The censors officials at the Brooklyn Public Library have decided that some art from the Footprints show can’t be shown at the library. Is it gay-themed art or something overtly sexual? Nah. Just a depiction of Atlantic Yards as a toilet bowl, a portrait of Develop Don’t Destroy’s Daniel Goldstein and that sort of thing. The Library issued a bizarre statement explaining that they’re publicly-funded when The Real Estate asked them about the censorship the choice they made to exlude six works. That’s Donald O’Finn‘s censored excluded work to the right. (Horrifying, isn’t it? Are those turds floating in the crapper?) You can see the portrait of Daniel Goldstein that that Library won’t show here and one of Amy Greer’s photos here. (You can see DDDB’s statement here.)

Censorship, particularly crass and brainless politically-motivated censorship, is one of our hot button issues. We could even vaguely understand if they were keeping something awful and offensive from their walls, but they’re not exactly trying to spare the people of Brooklyn a depiction of the Virgin Mary surrounded by little vaginas and dung. No, this is self-interest and stupidity of the highest order. The Library, in its statement to The Real Estate, even vaguely tries to blame local gallery owners and artists for participating in the decision as part of a “selection committee.”

In deciding to ban these works, the Brooklyn Public Library is behaving like a little village library in 1980s Transylvania refusing to show a portrait of Nicolae Ceausescu wearing one of those funny noses with eyeglasses and mustache. Actually, we’re overstating the case–the backwoods Transylvanian Communist censors would have had a better excuse, either because they were true believers or because they were afraid of being dragged out into the forest by the Secret Police and shot for mocking Ceausescu. The people at the Brooklyn Public Library, on the other hand, are said to not want to offend Bruce Ratner as they are trying to suck up to him do some fundingraising development work so that he’ll bankroll their floundering BAM Cultural District project. (Perhaps as a follow-up they can block internet access to DDDB and other websites that are deeply critical of Atlantic Yards. It could be worth an extra four or five hundred G’s, minimum.)

Guess this means the “Free Speech Zone” installation the library hosted in 2004 was only an abstract idea? Well, yes, actually. The BPL has had some censorship issues with actual books in the past. For instance, this case, which made waves in September.

You can say we’re overreacting or that our knee just jerked up, but our opinion of the BPL has fallen because of this. On the positive side, we haven’t had a case of Brooklyn art censorship to mock and rant about in a while, and we haven’t been able to invoke Nicolae Ceausescu in a blog post before and truly miss writing columns about police state East Bloc countries, so in that sense the library has our gratitude.

We came across a couple of interesting bits of information about McCarren Pool yesterday. One came from an article in Metro about how management of the historic pool will be turned over to a conservancy run by the Open Space Alliance for North Brooklyn. That arrangement will probably start next year. The article noted that any money that’s made by promoting big concerts in the park will go to a fund to “improve green space” in Williamsburg and Greenpoint. (Note the story did not say to “improve McCarren Pool.”) This is interesting because other than a handful of community meetings, most of the planning process for events at the pool by the Parks Department has been going on behind closed doors. The other is that we found a job description included with the ads last month seeking a new director for the OSA. Among the duties would be designing plans “for interim uses of McCarren pool for the duration of its reconstruction.”

The rendering above, if you didn’t catch it yesterday on Daily Intel, is of the New Look Greenpoint-Williamsburg waterfont. This vision was presented by the city this week and has gotten relatively good reviews, apparently, from local groups, according to DI. Apparently, developers of three projects turned the open space over to the city, which did the design. The plan, according to Daily Intel, includes “boat launches, picnic grounds, wetland preserves, which are all things — like a more natural-looking waterfront, a bit of which is shown in the rendering above — community groups have been asking for.

The plan “integrates Greenpoint Terminal Market artifacts — like old ropes and bricks — into the park’s design.” The plan has been developed by Donna Walcavage Landscape Architecture + Urban Design and Weisz + Yoes Studio Architecture + Urban Design. Ms. Walcavage has been working extensively on Greenpoint-Williamsburg waterfront planning and made an detailed presentation last year on general outlines for the Greenpoint waterfront, the Bushwick Inlet park and a possible park between the inlet and the East River State park, some of which would be on land that would need to be extensively remediated. One part of that possible park parcel is the site of a former Manfactured Gas Plant. MGPs, as they are called, leave behind exceptionally toxic sites, full of things like coal tar and other goodies. (The “Public Place” site in Gowanus is an example.)

