Brooklyn Heights Blog

A tipster sent us this unsolicited letter they received today, from Two Trees Management, asking for support for their Dock Street Dumbo plan. Yelling “IT’S NOW OR NEVER FOR A NEW MIDDLE SCHOOL IN DUMBO AND OUR NEIGHBORHOOD’S FIRST EVER AFFORDABLE HOUSING!”, they ask the recipient to contact David Yassky immediately, and attend a hearing hosted by the NYC Council Subcommittee on Zoning & Franchises on Thursday, May 14th at 11am.

Sound intriguing? Would you like to subscribe to their newsletter? Contact Nora Mattingly at 718-222-2500 or at nmattingly@twotrees-dumbo.com.

Anyone else out there receive this mailing?

Reader AEB informs us that May 1 is Czech National Public Kissing Day, during which osculation under the branches of a cherry tree will “strengthen a bond.” So, convince your Significant Other, or one whom you aspire to have as your S.O., to take a stroll to the north end of the Promenade, and then…

Update: the ever helpful AEB gives us a link to a video of Kissing Day in Prague here.

Brooklyn Heights resident/star of HBO’s In Treatment Gabriel Byrne is Teri Gross’ guest on NPR’s All Things Considered today . Listen here.

Ernie Salvi served as groundskeeper at First Presbyterian Church on Henry Street for thirty years until his recent retirement.  His health failing, Salvi’s about to move into a care facility in Manhattan and his two cats need homes.  ”He is a really wonderful person, and we’re so impressed with how positive and upbeat this man is, despite his situation,” said Dorothy Sherman, Director of the Brooklyn Bridge Animal Rescue Coalition, which is trying to find homes for Salvi’s two kitties, Gray-cha and Orange-cha, before he moves in mid-May. Read more »

City Tech’s 28th Annual Literary Festival will feature novelist Colson Whitehead, whom Esquire magazine has called “the coolest writer in America”, reading from his works today at 5:00 P.M., at the Klitgord Auditorium, 285 Jay Street. Along with Mr. Whitehead, the event will also feature the sounds of Zozo Afrobeat. Admission is free, and all are invited.

From the Brooklyn Eagle:

Longtime Brooklyn Heights residents John and Diana Herzog will be honored by Heights and Hill Community Council for their unflagging support of the organization on Wednesday, May 6, beginning at 6 p.m., at Plymouth Church of the Pilgrims. The annual event — this year dubbed Look What’s Cookin’ at Heights & Hill — is famous for just that — home-cooked delicacies prepared by HHCC friends.

According to this article in DumboNYC, local chocolatier Jacques Torres has been threatened with a trademark infringement lawsuit by choco-giant Hershey’s because of Torres’ use of the name “Champagne Kiss” for a confection he created a couple of years ago for Valentine’s Day. Hershey’s alleges that Torres’ use of “Kiss” infringes on its trademark “Hershey’s Kisses” used for its famous conical chocolate drops. Torres’ creation is a rectangular solid piece of dark or milk chocolate, hard on the outside but with a soft center, and bearing a red imprint in the shape of a woman’s lips. According to Torres, the two confections are so dissimilar that no one is likely to confuse them, and Hershey’s trademark only applies to “kisses” not “kiss.” To support his argument, Torres invited chocolate lovers to enjoy a free sample Champagne Kiss at his store on Water Street in DUMBO, an invitation that your correspondent was happy to accept (see photo). My verdict? Delicious, with a hint of Champagne flavor, and most unlikely to be confused with the Hershey product.

From Cobble Hill Blog:  We weren’t sure if we were being Punk’d today when an email from Cobble Hillbilly/The Real Housewives of New York City star Simon Van Kempen arrived in the CHB Inbox. The dispatch from Van Kempen not only turned out to be real but it led to a neighborly invite to their recently renovated townhouse to check out their recent improvements and to take in tonight’s episode of RHNYC. Read more at CHB

We just got off the phone with Francine the missing DUMBO cat’s owner.  She tell us many folks from Brooklyn Heights have called with tips but the her kitty is still at large.  So be on the look out!  Read more for full description and contact info.

What’s on your mind?  Comment away!