[Photo courtesy of GL’s Carroll Gardens Correspondent]
We’ll simply call it St. Agnes in the light.

There is little one can say about today’s weather other than it’s going to be pretty darned nice. It will be partly sunny with a high of 54, which will feel like 56. Tonight, look for partly cloudy skies and a low of 40. Tomorrow, though, clouds increase and rain is expected late.–Accuweather

A new South Brooklyn neighborhood coalition is in the works in Carroll Gardens, Gowanus and Red Hook to push issues on which there might be common ground. A private meeting took place on February 27 to discuss the mechanics of setting up the group and to work on developing a mission statement. Several groups, including the Carroll Gardens Neighborhood Association, CORD and the Union-Sackett Block Association, as well as a group from the Columbia Street Waterfront District of Red Hook were involved in the initial planning meeting. The coalition, which would include a variety of groups that don’t always agree on issues, would use the Queens Civic Congress as one of its models. An email we saw says the goal is “to form a coalition to better have a say in what type of zoning and building our community will get from City Planning.” A variety of new neighborhood groups have formed over the last year, particularly in Carroll Gardens and Gowanus. In many case, specific development projects have been catalyst.

Someone familiar with the organizing effort confirmed that planning is underway and told GL that “A lot of us have felt for a long time that all of the smaller groups must join up…we all want to unite as ‘one’ neighborhood.” The email about the effort mentioned that one goals is to try to have some influence in the 2009 municipal elections and that the coalition will grow beyond some of the core organizations involved in organizing it. “More groups plan to join this coalition for considerable voting power during our next local elections,” the email said. “The candidates and this election will be a big focus for this coalition so its importance could be considerable.”

The demolition of 340 Court Street is underway with windows now removed from the building. The fence and sidewalk scaffolding, which should be features of life on Court for 18-24 months are also completely up. The Union-Sackett Block Association had a meeting with executives from the Clarett Group last week, but haven’t disclosed what was discussed. An email notes that Clarett executives will be presenting the plans for the new building at a community meeting at the end of March. The email says that “the big meeting with Clarett will be the best chance we have to voice our concern to them about their development and we need to do plan the best way possible to do that.”

“So, which Brooklyn Post Office bites the most? Is it the Kensington Post Officer, where the guy was went postal on the famous YouTube vid last year? The Times Plaza Post Office, whose horrors could generate its own blog? Or the Ninth Street Post Office in Park Slope, whos suckitude has also been well documented? Possibly one not even listed here?–Brownstoner

These newest complaints from Boerum Hill are of a specific nature, but interesting in terms of some potentially new obstacles that residents face. Here’s one:

I just came back from the post office to retrieve a package I had tracked; the information online was that a notice had been left (it wasn’t – or it may have been left at another house). This happens frequently, not just to me, but to others…I mentioned this to the nice woman who usually mans the last window and she told me it had just been announced that the carriers or sorters will write on the package that a notice was left “to cover themselves” – this was the PO’s solution to the problem of complaints about notices not being left. She said it “proves” that a notice was left. All it proves to me is that someone wrote on a box that a notice was left; not that a notice was actually left.

She also told me that from now on, if a carrier or sorter does not think an address is written “perfectly” (no apartment number, an incompletely written name, perhaps a first initial only, etc), then he or she has the discretion to write “no such address” if they like, and return it to the sender, undelivered. She said these announcements were just made. So it sounds to me that this is not a solution to the mail problem, but a way of allowing the post office to continue to operate badly and “cover themselves” in the process.

Just a little something to brighten on a gloomy Wednesday morning.

Is Park Slope a generic description for a certain kind of neighborhood? Well, the discussion is filling up the Park Slope Parents email list to judge by the number of them we’ve seen in the last twenty-four hours. It began with a Park Slope resident contemplating a Boston move and wondering “Is There a Park Slope in Boston?” Many answers have followed, and Brookline, Cambridge and Jamaica Plain seem to be leading “Park Slope” candidates, although Back Bay and other neighborhoods have been mentioned. One resident writes, “Brookline is beautiful and manicured and close to downtown but maybe not so diverse as Park Slope. Cambridge great but also pricey….” One response suggests Cambridge because “the population is very liberal (Cambridge is known as “The People’s Republic of Cambridge“).” Another suggests Arlington and Cambridge “although neither of them have a park like Prospect Park, they do have open green spaces (called “commons”), and plenty of playgrounds” and also Back Bay, “which is quite similar in architecture to Park Slope and has the added advantage of being close to downtown Boston and Boston Commons/Public Garden (where the famous swan boats swim); I imagine their school district is also pretty good. Jamaica Plain is also a good option to think about, as there are houses there and a some nice playing fields (Baseball and soccer).” OTBKB also has a nice item on the discussion this morning.

