In 1922, Nicky Defonte opened a sandwich shop on Columbia Street in Red Hook, Brooklyn. After his retirement, the family business was passed along to his sons, Danny and Vito. Through decades of change, the sandwich stop still stands. One man is hoping to honor their legacy. Angel Conde, better known as “Spanky,” started hanging around Defontes when he […]
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PA says Red Hook waterfront is safe, by Keith J. Klein
The 76th Precinct Community Council meeting was held on Tuesday, January 5th featuring Port Authority representatives discussing counter-terrorism and security around the Red Hook container port and The Civilian Complaint Review Board was on hand to give a presentation on citizens’ rights. Captain Elliot Colon took the podium first, starting with the monthly crime statistics report. The latest report showed […]
Miniature golf coming to Red Hook! by Halley Bondy
When it comes to a low-stress, family-friendly activity that everybody loves, miniature golf has few rivals. Yet finding a mini golf course in New York is about as easy as finding parking on the weekends – and that goes double during the cold months. Four years ago, friends Chris Schneider and Ryan Powers had a harebrained idea. They would […]
News of Religion: Native Son Returns for Christmas Reading, by Laura Eng
Noted poet, playwright, author and Carroll Gardens’ native, Vito Gentile, returned to Sacred Hearts/St. Stephen Church on Sunday, December 6th to share poems, including those from his book, Fifty Poems About Christmas, and excerpts from his memoir, Little Christmas. Gentile, who grew up on 4th Place, attended school at St. Mary Star of the Sea and worshipped at both St. […]
A chat with Felix Ortiz, Red Hook’s representative in the NY State Assembly
Felix Ortiz has represented Red Hook and Sunset Park in the NY State Assembly for over 20 years. Last year, following the removal of Sheldon Silver as Assembly Speaker, Ortiz became the Assistant Speaker for the new Assembly leader Carl Heastie. We have gotten to know Felix well over the past five years publishing the Star-Revue, as well as his […]
Borough President joins CB6 for a Red Hook Screw, commentary by George Fiala
On Tuesday, December 22 at 6 pm at Brooklyn Borough Hall, the application to rezone part of Red Hook to allow an 8 story nursing home to be build in a flood zone will be the subject of a public hearing. There is so much wrong with the above sentence that my head is exploding. I couldn’t sleep most of […]
Reporters Notebook – CB6 and the Oxford Nursing Home Saga, by George Fiala
A week has gone by and I still can’t figure out what happened at the December General Board meeting of Community Board 6. The week prior, the board’s Land Use committee met at PS 27, in Red Hook, in close proximity to the Red Hook East Houses, to discuss the possibility of approving an 8 story nursing home by Conover Street […]
CB 6 reverses committee decision on nursing home, by George Fiala
In a meeting of the full board at Brooklyn Borough Hall, Community Board 6 reversed the decision of its Land Use committee and voted to favor the zoning application of the Oxford Nursing Home to build an 8 story nursing home in the middle of Red Hook. Victoria Hagman’s committee motion to deny approval of the proposed zoning change, which […]
Coherency in Housing, by Mark Shames
I am anxious to see whether we move forward with the creation of affordable housing in each of the proposed large-scale developments abutting our low-rise brownstone neighborhoods. The residents of Brooklyn Heights and Cobble Hill have registered their disapproval as expected. The test of the depth of progressive commitment to create vibrant diverse neighborhoods, instead of havens for the privileged, […]
Developer tries to give Gowanus a free park, but city doesn’t want it, by George Fiala
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was tasked with the job of cleaning up the toxic Gowanus Canal in 2009, following over 100 years of unbenign neglect on the part of New York City. The canal was declared a Superfund site over the objections of New York City, who felt that passive measures, such as building bioswales, would clean the canal […]
CB 6 votes against proposed Red Hook nursing home, by George Fiala
The Oxford Nursing Home proposal for a zoning change (ULURP) in Red Hook received a setback at the December 3 meeting of Community Board 6’s (CB6) landmark/land use committee. A motion against the plan was passed 11-5, with one abstention. On December 9th, the full CB6 board will meet at Borough Hall for a final vote. It then travels to […]
Brooklyn Museum holds craft show this weekend
AMERICAN FINE CRAFT SHOW BROOKLYN AT BROOKLYN MUSEUM TO INSPIRE HOLIDAY SHOPPING SPREES NOVEMBER 21-22 & VISITS TO EXHIBITIONS Six Brooklyn artisans will celebrate their creativity, artistry & skill with 84 other exhibitors Two Brooklyn jewelers, a handbag designer, potter, woodworker/furniture maker and woodworker whose studios are in Fort Greene, Gowanus, Park Slope, Sunset Park and Williamsburg will be among 90 […]
Gowanus Pathmark a victim of gentrification, by George Fiala
The Pathmark supermarket, which opened in Gowanus in 1992, is now closed permanently. The Pathmark chain was bought by A & P in 2007, which declared bankruptcy earlier this year. Over the past few months, A & P put all of its stores and store leases up for auction in a bankruptcy sale. Many of the stores were sold to […]
