Mayor de Blasio

Last Call For Census 2020

It’s not too late to complete the census! (Photo: Liena Zagare/Bklyner)BROOKLYN – It’s official. The deadline for completing the 2020 census online is tomorrow, Friday, October 16, at 6 a.m. For those who have yet to submit the census, you have just a few more hours

Announcements

‘Please Reopen Our Schools’: Parents & Local Pols Call On City To Open 16 Yellow Zone Schools

Gounardes speaking at the rally calling for the reopening of 16 schools. (Photo via Gounardes’ office)SOUTHERN BROOKLYN – Parents and elected officials are calling on Mayor Bill de Blasio and the NYC Department of Education (DOE) to re-open the 16 schools in the ‘yellow zone’ that have been ordered shut

community

City Cuts Promised Funding For Human Services Organizations

At United Community Centers of East New York (UCCENY), a nonprofit that serves the East New York community through everything from ESL classes to early childhood education, many of the costs associated with keeping the center running involve things like paying program staff, organizing field trips, and purchasing supplies. Mayor

Announcements

Schools Need To Re-Open & Government Needs To Provide Rapid Testing, SOMOS Doctor Says

Here is Dr. Chen in action meeting with a patient, with safety measures in place. (Photo via SOMOS Community Care)SUNSET PARK – When people in the city were urged to stay at home and quarantine during the worst of the coronavirus, Dr. Henry Chen, an internist, came to his office

Announcements

NYC School Re-Opening Pushed Back Ten Days

NYC school re-opening has been delayed by ten days, as part of the deal with the teachers’ union to prevent a strike, the Mayor announced this morning. Schools were supposed to open for the Fall semester on September 10. Now, remote learning will begin on September 16 and in-person classes

Announcements

District 13 Principals To DOE: Delay The Re-Opening Of Schools

Photo by Feliphe Schiarolli on UnsplashBROOKLYN – The mayor and the governor have given their blessings to begin the reopening of NYC Public Schools in the fall. Parents have the option of sending their kids to a physical school part-time or having them learn 100% online with distance-learning. Last week, principals

Announcements

NYC Health Commissioner Dr. Barbot Resigns Amid Pandemic

Dr. Oxiris Barbot. (Photo: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office)BROOKLYN – NYC Health Commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot, who clashed with the mayor amid the pandemic, suddenly announced her resignation this morning. In her resignation letter, she wrote, “I leave my post today with deep disappointment that during the most critical public

Announcements

Central Brooklyn Violence Prevention Initiative To Launch After Uptick In Shootings

Mayor de Blasio with Council Member Cornegy, clergy, and community members on a walk through Bed-Stuy. (Photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)BROOKLYN – The Mayor announced a new Central Brooklyn Violence Prevention plan today after an uptick in shootings. This comes after a weekend of violence across the city, which

Announcements

NYC To Expand Internet For Low-Income Families

The internet. (Photo: Zainab Iqbal/Bklyner)BROOKLYN – In a time where New Yorkers need access to the internet more than ever, the city will be accelerating broadband internet deployment in all five boroughs in an effort to connect 600,000 underserved people to jobs, training, education, mental health supports, and

Announcements

NYC Beaches To Open On July 1, Cooling Centers, Open Hydrants, Free A/Cs

BROOKLYN – Summer is finally here! After months of quarantine, the Mayor announced that beaches will be opening on July 1. He also announced the expansion of Cool It! NYC, a plan to help New Yorkers beat the heat this summer. The Wall Street Journal broke the story late on Tuesday

Big Story

Juneteenth in Brooklyn

Borough President Adams speaks at the Freedom Rally at Grand Army Plaza. Adrian Childress/BklynerBROOKLYN – Happy Juneteenth! June 19 is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in America. This year there are tons of protests, marches, rallies, vigil happening all throughout today to celebrate, show solidarity,

Big Story

‘It’s A Few Bad Apples’: Black Men Murdered By Police Isn’t A Race Issue, Brooklyn Cop Says

Brooklyn Protest – George Floyd. (Photo: Adrian Childress/Bklyner)BROOKLYN – The murder of George Floyd, an innocent Black man, by a cop in Minnesota has caused unrest all throughout the country, including right here in Brooklyn. Police, who were supposed to protect protesters, have instead aggressively shoved, hit with batons, pepper-sprayed,

Announcements

NYC To Begin Phase 1 Of Reopening In First Or Second Week Of June, Mayor Says

Photo: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.NEW YORK CITY – As the number of deaths and the rate of hospitalizations is decreasing, New York State is starting to reopen in phases. Today, the Mayor shared what Phase 1 of reopening will look like in NYC. “It’s important to remind everyone,

Announcements

Williamsburg Funeral Draws Large Crowds & No Social Distancing

Funeral of Rabbi Chaim Mertz in Williamsburg. Scott Stein/BklynerWILLIAMSBURG – About 2,500 people gathered on a Williamsburg street last night at a funeral for Rabbi Chaim Mertz who had died from the coronavirus. People were wearing masks, but there was absolutely no social distancing. At around 8 p.m.

