ZONING VARIANCE FOR 78-80 LEONARD
Another zoning variance was up next. The 1860 landmarked buildings at 78 and 80 Leonard were combined in the early 90s and converted to rentals with retail at the ground floor (and below, and below). A sixth floor was added, set back from the roof line. But the health club (Eastern Athletic) on the ground floor and two floors below it needs a lot of air conditioning, as do the tenants, so the roof doesn’t allow for enough open space, and the open space that does exist up there isn’t accessible by elevator; since it can’t satisfy the ADA requirements, the City Planning Commission is fine with it. So is CB1 Tribeca: 5-0.

MULINO A VINO, A PROPOSED NEW RESTAURANT AND WINE BAR AT 279 CHURCH
Paolo Meregalli, as explained here last month, wants to open a restaurant and wine bar called Mulino a Vino at 279 Church, the brick building just south of White & Church restaurant. His family is in the wine business in Italy, and has at least one Mulino a Vino restaurant there. Last month, the CB1 Tribeca agenda listed an incorrect address, so neighbors felt they didn’t have enough time to weigh the proposal, and Meregalli was told to come back next month. In the meantime, he held an open house to discus any concerns, and he collected around 90 signatures in support. At this month’s meeting, Meregalli once again explained his goal, reiterating that any music would not be amplified—a violinist, a pianist, possibly his friend Andrea Bocelli (still not sure I heard that right). There was hubbub over the status of the building—was it commercial or residential (the latter), was it an IMD building (yes, but not sure why we cared whether it was under the Loft Law), the menu (was it small bites and therefore a bar masquerading as a restaurant?). One member of the committee pointed out that people savoring $25 glasses of wine were unlikely to cause a ruckus, reasoning that another member found “appalling” but struck me as pretty logical. The main issue, ultimately, was that there are already four establishments serving alcohol on that block—there were five until Ristorante Aglio closed—and the neighbors are concerned. Meregalli’s lease says he has to soundproof, and if the building gets Landmarks approval to make it more historically appropriate—by, say, adding a window to the brick façade—CB1 Tribeca wants to make sure the windows stay closed (even though only parking lots are  across the street, which is double-wide at that point because it’s where Church and Sixth split). Meregalli wanted 1 a.m. (Sunday through Thursday) and 2 a.m. (Friday and Saturday), but the committee insisted on midnight/1 a.m., even though it’s on Church. (Nobody asked me.) Meregalli presumably can go back in six months to ask for extended hours. Vote: 7-0.

UNDERAGE DRINKING AT UNCLE MIKE’S
The owner of Uncle Mike’s, the bikini bar at 57 Murray, was hauled before the committee to explain why his establishment had received two citations for underage drinking in the past year. The owner—whose name I didn’t catch, but I hope it’s Mike, and who was evidently he was the chair (?) of CB3 for years—said it was the same bartender each time, and she has been stripped of her official Uncle Mike’s bikini, so to speak. There was discussion about how to solve the underage problem, even though Mike insisted that young people don’t really go there, and no one was going to admit whether he did either. (I’ve been wanting to! I love their flyers.) Then the point of the interrogation switched to how patrons tend to say rude things to women—nay, girls—through the open window as they walk down the street. (Which does sound creepy.) “I will take care of that,” said Mike in convincing fashion. He handed out his cell phone to aggrieved neighbors and was asked to close his windows at 10 p.m.

SIDEWALK-CAFÉ LICENSES FOR THE ODEON, LANDMARC, SALUGGI’S, AND VIET CAFÉ
These were all approved unanimously. The first three proposed no changes; Viet Café’s is new—12 seats at six tables.

BALCONY CAFÉ, A PROPOSED RESTAURANT AND BAR AT 78 READE
The folks behind Amsterdam Ale House on the Upper West Side—which is north of here?—want to convert the old Mocca space at the northeast corner of Church and Reade into Balcony Café (or maybe just The Balcony, as written on the menu). Chef Chaz Brown spoke first because he’s a contestant on “Around the World in 80 Plates,” a TV show on Bravo, and he was due at a viewing party. He said the food would be simple and fresh and, if it were up to him, more interesting. Members of the committee jumped on the menu, noting that it looked awfully simple and not especially fresh, making them think that Balcony Café was actually going to be a bar. To his credit, primary owner Jacob Rabinowitz said it absolutely would be a bar, too—the menu was more of a lunch thing. The problem was that they want 4 a.m. seven days a week, which even a casual observer of CB1 Tribeca would know ain’t gonna happen. (If I have one piece of advice for people thinking of opening a restaurant serving alcohol, it’s this: Go to a CB1 Tribeca meeting before you present. Trust me.) They had thorough soundproofing plans, but the stench of Mocca’s sad decline into nightclubbery hung over the proceedings. Colorful residents of the building showed up to talk about fires that happened 20 years ago; it got a little Felliniesque. The committee said it would be fine with midnight and 1 a.m., which was countered with 2 a.m. and 4 a.m., which led at least one member to take offense. Estancia 460‘s Stacey Sosa stepped up to say that she likes Amsterdam Ale House, but then folks who live farther along Reade said that lots of people were urinating everywhere late at night. “Reade Street is turning into Bourbon Street!” cried one resident. After far too long, the committee held to its midnight and 1 a.m. side-street standard—not even bothering to explain that the restaurant could come back and ask for later hours after six months—and the Balcony Café folks said they might withdraw as a result. Still, the redefined hours passed 5-0.

