We took a cruise up the Gowanus canal yesterday with the Center for the Urban Environment, which produces great posts every week for us. (See Ruth Edebohl’s post coming up in a bit, for an example.) We’re not sure what was better: passing under most of the drawbridges on the canal, enjoying the sea level view, riding up the Gowanus Canal on a big yellow New York Water Taxi or being stuck for 30 minutes while someone was retrieved to open the Hamilton Avenue Bridge to let the boat back out of the canal. A photo gallery from the shots we took is below.

One of our Park Slope GL operatives sent along this question, which has made the rounds via the always compelling, and widely circulated, Park Slope Parents email list:

A friend pointed out to me yesterday that the word “nanny” is a terribly offensive word to people of West Indian descent. “Nanny” is West Indian slang for female genitalia. How could I have lived in NYC for 5 years and not known this? My babysitter is from Trinidad, and I don’t know how may times I’ve called her my nanny, the equivalent of calling her a very bad word! Maybe I’m the only one who didn’t know this, but I thought I’d put this out there for anyone as out of it as I am. Being PC is not really my concern – I’m just trying not to offend the lovely woman who cares for my kids.

But, wait, it looks like it’s cool.

Of course, we attended the magnificent Mermaid Parade on Saturday and came away with, like, 1,000 photos or something close to that. We’ve added another flickr set of pics we didn’t have a chance to get to yesterday. Our original photo gallery that we posted yesterday is here. Enjoy the, uh, mermaids.

The United States Supreme Court has just announced that it will not consider the eminent domain case brought by opponents of the Atlantic Yards development. While this clears the decks in terms of the Federal courts and the issue, the 11 property owners will now take the case to New York State Court, which is where the Federal courts have said the issue should be heard. The plaintiffs argue that taking land by for the Forest City Ratner project by eminent domain is unconstitutional. Per a press release from Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn issued immediately after the decision:

The Court’s denial of the petition in Goldstein et al. v. Pataki et al. does not affirm or deny the plaintiffs’ arguments, nor is it the end of the legal road for the plaintiffs. The plaintiffs, fighting to prevent the seizure of their homes and businesses for the benefit of Forest City Ratner, will now pursue their eminent domain challenge in state court under New York State law.

There are potentially still many, many more months of litigation ahead in the case. It is believed that Forest City Ratner will launch a vigorous effort to try to prevent the case from being heard in the State Courts.

As has been widely noted and is now on live webcam, the Queen of the Mermaid Parade is on a short hunger strike to draw attention to opposition to the city’s revised plan for Coney Island and to try to get a big turnout at the “scoping” meeting on Tuesday for it. The hunger strike is taking place at W. 12 Street and Surf Avenues, otherwise known as the new ground floor bar at the Coney Island USA building. It contains some of the paraphernalia used during the parade itself.

And no Starbucks, either.

Since the Metropolitan Opera played Prospect Park on Friday night, there has been some mystery as to the exact size of the crowd. It’s interesting because the Met had predicted up to 150,000 people, and set up to handle a crowd that large. The police estimate the turnout at 50,000, which is still the largest ever for a show in the park. Some attendees, however, have pegged the crowd as being much smaller, in the 25,000-35,000 range. Regardless, the show was very well received and included six encores.–NYT

1) There is tentative joy among the delivered Chinese food crowd in Park Slope as Red Hot, which died over the winter, is on the verge of returning. The new restaurant will be called Red Hot II and it will be open next week. Telephone number: 718-369-2577. Get those Hot and Sour Soup orders ready.

2) Over on Union Street, Black Pearl appears to be finished. A report on Brooklynian advises: “Originally closed w/a sign saying they were re-opening. That sign’s been pulled down and the wood marking their outdoor seating boarder was also ripped out.” Not good indicators of a bright future.

