THE WEEKLY NEWSPAPER OF LOWER MANHATTAN

THE WEEKLY NEWSPAPER OF LOWER MANHATTAN — Volume 17 • Issue 46 | April 8 — 14, 2005

Inside
Editorial
West St. tunnel would be a wrong turn Downtown
The 800-pound gorilla that wanted to build the 740-foot tower Downtown spoke this week: Goldman Sachs is backing away from its plan to build its headquarters across the street from the World Trade Center site in Battery Park City. What divides the headquarters site and the W.T.C., as well as Goldman and Gov. Pataki, is West St. The governor wants a tunnel there and Goldman doesn’t.

Under Cover

Police Blotter

Letters to the editor

The Penny Post
Israel: On the road
By Andrei Codrescu
I am not the first biologist to say this: diversity is good for you. I’m writing this in Haifa, Israel, where I heard six languages in the past five minutes. Three of us were speaking English and Romanian, two of us were talking French, two of us were speaking Arabic, a goggle of teenagers was sharing in pizza in Russian, and all around us there was a buzz of Hebrew like a fine fishing net.

Downtown briefs

Downtown Express photo by Tequila Minsky
Two geese a eating
Two older Canadian geese enjoyed a fenced off area in the north section of Battery Park City last week. The spot has been a popular grazing spot for geese.

Downtown’s oldest (in all likelihood) celebrates birthday

Scottish celebration at Hanover Square

C.B. 1 Meetings

B.P.C. tot lot/dog run to open by end of May

Pressing the flesh

What do you like best and worst about living in the Seaport?

Youth

P.S. 150, I.S. 89 face possible after school budget cuts
By Ronda Kaysen
Two Downtown after school programs – at P.S. 150 and I.S. 89 — may shut their doors at the end of the school year if Manhattan Youth, the organization that runs them, is not able to secure state and city funding.

Youth Activities

Sports

Getting ready to play ball for real

The Listings

Events

Exhibits


Downtown Express photo by Lorenzo Ciniglio Madelyn Wils appeared at a Community Board 1 meeting Wednesday just after C. Virginia Fields announced Wils was no longer C.B.1 chairperson. Under cover Wils removed from C.B. 1 as Fields moves against Downtown leader Manhattan Borough President C. Virginia Fields announced on Wednesday that she took Madelyn Wils off Community Board 1.

School crowds draw parents to town hall
By Ronda Kaysen
Downtown needs more zoned schools for its growing school age children from pre-kindergarten through middle school, parents told representatives from the Department of Education, the New York City Council and Community Board 1 at a Town Hall meeting on Wednesday night.

Elections Board axes Soho site over political art
By Albert Amateau
The Board of Elections has eliminated the only voting place in Soho and is searching for an alternative site after a decision that some Democrats say has abridged the First Amendment right to free speech and that Republicans say makes sure that citizens are not subject to illegal electioneering at the polls.

India House restoration to get preservation award
ByDivya Watal
India House, the swanky brownstone located at Hanover Square, recently underwent a complete overhaul of its exterior and now looks so good that it is nominated for a Landmarks Conservancy award.

Students learn valuable lessons in Downtown offices
By Divya Watal
Kayla Rozon, dressed in elegant, business-casual attire, sits in a commandingly upright position, staring intently at the computer screen in front of her, tapping efficiently on a keyboard. She looks like she has at least five years of experience working in an office environment.

East River Park trees cut for improvements
By Lincoln Anderson
Roger Carr went out to do his usual yoga exercises in East River Park one morning last week, when he noticed something was missing.

Maiden Lane cafe hosts Downtown artist’s paintings of ladies
By Ronda Kaysen
The women hanging around the cozy Downtown cafe Klatch, have a sultry look about them.
The one sunbathing on a beach in a blue bikini seems unaware of the woman lounging on a stone bench in wide-legged white trousers, soaking up a day of spring.

Gerson gets by with help from volunteers
By Claire F. Hamilton
The shortcomings of city legislation rouse volunteers to get involved in parks and public schools in an effort to make a difference. But suppose one could go straight to the source of public policy? At Alan Gerson’s Council District 1 office across the street from City Hall, volunteers not only work with the community at large, they are also a key cog in the political operations of the councilmember’s office.

Witkoff/Cipriani’s Leonardo plan wins Pier 57 bid
By Albert Amateau
The Hudson River Park Trust board of directors last week chose the Witkoff/Cipriani Organization to be the designated redeveloper of Pier 57 over the rival Chelsea Piers, following the recommendations of the Trust staff, West Side elected officials and the local Pier 57 Working Group.

Arts

Capturing the local folk
By Aileen Torres
Michael Grossman Rimbaud, né Michael Grossman, son of the illustrious illustrator Robert Grossman (whose political satires have appeared in the New York Observer, the New York Times and the New Yorker) considers himself an ex-expatriate.

‘Village boy’ still performing and engraving
By Jerry Tallmer
The kid who had won the 1979 Drama Award at Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn figured that engraving “was a great way to avoid waiting on tables” while pursuing an acting career in Manhattan. “And there was more money in it,” he allows.

Life underground is hell
By Steve Erickson
This first feature film by Nimrod Antal begins on a strange note. A representative of the Budapest Public Transport Company informs the audience that it bears no resemblance to reality. While some of his colleagues wanted to prohibit Antal from shooting the film in the Budapest subway, this man trusts that spectators will understand that the film’s really about a symbolic struggle between good and evil.

Jeannie’s got a gun
By Jerry Tallmer
Norma Jean, Jean, and Jeanne. Before there was Marilyn Monroe there was Jean Harlow, and before her there was Jeanne Eagels. Eagels was primarily a stage actress and the other two were motion-picture actresses, but they all symbolized something—something blonde and bad and beddable, and they all died young—Monroe at 36, Harlow at 26, Eagels at 35.

Wilted magnolias
By Christopher Byrne
You don’t just want to like the new production of “Steel Magnolias,” you want to adore it. With its nearly flawless script, plum parts for powerful actresses and an affection bred by familiarity, you ease into your seat at the Lyceum Theatre, anticipating nothing but stellar performances for the next two-plus hours.

The majesty of paint
By Carrie Moyer
“It takes ten years to make a good painting,” the old adage goes. When it comes to making art, experience does count, as Pat Steir amply demonstrates in “Moon Paintings & A River,” her latest exhibition at Cheim & Read.