The Broadsheet – Lower Manhattan’s Local Newspaper
|
|
‘No Way This Could Have Been Predicted’
Doorman and Woman Walking Dog Assaulted on Rector Place
|
|
The entrance to Liberty House condominium, where a doorman was assaulted Monday morning.
|
|
Amid rising concerns about violent street crime in Lower Manhattan, the overnight doorman at the Liberty House condominium (located at 377 Rector Place, near the Esplanade) was assaulted without warning in the early hours of Monday morning.
According to a source within the building who is directly familiar with the situation, the doorman was standing outside Liberty House around 6am, facing toward the building and with his back to the sidewalk, as he washed the glass on the revolving door.
“He was approached from behind,” the Liberty House resident says. “Our doorman was wearing earbuds, but when he saw the man come near him, he took them off and asked, ‘May I help you?’”
The man, who did not reply, responded by punching the doorman full force in the side of the head. “He then walked away from our building, and walked across the street, to Liberty Terrace,” located at 380 Rector Place. “He menaced a resident of that building, who was able to get inside quickly. But then he walked along Rector Place and crossed the path of a woman walking a dog, and he slapped her,” the resident says. After the woman fled from the scene, the man who had assaulted both victims walked calmly away.
The source describes the assailant as “a white man with a beard, taller than six feet and on the thin side, wearing a hooded jacket, and carrying a backpack.”
Officers from the NYPD’s First Precinct responded within minutes, but no suspect has yet been apprehended, according to a police spokesman. The doorman was slightly injured, but is expected to make a full recovery. The woman walking the dog has not been identified.
“Before he tried to hurt both of these people,” the resident observes, “there no provocation or warning, no exchange of cross words or interaction of any kind. Maybe he was on drugs or emotionally disturbed, but a person this angry and this comfortable with violence could just as easily have pulled a knife and stabbed somebody.”
“Rightly or wrongly,” the resident continues, “many people are on guard when a homeless man approaches. But this man did not look like that. By his appearance, he could have been somebody who lives or works here. So the most frightening part is that there was no way this could have been predicted.”
A second Liberty House resident, Karen McDermott, observes, “I’ve lived here for 30 years and I never thought I’d be saying these words, but don’t assume that Battery Park City is safe. This is the ‘new normal’ in New York City.”
Ms. McDermott says, “I believe local buildings need more active community involvement and outreach before we get into a situation that is unmanageable. Residents should attend the monthly meetings of Manhattan Community Board 1, and also participate in monthly First Precinct Community Council meetings and quarterly Build the Block meetings with our NYPD neighborhood coordination officers [NCOs]. And please take the time to file a police report, if necessary. Unless crime stats are recorded, we won’t get the attention of NYPD for the future, and they won’t be poised to act.”
The First Precinct’s NCOs for Battery Park City are Officers Michael Rachwalski and Matthew Omara. They can be reached at michael.rachwalski@nypd.org and matthew.omara@nypd.org, respectively. See the schedule for meetings of the First Precinct Community Council here, and the schedule of Community Board 1 meetings here. Matthew Fenton
|
|
FiDi Food Hall Burgled
Thieves Break into UrbanSpace Market, Abscond with Cash
The Financial District’s newest food hall—UrbanSpace market at 100 Pearl Street—was broken into around 3:30am last Tuesday, by two men who shattered a glass door, according to surveillance video captured by the facility’s security system. Read more…
|
|
Letter
To the editor,
The high percentage of young children living in Battery Park City who have not been fully vaccinated to protect against polio is shocking, especially in such a well-educated and affluent community. I survived and recovered from paralytic polio in the 1950’s, but the disease left a permanent residual physical impact throughout my life, including old-age post-polio syndrome (PPS). No parent should intentionally expose this health risk to their children. Get them vaccinated!
Raven Black
|
|
On Common Ground
BPCA Asks for Ideas about Upgrades to the Promenade
The Battery Park City Authority is seeking ideas from residents about how to bring recreational uses to the granite promenade that parallels the West Street and the Hudson River Greenway, between Battery Place and Third Place. This initiative is envisioned as a tradeoff to countervail the deficit of open space that will be created for several years, when nearby Wagner Park is closed for reconstruction of resiliency measures. That project is slated to begin soon. Read more…
|
|
Eyes to the Sky, October 3 – 16 , 2022
Planet Jupiter brightest in 59 years
|
|
In evening twilight, gazing to the eastern skyline, the puzzling sight of a brilliant light close above the hills prompts conjectures such as “airplane?” stadium light?” “UFO?”
This was mostly my response as I approached a lookout expressly to observe planet Jupiter rise over an unobstructed view to the east a few evenings ago. When the unusually bright light met my eyes, I searched my mind for an explanation before accepting that it was, indeed, Jupiter. Not seen so large and bright since 1963, this is a not-to-be-missed time to view the largest planet in our solar system. Two rarely coinciding planetary events account for Jupiter’s outstanding appearance in Earth’s skies over the next couple weeks. The giant planet was at perigee, closest to Earth, on September 25, and arrived at opposition, when Earth was between Jupiter and the Sun, on September 26. Currently, Jupiter is second only to the moon in radiance and traverses the sky all night. The most dramatic times to see the great gas planet are when it is rising and setting. Look to the east on Sunday, October 9, when the Full Hunter’s Moon rises at 6:34pm. Jupiter rises at 5:51pm that same evening, preceding the moon. The two travel the night sky in tandem.
Judy Isacoff, naturesturn.org
|
|
Tuesday, October 4
10:30am-11:30am
Irish Hunger Memorial Plaza
Easy-to-follow Latin dance choreography. Come prepared for enthusiastic instruction, a little strength training and a lot of fun. Free.
