Reminder: Rooftop Pary on October 1 at 6PM

So we’re swapping one big box electronics store for another. Best Buy will move into the old Circuit City space on 14th St. by the end of the year.

Travel back to 1901 and take a look at the 4,5,6 train being built up the east side of Union Square. Remarkable images! You can even see the statue of George Washington at bottom center of the first photo. This was his original location, at the intersection of 4th Ave. and 14th St., before he was moved into the park itself.

As you know, the north end of the park is under heavy renovation, but the big question is what will become of the pavillion? For a while now, there has been discussion of handing it over to a restauranteur, but park boosters feel it should become a more public facility. As to the question of who that restauranteur might be, Danny Meyer of Union Square Cafe and many other great restaurants is a natural, especially since he has helped oversee the rebirth of Madison Square Park with his Shake Shack, but he says he’s not interested.

Here’s a great article about the Union Square Holiday market.

In a last-minute appeal, a judge on Friday hit the brakes on the city’s plan to ban private car traffic from a stretch of 14th Street, NY1 reports.

A judge granted the appeal, which was filed in the state appellate court division, and halted the pilot program for the second time in two months. The decision forces the city’s Department of Transportation (DOT) to suspend its plans and likely move to appeal the sudden about face.

The ruling comes just three days after a judge lifted a temporary restraining order on the program and as DOT crews prepared to launch the 18-month pilot program between Third and Ninth avenues on Monday. The stalled pilot aims to block private car through traffic from the busy road to speed up bus commutes during work on the L train’s Canarsie Tunnel. Pick-ups, drop-offs, and garage access would still be permitted under the plan.

The busway was set to launch Monday at 6 a.m. It was originally planned for July 1.

The soon-to-rise condo tower on University is selling fast, with both penthouses in contract at prices north of $10 million. Wow. Check it out here.