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Growing Up Flatbush. Part II

Growing Up Flatbush. Part II published on 1 Comment on Growing Up Flatbush. Part II

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Yesterday I posted some movie theaters I frequented as a kid growing up in East Flatbush. Here’s the rest of the places we re-discovered.

962 Utica Avenue. The apartment where we lived when I was born. My parents kept this place until I was about 11 years old, even after getting a rental upstate where I attended school for about five years. We went back and forth until we moved back to Brooklyn full time. The apartment was $69 and we had to leave because new owners wanted it for themselves. We ended up in Midwood.

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The playground around the corner from our apartment. It’s in much better shape now than it was when I was a youngin’. One day when I was there alone, I was pushing my imaginary friend on the swing when it came back and the metal corner hit me on the head. I walked home alone, crying with blood pouring down my face. The 60’s were so laid back, man. If that happened now, I’d be taken away from my parents.

Me on swings. Did I rock that outfit or what? I’d totally wear that now!

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They only have baby swings now. Guess they changed them out after that little girl got brain damage from the big girl swings.

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“The Silhouette” hall where my brother got barmitzvahed is now a Baptist church.

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Ziggy’s Deli stood where the Utica Food Market is today. For some reason, I remember that restaurant’s decor, food and even the waiter.

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The senior center where my grandparents lived during their final years. I was about 20 when my grandfather died, but this is the only residence I remember them being in. It’s still senior housing.

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“Buddy’s” kiddy amusement park was located near Kings Plaza, but we came here from East Flatbush. Now a Petco and Burger King sit on the site.

Some cool things we checked out from before I was born….

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The great grandfather I was named after helped build this synagogue. Didn’t know he was such a big macha, but it was never any benefit to me. My grandfather was once escorted out of this shul on Yom Kipur for taking a drink of water. That’s the fasting holiday, so water was a no-no.

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Dad’s elementary school: PS 91 on Maple Street.

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And the beautiful Erasmus High School where my father also attended. So I guess I’m third generation Flatbush.

Old Flatbush Movie Theaters

Old Flatbush Movie Theaters published on 1 Comment on Old Flatbush Movie Theaters

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My mother is visiting for two weeks, so you may be seeing some odd “Brooklyn From Memory” posts. On Saturday we drove around East Flatbush and Flatbush were I spent my early childhood. The movie theaters were most recognizable because some still had marquees, but also…movie houses tend to stick in one’s mind, don’t they?

The Loew’s Kings Theater was is the only one we found that was still intact as a theater, as run down as it was. Upon further research, we found out that restoration is in progress and the plan is to re-open as a performing arts center by 2014. A happy ending for this one!

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The Albemarle on Albemarle Road near Flatbush. Closed in 1984 after fire.

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The Brook Theater on Flatlands just off of Flatbush is now an office building.

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My long term memory must be pretty awesome because this Church Avenue theater became The RKO Keith in the early 70’s, but I remember it as The Kenmore. I was five in 1970.

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We were one building off on Utica Avenue’s Rugby Theater. It was actually the structure to the left of the T-Mobile store.

More from Flatbush.

Vintage NYC Summers

Vintage NYC Summers published on 1 Comment on Vintage NYC Summers

Weegee. Coney Island, 1940’s.

Ack. You kids today have it easy. Back in my day, the subway cars, buses and cabs were not air conditioned. Children slept on the fire escape (Ok, that was my mother’s era). You wanted to cool off? You opened a fire hydrant.

Check out Subway in Black and White. Brilliant!

Weegee again.

1977 Blackout during the city’s most memorable heatwave.

Yeah, I like my Weegee. What can I say?



2011 Building Brooklyn Awards

2011 Building Brooklyn Awards published on

Last night the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce honored 13 construction and renovation projects that “enrich Brooklyn’s neighborhoods and economy”. Since Hubby works on the “Newtown Creek Waste Water Facility” Skanska project that won in the Civic and Institutional category, I got to attend the 2011 Building Brooklyn Awards.

There were two honorees of the evening. Deb Howard, Executive Director of Pratt Area Community Council and Jed Walentas, Principal of Two Trees Management Company were recognized for their achievements.

