The Final Hours Of Chinatown Fair, The Last Arcade In Chinatown

Rumors started flying around New York City blogs last week that Chinatown Fair, one of the last traditional arcades left in the city, was closing. Those rumors became reality yesterday when Chinatown Fair locked its doors for good at 8 Mott Street yesterday at 12:48 am. It was in business since at least the 50s, first across the street and then at its current location for almost 30 years. Some games were removed before the last token was dropped and the space was nearly empty by yesterday afternoon. The end of Chinatown Fair unfolded with players battling each other in fight games until the very end.

Visiting St. Patrick's Old Cathedral School

This past June due to years of low enrollment, St. Patrick's Old Cathedral School on Prince Street at the corner of Mott Street closed its doors. Opened in 1822, it was the oldest existing Catholic grammar school in New York.

In a sale open to the public, the diocese is currently selling off many remaining items in the building to clear it our for undefined use. NYC The Blog snuck into the back courtyard to snap a few photos (seen above). See the full photo album on Facebook.

Previously:
Video: San Genarro Food Vendor Smashes Chair Over Visitors Head 
Have Squatters Come To Nolita?  
Nolita's Cupcake Wars Take Shape: Brooklyn's Little Cupcake Bakeshop And Chelsea's Billy's Bakery Announce Fall Arrival
Little Italy's Lombardi's Pizza Receives Truckload Of Coal  

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60 Foot Flag Hangs In Memory Of 9/11

This 60 foot by 30 foot flag was unfurled on 1 Liberty Plaza on September 22, 2001, overlooking ground zero during the World Trade Center rescue and recover efforts. It now hangs on a building at the corner of Mott and Hester street in Little Italy every year on the anniversary of 9/11.

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Seedr Tribute Piece Buffed From East Houston Street

During the at times annoying and comprehensive online coverage of Shepard Faiery's mural on the Deitch Wall, graffiti artist Seedr quietly put up a tribute piece a couple hundred yards away at the corner of Houston and Mott Streets in April. That piece was buffed last week.

See the before and after below.

Sloane NYC Closes; Designer Opens Eponymous Boutique On Greene Street

Sloane NYC closed their doors on the corner of Mott and Broome streets, but not all is lost for those who loved owner and designer Brian Stanziale's one of a kind pieces. Stanziale has opened an eponymous outlet at 112 Greene Street, inside The Garment Room. Sloane NYC was on Mott St since October of last year at a favorable rate but without a lease. Now the landlord has a leased tenant and Brian found a new space.

Note a new awning has already been installed above a small part of the space advertising "The Hole." Sounds so dirty and degenerate, like The Cock (the original Cock on Avenue A). A walk by the blackened windows of The Hole one night last week showed a woman feverishly and, with great success, hip-hop dancing in front of a mirror.

Put Your City On: Hit By Bus; Looking At Mott Street; Visiting The Jersey Shore; More!

Mott Street as seen from Elizabeth

• iBombed Your iPad Billboard With Porn [ANIMAL]
  
• Judge Rules MTA Must Reopen Station Booths [WNYC]
  
• Fighting the Noise Wars -- One Blog at a Time [Jeremiah Moss in The Huffington Post]
  
• The New York Times visits the real like Jersey Shore. With audio! [NYT]
  
• Another pedestrian hit on Lower East Side by bus
  [The Lo-Down]

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Fake Bird Twitters At Real People

Seen in a tree on Mott Street just north of Gimme Coffee, street art imitates internet life with a bored bird, closely resembling Twitter's own mascot, tweeting at passersby.

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UPDATED: This Just In: Hotel Toshi To *Allegedly* Leave 280 Mulberry Due To Tenant Activism

After posting about a potential new Hotel Toshi unit on Mott Street, Robert Chan, proprietor of Hotel Toshi, called NYC The Blog for a little chat and to offer information about his plans in Nolita, specifically at 280 Mulberry Street and on Mott Street, and imparted surprising news...

UPDATED: Hotel Toshi "Invades" Nolita?

Hot on the heels of a "misunderstanding" about plans for 168 Elizabeth Street, flyers posted around Little Italy and Nolita are raising the alarm over Hotel Toshi—run by "former sex party promoter, Robert Chan." According to the flyer, Hotel Toshi has landed in Nolita, though no affirming information was provide. Hotel Toshi's website does contain a listing for a 3 bedroom at "Prime Soho Mott" with pictures coming soon.

NYC The Blog emailed Hotel Toshi last night inviting them to add any information they felt was relevant. The post will be updated with any response received. UPDATED: Robert Chan telephones with more information.

