Tip of the Tongue Signs Up

Spring has certainly sprung on the Flabenue and environs. The boys at Tip of the Tongue have finally led us know they're in the game on Lincoln Road near the Park. I've known of their plans for some time, and they live in the 'hood, so all I can say is...

Welcome, good luck, and see you on opening day.

Don't know precisely what they're going to serve, but here's the catering company's website:

LGCS Seeks Community Support This Wednesday

Just three years into its life as a free publicly funded alternative to zoned district schools, local startup the Lefferts Garden Charter School is seeking permanent co-location within the longtime home of PS92 on Parkside between Bedford and Rogers. Local mom and co-founder Renata Gomes has forwarded this request to the greater community.

Dear Supporters of Lefferts Gardens Charter School,

We believe in the mission and vision of Lefferts Gardens Charter School and want to see it thrive in the years to come.  For the past 3 years, we have been co-located in the P.S. 92 School Building at 601 Parkside Avenue.  The co-location with P.S. 92 has been a mutually agreeable and respectful one and we look forward to the opportunity of deepening our ties with this community.  

The NYC Dept of Education is proposing a long-term co-location for LGCS at P.S.92.  This will allow us to remain in a space that has not only served us well but which provides close proximity to our field study program partners (Brooklyn Botanic Gardens, Prospect Park Zoo, Prospect Park, Brooklyn Children's Museum and Construction Kids.)  It will also give us an ability to build a long-term partnership with P.S. 92 and work on building initiatives and funding that benefit us both.

There will be a public hearing for community members to share feedback about this proposal.  We are asking friends of the school and neighborhood supporters to attend and speak in our favor with a quick 'I support Lefferts Gardens Charter School Co-locating at PS 92.'  We hope to see you there!

When :  WEDNESDAY, APRIL 10 

Time:    5:30 sign up 

            6:15 DOORS CLOSE

Where : LGCS SCHOOL AUDITORIUM 601 Parkside Avenue

Why:     The DOE will count how many for and how many against

Please -   SIGN UP TO SPEAK (everyone is allowed up to 2 minutes)

               SPEAK TO BE COUNTED

               YOU MAY ONLY SIGN UP TO SPEAK BETWEEN 5:30-6 PM

For more about the school please check out these links:

School website:

www.leffertsgardens.org

One could infer by the Q's printing of the letter that he supports the co-location, and one would be inferring correctly. If you read my post on the school a few days back, I noted that LGCS's board has made the wise move this spring to engage an outside search firm to find an experienced school leader to address the issues that have made the first three years perhaps more difficult than they need to be - basically the fact that there has been no one in charge with the kind of lengthy resume to handle all the pitfalls of a charter startup. Such seasoned leadership is clearly critical, particularly because LGCS does not have a national network behind it. The school could also benefit from a larger, broader and deeper board. But those constructive criticisms should not take away from the extraordinary accomplishments that I've noted, like the warmth of the school, it's awesome curriculum and the strengths of many of its teachers. All wrapped in a wonderful school building...

And at the very same time, PS92 itself is about to lose its longtime leader Diane Rahmaan to retirement. Meaning it too is about to undergo serious changes and next year could very likely mean two brand new principals walking the halls,. And so I say...

WHY THE HECK NOT HAVE TWO COOL, BASICALLY NEW SCHOOLS UNDER ONE ROOF?

Sure it's just my opinion, but then, it's my blog, and that's kinda what it's for.

See you Wednesday. If you care about the way kids around here get edumacated, then why not share an hour of your time on hump night? And by all means, share YOUR opinions below.
 

Weird and Weirderer

So I go into Pioneer last night, Saturday. Different manager than usual. So just to keep the game interesting, I walk up to him as I'm leaving with a couple items and I say "hey, you and Associated around the corner on Flatbush have the same owners?" Beat one. Beat two. "No. Who told you that?" "Lotsa people. Seems it's true. Why would say otherwise?" This is not Hector by the way. Another guy. One you see on Hector's night off. He looks up at the money window. Looks back at me. Shrugs. I say "why don't you guys just tell the truth? Why would you deceive your loyal customers? It's not like we care. I for one am not going to stop shopping here because you're owned by the same people. I just don't like being lied to, and it's a matter of public record that you're owned by the same company. Actually, I don't think any of your customers would appreciate being lied to." One of the cashiers is hiding a laugh. Now the manager is turning red. I ask if I can talk to someone upstairs. He says no, they're busy. I look up. I swear to god, the guy is picking his nose, looking the other way, probably not hearing a word we're saying.

