Our own Brookvid yesterday, dealt with Coney Island, so it’s only fitting to run this fascinating video of Coney Island in the 1940s. This came to our attention courtesy of Kinetic Carnival, a wonderful blog that focuses on Coney Island. In any case, you can watch this by clicking on the embed, clicking on this link or venturing over to Kinetic Carnival, which is worth the click in any case.

Here’s the second video in our new Brookvids Series. This is five minutes and 13 seconds at Coney Island at the end of the Summer of 2006, which may, or may not, be the last summer for Coney in its current form. The camera work is, um, evolving (we’re good with photos and words), but we learn fast and we’ve actually edited this one a bit (!!!) and put some TV on the Radio under it. It’s all part of our effort to create our own unique Brooklyn videos–Brookvids– and add them to our blogging mix. Watch by clicking on the embed or on this link. Enjoy. Hopefully.

This is a cool weekend for Brooklyn neighborhood events, so get out there and enjoy yourself, especially if you can clone yourself to be at several events at the same time. Today, we have the Brooklyn Book Festival, going on at Borough Hall. You can check out all the details over at the Brooklyn Record, which has covered it heavily or here, at Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn, which provides a detailed schedule. For those that are not so literarily inclined, there is the Sunset Park Waterfront Festival, which should be an enjoyable event and a good excuse to get out by the water in Sunset Park. The 8th Annual Waterfront Festival takes place today (9/16) from 11:00AM-6PM on the Brooklyn Army Terminal Pier at 1st Ave. and 58th Street.

Tomorrow, of course, there is the grandaddy of all streetfairs, the Atlantic Antic. As much as we loathe the average NYC street fair, and are actually cheered by the passing of street fair season, the Atlantic Antic is one of those rare events that retains a neighborhood flavor. It’s also humongous. While the Antic is going on, the Transit Museum, which is only a couple of blocks from the action, will be showcasing vintage and other interesting buses and offering free admission. Check out the Brooklyn Record’s item on it for details.

Do not forget the Conflux Festival, which is going on a various locations in Williamsburg through tomorrow (9/17). Conflux has already been up and running for a couple of days, but there are a ton of interesting events today and Sunday. If you don’t know, Conflux is, in its own words, “The annual NYC festival for contemporary psychogeography where international artists, technologists, urban adventurers and the public put investigations of everyday city life into practice on the streets.”

There’s also a free concert today at Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park in Dumbo, featuring Suzanne Vega, among others, dedication to immigration. That runs from 4-7, with gates opening at 3:15. Tomorrow, there are free dance performances crafted specifically for the park.

Visual:

• Disgusting Pig Roasting Outside Rosewater in Park Slope [Daily Slope]
• Roasting Pig Porn [Sugar Pond/flickr]
• Those Who Work [Callalillie]
• Kentile Spy [Lex’s Folly]
• This is Why I Live in Greenpoint [newyorkshitty]
• Pulaski Bridge Panoramic [justiNYC]
• Another Colorful Truck [Test of Will]
• Upper Upper Greenpoint Art [justiNYC]
• Gowanus from the Ground [e-liz/flickr]

Frantic for the Antic (and the Brooklyn Book Festival):

• Atlantic Antic Details [About Brooklyn]
• New Brew to Debut at the Antic [Brooklyn Record]
• Don’t Forget the Atlantic Antic [OTBKB]
• Book Fest Info [Brooklyn Heights Blog]
• Book Fest Events for Kids [Brooklyn Record]
• Blogging the Book Fest (and Detailed Schedule) [OTBKB]

None of the Above:

• No Evidence to Say ‘Atlantic Yards “wins by a mile’ [AYR]
• Study Finds Chemical Vapors Under Greenpoint Because of Oil Spill [NYPost]
• Doctoroff Cuts Ribbon on Gowanus Holiday Inn Express [Market Wire via No Land Grab]
• Brooklyn Links: Fishin’ Edition [Until Monday: Bkln]
• Richard Meier Sort of Criticizes Frank Gehry (in a Backhanded Way) [Brooklyn Papers]

