When we first got the email from the Neighbors Project about “Thank You For Shoveling Cards,” we thought it was some sort of snarky thing to leave the person down the block that doesn’t shovel the sidewalk in a timely way. Nope. It’s a way to thank the people that do. The front of the card is above and the back is below. The project even has its own website and you can order the cards and they’re free. Here’s what the email we got from Neighbors Project CEO Kit Hodges, who wants Brooklynites to know about the cards, said in part:

Snow both adds to the charm and creates a lot of frustration in Brownstone Brooklyn. And by snow, I mean snow removal. Now that it’s the snow season, your readers might be interested in our new, free “Thank you for shoveling” cards, designed to encourage your neighbors to shovel the sidewalks during the winter.

It’s easy to curse your neighbors when it takes you ten extra minutes to get to the subway in the morning because you have to wade through snow or jump over slush. We’re making it easy for people to do something constructive and neighborly about keeping their block shoveled this winter. We’ll send you cards, and all you have to do is drop them in the mailbox of your neighbors who shovel. A little positive reinforcement goes a long way towards making a snow-free and friendlier block. This definitely won’t work for people living in larger buildings controlled by a management company, like in downtown Brooklyn, but in mid- and low-rise areas with more homeowners, it’s a good solution to the eternal NYC neighborhood problem of sidewalks blocked by snow.

The effort is an offshoot of the Neighbors Project, which has been active in Chicago and is establishing a Brooklyn operation. It works to help organize activities to bring neighbors together. Here’s a bit about them from their website:

Neighbors Project is a growing movement of a generation of people living in cities with ambition and energy to improve their neighborhoods.

The movement was started in fall 2006 by a group of friends who were concerned about both the increasing polarization of our country due to expanding suburban sprawl and the polarization in our city neighborhoods due to increasing gentrification.

You can visit thankyouforshoveling.org by clicking here.

We didn’t expect to have this particular item about the former Giant Fart Cloud Building, aka 5 Roebling, this morning. We figured there would be another report of debris removal that might exceed the accepted parameters of debris removal. Instead, we got the following email at 10:19 PM:

One of my neighbors saw people dumping debris at the site and when I just got home, the cops were here and three guys were cuffed out front of the site!…I don’t know if someone called 911 or what.

We never realized there could be such a speedy police response to people dumping crap in the Burg (and will also point out that it appears outsiders were dumping at the site). On other Fart Cloud Building fronts, the Department of Buildings checked on after hours construction and work contrary to the Stop Work Order yesterday (the complaint had been made the day before) and found “no construction activity.” On the bright side, 311 may accept new complaints if there are any to be made. Any updates on FartGate as they become available.

Borough President Marty Markowitz’s former communications director has filed a lawsuit alleging that staffers on the city payroll were used to do campaign work and that there was “inappropriate sexual activity” by four employees and that she was discriminated against. The Daily News reported the story earlier this week and the Brooklyn Paper reports it today. Borough President Marty Markowitz’s office denies the charges:

“These unfounded claims should be taken in context — they are from a disgruntled former employee who was dismissed,” the statement read. “If served with court papers, we will address these baseless allegations in court. This office stands by its excellent EEO [Equal Employment Opportunity] record.”

The suit was filed by Regina Weiss, 50, who was forced from her job in 2006.

Check out Robert Mars’ cool collages of Coney Island. “Instead of trying to imagine Coney’s future, though, Robert Mars is commemorating its past. The Sunset Park artist (who contributed a book of prints to The Sampler) works within the school of California Pop Art, where Americana icons of the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s loom large. Using photography, old newspapers, vintage maps, brown paper bags and acrylics, his first body of collaged paintings focused on the ghosts of the highways: all those old neon motel signs, muscle cars, and every individually owned liquor store, auto body shop, and bowling alley that stands out from the sea of big box stores.”–Brooklyn Based

This vid was brought to our attention by the producer, who just posted it on YouTube. It’s a fun look inside the Arch at Grand Army Plaza, with puppets that have been stored there.

Bay Ridge’s 86th Street shopping strip, between Fourth and Fifth Avenues, commands the highest retail rents in Brooklyn, according to Sarah Ryley in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle–from $175 per square foot to $265. That is equivalent to prices on Michigan Avenue in Chicago. The figures come from Massey Knakal Realty Services. Fulton Street in Downtown Brooklyn and 49th Street between 13th and 16th Avenues in Kensington are not far behind, all commanding average retail rents higher than $150 per square foot. As for Bay Ridge, The Bay Ridge Rover writes that “The figures do come as something of a surprise, considering Chicago’s famed ‘Michigan Mile’ hosts such retailers as Chanel, Bloomingdales, Bulgari, Gucci, Paul Stuart and even Fileen’s Basement. Opposed to that of our own wide concentration of various banks, cellphone stores, smaller mom ‘n pop retailers such as ‘Expo 2000,’ ‘Forever21’ and other apparel stores specializing in all things stretch, lycra and glow-in-the-dark enabled.” We don’t know how the figures are broken down and how the most expensive blocks on Michigan Avenue break down, or whether these are averages, yet the comparison is still a fascinating one.

