Flatiron Holiday Shopping Guide Is Here

The snazzy new Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership Holiday Shopping Guide is now available. It's free and it's just in time for the holiday season.

The guide not only lists, by category, the extensive shopping opportunities throughout the district and the adjoining area, but also boasts a number of special features.

It has, for example, a roster of the neighborhood's fine dining establishments, complete with addresses and telephone numbers. There is a district map and a gift checklist - to make sure no one is forgotten. A calendar of important dates is included, as is a collection of fun facts about the holiday season and the Flatiron district.

This limited printing will be available only through mid-January of 2009. The guide will be found at local retailers and hotels, NYC & Company visitor centers, and local restaurants.

A companion poster is also available for retailers and other business owners, who are encouraged to display the poster and the guide in their storefront.

The Flatiron Holiday Shopping Guide is accessible online by clicking here.

To request a free guide and poster or to find out more about where you can get a copy, please contact us by e-mail at info@flatironbid.org or by calling (212) 741-2323.

New Banners Welcome Holiday Season

With the holiday season fast approaching, the Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership is helping everyone get into the spirit with a new seasonal banner that makes its debut this month. The new design, created by Pentagram, the internationally renowned design firm whose U.S. headquarters are in the Flatiron district, evokes a gift box in the Flatiron Partnership's distinctive colors and incorporates the "intersection" logo as the bow atop the box.

The same image appears on the new Flatiron Holiday Shopping Guide and promotional poster being distributed this month.

Sixty banners throughout the district display the new design. Most are sponsored by a local business or property owner whose logo is prominently featured. The banners provide a great opportunity for companies to show that they are vested in the neighborhood while also increasing awareness of the BID.

Additional streetlamp locations are available. For more information, contact the BID office at (212) 741-2323 or by e-mail at info@flatironbid.org.

Volunteer Flatiron!

The Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership is seeking information about events and volunteer opportunities from nonprofit organizations located in the district for inclusion in upcoming editions of the monthly newsletter and on www.discoverflatiron.org, the BID's website.

The Flatiron district has many distinctive qualities that draw people to it, including its history, architecture, restaurants, retail and educational institutions. Another important quality of the district that is often overlooked is the large number of nonprofit organizations in the area. By providing added visibility to the prospect of volunteerism within the community, the Flatiron Partnership hopes to bring together the many nonprofits in the neighborhood with all those interested in serving as volunteers.

Please send the relevant information to info@flatironbid.org.

New Litter Baskets, With an Addition

An additional 72 custom-designed and branded litter receptacles made their appearance throughout the district this fall, bringing the total number to 193.

Branded with the Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership's distinctive "intersection" logo, plus a corporate logo on cans sponsored by individual businesses and property owners, they are visible in high traffic areas around the neighborhood and continually serviced by the BID's Clean Team throughout the day, along with the standard trash cans in the district.

In addition, the Partnership placed four receptacles for cigarette ashes and butts at the Flatiron Building, as requested by the building's owner, Newmark Knight Frank. They are smaller versions of the BID's custom litter receptacles. The Flatiron Partnership plans to add the ash urns to the items that businesses and property owners can sponsor when the 2009 Sponsorship Program is rolled out.

For more information on the BID Sponsorship Program, contact Eric Zaretsky at (212) 741-2323 or via e-mail at ezaretsky@flatironbid.org; for more information on the BID's Clean Streets Program, contact Scott Kimmins at (212) 741-2323 or by e-mail at skimmins@flatironbid.org.

Safety Team Profile: Moises Gonzalez

Moises Gonzalez is familiar with the ups and downs of life.

While still a student at Bushwick Community High School in Brooklyn, he got an after-school job repairing and installing chandeliers, which obviously meant climbing lots of ladders.

"One time I had to install a chandelier in a certain television celebrity's apartment," he recalls. "I want to tell you, it was huge. The apartment and the chandelier."

As one of the original members of the Flatiron Partnership's Safety Team, the 23-year-old Brooklynite no longer finds himself on ladders very often, but he does regularly descend below ground.

"We get a lot of tourists who ask how to get to places like Ground Zero and the Empire State Building," he says. "They not only don't know which trains go where, but sometimes I have to go down to the subway with them to show them how to work a MetroCard."

Moises says the most frequent contribution he makes as a Safety Officer is providing information ("even people who work here ask me the location of stores they can't find"), but he feels that the most important aspect of his job is safety.

He remembers the afternoon he saw a disturbed and disabled teenager who had temporarily lost control and was struggling with his caregiver. Moises stepped in, calmed the young man down, restored order and was promptly showered with thanks from passersby who'd witnessed the incident.

