IN A SPACE DOWNTOWN On Cortlandt Street that last housed a messenger service, Khan Kashani just opened a women’s clothing boutique specializing in expensive designer labels.

Mr. Kashani is betting that affluent residents moving downtown will want to shop for the pricey yet casual clothes that he is selling – without leaving the neighborhood.

"There are a lot of condos going up, bringing in people who want luxury," he says.

Lured by Wall Street’s high-earning professionals and a growing number of affluent residents, upscale retailers, from BMW to Thomas Pink and Hickey Freeman, have opened locations downtown.

Basics, too

THOUGH THE STORES are welcome additions, there is a downside to their arrival:Their presence is driving up rents and driving out long-time independent merchants – a transformation that isn’t seen as a good thing by residents, who also desire supermarkets and dry cleaners.

Thanks to a wave of condominium conversions, about 46,000 people now live downtown – almost 20,000 more than in 2002 and up from 31,000 in 2003.

The newcomers who are being enticed by those units are exactly the type of wealthy consumers targeted by prestigious retailers.

Median household income in the neighborhood surged to $162,700 last year, compared with $111,000 in 2004, according to the Alliance for Downtown New York.

Ground-floor rents are rising dramatically as the area attracts more retail. Sites on Broadway, Wall Street and Broad Street are leasing for $200 a square foot, up from about $85 in 2002.

Exclusive merchants that have migrated to the area, which include leather goods designer Hermes and men’s clothier Canali, are more than willing to pay the freight required to be in the heart of the world’s financial capital.

Many of them have set up shop in grand old bank buildings. Tiffany, which moved into the former Trust Co. of America building at 37 Wall this fall, said the recent influx of residents was the draw.

"That area has always been a very important business hub, but now with all these conversions,thanksgiving key rings, you’ve got this real community," says Beth Canavan, an executive vice president at Tiffany.

Though status retailers are a sign of the area’s vitality, residents also need basic goods and services, some of which used to be supplied by independents that can no longer afford the rents.

"The mom-and-pop stores – the little jeweler,tiffany bracelets sale, the little discount variety store, the non-national food retailers, the delis, the nondescript stores – [they] are being replaced," says Faith Hope Consolo, head of the retail division at Prudential Douglas Elliman.

More to come

OVERALL,shop for tiffany key rings, there are about 1,200 shops and restaurants downtown, including fixtures like department store Century 21, on Cortlandt Street,tiffany bangles for sale, and electronics emporium J&R Music and Computer World, on Park Row.

More retail is on the way.

The Fulton Street Transit Center, which is slated to be completed late this year or early in 2009,tiffany earrings clearance, will offer 20,000 square feet.

The eventual build-out of the World Trade Center complex will provide another 490,000 square feet of space for retail activity – about 60,000 more than the original WTC.

And unlike that shopping space, which was largely underground to capture consumers commuting by subway, much of the space that will come on-line over the next few years will be at ground level or above.

You don’t have to pay a fortune to get cute and colorful bracelets for going back to school.

Take a look at these bangles and cuffs from Mudd in the photo at right.

The casted filigree cuff on top is $14; the stretch bracelets are $12 each, and the festive bangle set is $14.

They’re available at Kohl’s. To find a store or shop online: kohls.com.

Help a child, get a gift

Want your very own watermelon-, grape- or chocolate-scented pencil?

Catching Fireflies, the adorable gift store with locations in Berkley and Rochester, is collecting new school supplies to give to kids in need.

If you bring in five or more school items, you’ll get a free scented pencil.

Among the supplies Catching Fireflies is accepting for donation: backpacks, pencils, pens, markers,necklaces, highlighters,thanksgiving bangles, kids’ scissors, notebooks, folders, binders, rulers,tiffany necklaces sale, index cards,buy tiffany rings, tissues and hand sanitizer.

There’s a limit of four free scented pencils per family.

School supplies will be turned over to the Judson Center in Royal Oak for distribution.

The Berkley store is at 3117 W. Twelve Mile; 248-336-2030.

The Rochester store is at 203 E. University; 248-650-3318.

For more info: catchingfireflies.com

Intimacy at Somerset

Because girls of all ages need something special for the back-to-school season: Intimacy, perhaps the holy grail of bra stores,discount tiffany Pendants, will be coming to the Somerset Collection in mid-September.

The shop, which has locations in some of the nation’s toniest malls, specializes in such European brands as La Perla, Prima Donna and Chantelle and boasts 90 sizes, from A to K cups. It offers free custom alterations and promises to teach women how to wear bras, use them to eliminate back fat and care for them properly.

It will be the only Intimacy store in the state.

You find it at Somerset Collection South (Big Beaver and Coolidgein Troy. Info: myintimacy.com.

Contact GEORGEA KOVANIS: 313-222-6842 or kovanis@freepress.com

Red stones enhance two eye-catching pins destined for the fundraiser.

If your jewelry box is overflowing, some of the pieces you no longer wear could find a new home Thursday during Baubles, Bangles and Beads,tiffany keys, a jewelry swap/fundraiser for the Chattanooga Symphony & Opera Guild.

