Bum steer: So we did a bit more digging on that wild rumor we heard from a manager at the Jue Lan Club that Peter Gatien is looking to open up a new nightclub in New York City. Basically, it sounds extremely unlikely. New York nightlife guru David Rabin reminded us that, for starters, the former Limelight impresario was deported back to Canada. “I think getting a liquor license would be very hard,” he noted. We tried reaching out to his daughter, filmmaker Jen Gatien, but did not hear back by press time. As for Rabin, who was a Meatpacking District “pioneer,” he is currently a partner in four hot spots in the city, including two in the Downtown area: Jimmy at the James, at the James Hotel, at 15 Thompson St., and the Cafe Clover, at 10 Downing St.
Joke’s on us: Every year, jokester par excellence Joey Skaggs would announce an over-the-top April Fool’s parade through the Village. Despite detailed press releases listing multiple satirical floats and goofy takes on the topics du jour, soon enough we figured out that — there actually never was any parade. That is, until this year, when Skaggs and Co. actually did march, all wearing Donald Trump masks. Just another sign of the world turned upside down, perhaps. Maybe that’s why Doris Diether, the veteran Community Board 2 member and a huge Skaggs fan, kept leaving us urgent messages about his parade this year. Of course, Diether always knows the score! P.S., she’s recovered and back out of the hospital, and was seated in her usual spot in the front row at the C.B. 2 full-board meeting last month.
Gaslight goes out: It’s hard to believe, but the legendary Meatpacking District bar and lounge Gaslight is closed. We noticed the place was empty and stripped of everything but its bar and all lit up as we were walking by the other weekend. As Matt de Matt always used to tell us, the Gaslight was there back before “Meatpacking” was hip, and the transgender prostitutes still plied his corner for customers. In its heyday, it was a big spot for celebrity sightings, too. He didn’t tell us why it closed, but de Matt — who worked as a doorman at Studio 54 back in the day — assured us via text message that Gaslight is fini. Oh well, like Studio 54 and Limelight, clubs come and clubs go. A neighbor in the Triangle Building — one of the few grandfathered residential spots in the Meatpacking District — said the reason is simply that all the long leases on that particular block of Ninth Ave., which were of 15 or 20 years duration, expired roughly around the same time. That’s why, for example, the former Spice Market restaurant space is being renovated for a new Dean & DeLuca gourmet market.
A bright idea: Former City Councilmember Carol Greitzer is basically beside herself that the city’s Department of Transportation is thumbing its nose at $100,000 that Rudin Management is offering for the installation of historic bishop’s crook lampposts on W. 12th St. Rudin, of course, is building The Greenwich Lane, the tony residential building that has replaced the defunct St. Vincent’s Hospital. Funding the fancy light poles was another perk Rudin was willing to kick in for the community. However, as Erik Bottcher, Councilmember Corey Johnson’s chief of staff, explained to us, it’s not that easy. Basically, he said, while the Parks Department is more than happy to take donations for specific projects, D.O.T., for some reason, does not. Wanting to get to the bottom of this riddle, Bottcher requested that folks at D.O.T. show him specifically where it is written in agency regulations that they can’t accept these sort of contributions. In fact, Bottcher reported to us, there is no such regulation. “It’s not written anywhere, it’s just their policy,” he said. “D.O.T. didn’t want a situation where wealthy neighborhoods could purchase streetscapes.” Yet, why wouldn’t the same go for parks? Anyway, long story short, Bottcher asked us not to divulge the details, but he said that, at this point, Johnson personally is bent on working out a solution, so that the block will get the coveted lampposts. … On another issue, Bottcher said the recent “participatory budgeting” voting for capital projects for Council District 3 went well. More than 3,000 people voted, with half of them registering their choice online and half at a voting site. “A lot projects in the Village had a lot of support,” he noted. “People were campaigning.” What about people voting multiple times online? Bottcher said they check the names and do other verification. Hopefully, there was no Russian hacking!
Peel scare: Legendary Lower East Side rocker David Peel suffered a massive heart attack last Friday. The 73-year-old “Have a Marijuana” and “Die Yuppie Scum” singer, who was pals with John Lennon, was in critical condition at the Manhattan Veterans Administration Hospital on E. 23rd St. last Friday, and “resting up for a bypass,” former East Village activist John Penley told the New York Post. We didn’t hear an update by press time. But we hope that Peel will be able to “have a marijuana” again soon.
