Category Archives: What’s Happening

NYU Downtown Hospital for Battery Park City residents

New Medical Facilities For Lower Manhattan

NYU Downtown Hospital for Battery Park City residents
NYU Downtown Hospital expands services

It’s one thing to come to terms with the closings of restaurants and stores, but hospital and healthcare center closings are a whole other issue.

After losing St. Vincents hospital in April and an option for urgent care — several new options have come into light to serve both emergency and non-emergency medical needs in our area.

Downtown Hospital has announced plans to open a “Wellness and Prevention Center” in the fall, which will help to provide preventative healthcare for the downtown community.

The new facility will be located at 83 Gold Street on the first floor of Downtown Hospital. Some of the services provided include echocardiography, mammography machines and 15 examination rooms. The staff of 8-10 will include hospital doctors, nurses and other medical professionals and can serve 2,500 patients a year. All insurance plans will be accepted, and for those without insurance — payment options will be offered.

The construction for this new facility is slated to be completed by the end of this month for services to commence in the fall. Funding for the wellness center was provided by the hospital, State and  Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, with total funding equalling $11.4 million dollars.

Part of the State funding has gone into the construction and expansion of labor and delivery services, including a newborns intensive care unit — a service lost to Lower Manhattan after the closing of St. Vincents hospital in April.

The LMDC has also allotted $2.5 million towards expanding M.R.I services for Lower Manhattan patients as well. The radiology center will also be located on the first floor of the hospital.

Another emergency medical services option has also popped up, albeit a private one. Pinnacle Emergency Medical on 200 Chambers Street has a 24-Hour on call ER physician services as well as walk in medical care during their open office hours. That facility will also open in the fall on September 27.

As for the former site of St. Vincents Hospital, a new medical facility was slated to move into the location — but has hit a snag in opening the facility this summer.

According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, ”

An urgent-care center that was anticipated to open this month at the former St. Vincent’s Hospital in Lower Manhattan has been delayed and its operators are searching for other sites because of leasing disagreements at the bankrupt medical facility.

Officials with North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System and St. Vincent’s said they had expected to sign a lease by now that would have allowed North Shore to ready the hospital’s emergency room this month. But three months after St. Vincent’s closed, the sides have been unable to agree on terms. Neither would elaborate.”

All in all, good news for the health of Lower Manhattan residents and our community.

American Freedom Defense Initiative Bus Ads

“WTC Mega Mosque Why There?” Bus Ads To Run (PHOTOS)

American Freedom Defense Initiative Bus Ads
American Freedom Defense Initiative Bus Ads Run in Several Cities (Credit: AFDI)

Ads decrying the Park51 mosque near Ground Zero will run on New York City buses, after gaining approval from the MTA today.

The campaign is being funded by The American Freedom Defense Initiative, a New Hampshire organization, who had sued MTA in federal court last week to accept the ads.

According to the groups spokesperson, David Yerushalmi the ads are “a victory not for free speech but against political correctness and Mayor Bloomberg’s bullying.”

The ad features an airplane headed toward the burning World Trade Center along with the message, “WTC Mega Mosque — Why There”

This is not the first time the American Freedom Defense Initiative has run controversial ads. They have also purchased transit advertising calling for the questioning of Islam in several other cities including San Francisco, Miami and Minneapolis — which have been deemed offensive by different groups in each city.

According to a statement from the MTA, “While the MTA does not endorse the views expressed in this or other ads that appear on the transit system, the advertisement … was accepted today after its review under MTA’s advertising guidelines and governing legal standards.”

This would be the second advertisement against the slated Mosque that had caused equal amounts of controversy. A month ago, both NBC and CBS had banned the airing of anti-mosque ads on their networks by the National Republican Trust PAC.

Lili's Noodle Shop Closed

Lili’s Noodle Shop and Pizzabola Closed For Business

Lili's Noodle Shop Closed
Lili's Noodle Shop is Closed.

Brown paper has been taped up on the windows of both Lili’s Noodle Shop and Pizzabola for the last few days with the cryptic message:

“We will be closed from 8/1/10. Thank You. Sorry for the inconvenience.”

However, this is not your average story of another business at 102 North End Avenue biting the dust due to the Goldman shakeup.

Sign outside Lil's shop.
Sign outside Lil's shop.

