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Students at East Harlem School used to dine on reheated veggie nuggets and peas swimming in mayonnaise.
Now, the middle school’s 130 students munch on chickpea coconut curry, tofu pad Thai and a variety of culinary concoctions not typically associated with school lunch.
Health-focused lunch menu makes the grade at East Harlem School from CUNY J-School Video Storytelling on Vimeo.
5Pointz Aerosol Art Center in Long Island City has been considered a mecca for graffiti artists, hip-hop performers and aficionados for more than 10 years. Yet as the urban art center battles for its existence, some graffiti artists wonder where the big-name celebrities are to defend the haven against developers eager to transform the property into an apartment complex.
Curated by veteran graffiti artist Meres One (Jonathan Cohen), 5 Pointz encompasses 200,000 square feet of industrial space between Jackson Avenue and Davis Street where artists showcase their aerosol creations. The graffiti is legal through an agreement with the building’s owner, Gerry Wolkoff of G & M Realty.
But in March, Wolkoff announced the building could become the cornerstone of a neighborhood revitalization project aimed at transforming Long Island City into the next downtown Brooklyn.
Meres handpicks the artists from submissions from around the world. His goal is to transform the space into a graffiti art museum. Over the years, 5Pointz has attracted well-known hip-hop and R & B artists like Joss Stone, Grandmaster Flash, and Doug E. Fresh. Stone is one of the few celebrities to start a petition to prevent 5Pointz from being closed.
Zeso, a graffiti artist from France and a 5Pointz denizen, recently took time to talk about what makes the center more than just a colorful New York artifact.
New York’s Returnable Container Act – also known as the Bottle Bill – began in 1982 to encourage recycling. The law secured a five-cent deposit tax on most carbonated beverages. Over the past two decades, new beverage containers, including water bottles, have been added to the list of redeemable recyclables.
The state receives the majority of unredeemed deposits, totaling around $100 million annually. But there is an industry of people whose gainful employment consists of scouring city streets collecting bottles and cans carrying the five-cent deposit. They are “street canners,” and redemption centers – like Sure We Can in Brooklyn – have grown around this grassroots industry.
With all the new bike lanes around the city, it seems as if more folks are plying the streets on two wheels – getting exercise and cutting down on automobile pollution. One New Yorker is taking the good in biking one step further — by recycling old bikes. Meet Thomas Porter, of Porter Cycles, who pieces together old parts into custom-made new bikes in his Bushwick shop.
(Originally seen on 219 West TV Magazine. Go here for more stories)
