Earlier this morning, 4 and 6 train service was suspended for a couple hours between Brooklyn Bridge and 42nd Street, due to an investigation. It turns out that a man was struck and killed by a train near Spring Street before 6 a.m. more ›

Looks like Lady Gaga is looking for a fancy zip code. She is the latest celeb to check out the duplex penthouse at 304 Spring Street in Hudson Square (located near that controversial trash tower). According to the NY Post, the Lady checked out the $21,000-a-month penthouse recently—wearing a garter belt, wig, high heels and knee-high stockings, of course. The condo features a private roof deck where the superstar can escape the paparazzi, and a whole lot more. The paper reports she's also looking for a Hamptons beach house. Looks like Yonkers didn't make the cut. more ›

A reader sent us the above photos, taken around 3 p.m. today on Spring Street near Varick. As you can see, someone lost a motorcycle today. No one was harmed, the fire was put out and here's to hoping the owner had insurance. Read more at The Abbeville blog. more ›

Elettaria: Hendrix shredded here once upon a time, when it was a music venue called The 8th Wonder, but now the stage is an open kitchen and South Asian-spiced American dishes are the stars. Decorated by the man behind Allen & Delancey, the seductive 72-seat interior (pictured) features a rustic reclaimed barn-wood ceiling, plush banquettes, old-world paintings and exposed brick walls. Appetizers include a dish of dayboat sea scallops with celery root puree, oxtail, Meyer lemon and cilantro leaves, while entrées like roasted chicken with sweet and sour tomato ravioli and smoked sunchokes sound irresistible. Behind the 14-seat steel bar, Death & Co. alums concoct their fancy cocktails. 33 West Eighth Street, (212) 677-3833. more ›

The tragic death of a construction worker at the Trump Soho building has put the spotlight on the spotty history of a contractor on the project. On Monday afternoon, a worker, Yuriy Vanchytskyy (pictured below), fell 42 stories to his death when the molds he and other workers were pouring concrete into broke, causing a collapse into lower floors. more ›

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THEATER: The salty, electric dynamo that is Elaine Stritch shows no sign of waning – about to turn 83-years-young, the show biz legend has kicked off 2008 with a reprise of her Tony-winning cabaret show. Backed by a six-piece band and performed in two acts for a dining audience at the newly restored Café Carlyle, Elaine Stritch at Liberty, co-written with the New Yorker’s John Lahr, is a hilarious, old-fashioned ride through star-studded post-war Broadway, bursting with stories from her roles in such legendary productions as Company, Bus Stop, and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? The Times raves: “Every story in her arsenal of seamlessly stitched personal anecdotes is illustrated with body language that erupts like lightning out of words spoken in the gravelly voice of a tough old dame with a tender heart. Because she has the gift of gab, this loudmouthed life of the party could go on forever.” It’s an expensive night, but worth it. Dining reservations are almost booked through the end of the run on Jan 19th, but they do accept walk-ins for the bar seating. – John Del Signore more ›

Sean Combs clocked a 31 year old clubgoer in SoHo on Sunday, right in the kisser...twice. Oh yes he Diddy! The rap mogul was at the after-hours club Kiosk (located at 95 Spring Street) when the rumble went down, and he's yet to turn himself in. amNewYork reports that "he was expected to appear at the First Precinct this morning for questioning."

Police would not identify the victim in the case but they said First Precinct officers responded to a 3:15 a.m. call for a fight at the club. They found a man, who was identified as Steven Acevedo, suffering from at least two wounds to his face, the result of two punches Combs allegedly landed.

Do you hate graffiti? Do you also hate Brooklyn gentrification? Then you're really going to hate this email we received from Gothamist reader Paul Vogeler: more ›

Will Manhattan's clubs be moving to the 10013? With the group that opened Cain on 27th Street having opened Gold Bar at 389 Broome Street in February; and uber-promoter Danny A having opened the VIP-only Upstairs on Spring Street and Broadway, The Observer is reporting on a move of "clubland" to Chinatown. more ›

Johnny Utah's -- Nothing says classy like a mechanical bull and an enormous bourbon selection. Marlon Manton, formerly of Blue Smoke, will be serving up twists on Tex-Mex, including Texas brisket with red-eye gravy, and smoked chorizo with pickled okra. 25 West 51st Street, (212) 265-8824. more ›

Over the weekend, we spotted a new addition to Pinkberry’s Le Klint-inspired hanging lamps, pebble floors and ghost chairs. more ›

We've been hearing about a plan to increase security downtown by placing security cameras and license plate readers in Lower Manhattan, "ring of steel"-style for a while, but now the NY Times has word on when it'll happen. According to police officials, more than 100 cameras will be in place by the end of the year and if it's fully financed, over 3,000 private and public cameras will be up and running. From the Times:

Three thousand surveillance cameras would be installed below Canal Street by the end of 2008, about two-thirds of them owned by downtown companies. Some of those are already in place. Pivoting gates would be installed at critical intersections; they would swing out to block traffic or a suspect car at the push of a button. more ›

Got a tidbit for us? Send it to the feedbag. more ›

A truly bizarre crime is reported in today's Post. Apparently a man took a passed-out woman from a subway platform and then tried to assault her in Nolita. more ›

