Have Your Say On Transportation Issues At M.T.A. Public Meeting

Next week, Brooklynites will have the opportunity to voice their concerns about the Metropolitan Transportation Authority' proposed cuts to service to both train and bus service around the borough. A Brooklyn MTA meeting will be held on Wednesday next week. Please put it on your calendar.

Below is a letter on this matter from City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and James Vacca, Chair of the Transportation Committee

Dear Brooklyn Resident,

In December the MTA unveiled a package of service cuts that is a slap in the face to millions of New Yorkers across the five boroughs. Your borough now faces critical cuts in service that will negatively affect the commutes of thousands of Brooklynites each day. Please click here to sign our petition and oppose these cuts! Also, please attend the MTA's public hearing in Brooklyn next month and let your voice be heard. Details are below:

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

6 p.m.

Brooklyn Museum

Cantor Auditorium

200 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn

(To view a list of public hearings in the other boroughs, click here.)

Among the proposed cuts to your borough are:

• Elimination of Student MetroCards
• $40 million in cuts to Access-a-Ride
• Buses to be eliminated: B23, B37, B39, B51, B71, B75, B77, X29, X37 and the X38
• Weekend elimination of the B2, B24, B69, X27 and X28
• The following trains face reduced service, which will result in longer waits and more crowded subway cars: D, F, G, A, L and M trains. The M will be replaced by the V train.

Take Action!

• Help us collect signatures for our petition, which we plan to deliver to each of the MTA's public hearings. You can find our petition online by clicking here.

• Sign up to volunteer! If you would like to volunteer, please contact Nick Rolf at NROLF@council.nyc.gov.

• Urge the MTA to find alternative ways to prevent these terrible cuts. To contact the MTA by phone, dial (212) 878-7483. To contact them by e-mail, click here.

The New York City Council and the Straphangers Campaign have proposed an alternate budget solution that will allow us to avoid these painful service cuts. To read more about our plan click here. Or click here to read our Op-Ed in the Daily News.

With your help we can stop these drastic cuts and ensure greater input from Brooklyn residents in the MTA's budget process.

Sincerely,

Christine C. Quinn

Speaker

New York City Council

James Vacca

Chair, Transportation Committee

New York City Council

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Available For Rent On Smith Street: A Glimpse Inside Former Medical Office

This has to be one of the larger retail spaces on Smith Street! Once a medical office, Number 229 has been available for rent for just a few months for $6,500 by Smith Hanten Real Estate.
The 2,250 foot space, between Douglass and Butler Streets, used to be divided into smaller offices, but a glimpse through the window revealed that it has recently been gutted. It actually looks quite amazing.
The real estate ad states that a food business would be permitted. No doubt. Only a restaurant could pay that kind of monthly rent and turn a profit.
But Smith Street would be so much more interesting if there were less eating and drinking establishments, I say.

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'We The Free' Soon To Become Home To 'Free People' On Smith Street

On my walk yesterday, I noticed that the "We The Free" boutique at 113 Smith Street had been totally emptied and that a sign in the window noted that the store would be closed for renovation from December 25 through January 21st.
The space, the flier noted, will soon be home to a "new Free People boutique."
The store's blog doesn't give too much more information:

Yes, that’s right. Free People was so popular in our little store in Brooklyn that we will be turning over our inventory, and on January 20th officially re- open as a Free People store. While we all loved our little concept on Smith Street, the time is come for change… as we all know. So FP it is.

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Some Good And Some Bad News About The BQE Reconstruction Project

Robert Moses' Brooklyn Queens Expressway Cantilever Roadway

in Brooklyn Heights, 

Early 1950's

Last week, Roy Sloane, the president of the Cobble Hill Association, attended a meeting with Peter King, the New York State Department Of Transportation's Project Manager, regarding the reconstruction of the B.Q.E.

