Ya Gotta Believe … in Red HookCarroll Gardens: No more going to Cobble Hill for fresh vegetables. Soon, a community-supported- agriculture group will set up at Smith and 2nd Streets. [Brooklyn Record]
Greenpoint: Manhattan Avenue has a new construction fence, but it still takes up much of the sidewalk. [NewYorkShitty]
Greenwich Village: An appeals court says the city can go ahead and redesign the rat-infested Washington Square Park. [NYS via Gothamist]
Harlem: The fury against Aphrodite Cleaners continues; new enemies include a former Marine sniper. [Harlem Fur]
Red Hook: Barbara Corcoran still “strongly believes” in Red Hook, but she also believes she “may have overpaid just a bit” when she bought the still-empty 293 Van Brunt for $1.075 million about two years ago. [Curbed]
Williamsburg: Are some original investors trying to get out of their Schaefer Landing condos? [Brownstoner]
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It’s Never Too Early to Get on Line for the Shake ShackCarroll Gardens: If you want to work at the local beer garden, prepare to submit a self-promoting essay with your app. SATs optional. [Brooklyn Record]
Flatiron: Madison Square Park’s Shake Shack — home to those petite but perfect burgers — reopens March 21. Better start queuing up now. [NewYorkology]
Harlem: St. Nicholas and 135th is getting a Subway sub shop, plus the Frederick Douglass Furniture store. What’s next, Harriet Tubman Light Fixtures? [Uptown Flavor]
Hell’s Kitchen: Rustic chic or red flag? Some balconies on an ugly mid-century high-rise have been propped up with timber à la Swiss Family Robinson. [Manhattan Offender]
Lower East Side: Residents seek revenge on Microsoft after the software maker blasted music from a promo SUV on Ludlow Street at 3 a.m. Sunday. [
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Happy Chinese New Year!Carroll Gardens: Will a bank, national chain store, or real-estate office replace Bleach House, the Dickensiansly named, now-defunct launderette on Court Street? [423smith]
Chinatown: Party like it’s 4705! That’s right, the Chinese New Year kicked off this weekend. Welcome to the Year of the Pig. [Gothamist]
Coney Island: The PR firm for development giant Thor Equities has released another homemade-looking “newsletter” about future Coney fun — which yet again makes no mention of Thor’s planned condo towers for the area. [Gowanus Lounge]
Greenpoint: From the looks of the floor plan, it seems like the Polish movie house turned Burger King at 910 Manhattan Avenue is due to become Greenpoint’s first Starbucks. Rejoice or recoil? [Curbed]
West Village: When special people like Sarah Jessica Parker, Lucy Lawless, or Christine Quinn need to pick up a package, they do it at Something Special, a mailbox-rental place on Macdougal and Houston. [The Villager]
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Brooklyn Heights Doesn’t Need No Stinking BarbersBrooklyn Heights: Neighbors complain about the Clinton Street Barber Shop’s ugly sign. But is it all that bad? [Brooklyn Heights Blog]
Carroll Gardens: Buon gusto! After an extended close, the fave bakery Monteleone’s is once again open for business. Get your cheesecake! [A Brooklyn Life]
Cobble Hill: Postmodern luxury living comes to quaint Tiffany Place … behold the sold-out Tiffany Tower. [Brownstoner]
Coney Island: Cyclone views! Looks like the city may be edging toward a deal with megadeveloper Thor Equities to allow high-rise residential units in the famed amusement district. [Bay News via Gowanus Lounge]
Harlem: Lots of smoke (and photos) but only minor injuries in the fire on Lenox and 116th. [Harlem Fur]
Lower East Side: Get a glimpse of the “urban salvage” aesthetic of the new Bowery Hotel. [Vanity Fair via Curbed]
Williamsburg: It probably won’t win any design awards, but the Northside Pier residential tower continues its climb into the sky, with workers pouring concrete for floor twenty this past weekend. [I’m Not Sayin’, I’m Just Sayin’]
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The Sky Is Not Falling (in Carroll Gardens, at Least)Bedford-Stuyvesant: Who’s this mysterious “Michael,” whose handwritten notes left on doorsteps offer to pay for Brooklyn homes in cash? [Brownstoner]
Carroll Gardens: Is the sky falling? Nah, it’s just corrugated steel from a condo conversion crashing down near neighbors’ windows. [Brownstoner]
