World Trade Center Tribute

On first glance, it appears that Turtle Bay has nothing in common with Lower Manhattan.

However, after taking a tour of the World Trade Center, I realized New Yorkers who have lived here for over seven years have one thing in common despite their neighborhood boundaries— 9/11.

After speaking with Manny Papir, a survivor of the attacks, I left knowing that the feelings and sentiments related to 9/11 are universal. Whether you were in New York or California at the time, speaking to a survivor makes the entire experience real. Manny is able to speak about his experience without getting teary, although several times he gets the chills when speaking about loved ones who passed away.

Sept. 11, 2001 happened to also be an election day, and so Manny was late getting in to Lower Manhattan because he was voting in Brooklyn. At the time, he was the Deputy Chief of Staff for Mayor Rudy Giuliani and was working with Giuliani four days a week. By the time he got in to Lower Manhattan, he saw both towers collapse to the ground, and by 2 p.m. was with Giuliani figuring out how to begin managing the fear and chaos of rescue teams and New Yorkers. In that moment, he lost all senses but sight. He could not retell what he smelled or heard that day, but has only visual memories of those chaotic, blurred morning hours.

What really made the experience come to life were the personal stories. Both Manny and our tour guide, John Henderson, told story after story about friends and families, many about survivors, and other stories about victims. The World Trade Center Tribute Building also had footage and artifacts saved from that day, with pictures and quotes of people retelling what they saw and experienced.

Both John and Manny said the worst part about that day and the weeks to follow were the scattered body parts. From the attack, 2,751 people died, but rescue teams have found over 21,000 body parts, with fewer than 200 of those being identifiable. Sadly, of the 343 fireman that died that day, only 12 bodies were found whole. The World Trade Tribute founder’s son was one of the 12 firemen whose bodies were in one piece.

It is stories like these that make the experience real for everyone—no matter what neighborhood, borough, city or state you were in that day. Despite the horrific circumstances, it was one day that people crossed neighborhood borders and came together from all boroughs to help and support one another.

News Update in Turtle Bay

Local Businesses

Because of the economic depression, many restaurants in New York City have seen business slow down as people try to save money. Nino’s Positano, which I wrote about several weeks ago, has seen their restaurant hurting for more than just economic reasons. The cute Italian restaurant has been temporarily shut down by the Commissioner of Health and Mental Hygiene. Noone came to the locked door to answer questions, but instead, the manager posted signs saying the restaurant was closed until a steam pipe in the kitchen was fixed. The Health Department posted their own signs saying the restaurant was closed, but gave no explanation. Their official website listing inspection violations on Nino’s Positano Restaurant has not yet been updated.

The economy is also hurting small businesses in Turtle Bay. Heavenly Delights is an ice cream and candy store located on Second Avenue and 46th Street. Sojan, one of the workers said summer and Halloween are usually good times for business. “It used to be that 10 people would come into the store and buy ice cream and candy," Sojan said.  "Now, eight people come in and leave, and only two of those 10 are buying stuff.”

A fruit vendor on Second Avenue and 46th Street is feeling the economic recession as well. As winter approaches, he is doing everything he can to sell his fruit. He added in extra peaches and grapefruit to my order and still only charged 3 dollars!

Roosevelt Island

For those penny pinchers, Roosevelt Island is perfect for a quick and cheap vacation. There is a tram that leaves every 15 minutes from 59th Street and Second Avenue and only costs a two dollar metrocard to escape Manhattan.

Construction

There is always news of construction in Turtle Bay. Since the deadly crane collapse happened last March, the City Council is conducting an ongoing investigation on the Department of Buildings and questioning Commissioner Patricia Lancaster, who approved the construction plan. The documents and plans for the building are still not available to the public, and the skeleton of the building that is no longer undergoing construction is slowly deteriorating.

Gallery Update

In terms of culture, the Trygve Lie Gallery on 317 E. 52nd St. is showing the “Silence” Exhibit until Nov. 9. It is a collection of Marcel Lelienhof photos of places around the world in a post war-situation. The Japanese Society, located on 333 E. 47th St., has an exhibition called “New Bamboo: Contemporary Japanese Masters” from Saturday, Oct. 4 to Sunday, Jan. 11. It is the world’s first exhibition devoted exclusively to Japanese bamboo as sculpture. The Third Annual Halloween Open House at Turtle Bay Music School, 244 E. 52nd St., takes place on Oct. 25 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. It is free, open to the public and families are invited to dress in costumes!

A Chat with Pete Hamill

Pete Hamill, author of “Downtown: My Manhattan” had only one purpose in mind when writing his book.

It was when his son turned seven years old that he realized his own mortality and wanted to write a book about a place he had lived, loved and seen change his entire life. He wanted to use this book to excite passion in children to read about the history of downtown Manhattan and hopefully inspire them to discover Manhattan for themselves. “Manhattan has always been a fascinating city to me," said Hamill.  "I just hope this book excites passion in someone somewhere.”

Pete Hamill came and spoke to our class about the process of writing and his journey through "Downtown."

