Despite a setback from Hurricane Sandy, the historic shelter looks ahead to a new facility and a robust Thanksgiving

By Sophia Rosenbaum

The New York City Rescue Mission has a lot to be thankful for post-Sandy.

“It’s a little bit of a hardship to be blocks away from the worst of it,” said Joe Little, the mission’s director of community relations. “But, we were able to sustain some continuity for four or five days while being in the middle of mild-mannered chaos.”

While the mission lost power for four days, they continued to feed hundreds of people, including what Little calls the “perennial homeless” and the “temporarily homeless.”

The mission, which is tucked behind a construction project just south of Canal Street, helps those who have slipped between society’s cracks to find refuge, offer a meal on their plate and a bed to sleep in at night—24 hours a day, seven days a week.

“It’s a sanctuary of hope,” said Martin Bowman, a reformed cocaine addict who now greets anyone who walks through the doors with a smile as the mission’s front desk supervisor. “It challenges your worldview and hopefully starts people on a path to transformation.”

Bowman, who has been affiliated with the mission for 12 years, is just one of their many success stories.

Lost in a sea of scaffolding, the mission is getting a top-to-bottom makeover. With long sheets of plastic serving as makeshift doors and the resonating sound of drills and hammers, Bowman said he’s eagerly awaiting the new six-story building, which is still on track to be complete in early 2014 despite the setback from Sandy.

Many New Yorkers in dire straits can’t welcome the new construction soon enough. Statistics from the 2011 Census Bureau detail a rising poverty rate in New York City, which is currently at 20.9 percent, up nearly one percentage point from last year. In raw numbers, that means close to 1.7 million people fall below the poverty level of $22,811 for a family of four in New York City. Rising poverty paired with our current national economic crisis translates to more people out of work, out of money and out of a place to live.

For the mission, this means more people to help. Packaged as a soup kitchen, a pantry and a shelter, the mission offers a variety of 24/7 services, from three meals a day to overnight lodging to counseling, and men-only 12-step programs for recovering alcoholics and drug addicts.

Harry Benjamin, 58, has been coming to the food pantry for years because he and his wife do not bring in enough money to support his two children.

“I come here to eat,” Bejamin said, ”so that I can have enough food before my next check comes.”
Bowman said all the security guards who work with Benjamin come to the mission for pantry packages to sustain their families.

From 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., people arrive in spurts to claim two plastic bags stuffed with staples like rice, pasta, canned fruits and canned vegetables. Some unexpected treats like cookies and chocolate toffee also make their way into the bags through donations from Starbucks and other local bakeries.

From July to September, over 900 people volunteered at the mission to help serve the 500 people they help a day, according to David Knoche, the mission’s volunteer manager and administrative assistant. From spaghetti and meatballs to a full Thanksgiving meal, Knoche said numbers are up for those using soup-kitchen services for their daily meals since the 2008 recession.

“It takes a village to make things happen,” he said.

While he may not look it in his professional attire of a purple button-up shirt and black slacks, Knoche is a recovered alcoholic and dope addict. He has been clean for over 30 years and attributes much of his success to God.

The mission focuses on religious and spiritual guidance to help people escape drugs and homelessness. James Rowntree, 53, has been in the 12-step program for seven months, and is homeless, but not an addict.

“I’ve got no family, no money, no place to live,” he said in a British accent. “I believe that God wants me to be here.”

People at the mission like Rowntree break the mold of what most people think of when they hear the word “homeless.”

The same is true for Bowman. Although he was raised by a “solidly middle-class family,” his egocentric tendencies eventually tied him in the drug scene.

“My real addictions were power,” he said. “I had no intention of helping the homeless at all,” he added with a laugh.

But, after the tables were turned and Bowman experienced first-hand what it was like to be homeless, he dedicated his life to helping those in need.

“The real struggles in life are universal,” he said. “If you’re a homeless addict, we provide help. If you’re a businessman, we provide help. This place does so much more than just provide people with a meal.”

Little said that despite minor setbacks from Sandy, they are still gearing up for their 14th annual Great Thanksgiving Banquet, where he expects at least 1,200 people—up 200 people from 2011.
“We have a bigger space this year for the celebration,” he said. “So we think it will be bigger this year. Also, I think no matter what your socioeconomic status is, people are very aware of the plight of the homeless right now because of Sandy.”

By Paul Bisceglio

The shop owners at 314 Canal St. say they feel lucky to be alive after a car smashed into their storefront Tuesday, Aug. 21. According to police and witnesses, a black Mercedes made an illegal U-turn on Canal by Mercer Street and clipped the rear of a green Subaru, which shot into another vehicle before careening onto the sidewalk and into the garage-style entrance of one of the low-cost jewelry stores.

