The Post reports that Troy Young, 29, was killed by a bullet to his head in his basement apartment at 36 4th Street. He was discovered shortly after midnight this morning, after friends reported not having seen him for several days.
Archive | December, 2009
Get a free room from HGTV!
Battle on the Block, HGTV’s new home renovation series, is looking for three neighbors who want to go toe-to-toe with each other in a friendly competition where they can win bragging rights on their block. Each participating family will have a room renovation paid for by HGTV, and there’s an opportunity for whichever family designs the best room to win a cash prize. The show’s producers are interested in single family townhouses or family-owned brownstones in Brooklyn, so for those of you do-it-yourselfers out there looking to fix up a room, apply. It would be a one weekend commitment, and the family will do the bulk of the work, with supervision and help from HGTV’s contractor experts and design guru host. If you’re interested, contact Casting Producer Anthony Lucente at homedesignchallenge@gmail.com, and include the names and ages of everyone living in the home and their contact information, a description of your neighborhood, pictures of your family and home, and a description of the neighbors you’d like to compete against.
Bull and Bear Market
Check out Recession Art’s Bull and Bear Market this weekend, featuring affordable arts and crafts from local artists at The Invisible Dog- great for holiday gifts! There will also be a bake sale, face painting, a rock band competition, gingerbread decorating, and holiday gifts for the adults. The event takes place this Sunday, December 13, from 11 am to 8 pm at The Invisible Dog (51 Bergen Street). Admission to the Bull and Bear Market is free and donations are suggested for the various activities. Proceeds support Recession Art, an organization devoted to helping emerging artists show and sell their work while giving art lovers the opportunity to buy original work at reasonable prices.
“Toxic Preschool” Director to be sentenced tomorrow
Andy Lewis, former director of the Boerum Hill “Toxic Preschool” that closed in 2007 after parents discovered that it had no heat, exposed wires, unpainted walls and noxious fumes, will be sentenced tomorrow before Brooklyn Federal Court Judge Kiyo Matsumoto on charges of stealing more than half a million dollars in U.S. Department of Agriculture funds.
Brooklyn Eagle: The payments, made to Lewis’ Better Brooklyn Community Center, were supposed to be used, under the Child Nutrition Act, to feed low-income children. Better Brooklyn was the parent body of the “toxic preschool,” whose real name was the Brooklyn Children’s Academy Preschool.
Lewis pleaded guilty on Nov. 22, according to court documents.
According to an FBI affidavit, the scheme came to light in 2006 after state Department of Health inspectors found that the organization had spent only $18,448 for meals and snacks for the entire year of 2005; that there were no food preparation employees on site; and that Lewis had submitted vouchers even for periods when the center had been closed.
Jim Mamary’s empire shrinks
Following the news of Cafe Bueno’s closure, today’s Real Deal features an article on the decline of the Jim Mamary (best known for Patois) restaurant empire. Staffers from Cafe Bueno learned that the restaurant would be closing at their December 1 staff meeting. Since 1963, part of the complex at the intersection of Smith and Pacific Streets that also once included Trout, also closed last week.
“They said they needed to pull in $17,000 by week’s end and they were only pulling in $13,000,” said an employee at Bueno, who requested anonymity. “Now I’m back to square one, looking for a job on the holidays.”
Mamary has had a hand in creating at least 23 restaurants in the borough since his first Brooklyn venture, the Italian eatery Restaurant 101, opened in Bay Ridge two decades ago.
Sometimes he merely helped design and build the spaces; he sold his stake in others; and 11 of his restaurants have closed or were transformed into new ventures.
For now, he owns a stake in five restaurants: Gowanus Yacht Club, Zombie Hut and Black Mountain Wine House in Carroll Gardens, Café Enduro in Prospect-Lefferts Gardens and Pomme de Terre in Ditmas Park.
But his immediate future plans include moving his family from Ditmas Park to New Jersey, and pulling out of day-to-day operations in Brooklyn.
“I’m going to try, at this stage of my career, to just really build and design, and find the right person to run it and/or [take over],” Mamary said. “The days of me owning and operating are over.”
St. Nicholas Fair this Saturday
Check out Christ Church’s St. Nicholas Fair this weekend, where artisans and vendors will be selling holiday gifts. There will be a bake sale, free hot cider, food for purchase, and plenty of activities for children from 10 am to 2 pm, like holiday movies, arts and crafts, cookie decorating, and more. The fair takes place this Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm at Christ Church (326 Clinton Street, corner of Kane Street).
Borough Hall Christmas tree lighting
This evening, BP Marty Markowitz will light the 40-foot-tall Christmas tree in Brooklyn Borough Hall Plaza. There will be festive music and an appearance by the man of the season, Santa Claus. Festivities start tonight at 5:30 pm, 209 Joralemon Street between Court and Adams Streets.
New York Cares Coat Drive
The 76th Precinct is participating in the 21st annual New York Cares Coat Drive, taking place the entire month of December. Drop off your gently used coats at the station, 191 Union Street between Hicks and Henry Streets, any time through the end of the year (no clothing besides coats will be accepted. The New York Cares coat drive collects around 70,000 coats each year and distributes them to people who would otherwise have no protection from the cold.
Barneys coming to Cobble Hill?
Upscale department store Barneys New York is planning to open its first Brooklyn location, and they’re checking out real estate in our very own Cobble Hill.
Crain’s: Barneys’ plan to open its first store in the city in five years is another sign that it’s on more solid footing. The chain, which has three Co-Op stores in Manhattan, along with its Madison Avenue flagship, typically needs between 5,000 and 10,000 square feet for a Co-Op. The company would not provide details, but real estate insiders speculate that Barneys will take space on Atlantic Avenue, the thoroughfare that is already home to upscale clothier Steven Alan and home decorator Jonathan Adler.
“Brooklyn is a logical move for them,” says Laura Pomerantz, a principal at PBS Realty.
Brooklyn Bridge Park Town Hall meeting tonight
Senator Squadron will host a meeting tonight to give the community a chance to hear a presentation from the City of New York on Brooklyn Bridge Park. To take part, head to LICH tonight at 7pm, Conference Rooms C & D (corner of Hicks and Atlantic Avenue, enter on Hicks Street).
Nabe Chatter