 Remember when we told you about the bus rapid transit project slated for Nostand Avenue? Well, Streetsblog is now reporting that the Obama Adminstration's 2011 budget includes $28 million to make the dream a reality:
Nostrand Avenue SBS would ply the B44 corridor in Brooklyn, a route where ridership is already high, demand is higher, and bus service is currently the most unreliable in the city... The FTA's announcement should help turn this project into reality. "That funding helps assure everybody that the project is going to move forward in these difficult times," said Joan Byron of the Pratt Center for Community Development, which has been a major advocate for bus rapid transit in New York. Byron highlighted the fact that the design for the route is still very much an open question and that secure funding will make the public outreach process more effective.
More here from Streetsblog. (Photo: NYCDOT)
Previously:
PLG buses lose again; Nostrand Merchants protest bus upgrade
Update to Nostrand Avenue bus service
 Brownstoner tells us that 185 Ocean Avenue--the giant hole in the ground where PlanetPLG HQ used to be--is back in action.
[A] check of DOB records shows that the site passed an audit in December and was reissued a New Building permit early last month. The permit's for a 22,000-square-foot, eight-story residential building. Should fit in nicely next to the recently landmarked Ocean on the Park Historic District.
Rumor has it that Henry Herbst is still planning to resume building his gigantic tower on Lincoln Road in the next couple of years as well (at least, that's what he's been telling people). We'll see.... (Photo: Brownstoner)
 If you missed the first information session, the Lefferts Gardens Charter School (LGCS) will be holding information sessions in the neighborhood at local library branches.
This Saturday, January 30, at 11AM, representatives will be at the Crown Heights library (560 New York Ave. at Maple St.) Next Saturday, February 6, at 10AM, representatives will be at the Flatbush library (22 Linden Blvd. at Flatbush). If you were paying attention, you saw that the name of the school is now a link, which means that the website is up and running. The LGCS website is http://leffertsgardens.org and includes a FAQ as well as applications for students and faculty. You can also get updates by joining their mailing list.
 Good news, oenophiles: Mike Campbell of 65 Fen has decided that he will host wine tastings every Saturday evening from 4:30 - 7 for the next few months. He has been posting what will be on offer - grape and region, at least - on the Lefferts list.
Drink up!
 While we're talking about the Lefferts Gardens Charter School, it bears pointing out that the school principal is now official: The head of school will be Mark Marc Magnus-Sharpe, who comes by way of the prestigious United Nations International School, where he is Dean of Students. Sharpe's resume also includes Green Schools NYC Alliance and a lengthy history at Outward Bound. I hope you are suitably impressed.
Supporters of the Lefferts Gardens Charter School should save Wednesday, February 10, for a public hearing at 6 pm at PS 92 ( 601 Parkside Avenue between Bedford and Rogers Avenues). The school organizers are asking people to let the NYC Department of Education know that they want the school sited at PS 92 for its first few years (the school is hoping to find or build a permanent facility during that time). The DOE is obligated to give the school space during its "incubation" period, but it is not obligated to make it a conveniently located one. The more people that come out in favor, the more likely the DOE will chose PS 92, which, as far as I know, is the only available DOE space within the PLG boundary. Wait, you ask, isn't there already a school there? Why, yes. But the current elementary school there isn't at full capacity. If LGCS is located there, the two schools would share the building, an increasingly common practice at city schools. The administration at PS 92 is unlikely to be very happy it, however; ditto the teachers union. So we can expect a fair amount of opposition. The Lefferts school -- and charter schools in general -- are seen as a threat to old-line public school admins. (For a little background on the teacher's union and arguments against the way New York public schools operate, see this one-sided but illuminating New Yorker article.) Anyway, the Lefferts Gardens Charter School is also asking people to send letters of support to D17proposals (at) schools.nyc.gov stating that you'd like to see the school at PS 92. Every letter counts.
