What’s to be done when a property owner on Lefferts Avenue rips out a historic stoop, “which may end up lessening the block’s historic appeal and aesthetic”?–Across the Park
Bklink: Stooping to Conquer
October 23rd, 2007 · Comments Off on Bklink: Stooping to Conquer
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Demolition Porn: The Giant Fart Cloud Building
October 23rd, 2007 · Comments Off on Demolition Porn: The Giant Fart Cloud Building
Williamsburg’s Giant Fart Cloud Building has broken its last wind and is, in fact, being broken up as we speak. The Old Fart, which was a cabbage processing plant in its most recent iteration, is at 15 Roebling, and was so named by blogger Bad Advice because of its unique fragrance. Bad Advice is currently concerned that taking down Ye Olde Fart Cloud will damage her own building and demolition workers seem to have gotten some laughs from the notion that her building might escape damage. It is also across the street from the Roebling Oil Field and Building, which will make its excavation particularly exciting for us.
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Say What–The End, More or Less
October 23rd, 2007 · Comments Off on Say What–The End, More or Less
![Say What--End](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2181/1701639808_e86bdaa280_o.jpg)
This rather tagged up “End” sign appears at the end of N. 3rd Street in Williamsburg, where it ends at the East River next to the Austin Nichols Warehouse, aka 184 Kent. We’ve always had a soft spot for “End” signs that mark what is most clearly the end. This sign is one of the survivors of what was once a much larger group of “end” signs in the Burg.
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Bklink: Thanks for Your Patience During Highrise Construction
October 23rd, 2007 · Comments Off on Bklink: Thanks for Your Patience During Highrise Construction
FC 80 DeKalb Associates wants you to know they’re building a 34-story building and that it will be finished on March 31, 2009. Bruce Ratner (who is not identified on the sign) thanks you for your patience.–Brownstoner & Brit in Brooklyn
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Tis the Season: Bloody Hands
October 23rd, 2007 · Comments Off on Tis the Season: Bloody Hands
Comments Off on Tis the Season: Bloody HandsTags: Halloween · Williamsburg
Park Slope & Prospect Heights Mail Sucks Redux
October 22nd, 2007 · 9 Comments
There’s nothing like a good postal rant (or two or three or four or five or six) to brighten the day. Today, we’ve got two, found on the Park Slope Forum at the always interesting brooklynian.com. Rant Number One:
Everyone knows there’s ‘issues’ with our mail carriers in the slope. I’ve had it all: Lost checks. Mail tossed on floor. Netflix DVD’s viewed and taped back together then placed in our box!?! Wrong mail. No mail. Mail for delivery never picked up. Lost packages.
So I emailed the USPS and received a call back today. The supervisor says my usual postal carrier is on ‘limited’ work, something about not allowed to work more than a certain amount of hours. So they have random carriers covering for him. He tells me that recently I’ve had the same mail carrier for 3 days now and he’s talked to the person and I shouldn’t have any problems anymore.
So basically my block never has a constant mail carrier. So far I’ve got some guy regularly for the past 3 days. He’ll probably not drop the mail on the floor today, but what about next week when another guy is sent to cover this block? Is this happening on other blocks? No full time, regular assignment postal carriers?
Give it a while and the same problem will happen again. It’s been going on for as long as I’ve rented here.
Rant Number Two:
WTF is up with Brooklyn mail? I’ve never lived anywhere like this. I’ve had stuff perfectly addressed to me sent back with “NO SUCH ADDRESS” stamps, only to be put in a new envelope TO THE EXACT SAME ADDRESS and arrive. Eventually. I’ve had zero mail delivery for days, and then stuffed full one day. I can’t even count the number of things that have just “disappeared” that I found out about, much less the ones I didn’t. Seriously, WTF. I have everything important that I can sent to my work now.
Oh, and there’s also someone in Bed-Stuy who says that his Time Out NY always disappears. Excellent, excellent stuff.
