Eastern Brooklyn

Brooklyn Crime Blotter – May 21st

(Image: Zainab Iqbal/Bklyner)Concerns about an increase in crime continue to play a central role [https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/14/nyregion/nyc-crime-mayoral-race.html] in the city’s mayoral race.New NYPD data [https://brooklyneagle.com/articles/2021/05/11/around-brooklyn-crime-rate-up-30-in-nyc/] shows crime across the city jumped 30%

Cypress Hills

Replacement Named for Controversial Commanding Officer of East New York Precinct

NYPD Deputy Inspector Rohan Griffith. (Image: NYPD)The New York Police Department has chosen a new leader for one of the borough’s most troubled precincts, months after announcing that his controversy-laden predecessor would be re-assigned. Deputy Inspector Rohan Griffith is the new commanding officer for the 75th Precinct, which

Cypress Hills

City Lowers Speed Limit on Conduit Boulevard in Cypress Hills

Image: NYC Department of Transportation Commissioner Hank Gutman at a press event on Conduit Boulevard on Monday, May 10th. (Image: NYC DOT)The city is lowering the speed limit on a major eastern Brooklyn thoroughfare in an attempt to reduce crashes and save lives. Mayor Bill de Blasio announced this

Central Brooklyn

Opinion: What We Can Do This Spring to have a Maskless Summer

Photo by Julie Ricard [https://unsplash.com/@jricard?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText] on Unsplash [https://unsplash.com/s/photos/brooklyn-nyc?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText] By Dr. Sanjiv S. Shah, Chief Medical Officer of MetroPlusHealth Before COVID, many of us would

Central Brooklyn

First Poll of Brooklyn Borough President Race Finds Reynoso and Cornegy Atop Close Field

The first formal poll of the Brooklyn Borough President’s race shows Council Members Antonio Reynoso and Robert Cornegy Jr. on top in a tight race where several candidates polled within the margin of error and half of surveyed voters remain undecided. The poll [https://www.studentsfirstny.org/sfnycharter_poll]

brownsville

NYPD ‘Accidental’ Killer Cop’s Rise to Brooklyn Chief Questioned

NYPD Chief John Chell in a picture celebrating a previous promotion, dated May 3, 2019. | @NYPD84Pct / TwitterBy Eileen Grench, THE CITY. This article was originally published [https://www.thecity.nyc/2021/4/15/22386871/nypd-accidental-killers-rise-to-brooklyn-chief-questioned] by THE CITY [https://www.thecity.nyc/] Mayor Bill de Blasio this week weighed in

brownsville

Brownsville Comes Together to Heal After the Triple Homicide at Van Dyke Houses

Kathleen, a survivor of gun violence, speaks at the Van Dyke Community Center on Friday, April 9. Mukta Ahmad/BklynerFollowing the fatal shooting at the Van Dyke Houses [/four-dead-in-tragic-van-dyke-houses-shooting/] that left a nine-year-old orphaned, community organizations from Brownsville and around New York gathered at the Van Dyke Community Center to

affordable housing

Opinion: Brooklyn has a Housing Crisis. Here is the Plan the Next Mayor Needs to Follow.

Central Brooklyn. Liena Zagare/BklynerBy Michelle Neugebauer To create a fairer, more equitable New York, our next mayor needs to address Brooklyn’s affordable housing crisis. It is a dire situation: the median monthly asking monthly rent in the borough is $2,395 [https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/17/

Central Brooklyn

Crime Blotter: Hate Crimes, Shootings, Robberies and more

The New York City Police Department has arrested Joseph Russo, 27, of 76th Street in Brooklyn and charged him with Assault as a Hate Crime and Aggravated Harassment as a Hate Crime in the following incident. https://bklyner.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/bklyner/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/FINAL-RMA-830-21-Assault-61-Pct-4-5-21.mp4 It

Central Brooklyn

Two Unrelated COVID Cases Will Not Trigger School Building Closures, New Rules Rolled Out

Meisha Ross Porter at City Hall. By Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography OfficeBy Reema Amin and Amy Zimmer, Chalkbeat New York [https://ny.chalkbeat.org/2021/4/8/22373503/de-blasio-nyc-school-closures-2-case-rule] Two unrelated cases of coronavirus among staff and students will no longer trigger building closures for New York City schools, Mayor

Central Brooklyn

Opinion: Brooklyn Needs Public Power

Blackout in Mill Basin, 2019. Todd Maisel/BklynerBy Nicholas Boni It’s time for Brooklyn to take its power back. Our borough’s power grid is in shambles. Blackouts are as common as summer heat waves. Utility rates are astronomical, erratic, and ever-increasing. The East River, the Gowanus Canal, and

brownsville

Four Dead In Tragic Van Dyke Houses Shooting

Yesterday evening, April 5, shortly before midnight cops were called to 362 Sutter Avenue, the Van Dyke Houses, where they found three women shot inside an apartment. A short while later another 911 call came in of a man with a seemingly self-inflicted gunshot wound nearby, NYPD informed. Local TV

