- Stork, Franklin's soon-to-be store for little ones, hoisted its awning over the weekend, and is still aiming for an early-March opening. You can follow their progress on their site, which is acting as a construction blog/anticipation-generator at the moment.
- Right across the Avenue, Bella Greens has added soups and wraps to their menu, and as of last Thursday, they're now offering bagels from Bagels by the Park in the mornings. Their salads remain delicious, sizable, and only six dollars, so if you haven't tried one yet, swing by.
- In what might be sadder news, A Slice of Brooklyn was inexplicably closed when I went by earlier this evening. It's a tough economy out there, but I hope they're ok - the lady and I have a great affinity for the Slice because their grand opening coincided with our first day on the Avenue, and because Judy and Elwin are such nice folks. Anyone know anything more?
The New York Times ran a piece in their real estate section today comparing five pairs of New York City neighborhoods. Entitled "So You're Priced Out. Now What?," the article includes a comparison of Carroll Gardens and Crown Heights North, suggesting that those who enjoy the former's "congenial mix of the traditional and the retro-modern" can find the same in our own neighborhood "for a fraction of the cost." ILFA spoke with the reporter last week, and my count of new businesses since 2008 made it into the article, as well as a quip about our new bars bearing a resemblance to those along Smith Street. I must confess that I wish a slightly different quote of mine had made it in (though I've learned not to get to cross about these things - they pass through several editors and, unlike a blog like this one, have word count limits), namely, the point that while many brokers and real estate reporters have characterized Franklin/Crown Heights North(west) as an extension of Prospect Heights in years past, it seems as though writers and realtors are starting to understand that the neighborhood has its own unique charms, history, and character, distinct from its more ballyhooed neighbor to the west (Mike F made a similar point in response to ILFA's HuffPo article a week or so ago).
Readers, your thoughts? Is this an apt comparison? What are the implications of such a comparison (in the Grey Lady, no less)?
In other news, the Department of Buildings permits on the plywood in front of 3D's at Franklin and Sterling suggest that whatever becomes of the space, it will remain a restaurant. The owners told ILFA over a year ago that they were planning a renovation, though I wonder if that's still the case (they were in business for 30 years before this, and they do have a spot over on Washington). Anyone know anything more? Also, a chat with the owner of Bombay Masala last night revealed that they are indeed hoping to open an Indian/Bollywood-themed bar in the space currently occupied by Ebita Realty. As planned, it would serve Indian beers and wine, have a back garden connected to the current one behind the restaurant, and feature music from the subcontinent, including live performances. However, as the owner said, he's in the "hoping" stage right now, and he added, gesturing around the restaurant, that he'd "need our help" to make it happen (this may refer to getting the plan past Community Board 8, as well as patronizing the new place once it opens). Brooklynians, get your dancing shoes on!
The fantastic folks at SOS Crown Heights have announced their second-annual "Arts to End Violence" Contest, which offers cash prizes to artists under 20 in three mediums (2-D, video, and t-shirt design). If you work with youth in Brooklyn, share this great opportunity with them (complete guidelines are available here)! SOS has also put out a call to professional and emerging artists in the area who are interested in using art "to spread the message of nonviolence at various venues in the Crown Heights Community" at the end of May. If you're part of the Crown Heights creative community, considering getting involved, and help spread the word (complete guidelines for artist submissions can be found here).For more information about Arts to End Violence, check out the SOS Crown Heights website or read on below for their official release:
Save Our Streets (S.O.S.) Crown Heights is pleased to announce its second annual Arts to End Violence contest and art show. S.O.S. Crown Heights is a community-based effort to end gun violence in our neighborhood.
The Crown Heights community has made a commitment to end gun violence. Merchants hang signs in their windows counting up the amount of days it has been since our last shooting; clergy members organize events to discuss violence in their congregations, teenagers speak to other teenagers about alternatives to violence; S.O.S. Outreach Workers and Violence Interrupters intervene whenever a shooting occurs to make sure no retaliatory actions take place. We invite the artists of Crown Heights and beyond to participate in our efforts to transform the neighborhood to make it a safe place for all.
