PLG house tour today! And stoop sales!

I'm late at getting this out, but wanted to mention that there's not one but two group stoop sales in the nabe today (Sun. May 31):

1) 50 Lefferts, between Bedford and Rogers (time unknown), is a multi-apartment affair

2) Maple Street, between Bedford & Rogers (noon to 5 pm): Vintage household items: glassware, porcelain, and ceramic pieces, decorative arts and sundry collectibles, household goods, clothes, books and children's toys.

...and let's not forget the Prospect Lefferts Gardens House Tour today from noon to 5 pm.

Mini-Golf comes to Brooklyn

Attention people without Saturday plans!

PLG-based artist David Lukowski has built a one-day only mini-golf course in a Sunset Park warehouse and, best of all, it's free! You can read more about it at Playing Through.

Thirty artists teamed up to build the course from salvaged materials. It will be family-friendly during the day and give way to live music at night. According to The Brooklyn Paper,

The makeshift mini-golf course will include sand traps, a “Brooklyn-style” water feature made from a discarded fountain and kiddy pool, and even a mock-up of Mount Rushmore featuring the stars of a classic that Oscar overlooked: “Caddyshack.”

And don't forget, Sunday is the PLG House Tour, so your entire weekend is covered.

Subway Sodomy Lawsuit Filed

The New  York Times reported yesterday that Michael Mineo, the man allegedly sodomized in the Prospect Park subway station during his arrest for pot possession, has sued the City and the officers involved for $220,000,000, apparently having decided that their original estimate of $200 million was too low.

Since the incident occurred, three of the officers have been indicted by the Brooklyn District Attorney's office for their involvement. Officer Richard Kern was indicted for aggravated sexual abuse and assault - Mineo's DNA was allegedly found on his baton, while Officers Alex Cruz and Andrew Morales were charges with hindering prosecution and official misconduct for allegedly covering up the crime. According to the DA, the officer's criminal trial is going to begin in September.

Officer Noel Jugraj -  Officer Cruz's partner - was also named in the lawsuit but was not charged with any crime. I assume that he was sued so that he will testify against his colleagues in the civil trial as he did before the grand jury.

Traffic calming plans for Empire Blvd.

After attending last night's Community Board 9 meeting, I've got some good news and bad news. Good news: the Department of Transportation has developed a promising traffic calming plan for Empire Boulevard that, if approved, will be implemented in July. And the bad: the plan doesn't include the blocks of Empire from Flatbush to Bedford, one the most dangerous stretches for pedestrians and cyclists. Instead, it starts at Bedford and reaches to Utica.

The changes the DOT does plan to implement are certainly much needed. Empire is nearly twice the width that it needs to be, given its traffic volume, and that excess width encourages speeding. The DOT plans to reduce the boulevard from two lanes to one in each direction, place bike paths along each side of the street, add in 9 left turn bays and four protected pedestrian islands at key intersections, and plant trees and landscaping to the streetscape. 

You can find more information about the plan here. What you won't find, however, is the DOT's reasoning for excluding the Flatbush and Washington blocks, originally a key part of the plan.  According to DOT rep Hillary Poole, changes to those intersections were taken off the table due to the high traffic volumes concentrated there. At rush hour, things can get backed up for several blocks. When traffic is highly congested, it's slow and therefore less dangerous for pedestrians. 

That may be. But according to Crashstat, Transportation Alternative's database of DOT crash statistics, the Empire intersections at Flatbush and Washington are just as dangerous—and in some cases MORE dangerous—than the intersections included in the calming plan. The difference, of course, is that those intersections carry a much lower traffic volume; for them, the calming plan is a no-brainer. 

But, as CB President Pearl Miles argued at the meeting last night, the DOT shouldn't give up on finding a solution for the stretch around Flatbush merely because it's difficult. The DOT shouldn't just be thinking of the auto traffic there, it needs to think about the FOOT traffic as well. The intersection is a crossroads for commuters riding the bus and subway; for shoppers at Western Beef; for visitors to Prospect Park, the carousel, zoo, and the Botanic Gardens.

To their credit, the DOT reps (Poole and Keith Bray), were open to revisiting the question. Poole said, for example, that she'd look into the possibility of incorporating pedestrian lead intervals into traffic signals. 

We'll follow up and let you know what happens.

Lakeside Development meeting recap

I wasn't able to attend last night's meeting about the Prospect Park Lakeside Project, so I asked Celeste on Ocean to let me know her take on the affair. Here's her off-the-cuff reply:

The meeting was good! I was very much encouraged by the progress they are making. At this point, they have $46M of the $60M needed for the entire project. They intend to start on Phase I of recovery and revitalization of the Lakeshore  (which, btw, is a related but separate project from the Lakeside development) this fall.   
 
Although the economic crisis has caused them to do some cutting back and redesign, they did a pretty good job of convincing us that the more disciplined new design is even better. For example, the skating rink pavilion has been reduced from 2 stories to one, so the elevation is much lower. (This probably doesn't seem like such a big deal unless you live on Ocean Avenue. The 2-story pavilion would have cut off views of the lake and replaced it with walls.)  They also talked a lot about revitalizing the Concert Grove with some new landscaping, repair of the terraces, returning sculptural pieces to the area and creating an open line of sight from the Concert Grove to the lake and Music Island. As for Music Island, it will be reclaimed and transformed into a wildlife sanctuary of sorts.

In line with previous plans, the Wollman Rink parking lot will be moved to Breeze Hill, and the entrance at Ocean and Parkside will be closed to vehicular traffic. Cars headed for the parking lot will instead enter at Lincoln and Ocean (now currently exit-only).

While there is some concern about additional traffic at Ocean and Lincoln (an intersection close to a playground), the closing of the Parkside entrance—one of the most dangerous intersections in Brooklyn for cyclists — is a welcome improvement.