We are uncertain whether the towers that accompany the parks will be recieved as warmly by residents. Jasper Goldman of the Municipal Arts Society remarked that early renderings of the condo towers “looked like San Diego.”

Images:

• Awning Duel [Atomische]
• Gnarly Gowanus Reflection [e-liz/flickr]
• Hot and Buttery Desktop [Brit in Brooklyn]
• ESP Construction Corp. [Bluejake]
• Atlantic Avenue Lights [seriously excited!]
• No Words_Daily Pix [Hugh Crawford/OTBKB]
• Blue Train [Park Slope Street Photography]
• Gowanus Street Art [Food of the Future]
• Clean Society Cleaners [Clinton Hill Blog]

Words:

• Bloomberg Wary of Starrett City Buyer [Real Deal]
• In Coney Island, Mr. Sitt Learns From Mr. Ratner [AYR]
• Out-of-Control Park Slope Ankle Biters and Their Poopy Head Parents [Daily Slope]
• Brooklyn Public Library Drops (Censors) Anti-Atlantic Yards Art [Brooklyn Record]
• Library Says It’s Not Censorhip, Just Public Funding [TRE]
• Greepoint Oil Spill Suit with Cool Map [Gothamist]
• Second Elderly Brooklyn Woman Freezes to Death [NYDN]
• Fun at Methodist Hospital, Part II [I’m Seeing Green]
• Dumbo as Destination [Brooklyn Enthusiast]
• Romantic Brooklyn Valentine’s Day Restaurants [About Brooklyn]
• Going to Be a Great Ride in Coney [Brit in Brooklyn]

The city has formally asked developers to submit proposals for a residential tower of up to 20 stories at Ashland and Fulton in the BAM Cultural District. The development will include 150 apartments. The Danspace Project and retail space will occupy the first floor. Half the apartments will be affordable to low-, moderate-, and middle-income families, defined this way: 20 percent of the units must be affordable to households of four earning up to $56,700 or up to $39,700 for a single person. Another 30 percent have to be affordable to households of four earning up to $92,170 or up to $64,480 for a single person. The dance center will get 39,000 square feet. The overall BAM project is supposed to include The 200-seat Theater for a New Audience, a public plaza and underground parking. A Visual and Performing Arts Library is currently on hold. (The Brooklyn Public Library has had problems raising money for the facility, and its fundraising efforts may be connected to its censorship of several paintings and photos in an upcoming show of Atlantic Yards-related work that opens next week.)

The image above is from the blog Velvet Sea. The blogger writes, “How cold is it out there? Break out the ice skates cause it’s cold enough to freeze over the Gowanus Canal (or at least a portion of it). Who knew that 150 years worth of oil, mercury, PCB’s, and lead could actually freeze?” Most of the Big G is still ice-free. This is a basin off the main canal that runs behind the Whole Foods site, as viewed from Third Avenue.

Williamsburg, Brooklyn

We’ve been on the development site we have dubbed the Roebling Oil Field for some time since we were first attracted to it by the smell. We’d photographed the demolition of the building that used to be on the site, but hadn’t paid any particular mind to it until the digging began and an overpowering stench of oil began wafting from the big property on Roebling between N. 10th and N. 11th. We’ve posted about it more than a dozen times and were nearly eaten by a sidewalk sinkhole created by work at the site on New Year’s Eve while shooting photos.

Williamsburg activist Philip DePaolo has been following the site and has been working to bring it to the attention of Assem. Joe Lentol, whose staff has taken a look. An email from the Assemblyman’s office reads, in part:

I was told by DEC that black oil was found at the site on August 23 of last year. The contaminated soil was then removed from the site and another round of removal was scheduled (possibly completed by now). More soil testing was to follow that. A chemical agent called bio-solve has been used to treat the ground. Bio-solve is used for “petroleum remediation.” Because the building going up will be residential, I asked about danger to the future inhabitants. I was told that a vapor-barrier will be put in place as a precaution. A vapor-barrier is a heavy duty plastic liner that is placed in between the ground and the foundation. When I first came across that site, there was a distinct smell coming from the area along with a black sludgey substance covering some of the construction site. However, on a second visit a few weeks later, the area appeared to be cleaned up. Your photos indicate that more oil has surfaced.

