Down in the East Village, the St. Mark’s Bookstore is in danger of closing because it can’t make rent. To try to keep the store open, Jeremiah Moss of the indispensable blog Vanishing New York has started a campaign to encourage people to buy books from the store this weekend, after haranguing the landlord for selling out the neighborhood. Inspiring idea, isn’t it? Let’s all try to support local businesses this weekend. Yes, in some cases things might cost 10% to 20% more, but you won’t have to spend the rest of your life aimlessly wandering the fluorescent-lit aisles of Duane Reade wondering where your neighborhood went. The picture above is of Lucretia at Sensuous Bean on 70th Street, just East of Columbus Avenue. Buy her freaking coffee and tea, people! It’s delicious!
If you do one thing outside this weekend…
Check out the Columbus Avenue Festival from noon to 5 on Sunday. It stretches from 66th to 86th Streets.
If you do one thing inside this weekend…
Symphony Space is featuring some very young composers in a free concert Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. co-hosted by the New York Philharmonic’s director of education.
For more great local events, check out our weekly calendar.
If you’re traveling…
Check traffic info at traffic.com for delays. As for the subway, the MTA has a handy new map detailing all of the weekend changes, but it looks like there are no service interruptions on the Upper West Side.
