Vehicle being investigated for bomb scare at 51st and Park (Gawker)
September 2, 2010
The sexiest office this city has ever known: the Campbell Apartment, hidden away in the southwest corner of Grand Central Station. It was leased by John Campbell, millionaire financier and original gangsta, from William K. Vanderbilt II in 1923. The office, inspired by a 13th-century Florentine palace, included an enormous faux fireplace where Campbell kept a steel safe (wonder what he had to hide), hand-painted plaster of Paris ceiling, an art collection worth more than $1 million, and “a Persian carpet that took up the entire floor and was said to have cost $300,000 at the time, or roughly $3.5 million today.” A butler named Stackhouse oversaw operations.
Something tells me Mr. Campbell didn’t get a lot of work done in this “office.” Can you imagine the late-night parties he held, fueled by cases of illegal French champagne and elegant little sniffs of, ahem, smelling salts?
After his death in 1957, the Apartment fell into disrepair and over the decades served as a storage closet, signalman’s office, and even a jail.
In 1999, it was renovated and opened as a bar. The cocktails and wine list are lousy but, my, what a view!
Don’t forget, this September 7th! New York Civic’s End of Summer Networking Event at the southwest porch of Bryant Park, featuring our special guest, noted muckraker Wayne Barrett (Senior Editor for The Village Voice and Adjunct Professor, Columbia Journalism School). More info here.
Automatic Wayne Barrett reblog.
September 1, 2010
[Flash 10 is required to watch video]
Mark Federman has spent the last nine days camping outside the East Side Community High School, hoping to win enough votes on Facebook to be one of the 20 winners of the Kohl’s Cares $10 million give away.
Menschy cat.
What did you do on your birthday?
You can vote for East Side up to five times by going here.
Voting ends Friday.
C’mon, New York.
Thanks in advance.
August 31, 2010
August 28, 2010
August 22, 2010
Penn Plaza Tower Could Drastically Change City’s Skyline
from Gothamist
After being approved by the City Planning Commission in July, plans for a 1,200-foot tower just two avenues away from the Empire State Building are being reviewed by the City Council. If passed, the tower at 15 Penn Plaza would be a huge change to the New York City skyline. And the Empire State Building isn’t happy about it. Anthony Malkin of Malkin Holdings, an ESB owner, wrote to the City Council:
The Empire State Building is the internationally recognized icon on the skyline of New York City. We are its custodians, and must protect its place. Would a tower be allowed next to the Eiffel Tower or Big Ben’s clock tower? Just as the world will never tolerate a drilling rig next to The Statue of Liberty, why should governmental bonuses and waivers be granted to allow a structure as tall and bulky at 15 Penn Plaza to be built 900 feet away from New York City’s iconic landmark and beacon?…If built, be as much a scar on the complexion of New York City as the loss of Penn Station.
Bed Bugs Hit Empire State Building, Make People Unpopular
quoted from Gothamist
These bed bugs have had enough of their movie theater and clothing store infestations. Now, they’ve taken their terrifying act to the big time, and have settled themselves into the employee changing room at the Empire State Building. But the ESB doesn’t seem too worried, telling the Daily News, “Like so many other buildings in New York City, the Empire State Building had a small incident of bedbugs. The occurrence was specific to a uniform storage area in the basement of the building. The area has been treated and fully cleared.” Don’t they know the mere whiff of an infestation is enough to turn a beloved city icon into a social pariah?