In response, Mr. DePaolo writes:

Something is seriously wrong at this site. The fact that a foundation had been poured without proper mediation is VERY troubling. This site should be closed off till more testing is done.

The exchange took place this week, so the situation is ongoing.

Related Post:
Ground at Roebling Oil Field Still Oozing Black Slime

This was posted on Meathaus, which doesn’t normally cover planning and development or Coney Island. It’s bitter and funny and very much to the point. So good, in fact, that all we want to do is copy and paste:

NYC has been seeing a lot of local coverage of this story, and now the developer who has added to his Coney Island holdings through the purchase of Astroland has recently premiered the website The Future of Coney Island. Job growth, community revitalization and new opportunities for people are all good things. Building a new amusement park with shops, restaurants, hotels and condos isn’t necessarily bad either, if they do it right. But could they just respect the 100+ years of history of Coney Island a little and hire some new designers so that they don’t end up with crap like this?

For cryin’ out loud. Coney Island has a 100 years of awesome graphics, design, typography, signage, architecture, and history and this conceptual artist lays out a Times Square style glass and metal clusterfuck of ugly. Let me guess: they need all that cavernous retail space for the Dave and Buster’s, ESPN Zone, TGI Friday’s and Wal-Mart that will be moving in. Where did they get this designer anyway? Jack-O-Lantern on a bikini butt? Must be their idea of Coney wackiness. And don’t even get me started on the graphic for SPLASH! their proposed year-round indoor waterpark. Nice type, assface!

How about this: Try hiring some local old-school people to get involved, pay homage to the hand-painted signs and cartoons, get some of that Coney burlesque, freak show, neon, tattooed, vomit-encrusted, carnival, Russian junk store, hot dog eating contest, boardwalk flavor in there. Come on people. Get with it. And uh… good luck with that.

Rock on!

CONEY ISLAND BONUS: Kinetic Carnival reports that there will be some positive things happening in Coney Island during the Summer 2007 season. He says that Despite, what will probably be an emotional ‘last summer’ for some – lamenting Astroland’s last hurrah, a growing number of new empty lots, closed up stores, and long-gone rides – there will still be a few great things coming up this 2007 summer.

For one, the Cyclone turns 80 this year and there will be an on-going event planned around that. And there are also plans for the Astrotower to be the center of a guided tour with a Museum-in-the-Sky Aerial Photography exhibit. All this and a few other surprises coming this summer.

We’re not sure why we didn’t come across this until now, but in looking at things related to the sale of The Gallery Mall by Joe Sitt and Thor Equities, we came across an old story in Shopping Centers Today, which is published by the International Association of Shopping Centers. (Please don’t tune out yet, we’re doing this for a reason.)

Mr. Sitt often speaks in grand terms about his Coney Island vision. The $1.5 billion plan Thor has floated for Coney can be criticized for many things, but “thinking small,” is not among them. It’s in this context that his comments about and plans for The Gallery, which he sold this week for $125 million, are interesting. The story says, in part:

“We’re the only property in Brooklyn that’s got anywhere near the size that retailers need to come in [to the market],” [Mr. Sitt] said.

To be sure, there’s no longer anything murky about the three-level, 250,000-square-foot center’s layout and physical appearance. Much of the basement still awaits new tenants, but the center is no longer dark dimly lit.

Thor has installed floor-to-ceiling windows at the entrance and a huge skylight. There are granite floors, gold handrails and new signage. When everything is done, it will be a “Bellagio Hotel” of malls, Sitt says, referring to the posh hotel-casino in Las Vegas.

The two-level Toys ‘R’ Us is still the only major national tenant, but that will change soon, executives say. National women’s apparel chain Forever 21 has signed on and plans to open this month.

