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Thursday, January 28, 2016

Brooklyn Public Library's Fuzzy Figures; Slate Coming to MetroTech; and More Brooklyn Briefs

Sweeping snow from the steps of the Brooklyn Bridge. Photo by MK Metz
 - The Brooklyn Public Library has more money than it’s letting on, according to a new organization called Love Brooklyn Libraries. [Brooklyn Eagle]
 
- Forget Per Se. Brooklyn Fare has transformed itself from a lean, underdog chef's counter into one of the city's most comfortable and compelling expressions of haute cuisine. [Eater]

- Slate Magazine is ditching the West Village for Brooklyn. Slate signed a 21,000 square-foot lease at Metrotech Center. [TRD]

- Update: Behind the scenes at the Pineapple Walk vote in Brooklyn Heights: Property values at 75 Henry St. ballooning. [Brooklyn Eagle]

- Here's a map of every pinball machine in Brooklyn. [Brownstoner]

- Police have identified the woman whose body was found floating in the East River in Williamsburg Tuesday morning. [NBC] Another woman's body floated up in Greenpoint. [Daily News]

- An inside look at Brooklyn's Asian food scene. [BK Magazine]

- Bookie tied to mob found dead two days after Brooklyn DA raids homes. [DNAinfo]

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Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Craft a Giant Cardboard Model of DUMBO Tonight in Brooklyn


For some reason crafting a giant cardboard box model of DUMBO looks so fun!

Join the DUMBO BID at 68 Jay St. to help cut and paste.


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Tuesday, January 26, 2016

One Thousand Still Without Power in NYC, Most of Them in Brooklyn

Courtesy Con Ed
Following this weekend's blizzard, roughly 600 Brooklyn Con Edison customers were without power as of 5 p.m. Tuesday.

According to Con Ed's outage map, the dead spots were scattered across the borough, with Central Brooklyn registering slightly more outages.

Most notably, 115 customers (individual units or homes) were without power in Prospect Lefferts Gardens; 58 in the South Slope; 34 near Eastern Parkway; 67 in Bed-Stuy; 25 in Homecrest; 36 in Ridgewood; 17 near the Navy Yard, 22 in Boerum Hill and more.

About 300 customers lacked power in Upper Manhattan; 100 customers in Queens were also in the dark Tuesday evening.

Depending on the location, Con Ed says many of these repairs will be completed either by 11 p.m. tonight or early tomorrow morning.

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Tuesday, January 19, 2016

McBrooklyn's Heading South! (For a Week)

It's cold up here! So McBrooklyn's heading south for a week. We'll catch up as soon as we get back!

Dunk Island photo by Melalouise, Creative Commons license

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Monday, January 18, 2016

Shocker: Brooklyn Heights Co-Op Turns Down $130M for Pineapple Walk

 What's next -- flying pigs?

Cooperators at Whitman Owner (75 Henry Street) in Brooklyn Heights turned down a developer's $130 million offer to buy a strip of shops along Pineapple Walk to build a 40-story tower, the Brooklyn Eagle reports.

The developer had dangled the promise of from $120,000 to $200,000+ per Whitman shareholder, plus enriched coffers for the co-op and the use of the new building's amenities.

Here's the kicker: After much discussion about seriously overcrowded schools, subways and traffic (with many developments still to come) in Brooklyn Heights . . . shareholders turned down the developer's offer!

Do things like this even happen in real life?

Apparently, yes. 

75 Henry St. Shareholders Vote Against Selling Pineapple Walk in Brooklyn Heights



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Friday, January 15, 2016

A Marie Antoinette-Inspired Bar Opens Under Atlantic Ave. in Brooklyn Heights


We're not in town right now but if we were we would rush so fast to see this "Marie Antoinette-inspired bar" under Atlantic Ave.

"Le Boudoir" is meant to resemble the French Queen's "lavish lair" at Versailles. The drink menu is replete with hints of 1793, including absinthe.

