BY JANEL BLADOW | Busy, busy! That’s the buzz in our neighborhood and people aren’t even thinking yet of — oh gosh, don’t say it — the upcoming holidays!
Halloween Recap…. The Seaport streets were super spooky this weekend! Not only with little, two-legged goblins and bigger, two-legged monsters, but howl-arious four-legged beasties of all kinds.
The spooktacular action kicked off on Friday with the 8th-annual Salty Paw doggy masquerade party at Peck Slip Plaza. More than 75 dogs donned their frightfully-est and frilliest costumes to parade around the square, making it their biggest pup party ever.
Taking home the top prize for best canine costume was a gorgeously decked out Pretender the Pitbull, canine kid of Front Street neighbor Deb Koblen. She came as the spunky Frenchy of “Grease” fame. Could she sing and dance as well as Stockard Channing? Who cares? She had all the right moves to win our hearts. She won the Salty Paw Spa Experience package — bath, blow out, pawdicure, and lots of kisses.
On Saturday night, the streets really got scary. Our little ’hood held its 26th-annual Halloween parade and trick-or-treat party, now hosted by the Old Seaport Alliance (OSA). The event has grown so big over the last two and a half decades that it’s been moved from the FishBridge Park at Water & Dover Sts. over to Peck Slip Plaza to accommodate everyone.
Kids and their escorts started lining up at 5 p.m. for a map of shops, restaurants and residential buildings where they could pick up treats. More than 500 kids showed up and organizers quickly realized that lining them up for the traditional parade through the streets wasn’t possible. The fire department closed the streets so everyone could ramble at will — a big thanks to our Bravest for their support! Also many thanks to all the businesses that participated. Many ran out of candy before 7 p.m.
Halloween heroes Kolten and Calvin Zink protect their neighborhood from a scary zombie.
“The good news is that meeting in Peck Slip Plaza was a great way to get everybody into one area,” said Amanda Bryron Zink, an OSA member and owner of Salty Paw. “I noticed that people came back to Peck Slip to meet up with their friends again. Plus, it was a Saturday night and wonderful weather which helped make the evening even better.”
Taste of the Seaport Update… The sixth annual street-treats fete a few weeks ago on Oct. 17 to benefit the arts programs of two local schools — Peck Slip and Spruce Street — was an overwhelming success, according to organizers. More than double the amount of tickets were sold this year over last. The cooking demonstrations by local chefs were a big hit. More than 40 restaurants from Stone Street to Peck Slip were represented.
By 3 p.m. most of the restaurants had run out of food and they had to stop selling tickets.
A lot has been reported about the Health Department showing up to check stands, but organizers say that while the inspectors’ appearance was a surprise, there were no violations or citations issued. Organizers say they plan to work closely with the department next year to ensure this doesn’t happen again.
Seaport Future… Last week’s meeting of Save Our Seaport SOS proposed a vision for the future of the historic district. The group outlined what can be done to bring new life to the area while sticking to the guidelines of the Historic District concept. At the center is the South Street Seaport Museum. The group advocates that the museum receive a lease (not a license) to control all three sides of Pier 16, exclusive rights to the bulkhead between Piers 15 and 16, and the right to lease any spaces on Pier 16 for revenue-generating uses. That’s just one proposal in the 11 point plan, “Fair Lease = Fair Winds.” The goal is to make the Seaport area the historic and educational attraction it could be. For more on the proposal, go to www.saveourseaport.org, and click on the flyer.
Evening Shop Til You Drop… The Night Markets are on! The next one is Saturday, Nov. 7, starting at 7 p.m. Both the Fulton Stall Market and Cannon’s Walk will be filled with local artists and makers selling crafts and all kinds of treats. Local restaurants will offer $5 dishes and $5 beer and wine. Plus there willl be plenty of great live music.
The Red Coats Are Leaving… It may surprise some neighbors to learn that New York City — then mostly Downtown and the Seaport area — was home base for the British during the Revolutionary War. On Nov. 25, 1783, they boarded their ships and headed hom, leaving America’s shores at last. Now you can retrace their steps and learn about our part in history. The “Evacuation Day Walking Tour,” led by New York City Tour Guide Fred Cookingham, follows the path of General George Washington and his troops as they triumphantly entered the city. Saturday, Nov. 21, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., meet at Fraunces Tavern Museum, 54 Pearl St. Tickets are $15 for kids and $20 for adults, and must be purchased in advance at frauncestavernmuseum.org.