Sitt says he is talking to department stores, big-box tenants, specialty retailers and everything in between.

Besides renovations, the firm plans to add nearly 400,000 square feet of retail and a 39-story office and residential tower. When it’s completed in four years (at a cost of some $675 million), the center will comprise 1.4 million square feet of mixed-use space, says Sitt.

The “Bellagio Hotel of malls,” huh? Food for thought.

Related Post:
Sitt Speaks

We’ve been watching the progress of this building at 126 Fourth Avenue (at Baltic) and it seems like it was just a couple of floors worth of steel beam only months ago. (In point of fact, it was.) The building, which is on the site of a departed Exxon Station, is now approaching ten floors. The photo below is of the development site at the corner of Fourth Avenue and Warren, with our tall-ish friend in the background. The developer of the building at Fourth and Warren is Tona Development, the same firm building the Hotel le Bleu on Fourth Avenue.

New York State is preparing to sue ExxonMobil and four other companies over the toxic horror known as the Greenpoint Oil Spill and other environmental nightmares around Newtown Creek. There have been a number of suits by environmental groups, residents and local officials, but until this suit threated by Attorney General Andrew Cuomo the state had only had an “agreement” with Exxon about a cleanup. The spill–which is the nation’s largest–was “discovered” in 1978. It clocks in at 17 million to 30 million gallons (the Exxon Valdez only dumped 11 million gallons). The spill is thought to be under 55 acres of Greenpoint, but no one is really sure how far the “plume” has spread. Neighbors are apparently reacting with some skepticism about this latest development. Testing last year found benzene vapors, methane gas, etc. in homes. This suit is not to be confused with a new lawsuit over contaminated water that’s been dumped into Newtown Creek or these other suits. The suit has not yet been filed, however, and ExxonMobil can still “remedy” violations. You can read the press release from Riverkeeper, which is involved in other suits about the spill and has helped to keep the story in the public eye, by clicking here. The suit would go ahead under the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

Significantly, the state also intends to sue to other major contributors to the toxic mess around and in Newtown Creek that have nothing to do with the Greenpoint Oil Spill. They are KeySpan Corp., which is responsible for a former manufactured gas plant, and Phelps Dodge Corp., which operated a now-demolished copper smelting plant. Both facilities left behind their own toxic horrors.

Opponents of a mega-development on the site of The Gallery Mall–sold this week at a $100 million profit by Thor Equities–won’t have Wal-Mart to kick around. While the mall will be demolished to make way for a high-rise, both the city’s Economic Development Corporation and the new owners have said no to Wal-Mart. An anti- Wal-Mart in Brooklyn coalition announced an agreement with Albee Development LLC that means Wal-Mart in the new development. According to the New York Press:

“On the issue of Wal-Mart, the developer and their representatives acted in a professional and responsible manner hearing our concerns about the devastating effect a Wal-mart would have in Brooklyn,” stated UFCW Local 1500 President Bruce W. Both. “They have made it clear to us that there are no plans now, nor will their be in the future, to bring Wal-mart to the Albee Square Development.”

The new plan is for a mixed residential and office tower with retail, totaling 1.8 million square feet. The battle should now shift to tax breaks requested by the new developers.

When the Landmarks Commission met last week, it discussed the issue of landmarking McCarren Pool (which advocates have been trying to do for two decades), but took no action. The historic pool opened on July 31, 1936 and ceased operating as a pool in 1984. It was the eighth of eleven giant pools built by Robert Moses and the Works Progress Administration that opened during the summer of 1936, and was built to handle 6,800 swimmers.

The Commission has been accepting public comments on landmarking the pool and today (2/9) is the last day to submit comments. One way to do so is by clicking on this link, which will take you to Chair Robert Tierney’s email page. The next designation hearing doesn’t take place until mid-April, but there won’t be an agenda for a while.

