The Wall Street Journal - 26.11.2019

A8B| Tuesday, November 26, 2019 ** THE WALL STREET JOURNAL.

through an outreach program

that works with public schools

and community organizations.

It also has expanded its offer-

ings to include a dance pro-

gram and classes for adults.

The story of the Third

Street safe is one shrouded in

mystery. No current employ-

ees know for sure how old it

is, when it was last opened or

what it might have stored over

the years. Some wonder if a

rare instrument—say, a Stradi-

varius violin—could be inside.

The former school building

on Third Street that houses

the safe eventually became

Maryhouse, a faith-based

home that provides food and

shelter for women in need.

The safe’s weight—at least

4,000 pounds, by Ms. Lewis’s

estimate—may have been the

key factor in the decision not

to move it to 11th Street back

in the 1970s. Similarly, in the

past week, Third Street found

the safe too heavy to move.

The safe is believed to date

from between the 1880s and

the 1930s, according to Elaad

Israeli, a locksmith based in

Floral Park, N.Y. He has been

recruited by Third Street for

the safecracking job.

The safe occupies a spot

near Maryhouse’s kitchen and

has remained something of a

curiosity. The top of the safe

has served rather ignomini-

ously as a surface to store just

about anything, from silver-

ware to the stray newspaper.

Volunteers at Maryhouse

have come up with their own

theories about what the safe

contains. “We think Jimmy

Hoffa is in there,” joked Jane

Sammon, referring to the leg-

endary U.S. labor leader who

went missing in 1975.

If the safe has anything of fi-

nancial value inside, there is the

question of who can claim own-

ership—Third Street or Mary-

house. Officials with both insti-

tutions said they believe they

can readily resolve the matter.

That said, it probably won’t

be an issue, at least according

to Mr. Israeli. He has opened

hundreds of safes—the task

takes 30 to 50 minutes on av-

erage, he said—but he is hard-

pressed to think of instances

where any treasures are found.

“It’s usually a bunch of

knickknacks,” he added.

In 1972, the Third Street Mu-
sic School Settlement, a Manhat-
tan-based pioneer in arts educa-
tion, moved to its present home
on East 11th Street. Though the
institution kept its name after
the relocation, it didn’t take a
piece of its history—namely, a
hefty safe whose contents and
combination have been a secret
over the years.
Now, the school is finally
going to see what is inside.
Third Street is planning to
hire a noted locksmith to open
the safe in the coming days at
its former location at 55 East
Third St. in Manhattan. The ef-
fort is tied to the institution’s
125th anniversary celebration.
As the East Village music
school looks to honor its past,
this seems to be an obvious
time for reckoning with the
safe. And maybe find a treasure
or two—if not in terms of mate-
rial value then in terms of bet-
ter understanding the institu-
tion’s history. “This is a window
into the soul of Third Street,”
said Valerie Lewis, Third
Street’s executive director.
The school, a nonprofit in-
stitution run on an annual
budget of $8.5 million, has
long been heralded as one of
the first of its kind in commu-
nity-based music education in
the city, if not the country.
It was founded with the
idea of providing high-quality
lessons to members of immi-
grant communities in its Man-
hattan locale, in addition to
offering social services related
to housing, employment and
medical care.
Today, the school no longer
incorporates the social mis-
sion, but its artistic one con-
tinues to flourish. Third Street
offers instruction to 1,900 stu-
dents in its building, including
many who receive financial
aid, plus another 3,

BYCHARLESPASSY

Mystery Safe Set for Cracking

Speculation about

what will be found is

swirling around a music

school in Manhattan

The safe occupies a spot near Maryhouse’s kitchen and has remained something of a curiosity.

CLAUDIO PAPAPIETRO FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL (2)

GREATERNEWYORKWATCH

NEWARK AIRPORT

Commercial Flight

Targeted by Laser

Another commercial flight

has been targeted by a laser.

The crew of a JetBlue flight

originating in West Palm Beach,

Fla., noticed the laser as it was

flying Saturday night over Pater-

son, N.J., on approach to Newark

Liberty International Airport. The

Federal Aviation Administration

is investigating.

Lasers can temporarily blind a

pilot and are considered a prob-

lem at airports around the coun-

try. There have been more than

two dozen laser incidents re-

ported at Newark this year, and

about 5,200 nationwide.

—Associated Press

NEW JERSEY

Convict Voting-

Rights Bill Advances

New Jersey convicts on pa-

role or probation would have

their right to vote restored un-

der a bill working through the

Legislature.

The measureapproved Mon-

day by the Democratic-led As-

sembly would restore voting

rights to roughly 80,000 con-

victs. It was passed 46-23, with

one abstention.

