DAILY SLOPE | Park Slope Neighborhood, Brooklyn, NY

The future of Park Slope?

2007-03-02T22:26:52Z

The New York City Department of Transportation is planning some major traffic changes to Park Slope streets. According to Community Board 6's website, the changes include:

Elimination of lanes from Fourth Ave to improve left-turn lanes and widen the median
Conversion of Seventh Avenue to one-way southbound
Conversion of Sixth Avenue to one-way northbound
There are mixed feelings on the Park Slope message board. What do you think? Cast your vote on the message boards.

Chock Full o'Nuts on Seventh?

2006-10-19T19:33:58Z

Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn and Curbed are reporting that the former Cinematheque space on Seventh between Union and President is morphing into a new Chock Full o'Nuts store.

To those of us who grew up in the Florida suburbs (and have been longing for a branch of Gorilla Coffee on Seventh), Chock Full o'Nuts is just cheap-looking coffee gathering dust on the grocery store shelf. Is the new store a good thing? Bad? Discuss on the message boards.

FlexiChick's Landlord Drama Heats Up

2006-10-11T01:49:15Z

Petro-lamprey
Originally uploaded by Dope on the Slope.

Ok, my landlord just threatened me with eviction because I told him what the heating law is.

Please give me some guidance as to what rights/groups/attorneys, etc. I have at my disposal to deal with him.

I'm very freaked out now...

Read eye-opening facts about tenant rights on the Park Slope Message Board

Prime 7th Ave building for sale. Those interested in active streetlife and retail need not inquire.

2006-10-04T02:26:40Z

If you're looking for an easy way to dispose of that $5.75 million lotto winning, perhaps you'd be interested in 501 2nd Street? You know the building: across the street from PS321 and the Second Street Cafe, it's a handyman's special with a prime Seventh Ave ground floor retail space that's been vacant for years.

Just don't fire up those grand plans... the building (sans the top-floor duplex apartment) is already "100% triple net leased to one tenant."

More, including the full real estate listing, on the Daily Slope discussion boards.

"So... How does it feel to be poor and/or black in Park Slope?"

2006-10-02T15:05:00Z

Money fame success power.
Originally uploaded by monstro.

..........Erikka: "if a stranger ever asked me such a question, I would kick their ass all the way to Conneticut Muffin and run them over with a stroller. Since when did it become okay for an almost-stranger to be that rude and intrusive?"

How would you interpret this question?

Is FreshDirect Destroying the Planet?

2006-10-02T13:30:05Z

brooklyn (park slope)
Originally uploaded by leah jenni.

..........You are all dutifully recycling FD's ridiculously excessive packaging (brown paper boxes, pictured), so that helps. But what about those trucks idling all over Park Slope?

miriam asks: "Is anyone else bothered by the Fresh Direct delivery trucks sitting on the streets for half hour or more at times with their engines on??? Not only are they blocking traffic, but the polution and the noise! Is there something one can do about this??"

Simple answer: Yes. Just ask nicely. stacey says that she has approached the guys in the trucks and asked them if they could turn the engine off while they were unloading, and they always do.

But wait, isn't their direct-from-warehouse model actually more environmentally friendly than traditional grocery logistics, that involve TWO trucks (distributor to grocer warehouse, grocer warehouse to grocery store) and a vast array of private vehicles? sweet tea says: "it is my uninformed opinion that FD gets more than its share of griping because it is a lot more visible than private vehicles or unmarked warehouse trucks. but i'd be open to some evidence that i'm wrong, so that i can have another reason to complain when they're running the engine under my window."

Ultimate Solution: Government subsidies to FreshDirect so they can buy airplanes and drop-ship to Park Slope rooftops: "they can charge us triple for the groceries due to the price of jet fuel!"

Fresh discussions delivered direct to your computer on the Park Slope Message Board

Park Slope Archaeology

2006-09-29T05:23:03Z

041205_NYC 042
Originally uploaded by youngna.

..........stacy says:

"I worked with a guy once who was a bottle collector. He and his father would go to homes doing renovations or yard work and ask if they could dig."

"He told me 99% of the time they found something. He explained to me that many people used to throw the garbage in the yard or down the outhouse holes. Then when the city started picking up garbage, most of these people just filled in these outhouse holes."

"When my mother was selling the house, he asked if he could dig in our yard ... He found 3 plain bottles, some sort of medical tonic, a beer bottle, and a child's toy in the shape of a horse."

