By Julie Shapiro (courtesy DNAinfo)

••• “After complaints from small business owners that their customers get lost on the way to [Lispenard Street], the city agreed Wednesday to install more street signs by the end of next week. [...] There is currently just one Lispenard Street sign, at Broadway, the tail end of the one-way street. Lispenard’s other two intersections have no signs.” —DNAinfo

••• “We hear that one unnamed West Coast-based Facebook insider has flown to Manhattan twice to look at Tribeca’s 144 Duane St., a sprawling multifamily townhouse priced at $49.5 million—up from last month’s $45 million price.” —New York Post

••• Photos of Lower Manhattan restaurants in the 1960s. They’re all exterior shots, FYI. —Eater

••• Those VIP baths at Aire Ancient Baths will be filled with Champagne, among other fluids. —DNAinfo

••• “Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Monday he believes the 9/11 sphere should remain in Battery Park.” —DNAinfo

••• “Still no news on where the Port Authority plans to move the WTC Sphere but according to the Staten Island Advance, Staten Island Borough President James. P. Molinaro is lobbying for WTC Sphere to be moved to Staten Island Sept. 11 Memorial.” —Tribeca Trib

••• “After months of delays and millions of dollars in cost overruns, workers are making progress on repairing the landmarked 126-year-old [Pier A] at Lower Manhattan’s tip and will finish by the end of the year, Gayle Horwitz, president of the Battery Park City Authority, said Monday. The authority will then turn the pier over to a team of developers, including the Poulakakos family, to open an $18 million oyster bar and catering hall there. The new three-story bar and restaurant, along with a tourist information center and a new public plaza, is scheduled to open in the summer or early fall of 2013.” —DNAinfo

••• VE Equities will break ground soon on 11 N. Moore (at Varick), first written about here. “The company has once again tapped Prudential Douglas Elliman’s Eklund Gomes team, headed by Fredrik Eklund and John Gomes.” —The Real Deal

••• “The high-spending husband of beautiful socialite Annie Churchill was hauled off to jail this morning for stealing $590,000 from three of her rich investor pals via his bogus ‘virtual reality shopping mall’ Web site. Andrew Albert, 50, conned his wife’s pals for cash back in 2008, then spent the next two years blowing the money on fancy meals, clothes and renovations for the couple’s new Tribeca loft.” —New York Post

••• “Operation Sail is coming back to New York City this morning to commemorate the oft-forgotten War of 1812, which Henry Adams considered America’s second revolution. The bicentennial of the war will be marked by free boat tours and two parades: The Parade of Sail features an international array of 17 tall ships, and the Military Parade of Sail includes ten warships, plus military aircraft.” —Broadsheet

••• “Facing orders from the Department of Education, [P.S. 276] Principal Terri Ruyter will open a fifth kindergarten class that all but eliminates the kindergarten waitlist but creates future crowding concerns. ” —Tribeca Trib

Click to enlarge

To: The Landmarks Preservation Commission

From: Hal Bromm, who established his gallery, Hal Bromm Art & Design, in 1975.

Re: The proposed design for a new building at 11-15 Leonard Street (pictured).

As you know may know, in 1984 a community-based effort to preserve the Tirbeca neighborhood’s character, scale and sense of place began. The many friends, neighbors and colleagues—from throughout the community and across the city—who joined in the effort was both humbling and impressive. As leader of that drive I was proud of the determined good work of our community in assisting the Landmarks Preservation Commission to preserve and protect the area’s historic resources by establishing the Tribeca Historic Districts. As a member of Community Board One I also worked to establish a Landmarks and Cultural Affairs committee that continues today, carefully reviewing applications for work within these districts.

