I-Phone Review By Stephen Colbert

We are still in lovely, hot Surfside Beach, South Carolina. Our second week of rest and relaxation just started and I have to say, so far, so good.Now, had we been in New York this past week, I am not at all sure that my husband would not have stood in line to get an I-Phone. He has been dying to get one of those things. So it is with slight bemusement that I have watched the news of people camping out in front of the two Apple stores in Manhattan....

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City Street Art

The city as art gallery! I came across these pictures of street art and thought I would share them. If I have seemed down on cities lately, let me assure you, I love big urban places and their vibrancy. It still amazes me that so much creativity, so much humanity can reside in such unnatural surroundings. But it survives and thrives right on our streets... American artis Mark JenkinsBy British artist SlinkachLeon ReidLeon Reid installation: Lamp...

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ÜBER-CITIES

After reading the article below from the BBC, I wonder if there is any hope for cities. I had my doubts when Mayor Bloomberg predicted that New York City's population was going to increase tremendously in the next 20 years and that we would have to make arrangements now. Maybe he is right. But what is a livable city? When is a city simply too big to function? So pardon me for asking: New York City's infrastructure seems hopelessly antiquated...

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A Realtor With A Conscience

Image From Vita Realty on Court StreetNow one would think that realtors are all for development and big condo towers. Not so. Turns out that one small agency in Carroll Gardens still has some integrity. Imagine my surprise when found the paragraph below posted on Vita's web page. Angela Vita's agency has been on Court Street for many, many years. I have met Angela at a C.G.N.A. meeting. She genuinely seems concerned about the changes happening...

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Sanity Prevails On Atlantic And Court!

Could it be that sanity finally prevails in Brooklyn? Community Board 6 unanimously voted down a huge luxury apartment development at the corner of Atlantic and Court. For a while, it looked as though the project was a go. Inexplicably, the Landmarks Preservation Commission had agreed to it, though the building would have far exceeded the height limitations in this landmarked neighborhood. And lest we forget, Councilman Bill De Blasio was all...

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Scarano Building Limbo

(Though I am currently down South, I have not forgotten about Brooklyn, more precisely Carroll Gardens.)My little neighborhood is really getting worked up about the upcoming 360 Smith Street apartment building. But what's going on with architect Scarano's other Carroll Gardens project? The factory conversion or rather " creative re-use project" at 333-335 Carroll is shown on Scarano Architects' web site with a completion date of 2006. I guess...

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Home Improvements Here, Home Improvements there, Home Improvements Everywhere!

Oh, the indignity of it. We are finally on vacation, and here we are, making a list of things to do.1) Go to Sears to buy a new dishwasher. This morning, I wanted to turn the blasted thing on, and imagine my surprise when the thing did nothing. It's as dead as a doorknob. After spending half an hour doing all the dishes by hand, some fiddling around, the husband determined that the electronic control panel is broken. Therefore, the visit to Sears....

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Reports From Down South

As promised, I am reporting this morning from Surfside Beach, South Carolina. After a good night's sleep that is.Brooklyn seems far, far away as I am looking at the ocean. I never tire of it. Mostly though, I am thankful that this vast expanse of water spared the house for one more summer season. We were here the last time in April. Since then, there was a rather big storm which attacked some of the sand dunes. We will have to put up more fencing...

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Carolina On My Mind!

Hi Friends,School is out, summer is here, we are heading out of Brooklyn, driving to South Carolina. We are spending two weeks in the family beach house at Surfside Beach. Give me a few hours to get used to the heat and humidity here, and I will resume blogging. Have lots of observations about the South, the 12 hour drive and spending so much time in the car with the kids and the husband. So come back tomorrow...

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NIMBY JUST LIKE GEORGE CLOONEY

Recently I have written a lot about preserving the wonderful character of my old Brooklyn neighborhood. It is an issue dear to me simply because I have spent twenty years restoring a piece of New York history, our 135 year-old brownstone. I love the fact that when I emerge from the subway from Manhattan, I can see the sky, hear birds and run into people I know. I talk to my friends and neighbors who have watched my children grow up. This neighborhood...