Apartment Sale & Oil Suit:

• Starrett City Sold for $1.3 Billion [NYT]
• $1.3 Billion for Starrett City [Gothamist]
• High Starrett City Price Tags Fuels Fears Tenants May Be Forced Out [NYDN]
• Starrett City Sold for $1.3B [Sun]
• 39 Starrett City Sale Stories [Google News]
• ExxonMobil to Face Lawsuit by New York in Greenpoint Oil Spill [Bloomberg]
• New York Moves Toward Suit Over a 50-Year-Old Oil Spill [NYT]
• After Waiting 50 Years for Action, Neighbors are Skeptical [NYT]
• Cuomo Sez, Clean It or I’ll Sue [NYDN]
• New York to Sue Over Oil Spill Cleanup [Business Week]
• 158 Greenpoint Oil Spill Lawsuit Stories [Google News]

Everything Else:

• I Overkill, Madly, Because Mainstream Media Has Ignored Atlantic Yards [AYR]
• Bloomberg’s Stand on Eminent Domain [No Land Grab]
• Another Child Killed by a Truck in Sunset Park [7online]
• Early Morning Bay Ridge Blaze Kills Two Little Girls [Sun]
• The Ghost Bike Project [Brooklyn Rail]
• Thor Dishes Out Their Future of Coney Website [Kinetic Carnival]
• The “New Coney Island” Gets a Website [Gothamist]
• The Fire at 110 Livingston [53 Boerum]
• Competition for Fresh Direct [Brooklyn Record]
• Get Some Deep Local [OTBKB]
• Monteleone and Cammareri Playing Hard to Get [Lost City]
• Construction [Clinton Hill Blog]

[Photo courtesy keylimesteve/flickr]

Our trips to photograph the Revere Sugar plant being demolished by Thor Equities in Red Hook are generally confined to the weekends. So, we look forward to seeing weekday photos made by keylimesteve and others. Steve calls this photo, “Chilling View” and writes that “Freezing temps cause the water between Beard Street and the former Revere Sugar Refinery to freeze over. Weather keeps the cutter’s torch stowed away, but Week’s Marine stays on the charge.” A couple more icy Red Hook visions here and here.

If you didn’t know anything about Ikea’s massive construction project on Beard Street in Red Hook and saw the sign that was posted on the big blue construction fence, you would think that the Swedish retailer was doing some excellent archeological and historic preservation on the site. The sign pictured above, with the excellent “you are here” arrows, appeared sometime during the last week near the former site of Graving Dock No. 2, which was filled in 1976. (Click here to see a larger version of the photo, which will allow you to easily read what it says.) Ikea’s construction of a vast parking lot might unearth some relics from Graving Dock No. 2, so “professional archeologists” are monitoring the work. What the sign doesn’t mention, of course, is that Graving Dock No. 1 is being filled in by Ikea, also for its parking lot. Or that the filling of Graving Dock No. 1 has created an outcry among preservationists, some residents and those who would like to see it remain as a working facility.

No word on whether anyone is monitoring or creating a record of the process of turning the graving dock into a parking lot for a future generation of “professional archeologists.”

The website called thefutureofconeyisland.com, which is registered to Thor Equity’s PR firm, The Marino Organization, has launched. The site focuses on new amusements, job opportunities, community and retail opportunities. It omits mention of more controversial plans to develop luxury housing highrises on the boardwalk. The site is heavy on images of published print media stories that have featured early renderings of Thor’s Coney vision. (The URL was included in the “grassroots” Future of Coney Island mailings that have been hitting Brooklyn mailboxes.) Those are screen caps of the site above and below.

Related Post:
Mail From Mr. Sitt: Deliberately “Grassroots” Look?

Gowanus Lounge would be indebted to the reader that can tell us what the heck is exactly going at this building on Fourth Avenue, which has become progressively more vacant and boarded up as time has gone on. We certainly can guess what’s going on here–the building is being cleared of tenants so that it can become a development site. But does anyone know the back story of these buildings, which are on Fourth Avenue between Douglass and Butler (Number 150-158)? The buildings changed hands on June 21, 2006, and are owned by 150 4th Ave. Realty Corp. LLC, which appears to be the longtime owner in different corporate form. The occupied buildings on either end are under different ownership.