He was kind enough to send me his summary of the meeting. I am printing it below with his permission. Though, as he says, there is some good news (the project has been expanded), there is also some real concern. The project has the potential of tremendously impacting our entire area. Read on:

I want to update you on the latest news on the BQE Rehabilitation Project.

First the good news:

1) At this evening's Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) meeting, Peter King, NYS DOT Project Manager announced his agency's intention to expand the project area south to Hamilton Avenue-- subject to the concurrence of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). This means that the BQE Rehabilitation will be expanded to include all Atlantic Avenue entrances and exits and the BQE "ditch".

2) Expansion of the project area also means that the primary study area will be expanded south at least as far as Hamilton Avenue and will certainly include all of the neighborhoods west of the Gowanus Canal. It still remains to be determined exactly how far east the primary study area will include-- so this remains an important open issue, My personal opinion is that the primary study area should probably extend all the way to Prospect Park, but must be extended at a minimum to Fourth Avenue.

The final announcement on the southern extension of the project area will be made at the Stakeholder's Advisory Group (SAC) meeting that will be held on December 2nd at St. Francis College. I will forward the official announcement of this meeting to you all, so that you can be sure to attend.

Now the less than good news:

While a relatively low impact no build" scenario is still being considered as an option, the discussion among the TAC members -- almost all of whom are government agency officials -- confirms that the BQE Triple Cantilever Roadway Reconstruction Project has the potential to be an infrastructure reconstruction project of truly unprecedented scale and extent. It is not unreasonable to anticipate that our entire area could be profoundly impacted for the years required to complete the rehabilitation.

It is important to know that Peter King and his team are also considering an equally ambitious set of options to mitigate this impact including tolling strategies, a temporary outboard highway over the water and even more permanent solutions such as tunneling underneath downtown Brooklyn. You can learn more about the project and the planning effort at:

www.nysdot.gov/bqedowntownbrooklyn

Given the enormity of the potential impact on our neighborhoods south of Atlantic Avenue, it is imperative that the organizations that we all represent become actively involved in these early stage planning efforts. We must insist that the potential impacts of any maintenance of traffic plans be thoroughly studied to protect our historic neighborhoods located south of Atlantic Avenue.

Roy Sloane

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Halloween Vein Drain Blood Drive

Halloween Vein Drain Blood Drive
Watch horror movies while giving blood.
A great combination.

Get ready for the Vein Drain Blood Drive
At Brooklyn Borough Hall
(209 Joralemon Street)
11 AM- 4:30PM.

You have to love the name and the poster for this event.

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Neighborhood Artist Regina Perlin Captures Unique Beauty Of The Gowanus Canal

Artist Regina Perlin painting on the Carroll Street Bridge,
Gowanus Canal, Brooklyn

See Regina Perlin's work at Perfect Corner on Smith Street

Artist Regina Perlin and I have much in common. We both moved to Carroll Gardens about 24 years ago, have a deep attachment to our adopted neighborhood and find beauty in the ordinary. And we are both magically drawn to the Gowanus Canal and to the Carroll Street Bridge, I with my camera, Regina with her easel, canvas and paints.

I fell in love with her work long before I actually met the artist. I was enchanted by her paintings of local storefronts. The ones of Jim and Andy's Produce and of D'Amico's Foods on Court Street are particularly charming, imbued with light, sentiment and the spirit of this historic neighborhood. It was only much later that I got to see her equally beautiful series of paintings of the Gowanus Canal and of the industrial area surrounding the waterway.

A native Brooklynite, Ms. Perlin was a literature and arts major at New York University, before attending the New York Studio School and then the Art Students League. She started as an abstract painter, but did not quite know where to go with abstraction. She originally came to realism to hone her craft, intending to apply lessons learned to return to that style.
Instead, she discovered outdoor painting and thrived on the interaction of passers-by who stopped to talk to her about the neighborhood and about its history. It is that spirit and that love of place that translates into her paintings. Now, she almost paints exclusively in her neighborhood.

