It may not be as swanky as the annual BHA House Tour, but hundreds of locals attended an open house Saturday at the Brooklyn Detention Center, located within a whisper of Brooklyn Heights at 275 Atlantic Avenue off Smith Street in Boerum Hill.

The event, where carrot cake and coffee were served, is part of a city PR campaign to stave off fears about the jail’s reopening this week, after being shuttered in 2003 because of budget cuts. It is destined to replace older jail buildings at Rikers Island that may be phased out. In all, the facility will house 759 inmates for an average of 57 days before standing trial in Brooklyn and Staten Island. No convicted felons are based at the Detention Center.

Over the last six years, six high-rise apartment buildings, such upscale stores as Barney’s Co-op and Trader Joe’s and a boutique hotel have opened in the vicinity, but the city assures local residents that neighbors won’t interact with inmates, thanks to an underground tunnel that connects the jailhouse to the courts. Then again, BDC sounds like a pretty lovely destination: The 10-story building offers a rooftop with a view where prisoners can play tennis and handball during their one hour of outside recreation each day.

Some local associations have formed an advisory board if problems do arise. Read more in The Wall Street Journal here and The New York Times here.

(Photo: Gothamist)

The Wall Street Journal today reports that “Brooklyn Is Set For A Building Boom” in an article that claims residential developers are running out of zoned space in Manhattan, so setting their sights—and sites—on the borough.

A report by Nancy Packes, a consultant to city developers, says, “Brooklyn has in the early planning stages as many as 14,000 new residential units, compared with Manhattan, where just 5,000 new units are in the planning phase.”

The article focuses on downtown Brooklyn and the Williamsburg waterfront, but mentions 30 Henry Street, “a low-rise project in Brooklyn Heights with full-floor units designed to emulate townhouses.”

The Packes study also insinuates that because a high percentage of Brooklyn residents are “tech or creative workers” (34%), they are more likely to “gravitate toward simple, tasteful new construction at lower price points and away from modern towers loaded with amenities.”

Citi Habitats broker Anthony Dellecave noted in the story, “That charming brownstone feel is what people like about Brooklyn. From a developer’s perspective, I’d stay away from the modern luxury high-rise and focus on old-world charm and prewar character.”

Adds Packes, “The idea of luxury may finally be finished, at least to these emerging neighborhoods.”

This is out of the nabe, but it’s such a worthy cause we have to support it. CHIPS is a Park Slope based charity that provides a soup kitchen for needy people and shelter for homeless prenatal women and women with children. Their building recently suffered extensive damage, and some guests were injured, when a neighboring building burned. To help CHIPS restore and move back into its quarters, Brooklyn Potters and Ozzie’s are sponsoring an event, “Empty Bowls for CHIPS in Brooklyn,” part of the worldwide Empty Bowls anti-hunger project. It will happen this Saturday, November 12, from 2:00 to 8:00 p.m., at All Saints Episcopal Church, enter at 463 A Seventh Street, near Seventh Avenue, in Park Slope. There will be music, poetry, and storytelling, and the opportunity to buy one of the bowls made by the Brooklyn Potters for the event. Bowls will sell for $25 each, and all proceeds will go to CHIPS. For more information, call 718-636-8608.

The critically acclaimed documentary film Battle for Brooklyn will return to the Heights Cinema, Henry and Orange streets, this Wednesday, July 6, to begin a one week run every evening starting at 7:15. At the first two showings, this Wednesday and Thursday, the filmmakers, Mike Galinsky and Suki Hawley, along with Daniel Goldstein, who led the protest against use of eminent domain for the Atlantic Yards project, will be present after the screening for discussion. More about the film here. (Double click on the image to enlarge.)

This evening (Wednesday, June 22), starting at 6:30, the Brooklyn Historical Society, 128 Pierrepont Street (corner of Clinton), will present a panel discussion on “Brooklyn Cemeteries: Past and Present”, featuring the presidents of Green-Wood and Evergreens cemeteries and the authors of books about the histories of these two significant burial grounds. Admission is free with museum admission (available until 7:00 tonight), which is free for BHS members; $6 for adults; $4 for seniors (over 62), students, and teachers; and free for kids under 12.

Tomorrow (Thursday, June 23) evening, from 7:00 to 9:00, BHS, in conjunction with Urban Oyster, will present “History Through Beer”, a combined lecture and tasting.