Where do we start? Here's the announcement:

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Tarek Debira and Patricia Ageheim, the husband and wife duo behind beloved neighborhood French restaurant Chez Moi in Brooklyn Heights, with partner Ali Mardassi, open Le Boudoir (135 Atlantic Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11201, 347-227-8337, www.chezmoiny.com), an underground Rococo-style 75-seat bar inspired by Marie Antoinette. Le Boudoir draws inspiration from the Queen of France's private chambers in Le Chateau de Versailles, channeling a space that once served as her refuge from the etiquette of the royal court, reserved only for her most intimate circle of friends. Debira, Ageheim and Mardassi introduce Brooklyn to their modern version of the lavish lair complete with an expertly crafted beverage program and light bites.

From Beverage Director Franky Marshall, formerly of Monkey Bar and The Dead Rabbit, Le Boudoir offers an inspired cocktail menu that features imaginative takes on classic libations as well as unique signature offerings, both of which showcase unexpected spirits and liqueurs. All named as an homage to Antoinette, cocktail highlights include the 1793 with Toasted Sunflower Seed Infused Rye, Oloroso Sherry and Demerara; a French 75 with Cognac, Sparkling Wine, and Fresh Lemon; the Axel von Fersen with Applejack, Bourbon, Sesame, Curry and Black Caraway; Dauphin with Absinthe, Chile Liqueur, Almond Milk, Coconut, and Cacao Nibs; and the Guillotine with Mezcal, Scotch, Banana and Honey, among others. The bar boasts an extensive selection of spirits, including absinthes, whiskies, and French fortified wines, as well as lesser-known spirits like sotol. Bottled and draft beers are also available, in addition to sparkling, white and red wine by the glass and bottle.

Le Boudoir will also offer a menu of Les Petits Pleasures including Crispy Frog Legs; Croquettes with Truffled Mushrooms; Country Pâté with Cornichons; a plate of Fromages; French Fries with Garlic and Parmesan; as well as Desserts like Chocolate Mousse and Crème Brûlée.

Designed by the Chez Moi team, Le Boudoir takes its cue from the Rococo architectural and design movements of 18th century France. Hidden in Chez Moi is a replication of the bookshelf from Marie Antoinette's library, through which guests are invited to make their way to the secret entrance and down a flight of stairs to the underground bar area. The entrance reveals a marblebar, stocked with silver-plated goblets and coupes, crystal d'arcques glassware and features a small bronze bust of Antoinette that serves as the tap for beers on draft. Adjacent to the bar sits a Steinway Piano and plush tufted red velvet chaise lounge.

In front of the bar is the intimate lounge area, with opulent red velvet banquettes and white marble tables, beneath a wall lined with ornate gilded mirrors and antique sconces sourced from French châteaus. A geometric wood ceiling is a reproduction of the Parquet de Versailles, a flooring pattern first introduced at the royal palace. Toward the rear of the room lies a dimly lit stone grotto, an abandoned tunnel uncovered underneath Atlantic Avenue during construction. The grotto is outfitted with a brown leather banquette, whimsical glass-top tables, all set beneath French Neo-Classical paintings. Marie Antoinette's spirit lives on at Le Boudoir in everything from the bathrooms that were designed as an exact replica of her private powder room, to an original engraved doorknob from her bedroom.

Le Boudoir is open seven days a week from 6:00pm until 1:00am Sunday through Thursday and from 6:00pm until 4:00am on Friday and Saturday. Reservations are available via phone at 347-227-8337, or online at www.chezmoiny.com.

Photo: Louise Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons





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Cuomo's State of the State Was Party Central

By Diana Robinson, Wikimedia
Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s State of the State Address on Jan. 13 was "like Albany’s version of the Super Bowl," reports the Brooklyn Eagle -- with parties and receptions surrounding the big event.

Parties thrown by City & State, the Brooklyn Eagle, the Queens Tribune, Carl Heastie and Thomas DiNapoli,among others, attracted large crowds.

Because the people's business is hard work.

More here.


