How to 'Tree-Cycle' Your Christmas Tree in Brooklyn

Photo: NYC Dept. of Sanitation

Folks in Brooklyn have two ways to recycle our Christmas trees this year:

1: The NYC Dept. of Sanitation will begin its annual Christmas tree curbside collection and recycling program on Monday, December 30. The program will run through Wednesday, January 15, 2014.

Trees will be collected, chipped and made into compost for city parks, ball fields and community gardens. (Remove all tree stands, tinsel, lights and ornaments from trees prior to placing trees curbside.)

In Christmases past, the DSNY has typically collected about 140,000 Christmas trees for “tree-cycling.”

2: As an alternate, the Parks & Recreation Department will be hosting Mulchfest 2014 on Saturday, January 11, 2014 and Sunday, January 12, 2014 from 10 A.M. to 2 P.M. at drop off sites throughout the city.

To find Brooklyn (and other) locations, visit the Parks & Recreation website. You can drop off your Christmas tree at designated parks for mulching and can pick up free mulch.

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Chancellor Carmen Fariña: Finally, a NYC Schools Chancellor with Educational Experience

Farina and de Blasio at M.S. 51. Photo: MK Metz

 Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio has broken with Mayor Bloomberg's practice of appointing lawyers and magazine publishers to run NYC's Department of Education . . . and appointed a respected educator, Carmen Fariña, as Schools Chancellor.

“Carmen is not only the Chancellor of the school system, but she’s the Chancellor for my child," said de Blasio, whose son Dante attends Brooklyn Tech. "Carmen understands the system, she knows exactly what teachers and parents are going through, and she will deliver progressive change in our schools that lifts up children in every neighborhood. She knows it because she has lived it.” 

Fariña is a legend in Brooklyn, where she spent decades as a teacher at P.S. 29 in Cobble Hill and as a District and Regional administrator.

On Monday she said she would create an easier way for parents to interact with DOE, and promised to bring back arts, social studies and the sciences.

She said she was in for the long haul. “If I take a job, there’s no halfway.”

De Blasio said he would not allow any new school co-location plans for now. He also announced that Ursulina Ramirez, an official on his transition team and a former social worker, would serve as Fariña’s chief of staff.

Stories on the appointment here:

With De Blasio’s pick of Carmen Fariña as Schools Chancellor, parents hope to regain voice in kids’ education [Brooklyn Eagle]

De Blasio Names Veteran NYC Educator Carmen Farina Next Schools Chancellor [NBC]

De Blasio chancellor pick Fariña promises ‘progressive agenda’ [Gotham Schools]


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Miley Cyrus Brooklyn Bangerz Tickets Range from $86 to $6,000

Photo: Rhys Asplundh, flickr

Miley Cyrus is back in Brooklyn at Barclays Center for her Bangerz tour on April 5, 2014.

Good tickets don't come cheap. For those interested, we just scouted prices and found some (comparatively less expensive) at TicketHurry.com

They range from behind-stage seats for $86 - $95; to middle-distance seating for roughly $200; left and right of stage for $500; and floor tickets from $724 - $5018.

Prices for similar seats are more (up to $6,000) at other ticket sites we checked, but you may be able to do better. 

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Another de Blasio Appointment; No More Carding Teens at Brooklyn Mall; and More Brooklyn Briefs

Brooklyn: Nassau Ave & Mcguiness Blvd EMS on scene with a pedestrian struck by vehicle Aided is DOA on scene, NYPD Hwy CIS requested.
— NY Scanner (@NYScanner) December 29, 2013

- A woman has died after being struck by two vehicles in Greenpoint on Sunday. [NBC]

- Mayor-Elect Bill de Blasio has appointed former Brooklyn US Attorney Zachary Carter to become the city’s top lawyer. [NY Post]

- The Kings Plaza Mall has ended its carding of minors, imposed after Thursday's teen rampage. [NBC]

- Rite Aid cited by OSHA for safety hazards at Kings Highway Stor; Proposed fines total more than $83,000. [4-Traders]

- Two-family townhouse in Bed-Stuy going for $1.2 million. [Curbed]

- A Brooklyn teacher has accused a DOE investigator of blackmailing her into sexting him. [Gothamist]

- Spokesman calls Citi Bike program a huge success. [CBSlocal]

- The secret to hacking real estate rental sites. [Forbes]

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NYC Harnesses Tourists Peddling Citi Bikes to Power the New Years Eve Ball

Photo: MK Metz

NYC has set up a Citi Bike Pedal Power Station at 7th Avenue and 42nd Street with six Citi Bike bicycles for tourists to ride to generate energy to light the New Years Eve ball.