The plan to make a stretch of Bedford Avenue a pedestrian-only street on four Saturdays in July and August is now “official.” Per an announcement over at Billburg:

It’s official! – July 19th, July 26th, August 2nd, and August 9th. Williamsburg Walks is a celebration of the Williamsburg community, centered around a pedestrian-only Bedford Avenue, occurring four Saturdays, from July 19th to August 9th, 2008.

Not a street festival or street fair, Williamsburg Walks is an experimental temporary pedestrian street closure intended to promote the enjoyment of Northside Brooklyn, both on Bedford Avenue and beyond, by encouraging the community to come together to shop, stroll, and socialize in an area unobstructed by traffic. Williamsburg Walks places emphasis on allowing the community to self-organize and enjoy the spaces they have at their disposal. These events will focus on community involvement, and feedback from each Williamsburg Walks weekend will influence subsequent events.

There is a similar happening in Brooklyn Heights but, oddly, nothing planned for Park Slope, for instance, on Fifth Avenue where a pedestrian closure would also make sense.

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

· Recchia Funded Group That Improperly Made Big Loan [NYDN]
· Atlantic Yards: This Generation’s Penn Station? [AYR]
· Work Underway on Amity Street Horror II Penthouse? [BK 11201]
· Bright Space Ribbon Cutting [Bed-Stuy Banana]
· Many Wet Bottoms at Celebrate Brooklyn Show [Brooklynometry]
· Tibetan and Italian Restaurants Opening [Ditmas Park Blog]
· Book Store Coming to Atlantic Ave. [Lost City]
· A Cake That Says “Everybody Calls Me the Shark” in Spanish? [BVIB]
· Pink blossoms [Blather from Brooklyn]
· Remembering the Food of Spring [Brooklyn Skeptic]

Here’s a special extra Brooklinks in order to roundup a small selection of Mermaid Parade linkage:

· 11,100+ Mermaid Parade 2008 flickr Photos!!! [flickr]
· Rite of Summer Turns a Little Serious [NYT]
· Coney Island Mermaid Parade 08 [Gothamist]
· Mermaids and Moshers: A Tale of Two Islands [Brit in Brooklyn]
&#183 Brooklyn Mermaids Slide Show [NYT]
· Coney Island Mermaid Parade 2008 [ABL]
· Mermaid Parade, Part I [1000 Bars]
· Videos of the Day: 2008 Mermaid Parade [Gothamist]
· The Mermaid Parade Ball [Gawker]
· 26th Annual Mermaid Parade [Forgotten NY]

[Photo courtesy of 66 Square Feet]

We love this photo, which comes from a Cobble Hill rooftop on Henry Street courtesy of 66 Square Feet, and was taken after yesterday afternoon’s storminess had passed.

Check out the rundown of Saturday’s Newkirk Avenue Block Party. “In addition to a full schedule of live music (courtesy of Make Music New York, and coordinated by Mannix Gordon), we had Solar One, Brooklyn Compost Project, Alive Structures, and Transportation Alternatives represented; plus a paper casting workshop by Flatbush artist Kathy Levine, and the ever-popular Recycling Game.” Great pics included.–Sustainable Flatbush

[Photo courtesy of itsnotthatfar/GL Flickr Pool]

There were more interesting visuals in Coney Island this weekend that one could keep up with. This is one of them, courtesy of a contribution to our Gowanus Lounge Photo Pool from itsnotthatfar. Checkout itsnotthatfar’s full Mermaid Parade flickr set here.

Outside the Brooklyn Weather Observatory this morning, the sun and clouds are fighting it out. Today’s forecast calls for “intervals of clouds and sunshine with a couple of showers and a thunderstorm; humid.” The high will be 82 and it will feel like 90. Tonight will be more evening thunderstorms around. The low will be 68.–Accuweather

The Mermaid Parade Ball rocked the Childs Building on the Boardwalk in Coney Island last night. We’ll have a full photoset, but for now, a teaser shot.

Here’s a big, but incomplete, set of pics from yesterday’s fun in Coney Island.

