Community Board member Marc Glazer said that he’s observed people parking in the same spot for an average of 6 hours on Sunday, whereas they move within 90 minutes on other days of the week. That frequent turnover of parking spots allows people to park and shop at local businesses. The full community board will get a crack at the proposal when it meets in September. (flickr photo by Lucius Kwok)

The couple says that Doggie Love NYC drove the dog home from Queens in a sweltering van and then dropped him at the couple’s West End Avenue apartment without making sure he was okay or taking steps to revive him. The building’s doorman and a judge who lives next door asked the dog-sitters if they should call a vet or get water for the dog, but the person who dropped Percy off said no, the suit says. The couple’s dog-walker found Percy dead in front of an air conditioner a few hours later, the Post reported.

Doggie Love’s lawyer told news organizations it “will be fully vindicated.”

330 West 86th now (left) and the proposed building (right).

After complaints by preservationists, the board said it would pass jurisdiction of the matter to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development. In April, the Board of Standards and Appeals had ruled that the Department of Buildings incorrectly said it could restrict the height of the building. The ruling was considered one of the last impediments to the construction of the 17-story building, which would be built on aplot of land just 20 feet wide. The developer, Dark Horse Development, had spent a decade trying to win a fight to build the condo tower.

“This decision vindicates the community advocates who opposed the demolition,” said Council Member Gale Brewer in a statement.

The Daily News tested out the app, CityMint, when it debuted this weekend . It will be available every weekend between now and Labor Day. Five runners dash from the participating restaurants, which include Francesco’s Pizzeria and Restaurant, Aroma Espresso Bar, China Fun and Big Nick’s Burger Joint and Pizza Joint, to customers hanging out in the park. You can even get Pinkberry frozen yogurt. Of course, if it takes the runners more than a few minutes to find you, you could be drinking Pinkberry Soup.

(thumbnail of CityMint project manager via Daily News)

OPEN:

Urbani Truffles
The Italian truffle company is opening its new American headquarters at 10 West End Avenue on the corner of 60th Street. The new store serves as “a combination showroom, demonstration kitchen and sales office,” the New York Times says. You can get truffle oil, truffle paste, truffle sauces… And by “you,” we mean someone richer than you.

Unnamed Boulud restaurant
Daniel Boulud will open an unnamed French-inspired restaurant with a big bar and grilled food at 64th Street and Broadway this winter. (The New York Post)

Mel’s Burger Bar
The owners of the restaurant on 110th and Broadway we told you about in May wrote in to let us know more about their opening, scheduled for August: “We’re going to be a great addition to the neighborhood- family friendly but with a full bar, 20 beers on tap, and 5 flat screens. Though we are a ‘Burger Bar’ we’ll have plenty of other things to choose from- salads, delicious appetizers and sides, ribs, quesadillas, etc.”

Flywheel Sports
The indoor cycling fitness club co-founded by Tiki Barber opened a new location at the JCC on 76th and Amsterdam a couple of months ago.

Barber Shop 72
A new barber shop on 72nd Street just East of Columbus Avenue. Plus, free lollipops!

Sasa
A new lounge has just opened at Columbus Avenue and 106th Street, Columbus-Amsterdam BID president Peter Arndtsen tells us.

Crumbs
The new Crumbs inside the Harrison has opened next door to Giggle on Amsterdam between 76th and 77th. That means the old one one block South has closed. Don’t fret! The new one’s bigger and brighter.

SHUT:

Peter’s
The restaurant and bar at 68th Street and Columbus closed at the end of June after failing to find a buyer. (thanks to tipster Cliff)

Summa Gallery
The art gallery on 85th Street and Columbus Avenue shut down after 23 years because the landlord asked for the space back. (DNAinfo)

The Shark Bar
The soul food restaurant and bar on Amsterdam between 74th and 75th has shut its doors. (Eater)

Subway
The sandwich shop at 83rd Street and Columbus has shut down. (thanks to tipster Kate for the info and photo)

Check out all of our Open and Shut columns to see what’s opened and closed in the neighborhood in recent weeks. Please send us your tips and hunches about new businesses in the neighborhood, and let us know if you see any businesses that are closing.

Police released a drawing of a man suspected in both attacks (left). He is described as a thin black man, about 5′8″ tall, and he was wearing blue shorts. Call 1-800-577-TIPS if you have any information about the attack.

The restaurant took a comment Kagan made at her Supreme Court confirmation hearings last week as an affirmation of her support for Upper West Side Chinese cuisine. When asked jokingly by Senator Lindsey Graham where she was on Christmas, Kagan said “like all Jews, I was probably at a Chinese restaurant.”

So Ivy, the small bubbly owner who works the cash register at the restaurant and refused to be photographed, decided to put up a sign that reads “Elena Kagan, We Love You Too!” She signed it “Ivy’s Chinese Restaurant, the Upper West Side’s Favorite Food.” Ivy told us she wanted to repay Kagan for her support of Chinese food by putting up the sign. As far as she knows Kagan has never eaten at Ivy’s.

This isn’t the first political statement by a restaurant on West 72nd Street. Gray’s Papaya on the corner of 72nd and Broadway loves to get in the political mix, declaring in early 2008 “Yes Senator Obama, We are Ready to Believe Again”. (Photo by Avi)

Check out Kagan’s comment about Chinese food in the clip below:

Cortright, who fractured her cheekbone and had bleeding on her brain, was conscious and talking to detectives on Wednesday. Police released the sketch at left of a person of interest (possibly a witness) the attacker. Call 1-800-577-TIPS if you have any information about the attack.