Now one of our nation’s most successful renaissance neighborhoods, Tribeca is a thriving economic engine that fosters the city’s growth on many levels. Home to a myriad mix of residents, businesses and retailers who keenly appreciate the quality of life that historic districts offer, Tribeca has seen the successful adaptive reuse of countless commercial mercantile buildings, while new infill structures within and around the districts have quickly capitalized on the area’s curb appeal. This success proves real estate industry naysayers wrong yet again. Preservation does not limit development, it fosters growth and economic development, drawing tourists, restaurants, art galleries, shops and the television and film industries. It is an understatement to say that the preservation of the area’s many fine historic buildings has been hugely beneficial to the city.

Yet today we are reminded how judiciously we must guard this success, for as much as we value our community and its irreplaceable historic character and scale, others see only financial gain, seeking to profit from the neighborhood’s success and popularity, pushing the limits of square footage, height and bulk with little regard for the streetscape and their sense of place within the district. One of the most recent—and perhaps egregious—examples might be the the grossly over-scaled proposal for 11-15 Leonard Street.

As this proposal is again before the commission, a few comments:

• The scale, size and massing go well beyond what was previously approved; the structure is too tall and the penthouse too large, inappropriately out of scale and context with the historic district. While we have seen numerous attempts to add penthouse space that exceed all reason, I can think of no precedent that ”tops” this proposal.

• The penthouse scale and dimension relative to the neighborhood are clearly out of context and fail to fall within what could possibly be considered appropriate parameters.

• The disjointed use of channel glass—and its likely negative night-time impact—are a serious issue that would subject the block and area to potentially high levels of illumination that are both out of keeping with the historic streetscape and impossibly unattractive. (As others note, the inappropriately glaring law school structure nearby provides a disturbing example of what not to do with glass and light.)

Accordingly, I ask you and your fellow commissioners to reject this proposal as inappropriate to the district and the community. To allow it would be a failure to protect and preserve the historic neighborhood we fought to save.

Thank you for your consideration and attention to these concerns.

So the Real Deal had some bad news for her today: “VE Equities [...] has purchased a Tribeca development site at 290 West Street [at Canal], according to public records filed with the city on Friday. The company is planning another luxury residential development on the site [...]. VE bought the 85-foot by 85-foot site, which formerly served as a gas station, from Exxon Mobil earlier this month, records show. The company paid $15.46 million for the vacant residential land, which was cleared by Exxon before the sale.”

VE Equities is the company that took over the American Express Carriage House (60 Collister), developed 471 Washington, and is planning a building at 11 N. Moore (a.k.a. 20 Varick). Naturally, the architect is Morris Adjmi, who practically has a lock on the area: He has a hand in 11 N. Moore, the upcoming 403 Greenwich, 412 Greenwich, and the 50 Varick redo, and other buildings. And it practically goes without saying that “VE has once again tapped Prudential Douglas Elliman’s Eklund Gomes team, headed by Swedish broker Fredrik Eklund and group partner John Gomes, to market the project.”

There aren’t many details about the building in the Real Deal’s piece. Here’s the main part: “The developer is planning [...] units sized between 3,000 and 6,000 square feet each. The total number of units has not yet been finalized—the project is still in its design and development phase—but zoning restrictions allow for an excess of 40,000 buildable square feet. The development is slated to break ground this summer, with completion set for sometime in the next two years.”

I do recall Eklund recently tweeting about possibly repping a 12-unit new development in Tribeca….

••• Aire Ancient Baths—the new bathhouse on Franklin Street—has begun accepting reservations.

••• According to a press release, 250 West is 70% sold.

••• Excellent news from Blaue Gans: “We will now be offering our Strawberry and Elderflower Coupe from Taste of Tribeca on the menu.” It’s soooo good.

••• From Tommy Flynn: “Mysterious tree stump shows up on the sidewalk at Sixth Ave. and Lispenard St.” I hereby decree that it is art.

Here they are, property by property; click to enlarge. Maybe someday you’ll be able to click through to StreetEasy for more info….

••• “The city has spent a staggering $30 million on police overtime at the Occupy Wall Street protests, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said Thursday. The total overtime cost has ballooned over the past two months from $17 million in March to nearly double that on Thursday, Kelly said at a City Council budget hearing. The spike in spending follows the massive May Day protests of Tuesday, May 1.” —DNAinfo (Speaking of DNAinfo, did you know that its owner is the rich guy who was considering running the Jeremiah Wright-based attacks on President Obama?)

