are in a scene from the Godfather. “We will make you a dish you
can’t refuse!” Our unique Northern Italian Cuisine, atmosphere
and impeccable service will make your dining experience
~Michelin Restaurant Guide, 2008
Celebrate Valentine’s Day With Us!
- Your hosts Sergio & Timmy
~Z
Open for Lunch & Dinner
Mon. - Fri., Lunch: 12 - 3 PM
Dinner: 5 - 10:30 PM, Sat: 5 - 11
10 PM
Sunday: 5 - 10 PM
(UDSON3Ts
visit us at: www.acapella-restaurant.com
18 Februar y 9 - 15, 2011 downtown express

B.P.C. not thrilled with half marathon

Continued from page 5

reason for the race. “This is not like the Lupus Walk, for
example, where 100 percent of the proceeds go to the char-
ity,” he said. “I’m pretty sure there will be vitamin drinks and
commercial sponsors of this run.”
Several Battery Park City Committee members wondered
why the walk-off for the race had to go through Battery
Park City. Committee member Bill Love suggested that the
runners just head north when the race ended, with post-race
events on Pier 25 or Pier 40.
In a telephone interview, Peter Ciaccia, Senior Vice
President of Event Development and Production for New
York Road Runners, said that would not be an option. He
said that runners would be coming down West Street, whose
southbound lanes will be closed off for the race. If runners
who had finished headed north to the Hudson River Park
piers, the two groups would intersect.
Ciaccia said that the Half Marathon would be good for
Battery Park City businesses. “Our business team is working with
various restaurants. We recommend that the runners go to one of
these restaurants. The businesses appreciate it,” he said.
Although Philip Santora is scheduled to appear before the
Battery Park City Committee again on March 1 for further
discussion about the race, Ciaccia indicated that nothing
could be changed at this point.
“We have to work very closely with the City agencies on
this because it affects much more than just one area,” Ciaccia
said. “To move the finish line would be a little difficult. But
we are certainly not against looking at other options. To say
today that we can make that change might be a little difficult.
But we are exploring some other options for the New York
City Half Marathon at future dates.” This participant in last year’s half-marathon might not get the same chance in 2012.
downtown express Februar y 9 - 15, 2011 19

Avenues: Chelsea home of first world school

Continued from page 9
Hotchkiss School); and head of the early
learning center Nancy Schulman (director
of the 92nd St. Y’s Nursery School since
1990).
At the luncheon, C.E.O. Chris Whittle
(who founded Edison School — now
Edison Learning — in 1992 with Schmidt)
equated the 2012 launch of Avenues to
Victor Hugo’s declaration that “There
is nothing more powerful than an idea
whose time has come.”
Reached by phone later in the day,
Whittle spoke about the kind of student,
and person, Avenues intends to nur-
ture. “We believe that increasingly, life is
going to get more and more international.
Schooling is getting more international,
and so your capabilities to navigate in
other cultures are going to be helpful
— whether you’re in the art world or
banking.”
Whittle also emphasized the impor-
tance of fluency in at least two, preferably
three, languages. Avenues will require all
of its students to make an early decision
to study either Spanish or Mandarin. With
an eye on things to come, Whittle pointed
out, “America is destined to become the
largest Spanish-speaking country in the
world in relatively short order.” As for
the reason behind their other second
language of choice, Whittle stated, “The
most spoken language in the world is
Mandarin.” Currently, those who speak
it are studying English at a rate 30 times
that of those who are learning Mandarin.
This discrepancy, Whittle noted at the
luncheon, has immense cultural and eco-
nomic implications.
‘We need new models
of schools that break away
from the centuries-old
paradigm.’
Also referenced when Whittle invoked
Victor Hugo was the implication that
by preparing students to compete in an
increasingly global market, the Avenues
graduate will be primed to collaborate
with those on the five continents they will
have set foot on before they enter col-
lege. Beginning in Middle School, Whittle
assured, “Each student will be encouraged
to participate in overseas learning experi-
ences, with particular emphasis on China,
India, Latin America, Africa and Europe.”
Those experiences will take place in the
20 or more planned independent schools
which Avenues says will open over the
next decade — in cities such as Shanghai,
London, Mumbai, Johannesburg, Abu
Dhabi and Sydney. All Avenue students,
Whittle stressed, will benefit from highly
individualized instruction and a consis-
tent educational philosophy regardless
of which campus they’re at. “We need
new models of schools,” said Whittle,
“that break away from the centuries-old
paradigm.”
But before Avenues realizes its grand
global ambitions, it must first success-
fully get the Chelsea campus up and
running — and, in the process, become
the good neighbor it promises to be.
At least one group sure to be impacted,
Friends of the High Line, is optimistic.
Joshua David, the organization’s co-
founder, told Chelsea Now that “Avenues
has been a good neighbor to the High
Line, and the school’s leadership is eager
to become active and engaged mem-
bers of this community.” As for basing
their first, and flagship, campus in the
shadow of the High Line, David said, “As
we understand it, the proposed design
is respectful of the building’s original
design by Cass Gilbert and relates well to
the West Chelsea Historic District.”
One week after the luncheon, Chelsea
Now spoke with attendee Kathy Shea —
executive director of the Parents League
of New York (parentsleague.org). Shea
spoke glowingly of the school’s plans,
but did so with caution in both her
choice of words and tone. “I thought it
was a fabulous concept,” recalled Shea
— who was particularly welcoming to
Avenues’ standard of fluency in at least
two languages.
She hesitated, though, when asked
for her thoughts on the impact that time
spent abroad might have on education
and the family dynamic. “I think ideally,
it sounds wonderful,” said Shea — who
declined to elaborate further. One conse-
quence she eagerly speculated on was the
immediate impact, in 2012, that Avenues
will have on the neighborhood: “It’s in an
area of the city that needs more schools.
There’s a growing population in that part
of town. It should be a welcome addition
to the community.”
Avenues has not yet set its tuition
for the 2012-13 school year, but it will
be consistent with other K-12 indepen-
dent schools in New York, which they
say average around $35,000. At least $4
million has been budgeted for financial
assistance, and about 10 percent of the
student body will receive some form of
that assistance.
20
Lottery shaping up to be another crisis moment
Continued from page 1
introduced the system to the school.
“You don’t have the panic as you had in that
first year,” she said. “I’m not sure if it’s because
now they know there’ll be a lottery,” which is
“kind of a matter of course at this point.”
Besides, Lenski noted, not everyone who
applies and gets in accepts the seat, since many
parents end up enrolling their children in gifted
and talented programs or private schools.
P.S. 234, which opened in 1988, first started
holding lotteries in 2008, when the number of
kindergarten applicants surpassed the school’s
capacity.
Despite the calmness that Lenski described,
however, parents of pre-schoolers in the neigh-
borhood are worried that their children may
not be the school’s lucky picks. The thought
of Tribeca resident Silke Steinberg’s four-and-
a-half-year-old son, Alexander, not getting into
P.S. 234, for example, is making her very
upset.
In addition to hearing praise from neighbors
about the school, Steinberg said she has a good
gut feeling about it. “It’s such a great school and
community,” she said, “and the academic levels
are totally up to par.”
It’s only fair, she argued, that Alexander
get preference over youngsters that are new to
the area, she said. The family has been living
in the neighborhood since 2003. “We’re loyal
Downtown residents – I definitely think there
1\UPVY+P]PZPVU!K-4TH GRADES
Februar y 9 - 15, 2011
should be a way to put that into consideration,”
said Steinberg.
Only zoned siblings, however, get priority in
public school lotteries, according to the D.O.E.
Silke has filled out an application for P.S.
150 (The Tribeca Learning Center) and P.S.
276. She is also considering the private school
route.
Despite the back-up plans, though, she is
still very determined to win a seat for Alexander
at P.S. 234.
“We’re not going to give up. If they’re not
going to give us a spot right away, we’re going
to wait until September,” she said, even if it
means having to forfeit a down-payment at a
different school.
Tribeca resident Betty Huber has also heard
great things about P.S. 234. She was “extreme-
ly impressed” by the school’s principal, Lisa
Ripperger, during a recent tour of the school,
and feels comfortable with the city’s public
school system, having herself gone through it
as a youth.
Just as importantly, she said, “we’d like our
child to go to a school with his neighbors. “We
really want him to have a sense of his com-
munity.”
The family has foregone sending out applica-
tions to private schools elsewhere in Manhattan,
Huber said, since they wouldn’t want their son,
Thomas, to have to make the daily trek to
school by bus or subway.
Shino Tanikawa, president of Community
Education Council District Two, said the
20
Celebrating
FUN !
of
6WLU/V\ZL+H[LZ!
Feb 7th, March 8th, April 5th
C.E.C. is “very concerned” about overcrowd-
ing in P.S. 234. “It was the hardest hit
because [of] the way the school was zoned
[last year],” she said.
P.S./I.S. 276 in Battery Park City is also
contending with an excess number of kinder-
garten applications. The school, which now
has four kindergarten sections that hold a total
of 100 youths, is contemplating opening up
a fifth section to accommodate all students
that desire a seat in next year’s kindergarten
class. Approximately 70 have applied so far,
according to Erica Weldon, the school’s parent
coordinator.
Adding new sections to the grades is a col-
laborative decision between the school and the
D.O.E., according to Rosenfeld.
“If a zoned school, for instance, has roughly
25 more zoned applicants than they currently
have seats for, they would reach [out] to us,
and we’d take a look at the space they have,” he
said. “If we come to an agreement with them
that they have room for an extra kindergarten
section… we’ll partner with them and create an
additional section.”
As the school expands into a full elementary
and middle school, though, P.S./I.S. 276 will
begin to run out of room for a surplus of kin-
dergarteners.
“If we have more than four each year, it’s
going to be a problem,” Weldon said.
Terri Ruyter, the school’s principal, said she
is not worried. “It’s a zero sum game,” she said,
since some families who apply in the spring
:LUPVY+P]PZPVU!5TH-8TH GRADES
years

