Downtown Express

VOLUME 28,

NUMBER 15

DECEMBER 31, 2015 – JANUARY 13, 2016

Oh, what a year! This has been quite a year for Downtown. Lower Manhattan lost its powerful voice in Albany, and one of the neighborhood’s greatest boosters passed away. Battery Park City lost its marina’s beloved commodore and the founder of its parks conservancy, as relations between residents and its all-powerful, state-appointed board hit new lows, renewing calls for a city takeover. But 2015 also saw Downtown start to blossom as a retail destination and the new center of the city’s media industry, as a residential boom continued to transform the once-staid Financial District into the dynamic, 24-hour community of FiDi. The South Street Seaport may be losing one of its tall ships, but residents finally won their long battle against a planned residential tower. New attractions and amenities opened to locals and tourists, while the city took the first tentative steps to rescue

residents from the nuisance of helicopter tours. After years of Downtown missing out on much-needed funding for storm resiliency following the devastation of Hurricane Sandy, the city finally committed substantial cash to an effort to protect all of Lower Manhattan from the next superstorm. The opening of 1 World Trade Center and the reopening of a sidewalk blocked since 9/11 marked Downtown’s emergence from years of rebuilding and the start of a new era of growth and dynamism fueled by a surging population, a more diversified economy, and the world-class transportation infrastructure coming online in the near future. In our 2015 year-end issue, Downtown Express takes a look back at a year that will stand out as a new turning point in the long story of New York’s oldest neighborhood.

ALSO INSIDE:

WHAT A YEAR! Continued on page 3

BATTERY PARK CITY RESIDENTS SOUND OFF AT TOWN HALL P.4 DOWNTOWNERS FEAR CONSTRUCTION CHAOS P.7 DOWNTOWN’S ‘LITTLE SYRIA’ P.10 1 MET ROT E CH • NYC 112 01 • COPYRIG HT © 2015 N YC COMMU N ITY MED IA , LLC

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December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

DowntownExpress.com

2015

YEAR-IN-REVIEW ing felony assault in the second degree. Murdaugh has pleaded not guilty and the case is ongoing.

WHAT A YEAR! Continued from page 1

Shelly shock By far the biggest political news this year was the downfall of former Assembly Speaker and Downtown stalwart Sheldon Silver. His January arrest on federal corruption charges sent shockwaves through his Lower Manhattan district, which had long benefited from Silver’s influence during his two decades as Speaker of the Assembly. The case centered on kickbacks from two law firms. One scam traded asbestos-patient referrals for state research dollars, and in the other, developers hired a Silver-affiliated law firm in exchange for help renewing tax credits. Silver maintained that it was all just friendly favors. He was found guilty in November on all seven counts, ending a decades-long political career, including 20 years as one of the three most powerful men in the state. “Today, Sheldon Silver got justice, and at long last, so did the people of New York,” said U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara shortly after the verdict was announced. But many Downtowners mourned the loss of one of their most ardent advocates in Albany. “It’s hard for Downtown to think of him as anything but our local hero,” said Tom Goodkind, a C.P.A. and Battery Park City resident, after Silver’s conviction. “It’s almost like someone hit me in the gut.”

1 WTC observation deck opens Downtowners got a great new view of the neighborhood when the observation deck of One World Trade Center opened to the public in May. The tower’s 100th-floor observation deck opened to block-long lines and sold about one million tickets in its first three months. The new Downtown attraction offers breathtaking views and high-tech features, such as a timelapse video in the elevator that shows how the city’s skyline has changed as it ascends to the top.

Liberty St. sidewalk reopens

(Above) File photo by Jefferson Siegel. (Below) Photo by MIlo Hess

(Above) Longtime Assemblyman Sheldon Silver was convicted on seven counts of corruption in November. (Below) The observation deck of One World Trade Center finally opened in May, offering a dazzling view of Downtown.

Ghostbusters firehouse to get makeover Who you gonna call? A new crew of Ghostbusters will hit the screen in 2016 for a remake of the 1984 comedy classic — but the iconic Tribeca fire station used in the original movie is set to close for a lengthy renovation. The Ladder 8 company at 14 N. Moore St. will relocate to another house while the 110-year-old building is gut renovated to replace the floor and upgrade the electricity and plumbing. A firefighter told Downtown Express back in May that the work could take up to three years, but the fire department would not confirm a schedule.

Sinking the Commodore Commodore Michael Fortenbaugh was a fixture at Battery Park City’s North Cove Marina for 20 years. The longtime B.P.C. resident stayed after 9/11 and helped build up the marina, which he then ran for ten years until he was unceremoniously replaced last January. A groundswell of community support to keep the commodore as the marina’s operator started well before his contact was up at the end of 2014, but the Battery Park City Authority — the state agency that runs the neighborhood — had different plans. At a packed B.P.C.A. meeting in January, the board named Brookfield Office Properties and its partner Island Global Yachting as the marina’s new operator, in the first of several unpopular decisions the authority would make this year.

High Schooler joins CB1 In 2015, for the first time, 16- and 17-year-olds were able to apply for a post some adults shy away from: serving on a community board. Borough President Gale Brewer had long pushed for civic-minded teenagers to be a part of the boards, and in April she appointed Susan Wu, now a senior at Stuyvesant High School, to Community Board 1. Wu serves on both the Battery Park City and Youth and Education committees. “Joining Community Board 1 is the perfect opportunity for me to get involved,” Wu told DowntownExpress.com

In an opening almost as eagerly anticipated as One World Trade Center, and no less symbolic, the sidewalk on the north side of Liberty St. reopened for the first time since the 9/11 attacks 14 years ago. For nearly a decade and a half, the sidewalk on the south side of the busy Downtown thoroughfare was a miserable crush — which was only made worse by the opening of 4 W.T.C. last year, because new security measures included concrete barriers on the southern sidewalk — so reopening of the other side came as welcome relief to residents.

Downtown Express in April. “I am not only going to learn more about the community I spend most of my time in, but also provide a new perspective, as a young adult, to better the community.”

Beekman hit-and run In April, a driver trying to bypass traffic jumped onto the sidewalk during morning dropoff near Spruce Street School, striking a woman walking to work and sending mothers and children scattering. The driver then fled the scene. The victim, Heather Hensl, a mother and physician assistant, was unable to walk without aid for weeks afterwards. And a month later, with the culprit still at large, she told this paper in her first public comment that she feared the N.Y.P.D. would drop the case — which sparked renewed outrage, and action from the police. About one week after that, Tiffany Murdaugh was arrested and charged with three counts, includ-

Jeff Galloway off CB1 after tax fraud One didn’t have to look to the State Assembly to find political drama this year. Community Board 1 had its own scandal in June when Jeff Galloway, a 12-year member of the board, pleaded guilty to tax fraud. According to reports, he would have to pay $600,000 in taxes, serve three months in jail and resign from the bar — and, of course, from CB1. Galloway, 61, failed to file New York State personal income tax returns for five years, between 2005 and 2010, while earning close to $1 million dollars a year as a partner at a prominent law firm.

Howard Hughes backs off plans for Seaport tower The long fight over a massive residential tower proposed for a site on the edge of the South Street Seaport historic district finally came to an end this WHAT A YEAR! Continued on page 11

December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

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Battery ram Residents besiege BPCA bigwigs at public forum

B Y DUSICA SU E M A L E SE V IC The Battery Park City Authority recently held a public forum to hear from the locals — and boy did it get an earful. Following a series of unpopular decisions — and accusations of ignoring residents’ concerns — the board that manages the neighborhood took questions from a packed room at 6 River Terrace on Dec. 16. Residents lined up to take the authority to task, relishing a chance to speak directly to the board, which is appointed by Albany and can seem aloof to locals. “I think there’s a general attitude among the staff of Battery Park City Authority that they’re lords of the manner and we’re the peasants,” said B.P.C. resident Pat Smith. Many of the questions focused on the authority’s latest move that upset the community — bringing in private security “ambassadors,” who have no enforcement powers, to replace the city’s Parks Enforcement Patrol officers, who do. “This issue with the P.E.P.s is super disturbing,” said Elizabeth Lara, a Battery Park City resident since 2007. “We’re bothered by it. You don’t seem to care.” B.P.C.A. board chairman Dennis Mehiel said he couldn’t respond because of ongoing negotiations with the Parks Dept. about the future of the P.E.P. contract that expires at the end of January, but he suggested the fears that the city peace officers will be eliminated were unfounded. “The presumption is that when the dust clears, there wasn’t going to be anybody here that had the power to issue a summons,” Mehiel said. “Why do we assume that’s the case?” Mehiel acknowledged that the controversy unleashed by the surprise move to reduce the P.E.P. role prompted the board to hold the unprecedented meeting with residents. “This discussion we’re having here tonight about a joint role to provide this service in this area results from the pushback we got from you guys with the concerns you expressed,” he said. “So we’re trying to be responsive.”