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Thursday, January 14, 2016

Politico: Cuomo's Budget Screws NYC

Cuomo at a 2014 SUNY meeting.
Gov. Cuomo is paying back city residents for voting him into office.

The budget Gov. Andrew Cuomo unveiled on Wednesday will likely deal serious damage to New York City's bottom line for years to come, budget analysts told Politico.

Cuomo's changes will likely cut close to $1 billion from the city’s budget starting in fiscal year 2017.

“For New York City, I think this is one of the worst budgets that it’s seen in a long time,” said Maria Doulis, a budget analyst at the Citizens’ Budget Commission.

More at: Cuomo budget could mean real pain for New York City [Politico]

Also: Highlights of budget at Syracuse.com.

The whole budget here

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Wednesday, January 13, 2016

Going on Tinder as a Waffle House; Getting at 'Cattoo'; and More Brooklyn Briefs

Yes, "cattoos" are a thing now. In Brooklyn.

- Developer’s offer for Pineapple Walk in Brooklyn Heights shoots up like crazy. [Brooklyn Eagle]

- The fabulous story of a woman who changed her Tinder pic to a Waffle House, and how it changed her dating life forever. [Brokelyn]

The next step for families whose kids will be going to either P.S. 8 or P.S. 307 in September. [BHB]

- 'Don’t close the Pop-Up Pool!’ say Brooklyn pols. Meant to be temporary, popular Brooklyn Bridge Park pool approaching its last days. [Brooklyn Eagle]

- A judge refused to take the license of the motorist who killed Victoria Nicodemus on a Brooklyn sidewalk because, she said, District Attorney Ken Thompson filed no charges for reckless driving. [Streetsblog]

- Is Brooklyn's only weed doc a (possibly dangerous) quack? [Daily Beast]

- Four Brooklyn gang rape suspects appear in court, a fifth is arrested. [NBC]

- A 32-year-old Brooklyn man was killed Tuesday afternoon as he car surfed alongside a Mack truck in Manhattan. [NBC]

- Performance of David Bowie musical in NYC becomes a memorial. [AP]


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Monday, January 11, 2016

'El Chapo' Trial in Brooklyn? And More Brooklyn Briefs


Here's the video that got more than 5.8 million views on Facebook before it was blocked. It shows a New York strap-hanger literally giving the shirt off his back to a shivering homeless guy on the A train. More details at the Daily News.

- Cops arrest 4 suspects in gang rape of teen in Brownsville Park. They are ages 14 - 17. [NYT]

- The Brooklyn Heights Ten for 2015 have been announced. [BHB]

- Chicago and Brooklyn are leading contenders to host the first U.S. trial of drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman Loera if he is extradited from Mexico. [Yahoo]

- High-tech NYC subway? Cuomo unveils USB ports, Wi-Fi, station upgrades. [Brooklyn Eagle]

- The men who sell Brooklyn’s cool: Eric Demby and Jonathan Butler. [BBC]

- David Bowie has died of cancer at 69. [BBC] [WNYC] [Daily Mail]


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Report: Shooting in Red Hook, 1 Dead

Photo/data courtesy Google Maps
 According to the Twitter account NYC Scanner, two people were shot at 458 Columbia St. in Red Hook late Sunday/ early Monday.

One was pronounced dead at an unnamed hospital.

This address corresponds to the Hook West housing project.

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Voice: Barclays Center an 'Epic Train Wreck'?

Photo by MK Metz
 Neil Demause for the Village Voice says the Brooklyn real estate debacle known as Barclays Center is a money-loser that hasn't brought any new businesses or housing to the area that wouldn't have come there anyway. (Demaus credits Atlantic Yards Report blogger Norman Oder with digging out the financials.) Ratner recently sold his last bit of Barclays to Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov.

Demause says, "As for Brooklyn residents, we now have a terrible basketball team to watch, and a pretty decent hockey team, and a garish arena and some growing housing towers on a site that otherwise would probably have something similar anyway, given that pretty much every possible site in Brooklyn now has a ginormous apartment building going up on it..."

