Root Hill Cafe on 4th Avenue and Carroll had its second weekly open mic event last night. Performers over the past couple of weeks have included singers, comedians, a magician and a harmonica player. The coffee shop is holding the open mics every Monday starting at 8 p.m. Check it out.

This year’s edition of the Giglio Feast in Williamsburg will be more surrounded by construction than usual. In fact, it’s fair to say it will be nearly hemmed in by construction on the north and northwest in what we’ve called the Williamsburg Triangle of Death because of its wide open construction and demolition sites that are a tragedy waiting to happen. One of those sites is our old friend at N. 9 St. and Roebling, 239 N. 9 Street, which has been wide open more than it’s been closed during a nasty and prolonged demolition process. (See, for instance, this post from from April, which shows conditions strikingly similar to today’s.) In any case, the fence at this Karl Fischer building site is open again and visitors to the Giglio Feast will be able to chill on piles of rubble and even play with construction equipment if they wish. Two weeks of demolition and construction site fun to complement the Dance of the Giglio!

Yesterday, we posted a Park Slope Parents email from someone that was part of a group in Prospect Park that had gotten a ticket for having an open bottle of wine. There’s a post on Brooklynian from someone with the same issue, but we don’t know if it’s related to the Big Park Slope Parents Wine Bust. There is a lot more detail to this post than to the original PSP email, which sort of made the rounds. Here it is:

So, eight of us were having a very quiet picnic in Prospect Park today near the Picnic House. We had one bottle of wine with us, along with a lot of food and other beverages. A group of 4 cops (3 in those tiny cop vehicles and 1 on a segway) pulled up at the Picnic House about 30 feet away from us. After 20 minutes, the cops approached us and demanded IDs without saying why. I gave them mine, and the cop sarcastically said, “You’re an organ donor. I feel safer now.” I have no idea what his point was. He said we were being fined for having an “open container.” But then later said it was because we had glass.

The cops took all of our IDs and gave each one of us a $25 ticket regardless of whether we were drinking, and each ticket said, “Alcohol in the park.” I asked him to clarify whether the problem was having an open container or having alcohol, and he claimed he was intentionally “vague” on the ticket.

After waiting 15 minutes for the tickets, this particular cop also claimed that he wasn’t going to give us tickets until one of us started to balk, but that’s crap because they were writing up the tickets before my friend went to voice her discontent. It was clear to me that cops can lie about anything and get away with it. They were definitely jerking us around. We weren’t really thinking about having the wine with us, and I now know that having alcohol in the park is forbidden. But I felt we were particularly singled out, especially since there were numerous and obvious instances of people on either side of us who had cases of beer and another man who was walking around with a bottle in hand. The jerk cop claimed they were going to bust others, and said, “you can follow us around” but they took off and left everyone else with booze alone.

My question: has this happened to any of you? Is it worth making the court appearance for? Is this the sort of thing that goes on one’s record? And how long does that last? Has this been happening with greater frequency in Prospect Park? Is there anything a person can do about this?

We’re guessing this is related to the original email, but there’s an off-chance it’s an independent wine bust. We have to say that the organ donor comment is different.

Brooklinks is a daily selection of Brooklyn-related information and images:

· Five year old sets fire as revenge to “kill Grandma” [NYP]
· Raccoon Sightings Way Up in Brooklyn, Elsewhere [NYT]
· $25M Suit Over Kings County Hospital Death [NYP]
· Bloomberg Not Very Free Market on Atlantic Yards [AYR]
· Yes, as We’ve Noted: It’s Giglio Time Again! [Urbanite]
· Detail on Montague St. & Bedford Ave. Pedestrian Experiments [NYDN]
· Let’s Call This Slow Moving Karl Fischer on Roebling, Igor [Restless]
· Check Out the Monster Line for Swim Lessons at Sunset Park Pool [BVIB]
· Prospect Park Art [A Year in the Park]
· Mystery on Clifton Place & Grand Avenue [Clinton Hill Chill]
· Where to Find Good Views in Brooklyn [NYDN]
· Waterfall on a Hazy Day [ABL]

