Kunstler’s castle for sale: Randy Credico — stand-up comic, political impressionist, anti-Rockefeller drug laws activist and sometime political candidate — tells us that the Gay St. home of his mentor, the late radical attorney William Kunstler, is up for sale for $10 million. Asked if the place has any special features, Credico said, “Two escaped slaves hiding in the basement died in a fire in the mid-1800s. It has a big beautiful backyard. And it is a monument — the home of William Kunstler.” We tried to confirm with Kunstler’s widow, Margaret Ratner Kunstler, but did not hear back by press time.
Pier55 meeting, part II: The follow-up meeting between the Pier55 lawsuit plaintiffs from The City Club of New York and the Hudson River Park Trust and representatives for Barry Diller has been put off one week until next week, per the Trust’s request, Tom Fox, one of the plaintiffs, tells us from British Columbia, where he was away on business. Last week, Fox, boating activist Rob Buchanan and their legal team met with the park authority and Diller reps to try to hash out a settlement under which the $250 million “fantasy island of the arts” envisioned for off of W. 13th St., could proceed. Fox, citing the delicate nature of the negotiations, told us he couldn’t say what exact conditions the City Club was demanding — but one could guess that they might involve a much higher degree of transparency and public review than has characterized the plan thus far, which has been one of Fox and Co.’s chief criticisms.
Ottomanelli cut: The court case involving the alleged “noose incident” at Ottomanelli & Sons Meat Market has been put off until the fall. However, the Hunts Point-based meat distributor that employs the victim recently “severed ties” with the famed Bleecker St. butcher shop over what it calls the “racist incident.” A press release issued last week said Mosner Family Brands, which employs the aggrieved deliveryman, Victor Sheppard, has been “openly cooperating with the authorities” as they investigate the April confrontation. Joe Ottomanelli is accused of shoving the noose — the chilling symbol of racist lynchings in the South — into Sheppard’s chest and telling him to go use it on himself. “Mosner Family Brands condemns such intolerance, and any form of racism and discrimination,” Michael Mosner, the company’s president, said. “This incident warranted the termination of our firm supplying its products to this butcher shop. This type of behavior is not in line with our corporate values. We stand united with our employees and their union against racism and discrimination, and we demonstrate our support with actions.” Following Sheppard’s harassment, the company allowed him extended leave and offered free counseling and financial support through its disability policy. When Sheppard expressed a desire to return to work, Mosner offered him an alternative customer delivery route outside of Manhattan “to ensure that he would have no exposure to Ottomanelli & Sons’ storefront.” However, three months later, the deliveryman still has not returned to work. “Mr. Sheppard indicated on three separate occasions that he was ready to resume his duties at Mosner Family Brands, but unfortunately — for undisclosed reasons — did not return to work,” the press release states, noting that the last of these three times was back in May. “Mosner Family Brands has continued to communicate with the employee’s union representative on the matter in the hope that Mr. Sheppard will, in due time, be able to return to his post.” Meanwhile, radical attorney Ron Kuby, who is representing Ottomanelli & Sons, said, “The noose incident was an ugly and stupid act for which the Ottomanelli family has apologized and promised this episode will never be repeated. Ottomanelli’s has served a vibrant and diverse community, without incident, for over a century. Unfortunately, Mr. Sheppard is apparently being advised by his attorney not to return to work, in order to cash in on a civil lawsuit. Not every ugly and stupid act results in a large cash payout. A noose should not be confused with a winning Lotto ticket, with a lawyer taking a third.” Kuby was referring to Sheppard’s attorney, Wylie Stecklow. The two rad legal eagles apparently have an ongoing feud, of which this is just the latest installment.
Scrappy initiative: Composting began this week at Westbeth, in the West Village, and Manhattan Plaza, up on W. 42nd St., according to Erik Bottcher, Councilmember Corey Johnson’s chief of staff. Penn South, in Chelsea, is also being eyed to enter the city’s composting pickup program, Bottcher tells us. In Manhattan, the city’s Department of Sanitation plans just to focus on large residential complexes, in terms of composting pickups, as opposed to townhouses and smaller residential buildings. The existing composting program at Stuyvesant Town — which was recently featured in The Villager — is the largest in Manhattan.
Surgery coming soon: In a first step in bringing ambulatory ambulatory surgery to Lenox Health Greenwich Village, Dr. Peter D. McCann has been named director of orthopedic surgery at the health hub on Seventh Ave. between W. 12th and 13th Sts. Plans are for L.H.G.V., early this fall, to open a $25 million, 22,000-square-foot ambulatory surgery suite with six operating rooms and a 23-bed recovery room that will, according to a press release, “offer the highest-quality outpatient surgery technology.” “Dr. McCann is an exceptionally skilled surgeon and his strong leadership experience will be an asset to our new team of fellowship-trained orthopedic surgeons at our Downtown location at Lenox Health Greenwich Village,” said Dr. Nicholas Sgaglione, chairperson of orthopedic surgery at Northwell Health. “We are delighted to have Dr. McCann on board to spearhead our orthopedic surgery efforts at our Downtown location,” added Dr. Elliott Hershman, chairperson of orthopedic surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital. L.H.G.V. opened in 2014 as Manhattan’s first freestanding emergency department. In 2016, they added the Northwell Health Imaging Center, offering a full spectrum of radiology services. “Our goal at Lenox Health Greenwich Village is to provide easy access to high-quality orthopedic care at a convenient site in a brand new facility,” McCann said. “Emphasizing patient-centered care, we will offer weekday appointments before and after work and weekend office hours, as well as same-day appointments for urgent conditions.” McCann previously served as the chairperson of orthopedic surgery at Mount Sinai Beth Israel and was a professor of orthopedic surgery at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. He was also a founding member of the Insall Scott Kelly Institute for Orthopedics and Sports Medicine in 1991. Nationally, US News and World Report honored McCann as one of the top 1 percent in orthopedic surgery. A native New Yorker, he graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy and Columbia College, and did his residency at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center. He completed the Shoulder and Elbow Fellowship at Columbia under the direction of his mentor, Dr. Charles S. Neer II, who is widely recognized as the father of modern shoulder surgery. McCann is also emeritus editor in chief of The American Journal of Orthopedics, one of the most widely circulated professional journals in orthopedic surgery. He is also co-editor of “Sports Medicine,” a comprehensive 782-page textbook on sports medicine.
