You have to wonder sometimes if it's just not part of some weird game. Certainly the powers that be knew that there would be blowback at the Oval Cafe opening with no signage or stated regulations that it was for the exclusive use of "residents and their guests." So, of course there was blowback, and now, with Town & Village highlighting the matter, we see the above blaring signage, with Oval Cafe banners hanging around the Oval also stating that the newly opened cafe is for "residents and their guests." Okay, but wouldn't everyone have been spared a certain amount of tension if these signs were around before the cafe was opened or on opening day?
One of the feature articles in this week's Town & Village is devoted to the Cafe. Lady Maya, director of resident programing and responsible for such things as putting a huge TV screen in front of the Oval Fountain, is quoted as saying, "Having a central place to grab a bite to eat and chat with your neighbors, located conveniently within PCVST, will be a wonderful addition to our community." Okay, Lady Maya, but the bites to eat are rather not sophisticated enough to but an accent on the "e" of "cafe." (Hot dogs and chicken fingers?) And certainly this amenity is not located conveniently for Peter Cooper residents, as well as many residents even in Stuy Town, who don't pass by the Oval area because they live a distance from it. (Note to future statements from the powers that be: Please think of something new than "a wonderful addition to our community" whenever you add something to the complex. This corporate-speak is redundant and boring. Perk it up a bit.)
I had to laugh at the last paragraph in the T & V article, which stated that a rep for management explained away the affirmations by Oval Cafe staffers that the cafe was "open to the public" as the staffers actually meaning that it was open to to "non-members" of the Amenities. Yeah, sure. In actuality, the staffers didn't know anything about key cards or Amenity members or non-members. According to T & V, the cafe (no accent on the "e" from me) is run by ABC Kitchen, though the cafe menu is certainly considerably different.
UPDATE: I forgot to mention one detail in the T & V article that I thought of interest concerning the cafe. The patio extension will gouge out 15 feet of the Oval "park" to accommodate more outdoor seating. So, first we lose a portion of the southern Oval Lawn to the Farmers Market, and now this. Both for commercial enterprises.
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Who writes for the official PCVST Facebook and Twitter page? Well, both are kinda dopey (I mean a "Happy World Kiss Day" post?), but the writer fell flat on her feet (yes, I suspect anyone intrigued by Happy World Kiss Day is going to be a chick; sorry), when she posted a photo of a pit-bull/pit-bull mix being walked around Stuy Town with what appears to be a portion of a human limb in its iron-jawed mouth:
Pit-bulls/pit-bulls mixes are a banned breed in Stuy Town/PCV. But, aw how cute!!!
[Hat-tip: Alice Aaronson, TA Facebook]
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The big news over at the Tenant Association is that President Al Doyle has stepped down due to increased work responsibilities and other commitments. John Marsh (aka, the sock puppet "Peter Stuyvesant" on the TA Facebook page) is now the new president. But, seriously, folks, hats off to these gentlemen and others who work for the TA. Though I've had my disagreements with the TA (and how!), these people are volunteers who give of their free time to work for tenants in this complex. And anyone who does that is an "ace in my book," even if I misplace the book from time to time.
69 comments:
Who thought to brand the cafe with red and silver, or gray, the colors corporate brochures are made of. The whole thing is one big fail at the cost of $200,000 to renovate. Bravo Lady Maya! Chicken Sticks for all!
I walked by the cafe with my daughters and decided to pass on it. It's not a child friendly space to say the least.
There were a lot of big shots hovering around and inside the cafe this morning. "How do we sell this thing? How do we sell it?" seemed to be darting around their concerned eyes. That's why they made that huge "ALL RESIDENTS WELCOME!" sign. They want people to know that it's not just an amenity for members, but that those chicken fingers and hot dogs are for ALL RESIDENTS.
But STR why do they always ask these questions after the fact?!? These people couldn't plan an opening of an envelope let alone a cafe.
Chicken Fingers AND Hot Dogs? Diareah never sounded so fun!
They regularly promote - to the entire world - the farmers market and Lady Maya's stupid events on twitter. So much for the "residents and their guests" line.
And coming soon -- peanut butter and jelly! Yesssssssssss!! They'll never be able to keep nonresidents away!
This will be a nice added feature for the hotel hosts' business too!
I still want to know how they got zoning permission? Who did they bribe? Where is their Board of Health Rating displayed?