Bruni visits the recently reopened Provence (now owned and run by Cookshop & Five Points’ Marc Meyer and Vicki Freeman), awards the restaurant one star. He likes the minimal changes they’ve made to the design; the food, not so much: “Provence’s is inconsistent and dull,” he says. He does like the wine and the cheese selection though. more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: unstable scaffolding at Manhattan's 265 West 37th St., a police car multi-vehicle accident at Thomas S. Boyland St. and Eastern Parkway in Brooklyn, and a suspicious package at East 161st St. and Grand Concourse in the Bronx.
• How could the McGreevey saga get any more strange? Maybe if Jim McGreevey decided to join the priesthood. He told WNBC that he is entering a seminary to become an Episcopal priest.
• Politics makes strange bedfellows: the lobbyist most responsible for killing Bloomberg's beloved West Side Stadium project is now a major backer of his beloved Congestion Tax proposal.
• The sister of the Brooklyn woman accused of killing her newborn child by dumping it with the trash on her family's back porch is claiming she didn't know there was a still-alive infant in the pile of bloody towels her sister gave her to throw away.
• The New York Times features a slideshow of the United Palace theater, the 1930s baroque movie palace turned evangelical church hall turned current music venue.
• The Bancroft family rebuffs Rupert Murdoch's bid to buy the Wall Street Journal and other properties, and Dow Jones employees all exhale in a giant sigh of relief.
• The Dolan family is taking Cablevision private in a move certain to attract even more of the blame if the Knicks' woes continue next season.
• Meet New York City's new generation of preservationists.

FR.OG -- This sleek space in SoHo brings together Chef Didier Virot and his partner from Aix Brasserie, Philip Kirsh, in a tribute to parts of the world that had at one time been colonized by the French and influenced by French cuisine. The name stands for French Origin (it has nothing to do with amphibians), and the menu provides a global culinary romp with stops in Vietnam, Morocco, Lebanon and, of course, France. The sleek, trendy space (pictured above) seats 120 on two levels including some seats with a view into the open kitchen. Be sure to try the FR.OG martini -- vodka with a touch of cardamom and star anise. 71 Spring Street, between Broadway and Lafayette, 212-966-5050. more ›

Summer's around the corner and the party invitations are beginning to roll in. If you want to get invited back to their share on the shore, the key is bringing a great hostess gift (and not puking off the balcony). You don’t need to deplete your bank account to make a good impression; in fact for only $20 bucks we found the perfect gift. more ›

• 90-floor hotel at the Javits Center? That'll be great for the West Side Stadium - oh, wait
• Huh: Kean University hires former NJ Governor James McGreevey to teach ethics, law and leadership - we sort of understand it because they're just paying him $17,500, but STILL
• He's ready: Suspected sexual attacker Peter Braunstein was found mentally fit to stand trial
• Former Montessori school headmistress Lina Sinha's 14 year sentence for seducing a student is one year more than the student's age at the time
• Biggest non-shock: Duane Reade being ranked #7 out of 7 pharmacy chains surveyed
• It's Brooklyn "zipper pin" designer versus the Gap; maybe she can complain about the Williamsburg jeans while she's at it
• 11 Spring Street is busy getting buffed
• The Department of Transportation may tear down or renovate the Kosciuszko Bridge because it has "narrow lanes, insufficient shoulders and limited sight distance"
• ...and in other DOT news, Streetsblog has the agency's plans for Brooklyn's Grand Army Plaza - which makes you wonder why the DOT can't put them up on their site for the public to see (Streetsblog also looks at what the Grand Army Plaza Coalition's ideas are)

April 20-21: Wine Rave NYC more ›

It's no win for Donald Trump on two counts - and we bet Rosie O'Donnell is cackling. First, the Department of Buildings has rejected a permit for the Trump Soho Hotel- for the third time! Apparently Trump's contractors can't issue plans for the 40-floor tall hotel and residence that are compliant with zoning laws. It's unclear what the issue with the last set of plans was, but there have been claims that the property isn't enough hotel and it's too much residence. more ›

The controversial proposal to turn the UPS lot on Spring Street and West Street into a place for 106 Sanitation trucks may align Donald Trump with critics of his planned Trump Soho Hotel. The Donald takes a break from blabbing about ladies of The View and tells the Post, "I don't like trucks, the fumes, the traffic from the standpoint of the community... If the community wanted help, I would certainly help." more ›

Even though many of you may have an 11 Spring Street hangover, if you didn't make it to NoLIta to see the fuss, here's a video from trevor. He tried to get in, but the line was crazy...so he filmed the line and wrote, "It took about 4.5 minutes to walk it as fast as i could without running.. or running over people." We mapped it on Google and it's about a 1/5th of a mile. (Did you go to 11 Spring? Did you have to wait long to get in?) more ›

We stopped by 11 Spring yesterday for a quick visit. Lines around the block, but everyone was polite and things seemed to be moving pretty fast. If you come on Saturday, please try to be patient-- and if you're in a hurry, get there early! The doors open at 11am. more ›

Click for full-size timelapse shot. more ›

The opening of the 11 Spring Street Wooster Collective project is still a couple of weeks away, but the building has already been transformed by artists from all over the world. Check out some of the stuff going up on the outside walls: more ›

Midtown Subway Monkey by |Shrued. more ›

It looks like Donald Trump will get to build his 45-story Trump SoHo Hotel Condominium at 246 Spring Street. Though the city hasn't officially issued construction permits, the Greenwich Village Society of Historic Preservation heard from city officials that the hotel would be allowed, and made its grievances known. more ›