••• “Do you have any information as to why the sidewalk shed is still up around 310 Greenwich?” asks John. “The work on that building has been done for months now.” It is a mystery; you’d think Best Market would be apoplectic about it. I called Stellar Management, which owns Independence Plaza, and asked for the media relations person, but she hasn’t responded to my voicemail or subsequent emails. Perhaps a resident has inside information?

••• Blue Bottle’s café in 4 World Trade Center, fronting the 9/11 Memorial, opens today. It’ll be interesting to see what happens to the brand now that Nestlé has taken a majority stake.

••• From Notify NYC: “There will be a fireworks display near the Brooklyn Bridge [today], 9/19, at approximately 8:30 p.m.” I suppose it could be for the Brooklyn side, in which case we’d care less.

••• “The Newark Airport Express buses that used to depart only from Midtown now (since August 1) have a stop at Hudson and Broome,” reports N. “I wonder of Port Authority is letting them sneak into the tunnel on that little stretch of Broome that seems closed to ordinary traffic. That would add a great advantage during evening rush hours.”

••• The annual Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers run is September 24, so plan accordingly (or join in).

••• Opening September 26 at R & Company: “Side Dish, a solo exhibition of Katie Stout opening in the lower level gallery. This is Stout’s first comprehensive exhibition at R & Company and a presentation of all new works. For the exhibition, the designer has transformed the gallery space into an immersive environment that reflects her playful and spontaneous studio practice. On view are Stout’s latest girls series including new lamps, mirrors, tables and seating, each composed of unique female forms posed in provocative stances. Handcrafted in clay and wicker, these stylized female nudes are represented as domestic objects, meant to satirize the objectification and traditional role of women by way of extreme kitsch.”