Sitting together at the Fall Café recently, I asked her about her Gowanus Canal series. " The Gowanus Canal is a wonderful treasure because it has everything" she told me when I asked her why she was so drawn to the waterway. "The area has a lot of light. I like the shapes and I like the bit of chaos. I love the juxtaposition between beauty and neglect. The canal is an unexpected bucolic scene in the middle of an industrial world."
She tries to downplay the decay surrounding the canal. However, she does incorporate its many shapes. For example, the form of a rusted, broken down truck becomes part of her composition.

Ms. Perlin is wary of the the changes that will inevitably come to the Gowanus area in the not too distant future. She hopes that whatever may come, the light, the openness and the human scale of the area surrounding the Gowanus Canal will be preserved.

If you happen to see Regina Perlin painting around the neighborhood, or on the Carroll Street bridge, one of her favorite spots, stop and say hello. She is a lovely lady and an extraordinary talent. This neighborhood is lucky to have her.



Regina Perlin will be exhibited at Perfect Corner, a family-owned custom picture framing shop at 345 Smith Street, corner of Carroll Street. (Stop 28 on the tour)


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Don't Forget About Red Hook's 3rd Annual Film Festival This Week-End

The 3rd Annual Red Hook Film Festival

****REMINDER***

As part of their film line-up, the organizers of the 3rd Annual Red Hook Film Festival are including Blue Barn Pictures's film on fellow blogger and friend Bob Guskind. Also included is the incredibly poignant "Lavender Lake: Brooklyn's Gowanus Canal" documentary.

The 2009, Red Hook International Film And Video Festival screenings

will take place on October 3rd & 4th at

The Brooklyn Waterfront Artist's Coalition's Screening Room,

499 Van Brunt Street, Red Hook, Brooklyn, New York

Click here for Directions and Travel options to the Festival

At 1:00 p.m.	On The Gowanus
	Robert Guskind: 1958-2009 Directed by Blue Barn Pictures Documentary, 2009, color, 6:30 minutes A tribute to Robert Guskind - aka "Brooklyn's Blogfather" - who for many years published The Gowanus Lounge, a local news website that offered unique coverage of Brooklyn's many neighborhoods. This year's Red Hook Film Festival is dedicated to Robert Guskind, to The Gowanus Lounge, and to local storytelling.
	Lavender Lake: Brooklyn's Gowanus Canal Directed by Alison Prete Documentary, 1999, color, 53 minutes A 10th anniversary screening of this classic Brooklyn documentary, which chronicles the gritty details of the decades-long struggle to clean up the Gowanus Canal. This film remains especially relevant today, as the Gowanus neighborhood faces a potential Superfund designation. What has changed on the canal - and what remains the same - in the ten years since this fascinating documentary was completed?

Full Schedule Here

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Maria SS. Addolorata Procession In Carroll Gardens

Photo credit: Andy Schocken

The procession and feast of Maria SS. Addolorata, the patron saint of Mola Di Bari, is a tradition here in Carroll Gardens. Every second Sunday in September, the Catholic Parish of Sacred Hearts/St. Stephen holds mass and members of the congregation carry the statue of Our Lady Of Sorrows around the streets of Carroll Gardens.

I did not get a chance to see the procession myself this year. Luckily, Andy Schocken, a new neighborhood resident, took these terrific photos and was kind enough to allow me to post them here.

Thanks, Andy, and welcome to the hood.

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They Are Back!!!! Rats Invade Carroll Park... Again!

photo credit: Suzanne DeChillo/ The New York Times
on "The First (And Hopefully Last) rat Festival" In Carroll Park 2005

You know you have an infestation, when you see rats running around in the middle of the day. Unfortunately, that is exactly what is happening in Carroll Park right now. The Park workers are reporting that rodents have been sighted not only in the flowerbeds and in the open areas, but droppings were also found in the park house. This is not the first time that our park has been over-run by rats.