Why Prospect Heights Rocks: Louder Orgasms
Graphic Evidence Park Slope & Gowanus are Different
Prospect Park Rat Olympics
Carroll Gardens Lizard
Marrying a Williamsburg Open House to an Art Show
Marketing Fun: Ignore the Cemetery Next Door
Dumbo Market is Still Blazing (For Now)

Is it curtains for the Red Hook Graving Dock? Could be. B61 Productions is reporting a tip that big box Swedish retailer Ikea has started filling in the ship repair facility on the site of the former Todd Shipyard, which has now been entirely reduced to big piles of rubble. Neighborhood advocates and others have been lobbying to save the Graving Dock, which many argue is vital to keeping a healthy maritime industry in New York City. B61 says:

Despite pleas from a group collectively known as the “Save the Graving Dock Committee,” IKEA has remained steadfast in their intent to pave over the maritime structure…As one of the New York Preservation Society’s “Seven to Save,” the dock garnered interest from preservationists and local maritime advocates before and after the City Council approved the project.

Ikea maintains it has to fill the Graving Dock in order to use it as a parking lot. The retailer rejected suggestions that it build a parking garage elsewhere on the big property.

[Photo courtesy of John Bartelstone]

Related Posts:
Red Hook Graving Dock Future: Ikea Parking Lot?

Actually, make that D-E-A-T-H:

First, came the promo material for The Edge, promoting the 1.5 million square feet of new construction that will be part of Douglaston Development’s highrise project. The original rumor was that they were opening a sales office on Bedford Avenue, but that turned out to be wrong.

North8 Condos and the Toll Brothers are the ones opening the sales office in the storefront that used to be occupied by Spacial. This week, Toll Brothers sort of opened up the website for North8 (screencap above). Meanwhile, photoblogger justiNYC walked over and shot some photos of the New Look Williamsburg in the sales office.

The other shoe also dropped this week when the website for Northside Piers, which is the highrise Toll Brothers waterfront development, appeared. That’s the groovy screencap above.

All in all, a bad week for the Williamsburg many of us have grown to know and love, and a very good week, indeed, for those wishing to buy those $1M waterfront condos.

The first screencap below is from the Northside Piers website, the second is another shot from the North8 site.

Groovy.

Northside Piers

North8

Tops Picks of the Rainy Day:

• Last Call for Coney Island as Summer Winds Down [NY1]
• Best Brooklyn Car Service? [Brooklyn Record]
• Ditmas Park Mom Hassled Over Breast Feeding by ‘Boobs’ at Toys ‘R Us [NYDN]
• ‘Toys R Us Fury’: Employees Try to Stop Brooklyn Mom From Breast Feeding [NYPost]

Other Excellent Choices:

• Luxury Condos Come to Windsor Terrace [Brownstoner]
• Dying to Live in Brooklyn [NYDN]
• Forest City CEO: Crain’s Poll a Boost [AYR]
• Editorial: ‘Atlantic Yards Wins by a Mile’ [NYDN]
• Sunset Park Has Big Role in NYC Housing Plans [Sunset Parker]
• Lawyer Says Guttman Greenpoint Charges One of a Kind [NYPost]
• Dinner at Al di La and Rogue Wave at Warsaw [Park Slope Gastronome]
• Coastal Clean Up Day in Brooklyn Bridge Park [Until Monday: Bkln]
• Wiliamburgh Bank Finger Gets Veil [Englishman in New York]
• Princess Introduces Motor Coach Service to Red Hook Cruise Terminal [Cruise Ship]

We also strongly suggest the Brooklyn Animal Rescue Coalition (BARC), which is based in Williamsburg.

For those who glance at them–or for those that don’t–the Missed Connections section on Craigslist is the ultimate chronicle of ships passing in the night. They’re either heartbreaking or hysterical or a little of both at the same time. The Brooklyn selection is especially rich, natch, and one could devote some time analyzing the trends. (What places generate the most, which neighborhoods are hotbeds of missed connections, which train lines lead to more, etc.) One early conclusion is that the subway is a top spot, but that’s sort of a no-brainer, isn’t it?

