Open Thread Wednesday

By on November 1, 2016 11:54 pm in open thread

What’s on your mind? Comment away!

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  • AEB

    There was some dispute here about the voting location for those of us who normally go to PS8 to cast our ballots.

    I’ve checked online, and the city believes that PS8 is still the place for doing the deed. Does anyone else have other info?

    Thanks.

  • North Heights Resident

    Members of the community: does anyone have any insight about the abandoned construction work in front of 36 Clark Street between Hicks and Willow Streets? Materials from Hallen Construction have been dumped on the street and have remained untouched for upwards of two months now. The plates in the street rattle day and night. And recently—thankfully I was outside for this—an elderly woman tripped on the debris and fell very hard on her side. (She was alright—just shook up.) I spoke to representatives from both Hallen and National Grid last week when they were finishing work on a new site on Willow Street. When asked when work would be completed on Clark and Hicks Streets, they frustratingly had no answers to share. I’m hoping that you will join me in logging 311 tickets and contacting National Grid, Brooklyn Community Board 2, the office of city councilman Stephen Levin, and any additional resources or outlets you can recommend.

  • Andrew Porter

    I found out that the famous painted doors on the Middagh Street fire station are destined for the 9/11 Museum. I told various people and news blogs, including the BHB, but the Eagle got there first. Read about it here:

    http://tinyurl.com/hplvhxc

  • Andrew Porter

    Speaking of really delayed construction, how about the proposed new house at 27 Cranberry Street? The hole in the ground for the basement hasn’t been touched in a really long time, it seems to me.

    Here’s a report in YIMBY NY about this, which has been in the works for, what, maybe 5 years?

    http://tinyurl.com/z2rrzvx

    Anyone see anything happening there?

  • bklyn84

    National Grid has an active permit on that block.

    Contact Name: Edward Fritz
    Phone: 7182705777
    Tracking Number: 2016081500010097
    Permit valid from 8/15/2016 to 11/10/2016
    .
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e601cf1acae7d39fcf66e83089282a7fa4162eeed40eb7710525c1f5c03a1dc1.jpg

  • Andrew Porter

    Possible routes through this area for the proposed streetcar (pdf):

    http://tinyurl.com/gwdchcl

  • Andrew Porter

    I spoke to the BHA’s Peter Bray. He said he was talking with contacts about getting things moving there, forwarded posts here to them. Squeaky wheels!

  • BH Observer

    What happened at the BQE Reconstruction discussion last night http://brooklynheightsblog.com/archives/81992

    Anyone go?

  • Reggie
  • mary

    thank you David Kramer.. since you made your latest move
    around the investigations et al.. our fundraising dollars have gone through the roof
    http://www.lovebrooklynlibrariesinc.org
    join our lawsuit.
    contribute
    also on facebook

  • Banet

    So at the risk of this becoming an all-library blog I dare to suggest the following:

    In a few years the neighborhood will have a new library at the site of the old library… but there’s a beautifully renovated space inside the church to house the current interim library.

    What do people think about the church space remaining as a permanent children’s branch of the library? It’s the right scale for kids. It’s all renovated. It’s certainly centrally located. There’s something to be said for splitting off children’s space (such as the verbal altercation I witnessed last week where a homeles man repeatedly screamed (sometimes sexual) obscenties at a college student who he perceived as “hitting on him”. Kids don’t need to hear or see something like that in the library.) And all in, the two spaces combined would likely add up to more square footage than the old library, therefore obviating one of the original objections to the development of the new library.

    Obviously the library would have to come up with more money for the rent and staffing. And the church would have to be willing to continue to rent the space (though it’s hard to imagine they wouldn’t be).

    What do people think?

  • North Heights Resident

    Thanks to bklyn84 for the clarity and to Andrew for nudging the association!

  • Banet

    And as long as people brought up the library (oh yeah, that was me). I can’t beleive people are complaining about the handicapped access to the building.

    Apparently they’re going to repave the entire stretch but the driveway leading up to it has 1 *small* pothole. I honestly can’t think of a stetch of residential sidewalk in all of Brooklyn Heights that’s in as good repair as that stretch of road. Heck, the plastic ADA-compatible plastic ramp leading from sidewalk to pavement right outside the library on the corner of Henry and Remsen is broken into pieces and has been for months.

    As far as the cars that park along that ADA pathway, they enter once in the morning — well before the library is open — and leave once at night. I don’t see how this is a problem any more than any other shared space between cars and pedestrians — i.e, the tens of thousands of curb cuts where cars cross over the sidewalk throughout the city. There are dozens and dozens of them in our neighborhood alone and I don’t recall ever hearing of anyone getting hit.

    Finally, the complaint that the door needs one of the assist button? Completely 100% valid. I understand they’re having one installed.

