Category Archives: News

Sarah Palin Refudiates Ground Zero Mosque

Sarah Palin “Refudiates” Ground Zero Mosque on Twitter

Politics, , , , , ,
Sarah Palin Refudiates Ground Zero Mosque
Sarah Palin Refudiates Ground Zero Mosque

Remarkably silent on her Twitter account after news of her daughter Bristol Palin’s engagement to ex-boyfriend and family nemesis Levi Johnston — America’s favorite soccer mom, Sarah Palin seems to have broken her silence on behalf of 9/11 families and opponents of the Ground Zero mosque at the World Trade Center site.

In a series of Twitter comments, Palin tweets:

“Peaceful New Yorkers, pls refute the Ground Zero mosque plan if you believe catastrophic pain caused @ Twin Towers site is too raw, too real”

“Ground Zero Mosque supporters: doesn’t it stab you in the heart, as it does ours throughout the heartland? Peaceful Muslims, pls refudiate”

“Peace-seeking Muslims, pls understand, Ground Zero mosque is UNNECESSARY provocation; it stabs hearts. Pls reject it in interest of healing”

Upon the news of her tweets, Palin was instantly mocked for using a word not in the English vocabulary, “refudiate.” Palin has since deleted that post and made light of her grasp of the English language.

“Refudiate,” “misunderestimate,” “wee-wee’d up.” English is a living language. Shakespeare liked to coin new words too. Got to celebrate it!”

It is clear that not all politicians are celebrating the momentum that the Cordoba Initiative’s Park 51 mosque is receiving. Sarah Palin joins Rick Lazio as the most vocal political opponents of the mosque, where as other politicians including current New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is a strong advocate for the building of the mosque. Another strong advocate is our Community Board who oversees development in Battery Park City and at the World Trade Center site.

The current developer of Park 51 Sharif El-Gamal sees the mosque not only as a community center near Ground Zero, but as a future tourist attraction as well. El-Gamal was quoted in a recent Wall Street Journal article that he hopes that when tour buses come through the area, the mosque will become a monument as significant as the Empire State Building.

Battery Park City Community Comments

Week in Review: You Said It! (Community Comments)

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Battery Park City Community Comments
Check out this weeks neighborhood comments!

We’ve been humbled by the response we’ve received on the site through comments and suggestions, and so we’ve decided to create a weekly feature called “Week in Review.’ Every week, we’ll highlight  selected comments from the site. We urge you to find and add more comments to all our articles as we hope that this keeps the conversation going! As always, feel free to leave suggestions/comments for the rest of us on the site and in our posts.

Art Vendors in Battery Park
Battery Vendors

In ‘Battery Park to Have Fewer Art Vendors,’
John wrote: “what about the counterfeit luxury bags dealers? between the art vendors and the counterfeit luxury bags dealers, i’d rather see the art vendors stay, and the counterfeit bag dealers go. one group is selling legal merchandise, the other is clearly trading in illegal merchandise. and they make neither commitments NOR investments in our neighborhood. their shady way of operating is the real blight on our streets.”

45-47 Park Place Debris
9/11 Debris

In ‘Mosque Hearing Update and Religious Turf War,’
Dr. John A. Pagnani wrote: “It seems to me that the part of the reconstruction site that is not dedicated to commerce should be a nondenominational space to promote healing and rememberence, not division. I would vote to keep all organized religions from seizing this ground so everyone is able to feel comfortable there. I do not think it should be used to promote any specific religious perspective other than what people bring to the site in their hearts.”

liberty court 200 rector place
Tire Swing Woes

In ‘Liberty Court Residents New Tire Swing Victims,’
M Wood Wrote: “…Of course for the last year or so we have been living through another reconstruction of West Street. In addition, those of us facing West Thames Park just experienced many months of construction, starting early in the morning, sometimes 7 days a week. I think a little context might help make others a little more understanding and actually appreciative of those residents who have stayed here despite these challenges. By the way, my own pet peeve is the ugliness of the new “arbor”, but that is nothing after what we have been through here.”

MTA Cuts greatly affect Lower Manhattan
BPC MTA Changes

In ‘MTA Cuts Ream Lower Manhattan: What This Means,’
Kate S. wrote: “Battery Park City is a wonderful place to live–except when they take away key services like the W train and the M9 bus. The M9 was a link to being able to go out by myself at night and feel completely safe coming home late. What a shame that we, who do not have all the amenities of the rest of NYC, are cut off from the few things that made life here a bit easier.”

Battery Park City Ball Field Schedule

You Asked For It: Battery Park City Ball Field Schedule (Play Ball!)