Join local beer guides David Naczycz and Cindy VandenBosch as they lead a delicious beer tasting using present day versions of historical beers to tell the story of beer, its key role in our civilization and how, ultimately, it found its way to Brooklyn where it prospered, fell, and now is prospering again. There is no better way to learn about history than by tasting it. The tasting will include six generous tastings of beer along with delicious food pairings of cured meats and cheeses. Through these tastings we’ll get a sense of how everyone from ancient Mesopotamians to Belgian monks to our Brooklyn grandfathers drank their beer and how all of our lives are different today because of beer. 21 and over only.

Admission is $40 for BHS members, and $45 for non-members. Tickets may be purchased here until 6:00 p.m. tomorrow, and will also be available at the door.

On May 1, BP Marty Markowitz was joined by representatives from Karsan USA, elected officials and disability and transportation advocates for a press conference at Borough Hall to call for the selection of Karsan as the manufacturer of New York City’s “Taxi of Tomorrow.”  

While the potential factory will not be in Brooklyn Heights, we thought that folks might have some thoughts on which if any of the new cars should be selected.

Karsan is pledging to locate a manufacturing facility at the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal in Sunset Park, potentially bringing hundreds of new jobs to Brooklyn. A prototype of Karsan’s entry in the “Taxi of Tomorrow” competition—the V1—was also be on display in Borough Hall/Columbus Park Plaza.

For those of you who pay attention to such things, last year’s Brooklyn Blogfest was very “controversial.” This year, organizer Louise Crawford promises to get things back to basics with keynote speaker Jeff Jarvis.

Brooklyn Paper: “With Jeff being a keynote speaker this year, I think it’s back on the right track,” said John Loscalzo, aka Homer Fink, who oversees the Brooklyn Heights Blog.

That’s positively a rave from Loscalzo, who last year unleashed his bloggers on their biggest quarry ever — another blogger.

“It was like trying to get backstage at a Justin Bieber concert,” Loscalzo’s [sic] told us after last year’s blogfest. “With access being so hard, I think people made the association, ‘Oh, they got a sponsor this year, and it’s impossible to get in — who do they think they are?’”

A back-to-basics approach could ease some hurt feelings, but it won’t ease the pain attendees will feel in their wallets: No sponsor means a $15 admission fee and a cash bar versus last year’s free admission and open bar.

BTW, “unleashed his bloggers” WTF does that mean?
Flickr photo via reclaimedhome

We noted earlier that the building housing the home offices of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle and allied papers, including the Brooklyn Heights Press, at 60 Henry Street, has been listed for sale. McBrooklyn now reports a rumor that the paper’s owners are looking at space in “trendier (and less expensive) Gowanus”, and may open a satellite office in DUMBO.

Our man with cam gives us views of fireworks, festivities and food on a New Year’s Eve and following morning, spanning Brooklyn Bridge Park, the Heights, Cobble Hill and Carroll Gardens.

BHB photo by C. Scales

It was here, way back in 1776 at the “Battle” of Brooklyn, that George Washington staged the evacuation of his army to Manhattan, allowing it to survive for another day, insuring that we’d one day drive on the right side of the road.

(Despite the snarky quotation marks, there really was a Battle of Brooklyn; indeed, it was the largest battle of the Revolutionary War. What happened in the Heights was its aftermath.) If there had been a category for literary significance, Montague Terrace could have won there, too, having been home to both W.H. Auden, who wrote New Year Letter at One Montague Terrace, and Thomas Wolfe, whose novel, Of Time and the River took shape two doors away at Number Five. Also, of course, Montague Terrace has featured as the gateway to hell, a distinction L bestows on Central Avenue between Moffat and Knollwood Cemetery, in Bushwick.

The winner in the category “Best Block for Groceries” is Atlantic Avenue between Clinton and Court, which straddles the Heights/Cobble Hill border.

All-world market Sahadi and wonderful bakery Damascus (nearly side by side) would already count for the win, but this block also has a Trader Joe’s, a Key Food, and the Green Pea Grocery.

I’m glad Green Pea gets a mention, but Key Food??!!

Finally, the nod for one of the “Five Best Brooklyn Blocks to Live On” goes to Columbia Heights between Clark and Pierrepont.

Hard to argue with the views from the western side of this heightiest of Brooklyn Heights streets. Seriously, how do these people get anything done?

It could also have been named best block anywhere for helicopter spotters.

