A vintage clothing store has moved a few doors down from its former location and a new Korean bistro has come to N. 6th Street in Williamsburg, among other local business changes.
Manhattan Avenue vintage shop Fox & Fawn closed their 570 Manhattan Ave. location last month and as of last week are now open at 599 Manhattan Ave. just across the street. Continue reading
North Brooklyn residents and community groups are holding a rally outside of a fundraiser for Governor Andrew Cuomo at Giano On The Water (400 Kent Ave.) in Williamsburg to protest National Grid’s fracked gas pipeline, known as the Metropolitan Reliability Infrastructure Project, that is making its way toward Manhattan Avenue in Greenpoint.
Brownsville saw the start of the 6.8-mile-long pipeline’s construction in 2018, and the project quietly progressed toward North Brooklyn where local residents say that they were only recently informed of the plan.
Small businesses in East Williamsburg have reportedly taken a massive hit from the construction and road closures, and critics say that a $185 million rate hike is anticipated for National Grid customers in New York over the next three years to cover the pipeline’s costs. Continue reading
Affordable housing lottery options in Williamsburg continue to roll out this month with 312-314 Keap St. as the latest buildings to apply for via the NYC Housing Connect website.
At 312 – 314 Keap St. there are five total affordable apartments priced at 130% of the area median income, and the application is open through March 4th. Continue reading
The employees of the Greenpoint-based tech company Kickstarter (58 Kent St.) voted to unionize on Tuesday, becoming one of the first U.S. tech companies to join a union.
A vote on Tuesday by employees of the crowdfunding website resulted in 46 in favor of and 37 against joining the Office and Professional Employees International Union, which represents over 100,000 white collar workers according to VICE.
#KickstarterUnited has now been certified by the NLRB:
🤝🌟We Are A Union!!!🌟🤝 pic.twitter.com/l6W91lILKU— Kickstarter United (@ksr_united) February 18, 2020
A year-and-a-half process leading up to Tuesday’s unionization vote began in 2018 when Kickstarter employees and management disagreed on the decision to allow a campaign for a book entitled “Always Punch Nazis,” as NBC New reports: Continue reading
The Environmental Protection Agency has extended the public comment deadline to Febraury 28th on the proposed control plan to partially reduce combined sewage overflow into the Newtown Creek superfund site and will present more info on the plan at a public meeting in Queens on Wednesday night.
Community groups such as the Newtown Creek Alliance have dubbed the EPA’s proposal the ‘No Action Plan‘ for lacking commitment to fully rid the three mile tributary to the East River of the raw sewage that overflows into the water during rain episodes. Continue reading
Something was in the air Saturday afternoon. The dulcet tones of Phil Collins, yes, but also the yeasty aroma of craft beer.
Greenpoint Beer and Ale Co., a local brewery shuttered since late 2018, opened the doors of its newly renovated location at 1150 Manhattan Avenue Saturday to celebrate Phil Collins Day.
The event marked the first public showing of Greenpoint Beer and Ale’s new space before the brewery opens permanently next weekend, according to owner Ed Raven.
The new space is as cavernous as the previous site, which was located on North 15th Street, but now has a new rooftop bar overlooking the Manhattan skyline. And the brewery has quadrupled its brewing capacity, adding 15 more barrels to its production line. Despite having a full kitchen, Raven plans to slim down the menu, “First and foremost, we’re brewers,” he said. Continue reading
Happy Phil Collins Day Greenpointers! For the first time since 2015, the “In The Air Tonight” singer will be celebrated in a revived local tradition (complete with live cover sing-alongs) at Greenpoint Beer & Ale Co. (1150 Manhattan Ave.) starting at 3 p.m. today.
But first, neighbors and environmental advocacy groups will rally this morning from 9 a.m. – 11 a.m. at the intersection of Manhattan Avenue and Moore Street to call on Governor Cuomo and Mayor de Blasio to halt the pipeline’s construction.