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Battery Park City Ball Field Schedule
Battery Park City Ball Field Schedule

We are constantly going through your comments and suggestions, and we were very excited when we received our first official site suggestion from Sabrina:

She asked: “It would be great if you could have a quick link or a box somewhere on your site that would let us know if the BPC Ballfields are open. thanks!”

A special thanks goes out to James Miner, the Ball Field Coordinator for the Battery Park City Parks Conservancy, who worked hard to get us some basic information on how to get the best out of the ball fields. We’re also working with James to get a complete schedule for the summer season, which will be posted shortly.

Here is what James had to share:

Adult Use of BPC Ball Fields
The months of July and August are the best times for adults to take advantage of the ball fields in Battery Park City.

Each year (between Jan. 1st and March 1st) I collect about 40+ permits that I then schedule on weeknights — Tuesday – Friday from either 4-6pm or 6-8pm.  For those interested in potentially permitting out the BPC Ball Fields they can get more information here: http://bpcparks.org/bpcp/news/rules.php#permits.

For anyone looking to enjoy just a game of catch or  to kick a soccer ball around, they can use the fields as well, but should consider the following times for “drop-in” play.

  • Weeknights (Tuesday – Thursday, 4-6pm, and Fridays, 2:30pm-8pm)
    Weeknights are tough for “drop-in” play because they are permitted constantly by local businesses/companies.
  • Weekends (Saturday and Sunday, 9am-8pm)
    For those living nearby, weekends are a great time to come by for a pick-up game of soccer/frisbee/touch football etc.

There is almost always a BPC Staffer located at the ball fields who can loan out sporting equipment (soccer balls, gloves and softballs/baseballs, etc).

*During the Fall (September – November) and Spring (May – June) the fields are used heavily and on a daily basis by our Downtown Soccer League and Downtown Little League.  So, unless you can get out early, getting use of the fields is very tough.

** The new West Thames Park (by Rector Bridge) is great for games of frisbee or for light soccer use and not nearly as crowded as Rockefeller Park.

So thanks again to Sabrina and James — now, “Let’s Play Ball!”

Study says direct exposure to 9/11 plays a role in mental development

Children Exposed to 9/11 Found Developmentally Vulnerable

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Study says direct exposure to 9/11 plays a role in mental development
Study says direct exposure to 9/11 plays a role in behavior development.

If your child was directly exposed to the traumas of 9/11, he/she may have been vulnerable to behavioral problems — according to a newly published report in the July/August issue of ‘Child Development.’

Researchers conducted two studies based on children living in Lower Manhattan who were directly exposed to 9/11. The exposure included being a direct witness to the attacks a well as living in homes where their mothers were suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. In this first clinical study, preschool children exposed to 9/11 were found to be directly vulnerable to behavioral problems.

Mount Sinai School of Medicine, the Jewish Board of Family and Children’s Services and the Bronx Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center were part of the overall research team conducting the first study including the analysis of 100 moms and their children — directly exposed to the 9/11 attacks.

In a second study involved the analysis of adolescents and their mothers in our area. That study found that even a year after 9/11 both mothers and children reported elevated reports of post-traumatic stress disorder and depression.

The following research team included the University of Michigan, New York University and the Austin Independent School District, as well as the Sesame Workshop.

According to an article on Sify.com, “Direct exposure to the events of 9/11 played a small, but significant role in explaining the severity of mental health symptoms.”

The Lower Manhattan families were part of a recruitment outreach program of those affected by the attacks from March 2003 through December 2005.

The findings indicate the need to further understand the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder and the parent child relationship.

18th Century Ship Found At World Trade Center Site

A Ship Has Come In At The World Trade Center Site

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18th Century Ship Found At World Trade Center Site
18th Century Ship Found At World Trade Center Site (Courtesy: NYTimes/Fred R. Conrad)

If you dig up the past — you’re bound to find something. That’s exactly what archaeologists hired at World Trade Center site were hoping for by working alongside construction crews.

Lower Manhattan since the 18th century has been expanded through the use of landfill. In fact, Battery Park City, our lovely neighborhood, is built upon the land excavation of landfill from the original World Trade Center site in the 1960s. So when an approximately 32 foot hull of an 18th century boat was found — it wasn’t to anyones complete surprise, but the fact that the structure had been largely undisturbed for 200 years at the Liberty Street and Cedar was.

The New York Times has an amazing photographic accounting of the site is astounding and definitely check it out!

One great quote from their article is regarding how lucky they were to have rain yesterday, “Doug Mackey, the chief regional archaeologist for the New York State Historical Preservation Office, was greatful for the rainfall. “If the sun had been out,” he said, “the wood would already have started to fall apart.”