downtown express
ultimately choose to send their kids to gifted
and talented programs or private schools come
September. Others, she said, move out of the
district altogether before and during the school
year.
“It doesn’t do us well to panic about things
we don’t have control over in the future,” said
Ruyter, noting that the wait list last year even-
tually disappeared. “I have a lot of confidence
things will shake out just fine this year.”
P.S. 89, which accepts students pre-K to
fifth grade, has received 60 applications so far
for 65 available slots — a pretty similar count
to this time last spring, according to Parent
Coordinator Connie Schraft. “We always take
a few more than we’re slotted to,” she said,
“because there are so many people who move
or go to a gifted-and-talented or private school,”
she said.
If the school has to hold a lottery, it will,
Schraft said, but, either way, the administration
isn’t concerned about overcrowding.
“I think it worked last year, I don’t see why
it wouldn’t work this year.”
Kindergarten pre-registration ends March
4, and registration will take place the week of
March 21. The D.O.E. will notify families of
their seat assignments on or before April 15.
In the meantime, the D.O.E. indicated, par-
ents will just have to be patient.
“We understand the anxiety of parents,” said
Rosenfeld, “and just like last year, we’ll work to
provide every single child on a waitlist with a
quality seat at a local school.”
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downtown express
DOWNTOWN SUMMER DAY CAMP EARLY REGISTRA-
TION Spring’s not even in the air yet—but before you know it,
summer will be just around the corner. Get the jump on the always-
popular Downtown Summer Day Camp by registering by Feb. 28
for Early Bird Rates. For slightly less early birds, there will be Open
Houses on March 7 and April 5. Summer is just around the corner,
and now your child can enjoy the same enriching activities that
country day camps offer without the stress of traveling out of the
city every day on a bus. The summer camp combines a daily program
at their facilities, with special events to give children an exciting and
varied camp experience. Now in its 20th summer, Downtown Day
Camp proudly boasts that they provide “simply the most enjoyable
summer experience available — and all in a nearby, safe, caring
environment.” This year, there’s a new swimming pool — plus art
rooms, a multi-media lab, a dance studio, a gym, classrooms and
more. There’s also karate, musical performances, pier barbecues, a
camp carnival and special events. The camp day is from 9am-5pm
with early and late hours as well. Downtown Day Camp takes place
at 120 Warren St. For registration and info, call 212-766-1104, x250
or visit downtowndaycamps.com.
THE NEW YORK CITY POLICE MUSEUM The Junior Officers
Discovery Zone is an exhibit designed for ages 2-10. It’s divided
into four areas (Police Academy; the Park and Precinct; Emergency
Services Unit; and a Multi-Purpose Area), each with interactive
and imaginary play experiences for children to understand the role
of police officers in our community — by, among other things, driv-
ing and taking care of a police car. For older children, there’s a crime
scene observation activity that will challenge them to remember
relevant parts of city street scenes; a physical challenge similar to
those at the Police Academy; and a model Emergency Services Unit
vehicle where children can climb in, use the steering wheel and
lights, hear radio calls with police codes and see some of the actual
equipment carried by The Emergency Services Unit. At 100 Old Slip.
For info, call 212-480-3100 or visit www.nycpm.org. Hours: Mon.
through Sat., 10am-5pm and Sun., noon-5pm. Admission: $8 ($5 for
students, seniors and children. Free for children under 2.
DOWNTOWN COMMUNITY CENTER For info on swim les-
sons, basketball, gym class, karate and more, call 212-766-1104.
Visit manhattanyouth.org. The Downtown Community Center is
located at 120 Warren St.
CHILDREN’S MUSEUM OF THE ARTS Explore painting, collage
and sculpture through self-guided arts projects. Open art stations
are ongoing throughout the afternoon — giving children the oppor-
tunity to experiment with materials such as paint, clay, fabric, paper
and found objects. Young minds can be great minds — and great
minds, as they say, often think alike. See for yourself when you view
“Art Within Reach: from the WPA to the Present” — on display now
through June 5. This intergenerational exhibit connects the artistic
and intellectual dots between those who grew up in NYC during the
Great Depression and those who are growing up in the city today.
Museum hours: Wed.-Sun., 12-5pm; Thurs., 12-6pm (Pay as You
Wish, from 4-6pm). Admission: $10. At the Children’s Museum of
the Arts (182 Lafayette St. btw. Broome & Grand). Call 212- 274-
0986 or visit cmany.org. For group tours, call 212-274-0986, exten-
sion 31.
SATURDAY AFTERNOONS AT THE SCHOLASTIC STORE Every
Saturday at 3pm, Scholastic’s in-store activities are designed to get
kids reading, thinking, talking, creating and moving. The Scholastic
Store is located at 557 Broadway (btw. Prince & Spring). Store hours
are Mon.-Sat., 10am-7pm, and Sun., 11am-6pm. For info about store
events, call 212-343-6166. Visit scholastic.com.
Februar y 9 - 15, 2011
Barnstormers: Putting the Moo in “Moo-sical theater.”
CLICK, CLACK, MOO
Theatreworks USA is about to unleash
a barnyard full of singing, dancing animals.
“Click, Clack, Moo” sees Farmer Brown get-
ting more than he bargained for when his cows
come upon an old typewriter, load it up with
some paper and begin to air their complaints.
It’s not long before the farm animals go on
strike. Will a chicken cross the road — and the
picket line? Find out when this quirky musical
(complete with oversized props, colorful cos-
tumes and sing-along songs) takes to the stage.
Sun., Feb. 13, 3pm at the Tribeca Performing
Arts Center (199 Chambers St.). Tickets are
BOOKS OF WONDER & CUPCAKE CAFÉ Literate kids and cup-
cake enthusiasts of all ages mingle at the space shared by Books
of Wonder and Cupcake Café. The Café has sweet stuff all day,
every day (they’ve got some of the best icing in town) — while the
bookstore has story time Sundays at Noon (appropriate for ages
3-7). There’s simply nothing better than being able to depend on a