It did get us wondering about the Park Slopes of Seattle, San Francisco, Miami, Minneapolis, Denver, Atlanta, Dallas and Chicago, not to mention Portland, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh and Houston, but we like this reply best: “We’re from Brookline, and we always say that Park Slope is the Brookline of New York.”

When we last visited 333 Carroll Street, the troubled building with the Robert Scarano-designed growth on top that helped get the Carroll Gardens downzoning movement rolling, the lights were burning late into the night. Yesterday, the Carroll Gardens Hell Building was hit with another Stop Work Order and a “ten-day letter of intent” to revoke its permits (which does not mean the permits will necessarily be revoked). Blogger Pardon Me for Asking said yesterday afternoon that there was still work going on even after the Stop Work Order had been issued. A new architectural firm is working on the building.

Some Pratt professors and students are trying to come up with plans for Admiral’s Row in the Brooklyn Navy Yard that would allow for both preservation of the Historic Structures and development of a supermarket on the property. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle reports that “City planning and architecture students have come up with a number of ideas that they plan to present to community groups and, ultimately, the Navy Yard itself.” A Professor involved in the exercise says “We’re trying to please, I think, everyone, as much as possible.” One design involves “restoring the houses and reusing them for businesses like a bakery, a bookstore, a daycare center and cafes, with a green roof uniting the entire site.” The Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corp. has insisted the only way to go foward with the supermarket project is to demolish the historic buildings. The Federal Goverment estimates that preservation would cost about $18 million. The disupute has become heated at times. Here is how one of the students put it:

“We found that the Navy Yard’s proposal is quite heartless and doesn’t really do anything for the rifts in the neighborhood,” said Kuz, who assigned the project to her students. “We are keeping the Admirals’ Row houses in our designs because we think it’s a good reference in terms of scale and history. But we also incorporated a big shop, like the Navy Yard wanted.”

The full story is quite interesting.

[Rendering courtesy of Rafael Viñoly Architects]

The Landmarks Preservation Commission considered the proposed changes to the landmarked Domino Plant in Williamsburg yesterday, and told the architects to come back with a different design. The WGPA blog brought news of the hearing yesterday afternoon. New Domino architect Rafael Viñoly even appeared at the hearing, but it was Beyer Blinder Belle, which produced the design that includes a glass box at the top, whose work was the focus yesterday. The Beyer architects compared their work to a variety of structures including the Tate Modern, but the feedback was not entirely positive. Some LPC members felt addition was either “too tall,” “not the right design” or too “tame.” Other said it needs to be “more visionary” and emphasize the “industrial rigor” of the landmark, whatever the latter might mean. Domino Plant V. 2.0 to come.

Related Stories:
Landmarks Commission Calls for Revisions [Sun]
Overhaul of Domino Plant Back to Square One [NYDN]

“A Domino’s Pizza marketing campaign that offers speech lessons to Brooklynites who want to rid themselves of their ‘annoying, fake’ accents has irked borough pizza lovers. The telephone hotline campaign, a tie-in to the national chain’s Brooklyn Style pizza, argues, among other inaccuracies, that fuhgeddaboudit is – get this – three words. ‘Our accent-recognition technology will determine when you’ve completely lost your annoying, fake Brooklyn accent,’ an operator with no discernible accent says cheekily, before asking listeners to repeat well-worn Brooklyn phrases like fuhgeddaboudit and howyadoin’? ” Local reaction is not good.–NYDN

The image of the Fingerish Building below came with a photo of this humongous TV on the street outside, courtesy of our wide-ranging correspondent Miss Heather. It’s seen better days, but boy, is it big.

Nevermind the prudish reactions to the news about Babeland opening on Bergen Street in Park Slope. There is evidence that the Slope is a very, uh, lustful place. “…not only are Park Slopers uninhibited; they’re downright kinky! A quick browse through Craigslist’s personals for this particular pocket of Brooklyn proves it. Park Slope is rife with kink…”–Gridskipper

This is 31 Kosciusko Street in Bed-Stuy between Bedford and Nostrand. Miss Heather emailed it over after having a look at new construction in the neighborhood because it struck as being somewhat Fingerlike. We agree that it has the essential qualities that make a Finger Building, although the height of the building it adjoins doesn’t make a fully erect finger, just a semi-erect one. Interestingly, the original five-story design came from Henry Radusky of Bricolage Designs, who is called “Too Tall” by some. So, it came back as the 12-story building that’s pictured here. Our friends at Brownstoner also took a look at it back in January.