Bike Security 101: Lock Your Tires, Lose Your Frame

These two tires were seen within 30 feet of each other earlier this week, on Mott Street between Prince and Spring. It always causes a tinge of sorrow to see a sight like this. To this day, some of the most painful memories of childhood were parking the bike to go fishing, run into the store or stop by a friends, and come back outside to see it gone. SUCH PAINFUL REGRET! 

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Photo credits: Paolo Mastrangelo/NYC The Blog

Work Resumes At Former Kitchen Club

A stop work order was rescinded this week and renovations have resumed at the former Kitchen Club at the corner of Spring and Mott Street in Nolita. Kitchen Club and adjacent Chibi's Bar, both owned by Marja Samsom and beloved by the neighborhood, closed in December of last year after twenty years in business. 

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Jim Joe Likes His Dope

Montreal born Jim Joe, downtown Manhattan's public penmanship scribbler, has as of late been very active. If you've been below Houston Street, chances are you've seen the ubiquitous '1-800-Jim-Joe' or simply, 'Jim Joe,' scribbled on any available surface. 

He's since begun elaborating his scribbles, leaving varying statements along many neighborhoods in the area. Above, Jim Joe declared his love of dope on Spring Street at Lafayette. Fortunately for Jim Joe, if he ever needs help kicking a habit, the New York City Department of Health can assist him.

See one more new piece below.

Fiat Cafe On Mott St Opens For Business

Fiat Cafe is open at 203 Mott Street as of last night (map), one building south of Lombardi's. The cafe takes the place of a juice bar that spent as much time renovating the space as they did open for business—unfortunately, only a few weeks.

A quick glance inside last night showed a light menu of sandwiches and beverages, decorated with toy scooters on one wall.

It's unclear at this time if Fiat Cafe is a contrived Italian bar or the real deal, endearing as an outpost in rural Italy. Stay tuned...

UPDATE: They seem always to have a crowd of people enjoying their space at all times of day. 

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New Graffiti On Houston Street And It Is Not's Shepard Fairey

Spied this morning on the NE corner of Mott and Houston was the relatively large and (new?) work signed by BTM, seen above. Far left says "Wild Bill."

UPDATE 06.14.10: Luna Park fills in the blanks on the artist: Seedr. 

The paint still appeared to be wet at 8.30am and is only two blocks west of the Deitch Wall on Houston that was recently papered over by noted sticker artist and t-shirt designer Shepard Fairey. A crossing guard on the corner couldn't provide and clues as to when the work appeared, as it was her first morning manning this corner making sure pedestrians were safe from the speeding traffic on Houston!

UPDATE 04.23.10: A friend informs me they noticed this piece last week.

More photos of the newest art to grace Houston Street, below...

Man In The Window

Painting the interior of a display window at The 1929, one of Nolita's numerous storefronts seemingly being permanently used as temporary space for pop-up stores, galleries, or parties.

Previously: What's Going On At The 1929?

T-Bone Grocery Store On Mott St Gets Boarded Up

197-199 Mott Street (what used to be a grocery store called T-Bone, according to a reader) has been closed and abandoned for some years now. Until this week, it's interior was visible through it's windowed storefront; through the shattered and broken glass, you could see The registers, check out aisles, shelving and more, as if the owners just never showed up one day.

No more though. As shown in the photo above, the store was recently boarded up, it's interior sealed like a time capsule waiting to be opened.

See photos of T-Bone's interior frozen in time, and maybe a ghost if you look hard enough, below...

Sleeping On Mott Street

Navigating around a fellow member of humanity sleeping on a sidewalk in Nolita is most likely not what tenants in their $2,500 one bedrooms had in mind when they relocated to this trendy area of Manhattan. Though it's possible some appreciate the occasional sighting, contributing an edgy rebuke as it may to the areas posh and gentrified reputation, reminding them that they live "New York City."

If only The 1929 was still open for business. They would have really apprectiated such blatant displays of poverty and despair only steps from their door.

What's Going On At The 1929?

The 1929 opened last year, "inspired by the Great Depression," which grossed some people out. They served soup to hungry fashionistas.  Sometime since then and now, things changed. The store now stays shuttered all day, and comes alive again after hours when the gates rise.



Recently, this has included painting the walls, cutting clothes, creating window displays, and general hanging out, with people moving all about inside in what looks like a designers studio with fabric, sewing tables, mannequins, ladders,  and miscellaneous debris strewn about.

So who and what is going at 176 Mott St?

Past Sell By Date: Abandoned Interior of 197-199 Mott Street

If you peer through the broken glass at 197-199 Mott Street, you see the remnants of a grocery store. This is what it looks like: