Matthew Grace

Yesterday, Red Hook residents gathered at the corner of Van Brunt and Wolcott streets, the intersection where Janett Ramos was struck and killed by a van two weeks ago, to protest what organizer John McGettrick called the Department of Transportation's "indifference bordering on incompetence" regarding traffic in the once-sleepy neighhborhood. Over 125 people showed up for a vigil for Ramos; afterward, the crowd marched through heavy truck traffic, waving signs and shouting at vehicles to honk in support. At one point a firetruck stopped and firefighters yelled out in support of installing a traffic light at the corner.

According to Mr. McGettrick, the D.O.T. is ignoring the needs of the community, resulting in needless fatalities. The corner where Ramos was killed is one of the busiest intersections in Red Hook, equidistant from the new cruise-ship terminal to the north and the new Fairway grocery store to the south. Residents say that increased traffic from the Fairway is making the street dangerous. A spokeswoman for the D.O.T., contacted after the Ramos' death, said the department is waiting for the fall before conducting a traffic study, in order for traffic patterns to emerge.

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In today's Observer: In Manhattan Transfers, Russian developer Janna Bullock wants to flip an Upper East Side townhouse for a profit--a profit--of $19 million. Marketing strategy? Offer the place up as a "designer showhouse" for charity! Get the place looking snappy and charge for the open house!

Matthew Schuerman profiles Richard Lipsky, the self-styled David responsible for running giant Big Box stores like Wal-Mart and BJ's out of town.

Matthew Grace looks at proposals to make the streets around Union Square less of a death-trap for pedestrians; the locals want “Barnes dances” around the square, where signals at intersections periodically give pedestrians the right of way in all directions.  read more »

The sale of the Edmond and Lily Safra collection at Sotheby's, Brook Mason reports, pulled in $48.9 million for the auction house. That's the highest total ever achieved at a decorative-arts auction in Manhattan, and it may be just the beginning. (Third item.)

Michael Calderone waxes nostalgic about pre-Civil Rights Act Manhattan, when the Upper West Side was cheap, and its landlords discriminatory. Rejected by the owner of a 13-story building, Harry Belafonte bought the entire thing and turned it into a co-op. The Calypso singer is asking $15 million for his 21-room, 8-bedroom apartment now--Diego Rivera artwork not included. Matthew Grace has the skinny on why fashionistas won't spill over to a west midtown park come September--another chapter in the fight between handball players and commercial interests. And, continuing our saturation coverage of the West Side, Matthew Schuerman explains why The New York Times has ruled out getting its new Eighth Avenue headquarters certified as environmentally friendly.  read more »