weekly story followed by a massive sugar rush. Life is good! Books
of Wonder is located at 18th St. (btw. Fifth & Sixth Aves.). Call 212-
989-3270 or visit booksofwonder.com. Cupcake Café, at the same
address, can be reached at 212-465-1530 or visit cupcakecafe.com.
POETS HOUSE The Poets House “Tiny Poets Time” program
offers children ages 1-3 and their parents a chance to enter the
world of rhyme — through readings, group activities and interactive
performances. Thursdays at 10am (at 10 River Terrace and Murray
St.). Call 212-431-7920 or visit poetshouse.org.
ANGELINA BALLERINA: THE MUSICAL Everyone at the Cam-
embert Academy is all aflutter because a special guest is coming to
visit. Angelina and her friends are excited to show off their hip-hop,
modern dance, Irish jig and ballet skills — but will Angelina get that
moment in the spotlight she’s hoping for? Based on characters from
the PBS series, this show is appropriate for ages 3-12. Through Feb.
19, Sat. at 1pm & 3pm and Sun. at 1pm. At the Union Square The-
atre (100 E. 17th St. btw. Union Square East and Irving Place). For
tickets ($39.50-$65), call 1-800-982-2787 or visit ticketmaster.com.
Also visit angelinathemusical.com.
DEAR EDWINA This heartwarming show about the joys and frus-
trations of growing up has our spunky heroine (advice-giver extraor-
YOUTH
ACTIVITIES
Photo by Joan Marcus
$25 but with the purchase of a 10Club mem-
bership (a $140 10-ticket package), you’ll save
more than $100 and also receive a discount
with several of their neighborhood partners just
by showing the membership card. The TPAC
season continues with “Charlotte’s Web” on
Sun., March 6 at 3pm; Bo Eason’s semi-autobi-
ographical “Runt of the Litter” on Sat., March
12 at 1:30pm; the Dallas Children’s Theatre
presentation of “Giggle, Giggle Quack” on
Sat., March 26 at 1:30pm; and the Tall Stories
of London production “Room on the Broom”
at 1:30pm on Sat., April 16. For more info visit
tribecapac.org.
dinaire Edwina Spoonable) sharing her wisdom on everything from
setting the table to making new friends. That it’s done through clev-
er, catchy and poignant songs makes the experience enjoyable and
engaging for kids who know what Edwina’s going through as well
as adults who remember what it was like. Through Feb. 25 at the
DR2 Theatre (103 E. 15th St.). For tickets ($39), call 212-239-6200.
For groups of 10 or more, call 646-747-7400. Visit dearedwina.com
for additional details and full schedule.
GAZILLION BUBBLE SHOW: THE NEXT GENERATION Three
Moving Visions’ Murray Street Studio
A Wise Choice for your child’s dance education!
Dance for Children and Teens
• Modern Ballet (ages 5-18) • Choreography (ages 8 & up)
• Creative Movement/Pre-Ballet (ages 3-5)
ADULT CLASSES Yoga - Tai Chi • Chi/Dance/Exercise for Women
19 Murray St., 3rd Fl.
(Bet. Broadway and Church)
21
years into its run, the Gazillion Bubble Show welcomes creator
Fan Yang’s 20-year-old son into the family business. We’re prom-
ised that “Bubble Super-Star” Deni Yang will elevate this already
spectacular experience to new heights of bubble blowing artistry).
The open-ended run plays Fri. at 7 p.m., Sat. at 11am, 2pm and
4:30pm and Sun. at noon and 3pm. 75 minutes, no intermission.
For tickets ($44.50 to $89.50), call 212-239-6200 or visit www.
telecharge.com. Visit gazillionbubbleshow.com.
PRESCHOOL PLAY AND STORIES & SONGS A new session
of “Preschool Play” has been added: This program invites walk-
ing toddlers to join other children, parents, and caregivers for fun
interactive play, art and theme days. Thursdays, through March 24,
from 1:30-3:30pm. The fee is $175 for 10 weeks (siblings: $100). At
“Stories & Songs,” a variety of musicians teach and perform child-
friendly music. Movement, dancing and rhythm instruments add to
the fun. Mondays, through April 25 (except 1/17 and 2/21) as well as
on Wednesdays, through April 13. Space is still available in 40-min-
ute classes: the 9:30-10:10am class for children 6-14 months — and
the 12 noon-12:40pm class for mixed ages (6 months to 3.5 years).
There is a $231 fee for 14 weeks (20% discount for siblings). Both
events take place in the Meeting Room at the Verdesian (211 North
End Ave., btw. Warren & Murray, in Battery Park City). For info or to
register, call 212-267-9700, ext. 366 or 348. Visit bpcparks.org.
THE FESTIVAL OF THE VEGETABLES Once upon a time,
composer/librettist Michael Kosch and choreographer/costume
designer Rachael Kosch created a suite of savory vignettes
designed for children and their families. Sometime later (the pres-
ent day to be exact), “The Festival of the Vegetables” has returned
for its fifth annual production. Metropolitan Playhouse presents,
proudly we’re assured, this music-dance-poetry-theater piece
in which a troupe of dancers and actors (ages 5 to 45) perform a
series of lighthearted poems and dances that reveal the secret
life of vegetables. It is set in a vast supermarket where a toddler,
shopping with mom, nods off to sleep. The child dreams of veg-
etable adventures — each story introduced by a couple of bum-
bling yet eloquent produce clerks. Vegetable-people of all variet-
ies jump and whirl in a whimsical salad. Duncan Broccoli dances a
Scottish reel; King Potato holds vegetable court; lithe String Bean
Fiddler twirls and trills; Colonel Corn stalks the scary SpinWitch;
Arugula weds ravishing Radish; and Rotund Rutabaga perches
on pointe. If your kids won’t eat their vegetables after this show,
maybe they’ll at least appreciate the entertainment value supplied
by all that stuff that grows in the ground, helps you grow and is
very, very, very good for you! Sats. and Suns., 11am, Feb. 6-20. At
the Metropolitan Playhouse (220 E. 4th St., btw. Aves. A & B). Tick-
ets are $10 for children 12 and under; $15 for adults. For reserva-
tions, call 212-995-5302 or visit metropolitanplayhouse.org.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE YOUR EVENT LISTED IN THE
DOWNTOWN EXPRESS? Listing requests may be sent to
scott@downtownexpress.com. Please provide the date, time,
location, price and a description of the event. Information may
also be mailed to 145 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY,
10013. Requests must be received three weeks before the event
is to be held.
212-608-7681 (day)
www.murraystreetdance.com
22 Februar y 9 - 15, 2011 downtown express