He ends, "It’s probably too simplistic to say of the Brooklyn arena that everybody ended up a loser, but we certainly haven't seen any slam-dunk winners yet. So for now, man, is this turning out to be an epic train wreck, or what?"

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Even Spider-Man Gets Into No Pants Subway Ride in NYC

The 2016 No Pants Subway Ride attracted thousands of pant-less riders on Sunday. Some participants, such as Spider-man, above, showed a little comic imagination.

Other folks stuck to the pants-off script, or went above and beyond the call of duty, like no-pants no-shirt guy above.

The event is hosted by Improv Everywhere. According to the group (theme: "We cause scenes."), 4,000 riders participated this year.

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Thursday, January 7, 2016

Brooklyn Sex Perv Teacher Gets 5 Years; Carjacking Leaves Trail of Mayhem; and More Brooklyn Briefs

- Brooklyn Tech teacher gets five years in prison for sharing pornographic images with seven students, kidnapping one. [Daily News]

- East New York residents worry that de Blasio's rezoning plan will end them up in homeless shelters. [NY1]

- Politicians are calling for the Jehovah’s Witnesses to fulfill promises the group made in 2004 to fix a DUMBO park and subway station. [Brownstoner]

- Tough Russian cookie: A carjacking in Brooklyn leaves a trail of mayhem. [NY Times]

- Map: How crime ridden is your Brooklyn neighborhood? [Patch]

- Manhattan is so ho humm: Brooklyn is becoming an increasingly attractive option for corporate conferences. [Skift]

- Brooklyn wedding shop closes, leaving customers scrambling. [NBC NY]

- Brooklyn has more walk-up apartments than any other borough. Bed-Stuy had the highest percentage in the city. [MetroUS]

- Covered in gold? Williamsburg restaurant sells $100 donuts.  [Fox]

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Wednesday, January 6, 2016

CEC Vote Approves P.S. 8, P.S. 307 Rezoning in Brooklyn


The District 13 CEC approved on Tuesday night the rezoning of P.S. 8 in Brooklyn Heights and P.S. 307 in Vinegar Hill.

Kids living in DUMBO and Vinegar Hill will now be going to P.S. 307, rather than P.S. 8.

For more details, visit Patch's blow-by-blow live blog of the hearing.

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Violence at Brooklyn House of Detention on Atlantic Ave.

Photo: MK Metz
 Two inmates were stabbed in the stomach and an officer was punched in the head hours after correction officers found three blades inside the Brooklyn House of Detention at 275 Atlantic Avenue, according to the Daily News.

The Brooklyn jail has been called "a hotspot for violence" since last year, the News says.

Built in 1957, the jail can house 815 adult males, most undergoing the intake process or awaiting trial in Kings County (Brooklyn) and Richmond County (Staten Island) courts. (According to www.cobanyc.org)




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Tuesday, January 5, 2016

Robot Shop in Williamsburg; Community Gardens to Developers; and More Brooklyn Briefs

- A 15-year-old Brooklyn girl was charged Monday with murdering her mom and her mom’s boyfriend in Sheepshead Bay. [Daily News]

- Two robbers who viciously beat a 60-year-old man in an attack in Midwood last week are under arrest, but police are still looking for the getaway driver. [Brooklyn Eagle]

- New Williamsburg pop-up shop Geek Forest is a one-stop shop for robots. [Fox]

- There's a lot of opposition to the Bushwick 200 project. [Bedford and Bowery]

- At least 9 community gardens in Brooklyn and Manhattan will be turned over to developers. [City Limits]

- You're probably entitled to commuter benefits now that could save you up to $1,000 a year. [Brooklyn Eagle]


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P.S. 8, P.S. 307 Rezoning Vote Tonight in Brooklyn


P.S. 8. Photo by MK Metz
The District 13 Community Education Council (CEC) will vote on the proposed rezoning of P.S. 8 in Brooklyn Heights, and P.S. 307 in Vinegar Hill, at a special meeting tonight at 6:30 p.m.

The meeting will take place at P.S. 56, 170 Gates Ave. (A crowd is expected, so arrive early.)

