Brooklynian

Vanderbilt Avenue Tree Care Event on Sunday, June 6th!

Do you like the new street trees on Vanderbilt Avenue as much as we do? Then stop by the northeast corner of Vanderbilt & St. Marks Avenue at 1:00pm on Sunday, June 6th. After a brief training session you'll be set up with some tree care tools and be ready to help us make sure those median-dwelling trees stay healthy.

So, stop on by to meet a few of your neighbors while keeping Vanderbilt Avenue looking its best!

Posted by PH Urban Forestry Team at 1:30 PM

http://phurbanforestry.blogspot.com/2010/05/vanderbilt-avenue-tree-care-event-on.html

Recently moved to South Slope and I am interested in joining a summer or fall (or both!) bowling league in the area. Willing to travel to other parts of BK if the alley has lockers so I don't have to carry my ball with me on the subway.

My bowling scores usually range between 125-160, and I keep improving with practice and would like to be on a team with bowlers of the same skill level.

Monday nights generally work best for me but I can be flexible. Money league or not; no preference.

I am currently on a woman's league that is ending in the next couple of weeks but wouldn't mind joining a mixed league if that is an option. Just looking to meet some fun people who aren't overly competitive. Beer can settle all bets.

My small blonde-orange house cat jumped out of my first floor window Sunday morning between 3am and 8am and is lost. He is about 2 1/2 years old and 8 pounds, wearing a collar with his name "Mowgli" and both of my phone numbers on it. He is friendly but very shy, so if you see him, please call me at 718 670-1699 or 907 244-6426. And if you live on the first floor and have a grate he could crawl through into your entranceway, please look behind any objects he may be hiding behind if you have a moment. He has hid in such areas before and been completely undetectable.

Thank you.

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On Sat night/ Sun morning (5/15) our light orange tabby cat went missing from our house on 1st street and 7th ave in Park Slope. He has a orange collar on with a bell and a tag with his name (Mowgli) and our numbers. If you see him or have any leads please reply or call me--

718-869-0294

Thanks!

Manissa

Hi--

My small, pale orange/ white cat went missing on early Sunday morning/ late Saturday night from first street and 7th ave. His name is Mowgli and he has an orange collar on with a bell and a tag with our phone number. If you see him at all please call! He was seen last night on Garfield between 7th and 8th.

Thanks!!

Manissa

718-869-0294

907-244-6426

Subject: Really Disappointed @ the "racial tensions'" on th

I registered for this website because i am trying to connect with the different people moving into the area regardless of race.I am a 20 year old black female who has friends all sizes, colors and shapes. I expected people in brooklyn to be just as understanding! I live on woodruff and st.paul and I love brooklyn and consider myself a mix of many things. I can go to Whole Foods or Pioneer . I have been reading a few post and the message I am getting from a lot of them are I am white is this neighborhood a threat to me,or the "big bad word" Gentrification. So many neighborhoods and areas in nyc in general have been through changes,soho used to be a crack heads paradise and don't even get me started on chelsea! I just want to meet my neighbors and build relationships and do something to make our living situations better for all.I am so tired of this issue it's annoying and pple need to stop harping on it. Now if you just want to meet cool and new pple in or around the area just do it!

I just wanted to know what area is woodruff/st.paul is a part of we are not quite flatbush,not quite PLG? Are We? Also there have been alot of new residences in the area and I would like for us to somehow meet one another. During a recent post from hawthorne street (blog) It looks like a few individual would be into it.[size=18][/size][color=black:bca6012751][/color]

Anyone hear about this?

Happened this Saturday around 2-3. I think I had the best view of any eyewitness as I was riding my bike South on 7th just before crossing 9th Street.

A woman was crossing 7th headed toward Smiling when an ambulance (making a left turn onto 7th) hits her without ever seeing her.

I feel bad for the driver. But he cut the corner too short and her while she was in the crosswalk, she had the walk sign, AND he was in the wrong lane (taking a sharp left and cutting off the right lane on 7th ave.) You'd fail a driving test for a move like that.

About the Siren... again, I saw the whole thing... about 15 feet away. The siren - basically, the driver turned the siren on right as he approached the intersection driving up 9th Street.... he speed up while simoutaneously taking the left turn and hitting the woman - the siren was on for about 1 - 2 seconds at the most.

The other majorly fucked up thing, and the reason I'm writing this is that the ambulance that hit the walker did have someone in back.... which I only noticed 20 MINUTES LATER when they finally took her out and put her in another car (the ambulance that was in the accident stayed at the site)...

The question is: if the person in the ambulance was so critical, then why did they wait at least 20 min to get her anywhere.... why use the siren and speed on a Saturday afternoon in Park Slope? Also, why did the cops not seem to care? I watched one cop jot down a few words from an old lady... but that was about it... Was there even a report done?