Lili’s and Pizzabola owner Jonah Phillips spoke with BatteryParkCity.com this morning and let us know that Lili’s will not be permanently closing down but relocating and expanding their menu offering. Phillips will be breathing new life into the former Applebee’s space, introducing Lili’s successor as a new Asian-themed restaurant which will also have a sandwich/deli area.

Pizzabola’s fate is currently uncertain although the owner is looking into new locations for the Italian restaurant in the area. Regardless of the new location, Pizzabola will no longer be serving the gluten-free foods it had been known for.

Phillips, who also owns Izzy & Nats, said that finding a new spot for Pizzabola has been difficult: “There isn’t a lot of space left [to open a restaurant] in the area.”

The 102 North End restaurant version of musical chairs comes in light of Danny Meyer’s announcement last week of his openings of a Shake Shack, Blue Smoke and another “upscale” restaurant in the same building.

While most businesses in the building have gone to the wayside (Chevy’s, Applebees and DSW), it’s nice to know that at least one familiar face will remain amongst the newcomers.

Will you miss Pizzabola?

Battery Park City Hates The Sounds of “Frank Sinatra”

Battery Park City Residents are fed up with the sounds of "Frank Sinatra"

Battery Park City residents are not in love with the sounds of “Frank Sinatra.”

The “Frank Sinatra” and the “Yogi Berra” are just two of the ferry boats that illicit unending complaints from Battery Park City residents for nearly eight months. The vessels shuttle commuters from New Jersey to Battery Park City mostly for the service of Goldman Sachs employees who moved its corporate headquarters to our neighborhood almost a year ago.

According to a New York Times article, ‘The dispute about the boat noise has droned on for so long that Battery Park City officials have hinted that they might want to give the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which owns the $50 million floating terminal, the heave-ho, saying the agency is violating the terms of its lease with the high noise levels.”

The public transportation nightmare has caused headaches for residents closest to the ferry terminal for some time. The ferries shuttle commuters more frequently than most other ferry services in the area during normal rush hours; however, the ferries also operate outside of those hours primarily for Goldman Sachs employees. The noise that emanates from the commuter ferries are due to older vessels being used to keep up with the increased commuter use as well as the siren signals heard when arriving and leaving the ferry terminal.

To alleviate the public problem, a private wallet has emerged — Goldman Sachs has agreed to spend $5 million dollars to provide updated ferries that would alleviate the noise pollution.

Goldman had been quick to “bridle at the complaints, suggesting that the neighbors were piling criticism on a firm that has already been faulted in the public eye,” as mentioned in the same article.

For those who don’t know, Goldman might be referencing our neighborhoods tested and fractured relationship that started with their construction woes nearly two years ago. Falling glass and debris from the construction site had been known to fall upon our community ball fields and sidewalks, injuring one of their own architects, as well as the community outcry for the recent closings of several retail and restaurants in our area.

How do you feel about Goldman Sachs’ offer to our community for new ferryboats? Does the ferry noise affect you?

battery-park-city-dog-leash-law

Battery Park City Dog Owners On A Short Leash

battery-park-city-dog-leash-law
Battery Park CIty dog owners are on a short leash

Dogs may be man’s best friend, but dog owners are not best friends with the Parks Department these days.

The Parks Department have been stepping up their efforts to enforce leash laws, prohibiting unleashed dogs to run in public areas during all hours — in stark contrast with laws which had previously allowed unleashing during certain hours and were relatively unenforced.

Dog owners are up in arms with the unclear rules and have called the new enforcements “confusing.” According to a report in the Downtown Express, “The Parks Department said there is no confusion about the law which was codified back in 2007, shortly after the city’s then Board of Health voted in favor of the informal ‘courtesy hours’ policy, which allowed dogs off leashes in designated areas of City parks between 9PM and 9AM.”

Battery Park is not included as one of the places that allows for leash-free dogs.

Violations of this rule are costly: non-compliant dog owners can be forced to pay $100 fines for unleashed dogs.

However, according to Jeff Galloway, longtime founder of the Battery Park City Dog Association, enforcement of the rule has been arbitrary. In an email sent to Battery Park City residents, Galloway states, “Off-leash privileges in Battery Park have resulted in no damage to the Park and, to the contrary, have greatly enhanced the quality of life for local residents, by providing a much-needed recreation area for local pets and by making the Park safer for all residents during the hours in which off-leash use had been permitted. The Financial District is fast-becoming a vibrant residential area; if Battery Park becomes off-limits, Financial District residents will have no place in their own neighborhood to take their dogs. Many BPC residents would love to have an off-leash area as well, and Battery Park is conveniently located for BPC residents.”

