Donald on the Green?

Amongst the embarrassments that Mayor Bloomberg has had to deal with lately (the snowstorm debacle, Cathy Black, CityTime) is the fact that Tavern on the Green has been closed for over a year. After booting the Le Roy family in 2009 (which had run it since 1976), the city made a deal with Dean Poll to re-open the restaurant in 2010. Poll, however, failed to make a deal with the union representing the restaurant workers and so Tavern has been out of business. For now.

The city has turned the space that once housed Tavern into a visitor's center, and there are also vendors with food carts parked outside. It's unbelievable that a restaurant that used to pull in upwards of $40 million a year -- the highest grossing non-chain restaurant in the country -- is closed. It's an embarrassment to the city. It's absurd.

Enter Donald Trump. The real-estate mogul has said that he's made a deal with the restaurant union and is prepared to invest $20 million into a new Tavern on the Green. And he's ready to do it ASAP.

But for some strange reason, Mayor Bloomberg is hedging. He doesn't seem to want this deal to happen. For a man who's supposedly all about results and getting things done, Bloomberg is acting like quite the vacillator. Very weird.   

Now I'm not a huge fan of either Donald Trump or Tavern on the Green. Both the man and the restaurant are hopelessly tacky -- more interesting to tourists than to real New Yorkers. But it seems to me that if The Donald wants to re-open Tavern that he should be allowed to do so. After all, nobody else has been able to strike the necessary deal to re-open it ,and it's ridiculous that such a valuable asset -- and a part of the city's history -- is closed. If the sticking point was a deal with the unions -- which has now been resolved -- and someone has the cash and reputation credible enough to re-open it, then why not?

New York needs Tavern on the Green the same way Hollywood needs the Hollywood Sign. Tavern might be silly but, at the end of the day, it's a part of the New York spirit and it would be great if it could come back. 

Doughnut Plant

If Homer Simpson came to NYC, I'd immediately take him down to Doughnut Plant on Grand Street. 

A tiny little store, they sell big and tasty donuts along with chai teas and stuff like that. The deal is, they bake a whole bunch of donuts in the morning and then sell them all, not baking anymore. They sell organic and cake-like donuts, including chocolate pudding, hazelnut, ginger and coconut (amongst others). The owners like to mix it up, selling different kinds of donuts at various times so you never know what to expect. I recently got a square, cake organize raspberry jelly donut that was totally delicious. The hazelnut donuts were also really, really good.

The donuts aren't cheap (about $2.50 each) but they are worth the money. Mmmm ... donuts  ....

Taxi Yoga

I can't think of a more stressful job in this town than riding a cab. Traffic. Airports. Crazy passengers. Lousy tips. Sitting on your tuchus for twelves hours at a time has got to be tough on your back. Not to mention that you don't have much time to eat healthy. It's a tough job.

That's why it's fascinating to hear about a yoga class in Queens that's meant exclusively for cabbies. It's a really brilliant idea. I know for myself -- who spends most of my days sitting and staring into a computer screen -- that yoga is a welcome relief. It really relaxes my mind and gets the kinks of daily life out of my body. In my own yoga class we have some cops and pretty tough looking guys so yoga is no longer for women or pansies -- it's for everybody!

And for cabbies, yoga must be wonderful release. It's great to know that there are people out there who recognize this. See, who said there's no good news in the world?  

I'm Gonna Always Love You - The Muppets Take Manhattan

NYC as Philosophy

Very often on here, I harp on what NYC is, has been, and is becoming. This blog is not just about NYC as a place but about NYC as an idea, a spirit, a feeling, even a philosophy. 

What is the philosophy on NYC? Well, just read this whole blog and you might start to get an idea. But it would only be a start.

I've also blogged recently about the proposed Walmart in NYC, and about how it represents everything that NYC is not. Like Robert Moses building his highways by gutting neighborhoods, Walmart and the other big box stores are their 21st century equivalent -- big, impersonal impositions that come to dominate and ruin the neighborhoods they arise in. 

Big highways and big box stores are, in my opinion, antithetical to the philosophy of NYC. NYC is about diversity, about small neighborhoods that, knit together, make the greatest metropolis on earth. Highways and big box stores basically say, "To hell with the neighborhoods. The city is just one big mall and parking lot." 

