Early bloomers

(March 6, 2010)

Some early bloomers in Wagner Park. The top white flower is Galanthus (Snowdrop). The middle yellow flower is Eranthus (Winter aconite). Note the black fly pollinating the aconite.

and other images on the 55 degree sunny day

Shark!

There are sharks in Battery Park City, literally not metaphorically. An angler on the esplanade caught this small sand shark on Sunday, November 22. The fisherman spoke only Chinese and we were unable to get his name or any information.

Email us if you have photos of your own that you would like for us to post.

The fisherman

Lights around North Cove Marina

An outdoor lighting art exhibit on the trees surrounding North Cove Marina in World Financial Center

A piece of Ireland in BPC, literally

October 26

James Gill, Chairman of the Battery Park City Authority, gives a tour of the Irish Hunger Memorial in Battery Park City. The memorial was built in 2002 and features a reconstructed ancient stone house brought over from Ireland, along with authentic flowers and grasses on a manmade hillside. Along the path are stones representing different regions in Ireland, such as Dublin and Meath. At the top, one can view the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island: the first places seen in America by many Irish immigrants.

Traditional Irish music

October 26

BatteyrPark.TV is very pleased to feature The Craobh Naithí Branch of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann, which is an organization based in Dublin, Ireland that teaches and promotes traditional Irish music. The group is on a New York tour and stopped by the Irish Hunger Memorial in Battery Park City.

For more information, contact the CCE North American Public relations Officer, Paul Keating, at 201-965-6598

Battery Park City on Ice

An ice rink has been opened on the ball fields north of the Goldman Sachs building. It will be open until February. Rental skates and lessons are available.

For more information, call

1-888-PARK ICE     (1-888-727-5423)

http://www.batteryparkcityice.com/

The Best of Battery Park City and Vicinity: 2009

BatteryPark.TV took a stab at listing some the best resources in Battery Park City (BPC) and the surrounding neighborhoods. Please post any comments you may have.

Best Park: Wagner Park

We could have chosen virtually any of the parks in Battery Park City or Battery Park. Tear Drop Park, for example, rivals Disney Land. We chose Wagner Park for its impressive horticulture displays and amazing views of the Hudson and Statue of Liberty. Also, on many occasions during a summer day, one can have the entire park to themselves. We have several videos of the park (Monarch butterflies, Fall flowers).

Best place to catch a shark: The esplanade

An angler on the esplanade caught a small sand shark recently. This little posting went viral as New York Magazine picked it up.

Best Monument: The Irish Hunger Memorial

Constructed shortly after “September 11”, The Irish Hunger Memorial is a meticulously recreated chunk of Ireland. BPCA Chairman James Gill gave us a tour.

Best Hotel: The Greenwich Hotel

An outstanding boutique, The Greenwich Hotel, quietly opened up in nearby Tribeca and took the gold medal. Keeping with Robert De Niro’s demand for excellence, this hotel nailed the details, from the imported Japanese wood in the pool area to the furniture in the rooms. The pool and the spa are probably the best in all of New York City. GM Philip Truelove gave us a tour.

The New York economy took its toll on the former best hotel in BPC (and best in the world according to Institutional Investor Magazine), the Ritz-Carlton. The corporate suits trimmed back on amenities like the 14^th floor roof bar. 2010 might be a comeback year for the Ritz.

Best Museum: The Fraunces Tavern

Downtown New York City is where the most important events of the Revolutionary War took place, and The Fraunces Tavern was a key location. George Washington and many others made it their “hang out” and held important meetings regarding the war. Anthony Wellman gave us a nice tour of the museum and restaurant.

The Skyscraper Museum is also an interesting way to spend a few hours. Take a look.

Best Restaurant Overall: Bouley Upstairs

Battery Park City has a great demand for quality restaurants. As the economy recovers and the new Goldman Sachs crowd comes to the area, hopefully more restaurants will open up actually within BPC, west of the highway.

For 2009, we selected Bouley Upstairs as the best overall restaurant in the area. Famed chef David Bouley opened “Upstairs” next to his larger, more formal, Bouley. “Upstairs” is a small cozy dining space with an open kitchen. Chef Leo Marino, a new addition to the team, will be a just few feet away from you if you have any special requests. The sushi/Japanese kitchen in the opposite corner is quite respectable as well.