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Protecting Carroll Gardens: A Petition

There is a petition going around regarding the protection of our lovely little neighborhood. I don't know who started it, but it certainly is a worthwhile attempt to get some fire under the powers that be.It reads:To: Our Elected Officials, Community Leaders, the MTAWe the undersigned Carroll Gardens homeowners and residents, are appalled by the "as of right" ruling which allows owners and developers to erect buildings in our neighborhood with...

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A Brownstone Or A Chateau? That is the question

With real estate prices going through the roof here in New York City, I always like to check "comparables" around the world. I recently came across a listing for Château du Feÿ in Villecien, France about an hour outside of Paris. Their asking price for the 91-acre, property is €3.8 million, or about $5.1 million. That price tag would make it about the same as a 2 bedroom, 2 bath apartment in a sterile Trump Tower on the West side or the biggest...

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What's Going On In Carroll Park?

Hey Carroll Gardens Friends,Just read the latest round of emails from the Carroll Gardens Neighborhood Association. Seems that there was a little scare with a potential child snatching in our favorite park yesterday. I am not an alarmist and cannot confirm if all the details are correct but hey, this is my park and I used to go there with my kids when they were small, so I am copying the email here.Janna Bruner wrote:I am writing this on behalf...

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When Bloomberg Speaks, Europe Listens!

A.P. PictureWell I guess we have another Ross Perot on our hands. The news that Michael Bloomberg has turned his back on the Republican party comes as no surprise to me or to any other New Yorker. Bloomberg was less of a republican than the other (former) "New York Mayor," Rudy Giuliani. What amazes me is that the news was, well, newsworthy in Europe. I suspect that the fact that Bloomberg crtitzided George Bush's party may have something to...

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De Blasio vs. Scarano: Part II

Boy, Council Member Bill De Blasio is not letting up on getting the state to revoke Robert Scarano's architecture license. An email sent by DeBlasio's District Director to members of the Carroll Gardens Neighborhood Association urges everyone to copy an attached letter addressed to Governor Eliot Spitzer and to send it off quickly in the hope that Scarano's license will be pulled before construction at 360 Smith Street gets started.Though I agree...

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A Favorite Tune For A Brooklyn Monday

Yes, its old, but he is still one of the best. And I melt every time I hear this song...Leonard Cohen: I'm your ...

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Brooklyn Wildlife

We have quite a bit of wildlife action going on in our tiny backyard. To our big delight, a pair of turtledoves has made a nest in our grape arbor. Its not much of a structure, just some very loose sticks and grasses on top of each other. It hardly looks as though it could support the eggs, much less the parents as they take turns sitting on them. It is pretty neat having this little family just a few feet from our house. The only disadvantage...

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New York, My Cheap City!

We all know how expensive New York City is compared to the rest of the United States. And until today, I thought this place was only topped by London. Paris and Singapore. So imagine my surprise when I read CNN's business page today to find out that New York is downright cheap in the scheme of things. This year, the most expensive place to call home is Moscow. Moscow? Who knew?World's most expensive cities 2007 From CNN 1. Moscow...

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Great Brooklyn Read: Hard-Boiled Brooklyn

My friend Lois gave me a copy of "Hard Boiled In Brooklyn," a collection of short stories about what else? Brooklyn.Edited by Reed Farrel Coleman, these vignettes about the borough, its people and its unique culture are incredible gems and I have had a blast reading them. The common thread in the stories is of course that they are all taking place in this borough. But as Farrel writes in his intro, there is more to it. There is a rawness, a toughness...

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East River Day: The Launch Of The East River Agenda

This is going to be of interest to all Brooklynites, actually to all New Yorkers. I just got an email about an East River Day on June 21st. The schedule of events sounds pretty good. I don't know anything on the group organizing it, but I tend to applaud any effort that draws attention on our waterfront. Has anyone else heard about this East River Agenda?From the Municipal Art Society and the Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance are part of a coalition...

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A Brooklyn Kind Of Moment

Yesterday, I had a long leisurely breakfast with Moody Son. It's Regents week which does not mean anything to anybody who has never gone to school in New York State. Regents are those exams that a student must pass in different subjects in high school in order to graduate. Moody Son was test-free yesterday, so we walked over to Donut House on Court. It is no fine cuisine by any means. Just your ordinary greek diner with three grey haired old...