I recently read a wonderful article about this very subject. In words and mood much better than I could ever convey, the author of this article, which you must read, ponders about the proposed Walmart in NYC and what it means -- and will mean -- to the city's future. It is, really, a moment of truth for us. He writes: 

"If (and when) the retail juggernaut does come, its presence will be definitive of the state of the city. It will indicate how desperate we may be for work—any work. It will be a further sharpening of the edge between high and low, luxury and convenience, rich and poor. And it will show us all how far we are willing to let the city change to be able to buy thongs and pacifiers in the same place."

Couldn't have said it better myself.

Dan Halloran: NYC's Strangest Politician

Meet Dan Halloran. 

Representing Bayside and other parts of eastern Queens, he has been serving in the city council for a little over a year. 

And the guy is just plain weird.

When Halloran first ran in 2009, the Republican party wanted to kick him off its ballot when it was revealed that he is a Pagan. That's right -- this guy actually worships trees and rocks or something like that. But hey, this is America, and we're free to worship whoever or whatever we wish. So ,no sweat, he gets elected to the city council. This is NYC, after all, and we believe in diversity.

As soon as he gets elected to the council, however, he starts throwing his weight around. Before even taking office, he demands -- DEMANDS -- that he be made the city council Republican leader. Now, granted, there are only five Republicans on the council but three of them outranked him in seniority. So this was a little bit of cheekiness from the newbie. Halloran's logic was that since most of the Republicans on the council were from Queens, then a Queens person should be the leader.  Never mind that one of the councilmen from Queens already outranked him. Fortunately, the other Republicans on the council told him to take a hike and he didn't become the leader. But it was not a good way to start.

Then, in June of last year, he got into a very bizarre traffic incident in his district. He claimed that he saw a traffic cop blow a light. Halloran then followed the cop in his car, claims that the officer blew even more lights, and then, when the cop stopped outside a Dunkin' Donuts, Halloran started taking photos of the cop car. It was at that point that this cop, coming out of the store and seeing the councilman snapping away, gave Halloran a $165 ticket. Needless to say, Halloran was outraged! Outraged! He was a victim of the police! And he's a white councilman no less!

But this story doesn't make sense. If Halloran really saw all this, couldn't he just have taken down the license plate and quietly called the head of the traffic cops? As a city councilman, they certainly would have listened to him. Or is it possible that none of this happened and that Halloran was just embarrassed at getting a traffic ticket? And maybe he made up this story just to make himself look like a victim, win points with his constituents who all hate getting traffic tickets, and cover himself politically?

And yet it doesn't stop there. 

After last month's snowstorm, Halloran went screaming to the media, claiming that anywhere from three to five sanitation and transportation workers came to him and said that they had been ordered to work slowly in cleaning up the snow -- to hit back at proposed worker and budget cuts, to have the union embarrass and teach Mayor Bloomberg a lesson, etc. Halloran's claims triggered a federal investigation and a grand jury is currently looking into the claims (after all, if this is true, it's a very dangerous breach of public safety). 

So far, however, when asked to divulge the names of the whistle-blowing workers, Halloran steadfastly refuses to do so. He's claiming, bizarrely, that they are protected by attorney-client privilege. But Halloran isn't representing these people as a lawyer! 

And now Halloran's story is "evolving" -- Halloran is saying, well, maybe the workers didn't claim that they were directly told to engage in a slowdown, just given "hints"? What? 

Halloran is expected to testify to this grand jury under oath sometime soon where he may have to give up the names. If he doesn't, and if it turns out that none of this happened and that Halloran was lying ... the freshman councilman may be in a whole heap of trouble.

All of this comes at what must be a difficult time for him personally. Even his private life is weird (never mind his religious beliefs). In 2008, he was cited for building an illegal bathroom in the basement of his home. After he was elected to the council, he began to accuse the department of buildings of issuing improper citations ... on people building illegal bathrooms. Then he recently asked the buildings department to approve adding a second floor to his home even though its against zoning rules in his neighborhood. This was made extra strange since, apparently, Halloran and his wife are deeply in debt. Halloran has said that he and his wife are planning to divorce but they haven't filed yet.

Fascinating. 

Perhaps Halloran is going through a tough time personally and is cracking up, lashing out at other people to cover up his pain. Or perhaps this sad time in his life is totally coincidental to the very real outrages that he has been involved in lately. But this is all a little strange, don't ya' think? 

Halloran seems to be one of those people who always finds themselves mired in problems and disputes. One of those people always getting into trouble or finding trouble -- and always claiming ignorance or innocence as to how it happened. Halloran seems to be the drama queen of the NYC council -- and he's only in his first year. 

Let's hope that for him, and the city, his next three years on the council are a little more sedate. 