[Photo courtesy of chicapoquita/flickr]

Anyone who knows Greenpoint knows the site and, uh, smell of the Newtown Creek Waste Water Treatment Facility, which collects crap from far and wide. It has many distinctions, not the least of which is its long standing dysfunction and the epic and ongoing $2.3 billion upgrade that it is getting. Miss Heather has put together an interesting post for the Poop Report about what she and others call the “shit tits” of Greenpoint:

There are over eight million people in New York City. Invariably, each and every one of them will go to the bathroom. So after that fateful flush, where does it go? Well, if they happen to live or work in North Brooklyn or the East Side of Manhattan below 72nd Street, the odds are that their poop will surface two blocks from my home. You see, I live in the shadow of the largest waste treatment plant in New York City, and perhaps on the entire east coast….An upgrade of this plant was green-lighted by the city in 2003. The end product of this $2.4 billion project will be a thirty-seven acre facility equipped to handle 1.2 billion gallons of sewage. (That’s a lot of poop, people!) The projected date of completion for the new and improved plant is 2013 (although it’s rumored that the city is trying to push it back to 2022). The completed plant will also sport a state-of-the-art odor control system (which I can attest, as of July 2008, is NOT up and running).

It’s also one of the nation’s only sewage plants with a park and an architectural pedigree. There’s more great detail. Do read.

[Photo courtesy of itsnothatfar/flickr]

From Windsor Terrace we learn that Julio was around, if not exactly there. The pic comes from itsnotfar via the GL Flickr Pool.

“That same night, as on most weekend nights, there was a brawl outside the Lucky 7 bar across the street, and when i woke up to this crime scene i was hardly surprised. the fighting and shooting (several since i’ve lived here) around that bar has become commonplace. for all the police attention from a month or so back, nothing ever changes, and the Lucky 7 (or the crowd at the L7, to be precise) is the epicenter of a violent, showy, thuggish weekend culture that clashes both with the upscale newcomers AND the longtime local families who are too quiet or scared to say anything about the visible minority of losers, dealers, and wannabe kingpins who strut around ruining the night, saturday after saturday. when the cops WERE around, the Lucky 7 was shut down for some reason or another. presumably it had to do with shady electricity issues, because now they’re back open and running the whole place (bar, disco AND kitchen) on a generator. amazing that places like fix cafe are under the gun from DOH and this pit is allowed to float by on 12 hours of refrigeration. who’s protecting this trough, and when will they finally give it the shutter it deserves?”–Aftermath of a Williamsburg Shooting

[Photo courtesy of Gary Mirabelle/Mirabelle Studios]

This photo from GL contributor and local artist Gary Mirabelle totally captures the feeling of leaving Prospect Park after a concert, at least, without being in the middle of a thick crowd.

What else is new? Outside the Brooklyn Weather Observatory this morning it’s looking the same as it does many days with early morning sun that is a precursor to a hot day. It will be 90 today and will feel like 98. The forecast calls for it to be partly sunny and humid with an afternoon thunderstorm. Tonight will be partly cloudy with a low of 71 and a thunderstorm around.–Accuweather

Seen yesterday at a photo shoot in Williamsburg at N. 10 and Wythe. Simply drape yourself seductively over the motorcycle and smile.

Here’s a really nice time lapse of the Brooklyn Bridge posted in the last couple of days to YouTube. Pretty photography and effect.

We are waiting for the website for the Brooklyn condo with our favorite name to go live. If the decorative elements in this window on Bond Street, and the Andy Warhol prints hanging from the walls are any indication, Satori will be with us any time now. Satori, for those following the development of Bond Street in Gowanus, is a new condo designed by Robert Scarano that we nicknamed The Bunker because of the lack of windows on Bond. The sales banner says there’s a lot of natural light, so we’re assuming it’s coming in from the back side of the building. Satori is a Japanese word that means enlightenment. It has nothing to do with being mauled by an attack dog. Satori!!!