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The forum was an effort to improve communication, but some of the authority’s responses only exacerbated its reputation for stonewalling the public. Asked about why the authority didn’t inform residents about its intention to hire a private security firm, board members said that when they posted the request for proposals — a formal invitation for contract bids — on the authority’s website, that counted as informing the community. On several occasions when residents asked for more information about the authority’s decisions, rather than answering the questions, the board instead invited residents to file a formal request under the Freedom of Information Law, a state law used to force uncooperative government agencies to divulge information not normally made public. One exchange earlier in the meeting seemed to epitomize the authority’s disconnect with residents. When the authority’s vice president of administration, Benjamin Jones, referred to the P.E.P. in his report to the residents, he gave the impression that the city officers would continue to patrol in the community. “The Parks Enforcement Patrol contract that the Battery Park City Authority has with the New York City Parks Dept. remains in effect,” he said, prompting applause from the audience. It wasn’t until later, when Assemblymember Deborah Glick asked a question about the P.E.P. contract, that the board made clear that it was only in effect until Jan. 31. That led to shouts of “That’s not what you said.” Mehiel said there was no intention to mislead, but residents suggested that a habitual lack of transparency had eroded trust in the authority. “I get that you guys do things that you can’t always hold our hands or have us hold your hands,” said Justine Cuccia, a public member of Community Board 1. “We get that. The problem is the trust is broken.” Smith pointed out that the community and the authority had a very successful partnership until the last two years, but he said now public confidence in the authority’s leadership is gone.

December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

Photos by Milo Hess

(Above) Battery Park City Authority board chairman Dennis Mehiel, right, joined by board president Shari Hyman, left, and member Martha Gallo, took questions from residents at a Dec. 16 forum. (Below) Residents packed the room at 6 River Terrace and lined up for a chance to grill a board that many see as aloof and distant.

“The partnership is frayed. And there’s a very simple, but very necessary fix to this — the authority leadership must be replaced,” Smith said, sparking applause and shouts of agreement. “I serve at the pleasure of the governor,” said Mehiel, whose three-year term is up at the end of the year. Battery Park City is owned by the state, and Gov. Cuomo appoints the authority’s board. In an effort to move past complaints about the authority’s lack of communication, Mehiel asked residents for examples of specific outcomes that had an adverse impact on residents’ lives and strained the relationship with the community. Residents were armed with answers. Some shouted, “Tessa,” referring to Tessa Huxley, who ran the neighborhood’s parks conservancy for almost three decades before being forced out by the board over the summer. Others mentioned North Cove

Marina, which Michael Fortenbaugh ran for ten years before the board replaced him with the current operator, Brookfield Office Properties, in another recent decision that many residents disagreed with. CB1 member and resident Tammy Meltzer never even got to ask her question because the authority cut off the question time when the meeting ran half an hour beyond schedule. “I was going to kill them on communication,” Meltzer said afterwards. “They need to engage in a dialogue with the community. It’s an interesting start.” This won’t be the last chance residents will have to confront the board. In a bid to improve relations with the community it runs, the authority plans to make the forum a quarterly event. “I think it is a beginning,” Martha Gallo, the only member of the board who lives in the neighborhood, told the Downtown Express afterwards. “We had to start somewhere.” DowntownExpress.com

Selection, not election, will decide Silver’s successor B Y J O SH RO G E R S So who is going to be picking the successor to Shelly Silver, the former assemblymember who was convicted last month on corruption charges? If you are following the story, you already know it won’t be voters. Members of the Democratic County Committee from Silver’s 65th assembly district in Lower Manhattan will effectively crown the next legislator early next year when they select the party’s nominee for the April 19 special election, since the district is overwhelmingly Democratic, which means the Republican nominee stands little chance to win. But at least the public can easily see who the committee members are, right? Well, no. The city’s Board of Elections sent me its most complete list, but the information is not readily available online. And the names of nearly 20 percent of the committee members — those filling vacancies — may stay hidden from the public before the anointing. Cathleen McCadden, executive director of the Manhattan Democratic County Committee, said it is up to the local district leaders to fill committee vacancies, and many prefer not to release the names.

system, particularly in “It’s the only power that this case, since the new they have,” she told me. incumbent will likely face Indeed one Downtown a Democratic primary Democratic district leadnext September, only five er, who was inclined to months after taking office. send me the most up-to“They’ll only be in date list, told me there office for a hot second,” was resistance from fellow she said. district leaders. But the But Susan Lerner, County Committee’s leadexecutive director with ers, if they were inclined, File photo by J.B. Nicholas could also get the names to Former Assembly Speaker Common Cause New the public if they wanted. Sheldon Silver represented York, which has long Lower Manhattan for nearly backed more democratBut they don’t. There are 39 listed four decades before his ic ways to fill legislative conviction in November. vacancies, said “even a vacancies for the district’s short[-term] incumbent is 196 seats on the County Committee. Most members are not well able to arrange things within their district known, but there are others who have been for an advantage.” One of the reasons there has been no active in the community or in local politics, such as Virginia Kee in Chinatown, John reform, Lerner said, is that so many state Fratta in the Seaport, Diem Boyd on the legislators first get into office through a Lower East Side, Tom Goodkind in Battery special election and are reluctant to change Park City, and Judy Rapfogel, a former a system from which they benefitted. Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal Albany power broker who was Silver’s chief of staff for about two decades while he was from the Upper West Side is the exception. She won the political insider game in 2006, Assembly speaker. Despite calls to let voters play the but saw the problem with the system. “When I did run for the vacancy, a lot central role in filling legislative vacancies, McCadden defended the current of people were disgruntled by the pro-

cess,” said Rosenthal, a former County Committee member. Soon after taking office she sponsored legislation that would require a primary and special election to fill a vacant seat, but it went nowhere. This session, she and state Sen. Daniel Squadron are sponsoring bills that would set up non-partisan special elections to fill legislative vacancies. Candidates would collect signatures to get on the ballot. "It's a big concern that the process to fill vacancies is so complicated and obscure, especially after the year Albany's had,” Squadron said in a statement, making a clear reference to the federal convictions of two of Albany’s “Three Men in a Room,” Silver and former state Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos. Two of the four candidates to replace Silver, Paul Newell and Jenifer Rajkumar, have an advantage in the race as district leaders who helped form the committee picking the nominee, and will also likely fill some of the remaining committee vacancies. Both said in interviews this week that they supported a more democratic way to fill legislative vacancies. Yuh-Line Niou and Don B. Lee have also expressed strong interest in running.

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DowntownExpress.com

December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

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BEAUTY BANDIT A woman stole 133 bottles of Essiebrand nail polish from a Duane Reade late on Christmas Day, bagging $1,130 worth of the stuff, police say. According to the report, the cuticle criminal was caught on camera loading the bottles into a shopping bag before leaving the store at 100 Broadway just after 10pm.

HEAVY (SHOP)LIFTING Four out-of-towners went on a shoplifting spree in Soho on Mon., Dec. 28, grabbing almost $4,000 worth of designer goods from two different stores, according to police. The light-fingered tourists — all from Washington, D.C., and Maryland — reportedly stole a Louis Vuitton bag worth $1,150 from What Goes Around Comes Around, a vintage designer boutique at 351 W. Broadway, shortly after 6pm. When they were arrested later that night, police say they found the perps in possession of seven fur key chains from the luxury accessory brand MCM at 100 Greene St. — together worth another $2,814.

store at 158 Mercer St. on Wed., Dec. 16 at 3:32 p.m., grabbed the white fur coat from a display and jetted.

EXPENSIVE BLINK A theft can happen in the blink of an eye, and for a Swiss tourist that instant cost him $3,100 worth of stuff. The 25-year-old man was waiting for a southbound C train at the Chambers St. stop in the Financial District on Sat., Dec. 12 at 2:50 p.m., police say. He sat on a bench and set down his $100 backpack — filled with a $1,300 MacBook Air, a $450 GoPro camera, and a $100 external hard drive, along with other items. When the train arrived and he got up to board, the tourist realized his bag was gone.

UNSAFE SAFE Crooks stole $1,500 from the register and a safe at a Mexican fast food joint in the Financial District, in what cops believe was an inside job. An employee told police only four people were working on Fri., Dec. 11 at Sabor de Mexico at 76 Nassau St. when the cash went missing. The theft took place at 4 p.m., according to the report.

TOURIST TRAP Police say a visitor from Tennessee had her belongings stolen from her car when she left it parked on Front St. on Sat., Dec. 26. The woman told police she thought she had locked the car, but returned 30 minutes later to find that $2,850 worth of clothing, jewelry and electronics was missing from the trunk of her black Dodge Durango.