[Photo courtesy of Deborah Matlack/Matlack Photography]

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

• What Will Replace Bergen Tile in Prominent Development Site? [AYR]
• Brooklyn Jury Acquits Man of Trying to Murder Officers [NYT]
• Brooklyn College Opening First Dorm by Spring [NYDN]
• Junior Mynt Near Completion [Bed-Stuy Blog]
• The Bed-Stuy Beer Bong [New York Shitty]
• New Brooklyn Heights Pizzeria [McBrooklyn]
• Mailbox Goes Missing [Clinton Hill Blog]
• The Former Half Moon Hotel [Kinetic Carnival]
• Signs of Spring [Ditmas Park Blog]
• Forgotten NY at Word Tomorrow [WGPA]
• My Day in Jersey Traffic Court [OTBKB]
• Getting Around the Park [A Year in the Park]

Here’s the rundown of the Brooklyn Community Board meetings coming up in the next week, courtesy of information compiled by the New York Daily News:

Community Board 1 (Greenpoint, Williamsburg) will hold its next board meeting at 6:30 p.m. on March 11 at 211 Ainslie St.

Community Board 2 (Fort Greene, Fulton Mall, Boerum Hill, Clinton Hill, Downtown Brooklyn, Brooklyn Navy Yard, Brooklyn Heights, Fulton Ferry, Dumbo) is meeting at 6 p.m. on March 12 at St. Francis College, 180 Remsen St.

Community Board 6 (Red Hook, Cobble Hill, Park Slope, Carroll Gardens, Gowanus) is meeting at 6:30 p.m. on March 12 at Long Island College Hospital, 339 Hicks St.

Community Board 8 (Crown Heights, Prospect Heights, and Weeksville) will hold its regular monthly meeting at 7 p.m. on March 13 at the Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation, 727 Classon Ave.

Community Board 11 (Bath Beach, Gravesend, Mapleton, Bensonhurst) has its meeting at 7:30 p.m. on March 13 at Holy Family Home, 1740 84th St.

Community Board 14 (Flatbush, Midwood, Kensington, Ocean Parkway) will meet at 7:30 p.m. on March 10 at Edward Murrow High School, 1600 Avenue L.

Things may be looking up for subway access in parts of Brooklyn as MTA chief Eliott Sander announced that the MTA “is studying plans to rejuvinate the sleeping giant of a rail line that passes near the Junction from points east in Brooklyn and Queens.” The plan would involve converting a freight line for subway in Brooklyn. The first segment would run from Midwood near Brooklyn College to the Brooklyn Junction subway hub in East New York.–Brooklyn Junction

Park Slope is not the best place in Brooklyn to find violated street signs in Brooklyn, but one does come across them from time to time. This one is from Ninth Street and Sixth Avenue.

From the City’s Office of Emergency Management: “The National Weather Service has issued a Flood Watch beginning Tuesday, March 4, at midnight. The Flood Watch is expected to stay in effect until Wednesday afternoon, March 5. Rainfall totals may reach 2.5 inches in New York City, with localized flooding possible, and minor coastal flooding likely at high tide on Wednesday morning.”–GL Inbox

[Photo courtesy of Eric Provost]

It’s not just that this latest Coney Island sunset photo sent to us by Eric Provost is gorgeous. It is. It’s that there is something fun in the photo if one looks closely. More pics of them tomorrow.

Although a flood watch is still in effect, the forecast calls for rain early this morning with clouds eventually giving way to some sun. The high will be 58. Tonight will be breezy with patchy clouds and a low of 37.–Accuweather

What will the proposed zoning change in Dumbo do? GL spoke with Brooklyn City Planning Office Director Purnima Kapur yesterday who laid out the changes and the rational behind them. (She also spoke separately with our friends at Brownstoner, indicating the Department is pushing to explain its proposal.) She describe the changes as being with the context of Dumbo in terms of building size, but as a “complete change” in terms of allowing residential and commercial development on the block involved. The changes would convert 12 blocks between the Manhattan Bridge, Front Street, John Street and Bridge Street, from being zoned for manufacturing uses to a mixed use district that would include residential buildings up to 12 stories tall.

The project has been in the works for two year, Ms. Kapur explained. She said that the department had only seen a competing proposal put together by the Dumbo Neighborhood Association “on the blogs,” but characterized the two plans as appearing to be fairly simi last week, but characterized the two plans as seeming “to be along similar lines.” Buildings up to 12 stories tall would allowed along Jay Street, with street level fronts rising to 6-8 stories. Buildings along Bridge Street could rise to 8 stories, with 4-6 stories at street level.

“This is the beginning of the process,” Ms. Kapur said, saying that the hope is to begin the land use review process in the fall and to have a plan ready for approval by Spring or Summer of 2009. She said that the Department was open to tweaking the proposal based on community feedback. “We’re open to listening to what the community’s concerns are and to what hasn’t been addressed.”