Most types of cuisine can be ordered, ranging from French to American to Japanese. The menu is very reasonably priced with many entrees under $15. But make no mistake, the quality is the same as the full Bouley around the corner. That is the beauty of “Upstairs”.

At “Upstairs”, one can sit next to Meryl Streep, see the food prepared nearby, and have a complimentary chocolate truffle made across the street by the Bouley pastry chef, and all for under $30. The “secret” to the success of “Upstairs” is that David Bouley shows up to work six days a week and cares about quality.

Best Pie and Dessert: Bubby’s

For the best dessert in the area, one needs only to hop into a cab and go up the street from Bouley to Bubby’s. The cherry pie is perfectly sour and not too sweet, with a moist doughy crust. The apple pie is not too tart, and comes with great ice cream. The red velvet cupcakes are moist with creamy icing. Like Bouley Upstairs, the owner takes a hands-on approach to detail. Closer to BPC, The Ritz-Carlton has some noteworthy desserts as well.

Best Coffee: Whole Foods

The best coffee in the area is found on the main floor of the new Whole Foods (not the upstairs) that opened up in Tribeca. The beans are roasted on location and one can choose from a plethora of regions and roasts. Beans can also be purchased, of course, to take home. Closer to BPC, Izzy and Nats makes a pretty good cup of Joe too, as does Bubby’s.

Best fried Chicken: Bubby’s

Fried chicken is not on many menus because it is a hassle for restaurants to prepare. As such, it is a rare commodity. Well-made fried chicken is rarer still.

Bubby’s makes our list again, this time for having the best fried chicken (and moist waffles too if you like). Bubby’s double dips the pieces in buttermilk. Brother Jimmy’s also makes a mean fried chicken but is too far away to include in our list.

Best Italian: Locanda Verde

Opened recently in the building of The Greenwich Hotel, Locanda Verde covers the bases well. The social scene attracts the A-list and it is backed up by the food. Chef Andrew Carmellini has created some novel appetizers that will make you take notice, in addition to the main entrees. Locanda is another piece of the Robert De Niro collection of fine dining.

For a smaller dining room experience with less of a scene, try Il Giglio. It is essentially a clone of the more famous Il Mulino with the same absurdly-high-quality-ingredients.

Best Steak: You decide

The steakhouses in the area each offer a unique style and one cannot really pick a favorite. We toured Dylan Prime and Palm. Take a look for yourself. Il Giglio serves a great cut of beef as well.

Best Chinese: Mr. Chow’s

The next time you have a group of fashion models to party with, take them to Mr Chow’s new Tribeca location across from Bubby’s and down the street from The Greenwich Hotel. The menu offers smaller tapas-like selections conducive for groups. Nearer to BPC, Au Mandarin has the best hot-sour soup and General Tso’s chicken.

Best Working Man’s Deli: Cordato’s

For the average Joe who wants a good lunch for under $10, delivered fast with fresh French fries, we select Cordato’s as the best deli. The triple-decker sandwiches are excellent.

Best Upscale Deli: Samantha’s

For a more expensive sandwich or take-home meal, Samantha’s Italian deli is the place. At lunchtime, workers from the World Financial Centers line up ten to twenty deep. Have them place your Italian sub in the pizza oven to toast it up.

If you prefer a kosher deli, Izzy and Nats just opened up this year. They might give Samantha’s some competition for our 2010 list.

Best Bagel: You decide

Two restaurants in BPC make their own bagels on-location: Izzy and Nats and Pick-a-Bagel. You decide which is better.

Best Beer Delivery: NA

With the closing of JJ’s carry out on South End Avenue, there are no places that deliver beer, snacks, etc. to BPC for reasonable prices. The smart entrepreneur who meets this demand will make a killing. The space is open.

