Homeland Security Asks Brooklyn's Help Fighting Terrorism; Uber to the L Train Rescue; and More Brooklyn Briefs

This creep stole a Brooklyn mom's Mother's Day gift. Story: CBS (Photo:NYPD)

- Department of Homeland Security head Johnson asks Brooklyn groups for help fighting home-grown terrorism, reports the Brooklyn Eagle.

- A Brooklyn politician was punched in the face at a Greenpoint bar defending a barmaid, says Gothamist.

- Atlantic Yards Report mulls over the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership's "college town" agenda -- amenities for students and schools, or development rights?

- Uber slashes rides to $2.75 for final weekends of L train closure, according to the Brooklyn Eagle.

- Brownstoner looks at TV locations in Brooklyn: The Americans, The Knick, Blacklist, and more.

- Some Brooklyn transplants are doing the unthinkable -– moving back to Manhattan in search of a better real estate deal, according to TRD.

- Jealous Staten Island man kills his ex-girlfriend's Brooklyn boyfriend, reports SIlive.

- Jade Helm: A Pentagon training exercise is sparking controversy with conspiracy theories claiming it's a secret plot to impose military rule in Texas, using closed Walmart stores, according to The Hill.

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Brooklyn's 5x10 Talks; Carmelo Anthony on the TMNT Set; and More Brooklyn Briefs

- Tastemakers gathered at the 5x10 Talks to discuss what's next for Brooklyn. [Brooklyn Eagle]

- NYC libraries not too happy with de Blasio budget. [Daily News] 

- Unconscious woman wearing only a T-shirt found with cracked skull on sidewalk in Brooklyn. [NBC]

- DUMBO’s P.S. Bookshop, hit with tax bill, turns to crowd-funding. [Brooklyn Eagle]

- Lindsay Lohan racing to Brooklyn to finish community service to avoid jail time. [Daily News]

- Carmelo Anthony was spotted on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles set in Brooklyn this week and is said to have a cameo in the film. [Sportal]

- Nike is opening a new retail store in Flatbush. [Hip Hop Wired] 

- A sneak peak at the newest section of Brooklyn Bridge Park at Pier 6. [Curbed]


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Saturday: Brooklyn Heights Association’s Landmark House and Garden Tour

Photo: MK Metz

 The Brooklyn Heights Association (BHA) will hold its 31st Annual Landmark House and Garden Tour this Saturday, May 9, from 1 to 5 p.m.

The tour will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the New York City Landmarks Law and historic district designation of Brooklyn Heights.

More at BHA.

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Brooklyn Snowden Bust Set Free by NYPD; Goodbye GHE20G0TH1K; and More Brooklyn Briefs

Adirondack chairs made of recycled plastic are scattered around MetroTech in Downtown Brooklyn.  Photo by MK Metz

- The massive bust of Edward Snowden that was put on display in Fort Greene Park last month has finally been returned by the NYPD, reports Gothamist.

- Very sad: A teenager was critically injured after being struck by a car outside James Madison High School in Sheepshead Bay, reports 7online.

- Brooklyn accounted for 70 percent of the new residential development applications filed last month, according to TRD.

- Creator's Project/ Vice: Saying goodbye to New York's party heaven for weird vibes, GHE20G0TH1K.

- Nation: The tiny micro-apartments being built at the Brooklyn Navy Yard have a mini dishwasher, mini fridge, two hobs and a microwave but no oven.

- Brooklyn's Rep. Nydia Valezquez and Rep. Jerrold Nadler are two pols listed by NY1 as spending big bucks on campaigns despite non-competitive elections.

- Something oddly touching about the Post story re: a very tall man falling in love with a very small woman....

- Do you own a Lenovo computer? Another “massive security risk” has been found, says The Hill.


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Kids' Flashmob Ask Mayor, 'Where's Bushwick Inlet Park?'

Kids ask the darnedest questions @BilldeBlasio #WheresOurPark https://t.co/iIG0sjXfMk pic.twitter.com/VeYlNlSYlv

— NAG Brooklyn (@nagbrooklyn) May 7, 2015

Friends of Bushwick Inlet Park posts:
The children of the GWYSL divide this one soccer field into 16 fields so the bursting child population of Greenpoint and Williamsburg get a chance to play despite their lack of park space. Here they are collectively asking #wheresourpark?

Background: In 2005, the City of New York promised the neighborhoods of Greenpoint and Williamsburg a 28-acre park along North Brooklyn’s waterfront.

Almost a decade later, tens-of-thousands of new residents have moved in, but very little of Bushwick Inlet Park has materialized.

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Brooklyn's Van Gogh Look-Alike; Forever 21 to Fulton Street; No Charges for Borough Hall Shooter; and More Brooklyn Briefs

- The retired correction officer who shot and killed a man at Brooklyn's Borough Hall subway station will not face charges, reports 7online.

- Police officer dies in a motorcycle crash in Brooklyn -- struck by an NYPD School Safety Agent, reports Yeshiva World.

- The Atlantic Yards Report digs into which pols and parties are getting donations from mega-developer Bruce Ratner.