Given the recent landmarking of Dumbo, any new developments would have to be approved by the Landmarks Preservation Commission, adding an additional level of approval.

As we noted yesterday afternoon, the MTA sent out a reply via its Government and Community Relations staff downplaying the asbestos removal work that upset many Carroll Gardens residents over the weekend. The agency said that the work was done in a safe manner and that air monitoring showed acceptable levels of airborne contaminants. It noted that the only complaint was “an alleged open dumpster” (a photograph of the allegedly open door, which was one of about four that landed in our email box, is above) and said that the Department of Environmental Protection found the dumpster closed at 4PM. (A resident demanded that workers close it earlier in the afternoon, GL was told, long before DEP officials arrived. Before that it was open for hours.) City Council Member Bill de Blasio sent us a statement that said he was “troubled that New York City Transit chose to move forward with the asbestos removal near the Carroll Street station without informing the local elected officials or any of the community boards or residents” and added that “it is essential that the proper notification of the community take place.” One email we saw, however, indicated that the MTA’s own community relations staff was taken by surprise by the asbestos removal and subsequent barrage of email messages to local officials.

It is unclear whether residents fears were calmed by the MTA’s statement, which said the workers were “removing cable insulation, duct sleeves, duct seals and debris” and that nothing was detected in the air that exceeded state standards. Residents still appeared steamed about the lack of community notification as well as by the claims the dumpster was only “allegedly” open. As one resident put it, “The dumpster was open. There are plenty of pictures around to prove that. Why wasn’t any worker near it to prevent children or others from getting too close?” On the bright said, the MTA said the work is finished and they don’t anticipate doing more asbestos removal at the Carroll Street Station right now.

Related Story:
Subway Asbestos Removal Leaves Carroll Gardens Breathless

As the Toll Brothers firm seeks its own zoning approval for a big project on the Gowanus, a proposal for rezoning the neighborhood, which would create a framework for significant changes in the industrial neighborhood in the future, could be ready by late Spring or early Summer. (A number of meetings have taken place over the last year.) The likely time frame was noted by Brooklyn Planning Director Purnima Kapur. Ms. Kapur, in an interview with GL, said that additional community sessions would be held next month and that a draft plan would follow. “We’re going to go out next month and remind people where we were,” she said. “We’re working on a draft proposal. Our hope is to have it by the end of spring or summer.” The exact timetable depends on the extent of basic agreement or disagreement over the plan. “It’s a process of building consensus,” she said. A full land use review process will follow, once a draft plan is produced. The plan will determine which parts of Gowanus are rezoned to allow for residential development as well as the density of building that is allowed. The Toll Brothers firm is applying for separate land use approval to build a big Gowanus development. Their project would be considered before the overall Gowanus rezoning is in place.

The community meeting last night about the big Gowanus project proposed by the Toll Brothers firm that would leapfrog the actual neighborhood rezoning project, drew a big crowd and even attracted two representatives from the development company itself, included VP David Von Spreckleson. City Council Member Tony Avella held forth about the advantages that pro-development upzonings have over down zonings within the Bloomberg Administration, according to local blogger PMFA, who provided one account of the meeting. Community activist Phil de Paolo, who is a veteran of many North Brooklyn development and zoning debates also advised the Gowanus group. Community Board 6 District Manager Craig Hammerman described how the environmental review process for the development would work.

A full account of the session has been posted by our friend Gabby Warshawer at Brownstoner, who writes:

if the overflow crowd that filled the community room in St. Mary’s Star of the Sea Residences last night was any indication, there’s a great deal of fear in the community that those questions won’t be answered before the city gives Toll the go-ahead to build their project.

The Toll project would contain 577 units of housing in buildings up to 12 stories tall. Residents are organizing in advance of an early “scoping” hearing on an environmental impact study that must precede consideration of the Toll Brother proposal. The Toll Brothers officials noted that sale of the property for their development is contingent on it being rezoned for residential use. (The current zoning is for manufacturing uses.) PMFA describes the Toll representatives as growing “a bit testy when asked if they would reconsider and abandon the project if the neighborhood was against it.” One asked “if the neighborhood would rather continue living with a dirty canal than with the development, to which quite a few people said: yes.”

The Scoping Hearing will take place on March 13. There will be two sessions, one from 2:00 to 5:45 PM and one from 6:00 to 8:45 PM at the City of New York Department of City Planning, Spector Hall, 22 Reade Street, New York, New York 10007. Written comments will be accepted for ten days after the meeting.

[Photo courtesy of Pardon Me for Asking]