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 […]
Politics
Fellow politicians honor Joan Millman in Carroll Gardens, by George Fiala
Joan Millman, who served the citizens South Brooklyn for twenty years following the untimely death of Eileen Dugan, was honored this morning at the Eileen Dugan Senior Center, 380 Court Street, for her years in the State Assembly. Millman retired last year and was replaced by Jo Ann Simon, Joan’s choice for Assembly, who won in a contested election. Simon was […]
City Comptroller calls Build It Back “a case study in dysfunction”, by George Fiala
In June, 2014, at a meeting at PS 15, Amy Peterson, Mayor de Blasio’s head of the Build It Back program, spoke to residents about the Build It Back program. We wrote at the time: “New York City’s answer to the major damage from Hurricane Sandy was meant to offer millions of dollars of assistance to families and businesses reconstructing […]
The Crazy World of Politics, by George Fiala
Menchaca loses leadership spot Our cover story and editorial last issue was about the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal, and how Carlos Menchaca stood in the way of the Economic Development Corporation’s “fully cooked” (as he described it) scheme for it. Menchaca used the power of his office to slow the process down in order for the Sunset Park community to […]
Opinion: Politics off to the races already, by Mark Shames
This was to be a very quiet new political season, but the new political year is off to the races with a bang. Revelations about the activities of Assembly Speaker Silver first uncovered by the Moreland Commission and pursued by the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York led to a criminal indictment and his subsequent withdrawal from […]
Editorial: Menchaca roils the waters, by George Fiala
While some (including us) might call Carlos Menchaca’s first year in office an evolution, in the vital things he has held fast to his principles – the most important being that a democracy is for all the people. He is no thoughtless revolutionary. While he signs his emails “in solidarity,” he never looks to divide people into “us and them.” Instead, as we […]
De Blasio Report Card, by Mark Shames
The de Blasio administration has been in office for nearly a year. It is an appropriate time to give a progress report. I plead guilty to being an early and passionate supporter of the overall goals of the administration. I make this disclosure up front but I make no apology. The administration’s ambitions for a broadly progressive program were and […]
Editorial: A good time for Red Hook
Councilman Carlos Menchaca, Commanding Officer Justin Lenz, and Water Taxi founder Tom Fox are three important assets that Red Hookers are lucky to have. Menchaca is finishing his freshman year in the City Council. The Star-Revue has watched him grow in the office as he learns on the job. There are no classes in how to be a councilman. What […]
Our Beloved Valentino Park, by John McGettrick
Valentino Park & Pier, at the foot of Coffey Street in Red Hook is no doubt one of New York City’s smallest but also one of the most extraordinary assets. Its unobstructed vistas of the harbor – including the Statue of Liberty, the Verrazano Bridge, Ellis Island, Governor’s Island, the Manhattan skyline, State Island and New Jersey – are what […]
Editorial: This is how our governor rolls
If anyone was wondering why our mayor, who used to lead rallies across the street from Long Island College Hospital to prevent its closing, has barely said boo about it since February, one need only to look north to the governor’s mansion. You could get a clue by paying attention to Andrew Cuomo’s actions during this past primary season, when […]