DOWNTOWNEXPRESSARTS&ENTERTAINMENT
Malcah Zeldis: A Life Traveled in Painting
BY STEPHANIE BUHMANN
When I walked into the Tribeca home and studio of folk
artist Malcah Zeldis, my immediate impression was that
I had physically entered a storybook. A large selection of
paintings covered the walls with vibrantly colored narratives
that enveloped me as I surveyed the space.
At nearly 80 years old, Zeldis appears young and engag-
ing. She speaks vividly about her life and how it has con-
tinuously infiltrated her work. In conversation, years and
decades fly by easily — and in a couple of hours we cover
much ground. We touch on Zeldis’ upbringing in Detroit,
her Russian-Jewish heritage, as well as on her life as a young
wife and mother on a kibbutz in Israel (where she lived from
1948 to 1958). As we get more familiar, she mentions her
painful divorce a few years after her family had settled back
in the United States and ponders how in retrospect she feels
that her work had enabled her to fill the void that the loss of
her marital bond had left.
The night of our visit, she had just completed a small
canvas featuring Abraham Lincoln’s wife Mary Todd and was
happy to share it. The small portrait was inspired by the work
of William Mumler — a spirit photographer in the mid-1900s
who, like Zeldis, portrayed Mary Todd as she is embraced

As a New Yorker, Zeldis has not

shied away from addressing such
a delicate subject as September 11
or the political climate surrounding
Image courtesy of the artist

it. She has painted several tough Malcah Zeldis: “Peaceable Kingdom.” 1999. Oil on canvas.