The event,tiffany rings sale, the first of its kind for the guild, serves a triple purpose. Primarily, it will raise money for educational programs for the Youth Orchestras, but young women at Girls Inc. also will benefit. And those attending get the chance to bring home new-to-you pieces to add to their personal collections.

Admission is $25 plus at least one quality piece of costume jewelry from home (bring more if you like). Organizers stress the importance of quality costume jewelry. No junk please, said publicity co-chairwoman Suzanne Ahn.

The first item you bring will be donated to Girls Inc.

"They can use the jewelry as Christmas gifts for their mentors who have become very special in their lives,buy tiffany bracelets," Ahn said.

For every other item you bring, you can take home half that amount from other donated jewelry. For instance, if you bring four items, you can take home two.

"It’s an opportunity for other people to pick up gifts for other people or to add to their own collections," Ahn added. "This was an idea for something fun and different to do."

Reservations are advised so organizers can get a head count of how many to expect, as wine and hors d’oeuvres will be served on the mezzanine level at Greenlife Grocery.

"And you can do your grocery shopping on the way out,tiffany Pendant," Ahn said.

If you go

–What: Baubles, Bangles and Beads jewelry swap.

–When: 4-7 p.m. Thursday.

–Where: Greenlife Grocery,thanksgiving earrings, 301 Manufacturers Road.

–Admission: $25 plus at least one piece of quality costume jewelry.

Jason Mraz isn’t a family farmer in the traditional sense that embodies the spirit of Farm Aid.

But the "I’m Yours" singer is probably close enough.

Mraz’s grandfathers were farmers, and almost every night he ate the tomatoes and okra that they grew. He grew up around farms in Mechanicsville, Va., and today he harvests avocados on his own Southern California farm.

And now, continuing what might be considered a natural progression,tiffany ring, Mraz is one of the hipper headliners of this year’s Farm Aid, coming to Verizon Wireless Amphitheater on Sunday.

The benefit concert features Farm Aid founders Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp, along with Farm Aid board member Dave Matthews, Wilco, Gretchen Wilson and others.

"When I was younger, I remember that was one of the first festivals I was ever aware of," says Mraz, who is not committed to farming commercially but does it to serve his community.

Mraz was invited to perform at Farm Aid by Nelson.

"I’m really touched I’m a part of this, especially during a time when the food industry needs more of these events happening, buying locally and buying organically," Mraz says.

And that’s what Farm Aid, the longest-running benefit concert series, is all about. Farm Aid has raised nearly $35 million since the first concert in Champaign, Ill., in 1985. This is the first time St. Louis or Missouri has hosted Farm Aid.

"We continue to be excited about coming to St. Louis," Farm Aid executive director Carolyn Mugar says. "We know it’s right for us."

Farm Aid’s mission is to promote a "vibrant family farm system of agriculture in America." It does so by creating a demand for food from family farms, connecting consumers with farmers,tiffany cuff Links clearance, and telling people about the benefits of family farming and the downsides of industrial farming.

Mugar says she had a good feeling about bringing Farm Aid to St. Louis when organizers and local dignitaries announced the concert this summer at the Soulard Market, and that feeling has continued with all the work between Farm Aid, Verizon, promoter Live Nation, the artists and area farmers.

Organizers have been working hard to ensure the show is the "right mix" for St. Louis,tiffany Pendant, with classic rock, country and "four main artists who are huge," Mugar says.

Not huge yet, but equally interesting are the breakthrough artists Farm Aid presents.

"We like bringing in people on the cusp," Mugar says. "That’s fun, when you can look back and the first time you saw someone was at a Farm Aid and now they’re Mr. Big."

She thinks Phosphorescent, Matthew Houck’s folksy outfit, may be one of those acts.

"We’re stoked, of course," Houck says. "This is a great thing (Nelson) started, and we’re proud to help out in any way."

Phosphorescent recently released "To Willie," a tribute to Nelson featuring songs such as "I Gotta Get Drunk," "Reasons to Quit" and "Too Sick to Pray."

After he heard the CD,tiffany money clips for sale, Nelson called the band to give his stamp of approval, hang out with Houck and ask Phosphorescent to join him on Farm Aid.

"I’m looking forward to sharing the stage with all these musical icons," Houck says. "And if we end up playing with Willie, there’s any number of good songs I could play with him."

There’s a good chance that could happen, along with any number of on-stage collaborations. "There’s going to be surprises," Mugar promises.

And though music takes center stage at Farm Aid, the bigger task is never forgotten: promoting family farming.

At Homegrown Village, concertgoers will find interactive activities and opportunities to speak with farmers. Organic corn dogs and other Earth-friendly concessions will be available.

"Be hungry and have your spirits high," Mugar says, calling Farm Aid "the biggest family farm restaurant in St. Louis, but only for one day."

Matthews, who’ll perform with Tim Reynolds,tiffany, says the festival will try to open people’s eyes regarding the importance of family farming.

