Unless you have been out of town and haven’t been reading any news, Dumbo (and most of the East Coast) got 24 inches of snow this Sunday, and still shoveling off snow on some side streets. We’re stuck in the midwest due to flight backups, but wanted to wish everyone a wonderful new year’s celebration over the weekend.

Thank you for reading and emailing me throughout the year. We had the same amount of traffic as in 2009 at 500,000+ unique visits, but slightly less page views at 959,000. I still think that it’s pretty amazing that people are so interested in the 10 or so square blocks of Dumbo Brooklyn.

I’m still hoping to post a Dumbo recap of 2010, but will have to wait until the new year. (UPDATE:posted here) We have some new exciting things planned for DumboNYC.com in 2011, including more Crossing Dumbo video portraits, New York Digital District founder/entrepreneur profiles, and events. If you would like to be involved or have any personal Dumbo stories, Dumbo events, photos, or news, please contact me. Guest bloggers/writers/reporters welcome.

Also, visit our small businesses in the neighborhood by reading about them in our archive: dumbonyc.com/category/dumbo-retail. Thank you to the following for their advertising support on the site:

• reBar, 147 Front St, 2nd Fl, Brooklyn, NY
• Dumbo Gymnastics, 68 Jay St, Brooklyn, NY
• Mikey’s Hookup, 88 N. 6th St, Brooklyn, NY
• Barber on Pearl, 57 Pearl St, Brooklyn, NY
• Pet Web Express, 61 Pearl St, Brooklyn, NY

(After operating fees, I make anonymous donations to Dumbo-based non profit organizations with the remaining. Thus thank you for your support by reading this!) If you have any tips or news about Dumbo, please email us at dumbonyc@gmail.com. Happy Holidays Dumbo and see you in 2011!

Happy Holidays from Dumbo! Hope you had a great year and hope 2011 will bring you joy.

[DumboNYC.com is taking a vacation. In the meantime, take a look at some photos of Dumbo (in the DumboNYC Flickr Pool) or submit a story or event about Dumbo. We'll be back next week.]

Curbed and Brooklyn Paper looked at some findings from the Census Bureau’s early returns, so we thought to look at more local data of Dumbo area’s sample data from the NY Times’ interactive map of American Community Survey (ACS) sample data averaged over the course of 2005-2009. Note this is not based on the actual data from the 2010 Census (to be released in 2011), but shows the increase in household income, education level, and home value over the 5 year period. Not surprising, Dumbo (or the Tract that includes Dumbo) has the highest median household income in Brooklyn, which is needed to afford the second highest median home value, and highest median monthly rent.

Other stats from the map for Tract 21, which is the area bound by Hudson Ave, York St, Old Fulton St, Waterfront (includes Dumbo, Vinegar Hill, and Fulton Ferry):

• Households earning over $200,000: 35% (+15% change since 2000)
• Median household income: $148,611 (+55% change since 2000)
• Distribution of racial and ethnic groups: Whites 62%, Blacks 8%, Hispanics 12%, Asians 15%, other groups 2%
• Median home value: $986,800 (+69% change since 2000)
• Education levels: HS graduates 91%, Bachelor’s degree or higher 73%, Master’s degree or higher 31%

Highest Median Household income in Brooklyn (top 6):

1. Tract 21 Dumbo – Area bound by Hudson Ave, York St, Old Fulton St, Waterfront ($148,611, 1,008 households)
2. Tract 754 Midwood – Area bound by Avenue K, E. 27th St, E. 23rd St, Avenue M ($143,452, 444 households)
3. Tract 752 Midwood – Area bound by Avenue I, E. 26th St, E. 22nd St, Avenue K ($132,713, 353 households)
4. Tract 4 Bay Ridge – Area bound by Shore Road, Bay Ridge Parkway, Colonial Road, 79th St ($123,903, 475 households)
5. Tract 301 Brooklyn Heights – Area bound by Pineapple St, Joralemon St, Hicks St, Furman St ($122,520, 2,469 households)
6. Tract 151 Park Slope – Area bound by 9th St, 8th Ave, 13th St, 6th Ave ($118,295, 1,557 households)

{Mapping America: Every City, Every Block, NYT}
{Fun With Maps & Census Data, Curbed}
{Making sense of the Census, BK Paper}
{Census 2010 and the East Village, EV Grieve}
{Dumbo is Brooklyn’s Priciest Neighborhood, 02Oct2008}
{Dumbo Scorecard on NabeWise, 27Aug2010}
{NYMag’s Most Livable Neighborhoods List, 12Apr2010}
{Dumbo Named Best Manhattanized Brooklyn Neighborhood, 19Oct2007}

We featured Liz Lomax in an interview in early 2009, but since then, she has been continuing to do some amazing work. She recently was commissioned to create 11 giant celebrity chef’s heads for Barney’s NY 2010 Holiday window. In her words: “It’s been my dream to create artwork for Barneys window displays and to work with their legendary Creative Director, Simon Doonan…When the call came in from Lindsay, the kick-ass Manager of Display Production at Barneys, to sculpt 11 life sized caricatures of famous chefs in 7 weeks for their foodie themed holiday windows sponsored by the Food Network, Cooking Channel and illycaffe, I said “YESSSS!””

So in 7 weeks, Liz created the heads of celebrity chefs, Martha Stewart, Paula Deen, Mario Batali, Bobby Flay, Daniel Boulud, Anthony Bourdain, Emeril Lagasse, Guy Fieri, Ina Garten, Sandra Lee, and Wolfgang Puck. The end result looks amazing. And glad to see some Dumbo pics in there. Congrats Liz!

