69 – The Roman Senate declares Vespasian emperor of Rome, the last in the Year of the Four Emperors. 1361 – The Battle of Linuesa is fought in the context of the Spanish Reconquista between the forces of the Emirate of Granada and the combined army of the Kingdom of Castile and of Jaén resulting […]
Archives for 2018
Letters
To the editor: As a homeowner in BPC, losing Saks means nothing to me or many people who live here. Saks was always empty and a bad idea from the start. They need to put something that will appeal to the people who live here. Trader Joe’s or more reasonable priced retail. Best regards, Maryann Peters […]
EYES TO THE SKY December 24, 2018 – January 6, 2019
The dark of night extends into morning most noticeably from today through mid-January: in our neighborhood, the Sun rises around 7:20am. It is the ideal time to observe planet Venus, the Morning Star, shining brightly high in the southeast as late as 7am. During the whole period of this post, civil twilight begins just half […]
Home for the Holidays
Gilbert Chesterton said that, “Christmas is built on a beautiful and intentional paradox — that the birth of the homeless should be celebrated in every home.” In an odd way, this restless longing to get home, or to find a place in the world to call home, is perhaps at the bottom of Christmas. Robert […]
The River Project
For 32 years, The River Project (TRP) has worked to protect and restore New York Harbor. Some of their achievements towards this end over 2018 include the following: Over the summer, “Big”, the largest oyster seen in the Hudson River Estuary in the last 100 years was found under Pier 40. TRP’s wetlab partnered with […]
Today in History December 20
1803 – The Louisiana Purchase is completed at a ceremony in New Orleans. 1808 – The original Covent Garden Theatre in London is destroyed by a fire, along with most of the scenery, costumes and scripts. 1917 – Cheka, the first Soviet secret police force, is founded. 1924 – Adolf Hitler is released from Landsberg […]
Leader of the PAC
The much-anticipated Perelman Performing Arts Center (PAC) at the World Trade Center has passed several new milestones on the road from vision to completion in recent days. Last week, the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC) allocated an additional $89 million to cover construction costs for the project. At the December 13 meeting of the LMDC’s […]
Today in History December 19
1606 – The ships Susan Constant, Godspeed, and Discovery depart England carrying settlers who founded, at Jamestown, Virginia, the first of the thirteen colonies that became the United States. 1776 – Thomas Paine publishes one of a series of pamphlets in The Pennsylvania Journal entitled “The American Crisis”. 1777 – George Washington’s Continental Army goes […]
Lower Manhattan Suffers from Deficit of Saks Appeal
Two years after opening amid much fanfare, Saks Fifth Avenue is pulling the plug on its three-level, 86,000-square-foot women’s store in Brookfield Place. The space, at 225 Liberty Street, was extensively remodeled in 2015 and 2016 to accommodate Saks, which was billed as the anchor retail tenant that would lead the transformation of the shopping […]
Today in History December 18
1271 – Kublai Khan renames his empire “Yuan”, officially marking the start of the Yuan dynasty of Mongolia and China. 1499 – Rebellion triggers in Alpujarras in response to the forced conversions of Muslims in Spain. 1655 – The Whitehall Conference ends with the determination that there was no law preventing Jews from re-entering England […]
Lower Manhattan Activists Aim to Bury the Tombs Plan
Although the administration of Mayor Bill de Blasio has backed away from its controversial proposal to build a new, 40-story jail on top of a historic government office building at 80 Centre Street, it still aims to bring more prison capacity to Lower Manhattan. The revised iteration of this plan is to expand the Manhattan […]
Today in History December 17
546 – Siege of Rome: The Ostrogoths under king Totila plunder the city, by bribing the Byzantine garrison. 1538 – Pope Paul III excommunicates Henry VIII of England. 1777 – France formally recognizes the United States. 1790 – The Aztec calendar stone is discovered at El Zócalo, Mexico City. 1812 – War of 1812: U.S. […]
The Deal of the Sentry
The Battery Park City Authority (BPCA) has extended for one year its contract with Allied Universal, the firm that provides security guards (known as “safety ambassadors”) to the community. The original agreement, signed in November, 2015, provided for three years of such service (at a cost of $2.1 million per year), and was set to […]
Ferry Worried
As many as 10,000 people per weekend day will be pushed onto Battery Park City streets by a plan to use ferries to replace PATH train service to the World Trade Center, which will be on weekend hiatus for the next two years, during repairs to a pair of tunnels beneath the Hudson River that […]
Today in History December 14
557 – Constantinople is severely damaged by an earthquake. 1542 – Princess Mary Stuart becomes Queen of Scots at the age of only one week on the death of her father, James V of Scotland. 1780 – Founding Father Alexander Hamilton marries Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton at the Schuyler Mansion in Albany, New York 1900 – […]
Move Over, Rockefeller Center
Tomorrow (Saturday, December 15), the Rooftop at Pier 17 Winterland, opens for the season, featuring a pop-up winter village and market, along with New York’s first outdoor rooftop ice skating rink. The facility, which is nearly the size of the iconic ice rink in Rockefeller Center, is slated to offer not only traditional ice-skating lessons […]
Today in History December 13
1294 – Saint Celestine V resigns the papacy after only five months wishing to return to his previous life as an ascetic hermit. No subsequent pope has taken the name Celestine. 1577 – Francis Drake sets sail from Plymouth, England, on his round-the-world voyage. Drake was awarded a knighthood in 1581 and was a hero […]
Menorah Lighting at the New York Stock Exchange
On Thursday, December 6, the 200-year-old New York Stock Exchange saw its first-ever public menorah lighting. On the fifth night of the eight-day holiday of Chanukah, Rabbi Nissi Eber lit the Chanukah menorah at a public Menorah lighting outside the Exchange on Broad Street. The gathering of hundreds of celebrants was organized by Chabad of […]
Today in History December 12
884 – King Carloman II dies after a hunting accident. He is succeeded by his cousin, emperor Charles the Fat, who for the last time reunites the Frankish Empire. 1787 – Pennsylvania becomes the second state to ratify the United States Constitution, five days after Delaware became the first. 1862 – USS Cairo sinks on […]
Preservation or Reclamation?
As the historic New Market Building in the South Street Seaport faces demolition, community leaders are beginning to ponder the future of the site. Anthony Notaro At the November 27 meeting of Community Board 1 (CB1), chair Anthony Notaro observed that the City’s Economic Development Corporation (EDC), “says that building is falling apart, it’s condemned, […]