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Brooklyn Is # 1 Loser

Brooklyn is fast losing its industrial waterfront according to the National Trust For Historic Preservation. It is disappearing so rapidly in fact, that it earned first place of the Trust's annual list of Most Endangered. Tell us Brooklynites something new. We always said Brooklyn was Number 1.From the National Trust for Historic Preservation America's 11 Most Endangered Places 2007National Trust LinkBrooklyn's Industrial Waterfront.Once a booming...

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A Little Bridge Called Carroll

The Carroll Bridge over the Gowanus Canal seems stuck in time. Not for much longer I am afraid. If the Office of City Planning changes the zoning of the immediate area around the canal, this little movie by someone called "writerman000" will seem like a glimpse of days gone by....

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Not Only Water For Sarkozy at the G8 Summit

The honeymoon is over for newly elected French President Nicolas Sarkozy. After a meeting at the G8 summit with Vladimir Putin in Heiligendam, Germany last week, Sarkozy arrived late to a press conference and acted in a, well, strange manner. The Belgian press was the first to acuse him of "having not only water with Putin." The Belgian news station has since apologized, but take a look for yourself. I would agree that it looks mighty suspicious....

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Hi guys,Look, my better half is quoted on Gowanus Lounge. He is quite eloquent. Must be the Irish in him...The big Carroll Gardens IssueFor all the discussion in Carroll Gardens about the building that will be built at 360 Smith Street, and its design and height, the bigger issues according to community leaders are rezoning the neighborhood and enlarging its Historic District. The rub, however, is that neither are likely to happen soon. Residents...

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Can Condos Even Be Built Along The Gowanus Canal?

Last night was an eventful one at Scotto's Funeral Parlor, what with the Carroll Garden's Neighborhood Association's meeting about rezoning and the Smith Street Scarano debacle going on. Is ours the only community that holds its neighborhood meetings at a funeral home? I know this is Carroll Gardens and things are done differently here, but I just remember walking into what I though was a meeting once just to catch a glimpse of a dearly departed...

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Joe Porcelli: My Local Hero

To my local Brooklyn readers, you know about the punitive dismissal of some Community Board 6 members because they opposed the Atlantic Yards Mega Project. The three politicians who appoint members to the board, Marty Markowitz, Bill DeBlasio and David Yassky replaced nine members with people probably more inclined to embrace Bruce Ratner's monstro" city."Of course the lesson to learn for our board members is that they better not cross the politicos...

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Monday, Funny Monday!

Lets face it: Mondays are tough. A little laughter can go a long way. Here is the best headline from The Onion, the best little spoof paper around.Shaking Off Amnesia, Gonzales Remembers He's Actually Pool Salesman From Tulsa.onion_embed {background: rgb(256, 256, 256) !important;border: 4px solid rgb(65, 160, 65);border-width: 4px 0 1px 0;margin: 10px 30px !important;padding: 5px;overflow: hidden !important;zoom: 1;}.onion_embed img {border: 0...

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Picture Of The Week

Great picture, but such a disturbing image, don't you thi...

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Much Prettier then a Guillotine!

Yesterday was the annual flea market at Carroll Park. Moody teen son and I shared a spot and lugged our wares to the park. We were pretty successful. The house feels emptier already! We got rid of a few big items that were driving me crazy here in the house. If something is not used, get rid of it I say! It certainly was even nicer to get money for the stuff. So of course the news item below caught my eye today. What with selling unused...

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Contributing To Ratner's Personal Wealth With Tax Payers' Money

I think that Brooklynites knew all along that we were being lied to when it comes to the true cost of the Atlantic Yard Project. Now the first reports of how much Ratner is getting from us to make himself richer are surfacing. It is also encouraging to see that the City's press is finally starting to investigate a bit more thoroughly into the details of this project.Here are some very interesting articles on tax payers' contribution to Ratnerville.N.Y....

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Bill DeBlasio's Smith Street Protest Against Scarano

A quick update. I went to the corner of Smith and 2nd Place to check out the protest against Scarano. There were about 30 to 40 people at the subway station.I have to hand it to Bill DeBlasio. He sure knows a media opportunity when he sees one. Here he was, with a portable little lectern complete with New York City Council emblem. Very official. He made an impassionate speech about the unique nature of Carroll Gardens. He stated that he has...

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