compositions, featuring the day
itself, as well as abused prisoners
at Abu Ghraib.
by the ghost of her deceased husband. Rather than eerie, the
scene is peaceful, showing the mourning sitter with the faint-
est touch of a smile. Zeldis does not usually work from photo-
graphs and her interest in this particular subject went beyond
Mumler’s original. She had read Mary Todd’s biography and
knew much about her struggles and illnesses, talking about
her with compassion. All of the people Zeldis has painted
over the years have moved her deeply. In that sense, her work
is free of superficialities. The level of her emotional response
requires a deep knowledge of her subjects.
On the 30th floor with views of the city, Zeldis lives sur-
rounded by her works. Sparked by different memories and
stories, her paintings manifest as intimate illustrations of her
experiences, dreams and eclectic interests. Zeldis’ work was
begun primarily for her own enjoyment. She never imagined
having a career as an artist, and yet she has always experi-
enced an inner need for expressing herself creatively.
When her work finally began to gain professional atten-
tion (without her actively seeking any), she was so shocked
that she stopped painting. The realization that others were
suddenly looking at her work took away from her natural
and carefree approach. She began to fear that the work suf-
fered from her trying to make too many conscious decisions.
Since shedding these concerns and picking up where she had
left off, Zeldis has created a body of work that nobody could
deem inauthentic. It is her story told in her language to her-
self first — but accessible to others. Her work possesses the
unique ability to allow many to find themselves in it.
Born in 1931 in the Bronx, Malcah Zeldis looks back
at decades’ worth of work. Her preferences of palette and
compositional density might have changed (her earlier works
were darker and more spacious), but her approach and
manner have remained consistent. In recent years, she has
added three-dimensional works to her practice, working on
figurines made of found materials. Her oeuvre falls under the
genre of contemporary folk art, implying that Zeldis is com-
pletely self-taught and remains outside of any mainstream
art movements. Her style evokes a sense of naïve simplicity,
which conveys a purity of feeling.
While Zeldis remains outside of the buzzing art scene, she
hardly suffers from a lack of recognition. Her work has been
exhibited at the Brooklyn Museum, the New Orleans Museum
of Art, the Terra Museum of Art in Chicago, the New York State
Historical Society, the Yeshiva University Museum and the Katonah
Museum of Art, among others. In addition, she has illustrated sev-
eral children’s books (some in collaboration with her daughter)
on Benjamin Franklin, Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela and
Abraham Lincoln, for example. A Jewish Celebrations calendar for
2011 can be bought in stores and online.
Most importantly, Zeldis’ work is in the permanent
collections of the Smithsonian American Art Museum in
Washington, D.C., the American Folk Art Museum, the
Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Museum of Folk Art in Vermont,
the Akron Museum, the Jewish Museum in New York, as
well as the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, to only
name a few. This past fall, Zeldis had a well-received solo
exhibition at the American Folk Art Museum in New York
and, until February 25, her work is featured at The George
Washington University in Washington, D.C.
Back in her studio, Zeldis always works while sitting
down. She starts by drawing on a white surface — usually
canvas or board, which she subsequently colorizes with oil
paint (or gouache if working on paper).
Her subjects range from biblical and social themes, to family
celebrations, everyday events and portraits of people who have
had an emotional impact on her. The latter can in particular
include her mother — who was an accomplished ballet dancer
in Russia but had to give up her passion when she married — as
well as her brother who was deemed fatally ill as a child and
was hence forced to spend most of his childhood in bed. As a
result, elegant dancers frequently appear in Zeldis’ composi-
tions, and she has worked on many baseball scenes, which hark
back to memories of her brother, with whom she could not play
but would join in listening to baseball games.
One touching painting shows Zeldis and her bedridden
brother, who is wearing a baseball cap. They are listening
intently to the radio, while above them, in an almost surreal-
ist bubble of the imagination, a baseball game unfolds inside
a packed stadium. The contrast between the two children
and the jubilant crowd is heart-wrenching and yet, there is
a clear sense of hope and beauty in this intimate moment,
revealing the bond between two siblings.
However, Zeldis’ childhood memories are by no means all
happy ones. Her parents had lost children before she and her
brother were born and her father, a window washer, struggled
to make ends meet. He was a Sunday painter fascinated with
Continued on page 23
downtown express
Tribeca artist’s studio an extension of home, self
Continued from page 22
Flemish realism, but was a strict father and
remained unimpressed by his daughter’s artistic
aspirations. It is sad to think that neither her
father nor her husband ever encouraged Zeldis
to paint (she avoided making the same mistake
with her own children; her daughter Yona
Zeldis McDonough is an established writer and
her son David Zeldis is an accomplished artist).
Despite the hardships, there are simple details
that did enchant her as a child, and they con-
tinue to weave through her work. A birdbath
and an arch made of rose bushes, both beloved
features in her mother’s lush garden, appear
frequently and function as a visual Talisman
of sorts.
Besides members of her family, Zeldis
devotes much of her attention to prominent fig-
ures of the 20th century. Anne Frank, Abraham
Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Mother Theresa,
Gandhi and Beethoven, for example are people
she admires and they have become profound
staples in her work. All of them appear repeat-
edly, at times alone and then together, joining
in a montage-like accumulation of admirable
accomplishments. But Zeldis does not sim-
ply engage in the act of idolization. Instead,
she depicts them as her trusted and admired
friends. In a work entitled “Homage to Anne
Frank” (2004) Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther
King, Anne Frank, Gandhi and others join
Zeldis’ alter ego (depicted with a painter’s pal-
MUSIC ART
4ODDLERADULT
0RESCHOOL
!FTERSCHOOL
ARTSACADEMY
Februar y 9 - 15, 2011
ette in hand) around a grand piano, on which
Beethoven is just about to play. The scene is
astonishingly familiar and casual, letting it
appear like a warm Sunday tea party.
On the 30th floor with
views of the city, Zeldis
lives surrounded by her
works. Sparked by different
memories and stories,
her paintings manifest as
intimate illustrations
of her experiences, dreams
and eclectic interests.
Zeldis also extensively explores the dark
sides of humanity, its horrid wars and crimes.
But even when depicting historic figures or
shocking events, such as the bombings of
Nagasaki and Hiroshima, Zeldis’ works sub-
&
consciously always reveal much of herself.
They manifest as a meditation on her emotional
7EAT#HURCH3TREET3CHOOL
FOR-USICAND!RTBELIEVE
THATEVERYONEHASUNIQUE
23
Image courtesy of the artist
Malcah Zeldis: “Thanksgiving Dinner.” 1972. Oil on canvas.
response to the subject, which was chosen con- blatant question: of what horrors is human-
sciously, but captured while lost in thought. ity actually capable?
As a New Yorker, Zeldis has not shied While some of Zeldis’ works might provide
away from addressing such a delicate subject us with a kind of charming escapism, works like
as September 11 or the political climate sur- these show her as a critical and sensitive com-
rounding it. She has painted several tough mentator of her time. She is at once a dreamer
compositions, featuring the day itself, as and a realist. Continuing to trespass across
well as abused prisoners at Abu Ghraib and boundaries, Zeldis does not intend to tie herself
the execution of Daniel Pearl, for example. to a specific timeline and continues to travel
The paintings are forthright and do not lack seamlessly between current and past events, be
in unconcealed brutality. They all pose one they rooted in reality or her imagination.
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24 Februar y 9 - 15, 2011 downtown express

Hot property in the Baltics lands at La MaMa

State violence collides with secret violence against loved ones
offered us some. We declined.
THEATER SOLDIER 1 (voice only): We know
that you know the whereabouts of
Hans….
PURGE
Written by Sofi Oksanen SOLDIER 2 (voice only): You have
English translation by Eva Buchwald such a charming daughter.