→ 9 CommentsTags: Postal Service
Gowanus Lounge Construction Site Du Jour: 80 Metropolitan
October 22nd, 2007 · Comments Off on Gowanus Lounge Construction Site Du Jour: 80 Metropolitan
![80 Met Open](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2013/1681960551_2c47a3c61c_o.jpg)
While the 80 Metropolitan sales team was getting their sales office ready yesterday for its big opening this week, we found the 80 Met construction site was already having an open house. This is the gate on the N. 1st Street side of the site near Wythe Avenue. The good news is that they weren’t doing Sunday work on the site: it looked like the gate had been left wide open all weekend or hadn’t been properly secured, allowing for easy access. (If you look hard at the photo below, you can see bottles on the site.) Regardless, 80 Metropolitan was providing an advance look at, if not a walk around, the 80 Metropolitan basement (or what we’ve been calling The Big Dutch Hole, in honor of our demolished friend, the Old Dutch Mustard Factory). It was open at noon and it was still open at 5PM. Nice paint job and stenciling on the fence, though, parts of which are buckling and warping.
![80 Met Inside](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2297/1682815490_12e066414f_o.jpg)
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Red Hook Harvest Festival Photos
October 22nd, 2007 · Comments Off on Red Hook Harvest Festival Photos
![DSC_2170](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2373/1681054012_c43c4735cb_o.jpg)
The Red Hook Harvest Festival, which took place at the Red Hook Community Farm on Saturday, was one of those events that brightens our day significantly. Call us odd, but we’re just amused to see hay everywhere, pumpkins and even some chickens and a goat in Red Hook. We’ve included a photo above and below, and we posted a video yesterday. We’ve got a full flickr set if you’re interested. You can also pull up the slideshow here.
![DSC_2242](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2392/1680205417_66e737506e_o.jpg)
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Brooklyn Nibbles: Williamsburg Openings Edition
October 22nd, 2007 · 1 Comment
![Blackbird Parlour](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2418/1681372049_7c8cb7c8b7_o.jpg)
There are a few restaurant/cafe openings to report in Williamsburg:
1). Blackbird Parlour, which has been in the making at Bedford Avenue and N. 6th Street (197 Bedford) for some time, is now open (above). The menu is mostly coffee, tea and dessert, with about a dozen sandwiches and other dishes. It was surprisingly uncrowded on Saturday night, but looked pretty packed yesterday. It is the third storefront to change at this intersection in the last two months. The bodega on the southwest corner closed, and is currently in the process of being remade into a new shop. Also, the Toll Brothers North8 office on the southeast corner closed and was replaced by Uva.
2). We’re not sure that Williamsburg needs another Japanese restaurant, but Mizu is now open on the west side of Bedford Ave. (192 Bedford) between N. 6th Street and N. 7th (below).
3). Alia, which has been in the making for a long, long time has opened its doors at 95 N. 6th Street between Wythe and Berry (bottom). The menu is Mediterranean and there will reportedly be belly dancing, although all we saw was a huge TV with sports on Saturday night.
![Mizu](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2305/1682230940_a2852e4679_o.jpg)
![Alia](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2262/1682228474_ef38e4d343_o.jpg)
→ 1 CommentTags: Brooklyn Nibbles · Williamsburg
The Ghost Bike at Union Ave. and Ten Eyck Street
October 22nd, 2007 · Comments Off on The Ghost Bike at Union Ave. and Ten Eyck Street
This is the Ghost Bicycle set up in honor of 26-year-old Craig Murphey at the intersection of Union Avenue and Ten Eyck Street where he died. If the slideshow below (click on the right to advance) annoys you, you can go directly to our flickr set here. You can find a full photoset of the Memorial Ride that took place Saturday night from photographer Elizabeth Weinberg here and photos of last night’s Candlelight Vigil should be appearing as well.