The driver was definitely negligent...

n00b here.

We're looking for a 2 bedroom (not railroad) in Greenpoint for about 1500-1600. We can go higher if necessary, but prefer not to (OBVIOUSLY.)

How realistic is this for the area closer to the Pulaski bridge? Am I dreaming that we'll find a place? we LOVE the area and the school district is phenomenal (we have a 10 year old son) Don't mind having a small apt. Would rather be in a nice neighborhood...

Please someone reassure me... lol =)

I'm going to be moving in a few months, and I'm seeing a lot of places listed in southern Crown Heights. Can anyone tell me what Franklin, Bedford, Rogers, and Nostrand are like south of Eastern Parkway? For reference, I've lived on Rogers and Bergen and I currently live on Brooklyn and Dean. Would moving south be a big change for me?

$18 worth of Super Wings for $9 at Super Wings Crown Heights with Groupon http://bit.ly/aQU8e1

Hey, everyone! I'm new to this board and am moving to Lefferts Gardens in 2 weeks. I was just wondering if any of you could share some great spots with me; places to eat, coffee shops, etc. It can also be on the other side of the park. I have a bike and it seems like it'll be a quick ride. I'm 2 blocks from the park.

Thanks!

The past couple of times I've passed by it has been closed. Please don't tell me this place went out of business!

was told that the ace supermarket at 7th and berkeley place is nearly ready to undergo what sounds to be a pretty extensive renovation (think union market-esque) complete with bakery, deli, etc. i think they may be taking over the space which used to be zuzu's petals next door. not sure...

Light grey tabby male that answers to the name "Hank" escaped from a home today on 2nd Street b/w 5th and 6th Avenue. Please call 718-965-3868 if you find the cat. Reward!! He is very loved.

Subject: The NYPD Tapes: Inside Bed-Stuy's 81st Precinct

Part 1:

http://www.villagevoice.com/2010-05-04/news/the-nypd-tapes-inside-bed-stuy-s-81st-precinct/

Part 2:

http://www.villagevoice.com/2010-05-11/news/nypd-tapes-part-2-bed-stuy/

Runnin' Scared blog:

http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/archives/the_nypd_tapes/

The NYPD Tapes

The NYPD Tapes Series: The Cliffs Notes Version

By Graham Rayman, Thursday, May. 13 2010 @ 3:45PM

By Graham Rayman

In the first and second articles so far in our NYPD Tapes series, the Voice has documented and chronicled a range of highly questionable NYPD practices.

Here we offer a Cliffs Notes version of what the articles showed, based on the unprecedented recordings of 117 roll calls made inside the 81st Precinct, in Bedford-Stuyvesant, in 2008 and 2009 by Police Officer Adrian Schoolcraft.

Stay tuned to the newspaper and our Runnin' Scared blog for continuing coverage of these issues. And listen to the excerpts of the recordings posted on the Voice website ...

1. Police officers were routinely threatened with discipline (transfers, shift changes, partner changes, and assignment changes) by their superiors if they did not make their monthly quota of summonses, stop-and-frisks, arrests, and community visits.

"Again, it's all about the numbers," a sergeant says on October 18, 2009.

2. Among the patrol sergeants and lieutenants, the constant demand for "numbers" from downtown and the patrol borough command was viewed with irritation, at times almost as busy work. Moreover, the Brooklyn North Inspections unit was viewed with contempt, for nailing officers for what were seen as minor infractions.

"Inspections -- they pull you over like a perp, and you know it's disrespectful to us," a lieutenant says on June 12, 2008. "So Inspections is really not our friend. Let's leave it at that."

3. Police officers were ordered to be skeptical about the validity of crime complaints. The precinct commander, a lieutenant, and a sergeant in charge of "crime analysis" would call victims and question them closely on their complaints. Supervisors had to be on the scene to look over the cops' shoulders even on a routine complaint. The precinct had a policy that if a robbery victim refused to return immediately to the station house, cops were told to refuse to take the complaint, known as a "61."

"If the complainant does not want to go back and speak to the squad, then there is no 61 taken," a sergeant says on October 12, 2009. "That's it. ... How do we know this guy really got robbed?"

4. Long before he went to the media, Officer Adrian Schoolcraft disclosed about a dozen documented instances of crime statistic manipulation to the NYPD unit that audits the crime statistics. The unit, known as the Quality Assurance Division, pledged a vigorous investigation.

"What this is doing is that it's messing with the officers," Schoolcraft tells the QAD investigators. "They're losing track of what's real and what's not real, what their duties are and what their duties aren't."

5. Even within QAD, there was a perception that the downgrading of crimes and the refusal to take complaints from citizens was more widespread than the department has admitted.