Directed by Zishan Ugurlu ALIIDE: We said we didn’t know

Presented by Actors Without Borders anything about Hans….

February 10-20 SOLDIER 2 (voice only): What’s

At La MaMa E.T.C. (74-A East 4th St.)
For tickets, call 212-475-7710
BY JERRY TALLMER
Aliide speaks. She is a weather-worn
woman of 70, looking back on when she
was a girl of 20 in this same house in what
was then Soviet-occupied Estonia. Her lover,
Hans, in those days of her youth — her sister
Ingel’s husband, an Estonian who’d fought
the Russians and lost — is still asleep in his
hideaway in the basement behind a heavy
chest of drawers, when the Stalinist security
thugs come looking for him.
ALIIDE: Hans didn’t even wake up
when they came to get us, agreed to go
quietly. We didn’t want him to know.
We’d been woken by the dogs barking
even before they came to the door and
we knew exactly what it meant. By the
time they knocked we were standing in
the kitchen all ready to go.
It was our first time and they took
us straight to headquarters — to the
Town Hall. Me, Ingel and Linda [the
10-year-old]. There was a young boy
with them, a boy from the village.
He couldn’t look at us. We’d been
in the same school. In the cellar of
the Town Hall there were two naked
lamps [light bulbs] hanging from the
ceiling. A soldier was eating bread
and drinking vodka. Knocking back
his glass. Wiping his mouth on his
sleeve the way the Russians do. He
your daughter’s name?…The girl’s
almost a woman….
And that’s where the nightmare begins.
It’s all in the skillful telling, old Aliide
talking about the days of — remembering the
days of — young Aliide, a woman who will
survive in the face of anything, at the cost
of anything and anybody. All this in a jolting
piece of theater that’s by a young woman who
herself has hit the ripe old age of 33.
Her name is Sofi Oksanen. She was
born in Finland to a Finnish father and an
Estonian mother. Her play is called “Purge”
(“Puhdistus”), and it’s a very hot prop-
erty indeed in the Baltic countries of Eastern
Europe and elsewhere abroad. Its author
liked it so much — was so fascinated by its
characters, who wouldn’t leave her alone — Photo by Kirsten Kay Thoen
that she then further explored it as a novel, Maren Bush with Peter Franzén.
which in itself has turned into a best-seller.
Some share of play and novel, comes out of have the play come to New York. Aliide. You did the right thing. You
the memories of Oksanen’s Estonian grand- “Instead of a conscious and naturalistic did your duty. You acted as a progres-
mother. set,” Ugurlu said over some blueberry pan- sive, socially aware person should act.
This I learn from another remarkable cakes last week, “I’m trying for a set that That’s a noble thing. Your driving
young-minded woman, Zishan Ugurlu — is both conscious and subconscious — the force is your devotion to your com-
the Turkish-born director of the English- landscape of Aliide’s body and soul.” munity, to your Motherland. That’s
language version of this play (translated by And some body and soul this is. The admirable. You are guided by natu-
Eva Buchwald) that runs February 10-20 at Aliide of “Purge,” I hazarded, has much in ral class instinct. That’s what I first
the late Ellen Stewart’s La MaMa E.T.C. common with Bertolt Brecht’s eternal survi- admired in you. The very first time I
La MaMa regulars will surely remember vor, Mother Courage. saw you at the party meeting. I sensed
actress Ugurlu from her 2004 performance “Why yes!” exclaimed Ugurlu, who per- at once, there’s something special
as Helen of Troy in Andre Serban’s staging haps had been too busy to think of that. about that girl!…Finally when I saw
of “The Trojan Women.” Well, now she is She sees Aliide also as a Medea-like figure, you sitting in the corner, reading your
not only the director of “Purge” and of the “living on the edge; at the last moment Lenin — you looked like a picture or a
Actors Without Borders resident company she betrays everything and everybody, her painting — I could tell you had what it
that’s staging it, but also the set designer husband, her sister, her granddaughter. At takes to rise above the class you were
and the person who persuaded Oksanen to one point she becomes a sandwich in bed born into….
between her husband, Martin, and her lover,

