Off on the right ‘foot’: Kicking off his push for universal pre-K, Mayor Bill de Blasio came to P.S. 130, at 143 Baxter St., Tuesday morning, where he visited a pre-K class with 20 students and three teachers, including Aimee Koa-Chan. De Blasio complimented one young boy for being “articulate” for smoothly pronouncing the mayor’s read more here »

‘Master’ class canceled: The late tragic actor Philip Seymour Hoffman was among the many Downtown celebrities who contributed their efforts to the community’s ongoing fight against New York University’s 2031 South Village development plan. One of the top items on the block in the N.Y.U. Faculty Against the Sexton Plan’s massive, star-studded auction back in read more here »

E.R. is on the way: The pain of the loss of St. Vincent’s is still sharp. It seems like just yesterday that the community was desperately fighting to save the historic, 161-year-old hospital from closing. But, four years later, the new 24/7 emergency room at the former St. Vincent’s O’Toole Building is not far off read more here »

‘Hot Dog-gate’ grilling on hold: Due to Wednesday’s Slushapocalypse and the slippery condition of the sidewalks, the scheduled Feb. 5 Community Board 2 Parks/ and Waterfront Committee meeting was canceled. This was the meeting at which the Washington Square Park Conservancy members had been scheduled to attend and give an update on what they’ve been read more here »

Read, Rosie, read! We’ve been trying to get Rosie Mendez’s reaction to Judge Donna Mills’s stunning Jan. 7 ruling in favor of the community lawsuit against N.Y.U.’s 2031 South Village development plan. Of course, Mendez, along with everyone else in the Council, save for Charles Barron, voted in lockstep for N.Y.U. 2031 back in July read more here »

Super pier party: Pier 40, at W. Houston St. in the Hudson River Park, is set to be the scene of what is being hyped as THE — yes, THE —party of Super Bowl weekend. The DirecTV “Super Saturday Night” event, on Sat., Feb. 1, to be held, we hear, under a big tent on the read more here »

Mayor’s mane man: Well, no $1,250 John Edwards-style haircuts for new Mayor Bill de Blasio. Nope, he gets his locks chopped at good old Astor Place Hairstylists, for just $16. We went there ourselves not too long ago to get a trim, and it turned out the mayor had just popped in a few minutes read more here »

Friends again? There may be — at least publicly — no hard feelings after openly lesbian City Councilmember Rosie Mendez blasted her colleague Jumaane Williams for his stance against marriage equality and abortion rights during his recent unsuccessful bid to become the next Council speaker. The two briefly shared the stage on Jan. 5 at read more here »

Diether’s beef with Batali: In one corner: Mario Batali, superstar restaurateur. In the other: Doris Diether, veteran Community Board 2 member and, more recently, a major new Ricky Syers marionette — “Little Doris” — in Washington Square Park. Batali frequently refers to Diether, 85, on his TV cooking show as a pain in the neck who read more here »