Last year the Arts To End Violence show brought artists together to share their own messages of peace and feelings about violence. Some of the participants were established in their field and others were new to the creative process. The results were a diverse group of powerful images and performances that invigorated the community efforts to reduce violence.
We are calling on artists of all ages to submit art for this project.
Artists 19 and younger can submit in three categories (2-dimensional art, videos and t-shirt designs) to be eligible for cash prizes.
Professional artists are invited to submit pieces to be part of the Arts To End Violence collection to be displayed in local galleries and untraditional venues such parks, Laundromats and barber shops.
Deadlines
March 15th – Early Deadline (for feedback from the Selection committee - OPTIONAL)
April 5th – Final Deadline for Submissions
May 21st-25th – Festival and Gallery Openings
June 3rd-10th - Winners announced during “Cease the Fire, Increase the Peace” Week
We encourage artists, gallery spaces, teachers, art programs and media to call us at 718-773-6886 or email mohena@crownheights.organd speak with Anthony to learn more.
How SOS Works
S.O.S. Crown Heights provides immediate intervention whenever a shooting occurs in the neighborhood, reaching out to the victim, friends, and family to ensure that a retaliatory shooting does not take place. S.O.S. Crown Heights works closely with neighborhood leaders and businesses to promote a visible and public message against gun violence. The goal is to end the spread of violence by encouraging local voices to articulate that shooting is an unacceptable behavior. At the end of 2011 shootings were down 38% in our catchment area.
More Information
Guidelines for the youth contest are available here, and the call to professional and emerging artists is here.
It's here! "Art Not Arrests," the fabulous installation proposed by local studio Ground Up Designers for the Crow Hill Community Garden this summer (the CHCA is supporting the project), launched their Kickstarter drive on Wednesday, and as of ILFA's modest donation, they're one-tenth of the way to their $4,500 goal. This fundraising push is for the initial materials, after which the project becomes a fundraiser for arts-based education to prevent violence and provide a positive outlet for local youth. I'm particularly in love with the creative-subversive use of those miserable plastic zip-tie handcuffs as creative, connective materials that community members can personalize as they weave them together, but there are a lot of great things about this project. For more information, watch the video or follow any of the links on the widget below, and get your donations in soon, because they're only running this campaign until February 10th!
It was no surprise that President Obama made economic recovery the central issue of last night's State of the Union address. He rallied the base, threw some populist punches (I know he's supposed to be Mr. Competent, but could Mitt Romney have possibly picked a worse day to release his tax returns?), and articulated a vision of fair and equitable economic growth that drew heavily, both rhetorically and substantially, on FDR's New Deal and LBJ's Great Society, and which positions him in stark contrast to whomever the GOP sends his way.
One point the President returned to several times was how the fallout from the 2008 crash had landed disproportionately on the backs of middle- and working-class Americans (he could have added single-family households, women, and people of color to that list). This is certainly true in Central Brooklyn. While NYC in aggregate has bounced back well from the recession (thanks in large part to the continued rakings-in of a few at the top) foreclosures have wreaked havoc on neighborhoods like Crown Heights - in my first year of blogging, back when I really was "walking around Brooklyn with a camera and a pen," evidence of their catastrophic impactwas everywhere (taking photos in East New York, I was suspected of being a foreclosure agent). Unemployment numbers in Central Brooklyn are equally brutal - 15% as a whole, which rises to 16% for Hispanics and 18% for African-Americans, as of this summer.
