- Where dead bodies are now prepared for burial, you may soon be visiting your doctor. [Brooklyn Eagle]
- Uncollected trash saves Brooklyn woman's life. [NY Magazine]
- Is that a Manhattan courthouse on the Brooklyn DA's website? [Metro]
- Methodist expansion inches ahead in Park Slope. [Brooklyn Paper]
- Was Hasidic slumlord's murder a professional hit? [Failed Messiah]
- Judge says no to waste facility at Brooklyn park. [Brooklyn Eagle]
- Brooklyn Children's Museum wants to build a $3.6 million parking lot. [DNAinfo]
- News outlets parrot press release about a barber shop at Barclays, but no one reports about delays in a deal ten times bigger. [Atlantic Yards Report]
- Gov. Cuomo gives his State of the State address today. What NY governor, in his State of the State, said, "Now the times of plenty, the days of wine and roses are over." [City & State]
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Wednesday, January 8, 2014
Trash Saves Woman's Life; Slumlord's Murder a Pro Hit? And More Brooklyn Briefs
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
Suspect In Brooklyn Slumlord Menachem Stark’s Murder: His Partner?
In the continuing bizarre story of the kidnapping and murder of Williamsburg slumlord Menachem Stark, now comes word that his business partner, Israel Perlmutter, is a possible suspect because "police are convinced he has been lying to them about Stark and trying to use a Russian businessman as a scapegoat," the NY Daily News reports.
Detectives told the News they believed Stark was squashed to death.
A reward for information was hiked to $25,000, according to the Brooklyn Eagle.
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Previous:
10 Things About Murdered Hasidic Brooklyn Slumlord Menachem Stark
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Photo: Polar Vortex Hits U.S.; Chicago = 'ChiBeria'
Deadly ice storm that struck some parts of Eastern Canada and the USA #EarthPics #PolarVortex #ChiBeria pic.twitter.com/knTlxCd8yl
— Google Earth Pics (@GoogleEarthPics) January 6, 2014
A photo from Google Earth showing conditions in Chicago, from the Polar Vortex extending into the U.S. from the Arctic. Chicago has been transformed into "ChiBeria."
The Polar Vortex is extending into Brooklyn tonight. While temperatures are plunging, an ice storm is not in the forecast.
#PolarVortex
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On Year's Coldest Night, 1,200+ in Brooklyn Without Power
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| Photo: Con Ed |
Several hundred more customers have lost power in Queens, as well as a couple of dozen in other boroughs.
Unfortunately, this has happened on the coldest night in decades. Temperatures are falling into the single digits, and the Office of Emergency Management is warning residents to stay inside.
The NYC Dept of Health says if your home lacks heat, get to a warm, safe place immediately. Report loss of heat or hot water to 311.
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Monday, January 6, 2014
NYC Warns of Dangerous, Freezing Temperatures on Tuesday. Stay Inside!
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| A "polar vortex" is pushing into New York City. Graphic courtesy of NOAA |
As temperatures are expected to drop well below freezing tonight & tomorrow, NYC OEM reminds all New Yorkers that prolonged exposure to extreme cold weather can be deadly.
The NWS is forecasting bitterly cold wind chills tonight, with overnight low temperatures between 5-8 degrees & wind chills of -15 degrees. Cold temperatures will continue on Tuesday with a high of 10 degrees & wind chills near -10 degrees. Overnight temperatures on Tuesday night will near 5 degrees with wind chills of -10 degrees. Temperatures will remain below freezing until Thurs, 1/9.
Vulnerable populations, such as seniors & infants, are most at risk during extreme weather events. Check on friends, family and neighbors if you think they need help getting to a warm place. The NYC DOHMH encourages everyone to stay indoors as much as possible during this time period, & if your home lacks heat, get to a warm, safe place immediately. Report loss of heat or hot water to 311.
A "Polar Vortex" is pushing down from the Arctic, and temperatures are dropping 40 - 50 degrees from Monday's high of around 50.
The National Weather Service has issued a Wind Chill Advisory and Hazardous Weather Outlook for the New York City area until 6 p.m. on Tuesday.
The cold is is expected to "wreak havoc" on airlines and is affecting Amtrak and some subway lines.