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Crater Lake Still Beautifying Greenpoint
October 22nd, 2007 · Comments Off on Crater Lake Still Beautifying Greenpoint
![Crater Lake Water](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2246/1682490682_3849d7c29c_o.jpg)
We have dealt with the Greenpoint development that is best described as Crater Lake in the past. We posted about it in June and then posted the contractor’s explanation of why the spot became such a crap hole. Crater Lake is at 265 Eckford Street and a ten-story building with 18 apartment is supposed to be rising on the site. The most recent Stop Work Order was issued in July. In any case, our Greenpoint correspondent brings us up to the date on the lake, with pics that show the abundance of summer foliage around the lake (above), the trash on the site (immediately below) and the cut lock on the gate (bottom).
![261 Eckford Crater Lake Trash](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2397/1682489840_74eb966e2c_o.jpg)
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Bklink: Rat Removal at 360 Smith
October 22nd, 2007 · Comments Off on Bklink: Rat Removal at 360 Smith
First comes the rat removal. Then, comes the demolition or construction work. So, does the appearance of a crap load of rat poison trays at 360 Smith Street indicate that work is about to start?–Pardon Me for Asking
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Gowanus Canal "Restoration Study" Meeting Tonight
October 22nd, 2007 · Comments Off on Gowanus Canal "Restoration Study" Meeting Tonight
![Looking at the Canal](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2058/1689417896_8902c6020b_o.jpg)
If you’re interested in all the many issues concerning the present and future of the Gowanus Canal, there’s a Community Board 6 committee meeting tonight (10/22) at PS32 on Hoyt Street. The notice we got about it says:
There will be a Presentation by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the New York City Department of Environmental Protection on the Gowanus Canal Ecological Restoration Study. This is an ongoing collaborative partnership between the Federal and City governments to investigate and propose improvements to the water quality and habitat of the Gowanus Canal.
Here’s the time and place detail:
Monday, October 22, 6:30 PM
PS 32 Auditorium
317 Hoyt Street
Between Union and President Streets
The discussion should be of great interest to anyone concerned about environmental issues with the Big G.
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Brooklinks: Monday New Week Edition
October 22nd, 2007 · Comments Off on Brooklinks: Monday New Week Edition
![Brooklyn County Fair](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2046/1681372745_445d6720a7_o.jpg)
Brooklinks is a daily selection of Brooklyn-related information and images.
- Not Blaming the Victim in a Bicycle Tragedy [I’m Seeing Green]
- A Different Kind of Greenpoint Monitor Museum [New York Shitty]
- So, Would They Be the “Brooklyn Nets” [AYR]
- Death of a Park Slope Volvo Named Goldie [OTBKB]
- Bay Ridge Blogger Get Together [Luna Park Gazzete]
- Blogger Meeting in Bay Ridge Symbolized Bay Ridge 2.0 [Right in Bay Ridge]
- Bay Ridge Irish Pub to Go Mexican [Bay Ridge Rover]
- So, What Should Go on the Kensington T-Shirt? [Kensington Brooklyn]
- Trick or Treat with Thor and Astella Development in Coney Island [Kinetic Carnival]
- Street Fair Season Still Plodding Along, with Downtown Court St. Fair [McBrooklyn]
- Something About Ladders [Brooklynometry]
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Last Red Hook Ballfield Weekend: Long Pupusa Lines
October 22nd, 2007 · Comments Off on Last Red Hook Ballfield Weekend: Long Pupusa Lines
![Papusa Line](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2038/1681588340_9ee4e5cfe1_o.jpg)
A lot of people turned up for what was the last weekend of the vendors Red Hook Ballfields as they’ve existed. Even if the vendors are back next year, the scene will be very different. By then, Red Hook will be serving as a conduit for up to 50,000 cars a week traveling to and from the waterfront Ikea. If the community can survive the unchanged, we’ll go back to school and take two decades worth of urban planning courses. In any case, the Parks Department is putting the permit up for competitive bidding and it’s unknown whether the Health Department will demand changes that could be very expensive and whether God Only Knows what other city agencies will focus on them. We digress, however. Our real point here is to say that the pupusa lines this weekend were out of control. We waited for both a huarache and a horchata, sat down, ate them and found people we knew still waiting in line for their pupusas.