In any case, here’s one that struck our fancy, titled “F train transfer to A/C…been seeing you in the morning for years… – w4m – 30”

For some reason, the Brooklyn entries are Okay, so I used to see you on the train all the time. (I get on the F at Bergen – you’re already on – and we both would transfer to the A/C at Borough Hall.) I used to work up on 8th ave and 34th. Then I started freelancing. But it seems every time I get on the F at 9:30ish in the morning, there you are – what the hell? Are you stalking me?

No, obviously you’re not. You just happen to have held the same job and apartment in NYC for more then 1 year straight – amazing!

Anywho, I saw you again this morning for the first time in a long time. I was on my way to freelance at a theatre in Soho (where I actually saw you attending a puppet show once). I totally embarrassed myself by catapulting my cell phone across the train in a loud and obtrusive manner…

Well, I suppose I should make it clearer to you (or maybe your friends who read this crap at work when they are procrastinating…) who I am talking about.

YOU: shaved head, buddy holly type glasses, slightly rockabilly/ska/rude boy style, must work somewhere in soho near canal street A/C stop.

ME: curvy, cute, various styles and shades of pink hair (as of late a fauxhawk-type thing), cat eye glasses, nose ring, funky style, get on F at Bergen.

What else? Wow, I never do this. You probably will never see this anyway…I’m going to stop now.

If you do see this, email me if you feel like it. Just cause it’s too random…Really.

Poignant.

Honorable Mention:
La Bagel Delite!
We locked eyes on 3rd Street on Seventh Avenue yesterday

Call us uninformed, but we had no idea that there even was a Kurdish Library and Museum in Prospect Heights, let alone that it holds one of the largest collections of Kurdish materials and artifacts in the Western Hemisphere, until the Municipal Arts Society included it as one of their “Place That Matters of the Week.” We’ll let the good people at the MAS explain:

Vera Beaudin Saedpour founded and collected the material for the Kurdish Library and Museum, at 144 Underhill Ave. The space overflows with Kurdish rugs and textiles, artwork and artifacts, texts and manuscripts. It’s house as museum — but, unlike typical “house museums,” it’s dedicated to people from a region some 6,000 miles away.

Ms. Saedpour still runs the library, as well as editing a pair of publications about Kurds. You can visit the library from 1:00 – 5:00 p.m., Sunday through Thursday, and learn more about the Kurds. (Beware, though — there’s no catalogue of any kind.) Or you can visit just to see a unique New York institution. (The library’s phone number is 718-783-7930; calling ahead may be wise.)

The “Place That Matters” series has included the wonderful Lemon Ice King of Corona and the unique Footbridge Across Sheepshead Bay.

Brooklyn is one writing borough, so it’s fitting that the first annual Brooklyn Literary Festival will be happening on Saturday, September 16 from 10AM to 6PM in the at Borough Hall. The festival list of writers includes Jonathan Ames, Ann Brashares, Colin Channer, Jennifer Egan, Nelson George, Yusef Komunyakaa, Nicole Krauss, Jhumpa Lahiri, Philip Lopate, Rick Moody, Nelly Rosario, Toure and Colson Whitehead. There will be tree outdoor stages for panel discussions, performances and children’s programming. Indoor rooms in Borough Hall will be used for author readings and areas will be reserved for signings. Several local independent bookstores will be selling, and there will be 100 exhibitors, including publishers Seven Stories, Feminist Press, New York University Press, Graywolf, PowerHouse Books, and literary organizations like the Small Press Center. Gawker served up the recipe a little more, um, amusingly recently, suggesting “Place bylines and egos in Borough Hall; stir for three seconds or until pretentious. Serve chilled.”

