What would a Cooper Union reveal be without a check-up on its neighbor? The always busy crew over at the Cooper Square Hotel on the Bowery have been doing double -duty to ready Table 8, the just-opened dining experience that winds its way through architect Carlos Zapata's spaceship of hospitality. A forest of new trees has recently gone into the ground, transforming the expanse of dirt and construction debris on the corner of East 5th into a little nook of quietude.
The leafy canopies will protect diners from the summer sun and the bustle of the Bowery. They also create a garden in the air for poet Hettie Jones, long-time tenant of the little old walk-up next to the hotel. But when considering the hotel's open spaces, those stuck down below have nothing on the party people on the wraparound deck atop the hotel, which offers views even an Alaskan governor would drool over. No doubt all involved are hoping this patch of green will do something to solve the problems between the new kid on the block and the commandos next door.
