Continued Fallout From Court Street Gas Leak

1st Place was closed between Court and Smith Streets yesterday while ConEd crews cut a trench on the right side of the street.  1st Place block resident Barbara Brookhart shared some information on the utility work on the CGNA listserve:

Update on the aftermath of the gas leak in front of the CVS store on Court Street.   When the utilities were fixing the leak, they accidentally cut a water line, and Court Street had to be closed because the water was cascading down to Hamilton Avenue.

I haven't talked to anybody about this, so these are my observations while doing errands in the hood.  Can't help to think that everything seemed to have gone wrong with the repair of the gas leak.  But, thank goodness, we were lucky to not have had a San Bruno-type gas explosion, because you could smell the gas a block away.

The contractor still hasn’t sufficiently patched the cut in the street after fixing the various leaks (gas/water).  The sidewalk from 1st to 2nd Place was cut in the last week to install yellow plastic pipes for some utility. Construction barriers are in place on the sidewalk from 1st to 2nd Place.

Con Ed cut the street, next to the curb, on First Place yesterday to install new yellow plastic pipes for electricity yesterday.  A worker said that electricity was accidently cut for 122 First Place during the gas leak fiasco, and ever since, the building has had their electricity spliced from a light pole.  The worker mentioned that water was also accidently cut for a building on 2nd Place during the fiasco.

CGNA Meeting Tonight

7:00pm - 9:00pm, Rain or Shine
Hannah Senesh Community Day School
342 Smith Street between 1st and 2nd Places

AGENDA
Introduction and Welcome

Report from 76th Precinct Community Affairs Officers:
Det. Paul Grudzinski and Officer Vincent Marrone

Elected Officials, representatives:
Jonah Blumstein, Liaison, CCmember Brad Lander; Tamar Smith, State Assemblywoman Joan Millman; Alex DeLisi, Sen. Dan Squadron; Dan Wiley, Rep. N. Velasquez; Luke DePalma, BP Marty Markowitz.
Introduce: P. Rheaume and Veronica Aveis, Cong. Yvette Clarke

SPEAKERS:
City Councilmember Brad Lander:  State of the Borough updates and plans.

Mr. Isaac Fischmann, developer 333 Carroll St.:  Update on plans for the 333 building

CGNA Committee Reports
Health & Hospitals: Colleen Giunta
Land Use/Landmarks: Glenn Kelly and John Hatheway
Parks: Barbara Brookhart (BBP)
Transportation: Gary Reilly

Everyone welcome!

NEXT MEETING: Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011._,_.___

The CGNA listserv is an all volunteer community forum serving Carroll Gardens. Everyone from the neighborhood - renters, owners, business owners and others who work here - are welcome.

The CGNA meets at the Hannah Senesh Community Day School, 342 Smith St (1st & 2nd Pl) on the Fourth Wednesday of each month (except for school holidays in *February and *April).

The 2011 calendar: Wednesday, *Feb. 16, Mar. 23,* Apr. 13, May 25, June 22.

Brooklyn Do-Gooders - Vote Early, Vote Often!

The Brooklyn Community Foundation (formerly the Independence Community Foundation)  is the largest grant-giving organization in Brooklyn, and is celebrating the one-year anniversary of its new incarnation with a "Brooklyn Does Good" celebration. 

Nominees have been submitted from the community, and the community gets to vote for "Brooklyn Do Gooders" - up to five votes per day until voting closes on October 15th.  Winners will be feted at a celebration on November 3rd, and a $5,000 grant will be made to the 501(c)3 charity of their choosing in their name.  Altogether a great program.

As it turns out, I have personally worked with a few of the candidates, and I encourage you to send your votes their way (either all or in part) daily:

Maria Pagano - Carroll Gardens Neighborhood Association (and more)
Brian McCormick - Brooklyn Greenway Initiative
Dave "paco" Abraham - Transportation Alternatives Brooklyn Committee, tireless advocate for safer streets
Shannon Hummel - CORA dance
Rita Miller - CORD

Now get out there and vote like it's Tammany Hall!

