03/01/18 3:16pm
Dakota the Dog had quite the adventure on the F Train! Via Patch

Dakota the Dog had quite the adventure on the F Train! Via Patch

Hey, Dumbo! Welcome to March. This month is women’s history month, and this Monday, Dumbo added a brand new women’s co-working and networking space known as The Wing at 1 Main Street. The space is decorated with work by female artists, sells food from female-owned food vendors, and features a library stocked with titles by female authors.

Speaking of building, a 12-story condo has secured funding to rise at 70 Schermerhorn Street.

But, not every project in town is getting funding. While neighborhood advocates have long pushed for reconstruction on the Brooklyn Heights section of the BQE, Governor Cuomo left funding for the project out of his most recent budget proposal.  (more…)

02/15/18 3:00pm

A seal basks in the Sun a Brooklyn Bridge Park. Via patch

Happy Valentines Day, Dumbo! Were you getting cozy in Romantic environs of Brooklyn Bridge this weekend? Well, we’re betting some people did since our very own River Cafe was named one of the most romantic restaurants in the country by Open Table.

But, diners were not the only ones basking in the glory of Brooklyn Bridge Park. In fact, an intrepid seal spent hours catching some rays on Pier Two! 

That’s not the only time Pier Two was in the news recently. On Monday, Brooklyn Bridge Park put out a call for proposals for contracting at the site. A spokesperson for the park explained that the 3.4 acre addition to Brooklyn Bridge Park will feature a large lawn and water garden.  (more…)

02/01/18 11:06pm
Controversial Condos in Brooklyn Bridge Park via Patch

Controversial Condos in Brooklyn Bridge Park via Patch

Hey Dumbo, welcome back to our bi-weekly local news feature, Hometown Headlines! This time around, there’s lots in the press about Real Estate development in our lovely borough. To start, Two Trees, the development firm that has reshaped DUMBO and Williamsburg is now setting its sites on Gowanus, buying up sites along the Gowanus Canal, for over $100 million.

And DUMBO itself is getting a little TLC. Mount Sinai has opened a State of the Art Urgent Care center at 110 York Street.

Meanwhile, The former Watchtower Building will be transformed into a high-end office space and retail complex.   (more…)

01/18/18 9:32am
Grimaldi's Pizzeria

No Slices. Just mice. Via The New York Post

Welcome back to Hometown Headlines, our bi-weekly local news feature. On January 7th, Grace Church Brooklyn Heights (254 Hicks Street) announced that Rev. Dr. Allen F. Robinson will be its 15th rector — and first African American rector in the parish’s 170-year history. Reverend Robinson will take his post on March 19.

There are also changes afoot at another historic Brooklyn spot — Grimaldi’s Pizza in Dumbo (1 Front Street). The Pizzeria has been shut down by the health department due to violations including mouse droppings. Grimaldi’s is working with the department to fix the infractions and get back up and running.

If you can’t eat at Grimaldi’s at least you can drink at a prime new spot in Brooklyn Bridge Park. The swanky new Brooklyn Heights Social Club inside the 1 Hotel (60 Furman Street) features floor to ceiling windows showcasing iconic views of our glorious bridge and the Manhattan skyline. But with an $18 Gin and Tonic the view won’t come cheap.

But, if the drinks are pricey, Brooklyn made up for it in lower rents in 2017. Buyers and Renters were paying about 4% less across the borough at the end of the year.   (more…)

01/04/18 1:16pm
Selfie Central, Via the Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Selfie Central, Via the Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Hey Dumbo, hope you’re keeping warm in this frigid weather! If you’re off from work or school today, we hope you’ll curl up with some Hometown Headlines, our bi-weekly local news roundup.

To begin with, if you’re inside today, you’re not the only one. Even “Selfie-Central,” that prime pic-snapping stretch of Washington Street near Water Street that so perfectly frames the Manhattan Bridge, is deserted due to today’s wild blizzard and freezing temperatures.

And it’s not just the snow that’s obstructing the view. The community group Save the View lost its appeal against Brooklyn Bridge Park and the developer Troll Brothers. The original lawsuit, concerns the construction of 1Hotel, which blocks the view of a part of the Brooklyn Bridge that is not legally protected.

But not all construction in the neighborhood meets opposition. Some is welcome, such as repairs on the stretch of the BQE under the Brooklyn Heights Promenade. But, a rift in priorities at the Department of Transportation has pitted the BQE against the planned BQX.

(more…)

12/22/17 3:06pm
Reimagining Bridge Park 2. Via Brooklyn Paper

Reimagining Bridge Park 2. Via Brooklyn Paper

Welcome to the inaugural Hometown Headlines post, a new bi-weekly news roundup at Dumbo NYC!

This week, it seems that Dumbo will be having a green Christmas. On Monday, members of Community Board 2’s Parks Committee gave the ok on  plans to redesign Bridge Park 2. The park is currently almost entirely concrete. The plan is to un-pave paradise and turn the park into a verdant playground with artwork throughout.

Speaking of municipal improvements, Brooklyn Heights Assemblywoman Jo Anne Simon, the self-styled “Queen of Gowanus,” says that the plan to bury the Gowanus Expressway — creating an underground tunnel from 3rd Avenue to the Harbor, and connecting from there to the BQE — is nearly complete.

The fact that the wheels are turning on that tunnel might be welcome news, since the Brooklyn-Queens Connector (BQX), the proposed streetcar that will run from Astoria to Sunset Park with stops in Vinegar Hill, Dumbo and Brooklyn Heights, is already behind schedule.

But enough about infrastructure. What about art? It turns out that the art gallery scene in episode 6 of Spike Lee’s new Netflix series, She’s Gotta Have It was filmed in Dumbo!