- Brooklyn man who bears uncanny resemblance to Van Gogh sparks internet commotion, says PIX11.

- Forever 21 is returning to Downtown Brooklyn, taking a spot on Fulton Street, says the Wall Street Journal.

- Curbed reveals everything you might ever want to know about what will soon be Brooklyn's tallest residential tower.

- Joseph Lentol, in an opinion piece in the Brooklyn Eagle, pushes de Blasio to give the people the park they were promised -- Bushwick Inlet Park.

- The Brooklyn native who invented DSL, bringing high-speed Internet service to millions of households, has died, the NY Times reports.

- Food festival Smorgasburg is coming to Coney Island this summer, says Bensonhurst Bean.

- Look out Wall Street: there's a new white-collar cop in Brooklyn. Bloomberg/Chicago Tribune

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Happy Buddha's Birthday!

Photo: MK Metz

It's Buddha's Birthday today, according to Nepalese reckoning.

The date marks the birthday of the Prince Siddhartha Gautama.

People celebrate by going to a service, eating communal vegetarian meals including kheer (a sweet rice porridge), having joyous parades, and washing baby Buddha in a ritual.

 Nepalese in NYC celebrated a day early with a parade in Washington Square Park on Sunday.

In Nepal, according to Wikipedia, Buddha's birthday is celebrated on the full moon day of the Vaisakha month of the Buddhist and Hindu calendar. This year, that falls on May 4.

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Brooklyn and Staten Island Special Election Is On Tuesday

Do you live in Bay Ridge, Staten Island, Crown Heights, Prospect Lefferts Gardens or East Flatbush?

On Tuesday, May 5th, voters in these areas will be electing a new representative to the U.S. Congress, in District 11 (Staten Island/Bay Ridge) and to the New York State Assembly, in District 43 (Crown Heights/Prospect Lefferts Gardens/East Flatbush).

In District 11, Democrat Vincent J. Gentileis running against Republican Dan Donovan and Green Party candidate James C. Lane. (One of these will replace now-disgraced Michael Grimm).

In AD 43, the candidates are Republican Menachem M. Raitport, WFP Diana C. Richardson, Independence Party Shirley M. Patterson, and Love Yourself Party Geoffrey A. Davis.

Visit the NYC Voters Guide to read more about the candidates, find your polling site, etc.

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PHOTOS: Jodie Foster Directs 'Money Monster' in DUMBO

Jay Street and the Brooklyn Roasting Co. were the set of 'Money Monster.' Photos by MK Metz

"Money Monster" took over Jay Street and the Brooklyn Roasting Company in DUMBO on Thursday.

Jodie Foster (shown above, left) directs Julia Roberts, George Clooney, Caitriona Balfe, Dominic West and Jack O'Connell in the film about a guy who holds a Wall Street money guru responsible for losing all of his family's money.

Photos by MK Metz

On Thursday, Foster directed inside the Brooklyn Roasting Company, and then later in the day used Jay Street as the set for a scene involving a baby stroller and various pedestrians. Above, a member of the costume dept. spruces up the outfit of a cast member prior to the outdoor scene.

TriStar Pictures intend to release the film in 2016, according to Wikipedia.

More photos at Brooklyn Eagle.

Also:
- Jodie Foster's 'Money Monster' Filming in DUMBO Thursday. Tow Trucks Start Wednesday Night [McBrooklyn]


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Poets Will Recite to You As You Ride in the Wonder Wheel on May 8

Courtesy Parachute Literary Arts

On May 8th from 7 to 10 p.m., Parachute Literary Arts invites you to the first ever poetry ride on the world-famous Wonder Wheel.

Join a "multifarious array" of New York City's new and renowned poets in Coney Island for a surprising ride as the sun sets and the sky darkens. During your ride on the amaazzing Wonder Wheel, poets will recite to you.

Adding to the fun: Cash bar with beer from Coney Island Brewing Company; a booktable and snacks from Dos Toros; broadsides.

Plus: Soozie Hwang & the Relastics sing songs about books (including Vonnegut).


Wonder Wheel Readings by:

Penny Arcade & Amber Atiya & Brenda Coultas & Ian Dreiblatt & Jen Fitzgerald & Matthea Harvey & Brenda Iijima & Amy King & Wanda Phipps & Edwin Torres & Patricia Spears Jones & Lucy Ives & Walt Whitman (a.k.a. Tim Cusack) & Paul Blackburn & more to be revealed

Space is limited RSVP & Tickets Available Here. (Entrance to the Wonder Wheel on West 12th Street)

The evening is a benefit for Parachute Literary Arts' poetry workshops and community poetry libraries in Coney Island. You can read some poetry from previous teen workshops at Teenage Fever Mag or on Parachute Literary Art's website.

Parachute Literary Arts says:
P.S. It is for a good cause!
P.P.S. It is a cheap date!
P.P.P.S. The Wonder Wheel's slogan is Go Up It's Great!

Organized by Parachute Literary Arts & Coney Island Poetry Society


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