I’ll continue to chronicle the history of Orthodoxy in New York in future posts, but, about the founding of the Russian church — I don’t think the founding of the Greek church “prompted” the founding of the Russian one. Certainly, there is evidence that the Russian Orthodox in New York attended the Greek church prior to the formation of St. Nicholas. As in many cities, when the Orthodox community was small, ethnic divisions tended not to matter as much. When the various ethnic groups grew in size, the natural tendency was to separate and form a church for that specific ethnic group.

Also, with New York, as the Russian Mission began to focus its attention on converting Uniates to Orthodoxy, it became clear that an East Coast headquarters was needed. New York was the obvious place for it.

“The services consisted of a solemn high mass celebrated by the Archimandrite Paisios Ferendinos,” the article relates “with much pomp at the Orthodox Greek Church 340 West Fifty-third Street.” “After the cermonies, the Greek Consul D. N. Botassi [also involved with the Church at New Orleans], who was dressed in full uniform shouted out, “Long live the Greek Nation!”…”Long live the King!”….”Long live the Queen of Greece!” [Olga Romanov, who had a hand in causing the Evangelika controversy, which brought Meletios Metaxakis' nemesis Theoklitos to the throne of Athens] and there was an answering shout of enthusiasm.” The article then sums up “Services were also held by the recently established Greek Church in the basement of the Memorial Bapist Church, Washington Square South. Archmandrite Kalinikos Dilveis officiated. An address was made by Solon J. Vlasto, President of “Athena,” the Greek Society of New York.”
http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9C01EEDE1630E033A2575AC0A9629C94659ED7CF

The Exarch’s Cathedral in NYC credits Mr. Vlastos as leading the “first Greek association in this hemisphere, and the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox parish.”
http://www.thecathedral.goarch.org/vsItemDisplay.dsp&objectID=E9AED050-369E-48B6-BC125D72FB79A659&method=display

Soon after the parish was established the Church Board of Trustees decided to separate the Church administration from that of the Society of Athena. The disaffected group decided then to form a new parish and this time applied to the Ecumenical Patriarchate for a priest. The patriarchate was unaware of the situation and sent Fr. Callinicos Dilbaes to be the new pastor of Annunciation, the new parish.”
http://books.google.com/books?id=Uh4VnseTNZkC&pg=PA130&dq=Callinicos+Dilbaes&lr=#v=onepage&q=Callinicos%20Dilbaes&f=false

Annuciation in NYC also claims these same roots to 1892: “Founded in 1892, the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church is one of the oldest Hellenic-American ecclesiastical communities in New York. From its humble beginnings in Judson Memorial Baptist Church in Greenwich Village, where the community celebrated its first liturgy…”
http://www.evangelismos.org/history.html

Arch. Ferendinos ended up at the New Orleans parish.
http://books.google.com/books?id=HHmOYmd05BUC&pg=PA54&dq=Greeks+in+America+Ferentinos&lr=#v=onepage&q=Greeks%20in%20America%20Ferentinos&f=false

It is interesting that the Russian Consul was present: did it prompt the founding of St. Nicholas? On that Church, an early NY Times (aug. 6, 1899) says: “St. Nicholas’s Church was established in 1893 and has about 300 communicants. The Rector, the Rev. Alexander A. Hotovitzky is a secular (or white) priest…and has been in this country for four years, and for three years has had charge of St. Nicholas Church….His bishop is the Right Rev. Tikhon, whose recent visit to the Church of St. Nicholas was memorable event among the Russian Orthodox Christians in New York” [St. Tikhon had been welcomed the previous year, arriving as Bishop of the Diocese]
http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9C0CE6DB153CE433A25755C0A96E9C94689ED7CF