The energy generated is being collected and stored in batteries until the big celebration.

(NYC residents are also invited to power up the New Years ball, but face it: We gotta work.)

The Citi Bike Pedal Power Station is located on the Southeast corner of 7th Avenue and 42nd Street. It was open over the weekend, and will be open again today from 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM.

Citi Bike brand ambassadors will be on-site taking photos of participating riders. Participants will receive a free Citi Bike day pass and they will be sent a digital photo of them helping power the Ball that they can save and share. More here.


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Scanner: Cops Investigate 'Suspicious Duffel Bag' on B Train in Brooklyn, Monday Morning

From the scanner: Police have been called to instigate a "suspicious duffel bag" left on the B train stopped at roughly 2:15 a.m. early Monday morning at Flatbush and De Kalb Ave.

According to NYPD dispatch, the bag was found in car number 2640 on the B express.

No further information.


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Donate to Brooklyn Charities Before the End of 2013!

Charity starts at home with the Brooklyn Community Foundation.

Want to donate to worthy charities and help your Brooklyn neighbors . . . before the clock strikes midnight on December 31?

There are hundreds of worthwhile non-profits and charitable organizations across Brooklyn. Here are just a few that would welcome your end-of-year donation:

Brooklyn Community Foundation: With more than 15 years working with Brooklyn non-profits, Brooklyn Community Foundation believes that charity starts at home. BCF is a good place to start because they cover all the bases with five Field of Interest funds: Arts for All, Caring Neighbors, Community Development, Education and Youth Achievement and Green Communities. (They also run the Brooklyn Recovery Fund, with the Office of the Brooklyn Borough President and the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, to support those most affected by Superstorm Sandy.) 

Brooklyn Community Services: Brooklyn Community Services is one of the oldest, not-for-profit, non-sectarian social service providers in New York City. They work with families at risk of separation; people with psychiatric illnesses; adults with disabilities; people moving from welfare to work; and children who need support and guidance.

St. John's Bread and Life: Bread and Life brings food and assistance to the poor and provides other  necessary services through their soup kitchens, medical programs and legal programs assisting the needy with Medicaid and food stamps.

Red Hook Initiative:  Award-winning RHI provides long-term programming to youth ages 10 – 24in underserved Red Hook. When Hurricane Sandy hit, RHI became a hub for relief and rebuilding work.

Bed-Stuy Campaign Against Hunger: With $5 billion in food stamp cuts, some Bed-Stuy families are in danger of going hungry. BSCAH operates NYC’s largest emergency food pantry. The organization also provides nutrition programs for seniors, and healthy eating and anti-obesity classes for kids.

CHiPS of Park Slope: CHiPS serves the hungry and homeless with a soup kitchen (serves about 200 a day) and women's shelter. Nearly 80 percent of the food that volunteers prepare is donated by the Park Slope Food Coop. $10 provides six meals!

Catholic Charities of Brooklyn and Queens: You don't have to be Catholic to appreciate the work done by Catholic Charities, which has more than 160 programs providing affordable housing, nutritious meals, recreation for seniors, residences for the developmentally disabled, and assistance to neighbors in need.

Good Shepherd Services: GSS focuses on high-need communities in Brooklyn and the Bronx. They provide services to help youth. In Brooklyn, they serve the neighborhoods of Bensonhurst, Brighton Beach, Bushwick, Canarsie, Coney Island, Downtown, Gowanus, Park Slope, Red Hook, Sunset Park, and Williamsburg.

Children of Promise: Based in Bed-Stuy, COP helps invisible victims -- the children of incarserated parents -- with an after-school program, mentoring and summer day camp. They also provide transportation so kids can visit their parents, and help them connect by writing letters to mom or dad.

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Cops Chase 3 Armed Robbers on 7th Ave., Park Slope, Sunday p.m.

Radio Shack at 7th and 5th. Photo: Google Streetview

From the scanner: The 78th precinct is chasing a group of men who allegedly robbed a Radio Shack on Seventh Ave. and 5th Street in Park Slope.

Description: Three male blacks, in their 30s, wearing all black, sunglasses, face masks and gloves. They fled the scene of the robbery at roughly 7:15 p.m.

One man has a silver firearm.

The group is carrying a Radio Shack bag.

The perps are driving a four-door dark sedan, partial license plate possibly 7355. They may be heading south towards the 72 Precinct.

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Friends of Brooklyn Heights Library: Build School Inside New Library Tower

Proposal B." Photo: BPL

Opponents of the Brooklyn Heights Branch Library redevelopment say they plan to comment “None of the above” or “Just fix up our old library” to Brooklyn Public Library's suggestion site, where the public can comment on all seven proposals.