Biking Rules!, Brooklyn Greenway and more at CGNA 6/14

For our last regular Carroll Gardens Neighborhood Association meeting before the summer break we're covering a hot topic: bicycles.

As NYC has embraced more complete streets and livable streets initiatives, biking has made a comeback and is on the rise throughout the five boroughs. This welcome resurgence has not been without some friction: many people (drivers, bikers, pedestrians) are not aware of the rules of the road. When I was campaigning last year I recognized a lot of confusion (and occasional resentment) as the City took greater steps to share our streets among users. More than anything, people could use a primer on just what the rules are.

Are bikes allowed to ride on the sidewalk? (No!)

Are bikes allowed to ride in the street? (Yes!)

Can I double park my car in this bike lane? (No!)

How can I get a bike rack installed at X location?

On Monday night we'll have a representative from Transportation Alternatives on hand to talk about Biking Rules!, their educational program to educate all users, particularly cyclists, on the rules of the road.

And while we're talking about biking, we'll have a representative from the Brooklyn Greenway Initiative to talk about the latest developments with the Greenway, a locally created, now federally funded (thanks Congresswoman Velazquez!) 14-mile bike and pedestrian facility for the Brooklyn waterfront.

We may also have a representative from DOT to talk about the new bike lanes you may have noticed in the neighborhood and now along Prospect Park West.

All told, lots of good stuff on bikes. And I get to chair the meeting this month, while our President Maria Pagano recuperates from ankle surgery. Jeff Gillooly was worth every penny! In all seriousness, wish Maria a very swift recovery - we need her back on her feet soon with all that's going on in Carroll Gardens.

CGNA General Meeting

Monday, June 14, 2010
7:00PM-9:00PM
Hannah Senesh Community Day School
342 Smith St between First and Second Places

CBID Honors South Brooklyn Coalition

The Central Brooklyn Independent Democrats had their Annual Awards Dinner this past Sunday night. Among the honorees was a confederation of community activists that spanned several neighborhood civic organizations (dubbed the South Brooklyn Coalition for the sake of brevity) who united to support Superfund designation for the Gowanus Canal. Katia has the summary, pics, and video.

The dashing fellow in the blue shirt? That's me.

Full Schedule Tonight - CGNA, Hate Crime Vigil

We'll be shutting down the CGNA meeting early tonight to stand with our electeds and community leaders to send the message that Carroll Gardens will not accept hateful intolerance.

Schedule:

CGNA Monthly Meeting, 7:00 @ Hannah Senesh Day School

followed by

Hate Crime Vigil, 8:30 @ Luquer Street and Hamilton Avenue

From the Brooklyn Pride Center:

As you may know, a member of Brooklyn's LGBT community was recently assaulted in Carroll Gardens by a group of men shouting hateful, homophobic epithets. There will be a rally on Monday, 3/15 at 8:30pm. Join us and send the message that hate crimes against LGBT people or any other group will not be tolerated.

Lambda Independent Democrats of Brooklyn
Stonewall Democratic Club of New York City
The Brooklyn Community Pride Center

and

Public Advocate Bill de Blasio
NYC Council Speaker Christine Quinn
Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz
Congressmember Nydia Velazquez
Congressmember Yvette Clarke
State Senator Daniel Squadron
Assemblymember Joan Millman
NYC Councilmember Brad Lander
NYC Councilmember Sara Gonzalez
NYC Councilmember Rosie Mendez
NYC Councilmember Danny Dromm
NYC Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer

In a vigil to condemn these hateful acts and demonstrate the strength and unity of our community on

Monday, March 15, at 8:30 p.m. at Luquer Street and Hamilton Avenue

Tonight: CGNA Meeting featuring District 39 City Council Candidate Forum

CGNA October General Meeting TONIGHT!

