I’ve been immersed in a lot of urban studies reading at work lately, and have recently come across an intriguing phenomenon: the urban prairie. This occurrence is usually found in rust belt cities, like the one where I grew up.

An urban prairie occurs when city buildings collapse or have been torn down and nothing rebuilt in its place. As a result, grasses and weeds begin to grow and wildlife may begin to reinhabit it.

Yes, we have our fair share of empty lots that have become overgrown with grass and weeds and trash. But this post is about a different observation: Walking around on both Washington and Lafayette recently, I’ve noticed that there are an insane amount of grasses and weeds growing up out of the sidewalk areas that are paved with old bricks. The first is at the southeast corner of Underhill park, on Washington:

So sad, seeing that this is a well-used children’s park.

The second has cropped up on Lafayette Ave past St. James, in front of the St. James Apartments (Mitchell-Lama housing). This brick space extends for an entire block, and, with the buildings set away from the street, makes the north side of the street here look desolate and dirty. Imagine this space with tables and benches!

So, who is responsible for maintaining these areas of sidewalk? The city? Think about how pretty these planters would look if they were being maintained!

Why wouldn’t the residents here get together to fix this?

Who makes the decisions about these spaces, and how can we fix them?

There’s a gallery right next door to Frank White on Atlantic (at St. James):

Anyone ever been inside? What’s the story?

Brownstoner hypothesized yesterday that Atlantic may gentrify before Fulton Street.  Veeeeery interesting.  Could it happen?  Methinks not without some traffic calming measures and a renovated median (which could be very pretty!).

Used kids’ clothing and toy store Still Hip Brooklyn recently celebrated their first birthday! Due to a crazy series of events, I was unable to attend, which is a shame, since they had one of the shin-digs in the new Choice Market offshoot space!

When I walked past today, it sure looked nice to see them thriving and colorful.

(Grand Ave bt Lafayette and Clifton)

I suspect that several neighbors were towed during all of the Clinton Avenue construction that’s been going on lately.

Looks like they’ll be finishing up this week (beware with parking!). This makes me wonder why they clearly never do this kind of thing over on Nostrand Avenue (seriously, have you ever driven down that potholed crap street?!).

A few days ago, a reader sent me this intriguing email:

as bizarre as it is, i just noticed that a fresh fruit and vegetable market is opening on atlantic avenue right around grand (towards classon on the prospect heights/crown heights side of the street). it’s the produce equivalent of frank white — meaning, they’re putting a lot of work into the space and it’s going to be really nice, but it will probably ultimately suffer from its atlantic ave location (zero foot traffic).

i can’t understand why they wouldn’t choose fulton for this very necessary place, i guess the rents are a lot cheaper on atlantic.

Readers, this is why I love you. Because I would probably never, ever be walking around in that particular area and this is a very exciting tip!

It was not easy to find. I walked down a very desolate section of Atlantic, populated only by auto repair and restaurant equipment retailers, all completely shuttered on a Sunday afternoon. But then, I saw it: two gorgeous wooden planters with green fern spilling over at a storefront on the south side of the street.

The beauty of the fruit (both standard and exotic), as well as the interior renovation was shockingly gorgeous. Where on earth did this place come from?!

The owner (whose name escapes me, since I didn’t write it down), said he expects to be fully operational within the next few days. He is also open to suggestions on what people would like to see him carry!

People, check it out, NOW.

Atlantic Tropics
Atlantic Ave. nr. Grand

This review is very tardy, especially given that I wrote it up while they were still doing a drinks and bar food preview. Regardless, I was extremely impressed with the experience.

First off, the staff has their stuff down. Everyone was friendly and prompt and the atmosphere was inviting. Instead of using the entire space (an awkward layout, if you’ve ever been inside), the owners and manager decided to focus on the front half of the restaurant for now, to get things up and running smoothly. For now, the restaurant’s back area is being used as free bike parking (for both staff AND patrons!).

The food was mostly delish (the ribs were perhaps a little too peppery, but still very tasty). We loved the anchovies and radish plate, as well as the eggplant dip! The drink selection was fun and creative, albeit a little pricey. Plus, I don’t generally love the whole “small plate” thing, which is how the menu is set up. Still, with four people, a ton of food and two drinks each, we still only ended up paying about $30 per person. Not bad!

My verdict: compared to a lot of new places, General Greene has its shit together. Plus, the decor is great and the service is top-notch.

More info:

• Daily Candy
• NY Mag
• The Real Fort Greene

Yeah, it’s a little late.  But better late than never, and it’s a gorgeous day outside!  (My excuse for slacking?  Friday was my 30th birthday.)

DJs, food, demonstrations, fun up on Clinton Ave:

AFRO-PUNK BLOCK PARTY
Sun, July 13, 12—8pm
(Clinton Avenue between Myrtle and Willoughby)

For more info, visit www.afropunk.com and www.bam.org.

Last chance to submit your doggie for the calendar!

Move With Grace Studio
469 Myrtle Avenue (next door to Kum Kau)
Between Washington & Hall St.
info: 718 230 0013
http://www.movewithgracestudio.com

It can be very difficult to run a neighborhood blog when different readers want different things out of it. When I post about crime, commenters accuse me of fear-mongering. When I DON’T post about it, people demand that I do. I don’t know how many readers sent me the now neighborhood-infamous link in the NY Times about the crime increase in Clinton Hill.

I’ve been thinking about it all week, and I think it’s important to circulate this news. I am going to try to refrain from any comments such as “OMG!!!” Yes, we live in a large city and we should be vigilant no matter where we are. A person can be mugged on Grand Avenue, or on Park Avenue on the UES.

As for the bank robbery, maybe I’m naive, but I really didn’t realize it was all that common on a daily basis. I guess I assume it would be pretty damn scary to be in a bank when it happened.

So, without further ado, and in the spirit of keeping readers informed of what has happened, I give you the following:

• Increased muggings in CH [NY Times]
• Bank of America on Myrtle was held up just days after the CitiBank holdup
• Pratt Community Alerted to Crime [Brownstoner]
• Emails detailing continued blatant drug dealing on Grand Ave.
• Email from a Waverly Ave landlord alerting tenants that a fellow resident was car-jacked

Maybe we’re just more aware of all this because Clinton Hill, unlike any other NYC neighborhood I’ve lived in, is a place where people know their neighbors. Crime or no crime, let’s just watch out for one another. K?