For more information on this project, go to lizlomax.com: here and here.

Press Release (PDF file)

Previously:
{Interview with Liz Lomax, 18Mar2009}

Dumbo General Store has added some space in the back that includes some couches and dart boards – a comfortable place to hang out with friends for some good food and drinks.

Dumbo General Store
111 Front Street, Brooklyn NY 11201
PH: 718.855.5288
SUN-SAT 8AM-11PM

(This weekend! RABBITHOLESTUDIO Galley in Dumbo: 33 Washington St, Brooklyn, December 17-19, 12pm-7pm, Art work for sale)

The following are selected links from this past week on blogs and websites with discussion about Dumbo (and its neighboring areas):

• State Funding for 25 Washington St, 14Dec10, BK Eagle
• The Society of Digital Agencies Adds HUSH, 14Dec10, AWN
• Tourist Ponders: Is Grimaldi’s Better than Sbarro?, 13Dec10, BHB
• Building of the Day: 8 Old Fulton Street, 16Dec10, Brownstoner
• Update on Brooklyn Bridge Rehab, 14Dec10, BHB
• Dumbo Residents Spend $1200/mo on Dining Out(?), 15Dec10, Gothamist
• NY woos Britain’s hi-tech firms, 12Dec10, Guardian
• Crossing Dumbo, 09Dec10, Brownstoner
• VH House and reBar Included in NYE List, 14Dec10, Zagat
• LPC Approves Rooftop Addition at 30 Washington, 15Dec10, Brownstoner
• 100 Jay Street, #21G, 1260sqft, $1.2M, 12Dec10, Brownstoner

The approved 10 story Toll Brothers condo at 205 Water Street in Dumbo, approved in April, has begun. There’s now a hole dug to build the foundation.

Previously:
{Toll Brothers to set up Sales Office in Dumbo, 28Jul2010}
{Proposed 205 Water St Building Approved, 21Apr2010}
{More 205 Water St Renderings, 05Apr2010}
{205 Water Street Plans Revealed, 18Mar2010}
{Toll Brothers to Build Condos at 205 Water St, 07Jan2010}
{Demolition at 205 Water Street, 24Jan2007}
{In the Press: Demolishing 205 Water Street, 27Jan2007}
{Stop Work Order Violation Issued at 205 Water Street, 14Feb2007}

Beginning Thursday December 16, 2010 for approximately one week, there will be pile driving on Washington Street between Plymouth Street and Front Street. The street will be closed to traffic. This closure is necessary to accommodate pile driving work being performed as part of NYC DDC’s Water Street Project. There will be noise and vibration associated with this operation, which is driving the piles under where the sewer will be placed.

For more information, please refer to the Community Advisory Notice sent to us by The New York City Department of Design and Construction (NYCDDC) (PDF here), which is managing a capital construction project on Water Street from Adams Street to Old Fulton Street and Washington Street from York Street to Plymouth Street.

For More Information Contact: The Community Construction Liaison Paul Kidder 718-643-2850

Previously:
{Two Way Washington Street, 10Nov2010}
{Washington Street Construction (Oct 19 Update)}
{Washington Street Construction (Sept Update), 22Sept2010}
{Asbestos Abatement Project, 27Aug2010}
{Washington Street Construction Update, 13Aug2010}
{Construction Around Dumbo Through 2011+, 10May2010}
{Notice: Cars Parked on Dock Street, 12Apr2010}
{Water Street Reconstruction Update (Mar/Apr 2010), 10Mar2010}
{Water/Washington St Reconstruction Project Update, 03Dec2009}
{Belgian Block Reconstruction to Begin, 04May2009}

Episode 2: Davide Cantoni (davidecantoni.org)
Directed by David Castillo
Created by David Castillo
Produced by Blue Barn Pictures, Inc.

Davide’s recent paintings are amazing. His paintings that reflect light remind me of the Japanese magic mirror (known as makyoh). Different medium but they use light reflection to show a subtle image.

Crossing Dumbo, a weekly web series of video portraits of artists, entrepreneurs and residents in Dumbo Brooklyn. This is a collaboration between DumboNYC and our talented friends over at Blue Barn Pictures. Different directors from Blue Barn Pictures, a creative content agency, bring their own approach to each interview to create a distinct profile of the person being interviewed and place them within the Dumbo community. The people at Blue Barn Pictures truly love what they do and support the community in a positive way, and for that we’re grateful to have them be a part of Dumbo.

{DumboNYC.com/category/crossing-dumbo/}

Cacao Prieto, a cocoa distillery based in Red Hook Brooklyn opened a pop-up shop at the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory. The New York Times wrote:

A pop-up chocolate shop, Cacao Prieto, has opened at the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory at the Fulton Ferry Landing Pier at the end of Water Street in Dumbo, and will remain open through the end of April. It is a kind of test run for a larger, permanent installation with a distillery in Red Hook, Brooklyn, to open next summer, but for now there are bonbons, chocolate bars and “pop rocks,” as well as hot chocolate, all with chocolate from a plantation in the Dominican Republic. It is open daily through Dec. 26, after which it will be open Tuesdays through Sundays;(718) 246-3963.

Another option where the neighborhood can buy chocolates, hot chocolate, and candy is always a good thing for the holidays. A few others in the area to visit: Jacques Torres Chocolate (66 Water Street, Brooklyn), Almondine Bakery (85 Water St, Brooklyn) or Dewey’s Candy (141 Front Street, Brooklyn).