Tag Archives: east 17th street

‘Safe Haven’ for homeless to open on East 17th St.

327 East 17th Street (Photo by Sabina Mollot)

By Sabina Mollot

The city is planning to open a new “Safe Haven” facility to house chronically homeless individuals in a Stuyvesant Square building that’s owned by Mount Sinai.

The building was previously used by Beth Israel as an HIV/AIDS hospice/residential treatment center. It is currently empty, located at 327 East 17th Street between First and Second Avenues. At one time, the site was a home rented by the Czech composer Antonin Dvorak, though it was later demolished.

Word of the proposal, which is aimed at housing 28 homeless people and helping them transition to regular housing, got out on Tuesday with an email from Community Board 6 to various community organizations.

According to the email, CB6 has plenty of questions about the plan, including why it’s coming to the area when there’s already an 850-bed shelter on East 30th Street and other, local smaller shelters, and concern over the location’s proximity to neighborhood schools. The email also noted there was no guarantee the homeless individuals would be people from the district.

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Young physical rehab patients at NYU get a little ballet therapy

Ballet dancer Savannah Lowery gives a demonstration of how ballet steps can be adapted to upper body movements to children at NYU’s Rusk Rehabilitation Center.

Ballet dancer Savannah Lowery gives a demonstration of how ballet steps can be adapted to upper body movements to children at NYU’s Rusk Rehabilitation Center. (Photos by Maria Rocha-Buschel)

By Maria Rocha-Buschel

For the young patients undergoing treatment at the pediatric unit at NYU’s Rusk Rehabilitation Center, the opportunity to experience “The Nutcracker” is a new one. That is, experience by learning some of the steps from a dancer from the New York City Ballet, as opposed to being merely an audience member.

For the young patients undergoing treatment at the pediatric unit at NYU’s Rusk Rehabilitation Center, the opportunity to experience “The Nutcracker” is a new one. That is, experience by learning some of the steps from a dancer from the New York City Ballet, as opposed to being merely an audience member.

As part of a program hosted by the NYC Ballet, soloist Savannah Lowery visited a small group of patients at the East 17th Street center earlier this month, going over the story of the timeless ballet and helping the kids adapt the steps into upper body movements since many are confined to wheelchairs.

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Cops shut down gambling club above 17th St. lingerie shop

Journelle lingerie shop (Photo by Maria Rocha-Buschel)

Journelle lingerie shop (Photo by Maria Rocha-Buschel)

By Maria Rocha-Buschel

The NYPD’s Vice Enforcement Division busted a small gambling operation above the Journelle lingerie store at 3 East 17th Street on August 25 at 10 p.m. After getting a New York County search warrant, police arrested Rafael Lugo, 42, Sergio Valentin, 46, and Jin Feng, 35, for promoting gambling.
Police said that there were at least 15 people sitting at three different poker tables on the second floor of the building, all playing games of Texas Hold ‘Em with poker chips on the tables.

Valentin allegedly told police that he had been running the location for about three months under the business name “Admire Ads” and told them that the rate he charges of $10 per hand is one of the lowest in the city. Police also recovered $2,040 in cash from Valentin’s pocket.

Feng was sitting at one of the tables with at least eight other people and allegedly told police that he was the dealer. According to the criminal complaint from the District Attorney’s office, Feng had been working at the location for about three months, collecting $10 per hand for the house and placing the money he collected in a tray.

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