There was one last item on the agenda—a liquor-license application for the soon-to-open Tribeca Blu hotel at Canal and Broadway. But I think it must’ve been held over, because the meeting seemed to be ending, and after two hours, I wasn’t waiting around to make sure. As my dear, sweet mama used to say, a bitch gotta eat.

UPDATE: “The Tribeca Blu crew seems nice enough,” commented Orinocco Vaginelli on another post. The GM waited for almost two and a half hours last night—last item on the agenda—only to be asked to come back in a month! Given the rollocking the Balcony posse received for not playing ball, said GM was smart enough to agree to a revisit.”

Here they are, property by property; click to enlarge. I wish you could click through to StreetEasy for more info. Maybe someday…. (I’ve included the screenshot of 138 W. Broadway—actor Michael Imperioli’s home—which is evidently in contract.)

Here they are, property by property; click to enlarge. I wish you could click through to StreetEasy for more info. Maybe someday….

Here they are, property by property; click to enlarge. I wish you could click through to StreetEasy for more info. Maybe someday….

Here they are, property by property; click to enlarge. I wish you could click through to StreetEasy for more info. Maybe someday….

Here they are, property by property; click to enlarge. (You’ll see that the 38 Laight one is also listed as 44 Laight—not sure why.)

Here they are, property by property; click to enlarge. Maybe the folks in 169 Hudson will let me borrow their bathtub.

Here they are, property by property; click to enlarge. You might be surprised to learn who’s moving where—I happened to know two of the buyers!

New apartment buildings often use their addresses as their names—consider 200 Chambers, 34 Leonard, 471 Washington, 33 Vestry, 101 Warren, 88 Leonard, 1 N. Moore, to name just seven that come to mind—because it makes their locations easier to keep straight. (One York being a notable exception that line of reasoning.) Every now and then, however, a developer chooses poetry over the prosaic—even if all that branding often disappears once all the units have been sold….

Can you match each of the following buildings with its address? The winner gets… nothing! (Because clearly you could just Google it all. But even if you couldn’t there probably wouldn’t be a prize. We’re above all that, right?)

1. Cobblestone Lofts
2. The Fairchild Lofts
3. River Lofts
4. Skylofts
5. The Tribeca
6. Tribeca Abbey
7. Tribeca Summit
8. Tribeca Townhomes
9. Truffles Tribeca
10. Zinc Building

a. 121 Reade
b. 16 Warren
c. 55 Vestry
d. 303 Greenwich
e. 28 Laight
f. 415 Greenwich
g. 34 Desbrosses
h. 145 Hudson
i. 92 Laight/416 Washington
j. 475 Greenwich

The answers are after these photos. The man in the middle photo, by the way, is looking at me that way because I was telling Howard how beautiful he is.

Answers

1. Cobblestone Lofts = e. 28 Laight
2. The Fairchild Lofts = c. 55 Vestry
3. River Lofts = i. 92 Laight/416 Washington
4. Skylofts = h. 145 Hudson
5. The Tribeca = d. 303 Greenwich
6. Tribeca Abbey = a. 121 Reade
7. Tribeca Summit = f. 415 Greenwich
8. Tribeca Townhomes = b. 16 Warren
9. Truffles Tribeca = g. 34 Desbrosses
10. Zinc Building = j. 475 Greenwich

If you got any wrong, maybe these photos will help jog your memory….

••• The Spotted Pig people passed on the old Kinko’s space in BPC, but Danny Meyer may still be looking. And Le Pain Quotidien is opening in the Riverhouse condo. (Eater)

••• Outdoor lighting from Karkula was featured in a NYT shopping story.

••• In April, the Rascals (“Good Lovin’”) reunited for a party at Tribeca Grill and Bruce Springsteen, Whoopi Goldberg, and Bill Murray were there. (Rochester Democrat & Chronicle)

••• Soho Rep‘s The Truth—A Tragedy got reviewed by the NYT and Time Out New York.

••• The wind blew a dog off an Independence Plaza balcony and it lived. (Tribeca Trib)

••• Uzi Ben-Abraham, a co-founder of Scoop, is selling his Watts Street apartment. (NYT)

••• Magazine publishing company Condé Nast is considering moving into the Freedom Tower. (NYT)

by Julie Glassberg (courtesy The new York Times)

••• The Brooklyn Banks unofficial skateboard park is about to be closed so the construction crews working on the Brooklyn Bridge rehab can use it for a staging area. (NYT)

••• The Wall Street Journal shines its light on little-known neighborhood gem Locanda Verde.

••• A profile of Tribeca composer PT Walkley, who did the music for Ed Burns’s latest film. (Downtown Express)

••• A tourist from Arizona staying in the Financial District got mugged at 6 a.m.—his pants, shoes, and wallet were stolen. (Tribeca Trib)

••• Tribeca Summit has cut its prices. (Curbed)