Instead of fighting the plan to raze the old building and replace it with a tower, Deborah Hallen, president of The Friends of the Brooklyn Heights Branch Library, thinks residents should instead work the system to get a new school for youngsters.

She told the Brooklyn Eagle that there aren’t enough schools in the neighborhood. P.S. 8’s preschool is closing, and kindergartners are going to be put on a waiting list next year.

To seal the deal, Hallen wants the condo developers to devote space to a new pre-K and kindergarten. “You buy a place in Brooklyn Heights thinking you’re going to get into this wonderful school, only to be put on the wait list,” she said.

Residents opposed to the redevelopment say the whole thing is a real estate giveaway of public property, and it stinks of Bloomberg. Eagle commenter Marsha Rimler says: "Hallen's request for a K and pre K can easily be incorporated in a community plan without the developer giveaway. This is public land where public needs can be met. It can be the first 'public mixed use' building with smart thinking."

More at the Eagle.

Previous posts on this topic:
- Neighborhood Similar to Brooklyn Heights Manages to Afford a New AC in their Library
- Brooklyn Public Library Moving to Wrap Up Sale of Heights Branch Quickly
- Tough Crowd at Brooklyn Heights Library Meeting
- Brooklyn Heights Business Library Moving to Prospect Heights; Building May Be Sold to Developer
- Brooklyn Heights Library Closed Again
- Will Brooklyn Public Library's Self-Checkout Machines Work Better Than CVS's?


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Time to Hit These After-Christmas Sales In Downtown Brooklyn

Aeropostal's After-Christmas sale.

For some people, shopping After-Christmas sales is part of the holiday fun. Downtown Brooklyn has more major chain stores than ever before, and the sales have begun. Savings range from 20 - 70 percent.

Here's a look at some of the big Downtown Brooklyn sales, along with links to coupons (if we could find them):

Brooklyn Industries: Brooklyn Industries has started their Winter Mega Sale, with winter styles up to 50 percent off. This includes pretty much everything:  T-shirts, dresses, coats, skirts, bags, sweaters, the works. There's a fleece jacket for women marked down from $74 to $39.99, and a roll-cuff T-shirt from $44 to $19.99. Men's patch pants have been reduced from $72 to $29.99. The markdowns on men's winter coats and women's winter coats and jackets are substantial. The woman's Voyager wool parka with lined hood has been marked down from $238 to $99.99!

Aeropostal: Aeropostal is throwing a crazy clearance sale with up to 70 percent off. Girls black boots / white combat boots have been marked down from $48.50 to $16.99/ $19.99; Lola Rhinestone jeggings were $59.50, now $14.99. Coupon: $10 0ff purchase of $40 or more.

Macy's: Macy's Wow! Pass sale starts Friday. (Click here for a Wow! Pass coupon for an extra 15 percent off, or, online, use promo code MERRY.) Macy's denim (jeans) sale starts Friday: Ladies Levi's have been marked down from $54 to $39.99. Men's jeans marked down from $58 to $39.99. PLUS you get a $10 savings card with any denim purchase. (So maybe if you need two pairs you should buy them one at a time?) Also, now's the time for men to buy dress shirts and designer suits: buy one, get one free. Ladies get a similar deal on bras. ALSO: 60 percent off all quilts; 40 - 60 percent off sheet sets. Sale flyer here.

Armani Exchange: Looking for an upscale dress or  fancy Tee? Armani Exchange is chopping up to 50 percent off many high fashion styles for men and women. A ladies' tweed blazer has been marked down from $148 to $109. Several jackets have been reduced from $228 to $199.

Modell's: Need a hoodie, shoes, a backpack or sports products? Check out Modell's, with 30 - 50 percent off items for men, women and kids (but more for men).

Express: Take an additional 20 percent off already reduced merch, for up to 60 percent off.  All jeans 40 percent off; women's dresses 30 percent off; men's shirts and ties - buy one, get the second for $19.99; men's sweaters - buy one, get the second half off.

Gap Outlet: Here's a coupon for 15 percent off $75+ through Dec. 30.  And 20 percent off $100+.

H&M: H&M is discounting merchandise up to 70 percent. A satin dress is marked down from $24.95 to $10. Pair with a dinner jacket marked down from $34.95 to $15; or a faux fur jacket, reduced from $60 down to $20. Men can pick up slim jeans, marked down from $39.95 to $20.

Lane Bryant: Get up to 50 percent off on sale items, like a textured sweater dress - was as $79.95, now $39.97.

Payless: Entire shoe stock is up to 30 percent off or more on red tag models.

The Children's Place: Huge sale, up to 75 percent off with a 30 percent discount coupon.


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