"Even cast-iron architecture might have been considered avant garde when it first appeared." No. Just no. Cast iron was intentionally designed and used in 19th-century architecture to resemble stone, mimicking more expensive carved facades at a fraction of the cost (while allowing for ornate details, quicker construction, and fire resistance.). Cast iron fronts were originally painted in off-white tones (and sometimes with flecked paint) to resemble stone. Look at the 1857 Cary Building in Tribeca and the 1857 E.V. Haughwout building in Soho for examples of one of the earliest cast iron facades meant to resemble stone. Only later did the large window and storefront openings become part of the architectural use of cast iron, and only in the 20th century did black and other factory colors appear on these fronts. Preservationist Margot Gayle was well known for bringing a magnet on her tours of cast iron architecture to show what was iron and not stone (as the New York Times even noted in the very first sentence of her 2008 obituary.) Compare that to 14 White's "distinctive patinated etched bronze panel [... a] synthesis of unique site considerations and district precedents, a contemporary metal envelope meant to establish a dialogue with the neighboring cast iron manufacturing buildings". That is word salad, contrived by architects merely to satisfy LPC and obtain construction approval in a landmark district. — James Bogardus on Sneak Peek: 14 White

No slight was intended against Tribeca Paint. It's just nice to have a choice of stores, like we used to. Or - as sometimes happens - you need another source for some must-have item when your first-choice store doesn't have it. — Gary on In the News: A 70-year-old Fidi hardware store faces closure

The facade resembles two buildings on Church Street - one on the corner of Warren, the other at Chambers Street. Apparently bronze panels are the au courant cladding of choice for some of Tribeca's low-rise residential developments. Whether or not this look fits in with the tone and style of the neighborhood is another matter. However, metal cladding is not new. Even cast-iron architecture might have been considered avant garde when it first appeared. Sorry, Mr. Gehry - not everything can be stainless steel like 8 Spruce Street! — Gary on Sneak Peek: 14 White

The best part about those 9 ft windows is the inability to see 14 White while looking out through them. — James Bogardus on Sneak Peek: 14 White

Sad to see BabyCottons go. Bought many quality gifts there for family and friends. Items were always beautiful and well made and worth the price. This is the third baby store to close on that block. — Tribeca Mom on Babycottons and Willow & Zoey are leaving; a jeweler is coming in

Regarding Bubby's, it could be the Devil Wears Prada effect. People re-watching or first seeing the movie in advance of the sequel, then wanting to go to the restaurant where Adrian Greniers character worked. — Chester on Seen & Heard: An all-time record at Bubby’s?

Yes! Quite affordable for the more than 800 billionaires in America! — George Bacon on Sneak Peek: 14 White

Affordable housing at its best! — R. on Sneak Peek: 14 White

Meadow Lane needs to do a better job corraling the garbage generated by their business. — Anne gilson on In the News: A 70-year-old Fidi hardware store faces closure

Welcome to the block Shahla from one female founder to another. Duane street has been good to us for 30 years. We hope the same for you! Raising a glass! — Alycea Ungaro on Babycottons and Willow & Zoey are leaving; a jeweler is coming in

Tribeca Paint! — Tribeca Citizen on In the News: A 70-year-old Fidi hardware store faces closure

Gothamist (which quotes this very Tribeca Citizen post as counterpoint) claims that there is a "slump" for the Canal Street vendors. What? This is the worst I have seen the situation in all these years. If individual crooks are selling less, maybe that's because they are competing with more crooks now. The Gothamist article unfortunately neglects to condemn this criminality, and it doesn't call out the buyers either who are of course the actual enablers and funders, and therefore accomplices, of organized crime networks. Feel free to comment on the Gothamist article: https://gothamist.com/news/canal-streets-vendors-describe-a-holiday-sales-slump-after-immigration-crackdown — Marcus on Counterfeit sales on Broadway are worse than ever

Good point. With such a massive flow of counterfeit junk, by now the authorities should have been able to trace it to source, at least the local (US-based) warehouses and shippers. They might not be able to do much about the makers (who are probably overseas) but they can cut off the supply at the docks, shut down and penalize everyone local involved in the supply chain. It was out of control today. All around the post-office, a federal building no less. Total disregard for the law. No police in sight. Of course, if they killed all the counterfeiting operations, the sellers might still be here peeing on our streets; they would just sell non-counterfeit junk. So from our perspective as residents, that wouldn't necessarily improve much. So there also has to be proper vending enforcement. I'm fine with more legit vendor licenses, but they have to follow the rules about places designated for vending. They can't just set up anywhere in front of residential buildings or other businesses, or block up access to subways, or block pedestrians (not to mention wheelchairs, baby carriages, etc.). — Marcus on Counterfeit sales on Broadway are worse than ever