Monday, Oct. 19, 2009

7:00 PM- 9:00PM

Hannah Senesh Community Day School

Gym, first floor

342 Smith St.

Agenda:

Report from 76th precinct

Updates from our local elected officials

CGNA Committee Notes

Guest Speakers:

City Council Candidates Brad Lander (D), Joe Nardiello (R), Dave Pechefsky (G)

Please join us. Everyone is welcome!

CGNA TONIGHT

The big item on tonight's agenda is a forum for elected officials and their representatives to hear from you on the MTA funding crisis and Albany's inaction.

Date: Monday April 13, 2009
Time: 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm
Location: Hannah Senesh Community Day School, 342 Smith St

The Ravitch Commission set forth a clear roadmap, including bridge tolls, to avert the catastrophic fare hikes and service cuts that WILL take place if we don't act. But our elected officials need to hear our voices on this.

What do you think of $3 subway fares and drastic bus service cuts? Come to CGNA tonight.

MTA Public Hearing on Service Cuts - Wednesday Night

This is a big one people. AS discussed at last month's CGNA meeting, Carroll Gardens and the 39th District as a whole are facing severe mass transit cuts. Tom Gray of Bill deBlasio's office sent the following notice (excerpted) to the CGNA listserve:

The MTA has proposed eliminating entire bus lines that service
District 39, as well as overnight and weekend service. In addition,
the MTA proposes to close station agent booths at a variety of
locations throughout Brooklyn, potentially compromising the safety of
riders.

• The B16, B23, B37, B75 Could be eliminated entirely. The B71 could
lose weekend service. And overnight service could be cut on the B67
and B77.

• Station Agents would be cut from the Metrotech end of the A, C and F
station at Jay Street; the west side of Flatbush Avenue entrance to
the Bergen Street 2, 3 station; the southbound F and G station
entrance at Bergen Street; the northbound entrance to the Carroll
Street F- and G-train station; and the entrance to the Borough Hall 2,
3, 4 and 5 trains at Court and Joralemon streets.

• Reduced frequency of service weekends on F and R and increase
crowding during off-peak on F, R, 4 and 5

• The total elimination of M service between lower Manhattan and
Bensonhurst (That means 16 fewer trains on the 4th Avenue line during
the rush hour mornings; and 12 in the p.m. rush. As a result,
rush-hour waits will double and crowding will greatly increase on the
R.)

• The G would terminate at Court Square all the time (now goes from
Smith-9th to Forest Hills on weekends, nights)


On top of these cuts, the MTA is proposing a variety of fare hikes,
including: increasing the base fare of train and bus rides to as much
as $3, increasing express bus fare to as much as $6.25, and increasing
the price of Unlimited Ride MetroCards to as much as $9.50 for a 1-day
card, $32 for a 7-day card, $60 for a 14-day card and $105 for a
30-day card.

It's important for residents to show up at this meeting and let the MTA know that these cuts are intolerable. I'll be there and I hope to see a sizable contingent there from Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill, Gowanus, Park Slope, Kensington, Windsor Terrace, and Boro Park. All of us will be impacted by these cuts, and the burden will fall hardest on the elderly, students, and those with difficulty negotiating the subway system. Basically, anyone who relies on the buses to get around will be seriously impacted.

It's not enough just to complain about service cuts. We need to be realistic about the finance problem the MTA is facing: the City and State have shortchanged transit for years, leading to massive debts at the MTA. The debt service payments are choking the MTA budget. We need to have steady, reliable and larger revenue streams to not only run the system, but also expand it and keep up the state of good repair. Raising fares on riders yet again is NOT the answer.

Their are many proposals out there, but the two that will raise the most funds while remaining equitable are (1) tolling the East River crossings and (2) bringing back the commuter tax.

Let your elected officials know that we need reliable, robust transit funding. We won't get it unless we demand it.

MTA Public Hearing on January 28th, 6pm – 9pm
at the Brooklyn Marriott, 333 Adams Street

You Like Us! You Really Like Us!