Bushwick

OPINION: Keeping Our Graduates Connected Is Critical For Their Success

Photo by Alex Simpson [https://unsplash.com/@m_simpsan?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText] on Unsplash [https://unsplash.com/s/photos/bushwick?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText] By Arthur Samuels & Pagee Cheung Miguel* was a member of the very first class at

Central Brooklyn

What will it take for fully remote students to return to school buildings? 6 NYC families weigh in

Monday, March 22, 2021. Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.By Alex Zimmerman and Reema Amin, Chalkbeat New York [https://ny.chalkbeat.org/2021/4/5/22368832/opt-in-person-learning-nyc] The nation’s largest school system was among the first to throw open its doors. But it has struggled to entice most

Central Brooklyn

Opinion: The Racial Cost of NYC’s COVID-19 Vaccination Rollout

NYCHA vaccination site at Nostrand Houses in Brooklyn on Friday, February 12, 2021. Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography OfficeBy Brian Benjamin, Roxanne Persaud, and Kitaw Demissie, MD, PhD New York City is one of the most racially diverse cities in the world – it’s what makes our city incomparable to all

Business

Side Hustle To Big Business: Low-Income Entrepreneurs Could Help Brooklyn’s Economy Recover—How Can the City Support Them?

A two-part panel on low-income entrepreneurship in Brooklyn organized by the Center for an Urban Future included LaToya Meaders from Collective Fare, Camille Newman from the Brooklyn Women’s Business Center, Chymeka Olfonse from BUILD NYC, La-Shawn Allen-Muhammad from the Central Brooklyn EDC and Ras Omeil Morgan from iaRas iTal.

Central Brooklyn

Brooklyn’s Democratic Socialists: Who Are They And What Do They Want?

Three years after Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s shock victory over Joe Crowley, a year after gaining seats and influence in Congress and in the New York State Legislature, the Democratic Socialists of America [https://www.dsausa.org/] are now aiming to gain a foothold in the New York City Council. In

Central Brooklyn

Breaking News: Anyone Over 30 Can Get Vaccinated Starting Tomorrow, Over 16 April 6

Governor Cuomo. Darren McGee- Office of Governor Andrew CuomoGovernor Cuomo announced today that New Yorkers over the age of 30 will be eligible to receive the Covid-19 vaccine starting tomorrow. In addition, on April 6, residents over the age of 16 will be eligible for the vaccine, making eligibility universally

Central Brooklyn

When NYPD Takes Kids’ Phones, They’re Disconnecting a Pandemic Lifeline

Photo by James Sutton [https://unsplash.com/@jamessutton_photography?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText] on Unsplash [https://unsplash.com/s/photos/phone-teens?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText] By Eileen Grench, THE CITY. This article was originally published [https://www.thecity.nyc/2021/

Bensonhurst

NYPD Promises More Plain Clothes Cops To Combat Anti-Asian Hate Crimes

Photo via NYPDYesterday, NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea met with Brooklyn’s Asian community in Sunset Park to talk about the approaches the NYPD will be taking to protect them, following last week’s announcement by Mayor Bill de Blasio that the city will be deploying more police officers in heavily

Announcements

3-K Expanded To All School Districts!

Mayor Bill de Blasio and Chancellor Porter announced this morning that, starting this fall, the City will expand the free 3-K For All to as many families as possible in the remaining sixteen school districts. Mayor Bill de Blasio Chancellor Porter at Phyl’s Academy in Brooklyn to announce 3K

Central Brooklyn

Mayor Expands Cure Violence Program to Three More Brooklyn Precincts

Mayor Bill de Blasio on Monday, March 22, 2021. (Image: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office)In his latest effort to address the spike in violent crime that has plagued the city for much of the past year, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced today the expansion of Cure Violence programs in

Arts & Culture

Skelly! On Smartphone Or Skelly IRL?

Skelly [https://eightygames.wordpress.com/2015/06/21/skelly-a-new-york-street-game/comment-page-1/] , a popular children’s street game, is making a comeback as an app. Sometimes referred to as skully, skelsy, or skellies, it is played by “shooting” or flicking a bottle cap across a numbered grid, usually marked in chalk on

Central Brooklyn

NYC Schools Chancellor: Why I Dare to Dream Big

Meisha Porter, New York City Schools Chancellor. Image courtesy of NYC Department of Education.By Meisha Porter, New York City Schools Chancellor This week, I began leading the nation’s largest public school system. A school system that serves more than 1 million students—including, many years ago, me! I

Bensonhurst

Atlanta Shootings Prompt Calls For Real Action To Address Anti-Asian Hate Crimes In Brooklyn

Last week’s rally. Courtesy of Jimmy LiBrooklyn’s elected officials and community leaders reacted with sadness, frustration and anger after news broke that multiple spas in the Atlanta area were targeted in shootings [https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/17/us/atlanta-shooting-spa.html] on Tuesday that claimed the lives