Why Neighborhood Names Matter

To my fellow SW Lefferts North Flatbush Parkside Caledonians:

I was recently strolling down Woodruff, then Caton (past "The Diplomat" don't you know!), past the Parade Grounds and across Coney Island Avenue. A little jag here and there and I came across Kermit Place. To those who've never happened upon this adorable street, check it out sometime. But this isn't Brownstoner, and I'm not interested in their housing stock, sturdy and swell as it may be.

The area around Kermit Place is what I guess you could call an enclave. I did a little research and I found that it's much, much more than that! This is the little five-block neighborhood that could. They didn't like the direction that developers were taking and they did something about it. They formed a group - the Stable Brooklyn Community Group - and they got their area REZONED and RENAMED! In just the past couple years, "Stable Brooklyn" has become a distinct Brooklyn neighborhood on some maps. Check this out at Brooklyn.com: STABLE BROOKLYN NEIGHBORHOOD

To read more about how the locals pulled this off you can read their saga on their website SBCG. And here's the city's statement on the rezoning: NYC THINGY

I know what you're thinking - this is the MOST boring blog post EVER. And that's saying something - it's a blog post after all, and even though blogging is now RETRO COOL (that's right, you heard it here, so consider your source), rezoning and community groups are B-O-R-I...so boring it's not even worth spelling boring.

But you and I and others, on Parkside west of Flatbush, East of the Parade Grounds but north of Caton, West of East Flatbush and North of "Victorian Flatbush" but East of Caton Park and north of the Flatbush branch of the library...who call the Q at Parkside our HOMETRAIN...if we don't band together like the supergroup Asia we'll never score a hit like "Heat of the Moment." And we'll never have control over our own destiny.

So whaddya say? Can we all just get along?

And what's with the name Umma Park? Who's Umma? Is it like a mumbled "I am a Park?" Does it have anything to do with the Black Eyed Peas song Imma Be?