It's all in a day's work for Moises, who also wears the uniform of an auxiliary policeman. He's been doing that for three and a half years, first at the 90th Precinct in Bushwick, where he lives, and more recently at the 13th Precinct, headquartered on 21st Street, just off Third Avenue.

"It's been great," he says, talking about the switch. "The police in the district know me instantly now and their attitude is, 'This guy is one of ours.'"

We're happy to say he's also one of ours.

Speaker Series:
Rosie Mendez Covers the Bases

Touching on subjects that ranged from term limits to traffic jams, Rosie Mendez of the New York City Council delivered a lively and informative talk at the latest Speaker Series event hosted by the Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership and Commerce Bank.

Some 45 property owners, business representatives and area residents gathered at the Park Avenue South branch of Commerce Bank on Oct. 15 to not only enjoy a complimentary breakfast buffet, but to hear Councilwoman Mendez talk about such diverse matters as term limits, changes in the neighborhood, the economy and its effect on local businesses, the new public plazas near the Flatiron Building, the proliferation of parades and planned improvements at local subway stations. Mendez, who took office in 2006, represents the 2nd Council District, which includes the Flatiron neighborhood.

Other speakers included Jennifer Brown, Executive Director of the Flatiron Partnership, and Robert Jacobs, Assistant Vice President and Branch Manager at Commerce Bank, which co-hosted the event and is changing its name this month to TD Bank. One of Mendez's colleagues, City Councilman Daniel R. Garodnick of District 4, was in the audience, as was Deputy Inspector Timothy Beaudette, Commanding Officer of the 13th Precinct, who participated in the Q&A session that followed Mendez's presentation.

Pranna

Long Island restaurateurs Rajiv and Payal Sharma have partnered with chef Chai Trivedi to open the 15,000-square-foot Pranna, at 79 Madison Avenue, near 28th Street. The restaurant, the Sharmas' first in Manhattan, features Southeast Asian cuisine.

Pranna's street-level area is divided into two sections. One is a formal dining area that seats 108 and the other is a satay lounge that offers 13 satay choices and other "small bites," along with cocktails. Including the downstairs space, which is used as a wine cellar and can also serve as a lounge and dining area, Pranna can accommodate some 420 guests.

The satay lounge and bar opens daily at 4 p.m., and dinner is served Mondays through Saturdays from 5:30 p.m. to midnight, and Sundays from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Pranna also caters and hosts private events. For more information, call (212) 696-5700 or click here. To make reservations, click here.

Qdoba

Qdoba Mexican Grill is now open at 12 West 23rd Street. This franchised store, which originated in Denver in 1995, is the company's seventh in Manhattan and one of over 440 coast to coast. Qdoba serves an array of Mexican food including burritos, taco salads and quesadillas. Breakfast is served daily from 7 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., and the store is open Sundays through Wednesdays until 10 p.m., and Thursdays to Saturdays until 11 p.m.

Customers can place orders online at www.qdoba.com, and either pick up their food or have it delivered within a 10-block radius. Qdoba also caters. To contact the store, call (212) 206-9942 or click here.

Almond

Eric Lemonides and Jason Weiner were not only boyhood pals growing up in Brooklyn, but for years have been partners in the restaurant business. Their latest venture, Almond - they also have an Almond in Bridgehampton, N.Y. - just opened at 12 East 22nd Street, just east of Broadway. The space, still owned by Jeffrey Chodorow, was formerly Borough Food & Drink.

Almond is what chef Weiner calls "an American bistro." Its specialties include dishes such as roast chicken with hand-crushed potatoes; marrow cardoon gratin and "Le Grand Macaroni & Cheese" served with prosciutto and chopped truffles. Almond, which seats 170, is currently open only for dinner, from 5:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. daily. Weiner said he expects to add a lunch menu within the next couple of months. For reservations, call (212) 228-7557 or click here.

Gracious Home

Gracious Home has put out its welcome mat in the Flatiron area.

The family-owned home furnishings and housewares operation, which already has stores on the Upper East Side and the Upper West Side, opened a 25,000-square-foot unit in October that takes the entire east side of Sixth Avenue between 25th and 26th Streets.

It will add to that early next year, when it plans to open a 20,000-square-foot annex on 25th Street, "possibly in February," according to Ken Mesnik, Vice President of Store Operations.

"We thought this location was a great bridge between midtown and downtown," said Mesnik. "We're able to draw people from Flatiron, Chelsea, Gramercy, Greenwich Village and the Meatpacking district."