I would have made Garden Place best block for Halloween decorations, as well as for trick-or-treating, but L awards both these to Humboldt Street between Nassau and Driggs Avenues, Greenpoint, which, I confess, I’ve never seen.

Neighboring nabes also made out well. Cobble Hill, as already noted, shares the “Best Block for Groceries”. Charming Verandah Place, between Clinton and Henry (which boasts another Thomas Wolfe residence, where he penned the classic exercise in local dialect, Only the Dead Know Brooklyn), gets another of the five best to live on awards.

Whenever we pass by the tiny Ted and Honey and see the happy people outside enjoying a drink or relaxing in the park or meandering down the lane-like Verandah Place, we wonder, “Who are they, and how did they get here?” And then we are jealous.

Smith Street between Bergen and Dean, on the border of Cobble and Boerum Hills, is named “Best Block For Street Festivals”.

This might piss off borough traditionalists of the Italian persuasion, but the annual Bastille Day party (brought to you largely by Bar Tabac, at the corner of Dean) is the most fun had by French people anywhere, ever.

Reflecting its status as a happening place, DUMBO scores four times. “Best Block For Date Night ” is bestowed on Water Street between Main and Old Dock Streets.

Highbrow culture at St. Ann’s Warehouse or Galapagos Art Space; drinks before dinner or after at Water Street Restaurant; and fancy-ass dessert at Jacques Torres (closes at 9pm on weekends). Top off the night with a stroll through Brooklyn Bridge Park for that Woody Allen moment…

Front Street between Jay Street and the Manhattan Bridge is honored as “Best Block For Celebrity Sightings”.

Jason Schwartzman, Cynthia Nixon, Jay Z, Beyonce, Spike Lee, Alexis Bledel (of the Gilmore Girls!), the entire cast of Gossip Girl, Paul Dano, Michael Pitt… These are just a few people we’ve recently seen near our office.

Washington Street between Water and Plymouth Streets is called the “Best Block For Gallery Hopping”.

See large-scale projects by established artists and new works by emerging locals skipping between Smack Mellon’s massive refurbished boiler house space, the Dumbo Arts Center’s expansive loft and Rabbithole Studio’s raw basement gallery.

Finally, Main Street between Water and Front Streets gets dubbed “Best Block For New Media”.

Realtors recently re-dubbed Dumbo “Silicon Beach.” Seriously. A sampling of new social networking locative buzzword emergent media companies operating in this block’s behemoth office building: Digital Gravel, Fusia Communications, Red Herring Design, Lost Boys International, FreeAssociation, Domani Studios, Freeserver, Big Spaceship, The Joey Company, and so on. Also, The L, keeping it real for old media!

Hmmm…not exactly a disinterested choice, but probably valid.

In the schadenfreude department, we note that Park Slope gets only two mentions, “Best Block For Iconic Brownstones” (Garfield Place between Seventh and Eighth Avenues) and “Best Block For Ugly Condos” (Fourth Avenue between 4th and 5th Streets: “It looks like a service road south of Cancun.”)

The most inexplicable entry is this:

45. Best Block for Urban Detrital Discoveries (by day), Lynchian Encounters with the Unheimlich (by evening), and Profound Malaise Bordering on Fear (by night)
Meserole between Bushwick Ave and Morgan Ave
This one wrote itself.

What kind of archaic hipster BS is that?

This in from a BHB reader:

Scarlett is a long haired tortoiseshell (tan, brown, caramel, black) female cat, about 6 years old, weighing around 9 pounds. She was last seen at Bergen and Bond Streets in Boerum Hill on 9/21/2010

There is a REWARD for her return.
Please contact Alec at 917.972.0217
or erinbenim@gmail.com

Update: Good news! Scarlett is safe at home. Owner Erin gives this account:

Turns out Scarlett had fallen four stories down a heating duct, and then lurked in the basement duct system silently for 7 days without food or water. We had duct experts and contractors come and look last week, and they couldn’t find her. Finally last night she started to meow, and after taking apart the ducts even more, we got to take her to the emergency room where they proclaimed her merely dehydrated! She got her subcutaneous fluids, a bath, and was sent home where she is purring, meowing, eating ravenously, and sleeping off her trauma. Making it all even more incredible, the duct specialist, Tony, came all the way from Queens AFTER HOURS, refused to accept payment, and then topped it off by driving us to the emergency vet clinic. We’re calling him St. Anthony!