Why couldn't the money have been spent on replacing those filthy washing machines and signing on with a laundry company that services the laundry rooms the way they used to pre-TS? Diareah in the Caf and Dysentry in the Laundry. That's good ole STPCV!
LOL Why the F is peanut butter and jelly "coming soon" ??? lol Do they not know the recipe? is it too hard to make? Or are they trying to figure out how to clean sticky, staining jelly off the IKEA bars, I mean tables.
To Lady Maya: What you mean, "our community"?
To be fair, some of their ideas could work but the people behind them don't appear to have the experience to pull it all together. The branding is terrible, the spaces possess all the charm of a Stanley Kubrick film, and the menu is limited and unhealthy.
Absolutely agree with you. Good line about the spaces possessing the charm of a Stanley Kubrick film. Very true.
In four years they haven't been able to make the Oval Atrocities successful, do they really think Lady Maya and her Jumbo-Tron, Chicken Fingers and "coming soon" PB&J are going to save the day?
When I went by this morning, the side of the sign saying “All Residents Welcome” was facing to the INSIDE of the Oval café, the side with menu that shows 13 out of the 34 menu items “”COMING SOON” was facing OUTSIDE to the Oval. Rather curious. I walked in to check it out the place and aesthetically, in my opinion, it was a bomb (not the good way bomb) no warmth, no soul. I didn’t test the “residents and their guests policy”, was too depressed and left.
I would make use of a pleasant cafe (with an accent on the "e"), something more European charm style, rather than the tacky abomination that's there, which is strikingly uninviting. I wonder what the selection process is for interior decorating? The cheapest bid or is it one of those "I've got a friend" deals.
It's too contrived for the younger people to use and too sterile to interest the older folks in the community. And the menu? Food served at a circus is healthier.
I wish they would stop letting 20 year olds think this shit up. $200,000 is a lot of money to blow on this waste of space that further consumed the "80 acre backyard."
The problem with all of these initiatives is that none of them seems to be legitimately aimed at improving the quality of life. Rather they are cheap shots at raising revenue.
There are many thing that management knows the "residonts" are clamoring for which are routinely ignored. Make the place livable and more pleasant and the success will come. Until that time, it will be one audacious catastrophe after the next.
I wish I could earn a living slowly destroying a beautiful park.
So true, none of these things improve the quality of life here. We still have the Mac Gray machines full of dangerous mold, filthy recycling areas and cigarette butts and beer cans in the gardens by the door. Where are these things on the priority list?
Why don't they fire Lady Maya already??? To think she gets paid to fail over and over again. Buh bye!
I posted this on 6/16/2012. Told you so. Very sad.
Anonymous said...
Re Oval Lounge Expansion-The Slippery Slope Theory-If you notice (my opinion), that the expansion of the Oval Lounge has taken out a decent potion of the landscaped section next to the Lounge. I believe they are expanding the outdoor table area. And so it begins, a piece at a time, the death of a thousand cuts. Overreaction? Maybe.
June 16, 2012 12:42 PM
You all realize this kind of **it is for real estate investors, the moguls. They will look at the property, which looks extremely attractive from exterior. With the amenities, and the fountains and the cafe.... and it's a beautiful sell.
This is not for the residents, or even future tenants. This is for the next OWNER. And it will not be the tenants. Just saying....
I think it's for both the sell to the moguls and the sell to prospective market-rate paying tenants. Win-win.
Nothing is more attractive to a potential buyer like ill conceived spaces which divide a community!
We need to post lots and lots of photographs of the squalid and disgusting interior situations of Stuyvesant Town. And make them really large and noticeable, like the ones of the caf. Let prospective buyers and renters not be able to miss the graphic images of what lies behind the facade.
Is this the ABC Kitchen in charge of Oval Obesity? If so the garbage they're serving in Stuy Town is a real departure. Nothing but the best for us!
The only way for the menu to be any more unhealthy is if they emptied the trash cans on the counter and sold it.
Can't wait to enjoy the crumbling patio tomorrow during the 213 degree weather. If I die, please make sure Lady Maya doesn't turn me into a kielbasa!
I'd rather rummage through the garbage than eat there!!
They should catch the rats and grill them. Oval Bushmeat!
Coming soon!
Mac (Grey) and cheese
RATatouille
I say close the Oval Cafe and open up the Oval Brothel.
After all CW Cap and Rose have been pimping out this place ever since they got here.