(Correction: the man in the sketch above is a “person of interest”, not necessarily a suspect in the case.)

(Thanks to Regina for the tip)

Maybe the rabid raccoon epidemic isn’t over after all. About a month ago, a woman was sitting near Bethesda Fountain in Central Park when a raccoon came up behind her and bit her on the ankle, drawing blood, she told New York magazine. The raccoon ambled off, so it’s unclear whether it was rabid. Not all raccoons who walk around in the daytime and bite people are rabid, though increased aggressiveness is a possible sign of rabies. Two other people were exposed to rabies earlier this year, one of whom stuck her fingers in a raccoon’s mouth to try to give it water. Hundreds of raccoons have been vaccinated since january as health officials have attempted to stem a rabies epidemic that broke out in the park late lastyear. Fewer sick raccoons have been found in recent weeks, leading health officials to believe the problem was getting better.

The woman who was bitten about a month ago got four full rounds of rabies shots, and a story:

“So I’m sitting on a bench right on the 72nd Street Transverse, near the Mall and Bethesda Fountain. I was sitting there maybe 30 minutes … and suddenly I felt something around my feet, and a sharp pang in my left ankle. I think I felt the presence of something first, because I remember thinking maybe it was a leaf or something, but then I felt the bite. My first thought was: Someone’s dog. I looked down at my ankle and it was dripping blood.”

Read the rest at New York mag’s Daily Intel. We asked the NYC health department to respond, and to let us know if this means the rabies epidemic hasn’t gotten better. Here’s what they sent us:

The Health Department is aware of the incident. Wildlife is a feature of every habitat, including New York City. Raccoons, skunks, bats, stray dogs and cats can carry rabies. The Health Department reminds people to respect and enjoy wild animals from a distance and avoid direct interaction. New Yorkers should report suspicious acting animals to 311 and dangerous animals to 911.

If you need more information about wild animals in city environments, you should contact the State Department of Environmental Conservation. You can reach them at 518-402-8000.

To protect yourself against rabies:

Do not touch or feed wild animals, or stray dogs or cats.

Keep garbage in tightly sealed containers.

Stay away from any animal that is behaving aggressively

Stay away from any wild animal that appears ill or acts unusually friendly. Call 311 or your local police precinct to report the animal.

Animals that have attacked, or seem likely to attack, should be reported to 911.

To protect your pet against rabies:

Make sure your dog or cat is up-to-date on rabies vaccinations.

Keep your dog leashed while outdoors unless at a specified off-leash area or park

Do not leave your pets outdoors unattended.

Do not try to separate animals that are fighting.

If your pet has been in contact with an animal that might be rabid, contact your veterinarian, and report the incident to 311.

Feed pets indoors.

If you are bitten or scratched by an animal:

Immediately wash the wound with lots of soap and water.

Seek medical care from your health care provider.

If the animal is not owned, and can be captured, call 311.

If the animal is a pet, get the owner’s name, address and telephone number so that the Health Department can monitor the animal.

To report a bite, call the Animal Bite Unit (212-676-2483) between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. during the week. At night or on weekends, call 212-POISONS (764-7667). You can also file a report online at www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/vet/vetegp.shtml.

For information about medical follow-up, call 311 or your medical provider.

(Central Park raccoon photo by D. Bruce Yolton.)

Greg Hunt after the vote.

The vote was 22 to 11 in favor of letting the bar get a liquor license as long as it adheres to a list of rules, including closing down at 12:30 a.m. from Sunday through Tuesday and 1:30 a.m. from Wednesday through Saturday (the owner, Greg Hunt, had initially asked to stay open until 3 a.m.). The manager on duty at the bar will also have a cell phone designated as the “complaint line.” And Hunt has apparently even signed a notarized document agreeing he will never put a velvet rope in front of the club.

The bar would sit on the ground floor of 25 Central Park West, a landmark building on 62nd Street. Residents of that building and the ultra-swanky 15 Central Park West across the street (home of Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein), have spoken out against the proposal. The license application now goes to the State Liquor Authority, which will take the community board vote as a recommendation.

Unlike the three-hour meeting at a subcommittee last month, in which local residents said the bar would bring drug dealers and paparazzi to the neighborhood, the hearing on Tuesday was short and filled with legalisms. Most of the comments came from lawyers hired by the various participants and representatives for people who live in 15 and 25 Central Park West, as opposed to the dozens of incensed residents who spoke last month. The words of Supreme Court justices were read, terms like “grandfathered nonconforming use” were invoked numerous times, and the name “Lindsay Lohan” was not uttered even once.

Essentially, lawyers for the residents of 25 Central Park West plan to challenge the wine bar on the grounds that the zoning for the space doesn’t allow it. Because the meeting was about a liquor license and not zoning, the issue wasn’t hashed out. But it could land the bar in court.

A rendering of the proposed bar.

If the proposal makes it past the state liquor board and he prevails on the zoning issue, Hunt says he plans to open a wine bar that serves food and plays jazz music. Residents are afraid that the bar will attract a party crowd in a quiet residential neighborhood, a fear that wasn’t helped by Hunt’s initial request to keep the place open until 3 a.m.

Hunt is still trying to mend fences with the residents, most of whom have signed petitions and letters opposing the bar. After the vote, he went up to Paul Millman, the president of 25 CPW’s condo board, and said he was willing to put new windows in on the 2nd and 3rd floor above the bar so if people smoke outside the bar the smoke won’t get into their apartments. Millman, who thinks a bar doesn’t belong in the space, said Hunt’s offer was nice but “it’s not that simple.”

“It’s not over yet,” Millman said. “There are other avenues we’re going to pursue.”