"As the awareness of quality food grows, the quality of food is becoming much more important," he says. "There’s more light at the end of the tunnel now than there was two decades ago."

When three of Broward County’s once powerful residents are sentenced to federal prison in the next few weeks, their fates will lie in the hands of one man — U.S. District Judge James I. Cohn.

Cohn wields great authority and power as a lifetime appointee to the federal bench in Fort Lauderdale but outside court, he’ll introduce himself as "Jimmy Cohn" in his soft Alabama drawl or gently inquire about some personal detail you’ll have assumed he’s too busy to remember.

"A true Southern gentleman" and "tough but fair" were the most common descriptions offered by dozens of attorneys who have handled cases in his courtroom and were interviewed by the Sun Sentinel.

And yes, many of them said that he doles out tough sentences to convicted criminals.

For his part, Cohn said in a rare interview that he would like to be known as "somebody that was fair and reasonable and someone who treated people with courtesy and respect and somebody who followed the law."

The high-profile sentencings start June 2 with former Broward School Board member Beverly Gallagher, who took bribes from undercover FBI agents posing as contractors. She expects a sentence of three years and one month under a plea agreement reached with prosecutors.

A week later comes one of the most hyped days of judgment in Broward County in recent times. On June 9, Cohn will sentence now-disbarred attorney Scott Rothstein, who faces a maximum of 100 years in prison for running a massive Ponzi scheme out of his Fort Lauderdale law firm.

On July 8,tiffany money clips on sale, former Miramar City Commissioner Fitzroy Salesman faces a maximum of 60 years imprisonment after he was convicted of bribery and extortion for taking payments in the same FBI sting that ensnared Gallagher. Experts predict he’ll serve four to eight years in prison.

Forecasting the punishment Rothstein faces is a competitive sport right now in local legal and political circles. Most bets fall in the range of 30 years to life, though the disgraced lawyer’s help in pulling off a government sting of an alleged Italian mobster has some wondering if that will win him a meaningful reduction in sentencing.

The decision lies with Cohn alone, though the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the federal probation office and the defense will all make recommendations. As a judge, Cohn is prohibited from saying what he’ll do until sentencing day.

"He’s a judge who’s prepared, he’s decisive and he plays it down the middle. The rulings cut both ways,tiffany jewellery," said Bill Matthewman, a defense attorney who represented convicted cop killer Kenneth Wilk in Cohn’s courtroom in 2007.

Cohn "will give everyone a good hearing on trial issues but once they are convicted, if they are convicted, I think he believes they are also due a tough sentence that punishes them,tiffany Pendants for sale," Matthewman said.

Cohn, 61, is a lifelong Democrat nominated to the federal judiciary in 2003 by Republican President George W. Bush and confirmed 96-0 by a Republican-dominated Senate during a bitterly partisan era. His confirmation hearing was described by the Sun Sentinel as "a striking display of harmony in a contentious arena" but Cohn said that, as a Democrat selected by a Republican president, he was unlikely to face opposition.

The position of U.S. district judge is for life and appointees are not subject to voter approval. The job pays $174,000 a year.

Before Cohn’s current job, he was a Broward Circuit judge, appointed in 1995 by Gov. Lawton Chiles, a Democrat. He scored high in attorney reviews and never attracted a challenger at election time.

Growing up in Tuskegee, Ala., during the civil rights struggles of the 1950s and 60s, the Cohns owned a store and were one of two Jewish families in town. There was no synagogue so Cohn, his parents and his two sisters drove 40 miles west to the Reform temple in Montgomery for religious classes. "The worst part of it was I missed the first half of the NFL game," Cohn said wryly.

Cohn witnessed and was disturbed by racism against African-Americans. At an early age, he became acutely aware that his own heritage was also perceived as alien in the South.

"You want to assimilate, you don’t want to be different, no kid wants to be different," Cohn said. "On the other hand, you want to maintain your Jewish heritage and traditions."

For Cohn, playing sports was the best way to fit in. He was a quarterback on the Tuskegee High School football team, an all-star second baseman in baseball, ran track and played basketball.

When he started the ninth grade in September 1963, his dad escorted Cohn to school but it was surrounded by state troopers because Gov. George Wallace had closed it to avoid desegregation. Cohn went to live with his aunt in nearby Union Springs where he attended the public school.

He came home the next year and attended Tuskegee High when it was fully desegregated, though with a smaller enrollment. Cohn played on sports teams that were carefully made up of an equal number of whites and African-Americans.

Cohn planned to be an accountant but soon figured out that wasn’t for him. After graduating from his beloved University of Alabama with a major in general business, he spent time in the National Guard. He’d enjoyed business law classes, so he enrolled at Cumberland School of Law in Birmingham. When he tried his first case as a student before a mock jury, it felt right.

"I knew this was my calling," Cohn said.