People convicted of a crime

are currently barred from voting

in New Jersey. Under the legisla-

tion, those who are out on pa-

role or probation could cast their

ballots.

According to the National

Conference of State Legislatures,

New Jersey would join 16 other

states and the District of Colum-

bia that bar only those convicts

who are incarcerated from voting.

Most Republicans opposed the

bill, saying it lacked common

sense because the convicts hadn’t

yet paid their debt to society.

—Associated Press

CONNECTICUT

Thieves Steal Furs

Worth $11,

Police in Connecticut are

searching for three suspects

who allegedly stole $11,

worth of fur coats.

Officers responded to a re-

port of a theft in progress at

Albe Furs in Westport just be-

fore 11:30 a.m. on Friday. The

men reportedly grabbed at least

two coats and fled in a car.

Workers at another local

business reported that they be-

lieve the same suspects had

been in their store the previous

day asking about fur coats, po-

lice said.

—Associated Press

ROCHESTER

Bodybuilder, 82,

Clobbers Intruder

An intruder might have

thought an 82-year-old woman

living alone was an easy target,

but he didn’t count on Willie

Murphy being an award-winning

bodybuilder with nerves of steel.

Ms. Murphy told WHAM ra-

dio she was getting ready for

bed Thursday night when a man

pounded on the door of her

Rochester home saying he

needed an ambulance. She called

police, but didn’t open the door.

Then the man broke in.

Ms. Murphy said she clob-

bered him with a table, poured

shampoo in his face and was

beating him with a broom when

police arrived. The man was hos-

pitalized, and police tweeted a

selfie with Ms. Murphy, calling

her “tough as nails.” She says she

works out almost daily at a gym

and can dead lift 225 pounds.

—Associated Press

National Grid PLC will re-

sume connecting new natural-

gas customers in Queens,

Brooklyn and Long Island after

reaching a deal with New York

state that ends a monthslong

moratorium.

The utility said Monday it

would provide service to the

customers who have been put

on a wait list and will begin

processing new applications.

Under the agreement, Na-

tional Grid also will pay a $

million penalty to compensate

customers for hardships as a

result of the moratorium and

for new conservation measures

and clean-energy projects.

“Every decision we make is

driven by National Grid’s com-

mitment to provide safe and

reliable service to our custom-

ers, including the decision to

implement the moratorium,”

said Badar Khan, interim pres-

ident of National Grid U.S.

“We understand the frus-

trations of everyone who ex-

perienced a delay in service

during this period and regret

that we did not provide more

notice or explanation to our

customers about the morato-

rium,” he added.

National Grid stopped new

hookups this past spring after

state regulators rejected a

proposal for a new pipeline.

The company said it didn’t

have sufficient capacity to

meet the expanding demand

for natural gas in the region.

The utility serves 1.8 million

customers downstate.

New York Gov. Andrew

Cuomo, a Democrat, threat-

ened to revoke National Grid’s

certificate to operate earlier

this month unless the utility

presented a plan for meeting

the natural-gas demand in the

region.

On Monday, the company

said it has identified short-

term measures that would al-

low it to provide services to

new customers for the next

two years.

“This agreement is a vic-

tory for customers,” Mr.

Cuomo said. “National Grid

will pay a significant penalty

for its failure to address the

supply issue, its abuse of its

customers and the adverse

economic impact they have

caused.”

National Grid said it plans

to present long-term options

to serve the region within the

next three months. That in-

cludes examining renewable-

energy sources, conservation

strategies, a potential new

pipeline and liquefied-natural

gas and compressed-natural

gas facilities.

The company and New York

state officials said they plan to

identify the best long-term op-

tion by June so it can be in

place by the fall of 2021.

“No one should have to

worry about keeping the heat

on during the holidays and

winter months,” said Nassau

County Executive Laura Cur-

ran, a Democrat. “I look for-

ward to working with the state

and all stakeholders to reach a

long-term solution that will

provide safe, reliable service

to consumers while safeguard-

ing Long Island’s clean energy

future.”

National Grid, which ser-

vices much of New York, Mas-

sachusetts and Rhode Island,

said it receives about 8,

applications a year from com-

mercial, industrial and resi-

dential consumers in Long Is-

land, Brooklyn and Queens for

new or expanded service.

BYJOSEPHDEAVILA

National Grid Ends

Moratorium on New

Hookups in New York

The utility will pay a

$36 million penalty

to make up for

customer hardships.

Students rehearse at the Third Street Music School Settlement.

GREATER NEW YORK

NY

K AYA SURVIVED!

She was born 4 months

early and spent more than

5 months in the hospital.

© 2017 March of Dimes Foundation

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