Helped untold artists grow
To The Editor:
Re “At $33,000 a month, will the show go on at Cornelia St. Café?” (news article, May 18):
Viva Cornelia Street! So many artists, including singer-songwriters like me, have used the club’s commitment to freedom to grow and grow and grow! Support Cornelia Street Café, a one-in-a-million joint!
Michael Lydon
Another vacant storefront?
To The Editor:
Re “At $33,000 a month, will the show go on at Cornelia St. Café?” (news article, May 18):
Paradoxically, a lot of storefronts in Manhattan are for rent, with vacancy rates at near record highs. This should be driving down rents, even in the Village. Apparently, at least here, this is not happening. Will we be having yet another vacant storefront?
Joseph Hanania
She rolls with S.B.S. buses
To The Editor:
Re “No L train? No big deal” (letter, by John Wetherhold, May 25):
On May 22, at noon, all riders were put off the L train at First Ave. because another train was stalled in the tunnel. People poured out of the station and right onto the double-length bus, so it was packed, and became more so as the bus continued along 14th St.
On May 25, at 11 a.m., A train riders were put off at 14th St. because of “passenger injury.” Only half the train was in the station, so we walked through the subway’s cars to get on the platform. Firefighters were on the scene. A huge crowd then proceeded upstairs to the L train to connect with other lines; many riders probably went to the bus, too.
So, let’s all envision what it’s going to be like when the entire L line shuts down, shall we? Why anyone is opposed to Select Bus Service is beyond me. We’re going to need as many buses as the M.T.A. can put on, some S.B.S., some making every stop.
P.S.: No subway riders were seen carrying their tricycles as an alternative to get them to their destinations.
Noreen Shipman
One more costly failure?
To The Editor:
Re “Durst admits funding Pier55 suit, showing ‘Novo’ claim was true” (news article, May 18):
It’s a waterfront. A passive-use waterfront is lovely. No bells and whistles needed.
And the Pier55 designer, Thomas Heatherwick, has many controversies to his name. There were the falling spikes of his “B of the Bang” sculpture in Manchester and its subsequent cost overrun — its final price tag was twice the original estimate.
There is “Vessel,” Heatherwick’s $150 million “sculpture” going up at Hudson Yards on the West Side. Do we think spending $150 million on this “artwork” in these times, in this city, makes any sense at all?
Meanwhile, Heatherwick’s Garden Bridge fiasco in London is now under investigation for procurement irregularities and “significant failures of process throughout.” Experts predict it will cost taxpayers significantly more than initially proposed.
And then there is his Pier55 “fantasy island” protruding into the Hudson — as if the river needed any further adornment, at current and future cost to the city whose parks are starved for funding.
Why do the very wealthy insist on foisting these “emperors with no clothes” on the public dime, and why do does this city keep buying it? This is no “favor” to the public. It is the whim of the wealthy, and frankly we can’t afford to fund their whims — neither environmentally nor financially.
K Webster
Silwa but no Kuby: Borrring!
To The Editor:
Re “Kuby canned from ‘Curtis & Kuby’ show by WABC” (news article, thevillager.com, May 23):
I have been listening to the show and calling in from time to time and I have to say this sucks. Curtis Sliwa without Ron Kuby is boring and says the same old s— every day, and he does it all over again at 5.
Kuby was the only non-right-wing-Trump-loving fascist on the whole station.
And I say, so long. I listen no more.
John R. Penley
Phase out meat, dairy
To The Editor:
Earlier this month, the 146-year-old Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus shut down for good after years of animal activists effectively exposing it for animal abuse.
Can the meat and dairy industry be far behind?
The shift toward plant-based eating is everywhere. Fast-food chains, like Chipotle, Quiznos, Starbucks, Subway, Taco Bell and Wendy’s, offer plant-based options.
Parade, Better Homes and Gardens and Eating Well are all touting vegan recipes.
Indeed, Global Meat News reports that nearly half of consumers are reducing their meat intake. Beef consumption has dropped by 43 percent in the past 40 years.
Google C.E.O. Eric Schmidt views replacement of meat by plant protein as the world’s No. 1 technical trend. The financial investment community is betting on innovative start-ups, like Beyond Meat or Impossible Foods, while warning clients about “death of meat.”
Even Tyson Foods new C.E.O. Tom Hayes sees plant protein as the meat industry’s future.
The industry needs to transition to plant-based foods, or shut down, like the Greatest Show on Earth.
In the meantime, every one of us can shut the meat and dairy industry out of our own kitchen by checking out the rich collection of plant-based entrees, milks, cheeses and ice creams in our supermarket.
Nelson Yancy
E-mail letters, not longer than 250 words in length, to news@thevillager.com or fax to 212-229-2790 or mail to The Villager, Letters to the Editor, 1 MetroTech North, 10th floor, Brooklyn, NY 11201. Please include phone number for confirmation purposes. The Villager reserves the right to edit letters for space, grammar, clarity and libel. Anonymous letters will not be published.
