Monday Bulletin
June 26, 2023
Morning thunderstorms, a few may be severe; high 78 degrees
Notices
There are no Community Board 7 meetings in July or August, except for a Preservation Committee meeting on August 10.
News & Views
By Carol Tannenhauser
“Our new Constitution is now established, and has an appearance that promises permanency; but in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” — Benjamin Franklin, 1789
I would add to Franklin’s list of certainties: the New York Post vis-à-vis its restaurant review entitled, “Central Park Boathouse dining is back — and it’s very bad,” by Steve Cuozzo. The new operators of the Loeb Boathouse — Legends (of Yankee Stadium) — have opened a to-go, patio cafe in time for summer, while the main dining room overlooking the lake is being renovated. At this point, I’m still relieved and grateful that the Boathouse is open at all. It is an iconic symbol of Central Park and the Upper West Side, and having it close — twice in the past few years — was dispiriting when our collective spirits seemed tenuous at best. So, boo, to the Post and Cuozzo, who, granted, had an unusual experience, but didn’t need to be so snide about it: “Some of the counter crew must start their day by getting stoned at Weed World. My $12 cheeseburger had lettuce, tomato, onion slices and ‘secret sauce’ nicely layered on the potato bun. The only thing missing was the burger and the cheese — a first in my many years of reporting on restaurant fiascos. Perhaps the ghostburger was a vegan prankster’s joke. ‘Oops!’ they laughed when I returned and exchanged it for an actual cheeseburger that, while complete, was far from satisfying. The flavor-free, mystery-meat patty, if you must know, was almost as thin as the paper-thin cheese on top. Shouldn’t a cheeseburger be a no-brainer at a place like this?”
By the way, rowboat rentals are available. “Those hoping to take one of the 100 available boats for a spin on the Lake will pay $25 an hour, up from $20 last year,” the Daily News reported. “Walk-ins are welcome on a first-come, first-served basis, but online bookings will soon also be available through OpenTable. There is a maximum allowance of four people per boat and children under 12 have to wear life jackets.”
NY1 offered a tribute to the Beacon Theatre and overview of some past shows: “Zach Williams is a Grammy-winning artist who won two years ago for a duet with the legendary Dolly Parton. The singer and songwriter [brought] his ‘A Hundred Highways’ tour to the Beacon Theatre on Sunday [June 25]….Over the years, many greats have graced the stage, from John Mellencamp to Tom Jones, Carlos Santana to David Bromberg, and on the comedy side, Jerry Seinfeld. The Beacon Theatre opened in 1929 as a movie palace. It now features the Sphere Immersive Sound system, billed as the world’s most advanced concert audio system. Trey Anastasio of Phish broke it in during his performances there last year.”
If you think noise is just an annoyance, The New York Times writes otherwise in an article that explains how and why noise can hurt your health and shorten your life. “It is a largely unrecognized health threat that is increasing the risk of hypertension, stroke and heart attacks worldwide, including for more than 100 million Americans….Unpleasant noise enters your body through your ears, but it is relayed to the stress detection center in your brain. This area, called the amygdala, triggers a cascade of reactions in your body. If the amygdala is chronically overactivated by noise, the reactions begin to produce harmful effects.”
Finally, although the Central Park Tower, located on West 57th Street, is below our purview, it towers above us wherever we go about our daily lives. At 1,550 feet, it is the tallest residential building in the world. If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like inside, a visiting Business Insider reporter provides insight: “The building is just over a mile away from the humble 300-square-foot one-bedroom apartment my partner and I rent for $3,400 per month — but it felt like an entirely different planet up in the clouds….I went up to a staged five-bedroom apartment on floor 113. On the way up, a wave of nausea hit me, and my ears popped — that’s how high off the ground we were.”
Have a great week!
In spite of the implication of the summary above, If you actually take time to read the Business Insider article, it sounds like an incredible place to live (for the .01% who can afford it).
My question is why is Business Insider paying their reporter so little that she has to share a 300 sq ft studio??
They just had a several weeks long strike to fight for higher wages and thankfully won what they were asking for. Being a journalist doesn’t pay well at all, especially at a digital outlet that focuses on clicks clicks clicks…
Clearly you don’t follow media closely. Media outlets are struggling to stay alive, so don’t have big budgets to pay writers. Journalism is a very tough business to get into. Be sure to click through some of the ads on the right side of WSR to help them out!
Re: noise, it is surprising that NYC government has been uninterested in addressing the mind-boggling music sound levels in restaurants, fast food places and some stores.
Completely dangerous for employees and customers.
