Takefumi Hori was born in 1978 in Tokyo, Japan. He exhibited and sold his artwork privately in Tokyo from 1996 to 2004. In 2004, he moved to New York where he has been selling his artworks through gallery exhibits and on the street. His artwork is all about the gold. You can find him on any given Sunday at the SE corner of Washington Street and 13th Street or by visiting his website www.takefumihori.com.

Ever since Mayor Bloomberg put a ban on street art in Union Square Park (about July 15, 2010), the displaced artists have had to find a new home, and they have, right here in the Meatpacking District. So as I was strolling about this fine Saturday afternoon, thankful to get a day below 90 degrees, I came across one Zane Fix. His art work immediately struck me as interesting, high quality and very professional.

After nearly a three year stint in Kyoto, Japan, Zane returned to New York City with the goal of showcasing his work as a New Age master of Woodblock prints, with his own special twist. I could go on and on but rather than that, take a look for yourself. You can find Zane streetside on the corner of Washington and West 13th Street or just visit his website below.

www.jappopart.com.

The City Council voted last week to unanimously approve the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) application for the High Line at the West Side Rail Yards. The vote means the application advances to the final step of the ULURP process: a review by Mayor Bloomberg.

This vote is a major milestone towards the full preservation and transformation of the High Line at the rail yards into continuous public open space. Once approved by the Mayor, it will allow the City of New York to move forward with acquisition of the High Line above 30th Street, including the 10th Avenue Spur.

By the end of the day on Wednesday, some restaurants will have a large letter in their window. This is the debut of a new system designed by city officials to rate the cleanliness of the city’s 24,000+ restaurants. The ratings will be either an A, B or C based on their cleanliness factor. The city’s 157 inspectors will be using wireless hand-held computers that will calculate the score.

Also starting Wednesday the city will offer a website where diners can go and see the rating of any restaurant in the city. The website can be found at www.nyc.gov/health/restaurants.

The new inspection rules will require restaurant owners to post placards displaying their A, B or C ratings. The placards are required to be posted on a front window, door or exterior wall within five feet of the main entrance and must be four to six feet high.

http://ozersky.tv/2010/04/franklin-becker-steak/

www.ozersky.tv

Can someone please tell Ed Hardy that it’s spelled Meatpacking District and NOT Meat Packing District as they have incorrectly spelled it in their print ads that I have been seeing in the subway!

Department of City Planning kicks off public review process to authorize City acquisition of the
High Line’s remaining section.

Supporters of the High Line celebrated today as the Department of City Planning certified an
application to begin the public review process to allow the City acquire the final section of the
elevated structure. This announcement marks the beginning of the City’s Uniform Land Use
Review Procedure (ULURP), a seven-month process of community and government review. After
the ULURP is complete, the City will be authorized to move forward with acquisition of the historic
High Line structure as it runs the perimeter of the West Side Rail Yards.
The certification of this application, submitted by the Department of Parks & Recreation, is a
critical step by the Bloomberg administration toward the preservation of the historic High Line
structure, and the extension of the popular elevated park north of 30th Street.
Today’s announcement follows another major step for the High Line at the Rail Yards, taken in
December, 2009, when the City approved the Western Rail Yards Rezoning. The rezoning
contains requirements that the High Line west of 11th Avenue be used for public open space, as
well as stipulations for the ways in which future buildings can interact with the High Line. Taken
together, these two actions pave the way for integrating the historic structure into the future
development at the Rail Yards.
The non-profit Friends of the High Line has been advocating for full preservation of the historic
High Line structure north of 30th Street since the planning process for the redevelopment of this
site began several years ago. The group has worked along with the administration of Mayor
Michael R. Bloomberg, the MTA and the Empire State Development Corporation, the state
agencies that own the underlying land, and The Related Companies, the site’s developer, to
ensure that the High Line is included in plans for the site.
The High Line south of 30th Street is already owned by the City of New York, and is under the
jurisdiction of the Department of Parks & Recreation. This section was donated by CSX
Transportation, Inc. in 2005, following a public review process similar to the one beginning today.
The southernmost part of the structure opened in June, 2009 as a public park.
Once the ULURP process is complete, the City will be authorized to acquire the High Line north
of 30th Street.
On receiving word of the announcement, Friends of the High Line’s Chairman John Alschuler
said, “We are extremely pleased that the City is taking this important first step towards ownership
of the High Line’s iconic Rail Yards section. Through continued community advocacy, and
continued collaboration with the City, the MTA, and the Related Companies, we are confident that
this historic structure will be transformed into a great public space to be treasured by generations
to come.”

Wired has opened their pop-up store on 13th Street. It will remain open until year end they tell us. Come on down and shop ’till you drop for your favorite gadgets, or some new ones that you have never seen before. We stopped to speak to Christopher Weiss, one of the Saturday shoppers. When asked what items he liked in the Wired store that day he replied, “My favorite is the Dyson bladeless fan. It’s quiet and child friendly.”