BHB photo by C. Scales

Early in the morning of August 27, British forces that had landed at Gravesend Bay several days earlier began to advance toward Washington’s troops, many of whom were deployed in what is now Prospect Park and near the present Green-Wood Cemetery, on high ground from which they could defend the approaches to the Heights. The British General Howe sent some of his forces directly toward these positions from the south, but went with the bulk of his force to the east, to outflank the American positions. The tale of how Howe forced a tavern keeper and his son to guide his troops through what was then called Jamaica Pass is told by Brooklyn Daily Eagle writer Phoebe Neidl in her blog, Brooklyn Before Now.

Later in the day, there was fierce fighting around what became known as Battle Pass in present day Prospect Park, followed by a valiant holding action by some 250 Marylanders at the Old Stone House, which allowed most of the American troops to escape to the Heights. Washington is believed to have observed the action at the Old Stone House from the summit of a hill, later leveled by the British, that stood where the former bank building that now houses Trader Joe’s is located; the flagpole atop that building is said to mark the height of the hill. While watching the Marylanders’ stand, Washington is reported to have said, “Good God, what brave fellows I must this day lose!”

Howe did not immediately press his advantage by continuing in pursuit of the retreating Americans, but rather had his troops dig in facing the American positions. Manhattan was not yet in British hands, but Howe no doubt anticipated that the Royal Navy fleet, then anchored near Staten Island, could advance up to the East River and trap the Continentals on the Heights. On the 28th, he had his troops advance slowly toward the American lines, while Washington brought reinforcements across from Manhattan. Late in the day, it began to rain, which stopped the British advance. Bad weather continued on the 29th, when Washington and his subordinate generals met and decided to retreat to Manhattan, a meeting that is memorialized by the plaque, at the Montague Street entrance to the Promenade, in the photo above. (Note: I’ve heard some dispute over whether this plaque marks the actual location of the conference.)

BHB photo by C. Scales

Update: The Old Salt blog has an interesting piece on how a regiment consisting of sailors and fishermen from Marblehead, Massachusetts skillfully crewed the boats that ferried Washington’s troops across the East River on the night and morning of August 29-30, 1776. These same troops would crew the boats that carried Washington and his army across the Delaware to victory at Trenton the following Christmas eve.

Cobble Hill community activist Roy Sloane has proposed re-routing the BQE through what would be the longest highway tunnel in North America, taking it from the Navy Yard, under parts of Fort Greene, Downtown Brooklyn, and Boerum Hill, to the Prospect Expressway.

YourNabe.com: The extraordinarily ambitious two-and-a-half-mile tunnel is one of several options for replacing the beleaguered highway that is being considered by the state Department of Transportation, but it is already emerging as a favorite.

“It’s brilliant,” said Allen Swerdlowe, an architect participating in state-sponsored design workshops, who praised the tunnel idea because it would discourage traffic-enraged drivers from exiting the highway as they do now and driving on local streets.

Swerdlowe does not, however, agree with Sloane’s idea of keeping the existing stretch of the BQE, including the cantilevered portion below the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, that would be bypassed by the tunnel, open for local traffic. He believes that this will just eventuate in additional traffic volume. Instead, he suggests as a possibility shutting down this roadway and converting it to recreational use, in the manner of the High Line in Manhattan.

Other, shorter tunnel proposals would bypass the troubled cantilevered stretch, but would link to the “ditch” carrying the BQE parallel to Hicks Street past Cobble Hill and Carroll Gardens, and would involve tunneling under at least part of the Heights.

Save Our Buses Protest, 06/22/10 photo by Kathryn Kirk

Here’s the official press release from Brooklyn Beep Markowitz on today’s protest regarding cuts to the B51, B39 and other bus routes:

BP MARKOWITZ, ELECTED OFFICIALS, DISABILITY ADVOCATES PROTEST MTA CUTS TO B51, B39 AND OTHER BUS ROUTES

Student MetroCards saved, but not service for seniors and riders with disabilities

On Tuesday, June 22, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz held a press conference and rally at the Joralemon Street bus stops outside Brooklyn Borough Hall, joining elected officials, riders and disabilities and transportation advocates to denounce proposed cuts to the B51, B39 and other bus routes, and highlight the impact the service reductions will have on riders, particularly those who are elderly or have disabilities. Cuts to these routes, along with other bus and subway service reductions, will take effect this Sunday, June 27.