Gracious Home got right into the spirit of things by sponsoring three of the Flatiron Partnership's new streetlight banners.

In addition to a wide array of goods from here and abroad, including gift items, home décor, home furnishings, housewares, basic hardware, replacement parts and plumbing, the store offers an array of services, from personal shopping to gift wrapping.

It is open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, and from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sundays.

For more information, click here.

Next Speaker Series: Energy Efficiency

Energy efficiency, a subject that should be of great interest to all residents and businesses, will be in the spotlight at the Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership's next and final Speaker Series program for the year.

"A Breakfast Symposium on Energy Efficiency Programs, Practices & You," will take place at the Commerce Bank branch at 260 Park Avenue South, at 21st Street, from 8:30 a.m. until 10 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 19, with complimentary breakfast included. (Commerce Bank is changing its name this month to TD Bank.)

Residents and business owners will have the opportunity to hear representatives of Con Edison and New York City talk about new and planned energy efficiency campaigns.

Peter Meloro, of Con Edison, will go over the company's history with energy efficiency programs and the deregulation of electric energy in New York State before describing two recent energy efficiency filings submitted by Con Ed to the Public Service Commission. He will outline the benefits of the programs to the customer, the public and Con Edison.

Bridgett Neely of the New York City Economic Development Corporation will present the City's priorities regarding energy efficiency, including proposed legislation under PlaNYC and the "Greening the Codes" process, now under way. She will also talk about the City's plans to reduce energy consumption and environmental emissions in its own buildings and fleet as well as the impact of those policies on business owners.

If you are planning to attend, please RSVP by Wednesday, Nov. 12, either by e-mail to events@flatironbid.org or by calling (212) 741-2323.

Mad. Sq. Art: A Light Show With Heart

Two hundred beams of light, powered by 200 beating hearts, are illuminating Madison Square Park these fall evenings. It's the work of Mexican-born and Canadian-educated Raphael Lozano-Hemmer, an internationally renowned practitioner of public interactive art. The installation, a project of Mad. Sq. Art - the Madison Square Conservancy's gallery without walls - is called Pulse Park and will be on view through Nov. 17, from dusk to 10 p.m. It is Lozano-Hemmer's American debut.

For more information, click here.

Energy Training for Building Operators

Attention property owners and building managers: The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority Energy Smart Communities; the Association for Energy Affordability, Solar One, and the Manhattan Borough President's Office are sponsoring a three-day training course on eliminating energy and water waste for building managers and maintenance staff.

The three-day class includes in-class and hands-on time with building equipment. Class dates are Nov. 18; Nov. 25 and Dec. 2. The fee for attending is $399 with 75 percent reimbursable after course completion. For more information, click here.

Please RSVP by Nov. 11. For further information, contact Diana Pangestu at (212) 785-0734 or Diana@solar1.org.

Free Walking Tours Every Sunday

FREE WALKING TOURS
are sponsored every Sunday by the Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership.

Join our expert guides on a 90-minute journey through this vibrant neighborhood, viewing some of the City's most notable landmarks, including the New York Life Insurance building, the MetLife Tower, the Appellate Courthouse and the famous Flatiron Building.

Time:
Every Sunday at 11 a.m.

Meeting Place:
The southwest corner of Madison Square Park, at 23rd Street and Broadway, in front of the statue of William Seward.

Second Stories: Cosmic Comics

The question might have stumped most people, but when Mark Friedman was asked to rank the comparative popularity of two American icons - Superman and Homer Simpson - he never hesitated.

"Superman in the U.S.," he said with a voice of authority, "but in Europe, it's Homer."

Friedman should know. As the co-owner of Cosmic Comics - one of the Flatiron district's more unusual literary establishments - the 61-year-old Friedman has been selling comic books since 1992, when he opened a store at 36 East 23rd Street. Six years ago, Cosmic Comics moved to its current location, the second floor of 10 East 23rd Street, with a superhero's view of Madison Square Park. It is now one of the top five comic book emporiums in New York, Friedman says.

Four large windows, sometimes guarded by a giant red and blue Spiderman doll, allow lots of sunlight to illuminate the 2,000-square-foot loft. Down the center of the room flow neatly arranged tables topped by hundreds of large boxes, all indexed, bursting with comics. Friedman isn't sure how many titles he carries - old and contemporary - but estimates it's close to a thousand. On the walls, in racks and in display cases are the many other comic book-related items for sale, including action figures, books, games and toys.