After passing his bar exams in Alabama and Florida, his sister and parents, who retired to South Florida, persuaded him to interview here. After a brief stint as a Broward public defender, then State Attorney Philip Shaler offered him a $1,000 raise — to $13,000 — to be a prosecutor. Cohn prosecuted cases from 1975 to 1978, working with two men who are still his friends, current State Attorney Mike Satz and defense attorney Richard Garfield.

Satz said Cohn is a master of putting people at ease.

"When people I know meet him casually at the gym or in a restaurant, if they mention him later they don’t say ‘your friend the judge,’ they say ‘your friend Jimmy,’ " Satz said.

Cohn has always had a winning way with jurors. In private practice from 1978 to 1995, he was a successful criminal defense, family law and personal injury attorney.

Jurors trusted his sincerity and people at the county courthouse still talk about how he won a "not guilty by reason of insanity" jury verdict on a first-degree murder case — a difficult feat under Florida’s restrictive law. The defendant, Robert Lee Endicott shot and killed a young woman in Fort Lauderdale in 1979. Endicott is still involuntarily committed 30 years later.

For anyone who has ever heard Cohn’s mellow voice, he has a surprising disclosure. He had what he calls "a bad stuttering problem" when he was a child and decided to try to overcome it, without assistance, in the ninth grade.

"There was a kid in class who had a melodious voice and he spoke very slowly. And I started to mimic him and it worked," Cohn said. He still sometimes rephrases a sentence in his head before speaking to avoid stumbling on certain words.

Cohn and his wife Kathleen, adopted their son Bill, now 15, in 1995. When the biological parents had last-minute doubts at the hospital, Cohn said he delivered "as good a final argument as I ever gave a jury" and reassured the couple they would be making an extraordinary gift — the baby the Cohns had tried unsuccessfully to conceive for years.

Intent on being a good parent, Cohn said he decided to become a judge so he could have more structure in his work life.

And it’s a very structured life. He awakes at 5 a.m., doesn’t use an alarm clock and has never overslept in his life. He’s at the gym by 5:30 a.m. and goes to bed by 9 or 9:30 p.m. "unless there’s a ball game."

In his eight years on the state bench,buy tiffany key rings, Cohn tried 770 felony jury trials, including 144 in one year, a local record only exceeded by his friend, U.S. District Judge William Dimitrouleas when he was a state judge. Cohn believes that his work ethic helped to get him the federal appointment.

Spending time with his wife and Bill — they particularly enjoy watching "Seinfeld" reruns together and traveling — has won out over his older hobbies. Cohn is a devoted fan of the University of Alabama’s football team and keeps a toy elephant that sings the Alabama fight song in his chambers. He plays golf less frequently these days because of a workout injury but still loves to watch the pros on TV.

His personal heroes are federal judges whose legal decisions helped end racial segregation in the South, including the late Judge Frank M. Johnson who "had the courage to follow the law when it was not popular." Cohn’s own judicial philosophy, he said, is to look to the "plain meaning of the law" as Congress wrote it.

The judge sets the tone and he insists on punctuality, courtesy and respect in his courtroom. He seems bewildered by attorneys who run late or are less than totally organized.

If there is any criticism of Cohn, it is that his insistence on tight scheduling can sometimes seem too rigid.

Salesman’s attorney, Jamie Benjamin, practically begged Cohn for more time to prepare his defense, noting that the government had investigated the case since 2004 compared to the few months that he’d had to prepare. Cohn insisted the trial proceed with only a minor delay.

Benjamin said he thinks the world of Cohn: "He’s the picture of what you want in a judge." But Benjamin said he was really frustrated by the judge’s rigidity. "It’s puzzling to see that court scheduling can ever be more important than preparing a case," the attorney said.

Cohn said he hopes he’s evolved with experience but that "lawyers are inherent procrastinators and you’ve got to set deadlines."

Some defendants in state court,tiffany cuff Links on sale, where Cohn handled career criminals who were mandated by law to receive lengthy sentences, called him "the Rocket Man" because they said "he could send you to the moon." That reputation has stuck and some attorneys quietly call Cohn’s courtroom "the launching pad" for similar reasons.

Cautiously choosing his words, Cohn said he judges each case on its merits, considering the advisory sentencing guidelines, the nature and circumstances of the crime and the defendant’s history and character.

Cohn’s close friend, Garfield, said that beneath the calm exterior, Cohn is intense, prepared and efficient.

In more than 35 years of friendship, Garfield has only seen him lose his cool after flubbing a shot on the golf course.

The two, who have very different personal styles, like to rib each other, most recently about their views on Tiger Woods’ fall from grace. They were both long-term fans but Garfield is done with Woods. Cohn said he doesn’t condone the serial extramarital affairs and empathizes with Woods’ wife, but still admires his professional excellence at golf.

With a smile, Cohn said: "There’s got to be hope of redemption, right?"

Paula McMahon can be reached at pmcmahon@SunSentinel.com or 954-356-4533.

The city of Yakima issued the following news release:

Based primarily on incompatibility issues and probable negative impacts to nearby businesses, a staff report issued today by the City of Yakima Planning Division recommends denial of an application by Jamie Muffett to open "Sinsations Gentleman’s Club" at 2308 South 1st Street.

