N.Y.P.D. A surveillance image of the suspect.

The police are on the hunt for a man who allegedly robbed an Apple Bank on Feb. 1.

The police said that the man walked into the bank at Irving Place and East 14th Street at around noon and passed a note to the teller demanding money. The bank employee complied and the suspect fled with an undisclosed amount of cash.

The suspect is said to be around 55 to 60 years old, around 5-foot-8 and roughly 150 pounds. Judging by the surveillance image, he is also a Mets fan.

Ray Lemoine The Stone

When Hospital Productions closed its record store on East Third Street in December, the East Village’s avant-garde, noise, and experimental music scene continued to shrink (remember the days when Downtown Music Gallery was located on the Bowery? or when the Knitting Factory was on Houston Street?). As it turns out, Hospital’s founder, Dominick Fernow, is headed west, but he’s making a slight return this month, as curator of a two-week series of performances at The Stone on Avenue C.

Mr. Fernow, who will continue to run Hospital Records as a music label specializing in progressive noise, ambient, and metal music, told The Local that he closed his five-year-old record shop because he and Wesley Eisold, his bandmate in Cold Cave, were moving to Hollywood. Becka Diamond, an “it” girl who DJs at Cold Cave shows, also headed west. Despite regular gigs spinning outré music at venues like The Standard’s rooftop club, she left town – for no real reason, she said, save boredom with New York.

“It’s the same scene,” she said. “We just live out here now.”

Read more…

Ruth Spencer Steve Cannon, founder of Gathering of the Tribes.

Tribes is fighting back.

The landlord attempting to evict Gathering of the Tribes has no right to do so, and actually owes the founder of the quirky arts group at least $8,400, a new lawsuit alleges.

In December, Lorraine Zhang, the landlord of 285 East Third Street, served Steve Cannon, the blind poet, playwright and founder of Tribes with a notice that he must leave the building by Jan. 31.

The lawsuit, filed on Friday in State Supreme Court and reprinted below, says that the notice is “invalid” and that “Cannon is entitled to remain as an occupant of the second floor of the premises subject to the terms of the agreement” that the pair signed when Mr. Cannon sold the building to Ms. Zhang in 2004. Read more…

Daniel Maurer The horror!

Remember the family of pumpkins that took up residence inside of a fenced-in lot behind P.S. 19 Asher Levy School – presumably in October? Last week, as you can see above, they were still camping out, and sinking into a sorry state that made one wonder if they were some sort of biology-class experiment.

After devoting so much attention to their plight, we were beginning to feel hopeless about the power of journalism vegetable voyeurism to affect genuine change – but also ghoulishly fascinated to see just how long they’d continue to decompose as the students of Asher Levy played kickball right next to them. And now, as you can see below: the pumpkins are gone – presumably the work of an intrepid hazmat team trained in squash removal. Orange’ya sad about this? We kind of are. Read more…

Suzanne Rozdeba

East Village Farm, the convenience store that’s leaving the corner of Avenue A and Seventh Street, has announced that it’s “going out business” on Feb. 5, with the flower man lingering until Feb. 14 – Valentine’s Day. Now we know where we’ll be buying our roses.

From 1980 until 1996, John Leguizamo, the actor, comedian, writer and producer behind such hits as “Mambo Mouth” and “Ghetto Klown,” lived on East Seventh Street. He now resides in the central Village, but he still has roots in Alphabet City: his production offices are headquartered in his old brownstone there; and last month his wife Justine, who sits on the board of the Greenwich Village Society For Historic Preservation, spoke at a hearing that resulted in the landmarking of a block on East 10th Street.

Mr. Leguizamo told The Local that the East Village “will always hold a special place in my heart.” Of course, things have changed since the days when “you’d see Eric Bogosian at the bodega, Steve Buscemi buying a coffee, Iggy Pop at the health food store, Quentin Crisp tottering down the street,” as he wrote in his memoir. Over e-mail, he said, “The neighborhood used to be alive with all different kind of artists. Musicians, poets, painters, actors, singers, dancers. But the rich came in and all the squatters left and went to Brooklyn.”

So what’s there still to love about the “East Vill”? Mr. Leguizamo reflected on some of his past and present favorites. Read more…

Ray Lemoine Work was being done inside of Life earlier today.

There may be a light at the end of the tunnel for Life Cafe.

Owner Kathy Kirkpatrick and landlord Bob Perl have been in talks with potential business partners who would pave the way for the shuttered cafe at East 10th Street and Avenue B to finally reopen, much to the relief of “Rentheads” everywhere.

“There are other parties who want to partner with Kathy and I am talking to them,” said Mr. Perl. “There is a possibility it could go on — whether it does I’m not sure.”