Winners were rewarded not only for design and building but for completing projects within or under budget and bringing jobs to communities. Architects, Engineers, Developers, Builders and Contractors were all recognized as integral parts of each project.

Some interesting winners:

184 Kent Avenue in Williamsburg won for Adaptive Reuse. The 1915 Cass Gilbert building was headquarters of Wild Turkey bourbon manufacturing. The redesign of the 340 unit now-residential building was redesigned by SLCE and SLADE Architects and features an interior courtyard .

The winner of the Education category went to Pratt Institute-Myrtle Hall. This is Brooklyn’s first LEED gold certified academic building.

Erasmus Hall High School won for Historic Preservation. (My dad’s high school: Woot!) This NYC landmark is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Architect Charles B.J. Snyder increased light and air to the interiors of the Gothic structure.

Mixed Use winner was Brooklyn Ecopolis on Warren Street in Cobble Hill. The acceptance speech was most interesting to me because it wasn’t a bunch of industry people standing up there, it was a female nurse. Ecopolis is a family owned, built and operated project. The building houses a sustainable cafe on ground level and a non-profit sustainable resource center on the second floor. The owners live on the residential floors above. This is a LEED Gold project.

If you’re a Brooklynite, you can probably guess the Open Space winner. Brooklyn Bridge Park, of course! Piers 1 & 6 represent 18 acres of the 85 acre East River park. 6,000 to 8,000 people visit on weekdays with up to 12,000 on weekends. When there’s an event, the number rises to something like a gazillion. (author’s guestimate)

The Affordable Housing win went to The Domenech in Brownsville. Common Ground Community developed a 72 unit LEED silver-certified building devoted exclusively to the needs of the chronically homeless and low-income seniors. The complex features a courtyard, natural light and central heating and cooling systems.

Please check out the other wonderful winners and nominees on the Chamber’s website.

My New Favorite Coffee House

My New Favorite Coffee House published on

Daily Press has been open for months now and I finally got a moment to visit even though I live like 2 (avenue) blocks away. It’s not hard to miss this little Bedford Corners (Ok, ok: Bed Stuy!) hideaway as the only signage is on the window.

So, here’s the deal….

Daily Press located on Franklin just north of Fulton,  is a French Press and espresso bar. WTF is French press? It’s that plunger type device you see at your mother in law’s house (or at least MY Old-Country MIL). The coffee they serve is Intelligentsia. Pastries and bread from Balthazar. Terrace bagels. Good stuff, good stuff. My hummus-on-a-heated-croissant sandwich was yummy and the peanut butter cookie I had for dessert was amazing!

But what I really loved about the place was the reclaimed materials used in the renovation (Design by Draft Bench). The air conditioning was blasting to my satisfaction on the thousand degree day and I was able to relax on the upcycled furnishings whilst taking advantage of the wifi. There is a lovely backyard, but did I mention it was a thousand degrees?

What I love most about my neighborhood? After hanging in this hipster-yuppy paradise, I get to cross the street and buy an entire bag full of clothes at Goodwill that costs the same price as my lunch (pound of coffee included).

Bed Stuy Blog‘s write up.

Monday Night Fever at Coney!

Monday Night Fever at Coney! published on

Coney Island Flicks on the Beach kicks off tonight with none other than the quintessential Brooklyn movie, Saturday Night Fever.

1970’s Brooklyn was a divided place between the Tony Manero types and the Disco Sucks burn outs. I was a kid who listened to disco but cringed at the “cuisines” who were taking over my borough. So much so, that I refused to see Saturday Night Fever until the mid eighties when it was on TV one night.

Now I love the movie! And I miss old Brooklyn so much that those Jersey Shore kids make me smile.

Anyhoo, the festivities start at 7pm and the film begins at 8:45.

Brooklyn Summer Concert Series!

Brooklyn Summer Concert Series! published on 1 Comment on Brooklyn Summer Concert Series!

I swear, I’ve been going on the seaside concert website almost every day, waiting for them to post the shows. Finally, it’s up!