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Whole Foods; Murders; and More Brooklyn Briefs
- Tale of Two Police Departments: Brooklyn has the most unsolved murders, but gets fewer resources because Manhattan is "where the money is." [NY Daily News]
- Why Whole Goods in Gowanus will be a big success -- but why the Park Slope Food Co-op is better. [WYDNKBYANM]
- Mayor de Blasio staged interviews with citizens who waited for hours in the icy rain on Sunday to see the Mayor's mansion. [Politicker]
- Did you see camels in Brooklyn on Sunday? [Gothamist]
- “We’re in a crisis mode." Brooklyn facing tightest commercial market since WWII. [TRD]
- Tiger Mom says some cultural groups are superior, including Chinese and Mormons. [NY Post]
- Wife of pilot who landed on Bronx highway appears upset . . . about why two other women, not her, were on the plane. [Gothamist]
- NSA spies on members of Congress, too. [Gizmoto]
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Sunday, January 5, 2014
Hundreds Without Power in Brooklyn Late Sunday: Smoking Manholes, Transformer 'Major Explosion' in Manhattan
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| Con Ed |
The power outages are scattered all over Brooklyn, with 28 in Bay Ridge, 23 in Bath Beach, 25 near Kensington, 46 in Park Slope, 25 in Clinton Hill and many more. A smaller number were without power in Queens and Manhattan.
FDNY dispatchers received multiple reports Sunday late afternoon about exploding manholes, especially throughout Manhattan.
A "major explosion" of a transformer was reported on the service road under the FDR Drive in Manhattan at 5:16 p.m. (It will affect the power at 7 Peter Cooper.) Con Ed is trying to get a crew together.
UPDATE: Emergency services asked Con Edison at 5:30 p.m. is anyone in effected area in on advanced life support.
UPDATE: Car needs to be removed from atop "active arcing" manhole in Manhattan. UPDATE: Manhole steaming in front of 402 E. 83 St in Manhattan. Partial power outages from 402 - 428 E. 83rd. UPDATE: McDougal Street Manhole smoking at 6:05 p.m. UPDATE: Clyde Street in Queens, near 67 Street, report of a manhole fire at 6:12 p.m. UPDATE: Dispatch seems to be getting "smoking manhole," "manhole fire," or "arcing manhole" calls every 20 minutes. Too numerous to list.
Storm Center map.
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Scanner: Cops Look for Robber on Poplar Street in Brooklyn Heights Sunday Afternoon
From the scanner: NYPD was dispatched at roughly 4:28 p.m. on Sunday to Poplar Street in Brooklyn Heights following complaints of robbery(s) by a light-skinned male Hispanic in his 20s, wearing a black hoodie.
Police are searching from Poplar to Cadman Plaza West. No further.
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10 Things About Murdered Hasidic Brooklyn Slumlord Menachem Stark
Brooklyn slumlord Menachem “Max” Stark was kidnapped and thrown into a Dodge Caravan in Williamsburg late on Jan. 2. His body was found -- suffocated and burned -- in a dumpster on Long Island the next day. (Photos of the funeral here. [JP Updates]) (Blurry video of his kidnapping here.)
The more that comes out, the more bizarre Stark's life and business dealings appear. Here are 10 things known so far:
- Stark owed tens of millions of dollars in defaulted real estate loans and owned "vermin-infested drug dens and slums, along with several tonier buildings in Williamsburg." [Failed Messiah]
- He owed tens of thousands of dollars in penalties for 148 Department of Buildings violations on his 17 properties. [NY Post]
- Israel Perlmutter and Stark, principals of South Side House, LLC, were debtors in a Chapter 11 case worth $29 million.[Leagle] UPDATE: Make that $51 million. [TRD]
- Just hours before he was kidnapped, Stark had borrowed a half-million dollars from a business associate. [NY Post]
- He had a sealed arrest for "forcible touching” of a young girl. [NY Post]
- Typical review of his real estate company on Yelp: "Menachem Stark (aka Max Stark) and Israel Perlmutter (aka Sam Perl) are criminals and should not be trusted with your time or money."
- Stark, father of eight children, allegedly gave "generously" to Hasidic Jewish charities. [Failed Messiah]
- Stark had so many enemies that investigators say they almost don’t know where to start looking. [NY Post]
- PIX11 speculates NYPD will investigate Satmar and Lubavitch Jews in the murder.
- Stark was buried in Kiryas Joel on Saturday – meaning a full autopsy may not have been done. [Failed Messiah]
UPDATE: Police are looking at Stark's business partner as a possible suspect.
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Friday, January 3, 2014
NYC Property Owners Have to Clear the Snow from Their Sidewalks Today
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| That includes some park paths, too. Photo: MK Metz |
For property owners who may not be familiar with this concept, here are the rules:
* If snowfall ends between 7 AM and 5 PM, you must clear sidewalks within 4 hours.
* If snowfall ends between 5 PM and 7 AM, you have to clear sidewalks before 11 AM.
If someone doesn't clear their sidewalk of ice or snow after the proper interval (it always seems to be the same negligent owners, snow after snow), people can make a complaint here or by calling 3-1-1.
But show a little flexibility . . . If the wind is gusting at 30 mph it will be very difficult to keep the sidewalk clear.
For clearing park paths (we assume this means major paths) or streets next to parks, file a request here. But bear in mind that Prospect Park paths don't necessarily get the same treatment as Central Park . . .
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