ROTTEN TO THE CORE A burglar swiped some unusual but expensive loot from a construction site on Liberty St., according to police. A $3,000 diamond-bit core drill, commonly used in construction to create holes for pipes, went missing from a floor inside 225 Liberty St. sometime between the afternoon of Tues., Dec. 22, and the following morning, according to a report. Police say the drill was left chained to the floor, but the chain was broken and the drill gone when an employee showed up for work on Wednesday.

— Yannic Rack STOLEN MINK CHIC It took a thief two minutes to nab a mink coat worth nearly $5,000 from a Vera Wang shop in Soho, police say. A 28-year-old employee told police that a man walked into the high-end

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December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

PARTY FOUL A woman working the registration table for a large private party at a swanky steakhouse got her bag swiped — with the thief using her credit cards almost immediately, police say. On Tues., Dec. 15, the 25-year-old put her purse under the table while she registered people for a party at Capital Grille at 120 Broadway in the Financial District, according to the report. When she checked on her bag at 7 p.m., it was gone. By 11:20 p.m., her debit card had already been used to make a $91 purchase, police say. The victim told police her other cards were used as well.

HANDLEBAR MISHAP A woman was so focused on making sure she docked her CitiBike correctly that she left her purse on the handlebar — from which, of course, it was immediately stolen. The 26-year-old was returning her rental bike at the station in front of 388 Greenwich St. in Tribeca on Sun., Dec. 13 at 5 p.m., police say. She told police she left her belongings unattended for maybe three or four minutes. A thief got away with various credit cards, a $150 Longchamp bag, a $150 wallet, gift cards, an unlimited MetroCard and $100 in cash.

— Dusica Sue Malesevic DowntownExpress.com

Jackhammered Downtowners fear chaos if dedicated DOT office closes BY D U SI CA SU E M A LE S E V IC The city’s plan to shut down an office dedicated to coordinating nearly a hundred ongoing construction projects in Lower Manhattan could do serious harm to residents’ quality of life, say Downtown leaders. The Dept. of Transportation blames a lack of funding for its decision to “phase out” its Lower Manhattan Commissioner’s office — charged with coordinating around 90 major ongoing construction projects below Canal St. — and hand its duties over to the agency’s larger Manhattan office in March 2016. Community Board 1 Chairwoman Catherine McVay Hughes said the dedicated Downtown office has been vital for protecting residents throughout the process of rebuilding and developing an area that is recovering from repeated disasters to become the most dynamic neighborhood in the city.

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“Fourteen years after 9/11 and three years after Sandy, [construction has] a major impact on quality of life Downtown,” Hughes said. “It’s really important there is coordination.” The Lower Manhattan Commissioner’s office does just that: it coordinates with several city, state, and federal agencies as well as other parties about details of construction projects. It also provides a place for residents to register complaints, and it helps address quality of life issues connected with construction, such as noise, traffic, street closures, and after-hour and weekend work. The office lost its state funding in September and the city has been providing funding on a month-tomonth basis, said district manager Noah Pfefferblit at CB1’s Quality of JACKHAMMERED Continued on page 13

music & the arts

N.Y.C. Dept. of Transportation

This map shows the many ongoing construction projects Downtown currently being coordinated by the D.O.T. Lower Manhattan Commissioner’s office.

community

Twelfth Night Festival: Time’s Arrow THROUGH JANUARY 6

Another Day Lost

Trinity Church & St. Paul’s Chapel

THROUGH JANUARY 5

Celebrate the twelve days of the nativity with a music festival juxtaposing early and contemporary music spanning the past millennium. Most events are FREE.

Trinity Church, south churchyard

Highlights include: • Premieres of works by David Lang, Tarik O’Regan, and Gerald Busby • The Play of Daniel • Bach at One returns See full schedule at twelfthnightfestival.org

worship Epiphany Candlelight Service

Come view a mixed media installation by Syrian-born, UK-based artist Issam Kourbaj evoking the plight of millions of Syrians displaced by war since 2011.

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ANOTHER DAY

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SUNDAY, 8am & 9:15am St. Paul’s Chapel · Holy Eucharist 8pm · Compline by Candlelight SUNDAY, 9am & 11:15am Trinity Church · Preaching, music, and Eucharist · Child care available MONDAY—FRIDAY, 8:15am Trinity Church, All Saints’ Chapel Morning Prayer MONDAY—FRIDAY, 12:05pm Trinity Church · Holy Eucharist MONDAY—FRIDAY, 5:15pm Trinity Church, All Saints’ Chapel Evening Prayer Watch live or on-demand webcast at trinitywallstreet.org/videos

St. Paul’s Chapel Come to an intergenerational, family-friendly Eucharist with music by the Trinity Youth Chorus. Followed by a light pizza supper.

Catch Your Breath: A Sanctuary for Your Day FRIDAY, JANUARY 8, 1PM

Trinity Church, All Saints’ Chapel

an Episcopal parish in the city of New York

DowntownExpress.com

Leah Reddy

Stop by for a centering and supportive midday interlude of meditation and contemplation. Led by the Rev. Kristin Kaulbach Miles. Meets the second and fourth Friday of each month.

trinitywallstreet.org 212.602.0800

December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

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December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

Mixed reviews for FiDi film biz

BY YAN N IC RACK A box office bomb or a critical success? The movie stars and TV crews flooding the streets of the Financial District are a hit for the city but a flop for some local residents and shops. “They burden the community and then the only one that benefits is the buildings — they’re making money hand over fist,” said Megan McHugh, who lives on Hanover Square, after bringing up the issue at a meeting of Community Board 1’s Financial District Committee earlier this year. The Art Deco landmark right next door to her, 20 Exchange Place, is popular with TV shows such as “Gotham” and has appeared in movies including “Inside Man” and “Wall Street.” “All of the residents and businesses affected by it receive nothing in return. With the trucks coming in, we can’t get deliveries, parking spaces are taken up,” McHugh said, accusing the Mayor’s Office of Film, Theatre and Broadcasting, which issues filming permits, of mindlessly rubber-stamping applications. New York prides itself on being a “TV town” and film crews have become a regular sight in Lower Manhattan, one of the most scenic parts of the city. According to the film office, there were 46 episodic television shows filming in the city in the 2014-15 season,

as well as 242 movies last year alone. The office does not include details of individual productions on its website but said that community boards are notified about upcoming shoots. The mayor recently released an independent study that found the filmed entertainment industry now contributes $8.7 billion to the city’s economy, an increase of more than $1.5 billion, or 21 percent, since 2011. At the same time, full-time jobs connected to the industry have grown 10 percent, from 94,000 to 104,000, over the last four years. “I think filming of movies and TV Downtown are incredibly important for our community, for jobs and for the image of the Financial District,” said Luis Vazquez, who lives on John St. and is also a public member of CB1. “The fact is it’s one of the city’s biggest industries,” he said. How much of that trickles down to local businesses is not always clear. “For the city it brings money, but not for us,” said Minas Polychronakis, who runs a shoe repair shop on Wall St. “They park all over, they block the neighborhood. They dictate the streets down here,” he said, adding that in over a decade in the area he has come to expect being regularly cut off from his customers by film shoots. But not all of his neighbors agree. George Kulamgiev, who owns BLOCK BUSTERS Continued on page 18

DowntownExpress.com

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December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

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Saving ‘Little Syria’

Push to preserve remnants of Downtown’s Arab quarter B Y YA N N I C RA C K When Linda Jacobs’s grandparents first set foot in New York City after their long trip from Syria in the late 19th century, they didn’t have to walk far to feel like they never left home. Coming ashore in Lower Manhattan, they landed right in the middle of the vibrant Arab community now known as “Little Syria.” “They got off the boat and walked 25 steps, and there was a Syrian colony with all these stores, restaurants, people speaking Arabic,” said Jacobs, a scholar of Near Eastern Archaeology and Anthropology who just published a book on the community, “Strangers in the West: The Syrian Colony of New York City, 1880-1900.” Started in the 1880s, the enclave stretched from the Battery to Albany St. and from the Hudson River to Greenwich St. Nobody used the term “Little Syria” in the 19th century, and most of the immigrants were in fact from present-day Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, and Jordan as well as Syria. By the 1940s, the community had largely disappeared, pushed out by the construction of the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel. “Everyone always expects it was so exotic, people wearing fez hats and smoking shishas [hookas] … but I think the main thing is that it was a very enterprising, vibrant area,” said Todd Fine, co-founder of the Washington Street Historical Society. For the past few years, Fine and a small group of fellow preservationists have pushed to landmark two buildings on Washington St. that they say are the last remnants of the once-flourishing community. “You had this little area that was one of the most diverse in American history, yet the Lower East Side gets so much more recognition and preservation,” Fine said. Supported by the Friends of the Lower West Side, Fine has repeatedly written to the city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission to request a formal hearing on the former Downtown Community House at 105107 Washington St. and a five-story tenement at 109 Washington St., sitting side-by-side on a block between Rector and Carlisle Sts. But the commission shot down all his requests, arguing that the buildings are not significant enough to receive individual protection, and too few to warrant a historic district. The L.P.C. also notes that the Downtown Community House, which has sat empty since 2009, was only built in 1925, at which point the population of Little Syria had been in decline for several years, with many of its inhabitants relocating to Brooklyn. But the commission is missing the point, according to Fine. “I feel that in Downtown, history is not a priority,” he said. “There’s gotta be something that will forever allow people to understand that this was once a neighborhood.” After Hurricane Sandy, Fine’s group adopted a small park at the intersection of Trinity Place and Greenwich Street, where bench plaques now recall the area’s Arabic history.