Muffett’s application now moves on to City Hearing Examiner Gary Cullier. The Planning Division’s recommendation is just part of what Cullier will take into account in reaching a final decision on Muffett’s application.

Cullier will hold a public hearing on the application next Friday, May 28th. The public hearing will be take place in the Council Chambers at Yakima City Hall and will be conducted in 2 sessions. The first session will begin at 9:00 am and the second session will begin at 1:30 pm. Anyone who wants to provide comments during the hearing can attend either of the 2 sessions.

Following next Friday’s public hearing, Cullier will have 10 business days to reach a final decision. Whatever that decision may be,thanksgiving jewelry, it can be appealed to the City Council.

The May 28th hearing conducted by Cullier will be carried live on Y-PAC,tiffany sets, Charter Cable channel 22.

In mid-March, Muffett filed an application for what is technically referred to in the City’s Adult Business Ordinance as an "Adult Dance Studio." The Planning Division’s review of Muffett’s application included analysis of relevant land use laws,shop for tiffany cuff Links, rules, and regulations, as well as consideration of input the City received from community members during a 20-day public comment period that began earlier this month.

The Planning Division’s review found that while Muffett’s application meets many of the required procedural criteria, such as parking requirements, proper zoning, and appropriate separation from churches, schools, day care centers, parks, and residential districts, "…there is no question that there will be significant secondary negative effects upon both property values and the businesses which surround this site."

Based on that finding,tiffany rings clearance, the Planning Division determined that,tiffany on sale, "…a finding cannot be made supporting the appropriateness and the compatibility of an adult business at this location and therefore it cannot be logically accommodated."

Contact: Michael Morales, Director, 575-3533

Debuskey called the episode the best time a press agent could hope to have.

Papp first offered free Shakespeare on that patch of civic grass in 1957 when the mobile theater truck broke down near the Great Lawn. He continued his new tradition in the summer of 1958. Plans for 1959 were being made, and Papp was considering asking Moses about making the tradition a permanent one. If Moses agreed, it would be so,buy tiffany Pendants, no questions asked; Moses was, and had been for nearly a quarter of a century, the most powerful man in New York. His name was a household word, not only in New York but throughout the United States, as a battler for parks and a champion of large-scale urban renewal. He raised bridges, dug tunnels, created beaches, and opened countless vest-pocket parks, all with very little oversight from either City Hall or Albany. Among his projects were the Bronx-Whitestone, Triborough, and Verrazano-Narrows Bridges; Jones Beach State Park; the West Side Highway; the Gowanus, Grand Central, Henry Hudson, Interborough, Laurelton, Northern State, and Southern State Parkways; the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel; and the Cross Bronx and Long Island Expressways. He was great and fearsome, and even his severest critics acknowledged his overwhelming influence.

Moses’s top Parks Department aide, Stuart Constable, did not like Papp. An ultraconservative,cheap tiffany necklaces, both politically and socially, he was furious that this up-from-the-streets impresario, whom he perceived as a Red demon trying to destroy American society, had been given free rein by Moses in Constable’s leafy fiefdom. Ever since the HUAC testimony, Constable had been looking for a way to scuttle Papp’s plans, and he was confident that, if he managed to make the first move, his boss would back him, because Moses always supported his aides.

The previous June, after Papp’s testimony had been reported in the press, Constable had said that no plans were afoot to drop the park productions. But the parks aide had simply been waiting for the proper time.

Early in March 1959–with Moses vacationing in Barbados–Constable abruptly announced to Papp that there would be no more free Shakespeare in Central Park. Admission would have to be charged. And what’s more, the Parks Department would get 5 percent of the income to help pay for upkeep of the grounds and other expenses supposedly incurred by the city because of the Festival. Apparently, the high heels of female theatergoers were digging up the lawn. Constable figured that to Papp, the idea of a fee was anathema. He was right. When Moses returned a few days later, he acted as Constable had expected: he supported his executive officer unflinchingly.

A desperate Papp began a series of meetings with Constable in Parks Department headquarters, in a building called the Arsenal, just inside Central Park at Fifth Avenue and Sixty-fourth Street, next to the Central Park Zoo. But the antagonistic Constable refused to budge. It was now an edict: charge money or get out.

"They supported their demand with several justifications," recalled Debuskey. "We were cluttering the park, destroying the grass and so on. Which, if you take it to its logical extreme, you would exclude any human being from the park and let the blades of grass survive in their most pristine form. It would be great for squirrels. And one does not object to that, but it was not what its original purpose was. That park only had a life when people were alive in it."

Constable was a supercilious sort, with a reddish British-army-officer’s waxed moustache. He reminded Debuskey of a "remittance man"–"from Sri Lanka or someplace, the youngest son of a family, who was a no-gooder, so they sent him down to the Bahamas or India." Debuskey recalled one unproductive meeting. "Constable had a Band-Aid on his finger. He wouldn’t look us in the eye and kept picking at this Band-Aid, and finally he said thank you for coming and goodbye. He ushered us out and he still wouldn’t look at us."