Trade paperbacks - soft cover books that contain a comic book series with a connected story arc - are another key category, one that's become increasingly popular. Friedman calls them "the new thing." One of the most popular right now is "The Watchmen," a 20-year-old book whose sales have been boosted by a movie version that won't be in theaters until next March. Interest was generated just by the movie trailer, released three months ago.

Cosmic Comics is open seven days a week. It also has an online department, www.cosmiccomics.com. A subscription program allows customers to go online, check off what they want, and then come to the store for pick-up at their convenience. Busy shoppers can also bring a list of comics to the store, leave it with an employee, and then pick up their selections later.

These services can be particularly useful on Wednesdays, Cosmic's busiest day of the week. That's when new comics arrive, sometimes drawing 400 or more customers. According to Friedman, the locals in the area tend to come in on the weekends.

The store rewards faithful purchasers with a rebate program that offers a $20 store credit for every $100 spent. Friedman keeps track of the program in three thick, dog-eared notebooks on the counter. They contain over 16,000 names - and they're not all tweens and teens. Most of Friedman's clients are between 20 and 30. Comic books, he points out, aren't just for kids any more.

For more information, call (212) 460-5322 or click here.

Discover Flatiron: Mishkin Gallery

For the last quarter century, the Sidney Mishkin Gallery at Baruch College has been one of the Flatiron district's little gems. It not only offers museum-quality art shows to the public, but plays a key role in the college's student curriculum.

Tucked away off the ground-floor lobby of Baruch's Administrative Center at 135 East 22nd Street, the Sidney Mishkin Gallery mounts five shows a year, all when the college is in full session. The shows are small, given the gallery's modest space, but they have featured such giants as Pablo Picasso, Joan Miró, Henri Matisse, Louise Nevelson, Walker Evans and Edward Steichen. Perhaps most important, they are not only a remarkable cultural resource for people who live and work in the neighborhood, they are an important component of Baruch's effort to encourage interdisciplinary education.

"We don't advertise much because the budget for that is small," said Dr. Sandra Kraskin, who's been director of the gallery since 1989. "We do have a national mailing list of 3,500 names and we depend a lot on word-of-mouth and reviews. But I'm happy to say that the people in this neighborhood really do seem to know us and show a lot of interest in what we're doing."

Kraskin, an art historian who came to New York from Minnesota in 1982, conducts symposia and gives gallery talks for the college community and the public. Although Baruch is essentially a business school, students from a variety of classes routinely visit the gallery as part of their work.

"A poetry class taught by the distinguished poet Grace Schulman came here and was asked to write poems based on what they saw," said Kraskin. "Journalism students have been assigned to write reviews of the shows. Last spring, music classes saw an exhibit of photographs by the great jazz bassist Milt Hinton. English classes get written assignments in connection with the shows."

Kraskin pointed out that a visit to the gallery could help history classes learn more about current events. As an example, she referred to a photography exhibit that included stark images of a female child soldier in Sierra Leone and refugees from Rwanda.

"Most young people today know nothing about Africa," she said. "When they saw these pictures, the questions started coming. Who are the child soldiers? Who are these refugees? What's happening here?"

When the gallery opened in 1983, it was known as the Baruch College Gallery. Its name changed in 1991, when a Baruch alumnus named Sidney Mishkin left his alma mater its second-largest bequest: $2 million that included his personal collection of 10 world-class pieces of art, with works by Max Ernst, Man Ray, Alexander Calder, Marsden Hartley and Barbara Hepworth. Mishkin, who died later that year, had graduated from Baruch in 1934 during the depths of the Great Depression and became chairman of Bayuk Cigars, a company founded in 1897 and known as "the Chrysler of the cigar business."

Today, the Mishkin Gallery's permanent collection encompasses more than 300 works of 20th-century art: paintings, photographs, prints and sculpture. Its next show, entitled "Independent Visions/Feminist Perspectives," will be an exhibit of significant feminist artists who worked independently of the women's organizations of the late 1960s and 1970s, but whose influence on the feminist movement was significant. Dates are Nov. 21 to Dec. 17, with the opening reception on Nov. 20. The gallery is open from noon to 5 p.m., Mondays through Fridays, and until 7 p.m. on Thursdays.

For more information, click here.

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The Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership Business Improvement District, formed in 2006, is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to enhance the area's reputation as one of New York's most vital and exciting neighborhoods. This is undertaken by maintaining a clean and safe environment for those who live, work and visit the area; by spearheading area improvement projects; and by marketing the diverse business and retail options in this vibrant and historic neighborhood.

For more information go to our website at www.discoverflatiron.org or email us at info@flatironbid.org.

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