Food, Yo:

• “Reverential Compliance” at Anna Maria Pizza in Williamsburg [NYT]
• Guilty Secret: I Ate Ice Cream Cake [A Brooklyn Life]
• PT, New Italian on S. 3rd in Williamsburg [Chowhound]
• Made in Brooklyn: Wine Cellar Sorbets [Until Monday: Bkln]
• Flatbush Farms Kicks Plush Luscious Butt [Daily Heights]
• One Girl Cookie v. J. Torres v. Princeton Ice Cream Sandwiches [Clean Plate Club]
• Wednesday Food and Drink Round-Up [Brooklyn Record]
• Delicious Jackson Heights [423 Smith]
• Neon Presto and Sweet Melissa Now Open [OTBKB]
• Bobbie Flay Shows Up at Red Hook Ballfields [More Than Donuts via Curbed]

Not Food, Yo:

• Election Results Not an Atlantic Yard Referendum, but Not Endorsement Either [AYR]
• Atlantic Yards Game Plan [The Real Estate]
• 250 May Lose Jobs With Greenpoint Factory Closing [NYDN]
• Rats Dig Brownstone Living Too [Brooklyn Record]
• Prospect Park Rat Olympics [Curbed]
• Look at the New North8 Condos Storefront on Bedford Avenue [justiNYC]
• Hell on Earth: Adelphi Station Post Office [Clinton Hill Blog]
• Loom on Seventh Avenue in Park Slope Really Sucks [Park Slope Msg Board]
• End Run on Leash Laws: Not a Done Deal? [Daily Slope]

We thought this would be a good time to report a few events and volunteer opportunities in Prospect Park culled from the emails from the Prospect Park Alliance that periodically arrive in our inbox. The first event, International Coastal Clean-Up Day, is happening on Saturday, September 16 from 10AM-2PM. The Prospect Park Alliance is looking for volunteers to help clean the shoreline of the lake in Prospect Park, which is Brooklyn’s only freshwater lake and is actually an important wildlife habitat (and a cool place to chill). Volunteers are meeting at the Rustic Shelter by the Lake, easily reached by entering the park at Ocean & Parkside Avenues. Call the Park’s Volunteer Office at (718) 965-8960 for more information.

The other interesting event is billed as “A Refugee Camp in the Heart of the City,” which is sponsored by Doctors Without Borders and starts on Wednesday, September 20 and runs through Sunday, September 24 from 9:30AM to 6:30PM every day. “Visitors to this outdoor educational exhibit are asked to imagine that they are among the millions of people fleeing violence and persecution around the world,” an Alliance press release says. (Globally, 33 million people are either refugees or displaced within their own countries.) The exhibit is made up of materials used by Doctors Without Borders in its emergency medical work around the world, including emergency refugee housing, a food distribution tent, water pump, health clinic, vaccination tent, therapeutic feeding center, and a cholera treatment center. It’s free and locatedon the Long Meadow, which can be reached by entering the park from Grand Army Plaza or from Garfield Place and Prospect Park West. The “refugee camp” is in Central Park September 15-17. More information at Doctors Without Borders.

Looking ahead to October, the annual Halloween Haunted Walk and Carnival happens on October 28.

Primary day was not a terribly good one for opponents of the Atlantic Yards mega-development, although it would be a mistake to read too much into the results. The most vocal anti-project candidate, Bill Batson came in a distant second in the race for the 57th Assembly District . The race was won by Hakeem Jeffries, with 64 percent of the vote to Batson’s 25 percent. In the contentious 25th Senate District, challenger Ken Diamondstone, who has been a vocal opponent of Atlantic Yards, lost to incumbent State Sen. Martin Connor.

The big news of the night, of course, was the victory in the nasty and close 11th Congressional District by Yvette Clarke with 31 percent of the vote over David Yassky, Carl Andrews and Chris Owens. Mr. Owens, another Atlantic Yards opponent, came in fourth. In the 10th Congressional District, Atlantic Yards opponent Charles Barron made more of a showing, but still lost to incumbent Edolphus Towns by about ten points.

The one silver lining yesterday for project opponents was the big victory of State Sen. Velmanette Montgomery (pictured here) who easily beat back a challenge in the 18th District from a Ratner-aligned (some would say Ratner-sponsored) candidate, Tracy Boyland. Another more-or-less Atlantic Yards opponent, Eric Adams, won handily in the 20th State Senate District. (All of the primary results can be found here.)

What messages does the primary send? It’s hard to draw any conclusions from the Congressional races, which were dominated by their own issues. In terms of Mr. Batson’s defeat, one can argue that poorly-funded grassroots candidates rarely fare well against candidates with more money and mainstream support. Yet, it would seem that, at least in terms of the Primary, large numbers of people did not turn out to vote based on their opposition to Atlantic Yards.