It’s hard to know exactly how many headlines around the country and the world State Sen. Carl Kruger’s proposal to ban walking while listening to an iPod or talking on a cell phone has generated. The thumbnail of the story is that the Senator wants to impose a $100 fine for the offense. His proposal has drawn everything from support to outrage to knee slapping laughter. (Sen. Kruger’s district includes Brighton Beach, Manhattan Beach, Mill Basin, Bergen Beach and other neighborhoods in Southern Brooklyn.) The story has spread far and wide. The headline China Daily put on the Reuters story was “New York May Ban iPods While Crossing Street.” Daily India.com headlined the story, “Lawmaker Wants to Outlaw Street Grooves.” As of 7:30AM this morning, searching for “Carl Kruger” on Google News produced more than 400 stories. Searching for “iPod ban” produces slightly more. Most of the stories have mocking headlines like “State Senator Aims to Ban ‘Walking While Talking'” and “Warning: Be on the Lookout for Killer iPods.” There are also more than a few references to walking and chewing gum at the same time. Some ideas simply seem to get more attention than others.

Some of the local headlines are as follows:
Ya Hear This One? [NYDN]
A Crazy Idea That Just May Work [Sun]
Walk, But Don’t Use Your iPod, Cell or Blackberry [Gothamist]
iPod Limits on Tap? [amNY]
Listen to This [Metro]

The times they are absolutely changing. Who would have thought they’d live to see the day when there was a hotel in Gowanus–one that the developer has promoted as having “breathtaking views” of the Big G–called Hotel le Bleu? On Fourth Avenue, next to Staples and Pep Boys and behind a Yellow Cab Depot.

Holy crap.

We say all this as an excuse to share this basic information (oh, and nightly room rates are said to be in the high $200s a night to the low $300s) and to run the photo above of Hotel le Bleu as it nears completion. We will avoid the temptation to say something snide about le Bleu’s view of la merde in the Gowanus. The latter resulting from nasty sewage issues that will only get worse without a plan and action, not to mention the possible adverse impact of a certain development.

The Finger Building, which came to symbolize change in Williamsburg because of the way it towers over its neighbors, will be staying at its current height of ten stories. In addition to its height, the building was known for the towering crane that appeared on N. 7th Street in the summer of 2005, but it has been tied up in litigation for some time as the developer went to court to try to grow the Finger to 16 stories. On Tuesday, a Brooklyn judge ruled against the developer, Mendel Brach. The case hinged on the question of roof decks that Mr. Brach and architect Robert Scarano built over some adjoining buildings. Two property owners objected, saying they didn’t have a right to build. The ‘open space’ from the decks would have allowed a building taller than ten stories under zoning regulations. The judge said no and sided with the property owners. There could be a trial and a different decision, but the consensus is that it’s now highly unlikely the Finger will go beyond the current ten stories.

Brooklinks is a daily selection of Brooklyn-related information and images. On Thursday, we focus on food.

Food:

• Getting Medieval at Greenpoint’s Krolewskie Jadlo [Porkchop Express]
• Donna DaVine Wine Bar on Atlantic is Excellent Addition [Chowhound]
• Mazzat is Worth it “for the Atmosphere Alone” [Gothamist]
• A Boatload of Brooklyn Valentine’s Day Dining Options [Courier Life]
• V-Day in Brooklyn [ABL]
• Park Slope’s Miriam Taking Over Hill Diner Space [Chowhound]
• New Restaurant Search Engine is “Zagat’s on Steroids” [Brooklyn Enthusiast]
• Wednesday Food & Drink Roundup [Brooklyn Record]
• Yummy Taco’s Chinese Mexican: Explosive Farts [Clean Plate Club]
• The Banned Chowhound Post on Franny’s [Eater]
• Rebar Open in Dumbo’s Retreat [Gothamist]
• Kate’s Joint in Williamsburg: “Cold,” “Utterly Charmless” & Hit or Miss [EFB]

Atlantic Yards:

• Judge Poses Tough Questions to Atlantic Yards Supporters [Sun]
• First Courtroom Shots in Atlantic Yards Suit [NYDN]
• The Mad Overkiller Speaks [TRE]

Everything Else:

