The Harlem Neighborhood Block Association

Neighbors united to improve the quality of life in Harlem

Category: Culture

Party-On-Park Volunteers Needed

Posted on by Harlem Shill

Hello Harlem Neighbors!

Uptown Grand Central is reigniting Party on Park – a Harlem celebration on a closed-to-traffic Park Avenue between 125th and 116th Street – on Sunday, October 1st.  

Party on Park will be from Noon until 4 pm and we need you to help staff a Harlem Neighborhood Block Association table.  We’ll have cards and flyers for you to hand out, and otherwise all you’d have to do would be to enjoy the vibe, listen to the great music, and say Hi to your neighbors.

If you could volunteer an hour or two on October 1st, at any time between Noon and 4pm, please email us to let us know at: [email protected] 

 We really hope you can help.

An Open Letter to NYC’s Commissioner Raine (Department of Buildings)

Dear Commissioner Raine,

I’m writing to ask that you stop the planned demolition of the Landmark houses at 66-68 W 119th Street in Harlem and work with the owner to have them redevelop the properties to their original splendor. I am the immediate neighbor at 64 W 119th Street.

The buildings are part of the Mount Morris Park Historic District, which remains one of New York City’s most vibrant African-American communities.  Preserving its historic buildings and streets highlights our rich and diverse history, and the social and cultural influences of our different communities. It is very important to the community that Harlem retains its culture through its architecture and people; as the world around us changes, we should try to retain a bit of Harlem’s history by preserving its landscape.

The owner should be allowed to restore the properties under the supervision of the DOB and the Landmark Preservation Commission. If the owner can perform repairs to the satisfaction of your agency, there should be no reason for the DOB to rush through an unnecessary demolition.

I and the other immediate neighbor at 70 West 119th Street are convinced that all safety concerns can be satisfied as a standard matter of course in doing the restoration.  

Best regards

Art Nouveau in Harlem

Posted on by Harlem Shill

Art Nouveau never really had much purchase in the United States, and there are virtually no examples of it in Harlem. This pendant, with the date 1891, on a (now) storage warehouse on 126th Street, is about as close as you get.

Thanks to the contemporary owners who had the medallion painted so sympathetically.

Tonight! A Harlem Drag Show

Music In The Garden

HTTPS://CITYPARKSFOUNDATION.ORG/EVENTS/JAZZ-IN-THE-GARDEN-SYLVIA-CUENCA/?DATE=20230825

JAZZ IN THE GARDEN: SYLVIA CUENCA ORGAN QUARTET FEATURING EDDIE HENDERSON

In Association with The Jazz Foundation of America and Ariana’s List

Friday, August 25, 2023

5:30 pm – 6:30 pm

Harlem Rose Garden

6 E. 129th Street

Friday, August 25 at 5:30PM – Harlem Rose Garden – Jazz In the Garden: Sylvia Cuenca Organ Quartet featuring Eddie Henderson in association with the Jazz Foundation and Ariana’s List 

(FREE first-come, first-served)

Ummm?

Posted on by Harlem Shill

Note that the Hellman Contracting truck was being driven by a woman.

A New Harlem Nail Bar Opens

Perhaps the most posh nail bar to open recently, opened at 125th Street and Madison:

Blacklining Foundation – School Supplies

Join the Blacklining Foundation as they support our students of East & Central Harlem on their return Back to School.
Any School Supplies Donations are appreciated.
You can Drop off Donations @ 10amIf you cannot Donate just come out and enjoy
 Raffles and GiveawaysIn Collaboration with City Council Member Kristin Jordan
Saturday, August 26th11am- 3pm@163 Lenox Avenue

What Are Your Priorities for the City to Fund in East Harlem?

Posted on by Harlem Shill

Here’s your chance to tell City Hall what you want them to focus on when it comes to East Harlem:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeGDfEGLZD9sg_hBWJV3x8P2pPK26Aw6P1Ct_YH5LJL6ThC0g/viewform?pli=1

Just fill out this form and remember, they can’t read your mind. You need to tell them what they need to budget for and prioritize.

Maysles Cinema Celebration

Click HERE to learn more

Maysles Documentary Center | 343 Lenox Ave/Malcolm X Blvd., New York, NY 10027

[email protected]

Languages in New York

Posted on by Harlem Shill

A great map of the languages spoken in NYC:

Drilling down into the linguistic mosaic of Harlem and East Harlem you can see the complex, vibrant culture of Harlem immigrants – everything from lesser-known languages spoken by close-knit communities like Akan – an African language spoken by Ghanaian and Ivorian immigrants, to large linguistic groups like Haitian Creole speakers.