P.S. 8 is overcrowded, while P.S. 307 is undersubscribed.

According to the Brooklyn Eagle, the P.S. 8 PTA supports the rezoning, calling it "the only plan on the table to address the problem in time for the 2016-17 school year."

The DUMBO Neighborhood Alliance (DNA), however, has called for a delay in the vote. Doreen Gallo, DNA’s director, told the Eagle the alliance is against the proposal “moving forward to the CEC without the DOE answering very basic questions and needs of both communities.”

More here.

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Monday, January 4, 2016

Murder in Sheepshead Bay; Boro's Cheapest Gyms; and More Brooklyn Briefs

- A man and his girlfriend have been found dead inside a bloody Sheepshead Bay Houses apartment late Sunday (above). Police have taken the dead woman’s 15-year-old daughter into custody, but no arrests yet. [CBS]

- Brooklyn restaurant getting rid of tipping, paying servers $27 an hour. [PIX11]

- ICYMI: 100-story building is moving in next to Juniors. [TimeOut]

- Cops nabbed a Brooklyn gang member who pistol-whipped his ex-girlfriend Friday near their 1-year-old daughter. [NY Daily News]

- Guide to 17 of Brooklyn's cheapest gyms for 2016. [Brooklyn Magazine]

- Trappers break city law, release Brooklyn's hoard of raccoon invaders -- in Brooklyn. [Orange Co. Register]

- Two teenage boys were nabbed for brutally beating a man in Brooklyn were each ordered held on $25,000 bail. [NY Daily News]


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Sunday, January 3, 2016

Recycle your Christmas Tree at MulchFest in Brooklyn This Weekend

Help the environment and recycle your Christmas tree:

On Saturday, January 9, or Sunday, January 10, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., bring your tree to the Third Street entrance of Prospect Park or the Park Circle entrance at Parkside Avenue and Prospect Park Southwest, and it will be turned into environment-friendly ground cover. You can take home free mulch for your own garden.

While you wait for your mulch, you can enjoy hot chocolate, served by the Park Slope Civic Council or become a Civic Council member.

Can't make it? If you live in the area bounded by Union Street, Sixth Avenue, 15th Street, and Prospect Park West, you can leave your tree at either end of your block before 11 a.m. on Saturday and volunteers will pick it up and bring it to the 3rd Street entrance of the Park.

To volunteer, e-mail the Civic Council's Sustainability Committee, sustainability@parkslopeciviccouncil.org or come to the Third Street entrance of the Park.

MulchFest is co-sponsored by the Park Slope Civic Council in partnership with the Prospect Park Alliance, with special help from 1-800 Mr. Rubbish and U-Haul.
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Update: To check out other parks holding their own Mulchfest events, visit: nycgovparks.org/highlights/festivals/mulchfest
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Update 2: If you can't make it to MulchFest, the Department of Sanitation will begin its annual Christmas tree curbside collection program from Monday, January 4 through Friday, January 15.
Clean, non-bagged Christmas trees left on the curb will be chipped, mixed with leaves, and recycled into rich compost for the city’s parks, institutions, and community gardens.  


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Gunplay, Commotion Across the Street from Brooklyn's Barclays Center Early Sunday Morning

Map data copyright Google
From the Scanner:

Cops were dispatched at 12:40 a.m. Sunday morning to Tony Roma's Restaurant at 673 Atlantic Ave., catty-corner from Barclays Center in Brooklyn, to investigate a complaint about a male with a firearm.

According to the dispatcher, the gunman had been inside the restaurant but then left the scene.

Dispatch said that the restaurant manager was currently holding the gun, and someone might be bleeding. (This has not yet been confirmed.) The perp fled East along Atlantic Ave. in a white sedan.

The gunman was described as black, wearing a dark hoodie and dark jeans.

Shortly after this assignment, another call came in reporting a "big commotion," a "dangerous condition" and a crowd at that location.

The 78th Precinct transferred this to the 88th Precinct, according to dispatch.


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