It’s never quiet, even as people escape the workplace for a mid-week holiday or very, very long weekend. In any case, we have a couple of items, starting with an email we just got.

1) Council Member Bill de Blasio continues trying to hammer at architect Robert Scarano. His office is now circulating a letter to Buildings Commissioner Patricia Lancaster asking for a halt to all Scarano projects “until all investigations are complete.” The letter, which Mr. de Blasio is encouraging residents to copy and paste and forward to DOB, says in part:

Throughout the city, Mr. Scarano is synonymous with bad contractors, dangerous job sites and out of scale development.

The State Education Department recently sent a letter stating DOB is working closely with you on a number of investigations focused upon Robert Scarano, RA. In light of the seriousness of the issues raised by these investigations, I am respectfully requesting that you immediately issue stop work orders on all construction sites related to Robert Scarano until all investigations are complete.

All that having been said, it appears that things are full speed ahead with the project that drew Mr. de Blasio to Mr. Scarano’s buildings in the first place, 360 Smith Street.

2) The owner of the notorious Greenpoint Hotel, Sam Pearl, is in the process of buying five buildings at 150-158 Fourth Avenue between Douglass and Butler streets. They have been emptied and boarded up over a number of years and we’re certain the process of dislodging tenants has not been a happy or pretty one. Gabby Warshawer scores the scoop in the Real Deal. Mr. Pearl told Ms. Warshawer he wants to build a 12-story, 64,000 square foot building on the site and that he is in contract to buy the site for $8.7 million.