“It was like a dream,” said Maiya Lama, one of the shop’s five co-owners. She had been rearranging items in the store when she heard a loud crash in the street, then all of a sudden a car was spitting flames and fumes inches in front of her.

Lama was trapped in the single-room store with four other workers until firemen doused the flames. The car took out cabinets, piping, lighting and the track for the slide-down door. Co-owner Jahir Rahman said he always sits by a watch display case that the car demolished, but happened to be in the bathroom during the crash. Lama added that some customers had left “just two seconds” before the accident.

The owners estimated that repairs and losses could cost them over $25,000. The store has no insurance.

A witness who rushed to the Subaru driver’s aid reported that the driver suffered a seizure and still had her foot on the gas pedal after the collision. The driver was treated at the hospital for head trauma. The Mercedes driver fled the scene out of panic, police said, but then returned and was taken into custody.

“Trapped in there, I thought I would die,” said Lama, who was also treated at a hospital for minor injuries. “Thank God. Thank God.”
She reopened the store for business the next day.

Is Canal Street ‘Manhattan’s Next Great Retail Frontier’?
When most New Yorkers think of Canal Street, they probably don’t think of quality retail. Melinda Miller of Winick Realty Group, however, wants to usher in a new era for the downtown commercial street.
“For Canal Street, it’s a question of when, not if, the neighborhood will see its moment as the next great retail destination in the city,” she said in a recent company statement.
Miller is marketing 272-274 Canal St., a four-story, 1,800-square-feet-per-floor brick building at the northwest corner of Cortlandt Alley next to the new Tribeca Blu Hotel. Its owners, the Gindi family, have some big plans for its next retailer: a new glass façade and significant new signage.

Majority of NY residents Oppose Soda Ban
Mayor Bloomberg’s plan to limit the size of sugary drinks to 16 ounces faces opposition from NYC residents. Quinnipiac University released a poll last Thursday revealing that 54 percent do not think the city should limit the size of drinks sold in movie theaters, food carts and restaurants, while 42 percent think the size should be limited. The number of respondents in opposition increased from the 51 percent who said the city shouldn’t enact a size limit in a June 13 survey from the university.

Young Illegal Immigrants Get Temporary Legal Status in NYC
Hundreds of undocumented young people in New York City began lining the block around St. Mary’s Catholic Church on Grand Street before dawn last Thursday, braving the rain and enduring an hours-long wait. By noon, the crowd was excited and in high spirits. It was the first day that these illegal immigrants could acquire temporary work permits and immigration status at various locations across New York City, including St. Mary’s.
These youth are among millions in America who would be eligible to receive permanent residency and documentation in the U.S. under the federal Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, or DREAM Act. While the act has not been passed, President Obama has declared that his administration will stop deporting these eligible young people, and instead offer relief in the form of deferred action. This will grant those who are DREAM-eligible temporary legal immigration status and an employment authorization document.

According to the New York Immigration Coalition, approximately 110,000 New Yorkers are, or will be, eligible for deferred action. Immigration agencies and coalitions have now set up locations throughout the city to help undocumented youths under the age of 31 receive their documents, as long as they moved to the country before age 16 and have no criminal record, among other requirements. (From City & State)

Downtown Alliance App Is a Big Hit Among Museums
Museums located Downtown have designated the Alliance for Downtown New York’s recently released mobile application, “Downtown NYC,” the official app for the Downtown Culture Pass.
Created to help tourists and residents discover the latest events in the area, the app, supported by iPhone and iPad platforms, features information on all of Lower Manhattan’s renowned cultural institutions, restaurants and hubs. It also features passes to attractions on Chambers Street and below. As an added perk, admission to these attractions is always free.
The Downtown Culture Pass was founded in 2010 as a six-month pilot program to highlight the numerous cultural attractions in the area. It became an official program in 2011, helping to increase Downtown tourism.

Photo by Wilson Rivera, courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons.

When most New Yorkers think of Canal Street, they probably don’t think of quality retail. There the goods tend to come rolled out on street vendor mats with the brands misspelled, not behind glass windows in fine shopping plazas.

Melinda Miller of Winick Realty Group, however, wants to usher in a new era for the downtown commercial street famous for its open storefronts, questionable electronic imports and tourist-grabbing counterfeits.

“For Canal Street, it’s a question of when, not if, the neighborhood will see its moment as the next great retail destination in the city,” she said in a recent company statement

Miller is marketing 272-274 Canal Street, a four-story, 1,800 square-feet-per-floor brick building at the northwest corner of Cortlandt Alley next to the new Tribeca Blu Hotel. As it stands, the building is unremarkable, but its owners, the Gindi family, have some big plans for its next retailer: a new glass façade and significant new signage.

