Saturday, April 19, 2008

April 20, 2008 - Looking Through the Fence

"Party cloudy" is what I found when I stepped out of my apartment to take a few pictures of the Launch Box construction site late on Sunday afternoon. Better than total overcast, but not ideal.

It didn't help that it was already late in the day, with the sun well past the point where it is due south on 2nd Avenue.

Lighting is one of the critical elements of a good picture and I have to admit that I'd rather take no pictures at all if I'm not happy with the lighting.

For the first half hour the sun was ducking in and out from behind the clouds. i.e. Snap two pictures... change positions... wait a minute for the clouds to move... snap another picture... wait for the clouds to move again... (you get the idea.)

Most of the images are lit with what I call a "dull light." Those that live and work in New York City recognize this as the light that you see late in the day, before the sweet light of sunset washes across the city.

To tell the truth, it wasn't until about halfway that it occurred to me to use this session to only take pictures while shooting through one of the many (many) chain link fences on the site. This actually wasn't as easy as it sounds, since sometimes the camera decided to focus on the fence, instead of the object behind it.

In the end, after about an hours work, I was able to "find" all of the images that I was looking for, as you can see below.



btw. 93rd & 93th - east side, looking W
The rotary drilling machine, shown here in this image, as been working in this block for more than a week now.



Casings for two of the piles that were recently drilled.



93rd - looking N
A portion of the work site office, on the right.



96th - looking S
Trenching work extends, on the east side of 2nd Avenue, from 96th all the way down to 91st. In the distance you can see the rotary drilling machine, at 93rd street.



An access hole into one of the trenches.



btw. 92nd and 93rd, looking east
New water mains waiting to be installed, I guess.



btw. 92nd and 93rd - looking NE
The scene in front of the bars Blondies and The Big Easy.
(Yes, there are a lot of bars on 2nd Avenue.)



91st - looking N



95th - looking S
A large trench in the center of the 2nd avenue.



91st - looking W



96th st, SE corner - looking S
The MTA recently erected large posters, at the north and south ends of the construction site, to promote the shops in the area. The same poster has been posted in the Lexington Avenue 96th street subway station.



96th, NW corner - looking S



91st, SW corner - looking N
(no, this picture was not staged.)



91st, SE corner - looking N



btw. 91st and 92nd
This is a good example of the signage that the MTA erected in late February, at the request of the Second Avenue Business Association. These signs have been mounted on top of the concrete barriers in the center of 2nd avenue.



btw. 93rd and 94th - looking S
By chance I caught Eddie Crowe, the proprietor of The Crowe's Nest and one of the founders of the Second Avenue Business Association, outside on this partly cloudy spring day.


The following 2 images were taken on
Saturday, April 19th, 2008.


91st, SW corner - looking W
The Second Avenue Business Association hosted a Street Fair for the community on Saturday April 19th.



Another view of the fair.

- - -

Recent additions to right-hand column, of the The Launch Box:

The Second Avenue Business Association (SABA)
meeting minutes for 04/16/08:
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dd2w79zt_19gwvw57dc

A link to the MTA's notice that they are now seeking
bids for the construction of the 2nd Avenue Subway
96th Street station:
http://www.mta.info/nyct/procure/contracts/c26005sol.pdf

Friday, April 11, 2008

April 11, 2008

Last night's Second Avenue Business Association (SABA)
Launch Party at the Crowe's Nest was a great success, with over 200 people who checked in at the door during the course of the evening.

A impressive number of local politicians also turned out to show their support for the business owners who have been affected by the construction. After a few brief but spirited speeches, everyone settled in to enjoy the food and drink.

Latter there was a raffle drawing, as well as a silent auction, in support the SABA's fund raising efforts.

Here are a few pictures of the politicians who spoke to the group during the evening.


New York City Council Member Daniel Garodnick
(Community Board 8 Chairman David Liston is also shown, on the right)



New York City Council Member Jessica Lappin



New York State Assemblyman Jonathan Bing

Other notables from the world of New York politics included state Assemblyman Micah Kellner and Danielle DeCerbo from NY City Council Speaker Christine Quinn's office.

Notably absent were the co-chairpersons of the
Community Board 8 Second Avenue Subway Task Force.

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

April 9, 2008

A new addition to right-hand column, of the The Launch Box:

"A Different View on Second Avenue"
from Dominick Santise's "Life on Second" web site:
http://www.dominicksantise.com/2008/04/08/a-different-view-on-second-avenue/

Monday, April 7, 2008

April 7, 2008


Here's the Second Avenue Business Association's flyer
announcing their "Shop Second Avenue" Launch Party.
(left-click on the image to enlarge it to a readable size.)

When:
Thursday, April 10th, 6.00pm - 8.00pm

Where:
Crowe's Nest Bar & Restaurant
1804 Second Avenue (btw. 93rd and 94th)



And here's a copy of a poster that was created by the
Second Avenue Business Association, and the MTA, to
promote shopping in the area of the construction site.
(left-click on the image to enlarge it to a readable size.)

- - -

Recent additions to right-hand column, of the The Launch Box:

The Second Avenue Business Association (SABA)
meeting minutes for 04/02/08:
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=dd2w79zt_18dvsbc2gd&hl=en

A new posting on Dominick Santise's "Life on Second" web site:
http://www.dominicksantise.com/2008/04/05/a-new-friend-on-second-avenue/

A copy of the presentations "Second Avenue Subway Construction Progress Update" & "86th and 96th Street Entrances, Elevators and Ancillary Facilities" (presented by the S3 Tunnel Constructors and the MTA at the CB8 Second Avenue Subway Task Force meeting on 03/03/2008):
http://www.mta.info/capconstr/sas/documents/CB8_Elev_Anc_Fac.pdf

The Second Avenue Business Association (SABA)
meeting minutes for the month of March:
http://docs.google.com/View?docid=dd2w79zt_17c42dpjf9

An article from The Irish Voice, "Second Avenue Subway Hits Business" - 04/02/2008:
http://www.irishabroad.com/news/irish-voice/news/Articles/Second-Ave-Subway-Hits-Business050408.aspx


Please take note:
The next meeting of the Community Board 8 Second Avenue Subway Task Force has now been set for Tuesday, April 29th, from 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM. (further details are shown in the right-hand column.)