Also according to the article, “A 1797 map shows that the excavation site is close to where Lindsey’s Wharf and Lake’s Wharf once projected into the Hudson. So, no matter how many mysteries now surround the vessel, it may turn out that the ghost even has a name.”

Pretty cool. Who knows  what treasures lie under Battery Park City. Can you imagine? In the future someone is going to dig up a Volkswagon Beetle or a Pinto as they take the metal on their spaceships.

NRT PAC YouTube Video Screenshot

Controversial Ads Nixed by CBS & NBC

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NRT PAC YouTube Video Screenshot
NRT PAC YouTube Video Screenshot

Network brass at CBS and NBC have declined airing ads from the National Republican Trust PAC calling for the opposition of the Ground Zero mosque, or Park51 during commercial breaks.

The ad which has been streamed on YouTube, posted almost 2 weeks ago — uses uneasy images from the attacks on 9/11 edited with the sounds of Muslim prayers and negative imagery of Muslim extremists. Comments have been suspended on this video, but have streamed almost 102K by the publishing of this article.

The video includes the following narration,
“On September 11, they declared war agains us… and to celebrate that murder of 3,000 Americans, they want to build a monstrous 13-story mosque at Ground Zero.”

According to Ben Smith at Politico, NBC Universal Ad Standards manager Jennifer Riley released the following statement,

“An ad questioning the wisdom of building a mosque at ground zero would meet our issues of public controversy advertising criteria. However, this ad which ambiguously defines ‘they’ as referenced in the spot makes it unclear as to whether the reference is to terrorists or to the Islamic religious organization that is sponsoring the building of the mosque. Consequently, the ad is not acceptable under our guidelines for broadcast.”

A similar statement was released by a counterpart at CBS.

Of course one might wonder what about ABC, Fox, CW and other major networks? We’ll have to literally stay tuned to see if these videos will make it into our living rooms.

James Blachly conducts Mahlers 4th symphony

Trinity Church’s James Blachly Performance Benefits NOLA Music Education

Arts, News, , , , , , ,
James Blachly conducts Mahlers 4th symphony
James Blachly conducts Mahlers 4th to benefit All Souls Camp in New Orleans

As busy as we all get, everyone has a dream. James Blachly is no exception.

Navigating through the hustle and bustle of Lower Manhattan, this distinguished composer/conductor and Trinity Choir member often dreamt of re-creating the Lucerne Festival Orchestra.

“I attended and watched rehearsals and fell in love with the performance of Mahlers 4th Symphony. To me it was like paradise. I realized then, to work on this piece would be a great priviledge.”

Tonight that dream will be realized — as Blachly along with colleague Owen Dalby have assembled The Sheep Island Ensemble, in what they consider to be a “dream team” of young professional musicians across New York to perform Mahlers 4th 6PM tonight at Trinity Church.

Lucky for the rest of us, tonight’s performance is free — with a suggested $20 donation — in which proceeds will go to The All Souls Music Camp, which is dedicated to providing music education of children living in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans.

Although tonight’s concert isn’t explicitly connected with Trinity Church — being a Trinity Choir member helped the musicians score the location in light of supporting The All Souls Music Camp.

The All Souls Music Camp began in 2009 with 12 students, and has grown to 51. It’s a program for children from 3-16 and provides formal training in choral singing, strings, composition and music literacy. It was the brainchild of a local church that had began in an abandoned Walgreens turned community center for the children of the Ninth Ward.

As a volunteer for the All Souls Camp, tonights concert can be considered a full circle for Blachly. For he credits his education in Stuyvesant for the music education that led him to his profession.

“It was during my senior of Stuyvesant that I decided to be a classical musician professionally and practiced 5 hours a day to make it into and attend Oberlin.”

As part of the prestigious Trinity Choir, he appreciates being close to the World Trade Center site as keeping him connected to the post 9/11 world  — helping him to keep connected to the reality of what it takes to help a community after disaster. Many of the students of All Souls can relate to in their post Katrina world.

” [The All Souls Camp] is a really beautiful community and they have grown a lot over the past 5 years. We’ve been involved for the past 2 years and I realize that music can inspire and remind us of the most exalted state of humanity.”

For those interested in attending, please find the information below:

The New York City Summer Mahler Project
Mahler’s 4th Symphony
Date: Wednesday, July 14th, 2010
Time: 6:00 PM
Location: Trinity Church Wall Street
At the Intersection of Wall Street and Broadway
Tickets: Free with $20 Donation to benefit the All Souls Music Camp in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans
Telephone: (212)-866-0468 (GEMS) or (646) 320-5583 (Blachly)
Online: www.jamesblachly.com OR www.gemsny.org
Tickets: At the door.
Park 51 is the new name for the Cordoba House Mosque

Cordoba House Mosque Rebrands to Park51

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Park 51 is the new name for the Cordoba House Mosque
Park 51 is the new name for the Cordoba House Mosque

In a swift marketing move, the Cordoba Initiative Mosque has a new name — Park51.