  • bklyn84

    I was there and agree with Reggie the politico article covers many of the main points that were made in the presentation. There were numerous questions/answers that I didn’t take notes on but here are some additional points I picked up on.

    *** The Atlantic Avenue interchange is ok structurally; ramps need to be upgraded and nearby bike paths worked on.

    *** NYC/DOT will keep three lanes of traffic going in both directions throughout the project; creative solutions might include building a temporary roadway on the west side of the BQE above Furman. NYC has the right-of-way to build straight up from the west edge of the sidewalk on Furman.

    *** There will be no overlap between the BQE Atlantic-to-Sands project and the BQX streetcar project; the BQX won’t go near the BQE bridges being worked on.

    *** 72-hour shutdowns might be required at times during the construction.

  • KXrVrii1

    “Obviously the library would have to come up with more money for the rent and staffing.”

    That is probably the simple answer as to why it won’t happen.

  • Slyone

    Why do you think it isn’t at PS8? School is closed on Nov 8 and the PTA is planning an election day bake sale so I’m assuming voting is on there. I don’t vote there, though.

  • Banet

    It would definitely incur additional cost but it just occurred to me that if the children’s department moved to this new location then they wouldn’t need the children’s librarians staffing at the old location. So there will definitely be some incremental cost but in terms of staffing dollars it wouldn’t be as large as you would think.

  • AEB

    I don’t assume it isn’t there–as I said, someone brought up in another thread that the voting place was no longer there.

    But I see that the “relocation” isn’t. So–never mind!

  • Jorale-man

    A Gothamist article looks at the crumbling state of the BQE beneath the Promenade (apparently we’re at least 5 years away still from seeing any major reconstruction).
    http://gothamist.com/2016/11/02/bqe_decay_repair_project.php

    It raises another question for me: Hasn’t the surface of the promenade deteriorated pretty significantly in recent years? Parts of it are a real minefield of crumbling pavement and water ponding. You’d think the city would be afraid of a lawsuit with all of the cracks.

  • Banet

    The promenade isn’t too terrible. There are a few spots with crumbling pavers and a few low spots with big puddles after a rain. It’s pretty sad that it’s this way though considering the entire thing was shut down (in 2 portions) for about a year to replace it some time… after 2003? (I don’t recall exactly when — i just know it was after I moved in 2003). Anyone recall?

  • gc

    The very poor drainage is a real problem. Can’t believe it hasn’t been addressed.

  • Remsen St Strollin

    I want to note what a jerk the bartender at Custom House is and how I will never again frequent that establishment. The bald Irish bartender here is one of the rudest people I have ever met. It is inexcusable that the owner keeps him on (unless he is himself the owner). It makes me upset to know that such valuable commercial real estate in our quaint hood is being held by such an unfriendly establishment.

    I walked in to the bar to meet a friend to watch game 7 of the World Series over a plate of wings and a drink. I can’t drink alcohol bc of medicine I am taking. When I sat down at the bar and requested a water to start, the bartender asked if “my friend would be holding my hand for a real drink later.” I laughed that off. My friend was a little late in arriving, and after 5 minutes, the bartender came back over to me and said, “this isn’t starbucks, you’re going to need to move on if you aren’t going to order something.” He said this in spite of the fact that (a) the bar was half empty and (b) that I’d already told him that I was awaiting a friend before ordering. I got up and had my friend meet me elsewhere.

    Life is too short to deal with jerks like this. I sincerely hope they fire this guy or the place closes.

  • SongBirdNYC

    The CB2 Land Use Committee meeting is

    Wednesday, November 16, 2016; Room LC400, Dibner Building, NYU Tandon School of Engineering, off of the MetroTech Commons at 5 MetroTech Center. Would be a good question for them.

  • SongBirdNYC

    For definitive info on your polling place and other questions, go to voting.nyc

  • Concerned

    You should talk to the manager/owner. That’s garbage. This isn’t a college town…

  • StudioBrooklyn

    Was it the guy on the far left in this photo ( http://cdn.brooklynheightsblog.com/wp-content/uploads/jsw_img_3140_edited-1.jpg )? If so, I’m pretty sure that’s the owner but would welcome correction. I don’t know him well–I tend to keep a well-stocked bar at home, rather than go out–but I have heard many good things about him, especially his involvement in the community (for whatever it’s worth).

  • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlsiLOnWCoI Arch Stanton

    That’s outrageous but won’t do much here, put it on Yelp and any other review sites you can find.

  • KXrVrii1

    Saving on a couple of personnel isn’t enough. Still an extra lease, security, janitor, insurance, utilities, etc.

    And how would the library system justify having two libraries in one, relatively small and affluent neighborhood?

  • Concerned

    This would be great for red hook.

  • Robert Perris

    Council Member Levin’s office and the district office of Community Board 2 have both contacted National Grid about the stalled work and loose street plates at Clark and Hicks streets.

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