New York Times

New York Daily News: THE REMAINS of a globe-trotting Brooklyn Heights woman whose journeys took her to Tuscany, Asia and Africa have finally been identified.

Karol Ann Keasler, 42, a bride-to-be who volunteered in a soup kitchen and read novels to the elderly, was finally identified by the city’s chief medical examiner on Friday.

There are 1,270 presumed victims of the attacks whose remains have yet to be identified. In 2005, according to the Daily News article, some of Ms. Keasler’s personal effects were found at the Trade Center site, and given to her sister, Susan.

Squadron’s term as Senator ends this year. It’s doubtful that he will face a serious primary challenge and, in this district, the Democratic nomination is practically tantamount to election. It therefore seems almost certain that he will run for re-election to the Senate and win. The Brooklyn Paper article reports that State Senator Eric Adams (D-Prospect Heights), who has already announced his candidacy for Borough President, will run for re-election to the Senate this year. Our guess is that Squadron’s decision on a run for Beep will hinge on whether the Democrats regain control of the State Senate this coming November. If they do, he will be in a position to do much more as a Senator than he will if his party continues to be in the minority.

Besides Adams, the only other announced candidate for Beep is Markowitz protege Carlo Scissura. Others who, according to the Brooklyn Paper, are considering the run are “Assemblyman Nick Perry (D–Flatbush) and City Councilmembers Dominic Recchia (D–Coney Island) and Letitia James (D–Fort Greene).”

Accordion music, knishes, and egg creams, along with our Heather Quinlan, greeted upwards of 100 guests at the Brooklyn Heights Cinema this evening to see a preview of Heather’s work-in-progress film If These Knishes Could Talk. Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz was on hand to give a short talk on the Brooklyn accent, which he, naturally, considers the true American speech (never mind those people who say the real McCoy is found in Buffalo). He also described how one of the best kosher delis in Brooklyn has passed from Jewish to Italian to Egyptian Muslim hands, while remaining kosher. Marty was treated to a birthday knish with candles.

During a Q&A session after the screening, Heather was asked what she plans to add to the film. She said she hopes to travel to New Orleans to interview speakers of the Yat dialect, which is similar to “Brooklynese”, and to East London, to interview speakers of the Cockney dialect, which she sees as the closest British analogue to a New York accent.

Brooklyn Heights Cinema owner Kenn Lowy prompted enthusiastic applause at the close of the event when he announced that the Cinema will be around for some time, as the landlord has said he wants to do the right thing.

Tonight’s vote to approve the new P.S. 8 middle school is great news for Brooklyn! By heeding our calls and formalizing the new middle school, DOE is helping to ensure the continued success of P.S. 8 and creating better options for all District 13 students. Now we must work to get the new P.S. 8 middle school ready to go for next school year and continue to work for more options for District 13 students.

In a reversal of last week’s pattern, there will be Manhattan bound service on the R and (midnight through the wee hours) N service at Court and Jay, but no Brooklyn bound service at these stations, as all trains will be sent over the Manhattan Bridge. If you happen to be on one of these diverted trains, you can get off at DeKalb Avenue (the first stop in Brooklyn) and change to a Manhattan bound train that will take you back to Court or Jay.

The following week (Monday the 13th through Friday the 17th) from 10:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. there will be no 2 or 3 service to or from Brooklyn, so no service at Clark Street or on the 2-3 platform at Borough Hall. Use the A, C, R (N late at night), 4 or 5 as an option.

Last night, February 7th, at about 9 pm my dog Lili slipped out of her collar while being walked by her walker on Court street and Livingston. She was last seen moving toward Smith street. Once I was informed of the situation l joined the search and walked the streets until 8 am this morning. I am exhausted but hopeful that Lili will turn up. Lili does have a chip but she isn’t wearing a collar so I would greatly appreciate any help spreading the word that there is a lost dog out there and two parents who miss her very much. Lili is a year and a half year old Shiba Inu who is about 23 lbs. with a golden brown coat and white face. Any help in finding her will be greatly appreciated and there is a reward for her safe return.

The photo is not Lili but a representative photo of the Shiba Inu breed. Ramen Cromwell can be reached at blackwaterfilms@gmail.com

This Thursday at 12:30 PM, the Promenade Gardeners are hosting the first of our winter gatherings: Plant Trivia from Brooklyn and Beyond. We’d love to invite interested members of the public to join us for this first class and snacks. We sit, chat, look at photos of plants, and Koren and I ask some tough and not-so-tough questions about plants we interact with in daily life in literature, medicine, popular culture, and our walks on the Promenade. Half of the 90 minute meeting is devoted to plants of the Promenade, with a special emphasis on what was bought and planted last year using funds raised by the Promenade Gardens Conservancy and through our bake sales. Joining the group will give one an early taste of spring and a little extra appreciation for plants in our day to day life. Those who’d like to come should RSVP to the hostess, Koren Volk, at volkkoren@hotmail.com and she will provide location details.