TRIBECA DENTAL
Hans, her sister’s husband.
“It’s like a thriller,” said the director.
“Like a Hitchcock movie.” She took a breath
For the Whole Family before saying, “I love this play for the issues
it deals with — sex, politics, and power.”
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Also as it happens, rape, torture murder,
and other such Stalinist and non-Stalinist
Dr. Martin Gottlieb pleasantries.
Dr. Raphael Santore “Torture,” said Ugurlu. “Everybody does
it on one level or another. We do violence
Dr. Reena Clarkson,
Orthodontist
against our loved ones on an almost uncon-
scious level. And then the violence of the
Dr. Ken Chu, state collides with the secret violence against
Dr. Sara Fikree loved ones. The discourse of Aliide’s hus-
Pediatric Dentists
band Martin is almost like the discourse of
Stalin. ‘You are my comrade.’ ‘You are my
19 Murray Street Motherland.’”
Between Church & Broadway www.TribecaDentalCenter.com
For an appointment, call 212-941-9095 MARTIN: All right, all right,
Stop! Stop! Can’t someone please stop
him? I’d betray the crashing bore myself, if
only to stop him. Of course I’d have to marry
him first.
Fortunately for this production, the role
of Martin is being carried by the distin-
guished Finnish movie actor Peter Franzén.
The Aliide — old Aliide — is Jillian Lindig.
Young Aliide is Maren Bush. Grant Neale
is Hans.
Ugurlu says she owes everything to Ellen
Stewart for bringing her here seven years
ago, giving her a place to live, work to do,
getting her a Green Card.
The English of this young artist from
Istanbul is not only quite good but quite
colorful.
“That too is thanks to Ellen,” says
Ugurlu.
downtown express
Just Do Art!
COMPILED BY SCOTT STIFFLER
LANTERN FESTIVAL CELEBRATION
There’s more to celebrate than the
fact that the days are getting longer. The
H.T. Chen & Dancers’ “Lantern Festival
Celebration” will lighten your mind and
spirit by providing food for thought (plus
refreshments for the physical body).
Appropriate for the whole family, the
dances will range from the long-unseen
romantic duet “Nocturne” to H.T. Chen’s
“Big Brother” (performed by long-time
Company dancer Renouard Gee) to the
Chinese Lion Dance-inspired “Heart of
Grace.” Also scheduled to be performed
is “Warriors of Light” — a piece from
Chinese Opera, which concerns the jour-
ney towards enlightenment. So brave the
tail end of winter and get to know (or
rediscover) what the Chen Dance Center
has been doing right — and doing very
well — since 1988. Thurs. through Fri.,
Feb. 17-19. Pre-show activities at 7pm,
show at 7:30pm. At the Chen Dance Center
(70 Mulberry St., corner of Mulberry &
Bayard). For tickets ($15; $10 for stu-
dents/seniors), call 212-349-0126. Seating
is limited; reservations required.
CHALLAH BAKING WORKSHOP
The Jewish Women’s Circle’s “Challah
Baking Workshop” (sponsored by Chabad of
Battery Park City) will give you all the tech-
niques and tips you need in order to make
your own delicious homemade challah. Bring
along your daughter and friends, and have
fun — and never rely on store-bought again!
Suggested donation: $18. Wed., Feb. 16,
7pm. For details, or to RSVP, email Rabbi@
chabadbpc.com. Visit chabadbpc.com
Photo courtesy of Starboard Photos
Curiouser and curiouser: See “A Series
of Reveals.”
A SERIES OF REVEALS
When Zach Morris of Third Rail Projects
(creators of the Steampunk Haunted House)
walks past an empty storefront, he doesn’t
press his nose up against the glass and dream
of the day when the space will be selling $5
foot-long subs or overpriced designer duds.
Februar y 9 - 15, 2011
H.T. Chen & Dancers, in the Lantern Festival Celebration.
Quite some time ago, he had the foresight to
envision an evolving art installation inspired
by Lewis Carroll’s “Through the Looking
Glass.” That dream is now a reality, albeit
a twisted and ever-morphing one (appro-
priate, considering Carroll’s propensity for
images and ideas that are as silly and surreal
as they are dark and disturbing). The ever-
unfolding life-size dioramas are on view
through March 18, at One New York Plaza
Art Space (concourse level). Mon. through
Fri., 7am–7pm. Visit artsbrookfieldproper-
ties.com and thirdrailprojects.com.
CHINESE NEW YEAR CELEBRATION
The Chinese year 4709 (Year of the
Rabbit) began on February 3 — marking
Good gods, y’all: See “Apollo and other bronze Gods.”
Photo by Eddie Chen
the start of a two-week celebration dis-
tinguished by fireworks, festive food and
dancing. The Pacific College of Oriental
Medicine (the country’s largest college of
acupuncture and Oriental medicine) invites
you to learn about the Chinese New Year by
attending a series of health-minded events.
Throughout the day, there will be massage
demos and lectures, free acupuncture and a
workshop on Qi Gong (a thousand-year-old
martial art that combines deep breathing
with postures and movements that allow the
body to naturally and automatically release
hormones that relieve stress). At 2:30pm,
the documentary “9000 Needles” screens.
It chronicles Devin Dearth’s journey into
health with the help of a mixture of Eastern
Photo courtesy of the artist
25
and Western Medicine — after suffering a
devastating stroke that left him paralyzed
on his right side. Visit 9000needles.com for
more info on the film. By the time your day
is done, you’ll be looking forward to 2012
— when you’ll know by experience why the
Chinese say “Gung Hey Fat Choy” instead
of “Happy New Year.” Sat., Feb. 12, 12pm-
3pm at The Pacific College of Oriental
Medicine (915 Broadway at 21st St., 5th
floor). Admission and participation is free.
RSVP is requested. Contact cneipris@paci-
ficcollege.edu or call 212-982-3456 x226.
For questions, call x229. Visit pacificcol-
lege.edu.
Photo by Jennifer Harris
Qi Gong instructor William Kaplanidis
will lead students through movement
exercises. See “Chinese New Year
Celebration.”
APOLLO AND OTHER BRONZE GODS
Thank the gods that someone — spe-
cifically, Gallery 300 — has managed to fill
that vacant ground level storefront on 22nd
Street and Eighth Avenue with something
considerably more visually compelling than
brown paper on the windows. Currently,
the work of sculptor Sabin Howard (a
NYC native) is on display — in a collec-
tion of stunningly rendered bronze statues
whose muscular, in-motion bodies seem
as if they’re about to burst from within
the venue’s large wrap-around corner-to-
street windows. “Apollo and other Bronze
Gods,” a retrospective of 20 large bronze
figures, is accompanied by his latest life-
size bronze sculpture — 2010’s “Apollo.”
It’s his third life-size work (a companion
to 2006’s “Aphrodite” and a successor
to 2005’s Hermes, both of which are on
display). Smaller-scale sculptures on view
“Anger,” “Man” and “Eros” (2000-2001).
“My work is an alchemy of form and ener-
gy,” says Howard. “It speaks a universal
narrative of what it means to be human.”
FREE. Through March 31, at Gallery 300
(300 W. 22nd St.). Gallery Hours: Tues.-
Fri., 4-8pm; Sat./Sun., 12:30–8pm and by
appointment. Call 917-327-5714 or visit
gallery300.net. For info on the artist, visit
sabinhoward.com.
26 Februar y 9 - 15, 2011 downtown express