Celeste continues: 

I must say, at this 3rd Community Meeting, I am finally convinced that this process is working! The architects and staff seem to really be listening to those of us who are giving input on the design.  Of course, with so many constituencies and competing interests to balance, not everyone is getting everything they want (the horse riders, for instance). But, in general, I believe they are actually listening to those members of the community who are bothering to attend these sessions and offering feedback...By the time this Lakeside Center/Lakeshore Project is completed, the PLG side of the Park is going to be simply spectacular!  As one of the presenters explained last night, this area of the Park, once the revitalization is completed, will rival the grandeur and stunning beauty of the Bethesda Terrace/Fountain area of Central Park. At the same time, it will be especially open and accessible to the surrounding community and Park visitors. And, of course, it will all be eco-friendly. Sounds (and looks) good to me!   

If you were at the meeting last night, please let us know your thoughts. Did we miss anything here?

Community Board Meeting on Tues., May 26

The public session of the next Community Board 9 meeting has some noteworthy presentations scheduled. First up, representatives from the Department of Transportation will "present plans for the implementation of traffic calming measures for Empire Boulevard from Flatbush Avenue to Utica Avenue." This is great news. The intersection of Empire Avenue, Flatbush Avenue and Ocean Avenue is pretty scary for pedestrians. One problem is the excessive width of the street, which encourages speeding and unpredictable turns. I'm not sure what the DOT has in mind, but here's what we'd like to see at Flatbush and Empire:

Drawing of Flatbush Ave. at Empire Ave. and Ocean Ave. with raised median, pedestrian refuge, bus bulb, and bollards

• Give pedestrians a head-start at crossings. Set the "walk" light to give pedestrians a 5-10 second lead before vehicles get a green, allowing them to turn. This "all ped" phase will allow people to get started on crossing—increasing their visibility—before cars start turning into them.
• Create curb extensions, which will extend the crosswalk for pedestrians and shorten the distance they need to walk in the street. For added safety, the extensions could be lined with bollards.
• Consider adding bus bulbs, which improve efficiency of buses; unlike other streets, buses here do not have to pull into and out of traffic.
• Reduce street width. Install a raised median or pedestrian refuge island to encourage drivers to slow down and to give pedestrians a safe place to wait while crossing. 

Drawing of Empire Avenue with raised median and pedestrian refuge

Also on the agenda for Tuesday: Legacy Van Lines has applied to operate a new commuter van authority (with a total of 3 vans) in Brooklyn, with the "service area to include portions of Community District 9."  And Caribbean Spotlight at 103 Empire (near Washington) has applied for a liquor license.

Want to hear more? Come on down! 

Middle School 61 Auditorium - 7 pm

400 Empire Boulevard

Brooklyn, NY 11225

If you'd like to speak about any of these agenda items, call the CB in advance at 718-778-9279 and sign up. Members of the public are allowed 3 minutes to speak.

Upcoming stoop sales in the nabe

At least two blocks in the neighborhood are organizing stoop sales in the next few weeks.

Sun., May 31:  Maple Street, between Bedford & Rogers, is having a stoop sale on the same day as the house tour. Good idea, yes?

Sat., June 6: Fenimore, between Flatbush and Bedford, will have a block-wide stoop sale on Saturday, June 6.

If you live on one of these blocks, here's your chance to dig crap out of the basement and get people to pay for it. Organizers are also encouraging kids on the block to set up lemonade stands (and what have you) for the day. 

We love stoop sales here on Hawthorne Street; if your block organizes one this summer, just let us know and we'll pass word on.

Lakeside Center public meeting this Thursday

The Prospect Park Alliance is holding another public meeting to discuss plans for Lakeside Center, an extensive development that'll revamp and revitalize our side of the park. As we've mentioned before, the project represents a massive redesign of the area surrounding Wollman Rink, with acres of new green space, an eco-friendly family center (including two skating rinks), expanded lakeside views, and restoration of wildlife habitats.

The meeting will be this Thursday, May 21st, from 6:30 to 7:30 pm, at the Prospect Park Picnic House. If you want to hear more about the project and its status in the wake of the ecomonic crisis, be sure to come! I plan on attending myself, though I need to bring my 10-month-old, who may have other plans.

Hard Economic Times in PLG

Among the signs of the times in the neighborhood are the new For Rent signs. 

Veggie Hut, Patio Restaurant and Optimum Realty, all on Flatbush, are closed and the former City Jerk location still hasn't reopened as Cafe Exhale - and doesn't look close to opening.

Less obvious to the PLGers like myself are the effects on "barrel shipping" - local residents sending things back to their families in the Caribbean that are either insanely expensive or hard to find. Apparently barrel shipping is dramatically down as the economy has gotten worse.

I had seen signs for shipping to the Caribbean but didn't expect that mom-and-pop shops could really compete with the major shipping companies. Color me shocked to find that you can ould ship up to 200 pounds of merchandise for under $100. And still, the money to fill the barrels and ship them to the Islands is harder to come by and the number of barrels shipped has fallen by a third over the last few months. It is effecting local businesses like Trans Jam Express Shipping on Rogers Avenue and definitely effecting the families back home.

Nothing funny about any of this so I'll sign off without a closing joke.

PLG Neighborhood Association Meeting this Thursday, 7 pm

The Prospect Lefferts Gardens Neighborhood Association is inviting all PLG residents to come to its meeting on Thursday, May 7, at 7 pm.

The meeting will be held at Grace Reformed Church Chapel (1800 Bedford Avenue). The flyer says to "Join us for a presentation on the history of PLGNA and a discussion about the future of our neighorhood. Bring ideas. Bring a friend."