Death by a thousand cuts...destroying the peace and tranquility of the Oval, noise pollution from the "concerts", filthy laundry rooms, urine in the stairways, reduced maintenance, garbage and dog sh*t all over....nice job!
So sad.
What is the point of these tacky additions to the Oval? Actually, they are not additions, they are detractions. The Oval used to be nice. Now it is not worth going to. These crappy "concerts" as well as the substandard greenmarket and, now, this silly little greasy spoon cafe - what do they add to the Oval? Just more tawdry junk. Rose, CW, get a brain.
..."open to the public"
Is correct. No proof of residency is asked for.
For "Residents & guests only" is a joke.
The Oval Café is a farce!
>>I say close the Oval Cafe and open up the Oval Brothel.<<
Now that's a place I may be interested in, but I dread seeing the interior decorating.
To the commentator who wrote that hilarious post about Lady M, etc. Come on, you know I can't let that through! But, LOL.
On Thursday evening well after Penitentiary Cafe was closed for the evening my husband and I had to see it for myself, what all the blogger buzz was all about since the only other more explosive event of the week was the Macy's fireworks. When was the last time there was so much negativity surrounding the opening of a cafe, but having seen it first hand, all the buzz is on point!
From the outside looking in, the cafe looked like a cross between a prison institution and some sort of Cheese Wiz Velveeta night spot located in the bowels of Willits Point Flushing behind Citi Field. Who in their right mind would have made the primary color of the cafe Battle Ship Gray and then put lipstick red chairs in the space that match nothing at all. Originally the color scheme was a warm brown & white with an accent of green, but that was before they kicked out the original proprietors before the cafe opened, a story that the Sty-Town reporter should delve into deeply because no one really knows the true story and we certainly would like to know.
As my husband and I were marveling at this cataclysmic design wreck of a cafe, we were taken back by a few more egregious examples of why the blockheads who run Sty-Town and now the cafe do not have a clue. Far more disturbing was the food left partially covered on the counter, left almost as if there was a raid by the design police and everyone ran for cover. As we looked in my husband and I were at odds, although both of us certainly questioned what we were seeing, both felt our eyes were deceiving us. On the ice cream box was a wooded holder for ice cream cones, and on the holder was what appeared to be a fly, of which there were many joyously doing their thing over night at the cafe. Although neither one of us are entomologist we do recognize that flies at some point fly and other bugs do not. After a few more minutes of utter disbelief we recognized that this was certainly no fly but a roach partying like it was 1999 on the ice cream cone holder. It is with utter disbelief that this disgrace was allowed to be built under the noses of the residence of PCVST.
Why does Rose Associates need to act like a fleet of drunken sailors and spend money like they just robbed a bank, answer: so they can "cosmetically" make the property look great and sell the property to the next group of Tishman fools who will see condo $$$$$$$$ at the end of their rainbow.
I saw a fly on the food when I was there opening day, so I wouldn't doubt that flies, and other things, may have a free run of the place after closing. Wait till the chicken fingers and pizza arrives!
Guys and gals, perhaps I'm too much of a softie, but we have to stop the Lady Maya comments. They're amusing and sometimes wickedly amusing, but I'm already feeling sorry for her. Really, she's just doing her job, and someone must be okaying the projects she thinks up, if indeed she is the one thinking them up. I really apologize, but I feel uncomfortable about letting some of these through.
If someone has a question, please note that I can't respond back using the Blogger comment system. You have to e-mail me at: stuytownreporter@gmail.com
Brian can decorate Oval Brothel!
http://www.airbnb.com/rooms/385006
I can't wait to see the Zagats rating for this.
With all due respect, STR, it's your blog, your rules. But no one has to feel sorry for Lady Maya, who's "just doing her job." Rose is just doing his job, too! It'll be hard to find anyone who feels sorry for his greedy butt. Lady Maya deserves the comments. It's not the first time and she's resilient! She's still here, weaving her magic!
Food uncvered, flies and roaches on the food Where is the Department of Health? Are they, like the Buildings Department, in the bag for Rose?
People, please! We must not forget that: We are ALL residents somewhere!
Rosie say: "he's got good point!"
Manny say: "he mispell 'residonts'!"
Tenant say: "please, don't remind us..."
I have no sympathy for anyone that has contributed to the demise of this community. Not the managers or the hapless soldiers that are just following their orders.