We’re happy to return today to our Adoptable Cutie of the Week feature. This week’s pet is from the wonderful Sean Casey Animal Rescue shelter in Kensington. They do wonderful work and have an abundance of great animals that need loving homes:

Here’s what we can tell you about this little guy:

Happy is a 6 year old Maltese, and the name fits him. He is loving, funny, and opened-hearted with everyone he meets. Friend to kids and other animals, he is a treasure. Petfiner #5254872

You can find Happy’s petfinder profile here. Sean Casey Animal Rescue is located at 155 East 3rd Street in Kensington. Their number is 718.436.5163.

This is a special view of Coney Island from a rarely visited spot that we check out yesterday. It’s quite a nice vantage point.

Here are some of the first posted YouTube vids of the 2008 Mermaid Parade. Enjoy.

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

· Birdell’s of Bed-Stuy [NYT]
· That After-Hours Construction? The City Permits For It Are Booming [NYP]
· Brooklyn as a Brand Name [NYT]
· The Dean Street Block Party [AYR]
· Mermaid Parade ’08 [Gothamist]
· Mermaids and Mosh [Brit in Brooklyn]
· Cool Handmade Coney Jewelry [Kinetic Carnival]
· Lions, Tigers, Bears [New York Shitty]

We received an email from the Cobble Hill Association about the 2008 Music in the Park Summer Concert Series. Here’s a bit about it:

The Cobble Hill Association is pleased to announce the schedule for its seventh annual “Music in the Park” series of free concerts. This year’s series will feature seven Thursday evening concerts in Cobble Hill Park (on Clinton Street between Verandah Place and Congress Street). All concerts are free, open to the public, and scheduled for Thursdays at 7:00 p.m. (The rain date for each concert is the following day, i.e. Friday). The first shows is June 26 with Sufferin Succotash with Shlomo Pesko described as “Blues and Folk for the whole family.”

Click here for the full schedule

Outside the Brooklyn Weather Observatory this morning there is sun, but things are going to change. Here’s the forecast: “Cloudy most of the time with a couple of showers and a thunderstorm; humid.” The high will be 77, but it will feel like 85.” Tonight there will be some evening thunderstorms and it will be mostly cloudy and humid.–Accuweather

[Photo courtesy 66 Square Feet]

This is a Golden Raintree. The blogger who does 66 Square Feet sent us this photo and this info: “On the corner of Congress and Court Steets, a Golden raintree (Koelreuteria paniculata) is beginning to bloom. In about a week it will be ablaze. Watch the 1957 MGM movie Raintree County for an immersion experience…” A Golden Raintree!

[Photo courtesy of a GL Correspondent]

The real estate agency rapidnyc.com that put up a marketing banner on a wall over a Community Garden on Fifth Avenue at President Street is taking it down. We had the first report yesterday about anger about an “intrusive banner” that was subsequently picked up elsewhere later in the day. We received a long comment from the agency, which we’re posting, because it’s important in the context of how peeved some residents became about the banner, which advertises apartments for rent. The email says:

The point is, we were simply advertising and had no intent on causing any issues with anyone. But we’re taking the sign down. It’s unfortunate that people may be misinformed about our business. For those that wish to do so, visit our office and see for yourselves that our operation is a big one and we stand by our product and provide a good service.

The writer says they were simply trying to advertise and that the angry community emails weren’t necessary:

Look, obviously you guys hate the sign. We get it. It won’t be an issue. We will take it down as soon as possible. Our goal was to post the banner up for branding purposes…not to upset anyone. We do plenty of business in Park Slope. We’ve been a member of the community for a long time.

The agency said it received an email that reads as follows:

“I am writing in regards to your advertising, specifically the new sign on 5th Avenue & President in Park Slope…The way you go about advertising is disgusting, tasteless, classless etc. Thanks to you, my corner is now an eyesore with your sign. I am going to make the necessary phone calls to different agencies to put you guys in check.”

The response and more ahead.