Best Grocery Store: Whole Foods

The opening of Whole Foods in Tribeca met a huge demand in the area. The meat and fish sections are exemplary, as is the coffee section (see Best Coffee mention above)

Best Outdoor Drinking: PJ Clarke’s

The view of the North Cove Marina and Hudson River from the outdoor dining area by PJ Clarke’s makes for the best summertime outdoor hangout. The service is not always the best, but you will not likely notice after a few pints.

Best cocktails: Ritz-Carlton

For well-prepared cocktails and martinis, try the Ritz-Carlton in BPC. Tell Manny that we sent you. Also, Vintry Wine and Whiskey is a new place that just opened over on Stone Street and makes some interesting whiskey-based cocktails.

Best Thunderstorm: July 26

The most impressive display of the year by Mother Nature was the tornado-spawning front that passed over New York Harbor on July 26. Take a look.

Now, for the not so desirable “Best” list.

Best disturber of the peace: Con Edison

This November, Con Edison decided to dig up West Thames Street, yet again, and jackhammer into the early morning. This outraged the neighborhood. See the video. The company who runs the New York Waterway ferries was a close second as Best Disturber of the Peace. The new ferry added in the early morning schedule was rattling windows in Gateway Plaza.

Best place to get injured or killed: The Albany Street crossing

The construction of the West Side Highway and closure of the pedestrian bridge has created a deadly risk for people trying to cross the street. One person has been killed and at least one other was severely injured. Manhattan Borough President Stringer discussed the matter with BP.TV.

Disclosure

There are no financial disclosures to report. All of the choices were made on merit alone and are not commercials. We tried to create video tours of as many selections as we could.

Kill the Drill

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer discusses his “Kill the Drill” campaign to not allow near New York City’s source of water in Upstate NY a water-polluting method of drilling natural gas called hydro-fracture drilling.

A squirrel and his….

David Letterman’s writers would have fun with this photo of a chubby squirrel eating a peanut on the lawn of Wagner Park. Email us if you have photos of your own that you would like to post.

9/11 memorial lights

Ed Koch discusses homeless and politics

October 29

In the second part of our interview with Ed Koch, he discussed the growing homeless problem in Battery Park and how it is similar to New York City in the late 70’s when he was Mayor and the City was near bankruptcy. He also discusses the upcoming NY Governor’s election.

It’s duck season

Perhaps as a part of the normal migration, there are more ducks than normal in the waterfall pond south of the Great Lawn. By our count, there were 20 or so paddling around. Email us if you have photos of your own that you would like for us to post.

Rector Park

Our featured park of the week is Rector Park on Rector place and South End Avenue. Enjoy the footage from a quiet Fall Sunday morning.

Fall blooms in BPC

Battery Park still has plenty of fall blooms. Enjoy the images from Wagner Park.

Sunset

Say goo’bye to my leetle friend

October 13, 2009

Wasting no time, the DOT began construction on the new “Tire Swing Park” preventing any further delays from opposition groups. The current estimated budget is approximately $9 Million for the project. Despite opposition from residents, the project is proceeding with “Plan A” which cuts down all of the trees and has the maximal loss of grass field space to make way for the “Pataki Promenade” granite walkway parallel to the West Side Highway Route 9A.

The project is scheduled to be completed by Memorial Day, 2010. Near-term upside to the plan is that it will greatly expand the space allotted to the community gardens and level the grass playing field. The major downside to the plan, and reason for opposition from parents, is the loss of the large pear trees that provide great shade, and the down time from construction, of course.

NYPD 9/11 bagpipe parade 2007

Over 60,000 views and counting (originally posted on YouTube at another location of ours)

The growing homeless problem in BPC

October 15th

For the first time this decade, multiple homeless individuals are making the parks in Battery Park City their preferred location during the day. In particular, Wagner Park in front of the Jewish Heritage Museum is a popular spot.

James VarnHagen of the New York City Rescue Mission explains the reasons for this growing homeless problem. A key homeless shelter near BPC, the John Hughes shelter, did not receive a city grant and had to shut down causing many of the people that used to rely on it to spill into the park system. In addition, the budgetary problems of the city and increased unemployment have caused a 20% increase in homeless as the city shelters become overburdened.

To learn more and how to help, you may view the video now.

Monarch butterflies in Wagner Park