“The beauty of Canal Street is that it sits at the apex of several Manhattan neighborhoods — namely Soho, Tribeca, Chinatown, Little Italy, Hudson Square and the Lower East Side,” Miller said in the statement, which added, “The potential for exposure rivals that of virtually any major street in Manhattan.”

Canal Street’s small individual storefronts distinguish it from most of the city’s other highly trafficked shopping districts, where large landlords own large retail spaces. Property owners, business people and the street’s vendors have been tracking the area’s shift towards the city’s more conventional commercialism for years, however.

“Canal is on its last legs,” a watch-peddler told New York Press back in 2010. “They want to make this a franchise block.”

Albert Laboz, a principal with United American Land, a major landlord on the street, agrees. On fashion retailer Necessary Clothing’s recent leasing of 261-263 Canal Street, Laboz told the Real Deal: “It is further evidence that Canal Street is really becoming an extension of Broadway in Soho.”

He said that he could not recall a larger deal in the area over the past decade.

“I think it is slowly starting to change. But I think the city cracking down on the illegal sales [of knockoff products] is going to be the biggest driver,” Ariel Schuster, executive vice president at retail brokerage RKF, told the Real Deal in a separate story on retailer landlords cashing in on Canal Street.

Not everyone shares Miller’s vision of the street as “Manhattan’s next great retail frontier,” however. Michael Glanzberg, a principal with Soho-based brokerage Sinvin Real Estate, for instance, told the Real Deal that he and others believe that higher-paying customers will avoid mixing with Canal’s discounted and knock-off merchants.

“From the standpoint of someone who represents upper-end and high-end retail, Canal Street really holds no place for those folks,” he said. “It is the merchandise. There is a demographic and a shopper on Canal Street that is drastically different from what you find even a block north in Soho.”

Canal Street’s fate is not sealed, in other words, but everyone knows in which direction it currently is headed.

Illustrated by Evan Soares.

Soft Money

Feb. 22, a man was arrested for credit card fraud in a drug store on Wall Street. The man tried to buy $1,040 worth of American Express gift cards and, perhaps in an effort to properly launder the money, a $7 bottle of fabric softener.

Aisle of the Lost
While shopping at a chain supermarket on Greenwich Street, a man from Washington State put his black Gucci money clip down as he was shopping. When he realized he no longer had the money clip at the checkout, he went to look for it, but it unfortunately didn’t turn up. Among the lost items were credit cards and Harley Davidson and Costco gift cards totaling $500.

Out to Lunch
When a 38-year-old woman was eating lunch at a taquería on Canal Street, she didn’t expect to get a phone call a few days later from her credit card company asking for payment on about $1,600 in charges from that day. The woman believes a nimble-fingered thief reached into the purse draped behind her chair as she ate, grabbed her credit cards and $250 in cash and ran. The woman had no clue she had been robbed until she got the phone call.

Dance the Night Away
Drinking and dancing sounded like lots of fun to a 21-year-old woman until, as she danced the night away at a bar on Pearl Street, a man stole her Louis Vuitton purse and wallet worth $1,500. Also stolen were her Apple iPhone 4S, credit cards and $200 worth of MAC makeup. The thief was recognized as a regular of the establishment and is believe to work in a kitchen in Hanover Square.

Off to Work
When a 29-year-old woman went to clock in at the restaurant she works at on Church Street, she unfortunately forgot her purse on one of the bar stools. After catching up with her co-workers, she realized that the bag had vanished without a trace. Inside were her apartment keys, debit card and $200 cash.

Teatime
On March 22, a 46-year-old man sat down in his favorite coffee shop on the corner of Dey and Church streets to drink some tea and do some work on his computer. When he reached down to collect his bag next to his leg, he realized that someone had stolen it, along with his cell phone, credit cards, a $100 digital camera, headphones and an Apple iPod, which were all inside.

Card Tricks
A tourist out with her friends from Kentucky, was pickpocketed on Canal Street as she watched a game of three-card monte. The thief, who stole $500 in cash from the 46-year-old woman, was caught red-handed but averted arrest. Before he ran off, the pocket picker shouted, “Go ahead and call the law!” He has yet to be caught.
Stolen Bike
On the evening of March 19, a 21-year-old Queens man parked his red Honda motorcycle on the corner of North End Avenue and Murray Street. When he returned to the corner, his bike, which was unlocked and uncovered, was no where to be seen. Police searched the area for the missing bike, estimated to be worth $10,000, but to no avail.

Following this exhibition 6 Decade Books and Boo-Hooray will continue to host a revolving display of art exhibitions, books and ephemera all in the holiday spirit.  Drop by 625 Canal St. #601 for the inaugural holiday shop between Dec. 10 and 23. Don’t let the building’s appearance fool you, it is well worth the trip.