Chelsea: On the 23rd Street strip that once hosted New York’s flagship Krispy Kreme, the newish Burgers & Cupcakes – complete with giant, spinning cupcake – draws mixed nabe reviews. [Chelsea.ClickYourBlock via BlogChelsea]
Chelsea: Will landmark 1971 Knox Martin mural “Venus” be eclipsed by sleek new Jean Nouvel condo tower? [Curbed]
Clinton Hill: Is Pratt planning to destroy these beautiful, boarded-up townhouses on Willoughby Street? [Clinton Hill Blog]
Prospect Heights: With stakes raised by Sunday Times coverage, the backlash against the street art–defacing “Splasher” intensifies. [Englishman in New York]
Red Hook: There are good places to eat in a nabe that’s “not just for crackheads anymore.” [Chow via Brooklyn Record]
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Coney Island Goes to the Jocks
Carroll Gardens: Starting in February, you can find Smith and Vine at its new location, 268 Smith Street. [A Brooklyn Life]
Chelsea: How should the lovely General Theological Seminary develop its property at 175 Ninth Avenue? Comment at the community-board meeting tonight. [Living With Legends]
Clinton Hill: Want to open a wine shop? Cheese shop? Coffee shop? Bookshop? There’s some retail space available on Greene Avenue. [Clinton Hill Blog]
Coney Island: It’s nice to see new stuff on the beach (above), but why is it always fitness related? [Kinetic Carnival]
Union Square: It doesn’t matter that she can’t really sing. When Neysa belts out old Madonna songs on the L-train platform, people bob their heads and smile. [Gridskipper]
Williamsburg: Hipster music mecca McCarren Pool among roster of city pools to be considered next week at public hearing for landmark status. Beirut and Yeah Yeah Yeahs, step up and testify! [Gowanus Lounge]
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Video Stores Diversify in Carroll Gardens
Brooklyn Heights: Who’s that portly older gent who snaps at folks when they step around his little bichon? [Brooklyn Heights Blog]
Carroll Gardens: Video stores (above) are dropping like flies — or repurposing to stay alive. [423smith]
Chelsea: Boho hotel residents receive belated, nagging New Year’s message from Patti Smith. [Hotel Chelsea Blog]
Clinton Hill:The nabe’s Myrtle Avenue gets its own event-listing blog, marking edgy, can’t-miss moments like a Bank of America opening. [Myrtle Minutes via Clinton Hill Blog]
East Village: Luxury-tower sales offices face off on lower Broadway. [Curbed]
Park Slope: Slopers worry that old-school sports bar Snooky’s may be history. [Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn]
Williamsburg: Former Old Dutch Mustard building owner makes nostalgic site visit. [Gowanus Lounge]
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Cleaning Up the Lower East Side
Brooklyn Heights: Fishs Eddy is closing, but not until they sell everything in the store for 75 percent off. [Brooklyn Heights Blog]
Carroll Gardens: Brooklyn Yoga canceled its early-morning class. Where else to do the cobbler’s pose at dawn? [A Brooklyn Life]
Far Rockaway: Next time your cell phone dies at JFK, charge it in the terminal and thank Samsung. [NewYorkology]
Flatiron: Crayola-makers Binney and Smith have left the city for good. [Crazy Fingers via Blog Chelsea]
Lower East Side: It’s amazing what a little power washing can do. [Trevor Little via Gothamist]
Prospect Lefferts Gardens: What does rent control look like? Photos of Patio Gardens. [Sensei Oddsox via Across the Park]
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Are the Writers Leaving Brooklyn?The Bronx: It’s about time for a Web video series about bodegas. [The Daily Reel via Gothamist]
Carroll Gardens: Renaissance Pharmacy closed over the weekend, leaving you with few options that don’t rhyme with CVS. [Brooklyn Record]
Fort Greene: Take your Christmas tree to Fort Greene Park this week and go home with a bag of mulch. (BYO bag.) [Clinton Hill Blog]
Gowanus: Wannabe scared off by a few toxic fumes. Bah! [Gowanus Lounge]
Park Slope: The Rushkoffs are leaving? Will the Jonathans flee the neighborhood next? [A Girl Grows in Brooklyn via Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn]
Prospect Heights: What’s the best way to get home from JFK? It might just be the Air Train. [Brooklynian via Daily Heights]
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Let’s Just Call Every Land Deal ‘Atlantic Yards’ From Now OnBoerum Hill: There are twelve units left in the Smith; expect a fancy grocery store in the retail space. Will that make up for jailhouse views? [Brownstoner]