We know that bars in residential parts of the neighborhood tend to really upset Carroll Gardens residents, but how about TV commercial for Microsoft? Would an Apple shoot tick off fewer people? In any case, Thursday is Bill Gates Day on Carroll Street.

Yesterday, the Times took note of the Crest Hardware Art Show, which has been much blogged about. It’s run has now been extended through July 24 and, yesterday, this video tour of the Burg’s most off beat art show was posted on the YouTube. Back in June, Jen Carlson ran a Q&A on Gothamist she did with Joe Franquinha of Crest. You can check out the art show’s website by clicking here.

We’re not sure what’s going on with this one, but we overlooked it yesterday in doing our weekly Sunday Brooklyn Craigslist Missed Connection and, well, they need to be posted. We’ are just going to go directly to the copy and paste, staring with Craigslist Missed Connection Number One:

You gave me your panties… – m4w – 33 (Fort Greene)
After 1st Saturday last month in a nearby bar you demanded my attention, asked me to be discreet, and put them in my hand. Your confidence was stunning and your approach was incredible. It’s almost been a month and I hope to see you – particularly that side – again. Next time, I won’t be speechless.

And, here’s the second one, posted the next day:

I gave you my panties – w4m – 30 (Prospect Heights)
On First Night. You took them with respect and grace; that night has stayed with me every since. They’re yours, first night or any night. Looking forward to seeing you again soon.

We really don’t know how we didn’t select these yesterday.

Okay, it’s not called the BOG Building, but that’s what we’re calling 35 Havemeyer Street, because part of the site was, until recently, the outdoor dining area of the Brick Oven Gallery, one of our favorite little spots in Williamsburg. The Brick Oven Gallery now has tables outside on Havemeyer and the lot is going to be a five-story building with eight units. The new building has already garnered four complaints to the Department of Buildings and a short-lived Stop Work Order. Us, we suggest the Thin Sicilian Pie with added ricotta and hot peppers, plus the Brooklyn Caviar.

The weekly (for summer) Montague Street pedestrian plaza experiment debuted yesterday and at 3PM the crowds were…well, there wasn’t a crowd. There was a fairly empty street. Maybe it was the weather or that it was July 4 weekend or already late in the afternoon.–Brooklyn Heights Blog

And, now, a selection of Brooklyn shows from today through Wednesday:

Monday 7/7/08
BAM: Afro-Punk Festival — Hollwood Holt, Tim Williams, Shala, Proton, Sky Hy (Punk, Indie). Free!!, 4:00-10:00pm

Tuesday 7/8/08
Union Hall: Experimental Philosophy Book Release Party w/ performances by: Shaun Nichols & Joshua Knobe (Philosophers), Eugene Mirman (Comedian), Alina Simone (Musician). $8, 7:30pm

BAM: Afro-Punk Festival — Whole Wheat Bread, Disaster Us, Like Gravity, Irradio, McRad, Echo Jinx (Punk, Indie)- Free!!, 4:00-10:00pm

Brooklyn Botanic Garden: No Music, but admission is free!!

Wednesday 7/9/08
Barbes: Music At The Bridge — Brooklyn Bridge Park’s Tabacco Warehouse w/ The Parker String Quartet, Las Rubias Del Norte, The Mandingo Ambassadors (Classical, Eclectic). Free!!, 6:30pm

BAM: Afro-Punk Festival — Bone Crusher, Game Rebellion, Bazaar Royale, Voodoo Fe, Let’s Go To War, Planet Ubiquity- Free!!, 4:00-10:00pm
—Dan Bennis

Those who thought that Kellogg’s Diner at Union and Metropolitan Avenues in Williamsburg was going away were very, very wrong. This is the New Look Kellogg now that the scaffold and construction from a big renovation that started after the diner shut down in April have come down. The New Kellogg is a silver chrome and blue wonder, although it appears to be several weeks from reopening.