10

December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

Library of Congress

Library of Congress

The denizens of Little Syria brought the Middle East’s entrepreneurial spirit to their Lower Manhattan enclave, as businessmen (top) or smaller-scale merchants (above). Preservationists want to protect some of the last buildings from that era on Washington St. (right).

A third building on the Washington St. block, the former St. George’s Syrian Catholic Church at 103 Washington St., was landmarked in 2009. Although the terracotta façade of St. George’s is now protected, the church’s interior has for years been used as a pub. Next to the former house of worship sits an imposing Holiday Inn, and the tenement at 109 Washington St. abuts an empty lot that will soon host a residential tower. But back when the surrounding streets were still cobble-stoned, Little Syria had a very different atmosphere. “When the new immigrant walked up Washington Street, he would have heard Arabic on every side,” Jacobs writes in her book. “Many of the storefronts had signs in Arabic in the windows; there were men smoking water pipes in the cafés; and many of the men and women walking through the streets looked much as they did at home, not-withstanding their westernized clothing.” Today, the tenement at 109 Washington St. is still occupied. Esther Regelson, who has lived

Photo by Yannic Rack

in the building for the past 30 years, said that it is important to keep the memory of Little Syria alive — especially with anti-immigrant sentiment on the rise, as reflected in a recent Siena College poll showing that 52 percent of registered voters in New York State are against allowing Syrian refugees to come to the United States. “When you erase those buildings you have no idea of your place in history, and in a vibrant city that was built on the backs of those that came here before us,” Regelson said. “You take that snapshot of the neighborhood away, and it’s gone for good.” DowntownExpress.com

WHAT A YEAR! Continued from page 3

year when developer Howard Hughes Corp. announced this month it was scrapping plans for the high rise. In June, Hughes proposed downsizing its 494-foot tower — originally slated to be 650 feet — in a new plan that included sweeteners such as $10 million for the chronically under-funded South Street Seaport Museum, a community center, a marina, affordable housing at

Schermerhorn Row and a middle school that would occupy three floors of the tower. But that proposal failed to appease local opponents, who objected both to the outsized project’s proximity to the historic district and to its threat to neighbors’ East River views. In December, Hughes confirmed it no longer planned to build a residential tower at the site but rather a low-rise commercial building.

First Downtown Fourth of July parade in 40 years

Rendering courtesy of Howard Hughes

The developers of the South Street Seaport area gave up on building a high-rise apartment tower adjacent to the historic district after pushback from local residents and politicians.

Macy’s didn’t get all the glow this Fourth of July, as an Independence Day parade returned to Lower Manhattan for the first time in almost four decades. Leading from Pier 15 to Bowling Green, the march was organized by historian and tour guide James Kaplan, co-founder of the Lower Manhattan Historical Society, to revive the day’s tradition. “July 4th has become about backyard barbeques, trips to the beach and visiting relatives,” Kaplan said. “It used to be a major celebration in

Photo by Tequila Minsky

Downtown held its first Fourth of July parade in nearly four decades this year.

the city but the actual purpose of the day has since been lost.” As part of the festivities, the Hermione, an authentic replica of the ship that brought the Marquis de Lafayette and news of France’s support back to America 235 years ago, also led a parade of ships up the Hudson River.

Huxley forced out By this summer, residents and the Battery Park City Authority were

T:8.75”

locked in a frustrating pattern. The authority would make a decision without consulting the community, the decision was announced, and uproar would ensue. In another example, Tessa Huxley, who helmed the Battery Park City Parks Conservancy for almost three decades, was ousted by the authority from her position as executive director in July. WHAT A YEAR! Continued on page 14

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YUH-LINE NIOU IS A NEW CONTENDER FOR SILVER’S EX-SEAT (DEC. 18) Sorry I do not want Asians to be my mayor/governor. No racism just my preference. John That's actually the definition of racism but OK.

What the h*ll is wrong with Jeanne Wilcke? Is she she so tone deaf that she really concedes that the buffoon Quinn will control who is chosen by County Committee? That woman should stop talking all the time, think for a moment before she opens her mouth, and figure out what her job is as a spokesperson for DID. She's becoming an embarrassment. Josh R

Mike That is racist. And it's wrong. The comments of Niou and Kee also are racist and wrong. Since when does the Chinatown machine have the right to tell the rest of us that only what they want counts? Has Niou completely forgotten (or did she ever know) that there is an electoral district outside Chinatown? And if she's not allied with UDO, why is she spouting this nonsense, since she's never lived in Chinatown (much less anywhere else in our community). Maybe this young lady should learn a bit about our community before presuming to run for Assembly as the Chinatown candidate. Or else go back to Seattle. Guest

WEST THAMES LAWN BEING RESURFACED UNTIL APRIL (DEC. 18) Pity that as the city tries to get GREEN, BPC is shifting to plastic. This isn't really "neighborhood friendly". Instead, there should be a push to better utilize the play spaces we have - both the ball fields and The Battery (will that playground EVER be finished?) Keith It is a shame as there have always been a bunch of toddlers etc who walk around, fall down/crawl around on that surface. Now when they do, the will ingest highly toxic little black particles from the artificial turf. Liz

The Vatican has good news for the Jews B Y L E NO R E S KEN AZY You’d think this would be good news to a Jew like me: The Vatican has declared that my tribe can get into heaven. In a statement just released in honor of the 50th anniversary of the “Nostra Aetate” — itself a high point in Jewish-Christian relations in that it stated Jews should not be considered “accursed by God" (yay!) — the Vatican has gone one step further. The new document states that, “…it does not in any way follow that the Jews are excluded from God’s salvation because they do not believe in Jesus Christ as the Messiah of Israel and the Son of God.” In other words, Jews are now Heaveneligible — which has me very worried. (How Jewish is that?) You see, until now, I was already a little obsessed by what qualifies a person for a post-life thumbs up or down. And by “a little obsessed” I mean, I worried that if I ate a piece of bacon, did that make me a bad Jew, which then might damn me to Hell, even though we don’t really have Hell, so maybe even framing the question that way was a sin, meaning I was headed to some sort of miserable afterlife that supposedly doesn’t exist, with or without a devil, pitchfork, and lake that burns without giving off any light, etc.? See? So Jewish. And then, when I did something actually unkind — and by “unkind” I mean screaming at a cabbie who totally deserved it, because he made a right-hand turn while

December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

I was in the crosswalk, but still, those guys have a hard life and are barely surviving, thanks to Uber — I’d worry, “Well, was that one little blow-up the thing that’s actually going to tip the scales? I’ll be standing before St. Peter and he looks at a list of everything I did and it’s, ‘Why did you yell at the poor cabbie? They’re barely surviving, thanks to Uber.’ And he shakes his head like, ‘Sorry, you blew it,’ and then he pushes the little button that opens a trap door in the floor?” All this while I’m still in the crosswalk, shaking my fist. “Don’t worry about Hell!” my husband has told me, over and over. (Am I dishonoring him by writing this?) “We don’t believe in it!” But now … sheesh. All bets are off. I mean on! That whole Pascal’s wager thing is now in our court: Bet that there is a God and if we’re right, infinite rewards await us if we can just keep it in our pants (metaphorically speaking). But bet that there is no God (or Heaven), go rip-roaring wild, and we could be in for a world of pain (and jackals gnawing our intestines) later. That was a wager we Jews didn’t have to worry about. Until now! So how good do we have to be to go

upstairs? What is the fine print? Is one, “G------ it!” all it takes to rip up our VIP pass? Or do I have to be Bernie Madoff before I worry? Or, to put it a bit more proactively: How can I prove my Heaven-worthiness? Jews were already told to live righteously, give generously, dress warmly. (Well, most of us were.) We already knew we’re not supposed to murder, steal, or commit adultery. The real trip wire on that list is, “Thou shalt not covet.” But even if we did covet (come on — who doesn’t? Have you even seen my sister’s house?), it wasn’t like we were immediately disqualified from anything great. Coveting a fantastic house, or less jiggly thighs, or a job that pays more than freelance journalism, did not mean kissing goodbye to eternal life and harps that, because they are in heaven, must not sound as horrible as I imagine 10 billion amateur harpists must sound. We Jews just knew we were supposed to try to not covet so much. No wonder the goyim drink. (I’m kidding! I’m kidding! St. Peter — it was just one dumb, slightly un-P.C. joke. Come on!) Now I’m a Jew faced with all the worries of a Christian without even Christmas to ease the pain. Because a Jew celebrating Christmas — I’d hate to think where they’d end up! But I probably will. Lenore Skenazy is a keynote speaker and author and founder of the book and blog Free-Range Kids. DowntownExpress.com