Other Brooklyn lodgings are coming too. There’s another hotel, said to be a Comfort Inn, coming to Butler Street near Wyckoff Gardens and the Gowanus Houses. The Brooklyn Marriott is opening a 282-room extension and the Smith Hotel will be opening as part of Boymelgreen’s 75 Smith Street luxury condo development. There are also hotels said to be coming to Williamsburg, including a very large one that has been rumored, but about which there’s nothing solid.

Call it the Brooklyn hotel boom.

Related Posts:
Yet Another Gowanus Hotel is on the Rise
Gowanus Don’t Get No Respect, At Least From Holiday Inn

Election:

• 2006 Primary Election Results [Gotham Gazette]
• Primary Election Results [7 Online]
• Clarke Takes Hot Race for Congressional Seat [NYPost]
• Clarke Wins Nasty Race in Brooklyn [NYDN]
• Councilwoman Wins Primary for House Seat [NYT]
• Clarke Wins Brooklyn Brawl, is on Her Way to Congress [CQ Politics]
• Clarke Edges Out Yassky in Close Vote [Sun]
• Jeffries Beats Batson, Other Atlantic Yards-Related Outcomes [NYT]

Not Election:

• Atlantic Yards Election Day Forum Brief and Low-Key [AYR]
• Minerva Building Finally Killed [Preservation Perspectives]
• City Revokes Construction Permit for Minerva Building [NYDN]
• 200 Miles of New Bike Lanes in Next Three Years [StreetsBlog]
• Whew: Broker Says It’s Okay to Drive By Building Before Open House [Across the Park]
• Selling Condos at Death’s Door AKA Green-Wood Cemetery [IMBY]
• Greenpoint Landlord Guttman’s Worker Backs into Car [Brooklyn Record]
• Going Corporate on Havemeyer [Brownstoner]
• Everything You Always Wanted to Know About FAR [The Built Environment]

As it turns out, the Empire State Development Corporation’s “community forum” on the Atlantic Yards development bore only passing similarity to the “raucous” public hearing held on August 23. The New York Times described the meeting as “small and civil,” and largely dominated by supporters of the project as many opponents stayed away:

Previous hearings have generally been both oversubscribed and highly uncivil, but many of yesterday’s attendees were able to speak nearly uninterrupted by boos or catcalls.

But that discussion was largely one-sided. Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn, the umbrella organization for individuals and groups opposed to the project, called on opponents to boycott yesterday’s meeting, urging them instead to “participate in the electoral process.”

Norman Oder, in Atlantic Yards Report described it like this:

If a Martian had attended the community forum yesterday on the Atlantic Yards plan, the visitor would’ve concluded that citizens—except for a group of construction workers, a few community activists, two happy property sellers, and some other locals—weren’t much exercised about what would be the largest development in the history of Brooklyn.

There were perhaps 125 people in New York City Tech’s Klitgord Auditorium in Downtown Brooklyn, a room that can hold more than 800, and the mostly low-key hearing, scheduled from 4:30 to 8 pm, was over before 7 pm. By contrast, the epic and raucous hearing Aug. 23 lasted seven hours and left hundreds of people frustrated that they couldn’t get in and/or testify.

The final “community forum” takes place next week on September 18. The public comment period closes at 5:30 PM on September 29.

Surf’s up. Or something like that. The Gowanus Dredgers Canoe Club, the good people that will get you out on the Big G in a canoe are having their Gowanus Dredgers Canoe Club Blues and Cruise. It takes place on September 21, and it’s a fundraiser with tickets for adults costing $25 in advance and $40 at the door. (Kids under 12 get in free.) Tickets available online or call 212-868-4444.

The party happens on Thursday, September 21st from 6 to 9 PM and there will be live music and all-you-can-eat BBQ from Schnack, entertainment for children, a silent auction of art and yoga memberships and a raffle.

The party is happening at 165 2nd Street at the Gowanus, off Bond Street. And it will include–what else?–candlelight canoe trips on the South Brooklyn Seine.

Be there.