Should I just let it go? I mean...what's going on?

From KFC To TD Bank

Man o Mano the News Is Coming Fast and Furious! You know that sad vacant KFC on Bedford across from the Ebbets Apartments? Turns out TD Bank has applied to turn it into one of its branches, complete with suburban style drive-thru.  This from a neighborhood tipster who actually know how to read those DOB applications.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and call this a net gain for the neighborhood. Too many greasy fast food joints, not enough places to stash your cash. Now, I've always made fun of the name of this Canadian banking franchise. Say it fast enough and it sounds like a topless bar.  But, these days, banks are banks. None of them have any character or stick around for very long. So what's to like or not to like? It's a bank!

For those who are interested in such things (I and I for one), TD's home is Toronto in a Mies van der Rohe skyscraper, and it/they became a player here in NYC when it/they bought up Commerce Bank during the near Great Depression of 2007. It became even bigger after buying Chrysler Financial, which while technically not a bank like you or I might think of it, was, since it lent people billions of dollars money to buy its semi-functional cars, which, since having been bought by Fix It Again Tony (FIAT), I'm told, have become quite a bit more functional, though I don't own a car and don't really care one way or tah other. Over the years, TD bought up all kinds of banks, including ones you might have heard of like Peoples and First Vermont. Kinda fascinating, right?

 
 

This Sunday! Come Be Part Of The Parkside Plaza Renaissance!

This Sunday at Play Kids at 5PM the ever-busy committee to retool the plaza at the Q at Parkside will meet to report, discuss and plan the next stages of what will one day look something like the below:

I don't have time to get into it all here, but suffice to say things are moving fast and furious, though some things will take longer (slow and not-so-furious) than expected due to the renovations of the station itself. Please come and be a part of one of the biggest public works projects in the neighborhood since...um, the Parkside Playground? The Missive de la Committee:

Hi, everyone,

This is just a reminder that the committee to bring a plaza to Parkside Avenue is meeting this weekend

  WHEN:  Sunday, April 7, at 5pm

  WHERE:  Play Kids, 676 Flatbush Ave

  WHO:  Everyone!

On the agenda:  Updates on the last month of progress, and news on our plans for a promotional video to launch our KickStarter fundraising campaign.  (We think we are going to need everyone to turn out for the video shoot in May, and this is your chance to learn more.)

We hope to see you there!

A "Sign" Of Things To Come

From neighbor and reader Bruce comes the clearest indication that, yes, the once Papa & Sons at Lincoln and Flatbush will be a "Wholesome" grocery. Whether it becomes your "go to" choice for last second vittles and "upscale" items, the sign is here:

and another view, from another reader:

Crash on Rogers

Big crash between livery car and van (dollar?) on Rogers this morning. Bruce snapped this shot. Anybody know more?

A Tale of Two Supermarkets...Or Is It One?

Nearly three years ago I pondered the supermarkets around here. As a member of the Park Slope Food Coop I shop there whenever I can, often riding my bike home with crap hanging off the kid seat in the back. But even the Q has to pick up essentials every day or two, or gets lazy, and so The Associated and The Pioneer are my locals of choice. Now, over the past couple years I've heard folks say they have the same owner. Seemed like a good story, so I asked Sammy at the Pioneer when he worked there. "Nope." Still the rumor persisted. I asked the manager at The Associated. A very wooden "no sir." After a couple more questions, he shut down completely. Hmmm. Then after a nice conversation, Hector at Pioneer said "no, why would you think that?" I looked him right in the eye, a la Larry David. Something wasn't right.

Since then I've asked three cashiers, when the managers aren't around. And guess what? They all said, casually, without thinking and without a doubt in their minds, oh yeah they're the same owners. So...what the hell is going on?

I mean, I can understand if maybe they want to give the impression that they're competitors, so we the people think we've got a real choice. But to lie, blatantly? I mean, for all they know, I might be some kind of official or inspector. For all they know, I might be the sort of damn fool who might write a blog or something and might want to call attention to their deceit. What do they get from lying? Seriously, now, I'm looking for out and out speculation. If there's something they're hiding, this amateur sleuth wants to know. It's very, very suspicious if you ask me...