2015: A banner year for Lower Manhattan B Y J E SSI CA L AP P IN This has been a great year for Downtown, marking the start of a new chapter in the neighborhood’s history. In the past year, New York’s oldest neighborhood has truly emerged from a period of post-9/11 recovery into an era of new growth and optimism that seemed starkly impossible only a decade ago. The opening of One World Trade Center a little over one year ago was an important symbolic achievement that coincided with an even more significant milestone: Lower Manhattan’s private-sector employment in 2014 had reached its highest level since the 9/11 attacks. And it should only keep growing in the years ahead. The area’s powerful economic momentum — driven by an increasingly diverse combination of new industries and the public’s investment of billions of dollars in capital projects — set the stage for Lower Manhattan’s return to strength in 2015. In the past year, it was hard to keep up with all that was changing here: a flurry of brand-new places to shop and eat; state-of-the-art office buildings; and new tourist attractions, hotels and apartment buildings. The unveiling of the reinvented Brookfield Place ushered in a host of exciting dining and shopping options and offered a

glimpse of even more to come. One World Observatory debuted as a new marquee attraction on floors 100-102 of One World Trade Center, welcoming more than a million visitors in its first three months. A rejuvenated Battery yielded new bike paths and walkways, a lush new greenspace called the “Battery Oval” and the spectacular, luminous SeaGlass carousel. Pace University’s new 34-story dormitory tower at the corner of William and Beekman Streets opened its doors to 770 students this past fall. Many companies, including Time Inc. and Condé Nast, settled into their new Downtown digs in 2015, changing not only the area’s economic make-up but also its social and cultural fabric. A place that once largely shut down at 5 p.m. has become one of New York’s hottest neighborhoods, with an undeniable energy pulsing in the streets. In order to tap into that energy and to better serve newcomers and old-timers alike, the Downtown

JACKHAMMERED Continued from page 7

Life Committee meeting on Thursday, Dec. 10. The plan to close the office feels like déjà vu for many Downtowners. In early 2014, the city shuttered the Lower Manhattan Construction Command Center — also known as the L.M.C.C.C. or LM-triple-C — much to the consternation of the community. “This is what we were worried about when they got rid of LM triple C,” said committee member Marc Ameruso. Committee chairwoman Pat Moore lives near the World Trade Center complex and recalled a time when there was “jackhammering 21 hours a day, 21 days in a row.” The Lower Manhattan Commissioner’s office was supposed to take the place of the L.M.C.C.C. and do the inter-agency work addressing those problems, she said. “We thought you were going to navigate these rough waters for us,” Moore told the D.O.T. rep at the meeting. The agency’s director of construction coordination, Frank Hrubes, gives monthly updates at the committee meetings, but said that the steady DowntownExpress.com

Alliance opened a first-of-its kind collaboration and innovation hub called LMHQ. Located at 150 Broadway, LMHQ is a place for forging new partnerships — where companies can come together to activate and accelerate their growth. All of these developments augur even more big news in the year ahead. More than 1,400 rooms in eight new hotels will come online in 2016. Lower Manhattan’s flourishing food culture is drawing celebrated restaurateurs like Tom Colicchio and Jessica Lappin Keith McNally and legendary restaurant Nobu (which will occupy a 14,000-square-foot space in 195 Broadway’s grand lobby). Following on the heels of Brookfield, Westfield World Trade is poised to open its iconic and long-awaited retail destination that will feature a global mix of fashion, dining and culture (a total of 350,000 square feet of new retail). Soaring above the Westfield complex, Santiago Calatrava’s magnificent,

erosion of funding has made the office’s work increasingly difficult. “We do as much as we can,” he said. “But as you know, we’ve been reduced, reduced, reduced.” Hrubes pointed out that the L.M.C.C.C. was created after 9/11 to handle reconstruction and was only supposed to be funded for five years, but committee members reminded him that Downtown’s reconstruction has dragged on long after that, and is still going on nearly 15 years later. “Oh, and all the problems have gone away now?” Moore quipped. “We’ve already lost LM triple C, so now we need someone to do that work.” The committee passed a resolution at the December meeting “strongly” urging the city and state provide funding for the office. But CB1 passed eight resolutions in support of the L.M.C.C.C. before it closed, and another for continued funding for the commissioner’s office in July last year. One new resident who just moved to the Financial District from Brooklyn and came specifically to complain about construction woes, underlined the need for the office, saying about her move, “I have to tell you, I’m regretting it.”

winged “Oculus” World Trade Center Transit hub is expected to be finished in mid-2016. Other recent progress at the World Trade Center site includes the naming of a new architect and a projected 2019 completion date for the Performing Arts Center, as well as a letter of intent signed by 21st Century Fox and News Corp. to anchor 1.3 million square feet in the future 2 World Trade Center. The combined impact of these significant investments and Lower Manhattan’s diversifying economy will result in a surge of employment growth and activity over the next several years, according to a recent Downtown Alliance report. The best part: the district will gain an estimated 40,000 new private-sector payroll jobs by the end of 2019. This would transform Lower Manhattan’s once lagging economy into a powerhouse that will generate substantial increased tax revenues for the city and state and, even more importantly, provide new employment opportunities to New Yorkers from all backgrounds and those living in every neighborhood of the city. Even with all of the progress we have already seen, Lower Manhattan has even more great years ahead of us. Jessica Lappin is president of the Alliance for Downtown New York.

Photo by Milo Hess

Wi nter Blossom s Record temperatures on Christmas Day coaxed out these December flowers in Battery Park City. Temps reached 66 degrees on Dec. 25 breaking a three-decade-old record. On Christmas Eve, the mercury peaked at a balmy 72 degrees.

December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

13

WHAT A YEAR! Continued from page 11

Days after news of her firing broke, people lined up at Community Board 1’s monthly meeting to praise Huxley’s stewardship of the neighborhood’s parks, which are often cited as one of the best things about the area. At the B.P.C.A. board meeting the following week, Huxley was not even mentioned. Then seven hours after the meeting finished, the authority announced Huxley’s departure.

Squadron reignites debate on future of BPCA A state agency running a city neighborhood is no longer viable, argued state Sen. Daniel Squadron in an August op-ed in this paper calling for the city to take over the authority that runs Battery Park City. The charter of the Battery Park City Authority — a state agency whose board is appointed by the governor — includes a clause that allows the city to take control for $1 and assumption of the authority’s debt. It is not a new idea, but with residents’ relations with the authority at a

new low, the proposal got a favorable reception when Squadron made the case to the Battery Park City Committee of Community Board 1 in November.

SeaGlass Carousel opens A new attraction arrived at The Battery this summer when the long-anticipated SeaGlass carousel finally spun into life in August. The marine-themed merry-go-round, with its colorful school of glowing fish, quickly became a hit: over Thanksgiving, just three months after opening, the attraction marked its 100,000th ride. The carousel became so popular that the Battery Conservancy extended its opening hours for the holidays and decided to keep it open for weekends and holidays throughout the winter.

Downtown finally gets money for flood protection Superstorm Sandy hit Lower Manhattan hard, and Downtown is still repairing damage done. So when the area was routinely shortchanged on funding for much-needed storm-resiliency measures — just $1.5 million out of billions of dollars

Photo by Milo Hess

The SeaGlass carousel opened to eager crowds in August.

allocated over the past three years — the community was baffled. Things started looking up for Downtown in March, when $15 million was allocated for Manhattan’s southern tip. Then in August, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced the city would spend $100 million to protect Lower Manhattan from another major storm. The city is hoping to parlay this commitment into $500 million more in federal money from the $1 billion up for

grabs as part of the National Disaster Resilience Competition. The city has made it to the second round and the winner will be announced in January.

Downtown needs crossing guards Downtowners have long called for new schools to serve the growing population, but this year it became obvious that the neighborhood needs WHAT A YEAR! Continued on page 16

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additional crossing guards as well. Lower Manhattan’s chronic lack of crossing guards reached a crisis point in 2015, with four vacancies left unfilled by the end of the summer, at the same time the new Peck Slip School opened at the Seaport. “I don’t feel comfortable crossing the street,” said one parent, Tricia Joyce, who is also chairwoman of Community Board 1’s Youth and Education Committee. The First Precinct, which has had trouble recruiting new crossing guards, pledged to assign traffic agents to the task in the meantime. “Traffic enforcement agents will be out there helping children crossing the street until we hire crossing guards,” the commanding officer, Capt. Mark Iocco, told Downtown Express.