“Vacating” is beside the point as Red Hook Crushers has been closed since spring, but we’re guessing the Department of Buildings’ vocabulary is limited to printed stock on hand. The order is interesting in the sense that the Red Hook Crushers were said to have been shut down because either (a). Whole Foods coveted the property because they need to expand horizontally rather than dig very far into the ground or (b). the crushing operation would have made a bad neighbor to the supermarket, leaving the cars of shoppers coated in dust or (c). both. The violation taped to the door of the former crushers was in the name of the original owner of the property, so it doesn’t look like Whole Foods has bought it.

We noticed a large crack running down a wall of the former Red Hook Crushers next to the parking lot.

Meanwhile the entire Whole Foods site is as desolate as can be. The huge lake inside the original excavation remains. There are piles of discarded tires on the sidewalk. And, now, it looks some walls are about to collapse.

Related Posts:
Lake Gowanus Grows, So Does Whole Foods Site

Today is Primary Election Day, which means that the number of pre-recorded political calls should fall and the volume of campaign-related mail should decrease, except for statewide offices. (We got a kick out of the testy posting on the Daily Slope complaining about the “phony” phone call from Borough President Marty Markowitz…if we’d posted irately about all the political calls we’ve gotten…). In any case, only voters registered with a political party can vote tomorrow.

Locally, there is an especially contested race in the 11th Congressional District, with four candidates–Carl Andrews, Yvette Clarke, Chris Owens and David Yassky–going down to the wire. Today’s Post, in fact, notes that the race ended with a flood of campaign literature. (We certainly got our fair share yesterday, including one from Chris Owens that said, “No, this is not another mailing from David Yassky. It is your only piece of mail from Chris Owens.” Yassky is said to have mailed out 65,000 letter that arrived on Saturday.)

The race for the 57th Assembly District has also assumed a high profile because candidate Bill Batson has made his opposition to the Atlantic Yards development a rallying cry.

The Gotham Gazette has produced a handy guide to the primary, including many useful links, including this one you can use to find your poll site.

Turnout, as in most primaries, is likely to be on the low side, so every vote will count. Make sure your voice is heard. Get out and vote.

[Spectacular image, called “Remember,” courtesy of i’mjustsayin on flickr]

Brooklinks is a daily selection of Brooklyn-related news stories, blog items and images.

Remembering 9/11:

• Evening 9/11, Five Years Later [Brooklyn Heights Blog]
• Here Was New York [OTBKB]
• September 11, 2006 [Bay Ridge Blog]
• Storycorps Records 9/11 Stories [seriously excited!]
• September 11, 2006 Photoset [rsguskind/flickr]
• 9/11/06 Photoset [your pal matt/flickr]
• 9/11 Five Years Later, Photos [NYPost]

Moving On:

• 9/12 is a Day for an Election and a Hearing [AYR]
• No Parking Spots Left in Clinton Hill [Clinton Hill]
• Will Dumbo Real Estate Continue to Rise in 2006? [dumboNYC]
• Second Week of Demolition at 207 Wyckoff [Sail Brooklyn]
• Brooklyn as a Vacation Destination [Eating Clinton Hill]
• Chuck & Larry Filming at Soda Bar [Daily Heights]
• A Shower and a Shave for Williamsburgh Bank Building [Brownstoner]
• Best Brunch in Brooklyn? [Brooklyn Record]
• Nekkid Guy Jumps/Falls Into Sheepshead Bay [Erica’s Blog via Brooklyn Record]
• Home, Sweet Home (Ye Olde Gowanus Canal) [You Nork!]

The new owners are clearly putting a lot of money into totally redoing the food poisoning decor of the defunct Scourge of Seventh Avenue. Whatever opens, we have to say that it will be a 100,000,000% improvement on the eatery, whose closing was actually greeted with glee in spots like Chowhound. We never even thought about setting foot in India House and wondered how it managed to stay open every time we walked by. (There are some places that look bad but that you know harbor hidden culinary delights and, then, there are places that look bad that you know instinctively are revolting. India House fell into the second category.) There is still an India House on Court Street in Cobble Hill, which has a decidedly similar look to the Seventh Avenue spot and, we assume, common ownership.

If anyone knows anything about the new restaurant, please share!