••• “It seems like it’s been awhile since a lunch spot like French Cafe Gourmand has opened in the Financial District—as in a place that’s not a chain or a new branch of a chain. No, this cafe on Maiden Lane (btw. B’way & Nassau) is run by actual French people and they sell a small selection of items including coffee, soup, salads, sandwiches and some French pastries and baked goods.” I’m onboard with that sandwich. —Midtown Lunch

••• “Dozens of waitlisted Battery Park City kindergarteners could be bused to school in Chinatown this fall, Department of Education officials said at a meeting Wednesday night.” —DNAinfo

••• “A woman dressed in jogging clothes plunged into the East River at Wall Street Friday morning, authorities and a witness said. The woman, who was described as distressed, climbed over a fence at Pier 11 and jumped into the water.” —DNAinfo

••• “There’s a mild puzzle in the recent sale of the ’1,872 sq ft’ Manhattan loft #3B at 366 Broadway (Collect Pond House) at $1.72mm, as it sounds like a beautiful loft that went for less than you’d think (well, than I’d think). But there is also a more emotional response, one of empathy, for a seller who tried to sell into The Peak but just could not get the deal done then.” —Manhattan Loft Guy

••• “More than 150 residents of Gateway Plaza gathered in the auditorium of P.S. 276 on Thursday evening, for a meeting of the Gateway Plaza Tenants’ Association. The event also drew a quorum of Downtown leaders and elected officials, among them State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, State Senator Daniel Squadron, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, City council member Margaret Chin, and Community Board 1 chair Julie Menin.” That’s five, if you’re counting. —Broadsheet

As mentioned in the first item:

••• From a reader: “I’m the parent of a Spruce Street School student. Last night the school held a fundraiser on the school’s rooftop playground, which sits below the west side of the Gehry tower. Harry’s Italian donated excellent food, local wine merchants donated cases of vino, and someone renting one of the apartments above the party donated several brown eggs, which came splattering down on the parents. If the party was that noisy, wouldn’t a call to the doormen of the building to do something about it have been the easiest thing to do? Spruce Street School and the Gehry tower co-exist in the same building. I know a relationship exists between building management and school staff because they’ve had to meet and discuss the beer bottles another tenant (or the same?) previously rained down on the playground. What’s next? If recess gets too noisy should parents and school staff need to worry that someone is going to injure the kids? That behavior is disgusting. A doorman could have easily called the school to complain, or simply walked around the corner and said something to the security staff in the school lobby. People in this city are really gross.” It’s true! But they’re gross everywhere.

••• From the Department of Transportation: “The New York City Department of Transportation today announced the installation of a prototype for the agency’s first-ever outdoor art display case at TriBeCa’s Bogardus Plaza on Hudson Street between Chambers and Reade streets. The model, designed by Architecture Research Office, will be in place for one month to observe the design’s performance in an outdoor environment. Last fall, DOT issued a challenge to designers, asking them to reinvent the fixed display cases seen in museums and galleries as a moveable piece for outdoor use. ARO’s design was selected for implementation. The goal is to temporarily install display cases in pedestrian plazas and other areas within the public realm to create new opportunities for displaying art such as photos, paintings and collages.” Call me old-fashioned, but I think parks should be a respite from manmade visual stimulation.

••• From Manhattan Youth: “The Art Shack is a place where kids can get together for special art projects or to participate in the creation of  murals we are now making at Pier 25. The Mural Project is an on-going project and one day we hope to wrap the entire pier in children’s murals.” Let’s see if I can piss even more people off: I’m not sure how I feel about that last part, actually. Is kids’ art not best appreciated on the family’s fridge?

••• From a reader: “Janet Newman is opening a show of her very unique flower paintings [tonight] at the Sovereign Bank at corner of Franklin and Hudson, 5:30 to 8 p.m.”