Peck Slip School opens Sept. 9 marked a victory for Downtown school advocates with the opening of Peck Slip School in the Seaport. It took three years of “incubating” at the Dept. of Education’s headquarters, more than two years of renovations costing $58 million, and several years of lobbying by Downtown school advocates and the School Overcrowding Task Force to make the school at 1 Peck Slip a reality.

Photo courtesy of National September 11 Memorial & Museum

Pope Francis visited the 9/11 Memorial with Cardinal Timothy Dolan, archbishop of New York, in September during the pontiff’s first visit to America.

Pope Francis visits 9/11 Memorial Pope Francis came to the 9/11 Memorial and Museum on his historic visit to the U.S. this summer, and was deeply moved by the visit. “I feel many different emotions standing here at ground zero, where thousands of lives were taken in a senseless act of destruction,” the pope said after he greeted family members of some who were killed in the Sept. 11 attacks and led an interfaith service at the museum. “Here, grief is palpable.”

Council mulls chopper ban The Council invited Dowtowners to sound off about the problem of noisy helicopter tours at a

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hearing in November to consider bills banning the industry from Manhattan. The Downtown Manhattan Heliport near The Battery is the only heliport in the city that allows sightseeing helicopters, and tour flights thunder in an out of the Pier 6 heliport 28 times every hour during the day, seven days a week, according to figures from the Helicopter Tourism & Jobs Council, amounting to more than 100,000 takeoffs and landings each year. Local residents and leaders turned out in force to push for the ban, but the Council has not yet set the date for a vote on the legislation.

Peking soap opera In November, the South Street Seaport Museum confirmed what this paper predicted back in January: the century-old barque Peking will leave the Lower Manhattan berth where it has docked since 1974 and set sail for Germany next spring. The journey to its home port of Hamburg, where it was built in 1911, will likely be the tall ship’s final voyage. The decision to part with the Peking is a symptom of the museum’s ongoing financial struggle, and preservationists worry that the Seaport will eventually lose all its historic tall ships. Peking’s departure leaves the Wavertree, currently undergoing a $13 million restoration in Staten Island, as the museum’s only tall-masted sailing ship.

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Zadroga Act renewed At the last possible moment, the U.S. Senate finally voted to fund the renewal of the 2010 Zadroga Act, permanently funding health care for first responders and local survivors injured or made ill by the 9/11 attacks. Local pols lobbied hard for the renewal, which the Senate leadership was refusing to bring to a vote despite it having overwhelming support in both houses of Congress. In a last-ditch effort, Jon Stewart returned to “The Daily Show” as a guest in December and called for a social-media campaign to shame lawmakers into renewing the 9/11 first-responders’ healthcare program.

Private security at BPC The Battery Park City Authority brought in private security contractor AlliedBarton to provide yellow-clad “ambassadors” to patrol the neighborhood this month, in yet another surprise move that has outraged residents. The aim appears to be to replace most or all of the city’s Park Enforcement Patrol, who have patrolled Battery Park City’s green-spaces for years under a contract that ends in late January. The authority has said that it intends to maintain some P.E.P. presence, but details are still being worked out. Residents worry that replacing P.E.P. officers — who can issue summonses and make arrests — with private security agents with no enforcement powers DowntownExpress.com

Photo by Milo Hess

The Battery Park City Authority hired private security contractor AlliedBarton to provide yellow-clad “ambassadors” to patrol the neighborhood, replacing most of the city’s Park Enforcement Patrol.

could put residents at greater risk. “I’m sorry you’re being robbed, ma’am. Please, sir, can you wait there while I call a cop?” CB1 member Tammy Meltzer joked at a recent meeting, imagining how an AlliedBarton “ambassador” might respond to a crime.

Downtown becomes media mecca Lower Manhattan officially became the new center for the city’s media industry in 2015 with more than a half-dozen major firms settling into new Downtown offices or announcing plans to make the move. Time Inc. moved into its new offices in Brookfield Place this year, becoming new neighbors to publishers Condé Nast and Harper Collins. SportsNet New York inked a deal for space in 4 WTC, and 21st Century Fox and News Corp. — publisher of the New York Post and The Wall Street Journal — recently signed on as anchor tenants for 2 WTC. The New York Observer has also announced plans to relocate Downtown, joining the New York Daily News, which made the move in 2011. The latest media giant to head south of Canal St. is the Associated Press, which announced in late December that it would move into Brookfield Place in 2017.

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Downtown lost another champion this year when developer John Zuccotti died on Nov. 19 at the age of 78. The former public official and real estate investor played an outsized role in Lower Manhattan’s development before and after 9/11. As chairman of Gov. Hugh L. Carey’s World Trade Center task force, he was instrumental in the creation not only of the Twin Towers, but also of Battery Park City, which was build on landfill from the original World Trade Center’s excavations. Later, as head of Olympia & York, he developed the World Financial Center, now Brookfield Place. In the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, Zuccotti helped bring the public and private sectors together to ensure that the neighborhood was rebuilt. More recently, he served on the boards of both the Performing Arts Center at the World Trade Center and National September 11th Memorial & Museum.

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December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

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December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

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BY YAN N IC RACK The Battery’s new star attraction is getting a bit more stage time. The SeaGlass carousel has been so popular since its debut in late August that the Battery Conservancy has decided to extend its run through the winter. “It’s huge. I really wanted Downtowners to feel that this is their new, great asset,” said Warrie Price, the conservancy’s founder and president. The marine-themed merry-go-round sold more than 100,000 tickets in its first three months, and its popularity led the conservancy to keep the carousel spinning later in the evening, and open seven days a week, until after New Year’s Day — and to open it on weekends and holidays though January and February. Originally slated to close from Jan. 2 until March, the carousel is scheduled to spin from 10 a.m.–6 p.m. on weekends and holidays for the next two months, if the weather permits — and the warm

winter so far suggests it will. “Everyone has come, and they enjoy it so much they’re coming back again, and again, and again,” Price said. “And with this weather, we thought, ‘why not keep it going?’” Its regular hours — 10 a.m.–8. p.m. Sunday through Thursday, and 10 a.m.– 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday — will resume in March. The carousel’s colorful school of glowing fish circles within the Woodland section of the park, at its eastern entrance near the South Ferry Terminal. The eight-foot construction fences around the Woodland recently came down, but the lawn will remain closed off about another year, according to Price. She said once it reopens, it will include a brand new playground “grove” that will feature swings and other attractions dotted between the trees. The Battery Oval in the center of the park is set to reopen in June.

BLOCK BUSTERS Continued from page 8

crews have been good neighbors. “They clean up after themselves, and we all need to make money somehow,” she said, adding that one production last summer even reimbursed the pizzeria for a day of lost business. “Big-budget productions have been very good. They present before [the community board] and they buy from local vendors,” said Vazquez, who suggested that better cooperation might resolve residents’ concerns. “I have no issue with them being down here at all, and would never advocate any limits on them,” he said. “That said, they need to be cognizant that this is a residential neighborhood.”

George’s Hair Styling on Beaver St., gave two thumbs up to the film crews. “I like it because they all come here — electricians, set people, all of them,” he said, estimating that he has served over 1,000 crewmembers in his 14 years in the area. “Every month we get some filming, and each time at least a dozen come, to get a haircut or a beard trim.” Colleen Mitchell, co-owner of the Cucina Bene Pizzeria on Exchange Pl., said she does lose business from residents when streets are blocked off, but she makes the money back from catering to the movie crews. She said that in her experience, the production

DowntownExpress.com

Best in Screen, 2015

Our omnivorous critic harvests a subjective crop B Y SE AN E G A N It’s that time again — when every publication, TV show, website and blog that covers the arts trots out their monolithic lists of the year’s most excellent offerings. But doing this, even if just attempting to articulate your own personal opinion, is a pretty tricky business. It’s not easy trying to compare the relative merits of, say, a movie shot for 100K on an iPhone, and the latest $200 million installment of “Star Wars.” I mean, that’s like comparing apples and the world’s most successful film franchise of all time. Seeing as even the notion of basing lists around the confines of the calendar year is arbitrary, it might be nice to take the focus off of ordering and numbering, and instead take films on their own accord — by assigning them other, equally arbitrary categories in which they can shine. All of these movies are, I believe, pretty great, and are worth the effort to seek out and watch. Because if there’s one thing that film in 2015 has taught us, it’s that the more cinematically omnivorous you are, and the less concerned you are with consuming only “the best,” the greater chance you’ll have to find something you love — especially in unexpected places.