When approaching neighborhoods he wants to write about, he just walks around the area and tries to discover something. He goes for walks everyday and wanders until he finds someone who has lived in a neighborhood for years and can tell a small history story of how the neighborhood changed.

He is obviously curious and genuine, and very soft spoken. His second home as a child was the library and he talked about old memories reading books by New York authors. He also spoke very fondly of his mother who raised seven children, worked a part-time job and never escaped the working class.

“My mother once told me to never look down on someone unless I was giving them a hand to help them get up,” Hamill said. That theory has stayed with Hamill his entire life and shaped his journalism. Hamill’s first byline on a story was in the summer of 1960 when he wrote an article for the New York Post. He wrote a story about a man who lost his job, was evicted and became homeless. After that article ran, readers found him a job and a place to live. “I knew at that point I wanted my articles to do something good," said Hamill.  "It didn’t have to create a big change, but helping a specific person was enough.”

Although he didn’t cover Turtle Bay as a part of downtown in his book, he said he had wandered around the area and knew in its beginnings, there were several large turtles inhabiting the East Bay. The best thing he said about exploring new neighborhoods was that you always discover something new and create a memory about that neighborhood.

A Chat with Sean Basinski

Sean Basinski, Director of the Vendor Street Project, is doing everything he can to give the 10,000 New York City immigrant vendors a voice.

Sean Basinski founded the Vendor Street Project after working as a vendor himself for a summer, and realized vendors had no way to communicate to each other and to the city. Trying to make a change, Sean and NYC vendors are now using this “union” to try to expose discrimination, change policies and regulations, and have a place where they can support one another.

Sean attended law school and even worked on Wall Street, but after selling burritos on the corner of Park Avenue and 52nd Street, Sean saw how difficult life as a vendor really is. Sean is trying to reveal the constant discrimination vendors face from the city and the health department, trying to open up more streets for vendors to sell their products, expand the number of vendor permits allowed and reduce the cost of fines for tickets.

One of the main problems is that English is usually not the first language for a vendor. Also, according to the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, in June 2007, the city capped the number of vendor permits available. There is also a 2,500 person limit to the number of people allowed on the waiting list for full term permits, and so even getting on the waiting list is difficult.

Sean also commented that big businesses often complain that street vendors are able to afford to sell food at a lower price, making it hard for some restaurants to compete, and take up room on the sidewalk and clutter the streets. The Vendor Street Project is trying convince the city that street vendors are important and add personality to streets in a big city. Sean and the street vendors claim they should have more accessibility to permits because they are a sort of “neighborhood watch.” Street vendors are on the streets everyday, recognize locals and even see activities that the typical New Yorker may be too busy to notice—and can be reliable witnesses to crimes and drug deals. Sean is using this argument to show the city that street vendors can be helpful and an addition to the police department, and should not be treated as a threat.

Sean is celebrating his seventh year since starting the Vendor Street Project. In December, Sean will travel to Legos, Nigeria and document the half-million street vendors there to continue his mission of revealing the hardships of being a street vendor universally.

Fruit Vendor in Turtle Bay

When Edgar first moved to the United States, he didn’t have much in his pocket. After two years, working as a fruit vendor in New York City has not generated extreme wealth for Edgar, but he remains content and optimistic about the future.

Edgar Noel, 23, moved to New York City two years ago with his brother from his home country of Guatemala, where he left his mother and sister. He looks young and is somewhat shy, but is thankful for his older brother who watches out for him. He has a fruit cart on the corner of Third Avenue and 48th Street, with an extensive menu of blended fruit juices, non-fat yogurt fruit shakes and a list of fruits he can combine for a tasty combination.

Guatemala has a fertile coastal plain and tropical climate on the coasts. This combination has allowed Guatemala to make bananas and fruits a large part of the export market. According to the U.S. Department of State, agriculture accounts for 24 percent of Guatemala’s exports.

This is one of the main reasons Edgar is selling fruit in New York. Fruit is one of the things he knows best and he is able provide good suggestions on which fruits to pair together. However, one of Edgar’s main difficulties is that he speaks very little English, and relies on having his main clientele of professional bankers to point to the fruits they want.

Edgar’s fruit stand is there Monday through Friday from morning to sundown. Although he admits he does not make as much money as he thought he would when he first envisioned living here, he is happy he can at least send some money back home to his mother in Guatemala and hopefully return to visit his family in a couple years.

Turtle Bay News Update

Many New Yorkers assume Turtle Bay is just a wealthy residential area, but in fact, there are frequent news events that are of interest to locals—from concerns of new construction, openings of new art galleries and local musical productions.

Issue of Construction

One of the biggest issues in the news today in Turtle Bay is the issue of construction. Last Mar. 15, 2008, there was a fatal crane collapse on 303 E. 51st St. that caused locals to start speaking out against increasing construction in their neighborhood. For residents, this fatal accident has proved that these shorter buildings, as opposed to the tall skyscrapers being built, are the reason they moved to the neighborhood in the first place, and the reason the shorter buildings should stay.