Another shot of that Kellogg’s goodness ahead.

This is the scene yesterday morning around 11:15 AM on S. 1 Street east of the BQE in Williamsburg. The NYPD was gathering evidence from a car with a bloodied up door after a shooting. Gothamist Newsmap showed a shooting at S. 1 St. & Maujer, about a block from this scene. Much of the block of Rodney Street between S. 1 and Grand was also cordoned off. Residents said they heard gunfire from a large caliber weapon.

A couple of more photos after the jump.

Last week, Brownstoner offered a look at actual progress inside the Trader Joe’s site at Court Street and Atlantic Avenue. (We stuck our camera through the same hole for a shot.) Now, there’s a rumor on Brooklynian that TJ’s will be opening on September 28. Here’s the rumor:

For all those Trader Joe’s Junkies out there… I just talked with a soon-to-be employee for the TJ’s in Brooklyn who informed me that they are scheduled to open September 28th. I guess September 1 was the original date… but not suprisingly, that has been pushed back. I will be in line on opening day! I’m sick of hauling all my frozen stuff from Manhattan!

September 28. Fact or fiction?

Call it the spot where the Old Williamsburg meets the New Williamsburg. Every July, for nearly two weeks, Havemeyer Street hosts the Giglio Feast, officially known as the Feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel. They’ve been doing it for 121 years, although these days, a fair part of the crowd is made up of local hipsters. In any case, the feast starts on Wednesday, with the first Dance of the Giglio, on Sunday. The Dance of the Giglio is where dozens of men carry a five-story tall, three-ton statue carrying the local priest and a full band, up and down Havemeyer Street, stopping to bounce the thing up and down and rotate it. These are some shots from yesterday’s preparations. We missed the decorative elements being added to the Giglio, but caught some of the work on the Giglio Boat. Click here for some of our pics from last year’s festivities.

Here from the Park Slope Parents email list forwarded to us by a community-minded PSP member who keeps us supplied, is a riveting question about getting a ticket for drinking wine in Prospect Park and coop board approval:

My friend got a ticket today in Prospect Park for being at a small 8-person picnic gathering where there was one wine bottle out in the open. 4 cops came up and gave everyone a ticket for alcohol possession. Does anyone know if this type of ticket is easy to fight? She wasn’t drinking any wine nor does she drink in general. Also, as a side note she is trying to purchase a co-op apartment and is soon going to be reviewed by the co-op approval board. Should she worry about this citation?

Four cops on one bottle of wine? Was it a French, an Italian or a California? In terms of the coop board, a good wine should go over well, but if it’s nondescript stuff, it could be trouble.

· Many People Shaken by Tragedy of Brooklyn Gospel Star & Pastor [NYT]
· Woman Who Died After Neglect at Kings County Hospital Mourned [NYDN]
· Cops Looking for Suspects in Deadly Bed-Stuy Gun Battle [Sun]
· Kosciuszko Bridge Replacement Project Delayed Again [NYDN]
· Ugly Betty Filming in Dumbo [Dumbo NYC]
· Sunday Morning in Sunset Park [Best View in Brooklyn]
· Defying Gloom [A Year in the Park]
· Oral History, Song of Brooklyn, Ends with Atlantic Yards [AYR]
· Our Lady of the Safety Pin [Brooklynometry]
· Fort Greene Greenmarket Greetings [Bed-Stuy Blog]

Park Slope residents have been increasingly upset about the LaGuardia landing pattern that takes planes over Prospect Park. They say the noise has been getting worse and there was a report that a new landing beacon would alter the flight path. Not so. The FAA says there’s no plan to change the landing pattern.–NYT