The Good Old Days on 13th St.

Did you know that 5.7% of NYC’s residential waste is textiles, yet they are 100% recyclable? Recycle your unwanted textile materials at the Union Square Greenmarket every Monday, 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. Acceptable donations include used clothing, shoes, boots, hats, jackets, towels, bedding, and linens. Council on the Environment of New York City will provide receipts upon request for those who may want to use their donation as a charitable contribution. Visit www.cenyc.org to obtain up to date information on the status of the Material Mondays textile collection program. Now Saturdays too!

Walk down East 18th St. east of Park Ave. and you’ll see a new Zen Palate on your left. Welcome back!

Next week (October 10 to October 14), contractors will continue to excavate earth and load out material. Concrete foundation walls at the South East corner of the site and slab on grade work will continue. Underground electrical and plumbing work will continue. DOT approved street connections to underground utilities on Fifth Avenue will progress. Formwork and rebar for superstructure will continue at cellar levels.

The following week (October 17 to October 21 ), we will continue superstructure concrete and slabs, street utility connections and underground electrical and plumbing.

Cava Grill, which specializes in Mediterranean dips and spreads, will open on 4th Ave. near 13th St. soon. In the meantime, you can sample their recipes at Whole Foods.

Here’s the news: “The New York City Water Board voted on Friday morning to approve a 14.5 percent increase for water and sewer rates, the largest increase since 1992. When the new rate is in place on July 1, according to the city’s Independent Budget Office, water rates will have risen a cumulative 77 percent since 2001, and double-digit increases are expected to keep coming for at least a few more years.”

This is one of those uncontrollable costs that bedevil the co-op’s budget every year. The only thing we can do about it: use less water. We’ve already taken steps to examine our infrastructure and make sure we have discovered any sources of waste and leaks. Other than that, it’s all about less consumption.

Last Friday, NYC Parks & Recreation, CYNTHIA-REEVES PROJECTS, and the Union Square Partnership officially cut the ribbon on LOTUS, the newest piece of temporary art in the Union Square Park Triangle. LOTUS was the creation of Seoul-based artist Jaehyo Lee. To create the piece, the artist meticulously carved, shaped, burned the individual wood elements attached to a steel armature that stretches 12 feet high. The artwork has certainly made an impression as passersby who can be seen at all times of day stopping to look and touch the new art in the triangle.