Here’s what we’ve got. The new location is Surf Ave @ 21st St. because the kvetches at the synagogue across the street complained about the noise. Whatev.

July 14th. Joan Jett & The Blackhearts

July 21st: The Monkees! Looks like only Davy, Mickey and Peter. Who cares about you, Mike? You were the uncutest anyway.

July 28th: Mary Wilson of the Supremes and The Spinners.

August 18th: Cheap Trick.

The Wingate Concerts open with Maze featuring Frankie Beverly on July 11th.

August 8th: Jeffrey Osborne/Peabo Bryson/Freddie Jackson for some smooth easy listening.

August 15th: Queen Latifah!

These are just my middle aged music picks. There are more dates and some still say “To Be Announced”, so keep your eyes and ears open for more info!

Public Real Estate Auctions

Public Real Estate Auctions published on

Hubby and I hit our first real estate auction in the County of Kings earlier this week. We know folks who’ve bought at auction before, but we were always suckers for paying market value.

So, here’s the rundown. The auctions of real property are run by the Public Administrator of Kings County. Go to the government website to see when the next auction is and which properties are listed. There’s a preview the weekend prior to bidding, or at least that was the case with the June auction.

If you want to bid you’ll need a certified or bank check for 10% of the opening bid. Bring a blank check to pay the rest of the deposit because chances are the opening bid is not the final price. If you win the bidding that means you go into contract immediately. This is NOT contingent upon inspection or mortgage. You must have all of your little ducks in a row before bidding or else you stand to lose your deposit. No joke.

Auctions are not for the faint of heart. It’s a risky business and you may be bidding against investors and developers whom have been around the corner before. Know what you’re getting yourself into….

You may inherit tenants. The property may even be an SRO. The two places we looked at in Bed Stuy had senior women living there for 30-40 years. Who wants to kick them out? Not me!

Who knows what’s up with the previous owner? Some of these are estate sales of folks who didn’t have wills. Family members sometimes expect something. I’m sure they chill once the property is sold, but I’ve heard some crazy stories about what happens leading up to the auction.

Take your time with the previews because you don’t get an inspection. If you don’t know what you’re looking at, it might be a wise choice to hire an inspector for the day of previews. Or a contractor or architect. Or a friend who knows something about houses. This will cost a good few hundred bucks (not the friend-buy them pizza) so be sure you’re serious about bidding.

If you end up buying at auction, don’t expect the place to be broom swept. The city and the tenants will probably leave a bunch of crap behind. I’d also imagine it’s a safe bet to go the legal renovation route by filing with the DOB as the city will know you just purchased a fixer upper. Am I being paranoid? I dunno.

So, why do it? Here’s a partial list of properties and what they sold for.

582 Bainbridge St. Sort of east Bed Stuy/Ocean Hill/Bushwick. Opening bid: $290k. Sold: $300k

163A Halsey St. Bed Stuy, right around the corner from moi! House needed updating and restoration but had some fabulous detail! Partial SRO status was a bit off putting. Opening bid: $325k. Sold: $400k.

2633 Hubbard St. Sheepshead Bay single family. Opening bid: $300k. Sold: $390k.

1130 Brighton Beach Ave. 1 BR coop apartment. I really wanted to preview this one because the opening bid was $65k, but we just couldn’t make it out to Brighton over the weekend. It ended up selling for $130k. A studio coop apartment on Brighton 1st went for $155k. That was a more modern building (1960’s/70’s?). A 1BR in Bay Ridge didn’t sell at $180k. With coops, you have to deal with the board and then there may be flip taxes and transfer fees.

174 Lincoln Place. Opening bid: $1.75. Sold: $ 2.675. The highest priced “sold” property of the day. An Albee Square property that was going for $3.6 did not sell. Oooh, there were lots of bidders on this prime Slope mixed use building! Four ground floor commercial units and up to 6 residential units upstairs with only a single tenant remaining. Property taxes on this baby? $28k. Ouch! Rent roll? A gazillion dollars.

69 Sterling St. I believe this is Prospect Lefferts Gardens. Opening bid: $499k. Sold: $499k. Looks like someone got a sweet deal, although I didn’t see the interior.

