The big Toren condo, which is now rising on Flatbush Avenue at Myrtle, will be one of the most distinctive new buildings in Brooklyn. In fact, it would be stand out in Manhattan. Its big sales office on Gold Street just opened. Here’s a looking around, including a video of the developer and sales manager […]

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This is nature’s total gorgeousness currently on full display on Fourth Street in Park Slope.

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“For about 30 years I’ve been on bended knee,” says [Carroll Gardens Civic Association founder] Buddy Scotto, “begging developers to come into Carroll Gardens. It’s hard for people who haven’t been involved to understand how difficult it’s been…All of a sudden there are all these people who are concerned about high buildings are going to […]

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We believe the original graffiti on this fence came from the creator of this topical beauty. (In fact, we’re certain of it based on handwriting analysis.) No matter, the annotation does add a little something to the original thought.

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Even very early this morning, the view from the Brooklyn Weather Observatory shows the makings of an idea Spring day. The forecast bears that out, calling for a day that will be mostly sunny and pleasant with a high of 74. The low tonight will be 57 with patchy clouds. Enjoy.–Accuweather

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The very friendly naugahyde chairs come from Bedford Avenue in Bed-Stuy. They’re not couches, per se, but they’re street furniture and, you know, they fit together. Miss Heather contributed the photo.

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DOB Commissioner Patricia Lancaster who has faced increasing criticism in the wake of very high profile construction accidents this year, has resigned. Mayor Bloomberg made the announcement, saying that “Over the past six years, Patricia has moved the Department of Buildings a long way forward by fighting corruption, strengthening inspections and oversight, increasing the public’s […]

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That didn’t take long. The Love Fence, which an artist had decorated with hearts to “smother” the developer of the controversial 360 Smith Street building “with love” and which some of the neighborhood were viewing as a reflection of a less confrontational approach between activists and the project (which is now moving forward with speed), […]

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After much build up, Barrio opened yesterday on Seventh Avenue in Park Slope. We popped in to grab a menu and few photos and chatted with Spencer Rothschild who, with his wife Julie, is behind the restaurant. “This space is a dream come true,” said Rothschild, who is also involved in a number of Manhattan […]

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[Photo courtesy of Joe Holmes/flickr] Manhattan’s Cheyenne Diner–every single piece of it–is going to be moved to Red Hook. We read the item on Gothamist, which picked it up from amNY’s Urbanite blog, about five times to make sure we weren’t seeing things. We weren’t. The diner, which like all good NYC diners, is being […]

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The mystery of the tenant that will occupy the remaining part of the D’Agostino’s space on Seventh Avenue at Sixth Street is solved: It will be an outpost of the Five Guys Burger and Fries chain of restaurants. The chain most recently opened in Brooklyn Heights on Montague Street. The other part of the storefront […]

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Yesterday’s Construction Site Du Jour was a Karl Fischer building and so is today’s. This Pit of Death at 120 S. 4 Street is a building site that hasn’t been touched in so long that its foundation has become nicely tagged up. (The site was originally cleared and excavated a loong time ago and it’s […]

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Is there such a thing as “too many trees”? There is in Borough Park. “Too much green is making a Borough Park block red with anger. The rest of the city may be going green, but the folks living there on the block say it has gone too green. They’re outraged that the city tore […]

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It may be our imagination, but we think we’ve noticed a definite uptick in the number of site sporting Stop Work Orders around Williamsburg in the last few weeks. It seems like the Department of Buildings has been hitting some work sites hard since about the third or fourth week of March. (Stop Work Orders, […]

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The Big Eye is gone from the storefront on Seventh Avenue between Second and Third Streets where artist Mark Ravitz has been placing his work and it has been replaced by new work. The grate was already down yesterday evening, so we could only capture all three of them as they appear behind steel.

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This is Noodle Studio a Thai restaurant on N. 5 Street in Williamsburg whose irregular hours, at one point, led us to believe it was closed. It’s not and, in fact, the other day the entire front of the building was being turned into a big mural.

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It is correctly pointed out that “blogs are not a medium known for focusing on or endorsing neckties,” but when the tie in question is a Parachute Jump Tie, well, it’s going to be listed.–Kinetic Carnival

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Here’s a very nicely done video on the entire issue of the Brooklyn Museum’s controversial Gala honoring Bruce Ratner. It’s short documentary length, but definitely worth a view if you’ve got the time.

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Brooklinks is a selection of Brooklyn-related information and images: Credit Crisis is Hurting Brooklyn Renters Too [NYDN] Criticism ‘Comes to a Boil’ for Buildings Commissioner [NYT] Newark Option Gets More Realistic for Nets [AYR] Hope Street Warehouse on the Market Again [Brownstoner] 75 Henry Celebrates Earth Day by Chopping Down Another Tree [McBrooklyn] Flatbush Street […]

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A new exhibition of art on Bedford Avenue kicks off this Sunday (April 27) from 2PM-8PM. Per information sent along by Matthew Silver, known to many people as the Bedford Avenue Dancer: Artwalking: Bedford Ave. An invitational exhibition featuring over thirty storefront installations between North 3rd and North 9th on Bedford Avenue, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY. […]

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A new one from Wythe and N. 8 in Williamsburg.

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Want to see what a PriceChop looks like? Go no further than the Azure on Classon Avenue. “Let’s look at Unit 2a. It started life last June at $735,000. In November, it went to $649,000. In December, it hit $599,000. In February? $549,000. And, yesterday, there was more axe action with the price hitting $499,000. […]

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Our innate powers of observation tell us that this parking sign, which we found on Bedford Avenue, was clearly a victim of construction. Further analysis seems to show that it was felled by some sort of street work rather than building development. Nonetheless, it is down for the count.

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“The Vargas Mini-Market, a bodega at the corner of Bond and Warren, was shut down late last week. According to the restraining order affixed to the shuttered business, it was closed for the ‘sale of untaxed cigarettes.’” Isolated thing or growing trend in the age of mega-taxes?–Brownstoner

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We’re used to seeing trashed bike and deconstructed ones as well as ones for sale, but here’s a freebie we found in Williamsburg on N. 5 Street.

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