[Original photos courtesy of the excellent Bay Ridge Rover]

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

Deputy Mayor Dan Doctoroff Departure:

• Deputy Mayor Leaving to Run Bloomberg LP [NYT]
• A High Level Relationship Built on Trust [NYT]
• Doctoroff Leaves City Hall [NYDN]
• Right Hand Dan Quits [NYP]
• Doctoroff Departs for Bloomberg LP [amNY]
• Doctoroff Exits for Bloomberg LP [Sun]

Not Dan Doctoroff:

• Novo Park Slope Going Partially Rental? [Brownstoner]
• Thoughts on Bedford Avenue [New York Shitty]
• Magnificently, Roman’s Expert Shoe Repair is Not of This Era [Brooklynometry]
• Shar-Pei Rescued Wandering Brooklyn Streets [NYDN]
• Duffield St. Press Conference Pics [Duffield Street Underground]
• Brooklyn College Conference Center Open to Outsiders [Brooklyn Junction]
• Charles Barron Rips Into Marty Markowitz at Event [NYDN]
• In Search of the Holidays [Bed-Stuy Blog]
• Bay Ridge Holiday Illumination [Bay Ridge Rover]
• 3rd Ward Craft Fair on Saturday [Greenpointers]
• Print Money at Home, Try to Use It, Get Arrested [NYP]
• Waffle Truck Comes to Park Slope [A Brooklyn Life]

We were reading down a long list of luminaries being inducted into the New York City Hall of Fame this weekend, including names like chef Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and musician Tito Puente, when we came across a very figure from South Brooklyn: Craig Hammerman. Mr. Hammerman is the District Manager of Community Board 6 and is being inducted in the volunteerism category. Here’s what the press release says about him:

an extraordinary community volunteer who motivates and organizes citizens to solve problems and improve lives. His volunteer positions include: Chairman of the Board, Prospect Park Track Club; Ombudsman for the P.S. 372 PTA Executive Board; Park Slope Civic Council Trustee; Honorary member of the Police Department’s Honor Legion; and Founder and Executive Director of Friends of Brooklyn Community Board 6, Inc.

The induction ceremony is Saturday afternoon (12/8) in Flushing. Congratulations to Mr. Hammerman.

In case anyone is looking for something seasonal to do with the kids this weekend, the Winter Festival at Greenwood Playground will be happening on Saturday, December 8 from 10:30 AM – 12:30 PM. There will be story telling, crafts tables, face painting, “special snowman craft” instruction from the Brooklyn Museum and more, including hot chocolate and baked good from Crossroads Cafe. There will also be info about the Windsor Terrace Greenway Project and The Windsor Terrace Alliance! Greenwood Playground is on East 5th Street between Greenwood Avenue and Fort Hamilton Parkway, near the Fort Hamilton F train station. This event is organized by the Friends of Greenwood Playground.

[Photo courtesy of Icky in Brooklyn]

Carroll Gardens
[Photo courtesy of a special GL Correspondent]

We love the fact that so many Brooklyn neighborhoods are getting holiday gifts guides this year. Here are a dozen suggestions for doing your holiday shopping locally in Kensington. There’s everything from jewelry from a local designer to artisan goods.–Kensington (Brooklyn)

Cobble Hill, Brooklyn
[Photo courtesy of a special GL Correspondent]

“The section of Bay Ridge Parkway (also referred to as 75th Street) between 4th and 5th Avenues is often called ‘Doctor’s Row’ because of the high concentration of medical practitioners along the strip.” A block away, the cornice on a building notes the name as “Florence Row.”–Right in Bay Ridge

Williamsburg, Brooklyn

Enjoy a little video report that covers love and real estate in Carroll Gardens. It’s from the wonderful Rachel Natalie Klein at IntoTheBox.TV.

What is going on at 340 Court Street? Well, the photo, which was shot yesterday afternoon by a special GL Correpondent shows that a big dig is underway in the back of the former medical building that is going to be demolished. We also know that complaints have been filed with the Department of Buildings from people whose homes are shaking from bulldozers, saying that work is being done without a permit. There are no permits we could find filed on the project, so we’re assuming an excavation that doesn’t need a permit? So, what is going on at the former Long Island City Hospital building that is owned by the Clarett Group and that residents feared would turn out to be 21-story story building. (Which the developer says is a false fear, as a 6-7 structure is planned.)

The site of the former Giant Fart Cloud Building (aka 5 Roebling Street, which has partially been reduced to a flatulent pile of rubble) in Williamsburg become a very active place this week (complete with blowtorches cutting up steel in the night). So much so that blogger Bad Advice, whose building was threatened with damage before the Department of Buildings put a halt to the festivities, says that recent calls to 311 have been rejected. She writes in an email:

Now when I call 311 to report work going on for the third day in a row they won’t even take the complaint because they don’t like to duplicate complaints. They’re doing a whole lot more than removing debris.

