AL BUTZEL, AN ‘UNFLINCHING’ ENVIRONMENTAL ADVOCATE
The Times has an obit for Al Butzel, whose advocacy as a lawyer blocked Westway and a power plant at Storm King. But I knew him as the main agitator who created Hudson River Park as chair of the Hudson River Park Conservancy, born from the ashes of his eight-year battle to stop Westway. “There seemed to be no argument he couldn’t win, no trap he couldn’t wriggle out of, no adversary he couldn’t outwit,” wrote Tribecan Charlie Komanoff in the Gotham Gazette last year. “Not just the smartest guy in the room, he was the most effective.”

THE INTERIORS AESTHETIC OF WEWOREWHAT
Vogue has a feature on the Tribeca loft of Danielle Bernstein, fashion influencer and founder of WeWoreWhat, done in all earthy tones. And what’s remarkable is it’s a rental. “I had to get my renderings approved by the unit owner who thankfully understood that my renovations would increase the value of the loft,” Bernstein told Vogue. “And because this is a longer term rental and I mainly work from home, the investment in creating a space that I can produce content from is well worth it.”

VISION ZERO IN THE 1ST PRECINCT
I will elaborate on this, but the Daily News reports that the 1st Precinct is one of only two with no traffic fatalities last year, which I guess is a unique (and sad) achievement.

Photo by Daniel Krieger

MENA CHEF LANDS IN BROOKLYN
If you were one of the few people who got to eat at Mena at the Walker Hotel, you will be happy to hear that chef Victoria Blamey has landed at Blanca in Brooklyn. From Forbes: “Fans of the endlessly inventive chef whose closures left gaping wounds in New York’s culinary landscape, can once again take a seat at her table. Guests get double the pleasure as Blamey takes the reigns at Blanca in Brooklyn, the former Michelin-starred hotspot helmed by Carlo Mirarchi who turned the concept of tasting menus into an overture of surprise. With the support of Mirarchi, Blamey takes what she bore into the world at Mena in Tribeca in 2022 to a new realm rooted in stardom.”