![Papusa Line Two](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2104/1681589128_87b72b47a0_o.jpg)
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Bklinks: Zombies Cycle to Fort Greene
October 22nd, 2007 · Comments Off on Bklinks: Zombies Cycle to Fort Greene
There’s nothing like a bunch of zombies riding their bikes from the Lower East Side, across the Manhattan Bridge to Fort Greene. The photos prove the point.–Brit in Brooklyn
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Williamsburg Sidewalk Commerce is Thriving
October 22nd, 2007 · 1 Comment
![N7 and Bedford](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2049/1688377047_85dec6e7c3_o.jpg)
When we were taking photos of the corner, the vendor behind this fantabulous sidewalk store started shouting at us, “No pictures! No pictures!” We hadn’t been photographing her stand, so much as the corner of N. 7th and Bedford, which is the epicenter of the weekend sidewalk vending scene in the Burg. Regardless, here’s a photo showing the state of Sunday sidewalk commerce in the Burg. That would be the No Photography on a Public Street Stand on the left.
→ 1 CommentTags: Williamsburg
Sunset Park Rezoning Meetings Start Tonight
October 22nd, 2007 · Comments Off on Sunset Park Rezoning Meetings Start Tonight
Sunset Park is one of the many Brooklyn neighborhoods where an eventual rezoning is in play. To that end, several community meetings are coming up. They’re sponsored by Community Board 7, Council Member Sara Gonzalez and the Pratt Institute for Community Development. The first meeting is tonight (10/22) at 6:30PM. Here are details on the upcoming meetings from an email we received:
Monday, October 22, 2007: 6:30 p.m. at the Community Board offices at 4201 4th Avenue (entrance on 43rd Street off 4th Avenue). This meeting will be a workshop, conducted by Brad Lander and Paula Crespo of the Pratt Center for Community Development. It will basically be a class in “Rezoning 101” to give residents a basic foundation in what is involved in rezoning.
Saturday, October 27, 2007: 1:00 p.m. at the Sunset Park Recreation Center at 7th Avenue and 43rd Street ( inside Sunset Park). This meeting will provide an opportunity for residents and community groups to present their views on the rezoning of Sunset Park.
Wednesday, November 7, 2007: 6:30 p.m. Our Lady of Perpertual Help Auditorium, 5906 6th Avenue. This meeting will provide an another opportunity for residents and community groups to present their views on the rezoning of Sunset Park.
It will be interesting to see how the Sunset Park discussion develops.
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Bklink: What’s the Hook?
October 22nd, 2007 · Comments Off on Bklink: What’s the Hook?
Remember “What’s the Hook?”, the summer photo project? As it turns out, nearly 900 photos–863 to be exact– were submitted to the flickr pool. Naturally, a whole bunch of them are very, very good.–What’s the Hook flickr Group
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Tis the Season: Williamsburg at Night
October 22nd, 2007 · Comments Off on Tis the Season: Williamsburg at Night
![Halloween Night Shot One](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2002/1689108622_7331e6599d_o.jpg)
We’ll be posting some photo of Halloween decorations between now and the big day. Today’s selection is from Williamsburg.
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Brookvid: The Red Hook Harvest Festival
October 21st, 2007 · Comments Off on Brookvid: The Red Hook Harvest Festival
We checked out the Red Hook Harvest Festival at the Red Hook Community Farm yesterday. It was a great, fun event and an excellent excuse to wander around a small neighborhood farm…in Brookyn. We’ll have a full photo set tomorrow.
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Memorial Tonight for Killed Bicyclist Craig Murphey
October 21st, 2007 · Comments Off on Memorial Tonight for Killed Bicyclist Craig Murphey
There was a ride and placement of ghostbike last night at the intersection of Union Avenue and Ten Eyck Street where 26-year-old Craig Murphey was killed in an accident on Thursday. There is a Candlelight Memorial Tonight. From the Williamsboard:
This evening, Sunday Oct 21st we will meet at 9pm in Macri Park [on Union Avenue between Conseleyea and Metropolitan]. I picked up some candles last night and I have about 72, I hope I run out and need more. If you bring your own candle, please try to get one that isn’t the glass kind so we don’t have to worry about it breaking/going out. I can’t tell you how much I hope for a large turnout. If there was one thing Craig loved, it was his friends. Being around a great number of them would make him so happy. Please tell everyone you know who knew Craig or even those who didn’t to join us.