Community Board 1 is in recess for August, but have invited the Parks Department to discuss the issue when the board reconvenes in September. For those interested in supporting the Downtown Dog Owners initiatives to keep unleashed hours in Battery Park, sign the petition online.

How do you feel about dog owners unleashing pets in Battery Park during designated hours?

World Trade Center Site Time Lapse Video Screen shot

Metamorphosis of our Neighborhood (VIDEO)

We’ve all seen the images of what the Freedom Tower and World Trade Center Memorial pool will look like from images strewn against the chain link fences at Ground Zero. However, Myfoxny.com has a video from Brookfield Properties, the owners of the World Financial Center, depicting time lapse change in our neighborhood.

The video itself is stunning and could also help us residents to imagine the metamorphosis of our neighborhood once construction is finished in 2012-2013.

What is strikingly poignant is the real visual loss of commercial real estate space in our area. How do you feel about the architecture of the site? Do you think the loss of business real estate will help or hurt our community?

Check out the video below:

Friends With Benefits Set

Basketball Courts on the Esplanade?!

Friends With Benefits Set
Basketball Set for Sony Pictures "Friends With Benefits"

Before you run out and bring your trusty basketball today to live up your hoop dreams — this isn’t what you think it is…

…and for all the volleyball lovers, don’t worry your net is coming back.

Justin Timberlake fans, on the other hand, pay attention.

The esplanade space located immediately south of the North Cove Marina will be a film set for the Sony Pictures movie, “Friends With Benefits” starring Justin Timberlake. The basketball court will obviously not be for public use, but you can be sure to catch a glimpse of the actors putting up their best lay ups for the next two days.

The film purportedly stars Mila Kunis, Emma Stone, Cam Gigandet, Patricia Clarkson, Lisa Kudrow, Thomas Haden Church and Stanley Tucci.

Co written and directed by Will Gluck, Friends with Benefits is about the relationship between two good friends (Timberlake and Kunis) who take it to the friends with benefits level, who surprise surprise — are secretly in love. Which obviously ruins their good thing.

For those who live on South End Avenue, the taxi stand will be parking for the movie set trucks. Parking on either side of South End Avenue between Liberty and Albany Streets will be limited during the next two days.

Not quite sure how basketball plays into this, but if you happen to catch the filming of the scene between today and tomorrow, let us know in the comments!

Sean Kimerling Foundation Annual Golf Tournament

To everyone in plain sight, Sean Kimerling was the bastion of health. The local WPIX sportscaster and Mets pre-game announcer exercised daily, ate healthy and enjoyed playing golf whenever he could.

The Battery Park City resident had it all, good looks a great career but also didn’t know he also had cancer. After suffering through which he thought was exercise induced back pain, Sean Kimerling was diagnosed with testicular cancer and after fighting a short battle — succumbed to the disease. He was 37.

It was during his battle that he wanted to make a difference by bringing preventative care awareness to men. Armed with his wishes, his family set up the Sean Kimerling Foundation and nearly 7 years later the organization continues to help fight the disease through awareness in honor of the late sportscaster and fellow Battery Park City neighbor.

Testicular cancer is the most common cancer among young men between the ages of 15 and 40. It also has one of the highest cure rates of all cancers, with a survival rate of over 95 percent if detected and treated early . Our goal is that all men will have the information they need about the disease, its symptoms and what to do about them so that more cases will be diagnosed early, and lives saved.

The 7th Annual Celebrity Golf Tournament and Dinner which is held in honor of Sean, himself an avid golfer, will take place on August 9. For more information on how you can join this event who’s guests include Rick Ackerman, Ottis Anderson, Ron Darling, Darryl Strawberry and other sports legends, please vista their website here.

Battery Park City Ball Field Schedule

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

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!”

NYTimes Panoramic View of the World Trade Center Memorial Pool

Panoramic Look at the World Trade Center Memorial Pool

NYTimes Panoramic View of the World Trade Center Memorial Pool
NYTimes.com's Panoramic View of the WTC Memorial Pool (Credit: Fred R. Conrad/NYTimes)

As construction at the World Trade Center site continues, the semblance of one recognizable landmark at Ground Zero is near completion.

The New York Times has launched their panoramic view within the Memorial Pools — which will mark the footprints of the original Twin Towers.

Check out the interactive piece at NYTimes.com.