"They used to sell these bottles at the street fairs and they always had a stand at the Atlantic Antic. Last time I saw the son he said that they pretty much sell their stuff at shows and on eBay. "

LINK: Can and Bottle Collectors [Park Slope Message Board]

Chinese Restaurant Website Defaced by Saudi With Anti-Israel Agenda

2006-09-27T13:43:31Z

Chinese Restaurant Website Defaced by Saudi
Originally uploaded by dailyheights.com.

........Looks like Hunan Delight's website just got defaced by "S4ud1-H4cK3r" (that's "Saudi Hacker" for those of you not fluent in Leet Speak).

The hack starts out very politely, but quickly turns into a diatribe against Jews and Israel. The photo here (which is one of less graphic pictures) allegedly depicts "Israeli girls write messages on a shell at a heavy artillery position firing into civilians inside Lebanon".

This has been up for at least 4 days now... The webmaster for www.hunandelightparkslope.com/ doesn't seem to be in much of a hurry to fix it ... it's pretty much a 1-minute fix (delete/replace index.html) and a whole bunch of people have pointed it out. UPDATE: the site is "under maintenance" now.

Read what some Park Slope Jews (and others) have to say about the hack here:

www.brooklynian.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5336

Loud, Annoying Public Sex: Will Public Shaming Help?

2006-09-26T02:09:33Z

Hump day
Originally uploaded by dM.nyc.

seven24 writes on the Park Slope Message Board:

"I was sound asleep Friday night until I heard some lady talking loudly on my roof. I live on the last floor, my bed is next to the window so when I heard her speaking so loud it felt as if she was in the room with me."

"I looked at the clock and it was 2:35 AM. Since this chick kept speaking loud about how she used to jump from roof to roof as a kid, I couldn't take it anymore and I yelled out the window 'BE QUIET.'"

"Since they kept on speaking I went to the kids room and closed the window so they wouldn't wake them, and when I went back to bed, I heard them moaning and 'STUFF'."

"I heard everything! I hate to be a buzzkill, but if they really feel the need to explore their sexual needs in public, they should at least try to keep it on the low. My building is very old--I hear every footstep on the roof and in the hallways."

"I will post this web address on the mailboxes in my building so maybe that way my neighbors can learn how to have consideration for the other tenants in this building."

If this is your building, then you already know the post came from the Park Slope Message Board

Rash of Honda Civic Thefts in Park Slope

2006-09-25T13:28:16Z

Start Or End ?!
Originally uploaded by 718 Shooter.

Slope4-35yrs writes on the Park Slope Message Board:

My dented 17-yr-old Honda Civic was stolen Thursday night from Garfield Place (bet 8th & PPW). It had only 82000 miles and ran great, so I'm mourning its loss this weekend.
I just read the Police column from this week's Brooklyn Paper and see that 8 other Hondas, most of them 2000 or earlier - two 1991s - have been stolen in the past week alone. My loss was too new to have been listed in this item.
I don't know that much about car thets to figure out what's going on. Does anyone have a theory? For parts? For export to a third-world country? Teenagers joyriding?

LINK: Honda Civics are Stolen in the Slope [Park Slope Message Board]

Can and Bottle Collectors: Thanks for the Mess (and Fine)

2006-09-19T17:38:44Z

erikka writes on the Park Slope Message Board:

"I got a ticket this morning from the sanitation department due to a mess made by the people who dig through our recycling for cans and bottles."

"Turns out they started digging in the garbage as well, and left garbage strewn all over the sidewalk."

"I don't care if people take things out of the recycling--I actually leave the bag loosely tied so they can get at it easier and don't have to rip it. But the collectors have been getting more aggressive lately and have been making a huge mess--I've tried putting the recycling out right before the garbage truck comes but I have to leave for work at 6:30 am, which gives them enough time to dump the bags out and take what they want."

"Does anyone else have this problem? How do you deal with it?"

Read garbage strategy tips on the Park Slope Message Board

Little Monsters of Park Slope

2006-09-18T13:37:08Z

lost toys 3
Originally uploaded by DeeperSea.

LaSirena writes on the Park Slope Message Boards: "I was getting a slice on Seventh Avenue Friday evening when three loud little girls burst in (about age 13 or so, looked like the basic Park Slope Overprivileged Precious Offspring). Every third word out of their mouths was an obscenity."

"They walked up to the counter, barked and snapped at the pizza guys, demanding food and sodas. I asked one of them "Do you not say 'please' and 'thank you' to the people who are working hard here? Are these words not in your vocabulary?" She stared back at me and said "NO!" "

"I finished my pizza and left. As I was going out one of these delightful girls yelled at the top of her lungs "'Please' and 'thank you' my a*s!!. B*TCH!!!" "

"Thank you, Park Slope parents, for creating these little monsters! After 25 years in the neighborhood I'm considering leaving for someplace more civilized."