In other local news the monthly Brooklyn Community Board 1 meeting was Tuesday (full video here) and a jam-packed agenda revealed that the proposed development in the Greenpoint Historic District at 171 Calyer St. was denied as were the proposed renovations to the McCarren Park House, although both projects could still move forward if changes are made to the respective designs that suit CB1. Other presentations from the CB1 meeting include plans for the Franklin Street protected bike lane and the proposed change of traffic on N 14th Street.
For fans and patrons of Humboldt & Jackson (434 Humboldt St.) you have two more days to visit the restaurant and bar before it closes forever.
For more weekend fun checkout what’s happening and in the meantime catch up on this week’s headlines from around the neighborhood: Continue reading
A 20-year-old pizza delivery man was physically assaulted and robbed of his bicycle by a group of men last weekend in Williamsburg.
Surveillance footage in front of 32 Walton St. on February 8th at approximately 4:30 a.m. shows the delivery worker being approached by four men as they throw him to the ground and steal his bike, as Gothamist reports.
VIDEO: Brutal robbery Saturday morning on a Pizza delivery guy on Walton st by a group of 5 thugs, they hit him, stole his coat, all his belongings, and bike ‘with the Pizza’ and fled, @NYPD90Pct @NYPDDetectives investigating pic.twitter.com/RzW5k3pdME
— WILLIAMSBURG NEWS (@WMSBG) February 13, 2020
More details for the NY Post:
“If you don’t give us everything, we’re going to have to kill you,” one of the thugs threatened the 20-year-old, sources said.
One man pushes him out of the way, toward another, who flings him to the ground.
Two of the men wrestle with the 20-year-old as they try to get hold of his property, before stabbing him with an unknown item in both legs during the tussle, police said.
The thugs made off with his cellphone, about $70, a jacket, a pizza, and the e-bike, cops said.
Greenpointers really showed the love this past Sunday at our Valentine’s Day Market. From a luscious floral-filled “Love Lounge” to swoon-worthy handcrafted goodies–the Greenpoint Loft was brimming with SO much local support it made our little hearts sing. Check out our photobooth and see if you can spot yourself!
The Love Lounge—a candy-colored confection of roses and sweetheart sayings, was the crafty creations of the wildly talented, women-owned businesses Something Taylored Rentals, Modern Rebel event planning, Little Sister Creative and Ars Poetica. Visitors snuggled up to get personalized poems and play relationship guessing games. The Wizard of Greenpoint brought some magic to the lounge with his tarot card readings. Continue reading
This story was originally published on 2/14/20 by THE CITY. (By: Claudia Irizarry Aponte)
Construction of a 6.8-mile natural gas pipeline stretching from Brownsville to North Brooklyn has hit a wall in Greenpoint, where community leaders and elected officials are vying to halt the project as it reaches its final stage.
The National Grid gas main — which has been in the works since 2017 — would supply fracked gas from Pennsylvania, where the extraction is legal. The controversial practice was banned in New York state in 2014.
On Saturday, a community coalition of environmental advocacy groups, schools, and social justice groups will host a rally at the pipeline’s latest construction site, the intersection of Moore Street and Manhattan Avenue.
“I am familiar with the history of environmental devastation in my neighborhood,” said Kevin LaCherra, a third-generation Greenpointer who is helping organize the rally. “We need our elected officials to be taking bold steps to bring renewables on now.”
The pipeline opponents are calling on Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio to stop the project on the grounds that it goes against both the state and the city’s clean energy goals.
“This is not the kind of system we want any more,” Kim Fraczek, director of the Sane Energy Project, an environmental advocacy group, told THE CITY. “This industry doesn’t have the interests of the community at heart.”
Their claims are quickly gaining momentum: On Tuesday, Brooklyn’s Community Board 1, which includes Greenpoint, voted unanimously to stop any construction of the pipeline.
Advocates say they have the support of every single elected official who represents North Brooklyn at the state and city level, from City Councilmembers Stephen Levin and Antonio Reynoso, to State Sen. Julia Salazar and veteran Assemblymember Joe Lentol.
Levin, Reynoso and Lentol all confirmed to THE CITY they oppose the pipeline’s construction, Salazar did not return requests for comment. Continue reading