There is a Work Permit posted on the door at 21 Ninth Avenue which states “Structural New Foundation Work” being done. I wonder if we may be getting a new tenant soon.

Bobby Weiss/Autonomous Media, Inc.

Department of City Planning announces move toward City ownership of the High Line north of 30th Street.

“Friends Of The High Line just received word of an exciting development at the West Side Rail Yards. The Department of City Planning has announced that the City will initiate the process to acquire the High Line above 30th Street. The City’s decision to acquire the High Line is a major step towards achieving our ultimate goals: full preservation of the historic structure north of 30th Street, including the 10th Avenue Spur, and completion of the High Line project all the way to 34th Street. To understand the importance of this advance, it’s helpful to remember that the City’s 2005 acquisition of the High Line south of 30th Street was a crucial step in the preservation of that section. Similarly, we expect the City’s acquisition of the rail yards section to lead ultimately to park construction on the northern end of the High Line.”

I thought Ralphy was coming in.  Anybody have any leads on a new tenent?

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year 2009 from all of us at MeatpackingDistrict.com.

So sorry but I’ve been very busy with other work and have not kept the site as current as I’d like to. I hope to get back up to speed really soon. If you have any ideas or comments or would like to advertise, please write to me at bobby@meatpackingdistrict.com.  Thank you, Bobby.

This Wednesday, July 9, at 7:30, the cast from the Public Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park production of “Hair” will perform numbers from the original musical. The show is free and it will be on Gansevoort St. between Hudson and Greenwich Streets.

The entire cast will be on hand to perform the 45 minute show. Set list includes “Hair,” “Aquarius,” “White Boys,” “Black Boys,” “Let The Sun Shine In” and “I got Life.”

Bijoux, located under 55 Gansevoort Street, has just had a quiet no-press opening. KyKy and Unik had leaked plans of a larger three-part party place but only opened this subterranean den so far. It has low ceilings and plays Euro dance music. Open Wed-Sun currently. Bottle service is available.

Scarpetta, located at 355 West 14th Street, is now open for business. Scott Conant, one of the city’s top Italian chefs, is the Chef and owner. The place is conceived as seasonal Italian and will feature the kind of elegant, yet elemental and assertive food Conant is known for, such as imported ricotta raviolini with chicken livers and spinach purée, and calamarata pasta with mixed seafood and sea urchin. The room, which is designed by S. Russell Groves, holds 70 seats, and has a long mahogany bar and a twenty-seat café in the front.

Florent’s window now has a different kind of “For Rent” sign in it. Check out this picture I took today. Word is that Ralph Lauren is looking at the space. We will miss you Florent!

I just stopped by Bagatelle’s to have a look inside and guess what I found? Their Saturday brunch is like a dance club. They have a live DJ spinning A-list music and the girls were going wild, dancing on top of the furniture while patrons casually ate their brunch nearby. If you want to have a good time next Saturday, stop by Bagatelle’s at about 1pm and join in on the fun.

The Meatpacking District has a new set of car traffic patterns designed to protect pedestrians and initiate a better flow of car and pedestrian traffic. Along with the new traffic patterns are new parking regulations as well. The new signs posted on Gansevoort  and Little West 12th Streets have added the following restriction, “No Standing from 11pm-6am Thurs-Fri-Sat.” Beware or it will cost you $115 and cause you to say words that begin with F, S and or MF. The sign also indicates that parking meters are on the way. I’m taking an educated guess here that parking lot rates in The District are about to spike! Do you think the Gottlieb/Bender clan will open up some of those awesome buildings of theirs and turn them into parking facilities to help relieve the parking pressure that has just been created overnight? Hey Neil Bender, help out the neighborhood.

And the rock obstructions used to divert traffic are not the best looking things either. As a matter of fact, it’s the ugliest looking rock group I have ever seen (not including the Rolling Stones.)

Also, they have made Washington Street a Two-Way street from Little West 12th Street up to 14th Street. Why didn’t they extend that down to Gansevoort Street so you can drive down Gansevoort to Washington and make a right turn up to Little West 12th or14th? It would be a tight squeeze and it would probably take out a whole additional block of parking spaces, but what the heck, they don’t want cars here anyway. Oh the powers that be.

I’m heading up to The District today to take some pictures of all of the new car lanes that have been rearranged and new parking regulation signs that apparently many drivers didn’t see last night. The fine is typically $115. It’s really getting hard to bring your car here but I guess this is all to protect the pedestrians. The new temporary structures positioned so as to redirect traffic can be moved, removed or changed, but either way, they look as though they are here to stay. It’s a shame to cover up any portion of those cobblestone streets but in the name of pedestrian safety, it had to be done. Check back for my full report. – BW