Back in the summer and fall of 2005, the Committee To Improve Carroll Park, of which I am a member, notified the Parks Department that we had a real rodent problem.

Though the department tried hard to bait and get the problem under control, it was apparent to the Committee, that an inter-departmental effort was needed. (After all, the subway runs under the Smith Street side of the park) However, trying to get the other agencies, like the Sanitation Department and the MTA, to co-operate was hard.
In an effort to draw attention to the problem, the C.I.C.P. organized a "First (and hopefully last) Rat Festival" on the same day other parks around the city were hosting their official "It's My Park Day!" The event included relay rat races, the adopt-a rat program, eatable gummy rats were handed out as prizes and a giant inflatable rat, generously lent by a labor union, stood guard in front of the Park House.)

On First (And Hopefully Last) Rat Festival day, Carroll Park 2005

That got results! The event's press coverage got the city administration's attention and the necessary help to combat the rats. The problem seemed under control, until now that is..

C.I.C.P. is determined to attack the problem head-on and not to wait till it 'multiplies.' The committee is reaching out to the Park's Department, will hang up fliers informing the general public, as well as encouraging people to clean up after themselves and asking them to refrain from feeding birds and squirrels.

But we all need to help!

***If you have seen rats in other parts of the neighborhood, please leave a comment. It will help the city to bait more efficiently.***

Related Reading:
http://newyork.timeout.com/articles/i-new-york/862/trash-talk

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Another Great "Brooklyn Book Festival" Coming Up!

This simply has to be one of Brooklyn's coolest events. I was unable to attend last September, but am hoping to go this year. Below, find all relevant info.

2009 BROOKLYN BOOK FESTIVAL IS HUGE, FREE

NATIONAL LITERARY DESTINATION EVENT

Over 220 literary superstars and pop culture trailblazers at hip, smart, diverse festival of ideas

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 10AM - 6PM

BOROUGH HALL PLAZA,

209 JORALEMON STREET, BROOKLYN, NY

Featuring: Russell Banks, Jonathan Lethem, Anne Carson, Paul Auster,

Edwidge Danticat, Claire Messud, Colson Whitehead, A.M. Homes, David Cross,

Mary Gaitskill, Nicholson Baker, Oliver Sacks, Staceyann Chin, Gary Shteyngart, Amy Sohn,

Nelson George, Melvin Van Peebles, Siri Husvedt, Lupe Fiasco, Heidi Julavits, Sloane Crosley,

Tao Lin, Jeffrey Rotter, Esmeralda Santiago, Keith Gessen, Naomi Klein, Thurston Moore,

M.T. Anderson, Greg Milner, Francine Prose, Jonathan Ames, Kate DiCamillo, Mo Willems,

T. Cooper, Tom Tomorrow, Judi Barrett, Christopher Myers...and many more!

On Sunday, September 13, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, the Brooklyn Literary Council and Brooklyn Tourism will host the fourth annual Brooklyn Book Festival, a huge, free public event presenting over 220 authors participating in panel discussions and readings, young adult and children’s programming and a literary marketplace of more than 150 booksellers, publishers and literary organizations. Readings are held at Brooklyn Borough Hall, in Borough Hall Plaza and Columbus Park, at St. Francis College and the Brooklyn Historical Society.

The Brooklyn Book Festival will feature readings by Paul Auster (Man in the Dark), Russell Banks (The Reserve) Francine Prose (Goldengrove), Tao Lin (Shop Lifting from American Apparel), Yona Zeldis McDonough (Breaking the Bank), Nicholson Baker (The Anthologist), Ben Marcus (Notable American Women), David Cross (I Drink for a Reason) and Rakesh Satyal (Blue Boy), and poets Anne Carson, Sonia Sanchez, Philip Schultz and Arthur Sze. Jonathan Ames (The Double Life is Twice as Good).

For more information, go here to the Book Festival's Official Web Site or become a fan of the even's Facebook page.

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