Last year’s Taste of the Seaport, which benefits Spruce Street and Peck Slip schools. The fair returns Oct. 18.
BY JANEL BLADOW | After a bit of a summer break, I’m back with Seaport Report. While our little neighborhood gem has had plenty of news and events – the daily papers offered plenty of details – while S.R. was on hiatus, we’re back with the things that are important to us neighbors.
No news is… The Howard Hughes Corporation continues to hype its plans for developing South Street/Fulton Street/Pier 17 as a commercial mecca for shopping and entertainment. While they push forward with their ideas, presentation of those plans has no date in sight. H.H.C. was originally to go before the Seaport Working Group in September, then present at a special meeting with Community Board 1’s Landmarks Committee on Oct. 22.
That’s also been postponed. H.H.C.’s only scheduled appearance is Nov. 18 before the city Landmarks Preservation Committee for a decision. Mark your calendars!
Also of note… Anyone living north of Fulton St. in the Seaport may be interested in attending the Seaport/Civic Center Committee meeting Tues., Oct. 21, 6 p.m. C.B. 1 member Jason Friedman is making a presentation on “the possible resolution” of Peck Slip Plaza.
As of now, the debate continues – trees or no trees. Having done my own informal survey around the ‘hood, the consensus is “no trees.” Residents would like to see Peck Slip turned into a plaza for strolling and sitting, much like those in European cities. That would be in keeping with the design of plazas at the time our neighborhood was created and would preserve the feel of a working seaport.
And, I’d like to shout out – whoever decided to put the Citi Bike stand in the plaza has no sense of taste or style. That’s just plain ugly.
Great tastes… Now in its 5th year, Taste of the Seaport continues to grow. This year the food fest takes on a whole new perspective. Parents of the Spruce Street School (P.S. 397) and Peck Slip School (P.S. 343) join forces to make the event “bigger, better and more enriching to our broader community.” Proceeds will be split between the schools for art, music and other enrichment programs.
The event this year – Sat., Oct. 18, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. ($35 for 5 tastes/$120 family pack for 20 tastes) – has more vendors than ever, ranging (A to Z) from Acqua Restaurant at 21 Peck Slip with fresh Italian specialties to Zaitzeff Burgers (72 Nassau St.) with Kobe beef and veggie offerings, there’s something for every palate. Restaurants from Stone St. such as Ulysses, and John St. like The Trading Post to Water St.’s Mark Joseph, will all serve little plates.
“This year we have more than 45 restaurants from the Downtown community, an expanded Kids Zone, beer garden and live music,” said organizer Tami Kurtz, a Seaport resident.
Calling all ghosts, goblins and ghouls… Halloween is just weeks away. Have you picked up a costume yet? As has happened for 25 years now – can you believe our little neighborhood started its Trick or Treat parade in 1989??? Last year, it grew to more than 200 marchers, some of the them the walking dead. Bigger and buggier plans are in the works.
The fright fun ramps up on Friday, Oct. 31. This year the party changes a bit. Little tricksters and their parents will gather at 6 p.m. at the east end of Peck Slip Plaza (near South St.), the newly paved portion — thanks to those treatsters from the Parks and Transportation departments. Trick or treaters will meander around to shops and residential buildings that have agreed to hand out treats.
Jacqueline Goewey, owner of Made Fresh Daily on Front St. and one of the organizers, is baking an array of “Halloween themed sweets like marshmallow ghost mini cupcakes and camfire s’mores. She’ll have hot cider for kids and adults but, as we all know, many of the adults do their trick or treating at Pasanella & Son on South St.!
She’s heading up the event this year along with Bellavia Mauro, Ashley Elitt and Amanda Zink. They are looking for others to help with signing up treat givers, decorating the park beginning at noon the day of and cleaning up the day after Halloween. Email them at seaporthalloween@gmail.com. Howling happening… Meanwhile the fright night continues. Again the Salty Paw (38 Peck Slip) kicks up the pup party with its 7th Annual Doggie Howl-O-Ween party! Even though the parade will be passing by at the same time, canines and their parents will be giving one paw up at the most fun costume contest in town. Raffles, prizes and treats…oh my! All fun for the furry ones in your family. The bark-fest is from 6 – 8 p.m.
Eerie sounds… On a musical note, Trinity Church holds a Halloween and all Saints Day concert/showing of the 1925 silent movie “The Phantom of the Opera,” accompanied with a live organ and choral improvisation. Members of the Choir of Trinity Wall Street add their vocal and individual instrumental expertise to the fun, Friday, Oct. 31, beginning at 5 pm.
Our own Knickerbocker Chambers Orchestra gives five free concerts this month. Kicking off the Lower Manhattan fall arts season, the free concerts will be every Monday from noon to 2 p.m. at Albany Plaza, a new public space facing the W Hotel on Albany St., just south of the World Trade Center. This week, their string quartet performed, next week (Oct. 13) is a brass quartet, followed by K.C.O. woodwind trio (Oct. 20) and winding up with a K.C.O. string quartet (Oct. 27).
In between, everyone is invited to a fee public forum “FDR & NYC: Bold, Persistent Experimentation,” on Saturday, Oct. 25, at 2 pm. It will be a discussion of the interaction between Franklin D. Roosevelt, Fiorello La Guardia and Robert Moses and their work in creating the N.Y.C. we know today. Afterward, about 5 p.m., the K.C.O. will hold a special hour-long performance. Featured music will be the latest installment of K.C.O. Music Director Gary S. Fagin’s “Robert Moses Astride New York,” and a selection of F.D.R.’s favorite songs. Call (845) 486-7745 to register.
A new hood… So According to AM New York’s City Living section, a new neighborhood grows among us. Who knew? “Nestled between the East River and the Financial District is the high-rise-filled area of Fulton.”
Huh? It pinpoints: “The Fulton area is technically in the eastern part of the Financial District, between Frankfort Street and Park Row to the north and John Street to the south. It goes from the East River west to Nassau Street.”
And, the article says Fulton doesn’t have a ton of nightlife (it suggests you go to Battery Park City or Tribeca) but does have “easy access to the South Street Seaport, the city’s historic port at the end of Fulton.”
First, FiDi is along the East River and south of Fulton St. and the area they describe would be north and west of it. And second, technically speaking, the South Street Seaport goes north to the Brooklyn Bridge, Dover St. and from the East River west to Pearl St. And Fulton St. east is the main thoroughfare of the Seaport. If you want to create a new neighborhood, get your bearings first.
