February 14, 1999

Politics takes a turn toward farce in Vladivostok, far eastern Russian port, which has become an object lesson in how hard it can be to raise a democratic society out of ruins of Soviet empire; a power struggle is being waged by autocratic Governor of Primoriye region, Yevgeny Nazdratenko, and Viktor Cherepkov, the highly eccentric mayor of Vladivostok until he was ousted from office in December; Cherepkov claims extrasensory perception; Nazdratenko has received a mysterious $1 million prize for leadership from World Aristocratic Academy, an organization whose only known address is a post office box in the Bahamas; photos; map (M)

Police killing of Amadou Diallo, a Guinean immigrant, reinforces the vulnerability felt by Africans, particularly West Africans, living in New York, but it may be forging bonds between them and African-Americans, from whom they have chosen to remain largely apart; Africans are coming to New York in greater numbers than ever, but immigrants say that whether they stay in the city for 2 or 20 years, Africa is, and always will be, home; photos (M)

Seavey Organization plans a mixed-income rental complex in Manhattan involving a new 12-story, 97-unit structure on Eighth Avenue and renovation of two five-story prewar buildings, with 28 apartments, that turn the corner on 21st Street (S)

Patients at Guggenheim Pavilion of Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York, where people with failing hearts wait for transplants, have created small community defined by immense empathy and small kindnesses; photos (M)

Chicago Blackhawks beat Toronto Maple Leafs, 6-2, in last game played at Maple Leaf Gardens; Gardens, which opened in 1931, is NHL's oldest arena; Maple Leafs will play their home games in new Air Canada Center; photos (M)