Announcements

Seven Years Since Hurricane Sandy And Southern Brooklyn Is Not Prepared

Hurricane Sandy.Hurricane Sandy slammed into Brooklyn in 2012. It caused 43 deaths and $19 billion in widespread devastation. Seven years later, the effects of the storm still linger. Though much work was done and promises were made, some weren’t kept and some weren’t enough. In September, we

Announcements

Park Slope Neighbor Ends Presidential Run

Photographer/Mayoral Photography OfficePARK SLOPE – Four months after announcing his run for the 46th president of the United States, our Park Slope neighbor Mayor Bill de Blasio announced this morning that he is out of the race. “It’s clearly not my time,” he said on Morning Joe. “So I’

Announcements

Deborah Lauter on Hate Crimes, Segregation and Standing Up Against Threats

Deborah Lauter. (Photo: Zainab Iqbal/Bklyner)CITY HALL – Hate crimes have spiked all over the country. They have risen in New York, but more particularly in Brooklyn. A few weeks ago, a young Muslim woman was spat on and harassed on the bus. A few days later, a Jewish man

affordable housing

Affordable Housing: Who Can Really Afford This?

Photo: Zainab Iqbal/BklynerBROOKLYN HEIGHTS – Homeless activists and VOCAL-NY walked into a luxury apartment building– which the City has deemed as “affordable housing”– to protest Mayor de Blasio’s “affordable” housing plan on Friday. 15 Bridge Park Drive is a tall, glass residential building located near the water in Brooklyn

Announcements

Is Brooklyn Prepared For A Big Storm? City Says Yes, Local Pols Say No.

Before the Nor’easter. (Photo: Liena Zagare/Bklyner)It’s September which means it’s officially storm season. Forget hurricanes, it seems that every time it pours, Brooklyn gets flooded even though over $20 billion was allocated for the City’s resiliency plan. Puddles form on streets, water goes up

Central Brooklyn

Get Ready For 2019 J’Ouvert & West Indian American Day Festivities

CROWN HEIGHTS/FLATBUSH – The 52nd annual West Indian American Day Carnival returns this weekend with a series of festivities honoring Caribbean history, culture, and unity, including a Junior Carnival for the kids and the popular “day break” J’Ouvert celebration. With an array of steel band music, dancing, food, colorful

celebrity

Mayor de Blasio Works Out Despite YMCA Bomb Threat

PARK SLOPE – Two YMCA branches in the neighborhood were evacuated Wednesday morning after one received a bomb threat aimed at Mayor Bill de Blasio who regularly exercises there. On Wednesday, July 24 at around 7:30 p.m., the YMCA Armory branch, which is located at 361 15th Street, got

Bushwick

DA Eric Gonzalez Defends Diversion Program NYPD Says Is Used Too Often When Guns Are Involved

Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez at a recent press conference (Image by Sam Raskin/ Bklyner)Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez on Thursday defended a program aimed at keeping first-time offenders out of jail that he’s administered in recent years, after receiving criticism from a top NYPD official and the

Navy Yards

NYC Ferry Will Debut Brooklyn Navy Yard Stop In May

BROOKLYN NAVY YARD – As part of Mayor de Blasio’s recently announced expansion of NYC Ferry service, a new stop on the Astoria line will open at the Brooklyn Navy Yard this spring. The Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation announced on Monday that the new NYC Ferry stop will be

Announcements

Citywide Ban On Styrofoam Now In Effect

GOWANUS – The city’s styrofoam ban went into effect Tuesday, January 1, 2019, a law reaching as far back as 2007 with fourth and fifth graders from Brooklyn leading the charge. Students from PS 15 in Red Hook joined the mayor and other public officials at the Hamilton Avenue Marine

bath beach

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio suggests changes to elite high school admissions are just the beginning

PHOTO: Benjamin Kanter/Mayoral Photo OfficeBy Christina Veiga Overhauling admissions at the city’s prestigious specialized high schools could be just the opening salvo in more aggressive efforts to unravel segregation throughout the city’s school system, Mayor Bill de Blasio vowed Sunday. “Changing them sends the message that everything