Event will highlight local businesses recovering after East Village Explosion

New York, NY – Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and Council Member Rosie Mendez today announced the Council will host a “Follow Me Friday” tour of Manhattan’s East Village with local business owners, community members, and elected officials on Friday, May 29th. The Follow Me Friday Small Business Crawl will help highlight and promote East Village small businesses recovering from the aftermath of the March 26th building explosion and will begin with a moment of silence at the site of the explosion on 2nd Avenue and 7th Street. The small business tour will begin at 5:30 PM and will include the following stops:

• Moment of silence for victims of recent explosion (Northwest Corner of 2nd Avenue and East 7th Street)
• Tour of Moishe’s Bake Shop (115 2nd Avenue)
• Tour of New Yorker Market (550 2nd Avenue)
• Tour of Café Mocha (116 2nd Avenue)
• Tour of Bar Virage (118 2nd Avenue)
• Tour of Himalayan Vision (127 2nd Avenue)
• Tour of Enz’s (125 2nd Avenue)
• Tour of Jimmy’s No. 43 (23 East 7th Street)

“Despite the horrible tragedy that occurred in this neighborhood recently, the East Village remains a vibrant and lively destination in New York City,” said Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito. “The whole Council stands with the residents and business owners of this community in encouraging all New Yorkers to visit and enjoy all that the East Village has to offer. I thank my colleague Rosie Mendez for the leadership she’s provided in her district, and welcome everyone to join us at our Follow Me Friday Small Business Crawl.”

Speaker Mark-Viverito launched “Follow Me Friday” in 2014 as a way to communicate directly with constituents. At least one Friday per month, Speaker Mark-Viverito goes to a local business or institution to meet with members of the public. This East Village Follow me Friday event was organized in partnership with Speaker’s Office and Council Member Rosie Mendez to bring much-needed attention to local businesses in the East Village and encourage New Yorkers to visit the neighborhood.

Those wishing to join the event should RSVP by sending an e-mail to jli@council.nyc.gov

“I am proud to work with Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito to host a Follow Me Friday event in my district,” said Councilwoman Rosie Mendez, District 2. “After the East Village Explosion occurred on 2nd Avenue several weeks ago, many of the small businesses have been struggling to keep their doors open. Follow Me Friday provides us with an opportunity to visit our small businesses while encouraging New Yorkers to visit and support these establishments as well.”

“I am proud to be a part of this month’s spotlight on local businesses along 2nd Avenue, especially following the tragic East Village Explosion, and I am honored to support neighborhood businesses that define the nature of our community,” said Assembly Member Deborah J. Glick

“I applaud Speaker Mark-Viverito and Council Member Mendez for their leadership in bringing attention to the small businesses affected by the East Village gas explosion. I’m particularly grateful to the Speaker for drawing on her experiences from the East Harlem incident and utilizing the resources of the City Council to help our neighborhood recover,” said Senator Brad Hoylman.

“After a disaster, government’s most important job is to help the community – and no one has worked harder in the aftermath of the East Village explosion than my colleague Councilwoman Rosie Mendez,” said Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer. “As those joining Councilwoman Mendez and Speaker Mark-Viverito for their ‘Follow-Me Friday’ tour will see, this vital neighborhood is recovering and will grow stronger than ever.”

“When the disaster happened, we worked really hard to get up and running again. We’re still receiving calls from people who are surprised that we are open; a lot of them thought we were closed for good. This event will help show everyone that this part of the East Village is up and running again. We really the City Council’s support and we just want to show the city that we’re back,” said Jimmy Carbone, owner of Jimmy’s No. 43

“We applaud the Speaker and Council Member Mendez for drawing attention to the small businesses impacted by the tragic accident,” said Nancy Ploeger, President, Manhattan Chamber of Commerce. “It’s great to see support for our small business owners and their employees!”

“Community Board 3 is proud to join the Speaker and Councilwoman Rosie Mendez on Follow Friday. This is a wonderful effort to draw business to our small neighborhood businesses still struggling to overcome the destruction caused by the Second Avenue fire,” said Gigi Li, Chair of Community Board 3.

“We welcome the focus that Speaker Mark-Viverito and Councilmember Mendez are bringing to our small businesses via Follow Me Friday,” said William Kelley, Executive Director of the Village Alliance BID. “Although the area has been stabilized, we are still feeling the economic impact of the tragedy.”

“Now is the perfect time to visit the East Village, to support the places that were difficult to access and to find new favorites among a widely diverse retail and food landscapes,” said Sara Romanoski, Managing Director of the East Village Community Coalition. The East Village Community Coalition and East Village Independent Merchants Association are pleased to join Follow Me Friday and grateful for the leadership Speaker Mark-Viverito and Councilmember Mendez have shown in helping to revitalize Second Avenue and nearby streets.”

“We are happy to join Speaker Mark-Viverito and Council Member Mendez in supporting the community of small merchants that call the East Village home,” said Tim Laughlin, Executive Director of the Lower East Side Business Improvement District. “Our collective efforts to bolster the recovering local economy are critical in sharing the message the East Village is open for business!”

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