Carroll Gardens featured in the New York Times's Living In column. CGNA's own Maria Pagano is quoted in the article:

“Carroll Gardens is very much still a Sesame Street kind of community,” said Maria Pagano, president of the neighborhood association, which has been focusing opposition on construction projects it describes as out of scale. “That means people get out there and do things; they’re involved,” she said.

And 1st Place specifically garners praise for its proliferation of 25' wide brownstones. The article could have been three times as long and still not have scratched the surface of what's so great about this neighborhood. A worthwhile read.

CGNA Meeting Tonight

Meeting tonight at Hannah Senesh School
7:30pm
Smith between 1st and 2nd Place

See you there!

Also, Lost City has a Carroll Gardens centric post today, with a look at some of the local characters, shops and institutions. Worth a look.

MEETINGS TONIGHT: LICH, CB6

Lot's going on tonight. CGNA has cancelled our meeting tonight, instead encouraging Carroll Gardens residents to attend the Borough President's meeting tonight on the future of LICH. In addition, the Executive Committee of CB6 is meeting tonight, and under consideration are changes to the Bylaws of the Community Board. This could also be a very important meeting.

“Long Island College Hospital and the Ongoing Health-Care Crisis in Brooklyn.”
6:30-8:30PM, TONIGHT
Brooklyn Borough Hall Courtroom
209 Joralemon Street (between Court and Adams Streets).
Speakers are limited to three minutes and asked to bring ten copies of testimony. Per and email: “This meeting will address the closing of LICH by Continuum. Please take this opportunity to let the BP know what you think…”

Nov 10 CB6 Executive & Fin/Pers/Law
Discussion and consideration of possible amendments to CB6 by-laws.
Board member attendance review
Other business

Cobble Hill Community Meeting Room
250 Baltic Street
(between Court/Clinton Streets)
Brooklyn, NY 11201
6:30 PM

I'll be attending the CB6 meeting tonight to see what kind of changes are under consideration. Rumors of an attempted non-board member disenfranchisement swirling.

CGNA Meeting Monday Night 9/08/08

A message from Maria Pagano, President of the CGNA:

Hi Everyone!
Just a reminder- the new cycle of CGNA General Meetings will begin next
Monday, Sept. 8.
We will continue to meet on the second Monday of each month (except as
noted for holidays) at our new location: the Hannah Senesh Community
Day School, 342 Smith St (entrance mid block between First and Second
Places) at 7:30 PM.
Looking forward to seeing you all!


Also of note this week, the General Meeting of CB6 at LICH (339 Hicks St) on Wednesday night at 6:30.

No guest testimony at the General meeting, but there's always valuable information.

The Truth About The Wide Streets Amendment

Pardon Me For Asking has a must read post today on the Wide Streets Text Amendment.

The CGNA forum has been been inundated for days now with mis-information, dis-information and utter nonsense, mostly from one persistent opponent of the text amendment who is masquerading as a local preservationist. The sad thing is, to the casual observer, most of it sounds perfectly reasonable.

Please click through and read the entirety of the post above to get the true story on the text amendment. The misinformation flying around has sown confusion, fear and doubt where there should be clarity and unity. The wide streets amendment will help PREVENT out ofd scale development in Carroll Gardens. That is the point. That is precisely why a few would-be developers are fighting so hard against it.

Bottom line: the wide streets amendment will preserve the neighborhood scale by treating the Place blocks and a few others with 33' courtyards exactly like they should be: the same as President Street and other Carroll Gardens residential streets.

We are working to get the neighborhood downzoned to a more appropriate R6B. A number of people are working hard on landmark status as well. In the meantime, we need to get this wide streets amendment passed.

Reminder: G Train Rally Today

The rally for the G-train will be tonight at 6:30 p.m. at Lafayette Avenue Presbyterian Church. The church is located at 85 S. Oxford St., and can best be reached by taking the G-train to Fulton St., and walking up Fulton to S. Oxford, or taking the C train to Lafayette, and walking up Lafayette to S. Oxford. The church is on the corner of Lafayette and S. Oxford, with the entrance that we will be using on the S. Oxford St. side of the building.