But no concern by Bloomberg, De Blasio, Adams and respective City Councils.
New York City buses (with the high-pitched hydraulic screech) and Mount Sinai ambulance sirens (which are significantly louder and more annoying than other providers) are the main offenders. How hard is it to fix just these 2 things? Why don’t we require all ambulances to have the two-tone London sirens? Those get the job done and are not unpleasant.
One ear-piercing ambulance siren may be transient but when they come 24/7 it’s hard on the ears and nerves. I don’t know why municipalities can’t create a commission to look into the decibel level of various emergency vehicles to ascertain the best levels for both public safety and residential comfort. I wonder if ambulance sirens are so loud to ensure future medical business for hearing loss, strokes, cardio issues, sleep disorders, etc. .
I have seen several luxury buildings go up near bus stops or routes and I wonder who would spend all of that money to listen to the bus all day and night, plus people congregating at the bus stop. I don’t care how sound proof you think your windows are – if you are on a relatively low floor, you will hear it.
Lisa,
Yes ambulances are incredibly loud – but at least that is transient noise.
The massive noise level in chain food places and chain stores is terrible for the many low-paid employees at these places throughout NYC.
Construction noise is terrible too.
We walk out of the new Nordstrom’s due to the extremely load music playing throughout the store. We do not plan on returning. Cannot understand noise so loud the sales clerk could not hear your question.
MLT. I can no longer count the restaurants we won’t enter because the decibel level renders conversation impossible. I also worry about the future hearing of employees. Hearing loss results in the loss of many of life’s pleasures.
It’s unfathomable that the city allows the pounding noise from the Tavern on the Green parties, 5 nights a week. Hundreds of complaints and the city looks the other way. Not sure why?
Kudos to the West Side Rag for keeping us ahead of the curve. The NYT turned its attention to our neighborhood’s favorite crumbling edifice. Where today we learn our local philanthropist, Mark Ruffalo, donated 1,000 whole dollars to the fund to save West Park.
I haven’t been to the newly-reopened Boat House cafe yet. While harsh, I’m wondering if the Post’s review might be accurate.
It’s not hard to find restaurants that skimp on ingredients and have bad service. If the review is accurate to this reviewer’s experience, the restaurant should be called out. Otherwise, why should they improve?
I’d rather have an objective review than, “feel good,” subjective optics. Then I could decide for myself…imagine that?
I agree with Lisa below on ambulance sirens — didn’t know that Mount Sinai’s were louder than others’. Helicopters circling over Central Park. Loud restaurant noise. We need a City government that will push to change sirens and restaurant noise. Helicopter companies will only answer to the FAA; I have no clue how to get helicopter noise reduced.
Absurd. Emergency vehicles are loud for a good reason. The whining here is hilarious!
The Mt Sinai ambulances seem to take perverse joy in screaming their way up West End Ave at 3am when there’s no other vehicle on the street. I’ll whine to my heart’s content about that.
I agree. The issue is ‘how loud is necessary for safety”?
Here’s from an EMS expert: “Many estimates peg the noise level of a typical ambulance siren in the neighborhood of 120–130 decibels (dB). Exposure at these levels without hearing protection, even for a brief period, can cause permanent hearing damage. “
I find the worst offenders are restaurants and other establishments that pound music onto the street, and people who set up speakers, like the dude who begs for weed and blasts a speaker with no permit at Columbus Circle for the past five years. The guy sits on his butt all day begging for money and will threaten you if you ask him to turn the music down. He needs to be removed permanently . We need anti-loitering laws and no public music without a permit laws, and that goes for the egregious music from food trucks, too.
Sam,
Especially in the East Village and LES, there is blasting music and noise from restaurant sheds.
On weekends in good weather, it goes on all night and impossible to sleep.
So horrible that the City allows this
Poor Steve Cuozzo. If that’s his biggest kvetch of the day he needs to get a life. And – while it’s good to see headliners at the BEACON, it’s rare to see any list of entertainers without women. Sarah Silverman is one of the brightest stars on the BEACON’S guest list.
“noise can hurt your health and shorten your life” – so maybe now UWSers can sue the private helicopter industry (and our so-called governor. Lawyers, get to work.
In the late 1960’s and early 1970’s the Beacon showed movies. For $2.50 you had a double show. In early 1972, on a very hot and muggy day, I paid the $2.50 and saw a double header of a James Bond Movies. Stayed for over 10 hours, to beat the heat and to see the movies twice each. And the restaurant on the ground level, seven Chinese food. For $3.00 you got a 4 course meal. Good one at that. Those were the days.