There are five active complaints with the Department of Buildings, including several from this week. Frankly, while we understand a distaste for creating duplicate complaints, we’re rather flabbergasted that 311 operators would refuse to take complaints that refer to more activity on a different day and complaints that allege that more than debris removal is happening at one of Williamsburg’s more interesting demolition sites. How else can residents register evidence of possible problems–especially repeated ones? Further updates as they become available, as we don’t mind duplicating reports of late night work and activity that is alleged to perhaps be making a mockery of a Stop Work Order. The pattern of activity is even more interesting than a single incident.

This is one of the two barges that sank at the Ikea site in Red Hook recently. The Coast Guard writes that the barge pictured here, “which allegedly broke free from its mooring and may have struck the SEI 12, outfitted with an excavator crane, was used to remove steel from the demolition of a non-commercial pier in the Erie Basin.” (Our own theory is that the barges were put together with those special Ikea screws that can only be tightened with that L-shaped Ikea tool and the construction guys got frustrated and left some of the loose.) Other pictures of the Ikea-related sinkage can be found here and here. (The sinkings are not to be confused with the theft of one of the retailer’s big tools.) For the real hardcore Red Hook Ikea obsessive, the photo above can be sent as an e-card by clicking here. Go figure.

The Rider Report Card on the F Train came out without much fanfare or attention. Mostly, the line gets mediocre marks from riders: a fairly consistent bunch of C’s and D’s with not a single A in sight. The good news is the F didn’t get any F’s.–2nd Ave Sagas

The Park Slope Snowflake Celebration website is up and running, and it has a full list of the 100+ businesses that are participating in the December 13 late night of shopping and special sale in Park Slope. (The site lists the names of the stores, restaurants and cafes as well as any special discounts or offers.) Businesses on both Seventh Avenue and Fifth Avenue, as well as side streets are involved. The stores involved in the night are staying open until 10PM and some of them–including bars and restaurants–are offering specials.

No, not this kind of green. The kind of green that saves energy. The city is installing new energy-saving lighting on the Brooklyn Bridge. The 160 LED lights will use 24 watts of poer each rather than 100 watts for the current mercury bulbs, saving 24 tons of carbon dioxide emissions a year.–NYDN

That shot-up car with the busted out back window and blood stained interior that had sat in a bus stop at Union and Henry Streets for nearly two weeks is gone. The story of the car had made the Sun yesterday, with credit to Curbed, where we first posted it, and NY1 (which is heavily promoted by some bloggers) with no credit to or even generic mention of the source of the story. In any case, the GL special correspondent that first reported the issue and sent photos. writes: “Wednesday AM….bullet riddled SUV is GONE!”

Carroll Gardens blogger Pardon Me For Asking has a superb post today featuring the writing and recollections of a reader about growing up around the Gowanus Canal in the 1960s. It is special. We’re excerpting a few lines below, but if you have a few minutes to spend on reading something enjoyable today, then devote it to this post:

The Gowanus Canal used to be a great place to play…we used to jump on the sand and gravel barges. Pretty dumb now that I think about it, but you know, kids will be kids. The canal was absolutely filthy. On warm days, you could smell it for a half a mile or more. One time, my friends and I constructed a make-shift raft and paddled our way around the passage of the canal as far up as the Hamilton Avenue drawbridge. Each stroke of our paddles drew up such an awful smell that we figured it wasn’t worth the adventure and gave up. I can recall when I was really young, my father telling me that the man-made canal was actually a dry trench where mules used to pull coal and other materials. The mule team rider would crack his whip at them as the animals struggled with their heavy load. He would yell out GO ON ASS!!! GO ON ASS!!! Hence the name “Gowanus.”

So that’s how the canal got it’s name.

[Photo of Carroll Gardens and St. Agnes courtesy of a special GL friend]

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

• AY on BL: Would Atlantic Yards Be More Like Newark or MSG? [AYR]
• Ousted Arabic School Principal Loses Court Fight [Sun]
• Which Bank Will Branch Out at Royal Video Space on Flatbush? [Brownstoner]
• Remembering Comedian Rasheed Thurmond [NYDN]
• Flatbush 2030 Workshop Notes [Flatbush Gardener]
• Almost Tossing Bedbug Infested Crap Out Windows at the Astral [New York Shitty]
• Anybody Got Pics of Pine Scent Being Dumped in Bay Ridge Sewers? [Bay Ridge Blog]
• Nasty Manhattan Beach Civic Election Over, President Ousted [GerritsenBeach.Net]
• See Kinetic Carnival on Brian Lehrer’s TV Show This Week [Kinetic Carnival]
• Gowanus From the F Train [Velvet Sea]
• Weekly Brooklyn Food & Drink Roundup [Brownstoner]
• Check Out the Flat Bagels at Terrace Bagels [Brooklynometry]
• First Friday at RePop on Dec. 7 [Clinton Hill Blog]

Holiday-Related:

• Tis the Season on Montague Street [Brooklyn Heights Blog]
• High Budget Atlantic Ave. Decorations [BK 11201]
• Bay Ridge Illuminated [Bay Ridge Rover]

The new branch of the Union Market is getting close to opening at Seventh Avenue and 13th Street in Park Slope. “It’s looking like it’s getting pretty close – the fridges are in etc etc…”–Brooklynian