Attending the rally will be Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries, Councilwoman Letita James, Councilman David Yassky, Councilwoman Diana Reyna, as well as representatives from Assemblyman Joe Lentol and Assemblywoman Joan Millman's offices, representing a broad swath of both city and state leaders whose districts rely on the G train.

Yours truly will be there representing CGNA.

It's not enough to merely demand better G service . . . a line that sorely needs improvement in terms of longer cars, stations served, and timeliness. Our state officials, having failed to pass congestion pricing, need to step up to the plate and come up with funding for the mass transit improvements and expansion this city desperately needs.

Spring Is In The Air

And lots of activity in the streets. This morning I spent an hour flyering the block for the Public Hearing tomorrow afternoon at Borough Hall (209 Joralemon St, 5:30). Also I saw on the stoops there were flyers out for deBlasio's meeting tomorrow afternoon. I didn't see any today, but there are also some flyers that anonymous persons put out with scare tactics to confuse the issue of the wide streets amendment. The times and locations of the various public meetings tomorrow are HERE.

The picture above is of a guy making the best of the construction fence situation on 1st Place between Court and Clinton. Nice work!

* And in case it isn't clear, I wholeheartedly support the text amendment to close the "wide street" loophole that allows out of context development on the Place blocks and other blocks with courtyards *

May 7th Packed with Carroll Gardens Meetings

This is a pretty tight schedule in the local meeting circuit, but a lot of important stuff being covered. From Maria Pagano, CGNA President:

Acknowledging the interest and concern we have expressed, three separate meetings have been scheduled for next week by city agencies,elected officials and KEYSPAN.

The members of the CGNA Board encourage everyone to attend at least one
of the meetings. Bring a family member, a friend, a neighbor! (I don't
think pets can be accommodated).

These three meetings are all scheduled for Wednesday, May 7.

In time order:

1. Check your mail. A notice was sent out from KEYSPAN/NATIONAL GRID.
They will hold the first public meetings to "discuss the remedial
investigation
of a former manufactured gas site located at DeGraw near the Gowanus
Canal".
This is the beginning KEYSPAN's participation in the public discussion
on cleaning up the
Gowanus gas sites. There are a total of 17 sites. Meetings on Public
Place,
the Toll Bros site, etc to follow.
Meeting site: PS 32 (317 Hoyt St at Union)
Times: 4:00 PM - 5:30 PM and 5:30 PM - 7:00 PM
[ED. NOTE: more on this at Gowanus Lounge]
2. Borough President Marty Markowitz will hold a public meeting to
discuss the pending text amendment proposed by the Department of City
Planning. This text amendment will correct the inappropriate "wide
street" designation currently applied to the Place blocks; they will be
designated as narrow streets, as they were originally defined by law
when
they were created, and will match the bulk permitted on the other
residential blocks of Carroll Gardens.
Meeting site: Borough Hall, Community Room
Joralemon St entrance
Time: 5:30 PM
[ED. NOTE: more on this at Gowanus Lounge]

3. Plan for the Future Forum: The Gowanus
Sponsored by City Councilmember Bill DeBlasio,
CB6, Gowanus Dredgers, Gowanus Canal Development Corporation and the Gowanus Canal Conservancy Representatives of the NYS Departments of Environmental Conservation,
Education, City Planning, Buildings, NYPD, FDNY and NYC Parks and Recreation
will be on hand to answer questions.
For more info and to pre-register questions,
call Tom Gray at 718 854 9791.
Meeting site: 2nd St at the Gowanus Canal (off Bond)
There will be a tent at the site if the weather is bad.
Time: 6:30 PM-8:30 PM

Once again, we urge everyone to attend at least one of these meetings!

Back to my voice: be sure to check out the new and improved Gowanus Lounge at www.gowanuslounge.com. Bob's work has contributed immeasurably to the flow of information in our neighborhood. Looks great, too!

