Author: A Star-Revue Contributor

News

Red Hook Schools Promote Sustainability, by Samantha Goldfarb

Given the current climate crisis, as students return to classes, Red Hook schools are making efforts towards increased sustainability. As the Department of Education Office of Sustainability works city-wide to “integrate sustainability into the daily operations of [New York City public] schools,” the Red Hook community is also doing its part to take environmental action on a local-level – action […]

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Red Hook Town Hall at the Miccio, by Nathan Weiser

There was a Red Hook community town hall event at the Miccio Community Center with lots of neighborhood organizations represented on July 28. The Red Hook Community Justice Center’s MAP department and NSTAT team hosted the town hall. The idea behind the town hall was giving residents an opportunity to discuss their experience with community police relations in Red Hook […]

Feature Story

Cutting Through the Pandemic: The Resilience of Ken Marcelle and Mat Blak, by Matt Graber

On a quiet July afternoon on Verona Street, near the corner of Van Brunt, Ken Marcelle sweeps hair from the floor before his next appointment. The incoming client is Keaton Tips, formally a resident of Red Hook. A 34-year-old animator and motion designer, Tips moved from Dikeman Street to an apartment in Ridgewood, Queens, in 2020. That year, many of […]

Feature Story

Third Avenue holds the key to a well-integrated Sunset Park community, by Katherine Rivard

Sunset Park has a history of things happening to it, rather than for it. In Thomas J. Campanella’s thorough history of the borough, “Brooklyn: The Once and Future City”, Campanella describes how the borough’s neighborhoods were transformed by Robert Moses-era construction projects. Working class neighborhoods were re-branded with names like Carroll Gardens and Cobble Hill. In Sunset Park, Third Avenue […]

Feature Story

Egg Creams Aren’t Going Extinct Any Time Soon in Brooklyn, by Erin DeGregorio

A classic American drink, the egg cream is a true culinary invention of New York City, up there with chicken and waffles, the Waldorf salad, and baked Alaska to name a few. It was also deemed “Brooklyn’s official elixir since the 1920s” by former Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz 21 years ago. Following the end of World War II before […]

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RED HOOK WEST MEETS NYCHA, by Matt Graber

“I don’t think I have to tell anyone in this room what it was like during Superstorm Sandy,” spoke Joy Sinderbrand, of NYCHA (New York City Housing Authority), to an audience of Red Hook Houses residents. The meeting, held in the P.S. 676 auditorium on June 6 from 6-8 pm, was attended by several members of NYCHA’s Recovery and Resilience […]

News

IKEA celebrates Midsummer, as well as 15 years in the neighborhood , by Brian Abate

Red Hook’s IKEA held a midsummer celebration on June 23. It’s a Swedish tradition that brings family and friends together. In Red Hook, the celebration included a buffet with a special menu for the evening, as well as live music. IKEA is also celebrating its 15th year in Red Hook this June. One woman at the celebration said “I love […]

News

RHAP paints mural

The Red Hook Pool has two new murals thanks to the work of Red Hook Art Project artists Aspen, Felix, Rosana, and Angelly. Both murals were summer-themed, one featuring a fire hydrant with water coming out and the other depicting sea life. “Art is a way of healing and of bringing so many people together,” said Tiffiney Davis, the co-founder […]

Feature Story

FLOYD BENNETT FIELD WALKING TOUR, MUNICIPAL ART SOCIETY, by Raanan Geberer

When New Yorkers take an airline flight, they go to one of three major airports – Newark, LaGuardia or JFK. But before any of them existed, New York’s first commercial airport was Floyd Bennett Field, in a still-underdeveloped area of southeast Brooklyn, just northwest of the Gil Hodges Bridge to the Rockaways. Never a commercial success during its era of […]

Feature Story

Saint Ann’s Theatre Queen steps down after 50 years, by Erin DeGregorio

Actress, director, and on-camera coach Nancy Reardon, 81, has worked with St. Ann’s students for the past 50 years, engaging them in character development and strengthening their self-confidence for polished stage performances through theater classes and Shakespeare workshops. This spring, the “queen” of Saint Ann’s stepped down from her throne. “They called it a coronation, not a retirement, as they […]