Balancing Rights and Safety: The current approach seeks to balance an individual's right to drink with the public's right to safe roads, prioritizing safety when the two conflict. The legal system focuses on punishing actual or potential harm caused by a specific action (impaired driving), rather than banning the substance entirely. — David Lewin on An update on Luis Fernandez from the Square Diner

The street vendors are only part of the problem. The real issue to solve is why aren’t the importers and wholesalers.being jailed and/or fined very heavily? — Larry on Counterfeit sales on Broadway are worse than ever

I completely agree with you about the loss of hardware stores and Dick's is a good one. I currently use Chinatown Building Supply which is terrific and surviving well because all of the galleries in the nabe use them. — Heide Fasnacht on In the News: A 70-year-old Fidi hardware store faces closure

Hi Dan, How long have you lived in Manhattan? — Realist on Counterfeit sales on Broadway are worse than ever

I live on Lispenard and these guys really bother me. They block the sidewalks. They gobble up the on street parking. Believe it or not, many of them drive luxury vehicles like Mercedes and Range Rover. They leave half eaten food containers all over the place which attracts hordes of rats. Worst of all, they use the street in front of our building as a toilet because they don't want to leave their stuff unattended. Every day our super cleans up turds and Gatorade bottles full of pee. They use planters and construction stuff for semi-privacy. We have dozens of photos of these guys en flagrante. When I pass them I say, "Ice is coming in 10 minutes." I talk to the cops every day who say, "We can't do anything because our bosses told us not to." In other words, our elected leaders want them there. Why? They're neither voters or taxpayers. I think that the reason is because our racist politicians regard them as a "protected class" because they are black and illegal which gives them sainthood in the eyes of progressive white politicians. — lowrider on Counterfeit sales on Broadway are worse than ever

I started shopping here sometime in the mid 1970's buying vintage men's neckwear. I now own over 1,000 vintage men's neckties, many from this store. It's a great place to shop, and also just to look for interesting things. — AL G. on Church Street Surplus

Excited to be opening in Tribeca with our all-women team! I live nearby and we wanted our Flagship retail location to be at the intersection of architecture, design, and art! — Shahla on Babycottons and Willow & Zoey are leaving; a jeweler is coming in

I was sorry to read about Dick's Hardware, another storied downtown business threatened with extinction. As a hardware store employee in my college years, this kind of a loss is especially distressing. How about relocating Dick’s to Tribeca? We could use more hardware stores here. Tribeca Hardware on Chambers Street, Weinstein & Holtzman on Park Row, and even the eclectic Alexander's Hardware on Reade Street have never really been replaced. Not to mention the several lock and hardware wholesalers that used to exist before Tribeca became residential. Are there any real estate matchmakers out there? Let's pair this business in need of space with a location in need of a tenant! — Gary on In the News: A 70-year-old Fidi hardware store faces closure

The solution is to have a nice local market or farmers market there before they setup early in morning — Alex on Counterfeit sales on Broadway are worse than ever

Definitely mostly tourists. I've taken to telling them that there are still pancakes at lots of other places that don't have a line. I guess this is what they get for planning their trip (and wasting their precious time on this earth!) around what someone online told them is a "must". Still, I'm bummed that what was once our nice neighborhood breakfast spot is essentially inaccessible to us now. Especially stings since we no longer have Kitchenette, Gee Whiz, Socrates, Imperial, etc etc etc. :( — Elizabeth on Seen & Heard: An all-time record at Bubby’s?

I can’t wait for Friedman’s to open so that the neighborhood can do out for weekend brunch again. — Bec on Seen & Heard: An all-time record at Bubby’s?

Are there some higher up powers that have been protecting these African fake vendors and their Chinese counterparts? It’s inexplicable why they could operate with such impunity for so many years with no sign of subsiding. All the cat and mouse show raids and police-can’t-dos by now are nothing more than tired smoke screen, and we are suffering from being voiceless and defeated as residents of the neighborhood. It’s baffling how a city government can turn its back on its citizens with zero accountability! Christopher Martē is reelected, he can continue with his inaction and indifference. Mamdani? Probably already retracted all his ridiculous campaign promises and already working on his reelection campaign with new ones! — R. on Counterfeit sales on Broadway are worse than ever