Busy Season in NYC

Busy, busy, busy. I've been quite busy lately, thus the lack of blogging. And NYC has been busy too, based, at least, on what's been going on within our fair city. So let's see wuzzup:

Well, the sad news first. The Jets won't be headed to the Superbowl. They came up a little short against the Steelers on Sunday night. So while the Jets may have a been a Superbowl bridesmaid for the second time in two years, they didn't get to be the bride. But maybe next year. We still love our Jets anyway.  

And while the Jets aren't headed to the Superbowl, at least a whole bunch of mobsters are headed to jail. Last Friday, over 100 real-life "goodfellas" were busted in the biggest Mafia take down ever. Many of them were busted here in NYC (including many members of da' five families) but this bust stretched to places like Rhode Island and Florida. It'll be fascinating to see how many of these mobsters cut deals. Will they be given offers they can't refuse?

The worst part about going to jail, I would imagine, is the bad food. Mr NYC loves to eat particularly, amongst other things, cupcakes. So look out! You thought Starbucks had totally colonized our city, pushing its coffee on all our citizens, but now Crumbs bakery plans to become to the Starbucks of cupcakes. It's opening stores all over town, hocking its cupcakes and other baked goods to 8 million-plus people.

And Walmart is back in the news -- whipping up a pathetic PR campaign to get public support to open one of its stores within the five boroughs. They are relentless. Last year I blogged about what an evil company Walmart is and, a few weeks ago, a troll sent me a comment saying why Walmart was just dandy and that "poor people" needed Walmart. I did not publish this hack's comment because I suspect he was paid by this organized effort. And hopefully Walmart will stay out of NYC -- forever.

But the expansion of Crumbs and Walmart in NYC is, I'm sure, welcome news to Mayor Mike who is profiled in a lengthy Esquire piece. It's a must read. It gives you sense of how this guy who rules our city thinks -- and what he thinks of all of us.

Finally, if all of this is too much for you, may I suggest a pleasant escape. This past weekend the wife and I headed to the Winter Antiques Show at the Park Avenue Armory. It is the one of the best and most high-end antiques shows in the whole country and the breadth of their offerings is stunning. If you have a few thousand dollars (make that a few hundred thousand dollars), you can purchase ancient art, medieval army, beautiful first editions of classic books, furniture in good shape that's only a few hundred years old, as well as autographed mementos from people like Queen Victoria, Abraham Lincoln, and JD Salinger. It's really amazing (not that yours truly bought anything) but you should check it out.

So all in all, it's a busy season in NYC. And you were just getting over the holidays! Ha ha.

Betting Mayors

Tomorrow's Jets vs. Steelers game is shaping up to be a huge game. Whoever wins gets to go to the Superbowl. Imagine: after tomorrow, after more than 40 years, the Jets may be in the Big Game. Makes you glad you've lived this long.

So when a big championship game shapes up, the Mayors of the respective cities makes bets with each other. The rewards have usually been the losing Mayor sending the winning Mayor foods items distinctive of their cities. Or it can involve the losing Mayor wearing the jersey of the winning team at a public event. Something silly like that. 

This year the Mayor of Pittsburgh and our own Mayor have come up with an interesting bet: the losing mayor will wear the jersey of the winning team while preparing care packages for the returning soldiers from the winning city. If the Jets win tomorrow, I can't think of a better way for them to be ushered into their first Superbowl in almost half a century, then for the Mayor of Pittsburgh helping out the soldiers of NYC.

Weiner Rants On House Floor: GOP Lies On HCR Should Be A Drinking Game

I like to watch ...

Tonight at 10 PM on PBS is a program (a repeat actually) of something called Dutch New York. As the title suggests, it's about life in our city when old New York was once New Amsterdam. It's also about how the Dutch influence on this city remains to this day. Even if you don't get to see the show, you should check out the website which has more info and interactive maps showcasing in detail what this city was like more than four hundred years ago.

Also, upcoming this Friday night on IFC is a new show called Portlandia, about a life in that lovely, quirky city in the Northwest. It stars Fred Armisen of SNL (seen below portraying out Mayor Mike) and Carrie Brownstein of the old band Sleater-Keanie. Last year I visited Portland and had a great time, blogging about it here. I hope this show captures the town's funky "alterna" spirit. As some have said, this is a town where the 1990s will never die and, as someone I know who lives there, it's the town where young people go to retire. Today Armisen and Brownstein did an interview on WNYC and they actually relayed my "retire" comment to them. Check it out!