Papp, stymied, began to vacillate. Would a small fee be so terrible? At about the same time Walter Kerr,Bead bracelet, the theater critic of the New York Herald Tribune, had written a column imploring Papp to appease Moses and charge 25 cents. "Joe had to consider that he was faced with utter elimination," said Debuskey.

Debuskey hated the idea of charging a fee for the outdoor Shakespeare productions. As the Festival’s press agent, he had predicated the enterprise’s worthiness on Papp’s selfless, tireless contribution to the city’s cultural scene and the project’s overall altruistic spirit. Exchanging money, however small an amount, for admission upset the equation. It endangered the Festival’s future as a unique and pure–and pressworthy–endeavor. Madeleine Gilford recalled Debuskey complaining to her and Jack about the dilemma. "He brought us the Times and asked, ‘Where is the free Shakespeare?’ And it was on the front page. He said, ‘I got it there because it’s free. Joe wants to charge a quarter. If they charge a quarter, it will be in the back of the arts section.’"

Gene Wolsk, then the general manager for the Festival, also attended the Parks Department meetings. He considered Constable "a pompous English type. After Joe’s tenth meeting the message was the same: you can’t come in unless you charge admission."

The three men left one particular meeting at the Arsenal in low spirits and began walking dejectedly down Fifth Avenue.

"We were all very discouraged," Wolsk recalled years later.

We were on the park side, on the cobblestones. And Joe said: "Well, so we’ll charge. It’s not the end of the world. What are we gonna do? It’s the only way we’re going to perform." And Merle said: "Joe, I’ve worked for you since the beginning. I’ve worked for you a long time. I’ve knocked myself out for you. I’ve worked for nothing. I don’t mind. I’ll do anything in the world for free Shakespeare. But I can’t work for cheap Shakespeare."

The short protest moved Papp. After a few more phone conversations with Debuskey, he reconsidered.

"I really felt that this thing had to continue on in the fashion in which it was begun," recalled Debuskey.

We worked close together on this–fourteen hours a day. The conversation went on to the wee hours of the morning, where we established the position that they should not charge. My argument was, Joe, the difference between nothing and twenty-five cents isn’t two bits. Joe, your armor and your spear is "free." You can win battles if you’re free. You could lose them if you charge a quarter. You have the world on your side. You can get all kinds of concessions on stagehands, ushers, musicians, treasurers. Once you start charging money, you have union conditions you’re going to have to accept.

Papp convened his board and sent a letter to Moses. "The whole idea of charging came up for re-examination yesterday by members of our Board of Directors," Papp wrote. "It was resolved that the concept of paid admissions is utterly inconsistent with the stated objectives of the New York Shakespeare Festival–’to introduce classical theater to the vast uncommitted audiences through the free presentation of Shakespeare.’"

Debuskey’s campaign began. He rallied the city’s newspapers to their side, drawing on some of the fundamental rules [Edward] Bernays had taught him a decade back at the New School: "Find important or well placed individuals to advocate your positions, individuals who had no inherent connections with your client which would, as they were independent authorities, lend great credence to your intent; and never underrate the power of working from the bottom up."

Bernays, in fact, was watching the Moses-Papp fight closely. One day the grand old man of PR called Papp to ask which public relations company he was using. He told the stunned Bernays, "My public relations is my press agent."

Sometimes Debuskey wrote impassioned letters defending the park program, had Papp sign them, and then dispatched them to the press; at other times Papp wrote the letters and sent them to Debuskey for his comments. He had a graphic artist make up a map of the playing area in the park showing the existing walks and suggestions for additional paths to the building, illustrating an orderly flow of traffic that avoided the grass. It was sent out to the Parks Department as well as to the press.

"Joe was not afforded the protection or assistance of important personages when the argument commenced," recalled Debuskey.

In the beginning, our only weapon and mercenaries were the press. Their participation led to the voluntary contributions from all levels of the community, quite a varied conglomerate. After a healthy dose of media support we were deluged with offers of help–some genuine and some smelling to me of being self-serving. I had to fend them off. The press had to be kept in sharp focus and control. There were some well-wishers who were offended by my shouldering them aside.

Moses fumed. Accustomed to praise in the press, he unexpectedly found himself attacked in the most bald-faced manner by everyone from Eleanor Roosevelt to Hedda Hopper. "All of a sudden," said Debuskey, "he was being confronted by this little ragamuffin [Papp]." What made the turn of the tide all the more surprising was that Moses had an entire political machine behind him, built up over decades,tiffany rings clearance, while Papp was backed by a single flack with an old Underwood typewriter. Debuskey and Papp scored hit after hit. They didn’t know it at the time, but every day they bloodied Moses’s motivations and intentions, they were cementing the Festival’s civic significance, both present and future. Said Debuskey:

There was one event after another, with everyone coming aboard, and after something happened we used it, whether it was an elementary Catholic school in deepest Brooklyn who had put their pennies and nickels together along with the sisters who helped support the thing, or something else. Help came from all sides, and every time something happened it was exploited fully. And it was known as the battle of David and Goliath–little Joe Papp and big Robert Moses. And all the Shakespeare Festival had on it side was its absolutely untarnished purity of purpose. And it fended off all kinds of weaponry. I think it tortured the s— out of Moses.