Friday News Roundup

A few important bits of news:
- After an animated discussion, CB6 Land Use Committee voted 9-4 to support closing the "wide streets" loophole. The Committee, as well as Bill deBlasio (who was instrumental in making this happen) and our other local elected officials (Millman and Connor) all deserve praise for working to preserve the character of our community. Several steps still to go. Next is the full Board, then the Borough President.

- Another sign that DOB is a broken organization that needs a major cultural change, not just a new Commissioner: "City officials admit they wrongly gave the green light to the project at 303 East 51st St., where a tower-crane collapse on March 15 killed seven people." We must end the farce called self certification that outsources DOB oversight to the developers. Now.

- Consumer confidence "fell deeper into recessionary territory, to 62.6 from 69.5 in March . . . the lowest since March 1982's level of 62.0., when the "stagflationary" period of low growth and high inflation was still an issue for many Americans." We are in for a serious adjustment; the real estate recession has not even begun here yet, but realtors with long memories will remember what the early 1990s were like, and that's what we're facing in the near future.

- Generalissimo Francisco Franco is still dead. Have a good weekend!

360 Smith: Stein Digs In

Ah, to be at the right place at the right time. The gate to the 360 Smith construction site was open when I walked by this morning. I snapped a couple of pictures, and the gate was unceremoniously slammed shut . . . but not before I got some (camera-phone) quality shots for you, dear reader.

Looks like Stein is motivated to beat the text change on wide streets. Speaking of which, deBlasio's office, CGNA and CORD are all encouraging people to support the text amendment at CB6 Thursday night, April 24th:

Presentation and review of proposed Zoning Resolution Text Amendment (#N080345ZRK), known as the Carroll Gardens Places Text Amendment, submitted by the Department of City Planning that would define 1st Place, 2nd Place, 3rd Place and 4th Place between Henry Street and Smith Street; and 2nd Street, Carroll Street and President Street between Smith Street and Hoyt Street, in the Carroll Gardens neighborhood of Brooklyn Community Board 6 as 'Narrow Streets' for zoning calculation purposes.
Brooklyn Community Board 6
250 Baltic Street
(Court/Clinton Streets)
Auditorium
6:00 p.m.
April 24, 2008

CGNA Meeting Roundup: 360 Smith Edition

Last night's Carroll Gardens Neighborhood Association (our first at St. mary's Residences at 41 1st Street) was dominated by the looming edifice of 360 Smith Street. Developer Billy Stein came packing last night, with a new architect (no more Scarano!) and a multimedia presentation for the large crowd that turned out. Before I get into my thoughts, the meeting has already been ably covered by:
The Gowanus Lounge
Pardon Me For Asking
CORD
Brownstoner

Longtime readers will know that my biggest issue with the 360 Smith developent is that the courtyard be preserved (it will be). Second is the look and scale of the building, and that is more of a mixed bag. The planned development (pictured above) will rise 6 stories, with a setback and an additional level on top, for a total of seven stories (plus parapet & mechanics) . . . the bulk height will be 70', with an effective height more like 75'-80'. This is disappointingly large, but within the current zoning - which is why our efforts to downzone the neighborhood and eliminate the wide streets loophole are so vital. This proposed height is perfectly legal and requires no zoning variances.

The architect (KSQ Architects) brought 3D computer models which he showed on an overhead screen. Interestingly, the building seems to blend a lot better on the 2nd Place side than on Smith Street.

While I think the design over all could use some work (I would go with a limestone color in the glass area and overtop, limit the color scheme to two colors, and setback the corner top level like the rest of the top level). In addition, the corner piece over all could use a reworking, possibly even rounding the corner to soften the edge. The good news is that Stein has indicated a willingness to work with the community on the facade appearance, if not on density.

Some meeting attendees pleaded for some architectural details in the corner area, with one suggesting even gargoyles. Which leads me to this thought: crown the building entrance with a gargoyle, cast in the likeness of Robert Scarano.
Photo credit: Pardon Me For Asking