MOST WHITE KNUCKLE INTENSITY:

“It Follows” With his astoundingly assured debut feature, David Robert Mitchell has created a near-perfect horror movie — and one of the year’s very best films, regardless of genre. Taking place in an out-of-time suburb, the shape-shifting titular “It” begins its titular following after the individual it’s plaguing passes it along to another via sex. Fluid camerawork, realistically-sketched characters, and a brilliant premise set this chilling meditation about growing up and mortality apart — as does its ability to prod at big existential questions more effectively than most prestige pictures, while also remembering to steadily mount dread and thoroughly creep its audience out.

mild-mannered Russian spy), Spielberg turns in his most handsomely realized, exciting and vital film in recent memory. “The Hateful Eight” In, appropriately enough, his eighth feature, Quentin Tarantino has produced what is certainly his nastiest, most difficult, most visually beautiful film to date. It’s a strange amalgamation of past work (the confined location of “Reservoir Dogs,” the western landscapes of “Django Unchained,” the talky revenge tale of, um, everything else), which uses its expanded running time, gorgeous 70mm cinematography, and a fantastic Samuel L. Jackson-led ensemble to tell a relatively simple, highly theatrical mystery. The twist here is that Tarantino plays everything far more straight than usual. Sure, there’s some gallows humor, but when his signature viscera starts flying, it’s more brutal than ever before. There’s a method behind this film’s cruelty and lack of moral center, though — it dares you to take a long, hard look at the human soul, which is unable to hide all its ugliness when magnified by the unflinching eye of Cinerama. BEST OBLIGATORY HOLLYWOOD REBOOT:

MOST KICKASS MOVIE OF THE YEAR: Lionsgate

Emily Blunt, in a shot emblematic of the arid, threatening landscape of “Sicario.”

Warner Bros.

There was no more explosive movie (literally) in 2015 than George Miller’s “Mad Max: Fury Road.”

“Sicario” Smart and harrowing, Denis Villeneuve’s mid-budget adult thriller is the kind that doesn’t get made much anymore. It doesn’t skimp on the tension or action, even while exploring headier ideas. Led by dynamic performances from Emily Blunt, Josh Brolin and Benicio Del Toro, and guided along by Roger Deakins’ expressive cinematography, it’s ostensibly about taking down a Mexican drug cartel — but is most resonant when examining dynamics of race and gender, and the personal toll this high-pressure environment takes on a person. AMERICAN AUTEURS:

“Mad Max: Fury Road” Is there any way to describe George Miller’s belated fourth installment of his signature post-apocalyptic action franchise other than “kickass?” Well, you could also say the nearly non-stop, two-hour car chase is “action-packed,” “gorgeously shot,” “delightfully analog,” “surprisingly intelligent,” or “tons of fun.” Or, perhaps you could simply call it “the best movie of the year” — but even that seems a little bit reductive. DowntownExpress.com

“Bridge of Spies” To paraphrase the movie’s co-scribes, the Coen Brothers: “Tom Hanks. Cold War picture. Whaddya need, a road map?” And with Steven Spielberg in the director’s chair, the project does seem like a no-brainer the creative team could complete on autopilot. Fortunately, working from a true-story script that’s at turns tense and unexpectedly hilarious (and enhanced by a virtuoso performance from Mark Rylance as a

Warner Bros.

Michael B. Jordan and Sylvester Stallone helped to make “Creed” a knockout for the “Rocky” franchise.

“Creed” This might be the “Rocky” spinoff no one really asked for — but writer/director Ryan Coogler (of 2013’s acclaimed “Fruitvale Station”) justifies its existence by producing the series’ best movie since the 1976 original. Sylvester Stallone revisits his signature role with humor and pathos. Further aided by an intense, layered performance from Michael B. Jordan, Coogler digs deep into the characters’ psyches, and BEST IN SCREEN Continued on page 20

December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

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Reboots, indies, auteurs top 2015 films comedy about two trans sex-workers navigating the streets of Hollywood. The unique cinematography, which looks like a widescreen, ultra-saturated Instagram page brought to life, serves to complement the film’s palpable attitude and wit.

BEST IN SCREEN Continued from page 19

creates the most viscerally exciting fights of the franchise — knowing when to employ both lingering long takes and blistering montage to thrilling effect. UNCOMPROMISING INDIES (MALE-LED EDITION):

“Buzzard” There’s three things you gotta know about this movie: It’s punk rock as hell, its protagonist is a low-level con artist with a functioning Freddy Krueger claw/Nintendo Power Glove hybrid, and it’s got a nearly five-minute long scene of him eating a plate of spaghetti. If any of these factoids pique your interest, you’re definitely the target audience for Joe Potrykas’ greasy, desperate, pitch-black comedy. “Entertainment” I’ve described this film before as “bleak” and an “overwhelming sensory experience,” and I mean that as nothing but the highest praise. Rick Alverson’s depressing, tragi-comic character study of an aging, down-on-his-luck comedian (Gregg Turkington) knocked the wind out of me in the best possible way. Certain sequences and images from “Entertainment” have burrowed their way deep into my mind, and have been marinating in a way that few movies are capable of doing. You may not “get it,” but there’s a good chance the movie will get you, and refuse to let go. UNCOMPROMISING INDIES (FEMALE-FRONTED EDITION)”

“Queen of Earth” Shot on endearingly grainy 16mm film, and providing a fantastic showcase for Elisabeth Moss, “Queen of Earth” is a tale of precarious sanity and long-term friendship, which plays out as a ’70s psychological thriller by way of indie dramedy. Possessing an impressively strong grip on his characters, writer/ director Alex Ross Perry strikes a delicate balance between his signature acerbic humor and intense psychodrama, bringing out the best in both.

IFC Films

“The Duke of Burgundy” is a tale of kink and romance like no other.

“Duke of Burgundy” Equal parts Lynch, Brakhage, romantic-drama and ’70s softcore, “Duke of Burgundy” creates an intimately realized and emotionally affecting romance by examining what two women in love will do for each other to make their relationship work. That it does this by aiming directly for taboo subjects — namely extreme sexual kinks — and presenting them with a measured, art-house eye makes for an indelible, daring, one-of-a-kind film. BEST BLOCKBUSTERS:

“Ant-Man” While “Avengers: Age of Ultron” struggled under the weight of its narrative obligations and larger-than-life characters, Marvel fared far better with its other summer release, the comparatively low-key “Ant-Man.” Featuring a looser, comedic vibe, inventive action sequences and a more downto-earth story, the film is a distinctive and refreshingly offbeat installment of Marvel’s increasingly large cinematic universe. “Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens” I mean, what can I say? Nitpicking aside, it’s “Star Wars” — and they pretty much did it exactly right. NEW CHRISTMAS CLASSICS:

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December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

“Krampus” Hailing from writer/director Mike Dougherty, “Krampus” does for Christmas what his last feature, “Trick ’r Treat,” did for Halloween — providing genre cinema junkies with an instant holiday horror classic. It’s got a wicked sense of humor (bolstered by comedic ringers like David Koechner and Adam Scott), gorgeous grotesqueries (rendered lovingly, and, for the most part, practically), and enough yuletide heart to make the gore go down easy. “Tangerine” While not exactly a Christmas movie per se, all the action of this iPhone-shot indie takes place on Christmas Eve — qualifying it for inclusion in this totally arbitrary category. But that label is as good as any for this thoroughly singular, confrontational

Magnolia Pictures

The iPhone-shot “Tangerine” looks like a vibrant Instagram profile come to life.

BEST DEFENSE OF FOUND FOOTAGE HORROR:

“Unfriended” This nasty little flick twists the much-maligned “found footage” script by having the action play out entirely on a laptop screen. It’s an idea elegant in its simplicity and legitimately unsettling in practice, which accurately (and uncannily) reflects how people use technology and social media — managing to probe at our Internet obsession, and how it can affect our interpersonal relationships and moral fiber. “The Visit” Laugh if you want, but with his low-budget found footage chiller, perennial punching bag M. Night Shyamalan has made an honest-to-god (very creepy) creative comeback. Framing his tale of an ill-fated familial visit as the product of a precocious teenage documentary-filmmaker allows him to employ more formal mastery than the genre’s limitations usually permit, and lets him indulge in a fair amount of goofy humor and emotionally involving character work. BEST BLOCKBUSTERS (UNFAIRLY OVERLOOKED EDITION):

Warner Bros.