Two things regarding Community Board 9: First, the board is looking for a full-time Community Assistant: Minimum requirements for the position are a high school diploma and three (3) years of experience in community work. Applicant must be a self starter, exercise initiative, a fast learner, an organized, responsible, detail oriented individual with excellent typing, writing, oral, and computer skills.
Salary range for the position is: Current City of New York employee: $27,421 – 35,573. Non-City of New York employee: $27,421. EXCELLENT BENEFITS INCLUDING MEDICAL, DENTAL, VACATION. Submit resume & cover letter to: Pearl R. Miles, District Manager, Community Board 9, 890 Nostrand Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11225
Second, the next public meeting will be this upcoming Tuesday, January 26, at 7 pm. (Info here.) On the agenda: reps from the Dept. of City Planning will discuss the Residential Streetscape Preservation Text Amendment, which will cut down on curb cuts.... wait, haven't we heard this before? Why, yes, it was an agenda item on the December Community Board meeting, which means something must have gone awry last month. We will not speculate as to what exactly happened. We are better than that. Suffice it to say that those of you that missed the meeting now have a second chance.
 Those of you who read this blog know how we feel about the intersection at Ocean and Parkside Avenues. (Hint: hate it.) You probably also know that, under the aegis of PLG Public Works, our "sister" activist group, we've asked the DOT to find a way to fix it, to make it safer for pedestrians, cyclists and all users.
I am happy to report that we've received a response. According to a letter from Borough Commissioner Joseph Palmieri, the DOT's Division of Traffic Planning is investigating the location and will recommend appropriate action soon. The letter states that they'll respond to us directly by March 29, 2010.
So there you go. Fingers crossed!
The new wine shop, 65 Fen (at 65 Fenimore) is having another wine tasting on Saturday, from 4:30 to 7 pm, featuring wines from France, Italy and Germany. Come on down!
 The Hawthorne Street Block Association recently won a $500 grant from the Citizens Committee of New York to help us buy planters for the block. (Hurray!) As a rep of the block association, yours truly attended a workshop the Committee held last week that listed some of the services the City provides for citizens who want to improve their neighborhoods. Some of the services offered were specific to grantees, so I shan't mention those. But perhaps other block associations in the neighborhood will find the rest of this stuff useful. Incidentally, the Citizens Committee will do another round of grant-giving in the fall. For information and an application, see the Love Your Block page. Report a broken street light or signCall 311 Report bad road conditions, such as potholesFile the DOT's online formRequest a street tree or report a damaged street treeSee the Forestry Service Request form Help maintain neighborhood street trees by taking a tree stewardship workshop
Residents can take a free class to teach them how to take care of
street trees Get graffiti cleaned-upCall 311; property owner needs to give permission Remove litter on your block
Step away from the screen, grab a broom, go sweep the sidewalk, and stop waiting for the government to wipe your butt for you
65 Fen (at 65 Fenimore Street) is having a free wine tasting today, from 4:30 to 7 pm, featuring wines from Italy; Spain; Western Australia and Columbia Valley, Washington. Come by and support this new locally owned business!
There has been lots of chatter on the neighborhood listservs about collecting clothes and canned goods for Haiti, but what Haiti really needs right now is money.
I generally avoid donating to huge multinational charities myself, but lacking a familiarity with grassroots Haitian aid groups, here are the best options I could find:
Partners in HealthA Boston-based nonprofit focused on health care for the poor. This group has been recommended by a number of neighbors "in the know." Doctors Without BordersReputable international org; a welcome alternative to other large charities Hôpital Albert Schweitzer HaitiA Haitian health care organization that lost three hospitals in the earthquake.
UPDATE (1/16/2010): We can no longer in good conscience suggest Yéle Haiti as a
reputable charitable organization in light of The Smoking Gun's
disclosure of their self-dealing and dodgy tax filing history.
Even if they are currently working for good, they have not shown the
sense of fiscal or organizational responsibility to demonstrate that
their efforts will be effective.
For more options, see the New York Times, WNYC, and Huffington Post lists.