A Little Bit About a Lot Of Things w/ UPDATE

I'm not going to apologize. I'm just not gonna. In the Q's book, a good April Fool's joke is one that's believable. That's why I wasn't so crazy about last year's post. I preferred the one two year's ago, though a friend wouldn't speak to me for a week after. Look, it costs nothing to mark your Google calendar year's ahead if you're really so against the informal holiday (I'm talking to you J.Z.)

Now it's the 2nd of April, and I guarantee I ain't foolin' ya on this tip. This morning I called David Kramer, master of Hudson Companies, the folks who are planning the 23-story tower for 626 Flatbush Avenue, on a tip (thanks Matt!) that movement was happening. I've gotten to this point where someone puts a phone number in front of me I just call it and see what happens. I was pleasantly surprised to get a call back swiftly from a friendly Alison Novak, a VP at Hudson and the lead on the project, and we spoke at some length about how things were moving forward. And move they most certainly are.

Some folks have asked me whether a company like Hudson has a right to build such a big building. The term is "as of right," and the answer is yes. As in there's no need for any rezoning or community review process. Seems there's a lot of misinformation out there about how these things work. I even recently got an email from someone who was darn certain that the 20 story glass tower planned for Lincoln Road had been stopped due to community protest. By the way, that is not so. First off, that project was perfectly legal and did not need our blessing. What stopped it was the financial meltdown and gun jumping. Would seem to the Q that Hudson is much more in step with the realities of the market than that thing was back then (pictured). By the way, since that tower was three stories shorter than the proposed Hudson building, it should at least give you a sense of scale of what 626 would look like next to the park. So yeah, and I said this to Alison, there will be some people who have a problem with it - mostly folks who don't want to see a building that big from inside the park. Wanna know something else I noticed? 23-stories is exactly the same height as the Ebbets houses. Wanna know something else? Alison and I are both from Iowa. Wanna know something else? She blogged for Brownstoner about a Hudson building Hudson was creating in 2009  at 3rd Street and Bond near trendy "Gowanus." In the mid 1990's, I lived on 3rd near Bond in a derelict old warehouse in area that we JOKINGLY called "The Gowanus Basin." Can't make it up. The times they are a-changin' and stayin the a-same at the same a-time.

So now that I've made a connection over there maybe I'll be able to keep y'all updated as things unfold. Seems there's going to be a two-story commercial building along Flatbush (much as the current "medical center: is now) with the baby skyscraper behind it where the parking lot is now.  People have also been asking the Q about the other apartment buildings going up at 100 Parkside and on Lincoln Road and a) whether and b) when they're going to be finished to which I say a) yes and b) heck if I know. It's all happening folks, but if you're waiting on them to open for one reason or another, like say to open your haberdashery, then I would say maybe you should open your first iteration somewhere else, like maybe London, because everything seems to be taking longer than you'd think.

Take the "upscale" grocery opening "soon" at the corner of Lincoln and Flatbush. I walked plum in there today without so much as getting frisked, and they've got the refrigeration cases and everything, and a nice man said it will be probably another month til you can buy any lacinato kale there. He was the third person (landlord Rong Ge included) to use the highly descriptive but incredibly dull name "Wholesome Gourmet Market." Frankly, I find the word "wholesome" a bit grotesque, but I'll withhold judgement til the door's open. I mean, really, nless there are topless dancers or salty sailors telling ribald jokes in their dirty underwear I'm assuming the place will be wholesome enough for me to bring my wee ones with me, and I'm also assuming a general level of cleanliness will be the norm. There was a grocer on 4th Avenue near where Mrs. Q and I used to live called "Grade Fair" and I used to always appreciate their honesty, though it never exactly made me want to go out of my way to shop there.

Midnight already? Arghh...

UPDATE

On balance, I think this company and this project are excellent uses of the space. We need new rentals in the area, and by all accounts this is going to be a nicely made, nicely appointed building. My understanding is that it's all rental, with some set aside as affordable, whatever that means in this day and age. All well and good.