12:30pm-1:30pm
Rockefeller Park House
Play a quick game of chess or backgammon. Using clocks, opponents will play 5 minute games that are fast, furious and fun. An instructor will be on hand to offer pointers and tips to improve your game. Free.
3:30pm-5pm
Rockefeller Park
Play the popular strategy game while getting pointers and advice from an expert. For ages 5 and up (adults welcome). Free.
3:45pm-4:30pm
Rockefeller Park
For ages 6-10. Practice the basics of passing, receiving, and game strategy with fun and challenging exercises and drills for all levels. Free.
7pm
McNally Jackson, 4 Fulton Street
From celebrity heartthrob, host of The Viall Files podcast, and member of Bachelor Nation Nick Viall comes Don’t Text Your Ex Happy Birthday—a no-holds-barred dating advice book. Custom cocktails, an interactive Q&A, and more! RSVP required.
|
|
Wednesday, October 5
8am
Meet at Netherland Memorial Flagpole, Battery Park
Join experienced birding guide Gabriel Willow on a walk through The Battery to observe the diversity of migrating birds that visit the park. Free.
10am-12pm
Rector Park East
Observe and sketch the human figure. An artist/educator will offer constructive suggestions and critique. Drawing materials provided. Free.
1:30pm-2:30pm
Rockefeller Park
Children ages 6-10, are invited to play in pop-up clinics on select days off from school this fall. Join BPCA coaches for a kickball skills session ending in a scrimmage open to all levels. Free.
2pm-4pm
Rector Park East
Draw with pastels and watercolors. An artist/ educator will provide ideas and instruction. Materials provided. Free.
5:30pm
Oculus Plaza, Westfield World Trade Center
Sputnik Yoga creates pop-up experiences in unexpected spaces in New York. Bring your own mat. Free.
6pm-10pm
Fraunces Tavern Museum, 54 Pearl Street
Opening night of a new exhibition at Fraunces Tavern Museum featuring live sketching, silent auctions, original art and rare comics, and keynote speaker, former Marvel Editor in Chief, Jim Shooter. Discover how Washington’s persona has been showcased throughout pop history, from traditional reenactments of famous events to appearances in modern times with the likes of Superman, Captain America and other famous heroes. $25-$149.
7pm
McNally Jackson, 4 Fulton Street
Reading. An explosive, deeply reported exposé of McKinsey & Company, the international consulting firm that advises corporations and governments, that highlights the often drastic impact of its work on employees and citizens around the world. RSVP required.
|
|
Lower Manhattan Greenmarkets
Tribeca Greenmarket
Greenwich Street & Chambers Street
Wednesdays and Saturdays, 8am-3pm (compost program: Saturdays, 8am-1pm)
Bowling Green Greenmarket
Broadway & Whitehall St
Tuesdays and Thursdays, 8am-5pm (compost program: 8am-11am)
World Trade Center Oculus Greenmarket
Tuesdays, 8am-5pm
The Outdoor Fulton Stall Market
91 South Street, between Fulton & John Streets
Indoor market: Monday through Saturday,11:30am-5pm
CSA pick-up: Thursday, 4pm-6pm; Friday, 11:30-5pm
Outdoor market: Saturdays, 11:30am-5pm
|
|
Today in History
October 5
|
|
On this day 95 years ago, Gutzon Borglum began to carve Mt. Rushmore in South Dakota. This photo was taken five years into the project, in 1932. Photograph by Rise Studio.
|
|
1302 – A peace treaty between the Byzantine Empire and the Republic of Venice ends the Byzantine–Venetian War (1296–1302).
1582 – Pope Gregory XIII implements the Gregorian calendar. In Italy, Poland, Portugal, and Spain, October 4 of this year is followed directly by October 15.
1795 – Napoleon Bonaparte first rises to national prominence by suppressing armed counter-revolutionary rioters threatening the National Convention.
1853 – The Ottoman Empire declares war on the Russian Empire.
1883 – The Orient Express departs on its first official journey from Paris to Istanbul
1927 – Gutzon Borglum begins sculpting Mount Rushmore.
1957 – Launch of Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite to orbit the Earth.
1983 – Richard Noble sets a new land speed record of 633.468 miles per hour at the Black Rock Desert in Nevada.
2006 – Wikileaks is launched by Julian Assange.
Births
1625 – Jacqueline Pascal, French nun and composer (d. 1661)
1822 – Rutherford B. Hayes, general, lawyer, and politician, 19th President of the United States (d. 1893)
1861 – Frederic Remington, painter, sculptor, and illustrator (d. 1909)
1880 – Damon Runyon, author and playwright (d. 1946)
1895 – Buster Keaton, film actor, director, and producer (d. 1966)
1914 – Brendan Gill, journalist and essayist (d. 1997)
1941 – Roy Blount, Jr., journalist and author
1941 – Karl Oppitzhauser, Austrian race car driver
1946 – Susan Sarandon, actress and activist
Deaths
1661 – Jacqueline Pascal, French nun and composer (b. 1625)
1669 – Rembrandt van Rijn, Dutch painter and illustrator (b. 1606)
1859 – Karl Baedeker, German publisher, founded Baedeker (b. 1801)
1947 – Max Planck, physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1858)
1970 – Janis Joplin, singer-songwriter (b. 1943)
1982 – Glenn Gould, Canadian pianist and conductor (b. 1932)
1999 – Art Farmer, trumpet player and composer (b. 1928)
2004 – Gordon Cooper, American colonel, engineer, and astronaut (b. 1927)
2020 – Kenzō Takada, fashion designer, dies of COVID-19 complications at 81
|
|
|
|
The Broadsheet Inc. eBroadsheet.com editor @ ebroadsheet.com ©2022 All Rights Reserved All photos © Robert Simko 2022 unless otherwise credited
|
|
|
|
|