The name changed is seen as an effort to quell the controversy from the development of the mosque and Muslim community center by giving it an almost innocuous, generic name, sounding more like a new condominium construction than a mosque.

The metamorphosis comes only a day after the contentious public Landmarks Commission hearing to determine whether or not 45-47 Park Place is granted landmark status.

According to a report in the New York Daily News, “Spokesman Oz Sultan said the new name puts emphasis on the community center aspect of the project rather than religion.”

The address of the planned center is slated to take the entire block region 41-51 Park Place, which one could assume inspired the World Trade Center mosques new name.

It’s a sharp move considering that the part of the block that has been in contention is the portion of 45-47 Park Place. This may be a preemptive branding move and a statement by developers to say that regardless of the ruling, the community center will at the very least reside at 51 Park Place.

The Commission will determine the Landmark fate of 45-47 later in the summer. A ruling which is seen to determine the development of the mosque in our neighborhood.

UPDATE! Reader Questions: What’s going on with the old JJ’s Deli?

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The former location of JJ's Deli is under construction.
"What's going on with JJ's Deli?"

-=Update=-

A representative from the management company sent Batteryparkcity.com an email:

“As you may have seen, the former JJ Deli is once again going to be a deli of higher quality. They should be open in the next few months.”

Further questions about the name, types of food and whether or not it will be 24 hours are unconfirmed, but information will be forthcoming!

Thankfully it’s not a Duane Reade!

———————————————————————–

Whenever I think of JJ’s deli, I’m brought back to 1989-1990 when in an undiagnosed ADD stupor, I left my clarinet at the candy section while waiting for the school bus — sadly, the clarinet was never found again.  A traumatic experience for me and a costly mistake for my parents who wanted to make sure I had no excuse to drop out of the school’s band. I digress.

On Monday, around 5pm — I received 3 emails within a 10 minute period from readers asking the same question:

“What’s going on with the old JJ’s Deli?”

As this site can only find its true potential through contribution — suggestions and questions included — I embarked on my first investigative report on behalf of our neighborhood and readers.

After taking some quick pictures of the permits on the door, I made my transformation into gumshoe.

First stop on the beat — Gatehouse. (I was hungry and it was dinner time). Friend and manager Joe had told me that he thought that JJ’s was turning into another 24 Hour deli or a 7-Eleven. He too hoped I would reveal the identity of Gatehouse’s impending neighbor. After dinner, I decided to dream of Slurpees on the esplanade, determined to try and find answers the next morning.

Yesterday, emails and calls were made immediately to the most logical source — the RY Management office.

A quick search through the NYC Department of Buildings site did not yield any information on what is to replace JJ’s. Information I did discern from the search was that the use of the location would not be changed and new refrigeration units would be installed. The construction company on the permit gave two names: Happy Garden Construction Corp. and Peter Plumbing Associates Inc.

Undergoing a search of the Happy Garden Construction Corp, I yielded an address of their last construction site on 7th avenue in Chelsea which included an area in which a Baskin Robbins/Dunkin Donuts combo was located. Since franchises almost always come in multiples (and a new location had opened at 88 Greenwich street), I felt this was a good direction.

Calls to Dunkin Donuts Corporate confirmed there were new locations scheduled for lower Manhattan, just not for 300 Albany Street. Additional calls to 7-Eleven Corporate Offices and Happy Garden Construction Corporation were not returned.

I did finally receive an email back from the property manager at RY Management. In his cordial email he said, “At this time, I can not release any information on this site, but once I am able to, I will let you know.”

At first I asked my computer screen, “Why not?” — then I realized that contracts might not be finalized, or any number of other reasons could be behind the secrecy.

I reached out to the readers who emailed me with the information so far, and will continue to update everyone as I learn more. One of those readers, Stephen, came up with a brilliant idea of what should happen with the now vacant location:

“Turn it into a 24 shop/cafe. During the day — have it setup for strollers and families of all sorts, serve ice cream, fro yo, etc — it will be an afterschool paradise… post 9PM — serve alcohol and light fare — believe me as one of them — the parents of BPC have nowhere close to go for a quick drink or meet-up AND buy milk… would do gangbusters… now i just need a million to get started! :)”

An all and all excellent idea in my book. Or an IHOP might be nice too!

If you should have any information — please share with the rest of us!