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downtown express
Far beyond flowers and candy
Things to do with your love, besides the thing you’re thinking of
COMPILED BY SCOTT STIFFLER
If you’re a true romantic, and lucky enough
to be in love, every day is Valentine’s Day —
so good for you. But if you’re not the type to
wear your heart on your sleeve by gifting that
significant other with grand and frequent ges-
tures, pulling out all the stops for this annual
articulation of love is a no-brainer.
This year, in addition to lavishing them
with the usual flowers and candy, think about
employing some of these unique options. In
the end, the effort you take just might equal
the love you make. As for our single readers:
Suck it up and let your coupled friends have
their day in the sun — and remember, there’s
no shame in sending flowers to yourself. We
all deserve love!
FREE KETTLEBELL KICKBOXING
What’s hotter than a couple that can kick
ass? Not much. But before you channel
the bad mojo of your relationship issues
into swift acts of vigilante justice, take a
deep breath and consider a truly calming,
centered way to express your anger and
sharpen your skills. Anderson’s Martial
Arts has your back. Their Valentine’s
Week Fitness special kicks off on February
14th. Couples can sign up for their free
private training or join a class solo dur-
On the menu: Champagne, love and good times. See “The Bailey.”
Februar y 9 - 15, 2011
ing through February 20. On Valentine’s
Day, they’re offering a free two-hour Self
Defense Seminar for women. From 7-8pm,
Dasha Libin debuts her new fusion fitness
class: Kettlebell Kickboxing. The workout
combines the combative moves and quick-
ness of mixed martial arts and with the
strength and muscle training that comes
with Russian kettlebells. After the class,
Libin will be on hand to answer questions
and advise you on matters of personal fit-
ness goals. At Anderson’s Martial Arts &
Fitness Center (394 Broadway, at Canal.
Third floor). To sign up, call 212-766-
6622 or email webinfo@andersonsmart-
ialarts.com. Visit andersonsmartialarts.
com.
FREE TANGO LESSONS & DANCING
Return those tickets to Buenos Aires and
save yourself a trip to the airport. Arts World
Financial Center has a better way to get a con-
sensual pat-down — courtesy of free tango les-
sons and dancing the night away to the sounds
of the Hector Del Curto Tango Orchestra at
the Winter Garden. The 10-musician ensem-
ble will transform the glass-vaulted atrium
into a grand dancing ballroom. From 7pm to
9pm, couples will fuse at the hip to the jazzy,
festive rhythms inspired by the traditional
Photo courtesy of The Bailey
The Bond Street Euterpean Singing Society. L to R: Rosalind Gnatt, Dayle Vander
Sande, Anthony Bellov, Jane Rady. See “Love in the Parlors.”
Argentinean style. A group instructor will
provide tango lessons from 6pm to 7pm for
those looking to brush up on their footwork.
FREE. Mon., Feb. 14. At the World Financial
Center Winter Garden (220 Vesey St.). For
info, call 212-945-0505 or visit artsworldfi-
nancialcenter.com. Also visit hectordelcurto.
com. Got plans for the evening? Get a
little afternoon delight with “The Winter
Garden Milonga: Free Lunchtime Tango
Performances and Lessons” — from 12-2pm
on Feb. 14 (same address and contact info as
the evening event).
LOVE IN THE PARLORS: A
VALENTINE IN CONCERT
The Merchant’s House Museum — NYC’s
only family home preserved intact from the
mid-19th-century — offers an authentic frozen-
in-time glimpse into the customs, morals and
mindset of old New York. Their “Love in the
Parlors” Valentine’s Day concert recreates the
19th-century tradition of “salon music” with
vocal chamber works performed in an inti-
mate parlor setting. The compositions, which
address themes of love in all of its triumphs
and failings, were chosen from repertoire
written between 1801-1900. The Bond Street
Euterpean Singing Society (MHM’s arts group
in residence since 2004) provides the vocal tal-
ent. Mon., Feb.14, at 7pm (snow date Thurs.,
Feb. 17). At the Merchant’s House Museum
(29 E. Fourth St. btw. Lafayette & Bowery).
Tickets are $25 ($20 for students/seniors, $15
for MHM members). Reservations required.
Call 212-777-1089 or visit merchantshouse.
org/events.
Stretch out the warm and fuzzy spirit
of Valentine’s Day for the entire month
by attending “19th-Century Valentines:
Confections of Affection.” On view through
February 28, the exhibit features exam-
27
Photo courtesy of the Bond Street Euterpean Singing Society
ples of ornate and lace handmade paper
Valentine cards from the Museum’s collec-
tion as well as early manufactured cards.
MHM is open Thurs. through Mon., 12-5pm.
Admission is $10 ($5 for seniors/students).
FUNDRAISER AT THE COWGIRL
SEAHORSE RESTAURANT
Just say “Cowgirl Seahorse Restaurant,”
and you’re already having a good time.
So let those good times roll for a good
cause — when you attend their Valentine’s
Day Fundraiser to benefit the Avon Breast
Cancer Foundation. $50 (half of which goes
to the Foundation) gets you a 6-course prix
fixe dinner. On the menu: artichoke heart
fritters, creamy fish chowder, mango-goat
cheese salad, surf & turf, a glass of cham-
pagne, mini heart-shaped strawberry short-
cake and a special gourmet cupcake — plus
music from The Crusty Gentlemen. At the
Cowgirl Seahorse Restaurant (259 Front St.,
corner of Front & Dover). For reservations,
call 212-608-7873.
DINNER AT THE BAILEY
If you still haven’t made dinner reser-
vations for February 14, know that The
Bailey Pub & Brasserie has already put
the finishing touches on their plan for the
ultimate Valentine’s Day dinner. It’s a $55
pre-fix 3-course meal including choice of
appetizer, entrée and dessert. Menu items
include Seared Diver Scallops, Pan Seared
Wild Striped Bass and Tahitian Vanilla
Panna Cotta. There featured cocktail for
the evening: The Champagne Charlie — a
rich mixture of Stoli Raspberry, Champagne
and Pureed Raspberry. The Bailey Pub &
Brasserie (52 William St., 1 block North of
Wall St.). For reservations, call 212-859-
2200. Visit www.thebaileynyc.com.
28 Februar y 9 - 15, 2011 downtown express