Papp sought the support of City Hall, but when Mayor Robert Wagner knuckled under to the unfireable Moses, they went to court with the help of the law firm of Paul, Weiss, which worked pro bono. The case was heard quickly to try to save the summer season. Moses took the first round. However, the Festival appealed, and Papp won the appeal. Moses could still have demurred and taken the fight to the next highest court. But he gave in. Papp was victorious.

"Joe was a terrific general," Debuskey said.

The day the court decided in our favor, Papp sent a telegram to Moses inviting Moses to be his partner in producing an improved arena for Shakespeare in the Park. When Moses got the telegram, he immediately went to work on Joe’s side. Joe had said, and was absolutely convinced, that Moses was a supporter of culture and would understand and appreciate what Joe was doing–that Moses had been misled, had gone out on a limb and couldn’t get back. Joe said he would give Moses the opportunity to get back, and at that moment, when Joe could have rubbed Moses’s nose in Joe’s victory, he didn’t do that. It was part of Joe’s genius, his ability to seize the moment. He was still a modest fellow and had not become suffused with himself.

Before long, Moses would even agree to build a theater for Papp: the Delacorte.

The fight over Central Park had been harrowing,tiffany key ring, but it had also arguably made the Festival’s reputation. "The Shakespeare Festival had an identity in the theater," said Debuskey, "largely because we made all our problems public. It was the nature of it. We were able to get a lot of help that way. It was almost a pure activity. What the battle with Moses did was make Joe a veritable household name, and make the Festival significant."

For years afterward, from time to time someone would put forth the bright idea of charging for admission for Shakespeare in the Park, and Debuskey and Papp would have to make their argument all over again. "I remember Merle making arguments that were very idealistic and purist in respect to the park," recalled Gail Papp, Joe’s last wife. "There’d always be a board member who would say, ‘Why don’t you charge?’ They’d have to be reeducated."

In the sleepy Chilterns town of Amersham levels of anxiety are high and rising. Even though construction of a proposed high speed rail line from London to Birmingham is unlikely to begin for at least another seven years,tiffany cuff Links for sale, its likely routing through the town and surrounding villages is already prompting doom-laden predictions from householders and businesses alike.

Judy Hyland, a 48-year-old healthcare professional, thinks construction of High Speed 2 will be just the beginning of a process that will change the Chilterns forever.

"It will create a huge cavern in beautiful green-belt countryside. I fear once the railway is built,tiffany bracelets on sale, companies will be left slavering over use of the land for other property ventures."

Her son Andy Hyland, 22, questioned the need for the line, saying: "Great Missenden and the surrounding villages will be cut up by the track which is entirely unnecessary as there are already adequate travel links from London to the north."

Others were worried about the impact on local businesses. Frances Parker, 64, who owns a bakery in Amersham, said: "I worry that the rail line will mean that the Chilterns is not such an attractive area for outsiders to experience the countryside any more,tiffany necklaces for sale, meaning that local businesses like mine will feel the knock on effect."

The overriding concern of many though is the likely effect on property prices and the ability of the government’s new pound(s)50m fund to compensate local people adequately. "I think that the value of my property will definitely decrease, says homeowner Lucy Worth,Charm bracelet, 35. "I’ve looked into the fund but I don’t meet the guidelines so I won’t receive anything despite the fact it’s extremely likely I’ll lose out."

John Potts,cheap tiffany bangles, 76, said: "The vast majority of people who will be affected are not going to see a penny [from the fund], and given the length of the track the money will be spread very thinly."

Not absolutely everyone agreed though. Peter Wicklow, 28, a human resources manager who bought property in the nearby village of Little Chalfont four years ago, is fairly sanguine. "Houses prices here are consistently high, reflecting the demand for the area, so I think overall [the line is] unlikely to significantly lower prices in the long run."

Two Florida teenagers won the fifth biennial William I. Koch International Sea Scout Cup, beating one of the largest fields ever for Sea Scouts’ most coveted sailing trophy.

Cody Stansky, 16,rings, of Jupiter,cuff Links, Florida and Andrew Britton, 16, of Palm Beach Gardens, FL were awarded the silver trophy at the closing ceremonies held at the Officers Club at the United States Coast Guard Academy, which hosted the week long event.

Stansky and Britton, members of Ship 777, West Palm Beach, FL, defeated Amanda Norris, 14, and Michael Anderson, 16, of Christ Church, New Zealand. Heidi Rittmeyer, 19, and Peter Bied, 14, of Chicago,Charm bracelet, IL, placed third.