Ms. Kirkpatrick confirmed the discussions, but had little to add. “It has to do with the landlord agreeing to work together and cooperate,” she said. Read more…

After a failed demolition attempt by would-be developers, the historic building at 128 East 13th Street will hit the auction block thanks to an order from a State Supreme Court judge, The Real Deal reports. The building, which was home to one of the city’s leading sellers of horses and horse-drawn carriages and later served as sculptor Frank Stella’s studio, was the subject of much lobbying by preservationists once developers Isaac Mishan and Joseph Sabbah revealed plans to replace it with a seven-story building in 2006. The pair defaulted on $10.5 million in loans, resulting in last week’s court order.

Francisco Daum Flowers outside of CBGB in 2001, after Joey Ramone died of lymphatic cancer.

The CBGB brand — and the merchandising empire that comes with it — changed hands three months ago, a representative of the new owners told The Local.

“We bought the entire estate, the physical assets of the former club. They dissembled it as a theatrical unit so in theory they could put it back together — say, 80 percent they salvaged,” said the spokesman for the new owners, who wished to remain anonymous in anticipation of an announcement in the coming weeks regarding the return of the legendary club. “There are all kinds of tapes, photos, and the global trademarks and licensing.”

The spokesman added that his group bought the CBGB estate from Lisa Kristal, the daughter of the founder of the club, Hilly Kristal. A man who answered the phone at Ms. Kristal’s number had no comment regarding the transaction.

“In negotiating the sale, Lisa Kristal was motivated much more by preserving the legacy of CBGB than she was by money,” said the spokesman in an e-mail. “We had to court her for seven months, proving to her that we would be the best guardians of the name. She wanted to know our plans. I would stay up until two in the morning, night after night listening to her wonderful stories and telling her about the ways in which we were going to keep CBGB alive through loud music and by supporting new bands.”
Read more…

Gloria Chung The Nuyorican Poets Cafe at 236 East Third Street.

Several visits from city inspectors have led to the temporary closing of the Nuyorican Poets Cafe, Daniel Gallant, the executive director, told The Local.

The cafe tweeted the news earlier today, and Mr. Gallant clarified — a little — over the phone.

“The building is quite old. Some of the space we’re hoping to renovate,” he said. “We’ve had a few different city inspectors come in since the end of the year — we just figured it’s probably the best thing to do repairs.”

Mr. Gallant did not wish to go into further details before again meeting with city inspectors.

The Nuyorican building does not show any recent violations or complaints on the Department of Buildings website. Mr. Gallant said he should know when the cafe will reopen by Wednesday.

Evan Bleier Assistant instructor Eton Kwok.

Above a long-vacant storefront on Avenue A, a space that once served as the upstairs of Mo Pitkin’s and then as the office of an Internet start-up has found new life as a martial arts studio.

“You can do a lot of damage with a hammer-fist, and it’s quick to learn,” assistant instructor Eton Kwok told a group of young women practicing moves in front of a wall-length mirror during a recent “Smash Class” – a free self-defense class at the Chinese Hawaiian Kempo Academy.

Last month, C.H.K.A. left the Village Martial Arts Institute on Third Street and moved to roomier digs at 34 Avenue A. The dojo is owned by Sharon Shamburger, whose husband Jack, a ninth-degree black belt, is head instructor. Read more…

Photos: Vivienne Gucwa

Getting a table or a bar stool at the Holiday Cocktail Lounge Saturday night was nearly impossible. The 47-year-old dive was wall-to-wall with regulars, there to pay respects on its final night.

“I came here before I was legal,” said Angela Martenez, who frequented the Holiday in the 1990s. “The drinks were strong and cheap. And the little twinkly Christmas lights were friendly, and that’s what I needed in my life at the time.”

From all corners of the city, former East Villagers returned to the Holiday for one last beer. Read more…

Daniel Maurer At Eighth and Avenue B.

In a show of solidarity for Occupy Wall Street protesters arrested in Oakland, a group marched from Washington Square Park, as far north as 29th Street, and then back south to Tompkins Square Park – with a symbolic stop at the former Charas/El Bohio community center. Witnesses reported smashed bottles and arrests in the East Village last night.

Shortly before 10 p.m., protesters who had gathered at Washington Square Park three hours earlier made their way to the former P.S. 64 building on East Ninth Street, which was at the center of demonstrations last month. As The Local has reported, some residents want the developer who owns the vacant building to use it as a community center again.

After hearing a few words about the building’s history, the group – escorted by a column of police officers in the street – walked down Avenue C, then Eighth Street, and then Avenue B before stopping at East Seventh Street, at the entrance of Tompkins Square Park. Read more…

Jared Malsin Portraits of Gregory Foster and Rocco Laurie.

