Etan Patz case cracked? p. 14
Volume 81, Number 52 $1.00
West and East Village, Chelsea, Soho, Noho, Hudson Square, Little Italy, Chinatown and Lower East Side, Since 1933
May 31 - June 6, 2012
City O.K.’s roof rotors up to 55 ft. tall for buildings BY ALBERT AMATEAU Despite reservations by preservation advocates, real estate officials hailed new land-use guidelines intended to encourage the building and retrofitting of energy-sustainable buildings. The citywide Zone Green Text Amendment, passed by the City Council and signed by Mayor Bloomberg, which removed some zoning impediments to the construction and renovation of “green” build-
Photo by Tequila Minsky
A serene scene in Soho “Survival of Serena,” Carole Feuerman’s hyper-realistic sculpture — complete with beads of water on the figure’s arms and the inner tube — was recently installed in Soho’s Petrosino Square, at Lafayette and Spring Sts. The painted bronze piece will be on view through Sept. 23. The artist’s first version of “Serena,” as a painted resin sculpture, was shown at the 2007 Venice Biennale, then won first place at the 2008 Beijing Biennale. Three days after the sculpture’s installation in Soho, its base was graffitied, but the artist herself reportedly quickly took care of the inappropriate tag.
Mendez, Little Red, garden honored with Village Awards BY ALBERT AMATEAU The Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation on Thurs., June 7, will bestow eight awards on the people, places and institutions of the West Village, the East Village and Noho that contribute to their neighborhoods’ special character. Author Calvin Trillin will do the honors. The society’s 22nd annual ceremony, including awards to City Councilmember Rosie Mendez and to Marilyn Appleberg, of the 10th and Stuyvesant Block
Association, will take place at 6:30 p.m. at The New School’s Tishman Auditorium, at 66 W. 12th St. Over the past 22 years, the society has given out more than 150 awards. The 2012 award to Mendez, representing the Second Council District since 2006, honors her unflinching advocacy of historic preservation. She has helped secure preservation-friendly rezonings and landmark designations in the East Village and the Lower East Side. Her award citation notes that in the past year
she was the only councilmember to vote against de-landmarking the 1817 building at 135 Bowery. The 2012 award to Marilyn Appleberg, president of the 10th and Stuyvesant Block Association, cites her efforts for more than 40 years to preserve and improve the neighborhood’s quality of life. She helped create the small Abe Lebewohl Park in front of St. Mark’s Church and spearheaded the effort to
ings, went into effect May 1. While one of the more striking features, allowing 55-foot-tall wind turbines on the tops of buildings 100 feet or taller, may not become a reality in the near future, other features are more likely to appear on new and reconstructed buildings. Constantine Kontokosta, director of the Center for the Sustainable Built Environment
Continued on page 4
Private’s birthday is met with cards, tears and resolve BY ALINE REYNOLDS It was an outpouring of emotion prompted by tragedy, with the backdrop a photo of an only child who died far too young. Some 400 Chinatown residents and students gathered at Pace University High School, at 100 Hester St., last Thurs., May 24, to commemorate the late U.S. Army Private Danny Chen, a 2010 graduate of the school. Were Chen still alive, he would have celebrated his
Continued on page 7
515 C A N A L STREET • N YC 10013 • C OPYRIG H T © 2012 COMMU N ITY M ED IA , LLC
20th birthday over Memorial Day weekend. The event, arranged by the New York chapter of Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA), consisted of poignant performances by drummers, spoken-word artists and dancers — their art calling for justice for Chen and offering emotional catharsis to those who knew him personally or learned of him after he passed.
Continued on page 6
EDITORIAL, LETTERS PAGE 12
FOLK ARTIST GETS ‘DEEP’ PAGE 15