Stansky and Britton have been sailing together since middle school. They recently placed 15th at the 420 North American Sailing Competition in Brant Beach, New Jersey last month. The two teenagers are entering their junior year at the Alexander Dreyfoos High School of the Arts in West Palm Beach.

Approximately 80 young men and women gathered at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London to compete in the week-long regatta. Sea Scouts from New Zealand, Australia, England, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Brazil and Trinidad and Tobago sailed against youth from across the United States. The winds were moderate most of the week, averaging 10 to 14 knots, blowing from the south off Long Island Sound before turning light on the final day.

The biennial event is underwritten by William I. Koch, the Palm Beach businessman who successfully defended the America’s Cup in 1992. Other sponsors include West Marine and the United States Coast Guard Academy.

Sea Scouts are divided into two fleets: more experienced sailors compete for the Koch Cup, and a second fleet sails for the Kiwi Cup, a Maori carving donated by New Zealand Sea Scouts. Both trophies are displayed at the Boy Scout Museum in Irving, Texas. This year’s Kiwi Cup was dedicated to former New Zealand Sea Scout and Koch Cup participant Benjamin Carson who was killed in the line of duty while serving in his country’s Air Force.

Abby King,watches, 16, and Barchan Rogers,tiffany, 19, of St. Petersburg, Florida, won the Kiwi Cup.

"I enjoyed the event a lot," said Andrew Britton. "The races were well managed. The Coast Guard Academy did a great job."

Sea Scouts competing in the event selected Jonathan Hall and Jonathan Martin of England as well as Krista Chapin and Karissa Kasper of St. Petersburg, FL for the sportsmanship award.

The event venue, the Seamanship and Sailing Center at the United States Coast Guard Academy is located on the west bank of the Thames River in New London, CT. The center is responsible for the basic sail and seamanship training of the Corps of Cadets, and the coaching and management of the institution’s competitive sailing program.

Sea Scouts is part of the Boy Scouts of America and is open to men and women between the ages of 14 and 21 who learn leadership skills through seamanship.

http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100809/CG48185

Keywords: Boy Scouts of America, Leisure, Sailing.

After Shelby Morris hit a grand slam to give her Columbus North softball team an 8-2 lead against Brownstown Central on Saturday morning, Braves coach Monte Ault said he was interested to see how his team would respond.

He liked what he saw from the Braves, as they rallied back with runs in the final three innings, but they came up short 8-7.

“The grad slam hurt us, but we didn’t give up,” Ault said. “That’s what I like about this team. We came back and didn’t give up. If we get another hit, we tie the game up.”

North held an 8-6 lead going into the top of the seventh. Brooke Metz led off the inning Tiffany Key Rings a double high off the fence in left-center that missed by a foot of going out. She advanced to third on an infield out, and she later scored on a wild pitch.

Alli Nolan then singled for her second hit of the game, but was left stranded at second base when the next batter popped out to the shortstop to end the game.

“I knew they were a good hitting team,” Ault said. “We hit the ball hard, too. Brooke lacked a foot of hitting a home run, Alli hit the ball hard and Chelsea (Scott) hit the ball hard every time she got up. Caitlin (Conrad) made a good bunt and hit the ball hard. Everybody in the lineup hit the ball.”

The Bull Dogs bunched a fielder’s choice and two hits to take a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first, and then used two hits and two Brave errors to score a pair of unearned runs in the second for a 3-0 lead.

Scott put the Braves on the scoreboard by leading off the fourth inning with a home run.

Kristen Mellencamp doubled in the fifth and scored on an error.

Brownstown scored four runs in the sixth, with the big hit being a two-run single by discount tiffany.

The Braves scored two runs on passed balls and a run on an error.

Brownstown had nine hits, and Scott led the Braves with a home run and a double, while Metz and Mellencamp had doubles and Nolan and Riley had two hits apiece. Scott scored two runs, and Conrad had two RBIs.

Cheyenne Riley allowed six earned runs and 10 hits and didn’t have any strikeouts or walks.

“Our pitching was solid. Alli called a good game,” Ault said. “We made some nice Tiffany Bangles plays. Mellencamp made a big stop, Cat (Allen) made a big stop at third, and Hannah (Bays) played a good second base. ”

The Braves are 13-6 and will travel to Paoli today and to Mitchell on Thursday before turning their attention to the Eastern Sectional, where they will play Providence.

“We didn’t win, but I was pleased as a team,” Ault said. “I want everybody hitting from top to bottom, and we want to be playing our best softball come sectional.”

Box score

At Columbus North

Brownstown 000 114 1–7 9 3

Columbus North 120 050 x–8 10 2

Brownstown Central hits: Chelsea Scott 2, Alli Nolan 2, Cheyenne Tiffany Bracelets 2, Brooke Metz, Kristen Mellencamp, Caitlin Conrad; home run: Scott; doubles: Metz, Scott, Mellencamp; RBIs: Conrad 2, Scott, Riley; runs: Scott 2, Metz, Allen, Mellencamp, Nolan, Riley