“I applaud the MTA for working with Albany to preserve reduced student fares—at least for now— but the same must be done to help our senior riders and those with disabilities,” said BP Markowitz. “These routes may not be the most heavily used, but they are absolute lifelines for these riders. There is simply no reasonable way for people with mobility and accessibility issues who cannot take the subway—especially considering many stations along these routes are not ADA-compliant—to get over to Manhattan without these vital bus routes.”

The B51 is the only bus that takes riders from Downtown Brooklyn to Lower Manhattan and the B39 is the only service for passengers from Williamsburg to the Lower East Side. The B51 serves nearly 1,000 riders each weekday and more than 237,000 each year; the B39 carries 1,300 passengers daily and more than 459,000 annually. On Sunday, the MTA will also cut a dozen other bus routes in Brooklyn and eliminate the M train to Sunset Park, Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights and Bensonhurst.

In addition to the elimination of the B23, B39 and B51 and B71, BP Markowitz criticized plans to slash millions of dollars from Access-A-Ride and dramatically reconfigure Brownstone Brooklyn’s B69,
B75 and B77 routes, which will complicate commutes and lead to increased wait times. Also scheduled are reductions for Marine Park’s B2, Greenpoint’s B24, the B7 on Kings Highway, the B31 in Gerritsen Beach and several other routes.

Additionally, the MTA plans to cut the X29 and consolidate several other express routes, including the X28, X37 and X38, negatively affecting commutes in Bay Ridge, Bath Beach and Gravesend, and leaving Coney Island with no express bus service to Manhattan.

“Many seniors and people with disabilities rely on buses to get to their jobs and appointments, and have few, if any, other transportation options,” said State Senator Daniel Squadron. “We have to find a comprehensive, long-term approach to funding public transit—cuts to the B51 bus and other important routes on the chopping block without sufficient alternatives are unacceptable.”

“Cutting our much needed bus lines is unacceptable and cold-hearted,”
said Assemblywoman Joan Millman. “Contrary to the MTA’s assertion, bus service does not replicate subway service because so many of our city’s subway stations are truly inaccessible to the elderly and people with disabilities. Buses are not only easier to board, but deliver riders closer to their destinations. Yet again, the most populous borough has been short-changed by the MTA.”

“The B51 bus route is a vital lifeline for residents because it connects them to other crucial bus lines; cutting this service is unacceptable,” said Council Member Letitia James. “Also, taking the bus is simply a better option for the elderly and the handicapped because of the lack of elevators at most MTA subway stops. It is reprehensible that riders, specifically those with special needs who depend solely on bus lines for travel, may now be inconvenienced and without safe transportation.”

BP Markowitz has repeatedly proposed alternative funding solutions to the MTA budget crisis, including: a modest increase in the gasoline tax levied in the entire 12-county MTA district and dedicated solely to public transit; raising the fees on vehicle registration based on weight and model type; equalizing the vehicle use tax in all 12 MTA counties—a tax for which New York City residents currently pay more; a “mega millions” lottery dedicated to mass transit; and the MTA cutting costs by consolidating its property assets, including the blighted building at 370 Jay Street in Downtown Brooklyn.

BP Markowitz is also reiterating his call on the MTA to rally the congressional delegation to get the federal government to stop shortchanging buses and trains. One in every three public transit users in the United States rides the MTA, yet the system is among the least subsidized, per capita, in the nation. He has also supported the City Council and Straphangers Campaign’s proposals to redirect federal stimulus money, currently reserved for capital expenses, toward system operations.

Photo by Kathryn Kirk

Neil Freeman is an urban planner, artist, and Brooklyn resident. His work appears on his website, fake is the new real. Thanks to Urban Omnibus, we’ve been alerted to a project of Freeman’s that should be of interest to all Brooklynites, including Heights residents. This is his “Brooklyn Typology. ” In Freeman’s words:

Brookyn Typology is an investigation of borough’s population and urban form. It consists of 2100 photographs taken in a sample of blockgroups in Brooklyn, plus detailed Census, historical, and typological data about the residential and housing in area. Together, the interlinked photographs and
data form a portrait of the urban fabric of Brooklyn.

Two of the “blockgroups” included in “Brooklyn Typology” are in the Heights: tract 3.01, blockgroup 1, consisting of the area bounded by Pineapple Street on the north, Hicks Street on the east, Pierrepont Street on the south, and Willow Street on the west; and tract 5, blockgroup 2 bounded by Pierrepont on the north, Clinton Street on the east, Joralemon Street on the south, and Henry Street on the west.