4628 Beach 46th St. This place was getting bid up and we were like “Where the F is that?” I thought it was Dyker Heights or somewhere near there. Looking at the map, it seems to be Sea Gate, a gated community at the tip of Coney Island. Interesting. Opening bid: $$320k. Sold: $425k.

331A Stuyvesant Ave. This was the other house we actually previewed. A 2 family with older tenants that kept the house in decent shape. Some details remain, but the house needs updating and restoration. Really, not major work. A friend of a friend wanted this but got outbid. 🙁 Opening bid: $315k. Sold: $350k.

151 Prospect Ave. Interesting, I thought there would be some crazy bidding on this house because people are going gaga for the South Slope these days. (Yeah, I know…it’s really Gowanus over here.) Starting bid: $250k. Sold: $350k. I’m thinking the buyer could probably do NOTHING and turn around and flip it for $500k.

155 Berry St. First photo above. I saved this one for last because had us floored until we figured out just how much Williamsburg property is worth to developers. Opening bid: $695k. There were maaannnnyyy bidders going nuts. This little shack actually went for $1million and change. Surely, it’s a tear down.

Fascinating, no? Oh, and the nicest thing? Everybody applauds each time someone wins a bid.

Foie Gras for the Homeless

Foie Gras for the Homeless published on

The Prospect Park goose serial killers are at it again. Last year, hundreds of geese were rounded up and gassed. There were plenty of protests, not because the geese ended up in a landfill, but because they were killed in the first place.

The DEP has a solution this year. The captured geese (who, BTW, have reproduced since the mass slaughter didn’t quite do the trick) will be shipped to Pennsylvania to feed the poor and hungry. All on the NY taxpayer’s dime.

Goose killing became a favorite pastime since that one goose took down US Airways flight 1549 from LaGuardia. That’s the plane that ended up floating in The Hudson.

What can be done in lieu of murder?

A few suggestions…

Habitat Management. “Birds shot dead can neither learn nor pass on information.”

Friends of Animals. Habitat Modification.

Via City Room

1970’s Brooklyn

1970’s Brooklyn published on 3 Comments on 1970’s Brooklyn

Dumbo. You wouldn’t really want to walk around there alone back then.

Photographer Danny Lyon is one of the all time great NYC street shooters. Business Insider came across these public domain images from 1974. What I miss most about old New York is everyone being out in the streets interacting with one another. Is it that New York has changed or is it just a sign of times that we no longer “play” outside because of technology? How old do I sound??

Bond Street, Boerum Hill. Burnt out cars and open fire hydrants: the playground of my youth!

Koskiusko Swimming Pool in Bed Stuy. Still there, right near Home Depot. People still line up on hot days.

It doesn’t say where this is, but do ya think that deck is legal??

Weiner’s Textual Healing

Weiner’s Textual Healing published on 1 Comment on Weiner’s Textual Healing

I have to admit that I am shocked that Anthony Weiner actually pulled this junk. I mean, he seems like an intelligent guy, he should be able to contain himself. Is it so hard? Who thought he could be such a schmuck? That being said, I hope he doesn’t get the shaft.

Seriously, although I’m totally bummed about finding out my hero is only human, I would still vote for him. Unless we do find out that there was something illegal or treif going on, what is it our business? Was he doing his job? Damn well, I’d say! Weiner’s wife (who BTW, works for Hillary Clinton) is the only one who should care where his pecker has been. And according to him, it’s only been in front of a camera. And everywhere online. The only guilt the public should be concerned about is his stupidity.

The media is saying Weiner has reached the climax of his career, but I think New Yorkers are willing to overlook this screw-up. We’re not the family values crowd. I still say he’s gonna be mayor. I hope he at least gives it a shot. If he hasn’t done anything illegal, let the voters make the decision.

If you agree, there’s this Facebook page for starters.

Brooklyn Film Festival. Battle for Brooklyn

Brooklyn Film Festival. Battle for Brooklyn published on 1 Comment on Brooklyn Film Festival. Battle for Brooklyn

The Brooklyn Film Festival commenced this year with a documentary called Battle for Brooklyn. No, that’s not Sarah Palin’s take on the Revolutionary War. It’s the story of love, power, greed, deceit and dedication in the shadow of the Atlantic Yards project.

