Brooklyn Heights Blog

BHB Headquarters just received this tip:

My son has just reported that in the old Heights Books space, the cupcake bakery “Crumbs” is opening! I say YES!!

We are assuming this is the “Crumbs” Bakery chain that originated in NYC some years ago. Their Store Locations page doesn’t yet list a Montague Street address yet. Can anyone confirm?

Update (by Claude Scales):

It’s confirmed.

It’s been sitting there–trees, grass, pathways, a pond, and, especially, those gorgeous steps custom-made for lounging and enjoying the view–beckoning to us from the Promenade or the Brooklyn Bridge. At last, word has come that our longing is to be requited. The Pier 1 portion of Brooklyn Bridge Park will be open to the public this coming Monday, March 22. There will be an official ribbon-cutting ceremony, at which planned attendees include Governor Paterson, Mayor Bloomberg, Borough President Markowitz, State Senator Squadron, Assemblymember Millman, and Councilmember Levin, at 9:30 a.m., after which, as the Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy loves to say, “It’s your park!”

What’s on your mind? Comment away!

BHB Reader Cynthia Lawson posted Facebook photos of yesterday’s SUV fire on the Brooklyn Bridge.  The blaze shut down the Manhattan bound side of the span as FDNY responded.  No injuries were reported.

She reports:

On Sunday, March 14 around 3:45pm I was on the ramp on the Brooklyn side of the Brooklyn bridge and noticed a car on fire in the distance.

I, along with most cars around me, stopped and even backed up a bit. Ten minutes later, the police arrived, followed by firemen who extinguished the fire.

These are some images from the whole sequence of events. All were shot on an iPhone and I cropped into the scene, which is why the quality is not great.

The progression to big flames was slow so I am hopeful that whomever was in the car stepped out before they were engulfed…

YouTube user narunass caught the fire on video from the Manhattan Bridge: Read more »

The Brooklyn Historical Society was recently awarded a $440,000 grant to digitize materials that cover the period from 1834, the year Brooklyn was incorporated as a city, to 1898, the year it was consolidated into New York City.

The grant, from the Council on Library and Information Resources, will allow the society to survey, catalog and upload material from the BHS library archives, including photos and some 2,000 maps. The material will be made available online for students and history enthusiasts alike.

A car fire shut down all Manhattan bound traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge around 4pm Sunday afternoon.   Writer Peter Hyman snapped a few photos and published this report: Read more »

John Buffalo Mailer, the son of the late Brooklyn Heights based author Norman Mailer has published a new ebook which looks at the recovery of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina through the eyes of strippers.  Music, Food, and Death - The State Of New Orleans Through The Eyes Of The Strippers is available via Smashwords a company co-founded by Mailer.

The Huffington Post’s Mark Coker interviews the younger Mailer about the story he originally wrote for Playboy Magazine: Read more »

It’s not everyday that you come across a book featuring an Afro-Latina time traveler who lands in Brooklyn Heights circa 1863.  In author Zetta Elliot’s A Wish After Midnight, Crown Heights teen Genna is transported back in time to her neighborhood in the Civil War era, a wish granted after tossing a coin into the fountain at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.  Believed to be a runaway slave, she is befriended by a white doctor who lives in Brooklyn Heights.  The Young Adult novel touches upon many of the issues of the day - the differences between abolitionists, the New York Draft Riots and more.

Elliot, who is Canadian and now a resident of Brooklyn, discussed the book with WNYC’s Brian Lehrer.

The Brooklyn Heights Association is conducting an online survey and they would like to hear from members and non-members alike.  Here are the details:

There’s still time, so add your voice. As the BHA begins its second hundred years, we’re reaching out to the community to help us chart our course. We want to know what you think! Whether you’re a BHA member or not, whether you live in the neighborhood or are an occasional visitor, we want to hear from you on a range of topics: What are the most important issues facing Brooklyn Heights? How do you get your information about local issues? What could the BHA do to be more effective in the community? How can the BHA be of more service to you?

The survey takes just a few minutes to complete online. So add your voice by clicking here. Thank you!

After you take the survey, discuss the topics raised here.

God bless Montague Liquors, which suffered a devastating fire Thursday morning. Within 12 hours, as I walked home from din-din that night, the retailer, alongside the dry cleaner that was decimated by flames, was boarded up, the plywood painted white and a sweet, neighborly sign posted upfront.

Optimistic, I’d say, but a peak inside Friday revealed that it appears much of the damage was caused by smoke and water. Thankfully, the booze appears to have survived. Good thing, too–my supply of gin is running low…
[originally posted at The Smoking Nun]