••• Something called Delmonico’s Café wants to open at 300 Spring (between Hudson and Renwick, where Sora Lella used to be).

••• 481 Washington—just north of Canal—is being marketed as the Spice Warehouse (as if the real spice warehouse isn’t further south). No clue if this is new; I don’t walk up that part of Washington very often.

••• “Law enforcement officials are searching for one person they say is responsible for mailing 380 suspicious envelopes to elementary, middle and high schools, as well as government offices and other institutions across the U.S., the FBI announced Wednesday. Two elite lower Manhattan schools [including P.S. 234], which received envelopes containing white powder last Thursday, May 10, were among those terrorized by the mysterious substance sent out last week with a North Texas postmark. [...] They believe the suspect is likely to be a male who may not demonstrate a mastery of formal English. The suspect is also likely to be over the age of 30 and perceived by others as odd or eccentric.” You think? —DNAinfo

••• “Meg Ryan’s downtown home hunt continues. She was spotted this week at 153 Franklin St., the infamous Tribeca townhouse where [...] disgraced former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn lived while under house arrest after being accused of sexually assaulting a hotel maid.” —New York Post

••• “Parents at the Spruce Street School are demanding pedestrian safety improvements in the wake of a crash that killed a UPS worker across the street last month.” —DNAinfo

••• “The questions came fast and furious but the answers were frustratingly few in a meeting with school officials over what lies ahead in September for children on kindergarten waitlists.” In other news, the world continues to turn. —Tribeca Trib

••• Those three buildings the city wants to sell (22 Reade, 346 Broadway, and 49-51 Chambers) have been deemed unsuitable for schools. —Downtown Express

••• “In the last few days, three little cottages have appeared at the base of the World Financial Center in Lower Manhattan, like a rural-themed mirage. The installation is for Country Living’s semiregular House of the Year.” —New York Times

••• “After just a few months at the restaurant, Atera‘s Wine Director Alex LaPratt announced yesterday that he will no longer oversee the restaurant’s deep and ambitious wine list.” —Eater

••• “Another food truck lot [is] spawning downtown [at] the Lent Space at 70 Varick (at Grand) next to Duarte Park, and it’s another one involving the NYC Food Truck Association’s members, like the collection at the World Financial Center five days a week. According to the association’s site, there will be four to six trucks at the lot on Tuesday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.” —Midtown Lunch

••• “The owners of the landmarked Woolworth Building signed a contract to sell the top 25 floors of the tower to an Israeli investor group for nearly $70 million, or around $700 a square foot, sources familiar with the deal said. [...] The top floors, which total roughly 100,000 square feet, are empty and have been for a while as the owners contemplated turning them into a hotel or condos. [...] The remaining 32 stories, which are the bulk of the building, are occupied by office tenants. Sources says that although the owners weren’t actively marketing the space, they starting receiving numerous offers as the hotel and high-end condo markets revived in the wake of the recession.” —Crain’s

••• The New York Times on Demi Monde: “A hostess will greet you at the little entryway in the financial district and announce your arrival”—ladies and gentlemen, please welcome I.P. Freely!—”at this below-ground cocktail lounge and restaurant. The food, by Phillip Kirschen-Clark, formerly of Vandaag, will be small plates like Negroni-flavored oysters, king crab rolls and pork fried rice [...]. These drinks are also served with Mr. Kirschen-Clark’s $130 nine-course tasting menu at a 12-seat chef’s table. This summer, the entry space will become a coffee bar by day. (The lounge is open; the chef’s table opens May 24, for dinner Tuesday through Saturday at 8 p.m.): 90 Broad Street (Stone Street), (212) 248-7220.”

••• “9/11 Memorial Chief Emphatically Says ‘No’ to Sphere on WTC Plaza.” —Tribeca Trib

••• “A homeless man was rushed to a hospital late Tuesday night after an unknown assailant beat him with a piece of wood outside St. Peters Roman Catholic Church.” —DNAinfo