Power. Unless you’ve been sleeping under a rock for the past 8 years, you know the whole Atlantic Yards/Develop Don’t Destroy story. Personally, I WAS sleeping under a rock in Upstate, NY so although I was reading about the AY news, I wasn’t living it and therefore not following it closely. Basically, it’s the story of a big bad developer (Forest City Ratner) vs. residents of a neighborhood (Prospect Heights) where he wants to build his Nets basketball arena. He used the power of eminent domain to get them out even though this was a private venture.

Greed. Bruce Ratner seemingly had just about every New York City politician in his pocket with the exception of Letitia James. Mayor Bloomberg and Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz went far and beyond their obligations to ensure the stadium gets built. To be clear, the film didn’t say they were getting a kickback from Ratner. I did.

Which brings me to

Deceit. Wow. Okay, here’s what I didn’t know until I saw the movie. B.U.I.L.D. (Brooklyn United for Innovative Local Development) is an organization that backs the stadium project as it will create jobs for the community. Fair enough. As I watched the film, I was sympathetic towards them. At first. Here’s the deal….B.U.I.L.D. received money to the tune of $5million to promote Ratner’s cause. They organized church groups and minorities to fight for their right to bring jobs to this part of Brooklyn. I’m not sure how the volunteers feel about it now knowing they’ve been duped. Now that Ratner’s plan has been severely scaled back, the 15,000 construction jobs that were promised is in reality, about 115.

Dedication. The hero of the film is Daniel Goldstein, the one guy who held out until the end. For seven years, he fought the project while staying in his empty apartment building where all of his neighbors had been bought out. He went to protests, court proceedings and had to have lived every single day of his life under severe stress not knowing where he was going to end up. He got a decent settlement in the end once there was nothing left to fight over. Funny that some people say he did it for the money. I don’t think any amount of money in the world would make me want to live like that. Someone has to fight for people’s rights and he had the chutzpah. Seven years.

So, where’s the Love? At the start of the documentary we see Daniel with a fiancee who shies away from the camera. It’s clear from the start that this woman has no interest in fighting this thing and Daniel makes it known that it’s causing friction in their relationship. By mid movie, we see that activist Shabnam Merchant has moved in with him. They get married (yeah, I cried during that scene) and have a baby all while living alone in the big apartment building that will eventually be torn down.

So, it’s happily ever after, really, because the couple never would have met had it not been for Bruce Ratner. The matchmaker. As momma always told me…there’s a reason for everything.

Rooftop Films will be showing Battle for Brooklyn on June 9th in Ft Greene Park.

Indie Screen in Williamsburg will be showing it on June 11th.

Opens June 17th at Cinema Village.

A Midwood Street. The Bruckner Way.

A Midwood Street. The Bruckner Way. published on 2 Comments on A Midwood Street. The Bruckner Way.

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It was about a year ago that Saul Bruckner passed away. If you’re not an Edward R Murrow alumni, that name probably doesn’t mean much to you. To anyone who spent time there as a student or teacher, the man is a legend.

Bruckner founded Murrow in 1974 and remained principal for thirty years until his retirement.

Yesterday, E. 17th Street was renamed “Saul Bruckner Way”. The ceremony was held outside the school with Mrs. Bruckner, Marty Markowitz (of course), current Principal Anthony Lodico, City Councilman Michael Nelson, Assemblyman Steven Cymbrowitz, HS Superintendent Aimee Horowitz and retired teacher Frieda Jones in attendance. Murrow’s chorus sang. The band played. And the street sign was unveiled. Senior Man La painted an oil portrait of Bruckner that was also unveiled in time for the opening. Being that she never met the man, it’s a pretty good likeness.

Refreshments were served in the school cafeteria afterward, so myself and about seven other alumni made our way inside. We walked every floor of the school. It was exactly as I remembered it. Kids hanging out on the floor. People dancing in the hall. A teacher reprimanding his students.

Ah, high school.

*Flickr images

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