Here's a chance to come and meet some other families in the nabe: the Winthrop Street New Generation Block Association (between Flatbush and Bedford) is sponsoring a neighborhood "Homework Help" night on Wednesday, January 20, from 6pm to 9pm. Kids from kindergarten through grade 6 can come and get help with reading and math, or take part in an arts & crafts workshop. The event will be held at CAMBA, 19 Winthrop Street.
The Hawthorne Street Block Association was scheduled to meet this Wednesday, but that meeting has been postponed. We'll let you know when there's a new date.
This morning at Brooklyn Public Library, Renee Ciccone led an information session about the soon-to-open Lefferts Gardens Charter School (LGCS). There were about a dozen parents in attendance, as well as a representative from the NYC Charter School Center who was also able to answer some questions about the rules and regulations concerning charter schools. Here is my report from the meeting for those that weren't able to attend. Nuts and Bolts
- LGCS has been authorized to operate as a charter school for grades
K-5 and will begin operations in September 2010. In the first year
(assuming full enrollment) it will open with three Kindergarten classes
and 3 first grade classes, with 25 students in each class for a total
of 150 students. Each class will have 2 teachers for a teacher/student
ratio of 12.5:1. Each year the school will add a grade as this year's
first graders advance until there is a full K-5.
- LGCS applied to open as a K-8 school but only the elementary school
was authorized. They anticipate applying to extend to middle school but
will not be permitted to do so until they have been in operation for
three years -- and there is no guarantee that the request will be
granted.
- LGCS has not been told where it will be housed, but it has been
assured that it will be located within an existing public school in
District 17(map),
which includes all of PLG and a large swath of Crown Heights. They have
also been promised that once they are located, the charter school will
be able to stay in that location as they grow to the full 6 grades.
- LGCS is currently accepting applications. The application will be
available on the school website* as soon as it goes live. This is
expected to happen in the next week or so, and when it does, we'll post
about it here.
- Applications will be accepted until March 31. If there are more
applications than the school has seats, a lottery will be held on April
13 to determine who gets in and who gets wait-listed. Priority will be
given to District 17 students. In future years, siblings of enrolled
students will get pre-lottery priority.
- The school will have neither pre-K nor a gifted-and-talented
program, as those programs are federally funded and the charter school
is not eligible for that funding.
- The school does currently have office space, but it is not in the
neighborhood. The Charter Center, at 111 Broadway in Manhattan, has
generously given the LGCS an office to use. So don't be surprised when
the application tells you to mail it to a Manhattan address.
- For parents of students who are too young to attend the school next
year but are interested in future years, the school intends to have
regular open houses and tours during the school year.
Continue reading "Update on the Lefferts Gardens Charter School" »
Plenty of people have weighed in our debate as to whether the planned PLG food coop should be workers-only or not, but regardless of where you stand on this issue, we urge you to start coming to the coop's planning meetings if you care about having a food coop in the neighborhood. The group is very young and needs all the community support it can muster. Maple Street School
21 Lincoln Road
Brooklyn, NY 11225
Thursday, January 21, 7 pm
Details regarding the agenda are on the group's home page. Please don't go expecting to get into a debate about the membership issue. I posted that question only because I'm an argumentative a-hole and enjoyed the intellectual exercise. But coop organizer Karen Oh has many more pressing matters to discuss, and she is awesome so don't mess with her.
By the way, there will be another meeting on the following Thursday, January 28, for people who want to help out with communications -- spreading the word, creating coop literature, etc. Writers, designers, and creative directors should try to come to this one as well.
This just in from the Lefferts Gardens Charter School planning team: The Lefferts Gardens Charter School is a new K-5 charter school opening in
District 17 on Sept. 2010 for K and 1st graders.
We will be having an information session tomorrow at the Central Branch of
the Brooklyn Public Library from 10 am to 12 pm. Please feel free to come
down and hear about our progress!
Lefferts Gardens Charter School
Environmental Science Program
Saturday, January 9, 2010 from 10 am to 12 pm at
The Brooklyn Public Library
See also: Update on Lefferts Gardens Charter School
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