NY Daily News

New York Daily News: Sometimes less is more, and such is the case at Teresa’s in Brooklyn Heights. The eatery has become famous in its own right, mostly for its well-executed, simple breakfast meals, like eggs any style ($4.95) or their steak and eggs with a side of Polish kielbasa for $7.95. The ambience is diner-like, the service, very friendly, and the prices — just right.

The Brooklyn Paper: Preservationists hailed the city for protecting a slew of Romanesque Revival and Beaux-Arts structures, including the tiered co-op 75 Livingston St., which housed some of the designation’s most vocal opponents.

“We’re thrilled,” said Judy Stanton, executive director of the Brooklyn Heights Association, the powerful community group that helped push for the district. “The opposition exaggerated the negatives. This is going to be good for Brooklyn as a whole and very good for Downtown and Court Street.”

According to the Brooklyn Paper story, Council Members Steve Levin and Brad Lander, both of whom voted for the designation, received assurances that proposed changes to buildings within the district would be given expedited consideration by the Landmarks Preservation Commission, and that the LPC will “be flexible” with requests from residents of 75 Livingston.

In anticipation of the Indian chain Baluchi’s opening today in the former Seasons spot on Henry between Cranberry and Middagh, Karl took his cam to the store on Warren Street in lower Manhattan. Was it DEE-licious? Give it a look.

This Valentine’s Day enjoy Tumbador chocolates and Brooklyn Brewery and Bronx Brewery beer in BHS’s stunning Othmer Library while storytellers, poets, and baseball historians from Brooklyn and the Bronx explore the legendary rivalry and share their borough love stories. Featuring Brooklyn Dodgers historian Joe Dorinson, Brooklyn storyteller Michele Carlo, Brooklyn poet Knickie D, former Yankees batboy Frank Prudenti, Bronx storyteller Bobby Gonzalez, and Bronx poet Skye Cabrera.

Tickets are $15, or $10 for BHS or Bronx Museum of the Arts members, and may be purchased here.

Notification issued 01/30/12 at 8:40 AM. Emergency personnel are on the scene of an overturned truck on the eastbound Brooklyn Queens Expressway near the Brooklyn Bridge. As a result, the eastbound Brooklyn Queens Expressway is temporarily closed near Cadman Plaza in Brooklyn. Expect traffic delays and consider alternate routes.

This Saturday, February 4, Grace Church, 254 Hicks Street (corner of Hicks and Grace Court) will hold its annual Winterfair. From 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., you may shop for children’s clothes and toys, men’s and women’s clothing, books and CDs, sporting equipment, plants and flowers, furniture, housewares and tchatchkes. From 11:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., the cafe will serve delicious hot luncheon entrees. Starting at 6:30 p.m., there will be a gala cocktail reception and silent auction; the theme of this year’s gala is “Russian Rhapsody.” (Disclosure: your correspondent’s wife is in charge of the auction.) Among the prizes available at auction will be goods and gift certificates from local merchants and restaurants, tickets to cultural and sporting events, antiques and art works. Admission to the Fair is free; tickets for the gala are $25 if purchased in advance from the parish office (718-624-1850), and will be available at the Fair for $30.

If you have items you would like to donate for sale at the Fair, please take them to the Church during the day today through Thursday. Books, CDs, children’s toys and clothing should be left on the stage in the downstairs gym; fleas, clothing, sports equipment, and the like should be put in the back side pews on the left of the Church. If you have items for the silent auction, please contact Martha Foley at 718-624-4306 or foley.martha@gmail.com

This in from reader Kate, who has found a cat (not BeeBop):

For the past two nights, a large white and gray/black striped cat has visited our back yard (on Pierrepont, between Willow and Columbia Heights). S/he has dense, short hair and an unusually shaped face. We have given this sweet cat lots of food, but have been unable to capture him/her to being him/her inside. However, we managed to get the attached picture.

This cat definitely seems to us to be domesticated, and while s/he has no tags, we suspect that s/he could be lost. We expect that s/he will return for more food tomorrow evening, and we would love to help reunite this cat with his/her
family! Please let us know ((917) 628-9665) if you recognize this cat.

Thank you very much!

Intomobile

The only planned service change affecting a train serving this area in the coming week is that, in a directional reversal of what’s been happening from midnight to 5:00 a.m. this week, during the same hours Monday through Friday (January 30-February 3) Brooklyn bound A trains will be re-routed over the F line from West 4th Street to Jay Street. Use the 2, 4, or N to get from skipped or nearby stops in lower Manhattan.

The Brooklyn Paper: “There are a lot of people who want to keep it around,” said Lowy, who hopes to find a new home for the theater if the building can’t be saved. “It makes it easier to move forward knowing we have all this support.”

The story also quotes landowner Tom Caruana’s architect (not named) as saying “plans for the site are not yet ready to be shared.” Architectural historian Francis Morrone, author of An Architectural Guidebook to Brooklyn, who the article says “is working with the [Brooklyn] Heights Association on an in-depth history of the building”, is quoted thus: “It’s an intact piece of history, …A major part of what makes Brooklyn Heights what it is is this historical physical fabric.”

