The Beast Is Open for Business

ByDon

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  • Darts, Anyone?

    ByDon

    State of Play Hospitality group has signed a lease to open Flight Club, a technology-enabled darts gaming facility, at 31 Union Square West in Flatiron, Manhattan. This will be the group’s first venue in Manhattan, and its ninth lease for the Flight Club brand in North America. The location will be a global flagship for the brand. Flight Club will occupy a 10,700-square-foot space at 31 Union Square West, a 16-story Renaissance Revival building designed by architect Bruce Price. The building was constructed in 1902-03 as the headquarters of the Bank of Metropolis. It was designated a city landmark in 1988 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2003.

    The brand’s new location is scheduled to open in late 2025, joining the building’s history of housing venues like Zippers nightclub in the early 1980s, Metropolis restaurant and club in the late 1980s, and Blue Water Grill from 1996 until recently.

    “We’ve been looking for the right real estate opportunity to land Flight Club in New York for over five years, and this site has the potential to be a genuine landmark for the city and the group,” said Toby Harris, CEO of State of Play Hospitality. “Both 31 Union Square as a building and the stunning split level Flight Club space are as close to the physical brief for the brand that we could wish for. I’m confident that by complementing and retaining the character of the building, we will be able to do it justice.”

    Since launching the first U.S. Flight Club in Chicago in 2018, State of Play has expanded the brand to Boston, Houston, Atlanta, Las Vegas, and Denver, with new venues set to open in Washington D.C. and Philadelphia in late 2024.

  • 14th St. Coalition Alerts the Area to Huge Traffic Changes, Here’s How to Complain

    ByDon

    Are you aware of the proposed MTA/DOT “L” train closure plans?

    The MTA/DOT plans include a vehicular ban on 14th Street (between 3rd Ave & 9th Ave) for 16-21 hours a day:

     The ban will seriously impede the daily activities of thousands of 14th St. residents and businesses and will divert cars and trucks to residential side streets – with a 50% projected increase in traffic

    The increase will be felt by the West Village, Village, East Village, Chelsea and the Flatiron Districts.

    The proposed plans also includes a radical re-design of 13th Street with a two-way Bikeway:

    MTA/DOT projects 2,000 – 5,000 cyclists DAILY on 13th Street 

    The bikeway, coupled with a 50% increase in traffic, will seriously impede residential, educational, and emergency services on the street placing pedestrians and bicyclists at risk

    The 14th Street Coalition is a growing group of residents and business that was formed in response to the MTA/DOT plans.

    We ask the MTA/DOT to balance residential and transportation needs in a more equal way. They MUST consider the impact that will be felt on the quality of life concerns including air pollution, noise, congested streets and increased risks to pedestrians and bicyclists. 

    We understand that the Canarsie Tunnel must be repaired.  We seek a temporary solution that is EQUALLY fair to residents, businesses and commuters. 

    It’s Time to Take Action – Sign our petition (go to www.change.org and browse: 14th Street Coalition), join the 14th Street Coalition on Facebook for links to sample letters to send to our elected officials,

    Email us at  14thstcoalition@gmail.com for more information.

     

  • Strand: Order Online, Pick Up at Store

    ByDon

    The Strand has made it a lot easier to get what you need without having to dig for it in the store. Just order what you want online and pick it up at the store a couple of days later. You’ll save the shipping fee and all the time it takes to poke through the stacks. Of course, if you’re an inveterate browser, as many of us are, feel free to keep exploring. That’s what makes the Strand so much fun.

  • A Sad Farewell to Bowlmor’s Friendly Face

    ByDon

    From The New York Times’ Metropolitan Diary:

    Greenwich Village’s Bowlmor Lanes on University Place, open since 1938 and one of the longest continuously running bowling alleys on the East Coast, shut its doors on Monday to make way for new condominiums.

    Much more than the disappearance of another landmark is the loss of Mark Braunreuther, Bowlmor’s man at the door for the past 16 years: benevolent minder, gentleman greeter, peacekeeper on the rowdy corner between Bar 13 and Bowlmor, an area labeled by one resident as the intersection between “Bucket” and “Blood.” On weekends, residents regularly awaken to police sirens and find violent traces splattered on early-morning sidewalks. Mark was always deep in the fray. His judiciousness was the reason so many revelers went home unharmed.

    Mark B. was the mayor of University Place. He knew most of us, and all of our pets, by name. Last summer he tended corn seeds in the tree bed out front. Just seeing those struggling cornstalks made one glad for summer. This coming season, he was planning some tomatoes.

    Mark regularly brought my husband and me cake from his favorite Queens bakery. The box always included biscuits for our dog. We reciprocated with Carolina barbecue sauce.

    Mark lost everything in Hurricane Sandy — his entire apartment and his car. His bosses replaced the car so he could get in from Far Rockaway. And when our Bowlmor closed for good, they promised a good position at their Chelsea Piers location. Mark was very grateful but he admitted he’d miss our neighborhood.

    Mark died suddenly a few weeks before Bowlmor Lanes closed its doors forever.

    Rest in peace, brave knight. I, for one, will miss you long after a bowling alley is a distant memory.