The art in Freeman’s project, along with the photography, is the way the information on the various tracts links together. Again, in Freeman’s words:

The artistic intention lies in the links between the elements of the site. Each datum, map, or photograph is linked to others in several ways. Density figures and dates link to other instances of similar values, historic periods or styles bring up lists of similar sites, or to all the sites sorted together. The network of connections enables novel forms of exploration of the borough. One can simultaneously investigate both the physical structure (in photographic or map form), and the underlying data or history.

In addition to linking horizontally, the reader may mine data vertically for each tract by clicking on each photo on the tract’s page to get additional information on the buildings in the picture, or by following the link to more census data for the tract.

Brooklyn Heights own version of D.A. Pennebaker, Karl Junkersfeld is back with more of his unique kind of video vérité.   In this first clip he celebrates NYC Restaurant Week.

After the jump his epic three part tour of Fort Greene, a must-see for anyone who dreams to venture beyond the boundaries of Brooklyn Heights.

Former Magnetic Field mainstay Dick Swizzle will be hosting his Sudden Death Game Show Tuesday night (6/16) on the big stage at the Bell House [149 7th Street].

According to The Brooklyn Paper, They Might Be Giants will be playing a free show in Prospect Park on July 11. Read more at CHB.

Tres Belle petite medi-spa, relocated recently from 43 Clark St. (inside the Eastern Athletic club)  to new digs in Boerum Hill at 105 Bond Street and offers a range of therapeutic treatments including laser hair removal, microdermabrasion, facials and more.   Read more at CHB.

According to today’s Brooklyn Paper:

With $261 million of federal transportation funding from the so-called “American Recovery and Reinvestment Act” headed to New York City, Hizzoner said on Monday that he would use the cash to complete major shovel-ready projects including long-planned renovations of the Brooklyn Bridge — while redeploying the city money that had been allotted for the jobs to other infrastructure projects.

Other Brooklyn projects that the Mayor said will benefit include the improvement of the Flatbush Avenue streetscape between Tillary Street and Hanson Place, and reconstruction of the Coney Island Boardwalk.

Melanie Hope Greenberg — 32-year Brooklyn Heights resident and a longtime author/illustrator of children’s books — is on tour, and if her fans at PS 58 are any indication, she’s a rock star.

Greenberg — who was named to The BHB 10 last year — gets inspiration for her books from the neighborhood around her, and for her latest book, “Mermaids on Parade,” focuses on the annual Mermaid Parade in Coney Island.

And so there she was, on Tuesday morning in the snow, reading her book to first and second graders at PS 58 in Carroll Gardens, who couldn’t stop squealing with delight whenever they saw pictures of the boardwalk or the Cyclone.

“The kids were so engaged,” said librarian Maureen Vadala. “She’s very animated, and held their interest. The subject matter is something they identify with, and she was able to use that to her advantage to get them to see the larger picture of how a book is made.”

What’s most noticeable about her work is the color — bright blues, pinks, purples and oranges fill the pages of the Mermaid parade and Coney Island scenes, and in her other books as well.

“Mermaids on Parade” is about a young girl — the narrator — who dresses up as a Mermaid Coming Out of Her Shell, marches in the parade-slash-block-party, and then wins the Best Little Mermaid award.

That was 6-year-old Luke’s favorite part, he said.

“She was so good,” he said, beaming.

Greenberg first conceived of the idea three years ago, marched in the parade twice for research (and for fun), and then wrote her mermaid tale.

Rekindling her inner child wasn’t a problem with this project — it’s hard to not to internalize that creative, youthful energy and spirit of the parade, after all.

“The book was always good vibes from the get-go,” Greenberg said.

“I thought kids would really enjoy the feeling of the book and the magic of the parade, because I knew if I loved it and it brought out my child spirit, children would love it.”

The book itself is Greenberg’s latest Brooklyn Heights-inspired hit. She wrote “Supermarket” in 2001, which is based on the Key Food on Montague Street, and “Aunt Lilly’s Laundromat” in 1994, inspired by Montague Laundry.

“I just like bringing the whole community together,” she said. “It’s exciting.”

Greenberg started drawing as a child, and sold paintings and pins on Montague Street in the 1980s. She then fell into designing greeting cards, scored an agent, and discovered children’s books. For more than 20 years, the two worked together to secure book deals, but recently Greenberg decided to strike out on her own. “Mermaids on Parade” is her first foray, and so far, things are positive, she said.