Link: Are These Your Kids? [Park Slope Message Board]

Rosewater Pig - Too Intelligent to Roast (in Public)?

2006-09-15T15:22:23Z

Dinner at Rosewater!
Originally uploaded by Sugar Pond.

Did you smell the smoke? Jamzer says: "Rosewater is one of my favorite restaurants in all of NYC. I wish they would improve the service a little, but it is still fantastic. They do the pig roast every Fall. Yummmmmmmmyyyyyyyyy!"

SOME PIG: As might be expected in a neighborhood like Park Slope, not everyone is thrilled by seeing a friendly, big-brained, tail-waggling creature splayed out on a metal stick. The discourse on the Park Slope Message Board is quite civil, but findcate does explain her personal aversion to public roasting:

"I guess it's just that pigs have the same brain structure as us, they nurture and love their young, and they have to suffer thru unbearable conditions and abuse being raised as meat. I guess the intelligence of pigs just makes me empathize with them, so I see the pig in that photo as a tortured corpse more than an appetizing meal, and I would be totally grossed out if I walked past it on the sidewalk. I think it's really intrusive of rosewater."

Where do you draw the line? Are chickens dumb enough to eat? Octopi are pretty intelligent... but not very cuddly. Sorry tentacle dudes, you lose... get in my frutta de mare!

More on Public Pig Politics: read the Park Slope Message Board

"End Run" Around Leash Laws in City Parks: Not a Done Deal?

2006-09-14T02:05:38Z

Brutus
Originally uploaded by Gunni Cool.

Can it be true? By now, you've heard that New York City is about to do an "end run" around off-leash opponents and will "enshrine in law a two-decade-old unofficial policy that has allowed Lassie, Rusty and Sparky to roam free in city parks" for very limited hours [See "Dogs Win! Off-Leash Hours Survive"].

Not necessarily so, says Prospect Park Advocate, a blog that seems to be spearheading the anti-anti-leash-law movement: he says the author of that article, Dana Rubinstein, "is either another example of a journalist making up facts to suit a hidden agenda or she is just an outright liar."

He quotes a letter from Bob Holden (president of a Queens civic association that sued to end the unofficial "policy" of looking the other way during off-leash hours) saying that many people "don't believe the city can or even will (make off-leash legal) ... Parks attorney, Paula Van Meter, when backed in the corner by the judge, blurted out at the city will ATTEMPT to clarify the commissioner's authority to allow dogs off-leash in parks. The judge was grilling her on how can a commissioner give himself the authority to tell people they can violate a law."

Not familiar with off-leash? Go to Prospect Park in the early morning hours and witness the teeming mass of dogmanity. Whether you think it's dangerous or not... You may never walk barefoot on the lawn again.

Rockhound backs up ParkAdvocate on this Park Slope thread: "Dana Rubenstein was not telling the truth when she proclaimed off leash hours to be safe.... Hullo, I don't know how 'benign' it is to allow your dogs to menace your fellow park goers and leave poo all over the place. I have been cornered by two huge growling hair-bristled off leash mutts and the owner didn't give a rip."

"It was terrifying, just like being mugged -- but wouldn't have qualified as an "attack" because no blood was drawn (true of many muggings as well!). Off leash dogs can be frightening, and intimidating other park visitors is not a "benign activity".

Whatever the truth is... these off-leash advocates seem to have their act together. Go read what they have to say, and if you agree with them Here's the petition.

MORE LINKS:
Park Advocate has his say on the Park Slope Message Board
Time Out New York: Off-Leash Poll

Rodents in Prospect Park: Has the Rat-Hawk Balance Been Disrupted?

2006-09-13T13:29:31Z

IMG_7259.JPG
Originally uploaded by lostinbrooklyn.

Rose writes on the Park Slope Message Board: "Has anyone else noticed more rats than usual in Prospect Park? I know there have always been rats there, but this summer it seems like every time I go to the park, I see rats. I run on the dirt path next to the road, and rats keep dashing across the path in front of me -- I've been running in the park for years, and this never used to happen."

"I went running today around noon and during two loops of the park, I saw three live rats and two dead rats. Aren't rats nocturnal?"

"Also, what happened to the hawks? I never see hawks anymore (maybe because I'm always looking down, watching out for rats). Did the hawks leave the park, causing the rat population to explode?"

More Rat (and Hawk) Sightings on the Park Slope Message Board