Vivienne Gucwa

Good morning, East Village.

It’s official: with the demolition order on file, we can finally say that it’s the beginning of the end for Mars Bar. Its destruction has been long anticipated, and it’s unclear exactly how many days the iconic dive bar has left before it becomes part of the permanent foundation for 12-story apartment complex. Ultimately though, the end may turn out to be more of a hiatus. As DNAinfo notes, after two years Mars Bar will get the chance to reopen in the same place at quadruple the square footage.

The EV Grieve just sent out invitations for the funeral of 35 Cooper Square, scheduled May 25. The event will no doubt serve as a bit of closure for preservationists after the long fight to save the historic building ended in defeat.

And finally, The Times recently had a rummage through the eclectic collection of trinkets, odds and ends, and bric-a-brac at Archangel Antiques. The Ninth Street shop carries a stock of over 1 million buttons dating back to the 1860’s and proves that at least half the fun of collecting antiques is the type of people that you meet.