So we will meet at 9 and distribute candles and walk up to Ten Eyck and Union together.
Sad.
Comments Off on Memorial Tonight for Killed Bicyclist Craig MurpheyTags: Williamsburg
Disconnected in Brooklyn on Craigslist: Drink-Tossing Park Slope Mommy
October 21st, 2007 · 9 Comments
Usually our Sunday Craigslist Brooklyn Missed Connections are just that: the funny, sad or weird tales of ships passing in the long urban night of things that will never be. Today’s selection, though, isn’t a Missed Connection so much as social commentary about one of our favorite topics, the Park Slope Mommy. Here we go:
To the girl that threw her drink in my face because she didn’t like what I had to say about children being in bars; Sometimes it’s not about you.
You elected to listen to our conversation. You obviously took offense and I understand why you might think I was talking about you. You were ease dropping on a day-long discussion. If you don’t like what you’re hearing, tell the person when you hear it, not four hours later by throwing a drink in their face. But then again, since when does anyone agree with everything people say on the street? The reason I kept looking over at your table was because I said F*ck a few times and was worried your kid might hear me. But I couldn’t control myself and I shouldn’t have to.
Our conversation was about these things: an article I read and how children like to be at home and behave the best when there; how many kids are out for brunch these days when our generation was lucky to get McDonalds once a week; how you never hear parents say ‘you’re crusin’ for a brusin’ anymore and how one should be able to talk freely at a bar without offending children and their parents. Maybe if we run into each other in the neighborhood again we can discuss these things. Perhaps we can have drinks in our hands and not in our faces. We’ll act like adults. We’ll be in a bar where adults mingle. And my mouth can be a filthy as I want.
We told you it was about sociology this week.
→ 9 CommentsTags: Missed Connections · Park Slope
Bklink: Superblocks are Not So Super
October 21st, 2007 · Comments Off on Bklink: Superblocks are Not So Super
Ever wonder about huge city blocks like the ones that would happen at Atlantic Yards after streets are “de-mapped”? Look at superblocks around the world and adjectives other than “super” might come to mind.–Built Environment Blog
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On the Sofa: GL Reader Comments
October 21st, 2007 · Comments Off on On the Sofa: GL Reader Comments
Here is a sampling of some of the comments left by GL readers during the last week:
Last Weekend for the Red Hook Vendors. “And what’s wrong with that? Get some furniture, get some great food. Park @ Ikea, walk to the ballfields. Move on. Stop whining.” [Anonymous]
Last Weekend for the Red Hook Vendors. “Actually, the problem is that Mayor Mike and his henchman Daniel Doctoroff love putting giant IKEAS and malls into areas where there were thriving ethnic markets. Witness the Bronx Terminal Market, witness the “coincidental” pressure from the Parks Department and the Health Department in Red Hook on the vendors there, right around the time IKEA is coming. Believe me, I know, there is no such animal as the Health Department deciding after 17 years that there is suddenly a “problem” with the vendors at the ballfields. Doesn’t happen. They’ve been ordered to make those people go away.” [RedHook]
Peeing Dog Leads to Confrontation in Park Slope. “I have a street tree outside my house. I also have a 9 month old daughter whose stroller has to be wheeled through dog pee and crap all the time because people like you think that the street outside my house is a toilet. Please be a responsible pet owner and neighbour.” [Anonymous]
City Inaction in Action: The Curious Case of 143 Huron. “Although I totally understand and feel for those who are being abused in Greenpoint. I have to say that the “Wild West” of Construction is not limited to one place. It is constantly evolving and moving…What this City needs is a good class action law suit against it by all the tax payers who have been abused to facilitate all of this illegal work.”
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