"The mayor's looking for it, the police commissioner's looking for it ... every commanding officer wants to show it," says a supervisor in QAD. "So there's motivation not to classify reports for the seven major crimes."

6. In a campaign to clear corners and building stoops in the neighborhood, the precinct commander and his subordinates issued orders that may have led patrol officers to violate citizens' civil rights. The commander ordered officers to make arrests even when they didn't witness the misconduct themselves. Cops were told to arrest people and "articulate" a charge later, or arrest people and hold them for hours simply for the purpose of clearing a corner, rather than for a specific criminal act.

"If they're on a corner, make 'em move" a sergeant says on November 23, 2008. "If they don't want to move, lock 'em up. Done deal. You can always articulate [a charge] later."

7. The explosion in stop-and-frisks over the past five years, the tapes suggest, may have as much to do with statistical quotas and avoiding "negative attention" as it does with some law enforcement strategy. That part of the article raises whether New Yorkers' civil rights were being violated for the purpose of a statistical category.

"How hard is a 250? I'm not saying make it up, but you can always articulate robbery, burglary, whatever the case may be," a sergeant says on March 13, 2009. "It's still a number. It keeps the hounds off."

8. The precinct's tactics, which are duplicated throughout the city, caused significant resentment in the community and allegations of civil rights violations. The worst case the Voice found was a woman suffering two broken wrists during an arrest for not having her ID even though she was a few steps from her home.

9. The staffing shortages currently plaguing the department also hit the 81st Precinct. To make up the difference, precinct supervisors ordered forced overtime, left sectors unpatrolled, refused of days off, and pulled cops from the plainclothes units.

"Where is everybody?" a lieutenant wonders on October 27, 2009. "This is going to be a bad month."

A roughly four month old black/white male kitten was found today around Noon on the corner of Park Place and Vanderbilt. It was in front of an apartment building. The kitten was originally inside of the apartment building neighbors said but got it. The kitten is well cared for and completely domesticated so we know that it must belong to someone and may have just gotten out. Please PM me if this is your kitten. We would love to get it back to it's owners.

Once upon a time, readers lovingly documented the transformation of a "down and out" bodega (affectionately known as the "Dis-Associated" by long term residents) into an upscale market complete with fresh produce and deli meats.

The scene took place on Underhill and St. John's, mostly during 2008. The photos tell the story of Gentrification photo exhibit #1

and here's how the placed looked today, 5/16/10:

This new thread "exhibit #2" is dedicated to a space on a nearby corner: The Northwest corner of St. John's and Washington.

Note to longtime readers: We are not discussing the famous "is there ham in that cooler" bodega, located on the southwest corner. ...but I will put the link here if any of you need to walk down memory lane: http://brooklynian.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=32481&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

must. stay. on. topic.

Prior to 2007, the space I am going to waste an inordinate amount of time discussing was a run down bodega featuring no edible produce and dusty canned food.

Like the former Disassociated, it was not known as purveyor of quality food items. The old place seemed to do most of its business in beer sales, but it also seemed to have some added income: Items available in thumb size zip-lock bags...

It has now sat vacant for around 3 years, but I learned yesterday that work has begun on it to get it back on the market. The space is completely raw at this point... lots of work needs to happen.

As the process occurs, I'll post pictures of the transformation here. You are encouraged to post pictures and comments as well. (Note: the workmen did not know what it was going to become when I talked with them yesterday).

It's a large space ...it's anyone's guess what we will end up with.

enjoy, discuss.

Anyone know what the name of the prior establishment was?

Could someone confirm if the clothes donation booth at the farmer's market is there this weekend? I'd like to make a donation but will have to take a car and want to make sure. Thanks!

I'm moving into a 2BR next month and I plan to get a roommate. I've never had one before, so I'm really new to all of this. Five questions (sorry for so many!):

1. In general (not related to roommates), is there any difference in tenant/owner rights between a multiple-dwelling building (3+ units) and a two-family? This wil be the first two-family (and it's not owner-occupied) I've ever lived in, and I want to know specifically if the owner has any more rights than usual.

2. I am on the lease alone, and it seems I have a legal right to a roommate. Does my landlord have a right to request a credit check and financial information from whoever I select? I read on one site that the only thing I need to provide is their name. The management company is all "we need to get to know and approve of that person," but I don't think they have any right to since it's my lease and I am the liable one. I think a credit check for a share is a little overboard.

3. If I furnish the room, can I charge extra per month (and/or is it douchy to charge extra?), if so how much?

4. The rules seem to state that if there is one person on the lease, you can have one person room with you. What if you have two people? Is that against overcrowding rules?

5. Is it correct that my landlord cannot raise the rent for having roommates? (It says nothing about it in the lease.)

Thank you!! Looking forward to hearing back.