Carroll Gardens: Schnack heard the screams for highly processed flour and answered: White buns are back. [A Brooklyn Life]
Chelsea: A Jaguar ad plastered to the old McBurney Y makes us yearn for the days when the neighborhood’s billboards were all PSAs. [BlogChelsea]
Coney Island: With the sell-off of Astroland, New York’s favorite crappy beach might be the new Atlantic Yards. [Gowanus Lounge]
Midtown: When you see Christopher Meloni at the gym, do you think SVU or Oz? [Tales From the City]
Sunset Park: Neighborhood tree lighting conveniently scheduled for a time when no one can go. [Sunset Parker]
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A World of Wonder Outside BrooklynCarroll Gardens: Take your lactose intolerance to Giardini’s. [Eating for Brooklyn]
East Village: Unless you borrow shorts, the Russian & Turkish Baths aren’t sketchy at all. [My Brooklyn Year]
Park Slope: Everywhere else has rats, but the Slope gets raccoons. [Brooklynian via Brooklyn Record]
Staten Island: Brooklynites do field-study research, report back to the rest of us. [Brooklyn Ramblings]
Times Square: Will the stairway to TKTS heaven be finished in time to ditch our relatives there? [Curbed]
Williamsburg: Condos at McCarren Park Mews are affordable if you don’t mind the oily film. [Gowanus Lounge]
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Blockbuster Video Not Cool Enough for Carroll GardensCarroll Gardens: Indie nerds and porn lovers successfully close Blockbuster Video on Court Street. [Brooklyn Record]
City Hall: At a Citywide Coalition for Traffic Relief rally this morning, those pushy walkers and bicyclers demanded fewer cars. [Streetsblog]
Clinton Hill: Buy a little piece of Brooklyn and help bring the Broken Angel up to code. [Artez’n via Brooklyn Record]
East Village: “Hot Dog” returns to Avenue A. This time she’s almost sober. [Neither More Nor Less]
Long Island City: All those new condo owners will need hospital beds. [NYP]
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Carroll Gardeners Fight the Good FightCarroll Gardens: Volunteers MoveOn into vacant Carroll Gardens apartment, using it to call voters round the country. [Brooklyn Papers]
Kensington: City drags its feet in building playground, kids sad. [NYDN]
Lower East Side: Cronkite Pizzeria and Wine Bar helps hipsters indulge their inner child and their repressed adult by serving up cotton candy and affordable wine. [Gothamist]
Park Slope: Sharing is caring, and drivers and bikers will soon be splitting Fifth Avenue. [Streets Blog]
Prospect Heights: From ghetto to glorious: New bodega management patches hole in wall and actually stocks what its customers want, which is beer and cigarettes. [Daily Heights]
West Village: Ye Waverly Inn reopens, with better lighting and a new mural but sadly, when these photos were taken, no Graydon. [Eater]
Williamsburg: Breast-feeding has come to the ‘Burg, and the nabe’s okay with it. But not quite as okay as lactating moms would like. [Brooklyn Record]
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Bruce Ratner, Atlantic Yards Neighbors, All Set to Have Heart AttacksAtlantic Yards: IRS set to make thing more expensive for Bruce Ratner. [Brooklyn Papers]
Brownstone Brooklyn: In fancy-pants gentrified neighborhoods, people binge-drink more and die more often of heart disease. [Brooklyn Papers]
Carroll Gardens: Is a biodiesel plant coming? [Carroll Gardens Courier]
Downtown Brooklyn: Developer wants to “Botox” Fulton Street Mall, adding maybe a Cheesecake Factory and an Equinox. Existing shoppers ain’t thrilled. [Brooklyn Record]
East Village: Crappy scaffolding gets a scolding. [Neither More Nor Less]
Flatlands: The Aviator Sports complex, opening soon at Brooklyn’s Floyd Bennett Field, will be joined by high-end and highly caloric eateries like Junior’s, Grimaldi’s, and Jacques Torres. [Brooklyn Record]
Fort Greene: Residents fight to save a big rock. [NYDN]
Hell’s Kitchen: Pier 76, behind the Javits Center, would be a good place for a recycling transfer station. But then what to do with the tow pound? [Villager]
West Village: Locals still don’t think enough is being done about the queer kids who hang out at the Christopher Street Pier. [Villager]
Williamsburg: Northsix to close for renovations, plans are in the works for a new version of the club with a really lame name. [Brooklyn Record]