The PTA at PS 58 purchased 200 copies of her book “A City Is,” which she signed and distributed to second graders. The students are learning about communities, and she taught them how to create dioramas of streetscapes with recycled materials in art class, like making water towers from cocktail umbrellas and paper towel rolls, and windows from plastic bag ties.

But what’s next?

Greenberg focuses on her blog, mermaidsonparade.blogspot.com, where she posts about the process of creating her books and upcoming events.

In April, the Brooklyn Public Library’s main branch in Grand Army Plaza will host a 20-year retrospective of Greenberg’s work titled “Ordinary into Extraordinary,” which will showcase her picture books and illustrations of Brooklyn.

The title, she said, is emblematic of how she views her work.

“In an ordinary street scene, a kid sees things with eyes of wonder and it becomes extraordinary,” she said. “I have a childlike vision, and that’s how I see my work, and that’s the audience I paint for.”

Captions:

Top: Melanie Hope Greenberg, a children’s book author and illustrator, poses with some of her books. “Mermaids on Parade” is her latest.

Bottom: Greenberg explains the process of how to write a book, sell it, and market it to the first graders at PS 58 in Carroll Gardens — and captured the kids’ attention wholeheartedly.

BHB Photos by Sarah Portlock

(Note: This article is meant to be read with a nice glass of chianti and maybe a calzone…a little Sinatra music wouldn’t hurt.)

Okay, I’m gonna try and avoid as many Goodfellas/Sopranos/Godfather references here as I can, but what is up with Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz and “this thing of ours?”

As reported yesterday in the New York Daily News, Marty, his predecessor Howard Golden and Federal Judge Jack Weinstein, (the Kosher Nostra), gave a Carroll Gardens (Red Hook) restaurant owner (mobster), a pass for paying tribute to a made member of the Gambino Crime Family.

Joseph Chirico, owner of Marco Polo (or as we say in Brooklyn, Marco Polo’s) Italian Restaurant, was facing up to a year “away at school” for forking over $1,500 to the Family. However, the Kosher Nostra flipped for Chirico! Can the calamari be THAT good?

I’ve known Marty Markowitz for decades. He’s a good guy. As State Senator he would celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by handing out green bagels to legislators and staff…on both sides of the aisle. He bleeds Brooklyn. He cares about Brooklyn. Who can forget the sight of him standing on The Great Bridge handing out coffee during the transit strike?

But Marty, really, you ain’t even supposed to be eatin’ Italian food no more. Remember how that heart attack last year almost whacked you like a baseball bat to the knees?

As for Golden, former Brooklyn Boss, why did he stick his beak into the court’s business? I worked for the Golden family business – Borough Hall – back in the 1980′s. I can just picture the Boss standing in his kitchen when Chirico’s lawyer asked him for a letter of reference. “Every time I think I’m out, they pull me back in!”

So they’re not the Big 3, but the Kosher Nostra crew of Markowitz,Golden and Weinstein gave Marco Polo’s owner a huge bailout. After a tongue lashing (a beatin’) in court, Weinstein ordered six months house arrest with no bracelet! Chirico even gets to spend 10 hours a day at his food joint. Maybe the calamari IS that good.

The Kosher Nostra insisted that putting Chirico in jail would mean whacking Marco Polo’s and put 25 people outta work. Now that’s a bailout we can believe in.

Look, Howie Golden always operated like he was half-a-wiseguy wanabe. But Marty Markowitz? Fuggedabadit!
Marty, we know you’ve longed to be the second coming of Joey Bishop in the Rat Pack. We figure that’s why you’re a member of the Friar’s Club. But take my advice: Go home and get your shine box.

Howie Greene was born in Brooklyn just in time to watch the Dodgers pack up and move to Los Angeles. Currently involved in real estate, Howie was part of the management team for The Godfather of Soul, James Brown, traveling the world with him. Howie spent 2 years working on cruise ships and has literally “sailed the seven seas.” He’s hosted radio shows in Washington, D.C., New York City, Denver, Los Angeles and Buffalo. And yes, Marty Connor was once his landlord.
Howie will be one of the many colorful voices at The Brooklyn Bugle… coming soon.

Cobble Hill Association President Jeff Strabone has foiled Two Trees’ attempt to disguise height-limit-busting cabana penthouses at 194 Atlantic Avenue as “stair bulkheads”.  Read more at Cobble Hill Blog.