What I find truly remarkable is that after nearly a century of the Flatbush (this is the heart of what was once known as Flatbush after all) remaining virtually intact, this is a major, major change, as were Patio Gardens and the Ebbets Houses before it. Generally, the very buildings, and certainly the height of the neighborhood, have remained unchanged, as have other neighborhoods adjacent to the crown jewel Prospect Park. In fact, Park Slope went as far as to designate nearly all the area on the Park as Landmarked, meaning there will be no 23 story buildings along that side. I understand that it is legal and as-of-right to build big over here, but one would think that if the company wanted to get off on the right foot it might want to ask for a meeting with neighbors just to establish its credentials as someone who is capable of listening to concerns. Sometimes it's not just a matter of rights, but a matter of what is "right." You might even learn to love some of our crankiest residents in the process!

To date, I have every indication that Hudson is a responsible developer and one that is a willing participant in the neighborhoods in which it works. I watched a whole half hour interview with Head Hudson David Kramer, and I was struck by his candor and his bona fides as an advocate for housing subsidies. Folks, before digging in too deep I highly encourage you to view that interview, as odd as the interviewer Michael Stoler is (he's F-A-S-C-I-N-A-T-I-N-G and I want to watch them all now), to get a sense of the person in question before making too many assumptions about what sort of person he is. I'm sure there are many opinions on the project already forming, and I'm not even clear exactly what it'll look like (renderings are a-coming), but the YouTube is a fascinating way see the personal side of the characters that shape the very world we live in.

I look forward to meeting with the guy, and having a substantive conversation about the very real situations that plague and sustain Brooklyn neighborhoods like ours, and to welcoming him and Alison and whomever else to a lunch at Da Hot Pot over Doubles and some form of eye-watering curry.

This is big stuff guys. I hope we can get it right.

Dollar Vans To Install Metro Card Readers

In a surprise move destined to lead to an increase in the use of so-called "Dollar Vans," the Taxi and Limousine Commission this morning released new plans to install 20 Metro Card readers in a "test" fleet of Dollar Vans along Flatbush Avenue's B41 line. To date, the typically all-cash business has been plagued by a reputation for poor driving and illegitimacy. While the Q himself has been known to use Dollar Vans on occasion, he's also a known thrill-seeker who will admit that the high speeds and thumping bass are part of the overall experience he enjoys, and that he's learned a great deal about Gospel and Island musics this way. I do not, will not, and cannot condone the taking of small children onto Dollar Vans however, and to that woman who brought open Chinese food onto a Dollar Van the other day the only thing I can say is...really?

The new i-Pad reading Metro Card swiper technology, which will be controlled through an antennae linked directly to MTA's servers and will not be owned or operated directly by the driver himself but rather money will be payed to the driver in the form of an old-fashioned check within a week from the ride, has actually been available for sometime, and a version of it is used in nations from India to the twin 'Guays of Uruguay and Paraguay. That it has come to NYC in the last half of the last year of Mayor Bloomberg's term should come as no surprise. Bloomberg famously claimed to want to take the best of the world's transportation innovations and bring them on home. Mayor Bloomberg did not answer my direct email asking for comment as to whether he has actually ever ridden a Dollar Van and whether in fact he's ever seen the ad on the side of some Dollar Vans asking "does he really have his Daddy's eyes?"

T&LC Commissioner David Yassky (boy that guy landed in a cushy appointment after losing an election didn't he?) was sanguine about the system's chances for reigning in some of the past excesses that have led to the Dollar Vans sometimes poor reputations. "By allowing passengers the option of paying for Dollar Vans with their MTA transit cards, we're saying to the drivers - we see you, we trust you, but we expect you to conduct yourself with a certain level of dignity and self-restraint." Many local pedestrians and bikers have reached out to the Q to complain in the past year about the DVs and what can be done to mitigate their deliriously destructive effect on the overall traffic situation on our beloved Flabenue. This Spring, the MTA releases its long awaited study of the Flatbush corridor traffic study. Challah Lou Ya to that!

Perhaps along with the new MetroCard readers there will be a way to better distinguish legitimate Dollar Vans from the renegade versions. The good drivers must be rewarded, and the most reckless denied access to the roads. We need no more reminders, in the form of injuries or fatalities, of how dangerous are the stretches of Flatbush, Parkside, Rogers, Empire, Church, Ocean etc. near our beloved Q.

Oh, I almost forgot the price. While cash rides will continue to undercut the MTA ($2) the MetroCard reader will charge you the same as a bus or subway ride, but there is a catch - you may not use your unlimited, as this would be too easy a path to fraud.