• Markowitz Says He Doesn’t Know OTBKB, Park Slope 100 [OTBKB]
• …And I Wasn’t Really Ready for My Close Up [OTBKB]
• PLG Photogs Get Some Publicity [Across the Park]
• Don’t Block the Bus [Myrtle Minutes]
• Monsignor’s Space in Greenpoint Gets Rented [Test of Will]
• Merchants Stunned by Plans to Demolish Albee Square Mall for Highrise [NYDN]
• Dumbo BID Wants to Reroute the B25 [Dumbo NYC]
• Moments in Coney Island [Secret Toilet]
• Methodist Hospital Hilarities, Part I [I’m Seeing Green]
• 40th District Candidate’s Forum Tonight [Flatbush Gardener]
• MTV Coming to Brooklyn Tech [NYDN]

While Coney Island boardwalk mainstays such as Ruby’s Bar & Grill and Cha Cha’s have been given a stay of execution until the end of the 2007 summer season by Thor Equities, at least one business has been given the boot: the Lola Staar Boutique. Apparently, the boutique’s owner has been evicted. The eviction is particularly puzzling since the entrepreneur behind the boutique has been relatively supportive of Thor’s redevelopment plans. (The photo above, taken this weekend, shows the Lola Staar boardwalk location–which is the doorway surrounded by pink on the left. It no longer has a sign.)

Given that the Lola Staar store is one of the gems of Coney Island–a unique establishment that sells original Coney merchandise–the fact that it will not be there this summer raises interesting questions about Thor’s vision for the neighborhood. The boutique is hoping for a new home in Coney Island for the summer season, but finding boardwalk space that is not controlled by Thor is virtually impossible.

Thor has already evicted a number of tenants on its property and demolitions and land clearance are underway.

While it’s “only” one store, the loss of a business headed by a creative entrepreneur is a very, very, very bad omen for the neighborhood’s small and independent operators. We have said it before and we will say it again–having such large pieces of real estate in a neighborhood under the control of one landlord or developer is a very bad idea both in terms of the project that results and in terms of its impact on businesses. The challenge for Lola Staar and for other Coney businesses or enterprises that wish to move to Coney Island, but that can not meet the developers terms for one reason or another, will be to find quality space that is owned by another firm. In Coney’s core along the boardwalk, that will be all but impossible to do.

You can visit Lola Staar online for a look at her wonderful designs and original Coney Island products.

Related Post:
Lola Staar Founder Talks About Coney Island
Coney Island Death Watch: Early Demoltion Porn

Don’t look now, but there’s some good old-fashioned hyperlocal neighborhood conflict brewing over a firehouse in Park Slope. The disagreement comes from 11th Street, where neighbors are upset about plans to temporarily house another engine company in the firehouse that is home to Engine 220 and Ladder 122. The temporarily homeless fire company is Engine 239, whose home base on Fourth Avenue and Sixth Street is being renovated. The planned move–which will happen in about six weeks and last for 12-18 months–has drawn responses ranging from concern to outright hostility from neighbors on 11th Street. Members of the 11th Street Block Association turned out in full force to meet with representatives from the Fire Department at a recent meeting of the Park Slope Civic Council, which seemed to have been drafted into hosting the Fire Department and Block Association so they could talk through their differences. Neighborhood concerns ranged from increased parking problems as more firefighters come to work to noise and safety issues as more emergency responses come from the 11th Street firehouse.

Neither side had talked before the meeting, with residents saying they were upset that they hadn’t been consulted in advance and FDNY representatives saying they were doing everything the could (short of scuttling the temporary move) to make the situation as tolerable as possible. “We’re going to do everything we can to make this inconvenience as slight as possible,” said the FDNY’s Paul Gaughin, who is in charge of the Department’s City Planning Desk. “We’re investigating every option to not imposition anyone on 11th Street.”

“The main issue for us is a general quality of life issue,” said 11th Street Block Association President Mark Gordon. “Adding a third vehicle will signficantly impact our quality of life…We feel this is a significant issue that should have been addressed in a formal way.”

Residents asked the FDNY to consider moving the Fourth Avenue fire company to a different location, to obtain additional parking for firefighters in front of a local church and to install a “pre-emptor” for traffic signals so that firefighters could turn lights red when responding to calls and use sirens less frequently.

Discussion continues.