Thankfully, there are a number of local organizations working to provide citizens of these hardest-hit areas with the knowledge and access they need to get back on their feet. One is the Local Development Corporation of Crown Heights, which hosts a home-buying workshop tonight from 7-9pm at the First Baptist Church on Eastern Parkway (ILFA heard about this workshop from Councilwoman Letitia James, who often posts events of this kind on her blog). Another is the Pratt Area Community Council, who are hosting a workshop for small businesses on "Access to Capital," also tonight from 6-8pm (the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, who were represented at the most recent CHCA meeting, host similar events for small businesses). If you know people who would benefit from this information, pass it along - in my experience, it's not that these resources aren't out there, but that people don't know about them.
A pair of unrelated links from the behemoth blogs:
- Gothamist posted an interesting piece today about clashes between Chabad landlords and new tenants in Crown Heights (with the requisite Gothamist flair, of course).
- Brownstoner reported last week that the owners of Bombay Masala (an IFLA fave) have plans to put a "Bollywood Bar" in the space next door (currently home to a fantastic liquor and wine store that is not nearly as typical as it looks from the outside). Mike F and the Brooklynians are already practicing their dance numbers, but I'm wondering why they can't just put the new bar in the empty space next door to the liquor store to keep the lady and I from having to trek for our hard stuff. While I'm wishing for things I have no power to make happen, can we form a band called the Brooklynians that Mike F can front? Sounds very indie . . .
The campaign for the Republican nomination may be getting all the attention in the national media, but this happens to be a big week for political pronouncements and events right here in Central Brooklyn.
- Today (Tuesday), the Prospect Heights Democrats for Reform host a State-of-the-Union Watch Party at the Velvet Peach Cafe over on Flatbush, starting at 8pm. If you haven't heard of PDHR, they're a great group of folks committed to reforming Democratic politics in Brooklyn (and in a borough where registered Dems outnumber everyone else 7:1, Democratic politics is politics), and one of their own, Ede Fox, has launched a campaign to succeed our independent-minded (and fantastic) Council Member, Letitia James, when her term expires in 2013. Speaking of the Councilwoman, she's circulating information about a home-buying workshop on Wednesday from 7-9pm at the First Baptist Church of Crown Height on Eastern Parkway.
- On Wednesday, if reform politics sound like your cup of tea, the New Kings Democrats host their monthly meeting at a new location, The Commons on Atlantic. Closely affiliated with PDHR on a number of issues, the New Kings have made waves with their challenges to machine politics in Brooklyn since 2008, and will likely be an even more organized and influential force in this year's elections (shameless self-promotion: ILFA's also got a couple of articles about NKD linked in a new little widget of extra-curricular writings to your right).
- Finally, on Thursday, Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries will deliver his "State of the District" address at 6:30 PM in the Pratt Institute's Higgins Hall, which should be a particularly interesting event as the Assemblyman gears up for a three-way race for Congress this spring.
Lots to do in Crown Heights today! As ILFA posted on Thursday, PS 316 principal Olga Maluf and some of her devoted parents are hosting a meet-and-greet for prospective parents at the Candy Rush at 4pm on Saturday. Everyone interested in learning more about the great things 316 (on Classon between Sterling and Park) has to offer is welcome. Afterward, head on over to Five Myles Gallery on St. John's Place for the opening of January's Space Program show, a family affair featuring works by father-daughter duo Robert Toyokazu Troxell and Grace Sachi Troxell and music from Grace's brother Cooper Troxell. The fun runs from 5-8pm. Then, from 8pm - midnight, check out Okie Weiss's record release party at LaunchPad.
Also, ILFA recently started contributing some ramblings to the Huffington Post's New York page, the first of which ran today (the short version: after years of writing about gentrification from my own admittedly limited perspective, I've come to feel the term fails to explain some key trends in Crown Heights, and that understanding the neighborhood means taking other long-term forces like (im)migration and community organizing seriously as agents of change and continuity. It's no revelation, but I do feel it's been missing from some of the more recent reports on the area.). I've written a few longer pieces of this sort in the past, and I'm hoping to have links to them posted soon. In the meantime (need I even say it), comments, critiques, and all manner of reprisals are most welcome.
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