Just as Americans visit the Old World in search of family roots, tourists are showing up at the Brooklyn Historical Society, in hopes of tracking down their grandparents’ neighborhood ties and old houses — brownstones in Park Slope, row houses in Bay Ridge — in the New World.

Clines reminisces about going to the first night game at Ebbets Field and watching Jackie Robinson play. He also waxes nostalgic about the taste of Schaefer beer, one of several brands of suds once brewed in Brooklyn, at a ballgame, and then notes that BHS has, in the past, mounted an exhibit on brewing in Brooklyn. He then praises two current BHS exhibitions. One is Home Base, which will be in place until April 1 of this year. This is about the Dodgers and Ebbets Field, and is curated by local high school students. The other is the Society’s on-line exhibition An American Family Grows in Brooklyn, which gives the history of the Lefferts family, early Dutch settlers here. BHS is located at 128 Pierrepont Street, at the corner of Clinton.

The plans of the development company that bought 72 Poplar Street, the former NYPD building (see photo), will be considered at the meeting of the Executive Committee of Community Board 2 tomorrow (Monday, January 23) evening, starting at 6:00, at the Library Learning Center, room 515, of Long Island University, at DeKalb and Hudson Avenues.

According to the developer, as quoted by C.B.2:

Application is to extend the existing fourth floor, construct a new fifth floor addition, set back the rear wall by five feet to achieve legal light and air requirements, construct new rear façade, install new accessible ramp at Poplar Street entrance, create new window and door openings at east and west facades, and construct a one-story rooftop addition on adjacent garage.

Following up on our inquiry, prompted by reader Andrew Porter, Brooklyn Heights Association Executive Director Judy Stanton got on the phone and found that the City Department of Buildings has no jurisdiction over the billboard (see photo) near the north end of the Promenade, because it is affixed to a building owned by the Transit Authority. Ms. Stanton then called the TA, and was told “that the sign is securely bolted to the wall and is level with the rooftop to minimize wind resistance and was installed under MTA/NYCT structural engineering specification.” Since it is evidently a source of revenue for the cash-strapped TA, it’s unlikely they’ll yield to community pressure to remove it. (Photo: McBrooklyn.)

Update: Federal legislation may provide another means of getting rid of the billboard. See BHB Ten honoree Tony Manheim’s comment on this post.

This coming week, Monday through Thursday, 3 trains will not be running to or from Brooklyn from 10:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. Monday through Friday, though 2 trains will be running on the same line, and 4 train service will be extended to New Lots Avenue. Also, Tuesday through Friday from midnight to 5:00 a.m., Manhattan bound A trains will be re-routed over the F line from Jay Street to West 4th Street. Use the 2, 4, or N for skipped or nearby stops in lower Manhattan.

Responding to our post about an illegal billboard that was blown down by last Friday’s high winds and blocked the southbound lanes of the BQE, a local resident noted that there is an illegal–because it is within 200 feet of a highway–billboard near Brooklyn Heights. It can be seen in the photo and from the north end of the Promenade quite clearly. Within your correspondent’s now fading memory, it has always advertised Apple products (the photo was taken in June of 2010, when the iPad was the latest gadget). Reader Andrew Porter forwarded the complaint to us, and to Brooklyn Heights Association executive director Judy Stanton, who gave the hopeful response, “If it is illegal it shouldn’t be hard to get DOB to enforce it.”

Ever since the playgrounds opened on Pier 6 in Brooklyn Bridge Park, the BHA has been appealing to the NYC DOT to make it safe for pedestrians to cross the BQE’s northbound entrance on Atlantic Avenue.

We asked for four things: (1) elimination of the right turn on red signal on Atlantic Avenue at the BQE northbound entrance; (2) a pedestrian only crossing light phase; (3) a dedicated left turn onto the BQE ramp for eastbound vehicles; (4) installation of a red light camera for better enforcement.

The good news is that the DOT plans will make three of these changes, starting this spring!

Following a diagram produced by BHA President Jane McGroarty, the agency will: 1) prohibit the right turn on red at all times; 2) change the existing signals to create a dedicated pedestrian-only crossing; 3) add arrow signals to channel the left and right turning vehicles at this intersection. These improvements will make the intersection much safer, and we’re very grateful to the DOT for moving forward with the requests.

Before doing the above, the DOT plans to build up the triangular shaped “island” on Atlantic in the westbound left lane (the island is now marked with stripes just west of Hicks Street on Atlantic Avenue). Because this involves pouring concrete, it probably won’t be done before spring (2012), but “Jane’s Plan” is definitely in the works.

NOTE: You can help us by continuing to press the DOT for a countdown clock in the pedestrian signal AND for the red light camera installation.

Unfortunately, getting a red light camera will require action in Albany. This, and other instances of the State’s stranglehold on the City, are enough to make one wish that Norman Mailer and Jimmy Breslin had succeeded in their quixotic campaign to make New York City the 51st state.