••• Robert Ripps sends word (and image) that the Ladder 8 firefighters have moved out. The firehouse is undergoing a three-year renovation.

••• The New York Times went to the recent Mudd Club party.

••• Despite all evidence to the contrary, the Real Estate Board of New York sent out a press release saying that “Manhattan’s retail leasing market has finally seen some softening, with ground floor asking rents decreasing in seven of the 17 premier retail corridors analyzed in the Real Estate Board of New York’s Manhattan Fall 2015 Retail Report. The upside to the break in rent increases is that deals are getting done and retailers are making commitments rather than delaying decisions.” Alternatively, REBNY possibly realizes that landlords are catching the blame for the ghost-towning of Manhattan.