The spies of “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.” — Guy Ritchie’s fizzy, ’60s throwback. BEST IN SCREEN Continued on page 23

DowntownExpress.com

For your reconsideration: Orson Welles ‘Midnight’ culminates a lifelong infatuation with Shakespeare B Y T R AV S . D . Get used to hearing a lot more about Orson Welles over the coming months. The hoary old narrative on America’s greatest director is being rewritten; the old canard that says Welles’ best days were behind him after “Citizen Kane” (1941) is being laid to rest. Sometime next year the director’s unfinished late work “The Other Side of the Wind,” which was shot during the 1970s, is scheduled for release in the wake of a much-publicized crowdfunding campaign. And a reconstructed version of his 1969 “The Merchant of Venice” premiered at the Venice International Film Festival earlier this year. And then there is the widespread reappraisal of his recently restored 1965 masterpiece “Chimes at Midnight,” which will be screening at Film Forum, Jan. 1–12. Welles had many films in the works during his last decade, but “Chimes at Midnight” is the last one he completed, not counting the 1973 experimental documentary essay “F for Fake.” He thought of it as his most artistically successful film, and it was, in many ways, the culmination of his lifelong infatuation with Shakespeare. According to legend, Welles’ first exposure to the Bard came at age two, when his mother read him unabridged versions of the plays. As a teenager, he edited a three-volume series of books called “Everybody’s Shakespeare.” In 1934, he played Tybalt in Katharine Cornell’s production of “Romeo and Juliet” on Broadway. In 1936, he played Hamlet on the radio. Then he directed two Shakespeare productions of his own which put him on the map: a 1936 interpretation of “Julius Caesar” reset in the context of Fascist Europe, and a 1937 Voodooinspired “Macbeth.” His earlier Shakespeare films included a 1948 “Macbeth” (quite different from the stage production), and his 1952 “Othello.” Welles’ first appearance on television was in 1953, as the title character in an “Omnibus” production of “King Lear” — a role he was to play again onstage three years later. “Chimes at Midnight” was over a quarter of a century in the making. In 1939 Welles had put together an ambitious production called “Five Kings”, which folded together nine Shakespeare plays to tell the entire “War of the Roses” cycle, with himself in the plum role of Sir John Falstaff and Burgess Meredith as Price Hal (the young Henry V). This production collapsed under its own weight, and Welles went west to begin making films for RKO. He revisited it in 1960, as a much-condensed stage version, much more sharply focused on the Falstaff-Prince Hal relationship. The stage production was aborted, but it turned into a film, which Welles shot in 1964 and 1965. In addition to DowntownExpress.com

Courtesy Film Forum, Photofest

L to R: Keith Baxter and Orson Welles in Welles’ “Chimes at Midnight.”

Welles as Falstaff, the film features John Gielgud as Henry IV, Ralph Richardson reading narration derived from Holinshead’s “Chronicles,” Margaret Rutherford as Mistress Quickly, Jeanne Moreau as Doll Tearsheet, and Keith Baxter as Prince Hal. “Chimes at Midnight” was released in time for the 1966 Cannes Film Festival and won a couple of awards that year, but here in America it was, for the most part, critically dismissed, thinly distributed and ignored by the public. Its reputation has improved over the years, at least with scholars and critics, despite the scarcity of prints — and the seeming non-existence of any good ones. Like all of his post-Hollywood films, “Chimes” was made on a shoestring, often making use of desperate techniques to hide the seams, usually “sleight-of-hand” editing, and the liberal use of overdubs in post-production to cover weak takes and performances. Muddy sound, in particular, has bedeviled this film in days past. In versions I watched years ago prior to the current restoration, the dialogue was almost impossible to understand. The present version not only addresses the audio flaws, but the print is visually pristine as well, providing audiences perhaps with what might be called the first real opportunity to properly evaluate the film. And it is indeed glorious, even eye-opening. Welles was gravely disappointed when audiences of his day didn’t see what he saw — that it was his best work both as an actor and as a director. And the fullness of time has also shown that it’s possibly the best Shakespeare adaptation ever put

on film. Among other things, I can’t think of any other Shakespeare film that feels so imbued with an Elizabethan atmosphere. Welles once said that “Chimes” wasn’t just about the growing estrangement between Falstaff and Hal, but also about the death of “Merrie England,” i.e. the old Medieval England of Maypoles and Chaucer and Robin Hood. What would follow would be all statecraft and modernity, and eventually World Empire. As Falstaff, the over-stuffed Welles drew on his own personal legend, of his reputation for drinking and gourmandizing and womanizing and boasting and irresponsibility, for a performance at once hilarious and full of sorrow and regret. And if the terrific performances weren’t enough, there is the justly celebrated “Battle of Shrewsbury” sequence — genuine spectacle of a size and scale one rightly wouldn’t expect in a film that is, until that point, rather intimate. But this too is a Wellesian magic trick. Less than 200 extras were made to stand for thousands, and the illusion is convincing. Of Welles’ “Chimes at Midnight,” it may truly be said that never has something so small ever seemed so large. Jan. 1–12. Mon.–Sat. at 12:30, 2:50, 5:10, 7:30 & 9:50 p.m. Sun. at 1:10, 3:30, 5:50 & 8:15 p.m. Runtime: 115 min. At Film Forum (209 W. Houston St., btw. Sixth Ave. & Varick St.). Call 212-727-8110 or visit filmforum.org. Tickets on-site are $13 general admission, $7.50 for Film Forum members. December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

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DowntownExpress.com

Buhmann on Art: Arbitrary categories, Motley at the Whitney

essential films

‘Jazz Age Modernist’ charts a daring visual language

BEST IN SCREEN Continued from page 20

“The Man From U.N.C.L.E.” Featuring a splashy ’60s setting and an eye-popping primary color palette, “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.” is big-budget blockbuster fun of the highest order, which has kinetic action, incredible style (and some playful homoerotic tension) to spare. “Crimson Peak” Even for a visual visionary, the world of “Crimson Peak” stands as one of Guillermo del Toro’s most stunningly realized milieus. Combining the gorgeous production design with eerie effects and twisted, heightened melodrama makes for a campy, creepy, soapy delight.

Images courtesy Chicago History Museum, © Valerie Gerrard Browne

Top: “Hot Rhythm” / 1961. Oil on canvas, 40 × 48.375 in. (101.6 × 122.9 cm). Below left: “Tongues (Holy Rollers)” / 1929. Oil on canvas, 29.25 x 36.125 in. (74.3 x 91.8 cm). Below right: “Self-Portrait (Myself at Work)” / 1933. Oil on canvas, 57.125 x 45.25 in. (145.1 x 114.9 cm).

Warner Bros.

The Wachowskis’ maligned space opera “Jupiter Ascending” features eye-popping visuals and production design.

“Jupiter Ascending” Though their nutso space-opera was roundly dismissed upon release, writer/ directors Andy and Lana Wachowski’s humanism, style and sense of humor — as well as their knack for mashing up classic tropes with their own inventive ideas and thematic preoccupations — always keep things interesting and unpredictable. Yes, it’s a bit of a lumbering mess, but it’s a beautiful one, and, more importantly, an original and ambitious one — an increasingly rare thing to be valued. BEST WORST MOVIE:

“The Cobbler” Yeah, it’s cliché to call out Adam Sandler for making bad movies at this point — but hear me out. “The Cobbler” is a special brand of awful — a misguided, quasi-magic-realism flick that defies succinct description, and reaches new, operatic heights of bats**t insanity with its every questionable plot twist. For those who love to riff with friends, consider this a bow-topped gift streaming on Netflix. And for those who insist on things like “technical competence” and “quality” in their films, I’d recommend “The Cobbler” co-writer/director Tom McCarthy’s other 2015 release, “Spotlight” — an engrossing retelling of the Boston Globe’s investigation of the Catholic Church sexual abuse scandal. DowntownExpress.com

BY STEPHAN IE BUHMAN N One of the great visual chroniclers of 20th century American life, Archibald John Motley Jr. (1891– 1981) first came to prominence in the 1920s. His memorable depictions of African American, everyday urban life skillfully document the era of the Harlem Renaissance — when African American art, music, and literature flourished and impacted culture nationwide. Though born in New Orleans, Motley was based in Chicago for most of his life. There, he became one of the first black artists to attend the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, which provided him with an academic training focused on figurative painting in the European tradition. This education equipped him with impeccable technique — but

Motley's mature work was far from conservative. In fact, he succeeded in creating a daring visual language that fused vivid narratives with elaborate spatial distortions. Rendered in his distinctive palette, Motley's compositions range in complexity. His most impressive paintings feature eclectic groups of people from diverse racial backgrounds and social classes. Through Jan. 17 at the Whitney Museum of American Art (99 Gansevoort St., at Washington St.). Mon., Wed., Thurs. & Sun., 10:30 a.m.–6 p.m.; Fri.–Sat., 10:30 a.m.–10 p.m. Tickets: $22 general; $18, seniors & students; free for those under 18. Pay what you wish Fri., 7–10 p.m. Call 212-570-3600 or visit whitney.org.

December 31, 2015 – January 13, 2016

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