Here is a zoomed-in look at our neighborhood:

To explore the map, click here:

https://languagemap.nyc/?emci=2e66a330-4b26-ee11-a9bb-00224832eb73&emdi=ea756329-7926-ee11-a9bb-00224832eb73&ceid=4406900

As Seen In East Harlem

Blues Singer

Posted on by Harlem Shill

This photo from 1958 of “Sticks McGhee” ( a Blues Guitarist) was only described as being taken in Harlem NYC:

What struck me was that the foreground figure had space. Space between the building where the photographer was, and the subject. Most Harlem streets have stoop stairs ending right at the property line, with no room for the foreground you see in the photo, let alone space for the photographer himself.

With that, the architecture across the street also appeared to be a distinctive clue as to where the photo was taken. Note how the details on the pedaments between the doorways have been ‘shaved’ of detail:

Also note the “4…” on one building and the possible “3” to the right:

The sun, bright and shining on the background, also suggests that the photo was taken looking north, on a Harlem street.

All of these clues added up to Astor Row – West 130th Street. And after some looking around, the location appears to be 39-41 West 130th Street.

Note how the pediments were shaved of detail:

The doors have both been replaced, and the banister on the right has been removed, but the photo was taken across the street, looking towards numbers 39 and 41 on West 130th Street.

Taco Mix

Eater noted that East Harlem’s Taco Mix is one of the best place in New York City to get amazing tacos:

https://ny.eater.com/maps/best-tacos-nyc

Make sure to head over to East 116th Street between 3rd and 2nd Ave. to check them out.

https://www.tacomix.com/

Exhibit At The Africa Center

Posted on by Harlem Shill

Reframing Neglect
On view from August 5, 2023 through September 3, 2023 

The Africa Center at Aliko Dangote Hall (map)
1280 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10029

Thursday – Sunday | 11AM to 6PM
Free and open to the public; No prior registration required

In partnership with The END Fund, through the support of Reaching the Last Mile, we are pleased to announce Reframing Neglect, a new photography series, creative direction by contemporary artist and activist Aïda Muluneh, highlighting the need to end neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) globally. The full series includes 38 photos by photographers from seven African countries; through fine art and documentary photography, the artists highlight the weight of NTDs on individuals and communities, using art as a tool of shared human emotion while addressing the need to spread awareness of neglected diseases.

For more details visit www.theafricacenter.org.

The Africa Center is hosting a photography exhibition on neglected tropical diseases. 5th Avenue at 110th Street.

As Seen In East Harlem

Art In The Park

Posted on by Harlem Shill

Guns down! Brushes up! Get involved with arts and crafts and stand for nonviolence in Harlem. Come take part in the annual Art in the Park Inc. Back to Beautiful Community Block Party to combat gun violence and experience the arts and tons of resources.

The event takes place Saturday, Aug. 26 from 12 noon to 6 p.m. at Alice Kornegay Triangle, E. 128th St. in Harlem.

For more information, contact Art in the Park via email [email protected] or phone 470-593-9887.

Student Debt

If you, or someone you know is struggling with student debt, check out this conversation on the topic – August 23rd:

https://tinyurl.com/bded59kw

Urban Garden Center’s Storage Area

Posted on by Harlem Shill

If you recall the fire under the Metro North tracks at 118th Street a few years back, the fire was the result of material that the Urban Garden Center had been storing under the tracks, between 117 and 118th Streets. This photo shows the storage of everything from concrete block, to pallets, to soil, to machinery:

With the forthcoming rebuild of the MTA tracks, all the material has been moved south between 111 and 113th Streets. The space between 117 and 118 is now empty:

The Studio Museum Progresses

After several women came forward with allegations that Sir David Adjaye of Adjaye Associates – the architect behind the new Studio Museum in Harlem – was a serial sexual harrasser, construction has resumed. Adjaye was removed as The Studio Museum of Harlem’s architect of record, and Cooper Robertson & Partners are now serving in that role.

The 125th Street, 82,000-square-foot structure will feature expanded gallery and exhibition space for more than 2,000 objects, multiple lecture halls, a roof deck, a café, and retail space when completed. Construction lulled in 2022, but work has resumed and a 2024 opening has been floated, if optimistic.

Open Streets – August 18th

50

Posted on by Harlem Shill

Hip Hop turns 50, today.

August 11, 1973 is the birthdate of hip-hop. It was the date DJ Kool Herc – Clive Campbell – deejayed a “Back to School Jam” in the recreation room of 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx, introducing a culture that was coming together in Black and Latino neighborhoods throughout New York City.

The lesser-known part of the story is that the mastermind behind this jam was Herc’s younger sister, Cindy, who wanted to raise money for her back-to-school wardrobe. She didn’t have access to vast resources and spaces across the city, so she rented out the rec room, set the admission price, created the flyers by hand on index cards, coordinated food and beverages, and spread the word throughout the neighborhood. That jam became a legendary moment for hip-hop, sparking many more “park jams” that developed the culture into the dominating global influence it is today.

And The Savoy

Circa 1950. A Schomburg Library and Research Center image.