Although the accident happened last March, this crane collapse is still an issue for the locals. There are 11 future construction projects planned in Turtle Bay, and that construction is anything but accepted by the neighbors. Local residents have outwardly said that these recent construction projects are loud, disrupting, and will only replace ugly buildings with the prettier ones that were there before.

Since March, the Turtle Bay Association has been publicly speaking out against future planned projects. The TBA recently announced they created a “neighborhood watch” group that consists of residents to look out for dangerous and unsafe construction sites. They also boldly stated in their 2008 Summer Newsletter that new construction and tower cranes are not welcome in the neighborhood.

Despite the unwanted construction and extra noise, a small neighborhood inside Turtle Bay, Tudor City, has remained quiet. Tudor City is a small and self-contained neighborhood inside Turtle Bay. Tudor City complex is accessible on 41st and 43rd streets with a bridge above 42nd Street. In 1988, it was designated a historic district and is now a real community that holds Easter egg hunts, Christmas tree lightings, Menorah lightings and summer concerts in its park. During these fall months, it is perfect for walks or a quiet place to read.

Turtle Bay Grill and Lounge

Turtle Bay, the bar on 52nd Street and Second Avenue, hosted the City of Brave Firefighters of NYC 2009 Calendar Event. Although the event took place last week, it shows how many “outsiders” will travel to Turtle Bay (both the bar and the neighborhood!). The bar calls itself “midtowns hottest party bar” and hosts private parties and events.

Festivals

The Oktoberfest and Children’s Jaboree began Oct. 4 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. It takes place at the Dag Hammarskjold Plaza on 47th Street between First and Second avenues. There will be free pumpkin decorating and face painting.

TBA Meeting

The Turtle Bay Association Annual Meeting is being held Tuesday, Nov. 11 at 7:30 p.m. at Vanderbilt YMCA. This is residents’ opportunity to report to the membership leaders and meet them.

Galleries

The Trygve Lie Gallery is located on 317 E. 52nd St. between First and Second avenues and is open everyday from noon to 5 p.m. Starting Oct. 9 to Nov. 9 will be the “Silence” Exhibit by Marcel Lelienhof, a collection of photos of places around the world in a post war-situation. The opening reception of this exhibit will take place Oct. 9 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

The Japanese Society, located on 333 E. 47th St., is also hosting several upcoming events. The Japanese Society is hosting an exhibition called “New Bamboo: Contemporary Japanese Masters” from Oct. 4 to Jan. 11. It is the world’s first exhibition devoted exclusively to Japanese bamboo as sculpture.

The Turtle Bay Music School was just inducted into the Community Hall of Fame on July 9. They have many concert events in October as well as their third-annual Halloween open house for families.

Turtle Bay Overview

Turtle Bay is just a “small town” in the middle of Manhattan. Throughout its history, authors, playwrights, actresses and ordinary locals have helped save their small “town” from commercial developers and preserve its history. However, before it became a fashionable part of the East Side, it was very much a slum.

Back in the 1700s, Turtle Bay was farm land. James Beekman built a famous colonial mansion, Mount Pleasant, in 1763 that was used in the Revolutionary War. Today, it is located on First Avenue between 49th and 50th streets and has housed the Rockefellers and Huntington Hartford.

By the early 1800s, lower Manhattan was expanding north and the farms were broken up to lay out the city grid. Brownstones began to rise up for homes, but also became an industrial site, home to stockyards, slaughterhouses and breweries. When the elevated railroads on Second and Third Avenue were built, Turtle Bay’s streets became dirty and noisy and would make it one of the least desirable areas of New York City into the early 1900s.

Turtle Bay is located between 43rd and 53rd streets in the area east of Lexington Avenue to the East River. Since the days of the slaughterhouses and stockyards, Turtle Bay has experienced a revival and become one of the wealthiest neighborhoods with the most desired addresses. When the Third Avenue El was torn down in 1956, celebrities started taking over the area.

Turtle Bay is located in Community District 6, which has a population of 136,152 (according to the census in 2000). Over 100,000 people are white, and 70 percent are college graduates or higher. Some of its inhabitants include Humphrey Bogart, Walter Cronkite, Katherine Hepburn and Derek Jeter.

One of the most famous landmarks is the United Nations Headquarters starting on 49th Street along the East River. Its famous parks include the Katherine Hepburn dedicated park, the private Tudor City Park and the public Ralph Bunche Park, which serves as a popular demonstration site during UN meetings. James Grant Plaza is open 24 hours and has a café and free jazz concerts during the summer months.

The most famous historic landmark is Turtle Bay Gardens Historic District, located on 49th Street between Second and Third avenues. These brownstones were restored, and yards of two rows of town houses set back to back on 48th and 49th streets were turned into a communal garden by taking six foot strip from each plot to form a common path.

Turtle Bay is operated by the Turtle Bay Association, which is made up of a board of directors, who work closely with city officials to make sure their neighborhood has a voice that is heard. They focus on maintaining a sense of community and preservation in Turtle Bay.