In This Week’s “THIS WEEK IN CHELSEA”
In Order of Appearance:
Manhattan Community Board 4’s Four Committee Meetings / Hudson Guild Gallery Exhibit / Participatory Budgeting is Back /
Monday, January 10 through Thursday, January 13, 6:30pm Nightly via Zoom: Committee Meetings of Manhattan CommunityBoard 4 (CB4) | Observing maximum COVID protection protocol as per permission of New York State, CB4 is currently holding all of its meetings not in person, but online, via Zoom. This augmentation of the Open Meetings Law (which normally requires public bodies to conduct their business in a brick and mortar setting accessible to the general public) has been robustly observed by CB4 since it switched to online-only meetings at the outset of the pandemic. A YouTube channel, accessible by clicking here, contains the archived Zoom recordings of all committee and full board meetings from March 2020 onward—handy if you happen to miss a meeting in real time, or want to follow the arc of a particular issue.
On Monday, January 10, the Arts, Culture, Education, & Street Life Committee (ACES) meets, starting with an Open Session—your opportunity to share your thoughts on issues that are important to you. That’s followed by a presentation from Cafeteria Culture (which works with youth to achieve zero waste, climate-smart communities), on their education programming for 2022. To register, click here or, by phone, call 646-518-9805. The Webinar ID is 961-6164-5211. On Tuesday, January 11, the Business License & Permits Committee (BLP) has on its agenda, among other things, petitions from businesses wishing to alter their method of operation or change their applications (including a bid by MVLH Hospitality Group LLC to change their 176 Eighth Ave. location to include a small jazz band and ticketed comedy night. New liquor, wine, beer & cider license applications will be heard, and the committee will discuss the governor’s plans to resume sales of To-Go Drinks by bars and restaurants. To register for online attendance, click here. On Wednesday, January 12, the Clinton/Hell’s Kitchen Land Use Committee (CHKLU) will see an informal presentation from the NYC Dept. of Housing, Preservation & Development (HPD) and Douglaston/Actor’s Fund, regarding an affordable housing project at 705 10th Avenue at W. 48th St. (currently a DEP Site). There will be a presentation and a vote regarding a land use application for 806 9th Avenue at W. 54th St. (currently MTA Site). HPD and Hudson/Housing Works makes the presentation. The committee will also give an update on the RFP (Request For Proposal) for Site K , at 418 11th Ave. For the Zoom registration link, click here. By telephone, dial 646-518-9805. The Webinar ID is 961-7200-0913. Closing out the week, on Thurs., Jan. 13, the enigmatic “no agenda posted as we went to press” Waterfront, Parks & Environment Committee (WPE) meets. Click here for the Zoom registration link. The call-in number is 646-518-9805. All start times are 6:30pm.
NOTE: Held on the first Wed. of the month, full board meetings are where the letters generated from these committee meetings are voted on, by the entire membership of CB4–sometimes remaining in tact, other times with notable additions or deletions as per robust debate. January, 2022’s full board meeting saw new blood: Jeffrey LaFrancois took over the position of Chair from the great Lowell Kern. LaFrancois’ leadership team is comprised of First Vice Chair, Jessica Chait / Second Vice Chair, Leslie Boghosian Murphy / and Co-Secretaries Blake Kurisu and Katy Stokes. To visit the home page of Manhattan Community Board 4, click here.
Through Wednesday, February 2 at Hudson Guild Gallery I (Hudson Guild Fulton Center, 119 Ninth Ave.): The Light Over The Horizon (Light Art by Tom Fitzgibbon)| Viewing hours are Tues.-Fri., 10am-5pm. See the below flyer for more details or click here. Hudson Guild Galleries are located in the Elliott-Chelsea Houses(W. 26th St.) and in the Fulton Houses (Ninth Ave.). The galleries partner with nearby neighbor Google, as part of the Google Arts & Culture online platform. In doing so, Hudson Guild shares works by artists whose work has appeared in the gallery spaces over the past two decades. “It also,” the Gallery curators note, “gives us the opportunity to create permanent records of many different kinds of shows which are presented each year in the galleries, while also advancing our mission to make the arts accessible to all.”
NOTE: Hudson Guild Galleries are free to attend, but you must observe these five points of protocol. #1: Visitors are asked to spend no more than 15 minutes inside the galleries. #2: Visitors who wish to stay in the galleries for more than 15 minutes must fill out the Hudson Guild Health Screener in advance before entering the galleries. To access the Health Screener, visit hudsonguild.org. At the top of the first page it says “Click Here for a Health Screen” which will take you directly to the registration page. #3: Visitors must have their temperature taken by reception staff before entering the theatre and will not be permitted to enter if their temperature is above 100 degrees. #4: Visitors must wear masks at all times while in the building. #5: Visitors will observe social distancing of three feet from other visitors while in the galleries.
Participatory Budgeting Returns to New York City Council District 3 | Sure, he personally handed out COVID tests last week, and spoke passionately on TV recently, about the joys of Chelsea street corners bereft of huge piles of garbage… but what has Councilmember Erik Bottcher done for you lately? How about set aside a cool million, to be distributed among projects created by District 3 residents? Known as Participatory Budgeting (PB), the popular Cheddar/Lettuce Distribution program, which in its first year was responsible for creating West 20th Street’s beloved Chelsea Green pocket park, is set to return once again–End Date, April 22, 2022. Area residents (think Chelsea, Hell’s Kitchen, Greenwich Village, West SoHo, Hudson Square, Times Square, Garment District, Flatiron, Upper West Side) vote on a variety of proposals. The winning entry is fully funded, and what’s left after that gets distributed to the second, third, etc. winners until the money has been spent. To visit Bottcher’s Councilmember web page, click here. To visit the District 3 PB page, click here. There, among other nuggets, you’ll find this dandy: That $1 million, culled from the Councilmember’s budget allocation, “can be used for physical infrastructure projects that benefit the public, cost at least $50,000, and have a lifespan of at least 5 years. For example, projects such as local improvements to schools, parks, libraries, housing, and other public spaces can be funded. Ideas are then evaluated and voted on by residents of the district.”
BONUS ACTIVITY: Tuesday, January 11, 4-6pm, Councilmember Bottcher continues the Housing Clinic offered by Corey Johnson for so many years. It takes place on the second Tuesday of each month, doesn’t cost a dime, and gives you access to a knowledgable housing attorney who will give you the unvarnished truth about your situation, recommend a course of action, and provide further resources for future needs. To sign up for a slot, click here.
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