Monday, February 29, 2016
First Signs Of Spring Can Be Detected In Carroll Gardens
The buds of the camellia in my own front yard are getting ready to open up. So are the buds on the magnificent magnolia at the corner of Carroll and Smith Streets.
The birds have definitely noticed the change in the air. Their chirping has definitely gotten much louder of late. Have you noticed?
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Katia
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3:03 PM
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Labels: Carroll Gardens, Spring
Carroll Park Looking For Local Artists To Help Create Public Art Out Of Trash Cans
Exactly ten years ago, I was involved in a great project by Friends of Carroll Park, the non-profit organization run entirely by volunteers who keep our public space looking great.
In 2006, the Parks department replaced Carroll Park's trash cans with metal barrels that looked kind of drab, so FoCP put out a call to local artists to create art out of them. The response was overwhelming and the result was outstanding. We celebrated the success with a public unveiling of the cans, followed by a small ceremony. It was all very lovely.
Most of the cans have survived the elements all this time. Seeing them still makes me smile every time I walk across the park. Unfortunately, they have now begun to rust out and need to be replaced.
That is why Friends of Carroll Park is relaunching the project.
If you are a local artist or just a creative person who would like to give back to your community for the glory and joy of displaying your art in our public park, please submit a sketch of your design by Saturday, March 26.
FoCP will let you know by the following Wednesday, March 30 whether your design has been selected. You will have approximately one month after that date to get your work done. The unveiling ceremony is currently scheduled for Saturday, May 14.
Feel free to follow up with any questions you may have.
HEY, ARTISTS!
We’re looking for local artists to create a piece of public art using new trash cans. (The existing artist-painted cans in the park have lasted 9 years, but sadly they are now rusting through.)
You supply the talent, we supply a new 32-gallon metal barrel.
This is a great opportunity to give back to the community. Have fun, meet other artists and know that you have done something great for one of Brooklyn's oldest parks.
Interested? Let’s talk.
carrollparkbrooklyn@gmail.com
Friends of Carroll Park
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Katia
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9:39 AM
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Labels: Carroll Park, Friends Of Carroll Park
Thursday, February 25, 2016
Picture Of The Day: On A Red Hook Wall
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Katia
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3:39 PM
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Labels: picture of the day
A Moment Back in Time: Who Remembers Rainbow Market And Aiello's Food Store On Court Street

A while back, I came across this great photo of Court Street between Union and Sackett Streets, which still show two stores that were in business when I first moved into the neighborhood in the mid-80s.
There was Rainbow Market, a produce store where Charlie, one of the employees, would flirt with all the female customers. The store is now occupied by the Brooklyn Strategist
Then there was Aiello's Food Store, a large delicatessen, that once belonged to an Italian family, but which had been taken over by a Russian couple, who did not have the best people skills and ended up running the business into the ground.
In the photo, one can also detect the old pharmacy, Renaissance, which was run by two lovely ladies. It closed about ten years ago.
The blue and white building on the right hand stands pretty unchanged today. It belonged once to the Longshoremen's Union, but has houses a Church of Jesus Christ of Later Day Saints.
Who remembers these businesses and the people who ran them?
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Katia
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3:07 PM
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Labels: a moment in time, business
Bar Halyards Celebrates 5 'Crazy' Years In Gowanus Tonight (And The Oscars This Sunday)

Find all info about the event here,
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Katia
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8:35 AM
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Labels: 406 3rd Avenue, Bar Halyards
Monday, February 22, 2016
Picture Of The Day: All You Need Is…
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Katia
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7:30 PM
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Labels: picture of the day
Where Once A Temperamental Mechanic Repaired Motorcycles On Carroll Street, A New 4-Story House Will Rise

Tom eventually relocated his shop to 21st Street in Brooklyn and the garage on Carroll Street stood empty for a while.
In early 2015, a crew began doing interior demolition work and plans were filed for a "4-story, 3-family extension on top of the existing one story commercial building." Astoria-based Anthony Cucich is the architect of record.
Do you remember him?
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Katia
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12:55 PM
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Labels: 316 Carroll Street, Carroll Gardens, construction
Friday, February 19, 2016
Have You Ever Eaten At Queen Italian Restaurant On Court Street?
I have admired the restaurant's old fashioned neon sign for years, especially since it is one of the only unchanged store sign left on Court Street since I moved here 30 years ago.
According to Queen's web site, the restaurant opened its doors in1958 by the Vitiello family. It is still a family-owned restaurant, which serves its guests "the tastes and flavors of all the twenty regions of the Italian peninsula."
I would love to know if you ever eaten at Queen? What are the best dishes here? How does this eatery compare to some of the other Italian restaurants in the immediate area? If you have never been, have you ever been tempted?
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Katia
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1:32 PM
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Labels: 84 Court Street, Queen Restaurant, restaurant
Celebrate Purim At Hannah Senesh Community Day School In Carroll Gardens


The event will feature a variety of crafts and art workshops, costume parade and carnival games run by local artists and community organizations, including:
*Music with Timbalooloo at 9:30 am*Play Me a Story presents: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz – In this Americana-style folk story, wefollow the adventures of young Dorothy Gale and her dog, Toto, as their Kansas house is swept
away by a cyclone and they find themselves in a strange land called Oz. Another audience
favorite! Begins at 10:30 am
*Arts & Crafts: masks, crowns, groggers, face painting, and more.
more information on the celebration here.
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10:29 AM
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Labels: 342 Smith Street, event, Hannah Senesh Community Day School