December 16th

Artlog
2009

Look around and you can tell that summer is in full swing in the Lower East Side. Stop by The Wall cafe on Orchard Street and check out the menu full of summery salads and drinks. For dessert, take a walk up the block to Il Laboratorio del Gelato for an authentic Italian ice cream you can only find in this neighborhood. From there, go check out the new summer styles, and maybe pick up a new set of threads, at Still Life, a favorite local clothing and hat store.

The Lower East Side is also the neighborhood for linens and fabrics and, this summer, you stand to save a lot as you redecorate or accessorize your home. Pick up the Go East! Neighborhood Guide at the Visitor’s Center and save an extra 10% when you when you shop for the latest fine linens at Harris Levy on Forsyth Street or Mendel Goldberg Fabrics on Hester, and really complete your summer look! Whatever you’re searching for, it’s clear that summer begins in the Lower East Side.

LONDON SWAP

This August, it’s LES meets London. Because the Lower East Side is New York’s cutting-edge fashion district, the LES Business Improvement District has made a deal with Shaftesbury PLC to have an exchange: businesses in London’s Newburgh Quarter show off their merchandise here and we bring our merchandise to showcase over there. This partnership is a win for everybody, especially LES shoppers who will now have access to the hottest fashions from across the pond – all without leaving the neighborhood.

This is an unparalleled opportunity for shoppers to get the latest international fashions without even leaving the Lower East Side – right next to our own unique stores.
–Roberto Ragone,
BID Executive Director

Pop-up shops will be set up throughout the neighborhood to show-off and sell merchandise from the finest London boutiques such as Beyond the Valley, Fred Perry, The Face, Chateau Roux, The Great Frog, and Leluu, just to name a few. One more reason why the Lower East Side is the new neighborhood to go to for eclectic fashion.

PRIDE GOES EAST

Fourth Arts Block (FAB) and the Lower East Side Business Improvement District (LES BID) partnered to bring Gay Pride to the East Side with Pride Goes East, a week-long celebration of special events and local deals during Pride Week in New York City. From June 21 through June 28, Pride Goes East offered many incentives to come to the Lower East Side with exclusive restaurant deals, nightlife specials, shopping discounts and free entertainment – all geared to bring out the Pride in everyone.

Pride Goes East offered the community a vibrant alternative to the West Village with more room to celebrate a milestone in LGBTQ history. During Pride Week, Pride Goes East visitors enjoyed a special FAB-sponsored gay-themed performances and events on 4th street. With the option of heading south of Houston pre- or post-performances, visitors took advantage of special Pride deals and discount offerings at their favorite LES businesses, shops and eateries. We hope that you’ll spend next Pride Week with us here in the Lower East Side. Get all the information at www.pridegoeseast.com.

STANTON STREET SUMMER SUNDAYS

The Lower East Side Business Improvement District (LES BID) is bringing the Mayor’s Summer Streets Program south of Houston. Stanton Street will be closed off to cars between Allen and Ludlow on four consecutive Sundays (August 23 and 30, September 6 and 13). Because Orchard Street is also closed to traffic on Sundays, this will create an oasis of festivities and pedestrian comfort through the whole neighborhood. "It will be a great way to get people acquainted with some of the fantastic stores and restaurants we have in our area and for my establishment to help the daytime economy," says Epstein’s outdoor café style bar owner, Jimmy Balfe. Epstein’s, like many of the businesses in the area, will be offering promotions and sponsoring family-friendly activities to make the occasion fun and affordable.

The LES BID represents a legendary neighborhood of longstanding businesses, independent designers, and eclectic boutiques and is a destination for its art galleries, music scene, vintage shops, fabric varieties, and locally made products

The Executive Director of the LES BID, Roberto Ragone, hopes that Stanton Street Summer Sundays will help create a realization that the Lower East Side is Manhattan’s most unique district. "Old and new, classic and cutting edge, vintage and en vogue, bargains and boutiques – it’s all here side by side." So whether it’s the food, the outdoor activities, or the free promotions, make sure to get out and enjoy a sunny summer Sunday on Stanton Street.

ELS-LES (Every Last Sunday - Lower East Side)

In an effort to showcase the diverse artistic offerings of the LES, local artists began organizing ELS-LES tours over five years ago. Like the name suggests, these tours take place every last Sunday of the month and go to over 20 local galleries. The tours are a lot of fun, a great way to meet fellow art-lovers, and a chance to see what’s really going on in the culture outside of the big museum "boxes" uptown. Get in touch with your inner-art critic and be part of new trends, right in the middle of one of Manhattan’s oldest neighborhoods.

ELS-LES is part of the LESBID’s ongoing efforts to pay tribute to the varied cultural and institutional groups – including thousands of artists – who have helped build the Lower East Side over the course of its history and who continue to give the neighborhood its unique flavor.
–Roberto Ragone,
BID Executive Director

ELS-LES tours meet on the last Sunday of every month, at the LES Visitors’ Center, located at 54 Orchard Street (between Grand Street and Hester Street) at 1:00 p.m.

BEING AUDREY

As part of the East Meets East Initiative, Transport Group Theatre Productions, the winner of a special 2007 Drama Desk Award and a 2007 Obie Award, partnered with the Lower East Side Business Improvement District (LES BID) and the Fourth Arts Block (FAB) to approach local businesses to participate in joint promotions during the company’s world premiere production of the Off-Broadway musical, Being Audrey. The play is a world premiere musical with music and lyrics by Ellen Weiss; book by James Hindman; additional book and lyrics by Cheryl Stern; developed with Jack Cummings III and Adam R. Perlman; musical direction, arrangements, and orchestrations by Lanny Meyers; musical staging and choreography by Scott Rink; and directed by Jack Cummings III. It ran throughout March and April of 2009 to good reviews and much fanfare.

ARTLOG 2009

The second annual Artlog gave visitors a chance to see what residents already know – that the LES is New York’s new center for contemporary art.
–Mark Miller,
LES BID President

On April 18th, Artlog.com, in coordination with the LES Business Improvement District, put together the second annual Artlog and made it bigger and better, including over 25 galleries and the New Museum. The galleries, which have been moving to the Lower East Side over the past few years, have received much outside exposure and notoriety and add to the area’s unique, trendsetting culture. The success of this event is just another indication that, even in a recession, the arts are alive and well in the LES. For more information on the local arts scene, make sure to request a Gallery Guide as well as a Go East! Neighborhood Guide.

About Us
Established in 1992, the Lower East Side Business Improvement District (LES BID) is a non-profit, economic development organization created to revitalize the Orchard Street Shopping District while preserving its unique and diverse character. Today, the LES BID is a community of over 600 merchants and property owners managed by a Board of Directors and consisting of local merchants, property owners, residents and elected officials. The LES BID promotes the local businesses, hosts events and provides community beautification services including sanitation, security and graffiti removal.

Wanna know more about happenings on the Lower East Side.... go to www.LowerEastSideNY.com