Earlier today, the Police Department marked the 40th anniversary of the murder of two young police officers – one black, one white – who were gunned down by alleged black militants outside an East Village diner.

The officers, Gregory Foster, 22, of the Bronx, and Rocco Laurie, 23, of Staten Island, had fought together as Marines in Vietnam. When they returned to New York, they asked to be placed on patrol together in the East Village, which was then a high-crime neighborhood. They were shot dead after walking out of a diner at Avenue B and 11th Street just before 11 p.m. on Jan. 27, 1972.

Speaking at a re-dedication of two plaques honoring the slain officers at the Ninth Precinct, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly described a grim atmosphere at the time of the murders.

“This was a violent neighborhood, no doubt about it, and radical groups like the Black Liberation Army were specifically targeting police officers for assassination,” said Commissioner Kelly, who responded to the scene of the shooting as a young sergeant. Read more…

Natalie Rinn

Earlier this afternoon, Carlos Severino, a member of the Laborers Local 78, stood near an oversized, money-grabbing, cigar-chomping rat that had been conspicuously inflated in front of the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary on East 14th Street. The labor union, which specializes in the removal of asbestos, lead and other hazardous materials, is protesting Continuum Health Partners, which operates the Infirmary along with three other hospitals. Mr. Severino held up flyers complaining that an “irresponsible” private company was performing “deadly asbestos removal” at one of the company’s facilities, St. Luke’s Hospital on the Upper West Side.

Richard Weiss, a spokesperson for the union, said the protests began a couple of weeks ago. Mr. Severino said they would continue for some time: “We’ll stay another week, a month, until they do what they’re supposed to do.”

In addition to the rat on East 14th Street, members of Laborers Local 78 are displaying an open coffin in front of Beth Israel Hospital on First Avenue, just a couple of blocks north – a move that Jim Mandler, a spokesperson for Continuum, said was unacceptable. Read more…

Chang W. Lee/The New York Times

The news that both Bleecker Bob’s Records and the Holiday Cocktail Lounge would close amounted to a brutal double-whammy for many locals living around the Village. But there’s a silver lining: Jennifer Kitzer, a longtime partner of Bleecker Bob’s, told The Local that if worst comes to worst, the store will move to the East Village or Lower East Side.

For now, though, she and the staff are focused on remaining in their current location. “We’re not closing permanently — we’re not running out of there anytime soon,” said Ms. Kitzer, who later added, “I’m not looking to shut the name down, shut the store down. There’s going to be a fight in us.” Read more…

Rachel Ohm Left to right: Garrett Ford, Adam Toepfer, and
Jessica Garner.

Yesterday we discovered the trailer for “The Angelheads,” an indie flick that takes its title from “Howl” and is set in the East Village. To find out who’s behind the production, The Local stopped into a fundraiser at the Phoenix last night.

Turns out the film, set to be finished in February, is produced by a group of friends from Marymount Manhattan College. According to its writer and director, Garrett Ford, it follows two couples – one gay and one straight – living in the East Village.

“It’s about changing your identity based on who you’re with,” said Mr. Ford. “New York can chew people up and spit them out, but the message is ultimately about optimism and that it’s worth pursuing big things.” Read more…

Stephen Rex Brown Louis Fugazy kept the drinks coming last night at Holiday Cocktail Lounge.

Word had gotten around by the time the regulars started arriving: after 47 years, the Holiday Cocktail Lounge will close on Saturday. Not surprisingly, the shots just kept coming.

“Everybody that ever stepped foot in this bar is going to come through in the next three days,” said bartender Louis Fugazy. Over the years, those characters have included W. H. Auden, Leon Trotsky, and Allen Ginsberg, when they lived on the block. And urban legend has it that Madonna named “Holiday” after the bar (this much is certain: punk-pop band the Bouncing Souls immortalized the dive in a song that shares its name).

Over drinks, many of the regulars sitting around the semicircular bar bemoanded the state of the neighborhood, which recently has endured the loss of Mars Bar, another beloved dive. “Gentrification is moving out all the old standbys,” said Jeff Tendler, who was working the door. “The neighborhood is becoming full of chains, and the little guy is getting pushed out.” Read more…

First John Legend put his pad up for sale and now The Observer reports that Scottish singer-songwriter K.T. Tunstall has sold her duplex at 525 East 11th Street for $1.5 million, about $75,000 less than what she bought it for in 2008. The 2-bedroom, 2.5-bath home with 540-square-foot terrace went to one Farsad Golnaz.