Open Thread Wednesday 3/21/12

From Brownstoner: The former La Traviata Cafe space at Montague Street, between Henry and Clinton, is going to be replaced by an Irish pub. The Italian restaurant reportedly closed last November due to a rent hike. Brooklyn Heights Blog noted that another eatery was moving in, and now we know it will be a pub.

My husband saw those notes on most houses on one of the blocks in Cobble Hill. They are not handwritten by someone who really is interested in your particular house. It may not be a true scam, but who knows.

RE: Pierrepont, I don’t know that it was a true abduction attempt, but some kids were approached by a man who asked them “are you allowed to leave the park” and then when the mom came over he took off. The kids were behind the gate at Pierrepont so he couldn’t have snatched them, but it’s still scary.

there’s a lot of information about you tied to your cell phone number, especially if you have a smartphone

if someone can get your address and match it to your phone number through a maneuver like this, they can do some damage

it’s the new dumpster dive, except, without the dive

Regarding unsolicited real estate purchase offers, my sister and I each received a letter from a company following the passing of our father. Apparently this sleazy company is trolling through the Surrogate Court filings looking for business opportunities. The latter was a combination property purchase proposal and unlicensed quasi-legal representation proposal. If I had had more time, I would have followed it up with a letter of complaint to the Office of Court Administration.

Also, concerning grisly homicides, in 1973 there was a particularly violent occurrence in the lobby of 19 Grace Court. A young woman was stabbed more than 20 times and Mayor Lindsay made an appearance at the scene to express his concern for the situation and community.

O’Really, you don’t think O’Keefe’s is a “proper” Irish bar? It has an Irish name, an Irish owner, has Guinness & Harp on tap, serves generic bar food and is usually full of loud obnoxious d-bags. Qualifies in my book.