The question is will the Oval Cafe be inspected by the Dept of Health ever? Not sure what the rule is for a cafe that's latched onto a residential area as an amenity to residents. Anyway, it's too early for the cafe to be inspected. Let's wait until the chicken fingers, hot dogs and pizza start baking.
Also we will need more verification that there, indeed, is any roach problem at the Oval Cafe. So early? Just a caution.
I would be surprised if there was not a roach problem there. After all, most food service establishments have them in one form or another.
Lady Maya sounds like she's in over her head! Either that or this is ONE HYPED RESUME lol
"Director, Resident Programming
Rose Associates
Privately Held; 201-500 employees; Real Estate industry
September 2010 – Present (1 year 11 months) NYC
Responsible for hundreds of outdoor and indoor programs for all ages at a complex of 30,000 residents; and for all related print & online marketing to support leasing and renewal efforts. Work with creative agencies, digital media firms, public relations consultants, and a major network of vendors for entertainment and equipment. Responsible for all financial and legal aspects of vendor contracts, as well as sponsorship outreach."
>>Responsible for hundreds of outdoor and indoor programs for all ages at a complex of 30,000 residents; and for all related print & online marketing to support leasing and renewal efforts. Work with creative agencies, digital media firms, public relations consultants, and a major network of vendors for entertainment and equipment. Responsible for all financial and legal aspects of vendor contracts, as well as sponsorship outreach.<<
So is Lady M responsible for the slogan "something is always going on in Stuyvesant Town" and "an 80-acre backyard"? Say it ain't so!
I like it STR!!!
Stuy Town - Say It Ain't So!
Should the renters in this building buy renters insurance now that there's a kitchen with an oven beneath them?
Lady Maya doesn't deserve your compassion, STR. Please share the funny post you said you couldn't let through!
BTW, Lady Maniacal has more plans. She is planning to put push carts on the property, part of her master plan.
Not only that but now we're up to 30,000 residonts. I thought it was just 25,000--and that included the pressure wall dorms.
I hear they can get 4 into a small-sized ST 1BR now...
>>Lady Maya doesn't deserve your compassion, STR. Please share the funny post you said you couldn't let through!<<
It's funny, but kinda cruel.
>>BTW, Lady Maniacal has more plans. She is planning to put push carts on the property, part of her master plan.<<
Please, please tell me that this is not true!
"BTW, Lady Maniacal has more plans. She is planning to put push carts on the property, part of her master plan."
Are the carts to be used for people to peddle their wares or, more likely, to facilitate the rehoming of transient residents' drunken roommates?
>>Not only that but now we're up to 30,000 residonts. I thought it was just 25,000--and that included the pressure wall dorms.<<
Yeah, that was interesting to read, perhaps not surprising, but dismaying to get verification.
Why doesn't she say Stuy Town? She must not be too proud of her accomplishments here at the soap opera.
Stuy Town had 25,000 "residonts" when MetLife was here. With the dorms etc it has to be at least twice that now -- maybe more.
Come on, STR. Let's see the Lady Maya comments.
I think I found gumbo in my Mac Gray washing machine today. Or maybe it was vomit?? Either way I should scoop it out and serve it at Oval Obesity. It would make a delightful companion dish to Chicken Fingers!
STR how about a live report from the cafe!
>>Not only that but now we're up to 30,000 residonts. I thought it was just 25,000--and that included the pressure wall dorms.<<
Yeah, that was interesting to read, perhaps not surprising, but dismaying to get verification.
You're assuming they can actually count.
How long before the cafe is inspected? A few calls to 311 might help.
Ha! This place is a joke!
To those who believe Lady Maya-niacal is just a solder and not a decision maker, you are way wrong. She comes up with the ideas and then feeds then to people who know less than her and they rubber stamp it. She has RA believing she really knows what she is doing, when truth be told she has trouble finding her way to her office from her Peter Cooper apartment. Make no mistake, Lady MAya-niacal is the architect of so many of these ill-conceived projects.
30,000 people in this place now? And they still are trying to rope in more. No wonder there is more garbage than the Staten Island Landfill ever held! So, STPCV was built on the site of overcrowded tenements and we are going back to being just what we were supposed to replace.
My husband and I walked past the cafe tonight to gawk. Sadly, a lot of these comments are right on the mark. We wete suprised at how little seating there is. A few bar-like tables in the windows along with the red chairs, and in the back perhaps another bar-like table. The whole space seemed rather empty, cold, and not conducive to socializing at all.
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